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Owen put a hand on his shoulder. “So. Which one will it be?”
“I don’t know,” Nick admitted. “It’s… a lot.” A choice, finally, here at last, if Owen was to be believed, and Nick didn’t know why he’d lie. Not about this. Owen could be an asshole, but Nick didn’t think he’d try and pull something over on Nick, not when he washurting. “You said I’d have to keep taking them in order to stay an Extraordinary?”
Owen nodded gravely. “Yes, but let’s not worry about that yet. Choose one, Nick, and see how it goes. If you don’t like it, you can try another. And another. I’ll make sure of it. One pill to make everything go away, to protect all those you love the most. My father thinks… well. In addition to the military applications, he thinks these things should only be for the people who can afford them. The elite, willing to part with their riches in order to have the upper hand on those beneath them. It’s ridiculous, isn’t it? They should be for everyone. Anyone who wants to fight back against those who would take from them.” He sighed, a long whispery sound that crawled along Nick’s skin, leaving gooseflesh prickling in its wake. “Someone like you wouldn’t even be given a chance. And how is that fair? After all, it’syourfather who suffered.”
It’s easier to stand together than it is to struggle apart.Dad had taught him that. It’d been close, hadn’t it? Dad had been so close to dying, and where would Nick be then?
Alone. He’d be alone.
Still, he hesitated. “Are they addictive?” They had to be. If they gave the power Owen claimed, then why would anyone want to stop?
Owen laughed, but there was a harder edge to it. “Addictiveisn’t quite the right word for it. I don’t mean to rush you, but we’re running out of time. You need to decide, Nicky.”
Nick pressed a hand against the glass encasing the tubes, staring at the pills. “Aren’t you going to do this too?”
“This is for you,” Owen said. “Don’t worry about me.”
Green. Yellow. Violet. Blue. Orange. Black. White.
Nick’s mind raced.
He thought of the way the machines beeped around his father, his skin mottled with bruises. He thought of his mother smiling near a lighthouse, forever frozen in a moment in time. Anything. He would do anything to keep his people safe.
Including this, even if it was temporary. Being a temporary hero was better than being nothing at all.
“I think… I think I’ll—”
“That’s enough,” another voice said from behind them.
They whirled around.
There, standing near the elevator, was Pyro Storm. Nick froze at the sight of him.
Owen chuckled. “Well, well, well. Isn’t this a surprise?”
“Is it?” Pyro Storm asked. “Because I think this is exactly what you wanted.”
“Oh? How do you figure that?”
Pyro Storm glanced at Nick. “Because you think you’re forcing my hand.”
Owen took a step forward. “Someone had to. You can’t hide behind the mask forever.”
“And you can?”
Owen spread his hands. “I’m not the one wearing a mask here, am I? That would be you.”
“Um,” Nick said in a thin voice. “I have no idea what’s going on right now, but I think I’d like to leave.”
They ignored him. “I do it because I have to,” Pyro Storm said, teeth bared. “So I can keep the ones I love from harm.”
Nick blinked at that. Pyro Storm was a villain. Why would he be worried about people getting hurt? He’d hurt Nick’s dad. He’d—
“See,” Owen said, voice filled with contempt, “that’s always been your problem. You’re so sanctimonious. And where has it gotten you? You’ve been vilified for everything you’ve done. You’re Public Enemy Number One. Nothing you’ve done has changed that.”
Pyro Storm took a step forward. “Only because you’ve done everything you can to get in my way. You’ve spun these lies in order to elevate yourself. I allowed it because I didn’t know what else to do. But now you’ve brought Nick into this, and I won’t play your games anymore.”
“Youallowedit?” Owen asked incredulously. “You didn’t allowanything.The world sees you for what you really are. You’re the villain in this story. The archnemesis. I have become the hero this city needs, and not even you can stop me. Soon, I’ll hold it all in the palm of my hand.” He glanced back at Nick. “And maybe I’ll get myself a sidekick. Nick will do just fine, won’t he?”
