Project: MI
Chapter 12

Daria Foster and Kelly Coleman stood in front of a computer screen, taking in an image displaying the Epsilon Sentinel Kane, and his opponent, a thin, lithe figure that was partially pixilated from the waist up.

“We managed to salvage several images,” said a male technician seated at the computer to Daria, “but this is by far the best one and the only one that was missed. Whoever it was that hacked into our systems certainly knew their stuff, but they were in a hurry.”

“Seems like the target also knew their stuff as well,” Daria noted, leaning in. “You said that this image was missed? It wasn’t touched?”

“Not in the least.”

“And Kane said that she was wearing a mask…” Daria frowned, feeling a bit unsettled. Then it’s confirmed. This most definitely is not just an Emergent heroi. They’ve had their powers for a while and figured out how to operate under the radar or had help. She tilted her head to one side, considering that the latter was the most likely case due to the hacking of their systems that enabled the heroi to escape. Kane gave a report on observed abilities…invulnerability, flight, enhanced strength… This could be the same heroi who broke into Romana Pax.

“We’re going to have to thank Kane for his timely appearance. We finally have something more substantial to go on. We have a rough estimation of height, age, and body-type to go along with powers. Kane confirmed the suspect’s gender…”

“I believe we can determine the brands from the suspect’s shoes and jeans,” the technician supplied, tapping a few buttons on his keyboard. “It might not be much, but we should be able to narrow down their economic position.”

Daria nodded. “Very well. Do it and send me a report.”

With that Daria and Kelly both turned and exited the room. As they made their way down the hall, Kelly looked at her superior worriedly.

“Is there something you want to say?” Daria asked, noticing.

“I…don’t believe that it’s my place,” Kelly replied. Daria pressed her lips together tightly.

“I know that I’ve been promoted, but you shouldn’t let that get in the way of our friendship.” A pause. “You think this has to do with her don’t you?”

“With Ama…” A sharp look from Daria caused Kelly to stop short of speaking the name before nodding in agreement. “Yes. Her.”

“That makes things easier to talk about,” Daria replied, her tone full of sarcasm as they passed beneath a bubble on the ceiling, one of the building’s many recording devices. As they rounded a corner, Kelly took a quick look around before continuing.

“She has two daughters. One is definitely a heroi…”

“Her powers are different from the video evidence, and she disappeared.” Daria frowned. “I’d like to see that case file though. I thought it was strange then that it was closed.”

“I’ll have Mallory get it to you.” Kelly typed in a few commands before continuing. “There’s still her younger daughter. I’ll need to requisition her information so I can send you a copy of her file, but she should be within the approximated range reported for the suspect.”

“Can you check to see if she was examined in the past year?”

“I’ll contact her school. I believe though that she should have had it when Burton was in charge…”

“Yes,” Daria mused, more to herself than to Kelly. “She should have.”

“Do you think Burton would have covered it up if she turned up positive?”

Daria gave the woman another sharp look, reminding her to be careful of her words while out in the open.

“Sorry,” Kelly apologized. “But it’s not as though it’s impossible.”

Especially since he covered up for Amanda for years, Daria thought to herself. Never mind that he covered up my connection with… She stopped that line of thinking before it could progress any further. She almost wished Burton were here. He had the greater experience and would have known how to deal with the Epsilon Sentinel.

“This is quickly turning into a high level operation. At least we can expect…hope…that Kane stays out of the investigation with Romana Pax so he can look into Grey’s case.” She looked at Kelly more fully. “Consider him on a ‘need-to-know’ only basis. It’s within his power to involve himself, but only if he feels he has to or a higher up gives him the order. Until then, silence is gold here.”

“Understood.” A pause as Kelly tapped on her data pad. “Should I send my brother to go see her?”

“Not now.” Daria shook her head. “She got our message. All she has to do now is lay low until the storm blows over.”

“What if it doesn’t?”

Daria pressed her teeth into her tongue, not trusting the hallway enough to say more on the matter.

Franklin Grey splashed water on his face before looking up at himself in the mirror. His eyes betrayed exhaustion not helped by his pallid appearance and he felt it deep in his bones. He sighed heavily and hung his head, allowing his disheveled hair to fall over his face, hiding himself from his gaze.

