Today's main goal: don't die.
Simple enough. I mean, that's everyone's main goal. I've been pretty good at not dying my whole life. I've spent 24 years not dying, so what's one more day? I was speed-walking along the sidewalk. The heat from the sun was blasting me in the face. My face was already sweaty, my armpits already smelling—and I hadn't even gotten into a fight yet. Leon was next to me. A slight smile stayed glued to his face.
"You nervous?" asked Leon. His smile was as persistent as the question.
"Yeah, man, no biggie." In actuality, I was scared shitless. I kept moving my arms in an almost exaggerated up-and-down motion to hide the fact they were shaking.
"I remember my first mission. I was shitting bricks."
Well, that was somewhat comforting, but I didn't want to let him know I was nervous. I couldn't let him know I was nervous.
"Go over the mission," he said, the question punching me in the face.
"Uh, there's a guy in, uh, a bank..."
Leon's smile gave way as he let out a laugh. "There are guys at banks every single day. If you ever want to lead a team in the future, you have to know how to brief them."
Lead a team? Dude, it's my first mission and he's already telling me how to lead a team. One step at a time. But he had heard of my dad before. Probably means he has high expectations of me, which means I can't disappoint.
"We got multiple calls stating there was a suspicious man at the bank. Last call, we heard screaming, and the person on the line whispered, 'get help.' No calls after that."
Leon was able to walk fast and somehow keep his composure.
"So Maxey, based on the extenuating circumstances—God, I hate talking like that—what is most likely occurring at the bank, in your prooo-feessh-inal opinion?"
I half heard his question. The bank was already in view, and my full attention was on it. What if the villain comes out and spots us? He had his eyes on me—shouldn't you keep your eyes on the freaking bank? I knew I shouldn't have joined an unknown agency in the middle of butt-fuck nowhere. I should have just taken some internship at a B-level agency and worked my way up or something. I decided to join the only agency that reached out, and now I'm going to pay for it with my life. But before I give my life, I have to give an answer to Leon's stupid questions.
"The villain is probably, uh, I don't know…enacting an act of terrorism?"
Leon suddenly went out of my view. He'd stopped walking so suddenly, I thought my eyes were glitching. His mouth opened, one eyebrow slightly raised.
"Is this what they teach at the academy now?" he asked, a tinge of sarcasm infecting his tone. "If a villain is in a bank—crazy theory—he might actually just be robbing it for money." He resumed walking with that annoying half-smile making a return.
We kept walking until suddenly two large golden doors were in front of us. The doors to the bank assaulted my field of view with their presence. Opulent gold frames wrapped around the hinges of the door. The gold reflected the sunlight, making them hot to the touch. The rest of this shithole town we were patrolling was probably worth less than these two doors. I get it, you have money, but why show off? Sad part is, it's our job to protect these assholes and make sure no one steals their shit. Have one of these poor townsfolk get robbed for their last two cents and we won't get a call.
They'd probably just end up sending powerless heroes in that type of scenario. That's the proper term for them: Powerless Heroes. More like failed sperms, in my opinion. Let's see, maybe one day I can lead my own agency and help everyone, rich or poor. From what I hear, that's what my dad was planning on doing before—
"Dying," said Leon, as he pointed to the top of the building across from the bank. For a few seconds, my mind drew a blank. Leon snapped his fingers in front of me.
"Hey, lock in. Did you hear what I said? I have two sniper clones looking out for us so we don't end up dying."
"Oh, okay. Makes sense," I replied.
"Kid, let me know if you're good to go. If not, you can wait out here and I'll take care of it."
My heart and brain were having a race; every second I felt my heart beat a thousand times while my brain had a thousand thoughts. This is it—my first mission, my first villain. Be with me, Dad. I love you.
"I'm ready."
---
2 Years Ago — Local Highsmore Hero Academy
My pencil's eraser stared at me as the lead etched out my name. I heard I get twenty points if I just sign my name right. Now all of a sudden, I'm nervous about spelling my name wrong. This was the first test. The teacher said, don't even see it as a test—more like a questionnaire about myself. But I'm still able to flunk, so it's still a test.
First question: What are Powers? Okay, let's not overthink these softball questions. Powers are a genetic mutation that occurred around 3,000 years ago, where you are given abilities that can range from anything you can think of.
Question number two: Can you explain how powers evolve? Typically, a power will evolve depending on how the person uses their powers and characteristics they share as well. Usually triggered through any euphoric emotion, great loss, maturing…scientists are still trying to pinpoint it. But they do know one thing: It's not random.
