Frontier #2 - Supercharged pt. 2

                Marian’s feet were frozen to the ground. Her entire body felt paralyzed, and she stood with an open mouth as the figure tossed Tony’s body to the side like a rag doll.

“Another super come to save the day?” He laughed as he walked towards her, rubbing his hands together in anticipation. His voice was hoarse and his skin glowing faintly with charged particles. “Good. I was waiting for you.”

Marian couldn’t decipher if he meant her in general, or if any other superhero would have done the job. Her eyes drifted from the approaching menace down towards Tony, who was still unconscious on the floor.

How did he beat Tony? He’s too damn fast for anyone to catch. It doesn’t make any sense…

Marian didn’t have time to finish that thought. The enemy grabbed her by the throat, making her choke and lifting her off the ground. “You sure you’re a meta? Not much of a threat, are ya little girl?”

The physical pain snapped Marian back to reality. She reacted quickly, being trained by her father for many years in hand to hand combat. Bringing a knee up into the attacker’s face, she smashed his lower jaw, dazing him momentarily and causing him to drop her. Falling to the ground, Marian rolled backwards, putting a few feet between her and her opponent. She sprang right to her feet and just barely managed to dodge under a punch. She delivered an uppercut to the trachea, getting a solid grunt from the hulking man.

Putting her hands on his shoulders, she lifted herself up and over his body, kicking the back of his head in the process. She took a few steps to try and put more distance between them, but was knocked to the ground by a searing blast that slammed into her back. The white hot pain ran through her body and she cried out, not being able to control herself. Marian struggled through the pain to get back on her knees, but the attacker swiped at her, sending her flying into an overturned desk. As she laid on her burning back, he stood over her, his grin replaced by a scowl.

“Last time I play with my food before eating it. Got me real good ya did. But I think I got you better.” He held up his fist as electricity surged through it. “You’re gonna feel this in the morning.”

He bent down to grab Marian, but was stopped by the sound of sirens and people shouting. He stood back up and bared his teeth. “Looks like you got lucky, girly. Have fun telling them how Volt kicked your ass.”

The man grabbed a few bags of money and ran, escaping the building before anyone else entered it. Marian tried pushing herself up on her elbows, but her body wouldn’t cooperate and she collapsed back down. She closed her eyes, trying to block out the pain. The last thing she heard before blacking out was the calls of the police officers clearing the area and finding her and Tony’s bodies.

The giant hands of Steve smashed into a punching bag over and over again. Dust and sand puffed out of the tiny tears in the bag’s seams with every impact, and sweat ran down the sides of Steve’s face. He grunted as he swung, letting all his anger and frustration out through his powerful hands. Steve’s strength was incredible, giving him the ability to lift multiple cars worth of weight and knock down walls with relative ease. This particular sandbags weighed over a ton, and offered a solid outlet for Steve’s rage.

Natalie appeared in the doorway, leaning against it with her arms crossed. She was worried about her husband; it was natural for him to relieve stress through working out, but he hadn’t stopped since Marian and Tony were rushed to the hospital two days ago.

“Steve, please come eat something.”

“I’m fine.” Steve hesitated for a second to respond before going back to swinging.

Natalie walked into the gym. Even with all the modern equipment, Steve still preferred a good-ole fashioned sand punching bag. Natalie went right up behind him and put her arms around his torso, using her telekinesis to hold his arms in place and stop him from taking more swings at the bag.

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“I know.” Steve was breathing hard from the sudden exhaustion that was hitting him. He hadn’t felt it until he stopped, but right now he was a little envious of Marian’s resistance to fatigue.

“Marian’s a registered superhero; she can handle herself in the field. She was just caught off-guard, but she’s fine and coming home today. She doesn’t need to see her father like this.”

“I should have gone with, Nat. I could have helped her. Then this lunatic wouldn’t still be out running the streets and my little girl wouldn’t have been hurt.”

Natalie held him tighter. Steve was almost three feet taller than her, and her slender build was dwarfed by his size, but right now she knew he felt smaller than a mouse. “You didn’t know. This city hardly ever has this powerful of criminals. You can’t beat yourself up for something you couldn’t have helped. But now that you know, you can do something. Next time he pops up, you can be the one to beat the crap out of him for hurting your daughter.”

Steve turned around, putting his arms around his wife. Natalie had joined the team six years ago, but it wasn’t until four years later that he realized how much they both cared for one another. He never thought he would find someone to fill the void left by his first wife, but Natalie was the perfect fit.

