Deep under the sea, the Deep was riding around on a shark, asking every marine creature he encountered if they had seen or felt another human, someone they felt "close" to, swimming by.
The good news was that they had.
The bad news was that they did and knew exactly where he was.
He weighed his options: return to the Tower empty-handed and face the wrath of Homelander, or stay down here and risk becoming a bloated corpse like Great Wide Wonder.
The odds of survival were slim either way, but Homelander usually preferred a slow psychological torture over plucking your heart out. Usually.
He was just about to turn the shark around and accept his fate when a flash of movement caught his eye.
He saw a figure swimming gracefully and naturally toward him. He saw golden hair trailing in the water and, looking closer, a distinct burn scar.
It was his copycat.
Thank God it wasn't the Russian girl.
Ashley's heart practically hammered against her ribs like a trapped bird. Her eyes darted to the tablet, then back to Homelander's cold, plastic smile. She was a terrible liar, and they both knew it.
"I... it's just the stock, sir," she stammered trying to dig herself out of this trouble.
Homelander stepped closer, his shadow looming over her until she was forced to look up. "Don't lie to me. I can hear your blood rushing. I can hear the sweat forming on your hairline."
He reached out, his gloved fingers gently tilting the tablet toward him. "Why did your heart jump the second I mentioned the kid wanted my blood?"
"Ashley?" Stillwell asked as she stood, shocked her assistant might be hiding secrets from her.
"Actually, sir, Kevin reported something similar." Ashley chose her words very carefully; she was on thin ice.
"similar? similar how"?
"Well, he 'claimed' that when he was out to shoot the marine life awareness ad, he met a kid who was a Supe,one who can copy powers at 100% through blood, and that he also had..."
"HAD... WHAT, ASHLEY?"
"Parking..cancer"
"Wh... what? What the fuck are you talking about?" Homelander almost had a mini-stroke dealing with the level of stupidity around him.
"I... I don't know, sir! When the Deep came to me that day, I thought he was high! I didn't take him seriously! He said the kid told him he had... Parking Cancer!
Homelander stared at her. The sheer, concentrated absurdity of the phrase "Parking Cancer" was acting like a circuit breaker for his rage. He looked at Stillwell, his mouth slightly open.
"Parking... Cancer," he whispered again. He turned back to Ashley, his eyes narrowing. "You thought he was high?"
"Yes! I told him to get out of my office before I had him drug-tested! I didn't think there was a real kid, sir!"
Homelander let out a breath that sounded like a tire deflating. He looked at the ceiling, rubbing his temples. "He is so... fucking... stupid."
"He is, sir! He really is!" Ashley nodded frantically, her heart slowing down just enough to keep her from fainting. She'd done it. She is still alive!.
"Wait a second. What did you say?" Homelander cut her off, the air in the room suddenly still.
"I... I didn't say anything, sir," Ashley stammered, her hands shaking so hard the tablet rattled.
"No," Homelander hissed, his eyes fixed on a point somewhere behind her. "I mean what you said about the powers. What were his powers? Exactly."
Ashley swallowed, her throat feeling like it was full of dry sand. "Kevin claimed he could... he could copy powers. At one hundred percent."
"how?"
"Well... he said he gave him some blood. Just a few drops. And then they... they swam together. Talked to the fish. He said they even sparred, and the kid was just as fast, just as strong..."
Homelander went dead silent.
"Well," Stillwell interjected, "as long as he has cancer, whatever 'type' it is, it means he won't be a problem for much longer. He's a flickering candle, John. And besides, you'd never be reckless enough to actually give up your blood, right?"
"Pffft," Homelander finally scoffed, the sound sharp and defensive. "Of course not. I'm not an idiot, Madelyn."
He turned his head slowly toward Ashley "Get the Deep here," he said
Far away on the surface of the Atlantic, a massive whale lay unusually still among the swells. On its broad, mossy back, two figures sat together, drifting with the current.