---

Hull House
Orloo, Ontario
Canada

It was like every other home but she felt as a sense of dread as she walked from it. Heather MacNeil Hudson had spent her life attempting to bridge the gaps in her heart. James was her husband, her one and only, but she could no longer play second in his life. Choices were to be made and battle lines were drawn when the day ended she had no idea who would remain standing.

Mac may not be amongst that number.

Tearfully Heather turned her back on the people who had sheltered the entirety of her life, her long red hair blowing in the wind as she slid into the taxi and murmured an address to the man behind the wheel.

---

Mac watched her leave, his eyes wrathfully betrayed him. His voice was caught in the back of his throat but he forced on. He was a leader and that was how he had spent the majority of his life. In time of stress he looked to the others for direction but in this case he found little reassurance in their hollow faces. Each member of the team looked beaten and defeated, both physically and emotionally. It worried him not because of the effect it would have on the team but because of the effect it would have of the individual.

Shrugging his shoulders he moved to the centre.

“We have quite the battle in front of us,” he began before continuing. “We have never before fought ourselves before, at least beyond the proverbial. Now we stand on the edge with the villains looking back on us.”

They watched in silence.

“It’s been hard. We’ve suffered loses recently, far too many of them. Snowbird, Shaman and Murmur have all fallen in battle. Heather,” he paused for a moment. “Now its time to stop running. We need to make a stand. If there’s any doubt in anyone’s mind, they walk away now. This could very well be the last stand of Alpha Flight and nobody will be forced to participate.”

Silence filled the room.

“This is our legacy,” Jeanne-Marie Beaubier replied. “I would not forsake it for the world.”

Even as she spoke her gentle yet chaotic eyes fell across the moping figure of her twin brother, Jean-Paul, and her glance was longing to be a part of something. She had always wanted a family whilst she had been shut in the confines of the convent and now she had destroyed that. Her death, if necessary, would prove to her brother how much he meant to her despite her otherwise conservative feelings.

Strands of black hair shuffled down her back as she moved forward, blood stained her uniform and emotion was rapid on her face. Her gaze met that of her leader, a man she had never felt a connection to but was willing to fight for. She rested her white gloved palm against his chest and forced a subtle smile across her lips.

“I will not forsake you, mon ami.”

Aurora, the last woman standing, had never failed to amaze him but he could not allow his emotions to overtake his common sense. There were more important reasons behind the decision he was about to make.

“I am in too,” called the Sasquatch, Walter Langowski, from where he stood. The heroes parted to allow him to move forward.

Grimacing Jean-Paul Beaubier, the Northstar, joined them silently. His sapphire glare falling upon his sister.

“Mon frère,” she began to speak to her brother but he shook his head and she retreated into herself cautiously.

“I have amends to make,” spoke one of the remaining men shallowly. “And vengeance to seek for Murmur.”

Jared Corbo, the mutant Radius, moved forward slowly. “Arlette’s death was my fault and I have to fix it. If you’ll let me that is.”

Against his better judgement Mac reconsidered. “Everyone deserves a second chance kid.”

Eugene Judd, Puck, and Adrian Corbo, Flex, moved towards the line-up but Mac placed his hand on Adrian’s shoulder and looked down at the youth.

“I have another job for you Flex and it’s one of the most important things you’ll ever be asked to do.”

---

Directors Office
Department H

“That Intel was greatly appreciated,” smirked the villain behind the cloning. “I had never expected a traitor to emerge in the midst of this battle but you had barely even made my radar.”

Bernie Lachenay merely watched the man before him, a look of confusion etched across his human face, the only remainder of his human life.”RRR-TEK,” his voice choked. “My allegiance...RRR-TEK...lays with Department H...RRR-TEK...not Alpha Flight.”

Formerly his life had revolved around Department H, an agent in their midst from the schemes conception, but then Bernie’s life had been altered not only by his absorption into the armour of an abandoned ‘Box’ body suit but also by his most hidden secret. In truth, the ‘accident’ had been carefully plotted to utilise what was undoubtedly one of the world’s greatest minds but his intelligence was hindered by his inability to control his Asperger’s Syndrome.

It was a fact about Bernie that no-one knew, but now as his human mind declined the issue was less apparent and his mind was fully utilised.

