“My name is Blue Spekter—a name given to me by a young boy named Oliver who saw me save a man’s life. Ever since I was a little boy, I wanted to be like Superman, Wonder Woman, or Batman because I want to help people. Now that I have super powers, that dream is more alive than ever in my heart. I chose to save Hector instead of hiding who I had become because it was the right thing to do, and because the people I trust in my life helped me understand that the amazing gift of super powers I have been given is a gift I want to use responsibly.”
“The police and the Department of Homeland Security have been nervous about letting me talk to you because they think you will be afraid, and well, I understand. I would be, too. But I promise you, Portsmouth, New England, and the world at large—I am not your enemy. I’m here to help, because that is the right thing to do. I don’t want to hurt or kill anyone, but I don’t like bullies, no matter where they come from.”
“By now, many of you have heard about the attack on Portsmouth High School, and the speculations are true. I’m a high school student whose life has been forever changed through a freak accident. The same goes for Dark Flame, the bully who attacked the high school today. I chose to speak to you tonight because I need your help. I need you to help the brave men and women who serve your city and our country by trusting that I will work with them to bring Dark Flame to justice. So, please, obey the laws, call 911 if you see anything unusual, and help us out by being shining examples of community and vigilance. May God Bless America. Thank you.”
When he finished, he nodded to Camilla, briefly saluted, and then ascended into the night sky. Phil angled the camera to follow him, but Quinn didn’t pay attention to what was going on behind him. Instead, he swung around Portsmouth and headed home, happy to have found the courage to speak to the world despite having his heart ripped out earlier that day.
Now, I’ll need to watch for Blake…when he sees that interview…he’ll come for me…but where? If this is going to work, I need to draw him out and meet him on my terms. It’s time I spoke to the team about my plan.
❖
The next day at breakfast before school, Quinn and his dads watched the morning news anchors discuss and speculate while replaying snippets of Blue Spekter’s speech to Portsmouth and the world. Though most of their reactions were positive, like any sensational news story it had become political and divisive. One of the commentators still wanted him taken into custody, while others thought he should be banished, but when pressed for their rationale, it was clear those folks were simply afraid of him.
“That was one hell of a speech,” Dad said through a mouthful of eggs and toast. “I’m very impressed.”
“Thanks.”
“You didn’t even seem nervous,” Daddio commented.
Quinn shrugged. “I blame all those years of theater. I guess being on stage in front of everyone boosted my confidence in front of the camera. Besides, to me I was only speaking to two people.”
“Is this why you didn’t join the theater troop after track ended? Because of the superhero thing?” Dad asked.
Quinn nodded. “Yeah, with everything that’s going on, I didn’t have time to get into theater this year.”
“Okay. Do you miss it?”
“Yup. There’s a lot I miss, but I’ve also had to deal with my life changing since…” Quinn’s words choked in his throat as his emotions bubbled up once more and his heart ached. He wiped his eyes. “Yeah, everything changed and I can’t go back.”
“Sometimes not going back is the best thing that can happen to you,” Dad said.
Quinn looked at him. “What do you mean?”
“When we adopted you, you changed our lives forever. There was no going back once we saw your smiling face in the hospital.”
Daddio chuckled. “Actually, you were screaming and crying because you had just been delivered and didn’t know what the hell was going on. But still, you were so beautiful to us. When the nurses put you on Dad’s chest, you immediately became calm and all was right with the world.”
They shared a brief laugh.
Dad continued. “Sometimes change is a very good thing. When your dad and I moved in together, our lives changed. Sure, we had both been with a few other boyfriends before and…”
“Hey now,” Daddio quipped.
Dad smiled. “My life changed when I met Aren and we started a family even though it was just the two of us at first. Then, a couple years later, you arrived and changed our lives. We couldn’t—and wouldn’t—go back. Even you have been changing since you were born. Hell, you’re a teenager which means your body is going through lots of changes. You’ve been growing into a handsome young man every day without realizing it. Now, your Blue Spekter reality has changed your life and you can’t go back.”
“I just wish it didn’t hurt so much,” Quinn said, his hand over his heart.
“I know, but it will get better.”
Daddio jumped in. “Honestly, being Blue Spekter is no different from being anyone else, superpowers aside.”
“I don’t understand how that’s even a thing,” Quinn said.
Daddio smiled. “Every single one of us, whether ordinary or celebrity, is always faced with people who accept or reject us, and there’s nothing we can do about it except be nice to others and treat them the way we want to be treated. People will accept the love you have to share, or they will look the other way and want nothing to do with it. You can’t control what other people think, and you never will.”
Daddio paused and looked at him intently.
“Wait, is mind control one of your superpowers?”
Quinn laughed. “No, I can’t read minds and I can’t control minds. If I can, it hasn’t happened yet.”
“Whew,” Daddio said. “So, do you understand my point? Just because you’re Blue Spekter doesn’t mean you’re that much different from the next guy. I’m willing to bet most of your classmates like you, but naturally there are a few who don’t, and their reasons won’t always make sense.
