Chương 75: The Weight of Heroes

Augustus stepped through the doorway onto cool stone tiles, the shift from Argentum's afternoon to Mediterranean night immediately apparent. Stars blazed overhead in a clarity impossible near any city. The terrace's exterior lighting cast warm pools of gold across the stone, highlighting the pool complex and outdoor kitchen and barbecue area. Salt air mixed with the scent of citrus and wild herbs carried on the night breeze.

His tactical mind immediately catalogued exits, sightlines, defensive positions, even as another part of him gaped at the estimated property value. The terrace alone with its polished stone tiles, that pool complex with multiple hot tubs, and the outdoor kitchen had to have cost millions. The mansion rising behind them, three stories of glass and stone built into a cliff face, would push the value of the island well over a hundred million. Maybe two hundred million in this market.

"Beach!" Annie's voice cut through his assessment.

"Oh my god, there's an actual beach!" She'd dropped her bags and ran to the terrace railing. The moon was nearly full, painting the water silver and illuminating the white sand below. Behind them, the aliens filed through, still carrying their salvaged items. The multi-limbed one still clutched the couch overhead, while the crystalline being carefully cradled wrapped silverware.

"Inside first," Augustus said, gesturing toward the glass doors whose interior lights beckoned warmly.

"Let's get organized before exploring." Annie spun around, already in drill sergeant mode.

"You heard him, henchmen! Moving duties first, beach second. This is official Grimnir business!" The blue-gilled alien made a trilling sound. Augustus caught Annie glancing at her tablet before responding, though she was getting better at understanding their intention without it.

"Right, acceptable terms it is," she said. Augustus bit back a smile as they filed into the living room. The space was even more impressive from inside with vaulted ceilings, panoramic windows reflecting the terrace lights, and furniture that put his own back home to shame. A System notification blinked in his peripheral vision. He opened it while the others set down their burdens. Your father is safely secured at Astra Omnia. Such a delightful man. We're having wonderful conversations about his remarkable son.

The stories he tells! Did you really set fire to your boarding school's administrative building at fourteen? No rush to collect him, darling. We're learning so much from each other. The estate information is attached. - Q Augustus felt his jaw tighten. He didn't know if he was more grateful for the rescue or more worried that she was mining his father for information. And he couldn't help but admire her for both things, too.

He pushed the concern aside and opened the estate documentation, showing the layout with notes.

"Medical facility is in the basement," he announced.

"Talia, can you take our guest down? Left side of the hallway according to this." Talia nodded, and two aliens helped lift the Syltharian's stretcher.

"I should check the security setup," Augustus continued.

"Make sure we understand what we're working with."

"Ooh, exploring!" Annie said.

"Come on, henchmen, let's see our new evil lair!" They descended together, Augustus in the lead, following the map and flicking on lights as they went. The basement stairs were marble, because of course they were. At the bottom, he turned right toward where the security room should be. And stopped. The entire right side of the hallway opened into what could only be described as an adult playground. Red velvet. Suspicious furniture. Restraints built into the walls. A swing that definitely wasn't for children.

The lighting here was dim but still revealing enough. The crystalline being made a chiming sound while gesturing at something chrome and anatomical. One of the aliens reached toward it.

"Don't touch that!" Annie yelped. The rock being rumbled something that required translation. Annie checked her tablet quickly.

"The X-shaped thing? That's, uh, exercise. Very specific exercise." Augustus cleared his throat.

"Security room." He escaped into the small room right off the stairs, leaving the others to their horrified fascination. The room held banks of monitors and a server rack, along with control panels for the estate's systems. Everything was functional but outdated by at least five years, maybe more. He began checking systems while Annie's voice carried through the door.

"No, seriously, don't touch anything! We're burning it all later!" Talia heard the commotion from the entertainment room as she guided the stretcher down the hall, two aliens helping carry the Syltharian's weight. Annie's voice rose in alarm, followed by what sounded like confused alien questions being translated back and forth. She pushed open the medical facility door and blessed silence descended. The room sealed with a soft hiss, cutting off the noise.

White walls, clean surfaces and proper medical equipment lit by clinical fluorescents. An amateur had clearly set it up, someone leaning more toward paranoia than medical expertise, but she could work with it. The two aliens helped her transfer the Syltharian to an examination bed, its breathing still steady but shallow. She nodded her thanks and they departed, leaving her alone with her patient. The being hadn't stirred since the facility.

Alexander had asked her about disabling the collars, but she had asked him to hold off; they didn't know what effect it would have on the Syltharian with them being suddenly disabled, and it was already healing at a remarkable pace. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Talia moved through the room, powering up systems. The diagnostic equipment hummed to life, surprisingly advanced for a private facility.

Surgical tools under UV sterilization, a pharmacological synthesizer, even a small autodoc unit. The previous owner had spared no expense, but it reinforced her belief: they had been more worried about biological infection, perhaps even chemical warfare, than broken bones and localized wounds. She ran a basic diagnostic on the Syltharian. Vital signs stable. The healing rate remained remarkable everywhere except those five collar points.

She'd need time to figure out if they could be safely disabled, and then removed. For now, at least, their patient was secure. Annie emerged from the basement trying very hard not to think about what she'd just seen. Some of the aliens looked equally disturbed. Others seemed curious in a way that made her uncomfortable. The blue-gilled alien made a questioning trill. Annie glanced at her tablet, though she was starting to pick up the basic inflections and repetitions.

