by Drew Hayes
The third slide pulled a gasp from Donald, along with several others nearby. Now, they could see more ships, dozens in this one frame alone, with untold more outside the shot. Hearing the word “invasion” was one thing; seeing it stretched out through the vast void of space was an entirely different matter.
“Based on their speed, it is our estimation that the forces will arrive in less than a week’s time. While we will of course monitor in case of acceleration, current predications have them entering within range of Earth on Saturday. I hope you all can appreciate the implications.” Whether it was needed or not, Professor Quantum opted to go ahead and state the obvious, ensuring that everyone fully grasped the stakes of their situation.
“It means that if we do nothing, this will be humanity’s last week in control of its own planet.”
All the data was backing it up, ridiculous as the tip had been.
Wade was never one to turn down a solution, so long as he understood all the implications of using it. A random call to a guild-monitored line, leaving explicit information about the invading forces, was all but the literal definition of “suspicious.” The thing was, that didn’t make the tip incorrect.
People often thought of misinformation as untruths, and while there was certainly a fair bit of that in the mix, there was also more to it than that. On occasion, the right tactic involved giving out real information, but controlling who got it, and when. Move the pieces into position, predict their movements, and plot how to use them to the scheme’s advantage.
Based on the message he’d gotten, the Wrexwren weren’t coming to Earth with no idea of what they were stepping into. They knew the humans had intel, and were planning to challenge them to a duel. They also knew the Earth had an undefeated defender, and they were still coming, which meant they had to think they possessed an effective counter. That part, Wade had been the most curious about, and as test after test returned the predicted results, it seemed he finally had an answer.
“The universe is a scary place, if things like that are just out there wandering around.” He looked over the digital image, constructed out of places the transmission vanished, like throwing paint around a hole to get a shape of the void. Without the message’s precise frequency to scan, it might have taken him weeks more to manage even this much. Seeing the picture on-screen, Wade felt a rare sense of foreboding.
This was no half-assed effort. Whoever was pulling the strings had accounted for nearly everything, even managing to stymie the guild’s power here and there. As much as Wade wanted to wait out the AHC, force them to return on bended knee, begging for even the slightest bit of aid, survival took precedence over grudges. The Wrexwren were coming hard, and so far seemed to be better prepared and informed than the humans they were up against.
The guild would need to be ready to do more than just scavenge and strike. Should the world truly be in peril, it wasn’t just the champions with a stake in its defending. His people would be ready, too, prepared to send a message to every alien, cape, and civilian that saw their handiwork.
Even monsters had the right to protect their home.
Chapter 91
The flash in the sky was all she needed. Juan was asleep on the couch with Beth, and Rick had already locked himself in his room for the evening. Still, Janet paused by the door to scoop up the kitchen trash—less an excuse, more being productive with her time. Stepping out into the night, she shivered slightly. Fall was setting in more firmly; the night winds carried a crisp chill. Part of her wondered if she should have grabbed a jacket, though that might have looked odd to simply take out the trash.
Walking around to the side of her house, Janet popped open the large trash can and tossed her bag inside. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught movement coming from the driveway, a figure stepping into the floodlight’s range, lighting up a whole section of yard. She’d have been so easy to overlook, had Janet not known the truth.
Adjusting her glasses slightly, the woman waited until the light flickered off, plunging them into darkness once more.
“I heard you wanted to talk.”
“Talk?” Janet shoved the trash down harder, resisting the urge to punch and potentially break the bag. With her luck, she’d hit a wine bottle and fracture a knuckle—one more reminder of how human she was. “No, what I want is to be standing over the twisted remains of the people who did this, or living in a world where it never happened in the first place. What I’ll settle for is getting some goddamn answers. You were in there the entire time: how dare you sit on your hands for a full day and make those children suffer.”
Helen didn’t rise to the anger. She simply nodded. “I know this is hard to believe, but being careful and going slow was my way of keeping them safe. The labyrinth had failsafes in case certain abilities were used, ones designed to target the kids. Until I knew what they were, I couldn’t take the risk of accidentally causing the whole thing to explode.”
“How convenient, that it just so happened so that one of the few times Lodestar can’t use her speed is one where you’re sealed inside a getaway with...” Janet forced herself to take a breath. Going off topic wouldn’t help any of this. “Fine. I can accept that in your situation, with Ivan protecting the kids, caution would be the smarter move. My real question is what you intend to do about this moving forward.”
“That’s a perfectly fair concern,” Helen replied. “To answer your question, I’ve only just started the ball rolling, so there aren’t many details yet, but I’m putting together a new division of the Starscouts. Security-based, to ensure that nothing like that happens at one of our events ever again, or barring that, we have people to respond if it does.”
Slamming the large trash can lid down, Janet wrinkled her nose at the last whiff of stink. “What a surprise, you went running to your followers. And now that the AHC has its hooks in, it’s only a matter of time before they turn it into a recruiting pool.”
