"-you can see him standing next to the hero known as Cinder! We've identified him as the hero, Battery. As you can see from his power, he likely has a connection to the Victorian! His age is unknown, but we assume he is likely the number one hero's son, as the Victorian used to be married to Max Lightning, and rumors said they had a kid!"
"Yeah, but it was a daughter." Nick said, letting out a soft snort as he stared at the TV. It was on a hero conspiracy channel run by an old hero known as Golden Weaver, who used to be on the Enforcers back in the day when Full Monarch was the leader.
The screen showed off an old studio room, which Golden Weaver was in. The ex-Enforcer member wore a skintight white and gold outfit that covered every inch of the man's body. The symbol of a spider rested in the center of the man's outfit, and a golden thread came out of the man's hands, which connected to the roof. Golden Weaver rested upside down and faced the camera as he spoke about the hero Battery.
"Decide for yourself, dear audience. Could this new Battery person be the Lord of the Sun and Cosmos we have been waiting for?" Golden Weaver asked. "After all, just look at this footage some drones caught!" The image changed, showing a clip taken during the battle with Zoo and the Bad Timers. In it, the hero Battery created a large blue hand made of energy and tossed the heroes Cinder and Paragon into the air. The image zoomed in on Battery, who had a blue aura around him, and a second picture of Full Monarch appeared next to it. The previous number one hero was bathed in skin-tight blue flames. "They look awfully similar, don't they?" Golden Weaver said, letting out a hum. "Either way, up next. Should the hero Fisherman be tried for his crimes of catfishing men on the internet? Stay tuned."
Nick watched as the show went to commercial and began to show off various action figures kids could buy. A new Pantheon set was being created that had the heroes Myth and Snowdawn. The hero Cinder was also an option, though she was sold in a box with Paragon for some reason. Finally, the Ferros toy company was also repackaging their Vitorian toys and Max Lightning figures, including them in a box set alongside Battery.
All because of Golden Weaver's theory.
"Ooh, Jack is going to be annoyed when he sees that."
"See what?" Nick jumped a bit when he felt the apartment shake, and a second later, Battery phased through the wall. The hero dropped down to his knee and wiped some sweat off of his mouth, slowly standing back up. After his conversation with Ocean Empress, he had run all the way back here and vibrated himself through the wall of his apartment since he was too lazy to take the front door.
Nick's eyes lit up as he stared at his roommate. "No way, is this your new costume?"
"I guess." Battery glanced down at himself and flexed his fingers. His golden energy coursed through it. "Boy Genius made it."
"It looks good." Nick grinned. "Think you could get him to make me one?"
"You don't have powers." Battery said flatly.
Nick shrugged. "So?"
"You'd die instantly when someone like Green Wolf decides to look at you." Battery snorted. The man walked over to his fridge and was about to grab something to eat. He hadn't had any food since the death of Old Dog, which was still three days ago. He stopped though when he noticed the TV. "Seriously? You're watching this?"
It was back on the Golden Weaver show. The hero was slowly climbing up his thread and reached the top of the roof, where his golden web was. "Tell me, believers! Do you believe in destiny? Because I do! I think things are fated to happen-"
The TV flickered and switched when Battery grabbed the remote. The channel changed to a different station, showing off Alice Ward. The famous news lady for Oleander, who was always reporting on nearly any hero-related case.
"It's been three days since the death of Old Dog." The woman said in a somber tone. Battery frowned and closed the fridge. He wasn't hungry anymore. "Oleander has been hit with a heavy loss. Despite that, though, life goes on. I happen to be very good at my job, and I found out recently that the newest group to grace our city, Team Pantheon, might be the next sponsored team for our city."
Nick's eyes went wide as he heard that, and he shot a look up toward Battery. "Is she serious?"
Battery collapsed onto the couch and pressed a button on his suit's watch. His suit vanished in a flash of light, leaving him in his dirty dress shirt and pants, which he had been wearing for three days straight since he had gone to Old Dog's funeral. "It isn't set in stone yet." The man sighed. "We have seven days to find the villain Fairy Queen and send her back to Nightshade. If we can do that in time, then Laps will try and get us that sponsor position, but I doubt it'll happen still."
"How come?" Nick asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Pantheon is still a very new team." The red-haired man explained. "I mean, we've existed for at most three months now, give or take. Not a whole lot of time. Since then we have stopped some crime, but most of it has been through the help of the Sub Enforcers or the like, so those guys always get more of the glory since they're more famous. Anytime we do go up against other threats, it's always normal robbers. I think taking guys out like that is fine, but sadly, the public doesn't really care about that stuff since it isn't flashy or dangerous."
