Super14

“Change the car.”

“What?”

The gunshots are flying everywhere. We didn't make it far at all. I can hear the alarms at the hall of heroes. Snipers have already taken out the wheels and are dangerously close to aiming at Vigor and I. Bullets have even made it to the windows. Vigor has his arm over me at that moment. He has changed the density of his skin in order to protect both of us from the bullets. Even with an armored man covering me up I feel like any moment a bullet can sneak through a small patch and I'd be dead.

So much for our plan...

If Vigor is scared, I don't see it. His face is serious as fuck when he turns to me and demands, “Change this motherfucker to a bulldozer. We're going through the hard way.”

I look at the car we are sitting in. Vigor is so sure that I'm capable of doing something like this. A bulldozer is double the size of a car. It's complicated to transmute in that way. Vigor doesn't think that it's a problem though.

I see him leaning over to me at that moment. It's like he's giving me strength. I feel my body tremble underneath his touch. I close my eyes. I begin to picture the car changing. I picture the slick black metal stretching out. I picture in my mind the heavy tracks on the bulldozers. I see in my mind the heavy metal plate on the front of the tractor, fitting straight across the frame.

Then I think...why stop there.

By the time I'm done I just fall over Vigor putting my head on his shoulder.

“Open your eyes. Look what you did,” Vigor tells me.

I open my eyes at that moment.

“Oh shit.”

I'm actually shocked that my bulldozer is the dopest bulldozer I've ever seen in my life. It's an armored bulldozer. It's fitted with armor to protect the driver from the enemy fire. Vigor and I are sitting in the armored cabin and he is looking around with a look of true appreciation. Truth is I don't know how this came about. I don't realize how serious this is.

“You ready?” he asks me.

I see the gunmen around us. They are amazed at the fact that we are not in a small car anymore. We are in a fucking moving armored wrecking ball.

They are shooting at us from above the Hall of Hero fence. Helicopters have left the hall of heroes. It seems as though Philip Leaf knew we would be desperate enough to attack him. He was waiting for us to come back and try to stop his crazy plan. Moreover, we were just crazy enough to do it.

I hold Vigor's hand and together we change gears.

“Let's go get this motherfucker.”

I don't know if Vigor is rubbing off on me or not because I sound more like him than myself. Regardless Vigor smiles at me and changes gears. We are rolling forward quick! Guns are firing at us. Not just guns either. Rocket launchers come flailing down at us from the helicopters. Machine guns are amping up all around us. Sniper fire is attempting to take us out. The slat armor protects us against all of it though. We're still moving and we're going faster.

Before I know it, we take down the fence completely. The gunmen are running like little ants when they realize nothing they do can stop the armored truck that I just created. My heart is racing as soon as the fence comes down. It's another 100 feet to the actual entrance of the hall of heroes.

“Vigor look,” I state.

“They are out early.”

I notice who it is. The hero Phoenix Fire has come out to defend the hall of heroes. He's flying overhead. I've noticed what he's doing. He's summoning the Phoenix for us. Vigor is moving faster as ashes fill up the sky. Just at that moment, a giant bird the size of a three-story building emerges from the ashes with fiery wings.

My heart is races as I look at the size of this thing that Phoenix fire has summoned. I watch as Phoenix Fire jumps on TOP of the bird and is riding the motherfucker as if it's a flying horse.

“VIGOR!”

My heart is racing.

The bird drops on the bulldozer. It starts to tear away the metal. My heart is racing as Vigor attempts to swerve and get this giant bird off of us. The bird is ripping away the metal at that moment attempting as hard as it can to stop us.

“Calm down bae...”

I can't believe he's calm right now. He has this serious face on like he's playing chess or something instead of driving a bulldozer that is being attacked by a giant fucking bird! I feel heat all around us and the bird is clawing through the armor surrounding the bulldozer. My heart is racing. I feel the birds hard beak hitting hard on the top of the bulldozer.

THUNK! THUNK! THUNK!

We are swerving. We are finding it hard to stay steady.

“Vigor what the fuck are we going to do...”

Vigor looks me in my eyes, “I'm going to need you to take the wheel.”

“Of the bulldozer?”

He nods, “I'm going out there.”

“FUCK NO!”

