A True Hero

by M. R. Anglin

  “But then he just went freelance.” Stephanie gestured his her hands so wildly her hair bounced. “He didn’t go to jail or anything! He went on with his life like normal until he decided to retire! How is that fair?”

  “I’m so sorry it happened to you, Steph,” Nicole patted her knee. “But just because he was a no-good, rotten, loser doesn’t mean every Hero is bad.”

  “Are you kidding?” Stephanie turned her fury to Nicole. “Have you seen the amount of damage those so-called Heroes cause every year?”

  “It’s in the millions of dollars . . . possibly billions.” Justin nodded his head. “But ASH is trying to reduce and stop all the collateral damage. They’ve put rules in place to minimize that sort of thing, and—”

  “What happens if those rules are broken?” Stephanie’s freckles blazed with her fury. “The Heroes’ expenses are covered by insurance, and their butts are covered by the Heroes Protection Act. Nothing is going to change unless they criminalize their actions. Heroes shouldn’t exist.”

  “What happens when a Villain comes around?” Justin said.

  “Criminalize them too. Anyone who uses their powers in public should be declared a public menace and be put in prison.” Stephanie gave a rueful chuckle. “But it’s not going to happen. Who’s going to force a bunch of super powered humans to do anything they don’t want to do? So they’re going to keep on ruining people’s lives while the world cheers them on.”

  “I don’t believe it.” Nicole slapped her hands on the wooden floor of the treehouse. “Captain and Junior Justice . . . Starlight . . . even Refraction . . . they’re working hard to make sure they take care of people. One day, they’ll find out who did this to you and bring them to justice. I know it. After all, my mom used to tell me true Heroes always come to the rescue, Steph.”

  Stephanie rolled her eyes. “Thanks, but platitudes don’t help. Nothing’s ever going to change.”

  “It will.” Nicole rested a hand on Stephanie’s. “I promise.”

  “There’s not anything you can do, Nikki.” Stephanie let a smirk break through her anger. “But I appreciate the sentiment.”

  “Um . . . e-excuse me,” came a small voice.

  Everyone turned to look a Bee who had a timid finger held up. “I apologize for interrupting, Nicole, but I wanted to inform you I have finished installing the voice program.”

  “I can hear.” Nicole leaned in close to her. “Your voice sounds so real.”

  “It is a testament to Justin’s programming efforts.” Bee gave him a slight nod. “I am most grateful.”

  “Need to work on your word choice, though.” Justin stroked his chin as he studied her. “You sound like a clichéd, pretentious, girl genius.”

  “I will finish analyzing the verbal aspects of human speech. I surmise it will take care of the problem. Once the analysis is complete, I will require a reboot before those changes go into effect.” As she spoke, Bee stared at Justin cocking her head as if in deep thought. “While I reboot, you will not be able to utilize any of my services, Nicole.”

  “When you say I won’t be able to access any of your services, do you mean all of them?” Nicole said, hoping Bee understood what she meant.

  “All of them. I—” Bee stiffened. In her monotone, she said, “This unit has performed an illegal operation and needs to close.” Without warning she slumped forward.

  “Whoa!” Justin jumped back. “What happened?”

  “I don’t know.” Nicole shook her head. “She’s never done this before.”

  “Maybe it’s another flaw in the coding.” Justin ran his hands over his head. “I’ve never worked on anything so complex before.”

  Stephanie shrugged. “Can’t expect to get it right on the first try.”

  “Working,” came Bee in her flat monotone. She picked up her head. “Analyzing location . . . accessing settings . . . loading security protocols . . . please wait . . . Ready.”

  “Bee, what happened?” Nicole said once her reboot had finished.

  “Response unavailable,” Bee answered in her human-sounding voice. “More information is required in order to answer your query.”

  “You said you performed an illegal operation and shut down,” Nicole said.

  Bee blinked a moment. “Please wait while I review my log files.” She rested her cheek in her hands and tapped her foot in the air as she thought.

  “Wow.” Stephanie gaped at her. “Her movements are so natural.”

  “It took a long time to get her this far,” Nicole said.

  “You are correct, Nicole.” Bee picked up her head. “One of my background processes attempted to access information my core programming has forbidden.”

