This World

by Lee, TD

  There’s a bunch of chatter between people on the train. Most are talking about how excited they are to attend Hero Con as others are wondering which heroes are there or what their schedule is for the whole convention. I wonder how many people are excited to see Hiro. Hiro is a big topic at school, but I’m not so sure about outside of school. He’s had some interviews here and there, but I haven’t heard much else.

  When the train arrives at the right stop, I follow the sea of people to the location of the convention because I don’t know where it is and forgot to ask Hiro. The crowd arrives at a massive building that touches the sky. Floating around the building are giant TVs that are currently broadcasting a panel, featured heroes, or camera angles of different parts of the convention. Tall statues stand stalwart, many of which are notable superheroes. Several sets of stairs are already occupied by people trying to get in. Large banners connect several pillars together. This building is the HERO HQ. Has Hero Con always been at the HQ for all of the superhero operations or is this year just a strange exception? It’s not that I think it’s weird that a convention is being held at the HQ, what I find weird is that it’s so on the nose. Hero Con at HERO HQ. It works, I guess.

  Hiro was right though, I definitely should’ve come earlier. There’s such a long line outside. I thought the line at Gourmet Duel was bad, this is ten times worse. Some people are just getting in because they have some early bird pass or some shit that makes them seem special. Oh wait, I don’t have a pass or ticket. How am I getting in!?

  I take my phone out to call Hiro who takes a couple of rings to pick up. “Hey Ridley, are you inside?” From his end of the phone, I can hear murmured chattering, there must be a lot of people inside already.

  “Um, no, I’m very much outside. The line here is ridiculous!” I shout into my phone because there’s so many people talking around me, “How am I getting in? I don’t have a pass or whatever.”

  Hiro excitedly shouts, “Hey! No worries, I’ll get you in! Gimme a sec, tell me where you are!”

  “Uh,” I briefly pause to look around to find a statue of a hero, “I’m next to the statue of, uh. I don’t know who the hell this hero is.”

  “What do they look like?” Hiro questions.

  “Well,” I take another pause to sum up the statue’s appearance, “they have a cape, mask, extremely muscular.”

  Hiro chimes in with a chuckle, “That describes like almost every conventional hero out there.”

  “Well, maybe they should all look more different then!” I shout which causes some people to look in my direction. “Uh, anyways, he’s holding out his hand and in it are weirdly shaped tools, they kinda look like the head of a lizard.”

  “Oh, Draco Man! You’re next to the Draco Man statue, I’ll be there in a bit,” Hiro says.

  “Whoa, wait. How did you figure that out from my horrible description?” I ask.

  “Remember who you’re talking to,” Hiro quips, and I know this guy has a big grin on his face.

  “Yeah, yeah, well hurry up and get out here!” I hang up the phone.

  Seconds after I ended the call, there’s a roar of cheering and applause in front of me. What in the exciting hell is happening? I try to peek at what’s going on, but people are blocking my view. The cheers continue like a wave coming to the shore, the cheers are progressively getting louder and louder towards me. My confirmation for the cheering is a person screaming, “I love you Lancelot!”

  Arriving in front of me Hiro with a couple of security guards at his side. He’s wearing a modified version of his pilot suit that highlights his physique even more than the normal pilot suit does. He waves at all of the people in the crowd with a wide grin on his face. “I love you all too! Thanks for coming, I hope to see you all inside! Keep that fire in your heart burning!” Hiro walks up to me, grabs my arm and gently pulls me with him. “Finally made it Ridley?” We start walking towards the entrance of the building with the security guards closely following at our sides. As we’re walking I can feel the intense stares the people waiting in the line are giving me.

  “Aw man, I have always wanted to walk out in front of line like that!” Hiro says happily. This is definitely a dream come true for Hiro, the guy is all smiles. He hands me a plastic badge attached to a lanyard. “Here’s your pass, sorry I forgot to give it to you earlier.”

  “It’s all good, I honestly didn’t expect this many people to come to a thing like this,” I remark. I put the lanyard around my neck. The badge reads “Super Multi-Pass.” Are there different tiers of being a patron here? I look at Hiro and notice his badge hanging from his neck too. His reads “Super Guest of Honor.” Huh, Guest of Honor? That’s definitely something Hiro would be happy about.

