Natalie moved the laptop, turning it toward Tristan.

“You’re done?” I asked.

“I read it. I didn’t get into the list of capes, but I read about the ones in charge.”

“And?”

“I think the justifications for getting involved are sound. That depends on what the Wardens say, mind you. If they don’t agree, I don’t agree either. It does seem to me, however, that it seems like the kind of thing where heroes are very badly needed. I hope you get their help.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“I don’t think the younger members of the group should be involved.”

“Looksee will be more or less remote,” Tristan said. “Creepy kid will be venturing in only when we give the A-okay.”

“As… Sudden Shock and Deep Reflection?”

“I guess,” Tristan said.

“If the Youth Guard were active, they’d say no,” Natalie said.

“Can you mute the laptop so they don’t hear?” Tristan asked.

Crystal covered the microphone on the laptop with her hand.

“Natalie,” Tristan said. “If they Youth Guard were active, they’d say no, and the kids would get involved anyway. That was a thing that happened in my experience.”

“Oh man, my brother and I gave everyone headaches,” Crystal said. “Our grades dropped and our parents were told we had to give up the costumes for a few months until we pulled them back up. Our parents, the Youth Guard, even the PRT was asked to keep an eye out for us. We were scoundrels.”

“Right?” Tristan asked.

Crystal took her hand away from the microphone. Both Chris and Kenzie were protesting at length about being deafened for that segment of conversation, with lines of chat appearing so fast they were hard to read. Kenzie seemed to mostly enjoy joining her voice to Chris’s.

“I’ve given my advice.”

“They’re members of the team,” Sveta said. “We’ll keep them safe.”

Natalie pursed her lips but didn’t say anything.

“Let’s talk about major objectives,” I said. “On the small scale, we help the civilians. Pulling away from that, there are a few worst-case scenarios here.”

⊙

“Major objectives,” I said. “Containment, control, resolution.”

It was late, and the light from the windows were dark. The administration in charge of the Wardens were sitting at the tables in front of us, to our left, and to our right. Chevalier and Valkyrie were present, sitting directly in front of me. Legend’s seat was empty. I saw the name plate for Chief Armstrong, white-haired with a very pronounced chin and a crooked nose. He looked more like a mad scientist or a quirky grandfather than a major figure in the cape scene.