by David Bruno
“It’ll be okay,” said Phil as he grabbed Aegis and held her tightly against his chest. “We got you.” He looked toward Rick.
Regaining her breath, she continued, with tightness in her throat. “I haven’t known him long. But he was a good man and had the potential to be a great hero. It should be me lying there. He was the better hero. He gave his life for us, for his country and the world.” Her legs could no longer support her as she knelt down and sobbed.
The two men held Aegis and tried to find words to comfort her as she struggled for breath between cries. With his arm around her, Rick asked, “You loved him, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“He’s very lucky to have had you in his life, even for a moment.”
CH 21
HOME SWEET HOME
MINUTES LATER
The two men picked up Ironside’s pieces from the still-smoldering wreckage. It was a struggle for Rick, having been shot in the shoulder. Rick’s shoulder crackled and sent sharp pain through his body as he lifted. But he was not about to leave a man behind, especially Ironside. His parts were solid like stone. They noticed a complete lack of blood from the edges where he had split.
“He doesn’t feel right. He feels… skinny,” said Rick. “It’s like he’s much smaller than before. Look at his clothing, what remains of it anyway. It’s baggy. What can explain this?”
“I don’t know. Let’s get him out of here,” said Phil.
They loaded his parts into Rick’s minivan. Their vehicle was covered in dust and dented from debris as it sat parked just outside the blast zone next to the scooters, which rested on their sides in the spot where they were left. The men were exhausted from having to carry Ironside such a distance. Phil put his hands on Ironside’s chest as he carried him and detected a strange vibration.
“Aegis, check this out. I feel something in his chest. It’s odd. There’s an unusual vibration in there. Not quite a heartbeat,” muttered Phil in bewilderment.
“Are you suggesting that he’s alive? No way. Who could survive that?” asked Rick.
“My Benny, that’s who!” Aegis blurted. She wiped the never-ending tears from her face at the glimmer of hope given to her. “Get him back to my dad. Maybe he knows what to do.”
Aegis reached down into the scooter’s storage trunk to find her cell phone and called her dad. Her voice quaked as she spoke. “Dad, the place is destroyed. We won. Mission accomplished, but we aren’t sure about Doe. Benny… I mean Ironside. He’s down. It’s bad, real bad. We’re coming back and need your help.” She hung up the phone and quietly gazed on Ironside’s body as it rested motionless in the van.
When Ironside’s remains were secured in the minivan, the men felt they needed to give Aegis a better explanation of who they were. Aegis sat in the front seat, silent and dazed, shell-shocked from the events of mere minutes ago.
“We’re Benny’s Aunt Betty’s kids,” explained Rick to break the silence. When there was no immediate reply from Aegis, Rick kept quiet. He knew Aegis was in too much physical and emotional pain to care who they were. They were family and that was enough for the moment. They drove away, leaving the toppled scooters behind.
“Huh?” pondered Aegis, coming out of her haze. Her attention began to refocus on the information the men were willing to share.
Rick continued. “Our families went their separate ways a couple generations ago. Our side moved out west while his side stayed in PA.”
“Can we have the reunion after we fix Benny?” asked Aegis. Benny, please don’t be dead.
“Sure. But it’s really important we tell you how we got here,” said Phil.
“How are you here?” inquired Aegis, seemingly unable to maintain a coherent train of thought or follow what the men were saying.
“Rick, she’s right. It can wait until we regroup at the base,” said Phil.
“You mean the RV?” asked Aegis.
“Yeah.”
Phil drove the minivan back to the campground and parked alongside Max’s RV. Max limped out of his motor home. Phil took Max aside. “Benny was quite a guy, definitely a Brown. Tough as nails, selfless, and heroic.”
Max inhaled deeply. “What do you mean, ‘was’?”
