Power Play
A Super Hero Short Story
I put the last of the zip--ties around the wrists of the robber still struggling in front of me and pulled the end tight. He turned to kick at me, but I sidestepped and he crashed into a display in the side of the aisle. He fell into a heap on the floor and his ski mask slipped over his eyes.
“Ow!” he cried out. “Don’t you guys knock us out before you tie us up?”
“Are you kidding,” I said. “Can you imagine the legal repercussions from giving each of you concussions?”
Sirens wailed and I could hear the crunch of tires outside the convenience store. I stepped back to the counter and laid some cash down for the bag of chips and drink that I had picked out. Unfortunately, the cashier had long since abandoned her post at the register, so I was unlikely to get change for my transaction. I was enjoying the snack when the police officers walked in.
The first man was dark skinned and just under average height and carried his weight mildly off balance as he stepped over the mess on the floor. He locked eyes with me and crossed his arms.
“What the hell happened here?”
“This man assaulted me!” screamed one of the felons on the floor. His two friends joined in with ‘me too,’ and ‘help us!’ It would have held some credence if they were not wearing ski masks and dressed in all black. One of them was extraordinarily creative and called me a ‘raving lunatic.’
Raving. Hah.
I let them go on for a few minutes before I interrupted. “Good morning, officer. I entered this establishment to purchase some food. When I walked in, I saw these three men armed, masked, and threatening the cashier. I decided to aid the cashier and perform a citizen’s arrest of these gentlemen while I waited for you to arrive. The security footage should confirm this as well as the fingerprints on the guns.” I had been careful not to touch the weapons myself, but they were visible enough on the ground.
The police officer huffed noncommittally and turned toward his partner. “Montoya! Stuff these idiots in the car. Give me a minute to question the witness.” The taller, sharp featured woman nodded and began hauling the criminals to their feet. While that was in progress, he turned to me.
“You took on three armed men by yourself?”
I sighed and waved my hand in the air next to me. At the same time, I added a touch of concentration and the world slowed down. I knew that I wasn’t slowing time, but speeding my own body up. I belonged to a minority of the population who had superpowers. Biologists were still deliberating on the subject, but the reality was that we were in an age that resulted in some people being born with the ability to do incredible, impossible things. What the officer would see would just be a blur of motion next to my head.
“Figured. You got an ID?”
“Yes sir,” I said reaching into my wallet. I grabbed my license and the card that confirmed the registration of my powers. “My name is Eric. Eric Chase.”
“Mhm. Wilkins,” the officer replied giving my ID a quick once--over. “Y’know, I appreciate you sticking around. Most heroes these days will just knock out the perps and leave so they don’t have to worry about cuffing.”
I held up the bundle of plastic that I kept in my pocket. “Industrial strength zip--ties. Much easier to carry around. But I’m not a hero, just a normal citizen who wanted chips.”
Wilkins handed back my cards and gave me a scrutinizing look. “Chase, huh? Not the same speedster from Amren City?”
My heart immediately dropped into my stomach. I tried to remain calm, but I mentally removed Chicago from the list of cities for me to travel. I couldn’t afford to work in areas where the police recognized me. It had been a couple of years, but I knew the wounds were fresh on many minds.
“Um,” I replied, more tense than I wanted to sound. “Yeah, that’s me actually. Listen, I don’t know what you’ve heard, but I was cleared of--“
“I’m not trying to start any trouble, kid. I heard all the reports. It’s a rough lot you got and I certainly don’t blame you for what happened.”
Inside I cringed. I suffered the scorn from others well enough, but it was far worse to receive pity. I decided that it was high time to return to the road, so I turned to leave the shop. The officer took my shoulder and I stopped, but I was screaming inside to turn on my powers and escape before he could blink.
“Past aside,” Wilkins told me, changing the subject. “You were easy on those boys when you didn’t have to be. They’ll serve some time, but they won’t have to spend it in a hospital. You’re talented, but you also show a great deal of tact, and there’s a problem in the city that I could use some help on.”
“I’m not a cop. I’m not an investigator. I can’t help you.”