“I’m glad to hear that,” snarled Jaxon. “I would hate to have to destroy you alongside your comrades.”

“RRR-TEK. That Alpha Flight must die...RRR-TEK...is a shame,” Manbot groaned through the mechanics of his bodysuit. “It is merely a necessary evil...RRR-TEK...to accomplish the goals of...RRR-TEK...the Department.”

Continuing to smirk Jaxon pressed the pager button on his desk. “Unfortunately, you remain something of a wildcard.”

Opening the door an agent rushed in and a shot was fired into the exposed head of Manbot. Jaxon moved backwards as the ground shuddered under the weight of the cyborg.

“Traitors are only great until they betray you,” he muttered in conclusion. “Get him out of my office.”

Jaxon exited the room, plans of annihilation forming in his head.

---

Ottawa, Ontario
Canada

Aurora perched on the building.

Rain began to slip across the woman’s fine frame as she edged closer to the steep drop ahead of her, eyes narrowed and mouth pursed. Anger, disappointment and frustration was all that echoed in her movements, there was no sense of remorse for the loss she had suffered or the ‘life’ she had taken in killing her doppelganger. Others could easily argue she had become a monster, and she wouldn’t disagree.

Northstar and Guardian flanked her. It was a recon attempt, Guardian wanted information on the chaos that was happening in the city of Ottawa before he chose to attack. Aurora felt little comfort in going against the villains in such a small number, the others where in the wings but it was still too close for comfort.

Northstar rose to his feet after meeting the glare of his leader. Guardian nodded forward and the speedster dropped from the side of the building and out of sight.

Next his eyes met hers and she gulped. Aurora had the non-enviable task of being the decoy. She too rose to her feet. The wind and rain continued to smash around the superheroine as she propelled herself into the air. The evil Guardian hovered above the city, and when she looked behind her she noticed Mac had already dropped back.

It was up to the twins.

Aurora brushed her body through the smoke that billowed from beneath her as she came into collision with the Guardian. Ploughing her own weight into his did little to hinder the man but it gave her the opportunity to see how realistic the doppelganger was. She bounced back with a grunt, dodging the smack from the man.

“Bitch,” snarled the man.

She held in her scream as he blasted her to the chest with explosive energy from his palms and she hurtled back into the building that she had just sprung from. Glass shattered and the abandoned offices were in tatters as she pushed herself from the rubble. Placing her hand on her ear she spoke to the man who mattered on the ground.

“It’s on.”

Aurora’s gaze shot skyward as she moved back from the rain and into the protection of the building.

---

Northstar rushed through the havoc that surrounded him; the populace of Ottawa was hysterical as they dodged the falling rubble and the superhumans that threatened them. Seeing the position of Puck he bounded in the opposite direction until he came across the monstrous Sasquatch. The beast, in the true form of Walter Langowski, had attacked and almost killed him in the not so distant future and he was hoping there wouldn’t be a repeat performance.

Bouncing over the downed plane he avoided the grasp of the creature only to be caught by the swipe of its tale. He hurtled forward as he crash landed into the dusty road. Groping at his jaw after the fall, he looked up into the gnashing teeth of the Sasquatch.

“Merde,” he groaned.

---

Mac eyed his troupes as he met them on the border of the city. It was Puck who first greeted him upon his return, a nervous anxiety within the man’s coarse voice. There had been issues between the pair in the past but in order to survive; it was clear that in-team rivalries needed to be put aside. Even if they weren’t entirely forgotten.

“Aurora has him in position,” Puck informed him. A simple glance shot a question between both men. “Northstar has yet to report back.”

Grunting Mac replied. “Not the news I was looking for. Aurora’s hasn’t returned?”

“No,” said Puck. “The twins are MIA.”

“Fuck.”

Mac waltzed forward, his eyes glazing over the city as it fell. Clenching his fist he turned back to the remainder of his team, which apart from Puck, contained Sasquatch and Radius.

“We have to go on with the plan and hope they aren’t casualties,” Mac informed them. “Radius, I want you to locate Aurora and make sure she’s safe. Puck and Sasquatch, Northstar. Look, take out whoever you can en route. I’m going after ... myself.”

All four men made their moves.