"Beach, right? Yes, but it's nighttime. We can still go look!" The rock being rumbled what translated as agreement, adding something that required translation.

"Nocturnal environment assessment," Annie read.

"Sure, we'll assess now."

"Hench vote!" Annie announced.

"All in favor of nighttime beach exploration?" Six hands, tentacles, and appendages rose. The scaled one abstained, apparently more interested in exploring the house.

"Motion carried! Moonlight beach expedition authorized!" They trooped back out through to the terrace. The path lights created a gentle trail down toward the beach. Annie noticed Chilli in his cage as she passed, set down in the living room corner.

"Pretty bird!" Chilli announced.

"Night bird!"

"Sleep time for you soon, buddy," Annie said. She'd ask Talia about letting him fly free once they knew the island was safe. The path to the beach wound between overgrown citrus trees and wild rosemary, their scents stronger in the cool night air. The blue-gilled alien moved faster as they descended, making excited trilling noise that needed no translation. They emerged onto white sand that almost seemed to glow even this late at night.

The sea stretched out like hammered silver, waves catching and scattering the light of the moon. It was magical in a way the harsh light of day could never capture. The blue-gilled alien went straight to the water's edge, kneeling to cup some in webbed hands. It tasted carefully, evidently analyzing, then made a sound of pure joy and waded in up to its waist, apparently content to stand in the nighttime waves. The rock being stepped onto the sand and immediately stopped.

It rumbled something that sounded frustrated. Annie watched as it lifted one foot, sand cascading from stone crevices.

"Particulate infiltration in joints," her tablet translated when she checked. The rock being took another step and more sand worked its way in. It made another unhappy sound, attempting to pick individual grains from its joints while muttering in its own language. Annie didn't need the translation to understand the general sentiment. The others spread out along the beach. The crystalline being collected shells, holding them up to examine.

The multi-limbed one had discovered driftwood and was constructing something elaborate by touch and alien sight. Another alien was examining the phosphorescent algae that glowed faintly in the nearby tide pools. Annie sat on a piece of driftwood, watching her henchmen explore. The blue-gilled one had gone deeper, now just a silhouette against the silver water. The rock being had given up on walking and now sat at the sand's edge, still picking at its feet with geological patience.

The cheery mask she wore, the one that kept everyone's spirits up, felt heavy tonight. In the quiet, with just the sound of waves and alien contentment, things she'd been pushing down started surfacing. The technician's face came first. Then the prisoner who'd died during her fight with Pandora in a pointless display of power. Even Pandora herself, psychotic and dangerous, but still... Annie had shoved a knife into her mouth and let it explode. Had watched the back of her skull paint the wall.

The knights had been easier somehow. They'd been trying to kill her and her team, so it was self-defense. Clear cut. But the combat challenge looming in just over four days required her to kill again. For power. For survival. Her hands clenched in the sand. Tears ran slowly down her face, hidden by the darkness and the angle of her head. She'd been burning it off in the arenas, throwing herself at opponents until exhaustion drowned out the memories. But here, in the peace, it all came bubbling up.

The crystalline being held up a shell, making a soft chime of wonder. The blue-gilled one surfaced, trilling something akin to pure joy before diving again. These aliens had been ripped away from their lives, their families, their dreams. They were experimented on, their bodies and freedoms violated. They'd seen horrors that made her struggles look small. And here they were, finding joy in moonlight and seawater. The tightness in Annie's chest loosened slightly. She'd helped save them. Her and the team.

They'd given these beings a chance at something better. It wasn't perfect, and they hadn't fixed their problems, but it was a start. They'd made things better for them. She wasn't the hero she'd wanted to be when her powers first awakened. Or the girl who just wanted to feed her sister, who thought strength meant protecting people. No, she was gone. Killed by a world that called her a villain for trying to survive.

But watching the rock being carefully attempt another step in the sand, sinking as he went but determined despite frustration, she realized something. She was still protecting people. Still fighting for those who needed it. The weight of what she'd done, what she'd have to do, it was part of that now. Superheroes carried the weight of the world for others. Even if the world called them villains for it.

The blue-gilled one emerged again, closer to shore this time, and made a trilling sound while gesturing at the water. Inviting her in. Annie wiped her face quickly, felt a real smile, not the pretend one, tug at her lips. She was managing. She was coping. They all were.

"Maybe tomorrow, Gilly," she called out, the nickname coming naturally.

"When it's warmer." The alien's head tilted, and in broken English said, "Gilly? I am... Gilly? No! I am—" Then it made a noise like water flowing through fleshy tubes while gargling the depths of the ocean. Completely untranslatable.

"But Gilly is... good. Simple." It dove back under, apparently delighted with its new Earth name. They were safe and they were free. Not to mention that they now had a base that would make other supervillains jealous. Even if she didn't know how they would afford to keep it. That was Alexander's problem. Hers was making sure she survived the combat challenge in five days. She knew the others would. Even Talia, with her silly idea that she wasn't as strong as the rest of them.

Annie, on the other hand, still had no idea how to fight a dinosaur. Losing this time would mean dying. Not just a hefty healer's fee. Not even a prison sentence. Just… dead and gone. She'd never see Sasha again. Or Alex and Augustus and Talia. Or her new henchmen. And that scared her more than she would ever tell anyone. But for this moment, watching aliens discover their first Earth beach under a canopy of stars, Annie let herself believe everything would work out.

Because moments like this, protecting those who needed it, giving hope where there had been none, that's what mattered to every real hero. She could carry the weight. They all could. Together.