As Hector sleeps, oblivious to the world outside, he remembers his past life.
-30 Years Earlier-
Hector stands suited up in his first ever hero uniform, the sleek silver of the armor reflecting the light rays back out into the world and the light blue spandex filling the gaps between, he patrols the city. Waiting for the inevitable crime. Though young, he is eager to join the 'Good Fight', having gained his powers early on and suppressing them for fear of the public stigma. Now is different, powers are embraced and welcomed by almost all, he too has learned to embrace with whole heart, claiming a new identity: Javelin. As he makes his way down the sidewalk, the streetlamps reflect off of him giving an almost godlike golden aura as he passes the civilians. At his side is the small cylindrical steel bar, which is about 6 inches in length and an inch thick. This tool allows him to channel energy through it and accomplish things no normal person could. Hector can utilize his powers to attack, defend and even 'fast travel' as he calls it.
Before the Age of Heroes, somebody clad in armor walking down the street would be stared at by all around, but now it is commonplace that ads and billboards around town show off heroes shilling the next big product civilians can't live without. He continues walking and passes a bench with a hero in white and red armor, he doesn't pay attention to it anymore and passes an inflatable Heroine with long red hair and purple armor helping a food truck sell their delicious items. The streets are filled with normal people... Nothing out of the ordinary. Hector grabs his core, the cylindrical tube at his side and grips it tightly. He aims toward another part of town and his hands start to crackle with electricity. His arm moves to launch the projectile and in the same moment his body gets swallowed like the vacuum of space ripping everything out of a crack in a ship's hull, converting to energy to travel within the tool. This is the Javelin. Upon descent, the Javelin loses momentum and before it hits the ground, the energy ripples into Hector's human form, grasping the tool in his hand tightly, successfully traveling to another part of the city in seconds. Hector holsters it and continues to patrol.
"You ready for the Big Leagues, kid?" From behind a voice spoke up. A slightly older, slim man adorned with sleek gold spandex, silver foam-like armor extending over the chest and shoulders to create the cross-hair of a gun's sight.
"Lock-On! Good to see you, man. Of course I'm ready!" Hector greeted the Hero with a large, toothy smile and a familiar, but complex handshake. Once Lock-On! has his target, even from across the city, his wrist and ankle jets propel him to his target and he SMASHES away at the rival.
"Good, I've brought company." From behind Lock-On! stands 3 figures coming out from the shadows.
"Welcome to The Finalists." A woman dressed in a sleek red and green form fitting outfit spoke up, her long white hair shining upon her shoulders. "I am Mother Christmas." Hector's skin turned to gooseflesh though nobody could tell, he is ecstatic to meet The Finalists. Next to her stands a very tan man with bleach-blond dreadlocks behind a folded bandana. "This is Hang Ten." She introduced. On the other side stands an androgynous person who is outfitted with all the latest tech gear.
"Hi, I'm Technoid. We're your new teammates." They say as they push their glasses up the bridge of their nose. Javelin already knew this of course, but is delighted to meet them all the same. He is now an official member of the All Star Super Hero Club. Since Hector embraced his true self, he wanted to learn everything about others like him, so he did.
"I know I'm a total fanboy, but I really am glad to meet you all and I hope I can live up to the name!" Hector said, clearly confident in his abilities. Despite the years of belittling, jeers and condescension from "normal" people, Hector is glad to finally be accepted fully for who he truly is. He pledged to help everyone, no matter what they may have done in the past, so he became a hero to do just that. That is being a hero, he believes. As time went on, the Javelin one of the team. Being a hero wasn't about being a celebrity for Hector, he was more of a service-industry worker, hoping to get his name out there and be accessible to as many people as possible, to help them any way he can.
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-Present Day-
Hector sleeps peacefully in his Stasis device, surrounded by the warm and cozy feeling. Thoughts like dreams come and go, flashes of memories, fill the small mass of energy as if all the synapses in his brain were firing all at once, a million times stronger than normal. Another memory takes center stage this time: Javelin is on a mission by himself Hector remembers this because it meant so much.
