“Some guy who showed up mid-combat,” said Oscar. “Faced off against Nightmare. He had an R on his suit, but…” He shrugged. “None of us have ever seen him before.”
Adrian kept his brow tight with confusion. “The Sentinel?”
“That’s what Monarch said, before they put her under. He was a fire elemental, I think.” Oscar frowned. “But it definitely wasn’t Wildfire.”
Wildfire was the only fire elemental they currently had on the Renegades, at least in the Gatlon City branch. Adrian had gotten most of his ideas for how to handle fire manipulation from watching him in the training halls.
Ruby yawned. “I don’t think it was that Islander prodigy, either. The one who trained here last year. Magma, was it? This Sentinel guy was fully covered, head to toe. Someone caught a photo of him from street level so they’re starting to circulate it, to see if anyone knows anything.”
“He also had superior jumping,” said Oscar, “and this suit, like something straight out of a comic book. Honestly, I think he might be from research and development—like maybe some sort of new super-soldier they’ve been working on down there, and it’s too classified for them to admit it yet.”
Ruby gasped and leaned forward excitedly, like she’d just uncovered a clue. “Or he could be a villain, masquerading as a Renegade. Maybe he’s trying to hurt our reputation. Maybe it’s all part of some complicated scheme that will lead to our ultimate downfall!”
Adrian and Oscar stared at her.
Ruby shrugged. “Maybe?”
“Maybe,” Oscar agreed.
Collapsing back onto the bench, Ruby threw an arm over her eyes, as if this outburst had sapped her last bits of energy. The bloodstone on her wrist reflected the room’s light, turning her cheek a rosy red. “That’s my theory and I’m sticking to it.”
“But he was fighting Nightmare at first,” said Oscar, “before he attacked Monarch. Or maybe that was a mistake. Who knows?”
“Was anyone else hurt?” asked Adrian.
“Nope,” said Ruby, with a hint of defensiveness. “We’re grand. Positively stellar.”
“Nightmare got to her,” explained Oscar. “Put her to sleep.” He reached down and pet Ruby on the head. It was one of the most awkward gestures Adrian could recall him ever making, and Oscar could be a pretty awkward guy at times.
“Tattletale,” Ruby grumbled, swatting him away. “In case anyone’s wondering, I currently feel like someone’s filled my head with concrete.”
Adrian bit back the impulse to say he knew exactly how she felt. “That makes the fourth time this year a Renegade team has come in contact with Nightmare. She can’t be working alone.”
“She escaped on the Puppeteer’s balloon,” said Oscar. “Could be a new Anarchist.”
“But,” said Ruby, thrusting a finger into the air, “she threw the Puppeteer overboard. That’s not exactly a friendly greeting.”
“That’s their thing though, isn’t it?” said Adrian. “Even when they’re supposed to be working together, they still believe in trampling the weak to make way for the strong.”
Oscar shrugged. “Makes no sense to me, but then, they are villains. Who knows how they think?”
“On the bright side,” Ruby said, opening her eyes and flashing a mischievous grin, “I got Nightmare’s gun.”
Adrian lifted an eyebrow.
“They took it upstairs to have it inspected,” said Oscar. “She fired off one dart at the Captain, came this close to hitting him in the eye.” He pinched his fingers together. “That dart is being looked at too. Maybe they’ll be able to trace it back to wherever she got it from.”
Adrian looked away. He didn’t know how much information they could garner from the gun or the dart she’d used, but it was something. It was a start.
That morning, he had cared only about proving his abilities as the Sentinel. He had been excited to show them all what he could do. He had fantasized about taking off the Sentinel’s helmet and revealing himself to his team and the rest of the Renegades.
But he hardly cared about any of that anymore. One sentence from Nightmare had changed everything.
He had to find out who she was. He had to find out what she knew.
He had to find her.
CHAPTER FIVE
ADRIAN WAS BECOMING ANXIOUS, though he wasn’t sure why. Thunderbird had been brought to headquarters hours ago to be treated for her injuries, but the rest of the Council still wasn’t back. He would have known by now if they were hurt, so that wasn’t it. Maybe he was curious if they’d heard about the Sentinel. What they thought. If they were able to see right through him.