Liam walked to the edge of the main room. Huddling there, he took a deep breath then exhaled slowly. Repeating the process a few times while he scanned those inside. There were five people, all members of his new team. To one side of the room was the man Liam interviewed with. Ullr was his name, Liam reminded himself. He couldn’t afford to screw that up, not when first impressions were on the line.

The man was bent over reaching into the fridge, his helmet sitting on the counter next to it. As the large man stood up, Liam got his first look at Ullr’s uncovered face. He wasn’t disappointed. The man was the epitome of how a hero should look. He radiated authority and his every action spoke of one who stood against evil. Allowing it to beat against him so those he protected would be spared from the blows. A warmth swam through Liam as he realized he’d be following this man.

As Ullr turned, he made eye contact with Liam and took a moment to observe his new apprentice. The intensity of the gaze made Liam swallow hard. Almost as soon as it started, it was over. With Ullr nodding his simple greeting, then continuing into the rest of the room. Popping open a beer and taking a big gulp while he made his way.

Swallowing again, Liam smiled to himself. That was what he’d hoped to see from the Hero. His very presence was enough to send Cowls running.

Liam followed Ullr’s progress with his eyes for a moment before turning his focus to the other people in the room. Sitting on the far couches were two more Heroes. The first was a man wearing an outfit of a modern day ninja. His tight fitting black body armor covered most of his body. Strange small metal studs poked out over the armor. As with Ullr, this man’s mask was off, revealing a kind face. Lines marked his weathered skin from a life of laughing. He was in an animated discussion with the woman sitting next to him. And was putting the lines to use as a smile stretched across his face.

The woman was wearing an ancient looking breastplate. Decorated with scars and dents, each telling of another foe she’d vanquished. Her armor extended to her arms and shins with padded metal guards protecting both. A shield, sword and helmet were all lying on the couch next to her. Every piece looked hundreds of years out of date. The entire set was something Liam expected to find in a museum. There was no way he’d be found dead in something like that. Only high tech for him.

The woman was deep in conversation with the man sitting next to her, neither appearing to have noticed Liam’s presence. Her styled golden hair bounced as she chuckled along with man.

Turning his focus to the last Hero, Liam noticed the man was already staring at him. His face scrunched up as if he’d spotted something unpleasant. The black eyed gaze was deep. Sending a glacier up Liam’s spine as he felt like he was falling into a black pit. When Liam thought all hope was lost the older Hero averted his eyes, permitting Liam to breathe again.

Once the man spun away, Liam could focus on more than just his eyes. The man was wearing a tight fitting blue bodysuit with black accents running down the arms and legs. He’d emblazoned the logo of the Hunt on his chest in black. His heroic costume at odds with the look the man flashed.

Shuddering, Liam walked into the room. All eyes turned to him as he crossed the threshold. The conversation on the couches died mid sentence, a smile still hanging on the face of the man in black.

“Look who decided to join us,” the man with the unpleasant expression said.

“Oh come on Skip, he’s coming from the workshop. You know how techies love those places. Cut the kid a little slack,” the happy older man on the couch said. The smile on his face expanded as he spotted his new teammate.

“There’s nothing in there. How can an empty room be so interesting?” Skip, the man standing by the table said.

As the man on the couch was about to respond, Ullr stepped forward and held his hand up. Both men saw the gesture and stopped talking, waiting for their leader to take control of the conversation.

“Before this gets a little too heated why don’t we introduce ourselves. I’ll start if there are no objections,” Ullr said. He scanned the room for any sign of dissent. Not finding any he continued, “It’s great to meet you in person, Source. I’m happy you decided to join our team. As you know my name’s Ullr and I’m the leader of The Hunt.”

“I’m glad to be here. I won’t let you down.”

“Make sure you don’t.”

Liam subconsciously gulped. There it was again. Someone should patent this man’s looks and turn them into a weapon.

“Now, onto the rest of the introductions. On the couch we have Gladius and H-Bar.”