---

“I always did hate you.”

Aurora turned to face the ferocious entrance of the replicated Snowbird. Narya had been killed in a terrorist attack only weeks beforehand and Aurora had mourned her fallen comrade. It hurt to see the villainous counterpart.

“You’re nothing but an imitation,” snorted Aurora angrily. “A cheap one at that.”

“And you’re no more than a snivelling whore,” smirked the doppelganger. “I guess we’re even.”

Rushing at one another there was an explosion of energy. The blonde goddess burst out of her own skin as she became a polar bear whilst the raven haired athlete burst forward at a rapid rate. Upon collision the building shuddered.

Aurora’s arms propelled the bear backwards into the previously carpeted flooring. Quickly manoeuvring her body, the French-Canadian wrapped her legs around the bear’s neck, which hastily reverted to the body of a woman, and flipped backwards once again. A deafening smash was heard at the blonde crashed into the tables behind them.

Growling angrily, the Goddess rose to her feet. “You’re dead!”

“You’d have to see me first.”

Sliding back towards the shattered windows, Aurora used her ability to manipulate photokinetic energy in a blast of astounding light. The light was intense enough to set fire to all that was caught within its glare, including Snowbird by the sounds of her screams. As the light faded, the French-Canadian came face to face with her enemy.

“You cannot burn a Goddess, mortal,” chimed the villainess as she stabbed the young woman in the chest.

Aurora gasped and this forced Snowbird to push the blade further. Her smile was hysterical to the point of madness.

She fell to the ground, clutching her chest, as Snowbird removed the knife. Her hands glistened in crimson and her hair stuck to her cheeks but her eyes were transcendent as she panted.

“Now, a lesser villain would mock and tease you,” laughed Snowbird. “However, I have no need to do so. You’re pathetic excuse of heroism stands out for itself.” She paused. “I could kill you with one more swipe and end this suffering but personally, I’d rather watch you bleed.”

Aurora looked over her shoulder, she felt drained but anger surged through her as she spoke through gritted teeth. “Watch this...”

Her body blurred as she burst forward, grabbing the knife and holding it to the woman’s throat. Her smile widened as she watched Aurora.

“Even in my death you lose,” she reminded her. “Who is the real villain of this story?”

Jeanne-Marie already had blood on her hands. She looked into the eyes of this woman, pain starting to overtake her, and she clasped the knife.

“You’re still the villain.”

Aurora smashed the blunt handle of the knife into the woman’s head as she fell to the ground unconscious. Watching Snowbird fall and the effort it had taken, forced Aurora onto her knee’s as she blacked out.

---

“Northstar!” yelled the young man.

Radius marched forward as the man with whom he had so much tension and hatred turned to stare at him. He was mellowed by Murmur’s death and in a warzone he found it decidedly important to tolerate the other members of the team.

Northstar stood amidst the wreckage of some cars as a child screamed from inside, he watched Radius approach hastily.

“You were meant to call us in man, and let us know where the pawns were so Mac could get onto the king.”

“Monsieur,” smiled the doppelganger. “You have the wrong person.”

Shocked stretched across the young man’s face as he noticed the blood on the villain’s hands, and the three dead bodies that already lay at his feet. They had been previously hidden from sight by the car. In a reflex his shield stretched across his body and his eyes narrowed as he prepared himself.

The plan was in the enemies hands, so the enemy had to die.

---

Puck raced onwards, he’d lost Sasquatch a block back when they’d been ambushed by his own dwarfed doppelganger. Speed was a necessity over brawn and so Puck bounded from building to building in search of his fallen comrade.

Ahead of him, in blazes of light, Puck saw one of his oldest teammates flitting hastily from the path of the ferocious Sasquatch, a doppelganger with an all to close resemblance t one of his greatest friends. The scene brought back memories in the time since he had been chased by such a creature.

“Jean-Paul,” called the pint-sized hero as he burst forward, smashing his durable body into the face of the creature. Eugene Judd was always the hero, even when he didn’t realise it.

Jean-Paul stopped, panting. After a few moments the French-Canadian swore explanatories in French as he flew towards the villain Puck continuously struck. Jean-Paul allowed the burst of explosive, luminescent energy to stretch from his boy and overwhelm them all as Eugene slipped for cover between two buildings.

