Captain Stellar

by R J Sorrento

  A vibration in his uniform pants pocket distracted him from his pain, and he realized it was his new phone buzzing. “Mom?”

  “Are you running late today? I wanted to check in, make sure you were all right.” Valerie sounded frantic.

  Cal had to think on his feet for an excuse. “I, uh, got into this photography school. Sorry, I forgot to tell you yesterday.”

  “Why didn’t you say something? That’s wonderful!”

  “Well, I didn’t wanna take away from your big day with Gary proposing.”

  “Oh, Cal, I’m just so happy you found a new school. I had no idea you were applying anywhere.”

  “Yeah, well. I didn’t want to, uh, mention it in case I didn’t get in.” Cal gritted his teeth. He didn’t like that his skills in lies and deception were improving.

  “Oh, okay.”

  “I’ll be there in the evenings, so it won’t interfere with work.”

  “Hope you learn a lot.”

  “Me, too.” He ended the call and drove to the address on the Almighty Labs stationery. Unlike phone numbers he could never recall, that address was etched in his mind.

  Chapter 9

  An hour and a half of rush hour traffic later, Cal arrived. The first time he’d been here, he didn’t study the laboratory before running away. He blinked his eyes now, giving the building a once-over. It resembled a rundown factory. Nothing impressive enough to match the name Almighty.

  Cal parked the car a block away and walked to the lab. Can’t let anyone find Mom’s car. Just because I’m walking into danger doesn’t mean she should pay for it.

  Cal inched closer. His escape door from yesterday was still ajar, which he found suspicious. It was as if someone left it open for him, awaiting his return. He hesitated, imagining a terrifying beast of a man behind the gray metal door. But the woman who had called out to him before he left, seeking his help, didn’t sound terrifying. He stepped inside the storage warehouse of the building.

  “Hello?” Cal called out in a more timid voice than he would have liked. He needed to muster up that deep, commanding voice again.

  “Is anyone there?” His voice echoed throughout the warehouse. There were plenty of white boxes organized in rows, just as before. He wondered if that woman was still hiding and waiting for him.

  * * *

  “Don’t make me say I told you so,” Fernando teased his sister upon hearing a man’s voice.

  Margo shook her head. “You’re insufferable.”

  “Let’s go talk to him. Try not to scare him too much.”

  “I’m not the one with destructive hands.” Margo pushed her brother’s shoulder. “Venga, vamos.”

  “Welcome,” Fernando called, stepping out from behind one of the tall boxes with his gloved hands outstretched to show he meant no harm. He scanned the handsome blond up and down, impressed that Dr. Almighty had abducted a man so tall and strong.

  “Welcome?” Cal repeated. “That’s a funny way to greet someone you kidnapped.”

  Fernando smirked. “You’re feisty, no?”

  Margo stood in front of her brother. “We aren’t the ones who kidnapped you.”

  Cal’s eyes lit up. “You were the one I heard-”

  “Yes. What do you remember from that night?” Margo clasped her hands together.

  Cal cleared his throat. “Well, after I locked up at work, I was watching this meteor shower. It was incredible. It was like the meteor rocks were heading straight toward me. And then I got hit with something in the neck. When I woke up, I was in a small white room.”

  “With superpowers, no?” Fernando stepped to the side of his sister to make eye contact with the taller man.

  “Yes,” Cal responded, glaring at him. “And for whatever reason, I decided to save this little girl trapped in a car earlier today.”

  “You did? That’s incredible!” Margo’s eyes widened.

  “There was a crowd, they saw me. Even asked for my superhero name…and I was thinking of calling myself Starman.”

  Fernando’s laugh echoed in the warehouse. He should have been concerned that ordinary people witnessed superpowers in action, but he could only snicker at the absurd name. “Starman? Why?”

  “Well, a meteor shower gave me powers.”

  Margo put her head in her hands as Fernando continued to laugh.

  “What?” Cal snapped.

  Fernando stepped closer, walking around him. “That name won’t do.”

