“Thank you for the help today, Comet.”

She barely registered the words. At this point, that phrase was white noise and felt like hollow words. This was her job, what else did they expect from her? The only times the thanks felt like they had any meaning was when they came from people she saved.

Four years into this and she had already learned to pick up on when people were just going through the motions. All the soldiers were like that, thanking her because it was expected. She wouldn’t even be surprised if it was written into their contracts.

“Yeah, sure.”

This is just… pest control.

Comet watched as Techies and Junkmonger were loaded into an ECU prisoner transport and all she could wonder was when they would somehow manage to break out again. Maintenance workers in charge of the holding cells back at HQ said they were in constant communication with Mechakinetics to improve their systems. The problem was, the ECU was falling behind the times as independents started charging more for their services.

“Can I go now or do I need to regale you all with how those two losers led me on a wild goose chase?” Comet asked. “I’d like to go back to school and pick up my stuff, the place does get locked up, ya know.”

The captain awkwardly cleared his throat. “No need. You can go.”

“See ya,” she took to the air heading back to school.

Abby checked her phone when she landed.

4:37 P.M.

She couldn’t believe Techies and Junkmonger had given her so much trouble. Lunchtime had been just wrapping up when she had left to deal with those clowns. Worse still, Techies had managed to construct a weapon that bypassed her defensive bubble. That was a first, but she was always warned to be wary of Mechakinetics. They were a dangerous bunch, even the most innocent-looking ones.

She searched the library for her stuff when a cleaner mentioned that her friend had taken her stuff to the dean's office. That didn’t surprise her. It was probably Lucy or Max, they were always onto things. Chris and Jackson had the awareness of a goldfish sometimes so she doubted it was them. Eventually, she found her belongings in the Dean’s office.

Abby made sure to make her journey back to Headquarters short.

Taking to the air, she soared into the sky and blitzed across the city, heading for the monolithic tower protruding from the center that dominated the skyline. It extended far past the lowest cloud layer and continued upward. What they needed all that space for, Abby didn’t know and she couldn’t care less. She wasn’t allowed up past the sixtieth floor anyway. A couple years ago she had gone up there, compelled by her own curiosity, and had been caught. The reprimand had been swift and just, her mother grounding her for two weeks.

Naturally, that had only served to amplify her curiosity. It was short-lived, however, when her mom decided to kill the mystery and take her up there under the guise of a tour. It was a little disappointing but Abby found that it was just more workshops for the untested and unstable equipment, especially the stuff that had been confiscated. Glorified storage was another way to put it.

Flying up to a familiar part of the citadel, she pressed the back of her hand against the smooth metal surface. Her bracelet clinked against the wall and a hiss sounded. Servos moved as the wall slid open. Abby slipped through and landed on even ground, arriving in a room filled with machines and blinking lights. Technically, it was an emergency entry and exit for flying supers but Abby had taken to using it daily to get in and out of HQ. It was convenient and meant she could skip the checks at the front door.

She pressed her bracelet against a panel that was sticking out of a nearby console and the door closed behind her. After exiting the room through another door, she entered a hallway with a singular armed guard sitting on a chair next to the door. It was protocol to have someone stationed at every exit, even if it was hundreds of feet off the ground.

The guard lifted his head, pulling his attention away from his phone.

“I could report you for that, you know,” Abby smiled. “Watching videos on duty? Isn’t that considered neglectful behavior?”

The guard simply raised his eyebrow. “You’re one to talk. How many times have you been told to use the front door?”

“Here,” Abby reached into her jacket pocket and tossed him a bar of chocolate. “My daily toll for your silence.”

The guard caught it. “Ta.”

Abby strolled past him. “Enjoy.”

Carrying on, she headed toward her bedroom five levels below. She took the elevator and emerged into the rookie dorm area. She followed another long hallway that led to the common room before branching off into another hallway with all their bedrooms. Abby moved swiftly, enticed by thoughts of her bed. All she wanted to do was lie down and sleep the afternoon away until she was dragged out for dinner.

She passed through the common room without issue but, unfortunately, today wasn’t going to let her slip away without a fight. Seer stood, leaning against the frame of her bedroom door, waiting for her arrival. A tired groan escaped her lips and he turned. He was a boy about a year older than her. He wore a sky-blue shirt and jacket, along with a pair of shaded spectacles to hide the fact that he was blind.

“You better be here to tell me the new Cassidy Ellis album is out,” Abby grumbled, strolling up to her bedroom door.

Seer tilted his head slightly. “Not for another month and a half. I’m here to tell you that your mom got injured. She’s safe but a debriefing has been called and we’re required to attend.”

Abby rolled her eyes. “Pass.”

Seer’s brow raised. “You don’t care that your mom got hurt?”

“Oh, no. I care. I’m sure she’ll tell me all about it later. I just don’t feel like going to one of these ‘mandatory’ meetings. I’ve just spent the last few hours chasing two idiots through the city and sleep beckons me.”

“Abby—”

“Go away, Jason.”

“I can’t. I was specifically asked to come and get you.”

“Cool, I’m still not going.”

“You’re going to get reprimanded if you don’t show up.”

A dark look spread across her face as the exhaustion turned to bubbling anger.

“Fine. I’ll just go get changed.”

“Abby, I know you’re going to lock the door and go to bed.”

“Damn it, Jason! Go away! I’ll be there, okay? Just get the hell out of my way.”

Seer sighed and moved aside.

Abby unlocked her door and stepped inside, heading to her drawers to change into fresh clothes. When she was done, she stepped outside only to see that Seer was still standing there, arms crossed and waiting patiently.

“What are you, my keeper?”

“Your escort.”

Abby screwed up her face. “Ew.”

He let out an exasperated sigh. “You know what I mean. Let’s go.”

Another elevator ride landed Abby in a private debriefing room. Tricky and Copycat were already there, both of them leaning back in their seats. They were clad in their costumes, probably because they were scheduled for patrol in about an hour. Tricky wore his armor that was stylized to mimic a midwestern gunslinger while Copycat wore his Japanese-inspired cat mask.

They were both playing some trading card game that Abby was unfamiliar with. Despite this, they were the only two in the room. Normally, Seraphim was the first here and it stood out like a sore thumb.

“Where’s Nikki?”

“With her boyfriend. I think she’s seeing that new horror flick,” Copycat replied, tearing his gaze away from the cards in his hand. “It’s pretty bad from what I’ve read.”

“Counterspell,” Tricky said smugly, laying out a card on the table.

Copycat threw his head back and groaned. “Fuuuucks sake…”

“So I have to be here while Nikki gets a free pass?” Abby rounded on Seer who simply shrugged. “Fuck you, Jason.”

“Come on. That’s not fair and you know it.”

The door opened behind her and two senior heroes walked through. One wore a decorative skeleton mask while the other had multicolored threads throughout her hair.

“Lich, Dreamweaver,” Seer inclined his head in respect. “It’s good to see you. I hope your vacation went well.”