Third question: What is the ranking system we use to judge Heroes? Easy enough—the ranking system is the five-tier Top 500 model. A tier 5 hero is the weakest and is usually able to fight street crime, all the way to tier 1, which is top-of-the-line superhero. The Top 500 superheroes are usually all tier 1, and their rank is usually calculated on villains defeated, people saved, and strength of their powers. The School of Ranking is what gives out the rankings, which are updated on a weekly basis. That should be the answer they want. Man, I can remember since I was a little kid, I always wanted to be the number one hero and wanted to surpass my dad who, before what happened to him, was number 25.
Question four—there was a note that said next to the question: "Question does not count, no wrong answers." Okay… Question number four: Why do I want to be a hero?
Damn, do I talk about my dad? I got in the school because my dad had ties to the head of the academy, so they know who I am. I don't want to seem like I rely on my dad's reputation. I mean, I don't. I'd like to think I would've gotten into the academy with or without them knowing who my father was. I want to be a hero because I want to help those in need. I want people to live in a world where they don't worry about getting robbed or beat up or having their fathe… I erased that last word. A loved one killed.
---
2 Years Later — Inside the Bank of Austerium
Inside the bank, it was oddly quiet. The bank seemed much bigger on the inside than out. The interior was lavish—oak wood cabinets and walls surrounded everything with a gold accent. Leon got in a crouch position and I followed. Making our way through the bank, I started seeing people on the floor. Not dead—they were scared, but most of them had a sort of relief seeing us. Leon spawned two more clones of his. If I remember correctly, he can produce a maximum of five clones. That was his power. Two clones on the lookout and two clones he just spawned—that makes four in total.
The clones dispersed; one went to the left and the other to the right while we were walking through the center of the bank. As we made our way to the counter, not a villain in sight, we heard a moan coming from behind the desk. A man in his business suit was lying on the floor, his arm smoking. His suit's sleeve appeared to be melted into the guy's arm. He moaned in pain while trying to blow on his arm. When his eyes met our presence, he got his good arm and pointed at the bank's vault. He mouthed, "He's in there." Leon shook his head and kept moving forward. Poor bastard—could that happen to me if I'm not careful?
The person must have some fire or lightning-based powers to do that type of damage. At the vault, there was a man on his knees. Hands on the vault door. I could feel a heat wave hit me. The man was trying to burn a hole into the vault. Leon looked at me, then kept moving forward. We had the drop on him—if he doesn't hear us coming, we can...
I knocked over a vase as I thought of how to surprise him.
The villain turned around. He had goggles on, a thin mustache, and spiky black hair. The man must've been in his 40s. Sun-beaten skin. He turned around, both of his hands glowing. He was about twenty yards in front of us. Leon put his hands up.
"Hey man, how have you been? Sorry to bother you, but FYI robbing a bank isn't, you know, legal. So could you come in with us?"
The villain smiled, and the glow in his hand intensified as he charged up. He pointed his hand at Leon when suddenly a foot smashed into his arm, causing him to send a blast of—what I assume is—fire into the ceiling of the bank. It was one of Leon's clones. A second later, his second clone kicked the villain in the neck. Each clone grabbed a hold of one of his arms.
Leon looked at me. "Do it, Maxey."
The first time I'm going to use my powers on a villain—it's all happening so fast, I could barely process. My fingers trembled, my arms shaking. I crouched slightly, putting weight on my knees, opened my palm, and aimed it at the villain.
My heart wanted to jump out of my chest. Now my whole body was shaking. I tried focusing on my hand. I pushed my hand forward…
Nothing happened.
Leon's eyes went wide. "Maxey, you good?"
Before I could respond, the villain's body started glowing—smoke was coming out of the clone's hands. The villain pulled his left arm back after melting off the clone's hands and pointed at the clone on the right. A blast of fire melted him as he disappeared, then his other arm melted down the other clone.
He pointed his hand at me. "Must be a rookie," and blasted.
---
3 Months Ago
I arrived at a small office building. I read the letter that was sent to me: Room 302. I made my way into the building. All the rooms had numbers in the 100s, so the room I'm looking for is on the third floor. I made my way to the stairs. I was so nervous—this is my last chance to get into an agency. I remembered after finishing the academy, everyone got their offers from different agencies. I didn't get shit; my grades were decent, my power and combat were decent. Didn't make sense. Were agencies just nervous about signing the great Maxamillion's son?
I made my way to the office door. I knocked and heard a female voice telling me to come in. Opening the door caused a loud, audible squeak. The office was small, roomy. There was a small lobby and an office to the right.
