T H E  P E N T A G O N  W A S  in turmoil, everyone bustling about, working behind computers, pacing to and from rooms or barking orders and requests. This was after new footage had begun to be broadcast by satellites. Madam Secretary was one of the many people who were watching, alongside the Army General, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force and the entire UN Summit all the way from New York. Victoria Courtney had returned to the Pentagon around seven hours ago, having come from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Everybody had been pressuring her to take more action as the brutal battle outside continued to escalate. She had adamantly cut off all of them, not wanting to put at risk the lives of civilians.  Two hours earlier, it was confirmed that the extraterrestrial life forms had all been destroyed by the heroes of Atlanta. This included the Amarok army and the Legion of Death—but the Pentagon had no idea that

S O M E T H I N G  H A D  B E E N  particularly bothering Diana Roberts just two weeks after the battle. Nicolas Johnson had known this when he had called, asking her to meet. Diana had therefore found herself walking up to a restaurant in Midtown Atlanta. She was about to go inside when— "Diana, over here, " she spun around to spot Nick seated on one of the tables set outside the restaurant. There was a couple talking and laughing in one; a mother wiping away a drop of ketchup that had dripped on her son's shirt and then there was Nick. "Hi," Diana said, taking a seat and facing Nick. "Hey," his dark hair was short, matching his dark eyes as he beamed at her. "Actually, there's something I wanted to tell you," Diana bit her lower lip that was as red as her hair. Nick rested his hands on the table, ushering her to go on.