“Like the bully Darien James. I can’t figure out why he picks on me so much. My friends guess he is secretly gay and terrified to come out, but I don’t think that’s what it is. I think he’s just…a mean person.”
“He’s a good example and you may never know what makes him tick. The same goes for Blue Spekter. Most people will like and accept you, while some won’t want anything to do with you. You can’t control it, and if you spend your time trying to please people, you’re going to miss out on what makes you happy in life because it’s a futile ambition. That’s just how life is.”
“Yeah, I get it,” Quinn said.
Dad spoke next. “Your broken heart is one of those things that heals with time. We can only support you and hope you trust in our love for you first as our son, second as a kick-ass superhero.
Quinn laughed. “I do believe you, thanks.” Then, Quinn went upstairs to get ready for school. Before heading to the shower, he checked his phone and saw a missed text from Chief Applegate that read: FYI: As a precaution, Agent Potter and I assigned officers and agents to the high school today as a public response to any further threats Dark Flame might pose. They will be armed with TaseBolts. I’m sure you will understand our necessary decision. The good news is, they won’t be looking for you.
Yep, I get it.
Quinn set his phone back on the bureau then headed across the hall to shower and get ready for school.
❖
After the police and DHS agents monitoring the school entrances watched him approach and nodded at him as he passed by—now that they knew his face—Quinn walked into the high school cafeteria just like any other day. Some students glanced at him and nodded, some glared and frowned at him, some stared at him with wonder, and other students barely noticed his presence and continued their own early-morning conversations.
Quinn hefted his book bag to his other shoulder and walked to his usual morning spot with Ravone and Loren. Keegan wasn’t there, and Quinn accep
ted he probably wouldn’t join them anymore. He swallowed, but the pain still rose up when he sat down with his best friends.
“Someone was busy last night,” Loren said.
“What do you mean?” Quinn asked.
“Um, duh, your little speech to the world. I saw it. That was pretty darn awesome.”
“Thanks,” Quinn said, smiling.
“Have you seen yourself give it?” Ravone asked.
“Not yet,” Quinn replied. “I saw several clips on the news this morning, but I haven’t seen the whole thing yet.”
“Well, Mrs. White would be proud of you.” Loren said, sipping her coffee.
“Why? She’s an English Lit teacher.”
“Yeah, but she also teaches public speaking to seniors. Last night you stood in front of a TV camera and eloquently addressed the world and told us you’re on our side.”
“Well, I hope she doesn’t make a big deal about it in class. I just want to live a normal life.”
Loren and Ravone looked at each other and laughed. “You’re joking right?” Loren asked.
Quinn shook his head. “Far from it. Being normal got me a boyfriend; not being normal got me dumped. Tears formed, and he quickly wiped his eyes. Shit, when does this stop?
Loren and Ravone’s excited faces became grave, and Ravone spoke. “But you can do so much good as Blue Spekter, Quinn. Your normal is just different.”
“Yeah,” Loren said. “It’s kind of like having two dads, it’s normal but not normal.”
Quinn glared at his friend, ready to challenge her use of the word normal, but she continued.
“Just like me. I confuse everyone. I look like a girl and dress like a boy, while other days I look like a boy and dress like a girl. I use he and she interchangeably, just like the restrooms I use. That’s my normal—it’s normal, but it’s a different normal—and different isn’t bad.
Quinn smiled. “Okay, I see what you’re saying.” The bell rang and they groaned.
“Here goes nothing,” Quinn said. They grabbed their bags and joined the horde of students filing into the hallways and walked to their first class of the day.
❖
“Why do I even need the suit if everyone knows who I am now?” Quinn asked, slouching in one of the desks in the front row of Ron St. Germain’s science lab. He spun his phone around in his hand.
“Superheroes wear super suits because the suit embodies power, trust, leadership, and responsibility. Superman’s suit is iconic, and people know exactly who he is and what he represents when they see him. That’s what you want when people see you dressed as Blue Spekter. Otherwise, you’re just a kid in jeans, a T-shirt, and a hoodie. It’s not very inspiring, is it?”
“I guess not.”
“And, to be honest, people aren’t going to remember your face. Have you noticed the news hasn’t revealed your name or identity to anyone yet?”
Quinn stopped spinning the phone around and looked at his mentor. “What?”
“They’re not sharing your name, Quinn. Sure, your classmates and the faculty know who you are, but they won’t officially broadcast it on the news. You’re welcome.”
Quinn tilted his head to the side. “Did you have something to with that?”
Ron nodded. “Yup. Using my massive command of comic book knowledge, I convinced Applegate and Potter that revealing your identity would undermine everything they wanted to do and create targets for people to go after, including your dads, me, your closest friends here, and of course, them…all for helping you or being close to you….because that’s how you hurt someone who is practically invulnerable…you take out the people they love.”
Quinn looked down at the desk. “Yeah, it really hurts losing someone you love.”
“Oh?” Ron responded.
Quinn’s eyes watered. “Uh…Keegan and I…um…”
“You’re not together because he discovered your alter ego?”
“Yeah.” Quinn glanced at the boyfriends ring on his hand. He hadn’t removed it because he still hoped Keegan would change his mind.
