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I was sitting on the floor, my back against the cyberdesk down in mission command, with my knees to my chest and arms laying on top of them. I glance over at the spot that my dad had died for the second time and breathe in anxiously.
Douglas stepped out of the hyperlift and noticed me then and moved over to stand in front of me, starting, "D?"
"Big D leave yet to go back home to Tasha and Naomi?" I inquire while looking up at him, stirring the conversation away from me or what I had in my mind. Douglas nodded, sighed, and sat down on the floor beside me, his back also against the cyberdesk. "I'm fine, Dougie."
"No, you're not. You don't think I know what you're doing down here?" Douglas started, looking at me, his hands in his lap, "I practically invented that move. You're trying to distance yourself, so that everyone won't drown in your wake. It doesn't work, especially when you have someone who truly believes in you. You basically dragged me out of my... evil ways and showed me that I'm still good. Well, I believe in you, D, alright? And I have zero doubt that you're not some destroyer, some person that death follows. You still have people who won't give up on you-"
"I never wanted that-" I start quietly.
"No, you don't get to do that. You don't get to choose who cares about you. And Donnie and I, we care a lot about you, D. We all do." Douglas cut me off, glancing over at the spot where my father had passed on, "Your dad... He wouldn't want you to feel all of this guilt that you're feeling. He wouldn't want you to do anything alone, especially when you don't have to do anything alone."
I tear my gaze away from the empty spot in front of us and look back at the spiky haired man and slowly nodded. "I'm sorry, Dougie, but... I'm better off alone, me coming back here... I shouldn't have even done that because Hive will take advantage of my love for this family and put all of you at risk... I can't lose you guys, too."
"You feel everything too deeply, D. When are you gonna learn? This team, this family, always handles everything and everyone better when we're all fighting together. There is nothing that we can't succeed. I mean, sure, we'll have letdowns, failures, but we'll always succeed in the end. Good will always win." Douglas commented.
He sighed and stood back up off of the floor, holding his hand out towards me as I look at it and take his hand and was lifted off of the floor as well, him adding, "Come on, you need your friends. It's time for you to not be a... lone vigilante or whatever."
Douglas smiled as I roll my eyes but smiled also as we head to the hyperlift and enter inside of it, going up to the penthouse and stepped out and walked into the living room. Douglas squeezed my shoulder in reassurance and then walked over to the kitchen.
I notice Chase sitting in one of the chairs at the small table as I move over to him and stand behind the empty chair in front of him. "Anyone sitting here?" I start, my hands on the back of the chair as he looked up at what he was reading and at me, grinning.
Chase shook his head as I sit down in front of him, one foot underneath me while the other remain in the floor underneath the table. Chase had his arms lightly folded on top of the table while one of my arms rested on the arm rest on my chair and my hands in my lap. "I just... I'm sorry for leaving-" I begin.
"Des, you've apologized to all of us a lot since you came back. You don't have anything to apologize for, okay? If you want forgiveness, you have it. You're forgiven." Chase cut me off, biting his bottom lip, "I know why you felt like you had to leave. I get it. It was just one thing piling onto the next. And you having to go through their deaths again... That would be hard on anyone. No one blames you. We understand." He smiled a little.
I nod slowly, smiling a little also. "You're amazing, you know that?" I reply as Chase lightly laughed, nodded, and commented, "And you're more than amazing, Des. We're lucky to have you as part of our family."
"Guys! You need to see this." Oliver started while, he, Skylar, Reese, Kaz, Justin, and Bree walked over to where we were at still. Oliver turned the volume of the living room T.V up to where we could hear the news. "It's about Des."
"That's right, people of Centium City, we have finally discovered Quake's secret identity after all of these years. This superhero is known to be working with the bionic heroes for quite some time now. But, what question everyone has always asked: Who is Quake really?" The reporter for Channel Four News began as Douglas and the team glanced over at me and back at the screen. "Her identity is Destiny Moore, an orphan whose family died and is now currently living with the Davenport family. You've heard it here first, and now, Quake, you've just been exposed."
"What're we gonna do? The whole reason that no one has taken Des away and experiment on her was because no one knew of her identity!" Bree spoke up first as everyone glanced over at me.
"Well, we could relocate and Des could just lay low for right now." Skylar suggested.
