Levi jolted back to life. He bumped his head on a cool green surface and fell back to the marble floor with a groan.
Outside, Rose grumbled. Light fell over Levi as Handel lifted his hand. “You’re better now?”
Levi nodded. “Right as rain.”
Handel lifted his hand away, and Levi stood. He stretched, yawning, and patted Handel’s hand. “Thanks, friend.”
“No problem,” Handel muttered.
Levi stood there for a few seconds, a little stunned, then blinked. He patted around his pants, looking for his phone. “Right, I was doing a little…poking around…”
Outside, sirens blared. The doors blasted open.
Levi jolted. He grabbed Handel’s finger. “Shit! It’s the cops! Clear out, clear out, let’s go!”
Rose reared up, pointing her palm at the room, and screamed. Next to her, one of the high supers stumbled back, his eyes bugged out of his head. He pointed at Rose, wordless.
The homeless people ran out of the room, following Rose as she gestured at the back door. Handel got down on his hands and knees and started crawling out. Ahead of the two of them, Levi blended into the homeless people and ran out of the building. Fira joined him as he ran, the fire around her body burning out.
“Where were you?” Levi asked.
“Rescuing ordinary people. Where were you?”
“Killing bad guys.” Levi offered his fist for a bump.
Fira looked him up and down. “You don’t get a fist bump for that.”
Levi frowned at her. “Why not? We did the two parts of a super’s job. You helped normal people, I killed baddies. What’s to hate about that?”
“Supers don’t kill people,” Fira said.
“Yeah, and neither do guns,” Levi shot back. He shook his head at Fira. “Do you still think supers don’t kill people? After everything you’ve seen?”
“There’s a few bad actors, but—”
“And? Do those bad actors kill people?” Levi asked.
“I mean, yes, but—”
“No buts to it. Supers kill people. Part of the job description. We, the two of us, today, were collectively one super.” Levi went for the fist bump again.
Fira stared at him. “I’m not giving you a fist bump for murder!”
Levi shook his head. “Double standards, man. Double standards everywhere you look.”
“I don’t think I’m the one being weird here,” Fira muttered under her breath.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
They rushed through the kitchen and out into the dance floor of the low-level supers’ party. A few supers stumbled around, high out of their mind. They fled past, toward the back exit. The last red glimmers of the setting sun shone through the rear door. Handel crawled out, Rose chasing after him. The two of them led the rest of the vagrant contingent back onto the streets.
Levi followed, running for the light.
A meaty hand wrapped around Levi’s shoulder. Someone yanked him back, holding him in place. “You aren’t getting away.”
Levi glanced over his shoulder. A massive man, roiling with muscle, stood over him. The man’s head sunk into his thick, muscular neck, his chest double as wide as an ordinary person, his hips broad. Levi looked him up and down. “Do you have to turn sideways to get through doors?”
The man grunted. His grip tightened, and he threw Levi into the wall.
Drywall crunched. Levi slammed into the cinderblock on the other side and sagged down, head lolling, caught in a crater in the wall.
“Levi!” Fira turned back, startled.
Levi looked up. He waved his arm at her. His hand flopped at the end of it, bone broken straight through. “Go, go! I’ll catch up.”
The muscular man leaped, both fists raised.
Fira sprinted away. His fists struck the ground, tossing up fragments of tile and concrete. She glanced back at Levi one last time, then vanished into the streets.
Levi struggled out of the hole. His limbs refused to obey him. One of his legs dangled, the same as his arm. His ribs ached, stabbing at his insides. I’m dead.
The muscular man grabbed his head. “You killed Blasterman.”
“Me? Would I do that?” Levi mumbled, his vision fuzzy.
“I, Bonecrusher, will avenge him.”
Tension increased on his head. His skull groaned. Levi struggled instinctively, grabbing at the thick hand gripping his head. “Stop, stop—”
“No.”
Crack.
[You lost a life!]
[Lives remaining: -17259]
DEBUG: Corruption Level Medium [WARNING] | Ability Points non-degraded | status DEGRADED
Press X to reallocate your ability points.
Levi shook his head, coming back to life. He pushed out of the crater, half-climbing, half-falling to his feet. Blood stung in his eyes. He wiped bits of gore out of his eyes and sniffed, wrinkling his nose. “We’ve got to quit meeting like this,” he muttered to the System.
Bonecrusher turned. “What?”
Levi jolted. “You’re still here?”
“You’re alive?”
Both of them stared at each other for a moment. Time seemed to slow. The air thickened, tension growing.
Across the dance floor, someone sneezed.
Levi sprinted for the door at the same time that Bonecrusher lunged for Levi, his arms wide. Hands the size of dinner plates flew toward him. He ducked, barely dodging the sweep. The passing air sent his hair into a flurry and knocked him off balance. He struck the ground with his fingertips, pushed up, and kept running.
“No, you don’t!” Heavy footsteps rumbled after him. The floor shook. A shadow fell over him.
Levi threw himself to the side. Bonecrusher’s arms wrapped around thin air in what would have been a fatal bear hug. Levi jumped back up, only for a wall of flesh to hurtle into the side of his head as Bonecrusher threw his arms wide again. The back of Bonecrusher’s hand crumpled his skull, and he fell bonelessly to the floor.
Bonecrusher stepped back, wary this time.
[You lost a life!]
[Lives remaining: -17260]
DEBUG: Corruption Level Medium [WARNING] | Ability Points non-degraded | status DEGRADED
Press X to reallocate your ability points.
The first thing he saw was the bottom of a boot. He had enough time for a “fuck” before it crunched down.
[You lost a life!]
[Lives remaining: -17261]
DEBUG: Corruption Level Medium [WARNING] | Ability Points non-degraded | status DEGRADED
Press X to reallocate your ability points.
Before he even opened his eyes, Levi rolled sideways with all his might. A poomf of air and the THUMP of a boot behind him told him he was barely in time. He kept rolling. Bonecrusher waddled after him, one thump after another, stomping the tiles to bits. The wall loomed.
Levi licked his lips as he rolled toward his inevitable demise. It’s gonna be one of those days, isn’t it.