I don't even have time to stop Vigor. Before I know it, he's kicking out the door of the armored bulldozer with his armored foot and jumping out. I almost forgot Vigor could fly until I see him float away from the bulldozer and take off into the air like speeding bullet headed towards the flying bird. He torpedoes with his fists first right at the bird knocking the bird completely off of the bulldozer.

I take the wheel and all of a sudden, I realize that I don't know how to drive this thing!

I look up at the sky and see my man seriously going at it with this bird. It's like instead of one of those Japanese people running from Godzilla they turned around and decided to whoop Godzilla's ass. I can barely see Vigor as the Phoenix takes off into the sky. The Phoenix is aggressively trying to squash Vigor like he's an annoying bee.

I'm mesmerized by it all. I'm mesmerized by how fast Vigor is. I'm mesmerized that when he hits this giant fucking bird it actually seems to feel it. You would think they were the same size by how Vigor is flying around this bird and boxing it. The bird is thrashing at Vigor with his sharp beaks and each time he seems to get closer and closer to Vigor.

I'm not even paying attention to where I'm going!

I smash into the side of the building at that moment, completely tearing down a wall and feeling my head hit the window in front of me. Blood is pouring down my forehead and into my eyes. I can feel my back snap and I know that I've injured something but I'm too scared to sit around and wonder what it is.

Vigor.

I have to help Vigor.

Vigor is the only thing I have on my mind when I jump my dumb ass out of the truck. Almost immediately, I feel a bullet thrust through my arm. The guards have followed me into the crash on the side of the building and they are shooting at me.

I jump back into the armored truck. My arm is in pain. Every part of me just moans and screams as the bullet vibrates through my body.

Then I think about Vigor again.

I put the truck in reverse and I'm headed back. I hear the gunmen behind me screaming in pain and scattering. I'm sure I hit a few. As I put the bulldozer in reverse, I'm literally running over a few bodies. I take my ass all the way out into the parking lot and that's where I see him. I see Vigor there in the sky. He's battling the Phoenix.

I hop out of the car. My head is bleeding. My arm is bleeding from the blood. I see that one of the guys shooting at me is lying dead on the floor. He had a rifle lying beside him. I grab the rifle and think about using it to shoot at the fucking huge bird in the sky but then I realize it won't be enough to hurt the bird. Especially not a bird that size and at that distance.

Therefore, I change it to a rocket launcher.

“C`mon motherfucker...stand still,” I'm talking to myself.

The Phoenix has Vigor in its claws. It had dragged Vigor to the ground. Vigor is looking at the bird. He's attempting to keep the birds claws from digging past his skin. He's looks at the bird. He looks at me. Then Vigor does the dumbest thing. He points. He says something like, “Watch out stupid!” or something to that effect.

I don't know what he's talking about. The bird is over him and he's worried about me like an idiot! It's about to kill him.

It's about to fucking kill my man!

Then I realize what Vigor was trying to warn me about. To the left I hear the sounds of more gunmen. They are coming. They are running up. I can use the rocket launcher to save myself from the approaching gunmen or I can use the rocket launcher to get this bird off of Vigor.

I choose the latter.

I love him. I would do whatever it takes to protect him even if the gunmen snipe at me maybe I'll have enough time to kill the bird before it kills Vigor.

I have this fucking rocket launcher in my left hand. My right arm is way too fucked up to worry about. I'm bleeding from my forehead and it's fucking up my vision completely. All I can do is look up in the sky at Vigor, struggling with this fucking bird. The bird is huge and it's beginning to get the better of him.

I need to fire, but what if I miss. What if I miss the bird and get Vigor?

What if I kill Vigor with this fucking thing?

I can't see.

I'm panicking!

What if! WHAT IF I...

“Give me that.”

The voice at that moment sounds like an angel come down from the Earth. When I turn to my right and see Fem Fatale, it's more like a demon from hell. She's standing in her red flaring skirt with her hands out. I want to run into her fucking arms out of excitement.

“Fem! You came.”

“The rocket launcher, GIVE ME THE ROCKET LAUNCHER!” she is screaming at me.

I quickly hand her the rocket launcher. She lets loose with her more the perfect aim just in time. I watch as the bird disintegrates into ashes.

