by R. J. Ross
She'd spent years hoping and praying that this situation wouldn't come up. Why, oh why, does she have to deal with this on the same day she signed the divorce papers? Her head is pounding and her hands are clammy because, put bluntly, she's terrified out of her mind.
She's going to lose Ace. Oh, they'll paint it differently, say that they just want what's best for her boy, say that he needs to be among his own kind, but she knows what it really is. Her son is a super. She's known for years, just never mentioned it to her always absent husband. If he was too stupid to notice what was right under his nose, he doesn't deserve to know!
She walks through the automatic door and finds herself staring at the statue in the middle of the room. These people, they aren't human. They're bigger than life--greater than mere humans--
She has no chance of keeping her son.
Her resolve falls, just like that, every little lie she's told herself about the situation just drops to the ground as she stares up at the metallic Superior looming over her head. Her eyes go to the man next to him--the man she will be talking with any moment, Mastermental. Her son is one of them. She knows it better than anyone, knows that he takes after her father--
"There's a chance Ace will grow up stronger than his father," a voice says from behind her. She practically jerks as she turns to confront the newcomer. It's Mastermental. "You know that, though, don't you?" he asks in a gentle tone.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," she lies through her teeth. She can feel herself start to sweat and she tries to clear her mind. This man is dangerous--far more dangerous than a normal super, in some ways. He can see into her very soul, she's certain.
"Mrs. King--"
"It's Ms. Nyler," she says. "I'm divorced." There's a tone of defiance in that statement, one that she feels is childish, but can't help.
"Then Ms. Nyler, please, why don't you join me in my office? This is something I think we'd both prefer to talk about in private."
"Is my--is Blackjack coming?" she asks.
"Not yet," he says. "I think this is something you need to think about without... outside difficulties involved." He seems so reasonable, she thinks as he offers his arm in an outdated fashion. He acts as if her entire world isn't spinning out of control at the moment. "I want what's best for your son, just as much as you do, Ms. Nyler," he says earnestly, looking her straight in the eyes.
"Do you, really?" she asks.
"I do," he says. Hesitantly she touches the arm offered, pushing down, and he lowers it. She refuses to hook arms with a man that's about to take her boy from her. "It's this way," he says, motioning forward.
***
Skinny, rather creepy looking for a teenage boy, honestly, and those eyes...
"I've always wondered," Jenna says, jerking Jetta out of her thoughts. The two sit in a tree at a distance from the canyon, watching as Ace steps over the yellow tape. "He scares me," she admits quietly. "There's something about him that's seriously creepy."
"He's a typical teenage boy," Jetta says, blowing it off and crossing her legs. "He's a typical CAPE teenage boy, which is who you really should be chasing instead of that idiot jock of yours."
"Yeah, right. There's nothing wrong with Matt! He's cute," she says, almost pouting.
"He's a moron that didn't even recognize an obvious cape," Jetta retorts. "But they just dragged him into their secret base like he was an old family member." It's not fair. She wants to say that so much, but she can't. Their parents, respectable members of the East Branch, refuse to even consider putting them in Cape High. She'd asked.
"Dragged Matt?"
"No, moron, they dragged Ace. Why didn't you tell me you had a cape in your class?" she demands.
"I was hoping they were contacts. You know how creepy goth guys can get!"
"That's not goth," Jetta says. "That's flat out super villain material." A bad boy. One that had practically drooled at the sight of her, her mind whispers. "He'll be useful," she announces boldly, challenging her little sister to say what they both know.
"It'll never happen," Jenna says. "Our parents would kill you."
"So? I'm not a little girl anymore. I'm a working cape. If I want to toy with a cape boy, they have no say in it," she says, pushing her hair over her shoulder in an arrogant move. "Like I said, he'll be useful."
"He'll be dangerous," Jenna says. "He's scary, I'm serious. There's something that happens when you look into his eyes. It's like the world starts to get darker and you feel like something's really, really wrong--"
"You're just a wimp," Jetta says. "I can use him--he'll be happy to be used, even." She hops out of the tree and starts for him, only to stop as he pulls out his phone. Thanks to her wind ability she can hear every word.