  He studied Cal’s muscled form, his impressive stance, and was struck by his crystal blue eyes, like sapphire stars from a faraway galaxy.

  “Captain Stellar.” Fernando had a look in his eyes that Margo hadn’t seen in a long time.

  “I like that,” Cal answered.

  Fernando studied him closer, detecting pink in his cheeks as Cal returned his gaze. “Besides, the meteor shower is not what gave you powers. What happened to you is what happened to us, ten years ago.”

  “What happened?”

  “Ted is what happened.” Fernando made a fist.

  “Dr. Almighty, as he prefers,” Margo added.

  “Almighty Labs.” Cal pulled the stationery out of his back pocket.

  Fernando took the paper from his hands. “You’re smarter than you look, Captain. Uh, what’s your actual name?”

  “Cal.”

  “Cal,” Fernando repeated. “Margo and I were having leftover paella for dinner anoche. Why don’t you eat with us? And we’ll tell you anything you want to know.”

  “Let’s go,” Cal replied without hesitation, glancing at Fernando.

  Cal followed them down a white corridor, leading to a blue one. There was a door labeled with the number one, which Fernando unlocked with facial recognition.

  “Home sweet home.” Fernando opened the door for Cal and Margo.

  “Welcome to la casa Vazquez.” Margo led them inside.

  She pulled out a chair for Cal in the dining area of their open loft while Fernando walked to the kitchen to reheat the paella on the stove. The aroma of smoked paprika and saffron filled the air.

  “So, do you two have powers?”

  Margo nodded. “What my brother was trying to say before is Dr. Almighty kidnapped you. He captured us, too, only he did not let us go. We were young. I was fourteen, and Fernando was sixteen. We were his first recruits.”

  “Easy targets. We were high and drunk and partying on a beach in Chicago while our parents made an international restaurant deal. We always left Spain whenever they had business deals, but this time, we never went home.” Fernando stirred the rice.

  He had never told anyone else about being kidnapped. It surprised him to trust Cal so easily with such painful and personal memories, but there was something genuine in his eyes.

  “Ted kept us in his lab for weeks, experimenting on us until he had what he wanted.” Margo followed Fernando’s lead; if he trusted Cal, she did, too. Her memories of terror from ten years ago were buried just below the surface, easy to access but hidden deep enough to allow herself to function in daily life.

  “Did he hurt you?” Cal asked.

  Fernando watched Cal’s gaze move from Margo to himself before dropping it to the floor. He seemed embarrassed by his own question. “Not sexually, if that’s what you’re asking.” Fernando raked gloved fingers through his dark locks of hair. “But physically, yes. It was painful. So many experiments, and for what? Now, we only recruit and train for him. He pays us well, at least.”

  “What are your powers?”

  “I can fly,” Margo beamed. Despite all the terrible things she had endured, the ability to fly was the best thing that had happened to her.

  Fernando rubbed his jaw as he stared at the paella pan, ashamed his power was not spectacular like Margo’s. “It’s easier if I show you.”

  Cal stood from his chair, raising an eyebrow. Fernando took off his gloves and touched a houseplant near the kitchen sink. Within seconds, the plant disintegrated into a pile of ashes in the orange cera
mic pot.

  “My hands can destroy any living thing other than myself.” Fernando splayed his fingers and rotated his hands as if they no longer belonged to him. “Well, technically not ‘destroy,’ as Ted reminds me, since energy can be neither created nor destroyed. But I reduce living things to ash and dust. I can’t touch anyone. I haven’t touched a person in ten years. So I wear these, to keep people safe.” Fernando slipped his black leather gloves back on and held out his hands.

  He dipped his head down, reluctant to see Cal’s reaction. Fernando had always been ashamed of his need for gloves. His power isolated him, making him feel like a monster. He worked hard everyday to prove that he was so much more than his destructive abilities.

  Cal tapped the smooth glove with his fingertips; he seemed more curious than repulsed by Fernando’s powers. That was unexpected. “I’m sorry.”

