The Phenomena of Fireflies and Star... - Chapter 3: Chapter 3

September 21, 2023
Andrade Residence
Falco City, Neo-Manila
8:17 AM
Hours before the Battle in the Sky
"Right," Ames sighed as he hurried to pop open his antidepressant bottle. He'd almost forgotten to take a pill for the day. He was getting better. Somehow. He didn't want to be dependent on the meds. He wanted to be dependent only on his own willpower. It wasn't easy getting his heart to a good place, but he'd been keeping close attention. "I'm gonna' need to try to avoid this after today."
Living alone had its perks.
The sun's rays shone through the window to his right. They cast a warm glow into his room, illuminating the bed and the work desk by the window pleasantly. He'd really enjoyed repainting the walls with a warm tangerine. His bedroom used to be a boring white rectangle. It was out of the blue, repainting his room, but it had really helped channel his anger into something more productive. He gulped a pill down, slamming the bottle lid back to its place and letting the whole thing rest on the dresser.
"I'm good," he began. "I'm ready. I'm cool. I'm in the mood."
He pulled the topmost drawer of the dresser open.
"I guess I'll settle with you," he murmured as he pulled out the black canister of pepper spray he'd bought. It lay just beside his Stallion-ONE, a compact 1911-style handgun chambered in .45 ASP and customized with an ergonomic grip. His eyes lingered on the gun as he attached the pepper spray to his leather belt. The gun was a recent purchase. He'd always been quite a good shot. Growing up in the province had given him a rather fun childhood. His grandfather's bolt-action rifle was the first firearm he'd ever been taught to handle. Learning how to use handguns and other firearms later on, albeit informally, had been enriching.
After tracing the gun's grip with his fingers, he closed the drawer and locked it.
"Alright," he said, clearing his throat as he looked to his left, at his reflection in the large armoire's tall mirror. "Professor mode, on."
He'd forgotten to have his hair cut, but it wasn't overly long, stopping just below his ears and parting in a modern curtain style. It still looked proper. The annoying school policy for male employees when it came to their hair length could really use a change. Better yet, an erasure.
'Harvey used to cut my hair for me back in the day...,' a thought intruded his mind.
"No," he snapped, blinking in surprise at how immediately his mood had shifted. "No. Not like this."
'Sorry, Harv,' he thought, sighing. 'I should really stop thinking of you in every thought, right?'
'Even if it's hard.'
Downtown
9:22 AM
Falco City's network of roads looked lively in the morning. Thankfully, it wasn't super packed today. His class would start at 10:00 AM, and by the looks of it, he would have thirty minutes to spare when he'd finally arrive. The movement was steady but cautious on the flyover.
Driving helped clear his mind. It really did. Just like target practice.
He recognized the descent of the flyover, and he knew he'd have to refrain himself from looking at the billboard.
'Don't look. Don't look.'
His eyes rolled up to it instinctively.
"Dammit," he cussed. His eyes lingered for a while on the image of the Enforcement, Division's most illustrious national security program carried out by superhuman Enforcers and financially supported by the Philippine Government. Enforcers weren't just agents; they were also celebrities. They had a management team that kept a close eye on their public relations, social media presence, image, and integrity. Superhuman "stan" accounts kept social media hyperactive, too, and not always with the best of conversations. From what Ames had heard, they had a good fraction of the budget for the Armed Forces, too. "Must be nice to be bigger than life."
Alpha led the Enforcement in the field. He was also the most popular and most beloved Enforcer. His PR had always been good, as had been reported. He was also well-known for glaringly obvious reasons: he was handsome, built like a god, and great at handling the boy scout image well. Out of all the superhumans Ames had seen operating in the field, Alpha had been the most consistent in terms of behavior. Then again, his capacity for greatness compared equally with his capacity for danger. That had always been a superhuman issue, Enforcement or otherwise.
Ames didn't hate them. Not all of them. He was a good judge of character. Always, he knew. Then again, with what had happened, he couldn't help but despise the fact that they even existed. He'd tried again and again to be indiscriminate, but dictating his heart was a talent he'd lost along the way. He could do better, he acknowledged.
Eyes back on the road, he blinked away the negative thoughts that threatened to follow his remarks.
'I can't project this to my students,' he decided. 'Can't.'
