by Drew Hayes
“Go fuck yourself.” This one was smaller than Tips, a dense figure with a close shave along the top of his head and a tribal tattoo encircling a sizable bicep.
“Yeah, get out of here before we get annoyed.” The third fellow was darker skinned than the other, lean with long hair.
“So, just to be clear, you are refusing to act like men and own up to your drunken acts of rudeness? Rather you prefer to be petulant children, content to wallow in their own idiocy while giving each other congratulatory hand jobs over their perceived prowess with women?”
“What the hell did you just say?” Tattoo asked. Nick sighed; it seemed despite their status as seekers of higher education he was going to have to go low-brow in order to move this along. He really had hoped for a quick resolution, but the longer he delayed the greater the risk that Thomas or Will would get involved. Well, when in doubt, play the odds. Since he was dealing with drunken adolescents trying to prove their masculinity, it didn’t take a big leap of intelligence to guess what might set them off.
“I called you cowardly morons and implied that you were gay. You know, pillow-biters, pole-smokers, fudge-”
Nick was interrupted as Tattoo stumbled off his chair and took a swing at him. “Finally,” Nick mumbled under his breath. He sidestepped the drunken punch and drove his own fist into the muscular man’s throat. Tattoo immediately began to cough and clutch where Nick had struck, which left him defenseless for the follow up blow to his right ear. Long Hair finally began reacting, lurching forward to help his friend. Nick delivered a sharp kick to his sternum, slamming him back-first into the edge of the bar. Nick made no attempt to conceal the boredom evident on his face.
Tips finally jumped into the fray, clearly surprised at his lackeys’ inability to handle one lone challenge. He reared back and swung with all of his might. Nick was disappointed; even if they weren’t intoxicated, these three were still too slow to be any kind of a challenge. As drunks, well, they were hardly worth all the training his Vegas teachers had given him in the art of quick combat. This was not a style most of his HCP peers would have been familiar with. The vast majority of their martial arts were rooted in the idea of defense, in minimizing harm to each party and subduing a threat. Nicholas hadn’t been taught that kind of fighting. He'd never learned how to win fights; he'd been too busy being taught how to end them.
Nick plucked an empty beer bottle off a nearby table and used to it meet Tips’ punch. He couldn’t hear the subtle cracking of the small bones in his hand, but the way the taller boy howled in pain still confirmed that Nick had been successful. He used the time to deliver a few quick kidney blows and send Long Hair stumbling to the floor.
This had all happened in less than ten seconds, so quickly that neither the other patrons nor the bouncers had time to react. That was changing; Nick could see two massive forms slowly shoving their way through the crowd. His way of fighting was quick and efficient, built for injury and swift victory. Still, he needed to step it up if he wanted to finish in time.
Tips was still clutching his hand as Nick’s fingers snarled through his hair and jerked him to a near standing position.
“Believe it or not, today I’ve been your damn savior,” Nick hissed in the now-terrified drunk’s ear. “We live in a world where gods masquerade in mortal flesh. Learn some fucking propriety.” Nick jerked the jerk’s head back then drove it forward on a collision course with the edge of the bar. He was well-versed in the use of hard surfaces in a fight; it was one of the first things you learned handling drunks in Vegas. If he angled it right, Nick could give this asshole permanent brain damage. In another direction it could do long-term damage to his eye. Briefly Nick entertained both of those options; however, in the end he remembered that Alice was watching, so it was probably best to show at least some mercy.
“Mah teef!” Tips slurred from his bloody mouth. Funny thing about people: they always clenched their jaws when anticipating a hit. If you drove that tight mouth into a hard corner, you could do quite a bit of damage along both rows of teeth. It would only be cosmetic and could easily be capped, but it would hurt like a mother fucker.
“You’re welcome,” Nick said, staring down at the victims of his carnage with a curved smile slicing across his face. As the bouncers closed around him, the smile never wavered nor faded: if anything it seemed to grow more intense. It would be years before Tips would stop seeing that smile in his nightmares, a predicament many regretful former drunken gamblers in Las Vegas could have sympathized with.
Five tables away, Alice’s mouth hung open as they dragged Nick out the door. As quietly as she could, Alice scooped up his phone and sunglasses and followed them at a distance.
By the time Thomas and Will had gotten the wings ordered, it was all over and both of their classmates were already gone.
139.
“Campbell, Nicholas. You’re up.”
Nick happily stood from the stiff wooden bench he’d been sitting on. The cell wasn’t too bad; he’d certainly been tossed in worse over the years. Plus, it was still early in the evening, so there was only one drunk accompanying him. That dapper gentleman had passed out on the opposite side of the bench before soiling himself, so Nick was quite glad the family extractor had been quick with this one.
“Never seen someone get cleared of assault so fast,” the police officer remarked as his keys jingled in the lock. “You must have a hell of a lawyer.”
Nick gave him a sheepish smile, nothing like the devil’s grin he’d worn when being dragged away from his victims. “Something like that.” The jailer didn’t need to know that the order had actually come from a local politician who either owed the family a favor or owed someone who owed them. Crime only didn’t pay if you forgot to give the politicians their piece of the pie.
