The Guardians' Daughter

by A. M. McPherson

  Billy watches her go with a frown on his face.

  It baffles me that he’s interested in her, even though I’m pretty sure it is just because of her looks, not her bubbly personality.

  Billy faces me. “Man, I get it, you’re not too happy with her, but did you have to snap at her like that?”

  I sit down. “Yes, I did. For some reason, she told Ember we’re dating, and Ember got it in her mind that I didn’t want to hang out with her because of it.”

  “When did Carly say that to her?”

  “I guess they’re in a chemistry class together, but Ember didn’t tell me much.”

  Billy grabs his cup of coffee off the table before sitting on the couch. “Okay, I get it, you wouldn’t be too thrilled to hear that, but seriously, what’s going on with you?” He takes a drink.

  “What do you mean?” I eye my cup on the table but decide more caffeine wouldn’t be the best thing for me right now. I’ve always had to be careful of how much I consume because of my anxiety, and right now I feel like a dump of emotions.

  “You’ve just been in a mood the last few days.”

  “Oh?”

  “Aiden, c’mon. You just seem like you’re anywhere but here.”

  I close my eyes; the lack of sleep is catching up with me. “Well, there’s nothing I want to talk about.”

  “Is this all about Ember? Is this thing with her really affecting you this much?”

  My eyes snap open. “Billy, I said I don’t want to talk about it.” The nightmare from last night bolts into my mind, and I shake my head, trying to get rid of the horrors my mind keeps throwing at me.

  “Just ask her out and get it over with.”

  I jerk my head in his direction. “What did you say?”

  “This thing with Ember, it seems more serious than I thought.” He slumps forward, resting an elbow on his knee while holding his head. “I was hoping it was just a little crush and you would get over it, but it looks like I was wrong.” He grins, his white teeth shining brilliantly. “And man, I’m never wrong.”

  My heart may have just stopped. “I can’t just ask her out! I would never feel right being with her with all things considered!”

  Billy sighs and relaxes in his chair. “Just be honest with her.”

  My eyes become saucer size in confusion. “I can’t do that! You know that!”

  He takes another drink of his coffee. “You told me. Why can’t you tell her?” “

  “I should never have told you, first of all,” I respond, almost defensively. “That’s clearly apparent.”

  “Aiden, it’s crazy they told you to never tell anyone you were there. That wasn’t fair to expect a kid who endured something that traumatic to keep it to himself for his whole life.”

  I know what he says is true—it wasn’t fair—but this isn’t just any person I would be telling. “So, you think I can just tell her? She’ll just easily accept it, and we can live happily ever after?” I chuckle sarcastically. “Doubtful.”

  He takes another sip of his coffee and stares off into space for a moment. “I won’t lie to you. I’m not sure how she will react. It’ll probably be bad, but at least you’ll be getting somewhere with her.”

  I laugh to myself. Sure, that’s one way to put it: getting somewhere with her. More like getting nowhere since I’m bound to lose her.

  “Hey, guys. Can we join you?” Sing Lee and Scott Rogers walk up, two other students from the Defender program. I’m not sure which one spoke. They’re both out of their training clothes, now dressed as casually as Billy and me. Sing has a white patch over his facial scars he wasn’t wearing earlier. They’re both holding their own mugs, steam twisting into the air from them.

  I glance at Billy for his input, and he gives me a quick shrug with a nod. “Sure, why not?” I motion them toward the extra seats.

  Sing sits next to Billy, and Scott takes the other club chair across from me.

  Scott’s nose looks as if a wad of playdoh was smashed on his face and no one took the time to straighten it out. I don’t know too much about Scott other than he acts as smug as Jomo. He’s a bit on the heavier side but, at the same time, has an athletic build. His hair is silver as silver can be. If I didn’t know better, I would think, if melted, it could be made into a piece of jewelry—which makes sense, since he can collapse into a metallic puddle.

  “So, what are you guys talking about? Looked serious.” Scott glares back, taking a drink from his mug.

  “Oh, you know. School, school, and more school,” I joke.

