Who Needs Superheroes?

Chapter 12: Midnight Madness

"No, no, no, no, no, no. No!" My index finger was held out gesturing that I needed a moment to process.

"Eby, I know you don't want anything to do with me, but you need to hear us out," Alexx ground out. Jeanne had taken a match out of her pocket and struck it against its package, igniting a small and delicate flame. Reaching over to a torch that was planted into the lawn, she lit the short wick and soon, a faint glow filled the space around us.

I started pacing around in a circle, fingers digging into my scalp in search of logic. Jeanne came over to me with long strides from her lean legs and gripped my hands, stopping my motion.

"Eby, just listen to what he has to say. After we tell you everything, you can decide what you want to do. If you want to leave, we'll let you. Okay?"

I looked to Jeanne's desperate face. She was my best friend, and I had come here for answers. Jeanne was a lot of things: smart, witty, sometimes even a little wild, but one thing she was not, was illogical. If she believed that she was doing something important and that I would understand her reasoning, then I would.

I gave her a slight nod, motioning for her to continue. She let out a breath of air that she had been hanging on to and her shoulders lost their defensive position, slumping in exhaustion.

Alexx was the first to speak. "Do you remember anything about Battlesword?"

I shook my head, hoping to conceal my recent dealings with him. "Not really. We were little when he disappeared. Why, do you?"

"Battlesword protected us for years before Fear showed up. Now, don't you think it's a little odd how we not only get one Super, but two? Did you consider what he was protecting us from?"

Alexx's questions swirled around in my head. I was taken aback from their severity. I had never even considered them. I had just always assumed that Battlesword kept the criminals at bay.

"So do most citizens of Justice. Except for the fact that we are a small city. Don't you think there are larger cities with larger crime rates?" Alexx had taken a few steps closer to me, face crimped together in anticipation, awaiting a light bulb to go on inside of me.

"Yes, but-wait! I didn't say anything! You-you-you read my mind!"

Alexx exhaled deeply, almost out of frustration, and then dragged a hand down his face while the other clung to his blonde hair. "Yes, now can we move on? I was-"

"You're a f*cking mindreader!" The neighbors could most likely hear my screeches, but they were probably too scared to leave their houses and investigate. My hands clenched into fists and I held one up waving it in front of Alexx's face, ready to swing. Just when my knuckles were about to make contact with Alexx's nose, an unknown barrier absorbed my punch's force, just millimeters away from his skin.

"Stop!" Jeanne's arms were raised at 90 degree angles from each other. Her fingers were splayed and I watched as they came together into a ball. With that, I knew that the barrier had been removed.

"You two are ridiculous! Yes, he is a mindreader. No, you can't stop him from doing so. Just let it go!" With an exasperated sigh, she let her arms fall back down to her sides. When both Alexx and I had shameful looks on our faces, kind of like scolded children who had stolen cookies before dinner, Jeanne finally lifted a hand back up and circled it in the air, motioning for Alexx to continue.

Making sure that I was going to punch him, the rich playboy took a safety step back and went on: "These Supers are here for a reason. There are not many other cities in this country that have a Super, let alone two."