  We pass through the entrance and it looks like I’m in a totally different world. Despite the line crowding the majority of the entrance hall, there are so many decorative banners, holograms, and pictures that bring this place to life. There are even more tall statues in here; however, there’s a stand without a statue, but rather than it looking like a clean slate, it looks like a statue was torn off of it. This entrance hall only leads further into the building. It’s loud in here to reflect the many masses of people that are moving about and talking. The large TV displays are showing the same thing being shown outside. Everywhere I look, there are people dressed up in cosplay. I’m starting to feel really out of place with my normal clothes.

  A crowd of people cheer when they see Hiro, in which he returns a gentle smile and wave. He’s really popular and it’s so weird to see that. Not that long ago, people barely knew who Hiro was, now he’s such a well-known guy that it’s pretty hilarious.

  Hiro directs me towards a long table where there are robots guarding one of the many entryways to actually get into the convention. When we approach the robots, they say, “Please show your Hero Con badge.” Hiro and I do as such. The eyes of the robot turn blue and scan the badges we show. “Thank you and please enjoy Hero Con where all of your superheroes gather together.” After being scanned, the robots hand me a bag of random goodies: a booklet, water bottle, shirt, and several pins.

  We pass the robots and officially enter the convention. Immediately, Hiro is surrounded by a group of people all dressed up as different heroes. There’s a weird invisible boundary around Hiro that these fans don’t pass through. Good to know that these people have boundaries and don’t just invade Hiro’s personal space.

  “Lancelot! I’m a huge fan!” a girl says, her eyes shine with happiness upon seeing Hiro. I don’t know who she’s cosplaying as, but the outfit looks pretty good.

  “Oh, thank you!” Hiro responds with that winning grin of his.

  She pulls out her phone and asks, “Is it okay if I take a picture with you?”

  “Not at all!” he replies. It seems like he’s pretty good with fans too. The girl nervously approaches Hiro and holds out her phone to take a picture.

  With a bright flash, the picture is taken. The girl turns around and says, “Thank you so much!”

  “You’re welcome!” he replies, almost automatically.

  Another fan, a guy this time, asks, “Can I take a picture too?”

  “Of course!” Hiro answers.

  As soon as Hiro’s done taking one picture, another fan would ask to take a picture. Some people want pictures in groups, some want individual selfies. We’re stuck in this vortex of fans wanting a picture. I honestly expected people to be asking him questions more than pictures, but maybe that’ll happen later.

  After several minutes of just standing here and watching Hiro take pictures with people, one of the security guards escorting me and Hiro chimes in with an authoritative voice, “Alright, we have to pass through. You can take a picture with Lancelot at his table or after his panel later today.” Before any fans could respond, the guards push their way through and drag both me and Hiro through the crowd with them.

  “Sorry everyone, but I hope to see you soon!” Hiro says before being dragged too f
ar away from the crown of fans.

  Once we’re free from the crowd of people, we walk down a long hallway filled with costumed patrons as well as some people selling food on the side, kinda like a food truck. Tons of cosplayers are having their pictures taken, videos are being made, and it’s just a bunch of enthusiastic people in one place. It’s like I’m in a building filled with Hiros. It’s getting really warm in here now too, I hope they crank on the AC soon.

  The security guards eventually lead us into a giant room with even more people. I think this is the show floor. There’s a bunch of vendor booths selling all sorts of stuff, whether the stuff is homemade or imported, no one cares. Then there’s the artist alley where extremely talented artists showcase and sell their work. I can barely draw a stick figure, yet these people are talented enough to draw such amazing portraits or sceneries. It’s uncanny! Line up along the back wall of the show floor are large areas reserved for an entertainment area. There’s no video games here, but rather a bunch of other activities like escape rooms, foam gun and sword fights, arts and crafts, indoor racing, and so much more. Man, it really looks like Hero Con goes all out on the activity department.

