He ran his hand over the cover of the novel. It was an old, faded book about knights banding together to save a kingdom from a great evil. As a kid, he had never been into fairy tales. Instead, he and his father focused on myths.
The old world was said to have hundreds of stories. People created tales about gods and their own heroes, crafting kingdoms and attempting to go beyond the stars. That had always fascinated him more than fake stories. Now that he was an adult, though, there was something oddly charming in a fictional story.
He shook his head slowly and placed the novel up on the shelf where it belonged.
"Is this seriously all you do?" Lois sighed.
"For the most part, yes. My library doesn't get very many visitors." Thaddeus chuckled. "Kids these days just aren't interested in sitting down and reading a good book. If it isn't animated, then chances are they aren't going to bother with it."
They were in the library that Thaddeus owned. Lois had somehow gotten dragged along and now rested up on one of the tables made for reading. She hadn't really done anything to help out and just twiddled her thumbs while Thaddeus rearranged books and checked on his stock. "If this place isn't that popular, why do you keep it around?"
"For someone that can see the future, I'd have expected you to already know the answer to that question." Thaddeus snorted. "It was my father's." He went quiet for a moment and stared at another book. This one was about a powerful mage turning into a dark beast of the night after making a deal with a demon. "I like to think it's my job to keep it clean. It is the least I can do, after all."
Lois jumped off of the table and looked around with a sigh. The library did look nice, but there was dust scattered about it, and it felt sort of lonely. It was the kind of place where it never got to see anyone. "When are you going to talk to the Hero Branch? They practically threw you under the bus for the incident that happened two years ago. No one, not even me nor my father, could have seen a new Calamity level threat be created instantly after the Beast left. It isn't your fault Chrysanthemum became lost. The Branch used you as a scapegoat and ruined you. Why have you accepted it so easily?"
Thaddeus picked up another book, one about a robber who accidentally discovered the people he was robbing were gods in disguise. "You weren't there. You'd have been seventeen when it went down. I was, though. I was in the heart of it all. I watched as the Beast tore Chrysanthemum apart. Watched as the Enforcers struggled to beat him. Watched as we failed to save yet another city. All the while, the only thing I could do was help try to get as many people as I could out of there. In the end, I failed that too. Then I was there when it happened. I was forced to watch as a new Calamity level threat was created. One that claimed the souls of the damned. I watched it claw my father out of the pits of the underworld and force him to change. Watched as the fallen heroes stood back up. I wasn't able to save Poseidon. Because of me, she nearly died. My actions not only left the city in ruins but nearly made the heroes lose a Lord that has been on their side for hundreds of years. Then I disobeyed orders and took her to Sky, who had just awakened her powers. I'm to blame for the state of mind Lily suffers from. As far as I am concerned, the Branch never threw me under a bus. I brought this all on myself."
"So then just fix it, you dummy." Lois snorted.
Thaddeus snapped his head over to her and frowned. "Fix it?"
"Yeah. All you need to do is fix it. Have you even spoken to Poseidon about what happened? Has she blamed you, or did she thank you for saving your life?"
"Well-"
"On top of that, have you ever considered just who you are? You shouldn't let the Hero Branch walk all over you. You're Myth! Son of Legend, brother of Fable. You fought the Emperor when you were a little kid-"
"Fought is a strong word..."
"-survived an encounter with the Beast, was there when a new Calamity was born, and you built your own team, which in under a year has managed to defeat three of the biggest villain groups in Oleander. You're best friends with the leader of the Sub Enforcers, and every member of the Sub Enforcers respects you, and you have a freaking Lord on your squad, as well as myself, Battery, and Snowdawn, and both of those two are almost as busted as Cinder." Lois pointed at the man, smirking. "As far as I'm concerned, you've done more than any of those Enforcers have. They just sit up on their thrones, acting like they're something special. When's the last time we even saw one of them do something?"
Thaddeus snorted and folded his arms. "Okay. So even if everything you said is true, what about it? It doesn't really change anything."
Lois hummed and rubbed her chin. "Okay. First of all, screw this place."
"What?"
"You heard me. This place is dirty. If you're going to actually take care of it, then do it right. You shouldn't be forced to do something and change who you are just for your father's sake." She walked over to a table and grabbed her leather jacket. She was dressed in ordinary clothes, wearing a simple pair of blue jeans and a tank top. "You told everyone they have the day off and no hero work. Well, no normal work either. Let's go out and do something."
"Like what?" Thaddeus asked, raising an eyebrow. He was also dressed in his civilian clothes—the standard librarian outfit: long brown pants buckled up, a long-sleeved, white buttoned-up shirt tucked in, and a brown jacket over that. He also wore glasses, though, like Hope, he didn't actually need them. "What would we even do-"
He had to hurry to keep up with Lois, who began to head for the exit. Stepping outside, her new ride awaited her. A slick black motorcycle. She had gotten it after she discovered the state her van was left in after they 'borrowed' it. She jumped on and patted the seat behind her.
