Alarms blared along the busy Manhattan street. Civilians ran, looking for safety while leaving their damaged vehicles sprawled out across the asphalt. In a connecting intersection, the villain responsible continued his rampage.
He was donned head to toe in black, with unusual gear attached to his calves and feet. He ran hurriedly through the intersection, a large grey duffle bag slung over his shoulder. With every step, the asphalt beneath him shook and fractured.
The rubble around the man began to move, stacking a top each other, forming what resembled a hand. It attempted to grab the villain and capture him in its stony mitt.
"GET OFF MY ASS ALREADY!"
In stride, the man stomped the ground, causing a large rock to dislodge itself from the road. With a swift kick, he sent the rock hurling towards the stone hand. In the grainy dust of the ensuing explosion, the man continued forward.
However, despite the many steps the man took, it seemed like the cloud of dust would never dissipate. In fact, it felt as if it was following him.
Above the cloud of dust he could hear a woman's voice.
"He's contained, aim for the support gear!"
An orange glow began to permeate through the thick dust. The man attempted to leap backwards from the coming light. He felt an uncomfortable wave of heat fly pass his legs.
"SUN-EYED SLASH!"
The source of the glow and heat was a man—or what seemed like one. His body was covered in searing rock. The rock-man's arm cut through the dust cloud with a swift chop, Smashing and melting parts of the gear the villain had attached to his legs.
The villain quickly created separation between two and quickly glanced at his legs.
"Your legs are still there Tibs, relax. Just put the money down and your hands up."
The rock-man calmly approached the villain, chunks of his rocky exterior fell away revealing the face of a moderately handsome man underneath. Curly black hair with light brown eyes and a freckled face that sported a friendly smile.
"Calderyan. I was really hoping I lost you and your girl back ther–wait, Tibs?"
The villain's confusion was visible even through the black mask he wore.
"Yeah that's what the media's calling you, The Invincible Bank robber, Shockwave. But that's a mouthful so I just shortened it, T.I.B.S—Tibs."
Enraged, Shockwave stomped violently at the ground, launching himself towards Calderyan. He delivered a heavy kick, sending the hero flying. With another stomp, Shockwave leaped away, attempting to escape down the adjoining street.
Calderyan barreled down the road before slamming into an abandoned vehicle. He laid there for a moments as more chunks of his stony armor fell off, revealing the orange and black costume underneath. A figure descended into his view, a woman, flying atop a swirling column of earthly debris.
"Geodess, my guardian angel!" Calderyan sarcastically remarked.
The woman had dark skin, curly black hair and violet eyes. She wore a bedazzled green outfit with an emerald colored mask obscuring her full face.
"Focus please. Did you at least get his gear?"
Geodess quickly flicked her hand upwards. The ground beneath Calderyan erupted, sending the man upright in an instant.
Calderyan shook his head affirmatively.
"Yeah his support gear definitely totaled."
"Good. That should reduce his damage output."
Geodess snapped her fingers. Chunks of rocks from the maelstrom beneath her began to fall at Calderyan's feet.
"I evacuated the last of the civilians and my golems are keeping a three block perimeter. Let's corner him and wrap this up."
"Yes Ma'am!"
Calderyan reached a hand to the ground. The newly discarded rocks that surrounded him became magnetized to his body. On contact, they began to heat up, gaining a distinct scarlet hue. Soon the hero was once again cased in a semi-molten armor.
"We need to move quickly. I'm gonna have to carry you."
Geodess directed a hand towards Calderyan. He could feel the rocks attached his body grow lighter and soon the pair took flight down the street. It did not take long for them to catch up to the fleeing villain.
While suspended in the air, Calderyan shot fiery projectiles at the assailant. With considerable effort, Shockwave managed to dodge them.
"Okay! Tibs is starting to get on my nerves."
"Agreed. New plan."
Geodess reared one of her arms back. Calderyan felt a strong force dragging him and his armor backwards.
"Brace yourself."
At Geodess' command, Calderyan launched forward. Shockwave was forced to come to stop as scarlet blur came crashing down in front of him. Calderyan emerged from a small crater, vexation present in his voice.
"I think that's enough cardio! Alright Tibs, last chance to end this quietly."
Shockwave pointed at himself, baffled.
"Me? Quiet?"
Shockwave stomped the ground with both feet. Deep cracks fractured outwards along the street. As Calderyan lost his balance, Shockwave seized the opportunity and he lunged at the hero. The villain reared a leg back, ready to deliver a devastating kick. Rocks began to peel away from Calderyan's left thigh. The diverted fragments combined with the stony mass on his right shoulder.
The two men collided. Calderyan's stone armor rippled as it diverted the force of Shockwave's kick. While the power of the villain's strikes diminished, Calderyan knew he could only withstand a finite amount of blows. Nevertheless, he remained pinned to the spot and did his best to keep the villain distracted. Though his face was obscured by rocks, the cockiness in his voice was unmistakable.
"C'mon! Put your hips into it, Tibs!"