“I’m not asking for an investigator. Those are all tied up at the station. What I’m asking for is a local citizen who cares and has enough talent to actually lend a hand.” I hesitated, then he added, “Besides, I need you to stay in the city for a day or two in case I need to call in a witness for those thieves.”
I sighed. I was stuck and he knew it.
“Alright. What do you need?”
#
I really hate getting suckered into helping people. I somehow seemed to have a bad habit of getting into situations where people need help and the only person willing to help them is me. How dare they ask politely and show me respect; forcing me into becoming a Good Samaritan?
I have got to get rid of some of this selflessness or I’m going to get killed.
I reached the address that Wilkins gave me and knocked on the door. The house was in a beat--up area of Chicago that was in desperate need of repairs. The houses were half dilapidated and the street was a patchwork of potholes and spot repairs. At least the street was relatively empty today.
I heard muffled voices from within the one--story building. The dialogue went back and forth for several seconds until I heard a young, male voice say, “--worry, I’ll get it!”
A young, Hispanic man of teenage years answered the door. He was definitely of high school age, but he was one of those kids that could fall into the category of freshman or senior. Tall and lanky with dark curly hair, but he was gaining some adult definition in his face and shoulders.
“Can I help you?” he asked.
“Hi. I’m Eric, are you Jason? Um,” I looked at a scrap of paper that I pulled from my pocket. “Jason Martinez?”
Jason nodded and leaned across the door with his arms crossed. His body language was clearly displaying his defensive posture of the house and his displeasure with his first impression of me. I suddenly felt incredibly foolish for being here. I was most definitely butting in on a personal matter that I had no place being in the middle of.
I hated being stuck. I straightened my shoulders and calmed myself. Bad news: This was not my business. Good news: If I screwed this up, it was none of my business.
“I am a friend of Officer Wilkins. I understand that you are a part of the baseball team he coaches?”
“What’s it to you?”
“I gotta be honest, Jason,” I admitted. “I don’t know. He just asked me to check in on you. He’s noticed you becoming more withdrawn at practice and skipping more sessions than usual.”
Jason put his hand on the door as if to close it. “So what? It’s not like it’s an official team or anything.”
I sighed, and prepared to give up. “I’m just curious what’s up? Is there anything--“
My next words were interrupted by a blast of fire that occupied a baseball sized sphere inches away from my head. I reared back as I smelled the acrid burn of my singed hair. I whipped my head around to see a trio of teenagers standing on the sidewalk at the bottom of the steps. Two were young men in tank tops and jeans, and the third was a young woman that was covered in enough piercings and makeup to keep a Hot Topic in business for the next year. They stood in a triangle with the oldest among them taking point.
“Hey loser!” he yelled at me in what I imagined was supposed to be a friendly way. “You new here? We don’t like strangers nosing around in our neighborhood!”
“Back off, Ray,” Jason called before I could answer. “I was just getting rid of him.”
Ray crossed his arms and sneered. “I think you’re taking too long. Besides, you need your crew at your back, right?”
Ray reared his arm back and a ball of flame appeared in his fingers. I knew exactly where this was going, and I knew that he did not know about my powers. I smiled inwardly as I prepared to show off.
Ray punched, and the ball of flame raced in an arc towards my face. I turned on the speed and the arcing inferno slowed nearly to a halt. I stepped backward and to the left, angling my face away from the interception point. Using the momentum from my turn I would then kick off the stairs and land close enough to my assailants to quickly grapple and subdue them.
Well, I would have done that had I not stepped backward into ankle deep water in the middle of my dodge.
No matter how fast you can move, slippery surfaces are slippery. I wasn’t focusing on balance when I dodged the blast of fire, so when I stepped in the sudden puddle, my increased speed sent my leg flying out from under me. I moved to brace myself for the fall down the stairs. Nine--point--eight meters per second (per second) was pretty slow when you can move at super speed, so I should have had plenty of time to prepare myself.
Then I felt the pressure of the gust of wind that had built up above me. By the time I returned the world to normal speed, I was on the ground in front of the trio aching and grabbing my sides. The teens were laughing at me and playfully shoving each other’s shoulders. I began to slowly stand to my feet and Ray sobered to give Jason a hard look.
