There was a collective breath as everyone in the room digested what Nudge had just said. Liam could imagine the heads of the two women twirling at the ramification of the news. Liam braced himself for the eventual detonation of emotions. Sure it would be something to behold. The fuse took a few seconds to burn before Tank spoke up.

“I must’ve misheard you. What did you say?” she demanded. Her form rising from the couch like a leviathan awakening from the depths. Striding over to Nudge, she loomed over the man.

“Wire will apprentice under you,” Nudge repeated. Paying the larger Hero no mind.

If Liam were interrogated under that stare, he would be pressed to not spill everything. Divulging all of his secrets just for the chance the gaze would focus somewhere else.

“I never agreed to that,” Tank said, her voice solidifying into a sheet of ice.

As the large Hero spoke, Wire called out as well, “I thought you were my mentor, Nudge!”

Nudge looked between the two for a moment. Whether to analyze the two and better understand what they were feeling, or just for the dramatic effect, Liam didn’t know. Yet the result was the same. The two focused on the man, pausing and waiting for the next word. And he delivered, addressing Wire first, he said.

“I’ll be working with Source, so I can’t take another apprentice. Lucky for all of us Tank is here as well, so there won’t be any issues.”

Liam wasn’t aware of any rule that limited the number of apprentices under one Hero. When he was with The Hunt, he didn’t even have a specific person as a mentor. It was more a communal thing from the entire group. Maybe there was some unwritten rule about the number of apprentices on a team or tied to one Hero. He’d never been the best with the unwritten rules. He always figured if something was important enough to be a rule, it was important enough to be written down. Otherwise, what was the point of having rules?

“But I thought-” Wire started, only for Nudge to interrupt her and continue as if Wire hadn’t spoken.

“Don’t worry, Tank will be great. Plus we’re still on the same team, so it’s not like I can’t work with you. I’m sure Source would also be happy to help where he can.”

Liam wasn’t excited to be pulled into the conversation, yet looking at Wire, he could see the woman calming down. Her place in this group starting to make sense. Plus, the older Hero had used Liam like a piece of meat. Offered up to the starving, and it’d worked with Wire.

The calming effect on Wire was canceled as Tank spoke up, “You seem to forget a minor detail. Mainly, I never agreed to an apprentice.”

“You don’t want me?” Wire asked. Having turned from Tank’s ally to her enemy at Nudge’s command.

“I’m sure that’s not what she meant,” Nudge ventured. Offering an olive branch as if he wasn’t the cause of all of this.

Having the conversation move away from him again, Liam settled in to watch. As long as he wasn’t the focus of attention, he could enjoy the spectacle to the fullest.

“But she just said.”

“Tank likes to work solo. Being on a team will take her some time to get used to. Once she does, she’ll be a great mentor. Plus you’ll get to see how both solo Heroes and teams work. Few can say that this early in their careers.”

“Nudge, I’m not joking. You didn’t ask me about this. You can’t just dump her on me and make me a mentor,” Tank said. Her voice ratcheted up a notch as Nudge continued to ignore her. “I should walk right now.”

“But you won’t. You’re too enticed by why I brought everyone together, and what we have to do. You could never leave a mystery like that,” Nudge answered. Turning from Wire.

“That’s a colossal risk to take. Who’s to say I don’t change my mind tomorrow and leave. It’d throw Wire’s entire career into chaos. Losing a mentor days into her apprenticeship.”

“No, that can’t happen. You said this was an important mission. Don’t throw me out,” Wire whispered, moving closer to Nudge.

“You won’t be. Tank here was just exaggerating to make a point. A very crude one at that.”

“No, I wasn’t,” Tank cut back.

This was a scene from a TV show, Liam thought. There’d been reality TV shows with less drama than this group had in the first five minutes.

“Please. I can’t have that happening to me,” Wire pleaded. Her hands clasping together in front of her.

“Now everyone, calm down. Let’s grab a meal and get to know each other. We can go over the specifics of our arrangement tomorrow, but don’t worry Wire. No matter what Tank says, you’ll be fine. Either she takes you on, or someone else with The Watch will.”

“If that happens, would I be able to stay on this mission.”

“Unfortunately, no. But it’s not all bad. Who wouldn’t love to start their career with The Watch?”

Wire nodded along to what Nudge was saying. Then muttered. “I’d hate to miss the chance of being a part of all of this.”

While Wire seemed to have her heart set on this group, the idea of being on The Watch as a backup did a number to boost her morale.

“You don’t even know what we’re doing. Why wouldn’t you be jumping at the other opportunity?” Tank asked.

“I signed onto this team. I want to follow it through,” Wire said with a frown.

“Newbies and their righteous dedication,” Tank said with a sigh.

What Liam found the most interesting in the exchange was how much Wire wanted to be with this group. If he’d been in her boots, he’d have jumped at the opportunity to join The Watch. And Liam was sure if he asked everyone else in his class at the academy, they’d all agree.

After that, it took a few minutes for everything to calm down. During all of it Liam watched from the sidelines, forgotten by the rest of the group. Like Tank and Wire, Liam had some serious questions about what was going on. And what they were doing here together. He hoped the other two would pry more out of Nudge, or better yet, decide this wasn’t where they wanted to be and leave. If it was just Nudge and Liam, he’d be much happier with everything.

