I need to come up with a better plan…

A couple of hours after the briefing, Hoarfrost paced beside a large window in his spacious living quarters. On a coffee table nearby was a personal hero tablet that contained all of the confidential information the Twelve were allowed to access, including relevant details for the mission. In his hand, he held a half-eaten energy bar that apparently boosted his animus reserves for his powers as well as his physical energy.

Hoarfrost felt like he was on his first-ever mission all over again even though he had worked in a lesser hero organization for a while before being promoted to the Ultimate League. When One showed Hoarfrost to his room, One advised him to relax and recharge his energy for the mission, as he knew Hoarfrost had a long day until now getting acquainted with the Ultimate League Island. However, after a couple of minutes, Hoarfrost found he could not sit still at all and frantically scrolled through his hero tablet to cram as much information he could about the Ultimate League, the Federation, and Sarah Muse, desperately trying to make sense of the situation to formulate a solid plan.

Unfortunately, he felt like all of the cramming he did made him understand the situation even less and only served to give him a headache, which was why he took a break and started eating the energy bar while nervously pacing.

A plan… I can do this, I’ve created so many plans before, why am I drawing a blank? Start from mission goals and work from there… What were the goals again?

Secure information about the original Ultimate League and about the Federation…

Hoarfrost clutched his temples as his head hurt again. He took a bite out of his bar, scowling in frustration.

Why must the trial mission on my first day be so difficult and confusing?

He froze.

Then he hit his forehead with the palm of his hand, pounding the thought out of his mind.

What am I doing? Hoarfrost said, raising his head and looking out of the window. If the world could see how pathetic I am now they would have never nominated me to be part of the Twelve…

Hoarfrost’s emotions crossed a certain threshold. In response, something deep within him activated.

Iciness blossomed from Hoarfrost’s heart and through his blood, cooling away his frustration and anger. It was the subconscious activation of his power to cool his emotions. Hoarfrost closed his eyes and took deep breaths in and out.

Then he opened his eyes and looked at the window. The reflection of himself within it was now completely calm, staring at him with icy blue eyes.

Ah, they chose me because of this, Hoarfrost thought. His even breaths plumed snow-white in front of him. There’s a part of me that is strong. Incredibly strong.

This pure cold feeling inside of him reminded him of his past, of the first time he had used his powers. He had been absolutely terrified as they forced him onto the roaring warzone, far before he should have been ready to take it on. Then in an instant, he was completely calm, cold, as if he had become a different person. He walked out onto the field, bullets flying around him, and held out his hand and the animus within him blazed with cold. Then it was quiet. There was no more warzone. Only a white plain, and snow lightly falling around him.

It had been like that every time he released that coldness throughout his body. He became emotionless and his thinking became clear and his reasoning sharply logical.

They have the complete advantage over me in information anyways, so trying to outmaneuver them with strategies will probably backfire…

Thirteen’s advice was correct from the start. Don’t worry about the details. Demand the information we need and simply face their plans head-on from the start.

After finding that answer, Hoarfrost exhaled and the cold within him slowly ebbed away. He turned away from the window, frowning slightly.

The more he used his power, the more he loved it, and the more he ended up hating himself and what he had become.

I went through the meeting with the Twelve, the interview, and the briefing all without my powers and they acknowledged me so I thought… maybe… just maybe I’d be able to act like a hero without relying on the cold strength of my powers.

That thinking was naive. These are the top heroes of the world. I have to use a hundred percent of my abilities just to stay afloat after all.

He clenched his fist with determination.

For now, at least. Soon, I’m going to become the strongest hero, so strong that I won’t have to rely on the cold of my powers anymore.

Then I can finally be a hero without being an emotionless monster, and everyone will look up to and rely on me for who I really am.

Hoarfrost nodded to himself, then blinked and looked at the time on his tablet.

It was time to get moving.

Hoarfrost left his living quarters and walked down the hallway into the elevator. He pressed the button for the ground floor.

Along the way, the elevator stopped and the doors opened, putting Hoarfrost face to face with Thirteen. The man in the dark uniform walked into the elevator beside Hoarfrost without a word.

This man… One says he controls the Ultimate League. He’s the strongest, the one who fulfills the role of my dream, Hoarfrost thought, looking at Thirteen out of the corner of his eye, And yet… his stature isn’t nearly as large and imposing as One’s. In fact, I think he’s a bit shorter than I am.

Thirteen casually turned his head and met Hoarfrost’s covert gaze. Hoarfrost looked away sheepishly.

“Thirteen… can I ask you something?” Hoarfrost said as the elevator opened its doors to the ground floor.

“Sure,” The man answered as they both walked out and down the hallway, side by side.

“You are one of the surviving members of the original League, correct?” Hoarfrost said, “But you don’t look like any of its members.”

“That’s true,” Thirteen said.

“Who are you then?” Hoarfrost asked, slightly confused by Thirteen’s curt answer.

“Have you tried searching for that information in the hero tablet?” Thirteen asked.

“There was basically nothing there about you.”

“Then you should have been able to figure it out,” Thirteen said.

“Your identity is supposed to be a secret?” Hoarfrost asked.

“Yes. It’s for the good of the League.”

Hoarfrost pondered that. Was it because enemies could use Thirteen’s past against him? If Thirteen really was such a key member of the League, it made sense to protect that information.

“However, you can earn the right to know my identity based on your performance in this trial,” Thirteen said.

“What do you mean?” Hoarfrost asked.

“If I evaluate you as suitable, you can become a direct subordinate to me on top of being one of the Twelve,” Thirteen said, “If that is what you want.”

Hoarfrost remembered One’s words:

“There is someone that fits the description of your vision… someone who everyone relies on, who makes his own decisions, who has risen above the role of the Twelve to rule from the shadows as the heart of the League—”

A direct subordinate to Thirteen… that would probably make me his student and maybe even his successor.

“Yes, I would like to try for that position,” Hoarfrost said.

“However, I’ve never evaluated anyone as suitable so far,” Thirteen said.

“Really?” Hoarfrost said, “There are so many amazing heroes in the Twelve.”

Hoarfrost imagined One walking with Thirteen, about to take the trial for the first time.

“They weren’t lacking in raw power for sure,” Thirteen said, “They lacked something else. Something more important.”

Something more important…

“Looks like time is up,” Thirteen said as they approached a thick, metal door at the end of the hallway.

They entered the bare, cold, and well-lit room. Hoarfrost immediately noticed the glowing portal, the Gate, suspended across a large device in the middle of the room that was already set to the coordinates of a nearby abandoned warehouse close to the mission site.

Are you ready for your trial?” Thirteen asked as they approached the portal.

“Yes,” I met Thirteen’s eyes, “I’m going to be the first to pass your evaluation. Although the position is honorable, I don’t want to stop at being part of the Twelve. I want to be your successor. Whether it’s fighting against the enemies of the original League or if it’s making a critical decision that causes or prevents war between our organizations, everything I do will reflect my resolve.”

And if I need to, I’m prepared to go farther than I ever had before with that power inside me.

“Very well,” Thirteen said, “Then let’s get started.”

They both entered the portal.