At that very moment gunshots ring towards me from the approaching gunmen but the gunshots don't get far. There is a wall of fucking ice protecting me from the bullets.

Icebox, The Thinkers, Fem Fatale, Ghost, and Madame Motions are there with us. I have no doubt that Madame Motions transported them into the fighting zone.

“Let’s go inside,” Fem is grabbing my hand.

“Vigor.”

“Vigor's coming. Let's go inside.”

I know why she is panicking. The helicopters are still flying around. More gunmen are attempting to come through. I watch as the Thinkers take out the gunmen. Somehow, they are able to read the gunmen’s minds and honestly dodge bullets. The Thinkers take out the gunmen with ease doing moves that honestly remind me of the Matrix. I feel relieved they are there when I see how quickly they work. I definitely don't see them as being any type of suburban couple anymore when Mrs. Thinker dodges a bullet just in time for her husband to sneak behind the shooter and snap his neck.

We are in the lobby at that moment with the Thinkers guarding us with guns. My heart is racing as I look around. I did see the bird disappear but Vigor is still out there alone.

“I need to go back out there.”

“Are you serious? Look at your condition,” he responds, “You've been shot.”

I look the bullet wound. He's right. I'm in pain but I'd be in more pain if Vigor was really in trouble out there. I needed to go back out there for him and make sure that the gunmen didn't get him after Fem Fatale took out the bird. What if other heroes were around? Vigor was outside by himself and we were walled up in the lobby.

“Vigor is out there alone!” I respond again.

“You need to go home. Madame Motions, take him out of here,” Icebox states.

“You aren't the boss of me,” I explain, “Vigor is the leader.”

Icebox rolls his eyes, “You're so fucking annoying. Don't you know that? Vigor would probably feel better about you being safe. We'll take care of things. You are useless to us now. Look at you!”

He's stresses the word useless as though I'm a fucking corpse already. A part of me knows that Icebox isn't coming from a bad place. He's probably right about the fact that Vigor would feel better if he knew I was safe.

“Leave him be,” Fem Fatale replies, “I like it. Materias is a ride or die. Clearly...emphasis on the die part, but if you were in that position I'd do the same thing for you.”

Icebox is struggling with it. I know he still wants Madame Motions to get me the fuck out of here but it doesn't matter. I'm not leaving without Vigor. I don't care what he says. Icebox hears what his girlfriend says to him and he's looking at me with that same annoyance that he's always looked at me with.

“You're a stubborn piece of shit,” Icebox tells me, “You know that?”

“Wouldn't be the first time someone told me that,” I respond.

Vigor has made sure to stress that.

Icebox seems to give in then, “Ok. Fine. We go back for Vigor.”

We started to head outside at that moment but just as we make our way to the crushed wall that was taken out by the bulldozer I see the familiar face of Vicious Vigor walk into the room. He's not alone. He has Phoenix Fire dangling underneath him like a fucking doll. Phoenix Fire holds onto his neck at that moment.

He throws Phoenix Fire on the floor like the powerhouse I can only imagine Vigor is. I can't help but to run over to him at that moment.

For a moment, I think he was going to push me away by how shocked he look that I was running to him. I mean this was Vicious Vigor. This wasn't some lover. All the affection Vigor and I had really shown each other had been in private until now. Now that I'm running over to him, he opens his arms. He grabs me. He swings me around and holds me tight.

“I was fucking scared as shit,” I tell Vigor.

He smiles, “I told you that you better not get scared.”

Vigor pulls me close and kisses me. I'm shocked by it. I'm shocked that we are in the middle of a mission, in the middle of all the members of the Division of Disaster and Vigor is kissing me. The kiss is...passionate. His tongue enters my mouth. He squeezes onto my ass as though claiming it in front of everyone. His lifts me up when he cups my butt and his tongue ravages through my mouth over and over getting deeper and deeper.

The only thing that stops him is Ghost who lets out an awkward, “Eh erm.”

Fem Fatale laughs about it, “I think I need to change my panties. That was sexy.”

Madame Motions rolls her eyes at Fem, “We all know that you don't wear panties. Classless---”

Icebox is annoyed, “Guys. It's not the time to be arguing or taking jabs or each other. Vigor...Boss...with all due respect. I'm happy and what not that you have a soul and all. Or found it underneath all that meanness...but we have a job to do.”

