"Listen up," the FBI director barked, "you're all here to cooperate with an investigation. As long as you play nice, you'll be out of here soon. Honestly, there are some among you I wouldn't mind never seeing again."
He shot a pointed glare at Frenchie and MM, his threat practically written on his face.
MM clenched his fists and glanced at his wife and child. In the end, he lowered his head. Frenchie touched the wounds on his body, then grudgingly backed down as well.
The rest of the group exchanged uneasy looks. The atmosphere was heavy.
If they were only dealing with Vought and the Seven, they might have been willing to risk it all. After all, the Quiz Game had exposed Vought's vile crimes, and fighting back against such a corrupt organization didn't require any moral justification.
But they hadn't expected Vought to be absorbed into the government—apparently, some people had no shame.
Facing a national security agency was a different beast altogether. They weren't equipped to go up against official institutions.
After some silent communication through exchanged glances, Annie Starlight finally stepped forward to act as the group's de facto spokesperson.
"What exactly do you want from us?" she asked.
"It's quite simple. We only need to speak to three of you. Well, two now," the FBI director said coldly. "Annie. Hughie. Step into the conference room. Now."
He flashed a cold smile. "As long as we come to an understanding, I promise the rest of them will walk out of here safely."
Annie and Hughie exchanged a glance. With so many hostages in play, they had no choice but to comply.
Once inside, the director wasted no time. He laid out two demands:
First, he wanted a full account—every detail—of their experience in the Quiz game.
Second, he wanted them to become informants.
"What kind of informants?" Hughie asked, stunned.
"Inside the Quiz Game, of course," the director replied. "You were selected as players, and so were those alien invaders who showed up recently. I want you to get close to them during the game—gain their trust, dig up intelligence. And yes, there will be assignments."
His tone was cold and commanding, arrogance dripping from his every word.
Annie folded her arms and frowned. "You've seriously overestimated yourselves."
"First of all, we're not the only world that's been selected by the Quiz Game. Plenty of other universes were chosen before us. That means we're latecomers—extras, basically. No one knows when or even if we'll be selected again. Thinking we can infiltrate it is laughable."
"Second, those 'aliens' you're so worried about? They're heroes in their own worlds. Real heroes—not the fake, narcissistic monsters Vought mass-produces."
"They came to help us. For free. They came to stop Homelander from going rogue. We owe them our gratitude, not suspicion."
"And finally… even if we wanted to join them, we couldn't. Not unless you've figured out how to open an interdimensional portal. Have you?"
Hughie looked at her with newfound admiration. She'd said exactly what he'd been thinking—only much braver than he ever could. Even with superpowers now, Hughie still lacked the guts to stand up to authority like this.
The FBI director raised an eyebrow, staring at Annie with interest before giving a cold chuckle.
"Looks like they've brainwashed you."
He tapped a file in front of him. "I've read your entire background, Annie January. Every record. You're giving me whiplash. A naive college grad one day, and suddenly you're acting like a hardened pro? Impressive."
"Yeah, amazing, isn't it?" Annie shrugged, her words deliberately layered. After all, it was the gift she received from Wonder Woman that helped her evolve.
Without that trial on Themyscira, she probably wouldn't have handled this any better than Hughie—maybe worse.
The FBI director leaned back in his chair, still eyeing her coldly. "So just to confirm—all that was a long-winded way of saying 'no,' right?"
"You can take it that way," she replied, lifting her chin. "Emotionally and logically, I can't agree to anything you're proposing."
The director turned to Hughie with a mocking grin. "And you, killer? You know what I want to hear."
Hughie swallowed hard. He glanced at Annie, then took a deep breath.
"I… I want to say I'm innocent. At least for now, I haven't done anything. And no—I'm not going along with this either."
He exhaled sharply, his body relaxing a little now that the words were out.
"Excellent," the director sneered, revealing gleaming teeth.
"Of all the people I've had to deal with, the worst are the naive, the arrogant, and the self-righteous. You two check all three boxes."
He stood up, his chair creaking sharply against the floor.
"And just know this—when I walk out of this room, the people you care about will all pay for your stupidity."
Annie watched him silently, lips pressed together. Hughie was sweating bullets.
Just as the director's hand touched the door handle, a crisp voice echoed through the room:
"Then tell me—who's going to pay for your stupidity?"
A swirl of brilliant blue energy flared in the corner of the room. A glowing portal opened.
Out stepped a striking woman clad in warrior armor.
"Diana!" Annie instantly recognized her. It was Wonder Woman—her guide and mentor during her training on Themyscira.
"Hello," Diana greeted with a smile. "You carry a familiar scent. Seems your time with the Amazons left its mark."
Annie was overjoyed. "You came for me?"
"You could say that, yes." Diana nodded, her gaze shifting to the now-frozen FBI director. Her tone cooled. "But we'll chat more after I finish business with him."
She stepped aside, allowing the rest of the group to enter.
Captain America. Iron Man. Batman. Nick Fury. And—last but not least—the Ancient One.
Now it was the FBI director's turn to sweat.
He and his advisors had done projections. They'd assumed that even if more aliens or players showed up, it would happen later—maybe days, maybe weeks. After all, the Quiz Game had just ended. Superman's group had only recently left.
That's why they rushed to interrogate Annie and Hughie, hoping to exploit the "quiet window."
If Butcher hadn't mysteriously vanished, all three players would've been in custody by now.
But they hadn't expected another group to arrive.
And certainly not this soon.