“I don’t want to see his face here anymore, Jason.” Jason nodded, but his expression was etched from stone. Ray turned away, but he called out loud enough to hear, “And I want a solid answer by tomorrow morning.”
Jason joined me on the street and helped me the rest of the way up. Without a word, he began leading me out of the neighborhood towards Ogden Park with slow, but deliberate strides. We walked in silence for several minutes before he said, “I’m sorry about that, man”
“That?” I said, jerking my thumb over my shoulder. “That was nothing. I was taking it easy on them.”
Jason took a look at the bruises already forming on my face and grunted without agreeing or disagreeing. Well, at least some one had manners.
“Thanks for standing up for me, Jason.”
“Lot of good it did you.”
“Still, I appreciate the gesture. Those guys been giving you trouble?”
That comment closed Jason up real tight. I am not much of a comforting person, but after around two minutes in the situation, I felt the need to help Jason. Call it a hero’s intuition. Call it foolish bravery. Needless to say, something was going on with the teens, and it was not going to end pretty. I had a guess, and I decided it would be the best way to get him to unbutton his lips.
“Ray wants you in his gang, huh?”
Jason stopped walking and just stared straight ahead. I had pinched a nerve, so I decided I would get a full grip on it.
“The three of them all have powers. Ray’s obviously got fire, so I’m guessing the girl has water, and the last ones got air. You’re powered too?”
“Yeah,” Jason said quietly. He lifted a hand and a chunk from the sidewalk lifted and settled into his grip. “Earth. How did you guess that Lauren was the water one?”
“Women who get chemical powers typically manifest it as water powers. No idea why.”
“Cool. Yeah, Ray’s got this idea of getting all four elements together for his gang. Says the combining all the elements will lead to immense power. It’s stupid, but no one argues with a guy that can blow up the air in front of your face. When he heard that I had earth powers he asked me to join his gang. I can only lift small rocks, but it was enough for him, apparently.”
We continued walking toward the park and Jason dropped the rock to the ground with a soft thump. At least he was talking now.
“You don’t seem to like Ray all that much.”
“I’m sure someone does.”
“So, refuse. He can find another kid with powers.”
“I can’t,” Jason stated. We walked in silence for several minutes. I began to see the trees of the park and I heard the distant call of a dog barking. I tried to discern meaning from his expression, but I was stumped. I remembered when I first realized I had powers. My parents took me out to dinner and I proudly added it to my college applications. I had no idea what Jason was going through. What was causing this young man to struggle so much?
When we reached the edge of the park, he completed his thought. “Ray’s crew has been protecting the neighborhood and surrounding blocks.”
“You mean he’s been using his power to hold everyone under his thumb?” I scoffed.
“I said what I said. Listen,” he continued. “I got a mom and little sister. I can join the gang or they lose their safety. That’s not a choice. I can do a little bit, but Ray has some serious power.”
I nodded. “You’ve got that right. I’ve seen some impressive super powers, but Ray would have a lot of potential if he wasn’t so wasteful with his energy.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you along with the rest of Ray’s gang have chemical powers,” I explained. “The classification is a bit theatrical, but the truth is less mystical than it sounds. Air powers are about moving gases around; water powers move liquid; earth powers move solid. But fire power is all about making chemical reactions happen. It’s popular for making fire because it’s a relatively simple chemical reaction.
“Fire needs only three things: oxygen, ignition, and fuel. The oxygen in the air is fine, the ignition is Ray, but fuel is the problem. When Ray makes a fireball, he uses up all the oxygen and has to keep the ignition going with his own energy while the air replenishes the oxygen. With the show he’s making of holding balls of flame and sending them arcing through the air, he’s showing how much effort that he is wasting when he could just make the flames appear at the target. He could be making a killing in construction if he used that power to set concrete immediately.”
“Wow,” Jason replied, blinking. “You really know your stuff.”
“I know super powers.” I took a deep breath. I wanted to reveal more, but it was dangerous information. What I was going to tell him could completely destroy what little impression he had of me. Well, I was leaving the city anyway, so I took a chance. “In fact, I was once on the team in Amren city.”