“Happy to disappoint. This new division still isn’t AHC-related.” Helen was unfailingly calm, even cheery, despite the implied accusation Janet had just thrown. “Since the Starscouts are an organization open to humans and metas, we have quite a few of the latter who have graduated. I’ve been reaching out to old members, asking about their time and availability. There’s lots of interest so far, but it’s much too early to have many specifics in place. Just know that I take what happened this weekend seriously.”
Janet wasn’t sure why she’d expected anything different. Of course Helen already had a plan and an answer ready to go; not to mention found a way to get the personnel she needed without tapping the AHC. Given the role Helen filled in protecting the world, her efficiency and preparedness were technically positive traits, even if Janet did find them annoying.
“A good start for the Starscouts, but what about my kids?” Janet stepped away from the trash, onto the driveway, inadvertently setting off the floodlight once more. “I know who the target was, and why they chose that event to attack. There’s no secret magic protecting their father’s identity from getting out, or them from the fallout. If it’s already started leaking, then this was only the start of what’s to come. Tell me you have a plan to keep them safe.”
For a moment, Helen started forward, arms extending like she was reaching out to comfort Janet. That motion lasted for only a brief instant before she halted, just as the floodlight died once more. “I’m sorry, Janet. I know what you want to hear. You want to know your child will be safe, protected, and watched over no matter what. You want to be able to keep the worst of the world away, to drive it off, spare them so many horrible truths. That’s why I’m sorry, because I can’t give you that. Not even I can be everywhere at once.”
Before Janet could begin her tirade, from which there would have been little reprieve, Helen continued, hurrying slightly. “What I can do is start by enrolling them in various AHC monitoring services, if you’re comfortable with that. We’d set them up with some light surveillance and trackers, along wi
th emergency response beacons they could push to alert us they are in imminent danger. Obviously, these would all be located here; your ex-husband’s property is his own business.”
“That’s it? Your idea is to bug them?”
“I said it was the start,” Helen corrected. “I’m happy to work with you to come up with more solutions.”
To her credit, she did still have a polite smile fixed in place, but Janet doubted just how “happy” she’d really be if that offer was accepted. Not that it mattered. Hearing her proposal had only set Janet’s determination all the more. “Pass.”
“On which part?”
“All of it.” Janet mimed forming the air into a ball, then tossed it over her shoulder into the closed trash can. “You think I’m giving the AHC even one door into their lives? It’s just a matter of time until some cape with an old grudge or burning ambition decides to see how a legend’s offspring hold up. Or hell, one might pull an Apollo and outright use them for hostages. My kids will have protection, but not from you.”
Realization hit instantly. Young as she might look, Helen was concealing a wealth of experience. “As much as I get it—and I do—you understand what you’ll be choosing, right? Ivan is not the norm in that organization. He’s the leash they’re all kept on. I understand the mistrust in the AHC, truly, and if you’d prefer, I can pick the capes assigned to them personally.”
“Do... do you honestly think I’d trust you?” Janet was sincerely a bit shocked. She and Helen were on far from friendly, or even cordial, terms.
At long last, the veneer slipped, and Helen’s forehead pinched in frustration, causing her to run a thumb along the wrinkles that Janet knew would never set. “Outside of your—let me remind you—unfounded suspicions, yes, I would really like to think that if nothing else, you’d believe me when I say I’m trying to protect innocent children. I’ve got the track record to prove it.”
Forcing herself to stay in control, Janet took a few moments to breathe. She couldn’t afford to get overly heated. Much as she loathed it, there might very well come a day when Lodestar was the only cape in her kids’ corners. Janet knew she should play with at least a minimal amount of diplomacy until then.
“All right, perhaps that was a bit far. I’m standing by my decision, however. No AHC involvement. Maybe the guild won’t be as polished or as practiced in their protections, but they’ll know the stakes. They’ll understand just who they’re failing if anything happens to their charges. Besides, sooner or later, those two are going to learn the truth. Better they make some inroads with their eventual allies.”
Surprisingly, Helen gave another nod rather than keep debating. “Very well, then. It’s not the choice I’d have made, but you’re their mom. I won’t try to tell you what’s best for your family. All I can say is that if you ever do decide that we might be able to help, the door will be open so long as I’m there to hold it.”
The sentiment was a nice one, and probably the best place to end the conversation. Janet hadn’t gotten as much reassurance as she might have liked, but after a point, they would just be empty words. There was, however, one detail of the discussion that she refused to let lie. “I appreciate that, and I appreciate the help you’ve shown them so far. That said, let’s be clear: my suspicions were not unfounded.”
A loud, weary groan of a sigh escaped from Helen’s lungs. “I am several decades too old to stand in a driveway and fight about a boy. I’m sorry you think something went on between us, even though it didn’t. No secret affair, no tawdry messages. Ivan and I barely even talked when you two were married. He’d never have done that, and neither would I.”
“I know.” Janet was surprised to hear the words come from her own mouth. She’d realized all of that long ago, though giving the sentiment words was another step entirely. “I know Ivan would never cheat, because I understand why he was here in the first place. It wasn’t an affair I suspected. It was the truth.”
