Nobody knew it yet, but all the pieces were starting to fall into place.

Mason had joined Oliver during the last few missions. That had made life a bit difficult for both of them, but Oliver was glad Mason started now because he wouldn't be able to do it forever. Eventually, Mason would give up, and eventually, Oliver could go on a mission on his own. Oliver figured they would become confident enough to let Oliver go alone one day, and on that day, Oliver would never return.

But for now, the two were on a mission. A bank robbery was in progress, and they called in the SuperHumans, so Mason and Oliver were on their way. Mason pulled into the front of the large building alongside some police cars.

Mason and Oliver stepped out, straightening their ties and clothes. A police officer walked up to Mason.

"They've got every single point of entry covered. There is no way we can get in." The officer said.

"Any plans?" Mason asked.

"Not yet." The officer confessed.

"Red Suits?" Oliver asked.

"No." The officer replied. "Just a gang of ordinary criminals."

Mason scanned the area. "How many outside of the front door?" He asked.

"three." The officer told him. "Only two at the back."

Mason started forming a strategy in his head. "I'll be at the front. Oliver, you take the back. We'll sandwich them."

Without saying anything, Oliver ran to the other side of the building.

Mason slowly turned the door handle, then burst into the room at full speed. He charged one man before they could react, and shot the other two, only shooting once with each pistol. All three criminals were already down. Mason signaled for the police officers to move in behind him.

Mason turned toward the big metal doors leading to the main room of the bank. He opened it slightly, then threw a grenade over it, through the crack. Mason used it as cover to enter with three smoke bombs he dropped beside him. He and the police officers moved in. The smoke grenades went off, and Mason dashed into the very center of the giant cloud of smoke. He could hear the footsteps of someone directly to his left, so he shot in that direction. He heard another person react to the bullet, so he shot there, too. Mason jumped out of the smoke and turned around, analyzing the room and searching for where more armed robbers could be hiding. He could see the civilians hiding under tables, motion sensor bombs sitting on the surface of the tables, ready to go off if any of them tried to escape. That's a very clever trick. Nobody's ever used that before, in my experience, anyway. The smoke began to clear, and Mason saw the bodies of the people he'd shot. The police officers rushed to the wall surrounding the door. Behind Mason, the door flung open, and multiple criminals ran out with weapons.

These aren't just regular old criminals, these guys are advanced. They must be some kind of gang, and a big one. That's odd, I haven't heard of any gangs powerful enough to do this.

"C'mon guys, I really don't think you can deal with me," Mason said reasonably.

"There's four of us, One of the robbers asked.

"Me." Mason put simply. "After all, I am the chief of the SuperHumans."

"All the more reason to kill you right here." Another robber said, moving to the front. "So we will."

"Oh well," Mason said. "Looks like there's no helping it."

The police officers ran out and promptly apprehended or killed the criminals promptly. The whole thing took about 10 seconds. A gunshot whizzed passed Mason's face, Mason barely avoiding it by leaning back just in time. The man ran away, down a hallway. Mason raced after him, turning the corner to see the man aiming his gun.

"I won't hesitate!" The man said. Mason scoffed. "You already are, right now." He said. There was a brief silence.

"Go ahead, shoot me then," Mason told the criminal. A look of fear crossed his face, then determination.

The man shot Mason directly in the chest. Mason didn't even budge. Of course, he had a bulletproof vest underneath his suit, and his SuperHuman abilities allowed him to withstand against the impact of the bullet, so to this poor criminal, it looks like the bullet he shot at Mason might as well have bounced off.

The man shot and shot at Mason, at one point hitting close enough to the shoulder to make Mason fall back a bit.

"We live in a different age now," Mason said. "Small criminal organizations like you just can't survive. It would take some kind of mastermind with ludicrous amounts of power to rob this huge bank successfully."

The criminal put his hands up and sat down on his knees resignedly, a deep look of anguish on his face. A police officer ran in behind Mason and cuffed him.

-/-

Oliver peeked through a small window on the back door. Two. Just like they said. Oliver turned the doorknob and walked into the room.

"I have a proposal," Oliver said with his hands up, slowly approaching the men.

"Which is?" One of the guys asked, keeping his weapon aimed at Oliver.

"I… think…" Oliver said slowly, shortening the distance between the two of them. "You should…"

Oliver got close enough. He punched the man in the forehead, his head whipping back and hitting the wall behind him. The second man shot at Oliver, who ducked beneath him

Oliver pointed the gun at the second man, now standing up. The two stood face to face with each other, a gun pointed to the other.

"Just how exactly do you think this'll go right for you?" Oliver asked.

The man raised his eyebrows. "You might just be surprised."

The guy fought extremely well. Every attack Oliver threw, the guy managed to miss, and he pretty much kept up with Oliver during their whole melee. At one point, the two of them clashed, and Oliver slid back.

"I gotta say," he said. "Out of all of my opponents I've ever faced, you are by far the most formidable."

"I figured as much." The guy said. "I've always wanted to test myself against a SuperHuman. I give you my utmost respect, even though you haven't trained to gain any of your abilities, I can see you're up to date with modern combat techniques. Things you'd only find by fighting people like us."