“Seriously?”
I shrugged humbly. At least I tried to. It’s hard to express a lot through a shrug.
“That’s crazy, man,” Jason said as his eye bulged. “The Amren team is like, the Super Hero Team.”
“It wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.”
“Sure man, but,” He looked away again and we grabbed a bench to sit down. “Not everyone gets to be a part of a government sponsored super team. The rest of us have to make do with what we’ve got. Ray may be a corrupt idiot, but I can keep my family safe if I join up with him.”
This was it. This was where things would get hard, and I reflected that I did actually know some of what he was feeling.
“It’s the wrong thing, but for the right reasons, right?” Jason nodded grimly. “It doesn’t work, though. If you start justifying all your actions by having the right reasons, what will you do in the name of protecting your family? Will you strong arm your neighbors? Rob a bank? Will you steal from your own mother if you convince yourself she will be protected?”
Jason turned to look at me with fire in his eyes. “What the hell do you want me to do, man? I do my best, but no one can be perfect all the time. Do you think you could do better than me?”
“No,” I disagreed. “But I do know what I’m talking about.” Jason stood up and walked several steps away, but I kept talking. “I was on the Amren City team for a couple years. Then we get a call about some start--up supervillain holding about twenty hostages in an office building. The whole team assembled but we waited with the negotiators because the perp was holding the trigger to a bundle of C4 in the building. I got an idea in my head, though. I didn’t have to wait. I was faster than anyone there. I could save the day by myself by grabbing the detonator before I was ever seen.
“I was going to act on my own without discussing with my team because I had discovered what would be the best, safest choice for everyone. Wrong thing, right reasons.”
“Did it work?” he mumbled.
“I thought it had. It took me about ten seconds to enter the building, locate the villain, grab the trigger, and head down the street.” I sighed and swallowed hard. “I had never heard of a dead--man switch before. It gets activated whenever the operator stops holding it. It wasn’t until I turned off the speed that I noticed the smoke coming from the building behind me.”
It was quiet for a long time between us. Slowly, Jason returned to the bench and sat next to me, looking forward. Finally, he said, “That’s rough man.”
I didn’t respond. There was nothing to say.
“But that doesn’t help me. If I don’t do join with the gang, Ray could hurt my mom or my sister. That’s the wrong thing too. This feels like a gray area.”
I squared my gaze with him. “Jason, you’re right. There are sometimes when the situation is morally ambiguous, but this is not the case right now. Joining a gang is wrong. Giving Ray control of your abilities is wrong.”
“Then what is the right decision?”
I placed my hand on his shoulder. “Jason, you already know what the right thing to do is: Protect your family.”
#
I spent the night in a nearby hotel that offered me a good deal for the night. Another fortunate aspect of this hotel was that the bed was so uncomfortable, I woke up early enough to be back at Jason’s house before the sun had fully risen.
I sauntered up to Jason’s door, but before I could knock, I heard a familiar voice behind me.
“Hey, asshole,” Ray called from the parked car he was leaning on. Somehow the trio had approached without my knowledge. Lauren flanked him to the left and seemed occupied with something on her phone. To the right was... Airhead, I guess. I really should get better about learning the names of my enemies.
“I thought I told you I didn’t want to see you again?”
I was about to open my mouth to respond, but I heard the door open behind me. In the threshold stood a woman who shared eyes and hair color with Jason. She seemed have gracefully entered middle age, and her clothes were clean if not expensive. She spoke clearly, but apprehension colored her words.
“Raymond? What are you doing here?”
Ray looked over my shoulder and called, “Miss Martinez, this doesn’t involve you. Stay inside and you’ll be safe.”
Jason’s mother looked warily between Ray and me, and she retreated a step before her son appeared in the doorway.
“You’re already safe, mom,” Jason confidently declared. He then sent his gaze toward Ray. “And she is going to stay that way.”
Awkward silence stretched for several seconds, and I broke it by raising my hands in surrender.
“I’m out!” I said. “I’m not getting in the middle of this!”
