As the seven heroes dug into the dirty work of search-and-rescue, general clean-up, and citizen reassurance in the aftermath of what the national press was already calling the Astoria Incident, they got to know one another a bit, as well as some of the other first responders who poured into the area as soon as the metahuman threats were neutralized. Cops, paramedics, firefighters and average citizens all rushed unhesitatingly to perform the urgent tasks of saving those who could still be saved, and respectfully caring for the remains of those who could not.
Most of the beat cops who swarmed in once the battle was over and the streets cleared seemed genuinely grateful for the superhuman help, if maybe unsure of exactly how to act around the new heroes. The best of the lot seemed to be patrolman Carl Lebowski and his rookie partner Everett Manson, the only uniforms on the ground during the actual disaster. They’d been the ones Artemis and Dr. Froth had turned the disgusting rubber-man over to after they’d pulled his unconscious but otherwise unharmed ass out the building he’d crashed through. The cops had secured the unconscious prisoner and then pitched in to help the heroes deal with the still-panicked citizenry.
Most of the APD detectives, on the other hand, seemed more peeved than anything else at this sudden invasion of costumed vigilantes in their once-quiet backyard. They helped the heroes where they had to, especially in the face of the obvious goodwill of the citizens, but it was generally grudging and half-hearted. The main exception was Detective Eleanor Ransom – fortyish, half-Black / half-Latina, with a penchant for large, colorful necklaces’ to offset her all-business charcoal skirt and jacket, she looked like she’d just walked out of a police procedural TV show. She seemed genuinely pleased with the sudden advent of heroes in the city, however, and made an effort to establish some rapport with them as the day wore on. She also encouraged her peers to do likewise, sometimes quite acerbically.
It was the arrival, however belatedly, of the FBI that had actually helped to foster a more favorable view of the new heroes in the eyes of the local detectives. With the Feds doing their usual we’ll-let-you-know-if-we-need-you act, it became a game between the ACD and the heroes to keep them running in circles as much as possible. When SHADE arrived, of course, they out-Feded the Feds, but at least they didn’t treat the cops like amateurs nor the supers like dangerous, idiot children. It quickly became clear to the heroes that they were simply unknown quantities to the SHADE agents, and just needed to prove themselves worthy of trust… which was fair enough.
As the day went on Det. Ransom had been happy to share whatever information the APD had, with the understanding that the heroes would share whatever they might learn in return. She had also asked how she could contact them if she needed to. At the reluctance this produced in some of the new heroes she had smiled and suggested that maybe they’d be more comfortable sharing that information with Captain Astor, since he was already a publicly known hero with no secret identity to protect. Scion agreed to act as liaison, and they’d moved on to discussing the various other hot spots around the city that had suffered from the Event.
Nowhere had been hit as hard as the Silver Mile, of course, being at the epicenter. But hundreds of the the strange light beams had affected people throughout the city (several incidents were also reported across the river in Long Beach and Knappton), leaving death and new metahumans in their wake. Stormfront had flown in from Portland to help, and had focused on the outlying areas once he saw that Scion and his team of new heroes were dealing with the main problems. He’d be heading back to the City of Roses soon, having rounded up six relatively harmless new metahuman criminals/crazies and identified and interviewed a dozen potential new breakouts.
By the time the sun was sinking towards the Pacific things were enough under control that the seven could relax for a moment and discuss what had happened. With the police, FBI, SHADE and FEMA busy arguing over jurisdiction, and mostly trying to ignore the costumed vigilantes amongst them, it was comparatively easy to find some privacy. Given the eyewitness accounts, including those of the Blue Flame and Phantom Ace, there was little doubt how the mysterious sphere had been delivered. Scion, Quanta and Dr. Froth had jointly undertaken a close forensic inspection of the charred pieces of the plane as they were recovered… and the rather unnerving Artemis had performed her own investigation.
It was clear the corporate jet, belonging to a local company called ZeroPoint, had been carrying the object, but there was as yet no way to determine if the explosion and resultant attack had been accidental or intended. No manifest survived the blast, nor had the pilot, and local airports had no record of the flight, so questions of any passengers and the nature of the the cargo remained unanswered. Quanta used his ability to backtrack the paths of every atom in his range of perception, what he had taken to calling his post-cognition sense, to “see” the actual explosion… but all he could confirm was that something inside the plane had exploded and that it didn’t appear to have been a conventional explosive device. He also definitely ruled out an external attack on the plane.
