Bright Legacy of the Divine Shadow: Chapter 1 – A Master Reflected by His Apprentices

Chapter 1 – A Master Reflected by His Apprentices

Today’s another morning, but also a special one. All my friends are coming over for breakfast, which I help prepare for with my wife and apprentices. My wife, Darcy Travail Severe, is a blue-eyed, black hair beauty who is pregnant with our third child. She wears a purple and black dress, a white cooking apron, and her favorite pink lipstick. As for me, I wear a black dress shirt, red tie, black dress pants, dress shoes, and an apron as well. Behind us, our infants Rouge and Gris watch us in their booster seats, patiently waiting for breakfast and constantly making noises to get attention, which we give, in between cooking and preparing the table.

Next to me stands my first apprentice, Kane Mundr, who is dressed in his crimson hoodie, a black shirt with a snake on it, black cargo pants, and black boots as usual. His black hair is a bit messy from waking up early, and his grey, blue, red, and black eyes look heavy from being tired after last night’s work and today’s stress. Near him is Raziel Emundatio, my second apprentice. He’s wearing an apron, a red shirt with a cross on it, jeans, and leather boots. His golden blond hair shines as brightly as his red, orange, and yellow eyes, matching his cheerful personality and hopeful outlook, thankful for another God-given day.

Last, but not least, my third and most recent apprentice, Polina Yelizaveta, just arrived here not too long ago, so she can help. She’s dressed up in her dark blue police officer uniform with a badge on her chest, an equipment belt, and a pistol on each hip. Her crimson hair is as red as her eyes, and her fiery personality and love for mercy and justice. Cooking like this together reminds me of the times when I would do the same for the needy and homeless at the many charity centers my family runs. My parents would bring me out to them when they weren’t working at our hospitals to teach me the value of giving to others without expecting anything in return. Our guests soon arrive: Mayor Jeph, Deputy Tim, my close friend and brother, Lancetto Affare, and Klinge Geben, another inheritor of his family’s rich legacy like Lancetto, Darcy, and me. While we eat, I can’t help but watch everyone talk, eat, and enjoy themselves.

Lancetto is dressed in a top hat, bow tie, round glasses, and snazzy outfit as well, mixing white, gold, and red, appearing to be the embodiment of his family’s dignified wealth. The mayor and his deputy are dressed the same as Lancetto in their own way, and Klinge is a mutated man dressed casually in a grey hoodie, plain black shirt, dark blue jeans, and boots. We’ve tried to get him a custom suit, but he prefers to stay casual, representative of the common man and manufacturers, whom his family represents.

Darcy notices this, puts her hand on mine, and says, “Are you okay, Timeo, my love? You seem to be lost in thought since you’ve been looking at everyone strangely.”

My wife is one to always notice the finer details. It makes sense since the Travail family is taught to do this because of how they influence the city through the arts and fiction. She’s right in that I’ve been looking at my loved ones longer than usual and noticing every detail about them as if I’m admiring a prized possession or nostalgic photo.

“It’s been a long year, hasn’t it?” I ask. “Many criminal and villainous syndicates were taken down, I got three sidekicks or apprentices, my hero identity was outlawed, and then redeemed in the eyes of the law, and now, the safety of Meridian is about to be ensured thanks to our newest friends from the undercity.”

“God is good.”

“Yes, He is.”

Our peaceful breakfast is crashed by a group of masked robbers, who wear body armor and threaten us with guns. As they make their demands, I continue eating my breakfast of steak and eggs and drinking my wine. One of the criminals asks me what my problem is, and I simply laugh and raise my glass to them before my apprentices spring into action, taking them down and away from the dining room. With the criminals restrained in an adjacent room, our breakfast resumes as if nothing happened.

“How goes the investigation into the villain of the week?” I ask Kane, who sighs in frustration.

“We’re getting there,” he says.

“Who are they? They must be either well-funded, powerful, and bold or incredibly stupid to attack the house of one of the four powerful families outside the city,” Mayor Jeph says.

“No one will remember their name by tomorrow,” Raziel says.

“I’m glad to see you and your brother restraining yourselves more,” I say.

“Thank you, father,” Raziel says with a bow of his head.

