Mr. Forgettable #Wattys2016

28

       

Jacob's moment of realization allowed him to fully understand the severity of the issue he and Larkin were facing.

"So," Jacob began, slowly. "Contingence means touch, and I have been warned about Contingence before. It's not just a noun. Contingence is a super villain."

Jacob watched as understanding dawned on Larkin's face. "I'm tired of all these stupid villains showing up," she said, exasperated.

Jacob nodded before he continued to explain. "At the debate, the mediator collapsed after George Fredericks shook his hand, right?"

"That's the touch! George Fredericks is Contingence― a super. Why did he kill the mediator though?" questioned Larkin.

Jacob thought about what he was supposed to have done a long time ago: kill Larkin's father. He knew that his dad wasn't the one calling the shots. It was that man on the phone he'd been talking to earlier. Another idea struck him. "Contingence wants to kill your dad. The mediator was a test. He wanted to see if he could pull off the kill-by-touch-method in front of an audience of thousands of people. And next Saturday, at the make-up debate, he'd going to go after your father."

For a moment, confusion crossed Larkin's face. "But didn't your father tell you to kill my dad?"

"Yeah, but I obviously haven't done that, and I don't plan on it either. So their solution is to have Contingence himself do it. That way, I won't be there to mess anything up."

"So George Fredericks wants to kill my dad because you couldn't, and if he succeeds, he will become the governor."

"Pretty much." Jacob sighed in frustration before setting his head in his hands. "And I have no idea how to stop him."

"We're so screwed."

()()()

For Larkin, Sunday night would be a late one. She had snuggled into her sheets, her mind still buzzing with the discoveries of the day. Larkin had tossed and turned, sure that it would take forever for her to fall asleep.

Finally, around eleven, her tired eyes had drifted shut, and her mind was at peace. She had started to fall slowly into the comforting, black abyss of sleep.

It was at that moment that Larkin was jolted out of her almost-sleep by a slight discomfort behind her eyes. Something was very wrong. She had felt this before, many times, in fact. This was the way she had felt on the day Sway/Magnolia had caused the ruckus on the streets of Markusville. This was the signal that told Larkin to go.

Realizing that someone or something in the city must need saving, Larkin forced herself out of her warm bed and changed into her super suit. She didn't bother with the door, but instead used her powers to run through the wall and jump one story down to the ground.

Larkin landed on the soft, dewy grass outside her home and tried to pinpoint where the distress call could be coming from. Even with her advanced hearing, Larkin couldn't hear any screams or crashes, so she hoped that no people were in direct danger. It's probably just a robbery, she thought.

The cool night air reminded Larkin how thin her suit was, and she briefly thought about going back inside for a jacket before deciding that time was of the essence. Hopping to her feet, Larkin took off at a sprint towards the downtown area. The sense of distress was the strongest from there.

As Larkin ran past houses and storefronts, she ran through a list of the most rob-worthy places in downtown. There's a jewelry store, multiple banks, a few high class restaurants, she thought as she hurtled a fire hydrant, all the while trying to pinpoint the place where the signal was emanating from.