It was the people that made her most uncomfortable, though. Behind a security desk was a man with bronze skin, and that wasn’t figurative, who was bald and looked to her like he could pick up and throw a truck. He was in a relatively nice suit, and had an earpiece, indicating that the man probably was security for the building… which made sense when Lilith thought about it. In a line by the counters were several people waiting, each of them in approximations of superhero outfits that she suspected were home-made. Well, aside from the man in what looked like a suit of silver and green fish scales that covered him from the neck down. That looked like it was professionally made. The young woman in a pair of painted jeans and a tie-dyed hoodie just made her cringe internally. That wouldn’t offer much protection.
Beyond the people which Lilith assumed were here to sign up as heroes, there were also a handful of men and women in a cluster behind the statue who had far more professionally made outfits, and they’d stopped talking as she entered the room, while the reporters who were lounging in a small café to the left of the desks sat up abruptly. At a guess, either they’d known she was coming, or they were usually here.
“Miss Carpenter?”
Lilith almost jumped as the bronze-skinned man spoke in a surprisingly mellow voice, given his frame, and turned toward him. Now that she looked closer, she saw he had a nametag, with the name Dave listed below a line that said ‘SuperNet Security’.
“That’s me,” Lilith agreed, keeping an eye on the heroes and the reporters. A couple of the latter were quickly scrambling to their feet, one of them pulling out a notebook, while a woman adjusted her hair. “I’m here for an appointment with the director.”
“I was told to expect you,” Dave said, smiling at her as he shuffled through the podium he was behind. Then he pulled out a card and offered it to her. “Here you are; that’ll take you through the central doors. There’s an elevator on your left, you’re looking for the fifth floor.”
“Thank you,” Lilith said, relaxing marginally as she gave him a smile, taking the card. She glanced at the reporters as she added, “Now, it seems I’d better move quickly, before I’m waylaid.”
“True enough. Have a pleasant visit, ma’am,” Dave replied, nodding to her, and Lilith quickly headed for the doors he’d indicated, hoping that she’d be quick enough to avoid being accosted. Not that there was much chance of that, unless she broke into a run.
“Excuse me, Ms. Carpenter! If I might have a minute of your time—” a man began as he got close enough, and Lilith looked at him wryly, but didn’t stop as she interrupted.
“I’m afraid not. I’m on my way to a meeting and don’t want to be late. That goes for all of you, as a matter of fact,” Lilith said calmly as more of the reporters drew closer. She was suddenly happy that she’d chosen to wear the undersuit that Circe had made for her. It fit beneath her clothing, and provided more defenses in case she was attacked, which was the whole reason she’d worn it. “If you want to try to get an interview, I’m quite certain there’s a form you can fill out on my website, though I believe there’s an enormous backlog at the moment. In the meantime, good day to all of you.”
“But—” a woman began, only for Lilith to ignore her as she reached the doors in question. Her anxiety spiked a little as one of the heroes started strolling in her direction, but Lilith held her card near the door reader and its red light turned green as it unlocked the door.
Slipping through the door without allowing a particularly aggressive reporter through was a little more difficult than Lilith liked, but she was faster than most mundanes, and none of the reporters struck her as superhumans. When the door clicked shut, Lilith let out a breath of relief and turned around, only to almost squeak as she came face to torso with a woman who was much taller than her.
Lilith looked up to see that the woman in front of her had to be nearly eight feet tall. She also had cow horns, and a broad, somewhat flatter face. Coupled with the black skirt and white blouse, the woman would have been the very image of a secretary, though the musculature she had indicated that she might be stronger than Dave. It was only belatedly that Lilith realized she had hooves, and the woman was positioned next to a desk just inside the doors.
“Who are you, and why are you here?” the woman asked bluntly, her voice unusually deep for a woman. She was likely a minotaur, Lilith realized a moment later. They’d appeared during the Advent, and most of them were still in the regions around Greece, though some had migrated to pretty much everywhere since then.