"Yeah?"
"Come to the Hall, son."
"Why?"
"Because Mastermental and your mom are here discussing your future. Look, I know you don't agree with the divorce--"
"I'm coming," Ace says, hanging up before the conversation can go on. He looks around, not seeing her, it seems, because he breaks into a run. Not just a typical run, she notices, a flat out one moment he's here, the next he's gone.
"Wow," she says. "Who IS he?"
"I... think I know," Jenna says quietly.
"Then tell me!"
"He's the son of Blackjack. He came to the school earlier--I mean, he convinced everyone he was just dressed like Blackjack, but I don't believe it."
"I could get into the Central Branch with him," Jetta says, her hands growing clammy at the very thought.
"I don't think this is smart--"
"No," Jetta says. "It's BRILLIANT."
***
I hate running. If I'd had any other way to get here, I wouldn't have done it, I think as I slow to a jog, then walk up to the massive building they call the Central Hall. Even norms know that America has five branches of the Hall, North, South, East, West and Central. Central is right here in Kansas City, where the group is actually smaller, but higher class than the rest. It's ran by one of the most dangerous capes around--Mastermental.
He's come to a few of my birthday parties in the past. He's a slender, quiet man that looks like he's more suited to run a massive company than be a super hero. Then again, running the Hall is basically running a huge company, I bet.
I stop, feeling a strange sensation, as if someone is watching me. Of course they are, I realize as I see the cameras all around. The security system here is outrageously huge. They don't want crazy super hating norms running in strapped with dynamite. Sure, it wouldn't hurt any of the capes, but there are a lot of norms that work here. Tons of them, I bet. But cameras don't leave you with the feeling of being hunted, do they? I find myself looking around, searching the shadows to see if someone's watching. Who would be watching me? Maybe there's hidden workers in the shadows, or something--
"Ace." The word makes me look up as my dad starts for me. He looks torn, and his hands come up for a moment before he sees my expression. "Look, this isn't what you think--"
"Where's Mom?" I ask coldly.
"She's still talking with Mastermental. You need my help to get into that part of the building, so come on," he says, starting up the stairs.
"Blackjack," I say, making him stop and look back at me. "That school--"
"This is something we can discuss when we're inside," he says.
"Fine," I mutter as I follow him inside. "I'm not moving in with you," I add. "Wherever you're living, that is." I'm keeping my voice low, not wanting to be heard.
"I'm a dorm manager," he says. "I'm living at the school."
"What?" I demand a bit too loudly.
"It's not exactly easy to find living areas for one guy that might have to don a cape, you know," he says. "So far I've been kept on standby, but if something big happens I'll still have to suit up. Really hard to do when you live in an apartment building."
"And you're trying to get me into that school? Let me guess, you work there, too," I snap.
"I'm the math teacher," he says. "Ace, I don't see why you and I can't have a civil relationship--"
"Because you just ditched me!" I snap.
"Ace Lawrence King!" The sharp full-name rebuke makes me jerk and turn to the elevator. Mom is standing there with a dangerous expression on her face. It's the one that says if I go any further she'll toss me into boot camp until I'm thirty. But for once, I glare back at her.
"Don't get involved, Mom," I say. "You have no right to gang up on me with him, you're the one that signed the papers!"
"You... you signed them?" Dad asks, sounding a bit weak.
"Of course I signed them. That's what you do with divorce papers! Now if you don't mind, I need to have a calm, rational discussion with my son," she says, storming right past him and stopping in front of me. For a moment she stares into my eyes, then she pulls me into a hug. "Honey, I wish I had... I wish it was... I don't know," she admits. "But it's not going to be that big of a difference," she goes on, pulling away.
"You're making me go to his school," I say unemotionally.