“It could have been better. Malta just isn’t the same as it used to be,” Dreamweaver bemoaned. “I wanted to switch it up and go to Italy, but this lug here dug in his heels and refused.”

Lich grunted and said nothing.

Seer cleared his throat and gave a small understanding nod. “Well, I’m glad to hear it. There aren’t many places left where tourism flourishes. It’s nice to know there are at least some places still trying.”

“I didn’t know you guys got back,” Abby commented, still surprised. “Did you hear about Lana’s engagement? She’s given up her position to Ionizer.”

“Yes, I heard our Sparrow managed to get hitched. If she doesn’t ask me to be one of her bridesmaids, there’s going to be some serious trouble.”

“Well, it’s a good thing I had you at the top of my list,” another voice sounded from the door. Sparrow stepped through, followed closely by Domination and Director Oslin. “It’s good to see you, Jen. We can discuss details later. For now, duty unfortunately takes priority.”

“Take a seat, everyone,” Director Oslin grumbled. He moved with a hunch, his thinning gray hair was starting to fall out and Abby could have sworn he ages at least a year every time she saw the old guy. “We have business to attend to and I don’t have all day.”

Abby finally noticed the condition her mother was in. The woman carried herself like she was made of steel and didn’t so much as limp or slouch. Her injuries were obvious, even though she had clearly received at least some minor treatment. There was dried blood covering the lower half of her face and her armor had a large gash in it. Whatever wound had been inflicted had been sealed by a high-grade biogel, but it still made her queasy to look at.

Someone had really been gunning for her, it seemed.

As everyone took their seats, Abby sent a concerned look over toward her mom. Domination noticed but dismissed her daughter’s concern with a silent nod.

Sparrow walked around and dealt out a bunch of dossiers and Abby labored a sigh as she opened hers. It was filled to the brim with information about supers she hadn’t seen or heard of. Probably newbies that had cropped up around Bayside. These meetings happened all the time and Abby had learned to barely bother remembering these guys. Most of the time, they ended up somewhere else before the week was out. If they ended up staying, they either disappeared or ended up arrested fairly quickly. Rarely, did they ever actually end up being a serious threat.

The last two that actually amounted to anything had been Grim and Bonesmith.

For the next hour, Sparrow droned on about the new faces and Abby found her eyelids drooping. Tricky was already trying to play with his trading cards and Copycat was trying to look like he was engaged. Seer was impossible to read, doing his best impression of a Moai statue.

Then, as it started to wrap up, Ionizer stepped through the door. Sparrow stopped talking and everyone turned and stared.

“I apologize for my lateness. I was called to an emergency. But I have good news,” he said. “I have apprehended Bonesmith.”

Immediately, Abby was awake. Tricky sat up in his chair, Copycat shifted in his seat and Seer’s stone-faced expression shifted.

Bonesmith was no easy capture. The guy was a menace, one of the most lethal close-quarter villains in Bayside. His shifted weapons could rip through some of Nanoforge’s best armor. Not to mention the vicious history he had as a pirate.

“The Cains have been unusually active recently,” Domination mused. “Gold Rush’s attack on Pandora must not have been a knee-jerk reaction. Premeditated, it seems.”

Ionizer nodded in agreement. “He and a handful of Cain followers were reported fleeing the Downtown Mall in pursuit of a vehicle. Eye witness accounts claim it was a black sedan, 2008 model.”

“Were there no cameras to catch the vehicle’s registration and number plate?” Director Oslin questioned, not sounding pleased. “It sounds like you were not able to ID who they were after.”

“Not without Mentalist input,” Ionizer replied. “Two suspects, both Evohumans. It seems like a recruitment pitch gone bad. The cameras around the and inside the mall were disabled. Currently, our specialists are working to recover any footage from the last six hours, but from their reports, all of what they are able to extract is corrupted. Mentalists suspect Mechakinetic interference.”

“A lot of the security in that building is old hardware,” Sparrow mused with a frown. “I put through a report two and a half years ago about that,” she turned her gaze to Director Oslin. “Was nothing done?”

The Director scowled. “I don’t recall seeing any paperwork pertaining to such an inquiry.”

The room fell into an awkward silence.

“Casualties?” Lich asked, breaking his silence.

Ionizer turned to him. “No one died, though, there are a few injuries to note. Some civilians were caught in the crossfire. The pursuit was taken to the highway. A few civilian cars were caught off-guard and had to brake or swerve. There are some broken bones and concussions but nothing life threatening from what I’ve heard.”

“Hmm.”

Abby grimaced. She could feel the tension in the room. Things could have ended badly on the main highway. She had seen firsthand the kind of horror that could happen there.

“Recruitment gone wrong, you say?” Domination mused. “An independent Mechakinetic?”

Ionizer nodded. “That is my suspicion.”

“Who’re our suspects?” Dreamweaver asked. “If the Cains are after them, they’ve either done something to piss them off or they’re valuable enough to risk causing a scene for.”

Ionizer picked up one of the dossiers and flipped through the pages. He marked the people of interest by folding the top right corner of the pages.

“Four potentials, assuming our Mentalist support is operating on the correct information. Pages seven, twenty six, twenty nine, and forty one.”

Abby flipped through the pages and found who Ionizer was talking about. The problem with independents was that it was hard to find anything before they did something big. The ones that kept their heads low and tried not to do anything illegal had a lot of their information redacted because of privacy laws. But the more prolific they were, the more the ECU were allowed to know.

Blueprinter, Omnicraft, Uplink, and Upgrade… there’s not much here.

“Well, this isn’t very helpful,” Copycat chimed in. Then, he grimaced. “Omnicraft apparently likes… Thai girls? It’s still weird how we have privacy laws and redact their personal details, yet you monitor their internet activity.”

“None of them are particularly active online. Blueprinter and Upgrade have done some very minor work for clients and use forums to advertise their services,” Ionizer explained. “As you can see, our Mentalists are having trouble putting any of them at the Mall today. Our leading suspect is Uplink, seeing as they are known to be able to compromise security.”

“Has Bonesmith spoken since his capture?” Director Oslin asked.

Ionizer shook his head. “Unfortunately, no. I don’t think he wishes to give us the upper hand in this situation.”

“See if our Mentalists can extract any information on our chase victim,” Director Oslin replied. He stood and brushed off his suit. “Well done today, Ionizer. If I may, where is Seraphim? It is unlike her to miss these meetings.”

“Out with her boyfriend,” Copycat repeated.

Director Oslin’s lips thinned. “Ah, I see. You are all dismissed.”

Relief flooded through Abby as she stood.

“Not you, Ms. Kingston,” Director Oslin said, giving her a pointed look. “Sit.”

Abby wanted to scream. She watched as everyone filtered out of the room. Her mother stayed behind, as was her right. When everyone left and the door clicked shut, the elderly man sighed.

