The Paragons

Chapter 40: Bonding Over Loss

Duncan's aircraft had successfully managed to jump through hyperspace to the Shimmering Plane and was currently enroute to the king's palace, with many of the interdimensional city folk below gazing upwards in both awe and confusion at the foreign vessel that had just entered their airspace.

Meanwhile, while Walter, Clara, and Coldsnap sat on one half of the passenger area and began preparing their respective weapons for battle, Powerhouse walked over and sat across from Nightclaw.

"Oh.....hey," the werewolf greeted. "I don't suppose you're here to admonish me about my 'morals' again?"

But Powerhouse waved his prosthetic hand in disregard. "Nah.....any ally of Duncan's is an ally of mine. I just wanted to say that.....I've been thinking a lot about what you revealed at the briefing earlier; it took guts to share that, I'll say that much. I, too, know the pain of losing a parent. If there's anything I can do.....please, do not hesitate to ask."

"Elias Markovsky. One of the many casualties of the Blue Moon Bouquet Club Massacre," Nightclaw stated before pausing briefly. "Quite possibly The Viper's second-best rescue, next to the Space Needle."

"Wait, how did you know how he died? I never shared that during our introductions....."

"It broke headlines everywhere, even outside of Mercury Heights. The obituary in the newspaper the following day was massive. Every single name on that page burned itself into my mind the moment I read them. Plus.....didn't I say that I keep up with pretty much everything related to The Viper? If she was part of it, I likely know of it. There's just one thing I don't get, though....."

"What's that?"

"You don't blame The Viper at all for being unable to save him?"

The metal-armed hero shook his head. "Nope. Because I know all too well that no matter how powerful you may be.....you're never going to be able to save absolutely everyone. Still.....his death lingers with me to this day. Doesn't help that my best friend, Fritz Fornwright, died just over a year afterward. I couldn't even save him....."

"At least you had the pleasure of spending a lot of years with your parent," Nightclaw countered. "I was basically too young to know mine.....she passed when I was still young."

"Three years old, yeah.....I'm so sorry. I didn't mean anything offensive by it.....I was just letting you know that I'll be here to offer you help if you need it."

"Thanks....."

"Did your father, Dave, ever tell you anything about what your mother was like?"

Nightclaw voiced her response with a passionate, emotional tone, as if she were actually reminiscing on her mother's life rather than simply answering Powerhouse's question. "From what my dad tells me, she was a light to everyone she met, even those who weren't all that nice. She seemed to charm and care for everyone she came across, as if she were their parent as well. And.....at the end of it all, she showed immense bravery.....according to what my dad says, she still gave birth to my younger brother, Murray, despite being afflicted with cancer."

Powerhouse chuckled; something about his inflection seemed as though he was about to form a counterargument. "Interesting....."

"I don't even know if it was real or not, but back when I first got superpowers, around 2019.....her spirit actually appeared to me twice and guided me when I felt conflicted about what to do. She gave me that last 'push' of motivation that finally convinced me to start operating as a superhero."