Nyra walked down the street with her head low, her dark hair shielding her face from the flickering neon signs of the city. Her footsteps were steady and quiet, but inside, her thoughts were loud.
Why did Ultraman send me out like that?
She replayed the scene in her mind for the tenth time. No warning. No explanation. Just a sharp dismissal and a locked door. It felt like being tossed out of a moving car just as you realized you didn't have a map. As she continued walking, the ambient noise of the city—the hum of hover-cars and the distant chatter of late-night vendors—began to fade. Something felt off. The air felt thicker, as if the humidity had suddenly spiked.
She slowed her pace. Behind her, the faint scuff of boots on pavement slowed down in perfect synchronization. Her eyes narrowed. She didn't turn around; she didn't need to. Her training as a former covert operative for the Agency had drilled the sensation of being hunted into her very marrow.
I'm being followed. And they aren't even trying to be subtle.
Going home was no longer an option. If she led them back to the house, she'd be handing them Asm's location. And while Asm was powerful, he was still a minor with excessive tantrums who was more likely to accidentally create a toaster than a shield if he panicked. She abruptly changed direction, slipping beside a weathered brick building into a narrow, suffocating alley. The space was tight and draped in darkness, trash bags stacked against the walls. The air was a stagnant mix of rust, damp concrete, and old grease.
She stopped dead and leaned against a dumpster, her hands tucked into the pockets of her baggy jeans.
"Why are you following me?" she asked. Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried a razor-edged coldness.
Three figures stepped out from the mouth of the alley, silhouetted against the streetlights. As they moved closer, Nyra felt a wave of genuine confusion. They looked… ridiculous.
The first one stepped forward, puffing out his chest. "I'm Blaze Hero!" he announced, his voice cracking slightly with unearned bravado. The second one, a shorter man in clunky, DIY metal plates, snorted. "Iron Hero. And yeah, little lady, you're in trouble." The third one, a skinny kid who looked like he'd rather be anywhere else, waved his hand awkwardly. "And I'm… uh… Thunder Hero… I guess."
Nyra stared at them. She had expected elite assassins or high-ranking heroes. Instead, she got three lousy characters who looked like they'd been rejected from a low-budget cartoon.
"So," Nyra sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "This is what they sent? The bargain bin?"
"Don't get cocky!" Blaze Hero roared, his hands igniting with a flickering flame. He rushed her first. Big mistake. To Nyra, he was moving in slow motion. She didn't even use her Shadow abilities. As he swung a wide, amateurish punch, she ducked, stepped into his guard, and slammed her elbow into his ribs. The air left his lungs in a wheeze. Before he could recover, she grabbed his collar and flipped him face-first into the brick wall.
Iron Hero charged next. Nyra slipped to his side, grabbed his armored arm, and twisted it sharply. With a guttural grunt, she swept his legs out from under him. He hit the pavement with a heavy CLANG. Thunder Hero froze. "Wait—can we talk?"
"Too late," Nyra muttered. She closed the distance, kicked his knee, and finished it with a clean punch to the jaw. He went down like a sack of flour. The fight was over in seconds.
Moments later, the three "Heroes" were tied together with their own capes and discarded wire. Nyra crouched in front of Blaze Hero.
"Who sent you?"
The man swallowed hard. "A man… he kept his face covered. He just said his name was Mike."
Nyra froze. The name hit her like a physical blow. Nate. The Agency's silent cleaner. So, the Agency finally wants to take me out. I knew this was coming, but these goons? They're hilarious.
So, they sent a bunch of budget heroes to do their dirty work. If I end up dead, they just blame it on a 'hero intervention' gone wrong. Classic Agency move. She paused, her eyes narrowing as she studied Blaze Hero's shivering form. But I guess Mike's lost his touch. Or maybe he's blind, because these guys are bottom-of-the-barrel even for him."Unless, of course, the goal wasn't to kill me but to something else... hmm. I'll think about that later," she muttered to herself, shaking off the thought. "But right now..." She looked at the three of them. They were a pathetic heap of bruised egos, and she had a message to send.
