Alex was enjoying breakfast with Susan when Reed burst in, looking anxious. "Boss, Ben is missing."
Alex looked up, surprised. "Missing? What happened?"
"I called Debbie to check on him, but she didn't say much before hanging up. I'm worried something has happened to him," Reed explained, clearly distressed.
Alex's brow furrowed. In the original story, Debbie had left Ben because she was scared of him as a stone man. Now that he could return to his human form, why was this happening again?
"Let me see where he is," Alex said, closing his eyes as he focused his psychic power.
A moment later, he opened his eyes and said, "He's on the Brooklyn Bridge."
"We need to get there quickly," Reed urged.
"Definitely!" Alex agreed. For this new citizen, he needed to show some care.
Susan gathered Johnny, and Alex waved his hand, creating a portal to the Brooklyn Bridge.
Unbeknownst to them, as Ben sat on the bridge, a large truck ahead suddenly stopped. The vehicles behind couldn't see what was causing the delay and had to slam on their brakes. With such a short distance to stop, they collided one after another, causing a chain reaction of accidents.
Alex and the others emerged from the portal just as the scene of chaos unfolded. The police arrived promptly to manage the situation and prevent the accident from worsening. However, the sight of the accidents drew a crowd of onlookers. The police struggled to keep the spectators at bay and maintain order.
Alex, Susan, Reed , and Johnny rushed towards the scene, their concern for Ben evident.
Several people exchanged looks, and Susan asked, "What should we do now? There are too many people here, and we can't get through."
Reed replied to Susan, "We can't make it, but you can."
Susan paused for a moment, then remembered Alex had mentioned she had an invisibility ability. She nodded and activated her power. Alex grabbed Susan's hand and said quietly, "Susan, are you going to undress here?"
Susan looked at herself and realized that while she was invisible, her clothes were not. Her face turned red as she quickly reappeared. "I thought my power would make my clothes invisible too! You didn't mention that it wouldn't work! It's your fault!"
Alex was taken aback. "Why is this my fault?"
He decided to let it go; it was just another minor issue. Women, he thought, could be quite unreasonable.
Johnny, witnessing the exchange, chuckled. Alex gave Johnny a playful smack on the head and scolded, "What's so funny?"
"Hey, that's not fair!" Johnny protested.
"Alright, enough messing around. We need to figure out a solution," Reed said, looking frustrated.
As he glanced at the group—his boss, the boss's wife, and the boss's brother-in-law—he realized he seemed to have the lowest status in this scenario.
"Okay, just look at me." Alex held Susan's hand and instructed Johnny to hold onto Reed . Placing his own hand on Johnny's shoulder, Alex made a quick motion, and the four of them vanished from the scene.
Ben glanced up at the truck he had collided with. The driver, looking dazed but unharmed, was soon rescued from the wreckage. However, the arrival of police officers with drawn pistols quickly shifted the situation.
"Don't move! Put the person down and step away!" the officers shouted, aiming their guns at Ben.
Confused, Ben tried to understand why he was being targeted when he was only trying to help. As he began to lower the driver, one of the officers barked, "Put him down now!"
Ben complied, setting the driver gently on the ground. The officer kept his gun trained on Ben, continuing to demand, "Step back and raise your hands!"
Realizing that his appearance as a stone man was alarming to the officers, Ben understood that he was seen as a threat. The realization that he was now viewed as a monster made him question his own abilities and their consequences.
Feeling disheartened, Ben raised his hands and began to retreat, following the officers' commands. He felt increasingly alienated from the abilities he once saw as a blessing, now questioning if they were more of a curse.
(End of this chapter)