“I’m Lilith Carpenter, and I’m here for a meeting with the director,” Lilith replied belatedly, blinking up at the brown-eyed, red-haired woman. “Sorry for my odd entrance, but there are reporters in the lobby.”
“There always are,” the minotaur replied, snorting softly as she reached down to pick up a tablet, glancing at it before nodding. “Yes, you’re still on the list, and appointments are currently on-schedule. Take the elevator there to the fifth floor. You’ll need your card to activate the elevator.”
“Ah, thank you. I might not have realized that,” Lilith replied, nodding slightly, and she edged around the woman, then walked over to the elevator. The woman replied with a sniff, setting her tablet back down as she moved to take a seat.
Lilith hit the button to call an elevator, and as she did she had to wonder if the woman was there for security. If she was, she certainly would give most people pause. Her musing cut off as the elevator chimed almost instantly, sliding open to reveal a gleaming interior and faux wood paneling. Lilith’s eyebrows rose as she stepped inside and noticed that the floor buttons looked like they were made of wood as well, and there was a card reader above them with a glowing red light. She swiped her card over it, causing the light to turn green, then hit the button for the fifth floor. This was certainly different than the San Francisco SuperNet building… but she’d also been in a different part of the building. This certainly wasn’t an area meant for power testing.
The doors closed, and there was barely a sense of movement as it moved up the elevator shaft. That impressed Lilith a little more, but she supposed it only made sense. Paragon City was one of the few cities in the world that had been built from the ground-up with the new technology that many superheroes had introduced. Not that many people were happy thinking about the reason it’d been rebuilt; they just liked looking at the triumph of mankind over adversity.
“I suppose that people have to take victories where they can,” Lilith murmured to herself, a hint of sadness rippling through her as she thought about the destruction that was wreaked across the globe on a daily basis. There were so many villains, and plenty of people who could be heroes were closer to mercenaries, though she really couldn’t blame them. The life of a hero could be dangerous, as evidenced by how Gina and Rachel had both been severely injured in the past several months.
The elevator came to a stop and the doors chimed, then opened, letting her step out into a hallway that branched to both her left and right, and Lilith paused, wondering where she was supposed to go, exactly. There was a directory on the wall, and she stepped forward to study it for a moment. A part of her wished that the others were with her. Gina and Rachel gave her courage and helped suppress her nerves. On the other hand, the thought of them did give her a warm, almost fuzzy feeling, and she felt herself perking up anyway, her smile growing a little more real.
Finding the director’s office didn’t take long, as it was prominently displayed on the directory, and Lilith turned to the right, heading down the hall and taking in the odd ambiance of the building. She passed a door that was slightly ajar, and she could hear several people within, one which seemed to be on the phone, and the placard said ‘Hero Insurance Adjudication’, which told her a lot about what it was for. From what she’d been told, heroes had to pay something of a premium for health insurance, and SuperNet did what it could to keep the costs reasonable.
A minute later she reached the door at the end of the hall, which didn’t
have a name on it. It was emblazoned with a simple ‘Director’ in gold lettering, and Lilith suspected that the frosted glass wasn’t glass at all, but something far stronger. She’d heard of SuperNet being attacked before, and their buildings were incredibly durable, from what Lilith had heard.
Lilith knocked, and a man replied immediately. “Come in!”
Opening the door, Lilith stepped inside and paused, looking at the room in some surprise. The back of the room was a broad set of windows that gave a breathtaking view of Paragon City, with hovercraft zipping between the glittering spires and high-rises of the city, as well as the mountains beyond them, the Guardian Compound barely visible on one of the nearby peaks. Facing away from the window was a desk and chair, both of them sleek and modern, the desk mostly glass and silvered steel.
The thing that made her pause was the rest of the room, though. Instead of continuing the elegant, modern look, the walls were covered in posters of different heroes, men and women alike, while shelves held toys, trading cards, books, and more. All of it was themed off heroes, and the riot of colors took her aback as she looked around, blinking.
