Alfred rolled his eyes and sat the food down on the table. It was steak and mashed potatoes. “My name is not Alfred.”
“Yes it is,” Eli said smirking.
Taia hit Eli on his arm. “Hey!” he exclaimed.
“What?” she asked. “You just get to name him just because he’s human and he’s your slave?”
A look of realization dawned on Eli’s face.
“Wait—no,”
“You’re just like the rest of them,” Taia continued. “I can’t believe I thought you were any different.”
“No it’s not like that,” Blake said.
“You guys are disgusting,” Taia grabbed a plate and began piling food on top of it.
Alfred raised an eyebrow at Eli and Blake.
“He won’t tell us his real name,” Eli explained.
Confused, Taia looked at him. “What?” she asked.
“He’s been in my family’s employ since I can remember,” Blake said. “He helped raise me. But he refused to ever tell anyone his real name. Said just call him ‘slave’ if that’s what we’re going to use him as. Not telling anyone his name is Alfred’s own little way of defying the Regime,” Blake was smiling looking at Alfred admiringly.
“The only person he ever told his real name to was my father,” Blake said sadly. “Only person he felt that deserved it.”
“I’ve never met another person like him.” Alfred said solemnly.
“So where did the name ‘Alfred’ come from?” Taia asked.
“Blake’s always fancied himself a Superhero,” Eli said. “So he figured Alfred was the perfect name for his butler.”
“That and hopefully it’ll annoy him so much he’ll tell me his real name” Blake said smiling.
“Why is Alfred a perfect name for a Superhero’s butler?” Taia asked.
All three of the males in the room stared at her. “Wait, seriously?” Blake asked.
“Yea,” Taia said. “Why Alfred?”
“Well,” Eli began talking slowly. “You know. A Superhero. His butler. Alfred?”
Taia pursed her lips and shook her head. “Nope. I don’t get it.”
“Oh dear.” Alfred muttered before walking away going to the floating refrigerator.
“Dude,” Blake said eyes wide, turning to look at Eli. “Where did you find this girl?”
“Oh, whatever,” Taia said rolling her eyes and beginning to devour her food. She did not realize how hungry she was.
Alfred put a glass of water in front of her but after a few seconds had to go and refill it because of how quickly she gulped it down.
“Well that’s not a very lady like way to eat.”
The entire room froze as the condescending voice of Isla Gates cut through the room like nails on a chalk board. Blake visibly swallowed and Taia kicked Eli.
“Don’t worry children,” Isla said. “I will not be here long.” She then walked to the refrigerator. Alfred stepped out of her way as she opened it and grabbed something that looked like a Wine bottle.
“I could have grabbed that for you ma’am.” Alfred said.
“Yes you could have,” Isla retorted. “But I wanted it before morning old man.”
She then began walking away muttering “I swear the only reason I keep you around is because of my late husband.”
Taia gaped at her in disbelief. How could she be the one to say that when she was the one who killed her husband?
“Fix your face,” Eli said tersely. “You don’t want her to catch you looking at her like that.”
Blake nodded silently, slowly eating his food.
“Okay,” Taia whispered. “You guys have to tell me. What’s the deal? Why are you guys so scared of the Senator?”
The two young men looked at each other but it was Blake who spoke. “How much do you know about the Regime government?”
“There’s a mayor for each city right?” Taia asked. “There are Senators that make up the Parliament. And then there’s the Prime Minister. The leader of it all.”
“So your Resistance isn’t totally ignorant,” Eli said.
Taia glared at him and opened her mouth to respond but Blake spoke first. “Yea, exactly,” he said. “And there are 20 Regions with 4 Senators to each Region. So 80 Senators total with who knows how many mayors. Now do you know how each of those government leaders are chosen? The mayors, the Senators, the Prime Minister?”
“Um,” Taia began. “By popular vote?”
Both Eli and Blake let out a chuckle. “Wouldn’t that make things a lot simpler?” Blake asked rhetorically.
