Seattle Vance

They used to say guns were the great equalizers. Well, I’ve got news for you. They’re not—not anymore at least. Maybe they had been for men and women. Maybe for a normal and someone with a class one superpower. But for a normal and a fucking class three? Yeah, no.

I had barely glanced up from the table when I saw a guy in purple spandex appear right next to Jonas. Me and Jonas, we went a ways back. All the way back to when Cairo kicked off. That’s the thing about war. If you last long enough, you start thinking you’re special, that someone from up high is looking out for you. When you go for a piss and your whole platoon takes a drone up the ass, you start thinking you were saved for a reason.

“Oh shi—” was all Jonas got out before purple guy took him.

And he was gone. A man I once shared a foxhole with might as well have been dead.

It’s not easy to get through your head. I remember watching Captain Eagle cartoons when I was a kid, him popping off people’s noggins with a flick of his finger. You always think that’s the sort of thing that happens to someone else. You always think you aren’t going to be the random idiot who gets his brains blown out. But that’s life for the rest of us.

“We’re being attacked!” I yelled to the rest of the room, whipping out my pistol. All I had on hand was a 45. ACP. It could pretty much take out anyone with a well-placed shot. Anyone except those with class three or above superpowers.

The few guys with me unholstered their weapons and started pulling security. We were in a hollowed out living room converted into a makeshift command post. There were two points of entry—three counting the trapdoor which led out to our little pier on the Hudson.

“No!” I shouted, grabbing one of them. “Double up! Back to back! This guy’s trying to pick us off!”

I slammed my back against Sam’s just when purple spandex appeared again. I swung my pistol and fired a shot. He disappeared, the bullet whizzing harmlessly passed and punching a hole in the wall.

“What do we do!?” Sam yelled. He was in a panic. They all were.

I had to pause for a moment, stop the adrenaline from making me act stupid. One breath. Two. Gunfire erupted somewhere else. Explosions went off as my guys detonated the claymores we had hidden in the apartment walls. It wasn’t just superheroes then. It was CitySec too. We were royally screwed, but we weren’t going down without a fight.

“Get the Zapper!” I yelled. “Cover each other, make sure the teleporter can’t get close!”

Niles hesitated. “But it’s only got the one—”

“Do it!” I ordered. We had needed the Zapper for the ASA job, but as it stood, most of us wouldn’t be breathing tomorrow.

Niles nodded, finally realizing the gravity of the situation. He and Parker shuffled back-to-back into the nearby bedroom where we had stored all our equipment. Meanwhile, I was trying not to shit myself, waiting for purple spandex to appear again. Me and Sam stood in the doorway to the bedroom, trying to reduce possible points of attack. Going against supes, it’s downright unfair I tell you. But our purple friend didn’t come back. I think he realized we wouldn’t be easy targets.

I winced as I heard sounds of fighting all around us. I radioed in the warning for whoever was out there to listen. Probably wouldn’t do much good, but it would at least give them a chance.

Damn it. I thought we had it good here. We just got set up too. Homeless didn’t frequent the area, too far out from the food-lines. We had a signal jammer to knock out any passing drones, and I had rotating shifts of riflemen on the nearby buildings. We had secured this place as much as it could be.

I gritted my teeth as I heard more fighting. Where the fuck was our early warning? I had guys for that.

“Teleported away, you idiot,” I muttered to myself, suddenly realizing the answer.

Note to self, next time invest in those heartbeat alarms the Ecuadorian Mercs were selling in City 48.

Huh, funny how I always think that—that there’s going to be a next time.

“Zapper’s ready to fire!” Niles yelled from the bedroom.

“Hit it!”

“Shouldn’t we wait for—”

“He’s not the only supe out there! Fire it!”

There was an audible click as an electromagnetic pulse was fired off. My vision went dizzy, and the floor rushed up to meet me. I felt iron smelling blood burst from my nose, and the mother of all migraines exploded in my head.

“Vance!” Sam hauled me back to my feet.

