Haven flicked on the TV as the Legion, now down one more member, slowly picked through the take-out Jo had gotten for them. It had been chaotic since Prime was arrested, with Achilles and Light Master insisting that they had to launch a rescue, while Jo somehow managed to talk them down. Knight had expressed concern about that plan as well - they couldn't help anyone if they were behind bars and the prison wouldn't be easy to break into.
Haven herself had stayed quiet throughout the conversation. If she spoke up against Achilles, he'd be angry with her. Even if she was no longer sure if he was the best thing that had ever happened to her, she wasn't ready to commit to doing anything that would displease him.
Silence reigned over the old Legion headquarters. Haven had grabbed the remote to try and fill it, and she just clicked on the first live program she found.
It was some some kind of wrestling news. Speculation about what had happened to former wrestler Brennan Zavala, who hadn't been seen since his retirement earlier that year. Haven's heart sank as she thought of what he must be feeling right now.
A similar mood seemed to fall over everyone else, but nobody moved to change the program. Fifteen minutes later, it finished and autoplay chose Alyx Turner as their next stream.
The theme played, then she started talking as everyone slowly picked through their food.
"Hello, everyone, and welcome to Present Events. We've got some juicy stuff to get through tonight, but before that let's discuss Counselor Shaw's push for an increased budget for schools. The motion came earlier this week, and he's been campaigning hard for it."
A clip of said counselor started playing, quoting him in an interview about it. Haven mostly ignored the show, content to leave it as background noise.
A few minutes later, though, she wanted to melt into a puddle on the floor.
"And now for the big discussion," Alyx said, straightening in her seat. "The Legion.
"Now, we all know who these freaks are now. We've seen them running around with their 'Miracles' and doing crazy stuff. The Legion fights the Phalanx, the Phalanx broke up, Paris joined Team Chaos, and the tale goes on. We've got creeps crawling out of the woodwork, and not really anyone with the chops to restrain them.
"Oh, 'But Alyx', you say, 'The Legion protects us from all the bad guys!' Ha. No, no they don't. They act the whole 'heroic justice' thing, but really, they cause as much trouble as anyone else. Remember this?"
Footage of the Phalanx attack on several young kids played behind her, showing Scattershot shooting a few of the children. Parts of the video were blurred out, but you could still tell what was going on.
"Yeah. Legion shows up and makes that whole situation worse. Now, what about this?"
More footage. This time, of Hot Rod and Cold Snap battling with a civilian between them.
"That first one we could maybe forgive as ignorance, but that second video? They don't give a crap about us. The Legion is just as bad as the other groups. At least those groups are open about how *bleep* up they are."
Haven shuddered at the fact that they had to censor Alyx this time. She must have been really mad. Achilles looked annoyed too. She reached for the remote, but Light Master had already grabbed it and was giving the TV a solid death glare.
"Anyway, you know my opinion of the Legion by now. Today's news actually gives me mixed feelings. I feel vindicated that I was right all along, and I feel disappointed that I was right all along.
"Long story short, this morning the military responded to a security alarm for a residential building. When they got there, the Legion was there - most of them actually - and they were attacking civilians.
"Yeah. You heard me right. They invaded a private residence and attacked the people inside without warning or cause. The military managed to arrest Prime, but the rest of them got away. I expect they'll release Prime's real name and whatnot shortly, and they're looking for the others who were there."
Light Master finally turned off the TV and stomped back to dinner. The rest of the meal was in silence.
Alyx's program, however, wasn't over. Throughout the city, her show continued.
"The total list of Legion members they're after consists of Achilles, Light Master, Prime, Barrier Maiden and Knight Errant. No sign of Rose, Lightning or Jumper. Guess those three were smart enough to avoid trouble this time.
"Now, first off, we have Achilles The Delusional. Been doing this hero thing for a little over a year now, but his behaviour's been slowly escalating. Last year I thought he was a delusional weirdo, maybe some publicity stunt for some company or whatever, but now we've got evidence that these so-called Miracles he's so fond of actually do exist and defy the laws of the universe. Wahoo. Now, I don't know if these Miracles have some kind of negative impact on the psyche or if he's just this kind of creep normally, but we may never know.
"Next up on our list is Light Master. This thirteen-year-old brat seems just as bad as Achilles, but with more firepower. While Achilles is just invincible, Light Master - whose real name is known, but which I'll be concealing for privacy reasons - actually has a Miracle that attacks. Basically the kid has a high-power raygun in each hand. In today's incident, he even injured multiple military officers. This one needs to be locked up. Locked up, given serious counseling, and maybe throwing away the key.
"Prime seems more reasonable, and they did actually manage to arrest the guy. They might work out some kind of deal with him for the rest of the Legion too, so I'm glad at least one of them got caught. Hopefully he doesn't go the same route as Phantasma and Hot Rod. As much as I don't like the Legion, I don't mind Prime. When people see him on patrols, he seems friendly and down-to-earth, happy to talk, shake hands, and help out wherever he can.
"Yeah, I guess Prime would be some of the Legion's best. So on the one hand I'm sorry to see him locked up. On the other, I hope he cooperates with the military so we can get the real dangerous ones off the streets.
"Fourth on the list of wanted Legion members is Barrier Maiden. My source says she's wanted more for questioning than anything else, but we'll see how that goes. You've seen her around. Looks kind of like a model. Makes telekinetic shields or whatever. Spotted somewhat often with Achilles, some speculate that the two are a thing. Moving on.
"Finally, we have Knight Errant, who's been spotted a little less frequently lately. Has a sword. Fashioned his persona after those ancient medieval knights or whatever. Report says one victim suffered from a stab wound, so I'm going to assume that was Dear Old Knighty Boy. Unless the Legion's packing knives now, which wouldn't surprise me, but seems unlikely.
"Those five are wanted for this incident. I don't think they've caused as much trouble as Hot Rod - he was in the same league as Team Chaos - but rules gotta be respected. If nowhere is safe anymore, what are we going to do, really? Not like we can take a trip to the other side of the continent to get away from these freaks.
"So I really don't know what our solution is here. If there was an easy way to get rid of Miracles, that would be the obvious solution. No Miracle, no fireball in anyone's face. But the logic behind them is so bizarre and inscrutable that we don't even know the science behind how any of them do it.
"I, for one, am tired of this being our new status quo. I am also tired of our government and military - who are supposed to protect us - doing nothing about any of it."
Aila watched until the end of the program, then curled up in her hospital bed and went to sleep.
This was her last day before they let her go. Starting tomorrow, she'd work on fulfilling her mission.
