After Ven and Tamu grabbed something to eat at one of the exquisite restaurants they saw earlier, they started their walk to the Hero Brunch headquarters. With the popularity of heroes, there was no guarantee that he would even be allowed inside. Then again, they did regularly hold hero exams, so maybe he would be let inside.

  The duo got to the tall towered structured that was known as the headquarters. It was brightly colored and filled with many glowing lights and attractions. Several heroes could be seen entering and exiting the building. They were probably living the best life ever.

  Finally seeing the building up close was spectacular. It was far greater than viewing it online.

  “I can’t believe we’re actually here,” Tamu said, her eyes beaming with anticipation.

  “For real,” said Ven. It almost felt like he was in some sort of dream. He just hoped he wouldn’t wake up anytime soon.

  They walked towards the gigantic twenty feet long doors. The entire building was up a steep hill, so they had to walk up through a long and isolated sidewalk. There were two different rows of beautifully manicured bushes as they got closer to the entrance.

  There was a woman, wearing traditional gardener clothing watering one of the bushes closest to the door. He originally thought she was simply a gardener, but he gasped when he saw her face. Her signature green hair decorated with pink flower petals made it hard for her to hide. Her pale skin and green eyes were also notable features.

  “Look! That’s Rose-Maker,” Ven pointed out as they got to the door. She was currently one of the top ranked heroes in the world, why on earth would she be wearing clothes as if she were an ordinary landscaper.

  “What’s she doing here?” Tamu asked, which made the hero look up.

  Ven wanted to greet her, but he chickened out. A hero that highly ranked was somewhat scary to see up close. He was shocked that Tamu didn’t greet her either, perhaps she was also intimidated.

  Rose-Maker was a powerful hero that had the ability to create roses or any flower, on almost any surface. Afterwards, she could control the flowers any way she wished. The petals, the vines, and the pollen, all of which was part of her arsenal. She could take down villains like a track star on television.

  They opened the door and were greeted by an enormous hall that was neatly polished. The lobby area had a ton of people, and it was somewhat loud. Near the front of the hall, there were shiny silver statues of all the First Ten—the first superheroes ever. He looked at the old leader of the First Ten and then quickly looked away. The story of Lyte Man and the other First Ten members was super exciting, it was a privilege to see the iconic statues in person. When he glanced at Lyte Man’s statue, he didn’t realize that he was staring at the star that fell from the heavens.

  Many low-key heroes were talking with one another, some of which were laughing loud. Some people were wearing civilian clothing, so perhaps they were not heroes. Without knowing where to go, we walked towards a black platform that was blocking the only way forward.

  “Scan your ID,” the bodyguard said at the counter.

  “Like my legal ID, or…”

  “No hero ID? No hero ID, no entry! Unless you’re here for an exam.”

  “Oh, uh sure. Could I possibly take the exam now?”

  “Did you even study Ven,” teased Tamu.

  The security shot Ven a deep scrawl. “You have to register for an exam online! Everyone should know this! We don’t have any openings until a month.”

  “A month! Oh well… Any way I could talk to any heroes in charge for help? I’m The Rejuvenator, and I defeated Con-Crush, the one of the leaders of the Cinder-Fangs two weeks ago. I have a request that I could use some help with.”

  “I don’t care who you are! You don’t talk to the Hero Assembly without clearance. Now be on your way!”

  “Uh… how do I get clearance?”

  “From a hero. Now leave!”

  Ven and Tamu walked away from the unhelpful bodyguard. He figured something like that would have happened, but he was dreaming he’d somehow be magically let in.

  “Just ask anyone you see out here for help at the terminal,” suggested Tamu. “They don’t have to be a bigshot hero or anything.”

  “Hey, good idea,” said Ven, scanning the lobby. “There’s got to be at least one hero out here who’ll listen.”

  He saw two random heroes chatting in the lobby, sitting on cushioned hairs. He walked over to them, scattering through his brain.