The men pulled Benny’s pieces from the minivan and gently carried him into the RV. Max looked over Benny and held out his arms in wonder. “What happened? You said it was bad, not that he was in pieces and shrunken like a mummy!” He looked on at Ironside’s dismembered body as he recalled the events of years ago at the Agency. “Did you get separated? You were supposed to stick together in the assault. Never leave your wingman!” he shouted as he looked at his daughter. He then retrieved a pair of med kits and gave one to Phil to work on Rick’s injury. He passed around bottles of water to the team. “Stabilize Rick and we’ll get him to the hospital as soon as we can.”
“Yeah, great, Dad. Thanks,” muttered Aegis sarcastically as she took a sip of water. “You don’t seem too shocked or broken up about this. I love him, and we think he may be alive. I know we’ve had our problems, but we were hoping you could help us. If not, we’ll just leave.” She retreated again and sat on the ground and wept.
“Vanessa, look at you. You’re hurt worse than him. Let me help,” said Max as he began to tend to Vanessa. “I am so proud of you, what you did. I saw the whole sky light up all the way from here.”
She slapped his hand away from her. “Dad! How can you say that I’m hurt worse than him? He’s split in two!”
“He has time. He’s in a kind of stasis. He’s much smaller than before but likely still alive and can wait. He’s sleeping. We need to fix you now,” Max said as he worked on Vanessa. He wiped away the blood and bile stains and cleaned the dirt around her swollen eyes and the whip marks on her back. “Oh, Vanessa. Those monsters tortured you. I’m so sorry.” Max lowered his head in shame at what he’d put his only daughter through. His baby, his and Veronica’s surviving baby, had been tortured by the evil people who had created her. As usual, he had been powerless to do anything to prevent it. He hoped everyone at the Agency had suffered a long, painful death when she and Ironside destroyed the lab.
“Stasis? Sleeping?” inquired Rick as Phil worked on his gunshot wound. He winced as Phil dug into the wound to clean it. “Watch it, man. That hurts.”
“Yes. It’s a kind of suspended animation. We’ve seen this before in the laboratory. Did you think Benny and Vanessa were the first? Benny was not the first with this specific power. The Agency learned that it was possible to take people with the power to armor their skin, split them apart, and reassemble them later as long as we have all his pieces. It didn’t always work, but we have a chance. All we need is a piece of meteoric metal or slag infused with it. Did you retrieve any?” asked Max.
“We don’t have any meteoric alloy. We think it was all destroyed,” said Vanessa as she once again began to lose hope.
“Hmm. Well, it’s a good thing I have his mother’s engagement ring.” Max’s eyes twinkled.
“Don’t lie to me anymore, Dad,” Vanessa said threateningly.
“How in the world did you get that?” asked Rick.
“Espionage, my good man. I’ve had this ring in a lead box since a few minutes after Benny’s father, JB, buried it,” Max replied proudly as he pulled it out of a drawer. “Be glad I have it. In past experiments, all we needed to do was put the body parts in proximity to each other and expose them to massive doses of the radiation, and they would soon re-fuse. Our success was moderate. One poor soul, Mr. Stone, bled to death because we couldn’t find all his pieces. He had holes in him that we couldn’t heal. But if we have all of Ironside’s parts, we should be able to heal him. Easy peasy. You have all his pieces, right?”
“Are you taking this seriously, Dad? Benny’s life is in your hands!” bellowed Vanessa.
“Of course. I know what science can do. His chest is vibrating at low frequency and he didn’t bleed out. Good signs. We can save him if we have enoug
h radiation. The ring only has a small amount in comparison to what we used in our tests, but we have to try. It may just take a little longer. Rick and Phil, can you put the pieces next to each other? Lay his body on the bed over there and get some duct tape to hold him together,” said Max.
The men did as he asked.
“I have to warn you all that he may not be the same Benny as before,” said Max.
“What do you mean?” asked Aegis. She had just started to gather some hope only to have it dashed with the thought of Benny no longer being the man she’d fallen for.
“You’ve heard of PTSD, right?”
Rick and Phil nodded. “We have good friends who live with that. It’s tough, man. Some of America’s greatest heroes have it. Men and women who don’t need superpowers or capes to be great.”
Rick glanced toward Aegis. “I didn’t mean any offense with that comment. But it’s true.”
