Emmett walked along a metallic shore. Shards of metal crunched beneath his feet like glass. Black waves lapped at the shore, but without a moon or stars, he couldn’t see far. When the waves broke the surf smelled like oil and blood. 

He was utterly alone, except for the hands that lined the beach, flanking his path like a dead garden. They reached up out of the sand, still as statues, yet as Emmett walked, they always seemed to be reaching toward him. 

He couldn’t tell if they were trying to hold him back or beckoning him onward. 

Emmett looked back and saw his skin sloughing off behind him as he walked. A mix of silver and flesh marked his path and disappeared into the distance. The skin of his feet and halfway up his shins had flaked away, leaving a silver-colored structure—a mix of flexible musculature and rigid bone. All synthetic. 

He’d been here before—Emmett was certain…

But when? 

Slowly, the realization came to him, like a fog lifting. He’d had this dream before. The first time in a poison-induced coma at the hands of Porcelain. But that wasn’t the only time. 

He’d had this dream many times since. 

Sometimes he saw other people walking the shore. Other times they were in the waves. They were always half-metallic, like him. Like twisted reflections. 

Sometimes they’d reach for him, and Emmett would recoil and try to run away. No matter what he did, they would always catch him. No matter how hard he fought, they would wrestle him down to the sand or drag him beneath the waves. He’d see his own horrified face reflected back in their perfect metal. 

Despite how scared Emmett’s reflection was, he was never scared while it happened. Never scared when he woke up. He was more worried that he kept having the dream than he was about the dream itself. 

This time, he saw Antony, Mom, Dad, Darryl, Maci, and the boys. They were sinking beneath the sand, frozen, like everyone else. Each time Emmett blinked, they disappeared further and further beneath the shimmering sand. Antony… Antony was the last to disappear. 

~

Emmett struggled beneath the waves, and his hand punched something hard.

Felt glass shatter. 

Water flowed. 

Only then did Emmett open his eyes. He was in the submersion tank. Water was spilling out across the room. A lot of water. 

He’d woken up. 

Emmett tried to say, “Shit. Sorry,” but between the breathing mask and the water, even he couldn’t understand what he said. 

Dr. Venture’s muted voice came from somewhere behind the current. 

“TINA, what happened?”

“Emmett was having a dream and woke up from sedation. All vital signs are normal.”

Through the water, Emmett could just make out the spider-like operating arms from the ceiling. They’d descended and were now moving in a blur to patch the broken glass. 

When they finished, Emmett climbed out of the tank and pulled off his mask. Thankfully, he’d worn a pair of tight shorts, so he was only self-conscious about the damage he’d caused. 

“Don’t worry about it,” Venture said, sloshing through the puddle of water. “Really. We can repair it. And you don’t need the stress. Drones will take care of the water.”

“How did it go?” Emmett asked. He glanced around the room, trying to see if anything had changed—not with the room, but with his senses. 

“We’ll need to keep you under observation for a few hours, but TINA’s been keeping an eye on you.”

“Your surgery was successful,” TINA added. Emmett might’ve been imagining it, but it sounded like there was a hint of pride in her voice. 

“Why don’t you get changed—I believe you had some text messages from your folks while you were out. It’s Monday, by the way.”

~

Emmett dried off and pulled on a set of sweats, then walked to section 001. 

He meant to call his folks and check in—especially on Antony. Emmett hadn’t heard from any of them since Antony’s kidnapping at the hands of the Hellcat Mercenaries—Angel Eye, Windvane, and Lau Keishos—and the masks, Shifter and Oakenheart. 

Emmett thought the villains and masks had escaped in the aftermath of the Deep Ones’ attack, but Venture and TINA had used drones to apprehend them. Then all five of them had been delivered to the Summit of Heroes. Dr. Venture assured Emmett that they would be in custody for a long time. 

That was good enough for Emmett. He was more worried about his younger brother and how he would hold up in the wake of it. 

Emmett had signed up for this. Antony hadn’t. 

That was the whole point—why the rules of engagement were the way they were. Supers were supposed to keep civilian fallout to a minimum… 

Emmett stuffed his hands into the pockets of his hoodie as he walked out of the biolab and into the bunker tunnels between sections. Red safety lights illuminated the way. Not that Emmett needed them. The lights hummed steadily, and Emmett’s steps echoed through the hall. Even his breath sounded loud.

Normally it was a short walk from section to section, but today it felt like time stretched and dilated. 

Maybe it was his new brain that was making time pass so slowly. 

Maybe it was guilt. 

Probably both. 

~

By the time Emmett made it back to section 001, he would’ve sworn half an hour had passed.

It had only been a few minutes. 

Emmett walked to the kitchen sink and splashed water on his face. The water felt ice cold—almost painful. He gasped and steadied himself on the counter. Then he splashed his face again.

He wasn't sure if it helped. 

Finally, he dried his face off, went to the couch and laid down. For a fleeting moment, he had peace.

Then he felt the fibers of the couch. He ran his fingers across the grain, each ridge of the fiber felt as deep as a chasm and impossibly defined, like he could feel the twists and spirals of each individual strand.

Emmett yanked his hand away from the couch. Then he pulled out his phone to text his mom.

Emmett 1:43 PM: Hey, how are things at the shelter?

For the next few minutes, Emmett watched the tiny text bubbles come and go. They showed when his mom was typing, but she must have been backspacing and rewording it a lot. 

Mom 1:47 PM: We’re doing alright. Antony had a run in with some supervillains. He’s alright now but had a good scare. 

Emmett 1:48 PM: Is Antony alright?

Mom 1:52 PM: He’s pretty shook up. He’s taking some time off from volunteering and working. 

Emmett 1:54 PM: I can call in a few.

Mom 1:55 PM: I don’t think he wants to talk right now.

Emmett 1:58 PM: I’ll try to come by tonight. I can take some time off. 

Mom 1:59 PM: Okay. That would be nice. We miss you.

Emmett 2:04 PM: Sorry I haven’t been at the shelter much. 

Mom 2:06 PM: Don’t be sorry. You’re helping the Summit and they’re helping people. The city needs that. 

Emmett rolled over on the couch and stared at his phone, not sure what else to say.

Mom was right. Emmett was helping people. That was why he wanted to be a mask after his accident. That was why he wanted to get stronger. 

But at that moment, Emmett wasn’t sure it had been a good trade. 

Emmett stared at his mom’s text messages until he was sure that no more bubbles were coming. Then he drifted off to sleep.

~ ~ ~