Chapter 109: chap

"I wasn’t being sentimental," Scar scoffed defensively.

"You totally were," Alicia giggled. "Sure, it wasn’t guilt. But it was definitely something. You know, that feeling you get when someone you care about finds out a dark secret about you, and you’re terrified they’ll leave."

Scar was stunned. She’d read him so accurately that he hadn’t even realized that was what he was feeling. He was so estranged from ordinary human emotions that being psychoanalyzed by a teenager was jarring.

"What are you talking about?" Scar deflected, folding his arms more tightly. "It’s not even that deep."

"But it is," Alicia said with a smile. "It’s like you were worried I wouldn’t want to be your friend anymore after finding out you’d killed people."

"I don’t care what you think," Scar said sharply.

"Then why did you dramatically tell me to leave?" she challenged. "That’s practically a textbook example of insecurity."

Scar was stunned yet again. Before he could formulate a rebuttal, Alicia reached out and gently held his hand.

It was a simple gesture, but Scar completely froze.

"I don’t care about your past mistakes, Roy," Alicia said, her voice entirely sincere. "No one is perfect. I know I’m not. And I am definitely not going to stop being your friend just because of what happened yesterday."

Scar stared at their hands, letting out a dry, cynical chuckle. "You have no idea who I am, or what I’ve done in my past life. I’m not a good person, Alicia. The only reason I wanted to be your friend in the first place was so I could make you find ways for me to get faster."

Alicia laughed, squeezing his hand lightly before letting go. "Well, that’s changed, hasn’t it? Cause, that’s if it hadn’t, you wouldn’t be standing here telling me." She leaned back, shrugging. "And to be fair, I also just wanted you around at first so I could study the science behind your reincarnation. And also cause... you reminded me of Henry."

Scar was slightly surprised. The last part of Alicia’s statement was the exact thing Felicity had told him would be the case.

"But that was then," Alicia clarified, looking him in the eyes. "Now, I see you as a completely different person. A real person. With emotions, and fears, and issues. Lots and lots of issues. But that’s what makes us human, isn’t it?"

"But... I’m not a real person," Scar said quietly, chuckling to himself. "I’m just an alter ego."

Alicia smiled warmly. "I’ll be the judge of that."

She suddenly stood up straight, grabbing the crystal glass of whiskey and shoving it toward his chest. "Now, you’re going to drink this."

Scar stepped back. "No."

"Quit being a baby!" Alicia demanded playfully. "Your ridiculously fast metabolism is just gonna cancel out the effects anyway!"

"I’m still not interested."

"Look, if you drink it, I’ll build something for you," Alicia offered, wearing a mischievous smirk.

Scar hummed, considering her bribe. "Something like what?"

"Anything," she promised. "As long as it’s not beyond my capabilities."

Scar tapped his chin. "Okay. What about a velocity serum?"

Alicia scoffed. "I already told you, the Velocity Serum is still just a theoretical possibility. Pick something else."

Scar chuckled. "Alright. How about a treadmill that won’t break when I run on it?"

Alicia laughed loudly. "Consider it done." She held the glass out again. "Now, drink."

Scar looked at the whiskey, then shook his head, pushing her hand away gently. "You know what, I’ll pass."

"What? Come on! Just a sip!"

"I’m ready to get back to training now," Scar said, dismissing her request completely. "This time, I’m fully confident I can beat you."

Alicia chuckled, returning the whiskey glass and the decanter to the shelf. "Alright, then. You getting humiliated a second time would really light up my day."

Scar chuckled. "Come on."

They turned and walked out of the lounge, heading toward the elevators.

"Do you like clubbing?" Alicia asked as they walked.

Scar shook his head. "No, I don’t do clubs. I’ve never really been to one."

"What?! No way!" Alicia snickered. "You really need to go clubbing sometimes."

"Why would I do that?"

"To have fun! To experience nightlife, y’know?"

"No, I’m not into that."

Alicia sighed dramatically. "You are no fun at all. I am definitely taking you clubbing sometime."

