“Nova’s territory wasn’t the first place thisstuffsurfaced.” She looked at Apà Cosmo, who unfolded his arms, his frown deepening.
“Not even the second,” he added, his no-nonsense voice sharp and concise. “While traveling, we’ve been meeting with leaders of supe organizations like ours across the continents, per Ezra’s request.” Ezra dipped her head slightly in a silent thanks.
“One of the things we learned is this substance made its way through Asia, the Mediterranean, and Europe before ending up on your doorsteps.” Looking at my mom and dads, he continued with a smirk. “We may have helped them out with a few situations here and there.”
Riot’s voice cut through, sounding skeptical. “How? How did you help them?”
Daddy Lex leaned forward, grinning before she finished her question. His hands waved in front of him like he was brushing away dust. “Oh, you know… like finding snitches, getting information, taking care of people trying to fuck with them, killing people—the good stuff. It's still vacation.” All my parents were laughing, eyes twinkling with secrets.
Riot nodded once, dead serious, like she completely understood him. Ezra’s mouth twitched, a hint of a smirk, but it was gone as soon as it appeared.
Dad Ax’s voice growled like thunder, “While handling this, we tripped over some bodies in back alleys, ones that had green stuff coming out of their mouths or eyes. We found a couple of them alive, but they had to be put down after they tried to go on a rampage.” His jaw flexed. “It was a little bit of the Wild West, but we kept it from getting out of hand.”
The room went still, everyone taking in the weight of his words. If what he was saying was correct, this wasn't just anusattack. This was more of an attack on supes in general, and they were going for the strongest or the ones with the most power first.
Aniyah’s arms folded tight across her chest, her nostrils flared. “And where weretheirpeople? Her eyes narrowed. “How come you guys were doing all the work?”
Five grown men, former bosses themselves, shifted under her glare. Red crept up their necks until they looked like schoolboys who’d been caught smoking behind the gym. All our lives, they’d had a big soft spot for Aniyah. She was the youngest daughter after all.Eye roll.
“I told you,” my mom mumbled out the side of her mouth. “She’s got you all wrapped around her little finger, and it's your fault for letting her.”
Never one to resist a bad idea or a way to make everyone groan, Daddy Lex grinned. “She may have us wrapped around her finger, but you have us wrapped up in your pus?—”
“Nope!” Calix’s voice cracked through the air, sharp as a whip.
Aniyah doubled over with laughter, clutching her stomach. Mom’s cheeks flushed a rosy hue against her pale skin, but she leaned closer to Daddy, lips curling with a promise only he heard. His face lit up like it was his birthday.
Father Falcon cleared his throat. “In doing all that…” His gaze cut across the room, silently reminding them to get back on track. “The data showed that the turned supes were able to last much longer and sustain their original forms better than born supes while on this substance. They eventually met the same end, but, in most cases, the time was doubled, if not tripled.”
Calix’s voice rose in a rush. “When Father told me his finds, I went to test the theory and found that he was right. The rate in which the substance would latch on and pump up the magic to consume was a much slower rate.” He took a long exhale. “My thought is that, at the DNA level, there’s a difference between borrowed magic and born magic.”
That made sense considering we had a spike in missing turned supes. It wasn't just that they were poor or undesired; it was because he got more out of them. “That tracks with what we’re experiencing.” I nodded. “It's the turned supes that are disappearing.”
I ran through what I had found in the cave, giving my parents this information for the first time. When I finished, my parents didn't have any questions, no, but their faces darkened.
Ezra’s curiosity rang out. “What did these organizations do to get rid of the problem?”
Mom’s lips thinned. “They didn’t. Every time someone got close, the trail would vanish, whole labs emptied overnight, then the same pattern would start over somewhere new.”
Ezra turned to Calix, her voice firm. “Can you make something to counter it? An antidote?”
Calix’s cocky grin slid into place, smug and certain. “Already started on one.” He looked at his watch. “Just give me another twenty-four hours and a consult with the bio team, and I’ll have something to neutralize it.” His gaze went over to something we couldn't see. “Then I’ll look into that old fae blade that got Nova. See what's up with that ancient fae magic.”
The moment Calix said the words, my parents immediately sat up straight.
“Ancient what?!”
“What the fuck happened to Nova?”
“Fae magic knife?”
“Never heard of one.”
Ezra raised both hands,trying to keep the parents calm. “Nova ran into someone connected with all of this, and they had a magic knife that could stop a supe from healing.” Before their voices grew louder, she followed with, “As you can see, Nova is fine.”
As soon as the noise died down, Dad Ax thundered, “What the fuck? Since when do we have ancient fae magic?”
Papa Avery rubbed his chin, brows knitting. “Never heard of that kind of enchantment, and I’m like fae royalty.”