“You have to remember Taia,” Eli said. “Everything in the Regime is based off of survival of the fittest. That’s the mantra of the Regime. That only the strong survive. And that’s the rationale for having Transcendeds in charge.”
“So what does that mean?” Taia asked. “That the strongest are chosen to be in charge?”
“Mmm,” Blake said. “Not chosen per say.”
“They fight for it,” Eli said.
Taia paused. “You’re kidding.”
“Not at all,” Eli responded. “The strongest of the Supes—“
“Eli,” Blake whispered frantically, looking around.
“The strongest of the Transcendeds,” Eli continued. “Choose to fight every Cycle in a tournament for different positions. Each city has a tournament where the strongest of that city that want to be Mayor fight for the position. Each Region has a tournament where the final four are chosen as the Senators. And then there’s the Prime Ministerial tournament.”
Taia’s was astonished. “How long is a Cycle?” she asked.
“5 years,” Blake responded. “And everything is on the same cycle. So every 5 years there are all these different tournaments where the strongest and most ambitious of Eli and I’s kind battle it out. It’s quite a sight.”
“It’s barbaric,” Eli said.
“So do a lot of Su—I mean do a lot of Transcendeds compete?” Taia asked.
Eli and Blake shared a look. “No, not a lot,” Eli said. “The city tournaments usually have more competitors than the Senatorial tournaments and then the Prime Ministerial tournaments usually only have maybe 5 or 6 Transcendeds total.”
This confused Taia. “Why do so few Transcendeds compete for Prime Minister? Is it that big of a difference in strength between the Senators and the Prime Minister if its 80 Senators total that win, let alone compete?”
“Well a lot of the strongest Transcendeds don’t even challenge the incumbent Prime Minister. ” Blake said. “He’s just that strong. That, and each tournament is a fight to the death.”
“What?!” Taia exclaimed.
“Exactly,” Eli retorted. “Like I said, it’s barbaric. They fight to the death. And it’s why Senator Gates has been a Senator for the past 4 Cycles. One of her abilities that comes with her gift is accelerated healing.”
One of her abilities? The Senator must be powerful if her base gift granted her multiple abilities.
“And no one wants to fight the Prime Minister to the death. He’s just too strong. So even the strong Transcendeds just settle for being Senator.”
“Is he that powerful?” Taia asked.
“Yes,” Blake said. “But I know someone in this very room who can—“
“Let me put it like this,” Eli interrupted. “He’s been fighting people off trying to kill him for the past 9 Cycles. That’s 45 years. If no one has beaten him yet, no one will.”
And it was in this instance that Taia realized her Resistance really did not stand a chance.
After they finished dinner, Blake took Eli and Taia to where they would be sleeping. It was no shock that the Gates household had several guest bedrooms so each of them would have their own bed and privacy tonight.
It was still relatively early in the evening but Taia had claimed that she was tired and wanted to go to bed. She was now regretting this.
A few hours had passed since Eli left her room and assured her he was
just a couple doors down and to just shout for him if she needed anything. But she did need something and it was to feel safe.
Taia had been sitting in the room for hours now wide awake, staring at the ceiling. There was a television in the room but she was not interested in watching anything that had to do with the Regime.
But in this house she simply did not feel safe. This was the house of a Senator who hated humans and Taia was hiding that she was human. She trusted Eli and Blake seemed nice enough, but the way that they both were afraid of Blake’s mother had her own edge.
There was no reason for Taia to be as dismissive as she was when Eli asked her if she wanted him to stay in her room that night. Sure she wanted her privacy, but he wasn’t asking it maliciously. He had even said that he would sleep on the floor. Even though for some reason a part of her thought that the idea of him sleeping in her bed was quite comforting.
Now here she was, fighting a battle between her pride and what she ultimately wanted, and her pride was losing.
She didn’t want to seem like the damsel in distress that needed the hero to always come to save her. But she couldn’t deny that she was safer with Eli Proof. Especially in the house of the enemy.
