Today marks the first triple-digit day of confirmed cases of the virus scientists are calling O-TER-20. One hundred and twenty confirmed infections, the majority of which are from Johansontown. Less than 10% of those cases are scattered between both Saint Century and Millerton Bay. Not much is known about transmission, but the ICDC encourages those of us who may have OH friends and/or colleagues to practice social distancing and wear a re-breather mask if available.
-Century City News
“Justice Jones spreads OH propaganda!” The voice shouting was shrill; high pitched. The voice belonged to a man stuck at the center of attention in a media store located in northern Saint Century. Here was where the upper crust donned VR helmets and lost themselves in music, movies, or even literature. Justice Jones was here for a lecture in which he spoke about the responsibility of OH citizens to assimilate as he had. He had drawn his biggest crowd simply because Captain Steel was now alive, and he had somehow become a peer of the man. Because of this, some people did care what he had to say for once.
Jones was in his mid 40’s, had rough skin, and jet black hair. His claims to being an OH were truly pure propaganda. His abilities were given to him in a lab due to a failed initiative for the government to have their own Captain Steel that they could control and use. It was known as Project Combat Officer Protocol or Project C.O.P. With enhanced strength, reflexes, and agility, he often fought side by side with Cap, sometimes against him because, at his core, Jones was a major a-hole.
Ultimately Project C.O.P failed because of his disposition in part. The other part mainly had to do with Captain Steel working with the government properly, which showed them that it was more cost-effective just to massage the target rather than try to replace it. Still, Jones had charisma; he couldn’t entirely disappear. He became a low-level reactionary with ridiculous rants across social media.
Once Captain Steel had died 17 years ago, he suddenly found himself with a cache of expertise. He started getting callbacks to famous panel shows alongside guest spots on the top-viewed news magazine shows of the evening, which, in turn, he spun into an exhibition of his own. A show in which he pontificated on the topic of the day to decent ratings. Justice Jones longed to be the story his entire career and on the backs of scorching takes, he finally was.
Three normal humans had interrupted the conference. They separated Jones from the rest of the crowd. The three of them wore cybernetic exoskeletons that enhanced their strength and pumped a steady feed of adrenalin directly into their spine. The leader held a gun to Jones’ head; the remaining crowd remained docile so they would not be shot.
“Justice Jones is an OH apologist!” The leader shouted, which couldn’t be further from the truth. If a side needed a useful idiot to fan the flames of division and act like “one of the good ones,” they usually turned to Jones. It was a wonderful grift, and the fact that he wasn’t actually an OH made it all the juicier.
“Now they’re getting us sick!”
“What's the end game here?” Jones spoke carefully.
“The what?” The leader was wired, his pupils dilated, and his breaths were shallow.
“The. End. Game,” Jones repeated. “How about we sit down and have an interview on my show?” The ringleader shut his eyes tight and looked away. His head pounded; he slapped at it with his palm.
“URRAHH SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP,” he screamed, pushing the gun further into Jones’ temple. It was a Magno 500, private class. The uranium-powered weapon fired round metal pellets that were accelerated by quantum magnetic coils that all but teleported the shell at whatever it was aimed at. Jones shut his eyes and prepared to cease to exist, but a slow clap coming from the crowd forced them back open.
“Justice Jones, it has been a long time...” Captain Steel was walking in through the gathered crowd, clapping his hands. He wore a mask that covered his nose and mouth while his yellow scarf hung off his shoulder and fluttered behind him. He stopped clapping and adjusted his padded gloves.
“Do you have this or….?” He asked Jones, who just narrowed his eyes. The ringleader kept his gun trained on Jones but shivered and twitched. One of his partners stepped forward with a Magno of their own and fired it directly at Cap.
He smirked and slapped the bead out of the air; the next moment, he had hold of the shooter and lifted them off their feet one-handed. As the other two started reacting to this, the walls on either side exploded outward. On the left was Kid Steel; on the right was Athena Steel; both were masked as well. The twins pounded their fists into their palms simultaneously.