-15 Years Earlier-
Clouds hung low over the city, a constant drizzle steadily washing over everything, in an attempt to cleanse the city of its evils. A large building stood ornamented with spotlights covering almost every inch of land. Men with guns stalking the area for intruders, black nondescript cars littered on the lawn to prevent easy access inside. Javelin crept behind cars, an anxious panic in the back of his head as guards pass. He's going to be caught, surely this is it. But they continue on in their routine walk, unaware of the Hero creeping through the night. Javelin was hired as a Hand, a group of heroes that were legal mercenaries. The mission is to infiltrate the mid-tier boss's building and shut down the drug operation. Hector is older now and had seen plenty of the real world. After being a Hero for so long it became like working a job. Nothing but lip service to the customer and no back talking.
"You're really lucky we gave you this chance." He recalled the agent saying.
"Yeah, I'm sure. Despite you really needing help and nobody wanted to go on a suicide mission for you." Javelin retorted. He was over shit like this, but money is money. Hector knew this was the target's rivals leveling the competition so they could profit in drug business, but you don't bite the hand that feeds, so he kept quiet and did his job.
Javelin began outside and slowly worked his way in, avoiding the line of sight of men with guns or ones that could alert the others. Next to the door on the ground laid a brown cardboard box filled with bullet holes, blood pooling below. Poor bastard, he thought, couldn't get away with it again. Once inside, Hector was able to get passed the guards by hiding inside of electrical outlets, jumping from light to light, evading all of the unaware men.
He came to the second floor where two large brown oak double doors were enshrined in gold lacquer. Taking his normal shape again, Hector made the air tingle with his hands and was able to see inside the room. He saw what awaited him and prepared accordingly: Four goons with guns, his target and a woman sitting behind a large oak desk filled with suitcases and small baggies. Javelin took a breath and brought his leg full force into the doors. They cracked open and in an instant, everything became slower.
Their reactions were easy to read, Javelin zoomed to the first two goons electrically charging their guns. He moved to the others and the first guns' exploded upon the pull of the trigger. The men hit the floor as Hector shoved an energy ice-pick into the skull of the third goon. He flailed in pain, the trigger of the gun pulled and firing into the man's partner. Hector moved on to the desk and became immobilized.
His eyes fixated on the woman, a beautiful, brown hair, caramel skinned woman being grabbed by the boss and whisked away. Hector didn't know he was unable to move, he hadn't tried. Bullets flew past his head and he didn't register their existence in the slightest. Their eyes locked in what seemed to be a dance of time as hours flew by into days and into eternity. He noticed the boss running and snapped back to reality, everything still moving so slow, Hector blocked the boss from escape. She also felt the strangeness of the situation, having somebody transfixed on you all while they are evading bullets and fighting as if it was natural for them.
The boss yelled at her to move, but she couldn't. They were connected and both understood that in this single moment, an entire life spent together passed. An eternity that they would never get to visit again, because in a puff of smoke, everything turned to darkness and came crumbling around them. Hector later was told, the boss hit a switch when Javelin blocked his escape that set off explosives inside and outside the building. He was supposed to have taken the woman and ran, but while she and Javelin were locked together in time, he gave up and took all of their lives in an attempt to kill the Hero.
-Present Day-
Hector struggled to breathe, while in stasis he didn't need to and trying only complicated reality. If his body were tangible, a stream of tears would show running down both eyes. It is a painful memory, but that one moment shared between two strangers was beautiful, and that is all that mattered to him. He would have wondered why he was seeing that memory, the Stasis Device usually shows him happy memories, although with the loneliness of the voyage, he was glad to remember a time when he wasn't alone. Hector embraced his memories and remembered his emotions, instead of simply shutting them all away. He needed to remember.