Lights faded and Northstar dropped from the sky with a thud.

Puck lurched forward and lifted his young friend’s head in his arms. “Why didn’t you do that before?”

“What, and miss out on the fun of having you save me?” he laughed through a cough, but when he fell unconscious Puck’s question was answered.

His eyes fell upon the grumbling body of the beast beside them. A victorious smile stretched across his face.

---

“Trouble catching me furball?” laughed the mimic Puck hysterically.

Once again Sasquatch launched at the superhumanly agile man. Walter had deciphered that he may look and possess the abilities of one of his closest friends but there is nothing of Eugene Judd in this deviant Puck. It was a thought that soothed his otherwise chaotic mind. His worry of the fate of Aurora, who had failed to return after her part in the task, was at the forefront of his mind. Although he knew the villainous Puck should be his prime objective.

Lashing out with his large, clawed hands Walter roared. Nearby civilians continued to scatter and he found himself forced to refrain for fear of hurting an innocent.

“You’re like a bug,” he growled angrily.

Charging forward he cut off the man continuously, frustration grew on the dwarf’s face as he did so. Puck bounded to the right and Sasquatch pounced in front of him, repeating the process when he went to the left.

Unbeknownst to the terrorist, he was forced into a corner and when this realisation overcame him it was too late. Sasquatch grimaced as he lifted a nearby car and flung it towards his opponent, Bones shattered and blood streamed from beneath place of the collision. His blood splattered fur was what annoyed him the most, evidence of the dreadful crime he’d committed.

“Like a bug, you’re easily squashed,” he murmured as he reverted to his humanoid form of Walter Langowski.

---

Mac flew higher as he made towards the man who had started the chaos; it was up to him to end it in the endgame of such a nemesis. In the years since becoming Guardian Mac had fought himself proverbially and now he focused all the pent-up rage inside of the individual before him. Heather’s desertion from their marriage only added charcoal to the fire.

“I was wondering when you would arrive,” drawled the Guardian. “I assumed you’d be near when I destroyed your pet.”

Quickly Mac scanned the area for signs of Aurora but he saw nothing in the vicinity to suggest the gloating man had actually killed her.

“She thought she could challenge me and she fell,” he smirked. “Clearly history is about to repeat itself.”

Without stalling Guardian shot a concussive blast of luminescent green energy at his real life counterpart, who dived from his path, as he slipped higher into the air. Mac fingered the device in his hand but decided to bide his time as he shot after the terrorist.

Mac fired shots himself but missed successively. As they flew across a building top Guardian prepared to shoot another blast at him when Mac tapped the button on the device.

Guardian’s suit went haywire as sparks flew from it and caused him to crash land into the dirt of the roof. The velocity of impact caused him to roll further until he ran out of room and launched over the edge of the building speedily. His surprised scream filled Mac’s ears as he landed on the roof and made his way slowly to the edge.

Aurora’s task had been to place a device on the villain’s suit when she collided with him. It was a device that had been created to alter the settings of the power-suit and cause a viral related malfunction. Mac had designed the chip in his earlier days as a hero for use in case he was to go haywire or the suits fell into the wrong hands.

Northstar flew from below and caught the falling Guardian, matching his velocity and then speeding forward.

Mac watched after them. “We’ll get them tomorrow. Tomorrow’s the day.”

---

Two Months Later
Ottawa, Ontario

“Gardner,” smiled Jeanne-Marie, her arm in a sling and her chest bandaged, as she watched her former team-mate enter the room. It had been two months since she had slain her doppelganger in the Alpha Lounge but it seemed to her, and the others, as if decades had passed instead.

Gardner Munroe, the heroic Flashback, gasped as the French-Canadian knocked the wind out of him with the force of her hug. He tapped her back, careful not to cause greater injury than she had already received. If he could have utilised his power to go back and prevent her, and the others, from the harm they’d suffered then he would have done so but he was both certain and angry that his powers did not function in such a way.

He smiled fondly at the raven-haired beauty. “Thanks Jeannie.”

“Welcome home,” smiled Mac, the current leader and overall Canadian idol. “Or should I perhaps rephrase that? Welcome to Alpha Flight, again.”