“A report landed on my desk earlier detailing your conduct when dealing with Junkmonger and Techies,” the Director took a moment for his words to sink in. Abby huffed and sunk into her chair, knowing where this was going. “I’m aware of their reputation for miraculous escapes but that is no reason to brutalize them.”

“I just—”

“I don’t want to hear excuses,” the Director cut her off with a calm but stern gaze. “You have a right to feel frustrated. Know that what you feel is something I deal with daily. You must rise above it if you want a future with the ECU as a hero.”

Abby looked away.

“Am I in trouble?”

The Director shifted and sighed once more. “For this, no. While your methods should require disciplinary measure, you’ve provided us with the opportunity to incarcerate them without fear of them escaping.”

Abby turned back, a victorious grin on her face. Her mother did not share her enthusiasm.

“That said, I am still penalizing you.”

Abby’s mouth fell open as the Director moved toward the door.

“What? Why!?”

He turned and looked over his shoulder. Abby could have sworn she saw him smirk.

“Did you think I wouldn’t notice? Use the front door.”

He left without another word, the door closing and leaving Abby sitting dumbfounded. She caught a glimpse of her mother’s piercing gaze and slumped.

Crap.

----------------------------------------

Her phone rang out with her morning alarm.

Slowly, Abby blinked the sleep out of her eyes, reaching out with her power to snag her phone to dismiss the alarm. Like most, the young heroine hated Mondays. The beginning of the week just had an icky feeling that no other day possessed.

Like a zombie, she rose from her bed and rolled out onto the floor. It took a single thought to stop herself from colliding with the carpet, her telekinetic aura orientating her upright. With a yawn, she dispersed her powers and shambled toward the bathroom to begin her morning routine. Halfway through brushing her teeth, a knock sounded from her front door. Poking her head out of the bathroom, she glared.

“What?” Her tone was garbled from the toothbrush.

Seraphim’s voice sounded from the other side. “Meeting in the common room. Ionizer called it.”

“Ugh, okay.”

Finishing up, she quickly got dressed for school and headed toward the common room. Tricky was half asleep on the couch, Copycat was shoveling cereal into his mouth and Seer was stirring some tea in the kitchen. Seraphim just paced in the center of the room. Abby rose an eyebrow at the strange behavior before turning and making a beeline for the kitchen.

“Here,” Seer slid a cup over to her. “You’ve had a penchant for green recently.”

Abby reached up and brushed a few strands of her hair from her eyes. For a moment, she couldn’t tell if he was talking about her highlights or the tea. Cautiously, she picked up the tea, narrowing her eyes at the boy as she took a sip.

“Thanks,” she placed it back down on the counter and reached for the sugar. “So what’s this meeting all about? We’ve been having a lot recently, like, way more than usual. I’m getting sick of all this official crap. I mean, can you believe I was forced to submit an evaluation of my behavior over the weekend? I thought someone else was supposed to do that.”

“They asked you to do it so that you could understand your own shortcomings and get your perspective on how you act,” Seer replied, noting how Abby stilled. “Don’t take offense, we’ve all done them. It’s a fact, none of us are perfect.”

“But some of us are better than others!” Tricky chuckled from the couch. “I just gave myself full marks.”

“That defeats the point of an evaluation,” Copycat chimed in. “Anyway, does anyone know what this meeting is for? I was going to skip school, but I might as well go now since I’m up.”

Everyone turned to Seer and despite being blind, he could feel everyone’s eyes on him.

“You know I’m not allowed to use my powers to pry into official business.”

“It involves us, so what’s the big deal?” Tricky drawled, sitting up. He hung over the edge of the couch and waited eagerly for a reply. “Come on, just bend the rules a little. We won’t tell anyone.”

“At least tell us if we’re in trouble or not,” Seraphim asked, running a hand through her wet hair. “I was already chewed out for skipping the last meeting. I don’t need more bullshit popping up.”

Seer heaved a sigh. “No one is in trouble.”

“Then what? I’ve got school and this is going to make me late, it better be important,” Abby said. She didn’t even bother to hide her frustration. Sparrow would have said something, given a reason at least. Ionizer was still getting used to his new role and so far, he wasn’t adapting as fast as Abby expected.

“It is,” Seer reassured. “It’s… we’re getting a new addition to the team.”

That piqued Abby’s attention.

“Someone new is joining?”

“Finally!” Tricky groaned. “Is it a girl? Please tell me it’s a girl. There’s way too many dudes here.”

Abby snorted. “Like you’d even have a chance. Stick to your trading cards.”

“You say that, but I’m pretty sure I’ve been more successful than you,” Tricky laughed. “My strategy is working.”

Seraphim raised an eyebrow. “Is it really?”

“I have a girlfriend. Asked her out a couple of weeks ago,” Tricky defended. “She was like, totally blushing and all that. You should have seen it, she was all over me. I even made it to first base on the bus last Friday and we have a date this weekend.”

Abby rolled her eyes. She didn’t even need to voice how ridiculous that was. Everyone in the room knew he was lying.

“Roll your eyes all you want. You’re just salty cause no guy’s ever asked you out,” Tricky retreated from view by sinking back into the sofa. “I don’t blame them, that whole emo look you got going on is pretty lame.”

Abby seethed. “It’s NOT emo! How many fucking times—”

Her power flared and was about to grab the little bastard but a hand landed on her arm. She looked over to see Jason shaking his head.

“Ren, that wasn’t very nice,” Seraphim intoned. “You should apologize.”

“What? Me? Abby started it,” Ren sneered.

“Nobody cares who started it,” Copycat drawled. “No one believes you’ve scored a girl, dude. You’re thirteen. Relationships don’t usually last more than a week so it’s nothing to brag about.”

Tricky just sneered.

“So, who’s the newbie?” Seraphim asked, eager to change the subject. She turned to the room’s all-knowing Mentalist for an answer. “Anything we should know beforehand?”

His lips thinned as he looked toward the main door.

“Don’t make fun of her appearance.”

Tricky gasped. “So it is a girl!”

On cue, the main door buzzed and slid open. Ionizer strode through, clad in his sky-blue armor. Even now, Abby wasn’t sure what she thought of the man. He cut an imposing figure, making him one of the most intimidating Heros Bayside had ever seen on roster. To her, every movement he made was done with purpose, every breath using only the most efficient amount of oxygen needed to get a task done.

He was all business, with no fun allowed.

“Good morning, Rookies.”

Not to mention he reminded Abby of every teacher she’d ever had.

“Good Morning.”

“Eh.”

“Hey.”

“Sir.”

Ionizer’s head slowly turned toward Abby, finding her lack of any greeting troublesome. Meeting his stone-faced stare, Abby sighed.

“Whaddya want?”

The senior hero took her disrespect in stride. Instead, he turned back to the gathered junior heroes and cleared his throat.

“There is a new face joining your ranks this morning. I have called this small meeting in the hopes that you’ll all get along with your new colleague,” Ionizer explained. Abby felt her stomach churn. Colleague… She already missed Sparrow’s more casual approach. “That being said, I’d like to introduce you to Prosperity.”

