Afterward

"We march to the beat of a different drum.
We will fight, we don't run.
Stand up! Unified and joined as one.
It's not over, we've just begun—"

He stopped, breathless, and leaned back against the wall. Eduardo Jr. could hear the garbled voices of the small crowd outside the movie theatre, but otherwise the mall was dead. He scanned the parking lot, waiting, searching for signs of life around the cars. Still seeing no one, he pulled the bill of the blue baseball cap down further to hide his face and listened for Tye.

The night was chilled for May, the Taos Mountain still covered in spring snow; he could almost smell it on the wind. The gusts also brought with it the sound of feet in the distance, a hollow pounding of very large feet. And as the movie-goers began piling inside for their feature, Ed saw the beam of golden light at the other end of the plaza, heard the shatter of glass and felt the sidewalk quake beneath him. No one at the theatre seemed to notice in their cheer, and as the light faded, Ed pulled back into the alleyway between the cinema complex and shops.

Not seconds after, he heard an alarm go off, and Tye ran into the alley with him. "Go!" he urged.

They bolted through the passage, bounding over empty crates and trash from the adjacent store. There was a chain-link fence cutting them off, but Ed teleported through while Tye climbed it easily. They rounded behind the back of the theatre, running through total darkness, and came back around into the neon lights. Hopping onto the sidewalk, the boys slowed their pace, until they blended into the movie crowd.

Doing their best to appear innocent, Ed stowed his hands into his pockets and said to Tye, "Yeah?"

"Yeah." Tye's expression was full of dastardly pride.

Filtering into the lobby, hidden among the other heads, Eduardo smirked to himself, pleased with their latest strike against the Reach. Unable to produce tickets, they sat down on one of the hallway benches instead. Ed kept glancing out the glass entrance, to all eyes looking as if he were waiting for someone, but actually watchful of police or security. As the sound of the popcorn machines died away and the lobby emptied, he began to relax.

In the dulling noise, a specific conversation reached his ears. "We need theatre five," a father said to his small son.

"Theatre five!" The kid drummed the air with two wrapped drink straws, happily skipping along next to the Dad.

"You wanna show me where it is?"

Presenting a show of empowerment, the son dashed ahead with an excited, "Sure! Stay close so you don't get lost."

And Eduardo couldn't help but smile, if somewhat sadly. Tye must have noticed because he suddenly spoke, offering the sincerest tone, and what he said surprised him. "Thank you, Ed."

"For what? I was just the look-out."

Tye turned his gaze to the floor, reflecting, making Ed feel slightly uncomfortable too. "Not tonight. I mean... you know, for everything. I saw how you protected Sam back on the rooftop, and you always have our backs. I think I forgot that, for awhile."

Trying to mask his gnawing awkwardness, Ed fidgeted and replied, "Well, we're a team, right?"

"Sam called us brothers."

"She did?" His smile returned. That's right, Sam was quick to refer to them all as a family. Whatever nightmares had brought them together, it was undeniable they were also bound by them. Ed wasn't certain if he ever had such strong friendships before, but he found himself unexpectedly needing them. "I guess we are more like brothers—better or worse."

"Son como hermanos." Tye smiled softly towards the floor. There was a new look of gratitude and relief on his face, as if he had just recovered something he'd lost.

Ed knew what it was. Tye had lost his best friend to the Reach, but they had also inadvertently given him new ones. And Ed didn't want to break the trust the friends created in such a brief time. "Sí." The affirmation was heartfelt and positive, things which he wasn't accustomed to hearing from himself. So with a lop-sided grin Ed added with dark teasing, "And thanks for not crushing me, hermano."

Now Tye turned to look at him. When he saw the wicked amusement he smiled back ruefully, yet his voice was cheeky. "I hate your face, bro."

But he held out his hand, palm up, and Ed clapped his down into it with a satisfied laugh. The buried, touchy subject was resolved in that youthful instant, that boyish apology.

"So you wanna sneak into the movie?"

"Oh yeah."

When Virgil walked into the room, the first thing he noticed was the blue baseball cap atop Ed's head. "Oh, you did find it!" With a pleasant grin, he pulled his cap off the other boy, fluffing his already wild mess of hair into disarray. "Thanks, man."

Eduardo made no attempt to fix his hair. In fact, he didn't seem to hear him at all, breathing a contemplative, "Mmm-hmm." He was sitting on the floor before the laptop, squinting slightly at the screen with a thoughtful concern.

It troubled Virgil. "Somethin' wrong?"

"It's in binary."

"Huh?"

Ed lifted a hand and pointed at the screen, his brows dropping. "Binary code."

Leaning down while capping his head, Virgil saw the black screen and flood of numeric wordage. At first he wondered if there was something a simple system diagnostic would fix. "Can you open the dialogue box? Get the OS into safe mode?"