'Can't forgive fully.'
'It's been five months. Five months. I feel like I'm stuck on a loop in the same week.'
'When will that pill take effect already?"
Ames adjusted his speed as he reached the bottom of the flyover and proceeded forward to a busy and slow-moving street, turning the radio on to break the silence.
"We are taking the threat of rogues with superpowers very seriously," a familiar voice spoke on the radio. "Conspiracy theories are theories, but when they're a little too elaborate, it's a good thing to look into their validity. Validation can be good or bad news for us. Historically, it's been bad, but we've managed."
'Alpha,' Ames recognized the voice, changing the station with a rather strong press. 'Give me a break. All of you.'
The Eureka Cafe
Gonzales University of Arts and Sciences
9:40 AM
"Looky-looky," Eliza greeted enthusiastically, meeting him with a high five from her seat. The Eureka was not fully occupied like it usually was. The violet walls, white floor, and glass tables looked gorgeous under the brilliant sunlight that poured through its glass front. The orchids in the hand-painted vases that stood on each table bloomed in different colors. Good décor. Eliza's effervescent personality and fashion sense fit right into the place. She had on a pastel pink blazer with a black plaid design over a black band tee, which she matched with faded blue jeans and black leather Chelsea shoes. "Mister Future Doctor. How do you do?"
Ames sat adjacent to his friend, who was tapping on something on her ear. It took Ames a few seconds to figure out what it was. Another dazzling ear stud. Eliza already had multiple ear piercings, each of them sophisticated and complementary to the other studs.
"It's a surprise your ear is still hanging on, Elle," Ames commented, noticing Eliza's new hair color next. Her long hair now boasted of expensive balayage.
'Damn,' Ames thought. 'She really knows how to look good.'
Eliza's new look complemented her strong facial structure, sharp eyes, and electric smile.
"I'm surprised you aren't as pumped as I am," she replied, taking her laptop from her unnecessarily large designer bag, which of course had to be a shiny black. "Because your sleepless nights, and a few of mine, are about to pay off."
Ames's eyes lit up.
'Wait what?'
"You finished it?" Ames asked a little too excitedly.
"Eh!" Eliza held up a finger, opening her laptop and preparing it. "Not yet. Not quite yet, but we are closer than we've ever been."
"Oh, crap," Ames went on, scoffing in happy disbelief. "That's awesome. Good job!"
"Hey," Eliza reacted. "We parented this together-ish. All I really did to contribute was provide the AI, but the brainstorming and the development are on you. Also, I can't believe you studied programming for this."
"Believe me," Ames rolled his eyes. "It was a nightmare. Not to mention, AI Programming was a bitch. Totally a tangent from my field, but it bore fruit, right?"
"Totally," Eliza replied. Her laptop's screen was finally on. She then clicked onto a unique avatar. "Future Doctor Andrade, meet The Mastermind. Your brainchild."
Ames leaned close, watching as the laptop screen faded to black for a while before an animation of a red planetoid pulsating with even redder energy began to play. Complementary avatars popped up around it.
"It's even in red," Ames commented gladly. He couldn't help but smile.
"What you built here...," Eliza started, clicking into one of the moving avatars and enlarging it into what looked like a solar system of topics.
"What we built here...," Ames corrected.
"Right, but all I did was give you the lot," Eliza pointed out. "And you built the rest. I just added the little quirks and tricks, if you're gonna' press on."
"Imagine if we completed this already," Ames said, tracing one of the avatars with his finger. "All the people this could help."
"We have to take safety into consideration eventually, too," Eliza added, taking a sip of her green tea frappe. "If this gets too powerful, this could be an AI concern. You know that, right?"
"With your tech, Elle, yeah."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"You should. You're badass with tech."
"And you are going to help a lot of people," Eliza looked up momentarily as the server came by to give Ames his own frappe. Strawberries and cream, just like he wanted. "We'll make sure of that."
"Thank you," Ames said to his most trusted friend before turning to the server to receive his drink. "Thank you."
"No worries," Eliza replied as she checked her watch. "You might wanna' get to your class, Ames."
"Got it," Ames said, giving Eliza a tight hug. "You're a degree saver."
"My superpower," Eliza grunted, patting his back.