“None taken. I agree,” Aegis said with a nod.
“They need a lot of understanding and love,” explained Rick as he maintained pressure on his injured shoulder. “Don’t take what I said as an implication that you and Benny aren’t heroes. You are in every sense of the word.”
“Imagine having your body ripped to pieces, the pain and sheer terror involved with all that. Then, on top of that, to be inexplicably put back together. His initial pain will be horrific. He’ll be confused. Worse still, he might remember everything. In fact, he might be able to hear us talking right now. If you honestly love him, Vanessa, he’s really going to need you. I can’t expect the two of you to ever really forgive me for what I did. But I promise to do whatever I can to try to bring him back. Let me do this as part of my penance,” pleaded Max.
“Thank you, Dad,” Aegis said as she hugged him, placing all her trust in her father.
“Okay, guys. Here goes,” said Max as he placed the ring on the surface of the wound and covered him, neck down, with a blanket. Benny’s body was, in fact, smaller than before, as if he had lost mass during the mission. He looked withered—gaunt.
“What now?” asked Vanessa.
“We wait.”
“How long?” asked Phil.
“Wish I knew. Minutes, days, weeks. In our tests, we’d start to see results in a couple hours. With this lower-level radiation, perhaps longer.” I sure hope this works. Come on, Benny, you’re a fighter.
“Aren’t we worried about cancer or other radiation effects in Benny?” asked Rick.
“No, Benny and Vanessa are immune to it. In this case, it’s actually a catalyst for healing. I do recommend that we mere humans not stay too close to the ring for extended periods.”
Aegis sat at Benny’s side.
Suddenly, a voice from outside the motor home asked, “Can you open the door? It’s me, Joe.”
Max opened the door. Standing there was Joe Howard, Benny’s best friend, with a handful of cheesesteaks, or the most reasonable facsimiles which were available that late in the evening thousands of miles from Philadelphia.
“I figured Benny, Vanessa, and the guys would be hungry and went for steaks after hearing of their triumph.”
“Joe? Benny’s friend? How are you here?” inquired Aegis as she got up from Ironside’s bedside. She had never met Joe before but felt like he was an old friend, since she’d heard so much about him from Benny.
Joe hugged Aegis. She winced in pain from the effects of the evening. “Nice to formally meet you, Vanessa. Oh, my God, you look like you’ve been through a war. I mean, I knew it was a war but oh, my. You know, I feel like I already know you. Your dad told me a lot about you. You’re his pride and joy.”
Aegis gave a glancing smile to her dad.
Joe continued. “He’s quite thorough in his stalking. He found me a couple days ago and asked if I could help. He flew me out here yesterday. Since I already knew Benny had powers and live in his old house, I looked for clues. He left in such a state that he didn’t take all of his family memories. Nor did he have the decency to call me in weeks. No matter though. Max and I were able to track down the other side of his family from old photos and letters. Aunt Betty and Uncle Jim say ‘Hi,’ by the way. Even Great Aunt Abigail sent her regards.” Rick and Phil smiled at the family message. “We found them and their two sons.” Joe gestured at Rick and Phil. “Here they are. Special forces to boot. These guys are the real deal, Vanessa. First in and last out in any fight. They won’t say what they did in the Middle East, but I’m sure ISIS is glad they’re here instead of there. We told them the story and they jumped at the chance to help family.” Joe looked around the room, frowning. “Where’s Benny?”
The team looked at each other blankly. Aegis replied, pointing to the bedroom, “He’s on the bed over there. He’s hurt. Bad.”
Joe walked past Aegis and over to Ironside. “No, no, no! What happened? Is he dead?”
“Honestly, we don’t know. Stay with him for a while, but not too close. He’d be glad you’re here.”
Phil approached Aegis. “We really need to go back home. Our families are expecting us. Rick requires real medical attention, and we need to figure a way to delicately explain to his wife how he got shot in a battle on American soil and that her van got all beat up. Wish we could stay until Benny wakes. Call us when he does.”
