Super Hero Rhapsody: 1975

Cool night air cuts the smoke as Sally and the others step clear of the service tunnel. Ahead, a black sedan waits by the fence, engine idling low. The Contact raises two fingers, and the trunk pops open.

Two federal agents rise from cover beside the open trunk, rain-dark coats and mirrored patience. Doctor Aris Thorne is guided forward, pale but upright, toward the waiting hands.

Devlan stays close to Sally, keeping his pistol lowered but ready. The agents take Thorne’s arm, checking his face, his wrists, his breathing, like paperwork given a pulse.

One agent glances to Sally, then to the sedan, then past it toward the rail yard lights. The handoff is clean on the surface, but the route to the Department’s central hub is now visible, one transfer deeper.

Sally leaves Subterranean service junction, Seattle rail yard behind and arrives at the hotel.

The hotel parking lot sits under a buzz of amber lights, wet pavement shining like black glass. Sally and Devlan peel away from the service exit, the rest of the team already out of frame, and the sedan recedes behind them.

Sally gives Devlan a sharp signal toward their car. He catches it immediately and turns, matching her pace without asking twice.

They cut across the lot together, rain ticking softly off the rooflines. The black sedan stays behind with the agents, but a faint reflection in the hotel windows shows more than one shadow moving near the lobby doors.

Sally reaches the car first and gets it ready while Devlan watches the entrance. The hotel’s glass doors slide open for a late arrival inside, and a badge clip flashes briefly under the lobby lights.