The three days following the attack were strange. Everyone pretended like everything was okay, but the façade was thinner than a plastic-surgeon constructed waist. Emily could see the tension in the air. She could taste the fear around her. People tried to disguise their nerves. They tried putting on a brave face.
They couldn't fool her. Everyone was terrified, and rightly so.
After she was discharged from the infirmary, she holed herself in the shooting range and fired arrows at unsuspecting dummies until her fingers developed callouses. Well, deeper callouses, as she'd already had them from her years of archery and piano practice.
She craved for a distraction, anything to take her mind off the lingering threat in the distance that was Kismet. Everyone else was just sitting around and feeling sorry for themselves—namely Oscar. He'd barely come out his room after leaving the medical ward.
Chase was still there. Though, his injuries were healing nicely. Along with his hyper-strength and durable skin, his cells were capable of regenerating at a faster rate than usual. He'd be back to his normal self in no time.
She wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing yet.
Ten minutes ago, a messenger told her Director Shaw requested her presence in his office. She was surprised the man was in any shape to be calling a meeting. Despite being at the brunt of the explosion in The Grid, he only suffered a fractured leg and a grade-two concussion. The man took no days off and got right back to work after receiving his cast. He was probably scouring his databases now in search for Kane and his terrorists.
Sighing, Emily turned the corner to his office. Turning the handle and stepping through the door, she noticed the others were already inside. They took up chairs around the room. Her usual seat by the window was left unoccupied, much to her delight. After taking her seat, Director Shaw began.
''Thank you all for coming,'' he said. A bandage was wrapped around his head and a new pair of spectacles sat atop his nose. ''As you know, we've been doing everything in our power to locate Kismet.''
Emily snorted. They'd all heard that before; the director had been telling them that since they arrived at The Acropolis. The words were as empty as ever. He had no idea where Kismet was. No one did.
''Is that all you called us here for?'' she asked, a twinge of irritation in her tone. ''Because I'd really like to get back to what I was doing.''
That was a lie. She hadn't been doing much of anything before she was summoned to the man's office. She just wanted to get out of there sooner rather than later.
Stella shot her a dirty look. She ignored it.
Director Shaw adjusted his tie while clearing his throat. ''Er, no. There is something else that I need to bring to your attention.''
Theo, who was sitting towards the back of room, groaned and threw his head back. ''Please don't be any more bad news. I can't take anymore.'' Emily had to agree with him there. They could've used something to lift their spirits.
The director sighed. ''Sorry, but I don't think you'll see this as good news.'' As he typed on his touchscreen keyboard, she noticed the brace around his left wrist. Seconds later, the television screen on the other side of the office switched on.
The large display projected a paused video. Water-stained concrete walls served as the backdrop, giving no indication of where the video was filmed. Mask soldiers stood in a line behind a man clad in a suit whiter than snow. A grin stretched his snake-like lips. The look in his icy eyes chilled Emily to the bone.
She faced Director Shaw, her pupils dilated with fear. ''What is this?''
''This video surfaced on the internet last night. Before you ask, we've already tried tracing it—we got nowhere,'' he said. ''It's already gone viral.'' He ran a hand down his face. ''Social media is a powerful thing.''
Emily's expression darkened. People would surely panic. She didn't spend much time on their internet nowadays, but she did know the news was constantly covering the battle on the Golden Gate Bridge. They tried their best to make sense of what happened, but it was clear they were confused. Everyone was. It wasn't everyday you discovered people with superpowers exist.
A small part of her was happy she hadn't been there. Not because she was afraid of fighting, but because she was afraid of what her parents would think. They already kept their distance from her before she turned into a superhuman—though, they'd argue what she was currently is much worse. Who knew how'd they act once they found out what she was now?
She knew shouldn't care. She rarely cared what people thought about her nowadays. But they were her family.
''What's the video about?'' Chase asked.
''I'll let you be the judge of that,'' Director Shaw said. He pressed play on his keyboard.
''Greetings to those of you watching this message,'' Kane began. His soldiers stood behind him, the light catching on their menacing skull helmets. A flag with their malevolent logo hung behind them. ''I'm bringing you this announcement to notify you of what will be happening in five days' time. My life's work has been building up to this glorious moment. I've made many breakthroughs over the years. I have pushed the limits of science and I intend to go even further.
''As you may know by now, there are gods among you; beings stronger than you could ever imagine. I am one of them and there are many more. Or, at least, there will be soon. We are Kismet and we seek to make this planet a better place. In order to do that, we must strip the power from the tyrants who you blindly put your trust into. They have been destroying this Earth, killing it for their own personal greed.
''You may see us as terrorists. Insurgents. Villains, even. But if that's what it takes for us to instill change among you all, then so be it. We will bring about a new age. The age of evolution will soon be upon us.''
