The Phenomena of Fireflies and Star... - Chapter 13: Chapter 13

October 7, 2023
Saturday Morning
Andrade Residence
6:31 AM
Having been woken up by the sound of a hose spraying away a few minutes earlier, Ames now found himself standing on the porch and leaning on the column, cozy in an oversized beige sweater matched with beige harem pants. He felt well-rested, thanks to last night's sleep. It had been a while since he'd had a dreamless sleep. The lights had truly worked wonders.
"Look who's awake," Max greeted, appearing from the right side of the car with a hose in his hands.
"Oh," Ames almost choked at the sight of Max's utter lack of upper garment. His build was defined, muscular, and strong. Only a wee bit narrower than Harvey's. Max was built like a swimmer and his porcelain skin tone, which complemented his chocolate brown eyes very well, made the sculpture of his body more finely detailed. Ames eventually just looked down, embarrassed by the surprise he'd felt. "I was supposed to be the one to clean that."
"Yeah, I just wanted something to do for the morning," Max said.
Ames barely looked at him.
"Mhmm," Ames replied, nodding to get the message across better.
'He looks really good,' he thought. 'He looks really, really good.'
'Act normal.'
"Ames?" Max called out softly.
'Maybe consider looking up?' Ames thought to himself, noticing he'd been staring down the back license plate of his car.
"Mmm, yeah?" Ames responded, looking up and guiding his eyes straight to Max's face, which was no less attractive. Max's facial structure was chiseled and strong, his eyes gentle and inviting, his nose tall, and his smile soft and kind. For some reason, Ames hadn't really paid close attention to the handsome details of Max's face, even though he'd always found the man good-looking.
"I'm not bothering you, am I?" Max asked.
"No, of course not," Ames denied, shaking his head, realizing shortly after that he was shaking it a little too rapidly.
"Right."
"Mhmm."
"You had coffee yet?" Max inquired.
"You know what?" Ames quipped, gesturing with a pointed finger emphatically. "That's a good idea. Let me get you some."
Ames hurried back into house, shaking himself awake and rid of his embarrassing behavior. Max truly did look beautiful. He looked so good that it was distracting. Ames knew that he could use a cup of coffee himself. A good buzz to knock himself back into his senses was looking like a really good idea.
On his way to the coffeemaker, the pile of books on the dining table caught his attention.
'Did he finish all that?' Ames wondered, staring at the pile in awe. He then remembered what he had thought of yesterday. 'If his mind just keeps on absorbing information and expanding, he's gonna' need something that expands as he expands.'
'He'll need something as potentially unlimited as him.'
7:41 AM
Ames took one last sip of coffee from his large mug before putting it down. He observed as Max sat attentively in front of the laptop.
"Is this what I think it's gonna' be?" Max asked, a curious look on his face. "The Mastermind?"
"The Mastermind," Ames replied proudly, realizing a few seconds after how dramatic he'd made it sound. The silence that followed was just as awkward.
"What was that about?"
"What was what about?"
"You sounded like you were announcing a prophecy or something..."
"I did not."
"Yes, you did. You noticed it, too."
"Whatever. Just...," Ames moved over to Max's side to set up The Mastermind. The man had thankfully put on a white tank top. Ames then clicked his way into the program. The opening animation played smoothly before the main menu came into view. "Hypothetically, your capacity to learn and expand your knowledge should be unlimited. My books can only do so much for someone of your learning potential, so I am giving you access to an even bigger world of knowledge."
"How does this work?" Max asked, leaning closer to the laptop.
Ames clicked onto the English subject avatar, opening to more avatars.
"Think of it as an internet browser, except it gives you a set of links that the system patterns for a progressive learning path," Ames explained. "These sets change every single time you complete them, and the AI I developed it from generates tests at the completion of each set. Make progress? The Mastermind will adjust. Master each difficulty? The Mastermind will take it up a notch higher."
"It's a good thing computer science was part of our weird curriculum," Max commented, glancing up at Ames with a scoff. "How did you develop this?"
"While I was fighting through tertiary education and grad school, I studied programming informally with my best friend's help, and now here we are," Ames narrated, clicking into one of the smaller icons. A tab opened right after, enumerating a list of links being categorized per difficulty by the AI. "We have here a list of free academic journals, studies, theses, articles, et cetera."