Nick rubbed his chin and hummed. "Well, wouldn't now be a good time to do some work?"
"We have to be on the lookout for Fairy Queen." Jack sighed. "Now that she's busted out, she'll be pulling a stunt. Though I guess she will be busy for a day or two, so maybe if we found something quick to deal with."
"Well, it looks like you won't have to look very hard."
"Hmm?"
Jack followed where Nick was pointing and stared back up at the TV. Alice was describing something as a picture was shown. It showed off what looked like a flooded manner. "It appears that the villain Cybercroc has arrived in Oleander. The villain attacked the manor of Sir Ward, completely flooding it and causing a massive amount of property damage."
Jack let out a chuckle at that. "Ocean Empress is going to be mad when she hears about this."
Cybercroc was the leader of a group known as the Wet Bandits. They existed inside of Lillian and were the rivals to Reservoir, the group Ocean Empress ran. The Wet Bandits were sort of like the equivalent of Zoo, but for Lillian. They would go around attacking the homes of rich folks, stealing everything that was inside, and then completely flood the house, either killing everyone in the building through drowning or causing serious damage.
Recently, Reservoir, with the help of the hero Fable, another member of the Enforcers, took out the Wet Bandits, but the leader Cybercroc somehow managed to escape. Now it seems like that guy made his way over to Oleander and would be no doubt looking to build a new team made up of any solo villain he could get his hands on.
"If Pantheon is out there, and if they are listening to this, I'd like to issue them a challenge." Alice Ward said, giving a smirk to the camera. "I've had my eye on your little group for some time now. If you can take down Cybercroc, then you'll have my full support in becoming the next sponsored team."
Jack frowned and clenched his hand into a fist. Alice was a strong woman. She was also a Ward, so it made sense that she'd be ticked off Cybercroc destroyed one of her family manors. Besides Laps, she was likely the strongest human in Oleander City.
"I don't like that look in your eyes." Nick said, letting out a sigh. "When I worked for the Hero Branch, my partner Doctor Blue would give that same look when he was issued a challenge. You're about to do something crazy, aren't you?"
"I'm Jack Larison. I've always been batshit insane."
'Yeah, you have.' The voice of Full Monarch whispered in his ear. 'Say it with pride.'
***
"Can anyone tell me the first signs of ancient civilizations that were uncovered?" Mr. Pluto asked, sitting on top of his desk as he stared out at his students.
Hope eagerly raised her hand. "It was a sign saying 'New York' right! It was discovered by the hero Levithan near the ocean floor!"
"That's correct, Ms. Lauren." Mr. Pluto said, nodding his head. "New York is believed to have been a city that once existed, though it has likely now sunk to the bottom of the ocean. It was lost during the attack of the Shadow, nearly one thousand and one hundred years ago." The man folded his arms lazily as he looked out at the sea of students he taught. "New York was likely a magical place filled with wonderful science. After all, the people that lived there didn't have Supers amongst them. They also likely had no crime."
"I think there was still crime, just crime with normal people." She spoke up, giving a shrug. "After all, humans still commit crimes in our society today, even with Supers running around."
"Maybe you're right, Ms. Lauren. We have no way of knowing though." The teacher turned to his board and began to write out several things across it.
She stared ahead at the board but felt someone nudge her in the side. She looked over, finding it was Kyle. "How do you know all of this?" The boy whispered.
"I cheat." She whispered back. "I read all the text books then memorize them so I can ace all the lessons."
"That doesn't sound like cheating? I think you've just been studying? Are you a secret genius, Hope?" Kyle looked back at her just in time to see her placing her pencil between her nose and mouth.
"I have a mustache." She said, wiggling her eyebrows.
Kyle blinked before turning away. "Nope. Definitely not a genius."
The bell rang, causing her to drop the pencil. Mr. Pluto turned back to the class. "Alright. I'll see you all tomorrow. Remember to travel in pairs, and if you are attacked, you don't have to outrun the gang member; you just have to outrun the person next to you."
All the students stood up and began to head for the door. She followed after them, walking alongside Kyle. It had been a full day since she got her new costume from Boy Genius. School had finally started back up again, though she doubted it would stay open for long, what with all the recent attacks by the new Wet Bandit gang. She'd be meeting back at the Pantheon base soon, where Myth would discuss their next move. Until then, though, she had to play her part as a normal schoolgirl.