Kane rolls his eyes at Raziel’s bow and says, “I’m only using my non-lethal revolvers because we need information out of these people and don’t want another lecture on the value of mercy from Polina again. If I didn’t, I’d use my lethal pistols.”

“I’m sure you don’t mean to be so blunt, brother. You’re a gentler man than you seem.”

“He isn’t really,” Polina comments. “I’ve had to keep him on a leash with my mental powers a few times to restrain him from killing our targets.”

“I’d prefer it if you used those powers to explode more heads or at least give people migraines, not including me. Anyways, I’m done eating. Let’s head out.”

Polina and Raziel agree and follow Kane out the door. While leaving, Polina mentions she’ll take care of the robbers first before doing what Kane plans, and seems to do so because of all the racket outside and the back and forth between Kane, Polina, and Raziel that we can barely hear.

“Your apprentices seem to be more independent than usual. Are you planning on retiring, Timeo?” Mayor Jeph asks.

“No, not for a while at least. I’m just trying to leave a legacy and people to take my place so I can spend more time with my family,” I say.

“I can see that, especially with those strange superhumans that you found in the undercity. Their replacing the heroes and cops who died during Raziel’s city-wide fire, and you saving Meridian from a villain syndicate with them are the only reasons why I was able to make your hero identity legitimate again. Don’t get me wrong. I was always on your side, but-”

“Politics don’t make it easy, I know.”

“I don’t think you can recover your status again if something like that happens again,” Deputy Tim adds.

“Men are more judgmental than God. I’ll try to prevent it, but I promise nothing. You know that my dark powers bend to the will of God more than I.”

“But the public can only guess that’s true. It’s not like they know what you do or see God pulling your strings. Most of the city was quick to get behind you for saving them and your past actions, but there are still some who are distrustful. To them, it looks like you saved them by bringing in an army that you control. This is all an attempt to take over the city in their view.”

“Let them think what they want to. We have God’s work to do.”

Jeph and Tim nod their head at my dismissal. I know they agree with my thinking and just want me to be careful so we don’t find ourselves on opposing sides, a concern that I share with them and try to be accommodating on.

Continuing, I say, “Lancetto?”

“The Church and businesses I control and am allied to like you, even if they do so out of fear. Your protection brings the fear of God into the faithless and keeps the city safe, so business can go on as it should without threat of corruption or attacks from criminals and villains,” Lancetto reports.

“I was just going to ask you if you got that game we were going to play, but thanks for the report anyway.”

“Oh, you know I got that and took time off for us to play it so I can beat you at it.”

In a moment, Lancetto and I share a laugh as if we were kids again, our only concern being when we’d play together next, what game to beat each other at, and what to say to get on each other’s nerves. Back to business, I ask Klinge about the status of the common citizen and what they think.

They’re on our side. They don’t care what their bosses or politicians think of their heroes. In fact, they support their heroes even more when they oppose those in power they don’t like,” Klinge says.

“You’re right, but we have to be sure not to inspire people to become radicals and completely go against the law,” I point out.

“Whatever you say. They’ll keep supporting you as long as you don’t step on their toes and become a tool of the government.”

“That’s a fine line that all legitimate and uncertified vigilantes and heroes walk, so I’ll continue to be the example people look up to.”

We finish off our formal breakfast by bringing to attention smaller rumors of newer criminal groups, superhuman villains, and other minor conspiracies.

“My contacts will keep an eye on those people and put them down like dogs, if necessary. I won’t let them jeopardize the future peace we are trying to build for the city and our children,” Darcy says with conviction.

It, along with the look in her eyes, reminds me of the time when she was one of my first obstacles when I was first starting as a hero. Her intensity in making sure Meridian is an orderly and safe place to live seems to have risen after becoming a mother and learning from her previous mistakes.

“Do what you think is right, but don’t let them get carried away and have them taken care of in secret, if they can’t get enough evidence against them to have them taken care of by the law.”

“Yes. I’ll be sure to send them reminders.”

With that, the formal breakfast meeting is over. My friends stay to help clean up and take any leftovers with them on the way out. After taking a breather, Darcy and I take our children out for our day off. We stay in the calm suburbs of Meridian, which usually doesn’t like being associated with the city because of its crime rates, although they’ve recently been lower than usual. We browse and buy things at the shopping district and take walks through parks decorated with artwork donated by the Travail family, while receiving some attention from the public, signing autographs, and talking to people who are familiar with us. Thankfully, we don’t get too much attention, and people are respectful enough of our desire to be with our family not to take up too much of our time. Rouge and Gris fall asleep in their stroller, and Darcy and I take the opportunity to rest as well, sitting on a park bench and watching happy families play and do the same as us.

