Chapter one of Tennessee thanks to @danna-bell-is-black for the inspiration
Nova sat forlornly on her mattress, her head in her hands. A tear running down her face, Adrian was the Sentinel. Adrian, kind, forgiving, wonderful Adrian. She had kept it together through most of the day. He had revealed it to her when he decided to give their entire team vitality charm tattoos. She was immune to Agent N now. She had resisted the urge to yell at him to tell him just what she thought of the Sentinel. Luckily she had managed to keep quiet. Adrian didn’t know how much pain the Sentinel had caused her, and he didn’t need to know. That was a lie, he did need to know, she couldn’t keep lying to him. Nova stood her legs wobbly and her mind even more so. She trudged over to the dresser and picked up the jar with Danna’s butterfly. She scanned her room looking from her bag and when she found it she stuffed the jar inside and made a call.
When she found herself standing on Adrian’s door, she was asking herself for the 628th time why she thought this was a good idea. All of Danna’s butterflies were fluttering behind her and to Nova the sound was deafening. Then she knocked, hoping and praying that Hugh and Simon would be at HQ. Luckily when the door swung open it was Adrian and the team who answered, and their first reaction was about Danna.
“You found her!” Ruby said jumping up and down.
“Guys, I need to talk to you.” Nova said eyes to the floor. “Let’s go inside.” The all marched to Adrian’s art studio, and Nova marveled once again at the immaculate detail of the paint work. When they were all seated Nova pulled out the jar.
“Nova, why do you have one of Danna’s butterflies in a jar?” Oscar asked.
“Because I’m Nightmare.” Nova said with a sigh, surely it would all be over now.
“Why are you telling us?” Adrian asked. This wasn’t what nova had expected.
“Because, I can’t do this anymore, I can’t keep lying, I’m sorry.” Nova unscrewed the lid of the jar letting the butterfly flutter out rather ungracefully. In an instant Danna was standing before her yelling her head off.
“How could you! You little traitor! You kept me trapped for weeks, how could you.” Danna swung her arm back and punched square in the jaw, Nova’s head snapped back and after a moment she regained her senses. She rubbed her cheek and Danna did the most surprising thing she could have done. She hugged Nova, and said.
“Because I saw how the Anarchists treated you, Phobia and Honey are both abusing your grief and Leroy, never intervened.”
“They didn’t abuse-” Nova started, but then she realized, maybe they had.
“I want out, I want to leave.” She looked up to Adrian with pleading eyes. “We’ll both be on the run if the Renegades find out, let’s just leave Gatlon, we don’t owe them anything.”
“We can take Max and leave this all behind.” Danna said
“But where would we go?” Adrian asked
“I’ve heard Tennessee has absolutely no prodigies.” Said Oscar
“Sounds like a literal dream come true.” Nova said. And so they began to plot a break in to HQ in the basement of two councilmen. It was an odd group, three Renegades with pristine records, a golden son who doubled as a vigilante, and a villain from a family of villains, but somehow they were all working together. First the team would go into the Renegades tower, and tell Max the plan. Next they would wait for nighttime, and Nova would scale the side of the building and cut a hole in the glass. The Sentinel would guard her from the ground and handle any trouble. Danna Ruby and Oscar were all one block away in a getaway car. The night air bit at her face and she was grateful for her mask and hood. As she climbed higher and higher she filled with more and more hope, it was going to over soon. When she reached the sky bridge’s window she was greeted by a smiling Max. She pulled out her glass cutting tool and got to work, but it wasn’t working. Then she heard an alarm. She felt like she was falling which was not a good feeling since she was several floors up.
“Sentinel!” Nova cried “I need help” in a fraction of an instant Adrian jumped up and was teetering on a small ledge on the building slowly and carefully he torched the edges of the space Nova had cut. Just as a group of Renegades showed up at the other side of the newly reconstructed sky bridge. Stingray and his new team, an electrokinetic and that origami dude from the trials.
“Get back Max.” Nova cried as she brought a leg up to kick the carved glass through.
“Stop right there in the name of the code!” Stingray yelled
“Not likely, I’m a villain after all I don’t exactly follow the code.” Then she kicked, the glass popped out and max crawled through on to Nova’s back. Adrian jumped down and Nightmare began the treacherous climbback to the ground. Once she was a floor down the guard team rushed through the quarantine.
“Ummmm, Nova, they have guns.” Max said his voice shaking and high pitched.
“We’ll make it Max, they won’t shoot at you.” But Nova was proven wrong when, about four floors down, first bullet whizzed past them. Clearly they had decided that a villain was worth more than a child. Nova began rushing, climbing faster and getting sloppier. Then halfway through the second floor one foot slipped, both she and Max jolted at the unexpected trip and Max let out a shrill cry. Nova carefully regained her footing and with aching muscles, (and cheek, but that didn’t matter she had deserved that) she finished the trek. As her feet hit the blessed ground one more bullet was shot from the window a few stories up. Nova fell to the ground as pain ricocheted through her leg.
In a moment Adrian was beside her and the next she was in his arms bridal style. He was running as full speed, with max on his shoulders and Nova in his arm.
“Adrian, it hurts… so much…”
“I know we’ll get to the car soon.” He rounded the corner and there it was, a grey minivan with all windows rolled up when they hopped in Ruby and Danna were in the front, Danna was the only one with a license so obviously she was driving. Oscar was in the very back and Max climbed in with him. Adrian, who had changed out of his suit now carefully layed Nova down on the middle row, he rolled up her pant leg to see the wound. It wasn’t too serious, the bullet had grazed her leg but it still hurt like hell.
“Can you pass he the first aid?”
“Sure.” Ruby said fishing through the glove compartment, she handed the red and white box to Adrian who get a bottle of disinfectant. As he applied it is stung to high heaven and against her better judgement Nova let out a yelp. Adrian proceed to wrap Nova’s leg. When he was finally done Nova sat up, still hurting just about everywhere. Nova’s eyes drooped, she was so tired, she didn’t usually feel this way but maybe the shock of the bullet would was affecting her. As she closed her eyes she heard her parents pleas once again, until Adrian put his arms around her and the voices faded away, she was safe. And so she drifted off to a blissfully quiet sleep.