"I'll catch you later, sis," Ames said as they parted. "Thank you so much. You have no idea. I'm gonna' repay you big time."
"Treat me to the gun range!" Eliza laughingly pretend-whispered. "It's been a long time since I've popped off some rounds."
"Hey," Ames chuckled as he carefully held on to his drink. "Insurance, bills, and impending pennilessness wish to send you their regards."
"I'mma' delete all this then."
"Fine, fine. Someday. Like the old times."
School Corridor
Gonzales University of Arts and Sciences
9:56 AM
"Hey, kiddo'," Tyler greeted. Ames had been living separately from his family for quite a while now. Tyler was a good twelve years Ames's senior, but he'd been an incredible older brother. Strangely, they almost didn't have a similar thing to share with each other. However, their differences fit together like a puzzle, and Tyler was never a judgmental older sibling. Sadly, he lived far away, working as a police officer in Canada. He looked good in the video feed on the screen: healthy tan, thin diamond facial structure like Ames but with a stronger jawline, deep double-lidded eyes, and a tall nose that was envied by their cousins. He had already been of athletic build prior to his migration, but he looked much fitter now. Perhaps due to training. "How are you?"
"Yeah, I'm cool, kuya," Ames said, making his way through the corridor. The far left turn up ahead led to his morning class. "Just on my way to class."
"Your face says otherwise," Tyler commented. "Sorry if I press. I'm just concerned."
"I know," Ames forced a smile when he stared back at his brother, who looked cozy in his oversized hoodie and ball cap. "Actually, today's a good day, so that really helps."
"Oh, yeah?" Tyler got the hint and went along. Thankfully. "How's the PhD going?"
"Going well," Ames replied, smiling as he nodded at the thought. Things were indeed going well. He knew it would be better to focus on and invest his energy in that. "Going really, really well, kuya."
"Awesome. Hey, give me a sneak peek once your dissertation is good to go. Alright?"
"Oh, you gonna' proofread my work? Put me on mock defense?" Ames inquired playfully.
"Whatever prepares you," Tyler replied. "But I know you'll do well in this. I trust you."
His brother already had a PhD in Criminology. Ames, himself, had embarked on quite an academic journey. He had graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, additional units in the School of Education for the teachers' licensure exam and for the required vertical course alignment proceeding forward in his chosen graduate school path, a Master of Arts in Education degree majoring in English Language and Literature, and he was already close to finishing his PhD in Educational Administration. He'd been rather restless, working only as an English teacher initially before adding English Literature as a second subject for him to teach once he'd acquired his Master's.
Ames finally reached the end of the corridor. He could see the classroom at the end to his left. The class seemed pretty upbeat. Out of order, but happy.
Handling two subjects meant double the effort. It was his greatest luck that many of his students in English 1 on Tuesdays and Thursdays were also his students in English Literature 1 for the rest of the weekdays. They even used the same classroom for their morning classes. It was even more fortunate that he deeply adored them and that such admiration was reciprocated.
He had one month left to spend with them before the semester break, and he knew he'd miss them terribly. He knew his students would miss him, too. Freshies had always been the clingier students, which Ames valued sincerely.
The bond made by mentorship and secondary parenthood helped in sustaining his love for the job. Not that he'd ever find himself in a different career anyway. He loved being a teacher, and he wouldn't have anywhere else to pour his contributions to. He'd always known what he wanted to create for the realm of education. Thus, his informal studies in programming. He'd been studying it since college. Eliza had also, thankfully, been so supportive of it, largely because she shared the same hobby despite a career in finance.
"I miss you, kuya," Ames said. He really did.
"I miss you, too, kiddo'," Tyler replied. "You go kick some ass like you always do, alright?"
"Affirmative."
"Oh, affirmative, huh?"
"Just play along, kuya. Don't leave me hanging."
"Alright, kiddo'. Love you. Over and out."
"Love you too."
'Alright, you've had your boost of energy,' Ames thought to himself as he made his way to the classroom, ending the call as he did. He could hear happy noise inside. He opened the door and took a peek.
"Hiya there," he managed a sincere smile as he spoke. His students saw him and erupted in disorganized greeting. They didn't scurry to their seats like startled chickens. They simply, laughingly, went for their seating positions. Ames appreciated that. He didn't want to be feared. He wanted to be respected. So far, he'd done a great job. Gaining the respect of at least thirty excited freshmen was an accomplishment in itself.
