“Good morning Des Moines,” the radio blared.

The noise jostled Liam from his sleep. It was too early to get up, far too early. Yesterday had been exhausting and the few hours of sleep he’d gotten weren’t enough to fully recover.

“It’s looking to be another sunny day today with highs in the low seventies,” the radio jockey continued. “But that’s not what has everyone excited. Today’s the day our fair city’s newest Hero makes his debut. And that’s not all folks, a little birdy over at the DCP told me our city’s apprentice scored in the top 20 of the class. How’d we get lucky enough to-”

Liam’s hand smashed onto the off button. Top twenty of the class. They were underestimating him. That was all the motivation he needed to start the day. And what better way to work off a little stress than with an early morning workout.

Crawling out of bed Liam left the warmth of his room behind for the cold and dimly lit corridor. Each of his steps reverberated against the silent walls of the base. Click, click, click as he moved forward lights brightened, only to fade again when he’d passed. Leaving Liam in an island of light in an otherwise dark hallway.

As Liam made his way through the dark base, he decided to change the hallway lighting going forward. Being alone in the light’s glare while the world around him was in darkness left a weird taste in his mouth. Like he was on trial by some unseen court. His life hanging in the balance by the invisible eyes around him. That needed to change. Switching the settings to turn on all the lights in any hallway Liam entered would be an easy fix. And it’d let him familiarize himself with the base’s computers. A win win.

In no time Liam was outside the training room, where he was greeted by the sounds of muffled voices and the occasional clanging of weights from inside. At least part of the team was already up and working out. It was disappointing knowing he wasn’t the first one here. But what could he expect with a team of experienced Heroes? They’d be working harder than anyone staying at the top of their game.

As Liam entered, he took a quick look around and saw the rest of the team already there. Even knowing people were inside, Liam had hoped he’d beat someone here. It looked like his alarm would be set half an hour earlier tomorrow. He’d show the rest of the team he meant business when he beat them all here.

“Morning,” H-Bar called from the leg press. Liam waved at him and then headed to the weight bench.

While at the academy, Liam spent a significant amount of time researching different workout programs. After a year he compiled everything he’d learned into a training regime. One he stuck to like clockwork. Today wouldn’t be an exception.

As Liam began changing the weights on the bar Gladius walked up.

“Need a spotter?” she asked.

“That’d be great. Mind helping me set up?” Liam asked, gesturing to the bar. It was weighed down with over four times what he could hope to bench.

“I’d be happy. I think Ullr leaves the weight on just to intimidate us.”

“Well it’s worked on me.”

“Just wait until tomorrow. Today was an easy day for him.”

“I’d hate to see what he maxes at.”

A small smile played across Gladius’s face. It must be a mind numbing amount Liam realized. He’d have to avoid being behind the guy on those days. Taking off that much weight would drive him crazy.

It took the two of them a good five minutes to change the weights to something Liam could use. Even knowing Ullr had enhanced strength, Liam was blown away by just how much the man was benching. Liam wondered how being that strong affected Ullr’s view of the world. Everything must be so fragile to him. He must go around trying not to break it all. Was everywhere he went like a china shop to him?

Maybe one day Liam would get a glimpse of what that felt like. When he’d finished building his suit, he’d have Ullr’s strength or at least be close to it. But until then he could only imagine how the man saw everything.

While Liam was settling in to lift, Gladius said, “Starting a little light today.”

“Well, we aren’t all as strong as Ullr,” Liam said. A little more defensively than he meant.

“Ain’t that the truth. But maybe you could try a little more. We could make it into a little competition between the two of us?”

“Maybe another day. I have a strict workout planned today.”

“One where you can’t have a fun little competition?”

“Not with what I have planned.”

“Let me guess you created it yourself?” Gladius asked. Liam caught the woman rolling her eyes above him.

“I did. Do you know how much research went into it?”

“How can you make a workout this nerdy? I didn’t think it was possible.”

“I’m just using proven peer reviewed methods.”

“You mean peer reviewed by a bunch of people who’ve never stepped foot in a gym.”

“They have test subjects doing the exercises…”

Gladius just shook her head, eyes glazing over. He’d lost her. Maybe it was for the best as it meant he could start.

“You know what, let’s just get started,” Liam said as he lifted the bar up.

The two moved from one piece of equipment to the next as they made their way around the room. On each piece of equipment Gladius lifted second and lifted more. It only took Liam a few minutes to realize what she was trying to do, but he didn’t fall for the bait. He had a strict lifting plan to follow, and that’s what he’d do.

As they reached the final piece of equipment Gladius bid him farewell, she’d started working out earlier and was finished with her morning regime. Walking away she looked proud. She’d ‘won’ their imaginary competition and lifted more every time. Though her shoulders slumped slightly as she turned the corner.

