by Drew Hayes
“No need. You’ll be heading to the guild this time. Everything you need will be provided for the weekend. From what I understand, there is quite an array of training planned for you all.”
Tori tilted her head and arched an eyebrow. “Sending me to the park to play with the other kids? About time, it’s already been two weeks since the confluence. I was wondering when—”
The sound of an explosion filled the air. Through the small window in Ivan’s office, Tori saw a bright green blast of light burn through the sky. She looked at her boss and teacher, waiting for him to give her an order, to tell her they needed to get to safety. Clearly some heavy shit was going down, right?
Instead of doing any of those things, Ivan let out a heavy sigh and pulled a small radio from his desk. He clicked it on and an excited, static-filled voice burst forth from the black plastic box.
“—moving to a shelter on Magnolia and Ave E. To all those just tuning in, there is currently a fight occurring in uptown Ridge City by the Alfred Settler Memorial Plaza. Two men with strange powers just robbed Ridge City Savings & Loan and are currently engaged with Stalwart Iron as they try to make their escape. Again, if you are in the area, please seek a safe place to hide. All those out in the open can go to the just-opened shelter at Magnolia and—oh my goodness! It’s Battle Cry, Blunderbuss, and Apollo arriving to assist Stalwart Iron. Such an array of talent and power I personally have never seen—”
Ivan dialed down the volume knob until the radio was barely audible. “This is going to happen a fair bit for the next few weeks. Lots of new metas out there, testing their powers, figuring out what they can do, you get the idea. Eventually, some will build up big enough heads of steam to try and pull a poorly-planned plot like robbing a bank in the middle of the day. Capes are on high alert, so this is the time when any villain with a brain in their skulls goes deep underground until the capes get complacent.”
A knock sounded on the door and Barb, the woman from Human Resources Tori had met during her orientation, poked her head in. Atop it was a small plastic fireman’s hat with the words “Safety Officer” emblazoned in yellow letters.
“Hey all,” Barb greeted. “I’m sure you heard about the fight going on outside. Nothing to worry about, it was miles away and we got word that it’s already wrapped up.”
“I had complete faith we’d be evacuated if the situation was otherwise,” Ivan replied. “Thanks for keeping us in the loop, though.”
Tori could barely manage a nod as Barb ducked out and presumably headed off to the next office in the hallway. She stared at the shut door for several moments before finally forcing her tongue to work again. “You all take this stuff really well. I mean... creepily well.”
“We work downtown in the city where the AHC has its global headquarters,” Ivan replied. “Between idiot upstarts testing their power, the propensity to use capes in place of cops, and being near the tempting target of the financial district, meta fights are just part of our work week. Especially after a confluence.”
“Score one for crashing in the slums, I guess. Nothing to steal means the capes rarely get called out.” Tori gazed past Ivan to the world she’d spent too many wasted years in. For an instant, she could practically see the beaten-down warehouse where she’d set up her makeshift lab, but she blinked and it was gone. Strange as her circumstances with Ivan and the guild were, it was all still a big step up from where she’d been not so long ago.
“Anyway, you said I was going to be doing group training? Should I pack up a bag of my tech to bring along?”
“No, for this exercise, you will only have access to yourselves and what you can find,” Ivan replied, turning his attention back to the spreadsheets in front of him. “You’d do best to assume it will be something quite rigorous and mentally prepare yourself. I trust I don’t need to tell you to bring your A-game, right? After all, you’re representing me as much as yourself, and I have quite the reputation to uphold.”
Tori was pretty certain she caught a whisper of a smirk on Ivan’s face, but it vanished so quickly she suspected it might have been a trick of the light. There or not, she didn’t need visible sarcasm to know that Ivan didn’t give two wet shits about his reputation. He probably did, however, know that being Fornax’s apprentice would put a target on her back right out of the gate and wanted to make sure she was aware of it going in.