  “What was it trying to access?” Justin said.

  “I do not have the information to answer your query. My core programming forbids access to such information . . . hmm . . .” Bee tilted her head to the side. “I will queue a diagnostic to run tonight.”

  “It’s fine, Bee,” Nicole said.

  “In the meantime, you are on your way, Nicole.” Justin gave Nicole a high-five. “She sounds great.”

  “I would never have believed you did this if I hadn’t heard the difference. It’s incredible,” Stephanie said.

  “Thanks, guys.” Nicole smiled at Bee. “I can’t wait to see you again, Bee.”

  “I am currently in front of you, Nicole.” Bee furrowed her brows. “Is your vision compromised? Shall I make an appointment with the optometrist for you?”

  Nicole shook her head but smiled. Soon, very soon, she’d have her best friend back.

  CHAPTER 16

  STARLIGHT STRODE INTO Loscor Nedram’s office. As the head of ASH, he occupied the space on the top floor of ASH HQ where he oversaw all of ASH’s dealings. Though a few stars peppered the purplish, pre-dawn sky, all of the lights in the office were off—save one lamp on Loscor’s desk. Loscor, himself, sat at his desk, hand pressed together with his chin resting on them. He had his eyes closed—whether deep in thought or sleeping, Starlight couldn’t tell. In the dim light, she could almost make out his brownish features typical of those with Indian background.

  “You wanted to see me, Mr. Nedram?” Starlight stood in front of his reddish brown oak desk with her hands behind her back.

  “Thank you for coming on such short notice, Starlight.” Loscor’s eyes opened immediately, and Starlight was certain he had been deep in thought. He wore a navy blue suit tailored to his medium build. His dark hair, streaked with reddish highlights, had been slicked back with gel, and a pleasant, piney, sandalwood fragrance wafted from him as he picked his head up. His chin sported a stubby beard as if he hadn’t had time to shave.

  “With respect, sir.” Starlight lifted her chin as she spoke. “I need to get ready for my assignment.”

  “About that . . .” Loscor hefted himself out of his chair. “I need you to stand down, Starlight.”

  Starlight took a step back. “What?”

  “I’ve assigned Captain Justice to escort the armored van.”

  “This is my assignment, sir.” Starlight rested a hand on her chest. “I’ve been planning it for months.”

  “I know; I know.” Loscor heaved a sigh. “I don’t even think the Sapphire should be moved. Dr. Farber and the joint team of ASH and the Alferdale Museum researchers are making tremendous progress. I believe it could be accelerated by moving the operation to ASH’s Research and Development labs, but we both know why it wouldn’t be allowed.”

  Starlight nodded, her face darkening as she remembered the Depowering Incident. She shoved the thought from her mind.

  “My hands are tied, Starlight,” Loscor went on. “The Board and representatives from the government want the Sapphire moved to a secure, federally funded location. The reports of Heroes losing their powers have them spooked. We only know of one item which can cause it.”

  “The Sapphire.” Starlight examined the ground. “Right.”

  “They’re even rumors the Sapp
hire has been subject to unauthorized removal from its containment.”

  Starlight furrowed her brows. “That can’t be right. If it had been moved, Dr. Farber would know.”

  “I agree.” Loscor nodded his head. “The feds claim to have video footage of the Sapphire in unauthorized hands in the same location where Heroes are losing their powers. I watched them, and all I can see is a vague, orange glow. I assured them it couldn’t be the Sapphire, but . . . they want it in their control. Ever since Beatrix, they’ve been looking for a way to secure the Sapphire. Now reports are surfacing saying Villains are targeting the thing, and the Feds are taking their chance.” He shook his head. “The TelePorter is one of the Villains after the Sapphire, Starlight. Since Captain Justice has been clashing with him and knows him best, I asked him to take over. You can offer him backup, if you like.”

  “Backup?” Starlight scoffed. “With someone like Captain Justice in the fray, I won’t see any action. I’d be accessory at best.”

  “Captain Justice is the best Hero we have.” Loscor nodded. “Which is why the Feds requested him. They want to be sure the Sapphire will get to its destination, and he has the track record to assure them of the Sapphire’s safety.”

