The next afternoon, I was brooding on my way home from the city employment office, mulling over the news that Wilbur gave me. Wilbur had become somewhat of a friend as, over the years, he handled me as I went into and out of employment. I had scheduled today's appointment a couple of weeks ago, as soon as I got the notice that I would be fired, and today I just went in to finalize the paperwork to start receiving my unemployment subsidies. As we had finished up, and he ensured that the first checks would make it in time to pay for my monthly bills, Wilbur mentioned some news.
*****
30 minutes ago
“So, I don't know if you keep up on the news, but there's a bill passing through Congress right now, relating to the subsidies.”
I was packing up my papers in my bag, but looked up, a frown on my face. “No, I haven't heard anything. Are they reducing the payouts or something?”
Wilbur gave me a wry smile as he shook his head. “No, they're talking of retracting the whole program entirely. There are other details, but that is the main thrust.”
I frowned at the news. “Why? Well,” I immediately said, as multiple reasons came to mind. “I guess it isn't too strange, considering the amount of money going into it. I thought that the Worker's Protection Union was behind the subsidy program in the first place?”
Wilbur shrugged. “They're getting overruled. The big companies simply have too much clout, and it doesn't help that the Supers are getting voted into office more and more.”
Sighing, I finished putting the sheets of paper into the folder and slipped the manila folder into my satchel. “Well, there's not much I can do but plan around it. Hopefully, by whatever time that is, I'll have another job.” I gave a thin smile to Wilbur and we gave our goodbyes, but the smile fell from my face as the thoughts continued to tumble through my head until the bus.
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*****
My thoughts were turned back to the present when the bus abruptly braked, almost bringing my head smashing into the seat in front of me. Cries sounded throughout the vehicle as we craned our necks to look through the windshield.
About a hundred feet in front of us was a sight that was both novel yet familiar, as a man was slammed into the pavement in front of us. He was dressed in a bright blue and white suit of thick lycra, dirtied now by fragments of asphalt and dust. Coughing slightly, the man stood up from he was kneeling, looking up into the sky.
“Is that all you got, you ruffian!” With a flexing of his knees, the obvious Super shot back up into the sky, leaving a greater crater in the street. The bus started to go forward again, taking the next turn as the bus driver explained to the passengers.
“Excuse me, folks, but we're going to have to make a detour. As per company protocol, for everyone's safety, we will now be taking a four block detour around the incident, as Supers are directed to try and keep any violence as localized as possible. As such, we will be late to the next stop at Rivers Dr. Thank you for your patience and understanding.”
Most people on the bus were only half listening, as phones lit up in people's hands and videos started to play of news broadcasts detailing what was happening. I did the same, of course, as the brush with the world of Supers made it blatantly obvious just how close but divided the two worlds were.
The Mundane were protected, as much as we could be, by government practices and the Supers' grace. On the other hand, Supers could take hundred story falls onto hard concrete with nothing more than a bruise, and then go back into the skies to combat these forces. This came with a risk, though, as I read the news report of the details surrounding this incident.
“We have confirmed that this is an attack on Marchfield's offices of Protectant International, as the criminal gang known as the Black Crows have launched a kidnapping attempt on some individuals. According to conversations recorded from the scene, the Black Crows are in the process of fleeing with a young man and woman, though we do not know for what reason. The Protectants are following in force, though they have already taken two casualties. Please be warned, the following images contain graphic content.”
The newscaster's calm and measured voice sounded in my ear buds as I watched on my phone's screen sights of destroyed buildings, and a woman lying in a gurney with blood across her face and a dark cavity in her torso. The camera only lingered for a moment, but that was all I needed to remind me that, whatever power is offered in the Super's world, the dangers were just as pronounced.
However, this train of thought just brought me back to the news I just learned, about how Mundanes will no longer be protected by the system, even if only financially. This sliding shift in the priorities of those who could protect those defenseless was a blaring warning sign to me, as I wondered what I should do in the face of this.
“Maybe, just in case... I'll have to talk to someone about this.” I muttered under my breath as I thumbed through my phone to my contacts. Pausing for just a second, I swept a name to the side and started the phone call.
Once the ringing stopped, I spoke softly. “Hey, Olly? I need your help for this decision.”