"Yeah, but for how long? Eventually, someone will recognize her." Kaz pointed out.
"And any enemies, like Rodissius and every other villain she's faced, now knows where Des is and who her family is. They can use this as an advantage." Justin also pointed out.
The group quickly began arguing on what to do as I stand up from my seat and move my hand over my face, rubbing it lightly, and removed my hand and dropped it back down at my side. "Guys." I start as the eight of them continued to argue. "Guys!" I yell over their loud bickering, making the room tremble for a second and then stopped it.
They looked over at me, immediately stopping their loud conversations. I take a deep breath before continuing, "It's gonna be okay. I can handle the people- and if government agents shows up, wanting me to go with them- I can handle them, too. We all can. We've dealt with stuff way worse than this. This- This is nothing, nothing. Okay? Don't lose hope. It'll be okay."
They calmed down and nodded, slightly feeling relieved and better now. But, it didn't last long just as the door busted down and crashed onto the floor. Grenades with knockout gas inside them was thrown into the penthouse, making the room now covered in smoky gas.
The team and Douglas fell to their knees, starting to pass out. I notice fifty armed men in black storm inside of the penthouse, surrounding all of us now. I clench my fists, the building starting to tremble; I drop on one knee, the gas entering my lungs which made it hard for me to focus and remain awake.
The team's at risk. I can't let them down, not again. I think and blew the smoke out of the penthouse with my enhanced lung capacity and air manipulation ability. I look down at myself and see that the men's silencers was aimed at me as I then blast them all back with my blastwave ability.
The men let out pained groans as I send Douglas and the team to the lab/nursery at Donald's house through my portal creation power. The team was still unconscious and on the floor. I super speed upstairs just in time to see more armed government men bust down their door, making Donald release a surprised scream. "Big D, Tasha, take cover!" I tell the two adults who only looked at me with wide eyes and ducked behind the counter.
I step forward and stick my hand out, blasting two men backwards with my earth ability as they crashed into the wall and the coffee table with a thud. I glance over at Donald as he and Tasha looked at me and remark to them with a small smirk upon my face and a light shrug, "Just like old times, huh?"
I cartwheel forward and kick a man in his gut with my super strength, making him crash onto the floor as he groaned in pain. I duck from another agent swinging his arm towards me from behind and then spun around to face him, flipping him over me swiftly and dropped him on his head on the floor. He now laid on the floor in pain, groaning.
Donald and Tasha had stuck their heads above the counter to watch the fight just as I hear a not so good of a sound. "Get down!" I exclaimed, sliding over the countertop and pulled the two adults back down, making a shield surround the three of us just as the government agents fired a missile launcher into the house and hit the counter, blowing it up into pieces. "Go downstairs! I'll handle these guys." I tell Donald and Tasha as the two of them quickly exited the kitchen and moved downstairs.
I sighed and stand back up from my crouched position behind the burning counter. "Hey! Looking for me?" I smirk as more government agents crowded into the house and began to surround me, their high-tech weapons pointed at me. Two red energy crossbows appeared on both of my wrists as I shoot multiple red energy arrows at the agents in their thighs. They fell on their knees on the ground.
I keep my smirk and look at the fallen men as the energy arrows faded away; I backflip behind a man approaching me from behind and kick him in his back, making him drop to the floor on his stomach. "Whoa, whoa, Miss Moore. We just need to take you in and see if you're a threat. If you come with us willingly, nobody will get hurt." A dark gray haired, green eyed middle aged man in a black and white suit began, stopping at the open doorway of the house and looked at his hurt agents and then at me.
"You'll leave my friends alone?" I reply warily as he nodded, "If I do go with you guys, what then? You're just gonna talk to me or what? Huh? Experiment on me? What's your little plan once I'm in your custody?"
"We just need to ask a few questions at a secure location. It's just a precaution, just to make for sure that you're not a threat to the public." The man answered, taking a step towards me before continuing, "I'm Agent Williams from a secret organization known as Superhuman Protection Agency or S.P.A."
I scoff, slightly shaking my head, "So, what? I'm your first real superhuman that's been exposed, so your boss sent you to apprehend the subject, the subject being myself?"
"Something like that." Agent Williams replied, a small amused smile on his bearded face.
