The next morning, James and Sparrow met in the main hall to prep for the briefing. Sparrow was up most of the night getting every detail of her report looking perfect and as a result, was now looking quite tired.
James walked up from behind and leaned over her chair. "How do we get to HQ," he asked, causing her to let out a startled gasp.
"Don't scare me like that! She shouted as she smacked his arm in retaliation.
Then pointing over to a flashing disk that looked like a cross between a credit card and a computer chip, she said, “This is a transport marker, an agent from HQ will lock on to our signal and beam us over when they arrive.”
James raised an eyebrow, his interest was piqued. “Beamed? As in teleported?”
She nodded her head. “Yup, they have agents that they recruit specifically for their ability to teleport. It’s the only way to get in and out of HQ and it’s highly regulated.”
Once she was done talking James felt a prick in his brain. A sense of dread was building in him as spillover from Kazav.
"Kazav, are you ok?" He asked internally so as not to alarm Sparrow.
“I’m fine kid, it just feels like we are heading into the belly of a beast is all.”
James' eyes narrowed, “What do you mean?”
"We are about to enter the most sacred and heavily guarded location on this planet. Most of the people there probably wouldn't respond well if they found out you had basically conned your way into being a hero."
James' heart fluttered at the thought of being found out. "Wow, I didn't even think about that. Do you think we should be worried? I mean, is there any way for them to sense that about us?"
Kazav let out a long sigh. "I don't know kid, I guess we will find out soon enough."
Sparrow looked up at James and could tell he was nervous. "Hey, you'll be fine," she reassured him. "Besides if anyone should be nervous it's me. I'm the one who will be doing most of the talking."
That was more than okay with James, he hated public speaking. There are few things worse in his mind than being in front of a room of judgmental strangers forcing you to speak.
As they sipped on some coffee that James had made before entering the hall, a bright light lit up the room, forcing them to shield their faces.
Once the light subsided, they could see a man now standing in its place.
James and Sparrow both raised an eyebrow at his appearance. The man was tall and wore a black leather trench coat. His hair was greased back and had a bright sheen. Sunglasses guarded his eye's causing his facial expression to be a bit vague.
"I'll be your transport," the man announced in a burly tone.
They both put their drinks down on the table and walked over to the mysterious stranger. He held out his hands and motioned for them to take hold of them.
James reached out first and gave the hand a firm grip. Sparrow followed suit and gently placed her fingers around his palm.
With their hands locked the man began to glow once more and as his body began to disappear so to did James and Sparrow.
The next thing they both saw was the interior of a large metal room they had just materialized in. They felt confused. The room looked more like a prison cell than a high-tech headquarters.
"Follow me," the transporter commanded his tone now serious.
He walked up a flight of metal stairs and motioned for them to follow. They both scurried up the stairs as they tried to keep up.
"This is not at all what I was expecting," James thought to Kazav.
"Don't worry kid, I get the feeling we are about to be pleasantly surprised."
He looked over at Sparrow who had the look of intense focus on her face. She was trying to look confident but James could tell she was freaking out internally.
They all walked up one more flight of stairs before coming to a stop. The transporter looked back at both of them and said, "Make sure to mind your manners and respect the other heroes. They are all on duty and don't have time to chat."
Both of them nodded to him affirmatively. Satisfied, he typed a password in the keypad and the doors started to part. Once on the other side, James and Sparrow's jaws hit the floor out of wonder.
The doors had opened into a massive arena that looked like it belonged in some sort of science fiction movie. A waterfall feature sat near the top of the ceiling and rained a torrent down onto an artificial lake below. The apiary was a magical mix of nature and high-tech design. White, metallic floors sprawled out in all directions and people walked, biked, and hoverboard, their way around on them.
Sparrow smiled as she walked by the small oasis' of exotic flora planted in little gardens in between the rooms and walkways. It was like a whole other world that was guarded away from the outside, a paradise in the middle of a slum. Heroes of all stripes and districts roamed around inside as they interacted with the endless army of lab techs, officials, and sidekicks.