  “Hello… I’m a vigilante, and I need some heroes’ help with something. You guys in?”

  Both of the two heroes then began to laugh, almost as if it was impossible for them to stop.

  “Why on Earth would we want to help a vigilante when we’re already legally registered?” They continued to snicker.

  “This guy’s a hero, knock it out!” Tamu intervened.

  “Yeah right!”

  That interaction went the same way for almost every other hero in the vicinity. Ven couldn’t blame them either. They were probably there to get hero tasks and hang out, they wanted nothing to do with a guy who was using his powers illegally. Perhaps a registered hero completing tasks with a vigilante would spell trouble for them. Still, he hated how snooty and snobbish most of the heroes acted. Most of them were relatively young, so that could have been part of the reason. Ven was just about ready to call it quits, however Tamu’s perseverance inspired him to keep trying.

  This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “Maybe we should go ask Rose-Maker, if she’s still around,” suggested Tama.

  “Good idea, I’m not ready to call it quits.”

  They walked outside and noticed the high ranking hero was now nowhere to be seen. Every corner Ven looked outside, he did not see her.

  “Well, this sucks,” frowned Ven. “I guess we’ll just wait for your sis to come back.”

  He was thinking of any other way to get help, but nothing came to his mind. Perhaps all of the constant rejection was a sign that no hero would ever accept his plea. He would either completely ignore Con-Crush, and focus on studying for the hero exam, or go to the Terminal all by his lonesome, anxiety ticking and everything.

  “No wait,” began Tamu. “How about you call Stylo!? You have his number right? Ask him if he could set you up with some sort of admission to get inside. Don’t tell him you’re looking for help for the terminal though, since you already asked, he’d probably shoot you away.”

  “Call Stylo? I have his number, but I’m only supposed to call him in case of emergencies. And what difference will it make if he gets us clearance? That doesn’t mean we’ll just be allowed to speak with The Assembly , we’ll probably just be speaking with the same types of heroes again. It seems they don’t want to work with anyone who isn’t a legal hero.”

  “I bet we could find a high ranked person who would be more than happy to help out. We just talked to a bunch of rookies, what do rookies know anyway? Most of them will probably stop being heroes in a year or so anyway. Give him a call!” Tamu was persistent as ever.

  “Eh, fine. Let’s see what happens,” said Ven as he pulled out his smartphone.

  He called Stylo and waited for an answer… no response.

  “Oh well, at least we tried,” said Ven with a downcast expression.

  Suddenly, his phone rang again, Stylo called back.

  “Hey, are you guarding my mom today?” Ven asked

  “What’ you want?” Stylo asked sternly.

  “Oh, uh…,” Ven glanced at Tamu who was gesturing for him to continue. “I’m actually at the Hero Brunch headquarters right now. I wanted to get inside, to see the rest of the building, but they said I need clearance. Would you be able to get that for me?”

  “Why should I help you!?” Stylo barked.

  “You don’t have to if you don’t want to, but I’d really appreciate it.”

  “Fine… what the hell, I’ll see what I can do.”

  “What!? Really? Why the sudden change?”

  “Well you helped out Ashton, and I’m from there. I’m returning the favor.”

  “Oh, thanks a lot Stylo,” said Ven. He was glad that Stylo was finally conducting himself like a hero. “Let them know it’s The Rejuvenator asking for him.”

  He eventually hung up.

  “What did he say?” asked Tamu.

  “He said he’ll try to help, so I guess we just sit back and see what happens.”

  They walked back into the building and sat at the closest table available. It seemed like they were serving muffins, thus more people began to enter the iconic building. Being that the lobby was always available to the public, it had to get extremely crowded on occasion. A supervillain would be insane to try to invade such a place.

  Suddenly, the acclaimed superhero Rose-Maker appeared from almost nowhere. She was still dressed in our gardener’s outfit.