“Janet, it’s been a long weekend, and I’ve still got a lot more work before the night is over. Can you maybe skip over being cryptic and just tell me what it is you think happened so I can set the record straight?”
“If that’s what you want,” Janet agreed. “I ‘think’ my ex-husband married me because I’d given birth to his son, which is admittedly the same reason I married him. He was a good husband—surprising, given his past—but Ivan is adept at throwing himself fully into things. So he became Ivan the father, Ivan the civilian, Ivan the manager. We had another child, built a life together, and over time, I thought we’d fallen in love. Then that day at the beach came. Horrific as it was, the image I can never seem to forget is what came after, when Lodestar arrived.”
There was genuine confusion on Helen’s face now, an expression Janet might have relished in other circumstances. As it was, her focus remained on getting to say her piece. “I know how Ivan looks at someone he loves. There’s a vulnerability that exists only in those instants. I caught it when he looked at our kids, or as a faraway glint on the rare occasions he’d open up about those he lost in the past. For a long time, I thought he just had a different look for me—one of affection and care, yet still not quite the same. And I was okay with that. You don’t wed someone with his baggage without expecting a few oddities. Until that day. Until you landed, racing over to comfort the man who’d just slaughtered an army. Until I saw the way he looked at you.”
“I cannot emphasize enough, nothing was going—”
“Do you think that makes it better for me?” Janet barely resisted the urge to yell, her hands forming into balls. “I get it. You did nothing wrong, as always. You were perfect, and moral, and continued to live at a standard no one else can touch, and I’m just the horrid monster of an ex who dared to want more than a hollow marriage. But he loved you. Loves you still. Don’t look me in the eye and pretend you don’t realize that.”
Some distance off, the sounds of a car’s brakes filled the silence of the night air. “Yes, Janet. I know how Ivan feels about me. That’s why we barely talked when you were together. Both of us understood the danger and avoided it. Because whatever passing affections he might have in my direction, this family is the most important thing in the world to him, as it should be. And I promise you, Ivan never strayed, never even looked off the path. This emotion that you’re angry about, I understand, but I’m not sure what more either of us could have done.”
“While we’re several years and a new, happy marriage past that point, some more honesty might have been helpful. I don’t think Ivan is ever going to work past what he feels for you. However, if he’d been open about it, we could have at least tried.” A brisk wind caught Janet, causing another shiver. Helen remained unbothered, of course. She lived in the same world as Ivan, filled with beings of incomprehensible power, a realm that mortals could only catch glimpses of.
“On that front, I truly don’t know what to say. Getting Ivan to open up is beyond even the greatest of capes. Only he decides when to be vulnerable.” Helen took a slight step back, turning on the floodlight once more. Head lifted, she was scanning the skies, preparing to leave.
Tempting as it was to let her go, Janet did have one last bit of curiosity to scratch, especially since answers were flowing. “You know, in all this time, I’ve only ever gotten to witness Ivan’s side of things. That intentional avoiding of each other, was that purely for his sake?”
“Have a good night, Janet. I’ll catch you around.”
A few hops back out into the darkness, then suddenly, there was a flash of light and an empty driveway.
Janet headed back into the house; question more thoroughly answered than Helen might have intended. Nothing quite said inadvertent guilt like hightailing it out of a conversation at top speed.
Chapter 92
Halfway through her Monday morning wake-up routine, Tori paused to wonder if she even actually had to go in to the office. So far, they’d generally given her a few days off after each life-shaking traumatic event
, but a corporation’s goodwill could only stretch so far. Then again, she did know the boss, and the guy who owned the whole damn shebang, so perhaps she was receiving more generous time to recover than most. Toothbrush still hanging from her mouth, Tori popped open her phone, a text from Ivan already waiting.
“No office today, but there’s still work to do. Meet me outside your building at our usual start time.”
Interesting. Tori tossed the phone down and slowly resumed her brushing. No telling for sure what today’s activities would entail, though she could make a few general guesses on the subject matter. After a night of sleep and a few thousand actual calories, she was feeling far less wiped, but the new secret she’d uncovered still lay heavy on her mind. Tori was extremely thankful Helen had explained that it was impossible for her to slip up; at least she didn’t have to worry about some wrong word or turn of phrase giving away what she knew.
A few solid raps on her door were all the warning she got before Beverly shoved it open. “Hey, you almost ready in here? Chloe got up early to cook you a ‘welcome home’ breakfast, and I am not facing that alone.”
“That was sure... kind of her.” Tori had never quite gotten her flames hot enough to manage turning something solid into total ash, which would have made disposal of the goods far easier. Perhaps an invention to consider, once her suit was fully repaired.
“At least you can stall until it’s time for your office job,” Beverly said, marking one of the few times she’d expressed jealousy for Tori’s corporate-cog status. “Speaking of, since my more distracting roommate was gone all weekend, I made a lot of headway on our project. Couldn’t sleep after you got home and hit the lab, so I stayed up and got pretty close to being done. By tonight, I should have my part ready for the prototype.”