Aegis hugged them both. “We can’t thank you enough. Without you, not only would our mission have failed, but both Benny and I would be dead. We owe you guys. Would you consider teaming up with us again?”
“We’re happy to help. But before we team up again, you guys need some real training. You got lucky this time. You can’t go off half-cocked each time you go out there. Your powers put you at an advantage. Keep learning how to use them along with some real tactics, and you’ll be formidable.”
“You’re right about that. You’re obviously better trained than we are. Could you help us?”
“Call us when you need us. We’ll be there.”
*****
THE NEXT MORNING: CHANNEL 57 NEWS
“Today on Channel 57: a government laboratory in Lancaster, California, caught fire and burned to the ground. Several other buildings were caught in the blaze. There were no injuries, and the government said the lab had been abandoned for some time. Next on the news, local residents saw what they claim to be UFOs flying over a trailer park in rural Ohio… ”
“That’s it?” huffed Vanessa with her mouth hanging open.
“You knew this would happen. We maintained anonymity,” replied Max. “This is good. Sure, there will be rumors. Those people will be silenced by the government, maybe even ridiculed like those who see UFOs.”
“But if people don’t learn what’s really happening in this country, how can they fight against it?” asked Vanessa. She then thought for a second before asking a second question. “Wait. Are you saying UFOs are real?”
Max ignored the second question. “You can’t change everything singlehandedly or immediately. But you and Benny made a difference yesterday. Take the win and try for another one tomorrow. I’m so proud of you, my daughter the superhero. Aegis—protector of the world. You are a gift not just to me, but to the whole world, and I love you very much.” He kissed Vanessa on the head and put his arm around her.
*****
A week later, Max, Joe, and Vanessa were still in the RV park tending to Benny. They were beginning to lose hope. Joe and Vanessa scarcely left his side—particularly Vanessa, since Joe was vulnerable to radiation poisoning. But then Joe lifted the sheet, as he and Vanessa did each day, and noticed Benny’s two halves beginning to fuse together. “Vanessa, look. Something’s happening. It’s not much, but he’s coming together.”
“Come on, Benny. You can do it. Please,” begged Vanessa as she looked over to her father wide-eyed and hands trembling as she held the sheet back. Her wounds were all but healed. The swelling was down, leaving only scabs and ugly purple marks from all of the bruising she’d endured. Next to Benny was a framed picture of the two of them that she ha
d taken during their travels. She bowed her head. God, we don’t know each other. But you know Benny. He’s a good man and means a lot to me. Could you find a way to bring him back to me? I love him.
Vanessa turned off the TV after sharing her favorite episode of Star Trek with Benny. She then streamed some music to break the silence and buoy her hopes. “Oh, this is a good song, Benny. You like this one. You’re home now… with me.” The soft piano filled the RV.
Vanessa stroked his hair, still white from his transformation, as it began to soften. “Oh, Benny, how can someone as special as you, created like you were, find the strength to lay down your life for everyone—for me? We don’t deserve you. You and I should have run away together. I want to take that gondola ride with you. I miss you. Please wake up.” She kissed his forehead.
*****
“Wake up, Benny. Rise and shine,” came a familiar voice into the room. Benny rested in bed with his sheets pulled up to his chin.
Benny opened his eyes. He was inside his old bedroom. It was decorated as it had been when he was ten years old. The morning sun came through the window, waking the sleep from his body—or half of it. At the end of the bed, he could clearly see his legs and abdomen up to a point just above his navel. They were dressed in blue jeans with a black cloth wrapped around the top of the severed edge. The legs stood motionless next to the dresser. Benny panicked and reached for his legs. Where his legs should have been, there was nothing—no legs, and no sensation of them.
“AHHHH! Where are my legs?” he shouted as his torso twisted in terror.
“Shh, calm down, Benny. It’s okay. You got hurt.” His mother, Jenn, held his shoulder down and patted his hair, trying to ease his fear.
“Mom, I’m split in two! How? Why? Where’s Dad?”
“Oh, Benny. Just rest. Let me take care of you. I was never able to all these years. Let me do it now.”
