CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY-ONE

A Chariot Fit for Adventure, Part 1

A few hours after Sam and Thunder finally expressed their feelings for each other and put their hearts out there for them both to explore, New York’s newest power couple received a text message from Farsight that the Argo VII’s retrofit was finally completed.

According to Farsight’s message, Mr. Marsday had invited Sam and his friends for the grand unveiling of the new and improved version of the Argo VII, which is why several members of the team took a day trip to the secret Marsday facility in downtown New Jersey.

“People think nothing ever happens in Jersey, but they’re wrong. Lots of stuff happens in this state. Most of its just kept hush-hush from the public eye,” Farsight commented. “The Marsday facility’s just one of the many secrets peppered throughout Jersey, like that hidden vampire habitat out by the Passaic River.”

“There’s a vampire habitat in Jersey?” Sam asked warily.

He was still cursed with the Mark of Hector and preferred not to test its ranged capabilities while in a city full of warm-blooded civilians.

“The largest one in the US,” Thunder answered for Farsight. “And it’s not hidden, Ash. They did a documentary about it last year on Olympus+.”

Once they arrived at the entrance of the unremarkable-looking warehouse that Marcus Flint’s van dropped them off at, the team consisting of Sam, Thunder, Farsight, Miracle Girl, and Jackboot were welcomed by a male receptionist in a crisp red suit who ushered them into a spacious high-tech interior that wouldn’t have lost in its style to something like NASA’s Houston headquarters lobby.

Sam noticed that everyone in the building—from the security guards with high-powered element guns hanging from their belts to the custodians pushing their carts around the lobby floor—all wore the same bright red colors their receptionist wore.

“There’s way too much red in this building,” Jackboot commented, mirroring Sam’s thoughts exactly.

“Mr. Marsday calls us the red blood vessels that bring life and oxygen to his imagination,” the receptionist replied in a chirpy tone.

Jackboot mouthed, ‘Crazy’ at Sam behind the receptionist’s back, and Sam couldn’t help but agree.

He’d met two famous support specialists already, and they were both quite peculiar as well. It stood to reason that Mr. Marsday, the genius scientist and engineer who pioneered much of the technology used by modern hero society—from the coffins and power-dampening cuffs used to render dangerous criminals powerless to the elemental cannons and barrier vests that are now standard equipment for government law enforcement agencies around the world—was bound to be at least as unusual as Chiron.

After ushering the team into a darkly-lit conference room, the Marsday receptionist promised them that their host would arrive shortly. That was a little over an hour ago though. During that time, Sam had been enduring the teasing of Farsight and Miracle Girl over his and Thunder’s recent admittance to the team that they were now dating.

“You two together… This is priceless,” Farsight laughed out loud.

Miracle Girl was more critical of the pair though.

“Notice how he’s not sitting close enough to her?” she was alluding to the fact that Sam and Thunder, although seated next to each other, had way too much space between their chairs. “It speaks of hesitation. Someone who isn’t fully committed to the act of sharing his feelings with her through physical contact.”

Sam wanted to point out that the wheels of his chair were automatically sliding him over to the right for some reason, but he didn’t bother. There was no point arguing with these two who were alleviating their boredom at his expense.

“Hmm, I see that, but,” Farsight shrugged, “that could just be Sam being Sam. He’s flaky like that.”

Both young women glanced in Sam’s direction while he frowned at them from across the long table they sat around.

“Yeah, I can see that now,” Miracle Girl agreed. “His aura reeks of indecisiveness.”

“That makes no sense. Aura doesn’t have a scent,” Sam countered.

He was speaking from experience—neither Sword Aura nor Bulwark had a smell—but that didn’t matter to the Farsight and Miracle Girl. They were having too much fun teasing him.

“By the way, did you see the Herald’s op-ed today?” Farsight asked Thunder who was sitting next to Sam.

Thunder whispered an apology to Sam before prompting Farsight to show her what the Herald was up to this time.

Farsight switched her screen to the Herald’s webpage which had THUNDER — SINGLE NO MORE as its headline.