“Nice to meet you little man. The name’s Gladius,” the woman, Gladius said as she stood up, towering a good half foot over Liam’s head. She might be taller than him, but that didn’t mean she should call him little. His height had always been a touchy subject. However, the offense was soon forgotten as the magnitude of the moment came back.

The ninja in black was next. Standing up and waving at Liam, a broad smile stretched across his face as he said, “Hi Source. The name’s H-Bar. I’m so happy to have you joining the team.”

“A pleasure to meet both of you,” Liam said. Stepping forward and shaking their hands. H-Bar giving Liam a pleasant slap on the shoulder as they shook.

The man at the table was the last to speak, “The name’s Skip.”

His introduction was plain and concise. Though it was missing the hostility, he’d felt earlier.

“Pleasure to meet you Skip, my name’s Source,” Liam said as he reached out to shake hands.

“I figured that out from all the other introductions. Strange, I know.”

Well so much for no attitude, Liam thought. Before he could decide how to react Ullr turned to Skip and said, “Before you say anything more the answer is no.”

Skip stared at Ullr for a long moment before nodding, “Fine, fine, I get it. I’ll play nice with the new guy.”

“I expect nothing less.”

In a sickly sweet voice Skip said, “Why Source it’s so great to meet you. I’m sure you’ll make an excellent member of our team.”

Skip glanced over at Ullr when he finished talking, a small smile flashing across his lips.

“Don’t worry about him. The guy’s a little broken up here,” H-Bar said as he rotated a finger next to his head in the classical crazy person sign. Liam couldn’t be sure if that comment was for him or to get a reaction from Skip. Either way it got one, only it wasn’t from Skip.

“I swear you all act like children,” Ullr said as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

“I’m so offended, boss man. You know I have the emotional range of a teenager,” H-Bar said in mock horror. Gladius tried, but failed to stifle a laugh at the older man’s joke.

Well that wasn’t the introduction he’d expected, Liam thought. Weren’t Hero teams supposed to be well oiled crime fighters? What had he just walked into?

“Yep, this is going as well as I’d hoped. Now Source I see you’ve already met Matt,” Ullr said as he waved toward the only nonHero on the team. Who was watching the exchange with a huge smile on his face.

“Yes, he was kind enough to give me a quick tour of the base.”

“Perfect that’ll save some time. Now I’m sure you’ve noticed we’ve been using our Hero names. As a team policy we keep our full names from apprentices. It’s a safety measure for us. Once you’ve proven you belong, you’ll earn the right to know them.”

“I understand,” Liam said. And he did. It was a true sign of trust for Heroes to tell you their names. Why would the team do that on day one?

“Now then, with that out of the way, why don’t we move to the real introductions.”

“I’ve been waiting for this!” Gladius said as she grabbed her armor and hurried down the hall.

“Let’s go to the training facilities before Gladius gets anxious and destroys the place,” Ullr said. “We’ll be doing a little demonstration. Source, grab any equipment you’ll need and meet us there.”

“It was great meeting you Source. I’ll be leaving you here. I have too much work that needs my attention,” Matt said as he walked away from everyone. Busy with the never-ending demands of a team of Heroes.

As Liam was turning to follow everyone else down the hall Ullr waved him down and said, “One moment if you would.”

Liam waited as H-Bar and Skip left. The first only just able to contain his excitement. He was almost skipping as he went.

When they were alone, Ullr said, “Don’t worry about Skip. He’s a pain, at the best of times. It’s just been a rough year for him. Everything that happened with Blue Feather hit him hardest.”

“I can understand. That had to be rough for everyone.”

“It was. But enough of those painful memories. Just remember Skip doesn’t mean half of what he says.”

“I will,” Liam said with a nod.

“Good, now I’ll meet you down there in a few minutes.”