He stepped aside to reveal… an empty doorway.

Tricky sat up and scratched his head while everyone else stared. “Does… she turn invisible or something?”

“Stage fright,” Ionizer replied, sounding unsympathetic and unbothered. “Prosperity. It’s okay. No one is going to judge you.”

Even when he was trying to be reassuring, he still managed to sound cold.

Abby watched as the girl stepped out from the side of the door frame. She was hiding and it was obvious as to why. Prosperity was a Morpher, one of the ones that were unfortunate enough to have irreversible features. Apparently, that was a bit of a double-edged sword. Sure, they had a tendency to be extraordinarily powerful, but they also stood out like a sore thumb.

Prosperity had pointed ears protruding from her neatly brushed black hair. It reminded her of a dog or a canine of some kind. Then, Abby saw the tail, something that was very difficult to miss. Without a doubt, the girl definitely had traits that belonged to a fox.

“...Hi.”

A silence followed her shy greeting that was quickly shattered by Tricky.

“Whoa, that’s pretty cool. I’ve never met a Special Morpher before.”

“The official term is Transfiguration Case, Tricky.”

“Eh, who cares what they’re called,” he shrugged. He jumped up and swung his legs over the back of the couch. “Hey! I’m Ren, but you might know me better as Tricky.”

Slowly, Prosperity’s nervousness started to melt away. “Hi Ren. It’s… good to be here, I think.”

“I shouldn’t need to tell you all to be courteous. Prosperity is a newly Awakened, so I’ll leave the details up to her to share should she wish to,” Ionizer said, turning to the girl in question. “If you need anything, you know where to find me.”

Prosperity nodded as he turned and walked out of the room.

“So,” Abby started the moment the door shut. “Can’t imagine you’ve had the best impression with that hardass giving you the tour. Don’t worry, it’s not as bad as you’re probably thinking – well, if you forget about those two over there.”

If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

“Hey!” Tricky scowled. Copycat ignored the insult.

“It’s been fine…” Prosperity trailed off. “I wasn’t sure what to expect. A bit intense but so far things don’t seem so bad.”

“Happy to have you with us,” Seraphim smiled. “I’m Nikki. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Abby can also help since she's been here the longest.”

Abby offered a light-hearted wave. Prosperity stared for a few moments before slowly nodding.

“So… you’re Comet?” Prosperity’s smile widened a little as her shoulders tensed. “I’m… ah, this is so embarrassing, but I’m a bit of a fan.”

Abby tilted her head, caught off guard by the admission.

She had fans, all heroes did, even one as young and obnoxious as Tricky. It had been one of the biggest hurdles to overcome after becoming a superhero. Thousands of people discussing you online and in public was difficult to get used to, especially when she was one of the few that didn’t have a secret identity.

Her mom didn’t have one, so naturally, Abby followed suit. Whether that had been a mistake or not, Abby still debated to this day. She thought about what it would’ve been like if she had tried to keep it all secret. She doubted her friendship with Lucy, Max, Chris, and Jackson would have lasted as long as it had. Plus, with her mother being as well known as she was, getting powers was something a lot of people expected.

Abby’s mouth curved into a smile. “Do you want an autograph?”

“Aha, um… not really,” Prosperity said. “I wouldn’t want to bother you. It’s just… surreal actually getting to meet you. You and everyone else. I’ve admired heroes for so long that actually getting to be one feels like a dream. It’s just too bad it has to come with this.”

Her tail curled up into her arms and she dug her nails into it like she was trying to rip it off.

“I can’t imagine that’s easy to deal with,” Seer said. “I’m Jason by the way.”

“Hi,” Prosperity said. “Oh! I’m so sorry, how could I forget? I’m Amelia. Everyone’s been introducing themselves – sorry, it’s been hectic for me the last few days. I’ve been… adjusting.”

“I’m Karl, spelt with a ‘K’ if you’re curious,” Copycat chimed in. “Nice uh… tail. It must be hell to clean.”

Amelia groaned in agreement. “My showers were already long enough. Now, my Dad’s complaining there’s no hot water. I can’t help it!”

“You don’t have to worry about that here,” Nikki said. “Oh, well, that’s assuming you’ll be living here. Most of us do during the week, but we go home on the weekends.”

“Except for me,” Abby waved again. “I’m stuck here. This is home.”

Amelia’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Yep. I was even born here. I’ve lived on site all my life. It’s not exactly safe to stay outside of HQ when you don’t have a secret identity. I can’t even go shopping without being recognized.”

Ren snorted. “Sucks to be you.”

Abby ignored him.

Amelia shifted with uncertainty. “I’m going to be living here until I can figure out how to hide my new additions. I really don’t want my private life to be affected by this and Ionizer said that the ECU has helped people like me before.”

“Yeah the nerds will be able to cook something up. You wouldn’t believe the kind of things they’ve managed to pull off,” Abby said. “Did they give you a room or are you allowed to choose?”

“Um…” Amelia thought for a moment. “They said I was allowed to choose.”

“Ooh! Ooh! Pick the one next to mine!” Ren grinned.

Amelia chuckled nervously as Abby rolled her eyes.

“Come on,” Abby gestured for her to follow. “I suppose it falls for me to give you a tour of the place. I’m willing to bet the higher ups pointed to me as being your chauffeur,” Amelia just chuckled weakly. Abby smiled. “I thought so. Let’s get you a room that’s as far away from Ren’s as possible.”

----------------------------------------

The elevator dinged and Abby stepped out into a garage full of armored vehicles. They were heavy-duty, all imported and branded with that familiar logo. It was simplistic but easily recognizable so that anyone across the world would know it if they saw it. A globe with a leaf-like design curling around it, the initials E.C.U emblazoned across the bottom.

She saw it every day, feeling the immense weight of responsibility it carried. A responsibility very few truly understood.

Walking through the garage, Abby continued on until she came to the requested meeting place. Ionizer stood, clad in his blue armor. He offered a familial greeting, one which she wasn’t exactly keen on returning. Amelia stood to his side, dressed in a standard issue combat suit that Nanoforge had undoubtedly rushed to put together on such short notice. Given how tight it looked and the slight expression of discomfort etched across the newbie’s face, Abby could only assume that it wasn’t quite finished yet.

“I should’ve known,” Abby drawled as the realization dawned on her. “Really? It’s Friday night. Couldn’t this have waited for some other time? We’re not even supposed to be patrolling this late anyway. There won’t be anything for us to do.”

“I was informed by Director Oslin that I should be taking a more active role in teaching, so I’ve decided to employ my own methods,” Ionizer explained. “I’ve got approval from command for our patrol route and Overwatch is set to cover us.”

Abby groaned. “Look, I’m no stickler for the rules but I’m pretty sure this is against standard protocol for Rookies. There’s a reason we only patrol during the day time.”