After a more proper exchange of greetings, Ames made his way toward his table, plopping down his black leather sling bag on its wide surface. He'd left his bag overnight in his locker.
"Hey, Prof," Dante called out with polite excitement. "Word's been going around that you're at the tail-end of the PhD program. Congrats."
"Yeah, I heard about that," Sheila joined in. "Doctor Masuda's been mentioning you a lot, too, as I've heard."
"How in the heavens would you know about faculty gossip?" Ames asked, squinting curiously at his students, whose eyes were glancing toward one particular person. "We keep a tight lid."
"Well, we do have a reliable source," Sheila replied knowingly, gesturing with her hand toward Amanda, who gently placed a hand over her chest and feigned disbelief.
"Don't look at me...," Amanda said, prompting chuckles from other students. "Sometimes, stories come to me. I can't help but hear."
"Why am I not surprised that it's you, Miss Avila?" Ames commented, taking a seat. "Can't resist a good story, huh?"
"A good mystery is mine for the unraveling, Prof," Amanda replied, giving him a two-finger salute. "Nothing too obscure for an investigative mind."
"Oh, I'm impressed," Ames remarked, scanning the class one last time. "But yes, things have been looking up. Thank God. Wouldn't have done this without a great support group."
A short but sincere round of applause came up from the students.
"We got your back, Prof," Brighton, one of his more illustrious students on the same level as Amanda, spoke up from the back of the class.
"Thank you, thank you," Ames said as the applause faded out, giving his students a reassuring look. "I promise you, you're all going to love what I have in store."
English 1 Class
10:37 AM
The class was a little tense. Ames had been reading his students' homework for a while now. The essays he had tasked them to write were meant to do more than just reveal how well they composed essays. He wouldn't be proofreading them. What he wanted to glean from their work was a better view of who they were.
The question: "If you were superhuman, what power would you want to have? And why?"
A pretty simple question, especially for college students, but one would be surprised by how self-perceptions changed over time and how more profoundly more experienced students could express themselves.
He'd given himself thirty minutes to read the works. Meanwhile, the students were reviewing their notes.
Thirty minutes was just about up.
He shuffled the papers before him and let his eyes sweep over the class that anxiously waited for him to say something.
'Cute,' he thought as he observed them. 'This should be a piece of cake for these kids, though.'
"How do you all think you did?" he asked, forcing a straight face.
"Pretty terribly," Clay muttered, pursing his lips.
"I would say I did average work," Brighton followed.
"In my humble opinion," Amanda spoke up, obviously feigning humility. "Pretty awesomely."
The other students reacted immediately.
"Oh, your humble opinion, huh?"
"Yes, that is me being humble. Thank you."
"I'm feeling the shift in the winds, Amanda."
"What?" Amanda protested, flipping her hair as she turned to Ames again. "In my humble opinion, Prof. The humblest."
"Oh-kay," Ames chuckled as he stood from his seat, bringing the papers with him. "I am enjoying the variety and the enthusiasm I'm getting."
"I screwed it up, didn't I?" Amanda asked, grimacing.
"Nobody screws up under my watch, Miss Ma'am," Ames said to her, giving her an acknowledging gaze before scanning the rest of the class. He stepped out of his desk area and slowly made his way to the center of the room, attracting the attentive stares of the students. "But everybody gets out of this classroom with lessons learned and characters built. Word by word."
"You screwed it up...," Brighton teasingly whispered to Amanda, igniting muffled giggles from the students around. His target's response was a raised middle finger.
"Oop, nuh-uh," Ames tapped Amanda's table as he passed it by.
"Sorry, Prof," Amanda said, flicking off her hair as she lowered her hand. "Some haters can be real bitches sometimes."
Ames failed to conceal his snort. The student was really tactless. It was a good thing that it was all banter between her and Brighton, who was as smart in a debate as he was in the basketball court.
"Easy on the strong words, queen," Ames reminded her before throwing out the question he'd been intending to ask to the rest of the class. "What I want to know from all of you before we get to the real question is, have you ever wanted to be a superhuman? And if your answer is yes, we get to the essay question and you need to tell me why so and what power you'd like to have. If your answer is no, then why not?"