“Are you feeling okay, Frank?” asked a voice behind him, one of his coworkers and best friend since his senior year in high school, Benjamin Castle. Bald and bearded, Ben was tall and imposing, but the smile on his face easily melted any apprehension people would have toward him. Looking over his shoulder, Frank shook his head.

“Haven’t been sleeping well,” he replied. Haven’t slept well in years, he added mentally, but he didn’t tell the other man that. Setting aside the fact that it was common knowledge that the death of his son changed him, he couldn’t afford to have anyone suspect that he still dealt with the trauma. Among other…things as well. One thing in particular that he was forced to have under the roof belonging to him and his wife, calling itself his ‘son’.

“Your project?” Ben prompted. For lack of any other excuse, Frank nodded. Reaching behind him he knuckled his back. There was a satisfying pop, yet he still didn’t relax.

“I’m falling behind and the funds are getting frozen. Half of the people helping me on this are getting transferred to other projects and…Lilly…” He stopped and grimaced. He hadn’t meant for that last part to come out.

“Are things getting bad between you?”

Reaching up, he loosened his collar. The state of his marriage wasn’t common knowledge, and for the most part he and Lilly kept a lid on things at home and outside it. At least that’s what he thought. He sometimes wondered if he simply imagined that there was a problem. Sure, things have been shaky since…since our son died but we pulled through. And when the government came to our doorstep with their proposal, I supported her.

“It’s probably just one of those phases.” Moving over to the paper towel dispenser he tore off a sheet and began to dry off his face. “She’s got it rough because everyone expects so much from her and she’s taken some flack at work for being ‘too’ professional…” He frowned down at the damp towel in his hand. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m just not doing enough for her.”

We haven’t had sex in almost a year, he noted, trying to remember the last time he even took hold of his plow. Just a ‘good night’ when we go to bed and that’s it. Do we even talk about our days anymore? “Feels like we’re just going through the motions.”

“That sure sounds like a problem.” Approaching him, Ben placed a companionable hand on his shoulder. “If you want I can talk to the boss. I’ve got some pull. Maybe I can convince them to ease up on you. Get them to give you a break.”

Frank gave him a look of tired gratitude.

“That’d be great, though…probably not much help if Lil can’t get time off. Anyway, I’ve got to get going. I’ve got a meeting to attend.”

“Sure thing buddy,” Ben nodded gravely. “Good luck.”

Good luck indeed, thought Frank, approaching the meeting room door at the end of the hall and pushing it open. Inside sat a powerfully built man at the table in a sharp business suit, hands folded casually in front of him. In many ways, he reminded him of Ben, and indeed, placed side by side you almost could have called them brothers were it not for the fact that Ben was from the Middle East by descent.

The only other subtle difference here was that this man, whose name he didn’t know yet but would—Bruce Kane—had a gaze that was piercing, giving him the impression of a dealer in ancient artifacts appraising his value.

Or a police officer judging his guilt or innocence before an interrogation.

Given that he’s from the gov, the latter is probably closer to the truth, he mused, closing the door behind him.

“Thank you for coming on such short notice, Mister Grey,” the man said. “My name is Bruce Kane. I represent the National Security Organization of Heroi Affairs, a branch of government defense. You are familiar with us.”

“Yeah,” Frank replied stiffly, taking a seat. “The last time one of your people came around was five years ago.” This couldn’t be a good sign, he felt.

“Yes,” Kane nodded. “Regarding the incident of your current son. I hope you don’t mind if I ask you some questions.”

He seemed to wait for some kind of acknowledgement from Frank, but the man said nothing. “How is he?” Kane continued.

“You have an AI monitoring him twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. I can’t be around him for that long. Why are you asking me?”

“I’m looking for the human pulse in the matter. Companions can only be so human no matter how often we upgrade them.”

“As I said,” Frank repeated in a firm tone, “I’m not around him all the time. The kid goes off and hangs out with his friends when he’s not home from school. They go to the park or wherever it is they go when they want to be anywhere else but around adults.”

“Have you noticed how he gets along with his friends?”