"I guess even the government is afraid of real strength," she muttered. She pulled out a roll of tape, sealed their mouths, and pulled out a permanent marker. On Blaze Hero's forehead, she wrote: "They tried to bully a cute girl." She stood up, tossed the marker, and vanished into the night.
The Dimension of the Mother
Elsewhere, in a place of heavy, ancient darkness, shadows stretched unnaturally across the ground. A thick, black substance crawled along the walls like living smoke. A woman wearing a heavy hood stood in the center. She reached up and lowered it.
Elizabeth. Asm's biological mother.
"So," she asked softly. "Has the problem been taken care of?"
From the black substance, a man emerged, his body formed from shifting shadows. He dropped to one knee. "Yes, my lord. It seems your son, Asm, took out the real threats before they could even get close to the girl… he left the pests behind for her to play with."
Elizabeth's eyes widened slightly. She laughed. "My son never ceases to amaze me. Oh well. Follow her. Keep your distance, but do not let her die." Her smile sharpened. "She is a vital part of my plan. Asm needs a heart to keep him anchored… until I am ready to pluck it out."
The shadow-man vanished. Elizabeth reached into her cloak and pulled out a phone. "Everything is stable," she said into the receiver, her voice turning sweet. "Don't worry, dear. Nothing will ever happen to them. Just please… take care of the twins for me. And whatever you do, do not anger them."
On the other end, miles away, her husband leaned back in his leather chair. He looked exhausted. "Don't worry, honey. I've got the twins under control. I guess their appetite just means more work for me. See you soon."
He hung up. In the corner of his office where the light couldn't reach, two sets of glowing white eyes opened. They didn't blink. They just smiled.
The Alley and the Arrival
Back in the city, the alley was no longer quiet. Police lights strobed against the walls. Officers stared at the three "Heroes" tied in a human knot. One officer crouched down to read the message on Blaze Hero's forehead. "They tried to bully a cute girl."
The officer looked at the bruised men, then at his partner. "…Are we sure she's really cute?"
His partner looked at Iron Hero's bent arm. "I don't know, man. But I'm not the one who's going to tell her she isn't."
Nyra eventually made it back to the neighborhood. She didn't head straight for the front door; she took the long way, hopping fences and cutting through backyards to ensure she had lost any tail. When she finally slipped through the front door, she didn't find the quiet house she expected.
The living room looked like a disaster zone. There was a faint smell of ozone and burnt sugar in the air. In the center of the mess sat Asm, surrounded by several floating, glowing cubes that looked like they were made of glitching data. Asm looked up, his face flushed and his hair a mess. He looked like he was halfway through one of his excessive tantrums.
"You're late!" he snapped, his voice crackling with the weight of his mood. "I tried to make dinner—and the kitchen decided it didn't want to exist in three dimensions anymore!"
Nyra sighed, leaning her head against the doorframe. She was exhausted from fighting "heroes" and dealing with the Lord of Heroes, and now she had to deal with a minor who could accidentally rewrite the laws of physics because he was frustrated.
"Asm," she said tiredly. "Please tell me you didn't throw the fridge again."
"I didn't throw it," he huffed, crossing his arms. "I just... moved it. Somewhere. But I am not quite sure where it is."
Nyra walked over and put a hand on his shoulder. She could still feel the lingering coldness from her encounter in the alley, but here, with Asm, things felt human again. She didn't tell him about the goons. She didn't tell him about the mother he didn't know was watching him.
"Go sit down," she said softly. "I'll find the fridge I guess", I then she too a deep breath and said with frustration "I don't have enough money to get us a new one because I was fired because of you. Now we are going to find that fridge tomorrow and you are coming along do you here me."
Asm looked at her and saw the anger on her face, he didn't want her to scold him any longer, because he needed to eat, so he nodded and sighed, and then said under his breath."well I guess tomorrow is going to be a very long day, how nice. He said with sarcasm.