The dreams came and went. Blurs of color and blasts of sound. Liam was fighting but didn’t know what. Then running and falling. All too fast for him to track, yet there was something in them, something unifying it all together, something important. If only he could figure out what.
Soon the scenes were gone. Back to whatever realm they came from. A void of blackness taking over, stretching out to infinity. Alone in the dark he’d sit, waiting for something to change. Then, with a flash, the images were back, and the cycle started anew. Sometimes it was quiet, other times there was talking all around him. But Liam couldn’t understand any of it no matter how hard he strained to listen.
There was no concept of time here. Only the endless cycles of visions and darkness. Yet, as with all things, there was a beginning and an end. Eventually Liam reached just that point.
Liam opened his eyes to the harsh light of a bedside lamp. Looking at the thing, he noticed it lacked a shade. Something so minor yet so important if you didn’t want to be blinded by the light. He’d have to ask Matt for a replacement sometime today. Or it might be better to ask for a new lap. Easier to explain that, than the missing shade. How’d he even lose that to begin with?
Looking around for the missing piece, Liam’s eyes passed over an unfamiliar room. His stomach lurched as hundreds of thoughts raced through his head. Until one fought to the fore, this wasn’t the base. As the realization dawned his senses cranked up to one hundred, looking for any sign of danger. Ready to fight if called upon.
Liam pulled into a defensive stance, something made awkward when you were lying in a bed. His muscles screamed complaints at the sudden movement while his stiff and sore body struggled to respond. Questions about why he was sore were forgotten as he tried to determine where he was.
Analyzing the room around him, Liam looked for any clues it may hold. The room had a spartan feel, its furnishings fitting the description to the letter. Besides the lamp, on a well worn bedside table and the bed, the room was barren. No painting on the wall, or chairs in the corner. Not even a clock. The limited furniture wasn’t much to go on but was telling in its own way.
Focusing on the bedside table Liam looked it over. It was a small round thing. Blue paint chipped off the top in several places. It’d been through a lot, each scratch and stain carrying a different story. For example the patched repair job of one of its legs. It was little more than scrap wood nailed onto two sides of the broken leg. The simple if ugly repair broadcasting its current owner hadn’t cared about looks or style. All that mattered was function.
Switching to the bed, he was lying on, Liam noted its simple mattress held up by a sturdy metal frame. Nothing fancy there. What did catch his attention were the mattress springs pushing up at weird angles. Digging into his already pained body. A single gray and itchy blanket covered the top. Like the lamp, the bed was here for use not comfort or looks.
Glancing at the walls their plain tan paint did little to lighten the room. The simple uniformity mirroring everything else he’d seen in the place.
On the far wall was a small window. With curtains drawn tight, no light came from it. A number of water stains grew under the window. Their dark splotches the only color to the walls. Modern art in their abstract patterns.
The room wasn’t anything exceptional. It was worn down from age or disregard. While that didn’t bug Liam, he didn’t know anyone who’d live like this. Which showed this place didn’t belong to anyone he knew. Not a comforting thought to wake up to.
The simple but functional furniture almost shouted safe house. Was this a new place for the team, Liam wondered? Or an old one he’d never heard about. It was possible, he could have been hurt in a recent fight and rushed here. Maybe he’d hurt his head and didn’t remember any of it. It would explain the weird room. However, there was one major problem to the theory.
Where was his suit? If this was the team’s safe house then why wasn’t his suit here? There was no reason for it to be hidden away from him when he was in an unknown location. In fact the opposite was true, the suit would’ve been right next to him, ready to be used if the need arose.
With his throat going dry there was a knock at the door. Liam’s attention shot to it. His body itching to respond with violence if called upon. The reaction of a Hero, or something worse Liam thought with a thin-lipped smile.
The door opened a crack and an older man stuck his head in. A fedora with a blue feather pulled low over his eyes. The rest of the man’s face was unremarkable. Brown eyes, an average nose, and a hard mouth. He was the very ideal of a movie extra, someone your vision flowed past, allowing you to focus on other things.
“Ah, you’re awake. You had me worried,” the man said. While his words were of concern, it didn’t carry to his voice. It was coarse like someone who was in the process of forgetting how to use it.
“Who are you?” Liam asked. His hand itching for a weapon. With his nowhere to be found, he’d have to improvise. Could he use the lamp if needed?
Liam’s focus flickered to the lamp before pivoting back to the man. The lamp was in easy reach, and the stem looked sturdy enough for him to grab. With that confirmed it was time to find out what this man was after. Or what weapons he had. A quick eye search resulted in nothing. No clues on either front. It seemed he’d have to get the information the hard way.
“A friend,” the man said after a lengthy pause. His attention never leaving Liam, as if he was weighing the young Hero in front of him.
