Breathing in deeply, Sami took in the musty smell of the HUE reception area as he entered, delighted to be entering as a hero instead of a potential. Striding, he made his way straight to the desk and beamed at Lilly and Darius who both looked up.

  “Morning!” Sami said, saluting them with two fingers on his eyebrow.

  “Morning,” Lilly said, perking up upon seeing him.

  “You know you can just walk in.” Darius yawned, pointing to the way further inside. “You don’t need us to scan your card or anything.”

  “I got you coffee,” Sami said, sliding the to-go cup to Darius. Darius blinked, picking it up gingerly. Eyes narrowing, he turned it over like he was looking for a trap.

  “Uhhh… why?”

  “You were super tired last time I was at HUE. I took it to mean that you work late or something. And I didn’t see any coffee cups on your desk, so I figured there wasn’t a coffee machine in the warehouse. Sorry, do you not drink coffee?”

  “I do, this is just… weird. I’m not your boss, you know. Helping me out isn’t gonna get you a promotion,” Darius told him.

  “Darius! Rude!” Lilly said, appalled.

  “What? I’m being real. I don’t want him wasting his time and money trying to brown-nose us when we just run the front desk, deployments, and some payment business. He’s got bigger fish to fry. Or, feed, in this case.” Darius shook the coffee cup slightly.

  “I don’t really care about any of that. I just thought you looked tired. Our job is to help people, right? If I’m gonna see you every day, I thought it was reasonable to help you, too.”

  “I can get my own coffee.”

  “But you didn’t.”

  Darius scoffed, but didn’t reply. Taking a sip from the cup, his face winced as he swallowed hard.

  “Where did you say this was from?” he said, smacking his lips as he looked at the unbranded to-go cup.

  “Manny’s Diner.”

  “Isn’t that the place where super old people go?”

  Sami thought of Pinn and Kelly, both clearly in their thirties. As well as the other diners, who seemed around the same age.

  “Yeah, pretty much just really old people.”

  “Their pot’s probably been brewing since before The Awakening,” Darius said, popping off the lid and looking inside.

  “Sorry.”

  “Nah, it’s cool. Actually, I appreciate it. What did you say your name was again?”

  “Sami.”

  “Thanks, Sami. But any more coffee from there and I’ll need more sugar.”

  “Got it. If I want to suck up to reception, might as well do it right.” Sami grinned.

  Darius chuckled and raised his coffee in cheers before taking another sip. Sami looked to Lilly, his smile faltering when he saw she was pouting for some reason. Her eyes lingered on Darius’s coffee and she slouched in her seat with an odd look in her eyes. Envy? Sami couldn’t read it very well.

  “I was thinking about your power some more, Lilly,” Sami said.

  She shot up, sitting straighter and brightening up. “You were thinking about me?”

  “Okay, so check this out,” Sami said, pulling out two notecards. “I wanted to test what you could do with some cards. You could swap these, right?”

  “Yeah,” Lilly leaned forward, looking at the identical white cards.

  “But you said there’s some leeway, right? Like a couple grams?”

  “Something like that.” Lilly nodded.

  “What if I folded one?” Sami asked, picking up a card with a regular hand and a Shadow Hand. Folding a card in half, then unfolding it, he flattened it back out onto the counter, a crease running through the middle. Lilly turned her head slightly, examining it.

  “Yeah, I’m pretty sure I can manage.”

  The three looked at the cards on the counter as Lilly pointed to the cards. Without a sound, they swapped places, the one with the crease moving to Sami’s left.

  “Awesome!” Sami said, raising up the card and grinning.

  “What difference does it make?” Darius asked. “It’s just like when she trades pens. It’s a cosmetic change. Otherwise they’re the same.”

  Lilly nodded, but peered closer at the card Sami held.

  “This is different!” Sami said, flicking the card excitedly. “Last time, you could only trade the same stuff from the same packaging. This time, I made a change. It didn’t just come manufactured in a different color. Someone can alter it and you can still trade it.”

  Lilly gained a tiny smile.

  “What does that mean?” she asked, eager.

  “I have no idea!” Sami said, placing the card back down. “But it’s pretty cool, right?”

  Darius shook his head and took another sip of his coffee as Lilly stared, disappointed at the card.

  “I guess it’s pretty cool. It just doesn’t feel like much.”

  “No, I’m telling you, we’re just not thinking about it right. We gotta put some more time into crafting this into something special.”

  Lilly looked up at him, a shine in her eyes.

  “Don’t get her hopes up,” Darius said. “She barely resigned herself to being a desk jockey.”

  “Unless I can be more!” Lilly told him.

  “Here we go again.” Darius pointed his cup at her.

  “This isn’t wishful thinking. I’m being serious,” Sami said. “Naomi told me I could work out my Shadow Hand power by putting it under stress. Maybe Lilly could do the same with this swap power. Swap more altered things, even if they’re slightly different weights. I think you gotta start small and move up.”

  Sami placed the creased card on the desk and slid the two toward Lilly who snatched them up, looking between them like they held secrets.