The gathered crowd gasped in unison.
Athena lowered her shoulder and walloped the guy in front of her with a devastating uppercut. He flew off his feet, collided with the ceiling, and got stuck. MJ lifted his opponent above him in a gorilla press and did squats.
“You’re such a show-off, I swear.” Athena rolled her eyes and dusted off her hands. MJ smirked and slammed the guy down into the crowd so hard he sunk 3 inches. Both kids approached their father, who continued to hold the man 2 feet off the ground while scratching at his beard. Finally, he dropped the man.
“Take that crap off and go home,” He said softly. Jones’ eyes went wide as saucers.
“What? I intend to press charges!” Jones yelled. The twins shifted behind jones and chuckled behind him.
“Then go find a cop,” Cap said. “They’re just scared. Interesting to see that you’re a POS here too.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“C’mon, kiddos, the press awaits.”
Cap ignored Jones and headed for the exit, where a swarm of camera bots congregated. Athena and MJ followed right behind; Athena stuck her tongue out at Jones as she walked by. Across from the café, watching this swarm from a rooftop, were Corina and Roxanne. Cap could be seen engaging with the press; his charisma evident even from 50 feet away.
“You still scared?” Corina asked. She wore a smug look like a badge of honor. “Don’t think I’m not still annoyed by that stunt you pulled.”
“Corina, I’ve said I’m sorry, but something brought him here, and none of us know why—why aren’t you scared? The Greshing body is gone!”
“So what?” Corina replied, tired of this repeating discussion. “I've had my misgivings, but he keeps proving himself.”
“We don’t know anything about him, he never talks about the 17 years between now and the Grimm fight either, and I don’t like it.”
“I trust him, Rox,” Corina said. “I can’t explain it. He’s my brother. I know he’s not really my brother, not literally, but—he is. Just look at him; look at the effect he’s having.”
Roxanne did look. People had gathered around all three of the Steel Family. Cap talked to every single person there, from reporters to fans. The return of Captain Steel had shaken the entire universe. Roxanne had heard in her travels that legends were formed in real-time, and here she was with a front-row seat. Already it had been said that no crime had been committed during the 48 hours post-press conference, and no one questioned it.
“Can you at least admit that the act of him being brought here—if he was brought here on purpose—is in and of itself benign? It’s neither good nor bad?”
“Yes,” Roxanne replied. But that did nothing to make her feel better. She had softened, too; there was little point in driving yourself mad over something that hadn’t happened. That, plus this growing pandemic that’s only just reached Saint Century, had kept her mind off of such things.
But, she remained vigilant.
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
The constant news coverage about the thus far unknown disease had a lot of people on edge, and the Anti-OH aspects of society were bubbling to the surface. Roxanne switched to a live news feed in her HUD; she watched Captain Steel finesse with the press and did his part to quell some of it.
“Why wear that mask, Cap? Is the disease airborne? “ she heard someone ask him.
“I don’t know,” he replied. “But I do know it doesn’t hurt to be safe and prepared. Wearing a mask is the least you can do as a citizen.”
Roxanne rolled her eyes. The entire showbiz aspect of their lives completely turned her off. She let her likeness get merchandised because it provided income for her and grams; everything else was entirely off the table. She hated talking to the press, so she didn’t. She didn’t do public appearances or anything unrelated to her job because she hated feeding into that cycle.
“I am planning to meet with leaders to see if anything new can be learned or done,” she heard him say, which surprised her.
“What’s this about a meeting?” Roxanne asked.
“Hmm?” Corina seemed lost in her own head. “Oh, we’re attending a meeting with the directors, Central One, and leaders from ICDC.”
“That doesn’t sound ominous or anything.”
Corina didn’t respond. She was back in her own head.
“You alright, babe?” Roxanne asked.
“Have you heard from Sam?” Corina replied. Roxanne had to think back on that one; all the days had blended together.
“It's been a few days, I think,” Roxanne said. “Why?”
“He hasn’t been reading my messages. We should stop by his apartment.”
