APPROXIMATELY -4.1.22 PRE-INCIDENT

The entire group gathered in the control hub. Emmett and Clara took seats at the holographic table in the center. Both wore their suits, but didn’t wear their masks. Athena and Lock sat off to the side; both of them wanted to be present for the meeting, but neither wanted to be on camera.

They were waiting on McGuire.

Lock muttered, “He’s late.”

Clara asked, “TINA, can you see them?”

TINA answered from speakers around the room. “Yes. They’re nearly at safehouse three. Roughly a minute away.”

Emmett focused and tried to follow TINA’s signal. The lab around them hung brightly in Emmett’s perception. Not only had he grown familiar with the layout and its systems, but there was a comforting warmth there now. Emmett had to focus and strain to see outside of the backup lab. Maybe it was the abandoned block they were in, but it felt like standing on a boat at night and looking out across a black ocean.

But it wasn’t completely dark.

There were pinpricks of light on the horizon.

Emmett wasn’t sure how he knew, but one of those lights was McGuire. For a split second before TINA connected them, Emmett saw the speck of light flare brightly.

“Hey! Hey, I see you guys!” McGuire appeared on the holographic table and on screens around the room, looking a little bit different than he had before.

McGuire’s original superhero outfit was cobbled together from an explorer’s vest, long jacket, and homemade mask. He’d never given much thought to how it looked; he just designed it with maximum pockets in mind. Nobody else had minded either—unregistered supers had a long history of using homemade costumes, hoodies, and masks. Emmett had been in the same boat until Dr. Venture and TINA helped him design his super suit.

TINA’s disguise nanites had a hard time with McGuire’s outfit, though. It was much easier to overlay a disguise over a slim, form-fitting costume than it was to cover up an already bulky costume.

Surprisingly, McGuire had been all for the redesign—only because he trusted TINA.

McGuire’s new suit hadn’t changed much, but it had slimmed down considerably. His vest, pants, and mask fit snug but retained their color. Even the patches and stains were still there. His jacket was still long, but it was slimmed down too. The entire ensemble leaned closer to film noir instead of homeless explorer.

Emmett smiled at his friend’s hologram. “We see you too, buddy. The new suit looks good.”

“What—this old thing? Yeah, I guess.” McGuire shrugged, but couldn’t hide his smile. “TINA, if you ever get caught or you retire, you would make an awesome tailor.”

“Thank you, McGuire, but I don’t plan on retiring anytime soon.”

McGuire turned and gestured off camera. Two new Resistance members stepped into view. McGuire introduced them.

Snapjack didn’t look much older than McGuire. He had a fierce gaze and wore ripped jeans and chains. He could create concussive bursts similar to those made by Clara’s exosuit. Lurker was wispy thin, almost disappearing beneath her loose, black clothes. Her face was similarly hidden behind long, dark hair. She was an illusionist specializing in concealment. Neither of them looked like experienced masks.

McGuire finished introducing them. “And these two of the founding members of the Resistance—Mod and Arsenal.”

Emmett cleared his throat. “Emmett and Clara, but our super names are fine, too. Did McGuire already give you the introductory spiel?”

Both new supers replied with a nod and a “yes, sir,” that Emmett still hadn’t gotten used to.

McGuire said, “They know the basics about the nanite pucks and our handlers.”

The Resistance continued to spread, and the supply of nanite pucks steadily increased as the nanites self-replicated. Each new member of the Resistance got a puck, their own mask and scrubbing protocols. They each also got their own personal assistant.

So far as Emmett’s group knew, all traces of TINA had been lost with the lab. Hopefully, the Brotherhood and the Summit thought she was destroyed. So, instead of each member of the resistance communicating with TINA, she developed distinct personalities for each new member. Each member of the resistance thought they had a handler feeding them intel.

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Thankfully, Emmett’s HUD showed the new supers’ names alongside the names of their fake handlers.

Lurker added meekly, “I would like to put in a good word for my handler, Chandra. She’s been very helpful.”

A new voice came through the speakers, one with a slight accent that didn’t sound anything like TINA. “Lurker’s too kind. We’re all just doing our part to help the Resistance.”

Emmett nodded. “That’s right. Keep in touch with your handler and follow their instructions. Remember, we see more than you do and we can keep tabs on mech patrols and digital traffic. If you find other masks, let your handlers know. They can run background checks and help bring them into the Resistance.”

McGuire added, “That’s right. We’re a team, even if we’re not in contact all the time.”