Now Taia was trying to think of any excuse possible to go see Eli. She thought about going to the bathroom, but there was a bathroom adjacent to her room so that wouldn’t work.
Then she thought about claiming to be hungry and going down to the kitchen to ask Alfred for some food and coming back to the ‘wrong room’, but she did not want to walk around the house alone with the chance of running into Isla Gates.
It wasn’t long before her restlessness got the best of her and she figured she’d just knock on Eli’s door and ask him if he was doing alright, and hopefully that would lead to her hanging out with him for a few hours until she was tired enough to go to sleep.
Eli was two doors down from her. So a few minutes in the hallway alone wouldn’t kill her. Hopefully.
Taia got out of her bed and walked to the bedroom door, unlocking it. She stepped outside of her room and jumped, having to put her hand over her mouth to stop herself from screaming.
Eli had been sitting down outside of her door. He jumped up quickly with his eyes wide in a look of surprise.
“What are you doing?” Taia whispered harshly. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack?”
A look of embarrassment came across Eli’s face. He began rubbing the back of his head. “Look,” he said. “I’m sorry. I just couldn’t fall asleep knowing you were in this house alone. Blake’s a good kid but his mother…..she’s something else.”
Taia turned a deep shade of red. Eli was out here protecting her. For some reason this guy was going above and beyond to make sure that she was safe. And Taia couldn’t help but think of how remarkable it was.
“Well don’t just sit out here,” Taia said. “Come in”
Eli was shocked. “Are-are you sure? I can just sit out here.’
“All night?” Taia asked. “Don’t you think if the Senator came across you she would think it was suspicious you were guarding my room?”
“Hmm. Good point.”
The pair began walking into Taia’s room but then Eli paused. “Wait,” he said, furrowing his brow. “Where were you going just now anyway? Were you about to leave?” He looked flabbergasted. He couldn’t believe it.
“Look Taia,” he continued. “I know this isn’t the ideal situation but I’m telling you, this is the best way to get you home,” Eli looked worried. “I’ll protect you. I promise.”
Taia’s face was burning red now. She couldn’t tell him the truth. That she felt like she needed him to feel safe. But she couldn’t have him thinking this nonsense either.
“Oh calm down Eli,” Taia muttered. “I wasn’t trying to leave the house. I was just going to get a drink of water.”
“But there’s a bathroom in your room,” Eli said.
“Ew,” Taia replied walking back into her bedroom. “That’s bathroom water. No one wants to drink that.”
Eli looked offended. “I drink it all the time” he said under his breath following Taia into the room.
“You still aren’t sleeping in the bed with me,” Taia said, throwing Eli a pillow and getting into her bed.
“You say that like I want to,” Eli said with a smirk.
Taia gaped at Eli. “You don’t?” She asked.
“You don’t want me to?” he asked still smiling.
Taia had to catch herself. Was she flirting with a Supe? What was wrong with her? And a Supe she had just met the day before at that. She shook her head to clear her thoughts.
“So,” she began interrupting the awkward silence that had filled the room. “Are all your friends sons of Senators that think they’re going to change the world?”
Eli chuckled. “I don’t have many friends Taia. Only a few. But Blake is the best one I have. And none of them are quite like him.”
“Do all of them have a hero complex like him?” Taia asked.
“Give Blake some credit. He’s just trying to do the same thing as your Resistance.”
“No,” Taia said. “The Resistance actually has a plan. Blake is trying to put together the Super Friends or something and he thinks that it’s going to take down an entire empire.”
“I think that his plan has a better chance of succeeding than humans fighting against the Regime. Didn’t the Great War show you all that? Didn’t the few rebellions that you all have tried over the past 200 years show you?”
“We’ve gotten stronger,” Taia said. “We’re getting stronger. Soon we’re going to be ready.”
“Yea I doubt it,” Eli said. “But I doubt Blake’s plan will work too. I think you’re all just going to get yourselves killed trying to go against the Regime.”