“That bought us fifteen, twenty minutes tops,” I told him, panting heavily as I fought a wave of nausea. “Fall back to the pier and start the motorboats. Wait ten minutes and then leave!” As much as I hated cutting and running, we didn’t have much other choice. I felt a surge of anger at the supes. My brain was finally getting over the shock and realizing just how much we lost.

I got my radio out and gave the order to everyone. If there was anyone able to make it, they would make it in that timeframe. If not, then they were shit out of luck.

“You go too.” I glanced back at Sam. “I’ll put my back against the wall. Try to buy as much time as I can.”

“You can’t be serious. We need you.”

“Not anymore, our party is officially over. Want my advice? Head to City 35. I hear business is good with the Runner Gangs down there.”

Sam cursed, but he ran over to the trap door followed by Niles and Parker. I planted myself against the wall while several more men came running in the room. They each climbed down into the tunnel, but the trickle of men quickly ran dry. Ten—no eleven made it. I quickly pulled the rug over the trap door. They would detonate the explosives on the other side, keep anyone from following. That was good enough, I guess.

I threw up the table as a barricade and blocked the door to the hallway. Repositioning in the corner of what had been once a small kitchen, I prepared to set my ambush using the counter as cover. Probably should’ve done that earlier, but your head thinks weird things in combat. But now I had a good vantage point of both entrances.

I winced as I glanced at the crates and radio equipment in the bedroom. That room was filled with all our supplies, worth a small fortune in putting together. Clean water, MREs, and enough firepower to level a city block, everything needed for the gig of a lifetime. Now it was all going to be confiscated by CitySec.

My eyes fell to the floorboards. Well, maybe not everything. I was glad I took Joshua’s advice, even though I thought it was overkill. At least there might be something to come back to after this whole shitshow was over.

I chuckled. I did it again—thinking I was going to get out of this.

Before you get any of the wrong ideas, you should know a few things about me. I didn’t stay behind for some noble cause or anything. Listen, when the chips are down I normally don’t give two shits about anyone except number one. But I also hate losing. And I hate losing to supes.

Who’s crazy enough to square up against class threes or above? Me, I guess. Might say it’s a mental illness, but I like to think I don’t turn tail and run so easily. My hands were shaking while I was holding my pistol. Not from fear, mind you. Licking my lips, I tried to hold myself steady. Man, it gets difficult keeping a clear head, with all the memories that keep flooding back.

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The gunfire and explosions were growing quiet. Every once in a while, there would be a quick flurry of noise, but those were growing fewer and farther between. Minutes passed and no one came in. It seemed like the Zapper had done its job. And just as I was patting myself on the back, purple spandex popped back into the room.

I unloaded three rounds, and bird guy practically phased in and out of reality as he dodged them. My bullets may have well been nonexistent for all the good they did. Super powers bypass conventional human instincts. As long as he knew they were coming, there was no way my bullets were ever going to hit him. He was just trying to make me empty my magazine and then grab me. I stopped. It was pointless.

Purple kid appeared again. He knocked his hand on his head several times, and I noticed he had a red smear of blood on his lip. “I gotta say, you guys did a number on me. What was that? One of those EMP pulses?”

“We called it the Zapper,” I said, keeping my pistol aimed in his direction. “Bought it in a garage sale.”

“Har-dee-har-har,” the guy in the bird costume paced. “Can you go ahead and empty that gun for me? Would really help.”

“What did you do to my friend?”

“I didn’t make him go splat, if that’s what you’re worried about. I only killed the guys guarding the front door.”

“Fuck you!” I shot another bullet at him for all the good it did.

“Listen.” the guy in the bird costume appeared again, crossing his arms. “You put down the gun, and I don’t have to rough you up. I’ll take it easy on you. How about that?”

I raised an eyebrow. “You think you’re the one going easy? I could fuck you up in a second, kid. Don’t think I haven’t gone up against people like you before.”

The guy in the bird costume coughed out a laugh. “Oh, really now? All right then.” He raised both his arms. “Hit me.”

I couldn’t help but smirk. I knew I had him then.

Cocking my head, I put my finger on the trigger. “Could make it harder.”