He didn't have to look around him for volunteers.
"I have an answer!" Brighton raised his hand excitedly. As expected.
"Yes, Bright?" Ames acknowledged.
"My answer is yes," Brighton said. The other students seemed to already know this was the case. "If I were superhuman, I could do much more. Accomplish much more, much faster. And since I tend to be the tardy one in almost everything except the ball court, I'd like to be super fast."
"I'm glad you acknowledge your tardiness, Brighton," Ames couldn't help it, inspiring teasing laughs from the other students. Brighton raised his hands in resistance at the jeers being thrown his way. "Collecting your work can be a real problem. It's a good thing your works are almost always impeccable. Saved you from the deductions every time."
The look of redemption reflected clearly on Brighton's face.
"You heard the Prof, people," Brighton proudly announced. "My work is always impeccable."
"Almost always, Bright," Amanda interrupted, raising her hand next. "I have an answer, too."
"Yes, Amanda?" Ames said.
"This answer comes from a place of frustration, but yes," Amanda prefaced. "I have wanted to be a superhuman. I mean, come on, I'm a Battle Cry stan. Y'all know that. Any BC Altos here?"
"Hey, queen!" Kai hollered from the side, raising his hand in response, followed by other students. "Yas, girl!"
"Hey, Momma'!" Amanda responded, blowing a kiss at them before focusing on the question again. That had really helped in keeping the mood up in the class. "Anyway, so my answer is yes. I think wanting to be a superhuman or a superhero is a universal aspiration. If I were to want a power, it would be super strength."
"Cool, cool," Ames said. "I think they're all super strong, though."
"Oh, sorry," Amanda waved her hands in embarrassment. "I mean super inner strength."
'Super inner strength,' Ames thought, blinking in fascination. 'I haven't heard that from anybody yet.'
"Explain further," he urged her.
"Well," Amanda drifted off a bit initially. "It's impressive that they're strong enough to lift cars and stop trains and break the sound barrier. It's cool. But I'm also sure that they're struggling on the inside. Imagine dedicating your life for others without question..."
'Not here, not here,' Ames thought to himself as he fought off the penetrating sting of the otherwise innocent choice of words he was hearing. Ames knew someone who had offered his life in the service of others without question before. Very well. Intimately well.
"That's a lot to take in," Amanda continued, looking intently toward her classmates. "I mean, we're already stressed out by homework and our busy schedules. They're on twenty-four-seven alert. What we can't handle as regular people get thrown at their plates for them to deal with. That's got to eat them up at some point. It eats everybody up."
'It does...,' Ames thought in agreement, nodding at his student. 'I would know. So would Harvey.'
He snuck a long intake of breath, trying to mute the thoughts of Harvey that were coming up in his brain. He was starting to regret bringing the topic up for discussion, but he'd thought of taking the matter professionally. That was turning out to be rather foolish of him, but here he was.
"Good point, Amanda," Ames said, sighing discreetly. "I'm barely hanging on, too."
His choice of words had worked as a good camouflage for what he had wanted to let out.
"I have an answer too, Prof," Nigel lifted his hand next. Ames nodded at him permissively. Nigel always had interesting viewpoints on things. Mature and layered. Just as valid as that of the others. Ames only hoped that the boy's opinions this time wouldn't be too relatable for him. They normally were, especially since he saw his younger self in Nigel. "My answer is no."
'Crap,' Ames thought. 'Very relatable.'
The other students looked at Nigel in intrigue. Most of Ames's students, he knew to be fans of the Enforcement, each one with varying levels of understanding of how superhuman matters had affected society's makeup. Ames wasn't about to enforce his own viewpoints on them, though.
But he would be honest if asked.
"Explain further, kiddo'," Ames urged him.
"I mean, it's okay to want to be superhuman and have powers," Nigel said, looking at the class. "We all want to be great. Frankly, superhumans and superpowers fascinate me. I just don't want to be one or have gifts beyond my full comprehension. I just want to live normally."
'Same here, kiddo',' Ames thought as he listened, blinking away the whiff of anxiety he could detect inside of him. 'Please don't say anything that could trigger other thoughts. Please.'
