Brass Ring Chapter 3: When The Clarion Call Goes Out

[Link to Chapter 2]

After a wild mix of bumpy dirt roads and horrible karaoke, Oliver and Cass eventually returned home. The entire afternoon had had the feel of the last few hours of summer vacation; they had packed his van even before they had left for the pond. Each touch, each kiss was bittersweet; even the teasing lacked its usual "oomph!" Oliver had already made sure that the internet wouldn't drop as often just so that the two could talk face-to-face, even during the worst rainstorm and

Everything now was just holding back the hands of time, and even love had its limits.

When they finally returned home, Ma Barrett ran out the door even before they had parked. She hugged him and wouldn't let go. After a few attempts at trying to keep him home, such as pointing out chores that would go undone, tech issues that would crop up, and even animals that needed to be dealt with, but Oliver easily pointed out that she had more than enough farmhands to deal with the farm, she could always bring Craig from IT home to deal with the tech issues, and she was a far better shot than he was.

There was no reason for him to be here anymore.

Just as he was debating using a crowbar to disengage his mother, she remembered that she had cooked something for road and went to go grab it. Cass took advantage of the now-empty spot and moved in; the pair shared a quick, passionate kiss, the kind you see when the movie fades out. But with the return of Ma Bassett, they had to disengage, touching foreheads for just a moment before just holding hands.

She handed him a cold bag the size of a suitcase. "There are a couple of ham sandwiches, a couple of apples, and even a couple of juice packs in the cold bag." She handed him the paper bag. "There are a couple of bags of chips and a dozen coconut-chocolate chip cookies in this one."

He hugged her after he put the bags in the passenger seat. "You do know I'm only going to be on the road a couple of hours, not days? Right, Ma?" He let her go.

"Just giving you some wiggle room."

She and Cass retreated to the house as Oliver got in the van and hit the ignition. He then left the familiar farm for his unknown future.

The two women meandered into the now too-large home. Ma Barrett walked into the kitchen. "Oh, Cass, you may want to check out his room. One last time and all that." Cass swore she saw a twinkle as she disappeared into the kitchen.

Puzzled, Cass follows the familiar but now alien path to his room. A large, taped cardboard box with her name on it caused her to slow; Oliver loved giving her presents, but usually silly little pieces of jewelry. She smiled as she remembered the box of Samoas; that had been the largest present prior to this. She reached into her pocket, pulling out her pocketknife. She quickly opened the box and put her knife away.

She started pulling out the armor inside, shiny black piece by shiny black piece. At the bottom was a duffel just large enough to carry the body armor; the bag was a typical Oliver touch. She put on the armor and its user interface lit. She smiled as the Wraith suit introduced itself.

"This suits me so well, Ollie. Guess I need to test it out." She took off the suit and put it into the duffel.

She yelled to Ma Barrett as she left. "See ya later, Ma!"

She had disappeared before Ma Barrett could respond. "No, I won't." She knew Cass wasn't going to be in town much longer.

* * * * *

The Civilian And Professional Enforcement Squad has been in Overton for over three decades. CAPES had long ago taken over the rococo-influenced building that had served as meeting place, training grounds, and even museum since the beginning. Imago, an artificial being created by the former Steel Guardian, has been majordomo of the building for two of those decades.

A few hours ago, it had received an email from Telemachus, an email it had hoped would never arrive. The artificial synapses of Imago had not prepared it for this eventuality. It needed to determine Telemachus' successor as quickly as possible, but before that it needed to tell the existing members of CAPES the new situation. It had already sent out the emergency signal; it hoped that the team had been assembled.

When the team had assembled, it materialized on its stand, a crystalline blue form in a voluminous robe. Before him stood the most powerful team in Overton:

Major Republica, the leader and resplendent in his ed, white, and blue outfit including his shield, symbolic of his mission to defend the powerless.

Steel Amazon, her silver and black armor capable of destroying mountains.

The Amazing Man, an alien familiar to all as the most powerful being on the planet.

Onna-Bugeisha, her golden o-yoroi and paired katana, ready to defend the honor of her clan.

The Weasel, the defender of the city, a vigilante whose powers included his intelligence, his weapons, and his access to a ridiculous fortune.

Fleaboy, boy-scientist with the abilities of a radioactive flea scaled to the human frame.

Umbral Defender, sometimes the only one keeping the criminal underworld under control.

Dark Otter. A mutant who had been experimented on, his teeth capable of gnawing through everything, including the criminal underworld.

Major Republica stepped up. "We are assembled as one, Imago. What is the situation?"

A video of Telemachus being shot by Don Pelegrine showed on the display behind Imago. "This is the situation just a few hours ago." Imago gave them a moment to react; the group was split between shock, sorrow, and anger. "As you know, Telemachus had in his possession secrets on every hero and villain in Overton, allowing him to mandate several rules of engagement that keep civilians safe."

 A list of every super-being in Overton was listed. "This included secret identities, innate weaknesses, and items from very sordid pasts." It paused to let that sink in. "Those secrets are now free, as per the terms of his ultimatum that should he die the package would be delivered as determined by which receiver would cause the most damage to whom the secret pertained."

It looked at each of them in turn. "This included each of you."

The members each considered their individual pasts and backgrounds. The Weasel smiled. "I have to respect that old codger. He may have found a way to defeat the team that I hadn't even considered."

The Umbral Defender glared at him. "You would of course think so."

Dark Otter fell to his knees. "Some of those secrets could kill people."

Major Republica was visibly nervous. "This could change a number of paradigms."

Steel Amazon took a step toward Imago. "Can you determine where they were sent?"

Imago shook his head. "Without knowing their contents, no. And I was not privy to those contents."

Amazing Man was visibly pale. "We must work quickly. Our families are at risk."

Fleaboy nodded his head vigorously. "Especially if those secrets were sent to the most dangerous threat. The more time we spend here the more likely our friends and family are at risk."

Onna-Bugeisha unsheathed her katana. "We must leave immediately."

Major Republica lowered his shield. "Okay, team, it sounds like we should deal with this threat individually, but possibly check in with each other."

The Umbral Defender nodded. "Agreed. However, I would suggest taking this one step further: We should temporarily disband. Those that receive our secrets could use them to blackmail us into betraying the team as a whole, and possibly gain access to the resources of CAPES as a whole."

Steel Amazon sighed. "We should also assume that not all of us will come back from this." She looked at Imago. "You should start looking for our replacements. Any that return can sort it out."

They all looked at each other and nodded. Imago kneeled. "Given the severity of the situation, I need an anonymous vote. Be aware that if the vote passes I will be invoking the Valhalla protocols."

Again, they looked at each other. All eight voices spoke as one. "Aye!"

Imago nodded and stood. Its image flickered. "So be it. All of your various accesses have been revoked and all passwords have been changed. I will also begin looking for your replacements. I wish each of you luck."

The heroes saluted, hugged, and shook hands with their fellows, each true to whom they were. They then flew and ran from the meeting hall. Imago was soon alone.

"Interesting. One person was slated to show up tomorrow morning." Oliver's picture appeared on the screen along with his records. "He shall be the first of the new recruits."

Oliver Barrett was about to have a really horrible first day as a superhero.

[The last chapter is here. The next chapter is here.]