"And I can use this?" Max asked, as if making sure. "You'll let me use this?"
"Yes," Ames answered proudly, patting Max's shoulder. "You are officially my first Mastermind student. I don't think you can learn the way most people learn, so I'm gonna' make you learn the way you learn."
Max looked up at him proudly, an impressed smile on the man's face as he offered his hand for a handshake. Ames took it right away.
"I think we're gonna' do awesome with this, Teacher Ambrose," Max said, shaking Ames's hand playfully.
"As long as you're gonna' be a good student, Max," Ames replied. "And as long as you don't take all of my coffee, we're gonna' do just fine."
12:05 PM
The Mastermind was definitely handy. After hours of reading through Level 1 English Literature on Hard difficulty, Max knew he was good for the meantime. Ames wasn't kidding. Max had just confirmed for himself how The Mastermind only got better as he got better. It had certainly posed a bigger challenge than simply reading a textbook.
Dropping onto his butt on the sofa, he immediately turned the television on for a quick break.
He was just in time for the afternoon news.
"Citizens of Falco continue to mourn the fallen hero, Alpha," the news reporter said. Max had hoped not to come across news about himself today, but he wasn't kidding anybody. "Two weeks have passed since the hero's disappearance after sustaining critical damage in the battle against superhuman terrorists, Malign and Emerald. More and more people believe that the superhero has, indeed, died. His admirers and people he has rescued in the past continue to flock to his statue in the Hall of Heroes to pay their respects and express their sorrows. Angela Cordero, Bird's Eye News."
Max turned the TV off. He had to admit, he still felt guilty about what he had done. He'd gone through this many times before, but whenever he saw how the people actually mourned him, his guilt manifested in spikes.
There wasn't much for him to do in the hours ahead.
For some reason, he felt like going out today. There weren't many places for him to travel to and linger in freely, but he could make do with wherever was allowable. He just wanted to get out of the house. He hoped Ames did, too.
'I hope he's not busy or anything,' Max thought, going up to the bedroom and knocking on the partially open door.
"Come in," Ames called out.
Max made his way in and found Ames comfortably reading a book on his work desk. The guy's legs rested on the corner of his table while he clutched another cup of coffee. The book he was reading lay open on a bookstand, a handful of other books on the side of it waiting to be read.
"What's up?" Ames asked.
"You wanna' hang out?" Max inquired, lifting his eyebrows emphatically.
Ames stared back at Max for a while, as if contemplating whether or not to let go of his comfortable afternoon read.
"I was just about to get to the best part, but...," Ames said, trailing off as he looked back at the large book before him.
"I mean, if you're busy, I understand," Max added considerately.
"I am...," Ames trailed off again, his eyes moving quickly as if reading fast.
And then he clapped once.
"I am not. Where do you wanna' go?"
"About that...," Max replied, puffing out his cheeks in uncertainty. "I haven't thought that far ahead."
"Uh huh," Ames said, removing his legs from the table. "The road's a good enough place to start. Go get dressed."
"Yes!" Max mouthed, patting the door's surface. He was really looking for some fresh air. Plus, he wanted to go out with Ames for something other than an errand.
Commercial District
12:31 PM
Max savored the sunlight that shone above the tall buildings, the light traffic, and the hustle and bustle of the commercial district. His facial features were obscured by his ball cap and his non-prescription glasses. He had also decided to put on a soft gray band shirt, a faded denim jacket, faded blue jeans, and his trusty sneakers.
Ames looked comfy in his own clothes. He had on a long red cardigan over a white tank top and a pair of blue stretch jeans. He also had on a pair of calf-high, brown leather boots. Ames's hair whipped back to the wind, and Max actually thought that the guy looked pretty picturesque in his current disposition: relaxed and fanned by the wind as he commandeered the vehicle. One hand on the steering wheel, too. Unadvisable but at ease.
Max sincerely appreciated how Ames had been so gracious to lend him an old but functional instant camera.
He enjoyed taking photographs of the buildings, the passing cars, the street activity, and basically everything that came to his fancy.
They took on the road with the windows down and the radio softly playing a pop-country song that Max hadn't heard of before but was certainly hooked into by the beat now.
It felt so liberating. Ames had been so kind to be game with it, driving with no clear destination. Ames was right. The road truly was a good enough place to start.