“Oh stop being a hypocrite,” Taia said annoyed. “You’re going up against the Regime right now. You have the same hero complex as your friend.”
“No,” Eli said. “This just shows why I shouldn’t try to be a hero. Not in this world.”
“What do you mean?” Taia asked.
“Whenever I try to be good, something bad happens,” he replied. “I couldn’t even save your friends, only you. And now I’m breaking only God knows how many laws trying to protect and save you.”
“Is my life not a life worth saving?” Taia asked. “I can leave and get home on my own.”
Eli looked up from the floor at her sadly. “That’s not what I meant Taia.”
“Stop trying so hard to be bad,” Taia said. “You’re not a cool bad boy. You’re a softy. A boy scout. Get over it.”
Eli’s mouth dropped open. “I took out 5 Core officers. You saw me do it!”
“Yea,” Taia said. “To save a teenage girl. Who you probably have a crush on.”
Eli was shocked. “What? I-I don’t—“
“Have a crush on me?” Taia asked smiling. “Sure you don’t. We can just go with that.”
Taia smiled to herself. She was always good at pushing people’s buttons. And it was so easy to do with Eli Proof.
“So what about you?” Eli said, shaking himself out of his stupor and ignoring the younger girl.
“Oh I’m no hero,” Taia said quickly. “I just want to get home.”
Eli laughed. “No Taia,” he began. “What are your friends like?”
A large smile broke across Taia’s face. “Oh at my Sector?” she asked. “They’re pretty cool. I’m really competitive and can come across as aggressive so its hard for me to make friends.”
“I can only imagine” Eli said quietly with a smile.
He said a loud “Hey!” as a pillow that Taia threw at him hit him in the face.
Laughing, Taia continued. “They’re good to me though. Jesse and Kate are like family.”
“You only have two friends?” Eli asked. He was immediately hit with another pillow.
“You’re not running out of those?” he asked dramatically.
“N
o those aren’t my only friends,” Taia retorted. “Those are just my best friends. Those guys and my father are who I have to get back to see. I’ve known them for as long as I can remember.”
Eli looked at Taia sympathetically. He felt bad for asking now. “I’m going to get you there Taia.”
Taia looked over at Eli and smiled. “I know.”
A few moments passed in silence before Eli let out a loud groan.
Sitting up in the bed Taia smirked at him “What’s wrong?” she asked. “Not comfortable?”
Eli glared at Taia “I’m not tired,” he said. “What time is it?
Taia looked at the clock on the nightstand next to her. “It’s a little before 1900 hours.” She was a military girl so she operated in military time. And Eli had been in the Core so he operated the same way.
“1900?” Eli exclaimed. “It’s barely the evening at all.” He then stood up and began putting on his shoes.
“Come on,” he said.
Taia looked at him surprised. “Come on,” he said again smiling.
“Come on where?” Taia asked.
“We’re going for a walk.”
“A walk?” Taia was not in any rush to leave the house. “Are you trying to get me killed Eli?”
“Don’t be so dramatic,” Eli chuckled. “You really have to learn how to trust me. We’re just going on a walk. And we’re honestly probably safer out there than we are in here with Isla.”
He then held out his hand to Taia.
Already, none of this made any sense to Taia. She was in the home of one of the most powerful Supes in the Regime because she needed the help of her son with a Superhero complex to get home. And in order to avoid being executed, tortured, or enslaved, she was even faking being a Supe herself. And now this boy, who had for some reason pledged himself to saving her life, wanted her to go on a walk with him.
Sighing, Taia grabbed Eli’s hand and was pulled out of the bed.
The pair headed down the stairs toward the door of the house.
“Alfred,” Eli said while nervously shifting in the foyer, the place where he had seen his surrogate father murdered.
Alfred came out of a room.
“We’re going out Alfred,” Eli told him. “Be back soon.”
“Understood Master Proof”.
Becoming Super Page 9