The only significant anomaly the group could find was a very strange energy signature in the area around the attack. It was strongest in a half-mile radius around ground zero, and could be detected on every person struck by a beam whom they could test. Phantom Ace, by spot teleporting randomly around the city with a special detector Scion and Quanta had whipped up, was able to establish the energy’s rate of fall-off – at about 11.4 miles out from the epicenter, the signature became undetectable..
Once they’d determined there was no more physical evidence to be found, and with the FBI and SHADE forensic teams moving in, the heroes retreated to a surviving Starbucks a few blocks from the Mile. As they sipped various hot beverages provided by the two stalwart baristas who remained on duty, despite cracked windows and occasional power fluctuations, they pondered what the mysterious energy signature they’d found might mean.
They weren’t really doing much more than guessing, however, and Scion had just proposed they all remove to his nearby lab, where his high-tech equipment could let them do a proper analysis, when Det. Ransom approached them. A short, stout, but quite dignified Asian-American man in a police uniform accompanied her. They all stood up and turned to face the pair.
“This is Chief of Police Oscar Edwards,” Ransom began without preamble. “He wanted to talk to you all, and I said I’d make the introductions. Now don’t embarrass me!” Who that last comment had been addressed to, themselves or the chief, was unclear as she walked off to yell at one of the uniforms who wasn’t wearing latex gloves as he gathered evidence.
“The first thing I want to do,” Chief Edwards said, “is thank you, each and every one of you, for the tremendous help you provided our city today. The death toll is tragic, but without you it would have been much worse, and we’d be facing at least four super-powered threats that my men and women are currently ill-equipped to handle.
“I know some on the force might be dubious about super humans in Astoria… with the exception of Captain Astor,” he acknowledged Scion with a nod, the two having met several times before, “we’ve gone rather a long time without them, mostly, unlike most other big cities. But I don’t share that doubt, not a for a minute.
“I was inspired to become a cop by the example Ultra set when I was young – that man inspired a lot of people, actually, in a lot of ways. I think we’ve forgotten that, in the years since his passing, and that’s unfortunate. But this disaster may be a chance to show that the spark can be reignited for a new generation. I think you folks may be just what this city needs right now. Welcome to Astoria!”
With that he offered his hand to Scion, an approving smile on his face, and then shook hands with each of the others in turn, hesitating only when he came to the Blue Flame. The incandescent hero shrugged and offered a little wave instead. Chief Edwards smiled wryly, waved back and then addressed the group again, growing more serious.
“I have one further favor to ask of you all. I’ve called for a press conference at 18:00, a little less than two hours from now, and I would consider it a personal favor if you could all attend it with me – let the people see you, answer a few questions, and generally help us calm things down. I know it would give the people of Astoria some reassurance to get a sense that there are real people under those masks, to see you as more than just a collection of superpowers. It will be good for everyone in the city to see us all working together. Can I count on you?”
Scion didn’t hesitate – he might not be particularly fond of the press, but he had enough experience handling them to be comfortable with the job – and if he was really going to bite the bullet and jump into this hero thing, handling the press was certainly part of the job. Totem was fine with the prospect, good press being just what he wanted at this point, and of course Jonny was thrilled at the prospect of his first press conference – and since he’d figured out how to thicken the flames around his nether regions he wouldn’t be flashing the world anymore!
Some of the others, however, hesitated. Artemis had spent decades remaining in the shadows, purposefully avoiding the limelight – but todays events had clearly changed everything in her city, and she sensed that it was time to step out of the shadows once again… she too agreed. But Ted, Kyle and Gideon all had their own reasons to be leery of meeting the press, some concerns more serious than others…
Ted was simply unsure of how well his disguise would hold up, and was definitely not ready to go public just yet; Kyle also remained unsure if his nano-shell disguised him well enough, and had a much more long-standing dread of the media connecting him with his meta human abilities; Gideon, on the other hand, had a mysterious, murderous organization still hunting him, as well as whatever remnants of the old cartel might still be around, and he’d probably already had too much exposure today…
All three were vague and non-committal, which Chielf Edwards took with good grace. As he left to prepare his own remarks for the media he simply said that he hoped they’d see each other soon. Once the city’s top cop had departed, Scion again suggested the group head to his lab to see if they could come up with any answers before the press conference, and everyone agreed.