The childish provocation seemed to work and Shockwave stood in front of the hero, delivering blow after blow with his legs. The sound of rocks being chipped, cracked and ultimately powered made the ambience of this formerly busy street resemble that of an active construction site.
Geodess stared from above as the two men continued their brawl. She calmly brought her hands together, gently cupping and rotating them as if molding invisible clay. The stone rubble that surrounded the two men began to recede. Rocks stacked upon each other and formed into a somewhat humanoid appearance.
"Seize him!" Geodess commanded. By now she had created over fifty golems to aid in civilian evacuation and to maintain the combat zone perimeter. Despite her composure, the exhaustion had begun to catch up with her.
The towering golem approached Shockwave. Though it was far from quiet; the sound and vibration of its lumbering footsteps were impossible to ignore. Shockwave ceased his kick flurry and began a reckless sprint towards the still-defending Calderyan.
"TELL YOUR GIRL TO BUTT OUT OF IT!"
Shockwave leaped into the air and delivered a powerful dropkick. Calderyan's knees buckled as the remaining parts of his stone armor cracked. The hero's position had been compromised and soon he was sent rocketing into a street lamp. Shockwave used the residual force from that kick to send himself flying towards the newly spawned golem.
"I always hated heroes like you. Sending your little toys to fight."
Shockwave twisted his body into the air, delivering a rugged kick into the shoulder of the shambling golem. The golem wobbled as smaller rock fragments loosened and fell from the site of impact.
Shockwave righted himself in the air and landed in front of the golem.
"I was relieved when Mantle finally kicked the bucket. I said 'Finally, no more heroes using the city as a damn sandbox' but of course that blowhard had to have a kid."
A coldness overtook Geodess. There was a stinging feeling in her eyes as malice began to cloud her thoughts.
That bastard! What would he know about ⷱmͦyͧʳ father?
Could hͭeͪᵉʸ know what happened to him?
No, he's just another villain.
Take them out, just like Dͪaͤd taught me.
The golem became eerily still. The rock and debris that constructed its face peered down at the villain. It had no eyes but Shockwave could feel the anger of its imagined gaze.
"Break him." Geodess said coldly.
The golem's movements began sharp and precise. It whipped its stony appendages around at absurd speeds. Shockwave attempted to keep his distance, but the rocky giant moved with pace and balance completely contradictory to its size and composition.
Calderyan awoke to the sounds of oscillating stones. As conscious thought began to emerge, an alarming sight greeted him. Shockwave ducked and dived as the golem pursed him. Its rocky limbs slammed cars into retail stores and bisected streetlights with ease.
In his fear-fueled haste, Shockwave tripped over a dislodged car tire. The rocky arm of the golem came crashing down, leaving a gnarly gash on the villain's left leg. Shockwave howled in pain but managed to recover himself enough to avoid the golem's next strike. His gaze turned upon the commander of the stony behemoth.
"Like father, like daughter!" The villain exclaimed.
"Killing me would be just a drop in the bucket compared to your daddy's body count but you got to start somewhere I guess!"
A scream, drenched with bloodlust, erupted from Geodess. The golem once again charged at the villain, but the momentary lapse in its master's mental state caused a brief hesitation within the rocky giant. Shockwave capitalized and launched himself at the golem, feet-first, twisting his body to become a human drill.
The impact was deafening, the stone that comprised the hulking golem was violently scattered in a cloud of dust. The exhausted Geodess couldn't defend herself as large shards of her stone warrior stuck with incredible force. The heroine fell off her spiraling carriage of rock and plummeted to the ground.
Why ͣ ͬaͤmⷱ Iͦ ᵘ so weak!
Dͪaͤd would have never lost a villain like this!
Yͥou mⷲusͥtᶫ ᶫ end this!
These hostile thoughts continued to invade the woman's mind as she slowly rose to her feet. Shockwave remained knelt over, clutching at his injured leg. The two combatants gained sight on each other as the dust cleared. Shockwave frantically reached into the dust-covered bag slung around his shoulder. He produced a syringe filled with a sinister crimson liquid.
The villain motioned to strike his neck with the needle but a speeding rock sent it flying from his grasp.
"Tch! so much for plan B." Shockwave said casually. The villain seemed mentally detached from his current predicament.
Geodess stood before him, her hand outstretched as an assortment of pointed stones spiraled around it. Her face was expressionless, much like the golem that had fought in her stead. Shockwave chuckled and stared at his duffle bag.
"Two-hundred and seventy-five thousand. Not even my biggest score but it'll be the last, huh."
He turned his gaze back to Geodess, a vindictive smile stretched across his face.
"What are you waiting for! Do it! You crazy bit-"
Before another constant left his mouth, a barrage of sharpened stone flew towards the villain.
"JANINE, STOP!"
The stone bullets curved unnaturally, their trajectory altered by an unnatural magnetism that pulled them towards the dissenting cry. Calderyan leaped towards the two, most of his body bare besides his left arm which was sheeted in a cocoon of semi-molten rock twice his body length. The stone bullets were quickly assimilated into this volcanic appendage.
