String - Identity 12.7

We didn’t know where Lucy was, but it didn’t take us long to find her.

I deployed two drones that had fit comfortably in the truck of my car, and they had done most of the heavy lifting in terms of scouting.

Having lost all my original drones to Ajax and Pandora, I had already begun the process of replacing them. By this point, the drones were exceedingly cheap to recreate, seeing as I had done so many times before now. Unfortunately, I had spent a lot of my time occupied with Splicer’s mechatech, so they had only received slight improvements to their scanning and threat detection systems compared to those that were destroyed.

Those upgrades, along with Anomaly’s ability to see sounds and identify Lucy’s voice, led us to an unsuspecting cabin. 

It was small and clearly lived in. There was washing hung up on a line that stretched out from the house to a nearby tree, a bucket of bait used for fishing sitting on the ground by the steps to the front door, and a still steaming cup of tea on the porch railing.

“Cozy,” Alice commented lightly as we walked into the clearing. “I’ve always liked the idea of living out in nature, but there’s too many modern comforts I just couldn’t give up.”

“Internet, food deliveries, electricity,” Copycat listed off easily. “All pretty great, but you wouldn’t have to deal with all the Super bullshit that cities attract.”

“Plumming is nice too,” Prosperity added awkwardly. “I think I would miss showers too much.”

“Mmm, hot water. How could I overlook something so important?” Alice said, nodding in agreement.

Prosperity chuckled lightly before summoning blue fire in one of her palms.

“I don’t really need to worry about that.”

“Lucky,” Alice giggled. “I’d have to rely on my wits,” she said before leaning over to nudge me. “Good thing I can just drag this lug with me if that ever happened.”

I wasn’t in the mood to be trading quips. My mind was too consumed with everything that happened, and knowing Lucy was inside the building in front of us sent a wave of anxiety through me. I knew what I wanted to say, but I wasn’t sure how I was going to say it.

I’m sorry I got you caught up in all this. I’m sorry your dad burnt you alive because I was too selfish to keep my secrets to myself.

Nothing sounded right, but I knew I had to try—say something to mend whatever rift had formed between us. I didn’t even know where killing Wildfire even factored into any of this. Would she be upset? Relieved? Maybe she didn’t even remember what happened—that everything that occurred would have felt like some kind of bizarre fever dream.

No way to know until I asked her.

I scanned the house and saw four heat signatures inside. One was moving toward the door, and the other three were in the lounge. I saw what looked like Lucy’s thermal outline sitting cross-legged on the floor under another. The figure looked female, but I couldn’t tell who it was. The other was male, sitting across from them.

At the very least, she was here, and she appeared to be safe.

The door clicked open, and an older woman walked out. She had stark white hair and a tired look in her eyes. All it took was one look, and I knew she was a Super. There was a particular air around her that reminded me of Gaea.

“Not who I was expecting,” she grumbled out as her eyes scanned our ragtag group. “Are you vultures coming early in the hopes of some easy pickings?”

Lucy’s grandmother eyed us, waiting for a response.

“You have the best chance here,” Seer said quietly to my left. “Say what needs to be said.”

It was cryptic advice, but I felt like I understood.

“Not vultures, just concerned friends. I was there when it happened, and I saw what followed.”

Lucy’s grandmother eyed me carefully, but she did not attack outright. With each passing second, the atmosphere grew tense, and the elder woman’s gaze hardened.

“Some of you are wearing Nanoforge’s armor, that tells me you aren’t with The Initiative," Lucy’s grandmother said, looking toward Seer, Prosperity, and Copycat. “I am aware Lucy has a friend inside the organization—Comet, but she is not among you.”

“She was there as well,” I supplied evenly. “It is my understanding that she is shaken up by what happened. She meant to be here today with the rest of her team,” I spared a brief glance at the three Rookies before sighing. “But she isn’t, because I’m here.”

“You?” the grandmother’s brow raised. “And who might you be?”

“Upgrade. I am one of her other friends.”

“I do not recall Lucy ever mentioning you,” she grumbled, her attention drifting to the rest of Madhouse. “The rest of you I’m not familiar with either. You do not wear the same armor as those three, so you cannot be with the ECU. You’re an independent group.”

“So-to-speak.” Alice blurted out. She looked away awkwardly when Seer and Copycat glared at her. “My bad.”

“We’re Madhouse,” I said simply. “Just another group of Supers trying to get by.”

“Another group making everyone’s lives harder, you mean. I’ve seen more than enough of your type,” the grandmother drawled tiredly. “And you apparently claim to be my granddaughter’s friend. If you are not Comet, then that means you are the other one—the boy …” She eyed the rest of us, her frown deepening. “I’ll forgo saying your name aloud. I may not be involved with our culture anymore, but I will still refrain from breaking any taboos.”