  “Not as sorry as I am, believe me.” Fernando looked into Cal’s eyes. He felt a fluttering in his belly, surprised by Cal’s bold curiosity and compassion. Cal was the first person to touch his gloved hands. It felt miraculous, like a warmth that spread from his hands to his toes. He cleared his throat and headed into the kitchen to grab three plates.

  Margo held back a smile when she saw Fernando’s face light up as he turned toward the kitchen. Her brother had taken quite the leap, trusting someone new with his secrets. Cal’s reaction surprised her, too. He was either brave or a fool to touch Fernando. “And your powers? It seems you have more than one.” Margo glanced at Cal as he returned to the table.

  “I can fly, like you. Well, not as good as you can I’m sure. And I have super strength. I busted out of my cell with one push.”

  “And?” Fernando asked while he served them dinner, filling each of their plates.

  “That’s it.”

  Margo and Fernando exchanged glances but stayed quiet.

  “This looks delicious. Muchas gracias.” Cal glanced at Fernando.

  “El placer es mío.” Fernando winked.

  Cal blushed and stared at his food.

  Margo shoved her brother’s knee to reprimand him.

  “He understands Spanish, no?” Fernando grinned at Cal’s flushed face.

  “Yeah, I do. I took four years in high school, and I would have studied more in college…but I dropped out. But I speak it at work sometimes.”

  “Impressive.” Fernando turned his head to look at his sister. “See? He understands, Margo.”

  “A simple de nada would have sufficed.”

  “Do you guys have superhero names?” Cal asked, clearly trying to break the tension at the table.

  “Magenta,” Margo beamed. “My favorite color.”

  Fernando rolled his eyes and answered, “Funesto.”

  “That’s a cool name.” Cal nodded to himself. “Fu-nes-to.” He let the word roll over his tongue. “Very mysterious.”

  Cal took a bite of the paella Fernando had served. Fernando gave a satisfied smile as he watched Cal close his eyes and chew.

  While he ate, Fernando and Margo did their best to explain what was happening to Cal. They knew from experienced he’d be wondering what would happen next, what Dr. Almighty would expect from him. He kept unconsciously touching his own neck while they talked, probably feeling the scabs.

  He shot up to his feet in a panic, startling them both. “I think I’m starting to understand.” His voice shook. “A man experimented on me and gave me superpowers?”

  Fernando got up from his chair to join him. “Yes. I know it’s scarier than getting magical powers from a meteor shower, but it’s true.”

  “What do you think he did to me while I was unconscious? What does he want from me?” Cal paled at the thought.

  “Cal, slow down, take a breath.” Margo shifted in her chair.

  “We’re not sure yet,” Fernando confessed, trying to meet Cal’s blank stare.

  “This is all starting to feel a lot more…real. I need fresh air or some cold water on my face.” Margo could see sweat beading on Cal’s forehead and she felt for him.

  “The bathroom is at the end of the hall.” Margo pointed. She recognized the fear in his eyes from how she had felt ten years ago upon waking to her new ability.

  Cal headed toward the bathroom and when he was out of earshot, Fernando turned to his sister. “He’s the one we’ve been waiting for.”

  Margo shook her head. “I still worry that he’s too timid. He ran the moment he woke up. How can he help us fight?”

  “Cal is the one who can stop Ted. I know it,” Fernando insisted. “We’ve wanted to break free for so long. Now we can.”

  “Perhaps you are desperate after waiting for help so many years,” Margo warned. “And blinded by his beauty.”

  Fernando averted his eyes from her knowing gaze. Cal’s mesmerizing blue eyes and broad shoulders were so inconvenient for a man who couldn’t touch anyone. “No, he’s the one.”

  “Fine. If he’ll agree to it, we can train him secretly. No reason to tell Dr. Almighty we have his beloved prize.”

  * * *

  Cal stood in the bathroom at the Vazquez’s loft for a few moments longer. His face was dripping with water as he held onto their white porcelain sink. He picked up a fluffy white hand towel embroidered with a red letter V and dried his face.

  He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. His eyes looked different today, more determined than usual. “You saved both our lives today,” continued to echo in his head.

