Mod Superhero (Book 6 STUBBING on Oct 27th)

Chapter 7.5 - Interview

Mod did his best to project confidence as he settled across the anchor desk from Bethany Wonder. So far, the operation had gone as expected, but he still modulated his voice and emotions to keep himself in check and kept his thoughts focused on the present moment.

Partitioning himself like this was a superpower that he tried not to use.

Bethany sat across from him, doing much the same thing.

Mod had seen her on TV as long as he could remember. She was the voice of the Belport Bulletin. Even though she changed her hair every other week, one thing about her never seemed to waiver—her composure. It was easy to assume that she was never rattled at all. She always maintained a polished, professional blend of authority and warmth.

As Mod took his seat, Bethany had reset herself. She was no longer surprised at his entrance and she looked ready for anything Mod could throw at her. But up close, he could see the tightness in her jaw and the barely concealed tremor in her breath.

The studio, dormant only seconds before, snapped back to life around them. Cameras pivoted into place. Operators adjusted lighting. A tech in the far corner recalibrated the audio levels. Everyone moved as if in a trance—no one spoke too loud, no one looked Mod directly in the eye.

TINA had gone to great lengths to make this moment possible. She had locked down every device on the top forty floors. Phones were bricked. External calls were blocked. The building's digital footprint was filtered. Nothing got in or out without TINA's permission. Even now, she was masking and bouncing the broadcast's origin and bouncing its signal.

But Mod could feel cyberspace shifting, like wind building before a storm.

If this was the only task TINA had to manage, then keeping control of Ersconn tower and the broadcast wouldn't be nearly as difficult, but she was currently coordinating the Resistance, running bases, building reactors, as well as all her other normal communication monitoring. She was juggling plates, and sooner or later, one would drop.

As soon as the broadcast started, Bastion had begun peeling away at her defenses. The Brotherhood, the Summit, and the DSA weren't far behind.

TINA had rigged Mod's part of the broadcast on a two-minute delay, but that was all the time she could give him.

A nervous technician looked up from his terminal. "Our system's still giving us an error."

Mod didn't turn to look. He focused on Bethany. "My people will handle the errors. I'll have a few minutes before they come for me. Enough time to say my piece. Enough time for some questions."

Bethany hesitated only a moment. Then she nodded. "We're rolling in three... two..."

There was a camera just to the right of Bethany. Mod turned to address it.

The red light blinked on.

Mod's voice was clear and steady.

"The Binary Brotherhood says that supers were too chaotic. Too reckless. Maybe they were right...

"Midas promised you order. And now we have it—perfect, quiet, choking order. Biomechs and drones... Cameras on every block. Powers registered, ranked, restrained. Dissent criminalized. Voices silenced.

"That's what the Brotherhood really gave us. Silence.

"They didn't fix the system—they became it. They use hardware instead of superpowers. Instead of looking down from the rooftops, they invade your privacy. They say everyone is safe, but no one truly is. They've rewritten fear into every part of our lives. Into how we talk. How we protest. How we disappear. Order, to them, is not about justice. It's about control.