"Starlight, come to the conference room, now!"
When Ashley called, Starlight had just changed into her uniform.
"Uh, now?"
"Yes, now. Don't ask questions, just hurry."
The call ended as soon as she finished speaking.
By the time she arrived at the company and pushed open the conference room door, quite a few people were already seated inside.
The first thing she noticed was that the nameplates on the table had changed.
A-Train's name was gone, and his seat was empty.
A nameplate reading Stormfront sat in a conspicuous spot, its lettering fresh.
Black Noir's seat was empty too.
A note had been placed there.
[Recovering]
Starlight paused, wondering if she had walked into the wrong room.
She had seen A-Train just yesterday.
How had he suddenly left The Seven?
Ashley hurried over from the side and said quietly, "Sit down, Annie. Don't stand in the doorway."
Starlight came to her senses and took her seat, but her gaze drifted to A-Train's empty chair.
Homelander sat beside the head of the table.
He wore a smile, his blond hair was neatly combed, and his suit was new. But Starlight could tell that his smile looked a little forced today, with the corners of his eyes held taut.
Maeve leaned back in her chair, drinking water with her head lowered.
At meetings, she would usually at least give a newcomer a mocking look, but today she didn't even bother.
A few minutes later, Edgar entered the conference room.
He took the seat at the head of the table and opened a file.
"First, an announcement. A-Train has officially left The Seven due to health issues."
The conference room was quiet. No one objected.
Edgar continued reading.
"Black Noir will undergo long-term rehabilitation treatment within the company's medical system. The PR department will handle all public statements regarding the matter. No member is to respond to the media on their own."
Starlight's fingers tightened as she listened.
What on earth happened? There are only three people left in The Seven now!
"Stormfront will be joining The Seven as a new member." Edgar looked up at everyone. "For the next while, she'll be responsible for The Seven's public relations and for shaping public opinion among younger audiences."
Stormfront sat on the other side of the room and waved to the others with a smile.
"That sounds awfully bureaucratic. But don't worry, I'll make you people in suits look a little less old-fashioned."
Ashley gave a couple of awkward laughs and nodded beside her.
After the meeting, a press conference was quickly arranged.
Before Starlight had even figured out what had happened to A-Train, she was standing onstage, smiling for the cameras with a group of people.
Stormfront knew how to command the cameras.
She walked to the front of the stage and spread her hands at the fans below.
"Seriously, I read the script the company gave me, and it was so boring. Who even wrote it? Do you think young people like listening to robots read scripts?"
The crowd laughed, and some people whistled.
Standing off to the side, Ashley's expression stiffened for a moment before she forced another smile.
Stormfront didn't look at her. She continued speaking to the cameras. "I didn't come here to be an obedient product. The Seven needs to change, and superheroes need to keep up with the times too."
The cheers grew louder and louder.
Starlight stood beside her, clapping along with a well-practiced smile on her face.
She felt awkward.
Homelander didn't try to steal the spotlight at all. He didn't even seem to care about the cameras.
He stood behind Stormfront, simply nodding and smiling. Maeve kept her head down the whole time, staring at the water bottle in her hands.
Starlight clapped, several things turning over in her mind.
A-Train had left the team.
Black Noir was recovering.
Stormfront had filled a vacancy.
Those things couldn't all be a coincidence.
After the press conference ended, backstage was in chaos.
People from the PR department surrounded Stormfront, some handing her phones, others touching up her makeup. Ashley was on the phone, muttering curses under her breath, looking irritated.
When no one was paying attention, Starlight said quietly, "I'm going to the bathroom."
Ashley didn't even look up.
"Hurry. The group photo with the new member is in ten minutes."
Starlight nodded, then turned and entered the hallway.
She had just seen two medical workers push a box out through a side door. It bore the Vought medical department's logo and a line of small print.
High-risk sample.
Starlight slowed her steps and followed them.
There were no media or fans at the end of the hallway, only white lights and the hum of the air conditioning. The two medical workers thought no one was around and spoke a little louder.
"Is Black Noir still alive?"
"More or less."
"Did the explosion cause his injuries?"
The other person said nothing. After a while, he lowered his voice. "Don't ask questions. His injuries were clearly caused by a punch. It might have been Homelander."
Starlight halted, her face turning pale.
Homelander injured Black Noir?
She braced herself against a cabinet by the wall, her fingertips cold.
The medical workers walked away.
She stood where she was, thinking of how A-Train had been lately.
He had saved her.
He had also shielded her from The Deep.
Could Homelander have killed him for running his mouth? That would explain why Homelander is being so cooperative today. Is this his punishment for killing two colleagues?
Starlight shuddered.
She quickly lowered her head and took a deep breath.
Impossible.
She returned to the lounge. The door wasn't completely closed.
Stormfront's voice came from inside.
"A monster is a monster. Why call him the Blood Angel? Have those people online lost their minds?"
Stormfront sat on the sofa, reading comments on her phone. The light from the screen illuminated her face. Her lips were curved in a smile, but her eyes were cold.
"So what if he saved a plane? If he can save it, he can destroy it. Hurry up and suppress that term. Don't let those idiots turn him into a god."
Someone said something on the other end of the line.
Stormfront sneered.
"Homelander? Right now, he needs to have a good think about what he should do."
Starlight felt her back tense as she listened.
Stormfront ended the call, tossed her phone on the table, and got up to leave.
Starlight quickly retreated around the corner.
Stormfront walked past her without looking back, but paused for a moment as she passed.
"New girl."
Starlight stiffened and looked up at her.
Stormfront smiled.
"Don't be too curious. At Vought Tower, curious people don't come to a good end."
Starlight stood there, her palms covered in sweat.
She waited a few seconds and made sure the hallway was empty before pushing open the lounge door.
Stormfront's phone was still on the table.
The screen was lit.
Starlight knew she shouldn't touch it.
But she walked over anyway.
The phone was displaying an internal system. Someone had apparently been in too much of a hurry when switching away from it and hadn't fully logged out.
She looked down.
A string of red warning text appeared at the top of the page.
[A-Train impersonator risk level: maximum]
Starlight's breath caught for a moment.
An impersonator.
Not A-Train.
She stared at the words, her mind blank, unable to react for a long time.
If A-Train was an impersonator...
Where did the real A-Train go?
She thought again of the person who had suddenly helped her, of his violence and his warnings.
Could that guy not be A-Train?
The screen suddenly switched pages on its own.
Starlight's hand jerked, and she nearly threw the phone.
A secretly recorded video began to play.
The footage was blurry, and screams filled the cabin. The camera shook violently. Dark clouds loomed outside the windows, and the plane was falling.
Then something reached out of the clouds.
Black-and-red tendrils pressed against the fuselage, and a pair of wings made of flesh spread out beneath the plane, holding up the falling airliner.
Starlight froze, her breathing slowing for a beat.
The screams in the cabin gradually turned to sobs and prayers.
Someone shouted the Blood Angel's name.
Someone said they were saved.
Starlight watched the black-and-red figure on the screen.
A thought surfaced.
The monster Vought talks about might be the real hero.
He's the one who disguised himself as A-Train.