At Apergy Systems International the staff had long ago left, either to help with the recovery efforts or to check on the safety of family and friends, pick up children from schools freshly off lock-down, or just gather in bars to talk about the day’s stunning events. Penny, of course, had remained to work the phones, and JJ had to smile beneath his helmet at how well she hid her reaction at seeing six more costumed and/or masked people follow him in the front doors – only a slight widening of the eyes betrayed her surprise.
“Will you be wanting the large conference room then, sir?” she enquired cooly, not missing a beat. JJ decided then and there that he wasn’t paying his executive assistant nearly enough, and resolved to correct that as soon as possible.
“No, Ms. Monet, but we will be needing the main lab,” he replied, equally matter-of-factly, allowing his helmet to melt back into his armor. “And I’m afraid we’re all starving… we discussed it on the way over, and if Flying Pie is open and able to deliver, could you order up five pies, various toppings, including one vegetarian? Offer whatever it takes to get them here in 30 minutes.”
“Of course sir, no problem. Will your guests be needing security badges?”
“Mmmm, I suppose so… bring them up to the lab later, for now I’ll be escorting everyone. Thank you.”
By the time the pizzas had arrived and been consumed, the energy signature had given up at least some of its secrets to the heroes, via the power of deep scanning technology and an electron microscope. Gesturing at the image projected on the largest of the labs monitors, Scion settled back in his chair with a grunt.
“That, ladies and gentlemen, is a shard of kundalini crystal.”
A little less than 5 mm long and 2 mm wide, as seen through a standard microscope, the mineral appeared a normal crystal, of translucent emerald green. Magnified to atomic resolution, however, it’s lattice structure revealed an eye-aching, impossible geometry, as if part of it turned a corner and simply went… elsewhere. It gave Gideon a headache to look at for long, and by the expressions on some of the others’ faces he wasn’t the only one.
Given the size of the “disco ball” that had apparently launched the shard, millions of other, similar shards must’ve been spread over the city, or at least the area covered by the Incident. It also proved that it had been an artificial, created event – although whether purposeful or accidental it was impossible to say at this point.
“Also known as a matrix crystal,” Quanta added, tossing back the last of his Coke and flipping the can into the recycle can across the room, “which has been the preferred scientific nomenclature since Professor Sampson irrefutably proved their strange properties around the turn of the current century. There are many sub-types, each a different color and exhibiting a variety of odd effects, under the right circumstances. But they all share this unsettling “hyper-spatial” structural geometry, as Sampson calls it.”
“They’ve been known to humanity for many thousands of years, of course, under a variety of names,” JJ went on. “Kundalini has become the most common name in recent years, but they’ve had many names, in many places around the world. In ancient China they called them Nüwa gems, while the ancient Romans named them Manalis stones; the Slavs refer to Altyr stones, from the “navel of the World,” which is interesting because the ancient Greek name was Omphalos stones, which also means “navel of the World.” The Hindus have several names for them, aside from Kundalini, the one that Westerners latched onto – the nine royal Navaratna gems, and Cintamani wishing gems being maybe the next most common.
“I’m familiar with them because they make up an important part of Atlantean technology, despite being incredibly rare, especially under the sea. In fact, it is powdered Vedu crystals, as they call them, which is fused with a secret alloy of metals to create orichalcum, the substance which forms the base of my armor.”
“And whatever they’re called, they always are associate with strange powers or abilities” Artemis took up the thread, somewhat to everyones’s surprise. She’d been unnervingly quite until then, but now she pulled back her hood, revealing a cascade of raven hair. She left the domino mask on, however. “For most of human history, stones like these have been mistaken for either common quartz or the relatively mundane gemstones they closely resemble – rubys, sapphires, emeralds, and so on. But there have always been people who knew how to utilize the powers inherent in the crystals… which can be extremely dangerous in the wrong hands.”
“As I think we’ve seen today,” Ted sighed. He’d finally taken his mask off, though he still wore the goggles and hadn’t yet revealed his real name to the others. “But, if you don’t mind my asking, how do you know so much about them?”