“He hasn’t said.” He tried to remember who they were. One of them, Justin, he remembered to be a bit…aggressive? The other he could barely recall at all, he was so quiet. “Since they’re still friends I’m guessing they’re doing fine.”

“Have you taken him anywhere? Any movies? Games? Stores?”

“What does this have to do with anything?” Frank asked, starting to become irritated. “Yes, I’ve taken him to places, but are you asking me to recall everything I do that involves him?”

Kane didn’t appear to be phased by the slight outburst. “His Companion’s report indicates that there is some level of stress in his household concerning you and your wife. I’m simply looking to confirm this to see if he’s growing up in a stable household.”

“What are you, a social worker?”

“My work deals with heroi,” Kane pointed out. “Many heroi have, when living in unstable living situations, disrupted their communities. The fact that some of that disruption has involved the destruction of entire city blocks certainly empowers me to make sure that he is stable.”

Frank gave a bitter chuckle. “Right. Dumb question. All right. You want the truth? The truth is, I…” He hesitated to say that he didn’t want Jamie living in his home. “I don’t think things are stable right now.”

Kane leaned back. “Would you care to elaborate?”

“Besides my marriage being a bit rocky now? My and Lilly’s jobs stressing the Hel out of both of us?” He drew in a deep breath before continuing. “I thought I could make this work…with him I mean. Jamie. I wanted to support Lilly and everything when she said yes to you guys. I wanted to have back what we lost. Until I started thinking about it that is, and then…that whole ‘having to act’ thing.” He craned his head toward a blank wall over to his right and settled on a fly crawling across its surface. “I really thought I could love him again. But…Hel, I was wrong. I can’t do it. I don’t think I could have ever done it.”

He turned his gaze back on Kane. “You know Bradley Moore right? From your files? You’ve gotta. You already know everything there is to know about my son. He couldn’t handle it you know. In spite of everything we all tried to do, he figured it out right away, and all because he happened to move to the same damn city a year before we did. Freaky coincidence, right?”

Kane appeared to contemplate this for a moment before leaning back in his seat. “Thank you for your time, Mister Grey.”

The sun dipped down the horizon, casting a deep, golden glow across the yard of her home as Kira slipped in past the gate, breathing a sigh of relief as it latched closed behind her. As per the norm, she felt her strength decline, but in spite of this she felt comforted. Although it hadn’t felt that way for some time, home remained her safe haven and she was more than grateful to return to it in spite of the issues she had with its owner.

I crisscrossed half the city on foot, she thought, stepping away from the gate and moving toward her home. Unless they ID’d me there’s no way the feds should know where I am.

She wondered if she was identified. She had put on the mask when the Guardian Spheres arrived, but without her full suit there was no guarantee that she was one hundred percent out of the clear. If they didn’t know who she was, then Malcolm would make sure she was in the clear. If not, then it didn’t matter where she went.

Going to have to wait until this blows over before visiting the junkyard, she thought irritably. She thought back to Malcolm’s last message to her from about an hour ago, mentioning that Advanced Weapons and Tactics teams were arriving in force with flocks of Guardian orbs and were now beginning to comb over the place. It took everything she had to not go back and rescue him. At this point she could do little more than make the situation worse.

I have to focus on my mission anyway, she told herself, if only to distract herself from worrying about Malcolm. I still have that James kid as my main lead. If Romana Pax or whoever it is that has Ran comes after him again, they should give me a bread trail to follow.

The thought helped, but she couldn’t help but feel that she was grasping at straws. Still, for the time being she could only do as Malcolm told her and stay out.

Kira arrived at the door to her home and fished out the key. Inserting it in the lock, she pushed the door open. Mom’s probably mad that I ignored her calls… “I’m home!” she called out, entering the household and closing the door behind her. She heard the clickity-clack of claws on hardwood floor and turned to see the two-headed Cerberus trotting toward her, tongues lolling out of his mouth. In spite of herself, Kira smiled at the critter and upon reaching her placed a hand on the nearest head. The head nuzzled into her palm while the other growled slightly, clearly annoyed that his twin was getting the affection that he also craved.