  “True.” Starlight snorted through her nose. “Plus he’s training Junior Justice well. The kid’s moving up the ranks fast. I can give the Captain a little credit.”

  “Then I have your cooperation on this?”

  “Sure.” Starlight let her hands drop to her side. “I’ll stick around in case he needs some help.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate it.”

  Starlight turned to walk out of his office, but as she went, she had the distinct feeling she had been slighted.

  CHAPTER 17

  “LET’S GO, PUMPKIN!” John called from downstairs.

  “Coming, Dad!” Nicole called and then turned back to the feed Bee was patching through over her phone. “Sorry, Starlight. I’ve got to go.”

  “No problem,” Starlight said on the screen. “I’ve given you all the instruction you need. Remember, be alert and have fun. You’re technically on vacation.”

  “Do Heroes ever go on vacation?” Nicole chuckled as she finished stuffing her favorite night shirt in her bag.

  “Not really . . .” Starlight stared into the distance a bit, her mouth tightening. “It needs to change.”

  “Starlight?”

  “Sorry.” Starlight came to herself. “I’ve had a lot on my mind.”

  “Don’t spazz out too much. You’ve got the dangerous part of this mission, remember?” Nicole trotted to her dresser to where she had stashed her toothbrush after brushing her teeth. “Two Villains tried to steal the Sapphire in broad daylight already.”

  “It’ll be fine.” Starlight rolled her eyes. “No one would dare come near this truck with Captain Justice on patrol.”

  “Captain Justice?” Nicole halted while zipping her bag. “Isn’t it your assignment?”

  “It was, but since the TelePorter got involved, ASH didn’t think I could handle it by myself.” Starlight tossed a shrug. “Plus, ASH is sort of spooked by reports some Heroes might be losing their powers.”

  Nicole stood straight. “Heroes are losing their powers?”

  “One or two isolated reports, and always temporarily. Nothing to worry about, Starling, but ASH wants to make sure the Tifuld Sapphire gets to where it’s going. So I’ve been shuffled to the background to act as backup.”

  “So far back no one will see you?” Nicole resumed her last minute packing.

  “That’s how it goes sometimes.” Starlight shook her head. “The good news is, if something happens with you, I will be able to leave at a moment’s notice. So you’ll be fine no matter what happens.”

  “That makes me feel better.” Nicole shouldered her bag.

  “I see you’re ready. Have a good time, Starling.” Starlight smiled a warm smile which made Nicole feel strong. “Have fun, and . . . see if you can’t use this time to get to know Margaret a little more.”

  “Yeah . . . I try . . .” Nicole averted her eyes.

  “Ooop. That’s unconvincing.” Starlight gave her a knowing smirk. “I know your non-committal tone.”

  Nicole let her bag drop to the floor. “I am trying, but . . . I don’t know . . . I don’t think Margaret likes me much.”

  “You know that’s not true,” Starlight chided. “She wouldn’t be trying so hard if she didn’t. Remember how upset she was at the Museum?”

  “I know; I know . . . maybe saying she didn’t like me was the wrong choice of words. I don’t know how to describe how I feel around her . . .”

  “Sweetie, make an effort to accept her—”

  “I am! At the Museum, I tried talking to her about this thing my mom gave me, but she shut me down.” Nicole clutched her necklace. “I don’t know if she didn’t hear me or what, but it hurt . . . I miss my mom, you know. I wanted to try to talk to her about something personal, but she wasn’t interested.”

  “I see . . .” Starlight bit her lips together.

  “It’s weird.” Nicole plopped on her bed. “I feel like she’s always in my head, but then she can be so tone deaf. Maybe it’s my fault for being so selfish.”

  “Selfish? How do you figure?”

  Nicole flopped back on her bed. “Margaret’s going to be my dad’s new wife. Why would she want to hear anything about my dad’s old wife?” She paused. The thought of never speaking about her mother lanced her in the middle. Still, she couldn’t expect Margaret to put all her feelings aside for Nicole’s sake. “Maybe it’s good she didn’t see how inconsiderate I am.”

  “You’re not inconsiderate, Starling. It’s a hard topic to breach. She might feel awkward.”

