Led by Agent Strong, the team stormed into the Acropolis's hangar. They made it just in time for the show. A squad of armed Atlas agents was herding a NEMESIS soldier, his face obscured by a recognizable crimson mask. His choppy, onyx locks fell into his eyes. More agents poured into the landing area with their weapons raised. The air crackled with unease.
Chase slowed up as they approached the commotion. His muscles tensed at the sight of him. The black uniform with NEMESIS branding and the red sword at his hip gave him away immediately.
But his eyes…
They were different. They no longer held their crimson glow.
No… This time, they were bluer than the morning sky—and oddly familiar. For once, Apex looked normal.
Chase's breath hitched as his mind flashed back to their previous clash. It'd been a brief encounter, but one that'd stick with him forever. Apex's teleportation powers made it impossible to hit him. But Chase achieved the impossible. He'd dented the commander's Kevlar armor. He made him runaway. Who else could say that?
Klaus once told him Primes were gods amongst men.
But what was a god to another god?
The six young Primes pressed in beside Director Shaw and Victoria at the edge of the crowd. No one spoke. The hangar was so quiet that Chase swore he could hear his own pulse. His blood pumped through his veins, the sound louder than a drum at a college football game. Director Shaw's was unreadable; his face seemed as if it were carved out of stone. But, for a fleeting moment, Chase saw something flicker beneath his façade.
Panic.
Confusion knotted in his gut. He glanced back at Apex as the agents brought him closer. He was alone, restrained, and outnumbered. He turned back to the director. "What's going on?"
"I'm…not sure yet."
Chase folded his arms, the tendon in his neck tightening as he directed his glare forward. Apex might've been in the custody of Atlas agents, but that didn't answer how he got there. If he'd found the Acropolis, then NEMESIS already knew where they were. And if they knew, it was only a matter of time until they attacked.
Ever since the battle in Colorado, the bioterrorists had gone radio silent. Again. No strategic strikes, no new sightings, nothing. Even the Watchtower and Atlas's sophisticated satellites couldn't pin them down.
NEMESIS were ghosts in the wind.
What was this then?
None of it made sense.
The fragile silence cracked under Apex's voice. Smooth, taunting, laced with charm that made Chase's blood boil. "This isn't exactly the kind of welcome home I was anticipating—"
An agent elbowed him in the gut, snapping his sentence before he could finish. He doubled over, pressing his bound hands to his stomach. Director Shaw lifted his hand, silently ordering his agents to stop. The man tried to hide his wince, but Chase saw it.
He raised a brow.
It went even higher after seeing the thick metal bands locked around Apex's wrists. Lights embedded in the steel blinked green. His eyes widened.
They were suppressing the Prime's abilities, possibly nullifying them entirely.
But how?
Was that what the scientists in the Forge had been working on during their tests?He'd been under the impression that the experiments were to learn more about their powers. Perhaps Director Shaw and Atlas were using them to stop them.
It made sense. Smart organizations always developed contingency plans, even for their own weapons. His father taught him that. The US military had hundreds of countermeasures for itself, let alone its enemies. But the practicality of it all only spawned a sense of unease in the base of his throat. While everyone kept their eyes on Apex, he threw Director Shaw a quizzical look.
The agents stopped the Prime in front of the CEO of Atlas Corp. Director Shaw refused to speak.
"Don't look so happy," Apex taunted. "They might start to think you missed having me around."
Chase blinked before exchanging confused glances with the others around him.
"What's he talking about?" Emily whispered.
"Hell, if I know," Oscar grumbled.
Apex kept his blue eyes pinned on the director. The man's stubble-covered jaw tightened. He stepped forward, brushing off his men as they moved to block him. "Let me through."
The crowd parted without question.
Director Shaw approached his prisoner with the manufactured calmness he carried with him at all times.
"Victor." His voice was stern. Devoid of any warmth. "What are you doing here?"
Victor?
The name jolted Chase. He hadn't even thought to question what Apex's real name might've been. To him, he was simply an enemy behind a mask. A ghost to be chased. But as he peered upon him—bound, powerless, and vulnerable—he couldn't help but see something else.
But the Prime didn't seem to realize the situation he was in.
Or perhaps he did.
He looked past Director Shaw, his gaze settling on Victoria. Her face twisted in a scowl. "You've grown, Vicky. I see he roped you into the family business."
Scoffing, she turned her head.
A guard jabbed a rifle into the back of his leg, forcing him to one knee. Apex winced, but his confidence never wavered. Despite his circumstances, he seemed to be in full control.
What is going on?
Eventually, a guard explained how the security team caught him teleporting in and out of the mountains around the Acropolis. He was getting close. Too close. They managed to capture him before he could find the exact location of the base and report it back to his comrades.
It sounded simple enough, but something didn't sit right with Chase. The Prime, who could teleport at will, let himself get captured by Atlas agents with no powers? He didn't buy it.
Exhaling, Director Shaw pinched the bridge of his nose. He adjusted his glasses, then gave an order. "Take him to the basement. Keep the cuffs on until we get a null-cell ready."
"Yes, sir."
Null-cell?
Atlas was working on Prime-nullifying tech. Cuffs, cells. What was next? Guns? Robots like the ones they fought in the simulation arena? He shifted his weight while pursing his lips. Judging by the look on Emily's face, she must've been asking herself similar questions. They might not have seen eye-to-eye on most things, but they were in sync on this.
NEMESIS might've been their common enemy, but did that automatically make Atlas the hero?
"Wait, this place has a basement?" Theo scratched the top of his head. "I thought this was the lowest level of the Acropolis."
Just how far did Atlas Corp's. secrets go?
The guards stripped Apex of his sword, mask, and any electronics hidden within his suit. Fury flashed in his eyes. His lips curled into a sneer that seemed custom-made for his gaunt face. He was a cornered animal. A predator waiting to be unleashed.
Chase studied the lines of his face. His jaw was sharp, the curve of his nose even sharper. A chill rippled down his spine as he realized something. Those cheekbones… His pointed chin… He'd seen them before…
He turned to Director Shaw. The man paled.
The guards pushed Apex toward the exit of the hangar. Even without the red glow in his eyes, he radiated menace. It dripped off his body like venom from a cobra's fang. As he was stuffed into the elevator, he faced forward.
"It's good to be back," he shouted, his voice echoing through the hangar. He grinned. The sight made Chase's skin want to peel itself off. "I'll be seeing you." He paused, his grin widening. "Dad."
The elevator doors slid shut. The lift dropped into the bowels of the Acropolis.
Soon, every set of eyes in the hangar was on Director Shaw.
And the silence that followed…
It was deafening.