"Whew!" I wiped the sweat off my forehead. I was soaring in the sky, just cruising—pretty much doing nothing—as it was nearing midnight.

  Granted, a lot of crimes happen at this time, but when you know Red Justice stays past his bedtime, they'll think twice before doing something bad. At the same time, there wasn't much going on in Toronto. Sure, there were the occasional confrontations, wannabe gangsters trying to look tough, and drivers who seemed to forget that drinking alcohol while behind the wheel is bad.

  That doesn't mean much compared to my first couple of weeks as Red Justice. I was listening to late-night radio. I'll admit, I'm a guy who listens to the radio a lot. Besides, I prefer lo-fi study music, and I doubt they have any stations like that. No, I sometimes listen to the radio for the news.

  "—and we're back, Toronto. You're listening to NightLine FM..." a cheery voice with a unique accent said.

  "Four hours ago, a residential apartment near Dufferin and Queen went up in flames," the host said. "Fire officials are calling it a case of gas negligence. Faulty maintenance, ignored warnings—the usual tragic mix."

  Ah, so that's what caused it. I thought about the little girl, her father, and the other inhabitants and employees of the building. I'm hoping they have a place to stay; hopefully, it won't take long for them to restore the building. Still, people need to be careful — one simple mistake can cause this much damage.

  Yikes.

  "But despite that," Zack continued, "everyone trapped inside survived. No fatalities. No missing persons. Even the pets made it out."

  I let myself smirk as I leaned back and watched the night sky. At this distance, I could see the stars.

  "And that's because of Red Justice," Percy said, the other host.

  "Man, it's always Red Justice nowadays. Like, I get it — it's not every day we get a superhero flying around Toronto, but I'll be honest with you, Percy, I'm kind of getting sick of it," Zack grumbled.

  "Yeah, but for good reason. I mean, the kid smashed through a burning building, dragged people out, and somehow killed the fire without flattening the block."

  "And yet another problem with him: he's a kid. Or at least looks like one. Regardless, firefighters train their whole lives for that kind of thing, and some masked vigilante just freelances disaster response?"

  "Masked vigilante? That's more like Spider-Man than Red Justice. Even if the terms do fit him."

  "He's saved lives," Percy said. "Multiple times."

  "I'm grateful, especially with the whole atomic bomb that nearly wiped out all of Toronto, being stopped by Red Justice. Honestly, I don't understand how America screwed that up, getting it stolen by terrorists. But I'm still of the opinion he shouldn't be doing this."

  "Why is that?"

  "Why? Percy, powers or not, this kind of thing is still very dangerous. And he's a child — or... whatever he is. He should ditch this childish superhero thing and just be law enforcement if he really wants to help people."

  "Oh, come on, Zacky! Law enforcement is boring."

  "...You're only saying that because your wife left you for one."

  "H-Hey! Seriously!? Live on the radio!"

  The two squabbled on, totally forgetting about me. I rolled my eyes and changed the station. Man, my SEE Goggles' mind-reading feature is really handy. I was listening to a song until Gavin cleared his throat in my earpiece.

  "Come back to the shop, Ben. That's enough hero work for today. Besides, I got... troubling news."

  "What? You lose multiple ranked matches?"

  "How did—?" Gavin cleared his throat. "No, it's a different matter. Come on."

  "Okay, then."

  I lay back in the air like I was lying on my bed, but steered toward Gavin's shop using my Mind's Eye so I wouldn't crash. After a couple of minutes, I vibrated fast enough to turn invisible to the naked eye. People certainly don't need to know I hang around an old fart's place—especially at midnight. And for people to know Gavin is helping me, that's important too. I stopped vibrating once I entered his secret basement and typed the code that unlocked the door.

  Gavin was on the couch, rereading Dragon Ball for the twentieth time. I quickly slipped out of my costume and tossed it into a weird cylinder. After I tapped a button, it made a whirring sound. I grabbed my suit—fresh, clean, shiny—and hot steam hissed from the fabric.

