Heroes No More

Out of Thyme

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Raven's eyes snap open. Her attempts to get up are thrwarted by her dog's upper half laying on her back. Wirth a mind still foggy with sleep. Raven struggles to remember what she needs to get up for. Instinctively she reaches for the phone laying behind her head; thunk! Raven turns her head in confusion to discover her card box in her right hand, did she fall asleep with them in her hands? She releases her steely grip. Deep indents confirm her suspicions. As she stares at them, her mind begins to flood with the nightmares that plagued her dreams last night. The gasp of surprise that escapes her lips wakes Stacy from her deep slumber.

"Raven?"

Raven jumps out of bed in surprise. A laugh emanates from somewhere in front of her. "Brittany? Is that you?"

She feels around in front of her, but the girl's maroon colored room is wide enough for Brittany to be anywhere. The laugh rings out again, "Yeah its me. Mom told me to ask you about being seen again."

"Most powers deal with the mind or with emotions," Raven began, "How are you feeling?"

"Scared," Brittany confesses.

Raven thinks it over, "Okay, lets try a Theater exercise my teacher taught me. Close your eyes. I want you to tense up your whole body. Now I want you to relax only your toes and now your leg muscles. Now relax your stomach and unclench your fists. Relax your arm, chest, and finally your neck."

As Brittany follows Raven's instruction, her body shimmers like a mirage. By the end of the exercise, she can be seen again.

Raven breathes a sigh of relief. Brittany opens her eyes and claps excitedly. She wraps her arms around Raven thanking her over and over again before rushing downstairs to show everyone that she's not a ghost anymore. Stacy goes chasing after her happily leaving Raven to her thoughts.

A spark ignites in her eyes as a brilliant thought hits her. Sure she doesn't have powers, but she knows the most about superpowers in her family! She can still be valuable after all! Besides, those who can't do, teach. Isn't that how the saying goes?

"Who cares!" Raven picks up her phone and cards and throws them in her bag. "I've got some training to do!"

The rest of the day is filled with Raven telling and teaching her family all she knows about their given powers; technique, practice exercises, anything she can think of. There are many failed attempts, many broken things, and many arguments that tend to result in more than just broken items.

Six o' clock rolls around and the sun has already set.

"The sun's already gone," Jordan states sadly.

"Shh! The news is on," her dad says. They all stare intently at the new flat screen their mom has made from the old TV.

"Thank you for joining us," the female news anchor greets seriously, "Today we are continuing our major news story people are calling The Power Outbreak. Scientists are still baffled as to how these powers have been brought about, but assures the public that they are still continuing studying the outbreak. How the powers came and how long they will last has not stopped people country wide from turning into heroes or villains. Crime reports show that the number of reported robberies has sky rocketed in the last two days since the Power Outbreak began.

Local authorities  that have powers used them to stop a robbery attempt earlier today resulting in two dead and fourteen wounded. The robber and an officer were the ones killed.

The increase in crime has already caused numerous protests across the country from non-powered citizens."

The scene cuts to a women standing in the front of a crowd holding picket signs, "We don't feel safe. These people are using their powers to take advantage of the defenseless and we won't stand for it. They need to be dealt with."