They passed by shopping malls, boutiques, advertising material businesses, and many other establishments. Max was taking it all in from the front passenger seat.
'What do they call it again?' Max tried to recall. 'Riding shotgun?'
Gathering the photographs into the center console, Max caught sight of Ames glancing at him with a pleasant expression.
"What?" Ames asked, curious.
"Nothing," Max replied, enjoying the time he was having. "It's just freeing to go out with you and not be thinking about errands."
"We can do this more often, if you want," Ames answered, his eyes on the road. Max could feel Ames's relaxed pulsation. It was very pleasant to take in. Max considered the idea that this may be something Ames had been wanting to do, too. "Back in the COVID years, I couldn't go anywhere, and so I had to absorb my work, my study, and my leisure in the same room. It was getting stifling."
"We can make this a weekend thing," Max offered, glancing at the buildings as they drove by. He wondered what it would be like to work in one of them. He'd been inside a few of these buildings as an honorary guest for ribbon-cutting ceremonies, mergers, and high-profile events. "You. Me. Maybe even some friends of yours."
"A weekend thing," Ames echoed.
"Mhmm," Max said, looking at Ames. He really did look picturesque. For some reason, Max had the urge to lift the camera to his eyes and take Ames's photo.
And so he did.
He didn't know if he would regret that, but Ames did notice. There was a shocked look on the guy's face, but there wasn't anything else.
"Oh," Ames commented. Max could feel more precisely, much to his relief, that Ames's surprise was actually a pleasant one. "I didn't expect to have the honor of being the subject of your photography."
When the photograph came out, Max checked out the image. It looked good.
"Was that weird?" Max asked politely, looking back at Ames, who didn't look bothered in the slightest. In fact, the guy was smiling rather appreciatively. "I'm sorry if it was..."
"No!" Ames replied, looking back at him momentarily. "Not at all. I just didn't expect it."
"I'm gonna' take more...," Max teased, proceeding to take more photographs of Ames. "Like, a lot more."
"Haha!" Ames replied, shaking his head helplessly as Max went on.
"Yes, sir, I am," Max continued with his teasing, having taken about six photos of his friend at this point.
A thought at the back of Max's mind urged him to take a photo of Ames and himself. He adjusted his seating position, trying to aim the camera in their direction. It was rather hard, but he could manage it. He could.
'Maybe he'll find it weird,' another thought rang up at the back of his mind. 'He will probably find it very weird. Even if he might not.'
He finally got the positioning right and could now take the shot, but the sudden urge not to actually press the button steered him away from what he was planning to do.
'Yeah, I probably shouldn't,' he decided, slowly retracting his arm and putting down the camera.
He really did want to take their photograph, though. For some reason.
Ames had been instrumental in the many positive changes in Max's life. They'd become great friends in such a short time. Max hadn't connected with anybody like this in what felt like a lifetime. It had been incredibly fun. He sincerely hoped it would last.
Ames had made being human a different kind of fun.
Max looked toward Ames again, but the guy was preoccupied with driving. The traffic had loosened so much that their pace was gaining consistency.
'Maybe, someday, I can ask him properly,' Max thought. 'Definitely. Someday.'
Max normally preferred to have a proper table for a meal. He wasn't very keen with the drive-thru thing, but Ames seemed to be really into the concept. They'd driven into a narrow pathway around The Crunchy Fowl. Max wasn't about to complain. It could be a handy option someday down the road.
And he loved a good chicken serving.
Ames stopped the car by the window, immediately greeted by the stationed server.
"I would like a double chicken-double cheeseburger and large Embers for me," Ames said. "And for my friend, um..."
Max had no idea what to say, but Ames was looking at him in anticipation. He wasn't familiar with The Crunchy Fowl's menu, even though he figured it to be a chicken-based fast-food restaurant. He really wanted a native chicken soup. He wondered if they offered that, at least. Then again, the restaurant's name suggested otherwise.
"Eh...," Max hesitated, shaking his head slightly to let Ames know he had no idea.
"Anything else?" the server asked.
"He...," Ames then spoke up, turning to the server again. "He would like another double chicken-double cheese. And a large Embers, too."
After rendering payment, they moved to the next window up ahead.
Ames giddily took the bags containing their orders, thanking the server in a sing-song voice.
