“We haven’t gotten to the important thing yet,” Amp said, finally speaking up. “We’ve been waiting for you two to be back in this world for a month now. How soon can we take down Cloak?”
“This isn’t the sort of thing we should rush,” Alex said. “Now that you’re out of the Gloom, we should—”
“We’ll go public as soon as we can,” Lone Star said.
“But we need to talk about—”
“We don’t have time to argue about how almost a dozen people think we should be doing things. The longer we wait, the more time it gives Cloak to plan. This is our city. It always has been. The people love us.” He turned to Gage. “Now, what can you tell us about our powers?”
Gage frowned. He rolled a pen back and forth between his palms.
“Not much, I’m afraid. I’d thought the homing device I built to zero in on your powers was just not effective long-range, but it appears that’s not the case. Even in the same room with you, I’m getting a fuzzy reading when I should be getting a strong signal. I think . . .” He hesitated a beat before continuing. “I think the Gloom has drained you of most of your powers. Both of you.”
“But they’ll come back, right?” Kyle asked.
“Amp,” Kirbie said, “when you were training in the Gloom, how long did it take your powers to come back all the way?”
“Usually just a few minutes,” Amp said. He moved his hands to the back of his head, digging them into his short black hair. “I guess it took a little longer if we spent a lot of time inside. This last time in, it took me half the ride back to the lake house before I started feeling up to full strength.”
“There’s where our answer lies, I think,” Gage said. “The longer inside, the longer it takes for your powers to return.”
“So, how long, then?” Kyle asked.
“That’s the thing. We have no way of knowing. It’s not a standard amount of time, obviously, since Amp’s back to full power. If it normally takes, say, half the time spent in the Gloom back in the real world—which would correlate with Amp’s experience—we’re looking at maybe three weeks.”
“But it could be anything,” Lux said. “The time needed to recover could be exponential when compared to the time spent inside.”
“That’s correct,” Gage said.
“But Photon’s powers are fine,” Kyle said. His voice was getting higher. Alex could almost see his already fair skin paling as he tried to figure out a way to prove that the Rangers would return to full power.
“Yes, but he seems to have spent much less time away from the normal world. Lone Star and Lux might never get their powers back at all. Or at least not to the full extent that they had them.”
Alex closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The entire point of the mission—the thing they’d worked toward since Justice Tower—was to bring the Rangers out of the Gloom so that they could defeat Cloak. And now, all he was hearing was that they had taken yet another small step forward when they needed to be sprinting in leaps and bounds in order to stop whatever Cloak had planned for Sterling City—and them.
“I want to make it clear to everyone that this is nothing more than a guess,” Gage said, his eyes staring at a spot on the floor. “This is science that’s so far beyond my area of knowledge that everything I say could be wrong. I’m simply going off what we know, which at this point is very little.”
“We don’t need powers,” Lone Star said. “We just need the people of Sterling City on our side. Cloak is strong, but they can’t win if we have the entire city behind us. When the public realizes that Lux and I are back, and the so-called heroes they’re looking up to are actually supervillains, most of their power is gone.”
“Cloak . . . I can’t imagine what they’ll do after today,” Mallory said. “We can expect some sort of retaliation.”
“Right now they’re figuring out all our possible moves,” Alex said. “Will we go to the police? Will we try to get Lone Star and Lux on TV? Will we stage some sort of attack? And they’re figuring out ways to block us at every turn. We have to assume they’re going to expect anything we do and have some sort of counter ready.”
“What could counter Lone Star and Lux?” Amp asked. “Even without their powers.”
“Alex is right,” Mallory said. “The New Rangers—”
“Would you all stop calling them that?” Lone Star asked, his voice growing louder. “They’re not Rangers.”
“We know that,” Misty spoke up from one of the sofas. “We’re not dumb.”
“This city has lost its mind if it thinks these people are anything like us,” Lone Star said, motioning widely to the wall of cards and yarn.
“Star, the people of the city are just scared,” Lux said softly, trying to calm her teammate down a bit.
Alex turned to her. “They should be.”
There was a brief silence, finally broken by the lake house computer beeping across the room. Kyle rushed over to it and tapped on the keyboard.
“Oh no.”
“What is it?” Kirbie asked.
Kyle clicked on a video and spun the computer around to the others. Photon stood at a podium onscreen, Shade and Volt on either side of him. A huge crowd of onlookers quietly waited for him to speak.
“After a ruthless attack on innocent citizens during the city’s Fall Festival, the Rangers of Justice have unanimously decided to implement a city-approved curfew from sundown to sunrise until the Cloak menace has been eradicated. Only authorized parties will be allowed on the streets during the curfew period. All others will be charged with violating a direct mandate from the Rangers of Justice and Sterling City, and will be prosecuted as criminals.”
“What?” Lux asked, jumping out of her chair. “The people won’t stand for this. It’ll be met with revolts. Riots.”
“We can do this,” Photon continued on the video. “Together, we can defeat the villains known as the Cloak Society and usher in a golden age for Sterling City.”
