HEROES II

The entire Technical Department was in shock. The atmosphere was tense. Silent. Even the air itself felt heavy. Nobody could believe it. T. L was gone. Students whispered nervously around the department while damaged screens flickered from the destruction of the previous day. Then suddenly— The large doors opened. Ava and James walked in together. The moment they entered, they froze. Merson. Schizzel. Kaiden. Louise. Derek. Clarence. Everyone looked disturbed. Like something terrible had happened. James frowned slowly. “What’s going on here…?” Clarence immediately rushed toward Ava in relief. “Oh thank God you guys came…” Ava looked confused. As she slowly walked toward Merson and the others, she whispered quietly to Clarence, “What happened?” Clarence swallowed nervously but didn’t answer. That alone made Ava uneasy. When Ava and James finally reached the group, Merson turned toward them immediately. “Aha… Ava. And James.” Ava panicked instantly. “Sir wait—is this because we were with T. L during the party?” she blurted out quickly. “Trust me sir we warned her about the rules! Your decree sir! It wasn’t our fault!” Kaiden interrupted calmly. “T. L is gone.” Silence. Ava blinked. James stared. “…Gone?” Ava repeated slowly. Schizzel nodded sadly. “She packed her things and left the Academy during the night.” Ava’s face dropped immediately. James looked devastated. Then Ava whispered painfully, “It’s because of how we treated her at the party…” She lowered her head in regret. “Oh God… T. L…” James clenched his jaw. “She’s our best friend. We were supposed to stay together.” He cursed quietly under his breath. “I messed up…” Merson suddenly stepped forward. “If we were to look for her… where would she go?” Ava and James exchanged shocked looks instantly. This was the same man who hated T. L. Now he wanted to find her. Ava answered slowly. “If T. L left… she’ll probably go back to the orphanage.” “Starhaven,” James added quickly. “To Mrs. Rose.” Ava nodded. “That’s the only real home she knows.” Merson immediately turned away and activated his communicator. “Prepare transport units immediately,” he ordered sharply. “We’re going out to retrieve one of our own.” Within seconds, armed personnel began mobilizing outside the department. Heavy vehicles powered on. Weapons were loaded. Schizzel and Kaiden exchanged serious looks before following Merson outside without another word. The armed guards followed behind them. Just in case. If T. L had been abducted… Or if someone dangerous had found her first. Soon— They were gone. The department became quieter. Then James finally broke the silence. “Okay seriously…” he muttered. “Why is Merson suddenly interested in T. L?” He looked toward Clarence. Clarence raised both hands immediately. “Don’t ask me. Ask them.” She pointed toward Louise and Derek. “They were the victims.” Clarence sighed deeply. “I got blasted into a hole during the fight. By the time I came out… I only saw the ending.” Ava slowly turned toward Louise. “Okay what is going on?” Louise hesitated. For the first time— She looked genuinely uncomfortable. “That girl…” Louise muttered slowly. “Your friend… T. L…” James folded his arms. “What about our friend?” Louise swallowed. “She has some kind of power I can’t even explain.” Ava almost laughed from disbelief. “Excuse me… T. L? Powers?” “She’s had no powers since forever,” James added immediately. “That’s the thing,” Louise replied quietly. “I don’t know where the power came from… but she’s dangerous.” James frowned. “Dangerous how?” Derek finally spoke. “She can stop powers.” Silence. Ava blinked. “What?” Derek stepped forward seriously. “She did it to me and Louise.” “Our abilities were still there,” Louise explained nervously, “but it was like… something shut them off.” Derek nodded slowly while trying to explain. “You know when water is running from a tap…” He clenched his fist tightly. “And someone suddenly closes the tap?” He looked directly at them. “That’s what it felt like.” Ava stared in disbelief. “The T. L I know can’t do that…” Louise shook her head immediately. “She didn’t even look like T. L anymore.” Everyone became quiet again. “The first blast she released…” Louise whispered fearfully, “…all I could see was white light.” “The whole