True Sidekick - *Sequel to Hero by Day

Chapter 23 - Every story needs cliffhangers

"When a hitman is scared, you know something is wrong."

~ Cisco Ramon (Vibe)

:Oliver:

". . . and in an exclusive interview with the Super Task Force coordinator, Detective Pearson, we have learned that the attack on the prestigious Eldredge Academy was orchestrated by the super villains Andromeda and Inferno. Superheroes White Lightning, Kratos, and Delinquent fought valiantly against the villain, protecting the many students of this famous building. It became evident after the attack that the target was Mary Thompson, the daughter of the Secretary of State, Sara Thompson. You may remember from last month when her son, Ian Thompson and his friend Oliver Storm were kidnapped for ransom by radical Remedists. Mary Thompson was presumably kidnapped during the attack and hasn't been seen since. Andromeda is perceived to have her held hostage.

"When the police entered the school and evacuated students, they found an unconscious Dylan Danvers, a sophomore at the school, in the old band hall. When awoken, Dylan reportedly shot columns of fire at the officers. He was shortly detained with Merlonium cuffs and transported to Alcatraz for persecution on the crimes of being the villain, Inferno. The Danvers family denied our request at a comment on the reveal that their son was a super villain.

"A list of unregistered students from the school who are perceived as missing is below. Be sure to call the school if your student is fine.

"And, in other news, the Remedists and Richard Head plan to have a rally in downtown later tonight to discuss this recent attack. Richard Head is scheduled to . . ."

I turned away from the news station that was streaming in the Comic Book Shop. I already knew most of that information anyways.

"Honey!" my mom called. "We're all going to be late to dinner if you don't come now!"

I sighed and grabbed my blazer from the table and followed her outside. Chad was taking us out to dinner to celebrate the start of winter break and my release from school. We were going to a very nice sushi restaurant in downtown.

I got in the back seat and they started chatting, as usual. If anything, Chad was chatting more than he normally did, but it was probably only because of the recent reveal at Eldredge.

Dylan Danvers, son to one of the most respectable families in DC, was a super villain. The city was outraged and the Danvers family was in hiding. There was no doubt in my mind that they didn't want to be associated with their son. The Remedists took this as another spark to their flame. Dylan was young – only a sophomore in high school, even younger than the kids from Empire City. Plus, he was a villain. What did that say about our youth today? How could they possibly be allowed this kind of power if they were going to misuse it in such a way?

Mary's kidnapping was a huge story as well. It was assumed that Andromeda kidnapped her and fled. The police searched the building for hours, and there had been no bodies. As far as the public was concerned, Mary Thompson was a hostage, not dead by my hands.

I visibly flinched at that thought. Mary was dead, and it was my fault. I could never forgive myself for that. A hero was always supposed to protect the citizens first, and I failed. It was my blow that killed her, however accidental.

I had dressed back up in my White Lightning costume as soon as my mom had enough time to check up on me and make sure her baby was okay after the incident. I visited the police precinct and gave them a full report of what happened, leaving out the part where Mary died. There was no reason to alert the press that one of America's Sweethearts was dead.