Vigor shakes his head, “Ease up Icebox.”

Everyone is shocked at that moment. Serious ass Vicious Vigor was telling someone else to ease up. I couldn't believe it.

Just at that moment, we see Phoenix Fire at his feet. He's attempting to run but he doesn't make it far as Madame Motions teleports right in front of him, grabs his hand and brings him all the way back. As soon as he gets back, Vigor punches him solidly in his stomach and makes him fall over to the ground.

We all look down at Phoenix Fire who is squirming in pain.

“Where are the other villains?” I ask Phoenix Fire.

He looks up at me. He refuses to answer. A part of me wonders if it's because he can't. Vigor probably did a number on him outside because he's beat up. His once handsome face is now swollen to the point that I can barely recognize him if it weren't for his costume.

“You heard him,” Vigor replied.

“Just kill me. You've already killed my phoenix,” Phoenix Fire is saying, “There's no point.”

“There are worse things than Death,” Icebox says.

He looks like he's ready to freeze Phoenix Fire alive before Vigor stops him. Vigor motions for the Thinkers to come forward and at that moment the couple make their way up. Within a matter of seconds of staring at him, staring at each other and then staring at Vigor, they are able to deliver Vigor exactly the answer to the question he wants to know.

“The other heroes have...” Mrs. Thinker starts.

“Refused to fight,” Mr. Thinker states.

“They are...” Mrs. Thinker starts, “In the dining hall.”

Phoenix Fire realizes that his mind is not his own with the Thinkers around and probably just gives in to letting us know the information, “Cowards. They are all cowards. They are saying they no longer trust Philip Leaf after he killed Ashley on television. They are saying they won't support him. It won't matter. We don't need them anyway. We have an army of other superheroes.”

His use of the word superheroes is ridiculous.

“We'll stop Mind Meld, we kill Mind Meld. If the other heroes are not fighting it'll be easy,” I tell the others feeling all of a sudden like Ashley Keeper just did us a huge favor with his sacrifice.

Laughter happens though.

Phoenix Fire is laughing.

Fem Fatale looks shaken up when she asks him, “What the fuck is so funny?”

Phoenix Fire doesn't answer her. He's just laughing at that moment. That's when we hear footsteps coming from down the hallway. Its eerie harsh, familiar footsteps that I've heard before. My heart is racing at that moment.

I don't need the Thinkers to tell me what's coming but they don't hesitate to do it anyway.

“Not all the heroes have decided not to fight,” Mr. Thinker starts off.

“Mayor Moral is coming...” Mrs. Thinker finishes.

The steps walking down the hall scare the fuck out of me.

The steps are heavy.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

My heart drops at that moment.

“Fuck.”

Mayor Moral is in the room right now. He stands with his chest up, Superman in the flesh. My heart is racing when I see him in the lobby looking dead at us. Vigor doesn't hesitate to go forward. Mayor Moral is clearly ready to kill all of us and the scary thing is I feel like he can do it. I've seen Mayor Moral fight. Nothing can stop him. Not even Vigor.

“We can't defeat him,” I warn them.

Vigor shakes his head, “We die trying.”

“No...” Icebox argues.

Vigor looks over at Icebox, “You're really starting to feel yourself lately huh? I gave you an order. I told you this was a suicide mission. I warned you. If you decided to come you are going to follow my orders.”

“No...” Icebox says again, “You and Materias can go. Madame Moral can get you past him without getting hurt.”

“You all cannot defeat him. You don't get what I'm saying,” I respond.

They have no idea what the Mayor is capable of. He is walking teflon. Vigor has to turn his skin hard. The Mayor literally is like that all the time. He had no limits. He couldn't have had limits. I shake my head at the thought of the Mayor doing exactly what he did to my old team to my new team. I can't help but to be petrified at the thought of it.

“I'll fight him with you all. Materias can go on his own,” Vigor suggests.

“No. The two of you are the best of us. You need one another. You work better together,” Fem Fatale, adds at that moment, “You complete each other.”

Icebox nods in agreement, “It has to be the two of you.”

