𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐤

04⇢illusions

SAM

I sit upon the rooftop of my—our—apartment and find myself thinking about Jamie. I love how she can be shy and blushy one moment but fiesty and confident the next.

She's just full of surprises. I don't like, however, how she hides from me. I don't want to pry into her personal life, but when I start to see bruises and cuts, I like to think I'm allowed to be pretty concerned.

Call me a hypocrite, but I still worry.

It's nearing 10:30, and I know Jamie's already asleep. She told me she always goes to bed early, and I wonder why.

The city around me starts to slow down. I watch as the cars go by, and I look up to the sky, not able to see the midnight glory as the world is too bright.

All of a sudden, I hear a scream from the road below, making my head whip around. I quickly reach into my back pocket before pulling out my black mask and placing it over my eyes, fully entering my secret life of Phantasm.

After flattening my black suit, I drop down into the alleyway where I heard the noise, and my eyes instantly fly to two men in black and the defenseless man in a suit. I notice the gun in one mugger's hand, and I immediately think it's a business deal gone haywire.

"Stop!" My voice flies toward both muggers, and their heads instantly turn towards me as a gunshot rings through the air, making me flinch before shakily patting myself down, checking for wounds.

The businessman suddenly falls to the ground, clutching his bloody leg, and I'm only grateful the attempted murder went wrong.

The muggers both charge at me, so I lift my arms, close my eyes, and imagine a large grassland. When I open my eyes, I see blue skies above me, green grass below me, and two baffled criminals in front of me.

I walk up to one, we'll call him 'Hunter', and I grab him by the shoulders. I know that in reality, there's a brick wall standing not too far away, and I march him over before slamming his head into the wall, sending him rolling to the floor—even though to him, it only looked like air in the middle of a field.

I turn around to the last mugger, let's call this one 'Hunter 2', before I unexpectedly fly back, feeling a fist collide with my cheek. The grassland glitches as I try to regain my senses.

When I open my eyes, grunting from the pain, another fist comes into contact with my jaw, and I'm sent onto the ground as the grassland completely disappears.

Another punch connects with my face, rattling my brain, and I grunt once more. I need to get this man off me and the victim to the hospital, or it could be too late. I don't let anyone die on my watch.

I turn to my last resort, and I reach for the holster on my hip, pulling out my pocket staff. I instantly throw my arm out, and the small rod enlarges into a long, metal staff.

I quickly swing at Hunter 2's legs, throwing him off his feet as I stand up myself. I kneel over him, and as he tries to stand up, I grip his temples together, close my eyes, and imagine a snowy mountain.

I choose to stay in the alley, and when I open my eyes, Hunter 2 lays below me, bewildered and confused. I remove my grip and stand up, watching as he fumbles to his feet, and I see the snowy mountain's reflection in his fear-filled eyes.

As soon as Hunter 2 takes an unsure step towards me, I swing my arm, striking him in the head with my staff, and I watch as he falls to the ground.

♔♚

I find myself on the roof in my pajamas, the time nearing two, and my patrol rolling to an end as I sit alone with my thoughts.