"Well, I must say," Abe declared, "I am impressed. You guys have one hell of a setup here, Katya."
Katya held open the door to the library. "Being around the Guardians changes beings," she agreed. "It inspires one to be a better version of themselves and to encourage others to do the same. We created this place to give beings the opportunity to act on that inspiration."
Abe walked through the door and quickly discovered that not only were they not alone, but that the woman who was in the library with them was a very familiar face. "Martha Rodgers?!" Abe exclaimed, eyes wide and star struck. "Is that really you?"
Martha frowned, trying and failing to place Abe's face and voice to a name that she remembered. "I'm so sorry," she finally apologized. "Do I know you?"
"Only as a face in the crowd of your loving admirers," Abe replied, kissing Martha's hand with gentle chivalry. "Abraham Morgan, at your service."
Martha blushed and giggled. "Well, it is always a pleasure to meet a fan, Mister Morgan," she declared with a smile. Her eyes widened just slightly as she realized that she did, indeed, recognize at least part of the name of the man in front of her. "Are you related to a Doctor Henry Morgan, by any chance?"
Abe's defenses shot up quickly. "The name sounds familiar. Where did you hear it from?" he asked, trying to make the question sound as glib and casual as he could.
Martha recognized the dance immediately. "My granddaughter is one of the founding members of this little group," she replied. "So I...may have heard the name in passing once or twice."
"Once or twice, huh?" Abe asked skeptically. He fingered a lock of Martha's hair as the color recalled a younger woman that he had met moments earlier. The connection he made felt instant and obvious. "That granddaughter wouldn't be Alexis Castle, by any chance, would she?"
Martha's face fell, just slightly. "She is," Martha admitted.
"Which means your son is one of the Guardians," added Abe.
Abe's comment wiped every bit of a casual expression from Martha's face. She sighed and returned the book she was holding to the nearest shelf. "He is," Martha agreed.
"I believe it is time for me to leave you two alone," Katya declared before making a hasty exit out of the library.
Abe, for his part, was having trouble figuring out how he offended Martha. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I thought he and his team ran this place?"
"They do," Martha replied.
"So what did I say?" asked Abe.
Martha moved as close to Abe as she dared. "Privacy is one of the tenets upon which this place was founded. Every member of the Network has a code name, and that is the name most commonly used within these walls. Very few people have called me by my real name here. Even fewer know of my connection to Master Sìfāng or Crusher. And those who do know...well, we don't talk about it in common spaces."
"Why all the cloak and dagger?"
Martha closed and locked both of the doors to the library before returning to answer Abe's question. "Before you arrived at the warehouse, how familiar were you with the Guardians?"
"Not very," Abe replied with a shrug. "I've heard rumors, but not much more. Urban legend type stuff."
"That's by design, darling," Martha explained. "At first, it was primarily to protect the Guardians themselves. Think about it: if the Guardians were proven to be real, or if, God forbid, their identities were made public, what do you think would happen to them?"
Abe recognized the problem immediately. "They'd be mobbed at best..."
"And abducted...or dissected...by the military at worst," Martha agreed, swallowing hard as she gave voice to her only constant, nagging fear. "And the good they were given these powers to do..."
"They'd never be able to do it," agreed Abe. "Okay, okay. So protecting them, I get. But why make everyone use a code name?"
The corners of Martha's mouth turned up briefly in a nostalgic smile. "That part has never been much of a hard and fast rule, if I'm being perfectly honest with you."
"It hasn't?" asked Abe.
Martha shook her head. "It's a matter of necessity for the Guardians as well. But after a while a few people decided they wanted to use aliases, as well. Eventually the practice just caught on and became de rigeur."
"Why?"
"I heard what Angel told you earlier," Martha explained, careful to use Katya's code name as she encouraged Abe to sit at a table. "About how this whole experience changes a being..." When Abe nodded in recognition, Martha continued, "some of our members felt like they had changed enough that it felt like they were an entirely new person. The code names are a recognition of that change. After all, haven't you ever wanted the chance to just wipe the slate clean and start over?"
"Yeah," he agreed. "I guess..."
Martha quickly picked up on the cloud that had formed over Abe's head. "You do understand. Better than most, unless I miss my guess?" A bolt of panic shot through Abe, which Martha also noticed. "It's all right," she reassured him. "Whatever you did in the past.."
"It wasn't me," Abe insisted. He looked Martha up and down, studying her carefully as he considered his options. This isn't my secret to tell, is it? Why not? It's not like it hasn't affected me *my* whole life...
"So this is about Henry, then?" Martha probed. "Something in your son's past..."
"Henry isn't my son," Abe declared, cutting off Martha's second question.
Martha nodded, assuming she knew what Abe was trying to tell her. "I see..."
"Henry is my father," said Abe. "He and his wife adopted me when I was a baby."
Martha sat back in her chair, trying and failing to do the math with the information she had. "How...?"
"Henry is immortal," Abe admitted. "He's 235 years old."
Martha's eyes widened. "Oh," she exclaimed, sitting back in her chair as she processed Abe's confession. "He...he looks great for two hundred and thirty..."
"He hasn't aged in two centuries," said Abe. "Trust me, trying to compare yourself to that is only destined to drive you crazy."
Martha noticed the edge in Abe's last statement. "Is that why you moved around so much growing up?"
Abe nodded. "Every time Henry got suspicious that someone might notice that he wasn't getting any older..."
"Off you went," said Martha, completing Abe's thought. Abe nodded. Martha leaned back in her chair as she tried to get a full picture of the unique story of the man sitting before her. "Do you have any siblings?"
Abe shook his head. "Only child."
"So the only ones who knew about Henry were you..."
"And my mother," agreed Abe.
"Must have been very lonely for you," Martha mused.
Abe nodded again. "Although..."
"What is it?" asked Martha.
"I'm starting to worry about him," Abe admitted. He started to fidget slightly as his thoughts went to an uncomfortable place. "I'm not exactly a spring chicken..."
"Neither am I," Martha sympathized.
Abe leaned forward, suddenly desperate to get his point across. "No, you don't get it! You know that your children are going to outlive you. All parents do..."
"Except for Henry."
Abe sat back and blushed. "It's probably going to sound weird, but I wonder about about it, you know? What'll happen to him..."
"After you're gone?" asked Martha.
"Silly, huh?" Abe countered.
Martha shook her head. "Not at all."
"My mom and I were the first people in centuries that Henry's felt completely able to trust with his secret and his crazy life. Now my mom's gone, and when I'm...he doesn't have anybody who understands, you know? I just...I just don't want to see him go through eternity alone after he loses me."
Martha forced herself to look away from Abe, wishing that she had a drink in her hand or some other object to excuse the diversion of her attention. "Mister Morgan...I wouldn't worry about your father. He's not going to be as alone as you think."
