The day after Geffry Lincoln’s capture, while at school, Conner used his lunch break for two tasks. One, to look into buying books on child psychology, and two, to take time to listen to the news on his phone.
To his dismay, Conner didn’t share lunch with any of his friends in his senior year, so the news, online shopping, or scrolling through YouTube were his only means of entertainment as he ate. But to be fair, the young Mask was eager to hear the stories covering his capture of Geffry and what was to be done with the pathetic excuse for a man now that he was in custody.
As such, Conner was understandably upset and surprised by what the broadcasters were saying. Apparently, Geffry had died in his sleep from the wounds inflicted by the Shining Darkness, despite the prison staff’s best attempts to keep him alive. All throughout, the reporters would sprinkle in comments claiming the Shining Darkness was a brute who decided to take the law into his own hands instead of letting the victims’ families get justice.
Conner was utterly floored, and thought while doing his best to keep an outwardly neutral expression for the lunchroom, This… No! This doesn’t make sense! I know I hurt him in ways he’d never fully recover, but I also know enough about anatomy to know what I did shouldn’t have been fatal. Especially if he got medical treatment. This doesn’t…! This doesn’t make sense. Huh.
With those last thoughts, Conner had reached a sudden realization. Those wounds shouldn’t have been fatal, and the news is trying to paint me in a bad light again… Is this-?
Before Conner could finish his last thought, the news played an interview with Jessie and Dan.
“I asked him to catch the guy, and he does this. I-,” Dan said before the story went back to the reporters slandering Shining Darkness’ apparent carelessness.
With Dan clearly being cut off before the full interview could play, Conner almost let off an annoyed yet amused smirk at this final piece of evidence.
Yeah. It looks like whoever’s trying to slander me is still at it… I should follow Leslie’s advice.
Turning off the news and checking chat rooms on social media, Conner was once again amused yet disappointed. His public approval actually seemed to be going up, with most people thinking the death of Geffry Lincoln was justifiable. Even amongst those who didn’t think the child killer should have been executed out of court, or at all, most people didn’t want to hold Shining Darkness responsible.
The general sentiment was, “It was only natural that someone as strong as he is would do accidental damage in such a heated chase. If anything, the nurses and doctors were to blame for not keeping Geffry alive.”
Support for Shining Darkness wasn’t universal, though, with a loud and plentiful group calling for him to be put on trial for an unlawful murder. However, as a Mask, Conner wasn’t truly legally accountable for Geffry’s death since the man in question died in custody hours after the encounter. Additionally, there was no court in the country that’d want to put the Super Mask on trial for ending a child killer’s life.
If anything, it seemed like this whole media marry-go-round was causing more people to lose faith in the news itself rather than the Shining Darkness.
There was also one other story making the rounds, weighing in on this topic that caught Conner’s eye. One man named Alex Frank claimed to be the first person the Shining Darkness ever rescued, praising the Super Mask as a hero. Curious, Conner took a look at a photo of Alex. When he saw it, he was surprised yet pleased as it actually was the same man he’d rescued on the first field test of his powers.
It was times like these that Conner was thankful to John for making his online presence untraceable while on his phone. Otherwise, he’d have to waste time disparaging his own alter ego just to maintain his secret identity from internet detectives.
Unable to stop himself from frowning, Conner thought about this situation, Well… Looks like my merchandise will sell better now. The first round of royalties should probably give me enough right off the bat to get Carl out of prison… Just one more month, brother… But, seriously. Who is trying so hard to make me look bad…? I should go see if Jessie and Dan are willing to talk to Shine. And that family I pulled out from the bottom of the pile-up. Whoever’s doing all this probably isn’t happy about their vocal support for me.
|XXX|
After school, John and Lana skipped out on club activities to walk home with Conner. Lana was finally able to get Conner’s ear and wanted to talk about something involving the Shining Darkness. She’d already told John about whatever this was during their lunch period. But, with so many people around the school when they lift, the trio needed to wait until they were further from Hive High before they could get into anything.