  I hung the suit, removed my SEE Goggles, folded the visor slits into the earcovers, changed into civilian clothes, and finally approached Gavin.

  "Hey, what's up? What's the bad news?" I asked.

  Gavin shut his manga and set it on the table. He explained in that slow, serious way that meant I should listen.

  "So they'll send a Super Soldier squad after me? Psh. Big deal—I took on the SV4. What do they have against me?"

  Gavin sighed, rolled his eyes, and poked my nose. "That attitude will lead you to getting rocked and humiliated."

  "So they're stronger than me?"

  "Well, I wouldn't say that. But—"

  "What do we need to worry about then?"

  Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

  "Would you let me finish? Geez, kid, I swear I'm taking you to the doctor to diagnose you for ADHD." Gavin shook his head. "The point is, this squad of Super Soldiers isn't as strong as you individually, but from what I've heard from Jason and from classified videos, these guys are no joke."

  Gavin's face turned serious. I straightened up.

  "Squad Nova. One of the best—if not the strongest—groups of Super Soldiers. They actually fought the New World Order back when the NWO still had their massive ship. They didn't win, but from what Jason said? They really gave the NWO a run for their money."

  That actually made me sweat. The NWO generals were brutal. Silver Marksman nearly killed me with that explosion, and fighting that droid in Russia was miserable. I'd won those fights, but they were mostly one-on-one. Now a whole team of strong Super Soldiers might be coming after my butt?

  I gulped. "Yeah, that is pretty worrisome. When are they planning to attack?"

  "I don't know; Jason doesn't either. They were vague about it."

  "Why won't Jason allow them entry? Canada is his turf, after all."

  "The other Monarchs are pressuring him. Denying two or three is bad, but all of them—especially since they went behind his back to contact you about the New World Order crisis—has him tied up. We'll have to deal with it."

  I released a tired sigh. "Great, fantastic; not even a month, and the government is already sending their best to capture me."

  Gavin reached over and messed up my hair. "Oh, chin up, kid."

  I pushed his arm away, glaring at him as I fixed my bangs.

  "Jason said that you only need to beat them once, and he'll make sure to restrict them. Now that he and the Monarchs are square, he can block any attempted capture, as long as you stay in Canada."

  He then tossed me a small paper that contained a series of numbers.

  "And this is...?"

  "Well, we don't have enough time for us to discuss Squad Nova and its members, weapons, and other stuff, since it's time for you to go to bed. You have school tomorrow."

  I groaned.

  "But I did give you some documents I saved on your computer."

  "How?"

  "By hacking, of course—and by the way, you're a bit too young for those sites, kid."

  "W-What!?" I croaked; I shook my head. "You suck!"

  I shouted as I ran away while flipping him a single digit, and he barked out a laugh. Damn him. I hope he doesn't know about the one with the bunny costume. Whatever. I needed to use my computer to see what he sent me. It didn't take long to sneak into my room, and by then everyone was asleep. I opened my laptop, and the first thing I saw was a message from Emily.

  It showed a picture of her and her family. She was at the airport, flashing a peace sign as Mr. and Mrs. Shinichi posed behind her in silly ways. On Mr. Shinichi's torso was a strap. Her baby sister, Megumi, was absolutely bawling with a comically funny crying face. I smiled a little, then minimized the tab and went to the folder where Gavin had sent the documents.

  Clicking it revealed files and papers detailing Squad Nova. My stomach dropped as I read every line.

  [SUPER SOLDIER SQUAD – UNITED STATES: NOVA]

  [CODE NAME: FIGHTER]

  [REAL NAME: ██████████]

  [POWER ARMOUR]:

  Custom-built combat armour designed to amplify all physical parameters of the user. Enhances: Strength, Speed, Reflexes, Durability Constructed from Asteroid Steel (ADAMANTITE).

  [ELECTRIC BATON]:

  A close-range weapon made from Adamantite and Titanium. Delivers extremely high electrical output, capable of killing a blue whale in under a second. Effective against armored and superhuman targets.

