Iron Station Savage Masks IC IV

[Kvard51]

Morning Meeting

Louis eyes open upon hearing Terrance's last line. He looses a sigh and straightens himself out.

"Listen T, I think I can understand where you're coming from..."

More than most. The memory of his first encounter with Red Light flashes through Louis' mind, her words still echoing in his head.

"But don't you think this is kinda drastic?"

Terrance turns to look Louis in the eye, considering the High Octane Hero's words. "Louis, I've been thinking about this for days. Yesterday just kind of cinched it in my mind. My heart isn't here, working for AEGIS. And it isn't in school playing football. It's in The 'Sades, protecting my friends and family." He again surveys the gathered provisional heroes and their mentors, "And I know we are trying to include that with everything else we are doing, but it's just too much on top of dealing with city-wide threats and being a student and all the things that John and Raph and Keith have going." He smiles sadly at his former teammates, "I hate to leave you all. But this is why I became a hero. Protecting The Palisades is my job."

Terrance’s announcement felt like it made his time travel a small thing — a minor change in his life relative to the kind of jump he was considering.

“Louis’ right. Are you sure you want to do that, Terrance?” John asked with real concern. “There’s not a lot of money in vigilantism and even less support — both of which will lead to medical bills. With AEGIS, you have a base of operations, a network of support, and a long-term foundation from which to work from to make the Palisades a better place.

“While I know your family is well respected there and can provide a web of connections to draw intelligence from, it’s going to be rough — even if you can turn to us for occasional help.”

Keith turned and tilted his head at Terrence's admission. While he understood, it definitely seemed to shorten how much of a feat everyone had been through. Though, he didn't mind the downplay of his being gone. At the mention that everyone had almost died, Keith felt the need to look around.

They all signed up for that risk in this business. They all knew that might be how it would end.

"T, I get what you mean. I know I've had a bit more time to work through it in my head, but are you absolutely sure? It wasn't just you that made a mistake either."

He thought back to his first time out in the field under Don E.'s command, and how badly he had screwed that up for the cell that was sent out after his.

"Gotta keep in mind, no one would have seen Prismatic coming either. And I wanna get that ****er too. John is right too though, resources can dry up fast, especially when you're on your own. Even some cells of AEGIS have nearly run dry in wars like that."

With real concern, he looks at his friend. One he just now thought he might be able to connect with.

"Guys, I appreciate your concern. I really do. And I know there will be some challenges. But I have to do this," Terrance says, the gravity of his pronouncement heavy in his voice. "These people dont have anyone else. Not who cares about them the way I do. I'll make it work, somehow."