25 years after Houston was destroyed in a brutal supervillain attack, Jay Martin is accepted into the Texan Hero Network. Tasked with this sacred duty, he takes on the alter ego of Quickwit and vows to always protect Neo Houston.
Unfortunately, desp...
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Maybe that should be common sense. A bunch of people in tights and leotards, commanding awesome power with only a corporate entity regulating them? It was asking for trouble. Even so, Jay had somehow convinced himself into hero work. When reality hit him like a truck, he'd still somehow believed that heroes, for the most part, weren't the problem. It was the Network, twisting noble intentions. flawed as they might be, there were heroes who cared.
Today, however, today brings a bitter pill to swallow: even "heroes" are just as capable and willing to intentionally destroy innocent lives if it fits their priorities.
"They're all dead, aren't they?" Jay croaks.
Razzmatazz doesn't look away from the window, Taurrage only looks down at his hands. Jay looks back from the passenger side of the automatic Taxi. The villains look harrowed, eyes anxious and mouths creased lines. The only one spared is Frame, still out cold.
"It's not your fault," Echo's voice crackles from the speaker.
"There were so many people in there though. I saw it on the map!"
"People conducting unholy experiments on unwilling subjects. Did you forget the state you found my sidekick in?"
Jay covers his face, taking deep breaths. "You should've waited until Stygian was ready. He's the only one who can challenge Alphaman."
"You would've never permitted him to fight. You're too protective, you're weak for him."
"I need you to shut the fuck up when Ileft him, I left him when he needed me, to get your girlfriend who you were too weak to protect!"
Taurrage interrupts. "Quickwit, she has a point. None of us could've predicted that Alphaman would lose it like that. I mean, it was almost like he had a split personality."
"He does," Razzmatazz whispers.
The car goes silent. Jay meets Razzmatazz' eyes in the rearview mirror. They're neon yellow—the color of her fear, he's realized. "Razz, what did you hear in there?"
"It's...It was like the inside of Gannet's head, a little."
"Gannet is nothing like him," Jay growls.
"No, I mean—-when I read someone's mind, I hear like...their inner voice. Everyone has a unique one but Gannet has two. Two voices that say the same thing, express the same thoughts. They harmonize, most of the time."
"And Alphaman?"
"There are two voices, Alpha and Griffin. They hate each other and fight constantly for control. It was horrible, reading his mind. They were both screaming."
"What was the deal with Calamity? He's dead. Why is that their worst fear?"
"Their minds are so messy it was hard to sort everything, but Alpha liked Calamity. He feels responsible for letting Griffin kill him. I guess his worst fear is just...remembering what happened."
