We're finally here!! 😭😭 Enjoy the last chapter everyone! Don't worry, the Mavericks journey certainly doesn't end here.
Epilogue
"I'll be back!" I call out to T and she yells something from the other room as I take off from our little balcony. Tonight is going to be a busy evening and I need to get moving. Taking off to the skies, I cross the guy's path once or twice as I run my rounds.
Testing my new boots, I make sure the data is continuously pushing through and Avi goes over the information with me in real-time and has me do some fairly crazy things to test them. I don't argue or even say a word against it, I am thankful for the new pair especially because I wasn't due for an upgrade. Cabe's voice comes on the line and everyone easily communicates and updates locations and cases.
"Zana, I was able to a deeper search for the name you gave me," I hear Cabe say, and I instantly turn up the volume not wanting to miss what he has to say.
"Did you find anything?" I ask him excitedly. I pull to hover or the city and wait eagerly for his response.
"Xyla Ballek was born in Circa City and died there, and there is very little in-between, unfortunately. Your real name isn't even registered there, as far as everyone is concerned your real name is Zana Black," Cabe says and I am extremely disappointed in the lack of results.
"Oh,"
"But she did graduate from the same high school as you, I have records of her completing an associate degree at a college actually near your own but it's unlisted what she completed it in," Cabe says and that sparks my curiosity.
"Would I be able to have access to those records if I can prove I am her next of kin?" I ask curiously.
"Zana, legally you two aren't even connected," Aviva says disappointed and I sigh. It's not like I even have a birth certificate to prove she's my mother, I have no parents listed on mine.
"Of course not, that would be too easy," I say defeated. The team has been helping me chase some stray leads for the last few weeks, but with little results.
"I am going to make a few phone calls later in the week," I hear Cathleen's voice calls out and that puts a smile on my face. I am sure she of all people will dig up something for me to follow. At this point, I just wanted to know more about my mom, where she came from, and what she wanted to do.
My mind drifts away for a few moments as I think about all of the absurdities that have been happening. We don't have an explanation for quite a few fires, or what happened to my boots when I was flying over the water. My sporadic and desperate behavior comes to mind and I am horrified and embarrassed by my actions, I couldn't seem to get a grip. Why did I have such a violent reaction?
"Zana, I just got a police notification, there's a massive building on fire," Aviva says and when I spin around, I see an old skyscraper down by the abandoned district that was set to be demolished, completely engulfed in flames.
"On it!" I say and I cover the distance in no time before screeching to a halt. Glancing down, I see the four figures below me and find some sense of comfort in that.
Surveying the damage and the fire, I don't see anything that would indicate it was blown up and there is nothing I can decipher as a source of ignition. Flying lower I spot a single fire hydrant that would be useable. The fire trucks whine in the distance but I know it's a few minutes before they get here.
"Alpha, this building might be coming down and I think we'll need help containing the debris," I say and there is some shuffling, and my watch pings. She is getting my exact location. Within a few moments, she is hovering next to me.
"Another random fire?" She asks me and I nod. I have been trying to help the police with the arson investigations but that wasn't exactly my area of expertise and they didn't seem to have any leads.
"Yeah, it looks like the southside is going down first," I say, and she takes off. Dropping to the ground, no one is startled by my presence.
"Hey tattoo man, go help Alpha contain the debris," I say, and Jeremiah takes off.
"He goes by Rune, if your curious," a cheery voice says, and my heart skips a beat.
"And what do you go by?" I ask him carefully and he grins. His mask only covers the area around his eyes and onto his cheeks.
"Spade," he says, and he offers a hand to shake. Of course, he loved playing cards with Mabel.
"I don't think I need to introduce myself," I say amused before taking off to greet the firemen. My favorite police officer steps up, he was the one in charge of the arson cases. He frequently says it's the worst promotion ever and I can't say I disagree.
"I don't get it," he grumbles, and I shrug. It's as if the buildings are spontaneously combusting. There is never really any evidence left behind nor are any of the buildings connected.
"Are those guys with you?" He asks me to gesture towards the other three helping the firemen, they've been doing that a lot and knew the procedure.
"Yes," I say, and I can see the surprise coloring his features. They just don't know that yet.
"Time to get to work," I say with a salute before taking off. I continue to circle the building and let Alpha know which parts are starting to weaken as the fire continues to burn. The water almost seems to have no effect, it never does. These fires are almost supernatural. But we can't seem to link it to pyrokinetic metahuman.
"Aegis," Alpha's voice cuts through sharply.
"Yeah?" I ask confused when suddenly part of the building that looked fine a few moments ago, starts crumbling.
"Shit!" We both scream and Alpha works to keep the debris from crushing anyone, I grab two firefighters out of the way and drop them on top of their truck before zipping back and a search of adrenaline surges through me as I see Mason trying to clear out of the way. I all but smash into him and I hear him grunt as he grabs me tight. And I hit something and pull him close as we crash. My head spins and I feel massive crystals forming but I force us both back to our feet. Holding him to steady myself, in the exposed part of the building I see a figure for a moment. Trying to focus, it almost looks like... No that's probably just me seeing things from the crash.
"Are you okay Aegis?" Alpha asks me through my earpiece, and I stick it back in properly.
"Nothing a walking block of crystal can't handle," I half-heartedly joke as we rejoin the chaos. Eventually, the flames do dim, but not until after half the building has come down. As the smoke lingers heavily in the air, I can sense nothing but exhaustion. Checking my watch, I see it is well past one am.
"Do you still want to do it tonight?" Alpha asks me and we make eye contact from across the mess around us. I've been having second thoughts about the entire situation since the moment it was brought up.
"If I don't do it tonight, it won't happen. I won't have the courage to do it," I admit quietly, and I see her curls bob as she nods in understanding. This was going to change everything, and I've already made some very drastic choices.
"I'll be on the com if you need me," she says, and I shake my head.
"Go get some rest, your drained," I say. It was obvious by her posture and how she was moving, she was burnt out.
"Are you sure?" She asks me tentatively. She's the team leader, it's her job to oversee this.
"It's time for me to step up," I say, and she appears beside me and hugs me before disappearing.
"Well that was messy," Jeremiah says, and he walks over and shakes my hand.
"I need help with one more thing tonight if you guys could spare an extra hour," I say tentatively, Link and Mason join us. Levi is nowhere to be seen, but from what I barely remember from a few months ago, I believe he had some underlying health issues.
"Will we need Antibody?" Mason asks me and I pause. Oh, he's talking about Akeno.
"Yes, this is the address. I can meet you there in a few," I say. I hand them the paper with the address scratched on it. They all nod before I take off.
Moving as far away from them as I can, the crippling guilt of what I did starts to consume me. I should have waited, but I was too scared and angry. Thinking about Mason's grief-stricken face, I know he never meant to hurt me. But now I can't focus on that, crime rates are rising again, and I need help, and they are more than qualified.
Dropping down into the small side alley, I find the door with ease and lean against it. I can hear their voices and I marvel at how much they still sound the same. The way they interact with each other is so distinctive, but they quiet as they approach.
"What do you need help with?" Mason asks me eagerly.
"Is there any reason we are meeting in a dimly lit, sketchy, back ally?" Jeremiah asks and I crack a smile under my mask.
"I can only imagine how crazy this must look, but I'm not about to jump you. I've appreciated all of the help this last few months and I guess I wanted to ask if you wanted to make this a more permeant thing?" I ask quietly and there is a stunned silence.
"Are you asking what I think you are?" Link asks excitedly and I chuckle and pull the four keys out of my pocket and toss them to Mason.
"Find out yourselves," I say before getting off the door. Mason steps forward and scans the key against the pad I was hiding. There is a click and the door unlocks. They all eagerly fill in, but I already know what is inside.
In the center of the room is the same circular table with the smart touch top that the Mavericks have, with two couches that sit perfectly around it. The entire room is greyscale and chrome, Cathleen's favorite. We have a massive screen only a few feet away that is connected to a high-tech computer that Aviva has been trying to teach me to use. The room wasn't very large, but on the other side, are five docking stations. Each station is lit and has a place where their new masks are sitting, a hanger for their custom suits as well as docking stations for the boots. Mine is empty currently, and the Aegis plaque glows dark purple.
"You know all of our names?" Mason asks me and I chuckle.
"Spade, Rune, Antibody, and none other than Ricochet," I say. I marvel at the four suits still docked, there's are a dark grey material, but we all have the gold Maverick 'M' logo over our hearts as well as on the right sleeve of the jackets. I also had made crystals like the ones the New York team has, but I found much thicker chains like the one I used for Alexander's.
"Are these really for us?" Jeremiah asks me and I laugh.
"Those are your names, right?" I ask amused.
"Can we... try the suits on?" Mason asks excitedly and I gesture to a narrow doorway, they all grab their things and dart into the other small room to change. Sitting down on the couch, I see the necklaces still on their perch. When they all step out, I snap a photo and send it to Cathleen.
"So, does this mean...?"
"You are officially on a trial run to join the Mavericks. We will evaluate everything in three months, but I have a feeling this will work out just fine," I say.
"So, what do we call you?" Mason asks.
"You can just call me Aegis; I will be your team leader and your point of contact with the New York team. Welcome to your new home, boys," I say and there is a murmur of excitement.
I explain a few things to them and advise them to leave the boots in their docking stations until I can give them a proper run through with Alpha. I would need her to keep them from smashing headfirst into the cement. I tell them to grab the chains and I can see the confusion in their eyes.
"Consider it your direct line to me, if you wrap your hand around that stone, I can track you. The more surface area you cover, the better of a read I can get. I have one for all the members of the team plus a few others," I say, and I pull up the flap on my left sleeve and reveal a band with twelve stones on it. They all eagerly put the chains on before going and getting changed.
We part ways and I take off to the skies, the air still smells of smoke but something is relaxing about the wind blowing around me. There is a heavy sense of guilt and anxiety consuming me as the reality of the situation sets in. One day they will probably figure out who I am, and I don't doubt for a moment that they will get back some of their memories. Faith's abilities allow her to hide things but there have been a few instances where people are able to get fragments back. I know without a doubt that Mason will remember something, we spent so much time together.
Suddenly my arm lights up with warmth and I can see what the four boys I just added to the team are seeing for a moment before it fades. The fear calms down for a moment, we will face everything together and hopefully, they'll understand. But for now, I know I can trust them to have my back as Aegis, there isn't a doubt in my mind.
The End
IITTTSSS OVVEERRR 😭😭
Please don't forget to vote and comment, I will drop the information about the next book next weekend! It's been an amazing journey and I love interacting with everyone, and I just know you guys are going to love our next MC. The drama is far from over 👀
Thanks for everything ❤️
XX Cc