“Nothing to worry about,” Tori said. “I’m going to show those other rookies what a real apprentice is made of… which is fire. Real apprentices are made of fire. Wrapped in electronics. With a kicking smile and awesome wit and a sharp—”
“Pleeeeease stop stalling and go back to work.” Ivan looked up from his spreadsheets to glare at her, but only for a second. There was a meeting to prep for, after all.
“You are just no fun at the office. No fun at all.” Tori stuck her tongue out at him while his head was down, then opened the door and headed back to her cubicle.
* * *
Apollo floated gently down to the floor, grinning as applause from the trainees reached his ears. Stalwart Iron was already on the ground, having deactivated the thrusters on his legs. Though some of the others felt Stalwart Iron was a bit stiff, Apollo actually found himself fond of the robotic champion. What he lacked in emotion, he made up for in being willing to do grunt work, and that was a trait Apollo always enjoyed in his lackeys.
“That was great, sir.” It was one of the trainees. Apollo hadn’t bothered to learn most of their names yet, so rather than reply he just gave a smile and a thumbs-up. From behind the rookie, Blunderbuss appeared, massive gun strapped to his back and a pair of would-be criminals unconscious in each arm. Bridge stepped out of the wormhole she’d opened, followed by Battle Cry. A quick motion from Bridge and the warp in space vanished as though it had never been there. Bridge was one of the least well-known capes in the AHC, but she commanded salary and accommodations nearly on par with Apollo’s. Utility was almost as important as prestige. Almost.
“Class, please circle around me,” Stalwart Iron commanded. “Apollo has graciously agreed to lead a discussion over the event you all just saw, so we are going to review the footage from multiple angles in order to make sure you’re adequately prepared.”
This bought Apollo time to grab a shower and a sandwich, the former of which was most important. It wouldn’t do to have them noticing the flecks of blood splattered across his bronze skin. It wasn’t even his fault that the bigger goon had been so roughed up. The guy had certainly looked like he could take a punch, after all.
“You sure about leaving the kids with gearhead?” Battle Cry asked as they left the giant hangar designated for landings and entered a much smaller, more intimate hallway. Behind them, Bridge and Blunderbuss dragged the two cuffed and unconscious crooks off to processing, where the police would pick them up for trial after their abilities were adequately sealed off.
“Did you want to lead a half-hour long fight recap?” Apollo asked.
Battle Cry shook her head, sending the straight dark hair of her wig spinning slightly through the air. Underneath her red leather costume and wig, Battle Cry was a normal-looking woman who could and did pass as a regular civilian when at her day job as a local news station’s production assistant. “I just always feel weird about trusting robots. Yeah, he’s nice now, but you never know when one will get uppity and use Xelas’s Law.”
“Stally isn’t going anywhere,” Apollo said. “He’s technically free and loves working for us. Not all of them turn out like Xelas. Besides, do you know literally anyone else in this organization who doesn’t complain when the cleaning staff is off and the toilets need scrubbing?”
“Okay, you make a strong point. Any thoughts on what you’ll tell the trainees?”
“Probably just stick to the usual: assess the situation, use only the necessary amount of force, always go for the capture instead of the kill unless given special authorization. All the shit we’re supposed to teach them. The ones who actually
make it through will figure out how things really work pretty quickly.”
“It’s not a bad crop. Some of them could be really strong with enough training. I saw Blunderbuss working with that Ren kid, and man, for a rookie, he could take a beating,” Battle Cry said.
“Regenerative properties are off the charts. Whatever weird cocktail he had in his system didn’t go dormant once the changes were done. It’s still in him, bubbling around and fixing anything we try to break. He’s my frontrunner in the class, for now.”
Battle Cry leaned back, staring at Apollo uncertainly. “What, you think one of those others will pull ahead? I haven’t paid much attention, but it seems unlikely.”