“We'll hold them back,” Ghost, agrees, “He can't hurt what he can't hold onto...”

The others are smiling but I don't know how I feel. Sure Ghost was great and the Thinkers may be able to help Fem Fatale and Icebox make an offensive stance. It didn't matter though. When it came to the man of steel, nothing really mattered. The mayor would kill them.

“Maybe if we all stayed...” I suggest.

“No, No time, they are right,” Mayor Morals says, “Madame...”

Madame Motions grabs onto my hand and Vigor's hand. Before I can say anything else, the dramatic old queen teleports us on the other side of the Mayor.

The Mayor turns and seems ready to launch towards Vigor, Madame Motions and I but Icebox stops him but enveloping him in a block of solid ice.

My heart races wondering if Icebox was really able to stop the Mayor that easily. Maybe it was just me being hopeful. Maybe I was just hoping that my friends would actually make it out of this safely.

As I look closer, though I can see the ice immediately beginning to crack as soon as it envelops the Mayor. The Mayor is breaking out of it.

“RUN! GET OUT OF HERE!” Icebox warns us from across the room.

I notice him holding onto Fem's hand. I notice the Thinkers doing the same. I wonder if they all know they are about to really get into the fight of their lives. They are risking all of it fighting the Mayor. I want to go back to help them so much but I feel Vigor and Madame Motions pulling me down the hallway.

“Mind Meld is going to have extra security,” Vigor explains.

“I doubt it,” I respond, “Not with the Mayor guarding the Halls. They don't need extra security.”

That's when I see Madame Motions stop, “I'm going back.”

We both look at Madame Motions.

“What?” Vigor asks, “You won't be much help to them...”

“I won't be much help here either,” Madame Motions, explains, “I'm tired of being your metahuman Uber. I can fight too. I can help them.”

Vigor looks at the old lady.

“If they are losing...if they aren't going to make it. Get them out of there,” Vigor tells the old lady.

Madame Motions smiles half nervous and half sensitive, “We never planned on abandoning you boss. I hope you know that. It just took us longer to gather our courage. Not everyone is as brave as your little lover here.”

She mops my head at that moment as though I'm a little dog.

“Be careful.”

“Wait,” Madame Motions says, “I almost forgot. Your friend wanted to talk to you. He said it was urgent. He told me to bring you this earpiece. He's back at the lair...”

“Scanman.”

She nods. Madame Motions hands me the earpiece and as soon as she does, she disappears in a flash. I look at Vigor. He doesn't show emotions but he stares into the empty hallway at that moment. His entire team is in danger right now and there is nothing that he can do about it. There is no way that he can stop them.

“Let's keep moving,” Vigor says with a solemnness that I know is his normal sense of duty.

I put the earpiece in my ear at that moment as we walk down the hallway. Vigor is taking out all the guards that clear our path with an intensity that I haven't seen before.

“Scan...scan are you there?” I ask in the earpiece.

“Yes. I'm here. I have news for you.”

“What is it?”

Vigor and I go around a corner at that moment. I watch the gunmen open fire at Vigor. He stops them by making his skin hard. He rushes them slamming them into the wall before they get a chance to open fire on me. Every time I attempt to catch up to him he runs faster making sure that he's the one taking out everyone first. I guess he wants to be sure that if they shoot at anyone it'd be him since he had the ability to deflect bullets.

“I know who a healer is...”

“What?”

“Fem told me about Vigor when you guys left. You should have told me earlier. I know how to save Vigor. It's a long shot though.”

“How?”

“Cleanse. He has healing powers...”

“For wounds though.”

“No. I met him once...a long time ago and I scanned him. I was able to see that he had healing powers that worked on all types of diseases as well...including viruses.”

Stupid. I'm so dumb. Cleanse had healing powers. I was so worried about protecting Vigor's secret that I didn't realize telling Scanman about Vigor's secret might honestly help.

“Thanks Scan.”

I realize where I am now. Straight down the hallway and down a flight of stairs is where Mind Meld is. I can easily lead Vigor to Mind meld but instead I grab him.

“It's this way...”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

I know I'm lying but for me saving Vigor was more important than saving humans. I needed to make sure he was good. I loved him. There was no way that I was going to let him die.