  Scott smirks. “Yeah, sure.”

  Sing rubs his patch, capturing my attention.

  I’ve always made a point not to ask him about his scars too much, but today seems like as good a day as any to ask him. “So, Sing, what’s the patch for?”

  He continues to rub. “It helps with the pain. Sometimes this side of my face will ache because of the muscle damage. Nurse Pumpa made a cream for it, and I need the patch to keep it in place.”

  “What exactly happened to you, man? To cause those scars?” It seems Billy’s curiosity got the best of him too.

  Sing pushes his black hair out of his eyes. “When I was younger, I got caught in an explosion, but somehow I managed to phase through it without it killing me. Unfortunately, my parents weren’t so lucky. My dad died, and my mom is still in a coma.”

  Billy’s eyes grow large. “Oh man, that’s intense.”

  I’m glad I am not holding my coffee cup, because I would have dropped it. “Sing … I … don’t even know what to say.”

  Sing shrugs. “Yeah, it was a lot to deal with, but thankfully my uncles took me in. It happened a while ago, but I guess, in a strange way, it was a good thing. The intensity of the explosion made my phasing ability show itself. Before then, I thought I didn’t have any abilities, which disappointed my parents. Too bad they didn’t get a chance to see me actually use them.”

  Billy and I nervously spy each other, lost for words, and now I wish I never asked about the patch.

  Billy turns to Sing and exhales loudly. “Listen, man. I’m sorry you had—”

  “Were you guys really just talking about school earlier?” Scott interrupts.

  I regard Scott with my brow furrowed, surprised by his rudeness.

  “Yeah, why?” Billy replies.

  Scott focuses on Billy. “We thought maybe you guys were talking about the curse.”

  “It seems to be what a lot of people are talking about right now,” Sing adds.

  The curse? Billy glances at me with an eyebrow raised, like he’s asking, Do you have any clue as to what the hell they’re talking about? I shake my head, and he puts his cup on the table. “What the hell is the curse?”

  Both Sing and Scott’s mouths drop open.

  Sing motions at Scott with his mug. “You want to tell them about it? I know you get a sick kick out of it.”

  Well, that’s disturbing.

  “Sure,” Scott says with a grin. He takes one last sip from his mug, sets it on the table and adjusts his posture, as if he’s going to tell us a bedtime story. “So, seriously, you guys haven’t heard anything about this?”

  My paper-thin patience grows thinner. “No, we haven’t.”

  Scott smirks. “The curse is something that’s been happening for a while around campus. It’s not something anyone on staff would admit, but it’s definitely a thing.”

  “Okay, so what is it?”

  My impatience seems to make Scott happy; he smiles. “At least one student a year, not necessarily one in the Defender Program, just loses their mind! Normally, it’s someone with a pretty good ability, but they just go off the deep end. A few of them have committed suicide, but more often than not, they just go bad.”

  My face twists with both horror and confusion. “What do you mean, go bad?”

  “They become a villain, duh,” Sing comments like that should’ve been a no-brainer.

  Scott’s lips curl around the edges. “Yeah, the mo
st notorious one would be Black Mold, since he murdered those famous Guardians years ago. People tend to reference him the most.”

  At the casual mention of Black Mold, my stomach tenses, as if a cement block was just dropped on it.

  “Who was it last year then? If this is really a thing?” Billy’s eyebrow is raised in disbelief.

  Scott doesn’t blink an eye. “Jill Peterson. She can control the weather or something like that. She created a hurricane using the lake and nearly drowned ten other students. No one has seen her since.”

  None of what Scott is saying makes any sense. “I’ve never heard anything about that happening.”

  Scott shrugs. “You wouldn’t. Like I said, the officials around here keep it covered up and would never admit to it. They don’t want to scare people from coming here.”

  I raise my eyebrows inquisitively. “Then how did you hear about it?”

  “People talk, but you have to be careful, because, if the wrong person hears you, you may get expelled or worse.”

  Dramatic much? “How have we not heard anything about it?” I motion at myself and Billy.