As she walked alongside Kyle, she couldn't help but let her eyes roam across the hallway. She spotted who she was looking for. She wasn't the only one staring either.
Ashley Numen, the Queen Bee of their school, stood awkwardly in the hallway. Whispers echoed around as everyone stared at the scar that clung to the girl's body. It was a nasty one, starting from the stomach and crawling all the way up to the girl's right eye. It was a faint red and one that would likely never fade.
She sympathized a bit with the other girl. She couldn't help but reach up and rub at her forehead. Her own scar was there. The one caused by Wish. She had gotten it when the girl punched through her helmet, and Paragon hadn't been able to heal it. She wondered if she should ask Paragon to heal Ashley or if the healer could even get rid of the scars now that they were there.
"Stop staring!" A loud voice yelled out, causing everyone in the hall to jump back. Someone stood in front of Ashley now. One of the girl's friends. Hannah was tall and had dark skin. The girl's hair was braided back, and she glared at everyone in the hall. It was just Hannah. Paige, the final member of Ashley's trio, wasn't anywhere to be seen. "You all have better things to do than gawk at my friend, right!"
Everyone looked away, not wanting to mess with the dark-skinned girl. They had all been there when Hannah had beaten one of Kevin's goons who had been drugged up.
"What are you looking at!" She jumped for a moment when she realized Hannah was staring directly at her. She had been deep in thought and didn't focus on looking away like the others. "You have a problem or something?" Hannah asked, growling.
"N- No?" She said sheepishly.
Hannah let out a hiss and stepped forward about to grab her, but the girl stopped when Ashley placed her hand on Hannah's shoulder. Ashley shook her head softly. "Don't. Let's go, Hannah."
Hannah glared back at her one last time before slowly turning and following after Ashley as the two girls left. She stood there awkwardly in the hallway before she also turned and left, following after Kyle.
"You seriously need to stay out of trouble." Kyle said, letting out a sigh.
"I know." She chuckled and rubbed the back of her head. She was still getting used to having short hair. "I can't help it sometimes, though. I just have bad luck."
Eventually the school day came to an end, and Armin joined her and Kyle, the three of them stepping out of the school building. She felt a small shudder when she saw who was waiting for her.
"The end times come! I tell you all! I speak the truth! The Sun will soon engage the Devil!" Max Lightning was back, dressed like the homeless man, and once again being dragged away by school security. She had thought he'd give this up after revealing himself to her, yet he didn't. The man seemed to strangely like pretending to be homeless and would often show up still. He also always pretended like he didn't know her, so it was awkward to try and ask about what he was saying and if that was the Paths he was seeing or if he was just making words up. "It comes soon." She felt the Enforcer members' eyes on her as the security dragged him to the street. "Very soon."
"Ominus." Armin said flatly.
"I still can't believe he's Max Lightning." Kyle said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I mean, what are the chances, you know?"
"Maybe it's destiny." She snorted and shrugged. "Nah. I still don't believe in that lame concept. My fate is my own."
"Tell that to your bad luck." Armin chuckled, elbowing her slightly.
Kyle folded his arms as they reached the bottom of the stairs and stepped out into the parking lot of the school. "I have to head home, so I'll be seeing you guys. Let me know how the talk with Myth goes."
"Will do."
They said bye to Kyle and made their way over to a familiar car. Her mother was out waiting for her. Jane Lauren smiled when she saw them walk up.
"Yo! What's up, Mrs. Lauren?" Armin said.
"How are you doing, Mr. Moore?" Her mom smiled and shook Armin's hand. "My daughter asked me to give you a ride to the…" The woman leaned forward and whispered out slowly. "B. A. S. E!"
"You don't have to spell it out, mom." She said flatly.
"Sorry." Her mother winced. "I'm still just trying to get used to this whole thing. I've only been to the B.A.S.E. once before, you know. I really haven't gotten to see what you do."
"Well, you don't have anything to worry about, Mrs. Laruen." Armin pointed his thumb at himself. "I'm always there to make sure your daughter doesn't mess up and get hurt!"
Her mom frowned and placed her hands on her hips. "So are you the reason my baby girl's lovely hair had to be cut so short, and are you also the reason her pretty face has that nasty scar?"
"Well… When you put it like that…"
She frowned and rubbed at her scar once more. "It's not that nasty. I think it's pretty cool, actually. Besides, I usually wear my helmet so no one can even see it when I'm out in my hero costume."
"That isn't the point, Hope." Her mom sighed and folded her arms. "I don't want you getting injured like that anymore if you can help it."
"I'll try." She said sheepishly.