I tend to naturally gravitate toward Darcy when she’s visibly pregnant, like she is now, as if expecting trouble or trying to show others that they’ll have to get to me if they want her. I’ve done this before when she was pregnant the other two times, and I’ll probably do it again. She does want to have as many children as my parents did, and even added Kane and Raziel to that number, allowing them to stay at our house because they were orphaned—something Kane found off-putting, but Raziel was completely okay with. My hope and prayer is that my children won’t end up like the six siblings I had, who were all apathetic toward my parents, faithless children who abandoned their parents and took their inheritance when they were needed most. It shames me to think that I wouldn’t mind beating them half to death again if they were still alive, but it’s just one of those permanent memories I have to keep in the back of my mind.

“Timeo? You seem lost in thought again. What are you thinking about?” Darcy asks.

“Family, as always,” I say.

As Darcy talks about family, my attention diverts to Kane, Raziel, and Polina, who are in the park looking around and talking to one another.

Seeing I’m not listening to her, Darcy looks where I am and says, “I hope there isn’t any trouble here.”

Looking over to me, Kane’s eyes widen. He then talks to Polina and Raziel, who look at us, and they all hasten their movements. Tapping into my power a bit and allowing myself to be a conduit for justice, I seek their targets for myself, while clouding myself in my power, so it doesn’t look like I’m doing anything. Sure enough, a criminal is sneaking up behind me, about to draw her gun, and make her demands. Before she can, I allow my dark powers to flow through me and pronounce their justice upon her. Dozens of hands reach out from her shadows, first covering her mouth, and then grabbing her head, legs, arms, and body so they can drag her into the shadows. She’s confused and terrified, and even more so when I lock eyes with her and watch her become one with the shadows where the hands break and twist her body to punish her for her sins and force her to repent. Feeling sorry for such a simple foot soldier, I say a prayer for her, as I do with everyone who my dark powers of justice touch.

Noticing my change, Darcy is about to ask what’s wrong until she looks over at my handiwork. There’s nothing left of the woman but all of her body’s blood that’s drenched the grass. She didn’t repent and paid for it. Darcy seems to be afraid at first, not of me, but of the threat that was so close by. Her fear is then replaced with rage since our family was almost the victim of criminals twice in the same day. Soon after, my apprentices engage the woman’s associates in the park, some of whom are superhuman.

“Did you read her memories before she died?” Darcy asks.

“I did, but most of the details of the group she is from are things that my apprentices already know,” I say before smiling. “Really, it’s useless information since the group will face justice today.”

After my apprentices win their fight, they run over to me and see the mess I made.

“Damn it! I knew we should’ve been faster, done more,” Kane says, while looking down in defeat.

“Kane, it’s okay,” I say.

“No, it isn’t! You trusted me to lead, so you can take it easy for once, and I wasn’t able to.”

“Our enemies can sometimes blindside us even when we do everything in our power to stop them. You’re doing good and will do better in the future.”

Raziel puts his hand on Kane’s shoulder and says, “My guardian angel says that you’ll have many more challenges and failures to face, but God and we will always be on your side.”

“That doesn’t help, but I appreciate the sentiment,” Kane says.

“We still have to go to their base of operations today, so there’s time to get payback on them,” Polina says.

“You know the location of their hideout, and you came here first?” I ask.

“Yeah, because at the last place we were just at, we interrogated some of them and found out they were going to attack you again, so I thought we’d protect you and your family first before going there.”

I smile with a sense of pride in my chest.

“Thank you. You did the right thing. Would you mind if I joined you to get some payback of my own? They’ve been ruining this day I was meant to spend together with Darcy and the kids. I don’t want you to think that I don’t trust you to end them. I just want a piece of the action, and I’ll leave you all to do the majority of the fighting.”

“Of course you can come.”

Looking over to Darcy, she nods her head and says, “Bring justice to those pathetic scumbags.”

