Chapter
3 – No Holding Back, Even Against Family
At the community center, I find
that the shelter that was constructed in times of superhuman attacks and
battles is badly damaged and has dozens upon dozens of people surrounding it,
some of whom I recognize. I see my friends from the hero academy that I went to
and fought alongside, such as Luke, Titus, Mark, and a few other recognizable
faces. They talk about how Isaias bought them out with whatever they wanted:
fame, money, or moving up in the hero ranks, that this is nothing more than a playful
fight, that they’re sorry for being on the opposing side, and it’s nothing
personal. All their excuses for being a part of this blend in my head as
nothing more than them admitting to being sellouts and taking part in something
they don’t understand, is more dangerous and destructive than they think. I’d
say that they think of this situation differently if their hometown were under
attack, but then again, some would see this situation as a necessary evil for
greater fame and fortune to attain their goals.
“See that? Even your closest friends
and allies will turn against you for the simplest things,” Isaias says.
“You’ll have to train in dealing
with facing that kind of betrayal. It’s one of the hardest things to do as a
hero and, in our line of work, it happens more often than we like to admit,”
Irlene adds.
“We’ll also be on their side. Now
that you’ve both fought alongside us, you know how we fight, so it should make
it easier for you.”
“Us? Against all of them and you?!”
Idelle says.
“Given your powers and
determination, you should be able to just get by. You need to know what that
feels like as well.”
“It’s all for your betterment. You’ll
thank us later.”
“Shut it! Can you trust those
villains you’re fighting with not to turn on you or turn their attention to the
townspeople and use them for their benefit?” I ask.
“You’ll have to beat us to prevent
any possibility of that happening. Come on, son. Show us everything you have
and more!”
An ambush of villains who were
hiding in the surrounding area of the community center attacks us. The odd,
sinking, blood-boiling feeling from before quickly hits me like a rocket from a
launcher, and my entire body feels like it’s cold and hot at the same time as
it instantly turns white. I can hear Idelle, Isaias, and Irlene arguing, but their
exact words are muffled. I fight back against everyone who goes after me,
sometimes defeating them quicker than I expected or killing them when I didn’t
mean to. My friends, Titus and Mark, try double-teaming me with one of Luke’s
robots backing them up, all of whom fall in seconds.
That blood-boiling feeling grows
and grows with each passing second, and foe defeated, whether they’d be sellout
hero or depraved villain, all of whom have been judged for punishment in my mind
as if I could read their souls and know exactly what God wants me to do with
them. My skin and shirt then go completely white as I speed up and reach past
my boiling point. There’s no holding back anymore. Not against people like
these. This place, once a joyful meeting place of Poca Bellezza’s families, is
in ruins, and its people are cowering in a shelter, fearing for their lives.
This fight and the reasons behind it are pointless, except for bringing justice
to the sinful and humbling the survivors.
My strength and speed have now
quadrupled, and no one can last even a second against me as I defeat foe after
foe with terrifying speed and nothing held back. No one who doesn’t deserve
mercy is instantly killed, and those who do are incapacitated and unable to
move or knocked out cold. My righteous wrath leaves dozens upon dozens of
bodies in its wake, and my anger for today’s injustice is such that I scream so
loud that the force of my scream causes an explosion of light that bursts forth
from me and consumes everything and everyone around me. In the blink of an eye,
certain foes were evaporated, knocked out, or rendered immobile. As for Idelle,
she’s fine except for the wounds she suffered during the battle, and the surrounding
community center has been miraculously repaired as if nothing had happened to
it.
Meanwhile, Isaias and Irlene are
lying on the ground, struggling to get back up. Looking at myself, I see that
my skin is whiter and brighter than before, and my once bright red shirt with a
golden cross on it is now just as white as my skin, and the cross on it is
silver. The wounds on my body seem to glow, and looking at myself in the glass
of one of the buildings, I see that my hair is also white, and the color from
my eyes is completely gone. Additionally, my blue jeans and brown boots have
also lost their color. What kind of power is this that’s been lying dormant in
me?
As my anger subsides, the color
returns to my skin and eyes, but not the tatters that are my clothes. Idelle
looks at me more concerned than afraid and goes over to hug me. I hold her tightly
in my arms and tell her that I’m okay.
“Are you? What was that?” she asks.
“I…don’t know at all. It’s another
God-given power that I’ll have to figure out later,” I admit. “All I know is
that those who deserved mercy got it, while those who didn’t instantly died.”
“That was amazing,” Isaias says as
he struggles to get up. When he eventually does, he comes over and pats me on
the side of my arm. “You accomplished things beyond our expectations, son. You’ll
be a legendary hero. I know it.”
Irlene gets up and tells us how
proud she is of us and hugs us with Isaias in one big family hug. Idelle and I push
them away after a second.
“We won. Write your checks to repair
the damages you caused and get lost,” I say.
“We’ll be back soon, or you’ll come
to us. Look at your hero buzzer,” Isaias says.
Looking at my hero buzzer, I see
that…I’m not associated with any hero associations.
“What did you do?”
“Fire you from the association you
worked with and blacklisted you from joining any from the back end. Did you
really think I wouldn’t have any other way to push you to join us? You’ll either
have to work as a freelance hero or join us if you want to do legitimate work.”
“Write your checks, take your
wounded, and leave!” I say as my skin suddenly goes white for a second before
returning to normal.
Isaias and Irlene tepidly agree,
hiding their terrified feelings behind false smiles, thinking that they’ve still
somehow won. The two of them then call their men to come here, take the
townspeople back to their homes, write the checks they need to, and take the
injured to the nearest hospital. When Idelle and I go back home, we tell our
parents what happened. They try to emphasize our victory, but it feels too bittersweet
to feel good about. In the following days, Idelle and I help rebuild Poca Bellezza
with the help that Isaias and Irlene have paid for.
Afterward, the townspeople throw us
a surprise, daylong thank-you party for saving them. They call us “The Saviors
of Poca Bellezza” and have even created a statue in our image. It’s a fun time
and does reinvigorate my downcast spirit a bit, even though I still feel
fearful for Isaias and Irlene’s eventual return. Still, the townspeople want us
to be happy, so I put on my best smile, thank God for my real family around me,
leave the future in God’s hands, and enjoy the present moment as much as I can,
as God intended.
The End
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