This highly suggestive title made both Thunder’s and Sam’s eyes widen in alarm as they hadn’t told anyone outside of their very small circle about their relationship yet. However, as the pair quickly skimmed the article, they realized that the title didn’t mean that Thunder and Sam were in an intimate relationship, but that she and Sam were now officially hero partners, a fact that Sophie Sallinger, Sam’s publicist, had leaked to the press at the pair’s urging.

“They go in-depth on the possibilities of why the soloist Thunder, who can have anyone she wants, chose a former vigilante as her official partner,” Farsight reported. “From theories like mind control and blackmail to Sam having pheromone powers that bamboozle women—it’s riveting stuff.”

Miracle Girl, who was browsing the article on her phone, added, “Pheromone powers are number one on the Herald’s survey. Eugh.” She glanced warily in Sam’s direction. “Do you have pheromone powers?”

“No,” Sam sighed exasperatedly. “I do not have any mind control gifts either. If I did, I wouldn’t be having this conversation with either of you.”

While the two young women giggled at Sam, Thunder elbowed him playfully in the shoulder. “What do you think your grandmother thinks of this?” she asked in an undertone.

Careful, kid. That’s a loaded question, Chiron warned.

What do you mean?

Think about it, lame-brain… if you tell Thunder that you don’t know then she’ll think you don’t care enough, but if you say Marie probably doesn’t care—which I know was what you were about to say—Thunder will think badly of your only mother figure and it’ll sour your relationship with her long-term. She may also think you don’t care enough to make Marie like her.

So, it’s a lose-lose either way?

The best thing you can do is tell her a non-answer that’ll satisfy her.

Okay, I got it. I think. Styx, this is hard.

Relationships are hard, kid. But that’s why Chiron’s Dating Service is here to help you out.

“Sam…” Thunder’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Are you having a telepathic conversation with you-know-who about how to answer my innocent question?”

Oh, she’s good, Chiron chuckled. You’ve got your work cut out for you.

“Um, no, I wouldn’t ask Chiron stuff like that. He’d just laugh in my face,” Sam reasoned.

True. I did use to do that. I guess I’m getting soft in my old age.

Thunder still looked skeptical though, which is why Sam admitted to a partial truth. “Um, I don’t know how Marie feels about me and you because we haven’t talked since the warehouse incident, but I will text her later and ask, okay?”

You’re really going to ask your grandmother what she thinks of you getting a business partner? Chiron asked. Or are you going to tell Marie Shepard you’ve finally got your first girlfriend?

Of course not. She’d tell me it was none of her business, Sam sighed. And Thunder’s not my first girlfriend…

Yeah, you’re very believable right now, Chiron chuckled.

Sam had been feeling quite grateful to Chiron for guiding him with that recent bout of sound relationship advice, but not anymore. Once again, he was wishing Triple-A had a mute feature he could press.

Luckily for Sam, Thunder believed him enough to relax in her chair, which was also when he noticed Farsight and Miracle Girl casting a wary gaze over his shoulder. That’s when Sam heard the, “Hello,” come from a rich baritone voice that belonged to none of his friends.

“I couldn’t help but overhear some of your conversations as I made my way to this room… I understand you two heroes are now a couple,” that same voice commented. “No time like the present for young love to bloom, I say. Especially because life can be so very short for mortals seeking to enter the underworld without its master’s permission.”

Sam swiveled his chair around ever so slowly and then found himself staring into the crimson eyes of a pale-faced man with long, wavy dark hair, a prominent brow, a hooked nose, and a short curly beard that helped to accentuate the blood-red lips and fangs protruding from his upper lip.

Styx, Sam breathed. I’m about to get attacked, aren’t I?

To Sam’s surprise, the vampire—for what else could he be—didn’t try to bite him despite the proximity of his face to Sam’s neck. No, the vampire in the crisp red suit and matching red overcoat straightened up and smiled at Sam like he wasn’t at all affected by the mark Hades had placed on the hero.

“Hello, Mr. Herculean.” The vampire offered Sam a long-fingered hand. “I’m Mr. Marsday. Now, shall I show you the new toy I’ve built for you?”