HERO FROM SPACE

By Shaun Barrett

It was a sunny May day in Huntington, New York. The year was 1996. A high school freshman named Dane, blissfully hops on his bicycle at the end of the school day.

Dane rides his bike over to the middle school to meet up with his younger brother, Shane, to ride home like they do every day. Dane has bicycle pegs that Shane rides on. Shane still has an hour left of his school day because the middle school starts later in the morning than the high school does. On this day, Dane decides to read a couple of comic books to pass some time alongside the edge of the school grounds and against a big oak tree.

The bell finally rings and school lets out. Dane walks his bike toward the school parking lot and looks for his little brother in the crowd of students walking out front. Dane shouts out his brother's name and Shane enthusiastically runs over to his older brother. Shane looks up to his big brother tremendously. Dane doesn't feel like going home yet and suggests they ride to their favorite comic book store. The two boys love comic books with a passion, nothing makes them happier than reading and collecting comics. Dane knows his little brother would never turn down a trip to the store.

The comic store is not too far from the school, about a mile and a half down Jericho Turnpike. Shane stands on Dane's bicycle pegs as they race to the store. The brothers are all excited, breathing heavily and not able to stop laughing as they make noises imitating movie spaceships while they ride along the sidewalk.

The two boys pull into the store parking lot. Shane hops off the pegs and runs in immediately while Dane locks his bike outside on the metal bike rack. When Dane walks in the store, he realizes it's just them and the owner, Stan. The boys and Stan get along very well, as they are regular customers in the store and Stan is a kind thirty-year-old man who enjoys seeing these kids excited over the memorabilia throughout the store. They usually end up discussing various comic books and movies. The store is small, but crammed with an ultimate abundance and surplus of comics and toys. Even though the kids go there a lot, they always find something new inside that amazes them.

It's getting late and the boys decide it's time to head home before mom gets worried. Dane buys himself a comic and tells his brother to quickly decide. Shane decides on purchasing a comic as well. When they get outside Dane unchains his bike and throws the two books into his backpack. Shane hops on the bike pegs and they are in the motion to head home, but do not get very far in the parking lot.

A peculiar noise makes them look up into the sky. Like a speeding bullet, something crashes into the middle of Jericho Turnpike. Stan runs outside after hearing the crash. A man begins to levitate out of the crater in the road. Stan and the boys are staring in shock by what they are seeing with their own eyes. Soon after, another speeding object bigger than the first flies down smashing into the floating man. The beautiful blue sky turns red. Stan shouts to the boys to follow him back into the store. The boys turn back to Stan and the store in unwavering fear.

Stan locks the front door; his body shaking. The three are inside, with Dane's bicycle and the boys' backpacks on their shoulders. Shane is on the verge of crying but Dane puts his arm around him, trying his best to comfort him. Shane stumbles down on a bean bag chair in the corner of the store with a blank face.  Stan and Dane peek thru the cracks in between the posters that cover the front store window.

The mayhem endures outside. Traffic builds up around the giant crater in the road. Car accidents are happening left and right under the deep red sky. There is a loud rumble from below, the ground shakes. The levitating man from earlier flies out of the hole, battling a ten-foot robot with ruby- red glowing eyes.  The two super beings battle in the sky. It is such an incredible sight, like something straight out of a comic. They can't look away from this powerful scene, it seems so unreal but yet it is very real and in yards distance before them. Stan's fear soon turns into brief excitement over this epic scene before him. He frantically starts to look for his camera. Once he finds it, he tells the two boys to stay inside the store, and that he will be right back. The two brothers' plea with Stan not to leave but he doesn't listen.