Walking over to the track, Liam went through a few simple stretches before he set off on a run. He preferred to run outside, the changing scenery helped his mind wonder away from the pain of the workout. On The Hunt’s track, he didn’t have that luxury. This track was small with tight turns meaning he’d have to see each part of the gym eight times per mile. Not ideal, but it’s what he had to live with. It wasn’t like he could just go outside and start running. He didn’t know where the base’s exits would lead him or how to get back in after he was done.

A couple laps in and H-Bar joined him. Jogging up next to Liam and keeping pace.

“Decent tempo kid,” the older man said.

“I find it’s easier to run outside, so I’m having trouble staying focussed,” Liam said as they made their way around a tight turn.

“That might be true, but here you can keep track of lap splits. Makes it easier to keep a steady pace.”

“There are some advantages,” Liam said. And that was one, but better control of his splits didn’t make up for the mind numbing experience.

“How about we liven things up with a little race? Let’s say, first one to complete a mile wins,” H-Bar said. No sooner were the words out of his mouth than he was racing on ahead.

Why were they doing this? First it was Gladius, then H-Bar. Would the entire team needle him until he succumbed to a competition? Didn’t they know he had a workout plan he was trying to stick to? Sure Heroes were a competitive breed, but really? Wait, was this their way of welcoming him into the team?

Seeing H-Bar pushing farther ahead, Liam’s will broke, and he gave chase. He’d skip this part of the training regime for today. If the team would keep challenging him until he gave in he might as well give them what they wanted. At least this way he could decide what he competed in and when he’d refuse.

The steady rhythm of Liam’s shoes striking the track picked up speed. Each stride becoming longer and faster than those from before. As Liam raced to catch up to H-Bar. His older teammate had a head start, but Liam wouldn’t let it stay that way.

One lap, then two, together they ran as Liam pushed himself to beat his new teammate. With each lap Liam closed the distance until they reached the final one. With Liam a hand’s breadth behind H-Bar.

The rhythm of the run changed again. The steady beat of the previous laps was lost as both men pushed into a sprint. Giving their all to win the race.

Liam heaved in air with each breath. Fire rushed through every muscle in his body. Yet there was no quitting for him or his opponent. Not this close to the end and with their pride on the line.

Around the final turn they went. Liam creeping up on H-Bar. Entering the final straightaway they were neck and neck. With every step Liam felt like he’d break apart. His body screamed for him to stop, but Liam pushed through, every step a small victory in a larger battle.

Stride for stride they ran, matched together, closing in on the finish. Neither could wrestle away the lead. As they crossed the finish line in unison, they both dropped to the ground, utterly spent. A slick sheen of sweat covering their bodies.

“Decent,” H-Bar gasped out between deep breaths.

“Decent? We tied,” Liam spat back.

“Not how I saw it.”

“You’re just afraid you lost to the new guy.”

“When you can challenge me, I will be worried. Until then I’ll be fine,” H-Bar joked as he got up. Doing a few stretches before he bid Liam farewell and headed out of the training room.

With their little impromptu race over, Liam finished his workout for the day. After a few minutes of recovery Liam followed H-Bar out of the training room. He had a busy day ahead of him and sitting around recovering wasn’t how he wanted to spend it.

After a quick shower Liam was ready to face whatever came his way. He made a mental note to change his workout calendar. If he focused a little more on running, he’d be fast enough to beat H-Bar. Any pain would be worth it if it meant a clean win. The look on H-Bar’s face would be the cherry on top. So much for his perfectly planned workouts.

Arriving at his workshop Liam found a file next to the door. Well, file was the wrong word to use. There was a little tablet next to the door. It’s dull gray facade belying the importance of the contents it held. However the ruse didn’t fool Liam, he knew it stored the details of a murder inside, something no plastic case could dull.

Pulling up a chair at one of the empty tables Liam got to work pouring over its contents. Just what secrets would it hold? The first thing he looked for was the address of the crime. Once found he looked up the street map online. It wasn’t the same as being there in person, but Liam hoped the map would let him better understand the area. It showed the victim lived on the first floor of an apartment building with multiple units around it. His front door opened up to the street. Giving any suspect easy access without having to disturb the units around the victim.

Across the street from the apartment was a gas station. It was a little two pump place with nowhere to walk inside. Having gained a basic idea of the area Liam went back to the beginning of the report and started over.

Skimming through the file Liam found the responding officer’s statement. The case was first reported by a neighbor who’d heard a loud noise coming from Mr. Dean’s apartment. Two additional neighbors also called the police in the minutes after the first. When all three were interviewed, each described hearing the same thing. A loud crash followed by silence. There was no argument or build up of sound in the apartment. Just the sudden burst of noise. The conformity of the three stories led Liam to believe they were accurate.