Ionizer gave Abby a blank look through his headgear. “I didn’t call you down here to argue about protocol. I was advised that you were the most experienced rookie on the team and have been helping Prosperity settle in. I thought it best to bring you along for her first exercise.”

“Oh I get it. I’m the training wheels,” Abby grumbled. She quickly reigned in her temper when she saw Prosperity flinch. “Ugh, forget I said that. Sorry, I’m not in the best mood right now. I know you’re probably nervous as all hell Amelia, but trust me this stuff isn’t as hard as you think it is.”

“Um… okay,” she trailed off with a hint of uncertainty. “This is all a bit sudden but it’s what I signed up for, I guess.”

“It’s sudden because it’s unusual. We don’t normally do this,” Abby turned back to Ionizer. “I’m not taking the fall if this goes tits up.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to and there’s nothing to worry about,” Ionizer reassured. “This is authorized. I’m just a little bit more direct in my teaching methods than Sparrow and I would appreciate your help.”

“Fine, like I can say no anyway,” Abby crossed her arms and turned her attention back to Amelia. “Has anyone gone over basic encounter procedures with you yet? I think my mum would’ve given you the rundown the other day. She’s pretty good at introducing that stuff early to any newbies.”

The anxious girl nodded. “Uh, yeah! I’m supposed to follow R.O.V.E, right?”

“Very good,” Ionizer nodded. “Can you tell me what it stands for?”

“The first ‘R’ is for: Retreat. Retreat and find proper cover. ‘O’ is for observation; find and observe threats and distinguish them from the uh, non-threats. ‘V’ is Vantage point. When able, move to a better vantage point and continue to observe. Relay information to command if needed. ‘E’ is… its… um…”

Abby found herself smiling. “Engagement.”

Her favorite part.

“Engagement!” Amelia clapped. “I knew that. ‘E’ is for Engagement. Move to engage threats or to remove non-combatants from dangerous environments. Always prioritize the safety of civilians over anything else.”

“They’re just something for you to keep in mind when you're starting out,” Abby said. “Always make sure you're in a position of safety before you make any rash decisions. Think about it like this; you can’t help anyone if you’re dead.”

Amelia chuckled weakly while Ionizer just awkwardly cleared his throat.

“Yes… Comet makes a good point, however, there will be times where things won’t work out and you’ll be forced to make an on-the-spot decision,” Ionizer lectured sagely. “That comes with experience, which is why I am eager to have you start tonight. The sooner you understand the pull of the reins, the less likely you are to let them slip when they pull.”

“Cute analogy,” Abby snorted. “Alright, let's get this show on the road. The sooner we go, the sooner I can get back to enjoying what's left of my Friday.”

“Wait!” Amelia shouted in a panic. She quickly covered her mouth in embarrassment, mouthing a quick apology. “Um, isn’t there anything else I should know? I still feel like I’m really underprepared.”

“That’s because you are. At least by our standards,” Abby replied, giving her a so-so gesture. “But you’ll do fine. My first day out was during Hurricane Liz and that almost tore the city apart. I didn’t know anything about the procedure. Just operated on my raw intuition and guts.”

“Hm. I read that in your file. Your performance was noteworthy and saved many lives,” Ionizer said.

“You’re damn right I did,” Abby nodded in agreement. “That night sucked. By comparison, tonight will be a breeze.”

“Weren’t you going on about protocol earlier…?” Amelia wondered aloud.

Abby just shrugged. “Yeah, yeah it’s whatever. I just don’t like doing this stuff on Fridays. I was—” She stopped herself before she said anything that would really get her in trouble. “Forget it. Let’s just go, okay? We’ll teach you the basics as we go. How long is this route you're taking us on?”

“No more than two hours,” Ionizer said.

“Ah, a short trip. Easy peasy,” Abby replied, rolling her shoulders. Twisting her bracelet, she activated her armor. At the same time, her telekinetic aura flared, lifting her into the air until she was only a few meters off the ground. “We should be back just after midnight.”

“That’s the plan,” Ionizer replied, reaching into his belt. He pulled a small device that appeared like a triangular lightbulb and switched it on. It blinked rapidly, flashing light green. “There we go, we should be ready to go now.”

“What’s that?” Comet asked, perplexed. “Are you testing some funky Mechatech while we’re out?”

“Something like that,” Ionizer said. “It’s a unique opportunity to gather data. Also approved, if you felt the need to ask.”

“You’re the captain of this ship now. We go at your pace,” Comet waved off, clearly eager to leave. “Unless you want me out front?”

“It doesn’t make a difference to me, so I’ll send you the patrol data. This is a learning exercise for Prosperity.”

“Alright, I’ll take point then.”

Comet lifted an arm and examined the small interface built into where the bracelet would normally sit on her arm. A small holographic map of Bayside popped up before highlighting a clear path from their location in orange. She found herself frowning as the path continued to snake through territory that went far beyond where rookies were normally supposed to patrol.

“The hell? What kind of route is this?”

“Is there an issue?”

Comet turned and met Ionizer’s gaze. “No. I’m just wondering if this is a hint of things to come. Sparrow never had us going out that far before. Normally, we’d just stick to the areas that HQ can easily reach. This goes all the way into Cain territory.”

“I thought it would be prudent to show Prosperity the kind of people we deal with on a daily basis.”

Comet wanted to argue. There were designed patrol routes to break newbies in. She had run them countless times with Tricky, Copycat, and Seraphim when they joined the Rookies. None of those routes went further than a few kilometers from the Citadel. They were boring – so boring that she could have probably fallen asleep and still flown the route perfectly without issue.

This… this wasn’t just out of pocket. Comet would have gone as far as to claim that this was downright reckless.

“...Okay,” Comet said slowly. She had to remind herself that Ionizer – while a newcomer to Bayside – was well renowned across the world as a strong, capable hero. He knew what he was doing and according to him, this route had been approved by command. “You’re the boss.”

Still, that wouldn’t stop her from talking with her mother about it.

Ionizer gestured forward. “Lead on.”

With a huff, she did.

----------------------------------------

“Are patrols usually this uneventful?”

Comet could tell Prosperity was bored by the tone of her voice. She was expecting something – anything to happen by now. That was the unfortunate reality of being a hero. Not every outing was going to yield results. Most of the time, you just ended up walking and taking some photos with bystanders. Really, all patrols were really for was so you could be in a position where you could respond quickly to any escalating situations.

“Eh, this is pretty standard,” Comet replied. “It’s just past midnight and this part of town doesn’t really see any activity. It’s all industrial crap over here. Everyone’s out partying, drinking at bars, or watching sports. That’s normally where all the action is and rookies aren’t allowed to respond to calls at night unless it's an emergency, or we’re short staffed.”

“Myself and the other senior heroes take care of disputes past ten,” Ionizer explained. “It’s after that when things can get particularly violent. Too much for a rookie to handle on their own.”

