Lightweight 3: Flames

Senior Year Part III

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Flames

This time everything was different. 

I still floated above the city, like every night for weeks before. I was alone, high above it all.

But the sky was different.

It wasn’t night anymore. The sky was golden, almost orange. Thick billowing clouds of smoke filled the skyline. 

I stood atop my cloud. Always the cloud. It scared me, but I knew I needed to see the world below me. 

I took a deep breath as I leaned off the edge of my perch. Below me, flames crackled and burned. I never saw anything like it before. Sure I’ve seen a house burn, maybe even a few in those videos of California forest fires. This was so much bigger.

All of Federation burned below me. The city was in ruins. Everyone was dead. I was alone and my city was gone.

Instinctively I knew it was my fault. Lightweight was supposed to save the city. Instead, I doomed it.

---

Kevin shot upright. His head bashed into the ceiling of his room. The sudden impact jarred his subconscious use of his powers. The pull on the blankets tangled around him vanished.

He dropped down to the floor. He threw out his hands to stop his fall, but it was too late. He crashed all the way down to the floor and landed hard on his left side. 

Pain shot from his hip and he knew he would have a nasty bruise on his side, but otherwise, he would be okay. 

He climbed to his feet, checked himself one more time and found his initial assessment seemed correct. He walked across the room and turned on the light. He knew he wouldn’t get any more sleep tonight.

His room was a mess. But unlike most mornings in his life as a metahuman, it was the same mess as when he went to sleep. His fear seemed to have focused his subconscious battle with gravity on him and his bedding.

He was able to easily find clothes for the day, but before he could head to the bathroom, his phone buzzed. Kevin picked it up and accepted the text.

Turn on the news, Millie’s message said.

He grabbed the remote and switched on his television. As soon as he found a local channel, he saw it. 

Shepard’s Department Store had sat downtown for over a hundred-fifty years. It was one of the first businesses in the city. It managed to stay at one location for decades despite increasing competition from huge chain stores. 

And now it was burning.

Kevin raised the volume. 

“—again police are still on the scene as a metahuman appears to have set Shepard’s ablaze. Police barricades have kept our cameras back from the scene. We have reports the metahuman is still on site. Officials consider this individual extremely dangerous. His powers are dangerous to anyone near him. We will remain on the scene until—”

Kevin turned the television off and found his backpack. He pulled out his costume and quickly put it on. He drew his leather jacket over it before he grabbed his phone. 

He keyed in Millie’s number.

“I’m heading downtown. Fill me in as I fly.”