The Crusaders

Chapter 5: The War Begins

New York City, NY, May 29, 2029

Jasper sat on the couch, his hands bunched up underneath his chin. The story had taken a long time to tell, but Nyx had gone into great detail in order for it to make any sense. In any case, it was still a lot to take in. An organization from the future that harnessed the power of time travel, an unknown force set to take over the earth in less than 40 years, the destruction of all mankind, and the solution having something to do with all of them.

She was a resilient and brave girl, Jasper had to give her that. She was barely in her 20s, and she had already gone through much worse than anything they'd gone through in their years of being superheroes. He saw the sun peeking through the stained-glass windows of the church, casting a rainbow of colours on the ground in front of him. He looked down, scratching his beard. Suddenly the sunrise seemed much more...fleeting.

Naomi was watching Megaton and Peacemaker talking to one another at the other side of the room, keeping their voices low. She looked upstairs at where Nyx was lying down, still not believing that she was so close to a time traveller. She sighed and leaned back on the chair, petting Oscar who had fallen asleep on her lap.

Then, something caught her eye. Namely, Warren, who was eyeing Megaton with a icy glare. What was going on between the two of them? Whenever he was close, he looked at him like he was the devil incarnate. Maybe it was due to the fact that Megaton was working for the government? No, she'd seen this kind of look before. Whatever problem he had, it was much more personal. As if he didn't already have enough problems. She sighed inwardly, hoping he'd be ok.

Mark finished speaking with Lara, then walked over to Jasper, who was sitting on the couch and pondering in silence. "You alright?" He asked, then Jasper blinked twice, breaking out of his silent focus. "Yeah...just processing everything. What did you two decide?" Mark sighed, then looked over at Lara. She shook her head. "It seems incredible...but if there's a credible threat, then we have a duty to help."

Jasper stood up and looked at the both of them. "What about me and Warren? We don't exactly have clearance from the government like you two to handle this sort of thing." Lara bit her lower lip, then looked at Mark with a bit of a stare that said she didn't want to tell him something. Jasper realized what she meant, then sighed. "Right. You don't think we should."

Lara shook her head, raising her hands. "Listen, Jasper, if we could, we absolutely would want you both by our side. But you made a promise to the world all those years ago by staying in hiding. By getting in that suit last night, you broke the law. And Warren's worse." She lowered her voice at the last part. Warren, who'd been standing over by the wall, spoke up. "But I'm not hard of hearing."

They all stared at him, then Lara ran a hand through her hair, and stepped forwards a little. "Warren-" He raised a hand, then stared at all three of them. "Don't. Just don't. I get it, alright? What I've done is wrong in your eyes, but that doesn't change who I am or what I'm going to do. I'll do what I want, and if you want to try and stop me, you're welcome to try. In the meantime, you're on your own. After all, she said she didn't know who I was. Maybe it's better that way." 

He motioned upstairs, then walked out the front steps, putting his helmet on. Taking one look back, he ran out into the slowly shining day, disappearing into the shadows of the alley across the street. Jasper sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Goddamn it." He whispered to himself.

Mark pressed his lips into a line, then turned away and walked upstairs towards Nyx. "Mark?" Lara asked, confused, and she went after him. Jasper followed, and Naomi went as well, not wanting to miss anything.

Arthur was still upstairs, sitting next to Nyx's bed, and offering her some herbal tea. He had been intrigued by the new arrival, since she was a time traveller like he was. Perhaps this would help convince the others that he was out of his element and time here, and maybe she could help him get back. As much as he loved the 21st century, he wished to see his wife Guinevere again, and rule over his kingdom with his knights.