Finding an abandoned lot the group used as a playground as children, Conner took a seat on a somewhat rusting girder, John leaned against a steel pipe, and Lana sat on a large weed-encrusted cinder block. Fortunately, with the weather going from Autumn to Winter, the three were dressed in puffy warm clothes. This extra layer between them and their seats helped make them comfortable enough to actually relax on for a few minutes.
As his eyes and hair turned white, Conner let his super ears work for a minute. Powering down from his semi-transformed state, he told his friends, “Alright. No one’s nearby. We’re good to talk.”
Tilting her head inquisitively, Lana said, “John told me you got super hearing over the weekend… Cool! How’d you do that?”
Exchanging glances with John, the two talked over each other for a moment before Conner was able to say, “We, uh… We honestly need to run tests and figure that out ourselves.”
Putting his hand to his chin, John remarked, “I’ll need to make a new device that can scan his eardrums and look for any differences. We’ll have to start there.”
Tapping her fingers on her seat, Lana’s eyes lit up, and she asked, “Oh! What if Conner’s got some kind of reserved energy in him that’ll give him new powers for whatever he needs?”
The boys were surprised by the suggestion, but Conner eventually replied, “That… It sounds like it’d be useful if I could do that, but… I don’t know. I feel like I’d get bored pretty quickly if I can just do anything.”
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Shrugging, John added, “I mean, it’s as good of a theory as anything else we’ve got about your powers. I guess I’ll see if I can figure out some way to look for that.”
Nodding, Conner replied, “Yeah, fair enough.”
Leaning forward, Lana said, “Speaking of those sorta theories, I wanted to tell you something that might explain them.”
“Explain the theories?” Conner asked, genuinely puzzled.
Shaking her head, Lana exclaimed, “No! Your powers!”
While Conner tilted his head, John told him, “Yeah, bro. This is actually kinda interesting.”
“Okay… Well, let’s hear it then.”
Lana then went on to explain the manga she was reading, Leo The Sol Champion. Although the book sounded kind of fun to Conner, he was more eager to hear what this had to do with him.
Fortunately, just as Conner started tapping his heel against the girder, Lana explained, “So, I read an interview with the author, and I found out his inspiration for the story. Apparently, there was this really old Hebrew story written… Uh… I think in the hundreds B.C. Anyways, it was about this guy who was supposed to exist at the same time as that flood Noah built his boat for. After he found land, this guy with powers to glow as bright as the sun showed up and helped to boil away the oceans and bring back the land for people.”
Immediately making the connection between this glowing man and his own glowing eyes, Conner remarked, “I… see the similarities you’re getting at… But are you sure this is even a real myth…? I realize the oxymoron of what I just said, but you know what I mean.”
A bit puzzled by Conner’s developing vocabulary, Lana responded, “Uh… I got most of that… I really need to pick up a dictionary sometime if I wanna make my book any good.”
As Lana muttered that last part, John answered Conner’s question, “I was wondering that too, so Lana and I looked into it at lunch and in between classes. It seems like it was a text known as The Parable of Esh. It was supposedly written around the same time as when the tale of Noah was first written. But it wasn’t nearly as popular and wasn’t added to the Old or New Testament in the Bible. The same thing happened with a lot of different stories when the first version of the Bible was being put together. I think they’re called the Apocrypha.”
Looking at John with a hint of annoyance, Conner asked him, “You’re not trying to suggest I got my powers from God again, are you?”
Throwing his arms up, John exclaimed, “You said you literally saw the light! You were about to die from your insides being turned into prime cuts before everything healed in an explosion! And now the only contest you’ve got on Earth for raw strength are whales!”
Looking more baffled, Conner insisted, “Dude! I’m not even really religious! I’m… spiritual, I guess? Why would the Christian, or Jewish, or whatever God give me powers if I’m not a follower?”
Cutting back in, Lana suggested, “Um, maybe… Maybe, if a God did give you your powers, it wasn’t one that anybody worships? Or, if it is, maybe people are wrong about that God, and it doesn’t care who worships it. Like, you were just the best choice to get your powers, Conner. Whatever that means.”
With Lana’s creativity surprising her friends, John and Conner were speechless for a few seconds.
Scratching his head, Conner remarked, “Uh… I guess that’s possible… I mean, I’m not ready to assume I’m some sort of holy figure quite yet… I think my powers probably have more to do with that magic Penspot threw at me.”