  Scott brings his index fingers and thumbs together, mimicking a gun aiming at me. “Well, no offense, Aiden, but it’s not like you talk to the rest of us that much.”

  Billy snorts and wiggles his eyebrows. “And I get easily distracted by the ladies, if you know what I mean.”

  I roll my eyes at Billy. “Okay. So, Scott …” I focus on him. “You’re saying this is a legit thing? That every year for the last couple of decades just one student loses their mind? For no good apparent reason?”

  He nods. “Yep, like with Jill. One day she was ordering her Guardian suit, the next she was trying to murder people.”

  “We’re trying to figure out who it will be this year,” Sing adds.

  “Oh, really?” I ask with a chuckle.

  “Yeah.” Scott looks at me dead in the eyes. “A lot of people think it’s going to be you.”

  “What? Why?”

  “Mainly because no one feels like they really know you, but my money is on Jomo.”

  “Jomo?” Billy and I say at the same time.

  Scott laughs. “Why is that so hard to believe? He already seems bad and just needs a push to go all the way. I mean, those ghost hands, right? They’re so creepy!” Disappointment crosses his face. “No matter how much I wish I could agree with those who think it’ll be you, Aiden, I can’t. You scream top Defender candidate and seem too noble for such a thing.”

  This whole curse speculation makes me feel uneasy. “Thank you? But it doesn’t seem too kosher to be betting on people who may go villain.”

  Scott dismisses my comment with a wave. “Eh, it’s all in good fun.”

  I cock my head in incredulity. “In good fun?” I happen to glance at the clock on the wall and bolt up. “Guys, we need to get going! Our class starts in just a couple minutes!”

  Sing and Billy both stand, but Scott stays seated. “You guys have fun. I’m going to skip this one and actually enjoy my afternoon.”

  “Do you really think that’s a good idea? You’ve already gotten in trouble for missing class the other week,” Sing says with a concerned frown.

  Scott shrugs and takes another drink.

  Sing rolls his eyes and leaves for the door.

  Billy and I follow a few steps behind him.

  I lean closer to Billy. “Well, that was a fun note to end on.”

  “Man, you’re telling me, but it does make you think,” Billy quietly replies.

  “It sure does.”

  Chapter 23

  Aiden

  Billy swings his arm over Sing’s shoulder. “So, why do you hang out with that asshole?”

  Sing laughs as we turn into our Villian History classroom. “Who? Scott?”

  I chortle. “Who else would he be talking about? I mean … he clearly doesn’t have any respect for anyone.”

  “Scott’s all right once you get to know him. He says he likes talking to me because I don’t brag about who I’m related to. He feels like a lot of people around here get undeserved attention.” Sing chuckles. “It’s funny though, he acts like he deserves all the attention, but he puts in half the effort than most of us here.” He motions around the classroom as we walk to our seats near the back.

  I scan the room; it looks like everyone else has already made it to our class except us. The room is full of bookshelves and Wanted posters of villains in the area. An image of Iron Forge sticks out to me the most. Somehow his silver skin manages to shine even from the matted paper. All the desks are full of familiar faces, and one in particular takes notice of me.

  Jomo puts his hands behind his head and reclines in his chair. “Look, everyone, the almighty Aiden has decided to bless us with his presence.” His feline eyes glimmer with humor.

  I grit my teeth to hold myself back from telling him to shut the hell up.

  Carly sits in a desk behind him. Our eyes lock, and they are a lighter pink than normal, and they shine with a hint of tears. She pouts and turns her attention from me. I sigh. It’s really becoming a nuisance having all these Defender classes with the same set of people.

  Billy, Sing, and I sit next to each other. Something Sing said earlier prods my curiosity, and I turn to him. “So, who are you related to? It must be someone important if it impresses Scott.”

  He shrugs. “Like I said, I don’t like to brag about it.”