Artemis shrugged and sat back in her chair. “I spent… a number of years in a place where such knowledge is common currency. I had little to do with the crystals personally, but it was impossible not to study there without learning something of them. The thing I think we should keep in mind is that the crystals tend to take on… characteristics, let’s say… of the environment or energies to which they are exposed for any length of time. It is why they have always been sought after by mystics and magic-wielders of every kind.”
“Magic!” Quanta snorted a laugh. “Please, there’s no such thing. Whatever anyone calls “magic” is just science they don’t understand, as I think Professor Sampson has proved with the matrix crystals. Yes, they can be used to create strange, even seemingly impossible effects, and can channel many odd energies, not all of which we fully understand, but every year brings new understanding and gets us one step closer to putting all the pieces together in a rational way.”
“Well, that’s one way to look at things,” Artemis agreed, with an unnerving little half-smile. “I seem to recall that it wasn’t that long ago, however, that psionics, not to mention super powers, were considered the stuff of fantasy. Yet here we are, both are fully accepted, even if not fully understood.”
“Which just proves my point,” Quanta said. “We’ve moved from—”
“Listen, this is really interesting and all,” Jonny interrupted. “But isn’t it sort of beside the point? I mean, where did this crystal come from, and what does it have to do with what happened today?”
“Ah, yes, well we were getting to that,” JJ assured him. “While Phantom Ace was popping around town taking sensor readings for us, Quanta and I convinced Detective Ransom to let us examine that unfortunate looking rubberized fellow Artemis, Blue Flame and Dr. Froth took down. He was still unconscious and unable to give consent, of course; but by the same token, he couldn’t really object, either.
“I scanned him, and as we suspected the energy signature on him was much stronger than the ambient energy in the area of the Incident. But even better, we were able to localize the source of the energy to a specific location on his body – at the top of his spine, just below the base of his skull. I’d promised Ransom no invasive procedures, but this was too important to pass up. It was really a very small incision… and it was worth it, because we recovered that,” he gestured to the screen where the image of the matrix crystal continued to slowly revolve.
“Actually, it was good thing we removed it,” Quanta added. “There was no sign of a break in Armstrong’s skin – I’m not sure if that was due to some effect of the crystal or his own meta healing properties – but it was clear the shard was burrowing towards his spine. I think the rubberized nature of his transformed flesh was slowing it down, but it would have made it eventually. Then there’d have been no removing it, if it fused to his nervous system, not without killing or crippling him.”
Dr. Froth didn’t look like he’d be particularly upset by either outcome, but he didn’t voice the thought. “So another few hours and there would’ve been nothing left we could analyze or study?” he asked instead.
“Yes, we very much lucked out there,” JJ agreed. “My readings indicate that the energy is dissipating from the environment at a rate such that it will be undetectable by tomorrow morning. We could probably get readings off victims indefinitely, but we wouldn’t be able to recover any crystals if they were fused onto nervous systems.”
“But do we know that’s what would happen,” Blue Flame asked anxiously. “I mean, maybe that stretchy guy was a fluke or something. Maybe he already had the crystal inside him…”
“A good observation, kid,” Quanta said. “But no, we checked half a dozen others that the police had in custody. They all had elevated energy readings, and on each person we found a crystal fused to their spine at the base of the skull. There was no way to remove those crystals by then, unfortunately.”
“But you can relax, Blue Flame,” JJ interjected quickly. He could see the kid was getting distraught, and he could guess why. Unlike the rest of them, who all seemed to have had their powers for awhile, he’d only gained his this morning, a victim himself of the Incident. “I scanned you once we all got here to my lab, and I detected almost none of the tell-tale energy signature on you, and absolutely no trace of a crystal.”
“We think you, even more than that poor sod Armstrong, lucked out in the power set you were dealt,” Quanta said. “His thick, rubbery skin and flesh slowed down the movement of the crystal, and you turning into living plasma – well, you just vaporized any crystal that might’ve initially latched on to you.”
Blue Flame was visibly relieved at this news, but Artemis frowned as she considered the ramifications.
“If we are assuming that the beams were used to “inject” the crystals into their victims,” she said after a moment, ” and that the crystals caused the powers… I would expect that once the source was removed, the powers would vanish as well. Yet both Armstrong and the Blue Flame have retained their altered forms and associated powers even after the crystals were removed.”