“Easy there boy,” she said soothingly. “Today’s been one heck of a day, but I think I can take you to your owner now. Would you like that?”

“I’m sure he would,” came the voice of her mother, appearing from down the hall, a stern look on her face. “But I believe that I deserve an explanation for your behavior, young lady.”

Kira glowered at her mother as she drew to a halt before her. Withdrawing her hand from Monster she straightened up and faced her more fully.

“Sorry I missed your calls,” she said in as casual a voice she could muster. “I was pretty freaked out about today and wasn’t thinking straight.”

“It would seem so,” Amanda said, her tone even and stern, “seeing as how you didn’t even bother to call me and let me know how you were. Do you have any idea how worried I was about you?”

About as worried as you are about Ran? Kira thought sardonically, though she didn’t voice it. “I have an idea,” she replied instead, stepping around Monster to look for his leash. “Look, I’m sorry. I don’t know what was going through my head. I just needed to be alone.”

“And where did you go that you needed to be alone for?” Amanda asked, watching the girl go to the closet and open it. “The whole city is in an uproar. An attack on the school and there was some kind of accident at the junkyard…” Amanda eyed her daughter carefully, taking note of how she reacted.

“I don’t go to the junkyard,” Kira replied dully, withdrawing Monster’s leash. “I don’t like even thinking about that place after what happened to Monique. She’s back by the way.”

Amanda’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “She’s…back?”

Kira nodded. “Saw her before class started. She’s a grade behind me, but that’s only because of…you know.”

“I’m…glad for her,” Amanda continued, settling herself. “But don’t deflect the issue. Where were you?”

“Why does it matter?” Kira asked, clipping the leash onto Monster’s collar. She barely dodged a lick from the left head. “I was out. I’m home, safe and sound.”

“Doesn’t look like it.” Reaching out, Amanda brushed a hand across Kira’s cheekbone, causing the girl to flinch back, more in surprise than from pain, though there was plenty of that too. Raising a hand to her face, she felt along where her mother touched—where she had been struck. It stung again thanks to her mother’s contact. If it had not been for the fight she was in she would have forgotten completely about it.

“I fell during the school attack,” she said without missing a beat. “How…how bad does it look?”

Amanda craned her head to one side. Kira saw much worry and concern in her eyes. “It’s not terrible,” she said after a moment. “In fact, it looks pretty good. You said you fell?”

“Yeah,” Kira said evasively. “Anyway, I’ve got to get going. I found out where the Cerberus’ owner lives, so I’m going to drop him off.”

“Couldn’t you just call the owners and have them pick it up?”

“It’s a he Mom, and I want to get out of here for a bit.”

“You just got back honey…”

“What’s your point?”

Amanda frowned, not liking the girl’s hostile attitude but loath to confront her about it directly at the moment. “Fine,” she conceded. “But I’m going with you.”

That caught Kira by surprise, causing her hand to fumble on the doorknob. “Mom. I’m not a little girl,” she said angrily, turning back to her. “Just because of what happened at school…”

“It has more to do with school,” Amanda said firmly, taking hold of her daughter by the shoulders. Kira tried to pull away but, much to her surprise, she found herself unable to shake herself free. “In fact, if it were up to me, I wouldn’t have you out there at all right now.”

Amanda wrestled with herself inwardly and her grip tightened ever so slightly around her daughter’s shoulders. She had been debating for so long on how much to tell her…if she was even ready to hear it. So much of it hinged on what she was and had been. “Kira…” she began tentatively. “This city is becoming a dangerous place right now. I don’t want you getting caught up in it…”

“Like you did my sister?” Kira shot at her. Shocked, Amanda’s grip loosened slightly before taking hold again.

“You… How dare…?” Amanda began angrily, only to stop when her gaze fell upon Kira’s bruise. Withdrawing her hands, she held them up in a placating gesture and took a deep breath to calm herself. She had to be careful. If she forgot her own strength for even a moment…

“How dare I?” Kira began, not caring about her mother’s inner struggle. “After what you did…”

“I’m not going to explain myself!” Amanda interrupted, fixing the girl with a harsh glare. Unexpectedly, Kira found herself backing up into the door, feeling as though an aura of oppressive force had wrapped itself around the woman. Her heart almost seemed to stop in her chest and it took everything she had to keep from tearing the door off its hinges in an effort to escape. After what felt like an eternity, the oppressive force backed off and Amanda appeared as she always did; normal, unassuming, and not in the least bit imposing.