“Oh…” Prosperity sounded rather deflated. “Hey, Abby—”

“Comet,” Ionizer corrected before the heroine in question could get a word in. “Remember, outside of the Citadel, you’re to refer to your colleagues and comrades by their codenames. Comet’s identity might be public knowledge but it's a good habit to get into.”

Prosperity shook away her fluster. “Right, sorry. Hey, Comet?”

“What’s up?”

“You’ve been doing this for a couple of years now, so what’s the most dangerous fight you’ve ever been in?”

A light, nostalgic smirk crossed her lips. It was easy for her to forget sometimes that before getting powers, people lived normal lives, looking at the world she lived in from an outsider's perspective. Prosperity had just come from that, spending this week dipping her toes into the superheroine life. The only time she really got to tell these sorts of stories was to her friends at school and by now they had heard them enough times to make several movies.

“That’s a toughie. I’ve been in plenty of dangerous scuffles, my first night out with Hurricane Liz being one of them,” Comet mused aloud. “Though there was Molten Lord a few years ago. He was pretty fuckin’ scary.”

Prosperity beamed. “Oh! That was during your first year, wasn’t it? I remember that. It was all over the news!”

“Yeah. He took out like six buildings in the business district and turned a bunch of streets into slag. Mum and I were on search and rescue and he tried to take us on,” Comet chuckled lightly. “Let’s just say that he’s probably still recovering from what we did to him.”

“If I recall correctly, the reports I read stated that Lich was the one to capture him,” Ionizer cut in, robbing Comet of all the moment’s glory. “Your involvement was in the footnotes.”

“Yes but—”

A car alarm sounded behind them, cutting through the calm night’s quiet. Prosperity shrieked, transforming completely into a giant quadrupedal animal. She barked at the car in question as Comet floated down to investigate while Ionizer cautiously stepped forward. The two experienced heroes shared a quick apprehensive look.

“What’re the chances it’s a faulty alarm?” Comet asked, looking hopeful.

Ionizer placed a hand on the hood of the car, channeling part of his power. He turned back to her and shook his head. “Alarm’s fine. It was set off manually.”

Prosperity let out an anxious whine as her head started to turn on a swivel. Comet noted her attention lock onto a nearby rundown building – a decommissioned one by the looks of it. The paint on it looked worn and the windows were broken. There was graffiti everywhere she looked but none of it seemed uncommon for an area like this.

“Please let it be some dumbass kids playing a prank,” Comet said. “Really don’t want this turning into something crazy.” Another car alarm went off further down the road. “Yeah, it’s probably just some kids messing around.”

An engine sounded and the screeching of tires cut through the night. An expensive-looking car swerved out onto the road and accelerated, plowing right through the front windows of a fruit and vegetable shop. Smoke poured from beneath the hood and from where they stood, a small fire appeared to have started.

“I will deal with that,” Ionizer marched forward, but before he could make it, another car sounded.

Prosperity skittered away as the car next to her revved its engine and tried to speed off down the road. Comet, however, was much quicker than any modern land vehicle, catching it before it could make any sort of headway.

“Nice try,” she muttered, ripping the doors off and tossing them to the side. She peered inside to find an empty vehicle. It was perplexing, to say the least, but her confusion soon rose to a new level when every car alarm in the vicinity sounded. “Okay, this has gone a little too far to be any kind of prank.”

Ionizer stepped out of the store, having put the fire out. “Comet, call Overwatch for assistance.”

“Alright,” Comet lifted her arm and switched to a different channel. “Hey, we got something going on over here. Could use a hand figuring it out.”

“Status?” Overwatch replied.

“We’re fine. Can we get an eye overhead?”

“Establishing visual contact.”

Comet looked up into the night sky. Anyone probably would’ve mistaken it for a shooting star but to the people in the know, Overwatch had launched another eye into the sky. It appeared as a small greenish light, zipping about in the sky above the city. It flashed overhead as it arrived in their area and hovered for a moment.

“I’ve identified a hostile. Roof, three blocks from your position. Dressed in black, armed, high caliber sniper rifle. They’re observing you.”

Comet grumbled, turning to stare in that direction. With the dark backdrop of the night sky, it was hard to see anything but Overwatch was rarely wrong about anything. She had learned to put her absolute faith in her abilities.

“There goes my Friday night…”

Surging into the sky, Comet flew to investigate. Sure enough, she saw the figure Overwatch was describing, watching and waiting.

Yeah, take a shot at me. I dare—

He turned and fled into the building.

Damnit!

She was forced to rip the roof access door off its hinges to give chase. He was smart enough to lock the door behind him but wasn’t smart enough to know that it wouldn’t matter. Unfortunately, she was met with a tightly constricted staircase.

Just my luck…

“Hey! Quit running, you’re only going to make this more painful for yourself!”

She followed the sounds of her suspect’s movements, all the way into a large, open office room. Needless to say, she was not a fan of these cat-and-mouse games and given how spacious this room was, he could be hiding anywhere. The villains that hid from her were always the tricky ones. She preferred it when they were stupid enough to fight her head-on. It made their inevitable capture all the quicker.

Well, I’ve got him cornered. I’ve just got to listen to any movement and…

The computers all turned on and started playing music. To top it all off, it was her least favorite song looped on repeat.

I’m going to fold this guy in half on principle. I deserve that much tonight.

At some point, the guy must’ve slipped past her when she wasn’t looking because the scent of smoke had her retreating from the room and back into the hallway. She followed the smell all the way to the ground floor where Prosperity was desperately trying to put out the fire.

Comet acted quickly, finding the nearest fire alarm and smashing the protective cover to turn it on. Immediately, sprinklers activated and drenched both of the girls from head to toe. Prosperity was holding a fire extinguisher, which she clearly had no clue how to use properly, given that Comet saw no evidence of it being used.

Guiding the newbie out through one of the fire exits, Comet found that Prosperity was moving with a slight limp.

“What the hell happened?” In her aggravation of being juked, the words came out more demanding than she meant them to.

“That guy! I almost had him,” the girl looked distraught and angry with herself. “I… I should’ve ripped his stupid head off!”

Comet rolled her eyes. “Okay, cool it for a second. Let’s roll things back a bit, starting with the room and how it got set on fire.”

“He had some kind of weird gun that he shot me with and…” Prosperity huffed, sinking deeper into her misery. “...I may have tried to set him on fire with my powers and missed— but I tried to put it out! I didn’t mean to do that.”

“Accidents happen. Besides, all that stuff inside can be repaired. More important question, did you see where he went?”

“I—” Prosperity cut herself off as she began to sulk. “I don’t know. I’m sorry.”

Comet grunted and turned away before contacting Ionizer.

“Our little prankster got away.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Ionizer replied over the encrypted communications network. “Regroup on my position. I’ve already called and reinforcements are inbound. There’s a situation over here. It seems that our prankster has left a bit of a mess.”

“Ugh, it just gets worse,” Comet muttered under her breath. She turned back to Prosperity. “Come on. Something else has happened. Follow me.”

