Hero's Call

Chapter Twenty Eight

Wednesday came with a fair amount of nervous anxiety and trepidation. After seeing the broadcast from his great-grandfather's greatest enemy, Milo's first reaction was one of stolid determination. Deep down, he knew there was only one possible option. He'd meet Destructo at the specified date and time. He'd do everything he could to stop the Villain from taking over the world. If he couldn't then he would die trying. It was really that simple in his mind. There was no arguing the fact. It was his responsibility. He was the one that Destructo had called out. He would be the one that answered the call, for better or worse.

That line of thinking lasted for all of three minutes. Before he had even spoken his desire to stand and fight, Captain Amazing had put the kibosh on the idea.

"It's a trap, Milo," he had said. "Anybody that shows up there is more likely to leave in a body bag."

Hearing that, his parents expressly forbid Milo from doing anything going any nearer to New York City than school could bring him. Captain Amazing knew Destructo better than anyone else on Earth. If the old Hero was sure that his nemesis was setting a trap, then he most probably was. Milo begrudgingly agreed not to go to New York to meet Destructo, the final nail in the coffin being the fact that he would have to get a ride from his parents and they were refusing to take him anywhere. So he'd wait and see what happened when no one showed up at the given meeting time.

It didn't sit well with Milo, though, sitting on the sidelines. The Hero's Call was urging him more than ever to be a beacon of hope for the people, to fight against the injustice that would occur. Bill and Calliope weren't exactly eager to let things go either, but they were more keen on letting things go for now. Milo had a feeling that Destructo having such a close personal tie to him was making him a little more eager for a fight than he should have been. The way Destructo had spoken about Captain Amazing during his broadcast had been a personal offense, and one that he would certainly seek retribution for.

Sitting in Mr. Hanson's history class wasn't the best way to go about finding said retribution. Being an avid follower of current events – history in the making, he called it – Mr. Hanson had been engaging students in heated debates on the ethical and economic concerns of a full scale take over. He was particularly adept at pitting opposing viewpoints against each other while remaining an impartial mediator. Milo was surprised to see just how many students believed that a crash in the entire world's technological systems would actually be a good thing for everyone. He also couldn't help but notice that they conveniently avoided the topic of supreme rule by a raving lunatic hellbent on seeing the planet's population kneeling at his feet.

"Okay, guys," Mr. Hanson said after the bell rang to signal the start of the school day, "today is a big day. Czar Destructo has extended an offer with a deadline. What I'd like to discuss today is whether or not this mystery Hero or Villain should go to New York tonight and why or why not. Who wants to open up the discussion?"

"It's clearly a trap," a young girl in the front row said without raising her hand. Her name was Annalisa Barton. She was heavyset with thick black-rimmed glasses and a streak of electric blue in her brown hair. "Whoever it is would have to be insane to go there. If Destructo even is there, it'll probably just be to kill the new active himself to make sure the job gets done. And then we lose the one chance we have of stopping him. No way they should go."

Another student scoffed. His name was Brett Danvers. He was a hotshot freshman basketball star. The Varsity basketball coach was already grooming him to take over as captain of the team once he was a sophomore. "It's his job, Annalisa," he argued. "Like you said, he's probably our only hope to stop Destructo. It's his responsibility to show up."