Behind the desk was a Hispanic man with short-cropped black hair and a thin, well-trimmed mustache. He was looking up at Lilith and smiled broadly at the sight of her, honest pleasure in his gaze as he stood, speaking enthusiastically.
“Ah, you’re here! How may I address you, Miss Carpenter?” the man said, spreading his arms, then paused and laughed. “Ah, but I forget myself! I’m Osmar Esparza, director of the northern Utah SuperNet branch. It’s a pleasure to meet you!”
Lilith took a moment to steady herself, as she’d expected someone like Allison Gambry, the woman who’d tested her powers. The woman, better known as Insight, had been friendly but calm and poised, not enthusiastic like Osmar was.
“You… can call me Lilith, Director,” Lilith replied after a moment, a touch cautiously, and her response caused his smile to fade a little.
“My apologies, but did I do something wrong? You seem a little… wary, I suppose,” Osmar asked, lowering his hands slowly. “None of my people were unpleasant to you, were they? Here at SuperNet we pride ourselves on supporting heroes and those with powers, so if we did…”
“Oh no, of course not,” Lilith said quickly, shaking her head. “No, it’s just that you aren’t what I expected. My only previous interactions with SuperNet were primarily with Miss Gambry, so I’m a touch… confused, I suppose.”
“Ah, that would do it! Insight is a lovely, skilled lady, but I do wish she’d have more enthusiasm for her job!” Osmar said, smiling widely once again, then he waved at the room. “I, on the other hand, love my job. It allows me to help heroes fight the good fight, while making their lives easier. I may not have any powers myself, but that doesn’t mean I can’t do my own part to help them. Please, come in and sit down! Oh, and please call me Osmar, Lilith. Director just sounds so stuffy.”
“As you like,” Lilith said, beginning to warm to the man somewhat. When she’d been asked to give the director an interview, she hadn’t been quite sure what to expect. This was very different, and that helped her tension ease significantly as she eased down into a chair across from him. “I must say, I’m somewhat surprised by your reaction. Most people have looked at me skeptically thanks to Shadowmind.”
“Have they? I wish I could say I was surprised, but I’m afraid I’m not. It’s a shame, how narrow-minded people are,” Osmar said, clicking his tongue in disapproval as he settled into his chair again. “No, heroes can come from any walk of life, good or bad. I’ve heard of a fish spontaneously transforming into a human with powers who took up the mantle of a hero, as well as people who were dragged into crime syndicates at an early age! No, I don’t care who your mother or creator was. So long as you’re determined to do good, that’s all that matters to me. You proved yourself in the fight against Doctor Johnson, as far as I’m concerned.”
“That certainly makes me feel better,” Lilith murmured, relaxing still more as she took in the man’s expression. She thought the sincerity in his voice was real, and it thawed her attitude still more. “I’ve had… difficulties, I’m afraid.”
“I certainly can imagine, after the mess surrounding you a few months ago,” Osmar said, grimacing slightly. “I didn’t have anything to do with the bounties, mind you, but SuperNet allows secure communication between heroes, and we got a lot of inquiries about you. We didn’t share anything, of course, as your file was confidential, but since Ocean Shield had it… the genie was out of the bottle, I’m afraid. You have my sincere apologies about that.”
Lilith blinked, honestly surprised by both the explanation and the apology. While she’d known that SuperNet had the information on her powers, it’d never even occurred to her that they might have leaked the information.
“To be perfectly honest, I always thought it came from Ocean Shield. That you might have leaked it… it never occurred to me,” Lilith said, and at her words she saw Osmar relax a little, his smile returning. “Now, that aside… might I ask why you wanted to interview me? I wasn’t certain what it was about.”
“Ah, of course, of course! One moment, I have what I need right here…” Osmar said, turning back to the computer screen, quickly tapping a few keys, then clicked his mouse once, and waited, muttering, “Sorry, I’m afraid my computer is a bit slow. Possibly glacial.”