"I mean this might be a very unpopular answer, but...," Nigel was starting to be insecure about his words, but Ames gestured for him to keep going. It was ironic, but Ames wanted his students to have a voice. Each and every one. "I don't want to worry about accidentally laser-blasting people when I look at them or shutting down an entire town of people because of an unexpected migraine or something..."
A sharp intake of breath sounded from Ames's mouth, much to his own surprise. The other students noticed just as immediately as he did. Nigel completely drifted off in uncertainty as he stared at Ames.
'Shutting down...,' Ames thought, trying his hardest not to make a face under the pressure of preventing the images from flooding his mind. 'I'm really regretting this whole recitation now.'
'Not here. Not now.'
'Pull yourself together. It's been a good day so far, right?'
"Sorry," he raised his hand a bit as he spoke, gesturing for Nigel to carry on. "Palpitation problem. Caffeine buzz. Carry on, Nigel."
"That was it for me, Prof," Nigel replied politely. "That's just me."
'Sorry, kid,' Ames thought as he returned to his desk. He placed the papers on the table before resting his buttocks on it.
"That's me, too," Ames managed to say to his students. The class looked at him attentively, intrigued by his echoing of Nigel's opinion. He looked back at them with considerate intent. "I just want to be normal, too. But before the public knew—and of course, before I knew—that superhumans existed, I'd had moments of wanting to become a superhuman, having powers. Until we found out that they do exist. Ever since, I've stopped entertaining the idea. As time passed, I only floated farther and farther away from the fondness of such an idea. For reasons of my own, of course."
The class had gone silent, and Ames was starting to wonder if it had been a wrong move to voice out his own opinion. Then again, his expression had helped channel the mental pressure that had been stubbornly gnawing at his defenses.
"What power did you want then, Prof?" Nigel inquired. Ames could still remember his power of choice.
"A powerful mind," he confessed, nodding emphatically toward Nigel.
"Didn't really need a superpower for that, did you, Prof?" Amanda asked with a knowing tone.
"No," Ames replied, scoffing a bit at how confidently he had responded. The class, however, looked at him with reassuring trust. "Not at all."
University Parking Lot
8:43 PM
Ames helped himself into his car, sighing in exhaustion as he plopped down on the driver's seat. The day had been busy. His phone's sudden ringing broke the silence in the car, and on the Incoming Call screen was Eliza's avatar.
He could use a few minutes of just sitting in quiet, but a call from Eliza would be important. He received the call.
"Did you deposit money on my account, bro?" Eliza inquired.
"Yeah, why?" Ames replied.
"Hey, you know you don't have to pay me for anything," Eliza said. "Call it a favor between friends."
"I hassled the CFO of Wang Industries to help me with The Mastermind," Ames reminded her. "The least I could do was to repay your kindness."
"Programs and software are hobbies of mine, my friend," Eliza argued. "Not my job. Besides, you could use the help. And it's not costly on my part at all."
Ames had always known that Eliza came from an affluent family, but he had never taken advantage of that. He wasn't the type to be concerned about what his friends' social statuses were. They'd had some friends come and go after realizing that they couldn't meet Eliza's standards. She didn't even care about social status. She cared about personal development. Potential. She liked that in her friends. She also hated social climbers.
"It just makes me feel guilty," Ames explained. "That's all."
"Don't be silly," Eliza brushed it off. "Your treat of a hundred rounds in the range is enough."
"Hey!" Ames laughed. "You know how much a single bullet costs?"
"Well then, we'll do fifty-fifty," Eliza replied, laughing at her own stubbornness. "Alright. Safe driving, bro."
"Take care, Elle," Ames replied, ending the call. He turned the radio on, hoping for some music. A wrong press of a button sent him to the AM instead.
"Residents of Southern Jewels Village in Kingfisher District, Falco, are now under the protective supervision of the police and the Armed Forces after the superhuman criminal Malign engaged in battle against the members of the Enforcement," the news reporter said. "Just this afternoon, the superhuman offender was reported to have "telepathically terrorized" Southern Jewels Village, following a recent telepathic attack on an entire town..."
Ames sat in uncomfortable silence, eyes on the numbers on the radio screen.
'Malign,' he thought, his breath slowing down as he sank into his thoughts. 'How the hell is he still at large?'
'And now, he's on the move.'
'Also, Southern Jewels. That's nearby.'