“Ouch. I’m so sorry.”
Quinn sighed and wiped his eyes. “I’ll be fine.”
“Want me to talk to him?”
“No thanks, but we do need to get the team together, so we can discuss stopping Blake.”
“You have something in mind?” Ron asked.
Quinn cleared his throat and nodded. “Yup, and if I’m lucky, he won’t see it coming.”
4-16 | They Won’t Be Expecting This
Blake
DARK FLAME OPENED HIS EYES and found himself sitting in the middle of an empty, dark room.
That’s not right.
He blinked to focus his vision and realized he was inside a cube-style cage made up of shiny silver metal bars on all sides except the bottom, which was a flat metal floor. The cage had a door that was closed and presumably locked.
His eyes adjusted to the darkness and when his super vision kicked in, he realized the room wasn’t empty. Around the cage, a number of marines posted guard and pointed their TaseBolts at him. He groaned and tried to scratch his nose, but his hands and ankles were shackled to the metal chair. His feet felt cold, and when he looked at them, he saw his bare feet had been placed in a metal bucket of ankle-deep water. Two wires were duct-taped to the insides of the bucket, their exposed copper leads secured under the water.
“What the hell?” he angrily asked.
“Oh good, you’re awake,” a man said, then snapped the fingers of his left hand.
A significant current of electricity passed through Dark Flame’s body and his eyes popped open with surprised as the shock incapacitated his muscles and mind.
Just as suddenly as it started, the electrical jolt stopped and he breathed heavily, like he had just run a six-minute 5K race.
“If you try to escape, we’ll push more current into you through that pool of water than you can handle. Given your track record, I don’t really care if it kills you or not.”
Dark Flame tried to look at the voice, but the man’s face was obscured by darkness. “Who are you? What do you want?” he asked, shaking against the metal restraints.
The man snapped his fingers and Dark Flame’s body convulsed as a second dose of electricity tormented him. When it stopped, Dark Flame’s shoulders heaved with pain and agony. His head drooped, and his chin rested on top of his sternum.
“It’s you I want, Dark Flame.”
Not for long. Come on, Ira, don’t fail me now.
Dark Flame discreetly looked at whatever he could see in front of him, remembering Ira’s training about observing a room to understand what options were available to him. Using his super vision in the dark, he followed the dim light on the floor to a closed door to his left. A camera was mounted in the upper left corner, and he presumed more people were on the other side of the door or wall, watching him.
Dark Flame looked at the man, but still couldn’t make out his face. To Dark Flame’s right, he followed the wiring to another man in a suit who stood near a makeshift plywood frame that supported an industrial electrical switch in an exposed blue plastic electrical box.
That’s what’s controlling the electrical shocks. Wherever I am, it looks like they scrambled to build this. I bet I’m still on Seavey Island…
The man’s hand rested on the blue plastic of the electrical box, ready to flip the switch at any time.
Idiots. They’re not shocking me now, so they don’t know what Mother Superior knew about keeping a low charge running through me.
He reached out with his mind, sensing everything in the room—including the room—that he could manipulate with his telekinetic powers.
The rebar in Prescott Park…if those guys fire their TaseBolts at me, the metal bars of the cage will attract the electricity and I’ll be safe…oh wait…metal floor and metal chair…shoot.
Enough of this foolishness. Time to tear this place apart and show them what happens when you play with fire.
/>
Dark Flame’s eyes and body ignited with bright orange fury as he reached out with his mind and shattered the hand bones of the man standing near the electrical shock switch. As the man screamed in agony, Dark Flame swept his mind through the room and broke the legs of the soldiers surrounding the cage. They collapsed to the floor with shouts of pain and agony and their TaseBolts clattered to the floor next to them. Then, he ripped the wires out of the bucket his feet were in, whipped them across the room, and snaked them around the electrical man’s neck, finishing off by puncturing his cheeks with the exposed copper leads. Dark Flame grimaced, threw the switch, and fried the man at the controls. The man’s body involuntarily convulsed and smoked as it instantly burnt and charred into a stiff corpse.
Then, rapidly superheating his body to nearly three-thousand degrees so he could keep his super tights intact, Dark Flame watched the metal shackles on his wrists and ankles melt and drip to the floor. The incapacitated soldiers around him tried to move away, but their exposed skin was already scalding hot and melting from their faces. When he stood, the chair beneath him melted and warped into a disfigured metal blob.
He glared at the leader. The man had backed away and tried to shield his face from the oppressive heat by covering his face with his elbow, but the air in the room was too hot to breathe and soon everyone was dying or dead, their lungs burned to a crisp. The metal bars of the cage around him melted and the cage dripped to the floor into puddles of molten metal. The dead body of the leader collapsed to the floor near the door.
Cooling himself off, he saw his purple sneakers near the door and took a moment to put them on. On the other side of the door, he heard shouting voices and the squeaking and scuffing of boots on the concrete floor.
More soldiers are coming…
He turned away from the door and looked up at the ceiling. Though it was high above him, it looked like a commercial ceiling one might find in a warehouse-style department store like Target or Walmart.
The Guardians Omnibus Page 87