Summer signed the contract and Ashton explained the basics of exactly what she would be getting into. What their team was, what they would be doing, and the fact that they would all be learning together. He also warned her that she would have to move into the company apartments with the rest of the team. She took it better than he expected. She even seemed excited. Her eyes even lit up at the idea of finding unseen powers.

“Amazing,” Summer whispered at the end of his explanation.

Ashton hesitated. He couldn’t put off telling her any longer. “Summer, there is something I have to admit. This incident and everything with MysteriousMaskz is my fault. I intend to use this opportunity to track him down as I am certain he has some kind of unseen ability. I understand if you don’t want to get involved any further.”

“I’m in,” Summer told him immediately, “Ned won’t scare me anymore. Not when I have Shadow Phoenix to protect me.”

So she knew, and not only was she not hurt by the information, she seemed to welcome it. Once again, Ashton couldn’t help but think that Summer was a strange person. He imagined that most of the heroes duped by SI would be furious if they were to accidentally end up dating their villain. Since she seemed on board there was no need to have conflicted feelings on his end.

“If you are sure, fill out this paperwork and pack your things,” Ashton told her and handed her the appropriate materials.

There was a silence as Summer filled out the papers, broken by her occasional question. Once the paperwork was finished, he stacked it in a neat pile and stowed it away. He would need to get that to the hiring department and make sure the apartments were fully taken care of so she could move in.

“Ashton,” she called out, interrupting his thoughts. Before he had a chance to process what was happening her lips met his own, but only for a moment before they fell away again. “Thank you for always being there for me.”

What just happened? Ashton couldn’t move. He wasn’t even sure he was thinking. This was completely different from Queen Heart’s bold declarations of love. He could feel his heart thumping and his ears felt hot. No, his whole face did. He was glad that Summer had immediately left the room so he had some time to calm himself in solitude and silence. A crazy thought entered his mind. Did Summer like him? No, judging by the timing, it wasn’t Ashton she liked, but Shadow Phoenix. It was a bittersweet realization.

Unfortunately, Ashton was on the clock. There was no time for being dazed. He needed to finish submitting the proper paperwork and prepare for the next interview. Based on how they had just sent Summer in, the next one could be just as spontaneous. Ashton’s guess was right. As soon as he finished processing Summer’s papers, his next interview walked in.

This time, he was joined by two people. Levi and Kai Smith. They looked exactly like their profiles, if a bit more on edge. Ashton could understand their perspective. After living in that place, this was bound to seem too good to be true.

“I’m glad you could make it,” Ashton told them, “My name is Ashton Gray and I will be your team leader if you accept this position. If you would sign these, I can explain more about what you would be doing here.”

They carefully looked over the document. Ashton presented. Well, one of them did. The other scowled at him with great suspicion.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“How do we know this isn't’t a trap?” he demanded, “And don’t spout some nonsense that you will protect us.”

“I won’t promise to protect you,” Ashton confirmed, “Right now, I barely have the power to protect myself. What I can do is give you a chance.”

“I’d like to hear more,” the calmer twin proposed, handing back the signed paper. So he was Levi.

Kai snatched his contract and hastily scribbled a barely legible signature. “We will hear you out, but that’s it,” he warned, “We already know who you are and F7.”

Ashton suddenly understood Kai’s attitude. He believed that he had become one of them in order to get out. There was no real way to disprove that and it was ultimately their choice whether or not to accept. All he could do was explain.

For the second time that day, Ashton went over the details of what this team was and their purpose. Unlike Summer, both Levi and Kai had a darker take on the situation. Especially Kai.

“They want us to eliminate threats before they become one,” Kai scoffed, “The Facilities must be looking too empty lately. Are you proud of becoming their loyal dog?”

“I won’t pretend to agree with the way those places are run,” Ashton replied, “but I’ve seen what it is like for those kinds out here. With no way to control their power, their life becomes a curse. I won’t be sending anyone to those Facilities either, though. If they are a threat I will remove the cause. Gale Research has given me authority to permanently nullify powers.”

That seemed to get their attention. The Smith twins shared meaningful eye contact before Kai’s demeanor changed entirely. After his earlier fiery glares, the gleaming smile was off putting.

“We would love to take this opportunity and become part of the team,” he told Ashton, “How do we sign up?”

After that the paperwork went suspiciously smoothly. Kai and Levi were both very proficient and they were done and gone in record time. With all of the paperwork squared away, Ashton made sure to send everything to the proper places before his last interview arrived. If there was anything he learned about Gale Research it was that everything moved at incredible speed here.

There was a nice break between interviews this time. Ashton was almost finished with his own backlog of paperwork before she arrived. Kayla Penn looked more excited than nervous, and Ashton couldn’t help but notice she was especially elated to see him. He sincerely hoped it was only because she was happy to finally be free of F2.

“Nice to meet you!” she introduced energetically, “My name is Kayla Penn! This place is incredible. Will I really be working here in the future?”

“If you want to. I can explain more about what we will be doing if you-”

“No need for that,” she turned down before even letting him finish, “I don’t care what I have to do, captain. I am more than happy to use my power for your benefit. I heard I even get to live on the outside. Isn’t that exciting?”

She definitely seemed desperate. Just how bad were the conditions in F2? Ashton still couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off about her, but it wasn’t enough to send her away. If worst came to worst, he could always send her back later. Or perhaps, just like the twins, she might be hoping for an accident to happen where her powers vanished.

“If you are certain,” Ashton relented, “I still need you to sign the confidentiality contract along with everything else. Can I ask why you are so eager to work with me?”

“That’s obvious,” she said with a smile, “You are Shadow Phoenix, the hope of the future. The man who will change the world.”

Those words were chillingly similar to those that Queen Heart had told him before. Was she a spy sent by MysteriousMaskz? In that case, it was all the more reason to keep her close. Ned could use countless means to spy on them, but an obvious spy was a possible lead to track him down. The question was, what did Kayla want from him?