The world is not supposed to look like this. Remember that. The world is not supposed to look like this.
I realize that none of you remember it any other way. It isn't just now; the influence extends backwards through history. World War Two, the first great clash of Extraordinaries, with Miss Victory and the Gunslinger fighting alongside Allied troops, keeping the Nazi Extraordinaries from taking out hundreds of men. The Wild Man of Africa, raised by gorillas in the late eighteen hundreds. From the folk heroes of the American west back to the demigods of Greece, there are stories of Extraordinaries—and if you look closely enough, you can see the marks they've left on history. Or, in some occasions, on the landscape, like Pecos Bill's Gap.
And now, of course, with the population higher than it's ever been, we're living in the Age of Extraordinaries. Cris Mendoza, also known as the Silver Bullet, has been on Mythbusters twice, I think, using her superspeed to test gun myths that would be far too dangerous for a normal human being. NASA actively hunts for strangetechs; their red-carpet treatment is said to put NFL recruiters to shame. And if you look out the window in Marina City—
That's another thing. Marina City. Rock Harbor. There are a few major cities that shouldn't actually exist. I'm not sure what that means for the people who live there; possibly they're supposed to be in Chicago or New York. And there are small changes to the culture, as well. Science fiction, the literature of scientists and young businessmen—it should occupy roughly the same status as fantasy, literature of nerds. Comic books—well, they were never entirely mainstream, but they shouldn't be the vanishing niche market that they are.
When you look at it, living in the wrong city and reading the wrong books is actually a very small change. There are people who have had their life far more distorted by what the world has become.
Rick Normil is one of them. For the most part, this story belongs to him. I'll fill in the gaps, I'll tell the bits he wasn't there for, but the rest is his.
And, Rick—I'm sorry.
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Author's Note: If you are enjoying the story, please remember to vote for it! Or, alternately, since this is the first chapter and it's quite short, come back and vote later when you've decided whether you like it or not.
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A Normil Day
AdventureRick Normil is not a superhero, but he has superhero problems anyway. Just this morning, an interdimensional imp turned him into a fish man. Before noon, he's had his body hijacked, met a ghost, and seen one of the world's most powerful heroes tak...