“Who’s apartment?” MJ had asked while he floated over the roof, followed by Athena, then Captain Steel. Cap slapped MJ on the shoulder, pleased with his performance down there. MJ tried to hide that it had made him happy and mostly failed.
“I can handle that if you want while you do that meeting thing?” Roxanne offered. Corina felt all the tension drain from her body.
“You sure?” She asked.
“Yeah,” Roxanne shrugged. “I got nothing else going on today besides a shift at the store.”
“Mind if I come with?” Athena piped in. “I kind of want to check the store out too! The city is soooo exciting!”
The past couple of days had been the most time either of the twins had spent outside of the farm. Athena especially had become enamored with all the lights and bustle of the massive mega city. Corina usually handled most of the chaperoning, but Athena was 17 and had started to chafe against it.
Corina was the coolest Aunt and best friend a person could have, but at the end of the day, she was an adult, and her days were filled with family, family, family. Athena wanted to spread her wings on her own for a bit, and Corina was all for it. Roxanne smiled. Both she and Athena had spoken privately about hanging out, just the two of them, so she was happy to facilitate that finally. Athena was super extra, but Roxanne ultimately loved the energy.
“Sure thing, let's mosey.” She said.
“Hey, what about me?” MJ stepped forward.
“Sorry, bud,” Roxanne said. “Girl time.” And the two flew off into the sky. Cap put a hand on MJ’s shoulder as a sign of solidarity.
“We can do something together if you want,” he said. “After this meeting.” MJ’s ears perked up, and he stood up straight. The option to do something more “adult” appealed to him considerably far more than anything else.
“Can I come to the meeting?” He asked.
“I don’t see why not?” Cap replied and looked at Corina, who had shrugged. MJ beamed. What a day this had been so far. Getting to fight a long side Captain Steel; did it matter that it wasn’t indeed his father? He had already caught himself referring to him as such in private it was only a matter of time before it slipped out in front of him. He wondered if he should just embrace it at this point.
It couldn’t hurt...
“Thank you, fath-,” MJ cut himself off; not today.
----------------------------------------
Roxanne had only been to Sam’s apartment one other time. It was not long after they had first met, and it was completely awkward. They had met up alone at a bar with a stage and a band going to play on it. Sam first told her that this band was in town and that tickets were available. She got her own, he got his own, and they both settled on meeting at the venue.
However, a few days before the show, Sam texted her and asked if she wanted to “pre-game” at his place before they left. Roxanne knew what pre-gaming meant but wasn’t interested; she said she’d keep him company and hang out. He sent a heart emoji to that; in retrospect, she has since felt that should have been her first clue.
Still, she went. She said hi to Sam’s sister and took the 3-second tour. Roxanne was almost jealous; she would have loved a place like this if she could sign a flexible lease, but such things did not exist for people like her. The two of them sat on the couch while Sam cracked open a drink, Liquid Cooler, a bright purple alcoholic beverage that guaranteed an 8-hour solid flat buzz.
“I love listening to them on it,” he said.
“Nice,” she replied.
“Listen…” and he just laid it all out there. He liked Roxanne. Like, he really liked her. He thought she was cute. He wondered if they could hang out more, as more than friends. She put on a sympathetic face. Unfortunately, she has been here before, and you never knew how any guy would take rejection. She let him down easy.
She wasn’t into him like that.
She loves hanging out with him.
He took it well.
The rest of the night was weird, but it got better; they’re legit pals now.
Roxanne and Athena rode the elevator up in mostly silence. Athena hummed a tune Roxanne couldn’t match to anything she’d heard before. She recorded the melody and then ran it in a search engine, which also came up blank.
“What is that?” she asked.
“Hmm?”
“That tune?”
“Oh, this?” Athena hummed it again; Roxanne nodded. “I made it up. I study a lot of music theory an’ play a bunch of instruments and, like, I’unno I’m always just making up songs in my head!” Roxanne glanced back at Athena, all big and bubbly Athena; she was impressed.
“What do you play?”