I promise that I will and go with my apprentices to a place where I can secretly transform into my dark hero form, L’Obscurité, a tall figure dressed in a long black cloak, scarf around my neck, long hat, a bullet hole scar in the center of my head, and an indescribable face with a terrifying smile on it. Taking my apprentices into the darkness and light, we travel at blinding speeds to the location of our prey, a farm further out from the suburbs of Meridian. According to Kane, this simple place acts as a front for their operations and their only legitimate source of income. I drop off my apprentices and let them handle the situation in their own way. Polina suggests going in stealthily and using her mental powers to turn their own against them. Raziel proposes using his guardian angel’s fire and his scythe, and Kane mentions combining both strategies, a plan that Raziel and Polina agree on.

While they carry out their plan, I retreat into the light and dark to slip through the cracks of a building on the farm. There, I sift through the memories of the people present and discover a hidden basement, a common trait among criminals like these. Assuming the appearance of one of the criminals, I approach the door leading to the basement, pass the retinal scanner, and enter. Here, I find a hidden training, testing ground, and illegal experimentation for superhumans. They’re building an army here to gain influence in Meridian’s suburbs and city, but it’ll all stop here. I lock the door behind me as my dark powers twist the locks so no one can open it.

I then read the souls of the people here and plant my dark power throughout the room. Hmm. It’s a shame about the state of their souls. There’s a small chance they’ll repent and be saved, but that can really be said about most people, can’t it? With all my setup done, I reveal my true self to everyone by clapping and calling out to them. Everyone’s attention is on me, and they are all surprised to see me. The superhumans and guards have their weapons on me and raise their hands as if getting ready for a fight.

One of them says, “We’ve been trying to get you, Mr. Severe, but we expected you to come with one of our ‘escorts’. If you want to leave here alive, you'd better start telling us why you’re here alone. Is this some sort of trap by the law, hero, or vigilante?”

I laugh and say, “It’s no trap. A trap implies subtlety and deception, but there’s none of that for what I have planned.”

“And what’s that?”

“I’m merely searching through all your memories to see if you have any associates or allies outside of this location.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I know that you’re here because the city is secured by its new protectors. After they ran you out of the city, you fled with your tail between your legs, but still wanted to stake your claim to it for the honor and glory, so you built up your forces here, taking what you can from the suburbs, and dipping into the city from time to time. Your methods aren’t unique, nor will your efforts bear any fruit.”

My words strike a nerve and make the man in front of me shoot me in the head. The shot hits me, and nothing happens, shocking and confusing everyone as they step back as darkness emanates from my body and transforms me into L’Obscurité.

“He’s…he’s L’Obscurité!” one of them says as they begin to run away.

“Yes. It’s a secret that I allow only a select few to know, and none of you will leave here alive,” I say as I laugh and let the executioner’s axe of justice fall on them.

My powers punish them in ways unique to them, such as shooting them to bits for gunning down the innocent, tearing them limb from limb for experimenting on unwilling subjects, boiling them alive with chemicals appearing from nothing and suspended in midair for torturing their victims, and so on and so on. They all suffer horrible deaths for their crimes. None of them escape or are spared. From what I gathered from their memories, they know of other criminal groups and syndicates like them, but they’re all scattered and only have tenuous relationships with one another. Most of them are known to my allies and me, and will be dealt with next.

Going back outside, I find my apprentices cleaning up the last of the criminals, with some of them actually aiding them, thanks to Polina’s powers. It’s always good to see repentant souls and even better to see the fruits of my labor come to fruition. The proper law enforcement arrives and comes in to take those who were spared as we leave the area and head back home, where Darcy has prepared dinner for us. I reiterate to them how proud I am of their work and how well they did without my help.

“Yeah, but it could always be better,” Kane says.

“It could also always be worse,” Raziel points out.

“It’s best to think about what we could do better next time and leave our regrets behind us,” Polina adds.

I raise my wine glass and say, “I couldn’t agree more with that. Here’s to doing better and leaving the past in the past.”

My family toasts with me as we celebrate another job well done. Even with all the protection I have in and around the city, it seems like I need to tighten my grip a bit more. I’ll need to go into the city to arrange that, but that’s tomorrow’s problem, and tonight, I rest easy knowing my apprentices have the potential to take over my legacy when I need to rest, and do it possibly even better than I.