Gardner’s eyes noticed the glare he received from Walter, who leant on the mantelpiece, as the svelte woman slipped from around his waist. In a time long ago, they had been friends but those connections had long since died. Gardner had left Alpha Flight and everything it meant behind so long ago that he had forgotten his reasoning. Upon hearing of the dangers Alpha Flight had faced and the fatalities, he had be reinforced in his patriotic beliefs.

They had once been his friends, and they could be again. He needed them just as much as their country did.

“Welcome back,” smiled Eugene as he shook the taller man’s hand.

He blushed slightly with all the attention. “I was surprised when Gentry contacted me to be honest. I thought this had all been left behind.”

“It surprised us all,” Mac informed him, tightening the grip he placed on the man’s shoulder. “In the aftermath of the battle with those Alphan clones Gentry appeared. It was under the jurisdiction of the Canadian government and the Alpha and Gamma Flight initiatives were reinstated.”

“Not that we’re complaining. The battle taught us a lot about the necessity of having someone to look after this place,” grinned Jeanne-Marie widely. “Even after everything that happened, we can’t just walk away.”

“Jean-Paul could,” snorted the broken Walter as his face tensed.

Jeanne-Marie looked across her shoulder coldly. “I am not my brother.”

Gardner wasn’t an idiot; the tension between the pair seemed to be building as the joy of his homecoming disintegrated. He remembered why he had always hated teams and the drama they entailed, but Gentry had given him a very good reason for returning. Since abandoning Alpha Flight he had been lost and Gentry seemed to have Intel on this.

This was Gardner’s reason to start again, and to care. Gentry may have lost his wife in all of this but he had made a point to remind Gardner what he had received as a consolation prize.

He also noticed the unusual expression in Mac’s eyes and realised Heather Hudson was on his mind.

---

Toronto, Ontario

“Guys this is it, you walk away now or your here to stay.”

Heather was firm, and her eyes were unusually calculated. Strands of red hair fell across her face and for the first time in years she found herself in the uniform she had worn as “Vindicator”. She was a woman scorned by heartbreak and she was determined to survive the experience for the better. 40% of marriages failed and Heather knew she would have to live with that.

Her eyes narrowed as she looked at the group that was assembled ahead of her, she had been a busy woman when she had walked out on her husband. She had watched her marriage die and realised that she didn’t want that to be for nothing. Optimistically she had pre-empted the victory of her husband and long-time friends, and intersecting the young mutant Flex she had reorganised the Flight initiative in three forms, only two of which were known to the public and majority of heroes involved.

It was Omega Flight that stood before her, the team that was shrouded in secrets and dedicated to the black ops requirements of the government. It was up to them to do what none of the other flights could do. It was strange for Heather to find herself in the position that bordered villainy when she had been so against returning to active duty with Alpha Flight.

Nobody moved and she nodded.

“You are black ops and that means you fight for your country and you die for your country,” she emphasised to them. “Omega Flight is different from the other Flights as it may require you to kill for your country.” She paused and observed them slowly, looking for signs of weakness in the unfaltering faces that surrounded her. “Omega Flight does not exist and as of now, you no longer exist. It’s tough but that’s how it’s got to be.”

It was the cyborg Manbot that first came to her attention. He had been unconscious at the facility when she had returned in the aftermath. Jaxon and his troops at Roxxon had abandoned the sinking ship quickly before further plans could be made on the catatonic mixture of machine and body. In the reboot of his system Bernie Lachenay had be largely lost and now an impressionable machine stood in front of her, a killing machine. Heather could sense the others’ awareness of this and their intimidation.

Colin Ashworth Hume, the British Windshear, caught her eye next. When Heather had caught up with the man he had been living back in his home of England, working in MI-13 as one of their premier agents. Her loquacious tongue and her sweet charm had manipulated him into fighting by her side. Raw power and intelligence was the concept behind Omega Flight and Heather felt the man had both, she trusted him.

Yukon Jack had helped her save a life and she found herself indebted to him, she had approached him cautiously but the First Nation hunter was more than happy to join her motley crew. He was not a pacifist, and he was skilled in the ways of the land which was a skill Heather was fond of. She had wanted him on her team and she was pleased to have gotten him.

