The Library of Powers

Part 1 Epilogue

Samantha H. Quincy and Chase S. Dresser were loitering behind a small Butcher's shop in lower Fort Oregon. Except they weren't Chase and Sam at all, but Glamour and Trick. In full costume, the two stood silently, not exactly confident, but with good posture and a careful eye. 

Fort Oregon caused a feeling of existential dread that they couldn't exactly place. Maybe it was the older roads, littered with potholes.  Or the empty yards which seemed like they might've once held grass when factory workers from The Wharves lived here. Or maybe it was that the neighborhood was a breeding ground for new supervillains. Okay, it was definitely the last one. 

They were waiting for their liaison, a small woman who as far as they could tell didn't exist. They had done research into her, but nothing ever came up. Chase thought there might be more to her then they had found, but Samantha thought they wouldn't spare their big guns for two trainees.

As it would turn out, they were both wrong.

The man who turned the corner was not their previous liaison, no, he couldn't be further from it. Also in full costume, the man was of a hulking size, every step visibly imprinting into the gravel alley. This was not a man whom subtlety favored, which brought up the question of how they had only now realized his approach. But he was definitely looking for them, as his path towards them indicated. A thousand thoughts ran through their mind, on why he could be there. Had they messed something up, and were now going to be silenced? While neither of them believed that to be true, they weren't completely positive.

The man stopped close to them, and spoke with baritone tremors, "You should have ran, but I'm glad you didn't. I'm your new liaison. My first lesson is for you to be more careful. Heed my words."

Sam and Chase shared a look, determining that Sam would be the one to answer. "I'm Trick," she told him, "what happened to our previous liaison?"

"You did," he answered, pointing to Chase, "I know your power, Glamour. The league knows you were trying to get information from her. This shows resourcefulness, but will not be tolerated again. My second lesson is for you to stay in your weight class. Heed my words."

Chase eeked out an "Okay." This amused the man.

"You can call me Floatsam. I will be taking over your training. As such, have you completed the assignment yet?"

Sam and Chase were hesitant, not sure how to approach the topic. How could they tell him that they were caught? Do they not tell him at all? Floatsam furled his brows as they stalled for time.

"I'll take your silence as a no," he decided, "We did not expect you to be even this far along in this short of time, so we have decided to let it slide. My third lesson is to stay patient, but never be anything short of perfectly efficient. Your previous Liason says you are in the stage of collecting secrets from the AHB. You should know by now that knowing that organization in and out will be invaluable. What target have you chosen?"

"Johnathan Demarcson," Chase said with pride.

"Head of the cleanup division? Ambitious, but doable. My fourth lesson is to-"

Sam cut him off. "We have an in. We go to the same school as his daughter, and have recruited one of her friends."

Floatsam took a single step closer to them. He was not yet uncomfortably close, but was definitely straddling that line. "Do not interrupt my imparting of knowledge. Now, have we vetted this new person? We agreed to train you two, not a third. Are you expecting them to become a permanent member of your team?"

"Well, they're very powerful. It's Melanie Collins. You know, of the Collins. We wanted to test her out with this job, and then see if she's a good fit.

Floatsam took another step.

"You've already forgotten the Second lesson, Trick," he breathed in their faces, "Do not punch up. That's for foolish, young heroes. You are not heroes. You may be young, but we would not have brought you on if you were foolish. You are trainees of the League of Retired Supervillains. Being molded by the greats in their image, so that the world does not become complacent. The daughter of one of the most famous superhero families in the world is on the other side of the fence. There's a good chance Melanie is only pretending to work with you. You will be betrayed."

Chase had a comeback prepared, "What about Guy? He's a member of the Collins, right? Who says there aren't holes in that fence, that she can crawl through?"

Floatsam gave a hearty laugh, little droplets of spit hitting their foreheads. He was a good head above them, so he crouched, looking them over at eye level. He kept this contact for longer than was comfortable.

"My fifth lesson. Guy Harding will run into you at some point. It's bound to happen. Do not converse with him as you do with me. You should follow the most important rule. The one so obvious I didn't even number it. The first thing I told you, the base instinct that is to be trusted at all times. When you see Guy Harding, run." He turned around and started to walk away. "Heed my words," he told them, "You can work with The Collins girl for this mission. Do not inform her of our organization. And do not meet with me again until you have completed the mission. May you be cunning enough to not fall for traps lain upon your path."

He lumbered away, turning the corner towards the main street, his footsteps growing rapidly softer. When they could hear him no longer, the two breathed a sigh of relief.

"You ever heard of Floatsam?" Chase asked Sam.

Instead of answering, Samantha put a finger up, grabbing her phone with her other hand. A quick search brought them to a news article from earlier this month. Someone under the moniker "Floatsam" had robbed a bank in Portland, killing seven hostages in the process. Sam handed her phone to Chase, who also read it.

"Retired my ass," Sam remarked.

"We don't have to be like him, you know. Just because he's training us doesn't mean we have to do... that." Chase said, handing Sam back her phone but grabbing her hand.

Sam's heart skipped a beat. When in costume, she could almost forget his power washing over her. He probably didn't even realize how intensely he was using it right now. She turned away, which Chase took as a sign that she was concerned about their new liaison. That was fine with her.

Sam jumped to grab a dangling fire escape, pulling herself onto the metal scaffolding. "We gonna go on the hunt tonight?" she asked him.

Chase grinned. "Move over so I can get up. Can't give the heroes too quiet a night."