  “Then how does—”

  “Hello, class!” Professor Vetito bellows as he enters and drops his briefcase on his desk. Vetito is a tall, sturdy man, and his tight clothes exaggerate his frame. He tugs on the lapels of his tan, plaid suit jacket and fidgets with his matching bowtie. His ash-colored hair and mustache are both short and neat. He has a quarter-sized growth under his left eye that looks like a chunk of brown gum. “It’s so nice to see all your bright faces!” Vetito claps his hands together. “Many of you have asked about when we would discuss a certain villain, and I’ve decided today will be the day!” He grabs a piece of chalk and faces the chalkboard.

  To my horror, Vetito scribbles BLACK MOLD across the board.

  “Black Mold will be the topic of discussion today! All of you should know him as the man who murdered Emerald Blaze. Other than that, not much is known about the mysterious, vile man.” He drops the chalk on the bottom of the board and tugs on a piece of string hanging from the ceiling, pulling down a white screen. Vetito adjusts his bowtie and heads for the back of the room. After a few steps, he spins around, and his eyes light up and flicker like an old camera reel, using his ability—memory projection.

  The image on the screen is of a young man. He looks at home in a lab, dressed in a white coat and with a microscope in front of him. His gray eyes are bright, as if he is the happiest man in the world. His short black hair is styled to the side. Even though it’s hard to imagine it, there’s no denying this young man and Black Mold are the same.

  “However, at one point in my life, I knew him as Stanley Bitar, and we attended school together. He was a bright student who enjoyed studying and looking forward to what the future held.” Vetito’s tone is sad. “Many think he can produce toxins, but the truth is, he cannot produce them, he can only control the toxicity levels. He once wanted to rid the world of deadly toxins and be a well-known chemist in the process.”

  Wait a second … they were classmates? Black Mold actually went here? The earlier conversation with Scott replays in my mind. Scott mentioned that Black Mold was the most famous one to have fallen victim to the curse. I guess that would imply he did once walk these hallways.

  “What happened to him?” a student in the front asks.

  “No one knows for sure. Many speculate he may have exposed himself to some kind of toxin he couldn’t control, and it poisoned his mind against him.” Vetito closes his eyes. The image of the once hopeful man disappears from the screen, and his eyes return to normal. “Others think that maybe, all along, he really was evil,
just waiting to find the right toxin to use against the city. The problem with this is, he doesn’t show himself often, and he’s never used his toxin ability in public. The handful of times he has been seen, he’s only used his water-manipulation ability. Even when he murdered Emerald Blaze, it was his water ability that was her downfall. There is only speculation as to why he murdered her.” Vetito’s gaze falls to the floor. “My theory is that he had a grudge against her, and Digger got caught in the crossfires.”

  Black Mold’s voice suddenly whispers in my mind, “You made your choice long ago Julia …”

  A chill runs down my spine, as if a ghost had just touched me.

  Jomo clears his throat. “What kind of grudge? Was he just jealous of how talented Emerald Blaze was? People are always jealous of those who are better than them.” He focuses on me, eyes narrowed. “Especially of those who deserve the glory.”

  “Whatever,” I mumble.

  Vetito shrugs and glances out the window, his face blank. “Anything can cause a grudge.”

  Sing rubs at the patch on his face. “Why do you think he doesn’t come out often?”

  “Well …” Vetito heads toward his desk. “This is why I really do believe some kind of toxin is affecting him. Everyone has seen him, correct?”

  Many students nod in unison.

  “He looks sick. Perhaps whatever happened to him has weakened him, but not so badly that his villainous allies have abandoned him. Black Mold is still very powerful. He did take down one of the finest Guardians of all time, after all.”

  “How did he manage to trap her?” a blonde girl near the window asks.

  The image of Emerald Blaze thrashing wildly around in a sphere of water pops in my mind. My heartbeat quickens, and I focus on my desk. “Iron forge used metal beams to trap her, and Black Mold finished the job,” I say softly.

  Silence.

  I glance up.

  Everyone is staring at me.

  Shit. A lump forms in my throat, and my gaze darts around the classroom. “What? Everyone saw it on TV.”

  Vetito nods. “You’re correct, Aiden. Iron Forge did contribute to Emerald Blaze’s downfall.”