Some of the heroes were big names that James recognized from his card collection. Thunderclap, Cosmic Ray, Black Dragon, he was surprised to see them all in one place and all in the flesh.
Before long they exited the apiary and entered a long, whitewashed hallway that resembled an office complex. Room number after room number stretched on for what seemed like forever. The visual of endless department doors was broken only by the elevators that led to higher levels.
The man they had been following pushed the button and said, "Once we get off the elevator you will be in the grand council room. I hope you realize what an honor this is."
Sparrow gulped as her throat began to tighten. "Yes sir," she mumbled out as her voice wavered.
Sparrow reached out and grabbed James' hand, causing him to look down at it and then back up at her. Her expression was glassy and distant, much like the face a soldier makes when having a flashback.
He smiled as she held his hand. There was a mix of pity and warmth rushing through his heart. He rubbed her hand with his thumb to get her attention. "Hey," he said in a comforting tone. "It's going to be fine."
She gave him a nod and then smiled once she realized what she had done. Much to James' surprise, she didn't let go of his hand until they reached the top.
With a loud ding, the elevator doors flung open and Sparrow released James' hand to grip her binder. The next thing they both knew they were standing before the council of the Heroes Guild.
The council consisted of the 5 most powerful heroes as well as the 5 highest-ranking officials.
James didn't recognize any of the officials. However, he did recognize all of the heroes.
Dreadnaught was the hero sitting closest to him. With the power to manipulate light and energy in any fashion few enemies escape his grasp.
To his left was the Crimson Lady. She wore a blood-red jumpsuit and could drain the life force directly from a person's body. For that very reason, she is the most feared, and respected woman in the entire guild.
To her left was Carl, the most nonchalant and ambivalent man in the world. With his power of never-ending good luck, he never had to lift a finger to bring his enemies to their knees.
Next to him was Metamorphosis, a tall, slender woman who could transform into anyone or anything. Many a mob boss have had their plans foiled by her wily tricks.
Finally, there was Jeremy, James' brother. His hero name was Dauntless and he boasted virtual invulnerability alongside immense strength. While he had other powers he could utilize it was for those two in particular that he was feared and envied.
On the other side of the table sat the five highest-ranking officials in the guild. All of them were older, grizzled, and worn-out-looking men and women. James felt very uncomfortable around them. Their sagging faces and bland, fitted suits made them look like clones and lent the room a corporate vibe.
Franklin waved for them to take their seats so the meeting could begin.
"Now then, we are all here today at this critical meeting to discuss a matter of critical importance." He looked over at Sparrow. "I assume you informed him of the Nexus orb?"
She nodded affirmatively. "Yes Official Franklin, I filled him in on the basics."
Dreadnaught butted in before Franklin could respond. "All due respect Franky, why are these two low levels at this meeting? Shouldn't they be trying to track down a missing dog or something?"
James tensed up as his brother laughed alongside Dreadnaught. Kazav calmed him the best he could and after a deep breath, he regained control.
Franklin was in no mood for their antics and began to raise his voice. "They are here because, despite their ranking, they have vital information to share. Information that they obtained despite great danger to themselves so listen up!"
With the room now silent, Franklin motioned for Sparrow to stand and present her report. "Please, brief us on the situation."
"Thank you, Official Franklin," she said as she walked to the podium. Once her binders were arranged to her liking she dove into her presentation. "I am sorry to report that we have confirmed anti-hero activity taking place in our guilds patrol radius." She rifled through her binder and pulled out a photo that James had taken. It was an image of the odd symbol James noticed while looking through their vans.
Sparrow held it up for all to see. " All the districts who have also reported of this group's activity report seeing the same symbol. It appears on the member's bags, clothes, and even their vehicles. Unfortunately, this confirms they are organized and widespread."
She then pulled out an image of the factory James had tracked them to." Our investigation also confirms that they are using abandoned buildings for covert meetings."
"Where did you get these images?" Asked one of the officials at the table.