"No, I’m good," Scar declined flatly.

Then, he looked over at her and smiled. "Alicia, do you realize you are a terrible influence?"

Alicia smirked. "That depends on your definition of terrible. Are we talking a bad terrible influence, or a good terrible influence?"

Scar shook his head fondly, stepping into the glass elevator. "You’re a menace."

Alicia laughed and stepped in after him, pressing the button for the lower levels. The doors slid shut, sealing out the quiet ambiance of the lounge. As the elevator descended, the glowing lights of the Speednasium’s different floors flashed past the glass, illuminating their faces in rhythmic intervals.

"I’m serious, though," Alicia said, leaning casually against the metal railing. "You need to live a little, Roy. All this training, no breaks, no social life... you’re going to burn out."

"I don’t burn out," Scar replied smoothly, his eyes fixed on the descending floor numbers above the door. "I just get faster."

Alicia let out a soft chuckle, shaking her head. "We’ll see about that."

The elevator chimed, coming to a smooth halt at the simulation floor. The doors parted, revealing the massive, cavernous training room waiting for them in absolute silence.

Alicia stepped out first, cracking her knuckles with a loud pop. She glanced back at him over her shoulder, a competitive fire returning to her eyes.

"Alright, Mr. Faster. Let’s see if you can actually keep up this time."

Scar walked out into the chamber, a confident, predatory smirk settling on his face.

"Load it up."

......

Iris City,

TRIAD Global Headquarters.

High above the sprawling, futuristic skyline of Iris City, the Director’s office was bathed in cold shadows.

Director Christopher Tully sat perfectly still behind his expansive desk. The only light in the room came from a high-resolution holographic projection floating in the air before him. It was a classified feed captured directly by a Triad orbital satellite.

On the screen, a seventeen-year-old Henry Myers could be seen moving with supersonic speed and executing a group of terrorists in the National Museum.

The director watched as the boy effortlessly snapped necks, shattered armor, and systematically executed a squad of highly trained operatives in mere seconds.

Chris’ blood ran cold. This was the same boy he had completely overlooked a week ago. He had dismissed him as a fragile, mentally fractured rich kid.

He couldn’t have been more wrong.

Just then, the shadows in the corner of the office began to writhe and expand, dropping the temperature of the room to a freezing chill.

"You see it now?" a voice rasped from the darkness, sounding raw and impatient. "That boy is no mortal. He is the Scion of Mercury. He has to be! We must destroy him before he awakens the full power of his progenitor."

Chris paused the footage, resting his chin on his steepled fingers. He didn’t look intimidated or anxious. He was simply contemplating and calculating his next move.

"What if he’s not the one?" he said calmly. "What if he’s just a talented kid? If we make a move and you’re wrong, we’ll be killing Felicity Myers’ son for nothing. You know what she is capable of. We cannot take such a risk."

"We must!" the voice growled. "If the boy turns out to be the scion of Hermes, then everything we have been building will crumble. Hermes was the most powerful of the five gods. We cannot let the boy get stronger. He must be eliminated at once."

Chris stared at the frozen image of Scar standing over the dead bodies. He tapped a finger against his desk in thought.

"Fine," he said finally. "But I’m not going to get involved directly. Felicity has public immunity; we can’t touch the boy legally. If Triad moves against him, we’ll be putting ourselves in danger. It won’t just be the people we’ll have to worry about, Felicity herself will burn the agency to the ground. We can’t let that happen."

He took a deep breath.

"We’ll have to use people unaffiliated with the agency. Unaffiliated with us."

"And where will you get people willing to hurt the child of a woman that powerful?" The voice asked.

Chris let out a low, dark smirk. "I’ll just have to give them the right motivation."

He shifted his gaze to the side of his desk. Resting on it was the blueprint of a mechanical suit of armor. In the center of the chest cavity was a perfectly circular housing unit—an empty space designed for an arc reactor.

Chris smiled, his eyes gleaming with cold ambition.

"Do not worry," he said, leaning back in his chair. "One way or another, Henry Myers will be eliminated."