Emily blinked. The man really believed he and his band of lunatics were doing something noble. While he made some good points, it was clear he was unhinged. Psychotic, even. While the world governments did need cleansing, this wasn't the way to do it; even she knew that. Kane's plans would throw the world into chaos.
''We possess the power to make a change,'' Kane continued. His silver hair shone like moonlight. ''And soon you will too. The earth has given us the keys to unlock the gifts that lurk within us. We have discovered these keys and are prepared to do what must be done. Many have tried to stop us, but they will not succeed. Natural selection will do its job and the evolution of our species is imminent. The strong will survive.''
The screen went black.
His final statement rattled her to the core. She'd heard it before from Apex and from the man back in the quarry. It seemed like it was their motto. Their name should've been Charles Darwin's Fan Club.
Kane's long-winded message sucked all the life from the office. Everyone sat in their seats staring blankly at the dead television.
''Five days,'' Chase parroted. ''We've got five days to stop them.''
Oscar scoffed. ''You seriously think that's gonna happen? We don't even know where they are.''
''Stop being pessimistic,'' Stella scolded. ''We still have a chance.''
Emily sighed. ''Give it a rest, Stella. It's over. There's nothing we can do.''
She furrowed her brows and glared at the girl. ''We are not giving up. Understand me? We still have time to find them and stop them. If we give up now, they've already won.'' She looked around at everyone, her hazel eyes bright with hope. ''We can still do this. I believe in us.''
Emily had to admit, she wasn't expecting that from. It was a little strange seeing her take charge like that. It was also a little sexy. Her cheeks burned as inappropriate thoughts filled her mind. Internally scolding herself, she averted her ravenous gaze to her boots.
Stella faced Director Shaw. ''How long did you work with Kane? There has to be something you know about him that we can use to find him.''
It was worth a shot. They had zero leads on Kismet's base. If anyone might know anything about where they could be, it'd be the man who knew Kane the best.
''About twenty years,'' the director revealed. A sad smile formed on his lips. ''We met in college. He was a brilliant mind. Probably the smartest person I've ever met. So kind and full of dreams. Once we graduated, he proposed the idea of starting a company together. He always wanted to help people. He grew up an orphan, you know.''
Emily blinked. She hadn't been expecting that. Throughout their entire pursuit, she never gave much thought to Kane's background. The thought of the man wanting to help people sounded absurd. There was no way Director Shaw was speaking about the same person who killed people ruthlessly, experimented on children, and was planning on infecting the world with a deadly element.
A single question surfaced in her brain:
What happened to him?
''We started Atlas together with my wife, who graduated medical school with Kane. He had the plans and I had the millions. It started out as way to assist people all over the world. Eventually, I proposed the idea of going even further. People were willing to pay for protection. I had connections with military pals my father fought with. Atlas turned into a private military organization.
''Kane didn't like that very much; he claimed we were going against everything we once stood for. I didn't care at the time. I'd been consumed by my search for wealth and stability. He was miserable. I should've seen it. Maybe I could've prevented all of this from happening had I just been a better friend.''
He was staring out the window now. Sheets of snow cascaded down the mountain range. The sky was a bleak sea of white. She couldn't help but pity him. Steel anchors of guilt were tied around his neck, threatening to drag him down into the murky depths of despair.
She still couldn't wrap her head around the image of Kane that Director Shaw painted for her. The way he told the story made the leader of Kismet sound like the victim. All he wanted to do was help people it seemed. Then his dream was taken from him and turned into something else. Something he hated.
That was enough to make anyone lose it, in her opinion.
It still didn't excuse his actions. Kane was dangerous now. Unhinged. There was no saving him now; that much was apparent. He needed to be stopped. And they only had five days to do it.
Emily's eyes lit up. ''Where did Atlas start?''
Director Shaw tore his gaze away from the window. ''Er, in our old office building in New York City. Why?''
''Do you still own it?''
He see-sawed his hand. ''After Kane disappeared with my son, I had Atlas moved here to The Acropolis. I still own the lease, but it's been abandoned for a decade.'' He squinted at her. ''Why?''
Chase seemingly caught her train of thought, as he was nodding to himself. ''There's gotta be something in there we use to find him. He had to have been planning this for a while. There's a chance that a clue could be there.''
Director Shaw rubbed his chin. ''Perhaps. I can send in a team—''
''No,'' Chase said. ''We'll do it.''
''Are you sure? You all are still recovering from your injuries.''
Andre nodded. ''We've got it, sir.''
Theo smiled. ''Yeah, we've totally got this. All we're doing is checking out some old building. What's the worst that could happen?''
The director sighed. ''Alright. We don't have any time to waste so I'll have a jet ready for you to go within the hour. I'll let you know when it's ready.''