“No, most of them are destined to be second-string,” Apollo replied. “I’m more looking forward to when we see the ones who were smart enough not to get found that first night. Unlike the dipshit brothers we brought in today, there are bound to be a few metas testing and training themselves, exploring their powers on their own. Out of that lot, there are always a couple of standouts. Could be some serious talent, assuming they’re smart enough to join our team instead of bothering with the chump change of robbing a bank.”
“Or before those damned guildies get their hooks in them,” Battle Cry added. “I cannot for the life of me figure out why we don’t just kick their doors down and take them all out once and for all.”
Apollo grinned, an expression that made his face literally light up as his ever-present golden glow intensified. “Can’t very well go attacking them for ostensibly trying to support each other in keeping their noses clean, now can we? They’re too smart to get busted doing any amateur-level shit, so we don’t have cause. And besides, I think it’s useful to have all of them gathered together in a guild like they are.”
“Why on earth is that useful?”
The glow around Apollo grew just a bit brighter, shining off the metal floors of the hall as they walked. “Because when the day for dealing with them finally does arrive, it’s more convenient if they’re all grouped up in the same spot. It’ll make for a much cleaner assault.”
* * *
“Gather round, gather round, the betting is about to open.” Johnny spun the blackboard at his back around, revealing a simple table with the names of all four rookies’ teachers along with a selection of numbers on each person’s name. “Since our wonderful guild members did the service of choosing apprentices this year, you can bet on which one you expect to do the best in this weekend’s special training.”
Johnny Three Dicks stood on a box that was full of protein bars so he could see over the small sea of villains that had gathered to participate in one of their favorite forms of entertainment: betting on each other. The sizable break room, stocked with games and snack machines, was almost filled by the crush of people that had turned out to piss away some of their hard-stolen money. Johnny gleefully spotted a few councilors and felt his greedy heart swell with cheer. If they had turned up, this truly was going to be quite the event.
“For the record, I do not approve of this,” Thuggernaut grunted. He was sitting at a nearby card table, playing a round of hearts with The Bytes. Around them, the other guild members scrambled to see the board better.
“You gave Pseudonym’s girl the best odds?” Wildwood asked, staring at the chalk writing. “No one has even seen what she can do yet.”
“Some of us may have filched a file or two,” Johnny replied, “all in the name of research, of course. But regardless, she’s had several weeks’ head start on the others, so she’s not paying out as much if she wins.”
“I’ll drop a hundred on her,” Xelas said. “She’s got spunk. Let me get fifty on Arachno Bro’s boy as well. You humans do not take well to bugs.”
From the rear of the small crowd, a man in a popped collar with spider mandibles sprouting from his mouth gave a nod, then motioned to Johnny that he wanted to put two hundred on his own apprentice.
“Give me two hundred on Balaam’s guy,” Wildwood said quickly. Several other members of the magical division also placed bets on Balaam’s apprentice. Whether they believed he would actually win or not was irrelevant. What mattered was making sure Balaam knew they supported him and his endeavors.
Gork called out for three hundred on Pseudonym’s apprentice, and others quickly piled in, despite the crappier payout. Stasis broke the mold by betting on Arachno Bro’s apprentice. After her, Trilogy was next, and true to his motif, he bet on three of the apprentices, despite the fact that he was functionally guaranteed to lose money no matter who won.
Thuggernaut sat patiently as the bets poured in, villains from all departments of the guild throwing down a few hundred here or there. As he listened, he noticed more and more that his own apprentice was being bet on significantly less than any of the other three. The favor shown for Pseudonym’s apprentice was one thing—she did have a head start and a legendary teacher—but the other two weren’t anything special. In fact, Thuggernaut considered his own apprentice, Beverly, the strongest of those living at the guild, perhaps even more powerful than Tori. The longer he listened, the more bothered he became by the trend, until finally he laid down his cards and stood forcefully from the table.
The crowd parted before him and he approached the small box that Johnny was standing on. He surveyed the blackboard, taking careful note of each student’s odds, then looked his best friend in the eyes.
“I would like to make a bet.”