"That thing seems wildly dangerous."
"We're both Supers, and I can see the future. I'll let you know if we're going to crash."
Thaddeus sighed and slowly climbed on, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Isn't it the man that is supposed to drive?"
"I saw the state you left my last ride in, never again!" The bike roared to life, and they started to head down the road as the nineteen year-old began to cheer. They didn't even have helmets on, and he didn't have a proper jacket.
The wind smacked him in the face, and he had to use one hand to keep his glasses from flying off. "So where are we going exactly?"
"Bowling," was all Lois said. Thaddeus couldn't help the slight grin that came onto his face. Maybe a day off wasn't so bad.
***
"You know, I'm pretty sure this was going to be a date or something," Kenny said awkwardly.
"Seriously?" Armin hissed out with wide eyes.
The boy in the leather jacket just gave a lopsided grin. "Well, it started with Sky inviting Hope. Lily overheard it, then decided she was coming, and then Lily invited me, and I guess Hope invited you? So now it's just a friendly get-together."
Armin rubbed the back of his head. "Oh my God. Sky's going to think I'm the worst. Why is Hope so dumb? I shouldn't have come!" He clutched his face in his hands.
Ken just chuckled and shrugged. "Nothing we can do about it now. Just try your best to not make Sky madder, or she might actually try and kill you. The others won't be able to keep you safe from her wrath. I don't know if she'll forgive you for running her date plans."
"Hope's the one who ruined them, though! That clueless idiot!" Armin tugged at his hair. "And now we're well past this being the point of a date!"
Since there were five of them now instead of four, Lily had further changed plans and invited some of the others. They hadn't gotten here yet, so they were still waiting for them to arrive. They had walked around the mall for a bit, and the girls, or more actually, just Lily, went shopping and already had three bags full of clothes.
That had been nearly an hour ago. Now, they were in a skating rink built into the mall. Lily had basically taken charge of the group and decided where they would be going. The skating rink had a few people in it but was open enough to allow them to hang out mostly among themselves. It was a big circular ring in the middle, and colorful lights and music rained down from above.
Both Armin and Kenny had skated for a bit but decided to take a break. They rested off to the side of the ring, watching the others while they quietly talked. Lily was naturally a pro at skating and had looped around the ring doing various tricks dozens of times. Hope wasn't good at it, but she wasn't bad, managing to stay upright. She was wisely not doing any tricks. Finally, that left just Sky.
"You, okay?" Hope asked, looking down at the red-haired girl.
"My dignity is gone." Four whole seconds. That was Sky's longest time staying upright. She rested flat on her back and slowly slid down the ring, carried by her momentum.
"Are you having fun? We can have Lily change the place if you want."
"Oh no, I'm having a blast. I love slipping and humiliating myself in front of people, unable to stand up straight."
"Really? I didn't think you were into that kind of stuff-"
"Sarcasm! Learn it!"
Hope giggled and held her hand out to Sky. It took a bit of work, but she managed to pull the girl back up to her feet. "You were blind a few days ago, so there's no need to pressure yourself to be good at this." She gripped Sky's arm, making sure the girl didn't fall down again, and they slowly slid forward. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm pretty bad at this also. I sort of envy Lily."
As if on cue, the blonde girl flew past them at a fast speed and hopped into the air, spinning around a few times before landing back down on her feet and taking off once more. "I'm pretty sure she's treating this like it's figure skating," Sky said, rolling her eyes. Her sister was the kind of person who would go above and beyond, even in something as childish as this.
"She's really something alright, that's for sure." She nodded.
"Oh wow, Sky, way to hog the Lord all for yourself. Save some for the rest of us!" A new voice called out.
Hope turned when she heard the voice and felt a pair of arms wrap around the limb Sky wasn't clinging to. She blinked a few times and stared down at the new girl who clung to her. The girl was short and had her hair cut just past her shoulders. Her hair was black but had a few spots of red in it from where she dyed it. She wore a T-shirt with the image of Pretty Face on it and sweatpants. She recognized the girl immediately.
"BB?"
"I go by Sera when out of costume," the girl explained. The girl then shot her tongue out when she saw Sky's eyes narrow.
"Why am I suddenly so popular..." Hope muttered. It was a little awkward trying to keep your balance while two people clung to you. Sera was almost as bad at skating as Sky was, and both girls clung to one of her arms.