  “What did you say your power was, Darius?” Sami asked. “Or is it more of an Anomaly, like Naomi describes them?”

  “You’re gonna be late,” Darius stuck his thumb toward the entry door.

  “Right. We can talk about this later,” Sami said, getting the feeling that Darius wanted to avoid the subject. He didn’t sound ashamed, just reluctant, like a kid that was reminded there was no dessert before finishing his broccoli.

  Waving as he left, Sami scanned his card to the door to the warehouse and entered with proud strides. Taking in the scene, there were six others in the room. He recalled more during the tryouts. Which either meant that people were arriving late, or some hadn’t made the cut. Sami didn’t pay enough attention to the tryouts to know if there was anyone in particular who was certain not to make the team. Especially after being certain that he was going to be cut.

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  “Hey guys,” Sami approached familiar faces. “Good to see you made it.”

  “I was pleasantly surprised,” Claire admitted. “When they started off with a strength test, I thought I would be weeded out for my Subtitle power. But looks like they have use for us, regardless.”

  “Yeah, they even let me keep my hero name,” Gutshot said.

  “Even though they didn’t put the name to the test,” Claire added.

  “Did Gan Wen make it too?” Sami asked, looking around.

  “Yeah, but he and Francine got called for a special meeting with my dad,” Gutshot said.

  “Steve is calling people for a special meeting? Probably just those with the most power so far. They were the most impressive from what I remember,” Sami deduced.

  “Who said anything about Steve?”

  Claire raised an eyebrow and looked at Sami, shared confusion in their eyes.

  “At tryouts. You said Steve was your dad.”

  “Why would I say that?”

  “I don’t know! Why did you?” Claire asked, annoyed.

  “I don’t think I did!” Gutshot responded firmly.

  “I think we can clear this up if we start over,” Sami said patiently. “Who’s your dad?”

  “Isn’t it obvious? Apex!” Gutshot said.

  Wide eyed, Sami and Claire shared an expression.

  “Let me get this straight…” Claire said slowly. “At tryouts, you say that Steve is your dad. Today, you say it’s Apex.”

  “It’s only ever been Apex,” Gutshot said, offended.

  Subtly, Sami summoned his Shadow Hand and ran it quickly across his neck, signaling Claire to drop the subject. Her mouth was halfway open, another objection ready to fly, but she held her tongue when she met Sami’s gaze. She rolled her eyes, but nodded. Sami figured Gutshot had a touch of delusion. There was no use trying to nail down the story of his family.

  “That’s cool, man,” Sami said. “Really awesome dad to have.”

  “Yeah,” Gutshot agreed, smiling with pride.

  Steve approached the three with badges in his hand. He looked noticeably less sweaty and nervous than the previous day.

  “Hello new recruits. These are your Ranks. You can attach these anywhere on your clothing, it’s specially designed to stay on. If you want one custom made with your name or a certain color, you’ll have to file that with the front desk.”

  “Is it really smart to go around with these on?” Claire asked Steve. “Won’t it put a target on our backs?”

  “Plus, I don’t remember what Ranks mean anyway,” Gutshot said, somehow sounding proud about the fact.

  “Right... The Rank works based on your Grades. Each power has a Grade, determined by some HUE higher ups. And, your Rank is an average of all your powers’ Grades,” Steve explained, offering a badge to Sami.

  He took it and smiled broadly at his designation. Rank 3D. He was certain he would start at F.

  “So, Sami’s Rank is ‘3D,’” Steve began.

  “Like the glasses.” Gutshot nodded, following along.

  “Right…” Steve cleared his throat and turned to Sami who looked like he was paying more attention. “So, his Rank means he has three powers that average out to Grade D.”

  “That’s so cool!” Sami said, sticking his badge to his chest. “I’m glad you guys put me down for three powers even though I only know what two of them do. Can I ask what Grade each one got?”

  “Your Power Sense was deemed a Grade C power. Shadow Hand was a Grade F. And the unknown was left out, so you average at a D.”

  “So, what does 1F mean?” Gutshot asked eagerly as he held up his badge.

  Steve stared at him with a weak smile and nodded to him. Clearing his throat, he turned away, ignoring the question.

  “You still didn’t answer my question,” Claire said as she stuck her “1D” badge to her shoulder.

  “Right, umm… What was the question, again?” Steve asked, embarrassed.

  “We’re wearing crucial information.” Claire pointed to her shoulder. “Potential assailants will know how many powers we have and how powerful we are.”

  “Yes, well, HUE has determined that the fact your powers remain unknown will do well to throw off any danger this poses.”

  “What if they studied us already? It’s not like we’re gonna be incognito once we’re out in the field,” Claire said.

  Steve’s eyes narrowed as he considered the question, and his face scrunched in embarrassment. He had no answer. Sami stepped in when Steve’s face started to turn red.

  “Gutshot only has one power on his Rank, but Power Sense shows he’s got two. Do you want my help in giving you more accurate numbers?”

  “That’s nice of you to offer. But, no. Thank you,” Steve cleared his throat and walked away quickly to offer others their badges.

  “Real insightful,” Claire said sarcastically.

