This Thing A Quiet Madness Made

Chapter 44

The president furrowed her brows, a frown tugging at her lips as her eyes flicked up to the nervous secretary. "Those reporters are too quick for their own good," she sighed, carding a hand through her hair. "So much for keeping a low profile."

"Should we scale back our forces? If we continue like this, more people are bound to notice, especially with the number of non-local heroes."

"No. We're not pulling anyone back. The news networks may be a nuisance, but we have to continue as is. We don't have a choice," she stated grimly, eyes returning to the spread of papers in front of her, fully obscuring the glossy wooden surface of her desk. "Have any more heroes responded to our request?"

"Yes, ma'am. Eight more have arrived; they've each been assigned sectors and are already on their way. Should we keep reaching out to the rest of the list?"

"Absolutely. I want as many people on this as possible."

"How should we deal with the media networks then?

"Tell them it's a nationwide training exercise: something to test the effectiveness of new night-vision technology. Tell them we'll be making a statement in the morning. If this isn't settled by sunrise, we'll need to organize a better cover story, but until then, this will have to do."

"Yes, ma'am."

"And keep me updated on the situation in the city; make sure we're receiving reports from everyone. We don't need any more problems on our hands, understood?"

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3:03AM

A figure darted through an unlit alleyway, amorphous shadows and shapes cast onto the ground, blending in with the darkness of the filth and grime below as they shifted erratically with every stiff breeze. It didn't take long for the hurried footsteps to reach the other end of the narrow alley, stopping abruptly as it neared the streams of neon light leaking into the dark gap.

Heavy breathing filled the air, the nighttime chill stinging his lungs with each strained breath. Bakugo's eyes darted left and right, front and back, up and down, yet found no sign of the one he had been chasing. She had slipped from his sight somehow, somewhere along the line, and now was nowhere to be seen.

He cursed loudly, his voice instantly echoing through the vacant alleyway. Crimson eyes snapped up to the exit before him, leading directly into a populated commercial block. He saw a car or two zip by, illuminated bizarrely by the neon signs and bright street lamps overhead. There were pedestrians too, walking leisurely in the static early hours, yet none of them were what he sought.

He had to find her before she did something stupid.

Gritting his teeth with a scowl, he darted out of the dim alleyway, taking off into the strange glow of the nighttime city.

He had to hurry.

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3:30AM

"Sir!" a policeman called out as he rushed into the room, noticeably out of breath, instantly drawing both pairs of eyes to him, "There's news from the Commission, it's urgent!"

"What is it?" the dog-chief asked grimly, expression hardening.

He silently braced himself, though he long knew this was coming. It was only a matter of time before something went wrong. There was no shortage of horrible things that could have happened, they knew that from the beginning, yet his stomach still dropped sickeningly at the foreboding words.