I retreated from the house and passed through Ray’s gang to cross the street. Ray gaze me an aggressive shove to the shoulder, but he had already dismissed me from his attention. By the time I was on the other sidewalk, Ray had turned back to Jason.
“I don’t like to hear a member of my gang talking back to me,” Ray said. He held up a hand with flames licking over his fingers.
“I’m not in your gang,” Jason replied. He pulled a water bottle out of his pocket and unscrewed the cap. “And I think you need to cool off.”
He took the bottle and squeezed it in Ray’s direction. Ray didn’t flinch-- but Lauren moved into action and redirected the stream into a ring that she kept moving in an offensive posture. Airhead dropped into an attack stance and a torrent of air stirred the air around him. Ray just increased the size of the flame he was holding.
I smiled to myself.
You see, water is a funny chemical. It’s clear, colorless and looks just like water when it comes out of a water bottle. This is important because there are many liquids that are clear, colorless and look like water when they come out of a water bottle.
Lauren’s eyes widened as she caught the smell of the fumes kicked up by Airhead’s whirlwind slightly before Ray’s powers caught the kerosene on fire. It wasn’t a massive flame, but the initial flash sent the gang scurrying away, and a moderate pool of flame appeared on the sidewalk. Ray didn’t run so much as slip and hang from the car he had been leaning on. Someone must have been quick enough to zip--tie his belt loops to the door handle without him noticing.
Anger showed on all three faces as they turned to regard Jason again. Before they could ready defenses, however, Jason sent two blasts of dirt that he had collected from potholes into their faces. They immediately hunched over and grabbed at their eyes.
“If any of you threaten my mom again,” Jason said, his voice resonating up and down the street. Some of the neighbors had stepped out of their houses to see what was going on, and they too listened. “It’ll be glass instead of dirt. Stop harassing our neighborhood, Ray. I’m not going to let you walk all over me ever again. No one will.”
Jason turned around, put a hand on his mom’s shoulder and walked back inside, shutting the door. Lauren and Airhead cut their losses and ran; which left Ray alone and still strapped to the door of a car.
“Hey!” He yelled to no one in particular. “Cut me down! Come back here! Get me off this--“
The yells continued in decreasing volume for quite a while. All the onlookers returned to their homes without giving Ray a backward glance. He’d be cut down eventually. If nothing else, the police would come when someone reported a teenager zip--tied to a car.
I didn’t stay more than a few minutes before I left the neighborhood.
#
Jason hit another one with his bat and ran away as fast as he could. The rest of the team clapped encouragingly as he rounded the bases and stopped on third. I clapped along and shoved another bite of hotdog in my mouth. It was lousy concession stand food, but free tastes better than anything. Officer Wilkins--I guess Coach Wilkins, right now--sidled up to the bench and sat next to me as the next player stepped forward. He was dressed in a bright green T--shirt with ironed on letters reading: ‘BASE BOYZ.’
“Thanks for the food,” I said through a mouthful of processed meat.
“Thank you for helping Jason,” he replied, slapping me on the shoulder. “I haven’t seen hustle like that from him in weeks.”
“I didn’t do anything. Jason did all the work; I just watched.”
“You did more than that,” he corrected. “You set him straight. Gave him confidence. Now he doesn’t have anyone to threaten him or his family.”
“Probably not. Now he has a bully that will want revenge, or at the very least will carry enmity for years. If not, there is likely to be something to come down on their heads before too long. This morning will just be a speed bump compared to the rest of his life.”
Wilkins gave me a serious look. “And you gave him the confidence to face it. Listen, Chase, I know you said you weren’t a hero, but you were what that boy needed in the time he needed it. Most people don’t need a supervillain punched or a natural disaster reversed. They just need help. Help isn’t saving everyone from everything; it’s about being there when no one else is.”
I nodded at the words and we went back to watching the game. Jason would be up to bat soon, but he was talking and joking with his teammates while he waited.
“He has powers, y’know,” I pointed out. “This isn’t an official league, so how do you know he’s not cheating?”
“Jason?” Wilkins asked with a smile. “He wouldn’t. It’s not the right thing to do.”
END