Heroes Not Wanted

Prologue: The Beginning of the End

The superhero known only to the world as Solar walked along the street, ignoring the rain and the lack of his namesake. The water gathered on the side of the street, rushing down the abandoned walk as the grates intended to siphon the water out got clogged. Still he kept walking. There was a purpose to his being there, and he would find his target.

"Solar!" The call caught his attention, and he turned to the man in the black coat. Sunglasses covered the other man's face, concealing his appearance.

Solar threw down the letter he'd received onto the rain-soaked sidewalk. "What is the meaning of this?" he questioned. "Why have you sent me this?"

The man gave a smile with thin, bloodless lips. "Solar, Solar, Solar," he chided him, still giving that creepy smile. Solar's skin began to crawl as he wondered if coming had really been such a good idea. "You were as easy to trick as I had anticipated. Do you know why I've sent for you here?"

Solar's skin began to glow with a golden light. His eyes, normally a light blue, began to become orange like the sun. "This is a trap," he seethed. "What do you want from me? This is the last time I will ask you this."

The man produced a cellphone from the pocket of his long coat. Again, he smiled at Solar, and the superhuman prepared to unleash his powers on his opponent. "Solar, my good friend, do you know where we are?"

Solar stared at him and said nothing. He couldn't decide where the conversation was going. The man went on, "We're at the foot of the biggest apartment building in Dowir. And do you know what this is?"

"A cellphone," Solar said, narrowing his eyes at the man.

"A cellphone specifically designed for one thing." He pressed a button on the phone, and Solar felt a peculiar clutching movement in his chest. It was painful and brought a strange wheezing sensation to his throat. "Boosting your powers beyond what you would think yourself capable of. Goodbye, Solar."

The explosion that came from Solar completely demolished the apartment building and killed everyone in it. When emergency vehicles arrived, they found the hero dead on the ground, surrounded by rubble and bodies. Over two hundred people died in the explosion.

The whole town away, a little girl sat bolt upright in her bed, sobbing, screaming. When her mother came to see what was the matter, the girl wept that the apartment building had been destroyed. The strange thing was ...

This was before the explosion had happened.