Once the group finished arguing, a process, which the prospect of food helped move along, they made their way into the kitchen/dining room. A large room, with a similar color scheme to the room they’d just come from.

To one side was a modest setup. Fridge, microwave, and a four burner stove. On the other side of the space was a large red oak table. Twelve sturdy backed chairs surrounded the thing like it was King Arthur’s table.

Liam found himself a place at the table. He took his helmet off and set it in front of him. Unlike other Heroes who'd never be seen without their masks, except by their team, Liam took his off with ease. It wasn’t like the thing was doing anything to hide his identity anymore. So he had nothing to lose by removing it.

The helmet had seen some work since his days on The Hunt. The most obvious of which was the name on the side. The TH-S was gone, MK-2 in its place. All branding of who he’d been and the team he’d been on, was replaced with a simple Mark 2. The change helped encapsulate who he’d become in his time since The Hunt. Putting everything he’d been through into a visible symbol.

When the helmet first came off, Wire peeked at him from the corner of her eye. Acting like she wasn’t watching. Liam tried to pay the move no mind. It wasn’t a big deal to be seen without his helmet now, he told himself. And she’d be out of his hair tomorrow anyway, so what did it matter? The thought did some to comfort Liam, but he wouldn’t be truly over it until he had food in front of him.

As for food, Nudge warmed up some leftover lasagna. The rubbery stuff left much to be desired. Matt could put this meal to shame with both his eyes closed. The thought of the man’s delicacies turned Liam’s mood. He wondered what Matt was up to now. Had he been swept up in the purging of The Hunt? Or had he escaped the gavel of the law? Liam didn’t know, he hadn’t been focused on the man behind the scenes during his quest for revenge and once he’d been vindicated, he ignored that part of his history. Now though, a ping of interest sprung up in him, he’d have to look it up when he had the time.

The rest of the team made their way to the table, joining Liam. Nudge and Tank left their helmets on. Both able to move their face plates to the side and eat the meal in front of the others. Liam would be lying if he said he wasn’t interested in seeing their faces. Maybe they had horrid scars etched along their cheeks from a fight long forgotten, or some other distinctive feature from a storied career fighting the worst humanity could throw at them.

Another bite of the food and Liam was brought back. It wasn’t as bad as what Mr. Hat had them living off of. Which Liam was grateful for, yet it still wasn’t the best. In the end, Liam finished his plate. A free meal wasn’t something he’d pass up these days, even if he wasn’t keen on getting seconds.

Through the entire meal the room was quiet, the only exception was silverware sliding across the plates. The group, through unspoken agreement, had given everyone at least a seat buffer to the next closest person.

Nudge tried to break the quiet a few times. From his place at the center of the table he sent a few probing questions to each of them. It wasn’t the most compelling attempt in the world, and the group saw through it. Each time the conversations died down after a few statements and silence reigned again.

At long last the plates were stacked in the sink. And after a few mumbled words, Tank and Wire left the room. Following the directions, Nudge gave them to their bedrooms for the evening.

“That could’ve gone worse,” Nudge mumbled once he and Liam were alone.

“Losing both of them the first day is hard to top,” Liam replied. Trying to keep his joy at the thought of the group being back to Nudge and him hidden.

“We didn’t lose them. Tank will take Wire under her wing. She might complain about it now, but it was obvious she’d already come to the conclusion,” Nudge said as he sank back down into his chair.

“Are you sure we were listening to the same conversation? That wasn’t the vibe I was getting.”

“Trust me, I’m good at reading people. Plus, if she was against everything she would’ve left the base already.”

Liam wanted to disagree, but the man had seen through the lies of The Hunt. If he could do that, there had to be something to what he was saying.

“I think it’d be better if they left,” Liam said. Instead of agreeing with Nudge, he let his feelings out.

“Not you too.”

“What? If they are arguing now, it’ll only get worse when things get real. It’s best to avoid that and clear the table.”

“Once we work out a few kinks, everything will be fine. Trust me, you’ll be asking for them on the team once things get serious.”

Liam knew he’d never want them on his team, or for that matter, to be on a team. He wasn’t that foolish.

“You have to trust people again. You won’t survive, even outside the Hero world, if you can’t trust,” Nudge said when Liam remained quiet.

“I do trust people. But only those who’ve earned it,” Liam argued with Nudge over the assumption he didn’t trust people. He was putting trust in Nudge, after all.

“You have to trust more people than just your family.”

“I trust you,” Liam said as he got up from the table and started pacing.

“Your family and one other person. Wow,” Nudge said with the wave of his hand.

“There are more people I trust. Just at different levels.”

“Like who?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Liam said as he turned away from the other Hero.

“I’m vouching for those two. If you trust me, then you can trust them.”

“I realize you trust them. But that doesn’t mean I do,” Liam argued. Was he ready to put his life on the line because of this man’s ability to read people?

“We’ll need them to complete this mission.”

“I’m sure the mystery mission will need someone just out of the Academy.”

“Just wait until tomorrow’s briefing. You’ll see then.”

Liam would be waiting. Waiting for the other two to leave. Then he could get onto planning for the mission ahead without having to look over his shoulder. Though Nudge seemed to delude himself of that fact.

Whatever, tomorrow the man would see.