  “Either way, it’s better she and I don’t talk about it, I guess.” Nicole took a deep breath and pushed the pain down. “I won’t talk about Mom anymore. She’s been gone for nine years. It’s time I get over it.”

  Starlight gazed at her without a word.

  “Nicole, get down here! We’re going to be late!” John shouted.

  “I have to go.” Nicole swung a backpack over her shoulder. “Thanks for the chat, Starlight. I’ll see you in two weeks.”

  “Have a good time. Don’t give up on Margaret. I have a feeling she feels as weird about this as you do.”

  “Sure. Bye, Starlight.”

  “Bye, Starling.”

  Nicole slipped her phone in the pocket of her backpack. “Ready, Bee?”

  “I am, Nicole,” Bee said without appearing.

  “Let’s go before Dad has a fit.”

  “I am ready to depart.”

  Nicole flung her door open and rushed down the stairs. She hoped Bee would finish analyzing human speech soon because the computer speak was getting on Nicole’s last nerve.

  CHAPTER 18

  “THERE YOU ARE!” JOHN stood with his hands on his hips as Nicole walked outside. “What was taking you so long?”

  “Last minute packing and some stuff with my job.” Nicole darted past him to the car they had rented for the trip, a blue sedan with good gas mileage and lots of legroom in the back. Stephanie had arrived earlier in a ride-sharing car and had been sitting in the sedan while Nicole finished packing.

  “Now that leaves Margaret.” John held his phone to his ear. “Where are you?”

  “Took you long enough,” Stephanie said as Nicole slid into the car. “Were you packing you whole house?”

  Nicole forced herself not to take Stephanie’s jab seriously. “Just my toothbrush, and I had to flush the toilets.”

  Stephanie furrowed her brows. “Why flush the toilets?”

  “Once, my dad and I went on a vacation with my cousins who forgot to flush after ‘emptying the tank.’ ” Nicole shuddered. “It stank so bad when we came back.”

  “Ew.”

  “I know.”

  Stephanie and Nicole gazed at each other and burst into laughter.

  “Here comes Margaret,�
� Nicole said when she saw her SUV turn onto her street.

  The SUV pulled into their driveway. When Margaret stepped out she had her phone held up. “15 calls? Really, John? I’m not even late.”

  “You were supposed to be here an hour ago!” John stomped over to her.

  “What are you talking about?” Margaret stormed to her trunk and opened it. “It’s not 9:00 yet.”

  “I said to be here at 8:00.” John reached into grab her luggage.

  “No, 9:00.”

  John inhaled through his nose. “Check your texts.”

  “Fine, I will.” Margaret tapped on her phone.

  “Uh, oh. Trouble in paradise?” Stephanie kneeled on the seat to watch them argue through the back window.

  “They always do this.” Nicole didn’t even bother look up. “She’s smart, but a little scatterbrained.”

  As if on cue, Margaret straightened. “You were right. 8:00 am. Sorry, sweetheart. I don’t know why I put 9:00 in my scheduler.”

  “Margaret, what am going to do with you?” John kissed her cheek. “Get in the car. I’m going to lock up the house.”

  Margaret slipped into the front seat, and Nicole shivered when she did. A strange sensation washed over her. “Good morning, girls. You must be Stephanie.”

  “Thaaat’s me.” Stephanie pointed her thumb at herself in an exaggerated arch. She did it often, and once when Nicole asked her about it, Stephanie said she was referencing some old TV kids’ show Nicole had never heard of before. “So,” Stephanie continued. “Do I call you Margaret or Miss Farber, or . . .”

  “Margaret’s fine.” Margaret rested her head on the headrest. “I cannot wait to get going. I can’t remember the last time I went on vacation. The further I get from the lab, the better.”

  Nicole bit her lips together. Time to make an effort like Starlight suggested. “I . . . thought you liked your job.”

  “I love my job, but . . .” Margaret stretched. “Sometimes you need to step back and give yourself space. Helps you see things in a new perspective.” She suddenly stiffened, unzipped her purse, and pulled something out. Stepping out of the car, she strapped on a bag around her waist. Nicole cheeks burned when she recognized it.