Red vs. Black

Chapter 18

Unlike the rest of the population who associate Fridays with victorious relief, Liam can't wait for them to be over. It's always the busiest day of the week at the centre. People trying to get set-up with housing for the weekend since the foundations who handle temporary, charitable housing are always closed Saturday and Sunday. Having to process all those people while also managing an advice session on university and the self-defense class he'd gotten approved to lead. Friday's are a lot. And working for a non-profit always means the ratio of workers to clientele are way off, so if one of his coworkers calls in sick or gets pulled away to handle an unexpected incident, Liam's the one to pick up the slack.

For once, he couldn't be happier that Zayn's busy for the evening. It means he doesn't have to try. With his appearance, with his demeanor, any of it. Niall had offered for him to join in at the pub after work, but even that felt like too much effort for the night. What he wants is to go home, put his feet up, watch telly, and relax with a big bowl of chocolate fudge ice cream. And that's exactly what he does.

So he doesn't freeze, he holds the three serving size tub of ice cream through the blanket that's wrapped around his shoulders. He takes his first spoonful and closes his eyes in bliss, the sweetness from the sugar mixed together with the slight bitterness of the dark chocolate chunks is too much to handle.

"AOI, clear sighting of UFO headed West along the Thames ATT. CO19 and TFU needed. TAG and ARU, standby for assistance."

"Oh for fucks sake," Liam moans loudly into the empty flat, leaning his head against the back of the couch in vexation at the heaviest dispatch he's ever heard.

Because he knows he's going to need it, Liam shoves two more bites of ice cream in his mouth before tossing the tub back into the freezer and throwing on his signature suit.

Zipping in and out the cars crowding the London streets only becomes difficult when Liam spots his enemy hovering over the riverbank's north side, near Tower Bridge. Wearing bright red and yellow gets you a lot of second glances when you're slowed down, but he needs to wait and see where the machine's final destination is before he speeds up again. He gets his answer cruising along Southwark's main roads: Tower Hill.

Behind the famed Tower of London lives a bustling business district, home to countless corporate banks and law firms. It's a mix of new builds and older, making it an idealistic example of modern Europe. There's just one issue that Liam has with it: hardly any window-less alleys or balconies to climb up.

Thin lanes can be found here and there, but none are deadends. He's idling in the middle of an open walkway when he looks up and sees that the saucer's just on the other side of the building he's behind.

After searing the kickstand of his bike to the cement, he thinks on his feet and runs to the opening of the path where the main road lies. There, he watches as a delivery truck drives towards him. Timing it just right, he jumps onto the back, hoists himself onto the roof, and then waits until the truck passes by a business sign sticking out from a shopfront so he can throw himself towards it.

He's ready for the impact when it comes, immediately melting the white stone exterior of the building with his hands and hardening it around his grip. It takes a lot of energy, but he continues using the same method to scale the remaining six stories.

On the roof, the windchill sets in. By nature, Kevlar's quite thick, but Liam can feel the night breeze cut into his suit hard as he gathers his breath and assesses his surroundings, noting that the UFO's within a close distance like he'd estimated on the ground.

Next to the one he's standing on, there's a residential building made of similar white stone material. From its pointed roof stem several silver antennas. In a second, they're being withdrawn from their posts and summoned to where Liam can work them into javelins. He knows his powers take concentration, of which he can sometimes lose when he's having to dodge real superpowers and not just some guy with a scarf over his face trying to rob an electronic store. So the more free time he has to prepare for the upcoming battle, the better.