A lull settled over the conversation. Lurker said to both of them, “It wasn’t right what they did to you.”

Emmett and Clara shared a knowing look. New Resistance members didn’t know all the details of the past few months, but they knew that Clara’s dad had been ousted from the Brotherhood and imprisoned, and that Emmett and Clara had been branded villains. Those facts, together with video evidence of the Menagerie outside of Gnosis were enough to sway new supers to their cause.

Clara replied, “Thanks. Just remember to follow your handler’s instructions. We’ll do the best we can to keep your identities secret, but…”

“There’s no guarantees,” Emmett said plainly. “We’re up against some of the most powerful organizations in the world, including the Binary Brotherhood and the Summit of Heroes.”

Snapjack asked, “What makes you think we can beat them?”

Emmett paused. “There’s no guarantee that we can, but that’s what being a hero is about, right? We do the right thing even, though it’s hard.”

McGuire stepped back into frame and clapped both new members on the shoulders. “That’s enough of that. I’m sure the founders have plenty of stuff to do. You guys run along and we’ll meet up soon.”

Snapjack stood up a little straighter. “You can count on us, sir.” Lurker waved as the pair walked off camera. McGuire waited a few seconds before sighing heavily.

Now that the new recruits were gone, Athena and Lock stepped out of the doorway and into the room.

Lock snorted. “They look new.”

Athena nodded. “I think they’re the greenest ones yet.”

McGuire rolled his eyes. “You know, there’s not exactly a lot of supers lining up to join the cause. Snapjack and Lurker aren’t any younger than I am, and they know their stuff. Come on, TINA, back me up.”

“I’ve spent the last two days vetting Snapjack and Lurker. They began moonlighting as masks in high school and have practiced their abilities since. They’re both level-headed and open to criticism. With training, they both have the potential to be Class two.”

Emmett leaned back in his chair and nodded. “If TINA approves, then it’s settled. Good choices, McGuire.”

Lock added, “I don’t know if you guys have been paying attention, but Class two ain’t gonna help us much.”

Clara replied, “Beggars can’t be choosers. We need all the help we can get right now.”

Athena leaned against the wall and sighed. “Look, Lock’s right. We’ll need to start finding some heavy hitters. Maybe not right now, but we can’t wait forever—especially if the timeline is as bad as TINA says.”

“I’m curating a list of prospective candidates, including retired masks and capes that might be sympathetic to our cause.”

Emmett added, “We’ll continue expanding in the meantime. We need to expand before we can get ringers. Slow and steady wins the race.”

McGuire said, “You guys should still go by your superhero names.”

Emmett replied, “Everyone knows our real names now. The Summit outed us. There’s no point in trying to hide them anymore.”

McGuire shrugged. “I don’t know about that. You’ll always be Mod and Arsenal to me.”

Clara chuckled. “If you say so.”

Emmett asked, “You never told us what happened after the fight outside of Gnosis.”

McGuire laughed awkwardly. “Well, I was scared shitless during my debriefing. I was certain they were going to find the nanite puck in my pocket.”

Clara said, “Wait, they searched you?”

“Yeah. They already knew that we’d worked together, so I guess they didn’t want to take any chances. It was alright though. The puck straight up disappeared. I didn’t find it again until I made it back to the apartment. …Well, the other apartment. Also, we moved. That happened. The new apartment’s over on the West End.”

Emmett whistled. “How’s your mom doing after selling the shop?”

“She’s doing great. …Weirdly great. But hey, I’m happy for her. Anyway, I’m still technically a member of the Summit, but officially I’m taking some time off. I’m just happy I still get to go out and bust some mechanical heads. Also, those nanites are pretty swell. TINA still won’t let me experiment with them. I think she’s worried about my awesome gadgeteer powers taking over the world.”

Emmett smiled. It was good to see McGuire in good spirits despite all the life changes.

He couldn’t help but ask about his own family.

“Hey… have you heard anything through the Summit about my folks?”

McGuire looked at the ground sheepishly. “They have undercover escorts following your parents, your brothers, and Darryl’s family. They’re alright though. I don’t think the Summit is worried about them getting attacked or anything. …Pretty sure they’re waiting for you to come back and try to contact them.”

Emmett shared a knowing glance with Lock.

Emmett wasn’t the only one with family that he couldn’t reach out to. Lock was in the same boat with his sister. And then there was Clara…

A lot had changed.

And they were holding out hope that things would change again—this time, for the better.

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