That night we held a big all friends meeting, a couple of hours before we were due at our own Super meeting with our futures very much an unknown. It was an evening of revelations, mostly for Tristan and Stu, neither of whom had any inkling of what had been afoot all this time. Turns out Grace is surprisingly good at secret keeping.

It was a bit exciting to finally go 'public' with Ewan, so to speak, and I could tell he felt the same way by the glow in his eyes. Grant had already been told, so it was pretty much only Tristan that it came as a real surprise to.

I watched his face carefully and saw the flash of shock, confusion and hurt cross it, but in the end he took it graciously, perhaps both acknowledging how much better this was and also that he was still a bit scared of me. That felt pretty good, to be totally honest.

We told them all that we would be watching out for them, and that we needed them to be careful in the uncertainty before Morgan's next move. Who knew who among them might have a dormant gene waiting to be activated, and he wasn't shy about going after anyone important to any of us. I imagined the other Supers would be having similar conversations with their loved ones in the days to come.

There were twenty or so Supers already waiting when we arrived to the meeting, many of whom I recognised from over the years. Everyone was in full kit, and there was a buzz of anticipation and an anxious energy humming through the room. I wondered how many of them knew what Gareth was about to say.

"Good evening, all," he began, his pleasant voice so eerily like and yet unlike his twin's. "I've asked you all here tonight to speak to you about the emergence of a threat unlike anything the Super team has faced in many years. For those of you who are unaware, this is in large part the fault of my own family. I carry the shame of this with me often, and I can't tell you how embarrassing it is to admit that Sapphire City's greatest enemy is now my own brother, Morgan, and his team of Villains. I'm sorry to tell you all tonight that he has succeeded in stealing the two artefacts necessary to create a vast number of new gifted Superhumans by awakening their dormant abilities, who he intends to brainwash into Villainry using his own sinister gifts."

Murmurs broke out amongst the crowd until Gareth put up his hand for silence. "I am truly sorry that we have been unable to prevent him getting to this point. Now, after his stunt at the televised fashion show, we will also have to deal with the fallout of the public losing trust in our goodness and integrity, so we will have to work to build up our relationship with the city once more. It won't be easy, necessarily, since the public is fickle and flighty, but I trust in the ability of each and every one of you extraordinary Supers. Obviously our priority from here will be to rescue those who were snatched from the fashion show, and to prevent Morgan from using the artefacts that he has stolen at all. We've had a lucky break recently that may allow us some intelligence into Morgan's team, in order to formulate our best plan. I ask for your patience and your vigilance as we do this. Continue to protect the city. Be the best citizens you can be. Protect your friends and families. And I encourage any input, if you'd like to see me privately at any time."

Gareth obviously had the same gift as his brother, for he managed to be rational, calm, and yet inspiring to the variety of Supers in the room. Even I felt reassured, though I knew that underneath the veneer, Gareth was worried.

And it didn't seem like he had a plan.

The reassurance wore off over the next few days, and I began carrying a sense of unease. It was too quiet out there, too still. I was chewing on this, staring at my screen and willing something other than real life scenarios to pour from my head to the page, when I was startled by the buzzing of my cell. I answered, even though I didn't recognise the number.

"Kenna?" Jackson's voice rang in my ear. "Where are you right now?"

"At home, trying to work. Why?" The unease deepened.

"Could you come by the office so we could talk, please? About your manuscript, obviously," he said for the benefit of subterfuge.

"Sure, I'll be right over," I replied, sensing the importance of this call and not even bothering to be unpleasant.

His face was serious, and a little furrow wrinkled between his eyes as he showed me into his office. The blinds on the windows were drawn.

"Really committing to discretion, huh," I remarked, gesturing around.

"Kenna, I needed to tell you this right away," he began, ignoring my sass, "it's about your family."

I stiffened in my chair, all my attention on him now. "What about my family, exactly?"

"Your mother, you said she's a neuroscientist who studies Super brains compared to human brains, right? And she researches the effects of the Super genes?" He was staring intently at me now, and I felt my heart lurch horribly.

"Yes."

"Karen Jones?"

"Yes," I swallowed half of the word, feeling panic rising in my throat. "How do you know her name, Jackson?"

"Morgan's going after her. He talked about it today, thinks she can help him trigger his new Villains since she's an expert in the field. Not that she'd have a choice, if he finds her," he added grimly.

"Oh my god. Does he know where to find her?"

"If you're asking if he knows where she lives, then I'll tell you that he'll figure it out. He knows where she works, since that's public knowledge. I came as soon as I could to warn you. Atonement, and whatever," he gave me a meaningful look.

I was already halfway out the door, but I turned back briefly. "Thank you, Jackson," I said sincerely. "I'll add it to the other side of the tally."

Then I was gone.