"Oh, somebody's stoked," Max commented, helping Ames in putting the bags on the back seat. "Did I use that term right? Stoked?"
"Uh huh," Ames replied, thanking the server and driving off into the road again.
"I have to be honest," Max expressed, adjusting his seatbelt as he sank back to his seat. "I'm not used to eating on the road. We normally had it scheduled in a specific room."
"Trust me," Ames replied, gesturing gently with his hand. "You're gonna' get used to it. And we're not exactly eating on the road."
"Oh, we have a destination in mind now?" Max inquired, excited by the idea.
"Mhmm," Ames answered. "It's always been a very, um, grounding place to me."
The Garden
2:20 PM
'A picnic!' Max realized, plopping down on the large mat unfolded onto the grass. Ames sat down beside him. They'd entered The Garden, a large public park near the edge of Falco. The park was largely open and boasting of a variety of trees, flowers, sophisticated facilities, a large man-made pond with a central viewing cottage, and a wide picnic area by the pond. Also, one could never forget the Path of Pride. Overall, The Garden was beautiful. 'Ames wasn't lying about this being a grounding place. Even literally.'
There were many people in the park, especially in the picnic area, but the place was so wide that they were all gladly very far from each other. There were some kids in the place. Some were running about and chasing each other. Some were playing with their dogs. Some were doing cartwheels. Most people were adults preoccupied with either speaking with each other or admiring the cloudy and moderately sunny view.
Max couldn't deny the beauty of the view before him. He'd never been on a proper picnic before. Although, he could recall the times he had taken snacks in the open field of the farm where he used to work after a long day. A very similar experience.
"You know, I've never been on an actual picnic before," Max shared, turning to watch Ames take out their ordered food from the bags that sat behind them. "This feels nice."
"Still wanna' be in the confines of a restaurant?" Ames asked, looking up at him momentarily.
"No," Max replied, his eyes scanning the surroundings. "This is beautiful."
"I knew you'd like it," Ames said, handing him his burger. Max took it enthusiastically, proceeding to unwrap it.
"Am I the type to?" Max inquired, taking a long sniff of the burger. It smelled savory. Delicious. He immediately took a bite. It was really inviting. It definitely was delicious. He tried his best not to swallow it yet, but he eventually had to.
"Well, yeah," Ames affirmed, taking a sniff of his own unwrapped burger. "You're easily the type."
"Is that a bad thing?"
"Not at all. Exactly my thing, too."
"I-I'm your thing?"
"What?"
"What..."
"No," Ames held up a hand, pausing to take a bite of his burger. "I meant that I have a thing for what you have a thing for, too."
"Noted," Max said, tipping his burger toward Ames.
After a while of them just enjoying their burgers, Ames broke the silence.
"I actually kinda' needed to go out, too," Ames admitted. "Books are my initial escape, but a literal escape is a whole lot better."
Max observed the guy as he looked out to the scenery up ahead.
'Ames looked good in the light,' Max thought to himself. Ames looked vibrant. The guy, strangely, looked really good in the dark, too. Max wondered if it was because of Ames's penchant for the dark and enigmatic. He figured it most probably was.
"I don't think I've ever met anyone so studious," Max commented, eyes still on Ames.
"If I wanna' give the best for my students, I have to force myself to be the best, if not more," Ames replied, glancing back at him with eyes that sparkled with determination. "Or I shouldn't dream that far at all."
"You sound like a superhero," Max pointed out, feeling the pulsations of Ames's sincerity and spirit. Max wondered if it was appropriate of him to use the simile, especially considering Ames's history with superhumans. Max had a feeling he was going to regret his choice of words.
All he got from Ames, however, was a short pause.
"Not exactly...," Ames finally replied, clearing his throat. "I just knew what I wanted to be and what I wanted to give long ago. When I finally had the capability to get started with my mission, it immediately became a now or never situation."
"Makes me look back at all the choices I've made," Max shared, nodding to himself as he looked back at his days before his transformation. "I mentioned before that I never got to enter college, that I wanted to be a teacher."
"I think you have the heart for it...," Ames said, taking another huge chunk of his burger.
"I'd like to believe I do," Max admitted, grinning shyly at the thought. "We didn't have the money for it then, unfortunately. My father needed help on the farm, too."
Max felt the recognition of similarity in Ames's pulsation.