“And I should trust that why?”
“You’re alive aren’t you?” the man said. The door he was hiding behind creaked as he pushed it open further. Losing some of his cover.
Well of course he was alive Liam thought. What type of stupid question was that? The last time Liam was in real danger was at the bank with that bug guy. Was this man in a fedora claiming to have helped with that fight? No it couldn’t be, H-Bar did that, and this man wasn’t even at that fight. While Liam hadn’t seen any of the Cowls faces none of their body types matched the man in front of him. Making it easy to rule him out as a participant in the fight.
“People don’t just wake up in random rooms. With ‘friends’ they’ve never met before.”
“Most people don’t have friends like me,” the man said with a shrug.
“What’s the saying? With friends like you I don’t need enemies?”
“It’s not that bad,” the man said with a wolfish grin. “But close.”
Even more creepy comments from the guy partially hiding behind the door. Just perfect Liam thought. He’d wound up with Mr. Crazy. If only he had a way to contact his teammates, having some backup burst in through the window right about now would be great.
“That’s not the most comforting thought,” Liam said.
“Think whatever you want, Source, but I’m the only one you’ve got.”
Liam was about to speak again when he stopped, mouth hanging open. How did this man know his Hero name? Very few people could put his face and the Hero title together. And this man wasn’t one of them. Or at least he shouldn’t have been.
Checking his body again Liam found his armor missing. And nothing on him giving away his identity as a Hero. Yet the man knew his face, knew who he was. This couldn’t be good.
Cautiously Liam asked, “Why’d you call me that? I’m not a Hero.”
Did the man have powers? Was that how he knew who Liam was? Somehow he’d scanned Liam’s brain when he was unconscious and learned all of his secrets. However he’d done it, this was very bad, Liam thought.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
All right, any time now Mr. Window, break and spew forth my teammates so I can get out of here, Liam prayed. While he wanted that to happen he didn’t hold out much hope. He was on his own for this one. Would he have to fight his way out of here? Did the man in the doorway have backup waiting outside?
It was starting to make sense why Liam was in this rundown place. The Hunt wasn’t likely to look for him here. Not with so many other options in the city. With thoughts swirling Liam prepared for the worst, unsure of what that might be.
“Have your attention?” the man in the doorway asked with a wry look.
“Undivided.”
“Well that’s good.”
“Care to answer my question?” Liam asked with ice in his voice.
Liam thought he saw the man’s lips twitch for a second. But he couldn’t be sure. When he looked closer, the man’s face was set in a frown. But the possible slight bit of emotion made Liam wonder, did this man see their conversation as a game?
“Oh come on, I had to get you out of all that armor. Word of advice, add a release switch in case you get stuck in there. Or need medical help. It took me almost an hour to pry you out of it.”
“There is one... but only certain people can use it.”
“Ah good, glad to see you thought that through. I doubt I was one of those people, so that wouldn’t have helped me out much.”
“No it wouldn’t have.”
It wasn’t a stretch to see the obvious truth of what the man was saying. Which was why Liam incorporated it into the suit in the first place. He wasn’t telling state secrets when he confirmed it.
“We’ll I’m sure you have questions about what awaits you now?”
Liam’s brow furrowed, his mind racing as he tried to figure out what was going on. What was the man talking about? It was clear what awaited him. He’d reach out to his team then get out of here. Figuring out why this guy knew who he was, was also on the list, but at a lower importance. Before the daring escape could start he had another question to ask.
“Where’s my suit?”
“Kept away from you so you don’t try to use one of your toys on me. Or make a stupid call.”
“I want to see it.”
“Why should I let you do that?”
“I have safety systems I need to turn off. Unless we’re far away from the suit things won’t be pretty for us. In an explosive way.”
The lie rolled off his tongue like he was a used car salesman. Liam was quite proud of it, but it was a little corny. Something you’d hear at the movies, not in real life. Watching the other man, Liam waited for his response.
As the moments passed Liam started to fret. There was no way a sane person would walk around with a suit that could explode around you. And Liam liked to think he was a sane person. The only question was what did the man think?
“I’m not stupid enough to think it’ll explode. You should have said you installed a system to destroy the electronics. If I was thinking about selling the suit I’d be much more worried about that.”
The man wasn’t even close to falling for it. Well Liam had never been good at lying. And now even his best lie was seen through. Just another thing to go against him today.
While Liam was trying to figure out his next move, the man opened the door all the way and came inside. A brown coat and trousers clinging to him. His clothes were as descriptive as his face. Something you’d look at in a crowd and forget a moment later.
Walking over to a small closet, in the corner of the room, the man opened the door. With a clang Liam’s helmet and arm guard fell out. Rolling to a stop a few feet from the open door. While Liam digested that bit of information, the man moved out of the way and revealed everything else in the closet. The tiny space was crammed full of the parts to his suit. From the obvious damage to the armor, little care had been given to packing it away. With his foot, the man nudged the helmet and arm guard back inside before looking over at Liam.
