Interlude 2a

Titanwatch Interlude

Washington, DC

Nina Mores looked up at the fifty-story skyscraper in front of her, tiny butterflies in her stomach. She had not been at work in days. Ever since the news had hit the planet that the young self-declared High Councillor of Earth's new world government had disappeared while off-planet fighting against a preemptive invasion of Earth, just a week ago today, the world was in an uproar.

Many people on Earth and a large number of superhumans viewed him as an unbelievable god-like figure. The thought that he could be gone had caused riots as people feared the problems of the past would rear their unwanted heads again. It had taken Atlas visiting many places worldwide before they calmed down. High Councillor Grey may have been their leader but Atlas was their hero. His presence was all that was necessary to calm any hotheads. Nina glanced around as hundreds of other people made their way inside the tall headquarters of the Titanwatch Organization. It was terrifying knowing that Titan was missing. He was what had held the world together during the horrors the world had faced just a few short years ago. Governments had fallen but Titanwatch had risen, acting as the world's government and setting up small local governments worldwide. The day the High Councillor had dissapeared, Titanwatch had informed all non-essential personnel at the Head DC office that they were on paid leave and not to report to Titanwatch HQ until given clearance. That clearance had been given the night before.

Gathering her confidence, Nina entered the building and made her way past security until she made her way to the Director's private elevator. As she made her way to the top floor, she began to think about the various oddities that made her job what it was.

Despite the fact that she only reported to the Chief Director himself, Nina was just a simple secretary. Twenty-six years old and a graduate from an average college, she was an absolute nobody. She had no real skills and no real ability. She wasn't even an official agent of Titanwatch. She had only been working for Mr. Ford for a month and all she had done was get coffee and snacks for her boss and occasionally listen to him rant about whatever idiot was making his job harder. She was well aware that unlike other employees and agents of Titanwatch, she did nothing at all important and got paid rather well for it.

Nina was also aware that she was hired for her looks above all. She never tried to delude herself for it. Honestly, she didn't even think she was that pretty. Her hair was a light brown with only the slightest bit of life to it and her face was slightly better than average, which wasn't saying much. The only thing she knew she excelled in was her bust and she made sure to emphasize it every time her boss was around.

Mr. Ford was known for going through a lot of secretaries, all of them pretty, young and well endowed. He had only had this job for two years and she was the thirteenth secretary already. As she walked down the silvery walls of the top floor of Titanwatch HQ, large datapad in hand, she unzipped her top until she was sure plenty of flesh was visible and hiked up her already rather short black skirt. She didn't know why the other secretaries lost their positions but she was not going to lose this cushy job over something as small as her dignity.

As Nina reached the dark, tinted glass of her boss's door, she placed her hand on it and felt the familiar heat as it scanned her biometrics. A seam appeared in the side of the door and she pushed it open. She took a deep breath in an attempt to make her chest even more impressive but quickly let it out in a strangled cough as she realized just who was standing in front of her.

Seven feet and six inches of massive, firm, brown-toned muscle stood in her way, dwarfing her small frame.. She stepped back and gave the figure a closer look. It was a man, obviously. A man dressed in a sleeveless formfitting red, white and blue one piece made out of the same skin-tight, ultra fine, mesh-like bulletproof fabric all high level Titanwatch agents had. Silver manacle were worn on his arms that matched his silver belt. Across his shoulders was a voluminous red and white cape and emblazoned on his chest was a bright white compass with red accents.

Nina froze as she realized who stood in front of her.

His confident, booming voice broke her from her stupor. "Miss, are you all right? Miss? Miss?"

She blinked a few times and forced herself to stop staring at the way his extremely defined muscles rippled visibly under his costume. "Huh...uh...uh...yeah." 'Stop looking! It's creepy!' "I'm...uh...you...you...y-you're Atlas...THE Atlas?"

Atlas smiled at her in a way that honestly made her weak at the knees but before he could answer, someone else spoke first.

"Of course he's THE Atlas. Who else would be as tall, dark and handsome as my hubby here?," spoke a smooth, seductive voice. A woman's figure strutted out from behind Atlas and Nina was dumbstruck again. Long platinum blonde hair, full lips turned up in a confident smile, sharp blue eyes, and wearing a black bustier that showed off her assets and black pants, both made of Titanwatch fibers. The heroine that stood in front of her was Dana Grey; also known as Lioness, wife of Atlas, hero of Titanwatch and sister to High Councillor Grey, as well as being a Councillor herself. "I assume you're here for a reason?"

Nina gaped before catching herself. "Y-y...yeah, I mean, yes, ma'am. I'm here to...uh...," Again her mind hit a blank, leaving her looking like an idiot in front of two of the world's greatest heroes.

"She's here to see me," spoke the voice of her boss, Titanwatch Director, Aren Ford. Nina stepped past the two heroes and froze again. "She is my secretary, after all. Stop harassing her when she's just trying to do her job."