Putting his hands in his coat pockets as he stared into the sky, John remarked with a frown, “If what you’re saying is true, Lana… I’ll have to rethink my views on life and religion. So, no offense, but I hope you’re wrong.”
Grimacing, Lana briefly stuck her tongue out at John and Conner before telling them, “Well, I thought it was a good idea. You guys owe me an apology if I’m right.”
Nodding, Conner answered jovially, “Fair enough. If I’m right, you guys… You guys owe me lunch.”
Smirking, John jumped in and said, “And I want to see you guys at church if I turn out to be right.”
“Wait! I want twenty bucks from you guys, actually!” Lana exclaimed desperately.
Shrugging as he hopped off the girder, Conner said, “Fine by me.” Turning to face John once he landed, Conner asked him, “Hey, while we’ve got privacy, do you feel up for talking about the Big Bads?”
Jumping up from her spot, Lana asked, “The who now?”
“Conner’s found evidence there’s some secret super crime gang with a thumb on society trying to make him look bad. We’re just calling them the Big Bads until we get an actual name.”
Putting his hands on his hips with a bit of pride, Conner explained, “Penspot works for them, and I got out of her that at least some of her bosses can throw around magic like she did.”
Even more intrigued at the mention of magic, Lana stepped forward and asked, “Have you gotten to talk to her again? Learn more about magic?”
Raising his hand in front of himself, palm down, Conner explained, “Jericho’s been trying for months to get me another interrogation with that bitch, but the prison warden’s been stone-walling her.” Moving his hand and fingers in the same way Jericho had when she cast her first spell, Conner went on, “Like I said, she moved her hand like this and shouted ‘Ice Breaker’ at me. But her voice had this weird echo on it when she did.”
“You’re one to talk about weird voices,” John remarked smarmily.
While Conner gave John an unserious side-eye, Lana tried to mimic Conner’s hand motions and asked, “And you’re sure you’re doing the hand stuff, right?”
Tapping his skull, Conner explained, “It’s stuck in there like a steel trap. If the wiggly fingers and code words were all it took, I would have been throwing ice around by now.”
Looking at her hands with frustration, Lana sat back on the cinderblock, turned around, and said, “Okay. I’m gonna keep trying this. You boys have fun with your conspiracy theory stuff.”
Giving Lana a raised brow, he pondered, Does it still count as a conspiracy if you know it’s true…? I guess most conspiracy nuts would say the same thing.
|X|
Over the next hour, Lana tried to see if she could manipulate the overgrown weeds and grass of the lot. Simultaneously, Conner and John discussed everything they thought they knew about the Big Bads. Conner also went over his most recent suspicions about their connection to Geffry’s death.
“So, when exactly are you planning to pay a visit to the kids and the family from the bridge?” John asked with some doubt.
“Either this night or the next… You sound like you think I shouldn’t go,” Conner answered.
Shrugging, John said, “It’s just… If the Big Bads are really trying to make you look bad, then they might try to go after these people after you visit them. And seeing them in secret won’t work cuz of all the cameras in hospitals.”
While Conner rubbed his chin at John’s concerns, Lana leaned back and asked, “Aren’t you really good at hacking now or something? How about you mess with the cameras, John?”
With a mix of annoyance and embarrassment, John answered, “I… I can’t do that much all at once. Just the cameras outside Penspot’s tower was the limit of my know-how. It’d also be obvious to anyone looking back on the footage.”
Letting out an exasperated, attention-grabbing hiss through his teeth, Conner said, “You make a good point, John… But the family from the bridge, at least, were pretty vocal in their support of me. If the Big Bads are as petty as most criminals, then they’ll probably make a move on them sooner or later, regardless… I have a plan, but I first want to check in with all of them to make sure about it.”
“A plan already? Care to explain?” John asked.
Pulling out his phone for some more online shopping, Conner said, “Well, first, I need to buy and memorize some books on architecture and masonry. After that… Even with my powers, it’ll take a while.”
“Uh… What?” Lana asked while unintentionally plucking a wilting dandelion she’d been messing with in her magic tests.