Ullr and Liam walked down the hallway until Liam ducked into his workshop. Once inside Liam ran to his bag and started rummaging through it, looking for his suit. He pulled it out piece by piece. First Liam grabbed the padded full body jumpsuit. He’d designed it as a middle layer between the armor and his skin. Cushioning any blow and acting as a sensor array. The armor would sit over the jumpsuit, plugging into its sensors and allowing for faster input times. It was easiest to think of the bodysuit as the foundation the rest of the armor was built on.

Next, Liam grabbed the armored chest piece. Made from a special polymer he’d created during the last month. The polymer was ten times stronger than steel and could withstand extreme temperatures. It’d survive heat that would roast Liam to a crisp. The chest piece also contained many of Liam’s previous gadgets. Everything from a simple camera to a deployable smoke grenade launcher in the shoulder.

The goal was to have the armor covering his entire body with many of Liam’s most successful inventions built in. Becoming a true suit of armor tailored to support him. But that was yet to be realized, Liam had the plans, but hadn’t had the time to finish them.

After the chest piece, Liam jumped into his boots. The gloves, shin pads, and forearm armor followed next. Each one was created with the same polymer as the chest piece. And Liam incorporated several gadgets into them. Unfortunately, each still connected to the jumpsuit and not each other.

Last, Liam donned his helmet. The thing looked like a futuristic motorcycle helmet with a mirrored visor covering his face and black armor protecting the rest of his head. On one side were the letters ‘TH-S’ standing for The Hunt - Source, printed in a stylized green font. The color scheme on the helmet matched the rest of the armor, black with green accents.

With his helmet locked, Liam turned on the HUD. “System diagnostics,” A synthetic female voice said in his ear. A yellow spinning circle appearing in the corner of his visor. “Chest 100% operational, Right arm 100% operational, Left…” The system cycled through each piece of equipment, giving their current status as an image of the armor flashed on the HUD.

Once all the equipment was reviewed the voice said, “All components reporting 100%. We are green to go. Source is now online,” The spinning yellow circle was replaced by a green check that vanished almost immediately.

Liam programmed the voice so it was no surprise, but it still sent a shiver down his spine. This was the start of a new chapter in his life. When he was wearing the suit, he wasn’t Liam anymore. Instead he was replaced by the Hero Source. He would have to hold himself to the standard of a Hero. It was a good thing he had a leader like Ullr to take after.

Grabbing his staff, another toy Liam had been working on, he headed towards the awaiting team. The black metal suit shone all the more brightly as he left the empty workshop behind.

Entering the training room, Liam found the rest of the team standing to the side of the door. With their suits on and masks covering their faces. Looking like they were ready to go on patrol instead of a simple display of powers.

Liam didn’t look at the training room during the tour, so he took advantage of the opportunity now. The room was by far the largest in the base. It was three stories tall. With an indoor track running around its edge, encompassing weightlifting equipment on one side, and dummies on the other. Rooms off the main area had additional training equipment. One a pool, another a firing range. In all, the main room and those around it had all the equipment the team would need to train and plenty of space for them to do it in.

Of the Heroes in front of him Gladius stood out the most. She was a walking mix of Greek and Roman soldiers. Carrying a large roman shield in one hand with a giant sword strapped to her back. A helmet looking similar to the ones worn by Roman Praetorian guards, with the cheek protectors connecting in the middle. The metal dome polished to that of a mirror. The whole suit carried with it a sense of staring at a warrior of old.

Seeing Liam enter Ullr said, “Now that we’re all here we can start the demonstrations. As everyone knows we are a team out there. And a team needs to understand everyone else’s powers. As such, everyone will demonstrate what they can do.”

The explanation made sense to Liam. He’d take this opportunity to show the team he was an asset. Maybe his strengths could even cover someone else’s weakness.

“As the team leader I’ll be going first. I have multiple powers, all of which enhance my physical abilities. My first power is enhanced strength,” Ullr said, his voice coming out muffled by his helmet. Now that Liam could see him in the entire ensemble it only increased his initial impression. This was a man every Cowl would be smart to fear. He was a beacon of what a Hero should strive to be.

