Cliff drove though the same underground tunnel he had used earlier to head from the base to the forest. However, this time he was traveling in the opposite direction from which he had traveled earlier – as he was now headed from the forest back to the base. Also, on the way out, he had traveled alone. Now, on his return trip, he was followed close behind by Alex, who flew behind him with red glow, wings, and all.

As they reached the base, a circular door spiraled open before them. Cliff rode through it into Edmund’s base of operations and parked. Alex landed to his right and looked around – amazed.

“Welcome to my Base of Operations, Alexander,” said Edmund, who had obviously made the trip in less time than the other two. “If you excuse me one moment.”

“Certainly,” said Alex. “Thank you for inviting me.” This place was so unlike anything he had ever seen before that it could no doubt hold his attention for a few minutes as the cat did whatever he needed to do.

“All right,” called Edmund, before Alex really had had the chance to take in very much at all. He approached Alex and extended his right hand in which he held – a watch. “I was just putting the finishing touches on this watch for you,” he explained. “Not only does it display the time – but it also serves as a communicator – and a few other things. You may need it.”

“Thank you very much,” said Alex, accepting the watch, “but you know I can’t have anything high-tech in this suit.”

“No,” said Edmund. “You can’t change in and out of any such technology while changing outfit – but that does not mean you cannot leave this on you throughout the process. I will explain to you later how to use it. I suggest that for now, though, you simply put it on. It’s most basic function of displaying the time should require no instructions from me.”

“Thank you,” said Alex as he accepted the watch from Edmund and fastened it to his wrist.

“You are welcome, Alexander,” responded Edmund. “And you may remain in your present outfit or switch to your everyday gear as your preference dictates. But Cliff – I strongly advise you to resume your everyday gear in case I have to do work on your equipment.

“Okay,” said Cliff, as he headed toward the same booth that had earlier changed him into his current outfit. The process of changing back was just the same as the initial transformation he had undergone earlier – except that the outfit he had begun in that previous time was the one he ended up in this time.

Alex, too, decided to change. He pressed his palms together. When he pulled them apart, it could be seen that he held in his right hand a blue cube of about a centimeter length on each edge. He held it up – and from it came a white energy similar to the one that was transforming Cliff. It completely enveloped him – and by the time it returned to the cube, his mask had been replaced by his glasses – and the rest of his outfit had been replaced by a light-pink button-down shirt, jeans, and sandals. As soon as this was complete, he put the cube away by pressing his palms together the same way he had when he first produced it. All the while, the new watch he had received from Edmund remained in its place on his wrist.

“So, what’s the plan?” asked Cliff, walking out of the booth, back in his regular street clothes.

“I don’t know yet,” admitted Edmund, “but the helmet can hold up to two language modules at a time. I believe that no matter what course of action we pursue, ability to communicate in the Palaron language could very well be useful.”

“You mean, like, a built-in translator?” asked Cliff.

“Not exactly,” clarified Edmund. “A more accurate description is that the helmet’s neural interface will enable you to use the Palaron language like a native speaker while you are wearing it.”

“It messes with my mind?” asked Cliff.

“You tell me,” asked Edmund. “Did the skill of riding a motorcycle feel like your mind was being messed with?”

“But you said the bike was designed just for me,” reminded Cliff.

“It is,” affirmed Edmund. “Its dimensions are built precisely to fit your body’s measurements – but you still could not operate it without the skill of riding a motorcycle.”

“Okay,” said Cliff, “but now you’re talking about loading a whole language into my brain.”

“No,” insisted Edmund. “That’s not how the helmet’s skill matrix works. It is more like giving you access to whatever part of the language you need at the moment.”

“So when I take the helmet off,” asked Cliff, “the whole language disappears?”

“Almost,” explained Edmund. “The language module in the helmet does not become part of your own personal skill set – but whatever experience you gain while using it does.”

“Okay,” agreed Cliff. “I suppose being able to talk their language could help.”

“It certainly couldn’t hurt,” agreed the cat, “but back to the mission at hand.” With that he turned to Alex. “Alexander,” he said, “you mentioned that a friend of yours tapped into the network of the group we are dealing with.”

“Yes,” affirmed Alex.

“Do you think,” asked Edmund, “that this friend can handle the knowledge that some cats can speak human language?”

“I am sure he could,” assured Alex, “but there are other problems if you want to discuss anything with him.”

“Such as?” asked Edmund.