I was using the elevator to go down, alone this time, passing my hands over the smooth surface of my skull, I haven't had a shaved head since college, and that was only one time. It felt weird, but no weirder that everything else that was happening to me,like now going down to eat dinner in the base of operations of the Dawnbreakers.

Being a Dawnbreaker, I shook my head, it could be worse, I could still be that powerless husk living day to day. The elevator dinged the door opening and I went out at the same place I had that morning, this day also felt longer than they used to.

I made my way to the eating area, the smell was great and I decided to ask about who made the food during dinner, even though there were four tables it seemed everyone always used the same, but I guess it fitted everyone so there would be no reason to change it up.

I went to the buffet area greeting everyone, still somewhat awkwardly with a simple “Good night.”

Spotlight greeted me back with a loud “Look who's finally here, a cheer to the newest member.” turning his cup over his mouth.

“Drink your juice slowly Spot” Spyglass said, she was here too, I hadn't seen her since we arrived the night before, she seemed, well, the same, just different clothes.

I needed to apologize to her, the day I triggered I was too anxious to test my powers and I irritated her on purpose to try and get her to help me, might’ve made a bad impression already though. She gave me only a shallow nod.

“Hello Joey, can I call you Joey? You need a proper codename what about-” Swordjuice sent in a rapid-fire speak, the usual with her it seemed.

LED and Victor only gave me nods, Glassmetal answered with a good night, looking tired.

“Shoosh Juice, close your mouth to eat.” Payback chastised Swordjuice’s poor table manners before looking up at me and giving me a pleasant “Good night.”

I served my plate, listening to their animated conversation, when I turned to pick a seat, I got a closer look at everyone at the table, it was, well, everyone. Six people in total, sitting at the long benches on either side of the table.

On the left side Payback was eating calmly from his plate, stopping to answer in between bites, by his side Spotlight was only with his empty cup, the plate empty in front of him. LED at his side eating as well having arrived earlier than me his plate still relatively full.

In front of Payback on the right side was Swordjuice having just sat back from her outburst going back to her messy plate, on her side were then Glassmetal and Spyglass, Victor taking the last seat eating with a beer can at his side.

I took my seat on LED's side, the one least occupied turning to Swordjuice to answer her earlier question “You can call me whatever you want, and yeah it feels weird being the only one without a codename, feels out of place after a while.”

“We use it more to not let the government take our names in the confrontations, it could be bad. If you still have family and all.” Payback said.

“Yeah, that’s part of it of course but it's mostly tradition, I think.” Glassmetal said he seemed awkward in any social situation I saw him being a part of, really looked like the bookish introvert type, reminded me of me in lots of ways.

“Yes! it lets us leave our old life behind, take a new name for the cause.” Swordjuice in turn was all a sparky energy that she fueled into this cause of revolution. A good energy even, more amongst the brooding revolutionaries. Although she still had the rose-tinged glasses of youth.

“Of course, of course little Swordy but it’s also a lot of fun.” Spotlight said giving the table his trademark grin, always having fun with the antics he was brewing up and people’s reaction to his blatantly nonchalant act. It made me imagine what went through the mind behind the serious face I saw him rarely put on.

Smiling at all these different people and how they all fit together, I felt good about being one of them. “Okay you all have sold me on it, any suggestions though?”

“Just don’t take whatever Spotlight’s idea is, for your own good.” Spyglass entered the conversation; she always had a bit of a spice to her comments I noted, LED and Payback had said she was a bit of a reluctant participant, and I didn’t know her situation enough, so maybe it had something to do with that, or it was just her dislike for me shining through?

“Come on, my ideas are great, they make for the best codenames.” Spotlight lightly defended himself

“You don’t have any ideas for it?” Payback asked me, looking curious.

“I really don’t know; a mutating mimicking power wasn’t really something I thought I'd get.”

Payback considered that “The trend is to make something a little on the face, what about something like adapter? Mutant maybe.” He suggested.

“Don’t you all use compound names though, well, besides LED of course.” I asked

“True, wanting to fit in with the team?” Spotlight joked

“Ah. It would be nice, actually.” I confessed.

Everyone seemed a bit surprised at that, looking at me with differently startled faces.

“I mean, I haven’t really been speaking my mind or anything, but it's clear I'll stay with you all, right?” I explained my point of view” I don’t really know about overtaking the government or anything but I can find fights while I stay with you all.”

I paused considering everything, it rang true. I didn’t expect to just tell them, but it also made sense, to make allies, no, friends. I would need to be forward with my intentions.

“I do feel indebted to you all, even if my recruitment was a routine or even an afterthought, the result is that I was pulled from my old life.” I gave them an awkward smile, feeling self-conscious with all the attention on myself. “So, I look forward to working with all of you.”

“Hah, you sure you want to throw yourself with this bunch?” Spotlight joked, not losing his cheerfulness at all.

“How can you join them fully if you don’t agree with their ambitions. You know they’ll just be collecting more people and fighting the government.” Spyglass said, arguing my points.

“It’s true, but I never was a fan of the regime, fighting against it is something everyone would do.”

“Of course not, don’t you see how you're all walking to your deaths.” She slammed her hand on the table, rattling everyone’s plates. I was startled, is she that mad with me? That I would made something crazy to get more powers.

“I know I can be very power hungry, but I got powers now, I just want to train with them.” she wasn’t any more relieved with that, it seemed as though we weren't even talking about the same thing.

“I need to apologize to you, Spyglass.” She was confused at this but I pushed forward. “The day I triggered I was anxious to test my powers, and tried to pull you into violence, it could have touched some area that is of no concern to me. And I'm sorry for that.”

She still seemed livid, glancing at everyone on the table. “What they told you?”

“Huh? No one told me anything.” Everyone was watching in different levels of alarm, mostly coming from Swordjuice Payback and Glassmetal, LED and Victor didn’t seem fazed by the discussion while Spotlight still had his amused look watching everything like it was a funny piece.

She huffed seeming disbelieving. “If you want to throw your life away with this bunch, feel free to do so.”

“What’s with you, why are you part of the team if you don’t even want to? You’re against everything we do”

“I keeping this bunch alive, that’s my job.”

“Hey, people let’s calm down a bit, okay?” Payback tried calming us, always the diplomat.

She gritted her teeth, looking around the table, her face grew conflicted between angriness, sadness, and bunch of underlying emotions, she ended up just pushing her plate away and getting up. “I lost my appetite.” She announced before marching away.

“Well, that went well.” I sighed

“Indeed, indeed, you’re cracking her status quo, man, that’s to be expected.” Spotlight said, I couldn’t grasp his meaning though.

“She’s feeling bad because Thunder got the ambush on us, it’s normally her job to intercept those.” LED said from his place eating his food

“We didn’t expect any enforcers to be in the city.” Payback said, sighing a bit

“She’s very serious about doing her job.” LED said with respect, and it was true, I had seen how she acted on the highway, on the fight with Thunder, on the job she didn’t hesitate.

That explained some of it but not all, her behavior still seemed discordant, I didn’t know her story though and although I wanted to ask, I felt like it might be a terrible idea. She seemed to not want to be part of the revolution though, while at the same time helping everyone so they didn’t die, was that it?

The mood on the table got weird after that, everyone brooding a little while finishing their meals, the talk about my codename got pushed to another day.

Victor took a swing of his beer, his plate empty now. “So, found anything good on the training?