“Can’t believe a little guy like you took down three fellows. I mean, you’re fit, but the report said any one of them had twenty pounds and a few inches on you.” The jailer’s face grew uncertain as he pulled open the door. “You... you ain’t one of those Supers, are you?”
“Man, don’t I wish. Nah, the simple truth of it is that big guys can’t fight worth a crap. They’re big, so no one ever challenges them. We smaller folks know how to scrap because we’re the ones everyone tries to take on.”
The jailer’s face eased; this explanation clearly fit into his worldview. “Well, you’re free to go. Seems everyone saw them throw the first punches and you didn’t have any booze in you, so this is officially self-defense.” He closed the door and re-locked it, lest the pee-soaked drunk get any ideas of escape. “By the way, there’s a girl waiting for you in the lobby. She what this whole thing was about?”
“It’s possible,” Nick admitted.
“Can’t say I blame you then,” the jailer said with a conspiratorial wink. “Can’t say I blame you one bit.”
* * *
Hershel’s body was aching as he lay on the hotel’s plush bed. He could have shifted to Roy, but Owen had been adamant that the more he was able to push himself, the better the results would be. Evidently working through pain was a part of that equation. It was invaluable experience; the closer Hershel could come to complete bodily destruction, the greater the gain for Roy would be. He would have to pick up an exercise regimen once back at Lander, but this kind of intense training was far too dangerous to do without experienced supervision.
Hershel found he couldn't just sit still, in spite of his body’s fervent demands he do just that. He decided to compromise and engage his mind. A sore walk over to the desk and few quick button punches fired up his laptop and jumped his connection onto the free hotel WiFi. The hotel’s front page came up, along with a few advertisements for local businesses a weary traveler might be interested in. There, in the lower left hand of the screen, was a small ad for Owen’s bar: Tartarus.
Hershel suppressed a grim chuckle. His father never had been all that creative. Owen had only taken the name Titan at a friend’s suggestion when he couldn’t t
hink of anything better. Naming his bar after the place where the gods had sealed away the titans of ancient myth... it was just so predictable. Not that it was really appropriate, anyway. The Titan Scandal had certainly changed things for him; however, it didn’t have to mean his exile. Owen made that choice himself.
A new browser window opened and a quick search revealed countless articles about the former Hero. Amidst the hate-speech and conspiracy theories, there were a few archives of images taken of him before the scandal. There he was knocking out a gorilla equipped in a battle suit. There was one of him lifting a bus of children off of a collapsing bridge. There he was shaking the president’s hand. It always looked so effortless, in his blue jeans, red mask, and red shirt. No wonder he was considered one of America’s great Heroes. A strong, powerful man, who often talked about his wonderful family, though never with enough detail to deduce his identity. A steady anchor of decency for people of all walks to rally around. A symbol of goodness and morality. Everyone loved Titan.
Until he was caught having sex with another man.
Honestly, Hershel was amazed his mother had kept the truth of what happened from him for so long. He’d been in his teens before he finally found out about the Titan Scandal, a few weeks after Roy’s fateful trip out here. He’d found out about the reporter who’d spied on Titan, hoping to glean some information on his identity, and instead recorded the famous family man carnally engaged in homosexual acts. The cheating was bad, but one would think that in this day and age people wouldn’t have completely lost their shit over something like that. One would think wrong.
Hershel browsed through the articles now, it wasn’t like he was going to read anything new. Conservative groups denounced Titan as a sinner and a liar who was secretly promoting his gay agenda. Homosexual advocacy groups rallied around his image in support. Conspiracy theorists screamed to anyone who would listen that the whole thing had been set up by a shadow government. And, in the eye of the media storm, hidden away in a small house in Chicago, a family self-destructed as a piece of truth that Owen had been trying to hide from everyone, even himself, finally came to light.
No one banished Titan. There was no law that a homosexual, or any minority for that matter, couldn’t be a Hero. He was the one who walked away. He was the one who couldn’t handle being a Hero once his precious image was shattered. He was the one who left his family to come run a gay bar in Colorado. The man who had taught Hershel and Roy about honesty, integrity, and living up to one’s obligations had walked away from everyone who depended on him.
That was the only part Hershel and Roy couldn’t forgive.
Hershel clicked off the computer and walked back to the bed. Suddenly sleep sounded far more intriguing than it had half an hour ago.
140.
Nick and Alice plodded along the shoreline, well-illuminated by the lights from the nearby street and the glowing moon overhead. Neither had said much since leaving the station; Alice had grabbed a cab to follow Nick since Thomas had driven them to the bar, but being unable to find one nearby after Nick’s release had left them with only the option of walking a few miles to the house or calling a friend to pick them up. Explaining why they were at a police station seemed like more effort than a sand-covered trek, so off they’d gone.
“You really beat the hell out of those guys,” Alice said after about ten minutes of walking in silence. “I mean... you went after them.” Her voice was weaker than usual; her worry seemed to physically weigh down her words.
“They attacked me first,” Nick replied, pausing to knock some of the sand from his flip-flops.
