And here's the next chapter of the Wave, a little earlier so I'd be able to wish you a happy Valentine's Day, even if you're single! But now, the guys don't realy have reason to be happy, even with all the allies they have (spoiler: they're still outnumbered). But first, I respond to the reviews:

LabRatsWhore: Thanks for reviewing! And yes, the powers were contaminated and not the people themselves... that's why the Dark Warrior and Titanio and other heroes without powers play an important role. And even when fangirling, I will not leave the house. (I'm sorry if I'm too curious, bu what was your mom's reaction?)

Enjoy! Happy Valentine's Day!

-Writer207

"Count us in. Yeah, see you there. Bye!" Sighing, Nelson Oakley put down his phone. He just had an argument with the Dark Warrior, and this time they hadn't been discussing strategies to take down certain villains. No – the Dark Warrior, the most lonely hero out of all existing heroes, had asked them for help against the Annihilator.

At first, Nelson refused to help. It was the Annihilator. The guy could take away someone's powers, the guy was one of the most dangerous guys in the entire world. And to be honest, his team wouldn't stand a chance against him, even if they outnumbered him with four (or five) to one. He was the leader, he would never put his teammates in danger.

That is, until he mentioned Horace Diaz. Only Diaz himself knew the relationship they had, and nobody else knew about it. To the world, he was a simple Normo; to comic book lovers, he was Optimo; to the staff of Mighty Med, he was one of the heroes that almost never show up. They had their Healer; why would they go there?

But Diaz was family, the brother-in-law who was ever there for him and even accepted to raise Alan because it was too dangerous for Nelson to keep him. Diaz did a lot for him the past decade – he now felt it was time to repay the dept.

He called the other three members of the Super-Secret Heroes in Hiding and sent them the location of their next meeting. No, he did not have their phone numbers, only a handy device which they used to call the others to the next location of crime. He dressed himself and left his house, flying high above the ground, to Tidwell Manor. He knew where it was; he had been there once when the League had worked together with him to find the Razor Claw.

He was the first one there. There was no doubt the others would come soon. Al except the Healer would show up; he came only to tend their wounds, nothing else. And even if the Healer wasn't a real hero and many fans doubted his existence and utility in the comics, he had proven himself very useful, even when he still had been a teenager.

The Healer would show up when they needed him. It was the one of the two phone numbers he really knew.

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we-"

"Stop talking!" the Dark Warrior said. He almost yelled these simple words. Why would he yell? Because Kaz had been saying these words the entire time. When they were driving for five minutes (or even less, they didn't really recall how long) Kaz started to ask the most irritating question in the world when you're on the road. And yes, it was starting to get a little too annoying when the Dark Warrior was irritated.

Kaz looked upset. "Hey, I just want to know if we're there yet! How much longer do I have to wait?" This one question got a comedic effect when the Dark Warrior stopped his vehicle. When Oliver looked out, he saw a big mansion. A large brick wall separated Tidwell's property from the streets, with an elegant iron gate being the only way in and out (if you couldn't fly). The manor had three floors, and apparently a big basement as well, considering the amount of villains staying there. Did Henry even know the Annihilator used his basement as his new lair?

"Kaz, we're here," he replied – so Kaz really knew they were where they needed to be – and they stepped out of his dark car. They saw three people standing at the gate, probably waiting for them to arrive. The two Normos frowned; the Super-Secret Heroes in Hiding had four members – it was a small piece of knowledge every fan possessed. Then why were they with three?

There were two women and one man. They immediately recognized the man as Optimo, the leader of the SSHH, who would do anything to save the people… as long as his team had a chance to beat the villain. It was very brave of him and the ladies to show up.

These ladies excelled in hand-to-hand combat and would never back down from a fight, unless Optimo would tell them otherwise. With one being a former villain and the other a former top agent from the FBI, they most certainly shouldn't be underestimated. The agent, Minerva, was the strategist of the team, and the Normo who examined their threats. You could say this brunette was the only hero who didn't really have a code-name, and her costume was just one of her old suits – and sometimes, when Optimo accepted, she took the lead and commanded everyone. The former villain chose the codename Phantom. She didn't choose this name; the people gave it to her. She's like a ghost, like a phantom, when fighting; she teleports from place to place and hits her opponent real quick. Only few of these opponents came close to touching her. She wore a black costume and also died her hair black, which made it easier for her to hide during a battle.

And the fourth member didn't show up.

"Optimo. Thanks for coming. We could really use your help." The Dark Warrior said, shaking Optimo's hand once. The hero nodded.

