The helicopter's blades rotated at high speed. The updraft allowed the machine to soar through the skies. From the cabin window Alex could look down on the whole city. If the circumstances had been different, he might've taken a photo to send to Taylor.
The response team leader sat with her gun held across her body. The large weapon didn't bring her any reassurance.
The HUD in her mask detailed the subject's information. Alex Jones, a 19 year old medical student at the university of Chicago. His record already contained two incidents. It was obvious that he had intentionally been concealing his abilities.
The pilot was less nervous than the response team leader. The cockpit separated him from the unknown passenger. All he had to do was look forwards and steer.
The unusual group travelled in silence. Alex wanted to ask a question, but the faceless mask of the GDA agent put him off. He could hear the faint thud of her heart beating quickly in her chest.
His powers were growing stronger every day. They had begun to act as a sixth sense. They could detect information that his eyes and ears couldn't.
It wasn't his ears picking up the sound of the agent's heartbeat, it was his powers acting as an external awareness. So long as they were within a few meters, he could feel the presence of other people. It didn't matter if a wall separated them.
The helicopter flew out from the built-up city zone. The landscape below transformed into a desolate desert.
The pilot adjusted the controls and the helicopter began to descend. When the vehicle approached a hundred feet of the ground, a humongous hidden gate opened up. The pilot skillfully controlled the helicopter to enter.
The gate shut behind them swiftly. The artificial lighting inside the secret GDA base was brighter than the sunlight outside.
The helicopter touched down on solid ground. The GDA agent stood up and exited the vehicle. Alex followed.
The HUD display in the agent's helmet layed out a path for her to follow. The helmet communicated in long stretches of binary code with the identification systems in numerous sets of reinforced steel doors to allow her to enter.
The base seemed oddly deserted. They had been walking for nearly two minutes and Alex still hadn't seen another person. He realised that he was most likely the reason for the base's deserted appearance.
A set of gigantic doors two-people tall hissed and slowly opened. Alex noted the large interlocking pistons that appeared to struggle to move them. He could shatter concrete with his punches and dent metal, but the enormous weight and the depth of reinforced steel would make any attempt to force his way out of the room useless.
There were three pieces of furniture inside the room. Two chairs and a desk. All of them were made out of the same sleek white material.
The GDA agent gestured for him to enter, "Please take a seat."
The GDA were showing off their power. He didn't like that they were trapping him inside a metal cage, but he wasn't planning to be enemies with them. Having a powerfull ally was an advantage. He wanted protection for his family, it was reassuring to see that their potential security force weren't messing around.
He took a seat. He noted the red dots flashing steadily in all four corners of the ceiling. They were watching him.
A tall and slim man entered the room. He was holding two cups of coffee. He slid one across the table towards the GDA's guest. He didn't speak.
Alex didn't recognise the man. The scar on his cheek was distinctive. He would've remembered if he'd seen the other person before.
"I won't harm you. Or anyone here." Alex made his stance clear immediately.
The scarred man laughed and sipped his coffee. A smile broke across his lips, "God it's nice to talk to someone with brains. I can't tell you how many of these conversations start off with someone throwing a fireball at my head.
I'm sorry for my men pointing all those guns at you kid. It's protocol, some rules are horse-shit but we gotta follow em."
The man stretched out his hand to Alex, "I'm Cecil. It's good to meet you. Thanks for dealing with that nutjob out there."
Alex shook his hand firmly. He wasn't naive enough to let down his guard completely, but the man's friendly attitude significantly eased the tension in the room,
"Thanks for not shooting me." Alex replied with a half-smile.
The man laughed again. The sound didn't seem forced. He ran a hand through his slicked-back hair, "It's my pleasure kid."
The man, Cecil, sipped his coffee again. He tapped his fingers slowly against the table, "You're a good hider. Your file's got a couple suspicious points, but nothing too out of the ordinary."
Cecil paused and whistled, "Got some pretty gnarly photos of those bruises too. That kind of pain tolerance is impressive."
Alex wasn't intimidated. He didn't believe that the GDA would arrest him for hiding his powers. There were dozens of superheroes who'd only revealed their abilities in moments of crisis.
"They looked worse than they felt." He replied.
Cecil nodded slowly. The scars to his cheek restricted the motion of one side of his face. The lip didn't quite curl as it was meant to when he smiled, "Sure. But they did look pretty damn hideous."
Alex smiled. This time he didn't disagree or try to downplay it.
Cecil eyed his guest with a mixture of intrigue and wariness. His fingers stopped their steady drumming, "You're a smart kid, A*s in all your subjects. You've let us lead you to this little cage and you've saved the lives of a dozen civilians."
The director of the GDA leaned forwards, "I want to know how you want this chat to go."
Alex was silent for a few moments. He considered his answer carefully. He picked up the coffee cup and drank from it. He didn't stop until the cup was empty.
He wasn't worried about poison. He'd tested that before. His powers would clear anything toxic out of his system the moment it passed his lips.
There was no burning in his throat or discomfort in his chest. The coffee wasn't poisoned. His powers confirmed it.
Cecil raised an eyebrow at his guest's behaviour. It was extremely rare for anyone to drink the coffee. It was a pleasant change from the norm.
"I'd like to work with you." Alex said slowly.
Cecil grinned, "I'm liking you more and more kid!"
Alex wasn't finished. He had more he wanted to say but the man, Cecil, started to speak before he had the chance.