When the police arrived at the scene, they found the front door locked. After repeatedly knocking on the door and getting no response, they forced it open and made their way into the apartment, finding Mr. Dean dead in the living room. His body was stuck partially through a wall. From the way the body was positioned it was obvious it’d been thrown into the wall with incredible force, not something the average person could do. Or many Supers for that matter.

Besides the body, the rest of the room was in good order. All the furniture was still standing, nothing looked out of place. No clear sign of a struggle taking place inside the apartment. All signs lined up with what the witnesses told the authorities. This was a sudden killing.

The police went through the apartment and found nothing missing. Mr. Dean’s wallet was in plain view on top of his gym bag. A couple $20 bills and his credit cards were still inside.

After Liam finished reading the first responders report he looked at the autopsy. It claimed the cause of death was blunt force trauma, from whatever sent Mr. Dean into the wall or the wall itself. Most of the bones in Mr. Dean’s chest were broken. Not a good way to go Liam thought, not that there was a good way. At the bottom of the report the coroner made a note he believed powers were involved. If The Hunt didn’t say they were treating this as the work of a Cowl then the autopsy would’ve forced their hand. Good thing the team was already looking into the crime.

After going through the written testimony from the detectives, all of which lined up with what he’d read so far. Liam scanned the pictures of the crime scene. A glance at the body was all he needed to confirm what was written in the reports. This was the work of at least one Cowl. How there’d been an argument about that the night before was beyond him.

Skimming through the rest of the pictures Liam saw what the written reports described. They couldn’t find anything out of place in the apartment. No clear sign of a break in or struggle. All of this suggested the crime was committed by an acquaintance of Mr. Dean, or he hadn’t seen the person enter his apartment. Each picture Liam looked at reinforced those ideas until he spotted something in the corner of one that drew his attention. There was something there that didn’t belong. A wet stain on the far side of the room, well away from the body. Looking back through the reports Liam didn’t find any mention of the wet spot. Making a mental note to dig into the weird spot, Liam continued.

Mr. Dean had recently installed a camera on his front door. Its feed was being reviewed by police, but no one had entered since Mr. Dean himself, the night before. That camera might be a dead end, but the mention of one gave Liam an idea. Thinking back to the map he’d found earlier, he remembered a Gas station across the street from the crime scene. Gas stations always had cameras. If they were lucky, one was facing Mr. Dean’s building. Maybe it caught something the apartment security camera missed.

Liam looked through the rest of the report for any mention of the gas station. After a thorough search he came up empty handed. He’d have to fix that. This was another item Liam would add to the follow up list.

Flipping over the page, Liam realized he was at the end of the report. It wasn’t much to go on, but it was still early in the investigation. Liam was just impressed all the information had been compiled in such short order. It was a good omen for the local police department’s capabilities.

With nothing pressing for the moment Liam gave the intercom panel a click. He wasn’t sure who to talk to about getting the information he needed to do the follow up. His best bet was to ask Matt, he’d know who to talk to.

“Hey Matt, it’s Source. I have a few questions about the report you sent over,” Liam said when he heard the system kick on.

“Let’s see if I can help,” the static voice of Matt replied.

“First, what’s the wet stain in the picture...” Liam scrolled to the tablet until he found the image he was looking for. “8A? It looks to be on the far side of the living room. I don’t see any mention of it in the report.”

“Let me check.”

There were a series of clicks from the other end of the line as Matt looked it up.

“The stain was from Skip jumping to the scene so the police didn’t add it to their report.”

“I didn’t know he was the first to respond,” Liam said. Why wasn’t that in the report? Hadn’t it said an officer was the first person there?

“He wasn’t.”

“Then why’d he jump to a crime scene? He’s a trained Hero, and that’s well outside protocol.”

“I...yeah it looks like he did it though.”

Liam took a deep breath. The only reason for Skip to jump into that room was if he thought someone’s life was in danger. There was no other reason for a Hero to do that. All it’d done was contaminate the crime scene. How could Ullr let him do that?

Changing the subject before he could get upset Liam asked, “Was there any footage recovered from the gas station across the street? It might have a good view of Mr. Dean’s apartment. I can get the address if you need.”

“That’s an easy one. The footage from the gas station just came in. It covers the twelve hours leading up to the crime,” Matt said as Liam heard more typing coming across the line.

Liam was about to ask for a copy when the lights on the wall burned red.

“All Heroes to the entryway. I repeat, all Heroes to the entryway. This is not a drill,” an overhead speaker blared.

“Looks like I have to go, let’s finish this talk later,” Liam said as he raced to his suit.

“No worries! Good luck out there!” Matt called before breaking the connection.

It was time. His first day on the job and Liam was already getting a chance to be a Hero. Ideas of what he’d face flashed before him as Liam hoped all his training had prepared him for what he’d find.