arena was coming apart.” Ava folded her arms stubbornly. “No. I don’t believe this.” Louise stared at her seriously. “When you two were coming here… did you see workers repairing part of the Academy?” Ava and James paused. “Yeah…” Louise stepped closer. “What did you think destroyed it?” James answered carefully, “I thought maybe a storm or hurricane hit the building.” Derek’s expression darkened. “T. L made that hurricane.” Ava’s mouth slowly opened. “…What?” Louise nodded. “She caused the storms. The winds. Everything.” Then Louise muttered quietly, “That girl is terrifying.” She folded her arms slowly. “And the worst part is… I still don’t know what division her abilities belong to.” “Not even the Hexadriples match that kind of power.” Ava slowly turned toward Clarence. “You believe this?” Clarence hesitated before nodding slowly. “I didn’t see everything…” Her voice became shaky from the memory. “But when I climbed out of the crater…” She looked at them carefully. “I saw T. L flying.” Everyone became silent. “The whole place was shaking,” Clarence continued. “Wind was everywhere… and her hair…” She swallowed. “It was glowing white.” James stared speechlessly. Clarence continued softly, “And then I saw Louise hanging against the wall with sharp objects everywhere…” “Razors. Metal rods. Broken pieces…” Louise immediately pointed at herself. “Exactly!” She looked disturbed just remembering it. “She didn’t even move her hands!” Louise’s breathing became uneasy. “One second I was standing…” “The next second some invisible force threw me against the wall.” “And then all those objects came flying toward me.” Her voice lowered. “I honestly thought she was going to kill me.” Clarence sighed quietly. “She probably would have…” Everyone looked at her. “But suddenly she fainted.” “And everything stopped.” “The storms disappeared.” “She changed back to normal.” Ava and James stood frozen. Unable to process what they were hearing. T. L. The powerless girl they grew up with… Now had powers nobody could explain. Ava slowly whispered, “No wonder Merson is searching for her…” Clarence gave a nervous laugh. “You should’ve seen his face.” Then she looked toward Louise and Derek. “No offense… I know he’s your father…” She turned back toward Ava and James. “But I have NEVER seen Merson afraid before.” Her eyes darkened. “But yesterday…” “You could see fear in his eyes.” Then Clarence added one final thing. “And there were international spectators watching.” Ava’s eyes widened instantly. “WHAT?!” Louise nodded. “Yeah.” She looked away bitterly. “Our father wanted T. L embarrassed publicly.” “So everyone would see she had no powers.” “Then he’d finally get official permission to remove her from the school.” James muttered quietly, “But things didn’t go the way he planned…” Clarence folded her arms. “Now everyone is terrified.” Louise sighed deeply. “Yeah… but we still can’t leave her alone out there.” “Why not?” Ava asked immediately. Louise looked directly at her. “Because your friend is a ticking time bomb.” Derek nodded slowly. “I don’t think she remembers what happened at the field.” Ava frowned. “What do you mean?” “She still probably thinks she has no powers,” Derek explained quietly. “Until it happens again.” Silence. Ava slowly sat down. “My T. L…” Her eyes became emotional. “My powerless T. L suddenly has powers…” She looked completely lost. “This is a mystery…” Louise exchanged looks with Derek. Then Louise finally said, “We’ll help you figure this out.” Derek nodded. “If you want.” Ava slowly looked up. “Yes.” Her expression hardened with determination. “We need to find out the truth about my best friend.” She paused. “Because right now…” “It feels like I don’t even know her anymore.” Then Ava stood up suddenly. “Come on. Let’s go to the Tribrid Department.” She looked toward the others. “No directors. No teachers. Nobody disturbing us.” “Since all department heads are busy searching for T. L.” Louise and Derek agreed immediately. James followed too. The four of them began leaving the Technical Department together. But Clarence stayed behind. “I’ll join you guys later,” she called out. “I just need to grab my gadgets first.” And as the others disappeared down the hallway— The mystery surrounding T. L only grew darker.