"I've read your file, there's not a blemish on it. If you're working with us there's some standard benefits. I'll tell you them before we go any further.
Your salary as a hero will start out at $1,000,000 a year. We'll give you an apartment or a house or a castle if you really want, living expenses are covered.
We'll offer your family secure housing. They don't have to know if you don't want them to. We can make it happen.
You'll get access to training facilities across the globe. If you're lucky you might see one of the Guardians there."
The conditions were generous. Cecil paused to give Alex long enough to process them before stating the sweetest one of all, "If a distress beacon goes off at your family's location, we'll send out a Guardian immediately. The only thing we can't promise is Omni-Man, if he's available he'll take the call. He's uh-he's independant. "
The GDA's analysis of Alex was spot-on. They'd clearly identified that his family's safety was his top priority.
Alex smiled. He let go of the wariness he'd been holding on to, "Whatever psychologist you guys used for me deserves a raise."
Cecil laughed, "I'll pass it on. It was good to meet you kid, Dr Molay will be your coordinator, I believe you've already met."
A sleek white business card slid across the table towards Alex. Cecil stood up and adjusted his cufflinks, "If you need anything, give me a call kid. I'll pick up."
Alex was left alone in the room again. The smooth white walls made him feel like he was inside the stomach of some giant beast. The GDA facility was buried a hundred feet beneath the earth. It hit him that if the negotiation hadn't gone as smoothly as it had, he might have never left the stark-white room.
Heels clicked against the tiled floor. A second person walked into the room. It was a familiar face, "Hello Alex."
Alex smiled, "Hi again."
Dr Molay sat down in the chair opposite him. She placed her tablet on the date and scrolled through dozens of pages of files. After a while she looked up and smiled wrly at him, "I always knew there was something special about you."
Alex looked away from her gaze, feeling slightly awkward.
Dr Molay noticed the discomfort in Alex's face. She cleared her throat and continued, "There's a few things we need to discuss. The director might've mentioned moving your family to a secure neighbourhood, would you like them to be informed, or we can do so without their knowledge?"
Dr Molay didn't present the option for Alex's parents to weigh in with their own opinion. He gave an answer immediately, "I'd like them to be informed. I'll tell them myself."
The decision to work for the GDA wasn't one he'd made impulsively. When his powers first emerged he'd planned to live an ordinary life. The world had shown him that being ordinary didn't mean being safe.
The GDA handled dozens, if not hundreds of incidents every day. It wasn't uncommon to see Omni-Man on television seven days a week taking down a giant monster or crazed scientist. Ordinary people were able to lead ordinary lives because the GDA was constantly putting out fires.
Without revealing his powers, Alex could only remain passive. The incidents he'd solved had all shown up on his doorstep. The GDA could change that, he could take on an active role. He didn't aspire to protect the whole world, he just wanted to look after his own small corner of it.
He'd always believed that the best way he could contribute to society was through practicing medicine. As he'd dashed past bloodied glast shards embedded in the necks of the table sat closest to the window, he'd caught a glimpse of his own reflection and known suddenly that he could do more. So much more.
The world already had doctors, there were hundreds of other medicine students in his class who would graduate and earn their right to wear the white coat. What the world needed was heroes. People who would stand up and risk their lives to protect the planet.
For a long time he hadn't thought that he could bear that burden. But not all problems could be avoided, bad things happened to good people every day. He would rather seek out threats and eliminate them then sit around idly until the day his loved ones got hurt.
'I've got a responsibility to use these powers to help. That demon could've killed hundreds of people if I hadn't stopped it.' He thought to himself. His fists clenched beneath the table.
"Good. It often goes more smoothly if the family are aware of the move. I assume you will be wanting to move your girlfriend's family to a secure neighbour hood also. Would you like to inform them?" Dr Molay asked.
The question wasn't as simple. He could make decisions for the safety of his own family. He couldn't do that for Taylor's. They deserved the right to make their own choice.
"I need to talk to Taylor before I can give you an answer." He replied
Dr Molay nodded. She didn't express any surprise or disagreement. She tapped at her tablet, "And your studies, would you wish to continue? We've purged the security footage from today, your identity is still secure."
Alex looked down at his hands. His fists slowly unclenched. He shook his head. The self-assurance that he always carried himself with wavered. He didn't know what the right decision to make was.
He looked up and into Dr Molay's eyes. There was a vulnerability in his voice, "What do you think?"
Dr Molay met his gaze without any sign of unsureness, "If you continue with your studies, it may be difficult for you to balance your duties in the field. You must understand that an emergency will demand your presence immediately.
You will have to set aside whatever it is you may be doing. You will have to leave lectures suddenly and dissapear from dinner dates. We can discuss your schedule, you will not be required to be on call seven days a week, but it is important that you understand the commitment you are making."
She paused, then continued, "However, if you do carry on with your studies, you'll stay close to Taylor. In an emergency you'll be able to reach her more quickly. We can speak to your university. We can offer you exemption from your studies whenever you require it."
The choice became clear in an instant. Alex's opinion towards the steely-eyed GDA agent shifted from respect to admiration. She'd analysed his priorities and immediately offered the most suitable option.
"I'd like to continue with my degree."
Dr Molay nodded in response. Her fingers flew across her tablet. A few moments later she swiped her hand across the screen and the display darkened.
She stretched out her hand towards Alex, "I look forwards to working with you."
Alex shook the oustretched hand firmly, "Same here."