I lead him down the hallway and into the dining room that I remember. I open the doors at that moment and sure enough, the heroes are there.

“What the fuck is this?” Lady Liberty asks standing at that moment.

Hurricane Sandy, Kid Lightning, Bulldozer, Lady Liberty and Cleanse are sitting at the table. They all get up. They are alarmed and I immediately know why. Vigor is there. They probably react to Vigor in the same way that villains react to the Mayor.

The fear in their eyes is unmistakable.

“It's the day you die,” Vigor says, stepping forward.

“STOP!” I grab Vigor by his arm holding him back at that moment.

The other heroes look like they are ready to defend themselves. Luckily for me Vigor listens enough not to just up and attack these people.

“We don't want to fight,” Kid Lightning says.

I nod at that moment, “I know. Phoenix Fire said the rest of you decided not to fight us.”

It's Lady Liberty who speaks for the group, “It isn't our fight. For the longest time Leaf lied to us. We had no idea the registration was for him to control people. We recently did some digging and found out about Mind Meld. This isn't our fight.”

“So you'll let us pass?” Vigor asks.

Lady Liberty nods, “Mind Meld is out that door to the right and down two flights of steps. All you have to do is kill him and this is over. We won't stop you.”

“That's not why we came here,” I state at that moment, “I came to this room because I need your help...”

The heroes look at me like I have a million heads.

“We are staying out of the fight completely,” Lady Liberty responds.

The others seem to agree with her. I don't get it. What kind of heroes just decide to stay out of something that will affect the future of the world. I didn't know if they were cowards or if there was something else. I don't know if there was something deeper to consider for them to be willing to stay out of it. To be honest I was suspicious that they were so willing to play the sidelines. If they honestly thought what the Bishop was doing was so bad...why not stop him themselves?

I realize though I need these people so instead of calling out their cowardice or accusing them of something else I decide to beg, “We don't need your help to fight. We need your help to heal. I know that Cleanse is able to heal.”

“Heal your bullet wounds?” Kid Lightning asks taking a notice at my arm.

“No. Heal Vigor. He has the DAMS virus.”

Laughter breaks out in the room. It's an uncomfortable laughter. The only hero that isn't laughing at my request is Kid Lightning. Vigor looks over at me and grabs me so hard that I feel like he is going to pull me out of my skin, “I didn't ask for their help!”

He is speaking privately but he is super loud and not giving two fucks.

“And we'd never give it to you,” Lady Liberty lets him know.

I didn't care about Vigor's pride right now. I didn't care about anything like that. I step forward right now and I put my entire heart on that diner table.

“Can I just have a moment?” I ask them.

“It won't matter,” Lady Liberty smirks, “and shouldn't you be using this time to save the world?”

“She's right,” Vigor grabs my arm.

“NO. I know we've been enemies for a long time,” I explain to them, “Surely you know now though that Vigor is not your enemy. People sit there and think that he's the worst person in the world but he isn't. Some people don't smile with their mouth. Some people smile with their actions. Vigor has the ability to harden his skin. I'm sure you are all familiar with it. It's the ability to make his skin so hard that not even bullets can penetrate it. That's the part of Vigor that people know so well. Isn't it?”

The heroes are looking at me. They don’t understand me.

It's only Kid Lightning who nods, “Yes...”

“What's your point?” Lady Liberty asks sharply.

Vigor looks like he wants to kill me right now. I know I'm embarrassing him. I don't care about any of it. He looks like he's ready to grab me over his shoulder and pull me out of the room but he probably knows that I'd never forgive him if he didn't let me try this.

“He also had the ability to soften his skin too. It's a part of his powers that he rarely uses. That is the part of him that he keeps secret. He can be hard person. He can be damn near impenetrable. He can also be soft. I've seen it. I've seen him be so soft, so...caring. He can be the softest person in the world. I fell in love with that man. I think the world can too...”

“Vicious Vigor...the hero?” Kid Lightning asks me.

“Who says a villain can't change his stripes?” I ask, “Who says he already hasn't?”

The villains are quiet at that moment. I've touched something. Hurricane Sandy even seems to be on the brink of tears at that moment. Lady Liberty though seems to be the leader with Mayor Moral gone. She seems to be in control in the room and she is just giving me the hardest stare. It's a cold...dead stare.