I lift an eyebrow his way just as some agents brought the team, Donald, Douglas, and Tasha up the elevator and moved them over to us. "Let them go. They're not super, they're just bionic, which everyone knows about that already." I tell him, moving over to my friends and stopped beside Chase who immediately moved his arm slightly in front of me protectively.
The agents moved their high-tech guns at us and aimed at us; I step forward a little, my hand on my boyfriend's waist with his hand lightly on the small of my back, still protectively, as he watched the men carefully. I glance from the men to their boss, Agent Williams.
"You're right. They're not the ones who currently poses as a threat. Like I said, this is just a precaution." Agent Williams replied, his hands clasped in front of him while he continued to watch me carefully.
"Agent, look. Des isn't a threat. She's a hero. She's helped save many lives and have proven herself to the public countless times that she's here to help and on our sides." Donald spoke up towards Williams.
"That may be, but the people are still afraid of her. They've always been afraid." Agent Williams replied, "Miss Moore knows that this is true. I mean, look around you people. Look at the footage. Everywhere Quake goes, there's always some sort of destruction." I flex my jaw and look down at the floor while he continued, "This girl is a risk to the people. She needs to be put away."
"What- Hang on. Without her, the world would be a lot different, it'd be... doomed. My sister's not a risk or some sort of walking disaster. If anything, you all should believe in her. She's the true hero." Justin also spoke up, looking over to me and then over at the head agent.
"Your word isn't enough. I'm sorry. Men, take her into custody." Agent Williams said, his hands now on his hips as his men started to approach us, towards me.
"No!" The team, Douglas, Donald, and Tasha argued at the man, "She's not a threat-"
They started to fight the special agents who also fought them until I step in between, hands facing both parties, telling my family, "Get back. Get back!"
"It's okay." I cut my family off, giving them a small smile, "Really, maybe it's better this way. The more we fight, the more they'll keep trying to take me down- and then take you guys down for trying to stop them. I won't let them hurt you guys. You should know that by now. Thank you for being the bestest friends, no, for being my family all these years."
"Des, if you go with them, we might not see you again." Skylar started.
"I know... Be safe. I- I love you, guys." I reply, hugging them in one tight group hug. "May we meet again. And I have faith that we will... I will always find my way back to my family."
"Des, you don't have to do this-" Kaz began once we all part from the hug.
"Yes, I do. It's safer, I think, for me to go with them- away from the public. This isn't goodbye. I will come back, but for now... I have to go with them until they believe that I'm not a threat. If I fight back, then they will continue to think that I am one." I cut him off with a small, sad smile.
"We just got you back. This isn't fair." Bree sadly murmured.
"Life's not fair... You get some good and you get some bad. That's just how life works." I reply, looking over at Douglas and Donald and nodded a little at them.
I look over at my brother who looked down at the floor and sighed almost inaudibly. My lip trembled a little and move over to him and hug him again, my arms wrapped around his neck as his arms were wrapped around me. "I'll miss you, big brother."
"Just come home as soon as you can, okay?" Justin whispered as I nod, his hand on the back of my head reassuringly. "Don't be dead. You still have a family to come home to. Promise me, Des."
I nod slowly and murmured, "I promise." We part from the hug as I step back and was fixing to turn but stopped and looked at Chase. "Don't worry, I'll be back home before you even know it." I smile a little. "I'm not running away anymore. I know where I belong. It's with my family, my home, you guys."
"Wrap it up already." Agent Williams spoke up a little impatiently.
I glance over at Bree who rushed back over to me and hugged me tightly as she let out, "I'm not going to say goodbye because I know you're coming back." I smiled some while the speedster added, "Just be careful. I can't lose my sister."
The two of us part from the hug as I remark with a small, sad smile, "When am I ever not careful?" Bree snorted in amusement and stepped back, now standing in between her brother and my brother.
I look over at Agent Williams again and let out a sigh and nod, meaning that I was ready and that I would comply to leaving with them. The armed men surrounded both of my sides and behind me as we walk out of the home.
I glance back at my family and then look ahead of me at the ground, continuing to walk out of the door; The agents was still around me and led me to their black suburbans as I get in the backseat of one van and we drove away to some secured, top-secret location.
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