6-Nov-2020
No dice this time. Just writing whatever.
Jack and I sat perched on the top of a chain link fence. Below us, a group of cute, high school, girls walked by. I took in every detail. The way they held their books in their arms, they way they leaned closer to someone when they wanted to tell them a secret, and the way they walked without looking over their shoulder to see if anything was following them.
“You’re making the face again, Val” Jack said.
“So?” I tore my eyes away from the girls and glared at him. “We’re out here on watch duty in the most boring spot in the whole city because you decided blowing up the hot dog stand at the fair was more important than keeping a low profile.”
Jack glared right back and jabbed his thumb at his chest. “If I hadn’t stopped them, those two Dominants would have followed those kids home.”
I sniffed. “Maybe, but you could have gone with my plan and trapped them in one of the gaming booths.”
“And risk them slipping away?” He looked incredulous.
“And keeping us from stupid guard duty.”
Jack’s voice grew quiet. “Is this about the boy you saw change last week?”
Now it was my turn to glare. “No.”
He held my gaze. He knew me way too well. I looked away, noting the next group of kids to walk by us. These wore dark clothes with dark makeup and did their very best to create a dark aura around them.
If only they knew what darkness really was. They still smiled. I didn’t remember the last time I’d seen any of our people smile.
For once Jack left me to my thoughts. My brooding. I turned my attention to the school and the surrounding sports fields. There hadn’t been a Dominant attack in broad daylight in months, but Soll had heard rumblings about this location, so two of us had been watching it for the past few weeks.
I almost longed for a Domi to show up. My fingers flexed, and my skin warmed.
“Calm it down, Val. I can’t contain your powers and keep us invisible.”
He was also allowing us to sit on the fence with no discomfort. I took a breath and let it out slowly. A couple walked by, oblivious to the world around them as they kissed.
“Impressive,” Jack said. “I’ve never seen anyone kiss and walk at the same time that smoothly before.”
“Looking for pointers?” I asked with a smirk. Jack had been trying to get Lucy to notice him. Unfortunately, she preferred the quiet type, not the guy who blew stuff up.
“Shut up.” Jack faked a pout.
I grinned. At least a few of us could still dredge up some humor.
A group of three boys walked by, all crowded around one phone. They were listening to a podcast report of what had happened the night before.
“These Glories, as they call themselves, are a menace.”
“And the Domi’s?”
“Same. Anyone who’s changed needs to get help instead of tearing up the world.”
One of the boys commented. “I still say they’re making all of this up, and no one really has powers.”
“I want powers,” one of the other boys said.
“What would you be, the master of math?”
The boys laughed.
My grin faded.
“Idiots,” Jack said.
“At least they’re ignorant idiots,” I said.
“I’d rather know.”
I considered. “You don’t want to be normal again?”
Jack shrugged. “Not really.”
“But you had lots of friends. You were popular.”
“And now I have powers that will eventually make me crazy. There’s nothing I can do about it.”
I knew he was right.
“What’s this obsession with being normal again?” Jack asked. He’d never been so forward about it before.
“I—I feel like I missed out on so much. School. Dating. Prom. Football games. Instead of wondering if anyone is going to ask me to homecoming, I’m wondering when the next time I’ll put my life on the line to save people who don’t even believe in us.”
Jack arched an eyebrow. “If you could be normal for one day, what would you do?”
That was easy. I’d thought about this a lot. “See my family. Then go ice skating.”
“Ice skating?”
I waved a hand, and a small flame surrounded it for a moment before it went out. “Even with the suppression fields I’m too hot to stand on ice. I melt through it in less than a minute.”
Jack regarded me. “Is there someone special you’d like to go ice skating with?”
“My friends.” Peter. I swallowed. Peter had been killed when the Domi’s had found out about my powers and tried to snatch me away. I’d only had powers for a few days, and I’d honestly thought I’d had the flu.
Wrong.
A scream sounded.
Jack and I both stood and looked toward the noise.
The goth kids were running away from the couple that had walked by. A green glow surrounded the couple, who were still kissing.
“Call it in,” Jack said as he jumped down to the ground. His field took me there too, and as soon as my feet hit the grass I clicked on my radio.
“Soll, this is Val, we’ve got Domi’s at the school. Two of them. Kissing and glowing green.” I didn’t wait for an answer as I dashed after Jack. He might be able to contain them, or I might have to turn them to human slag.
Just another day in the life of a Glory.
Just another step toward the day when I’d become a Domi.