  “You’re The Rejuvenator, right?” asked Rose-Maker, her expression serious and cold

  “Yeah, that’s me,” Ven said, stars were practically shooting out of his eyes. He was too stargazed to even notice her cold demeanor.

  “Follow me,” Rose-Maker said, as she quickly walked towards the indoor gate.

  “Uh… alright,” said Ven as he arose from his seat. He shot a confused look at Tamu, one she returned.

  Rose-Maker got to the security guard and he looked at her in deep reverence.

  “Those two need clearance!” The guy said.

  “They are with me,” she commanded.

  The security guard gasped and let Ven and Tamu through the blocked area.

  They followed the hero towards a long eye-catching hallway, her pace so quick that Tamu with her crutches struggled to keep up with her.

  “So uh… Nice to meet you?” Ven awkwardly said.

  Rose-Maker said nothing at all, she just continued her hasty rush. Ven gasped with disappointment, was every hero annoying?

  They got to a huge elevator, and entered it. Rose-Maker tapped the highest floor—the twentieth floor. Ven’s excitement almost turned to dread when he noticed the button she pushed. The top floor could only mean one thing…

  Ven was captivated by the strong floral scent emanating from Rose-Maker, he wasn’t sure if it was her hair or a residue from gardening. As the elevator slowly ascended, the hero stared at Ven as if she studying his every move.

  Suddenly, Rose-Maker finally spoke. “You do know that vigilante activities are illegal don’t you?” Her eyes lock on him like prey.

  Ven almost felt his heart fall out of his chest. “I know, but I was trying to save a friend… this kid right here.”

  “What you still did it though. What would stop me from arresting you now?”

  Ven shuddered with annoyance. “I think it’d be really weird for you to arrest a guy who was trying to help someone out. I don’t think it’d make you a true hero at all,” he said with a stern countenance.

  Rose-Maker squinted her eyes. “It’s not about what is morally right or morally wrong, it’s about what is legal or not legal.”

  “So, you’re like the law enforcement slave for the hero brunch? Is that what being a legal hero is really about? Always upholding the law… even the parts that don’t make sense?”

  “I guess I am. Not like I have a choice. Do you think I actually want to uphold this rule all the time,” she turned around, revealing her vulnerability. “I’ve seen people get arrested over this thing all the time. Please make sure you become legally registered quickly as possible.”

  “Oh, uh… alright,” said Ven, taken aback by her sudden change in demeanor.

  “Where are we going anyway?” asked Tamu.

  “You’ll find out soon.”

  The long and tense elevator ride finally came to a holt. All 3 passengers exited.

  The top floor almost felt more dark and eerie than the lobby. Just where were they walking to. He noticed the numerous insignias, and muffled voices coming from somewhere.

  The walked towards a hallway that led to two huge double doors.

  “Is this what I think it is?” asked Ven, when he noticed the double doors, eyes beaming out of their sockets.

  “Yes. This is where the Hero Assembly meets. Maybe you’ve seen it before,” said Rose-Maker

  “…So, you mean to tell me the entire Assembly is through those doors?”

  “No, not all of them. Only a few, but he , would like to have a word with you regarding your vigilante activities.”

  The Assembly were a team of about fifteen heroes who were essentially the leaders of the entire Hero Brunch. They were lawmakers, who worked rigorously to try to maintain order. The leader of the assembly was no one to scuff at.

  “By he, do you mean—,” he almost struggled to finish his sentence. If he was meeting him so quickly, then he wasn’t sure if he should be excited or absolutely terrified.

  “Yes, The Crimson Fang, Tala Wolf would like to personally have a word with you.”

  “No way,” Tamu commented.

  Ven stared at his shaky hands. He wanted help for the terminal, but he didn’t except to get such an audience. The intensity coming through the doors was basically making his feet rattle.

  He took a deep breath before they even thought of walking through the imposing doors. He wasn’t sure how he was going to conduct himself with the current leader of the Hero Brunch who also happened to be the last surviving member of the First Ten.