Nina loved working for her boss. He was a handsome, bespectacled twenty-year old who held one of the most powerful positions in the world and he wasn't an arrogant douche about it. Normally, she would be trying her best not to blush every morning when he would compliment her outfit. Today, he seemed to be doing her best to leave her stupefied. She had just spoken to two of the world's most famous heroes and in front of her, spread around the Director's white office, were four more of them.

Nina stood stock still and everyone in the room watched as her facial expressions seemed to go from excited to mortified to awestruck and terrified and back again. She had only been Director Ford's secretary for a month and she was already meeting the Alphas of Titanwatch. Every single person in here ran a facet of the World Government. It was all she could do not to faint. As it was, she did stumble a bit.

Aren sighed and stood up from behind his desk, dusting off his completely white suit as he did so and straightening his glasses. "Ms. Morse, why don't you go and get us a few boxes of donuts? Take your time."

Nina nodded shakily and tried to respond only to emit a squeak. She slapped a hand over her mouth and backed out of the room slowly, eyes never leaving the heroes.
As soon as the tinted black door shut behind her, Aren looked up at his stark white ceiling. "We're starting immediately, Eldritch. Stop hiding and get down here right now." His voice was firm and rather stern, like a parent talking to a child.

The white ceiling began to ripple like a pond as a small black spot of what looked like tar appeared in the center and began to bubble and shift, spreading downwards like a stalactite. After a few seconds, the tar-like substance had stopped shifting. In it's place was a young man with short, spiky, black hair dressed in a black suit and round black glasses standing on the ceiling as if it was child's play. He dropped to the ground with barely a sound and gave Aren a rather wide smile. "That was your new secretary, Aren. She's certainly...bouncy."

Aren affixed him with a glare. "Eld, stop it. I like her. Don't mess with this one. I can't afford to keep firing secretaries because they start cracking under the pressure."

El's smile stretched even wider until it reached the side of his eyes, showing off his sparkling white set of razor sharp teeth. "Of course. I wouldn't dare mess with her. After all, it's none of my business if you meet someone new. You're not the only one who likes girls."

Craig's glare increased in intensity. "I'm serious. Don't go into her dreams. Don't follow her around and don't hide in her shadow."

"Alright, alright. Why don't you declare all fun illegal?"

Aren continued to stare at El until he dropped his smile. "Okay...We're here for one reason and one reason only." He paused and turned his head, glancing at all the people in his office. "We need to find Evron...immediately. People are terrified. Anything that could take out Evron has them freaked. Craig, any luck?" Aren's eyes went to his couch where a figure was lying face up.

Craig was a rather thin guy with long, shaggy brown hair. He wore a blue muscle shirt and blue jeans. The only sign that he wasn't human was the fact that his eyes were black with green pupils and that his arms were unproportionally large for his body and had what looked like paneling running up and down them. He sat up and leaned back on the couch, hands crossed behind his head. "Well...from all the data that I've compiled from my scanners and sensors, there is no trace of Evron's massive Zirin signature in any of the galaxies that I am able to scan for. MAI is still in her lab monitoring every single sensor we have but...we can either assume that the Boss is either dead or he's so far away that our scanners can't find him. I'll remind you that I built all our scanners and they have a really powerful range. I mean, he could be-"

"He's not dead," interrupted a soft voice from across the room. Sitting on a soft-looking white armchair was a robed young woman dressed all in white with gold trim. She had back length golden blonde hair done in layers and soft round eyes with scarlet pupils. She seemed to be backlit by a soft golden glow that made her hair stand out even more.

Craig sat up and leaned forward on the couch, stifling a yawn as he did so. "Look, Lia...Princess, I'm not saying he's dead but what if he is? Dying's apparently not a big deal to the Boss. He's come back before."

Lia looked at him with an expression that was too kind to be considered a glare. "He is not dead. I can still feel the bond that my beloved has with me. All of you can feel it. Due to your somewhat mechanical nature, your awareness of the bond you share is dulled. Regardless, Lord Nexus would not let him die."

Atlas stepped forward into the center of the large office, his voluminous scarlet cape fluttering behind him. "Princess is right. I do still feel like Ev is alive. He just doesn't feel like he's...here," Anton said, stressing the last word. "It feels the same as when he was lost when chasing Space & Time. Eva, you remember, right?", Anton gestured towards to the female figure leaning on the far left wall. "Sis?"

She clicked her tongue in an annoyed manner and nodded her head, her short pink hair shifting as she did so. "Yeah, I remember. How couldn't I? I was almost pulled in with him. Your bond with him is almost as strong as his girl. you would know better than I would." After pausing, she continued. " So what? You think he's reality jumping again? That sounds more plausible than him being dead." She stood up from the wall and stretched slightly. All she wore was a sleeveless white Titanwatch fiber bodysuit with pink hearts emblazoned on her chest as her insignia. A pink pair of sunglasses hid her eyes.

"That's right," spoke another. "Evron is strong, stronger than ever." The voice came from a young olive-skinned man standing with his face to a wall-length window. His thick, curly black hair was long and unkempt, reaching his shoulders. He wore no shirt, showing off the several rather large scars and intricate tattoos of sea creatures that adorned his torso. His only clothing was a pair of short black swim trunks and a thick silver armband. On his back was a large harpoon. "He is missing, not dead," he continued in clipped, gruff tones.

