A D Tier's Breaking Point

Chapter 5

Earlier that day

The morning was cool enough that the sun hadn't yet evaporated the morning dew from the small isolated grove. Breaking through the trees, the sun cast shadows across the clearing, shading a black marble tombstone. Moss had started to creep along one side, and leaves fluttered along the top, with the letters grey and green from natural wear.

A flash of energy broke the silence, and in its place was a person wearing a khaki hoodie, their hood down so the wind rustled their curly brown hair. They stepped forward, faded trainers leaving prints in the dewy grass, and they knelt down, putting down a bucket half full of soapy water and a bouquet of flowers.

'Hey Alex,' Morgan said in a quiet voice, brushing away a few of the leaves. 'Sorry it took a while to visit this time. I've been uh, busy.' They ran a finger across the smooth marble, examining the moss. 'Wow, that grows quickly huh?' Morgan rubbed at tired eyes, before settling down and pulling the bucket closer, reaching in for a sodden and soapy sponge, 'We'll have you shining before you know it.'

Morgan took their time, starting with cleaning away the physical leaves and tossing them away for the breeze to catch, before slowly working on scrubbing at the marble stone. Most of the dirt lifted easily, but the moss proved to be rather stubborn. Morgan carried on though, barely grumbling, instead starting to chatter to no one in particular as they fell into a rhythm. Talking about a recent low level heist they'd cooked up, just to keep the minions on their toes. About scamming Rex out of another billion dollars in their latest poker game and tallying up how many assassination attempts there had been since. About how insufferable Chad still was, and how their sister Katie had retired from hero work while she and Dave Dodgers worked through "their personal issues".

'I mean, I told her way back when he was an ass and she was too good for him, but apparently she's only seeing that now,' Morgan chuckled as they lifted away the last of the moss. Smiling at their progress, Morgan turned to the lettering. 'Think he said something about me actually. Apparently he disapproves of her association with someone who has "little to no regard for human life." Which is completely untrue.' They sat up then, eyes glazing over slightly, sponge hovering over Alex's name. 'People are fine. Idiots, but harmless enough. But I suppose Frisbee Boy sees heroes as people too.'

Morgan shook themselves out of their thoughts and carried on with their task. Soon enough the tombstone was sparkling clean again, and Morgan dumped the sponge in the tepid water of the bucket, wiping at their brow and smiling at their work with pride. 'Oh, hope you don't mind, but uh,' Morgan picked up the bouquet, twisting it in their hands. 'I never actually found out how you felt about flowers but...I figured you'd like the red.'

They set the bouquet on the floor, pulling a pair of scissors out of their coat pocket and carefully cutting the plastic wrapping open. The flowers spilled out then, and Morgan began to pick them up one by one, cutting into the stems diagonally before sliding them into the container in the front of the tombstone. 'Did I tell you about that job I did a few months ago? I ended up working for two weeks in a flower shop to scout out the building we wanted to hit. It's surprising how quickly you pick things up.' Like flower language , Morgan thought to themselves as they brought the carnation up to their nose for a small sniff. They really do smell pretty , Morgan thought, as they slid another one into the holder. Maybe one day, I'll tell you what they mean.

Soon enough the collection of white and red carnations were all prepped, and Morgan fished out a flask with fresh water to pour into the holder. They fiddled with them then, making sure there was a good balance of colour, that the different shades of red mingled well with the white.

'Okay, it all looks good,' Morgan smiled, putting away the scissors and tidying away the scraps of plastic and discarded stems, looking again at their handiwork. Catching Alex's name again, Morgan let out a shaky breath. 'Oh man, you'd think this would get easier,' they said, sitting back and tucking up their legs, wrapping their arms around their knees. 'I...really can't stay long today. You won't believe what those assholes have done at the Fairness Association. They...' Morgan paused, unspoken emotions catching in their throat as their eyes shone with tears, 'they want to make today a national holiday. To mark...to...they want to celebrate you dying. Which is...utter bullshit!' Morgan pushed the heels of their palms into their eyes, as if they could physically hold the tears back, 'They have no right. They have no fucking right!'

Morgan swallowed past the lump in their throat and dropped their hands. 'I shouldn't do that. Joey will yell at me about my contacts again.' They blinked, eyes rimmed red as they stared ahead at nothing in particular. 'But yeah, the idiots are making an announcement today. Which they're definitely going to regret. I guarantee it.' Morgan smiled then, a small cold one that promised something dark was coming.

'Speaking of,' a chipper voice sounded in Morgan's ear, making them jump with a yelp, 'You know what time it is right?'

'Bloody hell Monday, what did I say about doing that?'

'Well how else am I supposed to get your attention?' the artificial voice of Monday rang through and made Morgan roll their eyes. 'But anyway, both teams are ready. Katie has also texted you, she's said-'

'Monday?' Morgan said, 'I said don't disturb me while I'm busy here.'

'Okay sure, but you finished at least five minutes ago,' Monday said. Morgan opened their mouth, and then turned their head to a nearby tree, glaring at the winking glare of a camera lens watching the grave. 'And as much fun as it is to watch you practise your evil villain speech, if you mope around here any longer you won't get a chance to use it.'

Morgan continued to glare as they climbed to their feet, 'I definitely didn't say you could watch me. I wanted some time alone Monday. In private.'

Morgan could practically hear the shrug in their tone, 'And when have I ever respected anyone's privacy? You should have thought of that before you coded me to be a nosey git. Louis' words, not mine, but I can't say he's wrong.'

'You can't blame all of that on me,' Morgan chuckled, grabbing the bucket and checking over the clearing one more time. 'Pretty sure most of that comes from, what was that fake professor's name?'

'Dr Marple?' Monday snorted, 'The idiot couldn't get me to say peekaboo. Sorry boss, but you get full credit for me. The good and the bad. Now get your butt back here so I can watch the fireworks.'

Morgan huffed in amusement, their eyes lingering on the headstone and the flowers, before turning away. 'Let's get started then,' they said, and in a flash of light they vanished from the clearing.