Chapter 36

Fran squatted down right in front of Logan and put her hand on his shoulder. "Ah, don't worry. I'm sure there are lots of girls that like you!"

She was brutal. Rebecca and I both stifled our surprise. How could anyone be so blunt like that!?

Logan looked up with tearful eyes. "*Hic* I thought you loved me! Wahhhhh." Whoa, this guy was a crybaby? His physique said otherwise, but I guess this poor guy was a bit sensitive. He had snot coming out of his nose as he held his face in his hands. This was a very unfortunate scene to watch. I should've stopped her. Fran looked pleased with herself, not because she had hurt someone's feelings, but because she was being direct and clear with her words, knowing there was no other way to interpret her feelings.

I tried to console Logan. "Hey, I know I might not be the guy to tell you this, but she was kind of under a magic spell." As I got closer, I could feel my power latch onto him, and he started to calm down. "Oh..." He sat there in silence, seemingly depressed at the thought that his love was a sham all along. I kind of relate though... But I guess it's not his fault... He probably thought she was really that into him.

"So Talon was using this guy to separate us, Steven?" Fran acknowledged the question we all had. This poor man was just another victim of Talon's designs.

Rebecca interrupted the moment with a logical point of view. "Well, I guess we'll see you at school, Logan... We have to go fight the guy who did this to you." She turned, and we started to follow. None of us really knew him well anyway, and we were on a mission. I figured I could try and talk to him later, maybe, if he still needed to understand what happened. But he called after us, "Let me go with you!"

Huh?

"I don't really have any friends, so even if I'm not dating Fran, I'd at least like to be friends, if we can..." He pushed his fingertips together like someone begging for something they knew they shouldn’t ask for. He looked to the side shyly.

This was a lot to take in... I'm not sure I can accept this guy right now.

"Yeah, sure!" Fran smiled brightly and immediately let him come along. Welp, I guess he's coming....

We started down the steps—Fran in front, me, Rebecca, Leo, then Logan, who wouldn't stop talking. "So how do you all know each other? How long have Steven and Fran been going out? Who is Leo? Why do you guys have bird names, and Rebecca and Leo have flower names? Who's this Talon guy? Wait, Fran, you have superpowers? Wait, you all have superpowers?"

I was starting to feel drained but also kind of relieved. This guy was kind of annoying; there was no way Fran would've been into him. I looked at Fran, and I could see her shoulders were tense; she was clearly annoyed with his incessant questioning too.

Rebecca tapped my shoulder. "Hey, are you alright?" I felt a little bit of my stress leave my shoulders as I breathed in. "Ah, yeah. This stairway is kind of long, huh?" It was oddly longer than Leo made it sound... Strangely longer, actually.

I turned to look at Leo, and he was sweating and looking nervous. "Leo, you okay?"

He jumped. "Huh, wha- uh y-yeah, sure. We’re almost there... So a little bit more." Wait a minute. This could be dangerous. Why are we bringing Leo and Logan along in the first place? We know where we are now. This could be dangerous. They should probably hang back a bit...

"Leo, Logan, you guys should actually probably wait for us back at the top. Leo, you know how scary he can be."

Leo tried to put on a brave face. "Um, but I should protect Rebecca. If it really is that dangerous, then she needs someone to protect her!" This was the first time he said her real name. His voice was very shaky; he was probably feeling really out of it. Logan looked a little confused since he didn’t really know much about the super world.

"Leo, you might just get in the way. Please go upstairs... For me." Rebecca clearly knew how to get Leo to do what she needed, and he immediately responded, looking slightly relieved. He calmed down. "Anything for you, my lady!" And he ran up the stairs, dragging Logan behind him. "Hey, wait, why can't I come along?" His questions got quieter and quieter. Finally, I could relax. Fran’s shoulders rolled back as well. "Man, I can't believe I sort of dated that guy." I started feeling bad for Logan again, but it quickly faded.

We finally arrived at the last step. The room opened up, and it was just how Leo described. There was a giant tree root with a large amber resin deposit much larger than any person. The room was empty. I guess I was expecting a giant army and Talon leading his army of the undead or something... But there was nothing.

We went in a bit further and investigated the room. I went up to the tree and tried to glimpse into the amber resin deposit. For a moment, I thought I saw something inside of it. I put my hand on the tree root, and I instantly felt a huge surge of my powers leave me. "AGH!" It was so sudden and so powerful that I was caught off guard. I actually felt weaker. The root started to glow.

"Hahaha, nice work, Steven. You acted exactly how I thought you would."

Logan was standing in the doorway where the stairs were. In Logan's arm lock was Leo, gasping for air. "T-t-Ack! It’s... T-Talon!" Logan smirked and threw Leo to the ground in front of him. Leo grabbed his own neck and gasped for air. Then Logan's form changed right in front of us. No wonder I didn’t like Logan.

Logan’s face faded away, and Talon’s crazed eyes and smile peeked behind the illusion.

"It was so nice of him to lead you directly here. Finally, everything I’ve worked toward can finally begin!"