Epics of Noche 3, Limbo

EON CH 27

MILKMAN'S PAST.

1776, JUNE 9th, FRIDAY 6:00pm.

Milkman grinned from ear to ear as the reporters took his photo next to Raptorman and Melody. He always enjoyed these public spectacles and it was even more fun when standing next to a superhero. However, would it kill Melody to smile even a little?

"Hola Raptorman, Milkman, y Melody! With DeathTech having invaded over half of the humane world, are tu worried they may come for MoveCity next?"

Of course he wasn't – he's the god damn mayor-king! At least, that's what Milkman wanted to say, but he had to keep things PG for the kids. They meant the world to Raptorman and he wanted them to have good role models. He was always like that, even when they first met.

The thought reminded him of a time long ago.

Milkman was born with a genetic defect. His brain was wired a little differently and it caused his drive to flare up on its own. Often resulting in create making an aura of ice form around him. Its how his mother died – he was born prematurely when she froze to death.

She was a create user hiding in the humane world, so she couldn't get the help she needed without revealing herself. Her body heat kept dropping and dropping with no way to stop it. Eventually, she was forced to go to a hospital and by then it was too late.

Milkman had no relatives that he knew of, causing him to grow up in an orphanage in MoveCity. His unique condition made it impossible for him to create anything but ice and there were multiple times when his drive flared up and created against his own will.

It caused the other kids to shun him and he often found himself alone. If it wasn't for Raptorman, he's not sure what sort of person he would have grown up to be. Even back then the man was a fairly well-known. So it caught him off guard when the famous superhero visited him.

It was a hot summer day about seventeen years ago.

"Would you like to be my sidekick?" Raptorman asked.

He stared at this giant dinosaur person.

"What?"

"Do you want to be my sidekick?" Raptorman said again. "You have special powers—"

"— No I don't. Everyone can use Create."

Raptorman chuckled. "Not everyone."

The little boy stared at him.

"What do you want?"

"You have special powers that you can't control," he said. "I want to help you learn how to control it."

"Why?"

"Because it's causing you pain." Raptorman approached the kid and kneeled down. "I became a superhero to help kids. What kind of hero would I be if I couldn't help you with this?"

The boy crossed his arms and turned his head away. His mouth formed a thin line, but his expression was contemplative.

"It's impossible. I can't do it. I've already tried," he muttered.

"Nonsense! Nothing's impossible!"

The air shimmered as the temperature dropped. Ice particles began to form on the edges of nearby objects.

"You don't know that – You don't know what it's like," the boy muttered. "I told you, I tried."

Prismatic energy sparkled around Raptorman and a wave of heat melted the forming frost.

"Yes, but you haven't tried it with me." The two locked eyes for a long moment. "Come with me. Be my sidekick. I'll help you control your power."

"I... I don't wanna."

Raptorman raised an eyebrow. Rainbow energy became a chair and he sat down next to the kid.

"Why not?"

"Cause people like sidekicks and nobody likes me."

A grin made its way onto the dinosaur man's face.

"That's the great thing about superheroes. They have secret identities," he said. "If you have a costume, then nobody will dislike you cause no one would recognize you."

The kid's eyes lit up – the plan made perfect sense.

"Well. Maybe."

"You can be anything you want. You pick the name and design, I'll have it made for you."

The kid pondered for a moment.

"I want to be a milkman."

Raptorman blinked. He didn't say anything, but he did stand there and stare for a while.

"Sure – that sounds awesome," he smiled. "May I ask why?"

"Cause everyone loves milk with cookies! So they'd like me cause I'd remind them of cookies!"

Raptorman nodded sagely.

Together their training began. It didn't take long to figure out his ice powers were triggered by negative emotions. He would get upset, his create would activate on his own, he would get in trouble, feel worse, and the ice would spread. Causing a repeating cycle.

Over the years the superhero came to the orphanage, cheered up kids, and helped train his sidekick the Milkman. The work was difficult, but every day was a happy memory, that ended with a box of cookies.

It took most of his childhood, but Milkman learned to sense the previously unpredictable impulses of his drive. When he became aware of a flare-up, he could calm himself down enough to prevent a wave of ice. With Raptorman's guidance and encouragement, the Milkman mastered his condition. He became a more positive person.

Then eight years later, Raptorman won the Cross Civilian City tournament, became their new leader, and renamed the whole place to MoveCity. He found a girl named Melody who became in charge of infrastructure while Milkman focused on the populace. Together they became the rulers of MoveCity.

Back in the present, Milkman turned from the reporters and looked at Melody and Raptorman. They all had their own issues, but he loved them all the same. His eyes shimmered as it occurred to him that he finally had something he always wanted. He had a family.