Calamity
Clarie felt her breathing steady as she sat on the back of the fire rescue truck. The EMT's were so kind, so understanding.
'It's their job.'
'They still saved us.'
'Fine.'
Clarie's anxiety faded to exhaustion. She felt the shadow reluctantly go back to sleep. Then that hero who saved her, Lady Astra she believed it was, came and sat next to her.
"Hey, you doing alright?" Astra asked.
Clarie felt tears well up, her emotions overwhelmed her. She gave Astra a hug, and though Astra seemed surprised, the hero didn't pull away. Clarie restrained her tears, but held the hero like the lifeline she desperately needed. But Astra could never understand. Clarie pulled back after a few moments.
"Save me…" Clarie uttered under her breath. The thing inside her shifted, wide awake and angry. Astra didn't seem to hear what she said. The hero tilted her head in amused confusion.
"Say again?" Astra asked, only for both of them to be interrupted by blinding flashes of lights. The two squinted in the direction of the barrage seeing a massive crowd of paparazzi gathered just behind the caution tape. Lady Astra got up, annoyed, turning to the crowd. Before she could do anything however, The Every-Man walked up to her.
Clarie wasn't sure what to think about the well known hobo hero. He didn't even seem to notice the barrage of pictures being taken of him.
'He fought someone' The voice commented.
Clarie frowned. Her other half was right. Where was the villain? She looked around, and saw Pop N' Crack being loaded into a SWAT van. He had Emitter Disruption Cuffs. A type of vice like cuffs that completely immobilized the hands, making Emitter powers near impossible to use. Clarie could feel the other side grew a grin, and a shudder went through her. Clarie's eyes flickered red, and she realized what the shadow would do.
'He's the reason our house was burned down. All of our pictures, our memories.'
'He's arrested, he'll face justice'
'NO! Not nearly justice. He won't burn us again.'
____________________________________
"Alright folks, nothing to see unless you want me to start posing." Jack said to the paparazzi. People in the crowd started putting their cameras away. Jack felt a slight irritation noticing they weren't dispersing. He also didn't like the disgusted looks he got. That's when he heard that other hero walking up to him.
"You could have asked to use my powers." Astra said. She was clearly repressing a grimace.
Jack shrugged. "I could have."
"Do you even care?" She scoffed. "Do you know how much property damage there is?"
"Oh chill out. It would have been far worse if I hadn't taken him down." Jack reasoned.
"You still could have been more careful!"
"You know what, I don't need this." Jack said. He backed off from her. "I don't need to be lectured by a stranger."
He turned, thought of something, then snapped his fingers. After a pause, he waved his hand to the destruction. Suddenly every sliver, every nail, and every piece of rubble began reforming. The fires died, and the charred walls repaired themselves. Astra was stunned. She didn't know how he was doing that. Jack however didn't wait for another word. With a thunderous crack he shot into the sky leaving a crater behind. Meanwhile the rest of the damage continued to repair itself. Astra was stunned. She looked over the repaired city block, then to her own hands. She sighed.
"Now I feel like an ass." She muttered.
____________________________________
Jack floated high in the clouds, his mind thinking back to the fight. He was glad it had been away from his neighborhood. He thought about how different it would have been had it taken place in Riverdale. Riverdale… that place made him think of her again. It had been a while. Looking down at the city below, he looked for the area with the least lighting. In recent years the place had stopped receiving maintenance of any kind. Street lights were popped, and no one would fix it. The thought angered him a bit. However, he refocused. With a sonic boom he flew down. He slowed to a stop soon after, landing gently in the middle of the street. He saw three guys trading something. The three panicked and shot at him. Jack flinched at the noise as bullets bounced off him. Jack sighed.
"Drop your guns, and get back to your folks before I drop you off at the precinct." Jack threatened.
The three men quickly obeyed, running off. Jack felt disappointed. Those boys had been so young. Teenagers. Too young to be involved in such things. His hands unclenched and he heard a man clear his throat. Jack turned to see an old man in a rocking chair. Marcus Hathkins. Beside Marcus was a 12 gauge, but he didn't reach for it.
"Good to see your white ass back here." Marcus said crudely.
"Good to see you too old man." Jack chuckled. "Had much trouble tonight?"
"You just scared it off." Marcus said. "Been a while since anything like that's been here."
"Guess I should stick around for a bit this time." Jack said with a shrug.
"I hope you mean that. These young folk need someone to look up too." Marcus agreed. "But first, you need to clean yourself up, you dumb hobo."
Jack chuckled again. "Kind talk as always Marcus."
"Mhm." Marcus uttered.
Jack turned to the other side of the street. There stood the single story home with ugly yellow walls, a window sealed with duct tape, and a door with bars on it. The yard had a small dog house, a chain link fence, and a few dog toys. He stepped up to the gate, opening it and stepping through to the front door. He knocked twice, then once. He heard something shuffle, then a thud, then quick footsteps heading to the door. He heard three locks opened before the door parted. Her light brown skin and vibrant green eyes found his, and tears welled up for her. She threw open the door and hugged Jack. He was surprised, but quickly accepted, kissing her forehead affectionately.
"Your back." She said into his chest.
"Yeah. Sorry it's been so long."
She shook her head. "Don't be. I know you. I know you tend to drift around. I'm just glad you're back."
She pulled back and pulled her long brown hair back behind her left ear. It was straight and well kept, not a curl in sight. She hugged herself a little, the cold night air breezing against her. She was wearing one of his old t-shirts, and a pair of underwear. Apparently she had been getting ready for bed.