"So I became a farmhand," Max continued, his free hand gliding over the grass past the coverage of the mat. "It was a rice farm. I was handy in the field because I was tall."
"You're a mestizo," Ames guessed. Although, Max figured that it didn't need a thorough study to figure out that he was indeed a mestizo. His features were very indicative. His height was, too.
"Yes, actually," Max confirmed, remembering his mother. "My mother. She was the daughter of a Spanish socialite. Full-blooded."
"Oh," Ames said, head tilting in intrigue. "Must've been complicated then, right?"
"Oh, very!" Max replied in agreement, remembering the stories his mother used to share with him. "She and my father, they married in secret. She had this powerful character that couldn't be contained. I think you know where this is going."
"Mhmm," Ames answered, enjoying the intrigue.
"She had a voice," Max recalled fondly, his eyes gliding over to the central viewing structure of the pond in the distance. "She was intelligent and had particular political views. She never backed off, and back in the day, people didn't always like that."
"Ahead of her time."
"Yes, she was," Max said. He could remember his mother's nostalgia in her reminiscence. She hadn't shied in expressing how her family's estrangement toward her had hurt her. However, Max knew that his mother had loved his father so enduringly and so strongly. She had quickly found in him the respect and acceptance of her power that she'd long been fighting for. "My father was a soldier. An academy graduate. He didn't want to be, but he was pressured into it. It was tradition. He eventually had to stop, and he tried his best in keeping me from joining."
"Why did you join?" Ames inquired.
"He wanted me to be a teacher," Max recalled, putting down his burger. "I wanted to keep the pressure of participation off of him. It was a desperate time. They needed combatants, but they needed a different kind of combatant."
Max could remember something that he recognized had been concealed and kept off the records all these years. He used to be a soldier, but it had always been a little more complex than that.
"If I tell you, you promise not to tell anyone?" Max looked Ames seriously in the eyes. He knew he could trust Ames, but this was pretty big.
"Scout's honor," Ames replied without hesitation, a dependable firmness in his gaze.
"I was a Raven," Max confessed after receiving the pulsations of seriousness and honesty that he needed to feel from Ames. "Uwak. They knew I wasn't an academy graduate. They knew I was a farmhand. They also knew that I had a brain, and that I had brawn, and that they could make something out of that from behind the scenes. So they did."
Max watched as Ames looked more and more confused.
"How come we didn't hear about the Ravens?" Ames whispered, eyebrows meeting.
"They wanted to create soldiers that the enemy would never expect," Max continued, cracking his neck at the stressful memory of his training. "So they took every bit of effective strategy, every knowledge of war and battle, and everything they could weaponize. After that, they forged them in fire and trained us in the shadows."
Ames leaned back, as if knowing exactly what Max was going to say next.
"They trained you a little differently, didn't they?" Ames hypothesized.
"They knew what they were doing," Max followed, nodding at him affirmatively. "They trained us very, very differently, and then they taught us how to blend in with everybody else. We had soldiers. We were assassins. But nobody knows that now, am I right?"
"Holy shit...," Ames sighed.
Max hoped that Ames wasn't thinking of him differently.
"I didn't have the stomach to be an assassin," Max continued. "But I definitely had the stomach to be a soldier."
"Care to explain?" Ames pressed on.
"Walk with me," Max replied.
After finishing their food and putting their mat back into the car, they began their walk on the Path of Pride. The path encircled the park, lined on the sides by Narra trees and flowering shrubs. Tall lamps segmented the outlines of the path while ground lights studded its rainbow colors. This was dedicated to the LGBTQIA+ community to show support and appreciation to its members, who had always contributed to the economy and to the country in every way, every shape, and every form. The Enforcers had attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony of this project as honorary guests.
"We trained for months," Max said after walking for a while. People around them went by, minding their own businesses and enjoying the scenery. It truly was a scenic path, inspiring of reminiscence. The cool breeze that accompanied the slight shade provided by the tall Narra trees added to the feel of the place.
Ames walked by his side, eyes forward but ears and mind attentive.
"We never stopped," Max continued. "They trained us harder than the rest, in the worst possible situations. They trained us to be killing machines and dressed us as soldiers in the morning. We were dangerous secrets."
"Secrets are best kept," Ames chimed in. "Secrets turn the tide."