Liam ignored the gaze as he focused on the armor. It was dented and scared. The paint chipped off in several places. Its condition reminded Liam of the table beside him. They both looked worn down, beaten by age and abuse. How did his suit get so damaged? Hadn’t he polished it just last week?
“Did you use a sledgehammer to open it up?” Liam asked. “You have to be careful with it!”
“Something like that. It didn’t want to let you go.”
“It’s armor, it’s made to protect me. What’d you expect it to do?”
The man simply shrugged and closed the door. He had to put his shoulder into it to get it to click shut. No care given to denting the suit more as Liam heard parts grind against each other in the small space.
With the door closed, Liam’s thoughts returned to his present predicament. The man showed him the suit. Did he not care Liam knew where it was? Was he that sure, if things broke into a fight, that he could beat the Hero? Only someone with a strong power would act this way. Liam would have to be wary around this man as he figured out what to do next.
“How about you let me talk to my team and we can figure everything else out after that?”
Liam hoped the man was on their side. If he let Liam contact his team everything would be OK. If not, then they’d have to see how things went going forward.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” the man said.
Well that answered that. He wasn’t on The Hunt’s side. Which meant Liam’s goals had to shift as well, it was all about escaping now.
“And why won’t you let me talk to them?”
“It’ll be easier if I show you.”
The man in the hat made a shooing motion as he waved Liam out of the room. Getting to his feet Liam followed the instruction. Monitoring the man the entire time. As the other, guarded the closet door. Liam was filled with some hope at that. The man might be strong enough to win in a straight up fight, but he was still worried about the tech in the suit. Liam could use that tidbit of information.
Leaving the bedroom Liam found himself in the living room. The state of the room was no surprise. It was in almost the exact same condition as the bedroom. With a few pieces of furniture that were old and worn, but otherwise empty.
Moving to the far side of the room Liam pressed his back against the wall. Protecting himself from any sneak attacks. The wall had a thin sheen of slime that Liam tried to ignore, though his rapidly wetting shirt made that difficult. A shudder nearly rolled down Liam’s arms at the disgusting place.
Liam watched as the man entered the room, then walked over to the TV and turned it on. He used the buttons on the side of it as there was no remote. Was it lost or was the TV so old it didn’t have one, Liam wondered? Either way the man moved out of the way as the screen flickered to life.
It showed Ullr at a podium taking questions. Standing in his usual proud and imposing manner. The final wall protecting the city against Cowls or worse.
“How did you put everything together?” a voice from off the screen called out.
They’d figured out the killer, Liam remembered. The memory of finding out it’d been Skip sank into him. Pulling his already demoralized self down even more. This must be the fallout from that announcement.
“There were multiple clues that we had to put together. We’re just sorry it took so long.”
“Was he working alone?”
“It appears so.”
Questions barraged Ullr as he stood firmly behind the podium. Liam knew the fallout would be bad, but never expected a news conference this early. Not a good sign to pull that out before they had a good story ready and waiting. The realization that a traitor was on the team would stain even him, the one who uncovered the evidence, but that was a price worth bearing for the sake of the city.
“What was the final clue?” a voice asked as a microphone was held up to the podium.
“He was trying to push the case towards the local Cowl Phaser, even though there was no real evidence. He even dressed up as the Cowl and got caught on video to press the narrative.”
“Why’d he do it?”
“As best we can tell it was for fame. If you recall the first murder was the day he arrived. From that day on all he was looking for was the attention.”
That was weird. Skip joined the team years ago. Were there more murders Liam wasn’t aware of? If they’d told him about the others, his program would’ve been much more accurate. Dozens of questions came and went as Liam’s confusion grew. It was almost like Ullr was talking about someone other than Skip being the culprit.
“Why were these victims targeted?”
“We’re not sure why he chose them. But we know he found them at a local gym.”
“What’s so special about the gym.”
“That’s being looked into.”
A reporter at the edge of the screen changed the direction of the conversation by asking, “Will this change how the Academy trains and certifies new Heroes?”
“I can’t respond to that. You’ll have to ask them.”
After fifteen minutes the interview was coming to a close.
“I have one last piece of information to share. As the culprit of these horrible crimes is still on the loose, we have decided to release his picture. This isn’t something we do lightly, but for the good of the city we had to. If you see this man, contact us immediately. He is to be considered armed and dangerous. Please for your own safety, do not approach him.”
This was huge, Liam thought. A Hero being unmasked and by his former team. That’d never happened before.
The image that flashed on the screen wasn’t who Liam expected. The face looking back at him was none other than his own!