Wordlessly, the newbie nodded and followed. Comet followed Ionizer’s position all the way into that decommissioned building Prosperity had stared at earlier. Inside was a mess of unconscious bodies, along with two notorious Cain supers. All of them were armed to the teeth, some even carrying some sophisticated Mechatech weapons.

“Looks like we missed the party,” Comet commented blandly. “A skirmish this deep into Cain territory is crazy. That guy has a death wish.”

Ionizer was observing a small item in his hand, one he had pulled from the shoulder of one of the downed thugs. It appeared to be some kind of tranquilizer. When he was done, he slipped it into his glove and turned to address the two rookies.

“Not just him. A few others too. He wasn’t alone,” Ionizer said. “I did some investigating while you two tried to apprehend one of our suspects. There were men stationed in the buildings surrounding this one. Given how many people are here, it only stands to reason they were guarding something important.”

“They had the whole street on watch?” Comet asked, surprised. “What happened to them? We weren’t even shot at.”

Ionizer gestured at the unconscious men around them. “Same thing that happened here. They were shot with a tranquilizer. A potent serum, measured meticulously to render a fully grown adult unconscious for a number of hours.”

Comet found herself frowning as she observed all the unconscious Cain thugs. She could see that a number of them had tranquilizers poking out from their bodies.

“Non-lethal takedowns. They actively avoided killing?”

Prosperity gave her a blank look. “You look surprised. Is… that not normal?”

Comet just shrugged. “Normal? Eh, some people don’t bother to even try. I guess that explains the reason they chose to just run and hide from me.”

“He did say he was trying to distract us,” Prosperity said, shifting uncomfortably. Comet and Ionizer turned to her on a dime, startling her with the sudden focus shift.

“You talked to him?” Comet asked, surprised. “You didn’t mention that.”

“Everything’s happening so quickly! I’m sorry, okay? He said they were trying to save a friend, someone who had been taken from them?”

“A retaliation,” Ionizer summarized. “Makes sense. What caused the building fire?”

Prosperity froze.

“What building fire?”

Comet resisted the urge to groan.

“I had just concluded investigating the surrounding buildings when I noticed smoke coming from where you went to assist. Was our suspect responsible for that too? Another distraction?”

Comet was about to clear things up when Prosperity answered without really thinking.

“Oh, that? Uh, yeah. I was trying to put it out. Ab– Comet helped me. Sorry,” Prosperity shifted uncomfortably under Ionizer’s flat stare. “Also, umm… sorry for running off. I thought I’d be able to help her catch that guy.”

It was clear as day that Ionizer made the girl uncomfortable – enough to look for any reasonable excuse to get away. Their personalities just didn’t gel at all and if Comet was being honest, she couldn’t see why the higher-ups had approved of him taking Sparrow’s position. Internal politics gave her a headache, even though the stuff she was actually privy to was considered tame by her mother’s own admission.

“I see.”

He didn’t sound convinced.

Comet just crossed her arms and shook her head.

“This is precisely the reason we have the training routes. I don’t want to say I told you so buuut…”

“Those training routes don’t teach you anything. They keep you blind to what’s really going on in the city,” Ionizer shot back, his tone taking a bit more aggression. Comet didn’t care and stood her ground. “I don’t agree with them. It implies a lack of action and a lax attitude–” Ionizer stopped himself and took a small breath. “We will discuss this later.”

“You’re damn right we will,” Comet grumbled.

He ignored her.

“I’m going to investigate the rest of the building. Comet, you’re with me. Prosperity, stay here and watch the captives until the reinforcements arrive. They should be here any minute.”

Ionizer turned and marched off without hesitating. Comet’s gaze lingered on Prosperity for a few moments, noting how nervous she looked.

“I’m not sure how I feel about being left on my own,” Prosperity shifted side to side uncomfortably. “I’ve already screwed up once tonight.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” Comet waved her off. “Things have calmed down now so I think I can confidently say the excitement quota for tonight has been filled. Everything’s gonna be fine.”

----------------------------------------

Everything was in fact, not fine.

Grabbing a mass of the little drones, Comet crushed them into balls of scrap just as her eyes caught a glimpse of the three supers they had been trying to apprehend, fleeing the bunker with an unconscious girl.

“H-Hey!” She called out to Ionizer. “They’re getting aw— ah!”

More drones attacked her with reckless abandon. Her scrap pile grew as more threw themselves at her. It was like there was no end to them and she couldn’t risk thinning her telekinetic aura to try and grab the escaping villains.

“Forget them!” Ionizer ordered. “Clear the room and prioritize the victims.”

“But–!”

“That’s an order Comet!”

She lashed out in anger, her sparkling aura ripping more drones to shreds. She hated it when villains managed to get away, right from under her thumb. It felt like all the effort she went through had been wasted and the cycle would inevitably repeat itself when they reared their heads again.

“Ah! Comet help!”

Any thoughts of frustration were banished the moment Comet heard Prosperity cry for help.

She was thrashing, summoning blue fire with her hands and throwing them at the machines latched onto her. They seemed to be dragging her deeper into the bunker and the ones she turned to slag were immediately replaced.

Why aren’t they attacking her?

Comet rapidly expanded her aura to give her some space before soaring over a sea of drones. She landed next to Prosperity and enshrouded the girl in her sparkling aura. Prosperity scrambled to her feet, panting like she had just run a marathon.

“O-Oh my God—”

“What’re you doing!?” Comet took the girl by her shoulders and shook her. “Transform! Use your powers! You’re stronger when you shapeshift!”

“I’m sorry! I panicked.”

“Get your shit together! Now is not the time to panic.”

A wave of electricity carved a trench through the sea of drones around them. The ones in the path of the destruction were disintegrated while the others close by short-circuited and abruptly detonated. It was like watching dominos fall as the explosion set off a chain reaction. Many of the drones tried to flee but ended up consumed by the chaos.

Ionizer jogged up to Comet and she let him through her telekinetic field.

“Are you two alright?” He asked, his voice calm and collected like this whole situation didn’t affect him. How could he remain so stoic despite everything that had happened? “Prosperity?”

“I-I’m fine,” she took a breath. “I just panicked, that’s all.”

“Then you see why I instructed you to remain upstairs? You’re not ready for this,” he said. Her animal ears flattened against her head as her shoulders slumped. Ionizer just shook his head. “You misunderstand. I do not say that to belittle you. There are training programs for this. They are designed to teach you how to act in situations like these. It’s not a mark against you, merely a statement on your inexperience.”

Comet grunted. “Is now really the best time for this? They’re surrounding us again.”

“Are you not capable of keeping them out?” Ionizer asked without a hint of jest. “Your file states your telekinetic prowess is—”

“Yes, I can keep them out!” Comet snapped in response. “But since you’re soooo familiar with my file, you should know that I have a limit. We need to get out of here now!”

“Not a chance. There are trapped civilians. It’s our responsibility to ensure their safety,” Ionizer replied. “Once that’s done, we can find the three that escaped.”