  Eventually, Hiro and I are led to a section of the show floor that is dedicated only for the guest heroes. There’s so many heroes lined up side-by-side, some I recognize because of Hiro, some I have never seen at all. Above each hero’s table is a large banner with the respective hero’s picture and their codename. Hiro’s banner has Lancelot and a pretty cool looking picture of him. Do they do photoshoots just for these events? To the sides of Hiro’s section are Sadie’s and Arthur’s sections. Sadie, I knew was here, but Arthur? That prick is here too? Both of them are busy interacting with their own fans, but I don’t know how Arthur can have any fans.

  Hiro and I sit down at his table. The security guards stand on watch between sections, all of them having a stern watchful eye on the sea of people. Now that I’ve sat down, I can really take notice of just how many people are in this show floor room. It’s terrifying to know that there’s even more people outside waiting to come in. Even with how big this building is, I don’t know if it can fit everyone inside. Regardless, this will be an interesting experience.

  “Sad that Meteor isn’t here,” Hiro quietly remarks to himself.

  “Was he not invited this year?” I ask.

  “He hasn’t been invited for the last few years, sadly. Sucks too because I remember going to Hero Con when I was a kid and was always so excited to see Meteor.”

  “You’ve shown me the pictures, you always dressed like him too,” I say, recalling the many pictures of Hiro dressed as Meteor.

  Our conversation is cut short when two of Hiro’s fans approach the table. They’re dressed up similar to the Musical Maids, so much so that I honestly think they’re part of the Musical Maids. One of them speaks to Hiro, “Oh my God! Lancelot! You’re so cool!” Both of them place a Mobile Knight’s poster on the table. “Can you sign our posters?”

  I look over to Hiro who is lightly blushing. “Aw, well, thanks! And of course, I’d be glad to sign your posters.” He grabs a marker that was left on the table and quickly signs the posters. I take a quick glimpse at the posters before they’re taken away from me, but I see that under Hiro’s signature is a quickly written: Keep that fire in your heart burning! Thanks A Lot, From Lancelot. I don’t know if Hiro thinks that’s a good quote or something, but holy shit that sounds corny.

  Blaring loudly through the speakers is a booming voice announcing, “Hello all attendees of Hero Con! The Magical Melange Musical Maids group shoot is happening at the east lawn in five minutes. The ‘After the Prospector” panel will start in auditorium four-one-one in ten minutes. And the Mobile Knights of the Round Table panel will start in half an hour in auditorium five-oh-one.”

  “Mobile Knights panel huh?” I remark.

  “Yeah, I’m kinda nervous though. It’s my first ever panel that I’m a guest in,” he says as he watches the people wandering by.

  “Eh, don’t be nervous. I’m sure the people who’ll be attending the panel will be a lot more nervous than you are. You guys are the highlight after all,” I respond.

  “Yeah, I guess so,” Hiro replies.

  A group of people approach the table. Each of them are dressed in similar suits like the Mobile Knight ones. There’s a couple of people in the group that are dressed up like the mechs instead of the pilots. A boy says with a smile, “Hi Lancelot! Can we all get a picture with you?”

  “Yeah, of course,” Hiro replies, getting up from his chair.

  One of the security guards takes the picture for the group. They do several poses before the security guard gives back the camera. When Hiro sits back down, the same boy asks, “Is it okay that I ask if you know what happened to the last Lancelot?” That’s actually a pretty good question. Hiro never told me about what really happened to the last Lancelot, I’m interested in this answer.

  “Honestly, they never quite told me anything about the last Lancelot other than he was critically injured. He was so injured that he wasn’t able to pilot, so that’s why I became the next Lancelot,” Hiro answers.

  “Oh, okay, thank you! We’ll be at the panel!” the boy says before he leaves with the rest of his group.

  “So why are people calling you Lancelot instead of your actual name?” I ask as soon as the fans walk away.

  “It’s easier to remember codenames than actual names, I think. I’m associated with a certain mech too, so I think it’s pretty normal to be called by my mech’s name rather than my own. They do see my mech more than they see me when it comes to fighting after all,” he explains.

  “Makes sense, but I hope they know that you’re actually a person and not just a mech pilot,” I remark quietly. If there’s something that’s a bit concerning about all of this is that Hiro is becoming someone who is more and more like a celebrity. When this happens, there’s an invasion of privacy when it comes to the media and fans, almost as if they forget that the people they like and look up to are actual people themselves.