Ed shook his head. To prove his point, he restarted the computer and, as the visuals came back to life, he pressed all the manual keys to get the system to reboot, or at least over-ride into the recovery protocol. After a moment, the same lines of code scrolled across the screen; not even the mouse cursor activated.

"What the heck?" Virgil muttered. "Luthor just gave us this computer." He carefully studied the numerals, and the inclusion of erratic breaks made him shake his head. "It ain't any kind of encoding I know."

"Reach hack?"

"Not from Luthor's tech."

"Saturation effect, then," Ed countered. "A sort of random external disruption?"

"External, you're talkin' some kind of electromagnetic flux, and I swear I didn't touch the computer today." Virgil raised his hands away from the laptop, despite having no electrical currents running over his skin. At the thought of an outside interference, Virgil pulled out his Lex Corp phone. "Okay, even my phone is static."

Ed arched a brow at the pixilated mess on the smart-phone screen. Even as he reached for the remote Virgil said in a foreboding discontent, "Turn on the TV."

A dead reflection only greeted them, the digital picture silenced. "Something is blocking the satellites." Ed wore a grave look, theorizing internally.

Virgil turned back to the computer, curious yet cautious. "A message?"

"A warning." Tye's sudden voice gave them a start. He stood just outside the threshold of their new apartment, the safe-house suddenly feeling not so safe. His demeanor was strange. "Guys, check this out."

Following the Apache teen outside, Virgil sensed a new weight coming down on his shoulders, as if he'd just shrugged on a jacket made of iron; it made his lungs constrict, a tense shortening of breath. But the night was brisk and not unpleasant—not until they joined Asami's side and she pointed up to the clear sky. Virgil and Ed titled their heads back to follow her direction.

And the Runaways stared at the Warworld in amazed fear.

As soon as it was discovered, all efforts were made to cut off the aggressive, massive satellite and restore Earth's communications. They sat in front of the television, glued to the news reports on the new alien threat.

"Do you guys wanna go home?"

"There's no time," Tye mumbled, dark and unhappy. Though his face was blank, his voice betrayed him, the emotions crystal.

Sitting next to him, pressed quite close, Sam looked like she was holding her breath, fighting back tears. Ed had a death-grip on his phone, yet he made no attempts to call his father. Nor could he sit still, instead watching the rather hopeless events unfold as he paced behind the sofa, his eyes glassy.

Virgil swallowed hard. "I guess there's not."

His family, his friends—were they all just going to die now, in one giant attack? He felt oddly comforted listening to the news anchor give them a play-by-play of the Justice League's defense line, but nothing was for certain. He itched to be a part of the attack, to be on the inside. Everything was tumbling through his mind too fast, too strongly, it was overwhelming; Virgil suddenly felt a tear trickle down one cheek and he brushed it away angrily.

When it was announced the Reach was sending battleships to support Earth, Ed barked a nasty laugh and Tye bitterly shook his head. Virgil spoke without thinking: "This negates everythin' we done so far. Now the Reach will look like our saviors..."

As bleak as it all seemed, he wasn't willing to accept death as an option. He refused to be defeated.

"Aw hell yeah!"

Asami smiled at the gun-ho tone in Virgil's declaration. His spirits were high after the Warworld was officially shut down, and with Earth once again safe he was eager to return fire on the Reach. "Tenfold," he assured her.

"Things settle," she asked, "we go back out?"

"Battle ready." He held his fist straight out to her and, after a hesitant pause, she bumped it with her own. "Go get the others, huh? I wanna work out game plans for tonight."

"Sou sa. Will do."

"Yeah, yeah, sousas." He gave her a thumbs up, and Sam giggled, shaking her head at the silly attempt.

It was strange, but after the hours spent in dismal acceptance of death, of bearing witness to the possibility of Earth being annihilated, Asami now felt a mix of euphoria and eagerness. She knew the media would hype-up the Reach's involvement in disabling the other alien and they would see to it the spotlight shined brightly. The Runaways needed to put out that favoring light, or at least dull its flame. And feeling more alive—grateful to still be alive—she was wanting of an outlet, some vivacious action.

With a lively step she went down the hall after Tye, having noticed before he'd drifted away to the bedrooms. However, the sound of his quiet voice alerted her, and she knew not to barge in. She didn't mean to eavesdrop, but she kept inching towards the closed door until she could distinguish some phrases being said over the phone. And they made her smile.

"Mom... Stop, okay? Just don't cry. I said I was alright." His voice was stiff, slightly guarded, but he was trying and she was glad for him.

Yet she couldn't help but feel sorry for herself. Of course she considered calling her family, with the devastation hanging over their heads, but she knew she didn't have the courage yet. The memories were still raw and painful—Brother Blood had just given her a beating with them, reminding her how strong they were—and she needed more time. Maybe someday? She mostly feared them dragging her out of the States once they discovered her whereabouts, and she couldn't leave. She didn't want to leave the boys.

"No, I don't think so," Tye was saying. His words had an edge. "I don't know if I'm ready, not yet. And I don't want... you know, I have friends here, too. I think I need them as much as they need me..."