“Bullshit. I know you well enough to know they did exactly what you wanted them to do. They were drunk idiots and I’m not really sorry they got hurt but... I’ve never seen that look in your eyes before.” Despite the warm spring air, Alice shivered slightly. “Nick, you looked savage, scary, and happier than I think I’ve ever seen before. Is that... was that... the real you?”
Nick finished knocking away the sand and looked up at her. She was staring at him, resisting the urge to look away even though it was clear she wanted to. Her right arm was pulled across her stomach, something of a half-hug for reassurance. In this light she looked smaller than normal, yet somehow more beautiful as the soft light illuminated her features.
“Are you cashing in your marker?”
“What?”
“Our bet, from the second team event. I promised you an honest answer to one question if you won your match. I’m asking if you want to use it for this question, right now.”
Alice was silent for a moment then shook her head.
“Then I’m going to say no, and you’ll have to decide for yourself whether it’s the truth or not.” Nick turned to resume their journey, but Alice wasn’t done with the discussion yet.
“You didn’t have to do it that way. I was okay, it was just words. You didn’t have to hurt them.”
“Words are more powerful than people think,” Nick said with a sigh. “As for not hurting them, I’ll admit I’m pretty new to the world of friendship - hell, I’m still grappling with the idea of even having real friends - but one thing I’m sure of is that I’m not going to stand around and do nothing while someone hurts a person I care about. Besides, it was the best outcome.”
“How was that the best outcome?”
“Thomas and Will were there too. Thomas is like Vince, overprotective to a fault. He would have knocked those guys senseless once he figured it out. As for Will, let’s just say I’ve seen the look in his eyes when he gets serious, and he’s not someone I would purposely make an enemy of. Both would have taken action; neither of them have my connections. Jail would have been a much bigger deal, especially if it came out that they were Supers.”
“I... I can’t believe I missed this. I get it now.”
“Yup; just trying to keep things moving along nicely.”
“No. You were protecting all of us,” Alice said, some of her usual authority returning to her tone.
“Whoa now, let’s not go overboard. I just didn’t want the week to get spoiled. We’re all having too much fun. One of us getting locked up would have brought everyone down.”
“It would have. And an arrest for fighting humans would have been a serious black mark against Thomas or Will when they tried to advance to the next year,” Alice surmised. “You weren’t just hitting them on my behalf, you were doing it before the others had a chance because you knew you could walk away.”
Nick sighed and looked out at the ocean lapping onto the shore. This was why he loathed people with unpredictable perception. He could usually slip so much by Alice, but every now and then she caught something he didn’t expect her to see. It was quite annoying.
“Look, I think you’re giving me too much-”
“Why are you in the HCP?” Alice interrupted. Her passive posture was gone; now she moved slightly toward him, shoulders set and eyes full of steel. “And yes, I’m calling in my marker or whatever you said. Honest, complete answer. I want to know.”
“Have to admit, I wasn’t expecting that one. Mind if I ask why?”
“I just want to understand,” Alice replied. “What I saw today, that beast in your eyes as you smacked those guys around, it was kind of terrifying. But then, when I really think back, it seems like you’re always doing stuff like that. Playing the idiot or the ass and making missteps so the rest of us won’t. You go so far out of your way to act like a dick, but if someone were to look carefully, they’d see you’re always protecting the rest of us. I’m trying to figure out what’s real and what isn’t. The HCP wasn’t a mandatory part of the program, it was an offer. I’m hoping that knowing why you took that offer might help me figure things out.”
“I suppose I can see the thought process there,” Nick admitted. He walked toward the water and Alice followed a few steps behind. At the edge of the tide line he kicked off his flip-flops and trod a few feet further. The water pushed itself up the shore, covering his
feet then pulling away, sinking him slightly as it stole away the sand.
“The reason I told the... my family is that this is training I can’t get anywhere else in the world. There are big plans for me, and bringing my ability under control would go a long way toward reaching those goals. In my entrance interview I told the school I wanted in because it was a chance to finally get control of something that had run my life for so long, to turn a handicap into an asset. Both are true, although the reasoning behind the second is different than a person who didn’t know me might assume. But if I’m being completely honest, there is a third piece of the puzzle as to why I enrolled in the HCP.”
Alice pulled her own shoes off and joined him in the water’s path. She stood close, close enough that he could feel her presence tingling along his arm, but without touching him. The waves rolled in and rolled out. Their gentle lapping was the only sound either could hear. Alice waited.
“I was a kid once. I mean, not a very normal one, and I don’t remember having a child’s mentality for long, but I was a kid once. Gerry used to tell me stories and read books to me. He loved classics. Don Quixote, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, shit like that. I read comic books too, once I could read on my own. I played pretend that I was a noble knight rescuing princesses. I put a towel on like a cape and ran around making flying noises.” Nick paused as he ran his hand through his sandy hair.
“Even someone like me wanted to be the hero, once upon a time. Dreamed about making the world a better place. Believed that one person could make a difference. All that crap. I came to Lander mostly for the logical reasons I gave everyone else. However, complete honesty, I think some part of me wanted to touch that fantasy again. Maybe a chunk of me even wanted to believe in real heroes, not just Supers with the title. Silly, especially saying it out loud, but it’s the truth and that’s what you wanted.”