He stepped away from the microphone. All around him, the crowds cheered. Alex noticed something off about his mother. At first he couldn’t place it, but then it dawned on him. Something was odd about her posture. It was rigid. He could see her left fist at her side, clenched and shaking slightly. Her knuckles were white.
The video ended.
“I know we can’t trust the media here,” Kyle said quietly, “but all reports say that the people are happy about this. They support the New Rangers. They want the city to be safe.”
Lone Star took a long look at Kyle, then turned to Gage.
“You seem to be the authority on electronics around here. Do you have a burner phone I can use, or do I need to find a pay phone to keep things anonymous?”
Gage grinned and dug through a duffel bag he’d brought in from the garage. After a little rummaging, he pulled out a small black device.
“It’s a modified satellite phone,” he said, handing it over. “It’ll bounce your signal halfway across the country before it connects.”
“Who are you calling?” Kirbie asked.
“A friend in the city.”
Lone Star walked to the other side of the room, standing in a corner near the unused billiard cues and a dusty stack of old board games. He dialed slowly, as if he had to talk himself into pressing each number. Finally he raised the phone to his ear.
The others watched in a mixture of confusion and anticipation. Alex glanced around the room, making eye contact with the Junior Rangers, but they all looked as puzzled as he felt. He took a step forward, ready to point out that the last thing Lone Star should have been doing was acting without their knowledge, but Kirbie shot him a concerned look.
“It’s okay,” she mouthed. Alex grimaced, but nodded.
“Hi,” Lone Star said into the receiver. “It’s me.” He paused for a few seconds before whispering, “It’s Victor.”
There was a voice on the other end of the phone, but Alex couldn’t make out any of the words.
“Y
eah, I’m okay. It’s a long story. No, no, the phone is secure. Listen, I know this is a lot to take in and short notice, but I need you to do me a favor.”
He finished his conversation in whispers, Alex only able to pick out a few words. Then the leader of the Rangers of Justice turned back to them.
“There’s going to be a press conference tomorrow afternoon,” he said solemnly. “The . . . impostors are breaking ground on their new headquarters. Where Justice Tower stood. It’s not public knowledge yet, but it’s happening.”
“That was fast,” Bug said quietly. Zip twitched on his shoulder.
“This is perfect,” Lone Star said. “There’ll be cameras, a crowd—all we have to do is show up. The citizens of Sterling City may be under the spell of these tyrants, but we’re Lone Star and Lux. If we show up and explain what’s happened, the people will listen.”
Something didn’t sit well with Alex. His mother knew the Rangers were out but was carrying on with the press conference anyway. What did she know that they didn’t? What was her plan?
“Gage and I have been working on exploring new uses for my powers,” Amp said eagerly. “I can do more than just shoot bolts of sound now. I can be one big speaker for you. Broadcast your voice to the crowd.”
“He’s really very good at it,” Gage said.
“Excellent,” Lone Star said. “There’s no need for us to engage in any sort of combat. If Shade and Volt make a move, our priority will be to protect any bystanders, then to subdue the enemy.”
“Don’t you think they’ll be expecting us?” Mallory asked.
“It’ll take more than cunning to keep their charade going when we’re standing in front of everyone in the flesh,” Lone Star said, his voice resonating throughout the room. “This isn’t up for discussion.”
“That’s a lot of civilians,” Kirbie said. “I mean, if fighting breaks out, and I assume it will . . .”
“We do this peacefully,” Lone Star said. “When the public sees us—when we explain what’s happened—they’ll be cheering us on. I know how the people of this city work. They’re good people. This is our plan. It’s what we’re going to do. If you don’t like it, you can stay here. Otherwise, rest up for the next few hours.”
“Who was that on the phone?” Kyle asked. “Where’s the info coming from?”
“That’s classified. The fewer people who know, the less likely it is that the information leaks should we run into Shade along the way. All I can tell you is that it’s from a trusted source.”
“You won’t tell us where this intel is coming from?” Alex asked, trying to restrain his growing annoyance. “We’ve been planning things together up here for a month now and—”
“And we’re very grateful,” Lone Star said. “But now we’re back. Trust me. I’m the leader of the Rangers of Justice. This is what I do.”
Alex started to argue but kept his mouth shut. He could see that he wasn’t going to change the man’s mind.
“One more thing,” Lone Star said, his voice calmer now. “I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but when it comes time to talk to the crowd, I think it would be best for you and the other former Cloak members to stay back. It will be quite a shock to the public to see us, I’m sure, and the less we have to explain the better.”
“Lone Star,” Kirbie said, her voice hesitant. Alex could tell she wasn’t used to disagreeing with him. “We’re a team now.”
“It’s only for tomorrow. I’m sure they understand. Don’t you, Alex?”
“Of course,” Alex said obediently. He bit the insides of his cheek in frustration. It felt like he was being fed the same kind of unquestionable orders the High Council used to force on the Betas.
Lone Star yawned, glancing out the window where the sun was setting in the distance.
“Everyone get some sleep. We’ll regroup in the morning. Kyle, you’ve studied this area thoroughly. I want you to walk me through all possible routes and methods of transportation from here to the south side of the city. Downstairs. I’m going to try to find coffee somewhere in this place.”