By the quality of his voice, she was sure Tye wouldn't leave her, either. But she still had concerns about Eduardo...

He'd been on the roof since the pre-dawn hours, at first feeling anxious and cooped up; he needed air and quiet. It was a lot to absorb, nearly being blown up by an alien war-satellite. Sitting on the ledge, Ed held onto his father's business card while he watched the stars disappear in the lightening sky. He was thoughtful, but no real thoughts weighed on his mind. Instead, he was glad to simply feel gravity tug gently at his feet dangling over the edge, listen to the chirping of the night insects fade. He was alive and he damn sure appreciated it, especially now—

"Ed-kun?"

Looking over his shoulder, he offered Sam a welcoming smile. "Hey."

"Hey." She waved as if unsure the word gave the right meaning.

When she hesitated he nodded, allowing her to break his reverie and join him. She sat down next to him, dropping her legs off the side without regard for the height; they had superpowers, after all. For awhile there was only silence, both of them staring out over the town. Sam glanced up at the sky, the clouds scorching violet at daybreak, and Ed could almost touch her thoughts, she was pondering so hard.

Then she asked, "S.T.A.R.?"

"Oh, yeah." He turned the card over in his hands so she could see the handwriting. "My Dad gave it to me."

"Go back?"

"Never. But maybe... maybe home..." He pocketed the card with a shrug.

"Good thing?"

"I don't know yet."

She nodded, and from the heartrending tilt of her brows he knew she understood. Another hush followed. Assuming she was still struggling with English, he was unprepared when she said, "Sorry." His eyebrows lifted and she felt the need to clarify. "Um, gomen naisai. Sorry very much."

He wanted to beam at how cute she was, but the fact she was apologizing was too distracting. "Why? I mean, you don't have anything to be sorry for."

"Anone, Ed-kun upset before, and I—"

Suddenly catching her drift, he felt heat rise to his cheeks at the memory of some of the things he said. And specifically the context he said them. "Don't, Sam." He spoke quickly, waving a hand to suggest it was alright, water under the bridge, please let it go. "I was just being an idiot before."

She stared at him for a moment—a moment which felt like an embarrassing eternity—until she finally grinned. There was something sheepish about her expression, and she said without bothering to translate, "Edu-kun dakedenaku, watashi mo meyamo." He sensed it was more self-reflecting, yet her voice was sympathetic.

He jogged her nicely with his shoulder. "It's okay. Really."

Ed didn't know what else to say. He didn't have the heart to laugh it off, didn't want to sound like he was just humoring her, and an explanation... that was way too mortifying. So he simply said, "Créeme, este idiota." And offered a friendly, yet impish, side-grin.

And it seemed to work because she laughed. Playfully jostling him back, she said in a fake whine, "Nandatte! Now make it hard for me."

In better spirits, building an odd camaraderie in their separate bilingual efforts, he shrugged and said, "Sorry, hermana. I do that sometimes. At least that's what my Dad thinks."

"Dad gave you card, ne? He still worrying." With a firm smile she implored, "We worry. No more sorry, please." And she took hold of his hand, giving it a soft squeeze.

Ed found her openness and compassion touching, knowing how hard she tried to convey meaning. He gripped her hand in both of his gratefully. Despite feeling the moment, he wouldn't kiss her—he would not break that trust with Tye. But he still leaned his forehead against her soft features, wanting to be near her in some way; he was comforted when she rested against him in turn.

"You're right," he whispered. He didn't want people feeling sorry for him anymore—not even himself. "No more sorry. Not on this team."

"Alright, guys," Virgil declared. "First night after the good ol' Warworld and we need to do real damage."

Tye crossed his arms and agreed, "No more pair-ups." His posture was resolute, his face showing ease but strength. He was ready for the fight, too.

"Right! I made a list to show all the area Reach crap, and I wanna see all of it in shambles before tomorrow."

"So, as you say here, we go out guns blazing." Eduardo's smirk was eager, and the usual moody countenance surrounding him had lifted.

"Light it up," Sam said, and she seemed to get the fierceness behind the slang.

"Alien invasion means we're at war. Ain't no way around it now. But remember, we're probably still bein' hunted and we gotta stick together." Virgil gave each of them a bold look and they nodded back in turn. "Then let's do what we do best. Let's go get into some trouble."

The End.

Note: Chapter is titled using lyrics from the song "Rise" by Fight the Fade. All copyrights reserved with no infringement intended.

A/N: A little closure. Virgil and Ed's scene was inspired by a conversation I had with a deviantART friend regarding them maybe being a little competitive smarts-wise; Eduardo might get a bit of the analytic brain from his father, while DC-verse Static is well-known for his tactics and science. It was fun to consider! Ed and Sam's scene started as a drawing I did, and theatre events based on true happenings. XD

Thank you for reading! Now go watch the episode "The Hunt"! (^_~)