“I’m not going to explain myself,” Amanda affirmed once more, this time in a cooler tone. “But I’m not going to lose you like I did Ran. No arguments. Understood?”

Kira swallowed and glanced away, hating herself for her fear but not wanting to meet her eyes all the same. “Fine,” she replied reluctantly. “Let’s get this over with…”

“Sorry again to do this to you,” John apologized, coming downstairs from his room, adjusting his tie as he did so. He was back in his suit and ready to head back to the CHC. Teruo, for his part, could barely contain his excitement at the prospect and opted to cover up the smile that threatened to devour his face by stuffing food into it.

“It’s no big deal,” Teruo said between mouthfuls. “You said that you have to go, so you have to go.”

“Chew with your mouth closed and don’t talk when you eat,” John admonished, checking himself in the mirror and running a hand over his hair. Teruo swallowed in compliance. “Anyway, the security system is up so you should be all right for the night.” He glanced over his shoulder at the boy, a stern look on his face. “Please don’t mess with it tonight.”

“Okay,” Teruo said, dabbing at his mouth with a napkin. “I’ve got some projects to do and a movie to watch. I don’t want anyone interrupting me.”

“I mean it, Teruo. Do not mess with the security system. I don’t want to have to call Mallory to recalibrate it again.”

“What’s wrong with Mal?” Teruo asked, raising an eyebrow. John sighed.

“Just don’t complicate things, okay? That’s all I’m asking.”

“Like I said, I have some projects to do. Scouts honor.”

“Hmmm…” John regarded him skeptically for a moment before grabbing his keys and checking to see if his ID badge was properly in place. “All right. I’ll see you later. Hopefully I won’t be too late getting back.”

“Knowing the CHC you probably will,” Teruo observed. John ruffled his hair as he passed him by.

“Take it easy,” he said. Teruo mouthed a goodbye as he gulped down another bite of his meal and waited, listening carefully for the opening and closing of the door, and then for the sound of the car leaving the driveway.

A car door slammed shut. An engine turned on, and then followed tires crunching on driveway gravel as the vehicle began its journey. Teruo counted to five and then hopped out of his chair. Opening the door to the closet, revealing a vast array of machinery and wires, Teruo nodded to himself with a smirk.

“Still in the same place as before,” he chuckled. “Time to get this show on the road.”

Teruo waded into the mess of wires and buttons and began to do just what John told him to not do; mess with them. He half wanted to berate John for not attempting to make the security system more proof against him, but the fact that it wasn’t only made his job easier, for which he was immensely grateful. The faster this went the better.

Wonder if he thought to put in a backup somewhere, he mused, finishing his job. That would be something Mallory would do… Hmmm… There’s no harm in taking a look around. I’ve got plenty of time.

Heading up to his room, he turned on his computer and pulled up a program he designed some months back; a type of echo locator that enabled him to view the shape of the area around him based on sound waves. He started it off just as an exercise in keeping his itching brain occupied but quickly found a use for it in locating things he or John misplaced.

It can find keys pretty easily, but for some reason it can’t locate socks that get eaten up by the dryer, he thought with dry humor.Calculating the physical parameters of the security system using the original model as a base and taking into account any possible sleight of hand on John’s part that could change the dimensions, he hit the enter key on his keyboard and waited as the screen began to draw a schematic of the house and showed him all the items that fit the description.

So far it looks like the only thing available is what I already meddled with, Teruo thought, feeling somewhat pleased with himself. Not like I expected anything else. John doesn’t like being non-obvious much.

This left him with only one thing now; the task of getting to the junkyard, the one place in the whole city where he could get what he needed. Snatching up his ‘Doctor’ device, he pocketed it with an artful twirl and grabbed his book bag.

“Time to get this show on the road,” he said again, grabbing a pair of black gloves from off his nightstand and pulling them on. Blue arcs of electricity danced around his fingers as he waggled them with a giggle.

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