"I respect you too, for what it's worth," Oliver replied. "I don't intend to kill you after this."

"I'm afraid I can't say the same." The guy said.

Oliver took out his gun and shot at the man, who was able to move unpredictably enough to make even a SuperHuman miss. The two clashed again, Oliver ducking away, and attempting to strike the man, but he was already out of the way. Oliver shot his last shots at the man, which all missed as well. His gun was now out of ammo. The man leaped at Oliver, and actually managed to catch him in the gut with his knee. Oliver caught the man's leg before he landed and then dropped him. Oliver broke off the slide of his pistol as quickly as he could and snapped part off, making a sharp edge. When the man got close to Oliver again, Oliver managed to stab him in the gut with the broken piece of his gun.

The man fell to the floor, bleeding.

"Damn." He said through the pain. "A knife?" The man removed his hands from the wound and looked at it.

"A broken gun slide. Ha. That's new." The man took a big inhale.

Oliver helped him up and ran with the man on his back. He brought him back to the front of the building.

"This man needs medical help," Oliver said. A few medics from an ambulance waiting by the front put the man on a stretcher.

Oliver rushed back to get to the back again. He entered, ran through the small room he fought the robbers in, and entered the main room. Inside were civilians hiding under trapped tables, clearing smoke, and Mason. A small flicker of a fire sparked in Oliver when he saw him, the same as every time. Oliver hated this man now, and nothing would ever change that.

"I'll start securing hostages, you clear out the hallway," Mason said to Oliver, who reluctantly obliged.

Oliver reached the hallway, keeping an eye down it. Any others in the building will be coming soon. Suddenly, all the lights in the building shut off. Oliver quickly took out his flashlight, and shined it down the hallway, pistol drawn. Right in the center of the light was a man, with a gun to the head of a dragon. The dragon was tied up, and the man was carrying him down the hallway towards Oliver. Oliver's heart sank. I can save him. Come on, I have to. But no. The man didn't even give Oliver a chance. It was immediate. The man threw the body to the side like it didn't even matter. The gunshot ran through Oliver's ears. The thud of the dragon's body raced through his head. Oliver hadn't even realized he had moved before he was already in front of the man, putting all of his force into a punch, nothing held back. It made a blood curdling, bone-rattling crunch-squelch noise. The man let off kind of a growl and fell to the floor. Should I kill him? After everything he did? He killed that dragon mercilessly and put all those innocent lives in danger. Before Oliver could think of his next move, he heard a voice from behind him.

"Nice one, Oliver! You sure showed that guy!" Said Mason. He jogged over and cuffed the man, and led them out. Mason never noticed the body of the dragon.

-/-

Something had snapped inside of Oliver. Something inside his head was different now. Something was nagging at him, but he didn't know what. It was kind of an impatience, like an incredible wanting for something. It pulled at Oliver's brain.

"Are… you… okay?" Mason asked cautiously behind Oliver. Oliver was sitting at his desk, but staring straight ahead, zoned out, as he had been the whole way back from the bank.

There it is. That's what I want. I want to leave. I want this all to stop.

"Everything is fine, Mason. Thanks for asking. I'll get right back to work."

Mason nodded in agreement and then started to walk away, but then he stopped and turned around.

"You're awfully chipper, Oliver." He said with meaning.

"I'm just.. in a good mood," Oliver said. "I can't wait."

"For what?" Mason asked him.

Oliver stopped. "To get back to work." He finally said. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the new recruit glance at him, and back away.

Oliver waited for Mason to go back into his office. It felt like the time never came, it was taking to long. It seemed to take years. The door finally closed, and Oliver stood up. He casually walked towards the front of the room. Mason's door opened behind him. Oliver didn't look back. He set his eyes on the front door of the SuperHuman Tower. Mason's footsteps grew louder and faster behind him. Oliver sped up himself, which turned into a jog, then into a run, then into a full sprint. Other SuperHumans flew by him, but there was only one thing left. The door. He was almost there. The handle was in his reach. He could make it out. He could do it.

Hands grabbed Oliver's shoulders, one on each. Hands grabbed his arms. It was Joseph and another SuperHuman, one of the ones who took Amelia. Mason was behind Oliver.

"I hoped it would never come to this." He said. "But she poisoned your mind. You aren't Oliver Brown anymore, you're Amelia's drone."

Oliver didn't say anything. He's right. I'm not Oliver Brown anymore. But he's also wrong. I'm not a drone. I'm the opposite.

I'm free.

"You are an exceptional specimen."

"I really want you to stop."

Oliver drove his hands toward the ground, breaking through the grasp of both SuperHumans. He dove to the right and grabbed the unknown SuperHuman's head. He kicked the attacker's legs out from under him and drove his head into Joseph. Oliver knew what to do next. He rolled underneath the two entangled SuperHumans and was right in front of Mason. He punched Mason with full force before Mason could react. He grabbed his own pair of handcuffs and threw them around his arms. He picked Mason up by the handcuffs and threw him into Joseph and the other attacker. Oliver was grabbed in the back by more SuperHumans, both his wrists getting held back. Oliver was grabbed in the neck by Joseph, who gave him the most emotionless, inhuman gaze. Oliver kicked the man in the shins with his free legs and twisted out of the grips on his wrists. He held Josephs head in his hands, ready to break his neck.

