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Three guns point straight at me, their barrels cold. The police officers won’t shoot as long as I’m here, but that doesn’t stop them from hiding behind their weaponry. The human dispute is between two middle-aged men over the woman who was playing both of them.
She sits on the sidelines smoking a cigarette and rubbing salve over her fresh shoulder tattoo. Even under the makeup I can tell she’s half their age. No wonder they’re fighting over her.
The first guy was beaten nearly to a pulp when I arrived. All it took was a quick twist of his arm and an officer was able to handcuff him while I held him still. The second guy circles around me like a sumo wrestler, legs
wide apart and shuffling, arms clenched into fists. He licks his lips, eyeing me up and down.
“You’re just a baby,” he says. He licks his lips again. “They sent a baby to take me down? Must think I’m too old to be powerful.”
I smile my polite Hero smile. “With respect sir, your age doesn’t matter so much as your species.”
Another lick of his lips. “Why’s that?”
I hold up my arms. Isn’t it obvious? I want to say it but I don’t. “Look, I’m sorry your lady friend has been less than loyal to you, but if I can just get your thumb print and then have you speak with the officers, I’m sure we can get you home in no time.”
He stares at me, mouth slightly open as if he’s trying to think of some kind of joke or comeback. I reach out my arm, slowly, and motion for his hand. He gives it to me, still speechless. I press his thumb to my BEEPR.
Then all hell breaks loose.
“I don’t have to listen to you, Super.” He says the last word as if it were a dirty word.
“I am Hero Maci Might. We can play this game, but you’ll be sorry.”
His glassy eyes light up. He reaches into his pocket and the police cock their guns. I hold up a hand to let them know it’s okay. I’ve got this. No need to shoot.
The man holds up a slender metal tube. “If you want to play a game, we better make the playing field even.”
“Drugs,” I mutter, once again angry at Nova for figuring it out before I did. “Come on, dude. Drugs aren’t cool. You should know that.”
“This is better than a drug,” the guy says, positing the tube in the center of his hand, closing his fist around it so that only the pointy end sticks out. “This is a solution. This...this is invincibility.” The pointed part slams into his forearm. The man’s head falls back in pure ecstasy as the drug infiltrates into his cardiovascular system. As he soaks up the rush of his high, I high-kick him square in the jaw, catching the empty tube as it flies out of his hand. I slip it into the pocket on my sleeve that holds retriever hooks.
A vein just off-center of his forehead bulges. He swings and I duck, knowing from experience that someone juiced up on this mystery drug can pack a punch I don’t want to absorb. This time, although he fights like a beast on steroids, I don’t have as much difficulty taking him down, hooking him in the throat and handing him over to the human authorities.
That’s because this time I didn’t fear that my fighting back would harm the weak human.
This time I didn’t hold back.
My BEEPR lights up with three new messages. Before I can read them, the sender calls me. His impatience is kind of cute. “Hey you.” I talk toward my wrist. Evan didn’t make a holograph call so I answer the BEEPR normally. I hear his voice in my ear. “Did you get my messages?”
“I haven’t read them.”
“What? It’s been like ten minutes.”
“Sorry, I was fighting an old guy on steroids.”
“Huh?” He doesn’t even sound surprised.
“I’ll tell you later.”
“You need to come to Research. Don’t go home.”
I stop at the entrance to the KAPOW. “Why?”
“Because I’m here!” The voice in my ear doesn’t belong to Evan. “Nova? I don’t understand.” I practically punch open the door of the nearest public pod. “Destination Evan Letta,” I say, settling back for the trip to South Africa.
Evan comes back on the line. “Apparently President Might had a meeting with the elders today but they wanted to meet at your house because they didn’t think he was well enough to be traveling or accidentally running into other citizens in his...condition. So he sent Nova to me to hide out for the time being.”
The thought of Nova being in such close proximity to my boyfriend while they chat on his MOD sends a stabbing jealousy through my bones. How long has she been there? Having fun without me. Reading comic books and playing Xbox while I fight an old man. The sudden realization that other people live their lives when I’m not around seems unsettling and a tiny bit horrifying. As much as I may want to, I can’t control everything.