Sparrow looked over to James who gave her a grin. "One of our newest heroes bravely infiltrated a meeting and was able to gather some invaluable details."
"Right," Franklin barked out. "This budding young hero, Night Phoenix, was able to hunt down and eavesdrop on these sinister zealots." He then motioned for James to stand up and asked him to give a statement. The room gave him a halfhearted clap as he got up from his chair and thought of what to say.
"Night Phoenix?" Jeremy blurted out condescendingly. "That's a cute name Lil bro."
Kazav sensed James getting riled up and jumped in to keep things from escalating. "Stay cool kid, just say a few words and then we can be done with this."
He swallowed the lump building in his throat and gave a short remark. "Thank you all for your kind words. I was just serving my guild and my community to the best of my abilities." He sat back down slowly and tried not to draw any more attention to himself.
"So, little Sparrow," Jeremy called out. "Any other important details we should be made aware of?"
She scowled with an intensity James had never seen from her before. She didn't need to say a word in reply, everyone knew exactly what she was thinking. "Unfortunately they seem to be aware of the Nexus Orb. They made mention of it during their meeting and also appear to have a corruption crystal in their possession."
The mood in the room shifted markedly after hearing her mention the Orb and the Crystal.
"Seriously?" Jeremy cried aloud. "Why didn't you take it away from them when you could have? Aren't you suppose to be a hero?"
Sparrow interrupted him before he could scald James any further. "He had no way of knowing what it was, the mission was strictly recon and he performed his duties perfectly."
James blushed from the attention as well as her kind words. Sparrow noticed his face turning red and held back a smirk.
Dreadnaught slammed his fist down on the table. "So what's our next move?"
Franklin stood back up and motioned for Sparrow to take her seat. Once she was seated he started giving the room a rundown of what to expect in the coming days. "The next move is forming a dedicated task force to root out and eliminate this threat. Our first and most important objective is obtaining and destroying, their corruption crystal. We also need to find out how they know about the Nexus Orb as it's possible the leak came from within the guild itself."81Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyaC2pnFki6
Everyone began to look around the room at one another, a hint of suspicion now rising in the back of their minds.
"The next objective will be stepping up hero recruitment and training. If this new group of anti-hero zealots has a corruption crystal at their disposal then monster activity is sure to spike."
The Crimson Lady leaned back in her chair and put her feet up on the desk. "That corruption crystal is what concerns me the most. I would like to volunteer myself to head up a task force dedicated to their destruction."
Franklin nodded in agreement. "You have experience with these crystals Crimson Lady so that sounds like a solid plan."
After handing out tasks to the other heroes and officials he turned his attention to James and Sparrow. "As for you two, I will be sending a detailed description of your new priorities once you return to your guild hall."
Sparrow saluted him and shouted, "Yes sir, thank you, we won't let you down."
A smile broke out on Franklin's face as Sparrow's enthusiasm filled him with vigor. "I know you won't! Now, everyone except the officials please leave the council room, we have much more to address before this day is over."
The high-level heroes left through a door at the other end of the room while James and Sparrow followed their assigned transporter back down to the arena floor.
"How do you think that went?" James asked Sparrow as they hurried along.
"The meeting? I think it went well. I'm excited about our new assignments and I'm glad we had the chance to come here." She still had a glazed look in her eyes that made James worry. She was distant and aloof like her mind was somewhere else.
Once they returned to the room they had arrived in the transporter held out his hands just like before. "Take my hand," he commanded.
With one of their hands in his, he beamed them back into their guildhall to be greeted by the entire team. They had been waiting for them eagerly and wanted all the juicy details about HQ they could give.
"Tell us everything!" Super Static squealed while tapping her feet on the floor excitedly.
Sparrow took a deep breath in and sighed. "There will be plenty of time to talk later today when we get our assignment from HQ. For now, I need to take a nap or something. I am exhausted." She swayed a bit as she walked out of the room to her quarters.
"Kid," Kazav said ominously, "there is something I want to show you."
81Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4L4Kau9HH5