“It’s fine,” Lilith said, amusement building inside her at his obvious impatience, as the man tapped the desk.
“There it goes!” Osmar said at last, and he turned the monitor to face her as he spoke. “I contacted you because of something Warden said when she let us know she was transferring out here and was asking for recommendations for part of her business. She said you were planning to take up arms as a hero, and that piqued my curiosity rather firmly. While I’m sure she and Morgan could give you good advice, there’s no one who knows more about heroes than SuperNet, and I’d rather you went into the field with both eyes open. Beyond which, you’re perfect for marketing, I must say, and that will likely improve your reputation.”
The monitor showed a series of bulletin points, and Lilith’s eyebrows rose slightly as she looked them over. They mentioned marketing, licensing agreements, healthcare, secure banking, legal assistance, contacting suppliers, and more, which was a bit of a surprise. It took her a few seconds to realize what this really was, though. This was a sales pitch for her, and it was all Lilith could do to keep from breaking out in laughter.
“I think I understand, now,” Lilith said, smiling slightly as she looked at Osmar, thinking for a few seconds, then shook her head slowly. “And here I thought that you were going to ask about the technology used to build my house.”
“Well, I’ll admit that was something that a few people have asked about, but I know better than to ask,” Osmar replied, shrugging and having the grace to look a little embarrassed. “I’m being honest, though. I doubt you know about all the pitfalls of forming a team, and neither do your friends, since they’ve only joined existing teams before. Besides which, I know that you’re wealthy, but good publicity is important for any hero.”
“Yes, it is. Well, I’m going to listen, Osmar, but I’m not going to be rushed into anything,” Lilith said, settling down now that she knew what she was dealing with.
While she might not be experienced in a lot of situations, she’d gotten a fair amount of practice with analyzing pitfalls of business decisions in the past year, and that was something she could deal with.
“Of course! Now, first of all you’re going to want to look at whether or not making an official team is even worth the expense. It often means registering with the local cities and setting up communications with their law enforcement. That has its advantages, but…” Osmar began, looking surprisingly excited to Lilith. She supposed that he wasn’t joking when he said he loved his job.
Chapter 9
Thursday, April 24th, 2031
UC Berkeley, Berkeley
/> “And… there, done,” Rachel said, letting out a sigh of relief as she finished signing a final form, putting it in the pile to her right. That pile was much, much larger than she’d anticipated it being, but there’d been a rather large number of things she hadn’t expected when she decided to leave the university, and thus she’d been buried in paperwork.
Almost worse had been her students, though. Former students, really, but that hadn’t stopped them from trying to catch her as much as they possibly could over the week. She found it ironic, since many of them had been rather halfhearted in their studies while she’d been teaching, and now their enthusiasm had been palpable. Obviously, they’d have listened to her as Morgan significantly more readily than they had to her as Ms. Moore.
“Oh? I was wondering what was keeping you,” Gina said, startling Rachel into spinning around, blinking at the sight of her friend.
Gina was grinning at her while standing in the doorway, dressed in a nice purple blouse and a black skirt that suited her. Ever since the undertone of Gina’s skin had been turned blue, with azure lips, her friend had been trying different colors to see what worked best for her now, and Rachel rather liked the current experiment into greens, blues, and purples. On the other hand, if it weren’t for Gina’s sunny disposition, the colors would have made her look surprisingly cold.
“Gina! What’re you doing here?” Rachel demanded, standing up quickly. “How did you get in, anyway?”
“One of the teachers recognized me and let me in. Not that them recognizing me was hard, I suspect. We’ve had a rather lot of media coverage over the past months,” Gina said dryly, smirking in response as she stepped into the room and leaned forward to give Rachel a brief kiss. That prompted a blush from Rachel, though she wasn’t about to object with the warmth it sent through her. Gina paused after breaking the kiss, then corrected herself. “Well, we had a lot of coverage, not so much in the last few weeks. But given our relationship… I’m not surprised they knew who I was.”
Queen's Move (Lilith's Shadow Book 3) Page 6