I Have Risen

Ace of Spades

Ten years ago

    "Mommy why are my eyes different colors?"

"Iris, your imperfections are marks of authenticity, and that's the beauty of you."

Present Day

My senses come back one by one.

The first thing I recognized were the soft blankets which enveloped me. Strange beeping noises jolted my eyes awake. Surrounding me was a crisp white hospital room, with monitors and IV tubes linked to my body. My muscles tightened, and I ripped off the unknown tubes pushing fluid into me.

"Ms. Adeline, pleasure to see that you are awake."

"How do you know my name, and where the hell am I?" I sneer to the nurse in all white.

"Don't worry," She winks, "your boyfriend took care of it. You may leave whenever you would like."

"How long have I been here?"

"About a day, don't drink that much next time honey. But I know what it's like being young. Believe it or not I was young once too..." She rambles.

The nurse closes the door when she finally finishes telling me her life story. My clothes are still the same, but my jacket feels lighter. The watch! Instead of the rolex watch there is a playing card in my pocket. The Ace of Spades. On the top there are just the coordinates 40.7484° N, 73.9857° W. On the bottom, in bad handwriting, it reads At 12:00 Tonight, See you there sweetheart. Love, boyfriend.

Who is this sociopath? I think to myself.

Under the shelter of the moon and the stars I return to my apartment. In the city that never sleeps, tonight had an ambiance of comforting silence. There were little lights, no taxis, no drunk college students. The city had been cloaked in velvet solitude. When I unlock my apartment door, Jonathan tackles me into a tight hug.

"I've been so worried about you, where were you? Do you know how late it is? Are you hurt?" My best friend frantically asks.

"I can't breathe..."

"Sorry, but seriously. I thought you were caught by the police." Jonathan whispers.

"Not particularly. But I did run into the goons of the Black Mafia. They all look like they have chia pets on their faces. Let's just tell Meredith that I stayed late working at the diner."

"I thought you were going to finally tell her the truth, that you steal to provide..."

"No, Jonathan, not after staying out so late and causing you guys a midlife crisis. Maybe tomorrow." Maybe tomorrow I'll tell you what actually happened today as well.

    He gives me an awkward pat on the back and leaves to go work in the night. I wait about thirty minutes after he leaves then I too, venture out into the unknown. Every breath I exhale is momentarily crystallized in the night. This guy better have a good explanation.

The GPS instructs me to stop, and I've reached the meeting point. It's a skyscraper. The same one from ten years ago. The same dark steel walls, the same towering height, the same overarching emptiness. Unmoving, unchanging, unoccupied, for ten years. Bile rises up to my throat. This is where my mother jumped to her death ten year ago.

I force myself to walk up the marble steps again. With all my strength I push open the glass doors. Footsteps echo in the expansive mahogany hall. It was beautifully vintage, with an arched ceiling and a chandelier that dangled from a thread. Flight by flight, I made my way up the rusting stairwell to the last floor.

A pulse of confidence washed over me and I bluntly pushed open the door to the rooftop. I was greeted by the disappearing Autumn breath, which was being replaced by Winter's.

Over the ledge I watched the world move beneath me.

"Took you long enough, Iris. Or should I say, girlfriend." A pair of golden brown eyes met mine. He winked, then blew a kiss in my direction.

"Oh please," I say, looking up and down, "I can do much better than you."

His expression turns from a smirk to being shocked and offended.

"Let's not play games here, dipwad. How do you know my name and why did you help me yesterday?" I cautiously inquiry.

"Ouch. But yes I knew I had to help a damsel in distress."

"Drop the act Prince Charming. I saw you leap down from a building. What exactly are you?"

He walks up to me, backing me into a wall. My breathing shallows and my face becomes flushed when I am trapped.

"Do you trust me?" He asks.

"Um, no. Start explaining." I say.

His smirk returns and lets me go.

"I'm exactly what you are. We are both inhumans. Your golden eyes, the blinding aura, and the way you deflected those bullets; you are starting to discover your supernatural abilities."

"Okay... Let's just say that's true. How come you decided to help me?"

"I'd been assigned to keep you safe during your transformation."

"Some job you did." I roll my eyes. "I almost died when they fired those shots."

"That was not my fault! I went on a lunch break for five minutes and your clumsy self manages to almost die in an alleyway."

"I'm going to ignore that. But why are my eyes different? Your's are beautiful and symmetrical, but mine are so strange."

"Aw, you think my eyes are beautiful, sweetheart? Well of course-"

"You know what I mean!" I interrupt. "But yes, why are our eyes similar?"

"The golden flecks are indicative of superpowers. Your mother, Genevieve, was a powerful inhuman. But your father was not. So I guess that must be why."

My heart races when he mentions my mother. All those times she would return from work with bruises and scars finally fits together. Perhaps it was because she was inhuman that she and dad fought.

"What's your name? Thanks, by the way." I've never before sounded more fragile.

"It's Ace." He too, responds softly.

After a moment of silence I can tell he is contemplating something. He doesn't make eye contact but instead stares down at the city.

"Iris, you must come with me. They will stop at nothing to hurt you." He finally says.

"Who are you talking about?"

"The Vindicators. They killed your mother and they will kill you too."