They piled into her mom's car. She rested in the backseat with Armin while her mom took them off of the school grounds. It didn't take long for them to reach Spider Street, and even less time from there to reach the base. The three of them hid the car in an alleyway and went down the narrow path.
She was a little proud of the fact that going down the path was a little more of a challenge. During all the Wish stuff she had actually become sixteen, though she never celebrated her birthday anymore since she had a tradition she would only do with her father and until he was out of the hospital she wouldn't throw a party or get any presents due to the rule she set for herself.
The months of being a hero were starting to show on her body. All the nights constantly running and training meant that her arms and legs were getting some muscles to them, and she was even on the verge of getting some abs if she kept at it. More importantly to her, though, she wasn't as flat as she used to be. Still, they were nowhere near as big as Paragon's or Poseidon's, but she was slowly growing up.
She'd have that Super body before too long. Then maybe she'd actually get some fans.
Eventually they reached the base. She was a little surprised her mother was coming but didn't really think anything about it. As they entered, she and Snowdawn pressed the button on their watch, causing their new hero costumes to appear on them.
"Oh? Is that your new costume?" Her mom asked, walking around her.
"Yep!" She said proudly and did a pose. "I'm the new and improved Cinder, now!" Her mother reached out and played with the button on her helmet, causing her face plate to open and close and her voice to distort. "Please stop that."
Her mom just giggled, and they finished the walk up the stairs. Already Myth, Battery, and Whisper were there. The three of them were all in their costumes. "Mrs. Lauren?" Myth raised an eyebrow when he saw her mother. "What brings you here, ma'am?"
"I just wanted to sit in." The woman said sheepishly. "I haven't actually gotten to look at every member of my daughter's team yet."
"So you're Hope's mom!" Whisper decided to show off by doing a cartwheel and stopped in front of her mother. The girl held her hand out for her mother to shake. "I'm Whisper. Best member on the team, and also like a mentor to your daughter."
"Really?" Jane said, shaking the girl's hand.
"No. I lied." Whisper back flipped away, getting back in place next to Myth.
Myth cleared his throat. "Snowdawn, Cinder, please take a seat."
She awkwardly took a seat near the table along with Snowdawn. Whisper remained standing next to Myth, who was in front of his whiteboard. The TV was on, showing off some cheesy movie about an old hero named Omega. Battery was on the couch watching it, and the man scooted over as her mom took a seat next to him. Once they were all in place, Myth began to speak up once more.
"Now that we're all here, let me begin." The man drew on the whiteboard, creating several cartoonish pictures of them and all the members of Zoo, along with Fairy Queen. "Green Wolf broke the villain Fairy Queen out of prison. Fairy Queen is very powerful but won't be active until she is done fixing Golden God. Until that time, it's unlikely Green Wolf and his crew make any moves. When they do attack, it will likely be in a large public place when an event is being held. I've gone ahead and looked into all events being held for the rest of this month and requested that the mayor shut them down. I'm still waiting on Mayor Grove to get back to me on that matter, though. If this does go as planned, we can set up a bait location and maybe capture Green Wolf and then use him to get to Fairy Queen. If that works, we'll likely get our sponsor."
"It won't work." Battery said flatly.
Myth raised an eyebrow. "And why's that?"
"Same reason I told Nick. Even if our plan goes the way we need it to and we capture Fairy Queen, chances are we still won't get our sponsor. Several of the Hero Branch members still don't like you, Myth. As for the rest of us, we don't have the popularity we need."
"We need to clout chase." Snowdawn said, nodding his head. "Up our numbers a bit? I'll go get my phone so we can record an apology Hero Hub video. Cinder, go get a ukulele."
"I don't think that's the solution." She said sheepishly. "A for effort though."
"Do you guys actually have a plan?" Her mom asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, Battery does." Whisper said casually. "He's about to open his mouth and suggest something right now."
Battery shot an annoyed look in Whisper's direction. "Using the Paths to guess what I'm going to say isn't cool. I like being mysterious."
"Just say your plan, sir." Snowdawn chuckled. "What do you have in mind?"
Battery folded his arms and looked back up at Myth. "We have a few days until Fairy Queen is going to be active. I think it would be smart to use that time. We need to do something. Something big. The Sub Enforcers are MIA, and the Watch Dogs are still not ready to come back just yet. This is our chance to get credit for something that we do, and it will all go to us."
Myth nodded slowly, processing Battery's words. "What do you have in mind, Battery?"
"The Wet Bandits." Battery closed his eyes. "We stop that stupid ass-sounding villain group."