"But you're staying in the house," she says. "I know--I know this is a lot of change for you, honey, with the divorce, and now the new school, but--"
"Why don't I get a say in this?" I demand, jerking away from her. "Why do I never get a say in anything? All I get is things shoved down my throat! First the divorce, now this! You know what? I am SICK AND TIRED of being told what's going to happen to me!" The room seems a little darker, but I don't care right now. "I'm not a child anymore, got it? I deserve to have a say in my own freaking life!"
A part of me feels guilty right now. I mean, even if the place is insane, I don't think I would really mind it. It's just... I wish, just once, someone would ASK me before deciding, okay? I take a step back, looking from Dad to Mom, then back again. I can't think of anything to say, though, so I turn and run as fast as I possibly can, leaving all of this in the dust behind me.
I have a sick feeling in my gut that says it won't stay there for long.
***
"Did you see that?" Blackjack asks quietly, looking up at the ceiling of the large building. "Those were definitely storm clouds."
"Don't change the subject, mister!" Vivian snaps, poking him. "Go after our son!"
"No," a female says, stepping out of the shadows. Everyone turns to look at the black girl standing there. "I will."
"Adanna?" Blackjack asks blankly.
"She's cleared for this part of the building," one of the black suits explains. "She's a Cape High student."
"Yeah, I know, but when did she get in here? Shouldn't you be in school?" he asks her.
"I'm on a mission from Nico," she says. "And your son is getting away," she adds before racing out the door after Ace.
***
I still hate running. It isn't because of the usual reasons people hate running, sure after a while I bet I'll be a little winded, and sure I might feel a bit sore. I don't know about other super kids, I bet the tanks can just keep going and going, but me, I'm just the basics. But I still hate running. It's so... not cool. I pull to a stop way before I'm winded, not wanting to get that way. Besides, I don't recognize the area I'm in. There's cows. I turn, staring blankly at the field beside me. Yeah, those are obviously cows.
Now, see, you're probably laughing at me right now, but I've never gone on a run before. I knew I COULD run, sure, but I've never been on one. Like I said, nothing about it appeals to me, and until today I hadn't ever planned on announcing that I'm a cape. I wanted... actually I don't know what I wanted. Maybe I wanted for Dad to realize on his own that I'm just like him. That I'm a super. Instead I always got the faint feeling he was disappointed whenever he looked at me--like I didn't live up to his grand expectations and he'd have to start over again. Maybe, I'd thought, that's why he was so fine with the whole divorce thing. This marriage had failed to give him what he wanted, or something.
It's not my fault. Sure it's not.
I walk over to the fence, leaning against it and watching the cows for a long moment, trying to get my thoughts together. Am I lost? Probably. I figure I'm still in either Missouri or Kansas. It's flat, starting to turn green, and has lots of cows but not many buildings. Even if I'm not in one of those two, I'm still pretty sure I'm in the Bible Belt.
The sun is starting to go down. It makes the world seem a little warmer as pink light covers the field, but it's a lie. There's a sharp wind tugging at my hair.
"Hey, Ace."
The words make me jerk and look around blankly. "Ace, you've got Trent's earbud, it's in a pocket or something, right?" the rough voice finally fits a face. Jack. That's Jack--oh. I reach into my pocket, pulling out the earbud and slipping it in.
"I'm here," I say quietly.
"Good. Look, we've got an hour before I'm set up to face off with pink girl. You know how to get back?"
"Oh. Um..." I look around. "I've got no idea," I admit.
"Freakin' speeders," Jack mutters.
"What, you can't run fast?" I ask, seeing a weakness.
"I'm still getting used to balancing, honestly. You can take advantage of that tonight. But either way, turn around. See a dust trail or anything that shows where you ran?" he asks.
"Uh... no," I admit. "But I see Adanna," I add as I see the black girl sitting on the fence, watching me. She hops off of it and looks at me before starting to run.
"Good, follow her back."
"Hey, why would you need to get used to balancing, anyway?" I ask, starting after Adanna. I wonder if she's who I think she is. Panther's daughter? If she is, I bet she can hear Jack over my earbud. That would be seriously impressive.