“Of course, sir,” Kyle said, jumping to his feet. He followed Lux and Lone Star downstairs, leaving Alex and the others alone in the Rec Room.
“Well, he definitely took over quickly,” Misty said.
“I can see why he became the leader after everything happened in Victory Park,” Gage said.
“I guess we can get used to taking orders again.” Misty’s face scrunched up a little.
“I don’t like this.” Mallory’s usually stoic expression was twisted. “I feel like we’re walking into a trap.”
“Lone Star and Lux are idols to this city,” Amp said, rising to his feet. “You just have to put your faith in them. Trust them. Everything is going to be fine now that they’re here. Everything will be okay.”
“Amp . . . ,” Kirbie said. She seemed unsure of how to continue. “Do you want to talk about anything? I mean, what happened—”
“You heard what Lone Star said. We should get some sleep.”
And then he was gone, up into the little finished attic room that his father had once claimed as his own a long time ago when the safe house had just been Amp’s family’s lake house. Alex listened for footsteps or pacing, but there was no noise filtering down through the ceiling.
Everyone turned to look at Kirbie. Her eyes darted away from theirs.
“I guess we’ve gotten used to running things ourselves,” she said. “In chaos. This will be good. It’ll get things back in order.” The more she spoke, the less she sounded like she believed it. Her eyes met with Alex’s. “He’ll warm up. I mean, he’s been stuck in the Gloom for a month. He’s just a little . . .”
She struggled to find the right word.
“Cranky?” Misty asked.
“Full of himself?” Alex suggested.
“Of course his real name is Victor,” Gage said flatly.
“You guys—” Kirbie sighed. “—this isn’t going to work if you don’t try.”
Alex shrugged. She was right. Powers or not, this might be their only shot. This could work. And he had to admit Lone Star definitely seemed like the kind of person who could get things done. Besides, Alex had bigger things to worry about. After weeks of trying to stay off Cloak’s radar, he was about to confront them head on for the second day in a row. Tomorrow, he’d be facing his parents again.
8
GROUNDBREAKING
Alex stood in the center of the Rec Room alone. It was morning, but not yet light outside. He assumed the rest of the house was still in bed, exhausted from the previous day, but he’d awoken early and couldn’t go back to sleep. There was a nagging thought in the back of his mind—they were missing something. Cloak was going to subvert them in some way. He just didn’t know how. And so he’d returned to the place where all their information was noted and filed and sketched out in the hopes that something would suddenly make sense to him. He focused. Around the room, maps and blueprints floated in the air above the tables they’d been sitting on.
He let one newspaper clipping drift in front of his face. The New Rangers smiled back at him from thin, ink-smudged paper.
What is it, Mother? he asked himself. What trick are you going to spring on us? I’m your son. I should be able to figure it out.
Of course, he knew deep down that this wasn’t actually true. He’d spent almost his entire life trying to guess what his parents wanted from him—what would make them proud. And then he’d gone and done the exact opposite. He didn’t know what his parents might be up to now because he’d failed to become like them, to live up to the family’s standards.
A photo drifted in front of his face. The Beta Team, one of the other pictures he’s taken with him from the underground base. He took it in his hands, staring at it as he’d done countless times in the past few weeks. He wondered if he’d end up seeing Julie today. If so, it meant that they’d be fighting the entire Cloak Society. He hoped it didn’t come to that
. He wanted to trust in Lone Star’s plan. “Subdue the enemy,” were the Ranger’s instructions if a fight broke out, which Alex could only assume was inevitable. Even if fighting led to Cloak’s defeat and somehow Phantom was unable to whisk them away, what would “subduing” his parents look like? How was that even possible? What would his father say to him from behind bars? How would his mother’s face look as she was dragged away by the Rangers?
“You beat me to it,” Amp said from behind him. Alex jumped, lost in his thoughts, and the hovering notes and blueprints trembled in the air. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I was just coming in to stare at all this stuff until everyone woke up.”
“Couldn’t sleep?”
“Bad dreams.”
Amp’s tone was smooth and quiet, which was unusual for the boy who had to focus on keeping his voice from rising half the time on account of his powers. There was something else different about him, too—something vacant in his brown eyes. His mind was obviously somewhere else. Alex couldn’t imagine what Amp must have been going through, and he didn’t know the words to even begin to ask him. Suddenly his own thoughts about his parents seemed selfish, though he wasn’t sure what was worse: a mother and father wasting away in a dark world or parents actively trying to destroy you in the real one.
“Yeah,” Alex said, “I’m sure the Gloom will do that to you.” He stood there, very aware of how awkward he felt.
“You’re looking at me like I’m an alien,” Amp said, sitting on the couch near Alex.
“Sorry. You all right?”
“Kind of tired of people asking me that, but yeah.”
“Sorry.”
“Quit saying that, too.” Amp gave him a small smile. “I mean, you’re fighting against your family and stuff all the time now. For us. The last thing I should be doing is feeling bad about mine.”
“Well, it’s kind of a really different situation,” Alex said.
“Maybe. But you still lost them.” He frowned. “I didn’t mean for that to sound like it did. I’m just trying to say . . . you know.”