Eldritch chuckled softly and stepped forward toward Aren's desk, his steps making no sound. "Aleks makes a good point. Our Great and Powerful Leader is stronger than ever. I doubt he needs us to look for him. He'll find his way back on his own. He is Evron, after all."

Aren stood up again and slammed his hands on the white desk in front of him, making the material emit an audible groan. Despite the visible anger on his face, his voice was still as calm as ever. "That's not the point, El. That's not the point at all. I told you I left the Alphas of Titanwatch because I felt I was not good enough to be one of you anymore. I wasn't strong enough. That was a lie. I left because I was scared that one day I would be caught in a situation that my power could not help me get out of. We lost Angelo, we lost Takumi, Cesar, Tisha, Jani, Kevin, Nell, Cris, Bart, we...lost...we...we lost Luther. All gone, all...dead."

Atlas held up a large hand. "Aren, look...", he began in a soft tone that sounded odd with his booming voice.

"Let me finish, Anton." Aren took a deep breath and straightened his glasses before continuing. "All of them had more reliable powers than I did. I...I was just scared I'd be the next one gone. Then Niko left. Anna, Ben, Maria, Jak, Cole, Vick, Erek, Naida, Aidan, Brit, Vance, Li, Amira, Zelda, Dan, Brick. They all left the Alphas because compared to you guys, they were fodder...and they knew it. The only ones out of those guys on your level were Niko, Jak, and Cole and they left because they knew odds were they'd be first to die. We're going to find Ev because he's our friend and him being missing is the same as him being dead. He brought us together. He made us feel like we were worth something and he always had our backs. I...We need him." As he finished, Aren sat down, reached into his pocket, brought out a quarter and began flipping it in an attempt to calm his nerves.

The room was silent for over a full minute. The silence was broken by Anton walking to Aren's side and placing a hand on his shoulder. "I know how you feel, Aren. Ev did a lot for you. He did a lot for me, too."

Turning back to face everyone in the room, Anton raised his arms. " Look, none of us would be here today if it was not for Evron. Hell, the Earth wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for Evron. He was our friend when we needed it. He laughed with us, he fought with us, he fought for us, he bled for us, he died for us. When he was gone, we didn't act like a family. We barely acted like friends. We did a job and we went home. When he came back, we were whole again. Eva, Ev pushed you out of Paragon's way when he tried to kill you again. He took a hit that would've killed you and he didn't hesitate. You hated him back then because you thought he killed Dad. When you asked him why he saved you after you tried to kill him, what did he say?"

Eva smiled sadly. " He said 'You're still my friend, whether you hate me or not.'"

Anton nodded calmly. "Craig, when Mayhem took your legs and arm, what was the first thing Ev did when you woke up?"

"He offered me his own," Craig said with a chuckle.

Anton laughed as well before turning to Dana. "Dana..."

She smiled and shook her head. "He's my little brother. I already love him...almost as much as you love him."

"Thank you, sweetheart. Princess, who was the only one who was able to help you deal with your Bloodrage?"

Lia's hair became streaked with red and her soft golden aura became a harsh red. Her expression changed from a kind smile to a vicious one. "Why, my beloved, of course. Who else would ever dare to even think they could lecture me other than him?"

"Thank you. Aleksandr...Megalodon, when you were stranded on that desert planet, what did Evron do for you before you could starve?"

Aleksandr closed his eyes and nodded. "He tore off his arm off every night until we were rescued to give me something to eat. He is a true friend."

Anton gave a slight grimace. "Yeah...okay. El, we all know what Evron did for you."

Eldritch raised one side of his mouth in a mocking smirk. "Of course. My dashing hero Ev. When I lost myself to all the millions of minds trapped inside me and tried to kill everyone everywhere, he punched me in the face until I was myself again. Isn't he just wonderful?"

Anton glanced at Eldritch with a look that said that he wasn't sure if he was being sarcastic or not. "My point is, Evron did a lot for all of us.
He's had our backs. He needs us to have his back as much as he has ours."

Craig coughed loudly, trying and failing to hold back a laugh. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt but you're obviously joking, right? Evron is leagues above us. We're all Z-Class. We should be the strongest things ever but Evron...he has the only classification past Z. He has Nexus, a fucking godthing, inside of him. I don't think he can ever die. Why does he and why would he...ever need us to have his back?"

Anton gave Craig an understanding look. "I understand where you're coming from Craig. Ev is strong. That's why he's The Boss but...he still needs us. He needs us to ground him. To make sure he realizes that he's still human, a person, and not just a force of nature. We need him because he reminds us that there will always be someone stronger. He's the King for a reason and we're gonna get him back. Nothing and no one will stand in our way. Is that clear, Titanwatch?!"

"YES, SIR!," resounded the voices of everyone in the office.

"Good. Now let's find our boss and bring him back home," Anton boomed.