“Liberty, you have to admit the Vicious Vigor that we knew wouldn't have risked his life to come in here and save a boy. Vigor cares about someone,” Kid Lightning says and stares deeply at me for a minute before adding quickly, “I think I can see why...”


“Being in love doesn't make him a changed man,” Lady Liberty responds staring at Vigor who seems like he wants to run out of the room at that moment.

“Maybe it does...” Cleanse says.

I'm shocked when Cleanse speaks. He's a quiet man and seemed like wallpaper amongst the heroes. He was the only one who wasn't as attractive as the other ones. He's the only one that didn't really stand out. Right now, he was the only one that could save the life of the man I loved.

Bulldozer adds in, “It might not hurt to help him. It might even be the right thing to do. Maybe we should...but shit...I don't know. If we save THE Vicious Vigor it might bite us in the ass one day.”

“Or we can make friends for life,” Kid Lightning asks.

Cleanse looks over at the others, “I want to do it. I want to heal him.”

Liberty looks at me for a minute. For a minute, it seems like the others are willing to do it. Even Bulldozer seems to be leaning towards it when Cleanse lets us know that he wants to do it.

“No,” Lady Liberty says as heartless as ever.

Anger rises out of me.

Desperation comes next.

I don't know what makes me approach her in the way I am. I storm across the room. My mind is blown when I grab onto her dinner fork and I change it. I CHANGE her dinner fork but I don't change it into a sharp knife. I don't change it into a gun or even a rocket launcher.

I truly do the impossible and everyone in the room gasps.

“Oh...my god...” I hear Vigor saying.

I know why he's saying it. I've changed Lady Liberty's fork into a living Black Mamba snake. The snake curls around my finger. It's ALIVE. It's not a rubber snake.

I just literally created a living breathing being.

Kid Lightning runs to my side, “Wait...please...let's talk about this. Let's make this work.”

Lady Liberty is looking at the snake but then she notices something else, “What is that around your neck...”

The stone that Vigor gave me. She looks at it hard.

“It's nothing,” Vigor tells her.

“We will heal him for the necklace...” Lady Liberty finally bargains.

“Fine.”

Vigor walks across the room to talk to me. I let go of the snake and watch it hit the floor. Before it hits the floor, it turns back into a fork. I grab the necklace rip it off of my neck and hand it to Lady Liberty. For a moment, I forgot where we were. Even if I was talking to a hero it didn't matter. In Metropolis, it was always about what you can give to someone. Bartering had replaced money. It's always about what they can get in return...even with heroes.

Vigor looks at me with a questionable look, “I don't want you doing this for me...”

“I'll do anything for you. I'd rather give away a memory of you if I have the chance to make new ones.”

Vigor hesitates but he lets out a deep sigh. I know a part of him isn't ready to die... because it would mean he would get to spend more time with me. He touches my face at that moment. He rubs my face deeply.

Cleanse walks over and separates us, “You should wait outside. I'll be done shortly but it's better if you aren't here to distract him.”

“You want me to leave him?”

Cleanse nods his head, letting me know that is exactly what he wants me to do.

Vigor smiles at me, “I'll be ok.”

All I can do is pace up and down the hallway as I wait for Cleanse to finish healing Vigor. Two minutes pass and then five. I need Vigor. I need to make sure that he's ok.

Finally, he comes around the corner and appears.

“Did it work?”

“What?” he asks, seeming a little confused.

“Did they heal you?”

“Why don't you kiss me and find out?”

The kiss he gives me at that moment is deep. It's so deep. It feels different though. Vigor's tongue doesn't forcefully try to get to the back of my throat. He doesn't squeeze my ass like he usually does. I find it weird for a minute but I guess it doesn't matter. Vigor is healed. He looks completely like he's back at 100. He looks like the Vigor I met when I saw him for the very first time. He's completely healed.

“We should go back to the room. I want to thank them.”

“No time,” he says.

“You're right,” I respond, “Mind meld.”

He shakes his head and grabs my hand, “You need to stop being so distracted.”

I shake my head feeling annoyed almost immediately. We just had one more thing to do. We just had to kill Mindmeld and I doubt he was going to be much of anything. The guy seemed like a vegetable for all intents and purposes. When we met him, he was stuck in his brain.