“Seems I recall someone saying this game was ‘gauche, barbaric, and uncivilized.’ If only I could recall who said those things...” Johnny tapped his fingers together, looking as though he were genuinely plumbing the depths of his mind for the memory.
“That was because it seemed inappropriate to liberate money so easily from a friend. Since you decided to press on, though, I suppose I have no choice.” Thuggernaut paused briefly, doing some quick tabulation in his head. “I’d like to bet ten thousand dollars on my own apprentice.”
Johnny’s whistle carried over the heads of the nearby people who were chattering amongst themselves. Dropping that kind of money was no small feat, and he was her trainer. Maybe he knew something the rest of them didn’t.
“Now that is one hell of a bet,” Johnny said. “But per guild rules, I can’t accept anything over five hundred. Pot gets too big and people start getting antsy.”
“Then put me down for five hundred,” Thuggernaut replied. He returned to his card game, only to lose a few moments later. It didn’t particularly bother him, however. In fact, he was showing a slight grin as Gig reshuffled the deck.
From the way people were betting now, it was clear no one was ignoring his apprentice anymore.
Chapter 18
It was strange to be approaching the guild’s headquarters in a car other than Ivan’s. Tori hadn’t realized how at home she felt with the silent, brooding man until he was replaced by a robot built to look like a human driver—particularly given that, on the surface, this should have been a fairly good substitute for her teacher.
The experience also left her wondering why on earth Doctor Mechaniacal hadn’t started selling these self-driving robots to the world at large, since it did a marvelous job of taking her through traffic. It was honestly better than most humans she’d ridden with, which meant it would be worthwhile for both the guild’s pocketbook and society as a whole. It was possible he didn’t release them because it would help society, but Doctor Mechaniacal had never struck Tori as that type of villain.
After disembarking from the car, which she watched drive off and park itself, Tori let herself in to the changing stations that separated the garage from the guild proper. As Ivan promised, one of her Apprentice costumes was waiting there. She slipped out of her work suit and into the comfortable, now-familiar feel of a guild outfit.
She stepped out and was surprised to find someone waiting for her, though she likely shouldn’t have been. Xelas wrapped Tori in a powerful hug, squeezing so tightly that it almost triggered Tori�
�s fire-form before letting the softer woman go.
“Are you excited?” Xelas asked, her voice literally buzzing as she spoke. “Getting to meet your fellow rookies, sharing stories and experiences, fighting to the death to see which of you we actually keep?”
“I’m kind of—what the fuck?” Tori yelped, her brain catching up to her tongue midway through the reply.
“Calm down, I’m just screwing with you,” Xelas said. “Come on, do you really think we’d force you all into a death match for some artificial reason?”
“Let me meet your question with a question: do you really want me to answer that honestly? Remember, I’ve already got a death threat dangling over my head.”
“Pshhh, we all have those at some point,” Xelas replied. “Honestly, if I don’t have at least three people actively trying to kill me, I feel like I’ve pissed away a week.”
Tori stared at the metal woman for several very long seconds. “Okay, cards on the table: I can’t tell if you’re serious, being glib, or just outright fucking with me.”
“Why pick one when all three seem like great options?” Xelas crooked a finger and motioned down the hall. “Now, come on, your classmates are anxious to meet you.”
Moving slowly but steadily, Tori followed Xelas down the hall. “Are they really? Like, do they know there’s a fourth apprentice?”
“Of course. They’ve got their own teachers, so each one was brought up to speed on the current situation of the guild. They’re also probably all gunning for you, since you’re considered the top seed as Pseudonym’s apprentice.”
“Faaaantastic. Don’t suppose you’d care to even the playing field and tell me a little about them?”
“Technically, since I’m a councilor I’m supposed to be completely neutral, which includes not letting any trainees have advanced information.” As Xelas clipped through the words, it was the first time Tori had ever heard her actually sound robotic, a tone that quickly vanished when she continued. “But screw that, where’s the fun in being a villain if I can’t ignore some rules?”