“Thank you,” he said simply. They stood there holding each other until Francis announced over the intercom that Marian and Tony were arriving home any minute. After Steve toweled off, the couple walked out holding hands to welcome back their wounded family members.

At the sight of his daughter, Steve ran over and gently put his arms around her, pulling her into his embrace.

“Dad, watch it, that still hurts a bit.” Marian grinned as she hugged Steve back. “And you need a shower.” They both laughed, relief overcoming grief.

Francis waited a little ways back with Natalie. “Isn’t it amazing that, no matter how old she is, she’ll always be his little girl, and he’ll always be her hero?”

Natalie smiled and looked over towards Francis, who wiped his eye quickly. “Don’t worry Fran, I’m sure she has a hug for you too.”

As if on cue, Marian came bounding over and gave Francis a huge hug. Steve walked over to Tony, who was limping and using a crutch. “You okay Tony?”

Tony had been wearing a scowl ever since he woke up in the hospital bed and remembered what happened. Steve knew his pride was the most damaged out of anything, though. “Yeah, I’m fine. Bastard just got lucky. It won’t happen next time.”

The team walked back inside, with Francis demanding they all sit down to have a diner as a group. Nobody objected this time, and during the course of the meal the topic of what happened was strategically avoided, although the tension in the air was thick whenever someone hinted at it.

After diner, Marian pulled her father aside. “I know you probably don’t want to talk about it, but I have to get this off my chest.”

Steve held up a hand to stop her, but she continued. “I’m not gonna cry and complain or anything. It isn’t time for that; Volt’s still out there. But he used electricity, Dad. I don’t know if it was man-made or meta, but either way I think it’s time we paid the Electric Eagle a visit.”

Frontier #1 - Supercharged pt. 1

                The large wooden doors to the main office where thrown open. Steve and Natalie both looked up from their desks, but neither jumped in surprise. Marian stormed into the office, just having arrived back from out on a call. She had dark, shoulder length curly hair and moved with the sleek grace of a panther. Normally a jovial individual, at the moment her naturally tanned-colored skin was flushed and red while her fists were clenched into two tight balls that could do serious damage if she was angry enough.

                And right now, she was pissed.

                “I can’t fucking stand him anymore!” She screamed, waving her arms in the air to accentuate her rage. Natalie sighed quietly while Steve cleared his throat. Marian wasn’t his young, temperamental teenage daughter anymore, but Tony knew exactly what buttons to push.

                “Tell me what happened, sweetie,” Steve spoke in his usual deep, calming voice, knowing how to diffuse Marian’s anger after twenty years of practice. He stood up and walked around to the front of his desk, pushing a pile of papers aside with his abnormally large hands and sitting on the edge. Despite being just over eight feet tall and built like a heavyweight boxer, he could still make himself look unassuming. He patted the cleared spot next to him, motioning for her to sit down and relax. Instead Marian started pacing the room, her arms flailing as she rambled on about Tony and the last mission.

                “He’s an ass! We got the call, and I turn around and he’s gone! I bust my ass to get to the scene, and by the time I get there he’s got all five criminals hanging from the lamp-posts by their underwear like this is a damn joke! Next thing I know, he’s gone again, and when I finally get back after dealing with all the interviews and bullshit I find he’s been here on the couch drinking beer the whole time! He treats this shit like a video game and does whatever the hell he wants, cuz he knows I have no choice but to clean up his shit! I’m tired of putting up with this!”

                Marian took a moment to breathe, and Natalie grabbed the opening. “Marian honey, you know he’s just trying to impress you, right?”

                Marian shot Natalie a stare that could bore through a brick wall. Even Steve glanced questioningly at Natalie, wondering why she would intentionally add fuel to this fire. Both Natalie and Steve were aware of the complicated relationship between Marian and Tony. Before Marian could say anything to Natalie, Steve cut in.

                “Marian, look, Tony’s an ass. That’s clear as day to anyone who has spent more than five minutes with him. But his heart’s in the right place. He wants to do good in this world, he just kinda sucks at it. That’s why he’s here; not just to help us, but for us to help him.”

                Marian stopped pacing and stared at the ground. Her father always had a way with calming her down. She was still angry at Tony, but she knew that even if she couldn’t see the wisdom in Steve’s words at the moment, it was there. “I just hope that one day he gets his ass-kicked and I have to save him. That’ll knock his ego down quite a bit.”

                Steve shook his head. “And I hope on that day you’ll be the bigger person, see just how much he really needs us, and help him without throwing it in his face.”

