The moment I stepped inside Jesse's bar, I realized two things very quickly. First, the place actually felt kind of cozy; it had wooden furniture and an old-fashioned bar, and it was clearly meant to replicate a traditional bar. As someone who lacked access to the altnet, it was actually pretty nice.
Secondly, and unfortunately, this was not a normal bar.
The air buzzed, not just from old speakers blasting Frank Sinatra. Static crawled across my skin—the kind you feel when people in the room could melt walls if they sneezed too hard.
Supers...
Of course, it was a super bar, fantastic.
I sighed and pushed my hood lower to keep my face hidden. Nobody should know my identity, but years as a vigilante hunting supers had taught me to expect the unexpected.
The bartender glanced at me with disinterest.
"What'll it be?" he asked.
"A fancy whisky on the rocks, I heard I could get one in the house according to Suzy," I replied. "Hopefully it's strong enough to make me forget the last six months of my life."
He laughed softly, "Suzy got you, too, huh? I wish alcohol could make me forget my problems."
I took a small swig, and the whiskey burned down my throat. A perfect shot.
Before I realized it, I had already drunk the whole thing. I set the glass down and waved the barkeep over.
"Another fancy whisky?"
"Nah, just shitty whisky from here on out, don't get that kind of money, still want them on the rocks though."
"Hahaha, I don't blame ya kid."
I took a look at the man after he made that last comment. I was surprised because the man didn't necessarily look that old; he looked to be in his 30s at most. However, supers had abilities that could do anything, so the man could be in his 80s or even older for all I knew, so I tactfully refused to make a quip back.
As I sat there drinking, my mind drifted back to the hospital and Yasmine's offer. Although I still wanted my lawyer to check it out, so far it sounded great. A six-figure job with all the benefits one could ask for, and most importantly, getting my suit repaired.
I was still a bit surprised by the lengths they were willing to go through to have me on board. It's honestly kind of concerning. Yasmine's offer was essentially the government's offer, meaning that there had to be someone influential within the government who was keeping an eye out for me; if not multiple people.
However, my cynicism wasn't strong enough to reject such a great gift. I needed help, and as long as the contract didn't have any wacky clauses like enslaving me to BDN for the rest of my life, I couldn't see myself declining the contract.
I continued to sip softly on my whiskey.
I laughed softly to myself.
If Dad were alive, he'd tell me this was a terrible coping mechanism.
If he were really alive, he'd probably steal my drink and tell me to stop sulking.
I was halfway through drink number three when the bar's atmosphere changed.
I looked to see what the rest of the crowd watched.
The door to the bar was open.
Cold air swept in, and the room fell to a hush.
"Is that—"
"No way."
"Holy shit, it is her."
"And Astra's with her…"
I glanced over my glass.
Two women stood just inside the doorway, framed by flickering neon and rain.
The first one hit like a punch to the chest.
Seraphine Voss.
I recognized her immediately, even though it had been years since she was a particularly tough criminal that I busted up. She had long red hair tied up in a ponytail, scorched patterns visible on her arms and neck, and her eyes were bright red like a ruby. I wasn't exactly sure what her powers were, but her rune markings seemed to grant her some kind of strength with a temper to match it. I recalled that I essentially had to wear her down through attrition until I was finally able to subdue her.
I was confused about why she was at this bar instead of in a jail cell, but that was none of my business, besides her, though I noticed someone completely different.
The woman was like a bright beacon; it was the kind of light that drew you in, as I noticed others staring at her. She had blond hair, but it looked more like a strawberry color. She was tall, with classic blue eyes, and I thought Yasmine looked muscular, but this woman looked like a shredded war goddess.
"Yo, I think that's Astra Lumen!" A stranger exclaimed excitedly.
Ah, so that's who she was. If I'm being honest, I don't really keep track of the latest superhero trends in the news; I was mainly focused on the infamous ones. I also couldn't help but envy supers in general, just the fact that they had powers instantly made them more attractive than the average human.
Their spell seemed to drop, though, as everyone went back to their drinks, but the bar erupted into murmurs about the two supes.
I also turned back to my drink. They weren't my business, and I really didn't want to get involved with the flaming ember woman.
Unfortunately, it seemed that I wouldn't be able to enjoy my drink in solace as I felt goosebumps on my arms. It was the instinctive awareness of years as a fighter that recognized someone was targeting you.
I casually looked to the right to wave down the bartender for some water, while in the corner of my eye, I searched for who was looking at me.
And unfortunately, the person I noticed staring at me was none other than the Voss chick. She was giving me her best mean-mug expression, her eyes seeming to stare into my soul.
"Fuck." I muttered.
"Hey man, I think you look like a good dude, but I don't swing that way."
"Sorry, talking to myself," I replied, swinging around to face him.
"Oh, well, wait to fuck yourself until you get home."
I let out a sigh in defeat. "Can I just get some water, please?"
He gave me a thumbs-up before leaving to help another guest. "What a dickhead," I muttered in my head.
I went back to my drink, but I froze as I felt a presence behind me. I slowly turned around to see the ruby-eyed woman walking towards me. Her arms were crossed, and her facial expression was a mean frown.
She stopped beside me, close enough that I could feel heat radiating off her skin.
"Uhm, can I help you or something?" I asked cautiously.
"You always dress like this," she continued, voice low. "Hood. Jacket. That harness is under your coat. Same posture."
"Sorry," I said. "Do I know you?"
"I'm also certain I know who you are… You were the one from that night. You put me in a cast for six months, and collapsed half my operation. It cost me everything."