"Hey, Sera, you made it!" Lily called out. The girl showed off by twirling in front of them and then began to skate backward, which allowed her to look at them as they talked. "Why are you clinging to Hope?" Lily cocked her head to the side. Either Sera was playing a joke or Hope had some secret rizz none of them knew about.
Sera raised her thumb up and pointed out where the boys were. "When we got the call, we came right away. Rowan is over there. He brought Kyle with him. The kid is kind of going through a lot right now..."
Lily winced a bit and nodded. She was about to say something else, but a new figure skated up next to them—one who was about as good as Lily was and could skate backward. "So, you're what Cinder looks like under the helmet—" She recognized Oxide's voice, but she felt her eyes go wide when she saw the girl.
Ashley, like Lily, had gotten dressed up. The girl wore a pair of long pants and had a black dress over it. She had done up some of her makeup, primarily focusing on her face, where a faint scar had resided around her eye after she had been caught in a blast by Ghost.
"Ashley!"
"Hope!"
"You're Oxide!"
"You're Cinder! Wait, I knew that already?"
"You knew!"
"Yeah, Snowdawn told me."
"Armin!" Hope whined. She had a hard enough time hiding her identity, she didn't need to also worry about her best friend slipping up.
The other girls all seemed a bit surprised at the fact Ashley and Hope already knew each other. Lily raised an eyebrow, looking between them both. "You two already know each other?" Judging by the looks Hope and Ashley were shooting at one another, it wasn't anything friendly. "Don't tell me this is a case of an Ex-meeting! Hope does have crazy rizz!"
"Don't ever use the word rizz again." Sky said flatly.
"Don't go spouting nonsense." Ashley barked out. The girl's arms folded, and she looked away from Hope. "We went to the same school. I knew Armin was Snowdawn, so I guess I should have put two and two together. I think I sort of knew, but it's kind of weird seeing you now."
"I can't imagine the two of you getting along in school," Sky muttered. Hope and Ashley were very different-looking. Ashley was the kind of person who'd be at the top, while Hope was more of a bottom feeder.
"You can say that again," Hope muttered. She still remembered what happened with Ashley. The girl had dunked soda on her. Ashley had been a bully at their school, a very mean bully.
Ashley turned away and skated off. "Sorry for bothering you."
They watched her leave in silence. "Is everything alright?" Sky asked, nudging her in the side. "My sister was wrong when she asked about the Ex-thing, right?"
Hope sighed as she watched Ashley skate by herself. "I guess if she's Oxide and we ever team up again, I should at least talk to her. Hey, Lily, hold these two girls for a sec."
"What—" Hope thrust her arms out, causing Sky and Sera to slide forward. Lily let out a panicked yelp and managed to catch them both, but she slipped back, and all three of them crashed to the floor. "That's cheating, Hope!"
Hope poked her tongue out and skated off in the direction of Oxide. She had a hard time keeping up with the girl, but Ashley wasn't really paying attention and wasn't trying to get away, so she soon caught up to her. "Hey."
Ashley jumped a bit and turned when she saw Hope. "Yeah?"
"I think we should talk."
Meanwhile, over with the boys, they all still rested outside of the ring. "How are you holding up, man?" Kenny asked, punching Kyle in the shoulder.
"We're here if you want to talk." Rowan nodded.
Armin gave a smile and nodded. "It must be a lot. I can't imagine."
Kyle balled his hand into a fist and glared down at the ground. "I- I don't know. I'm just..." He still hadn't even gotten to see his dad. He didn't know the whole story, not yet. Rowan had only been able to give him pieces, but he knew enough. His dad was a monster. Not a real one, but he might as well have been. The man had been working for one of the vilest groups in Oleander and trying to make a deal with a devil. After the battle, his dad had been sent to jail and would be awaiting trial. "I don't get why he did it. Did he really hate me that much?"
The three boys winced and shot each other awkward looks. Armin rubbed the back of his neck, trying to figure out what to say. "I don't think he did it out of hate. I think it was out of love. Lois told me a bit about what he was saying. He kept calling out your name the entire time. I think you were important to him—so much so that you're what let him keep some of his morale."
"So, it's my fault he did this? Out of a sick, twisted sense of love." Kyle seemed to slump down further in his chair.
Rowan shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know what to tell you, man. We aren't therapists. There isn't any use wondering about the how or why. All that should be on your mind is the what. As in, what do you do from here?"
Kyle's shoulders didn't perk up, and the boy's eyes remained downcast. "I don't know. I'm not a hero. I don't have powers. I'm a dead man walking. I know I am. When Lucifer shows himself, he'll come for me and-"
Rowan punched Kyle in the shoulder again, this time hard enough to make the boy wince. "That won't happen. The chances of you being picked as a player in the next Murder Games are slim at best. And even if you are selected, you have nothing to worry about. The three of us all went toe to toe with the Emperor and survived. Compared to him, Lucifer is nothing. We'll keep you safe, right boys?"