                Marian laughed as the tension from her anger loosened, “That’s not gonna happen.” She walked out of the room, but before she was out of sight Steve called to her.

“Don’t forget to turn in your report from today!” He flashed Natalie a smile as they heard Marian curse and storm off to her own room.

“She’s getting there, slowly but surely,” Natalie said as she got back to work. “She has your genes, after all.”

Steve laughed as he too returned to his chair. “I know. That’s why I worry sometimes.”

Tony gave Marian a puzzled look as she stormed past the recreation room, cursing under her breath. He shook his head as he went back to watching TV. He chugged down the rest of his beer, crushing the can afterwards and tossing it on the coffee table he was currently using as a foot rest.

                “Yo Glider, can I get another beer?”

                Francis “Glider” Toomes was the team’s butler and organizer. Tall, lanky, and with receeding gray hair, he was in charge of keeping the household in tidy order. Himself a metahuman who wanted to be a superhero, Francis was originally denied by the GMA but was granted a superhero license when he joined the very first line-up of Frontier over twenty years ago. Unfortunately, after the first few missions he called it quits, citing that, “having a hollow bone structure is wonderful for birds, but not for humans in the line of fire, even those of us in technologically advanced wing suits.” Ever the good sport, he accepted the job Steve offered him as assistant to Frontier, and has been keeping the two-storied mansion in tip-top shape ever since.

                Francis walked over with a cold beer and handed it to Tony. Now in his fifties, Francis has seen his fair share of talent go through the ranks of Frontier. Often aiding in the decision process of new recruits, Francis was weary of bringing Tony onto the team. However the young man, who’s codename is Bullet, has proven to be just that: fast, destructive, but damn useful if pointed in the right direction.

                “I don’t get it, Glider. One day she’s all over me, the next she can’t look at me without punching a hole in the wall. What’s her deal?”

                Francis shook his head and sighed. Tony was useful in the field, but in regards to women he was clueless. “I believe she is confused by her feelings for you, Mr. Wilson. Might I suggest having a conversation with her, and perhaps listening to her side?”

                Tony finished up the beer Francis had just given him and belched. “Pshh, no matter what I say I’ll be wrong. Women, I’ll tell ya.”

With that, Tony got up and raced out of the room to the gym to keep his athletic body in top shape. Francis just shook his head again. “Kids these days. That boy’s going to lose her, and soon, I hope.”

                The buzzer sounded throughout the house, and the system of red lights turned on in all the rooms. Tony slammed down the weights and raced to the control room. Always the first one there, he saw the location of the robbery, scribbled a note, and zoomed out again.

                “Just another lame robbery,” he muttered as he sped away from the house. “I’ll take care it and be back before Mare even gets on her bike.”

                Tony laughed as he ran through the traffic, people only seeing a blur of color and a gust of wind.

                Marian arrived in the room after Steve. She had been in the shower when the call came in, and her nice relaxation spell had been broken, leaving her as bitter as before.

                “Tony’s already on it,” Steve said without turning around, “but that was two minutes ago. With his speed everything should be taken care of by now. I want you to head down there and see what’s holding him up.”

                Steve looked at Marian out of the corner of his eye. She was in her uniform; a black suit resembling a diver’s wetsuit underneath pants and a long-sleeved shirt, both made of Kevlar. The top layers were not as form-fitting as the black suit underneath, but provided protection and freedom of movement. Each member of Frontier had a different coloring on their protective layer. Marian’s was the exception, being all black to allow her a degree of stealth during night missions. Marian was busy strapping on her boots and snapping her gloves on when she looked up at Steve. He smiled, a huge sense of pride filling his heart at the sight of his daughter. She raised an eyebrow in question, and he coughed.

                “You want me to go with?”

                Marian smiled. “No thanks dad, I got this.” In thirty seconds she was on her motorcycle and speeding towards the robbery. Steve watched her drive away, nodding his head in agreement.

                The front of the bank was blown in, the street crowded with debris. A few people still ran about, but it looked as if the police had already been defeated. Their cars were flipped and the conscious officers were helping those who had fallen in the quick skirmish. There were no signs of Tony anywhere.

                “He’s inside!” One of the police officers called to Marian. “Be careful! He’s a meta!”

                Marian nodded and cautiously went inside the building. She had been trained for this. She was a superhero, licensed by the government to defeat the bad guys and maintain peace.