Lastly she met the gaze of the sullen Jared Corbo, the mutant Radius; he had abandoned Alpha Flight after the battle. He felt useless and unworthy until Heather approached him and offered him a direction.

She had been aiming to fill the last slot with Aurora before those plans had changed and she found herself staring down the barrel of a loaded gun with the young man. He was torn between childhood and adulthood, and that was something that most interested Heather in his case. She felt that he needed Omega Flight more than it needed him but she regretfully felt responsible for the direction he, and the others, would be led.

“You are our next chance in doing what needs to be done,” she continued. “How it needs to be done.”

---

Halifax, Nova Scotia

“Munit haec et altera vincit,” spoke the man at the front of the room, his back facing the blackboard scrawled upon messily with chalk. He walked away so it revealed the name ‘Madison Jeffries’. ”Who can tell me what that means?”

Madison had a past and when he had returned to the old and seemingly abandoned Department H in Ontario he had not expected the welcome he received, Despite the villain he had become as a bloodhound of the Zodiac Cartel, before he was saved by the woman he had loved and lost, Gentry had seen some goodness and heroism left within him. Mentally he was unsuitable for the field as his mind had yet to be fully explored after the event but there was still a position open for him.

He had never imagined being a teacher but he instinctively felt as though Gamma Flight, the training academy for possible future members of Alpha Flight, was where he belonged. Lillian had left him but he now felt at home.

A tawny-haired boy raised his hand. “One defends and the other conquers. It’s the motto for the territory in which we reside.”

“Very good,” smiled the teacher.

He recognised the boy: Adrian Corbo, the mutant Flex, as he had been the person to officially recruit Madison into the initiative. He looked downtrodden and almost as if the weight of the world literally fell on his shoulders. There was the look of a dreamer in his eyes but it was more than that, it was a dreamer who had been stripped of all of the hope he had once possessed by the death and carnage he had witnessed.

It was something that worried him.

He looked on. “Who can tell me the relevance of this motto in connection with the Flight scheme?”

“Alpha Flight preserves what has already been conquered by democracy, and those who challenge this and attempt to conquer Canada for themselves are the villains they defend against. Gamma Flight operates as a training institution to instil this mindset in the students, all potential recruits into Alpha Flight.”

Madison’s smile widened as he looked upon another of the new recruits, this was his first meet with many of them but he recognised Lilli Stephens from her file. She was the brain box. A young girl of mixed race, part English and part Asian, she had challenged herself to be the best upon entrance into the school. Lilli wanted to be a hero and she knew it would take everything she had to offer.

Yet, there was arrogance to her words as she smirked at her fellow pupils with superiority.

It was Bill Astin, the cosmically charged boy named Ouija, who received the look from across the classroom. He was pointy-nosed and disinterested in all that happened around him.

“O-U-I-J-A,” he groaned as he stared absently at his mentor. “It’s hardly likeable, is it?”

Yet another sigh fell from the lips of Zuzha Yu as she reheard the statement once again. Bill had been unhappy with his codename since he’d been given it by Gentry almost two days beforehand. He seemed to quieten down for the moment shortly after her response.

Zuzha Yu was an enigma to even herself with little information on who she was and where she came from, she considered herself yet another adoptee with a history lost in the paperwork. It was something she hated about herself and she strove for information on her heritage. It was this outlook on life, one of disappointment, which had forced to become the tough and somewhat aggressive young collegiate dropout that she had become.

“You’ll settle into the name Bill,” comforted his mentor. “Give it time.”

“Not everyone can have a tailor-built codename to work with,” grinned the blond boy, somewhat naive of his snobbish behaviour.

Louis Sadler Jnr. smiled broadly around the group, as a legacy hero he had inherited the name that had been used by his father during the war. Major Mapleleaf II hoped to become one of the greatest heroes Canada had known, the Guardian of his generation. Louis was a young man with serious issues as far as his father was concerned and this was why he had such an overachieving personality. It had grinded Madison until he had noticed the patterns in the boy’s otherwise well-hidden self-hatred.

Madison looked on helplessly. Before him sat the heroes of tomorrow and he had the responsibility of making them ready for such a task. In honesty, he wasn’t sure if he was ready to make the transition with them.

---

---

The End...

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