At the end of the lobby stood a desk and a woman sitting and typing on a computer. She had blond hair and light hazel eyes. She couldn't have been older than 23 or 24—my age. Pale skin, skinny lips, chewing gum as I made my way to the desk.
She looked up and smiled. "Hey, Maxey?" Her smile seemed genuine.
"Yeah, that's me. Nice to meet you." She handed me a few papers.
"Nice to meet you as well. My name is Alia. These are for you and Mr. Leon is waiting for you in his office." She pointed to the door at the right.
I smiled and gulped as I made my way into the office. There sat a man with black hair, specks of white coating his hair and beard. Looked to be in his 40s. "Leon Martin," said his nameplate. He smiled and stood up, then extended his hand.
"You must be Maxey?"
I shook his hand and sat down. "Hey, yeah, I'm Maxey. Nice to meet you." I sat down on the chair.
"So, we're willing to pay minimum wage for a year. Then, depending how that year goes, we can restructure." The fuck? Minimum wage? I never heard of a hero getting paid minimum wage, even in the most backwater town. I had no choice. I had no other offers from other agencies, and they probably knew. You know what? I'll work my way up, and by the time I leave this cheap BS agency, I'll be walking away with an actual amazing offer.
I shook his hand. "Sounds like a deal."
I was curious, so I asked, "So what's your rank, if you don't mind me asking?"
Without hesitation, Leon responded, "I'm tier one—just not in the Top 500."
Leon stood up and walked around his desk, folded his arms, and leaned on his desk. "I was a big fan of your dad's work, so I'm excited to have you on!"
There it is, I thought.
"Now, I have a few questions for you. First, what is your power?"
I looked at him with confusion. "Wouldn't my file explain that, sir?"
Leon laughed. "I never read that shit." This dude didn't even scout me. He's just some fan of my dad and hired me on a whim. I have a bad feeling about this, but sadly no choice.
"My power is—"
---
3 Months Later — Inside the Bank of Austerium
The fire blast headed straight for me. I closed my eyes and braced for impact.
A second later, I opened them to see Leon absorbing the fire blast. He had on the same smile he had while he asked me what my powers were around three months ago. The blast lasted for about two or three seconds, then dissipated—and so did Leon's clone. I can tell it was his clone because his clones disappear once they take a fatal hit.
Once the smoke cleared, I saw Leon running full speed at the villain. The villain raised his other arm and aimed it at me. Right before he could get another blast off, Leon kicked his hand in the air and screamed, "NOW!"
Instinctively, I raised my hand with an open palm. Behind me, the wind started picking up—so strong that the golden doors to the entrance swung wide open. The wind made it over to my body as my arm charged—all of this taking place in half a second.
The difference between this time and the previous attempt is that this time I didn't think—just acted.
I pushed my palm forward and a wind blast hit the villain and slammed him hard against the safe. His body then slammed on the floor as Leon put villain handcuffs on him and started clapping.
"See, wasn't so hard, huh?" He came over and looked me over the same way a father would check his son for injuries. "Seems like you're alright. You're a natural, like your dad."
"Yeah, I never saw him fight, but I've heard plenty of stories." Leon started walking around and helping the people in the bank evacuate. Once everyone had left—
"Yeah, I saw your dad fight. I was his partner, after all. I was his partner until the very end."
My eyes widened. I did not know what to say. I looked at Leon and his smug smile protruding. All of a sudden, he grabbed the back of his head as he looked towards the big golden doors. His eyes, for the first time, weren't the easy-going pair—they were wide, fear drenched within them.
"Both of my clones outside just got killed."
My mouth was gaping open. "Are they with him?" I pointed at the unconscious villain.
"I doubt it. Why arrive late for a bank heist and let your partner get caught? Maxey, we're being ambushed."
He lowered his head and crouched. "Someone followed us here, someone that knew we were going to be here."
I had noticed his hands were trembling—this dude was always so nonchalant. Seeing him act this way gave me goosebumps.
"Kid, stay here. I'm not risking your life."
I raised my finger in protest. "I know you felt like your life was at risk already, but I knew this villain wasn't much to worry about. Whatever is outside will kill you. Stay here, I'll call for backup and go out and take care of it." He signaled into his radio, calling for backup, and ran outside the bank.
I was terrified—a villain is stalking us? I was just about to ask him about my dad, too. Was he there? The day my dad died? Backup was on its way—most likely higher-ranked heroes, and I didn't want them to see me in here chilling out while my partner was out there getting killed. Also, I need to know more about my dad—I can't let Leon die. I rushed toward the golden doors and swung them open.