United [A Superhero AU] - Book Two

Chapter Forty-Three - Jokes and Aggression

Mark gets his much needed rest, and after he wakes up him and Jack head into the dining room to help the others on plans and preparation. Lili, Felix, and Phil sit in the corner, adapting medical tools and speaking softly to one another, while Gunner and Matthias attempt to hack into the NAI camera and computer systems. Mark settles himself down in front of a large selection of blueprints and gets to work, looking much better than the exhausted shell he was before. Red glares at Jack as he passes, but he finds it easier and easier to ignore her.

"Matthew won't let you hack him until it's the right time," Jack says to Gunner and Matthias. "He'll let you in, but not now."

Matthias watches him for a moment before sighing and ending his hacking attempts. Gunner looks from him to the villain and leans back in his chair, hesitant to give up his own attempts.

"Let us know when he'll let us in," he says.

Jack nods and picks up the projector cube, tossing it back and forth in his hands as he settles into a comfy armchair near to Mark. The hero passes him his phone and Jack plugs it in, projecting the same image of the floor plan onto the wall and into the phone. With his finger, he starts identifying bedrooms, living spaces, offices, and the UR's. A small shudder runs up his spine as he writes "UR #1" on the map, memories of blood puddles and wounds and crying filling his mind.

Everyone hates you. Even him.

Jack flinches, the boss' voice still fresh in his mind even after a couple months of him being gone. Jack wasn't the only one tortured in that room. Mark was forced to listen as Anti fed him lie after lie. He had to see Jack hanging from chains, covered in bloody bandages, while a monster consumed his mind. Mark glances over like a concerned puppy when Jack winces and the villain waves him off, his stomach churning.

"I'm fine, Mark. It's just memories," he says, his voice wavering slightly.

The hero bites his lip. "Okay... just remember that you're safe here."

Jack nods and turns back to the phone. Out of the corner of his eye, he can see Hudson shuffling out of the kitchen, one arm in a sling and the other holding a mug of coffee. He sips it carefully, watching everyone work before moving to observe Mark's map.

"Whatcha doing?" he asks.

"Mapping out the area we predominantly operate in. I've noticed that there are a lot of pro-NAI groups, but very few police forces," Mark replies, explaining the small drawings and blurbs of writing on the map.

"Ah." Hudson nods a little bit, and after a moment of silence he speaks again. "You know, if I had a power, it would be the ability to control Canadian geese."

Mark glances at him, an incredulous, humoured smile on his face. A few of the others who were listening look over as well, including Jack. "Why would you want to control geese?"

"Well, Canadian geese are some of the most vicious birds ever, so just imagine if I had an entire flock!" Hudson grins widely. "I'd just raise my arms and the fleet would attack! That'd be badass!"

"You're a weird kid, Hudson," Gunner comments with a chuckle.

Jack's anxiety, which had threatened to rear its ugly head, disappears with a laugh. Phil manages a laugh as well, which hasn't happened in a while. Mark glances between the two with a smile on his face.

"He may be weird, Gunner, but he's good for a laugh," Matthias says. "I think we'll keep him."

Hudson takes another sip of his coffee and raises an eyebrow, a grin tugging at the edges of his lips. "You'd better keep me, bud, because I'd rather not be abandoned in a foreign country."

"America isn't THAT foreign compared to Canada..." Mark points out, although he trails off when Hudson narrows his eyes at him.

"We spell things with u's, we're a bilingual country, we say things like toque and double-double, we sound like Americans and we spell like the Brits and yet we're unique in our own way... There are a lot of differences. Too many to name," Hudson replies. He grins. "You're all so foreign."

"He's a little patriot," Red comments, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth when she glances at Hudson.

"If you're foreign, what are we?!" Felix asks, gesturing to Lili, Phil, and Jack.

Hudson purses his lips. "Hmm... you're extra foreign. More foreign-er."

Jack snorts and Mark looks over at him with a broad smile on his face. The villain flashes him a thumbs-up and turns his attention back to the phone, adding a few finishing labels to the floor plan before unplugging the device and shutting off the projector cube. He places the cube on the table and takes the seat beside Mark, and even though he tries to ignore the glares coming from Red, he still finds himself edging closer and closer to the hero. Mark glances from Red to Jack before reaching under the table and intertwining their fingers.

"We're close to finishing the maps and our actual plan of attack. However, since Hudson's shooting, we need to make sure that nobody knows what we're doing before we go through with it," Matthias says, glancing at the heroes, rebels, and villain. "Tomorrow I'll be sending all of you out on patrol to check levels of activity among the other rebel groups and the pro-NAI groups. Later, when we're ready, I'll be sending Mark and Felix undercover with Jack as backup."

"Wait, seriously?" Felix asks. "Undercover? Isn't that ridiculously dangerous?"

"Yes, it is, but I have faith that a man who can control time and a man that can bring things into existence and animate inanimate objects can hold their own among a bunch of regular civilians. With Jack as backup, he can get you out in an instant if anything goes wrong," Matthias replies. "I can't risk Phil getting hurt or killed because he's our healer, Gunner needs to help me, Lili is a doctor, not a fighter, and Hudson is injured."

"What about me?!" Red exclaims. "I could go out!"

"I'm not sure that would be a good idea," Gunner says slowly. "It's better if just Mark, Felix, and Jack go."

The girl scowls. "You'd rather send Jack out than me!? He's a villain! Unbelievable..."

"Hey," Mark warns.

"I'm so done. He's a villain who has KILLED people and apparently you're all too blind to see that!" Red exclaims. "I can't. I have to go."

Jack sinks deeper into his chair, his heart racing as the girl storms from the room. Mark gives his hand a reassuring squeeze and stands, shoving his chair back.

"I'll talk to her."

Matthias frowns. "Maybe that's not the best idea. I can—"

"No, I'll talk to her," Mark insists.

With that he sighs, turns on his heel, and follows the girl down the hall.

A/N: The writer's block is gone!  I'll try to update more frequently.