  [SUPER KEVLAR SHIELD]

  A heavy-duty defensive shield capable of withstanding a nuclear explosion at ground zero. Absorbs incoming energy and can release it as a powerful shockwave. Can also generate a short-term protective barrier.

  —

  [CODE NAME: PALADIN]

  [REAL NAME: ██████████]

  [POWER ARMOR]:

  The heaviest and most reinforced variant in the squad. Massively increases strength, durability, speed, and striking power. Built for direct confrontation and frontline combat.

  [SHOCK GAUNTLETS]:

  Electrified gauntlets capable of delivering extremely high-voltage discharges. Functions similarly to Fighter's electric baton, but is built directly into the armour.

  [BARRIER GENERATION]:

  Can deploy a powerful energy barrier. Users must remain stationary while the barrier is active.

  —

  [CODE NAME: MAGE]

  [REAL NAME: ██████████]

  [POWER ARMOUR]:

  Lightweight armor focused on agility, speed, and evasive movement. Enhances physical stats but sacrifices heavy durability for mobility.

  [SONIC GRENADES]:

  Grenades that release powerful shockwaves. Causes severe damage to the eardrums and internal organs.

  [BARRIERS]:

  Personal forcefield capable of shielding Mage from attacks. Can project barrier fields onto nearby teammates to reinforce defences.

  [DRONES]:

  Carries six custom combat drones. Small cylindrical units capable of sustained flight and heavy firepower. Standard drones can level large structures, including skyscrapers.

  PRIMARY DRONE

  Equipped with speed-of-light laser weaponry. Capable of vaporizing an entire town. Long cooldown after firing.

  [SUPER GRENADES]:

  Adhesive explosives that stick to targets. Explosion powerful enough to vaporize a tank.

  [ELECTRIC WHIP]:

  Durable combat whip capable of releasing intense electrical discharges.

  [ACID GRENADES]:

  Contain corrosive acid capable of melting through steel within seconds.

  [ANTI-TANK PISTOL]:

  High-calibre pistol capable of destroying tanks in a single shot.

  [FLYING BOOTS]:

  Rocket-assisted boots enabling true flight. Greatly increases mobility and aerial combat capability.

  [UNKNOWN SUBSTANCE]:

  Custom compound developed by Mage. Deployed as small black spheres. Upon impact, it rapidly expands into a sticky restraint. Hardens almost instantly, becoming as durable as concrete. Exact composition unknown; Mage refuses to disclose details.

  —

  [CODE NAME: RANGER]

  [REAL NAME: ██████████]

  [POWER ARMOUR]:

  Lightweight armour focused on agility, speed, and evasive combat. Enhances physical capabilities while sacrificing heavy defense.

  [SMOKE BOMBS]:

  Used for rapid disengagement and repositioning. Allows Ranger to escape long distances and maintain sniper advantage.

  [ULTIMA SNIPER]:

  Top-tier sniper rifle, considered the pinnacle of long-range weaponry.

  Single round possesses attack potency exceeding the Tsar Bomba.

  Does not cause large-scale destruction, but its concentrated force rivals atomic weapons.

  [ELECTRIC BATON]:

  Durable close-combat weapon capable of emitting intense electrical discharges.

  Less refined technique compared to Fighter, but still highly lethal.

  ...Yeah. Okay. That's bad.

  I read it a couple of times. This sounds like an elite team. I fought a bunch of weirdos and unique people. But this team Nova sounds like a threat, if they were able to press Noah, Silver Marksman and Droid, then they will no doubt give me trouble. And I'd never fought a group fight before; fighting normal people doesn't count.

  I swallowed a lump in my throat, and my hands felt clammy. I pushed my fear down and clenched my fist, feeling red electricity dance around it. So does that sound tough? That isn't anything new to me; I fought humanity's greatest and deadliest weapon. Fighting a squad of Super Soldiers won't faze me.

  Come on, Squad Nova. Let's see if you can make me break a sweat.