I was dying from nervousness inside. How could she know who I am? Without my suit, I was essentially powerless against supes like her; however, I couldn't show that I was scared and bullshitted.
"Listen, Miss, I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just a random dude who's had a shitty day and wants to enjoy a couple of drinks."
She scowled, "Yeah, well, don't you know that this is a superhero bar? It's not a place for regulars like yourself, so why don't you get the hell out?"
The surviving part of me, the part that cared about preserving their life, was screaming for me to listen and not make a scene. After all, with this job offer, there was no reason to get into a conflict with this junkhead, but…
"Pffft, hahahaha." I started laughing.
The Voss woman was suddenly stunned for a moment before anger quickly flooded her. "You got a problem, asshole?!"
"Bwahahahahaha." At this point, everyone in the bar had paused to look at the spectacle that I was creating.
"Is that guy alright?"
"What a psycho."
I laughed so hard that I started coughing and had to thump my chest to clear my throat.
"Gosh, I'm so sorry, it's just… You call yourself a superhero, but you act like such a pathetic bitch. I've met 3rd-rate villains with more class than you."
Like a bombshell going off, the bar instantly became dead silent for a few moments.
"Oh shit, that guy must have a fucking death wish talking to Voss like that."
A few strangers gave me a couple of salutes like I just signed my death warrant, which, in all honesty, I probably did after that last statement.
By that point, the ember-rubbed woman was already enraged, "You must have some nerve, asshole, I'll beat the shit out of you until your mother can't even recognize you."
"Joke's on you, I hate that bitch anyway."
Despite my joke, she ignored anything else I said. Sudden rage on her face, she rushed toward me, her right arm pulling back as she prepared to throw a heavy punch.
Although I said I was powerless, that wasn't exactly true. To counter a supe, you had to be prepared for anything, and a concealed plasma handgun would be the perfect answer. Although I didn't want to use it, the raging woman left me with no other choice. I reached down within my waist pocket to draw my-
"Boom! Crack!"
An almost thunderous noise went out across the barroom. I widened my eyes to see what appeared to be some kind of barrier in front of me.
Seraphine, lost in her fury, immediately swung another punch that landed on the barrier, unable to reach me.
A wave of warm gold intercepted Seraphine's strike, redirecting it harmlessly upward, where it scorched the ceiling instead of my face. The impact sent a shockwave through the bar, knocking stools over and sending a few patrons scrambling.
I looked to my left and noticed Seraphine's companion from earlier standing before me. Astra, I believe, her strawberry blond hair flew around her from the shockwaves caused by Seraphine's punches.
Astra stood between us now, one hand raised, expression calm but firm.
"That's enough," she said.
Seraphine snarled. "Why are you protecting that bastard? We're supposed to be allies."
Astra smiled, "We are heroes, not villains; heroes are meant to protect our citizens and rise above such unbecoming behaviors. This is not you, please stop."
Serpahine scowled, "Uhh, god, your holier-than-thou attitude still pisses me off, but fine, for our team's sake, I'll let it go."
The fiery embers burning on her arms cooled down, and her blood-red eyes also seemed to relax in intensity. She turned back to face me again. "You're lucky that Astra was here to save you; you better not let me see your face again."
I wanted to reply that it was actually she who got lucky, but I bit my tongue; I had already caused enough problems as it was.
Serphaine turned and stormed out. Astra hesitated, and it looked like she wanted to say more, but she gave me a brief, apologetic look, then followed after her.
The door slammed shut behind them.
The bar immediately erupted in sound, with everyone talking about what just happened. People occasionally pointed and shot a few glances my way.
I slumped back onto my stool, heart pounding, my hands were shaking slightly as my adrenaline faded.
I made sure to still finish my drink.
(...)
The door to my apartment creaked open. Yet another reminder that I needed to buy some WD-40, which I kept forgetting about.
"Woof, Woof." A smile lit up on my face as a golden-furred dog raced across the room. She pulled out her favorite move by jumping up on her hind legs and putting her paws on my shoulder.
"Ah, how are you doing, Daisy? I know it's been a long time. I bet you're hungry. Wait, how did you get that sock? I swore I would put everything away."
I ruffled her ears and looked at an open drawer full of my socks hanging out. I sighed in defeat. "What am I gonna do with you, you little monster?"
"Woof!" "Mrrrhhhnn." She kept fidgeting around and whining anxiously. My heart felt heavy, although she was allowed to visit me, I know it wasn't the same as me being awake, and I was grateful that BDN helped take care of her. Yet, another debt.
I gave her some head pets and then graciously accepted her gift. Daisy was a sweet golden retriever I had found as a pup about 4 or 5 years ago. She had been abandoned by herself on the sidewalk in a less-than-nice area. Of course, I saved the poor pup and planned to turn her over to an adoption place, but I was a sucker for dogs, and her sad puppy eyes won me over pretty convincingly.
From then on, Daisy's been my #1 companion, and I spoil her a decent amount, which reminds me that I really need to take her out for more walks.
After taking care of Daisy, I settled onto the couch and patted the seat beside me, "Come here, Daisy." I called out to her in a baby voice.
Daisy came running in from the kitchen and expectantly jumped right into my lap.
"Oof, you're too big to be doing that, Daisy!"
"Woof!"
Despite her size, she still acted like a lapdog and curled up into a ball on my lap. I settled into stroking her fur as I started to relax after my crazy day.
"Things haven't been good lately, but you know what, Daisy, I think things are going to get a lot better, I hope."