When Heroes Fall

Chapter 9

A cool breeze shifted through the night air, rustling in the quiet of the sleeping city. Matt sat high above the city on an office building near the downtown. Normally, there would be a few cars on the road still, but the ten o'clock curfew meant by 3:00 a.m. the streets had cleared. Matt stared out across the horizon. Clouds covered the moon, but even this late the Axiomville never lacked in light—buildings and streetlights casting a soft glow over the sky. He let the wind brush against his cheeks, grateful for the extra warmth his jacket provided. His muscles ached from the fight against Gea that morning. He rolled his shoulder, feeling the muscles tense where he landed when he dodged Gea's attack. Grimacing, he closed his eyes and inhaled.

The fight had been a shitshow. The auditorium had been destroyed—they had to let out school for the day once they finally got a headcount of the students and staff. Over a dozen students ended up in the hospital, all because he couldn't handle one meta-human. It wasn't like he hadn't faced metas before. Aiden and he had a whole line up of regulars: Popsicle, Mage, Boulder, Belladonna, Opioid, Trepidation...not to mention all the one-time metas they had dealt with. Matt even fought some of those meta-humans one on one before. He had won those fights. But something was different fighting Gea.

It hit him like a brick in the back of his head, sinking to his stomach. He was alone. All those other times, he had the Great Comet only a call away. The police treated him like a hero. The Coalition of Heroes checked in regularly. Now though? The attack at the school proved he was by himself. Before the school let them go, a few officers took statements from students. Several of their questions were about Nightstar—about his identity. Despite the fact he was fighting against Gea, the officers believed he was a threat.

The Coalition of Heroes would be no help either. Whatever off-world problem the Coalition was dealing with was big enough to take a lot of the big hitters. It was the type of assignment Aiden would normally be called on, but he had stayed back from the assignment to manage on-world threats. He found one, alright. Aiden never gave him the communicator for the Coalition—he wanted Matt to keep focused on his studies. Told him there would be time to save the world later. Matt thought another hero would have shown up after the Comet's death made national news, but no one showed up.

On top of all of that, Matt knew he had school in a few hours. Gea's attack may have given them the day off, but they'd be expected to be back in their desks at 8:15 a.m. sharp. Matt's fists curled around the building's edge, his grip tightening. He should go home, but the thought made the brick in his stomach feel even heavier. Matt inhaled and exhaled.

A boot crunched behind Matt, heavy soles softly hitting the concrete roof—the quietness something only trained footsteps could accomplish. Matt jerked up, turning his head to see who approached. Seeing the figure hooded in dark violet cloak, Matt moved to stand, but Chaos raised her hands and gently pulled down her hood to reveal her domino mask a soft smirk. "I come in peace."

Matt snorted. "Yeah, Little Miss Chaos—coming in peace."

Chaos rolled her eyes. "Relax, Starlight. I'm not here for a fight—Gea hit me hard enough yesterday and I have an exam in like five hours that I can't miss because I'm breaking out of jail."

"It's Nightstar—you know that. And you could just try staying in jail," Matt pouted, but sank back into his spot at the roof's edge. The breeze caught tuffs of his blonde hair. Chaos sat down next to him, letting her feet dangle off the edge as her long black ponytail shifted in the wind.

"Want some gum?" She asked, dragging a pack out of a pouch on her belt. She took her own piece—unwrapping it and popping it in her mouth—before handing it over to him. He raised a brow. "Your breath smells terrible, and I'm guessing you have school in the morning too."

Matt blinked, then barked out a laugh, throwing his head back, "What are we doing?"

Chaos smiled. Matt shook his head, grabbing a piece of gum and popping it in her mouth. As she slipped the pack back in its proper place, she spoke up, "I don't know, man. Just trying to survive I guess."

"Normal teens would stay up all night playing video games or watching movies, not—not whatever this is." Matt gestured over across the city.

Chaos snorted, "Whoever said we were normal?"

Matt opened his mouth to shoot back a snarky response, but stopped short, a frown twisting his expression. "No, I guess we aren't," he said quietly, words drifting out into the night. Silence settled between them, uneasy and unbalanced.

Chaos stared at him, appraising him. "You look like you got ran over by a bus and then ran a mile."

"Thanks," Matt drawled. Chaos punched his shoulder—a light touch in comparison to the left hook she normally swung. "Hey," Matt shouted anyways, rubbing the now sore spot.

"Seriously," Chaos continued, "you're burning out."

Matt shook his head, setting his shoulders. He ignored the way it felt like the air around him tightened and squeezed, "Someone has to save this city. If I had—Comet isn't here anymore, which means it is up to me until the Coalition can step in."

Chaos narrowed her gaze, her own grip on the roof edge tightening. "Just drop the hero junk. This isn't your job—one person can't fix the world."

Matt opened his mouth to reply but stopped short. He took in the way Chaos' frown twisted her features into something hard, something angry and sharp. The tightness that gripped her was the same that gripped him. They shared the same drive to do something. Matt bit his lower lip. He placed his glove hand over hers. Chaos jolted but didn't pull back. She stared up at him.

"I could tell you the same thing," Matt let his words drift out softly in the night air.

Chaos reeled back at that, yanking her hand to her chest. "What?"

"You helped fight Gea today," Matt remarked, "And don't think I didn't notice that you always donate your cut of any job and you only hit people who can take it. I don't exactly agree, but you're not a villain. Not really."

Matt did not expect Chaos to reply with a scowl, turning her head away.

"That's different. We're different. You get to dress up and play the hero and then go home and leave all the problems behind. I have to deal with crappy people every day. I can't just turn in my skin color, my ethnicity, my race, my gender, my sexuality—I have to fight," Chaos spit out, "I'm not a hero. I'm just trying to survive."

Matt frowned. He reached a hand out to touch her shoulder but froze. Lowering his hand, he sighed. "I just want to make things right."

Chaos whipped around, standing to her feet on the roof's edge. Anger cut through her soft features. Her glare deepened. "Maybe you should take care of yourself. Maybe we should let the adults handle this shit for once."

Matt reeled back. Before he could stand, Chaos shook her head and stepped back. With grace and confidence, she leapt from the roof's edge. If it had been anyone else, Matt would be diving after them, but through the still night air, he could hear her boots landing on the next roof over with a thud. In one moment, Chaos disappeared.

Matt exhaled. He stared up at the clouded sky, the city lights and smog blotting out the stars. Everything felt heavier now. Reaching up, Matt pulled his mask off over his head. The blue-grey fabric wrapped around his hands, waiting. Chaos had a point. They were both only kids—if Comet couldn't—no. Matt's grip tightened, crumpling the mask. The Coalition would come, he just had to hang on for a little longer. He could save Axiomville. He had to.

Matt ignored the sickening feeling in his gut.