The Undoing Of Villains | ✓

twenty one

(a/n: no words to express how sorry I am for this late update ... i've been overrun with school lately, and even if it's a lame excuse i really needed to use the little time off that i had to work on my mental headspace and just relax, since i'm normally 330% stressed. but here I am, back w chapter twenty one! enjoy xo, cleo)

twenty one

IT TOOK A SECOND for me to properly digest the fact that I'd left my brother unconscious somewhere on a rooftop in Dynamo. And then that initial guilt mingled with the fear of him exposing who I was, and the urgent need to protect my still developing powers, which nearly evaporated it. Sawyer was a grown man, and he'd taken a shot at me. He would be fine. 

It was I who was the frog in hot water, the temperature having skyrocketed to a boiling level. Tetra was still occupying a large part of my mind, but now Sawyer was, too. It was obvious his affairs in Dynamo were tangled with my plans for Tetra - or just supers, in general. 

Thinking of it too hard made my head ache, and so, upon returning home, I topped up my coffee with an extra shot of espresso. There was only one thing I wanted to do - talk to the currently most sought after criminal in Dynamo, which - coincidentally - also was its most prized hero. Vector. 

Going back to his hideout seemed to be the right way to go, even if he wasn't there, I could leave a note of sorts. Our uneasy alliance was, to me, still semi-stable, which meant that even if he'd scuttled back to his HQ in order to wait out the storm, I needed to update him on the current conditions. With the exception of the Sawyer business, though.

You don't need him to be more involved in your business than he already is, my subconscious pointed out, and I agreed. 

After downing my beverage, I scrounged up a notebook and an old pen, scratching the tip across the paper until a smudge of ink leaked out. With that, I started sketching up a plan: 

Good guy go-to: 

- figure out what Tetra wants

- evade Sawyer 

- contact Vector

- fix suit

I glanced toward the coffee machine beside me, adding another line of text: 

- get more coffee. 

And that was it. My mind was spinning with possibilities on what to do, which path to take. I felt like a captain commandeering a vessel equipped with all the maps there is, every route open and inviting. All I needed to do know was choose the one which would get me to my preferred end point - a simple enough task for an amateur superhero all by my lonesome. 

No worries, Charlie. You survived puberty and high school. Invincibility, here you come.

A small smile curled the edge of my lips as I ripped out the page, tucking it into one of my kitchen drawers. I had a plastic container for the cutlery, and by lifting it up I could slide the sheet of paper beneath, hiding it from plain sight. With that, it added at least some semblance of security, even if all it was was a piece of paper, I could never be too careful. 

Besides, with what Sawyer knew about me, I wouldn't be surprised if he went looking at my apartment. I couldn't remember explicitly telling him the address, but with the political connections I was sure he had - working for an undercover op and all - it wouldn't be too much of a problem for him, considering he'd gone to the length of tracking my phone.