“They’re probably halfway across the city by now!” Comet sneered. “I can’t believe we just let them slip like that.”

“They are not the priority.”

“Not the priority? Look, I don’t know how things were done where you came from, but here in Bayside, we save the people and fuck up the villains. We’re not supposed to just let them get away!”

Ionizer shook his head. “We weren’t in any position to go after them.”

“I could have!”

“And leave us behind?”

Comet turned to Prosperity, feeling slightly betrayed by her words. Though, the moment she met her gaze, the fire inside of her died. Maybe it was the leftover frustration from having that guy in the black suit mess with her, but nobody got away from her – at least not easily and not without her breaking a few bones.

Even in a situation like this, it made her blood boil. She was supposed to be strong – one of the best.

“No,” Comet resigned. “No, I didn’t mean it like that. Sorry. I just hate it when criminals get off scot free.”

“There’s every chance they’ve been captured. Remember, there are soldiers upstairs. If we can secure this place quickly, perhaps we’ll be able to catch them before they manage to escape,” Ionizer said. “But they cannot be the priority. These people come first. Surely, we all agree on that.”

Comet ignored her pride and nodded. As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t argue that point. It was unbecoming of a hero.

“Yeah, we can.”

“Good. Now, let’s clean this place up.”

Having gathered their bearings, they went back to clearing out the remaining drones. Ionizer did most of the heavy lifting, blasting drones that were in groups. Comet immobilized the fleeing drones that tried to scamper around the edges toward Prosperity, and crushed them, while the new rookie transformed and ripped through any drone that came near her.

In minutes, the bunker was clear with scrap metal littering the floor. Most of the destruction had missed the vats but a few weren’t so lucky. They were leaking fluid and several machines were blaring out warnings. A quick glance told Comet that the systems were undergoing critical failures, including life support.

“How do we get these people out?” Prosperity asked.

Ionizer’s lips thinned in thought, but Comet wasn’t the patient type. Those machines were damaged from the fight and she couldn’t just leave them in there. Reaching out with her aura, she shattered the damaged vats and caught the victims before they fell and hurt themselves. Ionizer was quick to move. He climbed the broken tank and reached through her telekinetic aura to remove the more finicky equipment.

“These people need to be examined by specialists,” Ionizer concluded, checking their vitals. “They appear to be stable but there’s no telling what kind of condition they are in,” he reached up to his headpiece and tried to radio for help. “Signal’s blocked. It seems this bunker has a jammer. We need to get back to the surface.”

“Um… about that,” Prosperity pointed back at the entrance. “Guys?”

Comet and Ionizer turned to see a black cloud of darkness wash down into the bunker like water.

“Comet!” Ionizer barked with the most urgency.

She threw out her aura as far as she could to attempt to halt the oncoming tide. There was an air of anticipation the moment the darkness hit her aura and a feeling of dread pooled in her stomach. She could almost feel something… but didn’t have the words to describe it.

“Since when does this guy do anything!?” Comet breathed, feeling the pressure against the barrier. The darkness was pushing but wasn’t making much headway. “Of all the times, he decides to get involved NOW!?”

“That girl was telling the truth then. It seems our data on Grim is outdated,” Ionizer murmured. “I should’ve known. A place this well defended would’ve been on his orders.”

He sounded bizarrely calm considering the situation they were in now.

“Since when has he ever cared about this sort of stuff?” Comet snapped. “He’s never been this aggressive before!”

“That’s only been the case since he arrived in Bayside,” Ionizer replied. “His lack of aggression has always been a point of contention. You’ve just grown complacent to his presence here. You haven’t seen the destruction he’s left in his wake across the world.”

“Oh, whatever,” she growled. “How are we going to get out of this? I don’t think it’s safe to move,” she tried pushing against the shadow and was met with resistance – the strongest she had ever felt. “We’re stuck here. I can’t move against him!”

“How long do you think you can hold him off?”

Comet felt her hands start sweating as her barrier started slowly receding. She had fought some of Bayside’s most ruthless villains despite only being a rookie. She had helped capture them too, but Grim? Grim was someone even her mom wouldn’t go near.

There was a crushing sense of dread that made speaking difficult. Nobody knew how Grim’s powers worked except that he killed whatever his shadow touched. Now, the only thing between them and the shadow was her slowly shrinking sparkling bubble.

“At the rate he’s going, a couple of hours? He’s not making much progress,” Comet said, trying to peer through Grim’s shadow. Unfortunately, it was like staring into an abyss. “But his shadow is definitely pushing against me and I can’t regain what I’m losing.”

“I–I think I can hear him,” Prosperity stuttered. “What the hell IS that?”

There was raw panic in her voice.

“Don’t panic. I pulled you two into this mess. I will get us out,” Ionizer pulled a device from the belt of his costume. He then reached down to the unconscious civilians and pressed their fingers against the screen of it. Once he was done, he offered it to Prosperity and Comet. “A contact of mine has re-engineered this piece of Mechatech for personal use. It’s been cleared by the ECU.”

“What is it?”

“Deep breath,” Ionizer said.

It was the only warning they got before he activated the device. There was a surge of… something before the world flipped. Comet felt her stomach jump into her mouth before dropping right back into her gut. She lost control of her power as she fell to the ground, collapsing on solid concrete. Lifting her head and resisting the urge to vomit, she managed to see where they ended up.

It was the deployment garage, underneath the ECU Headquarters.

Any questions were immediately put aside as the violent sound of retching came from Prosperity.

“You may experience some major nausea, tinnitus, and blurred vision,” Ionizer casually mentioned as Prosperity’s dinner splattered across the concrete below her. “But I can assure you that there are no long term side effects.”

“We teleported,” Comet gasped, shakily climbing to her feet. Her ears were ringing and her stomach still felt like it was about to rebel against her, but she fought back the urge. “Since when does the ECU have teleportation tech?”

Ionizer was quiet for a moment, his stare unnerving her ever-so-slightly.

“They do not. Not yet,” he looked down at the device in his hand. He then reached down and picked up the beacon he had left prior to starting the trip. “I’ve been working with the higher ups to draft a contract for one of my contacts. For now, I’d appreciate it if you kept this quiet. They don’t like unnecessary attention.”

“What?” Comet shook her head, confused. “Who doesn’t?”

“My contact.”

“And who’s that?”

“Assuming I can get that contract for them, I’ll be able to tell you.”

“I thought you said that this tech was approved!”

“It is.”

Comet groaned, her stomach rolling again. She didn’t have the strength to argue. “Whatever. I need to… lie down.”

Prosperity whined, covering her mouth again.

“Take a moment to gather your bearings. It should pass momentarily,” Ionizer nodded. “Once you two are okay to move, we’ll go make our reports to command and then—”

Prosperity emptied her stomach again which led to Comet dry heaving.

Ionizer’s lips thinned.

“I’ll call a cleaner as well.”