As she stepped into the destroyed bank lobby, she saw the robber. He was twice her size, a hulking human being with buzzed blonde hair and looked like a mountain of muscle. On top of his formidable size, his body was crackling with electrical currents. His plain yellow t-shirt and black pants showed signs of battle, and he had his back turned towards her, holding something in his hands. Marian tried to quietly edge closer, but her foot crunched broken glass on the ground. The criminal looked around at her, his scarred face cracking into a smile. As he turned around, Marian’s heart jumped into her chest, and the anger she had built up dissipated. In his hand he held the unconscious body of the human bullet, Tony.

Super Issue #8 - Frontier

                After the riots in the US were quelled, it was clear that the policing force would need to employ metahumans in order to combat the more heavily powered criminals that were emerging. However there will always be those who have the ability and the control to help out in the line of fire, without the schooling of the police academies. To accommodate those who wanted to help but didn’t want to wear a badge, the government enacted the Superhero Rights Act, which allowed individuals to take physical and mental exams in order to obtain a superhero license. These superheroes are monitored by the GMA, but allowed to act on their own. It takes much deliberation, training, and show for the GMA to grant someone the license, but once received, that metahuman can be proud to be counted as one of the few who are legally considered “super”.

                The car sped down the crowded streets of Hopling, narrowly avoiding taking out a crowd of pedestrians walking along the sidewalk. The tires screeched as the brakes were slammed and the wheel spun, making a sharp turn that nearly flipped the beat-up car. Sirens echoed through the streets, but no police cars took such risks to keep up with the escaping robbers.

                “Think we lost them?” One of the robbers looked out the back window. Sweat was beading on his forehead as he gripped one of the money bags tightly in his hands.

                “Course we did, dumbass,” the driver sneered. “No pig could pull off stunts like me.”

                The criminals sped off towards the inner city, racing to reach their secret warehouse where they stashed all the goods from previous jobs. Bystanders leapt out of the way as the car went up on the sidewalk to avoid traffic jams, leaving even more police cars in the dust. The fleeing thieves seemed to have an incredible amount of luck on their side.

                “I can’t believe we’re pulling this off,” the robber in the back seat said, watching the confusion in the wake of the car. “This is incredible.”

                “Welcome to the big leagues,” the man in the passenger seat chuckled, smiling to the driver at the new guy’s awe. “It only gets better from here. Just wait til you start throwing some of the money around and buying yourself the good stuff. Once you start, you won’t stop.”

                The man started laughing, but was cut short as the passenger door was ripped off the car. Before anyone could react, the passenger was pulled from the still speeding vehicle by a blur of color.

                “Damn,” the driver muttered under his breath, “and he was a good guy, too.” The new guy in the back seat was screaming, now confused as well as to what was happening. “Shut the hell up!” the driver yelled back to him, his voice stern and without any signs of panic. “Figured this shit would happen. Now we see if you got what it takes.”

                The car skidded around a turn and the driver punched a button on his phone. A call went out to the rest of his gang a few blocks away in the warehouse, alerting them to the situation. “Get ready to shoot anyone who looks like a super!” he called back to the rookie, who was still shaking and sweating profusely.

                The rookie bent down to pick up his gun, which he dropped on the floor earlier, and sat back up just in time to see the car swerve around a big man standing in the middle of the road. He flew to the other side of the car, slamming into the locked door and banging his shoulder against the window. An icy shot of pain went through his arm, and it took him a few seconds to realize the car was on its side. He heard the driver scrambling out of the car, and then gunfire. He tried getting up, but found himself stuck. Suddenly he felt the car lift off the ground. The car door opened and he fell to the ground, hitting his head on the pavement and knocking himself out.

                “Well you can tell this guy was new.” Marian nudged the robber on the pavement with her boot. “Didn’t even know what hit him.”

                “You sound disappointed. Maybe next time you should do something instead of just standing around, Mare.”

                Marian shot Tony an evil stare. He was in his early twenties, prime time of his life, just like her, and loved nothing more than to show how “superior” his abilities were to hers. Sure, super speed was impressive and damn useful in the field, but she worked with what she had. Resistance to fatigue was just as useful.

                “That’s Marathon in the field, Bullet. Why don’t you try to be a little more professional, and maybe not hospitalize the guy you’re handling the next time?”

                Tony shrugged his shoulders. “Mare is short for both. And what can I say, they just don’t make criminals like they used to.”

                He ran off, leaving Marian fuming. She hated how pompous Tony acted sometimes, and it made her hate him even more that she wanted him. There wasn’t a single trait about him she liked, but she couldn’t keep her eyes, and sometimes her hands, off him. She stomped off towards her father, trying to get her mind off her crush and back to work.