That was… surprisingly considerate.

“I wasn’t aware there were any,” I replied easily, trying to keep the flow of the conversation. “All my experiences regarding that have been… difficult, to say the least.”

“There is little patience for it nowadays,” Lucy’s grandmother muttered. She shared a glance over her shoulder through her cabin’s entrance. After a few moments, she looked back and shook her head. “My granddaughter is recovering from her ordeal and I would appreciate it if you would give her the time she needs to come to terms with what’s happened.”

I considered her words for a moment, turning to look at Seer and Alice. Neither of them gave me any sort of indication about what I should say next. They just stared at me expectantly like they were waiting for me to find the magic words to bring Lucy out of the house and onto our side.

“Has she told you what happened?” I asked.

“Bits and pieces. I know it had something to do with my son,” the grandmother let out a light, shaky sigh as her gaze locked in on me. “They always had a rocky relationship, so something like this was bound to happen. However, I am not a fool. If he were able, my son would have been here long before you arrived, so I am left with only a few conclusions to come to.”

My jaw tightened as a warm dread enshrouded me.

“Wildfire.”

The name was enough to elicit a visceral look of distaste on the woman’s face.

“That’s right.”

“So I guess that makes you Prometheus?” I asked.

Information about her was sparse, but there were a few hints in her file that suggested a relation to Wildfire. They were both categorized as Elementalists with powerful control over fire. Hers took the form of a white fire, and I was cautious about whether or not my armor would be able to protect me. The notes my database provided me noted that her flames consumed anything they touched. She was one of the first Supers to emerge, and her powers had had decades to grow.

“Yes, I am Prometheus,” she said flatly. “Now, seeing as you said you were there when all of this transpired, perhaps you will enlighten me on the details. How was my son involved in this mess?”

A lump formed in my throat as I contemplated my options. Lying wasn’t going to win me any favors, and obfuscating details would only make her suspicious.

“There was a fight, and things didn’t end well.” I said.

“I gathered that much,” the older woman replied, her voice borderline monotone. “Han isn’t the type to leave survivors. He is thorough like that, so I can only imagine he lost the exchange, given that you are here and he is not.” She said, closing her eyes. There was a sense of resignation on her face, and I felt like I knew what she was going to say next. “He is dead, isn’t he.”

There was no question.

She knew.

“I’m sorry.”

It was all I could offer.

Her shoulders sagged, and she seemed to age years in just a few moments. I could see the undisguised grief begin to gnaw at her as she struggled to keep herself together.

“Stubborn fool.” I heard her mutter. “I told him how it would end. It always ends the same way for us. Fighting and bloodshed is all we seem to be capable of achieving.” Her grieving tone slowly morphed into anger and frustration. I saw flickers of white flame dance around her fingertips, pleading to be used. “Every warning I gave fell on deaf ears, but this is of my own doing. I shaped him into the monster he was.” She turned back to us, inhaling sharply as she tried to calm herself down. “It was one of you, I think. No matter,” the resignation came back in full force. “Give a mother some closure at least. Tell me how he died.”

I took a few tentative steps forward as I considered what to say.

“Wildfire had us dead to rights. Abby—Comet fought him while protecting me and Lucy. She held him back for as long as she could, but he got the best of her. She couldn’t protect us and fight properly at the same time. He was going to kill us until Lucy stepped in,” I said, looking down in shame. “I watched him burn her alive as punishment for her betrayal. When I watched him take her life, I lashed out and took his.”

Prometheus turned, a dark scowl forming on her features.

“Upgrade!” Alice hissed with a sense of urgency.

Seer held up a hand to stop her, which resulted in a nasty glare.

Vigil looked like she had a lump in her throat, and Anomaly looked like he was debating whether or not to transform in order to survive the inevitable inferno.

Prometheus glared at me, puzzled by my admission. 

“You had every chance to lie, and yet you freely admit you were the one. It is unusual to see such brazen honesty. I half expected you to lie,” she paused as if she were trying to gauge my reaction. “Your story matches with what little information I’ve been able to get out of her. Han was never one to take betrayal lightly, even more so from family. He would have killed me if he were able.”

That was unnerving to hear.

“He’s tried before?” I asked, curious.

“On more than one occasion. Why do you think I am out here and not with the rest of The Initiative? I realized my mistakes when I saw them for what they were. I was far too late to change his mind,” Prometheus sighed. “He saw it has his duty to reprimand me. He tried and failed. In time, his hatred hollowed, but he never forgot—never truly forgave. It seems, however, that my granddaughter has paid for both of our mistakes.” 

I steeled my nerves and met her gaze with one of my own.

“That’s why I’m here. What Lucy lost—what she endured, was what I was trying to avoid.” I explained. “I got her involved, and that’s led to this mess. I’m hoping to amend my mistakes. I need to start somewhere.”