"I know how much Diaz means for the hospital. We're glad to help." The hero responded.

"Where's Dr. Wood?" Kaz suddenly asked, and they were all staring at him. You just didn't ask where he was. Maybe he was just a little late. Yet, the expression on the faces of the members of the SSHH told them he wasn't just late.

"He retired," Optimo replied, "last time, he told us he couldn't keep up with us anymore. The previous mission was his last." Kaz and Oliver nodded. During the last comic books, Dr. Wood had to be backed by the others. He was making the team weak, and apparently the man had realized the same. And now there would be no more of Dr. Wood.

"If Dr. Wood retired, who's going to replace him?" He had been a valuable member of both the League of Heroes and the SSHH. Finding someone to replace him was a very difficult task. Maybe today, they could only count on three of the four Super-Secret Heroes in Hiding.

Then, a young man came running to them and he stopped next to Optimo, being completely out of breath. Optimo looked at his with this severe look. "You're late." He said, and the young man nodded, looking rather irritated.

"Hey, I'm sorry I didn't hear the alarm, I was showering! What's the emergency?" Kaz an Oliver stared at him. If he seriously was going to help, they had no idea who he was. But to be honest, they could really use every help they got. While they tried to figure out who he was, told the Dark Warrior what was going on.

"In the basement of this fancy building is a very dangerous villain with a lot of heroes helping him. He has a hostage – or hostages, depending on how you look at the situation. We need to get in and get out with the hostage. I really should tell you to use violence. The heroes are in his power. We're the only ones not corrupted, so they're all counting on us."

"Hold on; who's the boss?" the young man asked, "Which villain is strong enough to do this. Sure, Revengeance is, but he's a black powerless cloud." Before the Dark Warrior could answer that question, his team leader did.

"Caine, don't tell me you haven't been reading comic books," Optimo said, "It's the Annihilator we're up against." The expression on Caine's face changed from irritation to fear. This rookie clearly did not want to be here at this moment.

"The Annihilator! C'mon!" Caine yelled. "You should've told me before I came, because I will not go in there when it's the Annihilator and everyone who's trying to kill me or make me evil, okay? And please, call me by my codename! It's embarrassing not to have one."

"Kid, your codename is stupid and your name does sound a little intimidating too," said the agent. Caine sighed irritated. He too wanted to be addressed with his codename. C'mon, he didn't ask too much, did he? They just had to call him 'the Master Manipulator' sometimes and he would be happy. He still was adjusting to the situation though; he had been a member of the SSHH for three days and he might me a little stressed for his big mission, his big breakthrough.

They didn't say anything else, but got inside. The Phantom helped them inside using her teleportation power, bringing them inside, one by one. Caine and Optimo broke in the old-fashioned way as a distraction. As heroes like the Crusher and Alley Cat passed them to take down Optimo, the others – lead by the Dark Warrior – cautiously walked into the basement.

It was a large floor with only a few separate rooms, and there wasn't much light. Once the team got used to the darkness, they knew where to step and where to go. They immediately noticed Horace Diaz (still unconscious) lying on the floor, with behind him in the shadows a small figure, which probably was Skylar Storm. They didn't notice the cages and were very quiet, even Kaz.

The only sound was the one of their slow footsteps. This had to be a trap. That's what the Dark Warrior thought. It couldn't be this easy, especially not when it came to the Annihilator. It may be true his strategies don't always include stealth and secrecy, but when they do, he surely knows how to incorporate them to spread chaos between heroes and Normos, sometimes even villains.

Then, the intense silence was broken when one of the heroes spoke up. "They're here; two Normos, the Dark Warrior and Optimo's two ladies." The lights were turned on right after NeoCortex spoke these words. The room just became a little too dangerous. They were surrounded by the heroes. The most noticeable among them were NeoCortex, Skylar Storm, Blue Tornado, the Silver Shield and Titanio, all of them standing close to the Annihilator. Between other heroes stood one large cage, with Gus and Jordan in them.

"What are you doing here?" she yelled at the two Normo doctors, outraged and scared as heck. They could do with Gus whatever they wanted, but they should not touch the two only guys she could call her friends.

Kaz and Oliver weren't really focusing on Jordan and Gus. They were looking at Skylar and her position; she was not standing behind Horace Diaz. No, the teenager next to Skylar was holding the small yet effective gun pointed at Horace, ready to shoot when the order was given. Yet, even if he was twenty feet away, they saw how the gun, along with his hand and arm, was trembling.

Alan Diaz was holding the gun in his hand, and he wasn't exactly feeling comfortable with it.