The first text John had recieved from Tian-Gui was met with wide eyes; he hadn't actually heard about the attack yet. A few seconds later, he received a phone call from Anfisa that elucidated him as to what the steely Final Five member was talking about. The informant shot back a text immediately to Tian-Gui.
At the entrance to the twin's unfettered shelter, Tian-Gui was received with a slightly-ajar door and a pair of dull, insomnia-ridden eyes. Atop Yigga's head was a 20th century soldier's helmet, unbuckled, as if she were prepared for some sort of firefight. She looked down at his outstretched hand and slowly grabbed his phone before retreating back inside without a word.
There were, undoubtedly, a few news helicopters that may or may not have snapped some photos of Tian-Gui in the gutted penthouse, but in the days that followed, nothing surfaced on the news stations or papers about their ordeal. Either someone on the Final Five's end saw it fitting to limit information being disseminated, or the Thremont's themselves paid for a hush-hush.
A few members returned to the penthouse on occasion, namely the housekeepers and Anfisa, who tried to salvage a few research items from the penthouse lab. None stayed, though reconstruction had begun to take place without the aid of either
wealthy Final Five member. It seemed as though a certain
benefactor was notified of their situation and opted to chip in the total cost of reconstruction. The damage to the rooftop allowed for a second story to be built, and as things began to develop, it seemed as though the nameless benefactor had also submitted a floor design plan for a true "headquarters" for the Final Five. John refused to reveal the benefactor's name when asked.
It would be several weeks before the building, while fast under way, was finished.
Meanwhile, the Final Five had set out on their week-long camping trip. Runa's schoolwork had been resolved, though did necessitate the dreadful need to do the work "while on vacation". She escaped little. The forests of Washington were their destination, and a large open area had been reserved by the team, complete with a campside lake. The Olympic rainforests were vibrantly green and the skies a gentle grey, not quite unlike the general weather of Shanhu most of the year. Limov, of course, dropped them off, spending the entire trip recounting his battle with Thremont thugs in the apartment parking garage several days ago, in an attempt to ensure none of his precious vehicles weren't blown up.
The
four members of the Final Five were left isolated in the national park, as Limov ensured he would return in two day's time to pick them up for Operation Cerberus. What they did there, was up to them.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elsewhere...
"With Ling's spontaneous disintegration, we are, once again, left with only four members as our main team," said a suave male voice in the darkness. A dull light emanated from behind a large window in the wall. Two were present.
"Do we necessarily need five? Where is the constitution that says we
must have five?" replied another man.
"It has more to do with the image and publicity. I'm not sure how the originals would respond if we switched things up too much either... if they ever return that is."
"So why not Luminary? We need her anyways, right?"
"She's too much of a liability. I can't ever see her staying with a group of other heroes. She'd do her own thing."
"So then you propose...
this guy?" said the second man, gesturing disapprovingly to the humanoid machine sitting behind the one-way mirror. The first shrugged, stepping closer to the window, light illuminating his front. John stared at the cyborg that sat patiently before him, unaware that they, specifically, were watching him. Or perhaps he was; John didn't research much into the cyborg's capabilities.
"He's been working for an electric company for a long time now."
"And?"
"He hasn't seen much action."
"He's a god damned mercenary, you know that, right? Did you not read the dossier?"
"I skimmed it."
"You're really set on Luminary, huh?"
"...Maybe."
John sighed before approaching the door to the room where Jin-Sun sat, opening it before gesturing for the other man to follow in. John, of course, was a tall and tightly-built individual, cloaked in a white trenchcoat. his hair was a lustrous silver and his equally so. The man that followed him was tall, business-like, and of raven-colored hair. He was clearly either simply a businessman, or some sort of shadowy important individual. Jin-Sun could not identity him regardless.
Both of them sat down at the steel table before Jin-Sun, crossing their arms and leaning forward.
"Alright Jin-Sun, we need to ask you a few questions before we proceed," John said.