Prometheus was quiet for a moment, the agony inside her raging like a wild beast, threatening to break out and consume us. 

“Am I to believe you could not act until it was already too late? Could you have done nothing to prevent this?”

“Lucy asked me not to kill him. Though our goal was to weaken Pandora, we were trying to find a way out of that conflict without killing him.” I said, shaking my head. “I was injured badly when it happened. I saw it coming and tried to act, but I was too late. I watched him reduce her to a pile of ashes, and I reacted in the moment. I would call it a miracle that she survived, but we both know it’s anything but that.”

The elder woman’s expression didn’t change. That told me more than enough about how well she knew her son. The betrayal Wildfire suffered last night drove him to enact a level of cruelty Pandora would routinely employ to keep their members in line.

“You are brave to come all the way here. Part of me wants to call you a liar and burn you all alive—I would have if I were younger.” Her casual admission of wanting to slaughter us had everyone behind me tensing, but she showed no desire to follow up on those words. “Even now, it is a difficult truth to believe.”

“But you know I’m telling the truth.” I said. “You said so yourself; Wildfire was cruel, and my story matches whatever Lucy’s told you.”

Prometheus scoffed.

“Be that as it may, Han was my son. My son,” she growled. “To see you—his killer—standing before me…”

I saw her fingers twitch as the heat in the atmosphere rose further.

“He murdered Lucy.” I said, challenging her to rebuke me. I raised my arms out wide and waited for her to attack. “If you want to kill me for that, then go ahead, do it. But I know I would do the same again, if only quicker to spare her the pain.”

I waited for the heat to swallow me whole, but no attack ever came.

“I would have done it myself,” Prometheus said, her voice barely audible. “I would not have let him harm my granddaughter. Never.”

The heat around us dropped, and I took that as a sign to lower my arms. 

“I only came here for Lucy. I’ve done wrong by her—by a lot of other people close to me. For what good it’s worth, I'm trying to make things right.”

Another tired sigh escaped the older woman’s lips, and the last of the hostility coming from her disappeared.

“Found a conscience, have you? That’s more than what a lot of other moon-touched your age can claim. It’s a shame that it took the death of my son to help you find yours.” She said bitterly. “If you care as much as you claim, leave. Lucy needs to recover, and all of you being here will prevent that. I will not allow her to involve herself in this chaos before she is ready.”

The finality of her tone destroyed my desire to continue the conversation further. 

I spared a look at the lonely window on the side of the cabin facing us, half expecting to see Lucy standing there. Unfortunately, there was no one there, and I was left feeling like I had made a misstep somewhere. Seer never said I was going to succeed, just that I had the best chance.

I wasn’t going to push my luck any further.

I nodded and stepped back.

“Tell her we came by. Tell her we’re worried about her. Tell her…” I trailed off, my gaze drifting toward the ground. “Tell her I’m sorry.”

Prometheus inclined her head.

“I will pass your message along.”

I turned back to Madhouse and the Rookies, giving them a nod before walking through them to leave.

“Wait, that’s it?” Copycat asked, his tone tinged with disbelief. “You’re just going to leave it at that? You’re not even going to push?”

“What would that achieve?” I asked, stopping to face him. “I didn’t come here to start a fight. All I wanted was to make sure she was okay,” I turned and spared a glance at Prometheus over my shoulder. I suspected she wouldn’t move until she was certain we were gone and no longer a threat. “I’m going to leave her in capable hands. When… if she’s ever ready, she’ll come and find us.”

“What about what Seer said?” Vigil asked. “Don’t we need her help?”

“What do you want me to do? I said what I felt like needed to be said. She’s not going to let us see her, and I get why. A bunch of Supers showing up unannounced at her front door to see her granddaughter who Awakened last night? If it were me, I’d do the same.” I muttered before sighing. “Seer said I had the best chance. I tried. She won’t budge. It’s time to look at other options.”

Copycat and Prosperity looked dissatisfied, like they had wasted their time coming out here. Vigil looked disheartened while Anomaly appeared resigned. Alice’s face was scrunched up as she stared at the ground, her brow furiously twitching like she was trying desperately to figure out what to do next. Seer was looking at the cabin and Prometheus as if he had missed a crucial detail.

“How are we supposed to know if she is okay?” Prosperity asked, gesturing at the house. “We haven’t even seen her.”

“She’s inside with some others, her grandfather and someone else. I scanned the building earlier.” I said.

“Her mother,” Prometheus called out. “My son saw fit to leave her here the last time he came to visit. Now, if you would be so kind,” she gestured for us to go away. “Leave while you still can. I won’t ask again.”

“Time to go.” I said. “We’ll figure out another plan to stop the chaos without her.”

“No.” Seer said under his breath. “This isn’t right.”