Purple spandex appeared less than two feet away. “No no. I want you to try to hit me. Go on. I’ll dodge it like the rest.”

Holding the pistol with one hand, I aimed it square at his head. “Oh, in a few seconds, you’ll be feeling it.”

Bird guy appeared right in front of the pistol. He grabbed it and pushed it directly into his forehead. “Come on, hit me.”

I grinned. “All right then.”

With my other arm, I slugged him in the solar plexus. Purple spandex doubled-over gasping for breath. I tried to shoot him, but he disappeared again.

Fuck. I stomped my foot in the ground, pointing the pistol in the air. “You think you’re invincible!? Even you can’t dodge something you don’t know is coming!” I shouted.

There was some yelling and gunfire down the hall. There were a few guys still trying to fall back, but there was a bright flash. I smelled ozone, and I heard screaming.

I kid you not, a guy in a lightning mask ducked his head through the barricade before blowing it apart with a bolt of electricity. Purple spandex appeared again beside him, still recovering his breath.

I sighed as I waved my pistol between them, knowing full well what was going to happen.

“What the fuck did he do?” Lightning mask asked purple spandex, noticing his breathing trouble. “The EMP wasn’t that bad.”

“Shut up,” bird guy responded, giving me the evil eye.

I wish that they would’ve just done a drone strike on the building. It wouldn’t be as humiliating as getting presently whipped by two kids playing dress up. Still, I wasn’t about to go out without letting a few more shots off. I unloaded the rest of my pistol at lightning man, but each bullet was struck out of the air by sparks of electricity. He didn’t even need to move. He simply raised his hand, ready to blast me.

I looked down at my gun, a constant disappointment in my life. I tossed the weapon away and threw my arms wide. “Well? Let’s get this over with.”

“We going to kill him?” Purple spandex asked, straightening up.

“Nah, this guy looks like the leader. They’re going to want him for questioning.”

I gave him the honest finger. Lightning man shook his head in annoyance, and after that, all I remember was a flash of light.

The next thing I knew, journalists were snapping shots of us and the dead bodies, the tasteful corpses anyway. Some of the charred remains were too graphic to put on the news. It might’ve made them look bad. The lightning man held me up by the hair as he gave a quick interview.

Slobber dribbled down my chin. I remember throwing up on the pavement, and then I was shoved into the back of an armored truck.

…

It was several more minutes before I came to again. My head was pounding, and I groaned as I blinked my eyes, trying to clear up my vision. The purple guy was sitting in the truck with me as we were being driven to the nearest interrogation center. I shook my head and vomited again on the floor truck. That seemed to be the last of it. I sighed with relief. I noticed I was bound in handcuffs. I wiped the dribble off my mouth with my shoulder.

“Mind if I smoke?” I asked.

Purple spandex shrugged his shoulders. He had taken off his mask, revealing a young face that couldn’t have been much older than twenty. His brown hair was smooth and glossy, likely the result of a dozen different shampoos and conditioners. Some of it was combed to fall over one eye. His stylist was clearly going for the bad boy look, and it was failing badly. His soft features made him look more like a sad puppy. The only thing off-putting were his crimson red eyes, which were the only mildly intimidating thing about him.

I couldn’t bring myself to hate him after seeing that. I understood then—I had seen it enough times over my colorful career. He wasn’t a believer. He was just someone trying to survive.

I ruffled through my coat and pulled out a lighter and cigarette. Some men have trouble moving about in handcuffs. I had plenty of experience. I puffed on the smoke for a few minutes, enjoying the burn in my chest.

“When did they take you?” I asked.

“What?”

“What age did they take you? Were you an ASA kid? I know StarCorp does the rounds at their facilities, buying out the kids with potential.”

“I was from a protective parent program.”

I puffed again. “Shit, that might be even worse. Bred from the cradle to be our best and brightest. Did your parents at least reconsider when they finally had to hand you over?”

One sour look told me all I needed to know. Those sorts of people didn’t get selected for StarCorp’s eugenics program because they got too attached to children. They themselves were probably recruited out of Gen Pop, given a lavish lifestyle in exchange for producing superior, more well-adjusted superheroes.