“Little bit of everything, but I love drumming the most, probably.” She replied. “Do you play anything?”
“I mess with an old guitar I picked up off-world sometimes.”
“We should totally jam!” Athena bounced on her toes and smiled brightly. Roxanne grinned back and shook her head just as they reached the floor. Roxanne exited first; from the elevator was a hallway that extended 20 feet with apartment doors on either side. Sam’s was at the end and on the left.
The two stood in front of the door marked 44E and noticed that it was open, just a crack. Roxanne held her hand out and stopped Athena. With a spark and a flash of light, Roxanne’s uniform built itself over her body atom by atom and fiber by fiber. She took her toe and pushed up the door, and shined a harmless light inside the apartment.
Roxanne scanned horizontally across the living room and caught the glare of a pair of yellow lenses. The lights inside flicked on and revealed Spydalow, also in a face mask, standing on the ceiling.
“Hey!” Athena shouted and leaped inside. She threw a wild haymaker that Spyda deftly blocked before flipping backward. He jumped and twisted in mid-air, landing on the floor just feet away from her with his hands up.
[https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/939246405011251231/1079123209431031838/IMG_20220407_174054__01__01PSD.JPG?width=1006&height=662]
“Wait!” he shouted. “I’m a friend.” Athena hesitated and then moved like she was going to throw another punch, but Roxanne stepped in and surrounded her in a hard-light bubble.
“I know it’s like your—third?—third time out, but,” Roxanne said. “Talk first, then fight, always.” She turned to face Spydalow; he stood slowly.
I know you,” she said.
“You do?”
“I mean, I’ve seen you on the net.” The words seemed to perk Spyda up.
“Thanks!” He said.
“You’re like the conspiracy guy or something.”
"...thanks."
Spyda crouched again and inspected the floor. Roxanne took another step, but he held up a hand. “I wouldn’t come closer; I don’t feel great.” Roxanne froze and held her hand up toward Athena to get her to freeze too.
“You have it?”
“No idea, but call it a strong suspicion.” Roxanne hadn’t noticed it earlier in the brief melee, but his breathing seemed haggard.
“Do you know where Sam is?”
“I think he has it, too,” he replied. “They took him and his family. They tried to take me; that’s why I’m here.” Roxanne and Athena looked at each other; Athena shrugged.
“Who’s they?” She asked, and Spyda looked at her like she had three heads. She got the picture.
“I don’t get it,” Athena said. “Who are we talking about and why?
“The ICG little girl,” Spyda said. “The same people you and your daddy work for.”
“We don’t work for the government!” she shouted, and then to Roxanne: “Do we?” Roxanne ignored that because they basically did, and it wasn’t worth splitting hairs over.
“Why did they take Sam?” she asked. “If they took Sam.”
“Because the damn thing doesn’t affect just OverHumans. I think it affects normals too, and Sam got his family sick.”
“Bull, they can't keep something like that secret forever.”
“Are you like 16 or something? Wake up, girl, aren’t you like all-knowing or some crap?”
Roxanne steamed.
“You’re just a goddamn conspiracy kook!” She shouted, casting aside all aspirations of poise.
“Oh yeah? How do you explain the conversations I had been having with Sam where he expressed concern about getting his family sick??”
“Let me see them.”
“They’re deleted. I always delete my convo history; you should too,” Spyda told her matter-of-factly. Roxanne threw her arms in the air and turned around.
“Really convenient,” she sighed.
“I don’t need you to believe me; hell, I don’t care. But Sam’s in this cuz of me, and I’m gonna do what I can to find the truth and get him out.”
“Well, now you’re talking sense. We’ll help you,” Roxanne said, pointing at her and Athena.
“Nah, I’m good.”
Spyda tossed a glue grenade—Web Bomb—at their feet. The paste covered them instantly and anchored them both to the floor while Spyda backflipped toward the back bedroom and, presumably, out of the apartment. Roxanne expanded her aura and disintegrated the adhesive like it were tinder. She ran to the room after him.
He was gone.