"IGNIS PRESS!"
Calderyan reached out with his rocky limb, binding Shockwave in place with a clangorous thud. The injured villain was rendered unconscious by the sudden strike and remained pinned to the ground by a hand composed of smoldering rock.
"Janine!"
Calderyan broke free from his igneous creation and ran towards Geodess who stood motionless.
"Are you okay? Janine, answer me!"
The emerald mask that typically covered her face was gone, lost during her earlier fall. Her whole face was now bare. What hid beneath that mask was a deep scar that ran across the bridge of her nose and a smaller scar above her left eye that split the tail of her brow.
These features, while distinct, were not new to the hero. Instead he peered deeply into her violet eyes. Her bizarrely dilated pupils soon returned to a normal size.
"I-I'm okay, Ryan."
The response was unconvincing but the hero did not care and embraced her tightly.
"I know you didn't mean to. I'm just glad I got here in time."
Calderyan pulled away, still holding onto her shoulders. He glanced at the incapacitated Shockwave then back at Geodess.
"I'll handle turning him over to the police. Just take a breather for me okay, babe?"
"Sure." Janine replied meekly.
Ryan gestured over to an area of the street partially untouched by the battle. He gently caressed her face before kissing her forehead.
"I love you."
Janine sat there for what felt like hours. She watched as Ryan assisted police vehicles, helping them navigate the rubble-filled streets, directing them to the apprehended villain. She spectated as Ryan donned his iconic stony armor and heaved the bound villain into the back of an armored van.
As goofy as he was, Ryan was an incredible hero and a loving fiancée. So then, why, instead of pride for her partner, did she feel the opposite? Even after the malice that clouded her mind subsided, these feelings of jealousy and anger did not go with it.
She felt a small tap on her leg. It was one of the child-size golems she used to evacuate civilians that were pinned under rubble. In its stubby, rocky hands it held a battered emerald-colored mask. She couldn't bring herself to grab it. She just wept. The small golem attempted to comfort her; the jagged vibrations of its stone body emulated a familiar lullaby.
...
The room was dimly lit. A midsize monitor illuminated portions of the space at intervals; shadows flickered in tandem with the static on the screen.
"I am ready to deliver my report, Prometheus." Pierre said calmly, facing the monitor. The static blended together and quickly dissolved. On the screen sat a large figure, cloaked in darkness.
"Proceed Mr. Maxi. What have you learned from the Roswell child?" The figure responded sternly.
"I've acquired confirmation of Ms. Roswell's involvement with the heralds."
"Any dealings with their leader?" Prometheus interjected.
"None. Her point of contact with the group was through her father who used her as a puppet, capitalizing on her youth and quirk to blackmail heroes and politicians."
Pierre calmly adjusted his glasses and continued.
"However, she did overhear her father conversing with a member of the group. A scheme involving ESHA."
"Empire State Hero Academy," Prometheus replied, "It's been eight years; another string of abductions is improbable. They've partnered with local hero agencies and even Shield Industries since then. Should their operation go sideways, it would balloon into a state-wide incident."
"I concur."
Pierre had his signature snide grin.
"But perhaps a brazen offensive plays into their greater interests this time around."
Prometheus leaned forward, his shadowy frame covering the entirety of the screen. He did not speak but his body language emboldened Pierre to continue.
"The Heralds of the Singularity want to establish a new world order—or rather return the world to how it was centuries ago. Where quirks were feared and suppressed. Like with any societal coup, trust in the current status quo must be overturned."
Pierre grew more passionate as he spoke and began to gesture with his hands.
"They've tried to weasel their way into FHC to change policy but that crafty Atkins always remains one step ahead of them, so instead of felling the tree, they'll poison its roots."
"Sounds like you have a pretty good idea about their next move, Maxi." Prometheus replied amusingly.
"Ha, I wish! Unfortunately, a hunch is all I can formulate with the information I have right now. What I can tell is that they're desperate and whatever spectacle they have in mind, that school will be the stage."
"So be it," Prometheus remarked as he assumed a more relaxed posture, "The heralds think themselves humanity's saviors, but should the singularity come to pass, those that dread and suppress their abilities will not survive. If the time has come for them to step into the light, then we shall spread the truth of liberation within the shadow they cast."
Pierre saluted, his thumb pressed against his forehead as his index finger pointed skyward.
"Report received Mr. Maxi, you are dismissed."
A sharp luminance engulfed the study as the monitor screen went blank. Pierre cleared his throat and adjusted his tie. He walked over to an impressive mahogany desk and took a seat on the smooth velvet chair behind it.
"Within the shadows they cast..."
Pierre leaned back onto soft white velvet cushions as he perched his feet atop the lavish desk.
"Minerva, call the widow."
The surface of the desk shimmered as a holographic display formed across it. A glowing teal sphere emerged and responded to Pierre's request.
"Calling. Rachel Stone."