"That's right." Armin punched his fist into his open palm and smirked. "I'll just freeze time on him and kick his ass before he even knows what hit him. From the very start, I planned on taking out a Calamity level threat. I'll personally stop Lucifer myself!"
Kyle chuckled and sighed. "Yeah. Maybe you will."
Kenny turned away and gave a smirk. "I just got a good idea. I'll be right back!" He took off into the ring, skating after Lily, who had just managed to stand up and was now trying to figure out what to do about Sky and Sera, as both girls clung to her, shaking and nearly falling over. "Lily! We're having a bit of a change of plans!" He called out.
Back over with Hope, she and Ashley skated in silence for several moments. "So why did you come over here?" Ashley asked, finally breaking the silence.
"You were kind of a bitch." Ashley cringed when she heard Hope's blunt response. "Like a mega bitch. Like a super mega bitch. Like a super mega ultra-"
"I get it!" Ashley sighed and stared at the ground. "I know."
"It's hard to think that you're Oxide. Oxide is actually nice. It makes me wonder which one is the mask and which one is the real you."
"Sometimes, not even I know."
Hope rubbed the back of her head, careful not to knock her wig off. "That said. It must be hard, right?"
"What do you mean?"
"You know what I mean." Kevin was taken to prison. Her face was scarred, and now Kevin was a monster, the same as Hannah, one of her best friends. It was hard to imagine what Ashley was even thinking or going through. "I think that the hero is the real you, and the bully is the fake."
"Huh?"
"Despite everything that happened, you've gone out of your way to do good. You haven't done anything at school for a while now and have been saving people as a hero. I think a bad person would have closed themselves off more and snapped at the world after everything they went through. I still think you can be a real bitch at times, but I think you're also a hero. One who is doing her best to help the world. I can't really hold a grudge anyway. That soda incident was so long ago, and compared to some of the stuff I've gone through from the real villains, it might as well not have happened."
"So, you're saying you forgive me?"
"I didn't say that." She shook her head. "But I accept you and what you did. I acknowledge you. I acknowledge that Oxide is a good hero, and I'd like to work with her more if I can."
Ashley folded her arms and nodded slightly. "I'd like to work with Cinder more, too, I guess. I think we could make some good combos with our powers."
"Oh, for sure!" She giggled and nudged Ashley with a shoulder tap.
The world was big. Threats were around every corner, and monsters lurked in the dark. Mankind survived, going about every day and enjoying the peace just like this. There was just no reason to hold a grudge against something so small. Perhaps this is the moment when the idea of a combo between the two heroes would be made—a combo that would go on to possibly save the world.
Of course, that's a story for much later...
Ashley skated forward a bit and swirled around, facing Hope. The girl gave a small smirk. "So are you and Sky really..."
"Friends? Yeah? Why do you ask?"
"That's not what I meant!" Ashley sighed and rolled her eyes. "I would have to spell it out to you, wouldn't I? Are the two of you-"
Ashley was cut off when they heard Lily raise her voice. "What do you mean you're ditching us!" They had just reached where Lily and the others were and found the blonde girl talking to her boyfriend. She didn't sound mad but was clearly wanting an explanation. Her head turned as the two of them pulled up. "You two. Catch."
Sky and Sera were once again turned into makeshift weapons and sent forward by Lily. Sera managed to get her arms around Ashley, who somehow stayed upright and kept her balance. Sky, on the other hand, crashed directly into Hope, who only had time to catch the girl in her arms, both of them falling back.
Now that Lily had her arms free, she folded them and turned to look at Kenny. "Want to explain?"
Kenny just gave a sly grin and turned away. "Well, since Sera and Ashley are here and the date stuff is already ruined, I figured they could keep you company. Me and the boys are ditching you girls!"
"What do you mean you're ditching us!"
"You know exactly what I mean! The only reason a group of boys would ever ditch a bunch of girls and leave them alone! Only one thing in the universe is strong enough to make this happen!" Kenny made it to the edge of the skating arena and pointed to the sky. The lights above cast down, cloaking him in a golden glow. The music changed to some sort of heavenly song. "Guys, night!"
"Huh?" All the girls stood there, slowly processing the word.
"Guys, night?" Armin asked.
"Guys, night." Rowan nodded.
The two looked at each other, and then slowly, they began to chant. "Guys night, guys night, guys night!" Kenny joined in, and the three of them picked Kyle off of the ground, heading for the exit. "GUYS NIGHT, GUYS NIGHT, GUYS NIGHT!"
And just like that, the girls had been ditched.
"What just happened?" Hope asked, a little confused.
"Boys." Ashley said flatly. "Boys happened."