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry about what?”

“Sorry you never got to have a childhood—a real one, anyway. I was much the same. It’s a tough hand to be dealt.” I offered the cigarette over to purple spandex. “Want a puff?”

“I’m not allowed.”

I rolled my eyes. “They aren’t watching all the time. You can cut loose.”

Purple spandex pointed to a sleek watch on his wrist.

“Oh,” I said. “I guess they are.”

We rode in silence for a little ways. I continued enjoying my cigarette, fully aware of the irony of the situation. He was the hero, and yet he was riding in the same Zurchon-lined coffin as me. I knew the business very well. Behind all the glamor, superheroes were kept on a very short leash. They walked that thin line of being too dangerous for society and too powerful for the system to pass up. I pitied this young guy. He had never known freedom.

“They all resent you,” I began speaking. “You should know that. I saw how the police officers were looking at you when they put you in here with me. They hate you because you’re a walking contradiction to the lie we’re supposed to believe. Not all of us are created equal, and they hate you because you can do something they can’t.”

The kid remained silent.

“But they’re not as bad as the leeches who watch your every little exploit, the ones who eat up all the propaganda like it’s the Bible. They spend their lives wanting to be you, and you just want to scream at them the truth. It’s all squalid, right up to the very top.”

The bird kid winced, and I smiled, knowing I finally hit something real.

“I am loyal to the people of the Democratic Union. You’re a dangerous terrorist.” Purple spandex rattled the line off as if he were a wind-up toy.

“I’m far worse than a terrorist, kid.” I chuckled, hesitating for a moment. The smile died on my lips for a moment. “Want my advice? Start learning to say no—before you lose something you can’t get back.”

“Shut up.” The kid finally had enough.

I raised my cuffed hands in surrender. I lifted a finger. “Just one more thing… I want you to know you’re not the only one who can do cool stuff.”

Purple spandex raised an eyebrow.

“I can teleport too.”

I vanished from the truck.

Of course, I didn’t really teleport. If I had that ability, it would’ve made my life so much easier. Instead, all I got was a paltry class two invisibility… but it did have its advantages from time to time.

Bird kid’s eyes went wide. To his credit, he didn’t immediately panic. He reached out with his arm, checking if I was still there. He had a good head on his shoulders, but not good enough to realize what he should’ve done. I yanked my handcuffs around his neck and started choking him.

Suddenly, we were outside of the truck and in the street. I grinned. Instinct overrode sense. He was just trying to get away, and he accidentally pulled me with him. I let him go and pushed him into the asphalt. His watch was already squeaking and the police convoy was putting on the brakes, but it didn’t matter.

Between the Zapper, the Zurchon-lined truck, and getting hit by actual lightning,. I didn’t have much left in the tank. My invisibility flickered on and off as I stumbled into a stopped car, the occupant honked the horn. Panting heavily, I summoned my last bit of energy as CitySec cars pulled to a stop and officers began pointing guns.

I went invisible and sprinted away as a hail of bullets issued out. Thankfully, none hit me, and I ducked into a nearby alley. Throwing myself under a dumpster, I let out a gasp of pain as the invisibility turned off again. They’d think I’d still be running—that would give me some time to recharge my batteries.

And then? That was for future me to worry about. My head was still too clouded to think that far ahead. I shut my eyes and tried not to think about all the shouting and commotion on the street.

…

Since you found out my dirty secret, I’m sure you have some questions. Yes, I’m technically a supe too. Technically. Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves here. I’m close to the bottom of the bottom of the barrel here, the shortest straw drawn in the genetic lottery, abnormal enough to be a de-facto enemy of the state, yet not enough for the cushy life.

Funny how that works.

If you stick around longer, maybe you’ll learn a few other things about me. Don’t expect me to go blabbing though. I’m a guy who has to keep his cards close to his chest. That’s the only way people like me survive in this world.

But in any case, I’ve still got CitySec drones trying to spot me.

Catch you next time.