I stood on the roof of the tallest building in my town, looking down on the law-abiding civilians as they went about their duties and concerns.
The moon was high in the night sky, the town was quiet and the breeze blew through the streets. It was the perfect picture of peace, just as I liked it. Although I knew it would never last for long.
My name is the Silverman, I am a superhero that got my powers through some failed experiments conducted by a quack doctor. He had been testing his new drug that was meant to improve visibility by over 200%, and instead, my strength and speed had increased. And I also realized I could fly. I decided to use my powers to protect my people.
As it turned out, I was not the only one who the doctor had tried to experiment on and failed woefully. He had also created the Shadow. A man who could phase through solid metal and also use gravity to manipulate both density and mass. The Shadow was my arch-enemy, for years we have battled all over the streets of my town, I have sent him to prison countless times but he always breaks out and comes back to haunt me. And he is the one always responsible for disrupting the peace.
I could have killed him, just to make sure he is truly gone for good, but I had a code I lived by. I could never kill anyone, regardless of their crimes. I always let the law decide the fate of each villain I caught.
The last few days had been without much excitement, I had just sent The Shadow to jail which was the reason for the peace and quiet in the town. So I was expecting the night to go without any issue.
Until the explosion went off.
It was far away. In the chemical plant, huge balls of fire went up as orange flames roared up into the sky.
At once, I launched into the sky and flew towards the flames, flying above the buildings as I tried to fly faster. I had to evacuate all the workers at the plant and then figure out a way to stop the fire, I hoped the fire department had also heard the explosion and was also on their way. It was after everyone was safe and happy that I would focus on finding out the cause of the outbreak.
Getting to the plant, I spun in the air and landed on the ground with a thud. I hurriedly kicked the door open, knocking it off the hinges as I made my way inside. The place was filled with smoke and roaring flames, I could feel the burning heat but my special suit could withstand it.
I kept going deeper, looking for people trapped in the building. I kept knocking down doors, leaving the places open so the heat won’t cause them to jam up. It was after over ten minutes of searching in the searing heat that I realized there was no one in the entire plant. The outbreak might have been the result of a fault. Now I had to quench the fire.
I launched into the air once more, punching through the roof as I soared into the night sky. The fire trucks were already on their way, as I made to fly towards them I felt something hard and heavy slam into my back.
I fell hard, crashing into the plant, taking a chunk of it down with me. This seemed to escalate the fire, causing it to swell even more. I climbed to my feet and turned to see a dark-dressed man floating eerily towards me. I had never seen him before.
“Who the hell are you?” I asked as I bunched my hands into fists.
“My name is The Taker,” his voice was thick and had a deep base to it. “And this city now belongs to me.”
“Not under my watch.” I cried as I launched myself towards him, I raised my hand for the punch, pumping all my power into it. As I got to him, just before the blow could connect, a transparent shield suddenly encircled him. And I crashed fully into the shield, it was solid. I slid off it and fell to the ground. Then as if punched by an invisible fist, I was pulled through the air and into the side of a parked truck causing it to turn on its head.
The fight was very embarrassing and very short. I could not touch him, no matter how hard I tried, but he could do all he wanted to me. For the last time that night, I fell to the ground and remained still, I didn’t have any energy to go on.
The Taker landed on the ground and placed his foot on my chest, “this town is too small for you and me, so you have to leave. And I’ll be glad to help you.”
He pulled out what looked like a dagger, it was glowing yellow and I knew at once it would be very dangerous for me. This had to be it, there was no way I was going to survive this. Then he raised the dagger.
Suddenly, a black mist appeared behind him, zooming at top speed towards The Taker. At once the shield came up, protecting him. But the mist simply went through the shield and formed into the smiling figure of The Shadow.
“How did you…” The Taker muttered, “That is impossible.”
“Not to me,” Shadow muttered as he grabbed hold of his belt and yanked it off. The shield dissolved at once, The Taker made to run but I surged forward and punched him hard, knocking him out at once.
I turned then to Shadow, the hero I would never have thought of, “why did you save me?”
“It’s a selfish reason Silverman, you belong to me.”
“No, I don’t.”
“Yes, you do. You’re my arch enemy, and so the only person that can ever hurt you is me. I only saved you today just so I can beat the shit out of you later; it’s just an ego thing.”
“You’re a sick man, and why the hell are you out? Can’t you just stay in prison like a good criminal?”
“I heard The Taker was in town, and I was sure you would never be able to take him on your own. So I had to break my way out. Some of the guards at the facility are hurt though, pretty badly I may add. They tried to stop me, and I didn’t like it. So, you can try to arrest me again, or you will go and save them.”
Before I could even make up my mind he dissolved into a mist once more and sped off into the night. With a sigh, I hurled the comatose body of The Taker and launched into the air.
I would make sure the guards at the holding facility are okay, and then give The Taker his cell there.
And then, I would continue my war against Shadow.
As usual.
The End.
This story was inspired by the prompt for this week which is Unlikely Hero. Feel free to try it out.
Thank you for reading.
Feel free to contact me via my Discord handle below:
bruno-kema#1355