                Her father’s name was Steve, but out here in the field he was known as Fist. He’s the leader of Frontier, the premier superhero team of the city of Hopling, and deserves all the recognition he has ever received. Standing at eight feet tall, he towers over everyone, but it’s his humanity, willpower, and determination that separates him from the other superheroes. Then again, the oversized hands and super strength don’t hurt either.

                Marian stood with her arms crossed, trying and failing not to look angry. Fist was giving a short interview with an officer, along with Natalie, his wife and Marian’s stepmother. Natalie had come into their life due to her qualifications for Frontier, but soon became a permanent fixture of the household. Teleka, which was her codename, was a top-level telekinetic. She had no idea what was on someone’s mind, but could rip out their brain to try and get a look.

                The interview was basic, boring stuff. Marian preferred the action to the bureaucratic crap, but one question did catch her attention. The officer asked where the Electric Eagle was, something that Marian never thought of asking herself anymore. Alexander Jackson was a member of Frontier; a very active participant at first, but now his time was mainly devoted to himself and his own little world he dubbed “The Eagle”. The Eagle was a futuristic airship; a floating utopia that drifted across the sky like a mobile Heaven. Jackson was king of his world, and he rarely bothered coming down from his throne these days.

                It took hours until everything was done. Pictures taken, evidence collected, interviews conducted; finally the team was able to return back to base. It was a standard night; Steve and Natalie finished off the paperwork, fielded calls and other leaderships responsibilities, while Marian gave herself to Tony again after a few drinks. Afterwards, feeling disgusting and hung over, she left him snoring on the bed and went outside. The air was cool on her sweaty body, and she stood on her balcony naked, looking over the bustling nightlife of the city she protected.

                This is it, she thought to herself, not too sure if she was sarcastic or not. This is the life of a superhero.

Super Issue #7 - The Right Thing

                The campus was overflowing with students. Some were walking to and from class, others lounging in the sunlight, and even a few playing Frisbee in the courtyards. The college wasn’t very big, but there were still thousands of students who studied there. Matt was one of the students walking from one building to another. He kept to himself and never made many friends; not because he didn’t desire friends, but because he felt he couldn’t have any at this point in his life. Matt was a metahuman, despite his best efforts to hide it. He wasn’t ashamed of his genetics though; his father was a powerful meta who was one of the first and greatest agents of the GMA. Matt hides his powers because six years ago, he accidently caused a woman’s death while trying to save her. Ever since, he has subjected himself to a rigorous training regiment and has hidden his abilities away from the world until the time when he believes he has enough control to use them properly.

                One of Matt’s abilities enables him to sense energy signals around him. On a busy campus like this, his sense is flooded by the hundreds of people around him. Overtime he learned how to ignore the basic human energy level and just feel for the spikes that signal a potentially powerful metahuman. He usually doesn’t confront them; instead he just kept an eye on the high energy individuals, making sure they don’t use their power for the wrong reasons.

                However, today Matt didn’t need to sense the energy presence watching towards the campus. He heard the screams and saw the glow just fine from where he was standing.

                Arthur looked up from where he was reading as the first girl ran by the window. Must be nice to have some fun, he thought as he went back to studying for his molecular biology exam. Some of us actually want to be something when we grow up.

                Arthur’s parents were rednecks. There was no denying that, and although he was brought up under their roof, he didn’t see himself as one. If anything, he saw himself as a druid; someone who was one with nature, mentally and physically. He went to school to learn all he could about the natural world around him. Partly because he wanted to, but also because he wanted desperately to figure out what makes him different. He wanted to be the one who finally cracks the mystery of the Illumination and discover what initially gave the metahuman’s their amazing abilities.

                Before Arthur could read another page, however, more people ran by screaming. He looked out the window and saw dozens of people running away from a glowing object that was steadily getting closer to the school. As students started evacuating the building he was in, Arthur stayed, watching with scientific curiosity at the unknown entity. With a start, Arthur tripped over his chair and ran outside the building. It wasn’t just a mysterious glowing object he was watching. It was a man.

                The man walked towards the buildings, his body stiff and movements shaky, as if he were moving against his own will. Energy was pouring out of his body, creating cracks in his physical form and miniature explosions of force whenever two beams collided. The ground beneath him shook, and it seemed like the very air around him vibrated with the power he was putting out.

                “He’s going to self-destruct,” Matt muttered under his breath as he stood behind a wall with a few other brave students who wanted to watch this event up close. “And he’s going to cause a helluva lot of damage when he does. Somebody’s gotta take him out before his body breaks completely.”

