The League

Chapter 8 - The Magic Stone

Phoenix silently drummed his fingers on the table. He wasn't alone, but he wished he was. Hazel had called and asked him to come to HQ, and he assumed it was to finally finish up his database entry after the long-lost-sibling thing put it on pause. He'd patiently sat in the empty conference room that he was directed to, thinking he was waiting for Hazel, but then a guy he didn't know walked in, and then Tara, and then Kate, and now there were four of them at the table, waiting for Hazel. When he was alone, he could believe this was just about the database, but with the others here, it was obvious this was about some other League business.

Tara and Kate were across the table from him, talking to each other. The new guy was next to Phoenix, but his chair was turned to face the wall. The suit he wore was torn in places as if he'd gotten attacked at a dinner party before coming here. His tie hung loosely. He hadn't said a word to anyone, and he was slumped in his chair, staring blankly at the wall with tired eyes.

Phoenix kept fidgeting with his fingers, waiting for someone, anyone, to start explaining. He didn't think he could stand the suspense much longer. The others looked comfortable, but they worked here. He didn't. Something about being in the headquarters of a federal superhero agency without knowing why was freaking him out.

Answering his silent plea, Hazel walked into the room. Tara and Kate fell silent, and the other guy turned his chair around. Hazel pushed a button on the control panel on the table, and the lights dimmed as a screen unrolled itself down the wall.

There were only five people at this meeting, and Phoenix already knew three of them. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing; did a small meeting mean it was not important or very important?

Tara whistled and leaned forward on her arms. "Is this serious?"

"It isn't too bad," Hazel said, standing at the head of the table.

"Then why is he here?" Kate asked, gesturing to the guy across from her.

He put a hand over his heart. "Come on," he said defensively. "I thought we were friends."

"He's here because this is international." Hazel sifted through the contents of a folder as the screen lit up with an image of a city. "And he'll fly the jet."

Phoenix blinked. International? Were they talking about a mission? Right in front of him? He kept his mouth shut; he'd speak up about it later.

Hazel pressed a button, and the image of the city was replaced by an image of a building surrounded by empty land with the city in the distance. "This is the facility of an illegal arms dealer near Prague." She glanced down at her file and calmly added, "I need you to break into it."

Phoenix looked around to see if anyone else was surprised, or if it was just him. They were all indifferent.

"At this facility, they're holding something called the magic stone," Hazel continued, putting sarcasm into the word magic. "It's simply a rock imbibed with powerful energy. We don't know its source—it may even be man-made. It's taken us months to track it down after it went missing from a French research facility, and we need to get it before they sell it to someone dangerous."

Hazel laid the open folder on the table. Kate, Tara, and the other guy leaned forward, picking up papers and handing them to each other so they could get a better look at the details of their mission. Phoenix didn't reach for anything; he just sat there with his eyes glued to the floor.

Hazel turned off the screen, and the lights brightened. "Dismissed," she said.

Kate and Tara left together. Phoenix stayed in his seat, intending to wait until he was alone with Hazel, but the other guy wasn't leaving. He watched Phoenix expectantly, like he was waiting for him to leave.