Scribbles and Drabbles

Last Icefire: Trent's Capture 1

He woke up to a piece of paper cheerfully informing him that he was exempt from the rules as he'd been outside during the takeover, but returning would be seen as an agreement to live under those rules. He looked at the image, closed it, and slept off the rest of his hangout. When sober, he discovered that the Mad Clown had won the war.

Trent was safe in a different city. He quit drinking and drugs. He did not need to risk accidentally revealing his powers and giving them leads to follow.

The rules of the game changed many times. It started as people alone, some fighting to protect the normals, others to take advantage. It evolved into groups. Then the Mad Clown came and rewrote every rule in the book. Then again, he won the war and took over the city. One rule started as basic decency and evolved into a rule as the Mad Clown decided what an ethical way to humiliate 'heroes' was and what was not. 

An Esper who wore a mask, regardless of affiliation, should not be unmasked in public or on camera. The rare occasions it was allowed happened under Floatsom's direct orders, and there was a pattern. Unmasking never came at the cost of a hero's safety. It was done when they were under his influence and to stop them from escaping it. Or if they'd unmasked someone. 

It was the same rule with all personal information that could link an Esper's civilian ID to their Esper persona. Discovering a person's face was one thing; releasing their name and profession was enough to destroy their lives. Outside of the Mad Clown's city, the world did not look kindly on espers. After the first few deaths, Floatsom locked the rules tight and went after anyone who broke them with the intensity of the Hunt. 

He didn't go home either. They did tests at the gates to see if the person entering was an Esper. Espers who entered the city did not leave unless they were under Floatsom's influence. His parents didn't ask questions they didn't want the answers to. If Floatsom left, people would move permanently from the city. Civilians could go on short permits, longer for university, but overstaying them resulted in one of Floatsom's retrieval squads visiting. 

Trent hid at university, keeping his powers locked down and not contacting anyone from home outside of his parents. He forgot most of the time he had them. They weren't the type that needed using all the time, or that crept into his daily habits. He could forget.

He couldn't forget that one clownling did know his face. It was his weak link. His Esper persona could die and be forgotten, but one person knew him, and that promised dark things if he agreed to go back. 

The stupid thing was he didn't need to go to the lecture. His dissertation was almost complete; it needed some polishing, but he didn't need more lectures. His professor asked that he attend. It was a lecture on espers and how their powers interacted with their sense of self. Nothing that Trent hadn't seen a thousand times before in person. 

They had a guest lecturer. 

"This is one of our final-year students, Trent," his Professor introduced him with a polite smile. He's writing his dissertation on the intersection of espers and technology and how certain tech struggles around espers." Because sue him, Trent might forget his own powers, but he couldn't escape an interest in the espers as a broader phenomenon.  

"Trent," the guest lecturer said his name like he was tasting it, his eyes glancing over Trent in a way that left goosebumps on his skin. Mr Crouch rolled his shoulders and smiled warmly, but it didn't meet his eyes. "Where are you from, Trent?"

"I'm a Northgate native, much like yourself. I started here before Mayor Floatsom went into office, though," Trent said, deciding not to hide or pretend otherwise. 

Crouch tilted his neck, considering. "Mayor Floatsom, not the Mad Clown?"

"I assume he'd prefer Mayor Floatsom? Or does he like that title?" Trent said, unable to keep incredulous from his voice.