The research hospital was teeming, as usual, but I barely noticed as I breezed through to the office of Karen Jones, PhD, MD. My heart sunk, and I sucked in a shuddering breath when I found it empty, but with the lights on. My mind spun out of control with fears that I was too late, until a soft voice from the corridor caught my attention.

"Kenna?" It was one of the nurses who knew my mum and me well.

"Hi Linda, I'm looking for my mum. Have you seen her? Isn't she at the hospital today?"

"She was, but she had to go to the lab for something, hon. Try over there?" Linda smiled at me kindly, and my panic dulled a little.

"Thanks Linda, I will." I tried to walk away both as quickly and as nonchalantly as I could, before folding space once I was out of sight.

The laboratory tower rose like a behemoth of glass and steel against a dour grey sky as I dashed in through the double sliding doors. Everything felt extra dramatic at this moment.

My hopes were dashed again when I found my mother's rooms empty and I thought I might just scream in fear and frustration. For the second time, I was interrupted by a voice behind me, but this time it made my heart leap with joy.

"Kenna, sweetheart, what are you doing here?" My mum stood in the doorway, looking pleasantly confused.

"Oh my god, Mum!" I exclaimed, rushing forward to hug her tightly. "Thank goodness!"

"This is lovely, dear, but I can't help wondering what's going on?" Her voice was bemused and slightly muffled through my hair.

It took some convincing to get her to go to her house with me, leaving work citing a family emergency, after I told her that I couldn't tell her there. In the end, though, she was a parent of Supers and had to trust in our quirks.

Luckily my father had arrived before us, and I was able to explain to the both of them the danger they found themselves in presently, with as concise a backstory as possible. I wasn't about to leave my father at home to be a pawn of Morgan's either. After some time, they both agreed to my suggestion that they pack a few bags and leave with me right there, with a vacation cover story to be negotiated with both their places of employment. Milo, the dog, would of course be joining us.

I took them, minus Milo, who could stay at our apartment, to the safest place I could think of.

"This is a very nice office," my mum remarked kindly to Gareth, patting the comfortable arms of her chair. "I've never had a chance to visit before."

"I've been here too many times this week," I said dryly.

"That's very helpful, Kenna," said my father, who I inherited my sarcasm bone from.

"Something something old habits," I muttered.

"I'm so glad you're both here," Gareth began. "Not because of the current circumstances, of course, but we will keep you both as safe as possible here. We have a safe house apartment in this complex, something which almost nobody is aware of, and the frequent presence of Supers will be excellent security."

"There is something I thought of on our way, Gareth. I've spoken to my mum about it already, and she is willing if you are. Morgan wants to use her to help his cause, so why don't we harness her knowledge for our own? Whether it's in developing an antidote response to the amulet, if that's even possible, or in mitigating its effects or whatever, her research and expertise could be just as valuable to us as to Morgan."

"I don't disagree that that could be very useful, but I do want to make sure that you know that your safe harbour here does not rest on your assistance. We'll shelter you no matter what," Gareth assured my parents. I found myself positively liking him once again. It was a weird feeling.

"We don't take kindly to threats in the Jones family. We'll do whatever we can," my mum replied, a hint of rarely witnessed steel in her voice.

The door opened suddenly, but to my relief, Seb and Ewan walked in.

"We got here as quickly as we could. Someone didn't call for backup," Seb said pointedly at me.

"No time, parents safe," I shrugged.

"Hi Ewan," my dad said with pleasant surprise. His eyebrows raised a little as I interlaced my fingers with Ewan's. "Nice to see you."

"That's a conversation we should probably have," Seb quipped sardonically.

"Maybe not right this second, ding-dong," I shot back.

"Well, it's good to have a reminder of what's truly important as we face this new wave of Evil. Family. Support. Ironic isn't it, that you're all here fighting for your family, trying to keep the world safe from mine. If I can be frank with you, it's alarming. Morgan is the wolf in the fairy tale; cunning, deceptive, manipulative, and void of empathy. He wants nothing less than our world in his hands. If he can't have that, he wants it destroyed. We can't let that happen."

I looked around the room at everyone I held dear and thought about what the past months had brought me. Fear, pain, anger, turmoil. Fun, purpose, confidence, and, with Ewan, maybe even love. Now I was a Super, and we had to save Sapphire City from a maniac.

There was only one answer I could give.

"Bring it on."

WOW YOU GUYS

WE MADE IT

THIS IS THE END

...for now!

Yes, as promised, I will be bringing a whole new instalment of all our Supers at a time TBD. There will be more Super and Villain showdowns, and certain characters will have more to do...no spoilers but...*ahem* Grace. Will our heroes stop Morgan in time? Will he unleash a new army of brainwashed Villains? Will Lexa finally tell Seb?

All those pressing questions ahead.

Please do leave me a note to let me know how you liked the ending - suggestions always welcome!

LOVE YOU ALL. Thank you so much for your time! See you next book!