Still I just felt like something wasn’t right when I lead Vigor down to that staircase. It felt like it wasn't over yet. Vigor was healed. We were almost done. At this point we might have time to get back and save our friends.

We may have come out of this for the better.

That's what I was hoping but then as I walk down the steps I see the face of my past and I realize what that feeling was this whole time. Something wasn't right.

“Sunbeam.”

Sunbeam is right there next to Mindmeld. I notice a machine is connected to Mindmeld. The machine seems to be keeping him alive. I have no doubt that Mind Meld has control of Sunbeam right now. Sunbeam is standing in the room like a zombie looking back at me.

“What are you doing down here?” Vigor demands angrily.

He steps in front of me at that moment as though protecting me. My heart is racing when he does it. Vigor is back at 100 percent but Sunbeams powers were nothing to be played with. I watch as Sunbeam lifts up his hands and he looks like he's ready to blast at both of us.

“Sunbeam. Sunbeam it's me...” I find myself saying.

Vigor looks at me and tries to push me back, “I'll deal with him.”

“No. He's my friend,” I tell Vigor, “Let me try.”

Vigor is hesitant but I push past him regardless and walk towards Sunbeam. I have my hands up. Here I was trying to protect the love of my life from the one boy who I loved the longest. Sunbeam shakes his head for a moment as he stares at me. I see a glimpse of recognition.

“Stand back,” he warns in a robotic voice.

“Sunbeam you are being controlled,” I explain to him.

“Stand back.”

“Do you really want me to?” I ask Sunbeam, “It's me Sunbeam. It's Cameron. Mr. Matter. Materias whatever name you want to call me. You know who I am. I'm here...”

Sunbeam is staring at me hard. He blinks a few times.

Vigor is struggling, “Materias...stay away from him.”

“Sunbeam, look at me. LOOK into my eyes,” I explain to him.

He's hesitating and then all of a sudden Sunbeam seems to step into himself. He looks at me and he seems to be snapping out of Mind Meld's control. I look over at Mind Meld who is sitting behind a glass wall. He stares at the screen. When I look to see what he's staring at I see it is Sunbeam and Sunbeam's limit. Sunbeam is stronger with natural light.

There is a stream of natural lighting coming right in from a window and it is directly hitting sunbeam. His skin is glistening. He's so powerful right now. Maybe that's why he's getting out of Mind Meld's control.

“Cam---Cameron,” he says.

I'm holding his hands now, “Yes. It's me. Sunbeam.”

His eyes finally open, “Cameron. You're safe. You're here.”

“Is it really you?” I ask him.

Sunbeam smiles at me, “Of course. You got me over here calling you Cameron. Did the Hatter guy die or something? Did I miss that? What happened to your opening line. Call me Materias...”

It was Sunbeam. No one else would have known that after years of people calling me Mr. Matter I decided to change my name. Mr. Hatter was some cornball villain I didn't want to be mixed up with so I changed my name to Materias.

I literally walked into every room telling people to call me Materias.

Sunbeam was here.

I hugged him so tight, “I've missed you.”

That's when Sunbeam says the words that I've always wanted to here, “Damn I really thought I lost you Materias. I love you Materias. I always was in love with you...”

“Eh-erm.”

The words come from Vigor. I can see in his face that he doesn't like this. He doesn't like this shit at all. I mean the boy that I was obsessing over for years is telling me that he was in love with me. I am in his arms and the man I really loved was across the room.

That's when Sunbeam grabs me and pulls me out of the way, “Be careful.”

Moreover, I'm not expecting what he does next.

Vigor isn't expecting what he does next.

That's why Vigor doesn't protect himself by hardening his skin. His guard is down.

Sunbeam launches his photogenic beams at Vigor. It happens in an instant. I can't even scream at him to stop him.

His beams are so powerful that he leaves a hole the size of a peach in the size of Vigor's head.

Immediately Vigor falls down to the ground.

Stiff.

Dead.

There wasn't any coming back from that. Not this time.

No healing in the world would help.

Just like that after saving the love of my life from a virus, I lost him to my closest friend.

To read the next chapter go to www.crushedcrown.com