Marvel One-Shots and Prompts

What of Heroes?

Created: 12 June, 2019

Rating: Teen
For character death, attempted murder, implied torment, and mental trauma

0-00-0

"Breaking News! New York is under attack by, what some say, are aliens! Just moments ago, a spectacle turned into terror when the sky above the Stark Tower became a source point for the attack. We go live to the scene right outside the tower." The reporter's voice was calm, like it was just any other story. But it wasn't. Not for me.

As images of the Stark Tower played across our small television screen, the walls shook, and the lights dimmed. My brother Brayton squeezed my sweaty palms, trying to tell me that everything would be alright. I didn't believe him.

"Shut the blinds, Mama," Brayton whispered, not daring to let go of me. Tears streaked from my eyes as the walls trembled with the same fear I knew. "We gon' be okay." He knew how to make me feel better, I'd give him that.

Mama shut the blinds and returned to the same spot. All four of us, huddled in the bathroom of our two-room apartment. None of us had been brave enough to turn the television off, I assumed the thought had been 'If they can still report, we'll be alright'.

Lakeesha tried to move and ended up kicking my back by accident. "Sorry," She groaned, her legs aching from the uncomfortable position. Of course, I blamed myself for this. We could have been far away from here, except for my insistence that the schools around here were worth it.

Well, they certainly weren't worth this.

"I'm sorry guys. I'm sorry we stayed here." I mumbled profuse apologies to my mama, then my little sister. When it was my brother's turn, he shut me up.

"It ain't your fault. You didn't know this would happen." Of course, he tried to make me feel better. He was the man of the house, more of a father figure than a brother. He had grown up like that, it was part of who he was.

Another crash just outside. The noise of the television went from voice to static. Had the service gone out, or had the aliens reached our building? Silence. For that moment, then the next, and after that.

The door burst open, all of us startled. However, we were glad to see it was not an alien. "We're evacuating everyone in this building. You'll be okay, we're gonna get ya'll to safety." The country accent rang through the air a moment after he finished.

We would be okay.

Mama stood up first and we followed, creeping cautiously out of the bathroom. I screamed as something hit a nearby building. Brayton grabbed my arm and helped me along. "We gon' be okay," he repeated, though I was starting to get the feeling that his words were for himself as much as they were for me.

We had just made it to our door when Lakeesha shouted. "Look at that!" She was still a kid, and not nearly as frightened as she should have been.

Mama whirled around, and through the slits in the damaged blinds, she saw what Lakeesha had meant. It was one of the alien 'skyworms,' and worse, it was barreling right towards us. "Run!" She yelled, but in that moment, her tone of voice had me frozen. Mama was scared. She was never scared.

Everything exploded. But I was pushed away from the blast. Mama's hands shoved against my chest with more force than I had ever felt. My eyes closed as I hit the hallway floor, but I couldn't rest. I had to go.

"Anaya!" Brayton screamed, pulling me off the ground. He looked over at what used to be our apartment. One of the alien ships lay unmanned and broken, with an arrowhead sticking out of it.