"Because I'm a mad scientist's experiment on a norm," he says. "Only reason we're even talking right now is because my girlfriend happens to be the only healer around. Look, Max said he's trying to talk you into being a villain, right? Well you don't gotta if you don't wanna. You've got it set up to follow in your old man's footprints, take on the hero title and save the world if you want. Don't go getting pulled into something you don't know all about."
"What's it like?" I ask.
"Fun," he admits. "Playing the villain, that is. You gotta be careful about destroying things, and more often than not they make me go back in the middle of the night with the suits to fix the damage, but it's fun. Only thing that really sucks is having to take the fall all the time."
"Why do you have to?" I ask him, falling into an easy pace as Adanna slows down. I can see the reflection of his skin ahead of me, so I know we're back to Death Canyon.
"Because the world needs to know their heroes aren't wimps. But don't worry, I don't have to work that hard to fail when it's Trent."
"Or at all," Trent says as I reach the crowd of teens standing by the yellow tape. It looks like the entire school is here, I realize. They're all dressed in jeans and coats, except for one girl, who's wearing a frilly looking skirt instead of pants. She must have noticed me looking at her, because she turns and looks me straight in the eye.
Why do I feel a chill go down my spine? She doesn't even look that old! But I can't seem to look away from her, fighting the urge to take a step back. I mean, I've had moments where I've felt awkward around girls before, and she IS cute, but--
"We're going with you," a new guy says, stepping forward. I stare at him blankly. Actually I'm staring at the seriously ugly plastic rimmed glasses that he's wearing. Don't get me wrong, I've seen plastic rimmed glasses that look cool before, these are not them. In fact I have to glance down and make sure he's not wearing a pocket protector--not that I'm sure what one of those actually looks like, but with his outfit it calls for that elusive piece of epic nerd-ery. Nerdiness? Whatever.
"Who are you?" I ask bluntly.
"He's Justin. THE Justin. Hysterical, right?" a shorter male says for him. He's got a streak of white in his bangs, sort of like Nico. He's the one that Adanna stops next to. "I'm Sunny," he adds, holding out his hand. "This is Adanna, that's Zoe, t
hat's Emily, and the girl you were staring at is Noelle, and that's--" I go back to looking at Noelle, who looks patently bored.
I don't have that same urge to back up. Maybe I imagined it or something. I really don't know. I mean, I'm surrounded by supers, right? One of them has got to have noticed something off about the girl, right? Yeah. It's all in my head.
"You just totally stopped listening, didn't you?" Justin asks. What's so big about this guy, anyway? THE--oh. Wait. Waaaait.
"Are you the pop singer that sent a handful of girls into the hospital?" I ask him. The entire group goes quiet and I wonder if I just went somewhere I shouldn't have.
"Yeah," he says. "I am. And now you know why," he adds a bit dryly, motioning to the canyon. The rest of the group looks at him and I see a few hints of surprise. I wonder why.
"I just broke some guy's fist," I tell him, since it feels awkward. Why not just add to that awkwardness? "With my face."
I hear Jack choke and look over as he bursts out laughing. "I gotta try that sometime!" he says.
"Nobody's stupid enough to do it to you," Sunny says.
"I bet there are," Jack says.
"Okay, okay enough talking," Nico says as he steps through the group of teens. "What's going to happen is this, the fight is scheduled to take place at the local park--not many people, but you can make it showy enough to bring in the media," he says to Jack. "This one might be problematic, so try and keep her in the park."
"Problematic, how?" Jack asks.
"As in she really wanted to do this at a local club. I convinced her parents that it's too high of a risk for norms, considering this is her debut and you're still working on your steel control. They agreed, but she hasn't. So in order to appease her ego, we're bringing a couple dozen teens out slumming. That means you guys have to pretend to be partying, got it?" he adds to the group at large. "I've even rigged a cheap sound system to make it more like a party. As far as anyone getting hurt--well, you shoulda dodged better," he says bluntly.
