HEROES NEVER DIE

Chapter One

1

Adira twirls her finger around the single strand of hair. Her hand twists, then tugs, and with a single, solitary twinge of pain—one that doesn't really hurt her anymore— and the strand is out. It falls to the ground.

She watches it descend, gently and slowly. Distracted.

She feels a strange sense of regret. She's never really quite gotten rid of this habit. Or any other habit, actually. Plucking hair from her scalp. Scratching her fingers till they bled. Biting her fingernails till even the base bled. Habits, habits, habits.

It's not like she hasn't tried to get rid of them. She knows that they are harmful. She knows that she shouldn't do it. But often she only realizes what she has done when she sees the aftermath, or when someone points it out. The rush of embarrassment from when someone says, "What have you done to yourself?", if not in words but in that slightly horrified look they have on their face—no matter how hard they try, Adira can sense the disgust—

Then the cycle begins again. 

Her eyes hurt. She closes them for a minute, and then pulls out her phone. Her newsfeed is yet again filled with exploits of supers. Lightspark's new movie released, apparently. Ignore. Salvert City signs M.O.U. with Israel for research into supers. Bookmarked. Earthquake in Nepal caused by supervillain. Ignore. 

MNSTR attack in Sector 11.

That one catches her eye. Silas lives in Sector 11. As does his grandma. She recalled his smile, all white teeth and crinkled eyes in an interview she'd watched. 

"Of course, Dubai is great," he'd said, "But Salvert is where the future is." 

He'd grinned awkwardly. Never been one for the cameras. 

Even after what happened... Adira couldn't help but keep him on her 'Interested Topics' list. 

She hasn't seen him in person in over a year, or hell, even talked but... He's still her friend, right? She clicks.

There's a blurry image of a large, black creature. It was probably taken by some kid with a smartphone. 

MNSTR ATTACK IN SECTOR 11
ASR | Aug 8, 2121, 11:21 A.M. AST updated

ASTROCITY: A Class V MNSTR attacked Sector 11 of Salvert City at around 10:20  a.m. and has left around 300 stuck in evacuation and closedown procedures. Three reported causalities have been reported so far, but experts estimate that numbers may be higher. The damage procedure has been heavily impeded and phone lines are down. 

Supers were dispatched to the scene with an hour delay. A inside source states that this delay could have possibly been because of Lightspark's "tantrum"...

Adira does not read any further. Her hands fumble, trembling as she calls up Silas. The ring goes once, twice. He's not available. Of course. Phone lines are down. And... well.

She's not even sure he uses this number anymore.

Fucking hell.

She sends a text to him.

Hey Silas its adira

 Her fingers can barely form the words. She wants to leave now, find out where Silas is. But she can't. Not with the closedown. Or the fact she doesn't know where he lives.

 No matter how many times this happens, she always gets that horrid, horrid, sinking feeling in her stomach. It never gets easier. It never does in Salvert.