By the time Exalibar's final class ended, Sky was already leaning against his sleek silver car in the academy parking lot, scrolling through his phone.
"What took you so long?" Sky asked without looking up.
Exalibar didn't answer. Instead, he swung his backpack and tossed it cleanly through the car's open window, landing it perfectly on the passenger seat. "I was getting some notes."
Sky finally looked over, raising an eyebrow. "Woah, woah, woah. What about your car?"
"What about it?"
"Aren't you taking it? You love that thing more than you love me."
"No need," Exalibar said, sliding into the passenger seat. "Chloe is bringing it."
Sky's eyes widened as he got in and started the engine. "You told her about the agency???"
"No," Exalibar said, buckling his seatbelt. "But I did tell her to pick me up there. We're going out to catch a movie afterwards."
Sky pulled out of the parking lot, groaning. "Damn it! If I'd known, I would have invited Jane. We could have double-dated."
"You guys are still together?" Exalibar asked, feigning surprise.
Sky shot him an astonished look. "Why wouldn't we be?"
"Meh, I don't know. Your hoe-like tendencies?"
"Bro, I told you, this is serious! I am actually trying loyal—"
"BRO! LOOK AT THAT GIRL OVER THERE!" Exalibar yelled, pointing dramatically out the window.
"WHERE?!" Sky craned his neck, scanning the sidewalk.
Exalibar burst out laughing. "HA! Got you! See what I mean? Loyalty, my ass."
"Foul, bro. That was just foul," Sky grumbled, shaking his head but smiling despite himself.
"Uhh, anyways," Sky said, changing the subject as he pulled up to a towering, gleaming skyscraper, "we're here."
The two brothers made their way through the revolving doors of The Valiant Agency headquarters into a vast, marble-floored lobby. And waiting for them at the reception desk, as if he had all the time in the world, was Ronin himself.
"Boys," Ronin said, a genuine smile on his face. "Glad you made it."
"Happy to be here, sir," Exalibar replied, his tone respectful.
"Wonderful." Ronin turned to the receptionist. "Have my secretary come down and escort these two. She knows where they need to go."
"Yes, sir," the receptionist chirped.
Sky looked confused. "Wait, won't you be with us?"
"I will," Ronin assured them. "I just need to attend to a call I got about a robbery happening on 8th street. I'll be quick."
"Oh, okay."
A moment later, a beautiful yet severe-looking woman with a sharp business suit and a sharper haircut approached. "If you will kindly follow me?" she said, her voice devoid of warmth.
"Lead the way, ma'am," Exalibar said, throwing a quick 'check her out' look at Sky.
Sky gave a subtle, understanding nod.
As they followed her to a private elevator, Exalibar leaned in and whispered, "Loyalty, my ass."
The elevator descended, the numbers on the display ticking down into the building's sub-levels. The door opened not into another lavish lobby, but onto a short, narrow passageway with stark concrete walls and a single, unmarked metal door at the end.
"Eerie," Exalibar muttered.
"Yeah," Sky agreed, his usual confidence seeming slightly diminished.
"This is your stop," the secretary announced, remaining inside the elevator. "Mister Ronin will meet with you here shortly."
"Aren't you staying?" Exalibar asked.
"This area is beneath my pay grade," she stated flatly. "Now, go. I have other issues to attend to." The elevator doors slid shut, leaving the brothers alone in the silent, dimly lit corridor.
Shrugging, Exalibar pushed open the heavy metal door. The room inside was a spartan briefing room with a large table and a few chairs. And sitting on a sofa with his back to them was another figure.
Exalibar's expression instantly morphed from cautious curiosity to pure, unadulterated disgust.
"You," he spat.
The figure on the sofa turned around slowly, a smug, infuriatingly handsome smile on his face. "Well, if it isn't the two nepo-babies."
A vein bulged on Exalibar's forehead. "Always a pleasure, Ethan."
There were two, no, three things Exalibar truly loathed in this world:
1. Raw onions.
2. The chosen one trope in media.
3. Ethan.
Ethan was two of these three things. Born with the highest ever recorded innate mana capacity in human history, Ethan was the type of person novels were written about. Tall, sculpted, effortlessly charismatic, and above all else, devastatingly powerful. It was the 'powerful' part Exalibar really loathed. They were constant subjects of comparison, with people whispering that the only reason anyone would pick Exalibar over Ethan was the Maxford fortune. Those statements festered. It also didn't help that the one time they had fought, six years ago, Ethan had wiped the floor with him. A fact Ethan never failed to rub in his face.
"Why is this male Mary Sue here?" Exalibar scoffed, not taking his eyes off the antagonist to his personal story.
"The same reason you are here," Ethan replied, his smile never wavering.
"Yeah, I'm not working with this guy."
"Whaaat? Why?" Ethan asked, feigning innocence.
"You know why."
"That's all in the past, bro! We forgive and forget."
Exalibar internally seethed. It's this exact type of condescending, 'holier-than-thou' attitude why I can't stand this guy.
Sky, sensing his brother's hostility reaching a boiling point, stepped between them. "Now, let's all calm down before we do something we all regret."
Just then, the door opened again, and Valery walked in, her presence instantly cooling the temperature in the room. "Yes, yes, Sky is right. Good afternoon, boys."
All three mumbled a synchronized, "Good afternoon, ma'am."
After a few strained pleasantries, they got down to business. Valery sat at the head of the table. "As you know, we are putting together a team to handle operations that are… beyond the scope of official heroics. The three of you have been selected as the core."
"Anything for the greater good, ma'am," Ethan said, his voice oozing sincerity.
Exalibar's internal monologue was less polite. "Fuckass saint."
"Yes," Valery continued, a hint of a smile on her lips. "Now, the reasons we picked you are different. Exalibar, yours was based on merit. Sky, via recommendation. And Ethan, to gain more practical field experience." She paused. "However, the three of you aren't enough. You will need a total of seven people. Luckily, we have already secured the others. They should be arriving shortly."
"Who did you pick?" Exalibar asked, his interest piqued.
"Well, we tried contacting Theo, but after his… traumatic experience, he refuses to do anything field-related. He will, however, provide tech support. Jack agreed on the spot. So did Aisha."
Exalibar's head snapped up. "Aisha? You're dragging your own daughter into this?"
"It was actually her idea," Valery corrected gently. "Dylan, too."
Sky whistled. "Oh, wow. But isn't Dylan an aspiring public hero?"
"He is. He will need to use an alter ego, which, by the way, all of you will be using. More on that later."
Ethan leaned back. "That just leaves one person."
"Yeah," Exalibar grumbled, scanning the room. "I wonder who that could be."
At that exact moment, a pair of soft, familiar hands covered his eyes from behind.
"Yes," said a sweet, melodic voice that made his heart simultaneously soar and sink. "I wonder, too."
Sky burst out laughing, unable to contain himself.
Exalibar's shoulders slumped in utter, complete defeat.