He followed her back into the house, and she practically skipped to the couch. The house was mostly clean save a few bullet holes in the living room, and a full laundry basket in the corner. She had a shelf full of books, and a half decent collection of cooking appliances. She looked positively radiant when he moved to the couch. She opened her arms, crossing her legs. With a sigh, Jack laid down letting her guide his head into her lap. She stroked his head gently and he closed his eyes.
"I missed you Jemma." He said.
She smiled. "You do too much Jack. You really should just stay here. Or make it your home base. Something."
"That… does sound nice." Jack considered.
Jemma leaned over him. "We could have lots of fun together. Date nights, maybe find an old tv at a garage sale to watch a movie, then something more fiery each night you stay."
Jack chuckled. "You are a piece of work, you know that? Make it so tempting why don't you."
"Oh you know how much I love playing with you." She teased. "But I really would if it'd keep you here."
Jack opened his eyes to meet hers as she caressed his face. "Needy." He joked. She rolled her eyes.
"A bit. I'm a playful person, playing solo just feels stale." She whispered teasingly. She leaned down kissing him. Jack leaned into it, feeling her love for him in her action. After a moment she pulled back. She looked hesitant, then looked away.
Jack frowned. "What's wrong?"
"It's…"
"Don't say it's nothing." Jack interrupted. "I can read your mind if I have too."
She gave an irritated look, then sighed. "Chen wants me back."
"To perform at the club?" Jack asked.
She nodded. "I don't want to, but even with the money you send me, I'm barely getting by on bills. I need a job to support myself, and no one else has even looked at my applications yet."
Jack shook his head. "Don't accept yet. I'll find something. You just relax."
"But…"
"Hey…" Jack said, reaching up to caress her cheek. "Have I ever lied to you?" She shook her head. "Then don't worry. I'll provide for you. You'll never have to display yourself for money again."
Jemma smiled. Jack could see she was still worried, but she trusted him. He'd be real sure she never misplaced her trust in him. He brushed a rebellious hair back behind her ear as he looked into her eyes.
"You're too good to me Jack." Jemma said.
"For you, I'd fight the world."
Jemma giggled. "Well then Mr Hero, maybe your little damsel should give you an exclusive show for your efforts. For luck." She booped his nose, and Jack smiled as she reached for the hem of her shirt.
___________________________________
Karmen glanced at her watch. Matthew would be asleep for a few more hours. She nodded to herself, then moved to The Funnel Web's main computer. She searched up The Every-Man. Unlike most heroes, his identity was public knowledge. The hero name had become more of a moniker or a nickname. She tracked his usual patterns using the city's cameras. After about 30 minutes she found he frequently returned to some home in Riverdale, a near lawless part of town. It had been bad before, a hot spot for violence even before powers. Now however it had three big powered players. One was Yue Chen, leader of the Shōuyì, wanted for gun running, various murders, and trafficking. Apparently no evidence had been able to stick leading to his current freedom.
Another player was Tommy Finnegan, the leader of an offshoot of an old Italian mafia group who broke off from New York. While Tommy had no actual crimes pinned to him, plenty of people knew he was the head of Chicago's current Mafia.
The last one however was Nick Price, leader of the Liberation 50 gang. His crimes were enough that even federal agents had been trying to find a way to bring him in. Mass murder, torture, blackmail, and a long long list of so many others. Karmen had to resist the urge to gag at some of the atrocities tied to Nick.
Karmen refocused back to Jack. Noting the address, then she typed in Lady Astra. The beloved super powered woman was a shining example of heroism. Though her identity was still unknown. Karmen pondered for a moment. She then pulled up an old project done for charity. A satellite which kept a live recording of the planet. She took a large chunk of the recorded footage, and placed it in another application. After a little more typing, the recording quickly showed a small line being drawn over the US. Specifically from Chicago to Montana and back. Karmen played it back a few times, getting a rough estimate on where Lady Astra lived. She wrote it down, and leaned back. She opened the Hero Registry for local heroes, or heroes nearby. 15 names popped up.
1. BioMaster - (Heavy Hitter) Retired
2. Cat Saint - (Minded) Active
3. Movie Man - (Emitter) Active
4. Ralia - (Unclassified) Active
5. The Every-Man - (Unclassified) Active
6. Justice John - (Emitter/Heavy Hitter) On Vacation
7. Lady Astra - (Heavy Hitter) Active
8. Linda The ShowWoman - (Magic) On Vacation
9. Cubify - (Minded) Active
10. QuickSlip - (Speedy) Retired
11. Freedom Master - (Tech) Retired
12. Invisidude - (Unclassified) Deceased
13. Zoo Talker - (Minded) Active
14. Fire Flight - (Emitter) Retired
15. Comedy Man - (Minded) Active
Karmen looked through each file. The order of the heroes wasn't based on ability she knew, and it certainly wasn't alphabetical. It just seemed to be cobbled together. She wanted to strangle whoever was behind the disorganization of the site. The site was public access. Something Karmen believed was a mistake. It listed their hero name, their real names if it was publicly available, and the class of power they had. Sometimes it would detail where the hero operated, but that didn't mean those heroes couldn't or didn't operate elsewhere. Cat Saint she noticed was new, then when she read the file her interest faded. A hero who could talk to cats. They'd die on their first attempt to stop a robbery. Movie Man was interesting, but his personality was a bit… rude. Then there was Ralia.
Karmen paused on Ralia. Her file listed her as Immortal, and more interestingly she was documented as over 4000 years old. She opened a picture, and was surprised to see the woman looked no older than 20, maybe even younger. She looked at the information on her and found her name was public knowledge. Ralia. Karmen raised a brow. So Ralia wasn't a hero name, it was just her name. Looking further and apparently she owned a new World History Museum in the city. Karmen wrote down the address, and powered off the computer.