Ullr walked over to a bench press. The bar held giant weights on both ends. Liam doubted he’d be able to lift half of what was there. With one hand Ullr grabbed the center of the bar and lifted it up. Making it look comically easy as he raised it over his head. But it was what happened next that was truly breathtaking. Ullr began to swing the bar around. Like a child waving a stick Ullr chopped it back and forth. From where he stood, Liam could hear the air whistle as the weights moved. Upping the stakes Ullr tossed the bar into the air. It flew a dozen feet only to be caught, one handed, by Ullr on the way back down.

“I’m around eight times stronger than a non-super weightlifter,” Ullr said as he shifted the weight lifting bar into both hands. Well that could come in handy, Liam thought. Super strength was one of the more common abilities, but it was also very versatile, “I’m also faster than the average person over short distances. My fastest 100 meter time is just under eight seconds. Which means I can catch supers who don’t have enhanced speed, but I’m on the low end of the scale when it comes to that power.”

Still holding the weights, Ullr showed his speed by running around the track. He was fast Liam thought. But what was impressive was the weights didn’t seem to slow him down. While carrying the weights Ullr ran faster than Liam could without.

Coming to a stop Ullr said, “My last power is enhanced physical toughness. It comes in two flavors. The first is that I can take a hit and keep going, the other is poison only gives me an upset stomach. Even the lethal kind. I doubt anyone has a poison lying around so I can’t demonstrate my resistance to them. However, if someone would like to help me show my physical resistance, we can do that.”

“Yes, me!” H-Bar said jumping forward, “A chance to hit the boss man. How could I ever pass that up?”

H-Bar sauntered up to Ullr as the team leader looked on, clearly not surprised it was H-Bar who volunteered first. H-Bar’s entire attitude exuded the excitement of someone about to get a present. Though Liam couldn’t see his mouth, as a black mask covered it, he was sure the man was smiling.

“You sure about this?” H-Bar said as he stopped in front of Ullr.

“Yeah yeah. One punch. Do your worst,” Ullr said nonchalantly.

As Liam watched, he didn’t think there was any bad blood between the two men. But it was strange how fast H-Bar had volunteered. With his happy carefree attitude it made reading the man difficult. Was he really like that or was this all an act? Liam would have to watch going forward to get a better idea of who these people were.

With no ceremony H-Bar attacked. His fist arching in a vicious right hook. It sailed through the air before Ullr even braced himself. As the fist smashed into the team leader’s helmet, it left Liam stunned. Unlike Ullr, who took it in stride. The strike simply turned his head to the side. He didn’t even step back from it. What was crazier was Ullr hadn’t braced himself, he accepted the full blow.

H-Bar, on the other hand, was left on one knee, gripping his right hand. Pain written across his body.

“As fun as I remember it being,” H-Bar said through gritted teeth.

“And yet you keep doing it,” Gladius said.

“It was either I do it, or the new guy got tricked into it.”

“Doesn’t mean you had to go full force.”

“Wouldn’t have been a good training experience if I didn’t.”

Gladius only shrugged to that.

Wait, they wanted him to do that? That would’ve been a cruel trick. Who would join a team and then attack its leader? Even if Ullr had told him to do it, Liam wasn’t sure he would’ve. However, if they’d convinced him, then he would’ve been the one writhing on the ground. As Liam looked at those around him he realized the others had planned just that. This had been some kind of hazing that H-Bar had spared him from. He would have to thank the man for that later.

Liam felt a pang of guilt. He’d just been assuming H-Bar had some hidden ulterior motive, or was too arrogant to do anything but joke. Then he goes and trips up the prank meant for the new guy. Liam had to remind himself to stop judging people from first impressions.

“And those are all of my powers,” Ullr said. “My Strength, Speed, and Toughness are all enhanced. Now who would like to go next?”

Liam felt a smile tugging at his lips. Who’d be next? And would they be able to match what Ullr had just done?