                Matt looked around, sighing as he did. He didn’t feel any energy signals that were strong enough to do anything against a threat like this. Even if there were, a situation like this required delicate handling. Any physical blows just might crack the body open, letting loose the torrent of energy pent up inside and devastating the area. Matt took a few deep breaths. A few months ago he used his powers publicly for the first time at a parade in Hopling, putting down a small group of humans before they could really hurt anyone. He managed to get away without being caught, but here people recognized his face. It wouldn’t be as easy, but he knew there wasn’t much time. Something had to be done.

                Something had to be done. The man was entering the main courtyard of the campus, and many students were certainly hiding in the surrounding buildings. Arthur paused as he stood in the arc of a doorway, watching the energy rip out of the man’s body.

                Nobody’s coming; no sirens, no police. And if I’m seeing this right, his body is breaking down. The energy is coming from his core. Somebody has to knock him out before he explodes.

                Arthur looked around, pausing for a few more seconds before making his decision. Hastily he took off his clothes, laying them aside for once this was over.

                “I know I’m not licensed,” he said while taking off his pants, “but it doesn’t look like there’s anyone around here to do this but me.”

                Not wanting to expose himself to the student body completely, Arthur stayed in the darkened doorway as he forced his body to change. When his powers first manifested, the change was uncontrollable, brought on by stress and emotion, and caused him unimaginable pain. But as he learned to trigger the transformation consciously, the pain lessened. Though it still hurt like hell.

                As his sized tripled, Arthur felt the claws and teeth grow. He always felt more alive in his altered state. The brown shaggy fur covered his once hairless body; his skull crunched and popped into place as a long snout. Arthur reared onto his hind legs and let out a mighty roar. Now fifteen feet tall and weighing over one ton, Arthur, transformed into a bear of gigantic proportions, charged out of the doorway into battle.

                “What the hell is that?” Matt exclaimed, having just stepped out from behind the wall to confront the unstable menace. He had felt a surge of energy, but didn’t expect to see an oversized bear run out from a nearby building. Must be a shape-shifter, he thought to himself. Then another thought followed. Shit! He’s gonna break open the body!

                Matt didn’t waste any more time. He rocketed towards the bear, hoping to knock it away before dealing with the man. But for a creature of such size, the bear was too fast. It reached the man just as Matt reached the opposite side. With one swipe of its massive paw, the bear clawed right through the cracked body of the man. The energy kept inside the body was released in a blinding flash of energy, plowing the bear into the ground.

                Arthur had never been hit by anything like that blast before. Dazed and seeing spots, he lifted his head off the ground and slumped over on his front paws. The man’s body had exploded, yet nothing was destroyed. Besides for a few feet around him, everything was unharmed. Arthur looked at the shining light that floated where the man once stood and saw why.

                A young man, no older than himself, was hanging in midair, his entire body shimmering with energy. However instead of leaking energy like the now deceased man was, this person was keeping it under control perfectly. He had absorbed the entire blast into his own body, saving the school from the destruction Arthur would have foolishly caused. Arthur changed back into his human form, ashamed of his hasty move. He could have killed dozens of people; would have, had this guy not saved them all.

                Matt floated back down to the ground, concentrating to hold all the energy inside. The man had lost most of his power through the cracks, but the amount remaining would still have done serious damage to the campus. Finally feeling like he had it all under control, Matt stopped absorbing, and the glow of his body died down. He still felt invincible with all the energy coursing through his body, but this wasn’t the first time he had done this.

                “Thank you,” Arthur blurted when Matt looked at him. “I had no idea what to do, but I thought I was all alone out here. I just did what I thought was the right thing.”

                Matt looked at his peer and felt the heavy hand of past regret fall on him. He had made a mistake once, just like this one did, but now he was here to do the right thing as well.

                “It’s okay,” Matt replied in a low voice, “I know what that feels like. But you’re not alone out here.” Matt held out his hand, smiling as he did. “My name’s Matt. I think we have some things in common.”

                They both laughed at that, and Arthur returned the handshake, although he was still embarrassed by the event. “I’m Arthur. And I have to agree. I think we’d make a killer pair.”

                “Once we work out some kinks in our attack plan, that is,” Matt joked. The two men walked back into the school buildings quickly, stopping so Arthur could put his clothes back on. People had seen them in action, of course, possibly even catching it on video. But there was nothing they could do about that right now. They’ll just have to wait to see what tomorrow brings.