"I knew I could never stay in the shadows," Max resumed. "And it cost me my legs."
He felt Ames's surprise and inquisitiveness spark up.
"What do you mean?" Ames inquired, looking at him in an instant.
"I lost my legs in the war," Max elaborated. "My instruction was to take the enemy from the side and make sure it didn't look suspicious while the rest engaged from the front."
"What did you do?" Ames urged.
"I saw a fatal flaw," Max narrated. "The front runners were headed straight for a strip of bombs that nobody knew except me. I had to make a choice. So I exposed myself and warned the others."
Max could still remember the chaos that had unfolded that night. He'd had to fight back the enemy troops. At the same time, he had needed to expose the threat that nobody could see.
He could remember the heavy rain that night. The terrible duet of thunderclaps and gunfire, too. He could remember how his heartbeat had felt like the violent percussion of a war drum.
He could remember the madness.
Worst of all, he could remember the dangerous choice he had needed to make.
"I took an enemy's rifle and opened fire on one of the explosives," Max explained. He could remember how he had set the battlefield ablaze that night, explosive by explosive. He had managed to hold the majority of his comrades back, but then he had paid the price for it. "I didn't know that I was standing right next to one."
"And then you lost your legs," Ames continued for him.
Max remembered it all.
Every fine detail.
He could feel himself sinking into a painfully familiar place, and his throat tightened upon his recognition of the space in his mind that he was being pulled into.
"Somebody tried to save me," Max said very carefully, managing his calm as he spoke. He gave Ames a reassuring look. "But yes, I did."
Max took a deep breath, trying to silence the noises that began to whisper inside of him. He saw all too well in Ames's eyes that he wasn't doing a very good job.
Ames stopped walking and gripped him by the shoulders, steadying him. He knew he was a bit too strong for Ames, but the guy was firm, too.
"If it hurts," Ames spoke softly. "You don't need to tell me."
Max could feel Ames's strength reaching out, channeled by a gesture of human empathy.
"I'm already here, am I?" Max managed, gulping down a lump in his throat.
"So am I," Ames said firmly, looking right into Max's eyes without a single blink.
"I can do it," Max said, projecting his own strength and perseverance.
"Okay..." Ames said after a few more seconds.
"Okay...," Max echoed, gently patting Ames's side to get them back on the walk. They were already close to getting halfway around the park.
They walked on.
"They took us in," Max went on, pulling himself together and directing his mind to the next turn of events. "We who fell. They took us in for a clandestine operation. We didn't know that we were about to become experiments."
Max could feel Ames still looking at him intently, pulsating with concern. He glanced back, nodding reassuringly.
"They exposed us to something they'd uncovered," Max recalled. "The Creaton. A large crystal of unknown origin and unfamiliar composition. People will say it has magical capabilities, but we see it as a complex scientific discovery capable of phenomena, both comprehensible by human minds and unknown."
Max remembered his turn in the treatment. The pain and wonder he had felt during his exposure to the Creaton's radiance remained engraved into his memory. He could never forget how his legs had grown back. He could never forget the terror and the pain of bones and muscle tearing out of his sewn stumps during the regrowth of the limbs he had lost.
Muscle memory of that pain remained to this day, and Max couldn't help but press discreetly against his legs with his hands. Ames caught this anyway.
"My legs grew back," Max carried on. "They grew back. It felt horrible. You'd never understand. I hope you'd never have to."
"That sounds painful," Ames commented.
"Well, they regrew," Max continued. "I managed to live through the pain. And more. I looked the same as I originally was, but my body never adapted and developed the same since. I stopped aging, my brain functions and my metabolism improved drastically, my muscles and my bones became both tough and adaptable to physical training, and my cells began to regenerate as quickly as they were damaged. My human empathy also got a superhuman upgrade. That was something only I developed, though. Enhanced Empathy, as they called it."
"Quite a payoff," Ames said after a while, looking deep in thought.
"And then the rest...," Max stopped there.
He turned to look at Ames, who returned his gaze with understanding.
"And then the rest...," Ames echoed, smiling reassuringly, as if telling Max that he no longer needed to continue.
Thankful for the gesture, he gave Ames a grateful smile.
"Let's finish this round trip, and then let's hit the road," Ames said, giving Max a solid but friendly pat on the back.
"I'd like that," Max replied, looking onward to the path ahead.