With that, Ames started his car and drove off the parking lot.
"Gonzales University of Arts and Sciences," he murmured, reading a signboard on the wall as he passed it by and rolled out into the rain. "Exit here."
He had rendered overtime. It was almost 8:45 in the evening. He had to go home.
And avoid any unnecessary brush with combative superhumans.
On the Road
He could see them, though. The superhumans. He could see their figures far up in the air, standing out in the night sky but almost concealed by the rain. He watched as they charged in and out, zipping from place to place like flies. The traffic wasn't so bad, but Ames couldn't move forward just yet. As of the moment, he was fixated on the intensity of the scuffle in the sky above. However, he didn't look at it in awe. He couldn't. Not anymore. He looked at the superhumans as they fought. He only looked at them. The others on the street, however, were much more entertained. So hooked were some of them that they went as far as stepping out of their vehicles to get a good recording.
'Seriously,' Ames thought. 'Tsk.'
The road ahead was slightly obscured by the rain, but Ames kept himself entertained with his favorite playlist. It was almost 9:20 in the evening. The road wasn't very busy anymore, so quite a bit of time had been saved, but home was still not exactly near.
Much to his curiosity, he caught sight of something in the distance. It was so peculiarly illuminated that it immediately caught his attention.
"Whoa," he whispered to himself, recognizing the humanoid silhouette of the glowing figure as it descended. One of the superhumans, Ames realized.
"Dammit," he cussed, realizing that wherever the superhuman was landing—or crashing, more likely—was just around where he was headed. "No, you better not be where I think you are."
'What is wrong with this day? It's like it's testing me or something,' he thought to himself, annoyed and slightly perplexed. He drove onward. 'Any second now, whoever that was will be flying back up and not be anywhere near where I don't want them near.'
But nothing flew back up.
Eventually, Ames had to make a right turn. He drove into a long stretch leading to a junction, to the right of which stood the entrance to the subdivision where he lived. Rain was still pretty strong, and the lighting on the road could use better funding.
'Hmm,' Ames thought, seeing a figure walking in the rain in the distance. 'Poor guy getting caught in the rain at this hour. How untimely...'
Ames slowed his driving down a bit. When the light from his vehicle hit the approaching figure well enough, a cold sensation traveled down his spine. He was staring at an alarmingly familiar figure. He knew it wasn't the air conditioning of the car. This chill was deep, and it petrified his insides and locked his eyes onto what he wasn't hoping to come across today.
Up ahead, head bowed against the rain, weak on his feet, was no other than the leader of the Enforcement.
"Alpha...," Ames could only utter. His voice sounded restricted to him, and his heart began picking up the pace. His eyes, however, stayed locked on. Realizing the car was still dragging on slowly closer to the tall, muscular Enforcer, Ames stepped on the brakes.
For a while, he could only gaze upon the superhuman, who looked back at him with eyes that were devoid of confidence and glory. Something looked incredibly wrong. Ames couldn't help but notice. It was a rather off-putting sight, especially as he'd always seen the man standing in poise. This time, Alpha's black and gold suit had tears and cracks in multiple places. His cape had a few rips, and his leather domino mask was chipped.
'Was he...,' Ames couldn't formulate a steady thought for a while. 'Was he the one that crashed down?'
For a moment, before the situation sank into his mind, Ames had forgotten that he'd been staring at a superhuman. A superhero. An Enforcer. His instincts kicked in hard eventually. Gulping down a heavy lump in his throat, he put the car on neutral and stepped out.
The rain felt heavy on him, but he almost didn't mind it. In fact, it didn't bother him. In his eyes, somebody needed help. That thought rang too loud in his head, and he held on to it. He couldn't help it.
"Are you okay?!" he called out to Alpha, who merely stared at him for a while. "You look hurt, sir."
"Are you okay...?" Alpha replied after a while, forcing a smile. That took Ames aback strongly. It was a silly question from a guy who could use the question more. It took Ames a few seconds to detect the faint quiver in Alpha's lips, the crack in his voice, and his sudden sway.
Without warning, the Enforcer fell to the ground.
Ames was left standing with his mouth open in shock, hand smacking his chest, and body tense with uncertainty.
'What the hell? What...'
'I can't just leave him there.'
"Son of a..."