"I'LL DO IT!" Oliver shouted, backing towards the wall, the SuperHumans taking out their guns now. Only a few working SuperHumans watched, one including the SuperHuman Oliver knew wasn't redirected.

The SuperHumans surrounded Oliver, and one freed Joseph. Oliver's enemies closed in. Oliver was being restrained in all places he could fight with. He was helpless. He was going to be redirected. It was all over. There was no saving him.

The unknown SuperHuman who had helped restrain Amelia, who was holding on to Oliver's right arm, was shot in the back of the head. His corpse fell down to the ground. Behind him was the new recruit, Daniel.

"Oliver, I was there." He said. "When Amelia got taken."

Oliver broke free, and he heard Daniel keep talking. "I eavesdropped on your conversation with Mason. I was wondering when you'd escape."

Oliver kept fighting back against the other SuperHumans alongside Daniel. Oliver kept slowly edging his way toward the door. He took a break in the fighting to use his pistol to shoot the door, making a small hole in it, but more importantly, alerting the near public. There was a brief pause in the fighting when Oliver did this and Joseph took this opportunity. He grabbed Daniel, dropped him to the floor and put his knee on him. He took out a pair of handcuffs and connected them around Daniel's hands, which were put behind his back. Oliver used this small break to shove past one of his attackers and right through the door to the SuperHuman building.

A wave of cold air hit him like a truck, but before Oliver could take in his surroundings, he sprinted over around the tower and started climbing the next building over.

None of them would dare come out here and pursue me, not if they think they can catch me. Everyone is watching.

Oliver took in a deep breath when he reached the top of the building. He saw everything on the streets now. He saw homeless people and dragons, sitting on the sidewalks. Distantly, he could see the harbor and the sea, huge boats pulling in. He saw humans and dragons, watching him and taking pictures. Oliver saw the city for what it was. Oliver saw life for what it was.

It was incredible. A new chapter to Oliver's story was beginning now. He had done what SuperHuman after SuperHuman has wanted to do. What Oliver was sure Joseph wanted to do, at one point, before he became redirected. See the world, unburdened. Mason was standing on the street staring at him.

I won. I beat him. One SuperHuman managed to slip through their fingers, and that SuperHuman won't just disappear.

He'll be back.

Oh, I'll be back.

-/-

Wolf frantically shook out both Lilypad's blanket. No luck, not here either. Wolf had been searching for Tide's old book about The Scorching War ever since he had visited the mural, and he still couldn't find it. Where else would Tide have put it?! It HAS to be around here somewhere.

Wolf reluctantly asked Sedge.

"I know you held on to Lilypad's old journal, what about Tide's book, about the war?" He asked.

"Nope, I haven't seen it." Sedge told him. "Excuse me, I have to go start planning with the others. That weird dragon has really got everyone excited."

"Yeah," Wolf said. "Of course."

Defeated once more by the missing book, Wolf flumped down onto a chair, daydreaming. If only I had listened more carefully when Tide was giving me spit facts about different locations and battles and stuff. Wolf gazed at the large TV, a red breaking news alert floating through the screen.

Wolf was completely zoned out, not paying attention to the words the people on the screen were saying until the name 'Johnathan Craney' was uttered. Wolf jolted back to reality and started listening intently to the television.

"Local humanitarian Johnathan Craney was found dead in his residence earlier today. Cause of death is unknown." The anchor said.

No.

"This loss is especially tragic when taken into consideration of all the homeless he took care of. He ran the shelter on his own, and his abrupt passing will force it to close." She continued.

No way.

I killed him.

No, Moonfall did.

He tricked me.

But I fell for it so easily.

He told me who Johnathan Craney was that night. He was probably the one who caused those men to blow up and kill the soldiers. He tricked me into believing him.

The world was spinning. Wolf felt like throwing up. He couldn't focus on the TV anymore, or Sedge's words, or anything else.

A magic dragon from a lost tribe committed an act of terrorism and tricked me into trusting him so he could kill again.

Wolf fell from his seat, having fainted. He lay on the floor, surprised Basilisk members making sure he's okay. Behind them, the TV kept running, showing the body of Johnathan Craney, a man killed by animus magic. The TV shone on Sedge the MudWing, watching it, attempting to make a connection between it and the now unconscious Wolf. The light of a TV showing the same news story also shone on the scales of Moonfall the NightWing, sitting in his quarters drinking a cup of hot lemon tea. A smile cut through his face, as he excitedly tapped the arm of his chair. It was beginning.

Wolf knows now. But Sedge and the others are on my side. I wonder what path Wolf will take; does he reveal he caused the death of an innocent human, or does he let Basilisk slip into the talons of a dragon he does not trust?

Dragons and humans are such interesting creatures. Not only have the seeds of chaos planted themselves in Basilisk without any of them knowing it, but now the public has been pushed that much farther. I wonder what the breaking point will be, and I wonder which will break first? The freedom fighters, or the free?

Things are going to change.