Author Games: The Absent Empress

Task Four Entries: 11-20

Maanyo

The weather during Project Phoenix's first official mission was beautiful. Stepping out of Ms. Sato's jet onto the private runway, Aar noted the azure sky stretching over the Vancouver landscape, the unhindered view of the white-yellow sun, the crisp air nipping at his hands. For a moment, he could forget that his future at Project Phoenix rested on this one mission; then his presence of mind returned, and his head lowered again.

No one at Headquarters examined Aar with the same scrutiny he turned upon himself. Over the past week, the invasion had eaten at him, intensifying with the worsening of several teammates' conditions and Sweetheart's passing in the ICU. Could-haves and should-haves had plagued him constantly, from his thoughts upon first waking to the nightmares that accosted his sleep. He had acted rationally during the invasion, but heroes had died. The moment Project Phoenix had accepted him into their ranks, Aar had felt valuable; now his self-worth had degraded, so that he felt equal to that same miserable sea-creature who had contracted himself for pay.

But Project Phoenix's first mission could redeem him. Finally, the team had been directed to a maritime zone, specifically Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt in Vancouver, which itself was suffering an invasion. He would not face real combat—Ms. Sato's management had allocated him to the strategy team, while the vast majority of their remaining heroes would face battle on land. Underwater, Aar would observe the activity of invaders who hoped to conquer the boats moored beside the base, even sneaking onto the boats himself were it necessary. He would communicate with the rest of the strategy team, comprised of The Girl and Kevin (whose concussion and meager physical skills had not merited placement on the combat team). These people had been selected for their intelligence, and, strategically, Aar lacked the same clout. (He was the head of covert operations, though, again, he suspected someone better-trained might fill the role more successfully.) But at last Aar possessed an edge—his own anatomy. Even as a physical mutant, rarely could Aar perform the physical work of other heroes; but today he would scout and strategize as only he could, and he would prove himself irrevocably.

Their target was formidable. Upon the team's initial briefing, Aar had been astonished at the sheer power of Declan Hart, professionally known as Horde. The convict had escaped from L'Amant Superhuman Correctional Facility in Quebec by replicating himself over a hundred times, overtaking security officers through strength of numbers. According to the report, Horde could produce up to two hundred copies of himself at peak strength, all possessing the same memories and knowledge of the source. The entire invasion of CFB Esquimalt was currently being carried out by Horde himself. As of two hours earlier, Horde had conquered the land-facing section of the base and was pushing toward the back, with more copies attempting to scale the ships from the water.

Most had assumed that Horde was a base criminal, someone who relied on physical strength to achieve their ends. True, Horde did use physical strength, but Aar could not ignore Horde's obvious mental capacity. In order to duplicate oneself, and to sustain those duplicates within the half-mile radius reports had speculated was Horde's limit, one would need an advanced degree of discipline. Horde had also served on the Canadian Special Operations Task Force, an entity similar to his mother's employer; though Horde may have been convicted for physical misdemeanor, the man behind the mask was wholly white-collar. Aar could not underestimate Declan Hart's mind.

The car ride to the coast was brief. He sat in what appeared to be a Vancouver cab alone, while a Project Phoenix driver transported him to a beach one mile from CFB Esquimalt. If any passersby had looked into the car, Aar's uniform would not have escaped notice—he wore his Maanyo costume, a black wetsuit that clung to his body like a second skin. The uniform bore no sleeves, so his arms prickled with goosebumps, and a pair of quickly-removable tennis shoes hid Aar's webbed feet.