The meeting hall of the headquarters was undergoing a major reconstruction. Hero Hunters and rogues alike were tearing down Nexus memorabilia and carrying in crates full of supplies. Surazo sat upon a throne made up of the marble walls and pillars, watching his subordinates work. His chest glowed with the colors of silver and red.
"Master." Evak marched up to Surazo and kneeled in respect.
"Was your mission a success?"
"Yes, sir. I have retrieved the Star Fragments, just as you commanded." Evak opened his metal hand, revealing both a yellow and blue star fragment.
"Very good." Surazo stepped forth and took hold of his former teammates' fragments. Pressing them up against his chest piece, they were absorbed into his armor and channeled their power into him. Just after Surazo finished surging with the power of the Star Troopers, Savannah rushed over to him.
"Are we ready to begin the broadcast?" he asked her.
"Yes, master. We are ready to begin."
"Excellent." Surazo walked to the other wing of the headquarters. A TV set was put together, with a lone podium in the center. Surazo took to it and cleared his throat. The camera crew gave him the thumbs up, and a live feed of the villain appeared on every TV screen in Hoirom.
"People of Hoirom, I am Surazo. For those of you who may be unaware, I am the leader of the Hero Hunters. Some of you may believe me to be a mad man, but tonight I appear before all of you as a savior... Earlier today my forces received alarming news. The so-called heroes of the Nexus Society were planning on unleashing chaos on our great city. This is evident by the infamous bus rampage that has occurred. Rest assured, the Hero Hunters and I will do everything in our power to ensure peace not just for Hoirom, but for the entire world!"
A small prison was built under the Nexus Society headquarters, just for momentaily holding special villains. Invisia sat around sobbing in one of the cells, her hands handcuffed. Sofia and Luli slammed their restraints on the cell bars, hoping that something would break. Miya sat quietly, too defeated to even bother an escape.
"Will you guys stop?!" Eli approached the cells, fully under Surazo's mysterious control.
"No! Let us out of here so I can smack those stupid glasses off your face!" Sofia growled.
"Gosh you're annoying."
"Let us out of here, Eli!" Luli yelled. "This isn't you!"
"Surazo gave me clear orders, and frankly, you all are too annoying to let out." Eli walked back to his spot in the corner, returning to what he was watching on his phone. Sofia shouted and went back to hitting the metal holding her.
"Please stop," Miya sighed.
"What?! Miya we have to get out of here!" Luli told her.
"It's no use! We lost! No one is coming to save us, because no one actually knows we're here!" she snapped.
"We shouldn't have turned our back on Jonas," Invisia whimpered.
"We were pretty harsh to him," Sofia sighed. "He was a bit strict, but he was just looking out for us..."
"Which is why we owe it to him to get out of this mess!" Luli yelled. Sofia eventually was too tired to keep hitting the bars. Reaching her limit, Luli gave up, too. As the four of them wallowed in sadness and regret, a little white butterfly flew into the room.
"Still awake, girls?" Surazo's voice ominously reached their ears. They rushed to their bars to find the power mad trooper approaching them.
"Let us out!" Sofia screamed at him.
"You do not command me, child. Know your place. Behind bars."
"Why, Nindai? Why would you do this?!" Invisia cried.
"So many reasons," he started. "At first I destroyed the other Star Troopers because they were not worthy to have their powers. With the power of the Star Fragments we could rule the world! But they chose to become flashy heroes that exist to fight for good. Disgusting!"
"You destroyed them?! You said it was a cave in!" Miya said.
"One that I caused. I knew GenTech was operating in that area, I just needed to let the right person know and then we'd be there to save the day," Surazo laughed. "See, girls, I saw the Star Fragments for what they were. Opportunity! The chance to finally rise above that of a nameless loser! I grew up a nobody, but now I can become a symbol to the world!"
"What kind of symbol?" Luli scoffed.
"One of pure power and authority! I plan to have the Nexus Society tear the world apart. And when the Hero Hunters put an end to their madness, the world will hail me as their champion!" Surazo walked away, leaving a chill in the air and the Afterschoolers in full despair.
"We'll stop you!" Invisia shouted.
"What was that?" Surazo had to stop where he stood, turning ever so slightly to see the child declaring his defeat.
"We'll stop you!" she repeated. "Not just because we're the Afterschoolers, but because it's our responsibility to do so!"
"Yeah!" Miya and the others cheered. The four of them broke out into determined shouts and yelling.
"From what I recall on our bus ride, you all wanted to become heroes for the fun of it," said Surazo. "Let's put your new ideals to the test, shall we?"
A clinking sound echoed through the prison. Walking to Surazo's side came a young woman in red and white pajamas. Her eyes were sunken and dark, desperately wanting to be shut. Her greasy and blackened hair stretched all the way down her back. Around her neck was a thick chain. At the end of it was a reddish Aura Crystal.
"Girls, meet Maddie Rose," Surazo introduced.
"Wait, Maddie Rose..." Invisia's mind raced with memories and mentioning of the name. "She... She's the girl from the mountain lab!"
"Yes. A sole survivor. When I returned to the mountain, I found her and a wealth of information on Aura Crystals. Cord should've done a better job. Now, Maddie... Let them dream of the heroes they wish they could be."
"Right..." Maddie blinked weakly and looked at the four prisoners. A black and red pulse blasted out from her head. The Afterschoolers immediately started feeling a sense of drowsiness. One by one, they fell asleep and drifted off to dreams.
"Now, rise." Surazo's command extended to the children. Like obedient zombies, they rose up with silver eyes.