  A buzzing notification interrupted his thoughts. Cal reached for his phone and saw two messages from Jin.

  I wanted to talk to you about moving in together. Gary and your mom were house hunting today.

  I know it’s late, but can you call me tonight?

  Cal gripped the phone. He could lift a car with his bare hands to rescue a trapped little girl, but he lacked the courage to call his boyfriend. Putting it away, he headed for the kitchen.

  Margo and Fernando had been waiting for him in silence. Fernando’s hands were in tight fists and Margo tapped her right foot back and forth.

  Fernando took a step forward as he entered. “Cal-”

  “Wait. I’d like to say something.”

  Fernando looked over at Margo, catching her curious gaze. He motioned to Cal, allowing him to speak first.

  Cal thanked Fernando with a nod. He came off tough with his scruffy face and dark gloves. But he provided a warm meal. And he was damn good at coming up with superhero names. His eyes shifted to Margo with her easy smile and kind brown eyes. She felt trustworthy. He felt safer with them around, knowing he wasn’t the only one abducted by the man they called Dr. Almighty.

  “I saved someone today, and it felt pretty damn good. I ran into something scary and helped people. Never thought I’d be someone’s hero.”

  He heard Margo gasp and then pop her mouth shut like she was holding her breath.

  “But I hurt myself.”

  Fernando rubbed his jaw. Cal felt his eyes study him up and down.

  “I have these powers, but I don’t know how to use them. Part of me wants to run away and forget about this, but I can’t. I don’t want to run.” Cal stared at Fernando on that last line. He tried to ignore the slight blush betrayed by Fernando’s fair skin.

  “So, what I’m asking is, will you train me? Teach me how to use these powers, so I can help people?” Cal clasped his hands together and anxiously awaited their response.

  Margo jumped. “Yes!”

  “You will?”

  “Claro,” Fernando grinned.

  “Thank you!” Cal hugged Margo. Relief washed over him as the knots in his stomach loosened. His fears of being alone in this had been extinguished. He turned to Fernando, but he had already taken a step back.

  “I usually make it a habit not to touch anyone,” he explained.

  “But…you’re wearing gloves.”

  “I can never be too careful. I would never forgive myself if someone died from the power of my hands.” Fernando fixed h
is gaze on them.

  Cal had an urge to touch Fernando’s shoulder, to comfort him even though he didn’t know him well, but he held back. He had to respect his rules, even though Cal realized he had broken one already by tapping his gloved hand in the kitchen. Cal did not know the burden of such destructive power. He didn’t think he wanted to.

  Margo looked at Cal and her brother before clearing her throat. “We’ll train tomorrow morning. For now, sleep in the guest room. I’ll show you there.”

  “Good night, Fernando.”

  Fernando nodded at him.

  “This will be your room,” she told him when they arrived down the hall. “I’m excited to have a guest. No one has ever stayed at our place.”

  “It’s a nice room.” Cal liked the blue bedroom set and the photos of Barcelona on the walls.

  “My room is next to yours and Fernando’s is across the hall if you need anything.”

  “Thanks,” Cal walked around the room. The only thing missing was a window. “Margo, who trained you and your brother?”

  “We are self-taught. A lot of trial and error. Dr. Almighty has no superpowers, so he did not know how to teach us to use ours. But he’s a very intelligent man, and he tutored us in academics until I was twenty-one and Fernando was twenty-three.”

  “Oh.”

  “After that, he gave us this gorgeous apartment, a BMW, and money. Lots of cash. But in return, he asked us to recruit and train for him as he developed more types of superpowers.”

  “I see.” Cal didn’t want to judge them, but it seemed greedy to help Dr. Almighty kidnap people in exchange for a few nice things. Then again, Cal imagined it would be a tempting offer after losing their freedom and the comfort of home.

  “Who could say no to this? We were well off back home, even as the economy in Spain floundered. Our parents must have assumed the worst. I guess they have carried on with their lives. Fernando has been too afraid to find them. He’s so ashamed of his powers. So, we stayed here with Ted. It hasn’t been all bad.”