  “I think I’ll be okay. I haven’t had any people treat me as if I’m not a person,” he says with an upbeat tone. “By the way, you’re more than okay to go explore and walk around the convention. You don’t have to hang out with me the whole time, it’ll probably get boring for you.”

  Even though I’m at such a large convention where I could be exploring, I honestly just want to hang out with Hiro. Specifically, I want to talk to him about the Omega threat event that happened a few days ago. I still can’t believe he’s even okay after it considering his mech got beheaded. “I’m fine, but I’ve been meaning to-”

  I’m interrupted by another fan approaching the table. This fan creates the start of a line of people waiting to talk to Hiro. This fan asked for the usual picture and signing. The fan after asked for the same. I don’t know how many people have come by, how many flashes from a camera hit my eyes, or how many signatures Hiro signed. All of the fans have become a blur as I simply sit by watching Hiro interact with his fans. He’s really gentle and nice with them, even when some of them approach him strangely, he’s still nice. Maybe that’s his main draw with the fans, his overall niceness.

  The line dies down for Hiro. I look to the side and notice the lines have died down for Arthur and Sadie too. Right, the panel is about to start. The security guards come up to Hiro, one of them says, “Your panel with Sadie and Arthur is about to begin. We’ll escort you.”

  “Um, alright, thank you,” Hiro replies, standing up. I stand with him which prompts him to turn towards me and say, “You don’t have to come to the panel. It’ll probably be boring for you.”

  “I have nothing better to do, I don’t even know where to begin exploring if I were to. Hell, I’m here to support my best friend, so I’m okay with following you around,” I sound like a complete loner who has no other friends.

  Hiro smiles widely. “Alright, yeah, cool!”

  We get escort
ed through the show floor and long hallways. We get to a glass escalator which quickly shoots up the floors. With a higher perspective, I can actually see how many people there are just hanging out in the hallways. It’s astonishing just how many people are here. I knew that heroes were a big thing, but for it to be as big like this is completely surreal. I wonder how Hiro’s feeling about all of this. I haven’t been able to talk to him too much since fans keep approaching him. But I do want to know how he’s feeling about all of this and being a guest here. It seriously has to be a dream come true for him.

  We approach a large set of doors which leads into a pretty big room filled with chairs that are already occupied with people. There’s a small stage which has a long table on it. Sadie and Arthur are already sitting at the table, neither of them are speaking to each other though. There’s a nicely dressed woman with both sides of her head shaved off, but topped off with bright green hair who is talking to Sadie. Filling the room are Mobile Knight fans, some are dressed up, some have Mobile Knight shirts. There are people dressed up as other things unrelated to the Mobile Knights, but it looks like they’re ready for a good time.

  One of the guards turns to me, whispering, “You’ll take a seat at the front row.” I nod to confirm I heard the guy. We all enter the room and I, indeed, take a seat at the front while Hiro sits next to Sadie.

  The room was packed before, but even more people are coming in to take the empty seats. Who knew that a panel about the Mobile Knights would be so popular. There are even more people who are dressed up similar to both the pilots and mechs of the Mobile Knights in here. Seeing people dressed as the mechs is really fascinating considering there’s just so much more that goes into making those suits. The people who even go the extra step to create the weapons of their respective Mobile Knights mech deserve some props.

  The green haired woman picks up a mic and speaks into it clearly, “Hello my beautiful babies and welcome to the Mobile Knights of the Round Table panel!” A roar of applause erupts from the audience. This woman has a great presence and charisma that for a brief moment that I’m actually here for Hiro and not her. She’s captivating in her own unique way. “For those of you who don’t know who I am, I’m Dani, hero lover specifically the Mobile Knights, Retaliators, and Deviants. I also have my own channel where I interview all sorts of heroes, and even some villains. Just as a quick plug and self-promote, my Deviant panel will take place later today at three in this auditorium, so I hope you come back for that. Anyways, we have some lovely and amazing guests for this year’s Mobile Knight panel. So if these lovely pilots will introduce themselves.” She smiles as she gestures her hand towards the pilots.