Not Your Villain (Sidekick Squad #2)(76)

Names and powers and hometowns are being rattled off, one by one, and Bells loses track of who is who. He’s going to have to ask everyone individually. Finally, it’s his turn.

“Hi, I’m Bells Broussard; you guys probably have met my parents already,” he says.

“They’re great!”

“We want to keep them!”

“Collette is fantastic at charades.”

“Never would have imagined we could grow so many vegetables!”

“Aw, yeah, they are great. And I’m glad to be here; we’re really excited to be working with you guys. Oh, and uh, I can shapeshift and stuff.” Bells lets a strand of his hair turn pink and he smiles.

Emma pshaws. “Bells forgets to mention; he’s the incredible Chameleon!” She smiles proudly at Bells.

Bells can feel everyone’s eyes on him. “Actually, it’s the Pretentious or Heinous,” he jokes. There’s a bit of nervous laughter and some interested looks.

“Chameleon?” Michael scoffs. “The League said he was the most powerful meta-human of his age and were planning for him to be the next Captain Orion. Chameleon defied them and forged his own path and rescued Mistress Mischief and has resisted capture for months. You’re just some kid with cool hair.”

“Are you calling my son a liar?” Collette stands up, glaring at Michael.

Nick takes her oatmeal bowl out of her hands, grinning in anticipation.

Bells winks at his parents. He wasn’t planning to transform, but he can’t resist it now.

He isn’t quite at full strength after the incident with the rogue MonRobots, but he finds his power steady inside him and pulls at the shift. He cycles through several different looks, lightning quick, turning himself into an exact copy of Michael, right down to his angular jaw and blonde hair and mismatched pajamas, then Abby, then Jess, and Genevieve, and then back to the look now immortalized as the Collective’s most wanted villain: Chameleon in his green, metallic, shimmering bodysuit.

He puffs himself up and makes himself a bit taller than usual.

Bells grins at the room and the slack-jawed looks of awe. Okay, that was totally necessary.

At the end of breakfast Chloe clears her voice. “Kids, feel free to ask questions and chime in on what you want to do to help. And the agenda for today…”

Bells catches Emma’s eye and nods. He can feel the energy of the room change; it’s charged with action, and he’s ready.

“So Michael and Tree Frog, you guys are in Cavern Three with the broccoli, and Nick and Collete, this apple tree idea is great, so if you wanna take Li Hua and…”

Bells listens to the whole agenda. It sounds like all housekeeping and farm duties and… they’re planning a karaoke night.

He perks up when Genevieve mentions a meta-human named Hudson who lives in Middleton whom they can bring to safety, but so far they’re just deciding who’s going to leave headquarters and access the Net.

“Really?” Emma asks. “This is how long it takes to get one person?”

“Locating meta-humans who are in danger from Orion is an arduous task,” Victor says. “We’ve been quite successful, as you can see.”

“Right, gathering people here in your super-secret hideout!” Bells says. “But Orion is going to get the Registry, and, if we don’t get it first, she’ll know exactly where every single meta-human ever registered lives!”

The adults are whispering.

“What about the Resistance?” Brendan asks. “We could work together and pool resources!”

Genevieve stands up. “Right now we need to focus on staying hidden. The League has infinite resources and the support of the Collective government. Orion going for the Registry is a long-shot; the location of the training center is a well-kept secret.”

Bells nods. “We have a good idea where to start looking. I was there last summer, right after they changed to the new location. We can easily all work together and make sure Orion never gets her hands on those names.”

“That isn’t a priority,” Chloe says. “We can’t risk our people on the chance that Orion might know something. What we should do is focus on is what we know for sure, who we can get to safety. We stay out of sight of the League; we stay alive. We stay safe.”

“Safe?” Jess echoes. “The new MonRobots are already attacking us!”

“And Dad! Dad is being forced to work with Stone,” Abby says. “Who knows what kind of upgrades they’re making him do…”

“The Authorities are looking for you, yes, and are sending these new robots after you, but they can’t find you here,” Chloe says.

“It’s an excellent point,” Genevieve agrees. “Yes, it’s a threat. We definitely can’t risk you leaving headquarters because they would find you immediately.” She closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, then fixes everyone with a steady gaze. “We will handle Phillip and the situation in due time. Just be patient.”

All attempts to ask the adult members of the Guild to help, to take action, are met with non-answers and evasiveness. Why leave, why do anything when they are safe in their hideout?





Ch. 15...





Bells hates this. As frustrating as it is, the adults are right about leaving—they can’t.