“I don’t think the matrix crystals are actually the source of any of the powers,” Froth shook his head in disagreement. “I suspect that each crystal merely acted as a catalyst to trigger the complex of genes and so-called “junk” DNA that we know governs the meta-human transformation.
“There’s still so much we don’t know about the whole process, but one thing that’s certain is that once the meta-complex is activated, there’s no going back – whatever powers or physical transformation occurs, they’re there for good.”
“But then that raises the obvious question,” Totem observed. “Why go to all the trouble of having the rakir crystal, as my people call them, burrow in and permanently attach itself to the host, if it has already performed its function? It would require effort to achieve this, yes? It’s unlikely to be a simple accident?”
“Well, maybe if the crystals had been developed for some other purpose,” Froth said slowly, considering. “For medical treatment, for example. And when the plane exploded, the technology was damaged… maybe?”
“Does ZeroPoint work with matrix crystals?” Artemis asked. “Could this have simply been an… industrial accident?”
“I don’t think so, but…” JJ hesitated. “They’re a minor competitor of mine in the clean energy / energy storage business, and I’ve never heard of them having any expertise, or interest, in bio-tech. It just doesn’t fit with what they do, really… although matrix crystals as an energy source might have caught their attention?”
At that point a musical note winkled on his wrist comp, and he sighed. “Well, as compelling as this mystery is, it’s time to get back to the Mile for the Chief’s press conference, for those of us who are going. Descion time, Froth, Quanta, Ace… are you coming, or not?”
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
It was a beautiful sunset over Astoria as Artemis teleported herself and Totem into the shadows on a rooftop overlooking the site of the press conference. Although she doubted anyone in the crowd below could appreciate the beauty with the glare of all the TV lights illuminating the street. The two heroes silently enjoyed the the vivid colors above the warm lights of the city’s towers to the west for a moment, until Scion and Blue Flame swooped down toward them.
They had decided to make an entrance, and Scion grasped wrists with Totem, lifting him up and then dropping them both down toward the makeshift platform that had been erected at the north end of the pedestrian overpass at Pacific Avenue. Blue Flame dropped down to their right and Artemis glided down to the left, seeming a shadow come to life. They touched down almost simultaneously just behind Chief Edwards, who turned and smiled at them. He said nothing about the missing heroes, as the murmuring of the crowd of reporters, first responders and regular citizens rose to a roar.
After the crowd quieted the Chief gave a brief précis of what was known at that hour… 123 people dead, 87 still missing or unaccounted for, and at least $100 million in damages by early estimations. The plane that had exploded had belonged to local energy company ZeroPoint, who were cooperating fully with the authorities but had no explanation as to what had happened. According to company records the plane was scheduled for a standard executive pick-up in Seattle, and nothing normally aboard it could explain the phenomena witnessed today. The FBI, SHADE and local experts were at this hour still examining all evidence recovered from the scene of the tragedy, but it would be days before anything could be expected from the forensics. No, it was much too early to declare the Astoria Incident either an accident or a terrorist attack; no, the deceased pilot was neither Middle Eastern nor a Muslim; his name was Kevin Lipton, a seven year employee of ZeroPoint, married with two young children, and no criminal record beyond a couple of traffic citations in his teens.
“Chief, whatever this event was, it seems to have triggered a great many meta-human breakthroughs,” a gimlet-eyed male reporter from Channel 4 asked. “What is the APD’s response to this? Can the city handle a sudden explosion of super-powered individuals? Er, no pun intended.”
“A potential influx of super-powered criminals is obviously a concern,” the Chief replied calmly. “While Astoria hasn’t had much in the way of such problems since the Second World War, SHADE and the federal government have offered whatever support we might need in the days and weeks to come. But the APD is not totally unprepared for this eventuality, and I have no doubt that our fine men and women in blue will step up to whatever challenges lay ahead.
“That said, they won’t have to do it alone… as we all saw today, not all the super-powers are in the hands of the deranged or the criminal. A handful of people went berserk today, whether by natural inclination or the stress of suddenly gaining powers, it will take time to tell. But at least seven other people kept their heads and did their civic duty – indeed, I’m not embarrassed to say that they took up the mantles of heroes today. They worked tirelessly with the other first responders and saved countless lives, at some risk to their own.