  “I think they don’t trust me enough to want to use Power Sense,” Sami determined. “I guess that makes sense. Gotta prove myself out on the field.”

  A speaker cracked to life above them, a shower of static filling the warehouse for a pregnant pause as eyes were drawn into the center of the room. Steve stood with his microphone in hand, alone. He cleared his throat twice before speaking.

  “Hello everyone. Welcome to HUE. We are excited to see so many new faces today and we hope you enjoy your first day here. I am… You… Ummm…”

  Blinking to himself, Steve stared at the floor, trying to spur recollection and removing the microphone from his face. Clearing his throat in embarrassment, he ran a perspiring palm into his front pocket and pulled out a small stack of sticky notes. He flipped over the first two and cleared his throat again, drawing the microphone back to his mouth.

  “Welcome to HUE… Excited… Right! While we are not aware of what spurred the Awakening in Hammerton, there is important work to be done. Some are out there trying to discover the source of these miraculous abilities, but we don’t need to understand them in order to do good! You should take the time to introduce yourselves to one another, as you will be on a team from here on out. Some of you will be deployed on missions together, even as soon as today.”

  An excited murmur went through the audience as Steve paused to struggle with the notes sticking to his fingers. Huffing, he wiggled his hand, then looked up when he saw a hand raised.

  “Errm… Yes?”

  “Are we gonna be deployed all over the country?” the young man asked. Sami recognized him as the one who could sharpen his hand. Dawson.

  “No, Awakened people have only ever appeared in Hammerton, so we won’t go anywhere beyond the surrounding districts in the city,” Steve answered, blinking as he saw another hand raised. “Another question?”

  “Yeah, why are we only sticking to Hammerton?” Sami asked. “We have incredible abilities. We shouldn’t limit ourselves to going up against others who are Awakened.”

  Steve nervously dabbed at the back of his neck with the sticky note. It stuck to his neck.

  “The Hero Unification Entity is still on its first legs. We are not in the good graces of operating within the law. We are trying to build ourselves up to be an indispensable part of Central Hammerton and the surrounding districts, especially those in hard times, like Indus. If we find ourselves in better terms with the law, we might be able to expand our operation. But as it stands…”

  Steve thumbed at more sticky notes, desperately trying to pull them apart before more hands were raised. Sputtering in frustration, he tried to toss them aside. They stuck to his forearms and pants.

  “Thanks again for joining us. Pay will be on the first and third Friday of every month. Looking forward to working with you. Oh, and if you have any…”

  Steve stopped suddenly, his body going tense. Sami felt a sense of vertigo slip through his spine and he glanced around to see if anyone else was similarly disquieted. Others were wobbling in place, looking around in urgency.

  A crack appeared in the far wall of the warehouse. It spread up and down before the entire wall collapsed, revealing five people in goggles walking through. Triggering Power Sense, Sami saw that each of them was Awakened, some with more than one power.

  “Oop, right there! We found our target!” One intruder gestured broadly to the room.

  “Get back!” Steve called to the new recruits as he slammed his arms to the floor. “This is not a drill. We’re under attack.”

  In an instant, a massive wall of clay shot from the floor to the ceiling, covering the hole and preventing the intruders from coming inside.

  Sami watched in shock, not convinced that it wasn’t a drill. It was so random and abrupt, plus there wasn’t anything worth stealing in the massive empty warehouse. Was this a test?

  Before Sami could reach a conclusion, the wall of clay shattered in a shivering pile of rubble. Frustrated, Steve charged forward, summoning two spears of clay and chucking them like an amateur javelin tosser.

  The two weapons flew erratically, but ultimately hit their marks. One of the man in black goggles grunted, slapped in the face by the wad of clay and the other broke against a blast of laser emitted in front of another’s face.

  “Get him already!” the intruder closest to the front said.

  The one on the floor protested, but was too far for Sami to hear.

  Another placed a hand to the side of his face and erratic red blasts of energy shot out of his goggles, bending and weaving in impossible-to-follow paths. Steve tracked the oncoming attack and threw two walls of clay ahead of him, just in time to catch the attacks and leave deep scorches in his defenses. Gritting his teeth, Steve punched through the clay, sending more heavy projectiles into the gathered enemies.

  One man broke away from the rest, carrying a long baton in one hand and screaming. Smashing a foot into the ground, a pillar of clay blasted into the man’s chest. Air rushed out of him, the assailant flew back, spinning in the air until a tall man caught him easily with one hand.

  Dropping his water, Sami ran forward to assist while others remained back apprehensively. This definitely wasn’t a secret drill.

  “That’s it, I got him!” another of the intruders called confidently.

  Two thin spikes appeared from in front of his face and fired, spinning rapidly. Steve whipped back, leaning just far enough to avoid the first spike, and a wad of clay caught the second in the air. Spinning even faster, the spike dug through the clay and darted out, sticking Steve in the chest.

  He looked down, coughing once, then collapsed, unmoving.

  Sami watched in horror, then looked up at the approaching invasion.

  “Spread out boys! And have fun!” the lead intruder laughed.