Prometheus’s arms crossed as she glared down at Seer. He stood rooted to the spot, unintimidated by her. I stepped forward, sensing the danger.

“We don’t need to do this. If you start this fight, you’ll be fighting alone,” I said tightly, lifting a hand and resting it on his shoulder before giving it a tight squeeze. “You’re a Mentalist, so you know we have other options. You’re following the best lead you’ve got, but it doesn’t have to be—”

“No,” he cut me off, turning. “That’s not what I meant. This isn’t right,” he said, gesturing to the ground and the area around us. “Something feels off. We deviated somehow—but everything was right. This outcome feels…” he shook his head before resting it in one of his hands. It almost looked like he was suffering from a headache. “Something is wrong.”

“What do you mean?” Alice asked, her tone demanding and full of urgency. “What do you see?”

Seer turned to her, his expression twisted and complicated. The corner of his mouth twitched like he was trying to say something but couldn’t think of the words.

“That was supposed to work. I saw it.”

“Saw what?” I pressed. “Every word I just said? That was supposed to get us in?”

“No!” Seer snapped. “Any outcome that didn’t lead to a fight was supposed to end in reconciliation. Phoenix should have come out by now to confront us,” he turned back to stare at Prometheus. Her brow was wrinkled, a deep frown analysing us. “I’ve missed something. Something is wrong—terribly wrong. We don’t just walk away. Something happens. Phoenix is supposed to be out here by now.”

“Well… she isn’t,” Copycat pointed out. “Apparently she’s all hunky dory inside her shack.”

Alice pointed at Anomaly.

“Scan the area,” she hissed under her breath. “Check if we’ve been followed.”

Anomaly shifted, which caused Prometheus to tense. His entire body shook as his head elongated and began scanning the area.

“I would’ve heard someone approaching,” Prosperity crossed her arms with a scowl. “There’s no one here but us and them.”

“That’s what you think,” Alice said. “And that’s precisely what anyone following us would want us to think too.”

Anomaly transformed back.

“There’s nothing. Just a bunch of nature.”

“Are we expecting an attack?” Vigil asked tentatively. “I have my statues spread out through the forest. I would’ve noticed something too. We’re alone here.”

“Mentalists can interfere with each other,” Alice explained quickly and glanced at Seer. “Those with precognition are no exception.”

“So, what, you’re saying there’s a Mentalist around here?” Copycat asked, looking back at the cabin. “Unless Phoenix has a Mentalist capability we don’t know about, it’s not her.”

“Lucy Awakened last night,” Anomaly said. “We don’t know anything about her powers.”

“Exactly, so she could be the interference.” Copycat reasoned. 

“Clearly, you don’t know anything about Mentalists,” Alice chided. “You have to have a thorough understanding of your power in order to mess with other Mentalists like this. Phoenix is new. If it were her, then Seer’s visions would be chaotic, almost incoherent. But they’re not, so there’s someone else nearby.”

“But… there’s no one around.” Vigil said, confused. “I’ve literally got us surrounded. No one’s getting by me without me knowing.”

“Yeah, I didn’t see anything either.” Anomaly chimed in. “Don’t tell me we’re dealing with some freaky mind altering shit. Is it Mirage? No shot he followed us all the way out here.”

“It’s not Mirage,” I said confidently. My suit would have warned me by now, and the prick would’ve already started taunting me. “He’s not going to leave the cover the city provides to come all the way out here. He’s too vulnerable, and he knows that.”

“Then who?” Anomaly asked.

Laughter echoed, crescendoing from all around. It sounded like it came from hundreds of different people from a thousand different directions.

“They’re so clueless. To think the rumors about Alice were true! Poor little thing.”

More laughter followed, and we pushed our backs against each other. 

“Didn’t see this, did you?” Copycat quipped, sending a glance to Seer. When Seer didn’t respond, he just rolled his shoulders. “Alright, I guess we’re doing this now.”

White fire erupted around the clearing, surrounding us and cutting off any escape route. I glanced toward Prometheus, who had stepped off the porch and was striding toward us. For a moment, I thought her to be part of this trap, but when she stopped a few steps from us, her glare lifted and began surveying the forest that, surprisingly, wasn’t affected by her flames.

“Children, to me.” She commanded, her tone grim. “The real vultures have arrived.”

From the edge of the clearing in front of me, a hazy figure strode forth. My suit wasn’t registering anything, but I could see him just fine. They were armored, and their form grew by the second. 

My heart fell into my stomach the moment they materialized properly, and my suit identified them.

Liberation unsheathed his sword and shield.

“So this is where you’ve been hiding, Prometheus.” He plunged his sword into the ground. “I believe it’s time we had a chat about where your loyalties lie.”

All around him, more hazy figures appeared by the dozen.

He had brought an entire army with him.