“Some of them are here with us this evening, so why don’t I let them speak for themselves?” He stepped away from the podium and gestured to Scion, who stepped forward, the others fanning out behind him.
“Ladies and gentlemen of the press,” he began, letting his helmet once more melt into his armor. “Most of you know me… indeed, it was you who gave me the name that most people now associate with me when I wear this armor.” That got a chuckle, if a nervous one. They all knew he didn’t particularly like the name, and he was often a prickly interview at best.
“Despite what some of you believe, I have never been opposed to using my abilities, all my abilities, to help people when they need it. And it is obvious to me that my city needs help right now, and perhaps for some time to come. So I want to reassure the citizens of Astoria that I intend to do everything I can to keep them safe, both as Scion and as John Jacob Astor VIII.” There, using his full name ought to really annoy his cousins.
“But I’m not alone in this determination. Behind me are others who feel their responsibilities to this city and her people just as strongly. Artemis, who has fought from the shadows for years, but who now chooses to step into the light.” Artemis bowed her head slightly, a faint smile on her lips. John was being very poetic, just as they’d discussed.
“Totem, a Native shaman with some amazing abilities, has also stepped up today. Many who were injured might have died if not for his healing skills… not to mention his strength. I don’t think any of us will soon forget that image on tonight’s front page, of him in his Eagle form carrying an ambulance over the sea of stalled cars to those in need.
“The Blue Flame – a young man who gained his amazing powers only today, like so many others affected by the Incident. But unlike some of those others, he did not see that power as a license to run mad, to take what he wanted or to abuse others. Instead, the very first thought in his mind was “how can I help?” And then he found a way – if not for him much of the Silver Mile and the surrounding blocks might still be burning tonight –”
“What about the others?” a voice called out from the crowd. “Weren’t there seven of you out there–”
“Yes,” Scion interrupted the woman in turn. “There are others, who are not here now because they are hard at work in my lab studying the evidence we’ve uncovered and seeking the answers we all want and need about the origins of today’s horrific event. They too have made a commitment to do what must be done to protect this city and her people.”
Then an avalanche of questions was unleashed, most aimed at the known quantity of Scion… “Scion, are you putting together a team, then?” No. “Scion, are you the leader of this team?” No. “Scion, will you be recruiting more members for your team?” >sigh< No.
But questions were directed at the others as well. Artemis took it all in stride, cooly answering those questions she choose to, and simply ignoring the rest; Jonny found himself suddenly tongue-tied, but did his best to answer what he could and hoped to hell he wasn’t saying anything that would give away his secret identity (then laughed inside at the thought that he had a secret identity).
Totem did well, Scion noted, right up until the moment a young blond woman elbowed her way to the front of the pack, and called his name. JJ could’ve sworn the man blanched… and the stoic look he’d worn all day, even in combat, slipped just a bit…
‘Totem!” the young woman repeated. ” Meg Halcyon, with the Daily Astorian. What tribe are you from, sir? Whom do you represent?”
“I represent all of the First Peoples, Ms. Halcyon,” Totem replied, visibly regaining control of his expression… but JJ thought he detected a ghost of a smile. “All tribes must stand together now, just as all good people, of all races, must stand together against evil. But as for my tribe of birth… I am of the Haida.”
She followed up with several more questions that let Totem pretty much lay out his philosophy as he’d explained it to JJ during lulls in the action earlier today. When she turned her attention to Scion, he was already inclined to call on her, but after she called him “Captain Astor” instead of Scion, the deal was sealed.
“Yes Ms. Halcyon?” he replied, mostly suppressing a smile.
“As the Chief alluded to earlier, we haven’t seen an heroic team in Astoria since WWII and Victory Flight… would you say that you here are the vanguard of a new heroic renaissance in the City of Tomorrow, sir?”
JJ did smile then, and actually chuckled, which caused the rest of the media pack to fall almost silent in surprise.
“You have a nice turn of phrase, Ms. Halcyon,” he said, leaning in to the mics. “Yes, whatever is coming in the days ahead, I think you can legitimately say that we are the vanguard of that change…”
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
Headline in the Oregonian, morning edition, 17 May 2016: