Feet hitting the concrete as his breathing was harsh, a young man, only 19 years old, ran through the street. There is only a crowded street surrounding him, and most of the people are fearful, backed into a building as they watch the freak, the boy. Not many people care much for the supers, the people with abnormal powers that are subjected to three categories, sometimes unfairly so. Hero, Neutral, Villian. The natural order that makes powerless people feel safe. The boy is used to the looks he receives, and he makes no notion to try and stop their staring.
The boy jumps, his wheat blond hair blowing as he begins to ascend into the air, his sky blue eyes glowing as his body is surrounded by the same color. It took little for the boy to conjure enough energy to perform this feat, as he had been doing it all his life. with a small push from his mind, he was soaring through the air with ease, the buildings below him passing by in a calm, familiar manner. The boy considers himself a neutral, with super strength and telekinesis, he isn't the most important hero on the block. No, the people who can control elements, create living being to aid them, the men and women who can do something no one has seen before, those are the outstanding ones. Alfred is just a street thug whose done some good and some bad, he just hasn't killed anyone, hasn't gained the mark of a villain yet.
His city is small. Raised in nowhere, Alabama, he is a completely small-scale hero. His parents were normal, the only special thing about them was their slightly above average IQs. they gave birth to a kid who could move things with his mind and break out of his cradle. They didn't tell anyone, but they taught their baby to hold it in. He couldn't do this forever, and one day he got scared at school because some kid was teasing him about liking hero comics. That boy was sent to the hospital, his parents avoided being sued for hiding a super by telling them he must have developed them without their knowing. Alfred didn't blame them, it was just a small mistake, they were trying to keep Alfred safe, trying to keep him out of those special super schools.
This boy is Alfred, a normal super who steals small amounts of food to keep himself alive daily. Alfred who was kicked out of his normal high school at 16 because he wasn't focusing enough. Alfred who couldn't hold a steady job without a high school diploma. Alfred the nobody. Alfred the kid who wanted to be an astronaut, to see the stars and the touch the sky. Alfred who was taken from his parents at twelve after displaying signs of mental dysfunction, and the doctors feared he would hurt his parents with his powers. Alfred who had never shown anyone his super strength.
Alfred landed in a small field, his little blue tent dutifully waiting for him. No one knows where he lives, but if you asked him, no one really cared all too much. The field is golden with long weeds, a small patch cleared for Alfred and his tent. The weeds provide enough cover, as no one cares enough to look for him. Alfred crouched into his one man tent, which smells of air freshener and body odor, and sat down on his camouflage sleeping bag. he had taken some McDonald's, just a burger and fries. He thanked the people too, but they just looked afraid, as if Alfred was some bloody killer ready to murder them. Alfred couldn't kill a fly if he wanted to, so it wasn't shocking that he didn't even touch the employees, only the food.
He forget any ketchup, which sucks, but he just ate them dry. He hadn't eaten since Monday, and Alfred thinks it may be Wednesday, but he didn't much care. The lukewarm food felt good in his stomach. His old brown coat was wrapped tightly around him, the early fall weather finally setting in, his dark baggy jeans crumpled around his feet. His red sneakers are old too, he got them two years ago from a shoe store. They were on sale, too, so it wasn't that big of a deal. Plus they used to light up when you walked around in the dark, but the battery ran out four months after he got them. That was a bit of a disappointment, to say the least.
After Alfred's 'meal' he exited his little tent with a new goal. Walking from the field, Alfred carried behind him a bad of dog food. This food was stolen four hours ago, brought back just before he left to get himself something to eat. He always makes sure to grab a bag of dog food, no matter how big or small. A couple times he grabbed cat food too, but the place he goes doesn't have any cats, so he gave that out to strays. Today's bag is the biggest he could find, as he wanted to make sure they got plenty today.
The path is worn from the many times Alfred had walked it, the discreet site of the First Hope Animal shelter helpful for Alfred, being a sorta wanted man. The animal shelter is medium-sized, able to hold up to thirty-five animals at once. It only takes in dogs, because the owner is allergic to nearly all other animals(This including cats, horses, rabbits, etc.). The owner is a small old woman named Mrs. Dyer, with a vibrant personality and many playful quirks and stories from her past. The workers there are few and far in between, as most of the time Mrs. Dyer takes care of the animals herself. Lately, she had got sicker, and hasn't been able to do as much, so she's hired a couple of teens to help. She plans on passing the shelter onto Alfred, but he is unsure of how to take care of the shelter or pay the teens anything.
The shelter came up at the end of Alfred's path, right up to the back door of the shelter, the door having a sigh that plainly says 'Staff only.' Alfred pulled out his key, clicking the door open. He walked in without much hesitation, plopping his bag of dog food down beside the door. Alfred locked the back again, the small click making Alfred smile. Turning around, expecting the see his friendly old woman friend smirking and holding her small hips, preparing to hear her usual line of 'Where in the sam heck do you find all this dog food everyday?' What he saw was anything but what he expected.
The small body of the old widowed woman, frail and in its last years of life, was pushed against the wall of the room, a bloody mess instead of the sweet old woman he had known. It appeared as if something had eaten her, and though he was afraid to say it, those paw prints leading away from her looked much like a dog's. Alfred held in a scream, but he couldn't stop the tears. His sweet friend, who always tied her long grey hair back with a flower hair pin from the children's section of Wal-Mart, was gone. He didn't even notice all night, he didn't come check more often like he wanted himself to. His only friend is now sitting against the wall, her old blue eyes hollow and empty, just like her stomach is now that it's been eaten. Alfred nearly vomited, but he heard noises from the front room, a jingling of keys. Alfred sucked in his fear, tip-toeing through the connecting door and into the kennel.
A man stood, surrounded by the shelter dogs. He opened the last cage, the one holding the puppies, and smiled as they circled around him, licking his hands as he crouched down and petted on their small heads. Two dogs in the back of the group, a German Shepherd and a Great Dane, made themselves known, as their muzzles dripped blood on the floor around them, their eyes glowing a bright, icy blue. The dogs didn't flinch at all, didn't even look over as Alfred entered the room. The man stood, but didn't notice Alfred until he finished looking over the dogs, petting them and cooing over them. The man's eyes matched the two dogs in the back narrow and icy blue.
"Who are you, what are you doing here?" The man asked coldly, his eyebrows furrowing together and the two dogs in the back snapped their heads to look at me, growling and showing their sharp teeth. The man's hair is blond and slicked back, his shoulders broad and his entire body filled with the hint that under those clothes there are muscles upon muscles. The man's body pose suggested that he was adequately trained, as if he were in the military at one point in time.
"I'm Alfred." Alfred choked out, his left hand baling into a fist as the two blue eyed dogs moved forward, taking small steps towards him. "Did you kill Mrs. Dyer?" Alfred asked quietly, seeing some of the dogs back away from the tense vibe the blue eyes man was giving off. The man said nothing for a while, his dogs doing a good job of intimidating poor Alfred.
"Yes, she was holding these dogs captive." The man stated, his lips turning from emotionless into a deep scowl. "She was beginning to become like a prison innkeeper, holding living things captive and claiming them as hers, when they rightfully belong outside and free to their own will. Now, I must ask, who were you helping her keep these animals here, huh, Alfred?" Ludwig growled, the dogs stepping closer to Alfred as he spoke. Alfred backed away slowly, to the opposite wall of the kennel, as the dogs approached.
"I was just helping her out, man. she was a really nice old woman, and you had no right to kill her!" Alfred found himself yelling, despite the crack in his voice and his shaking hands. The two front dogs pounced at him when he raised his voice, but he easily deflected them by using his powers. A small push and they were suspended in the air, a small wave and they were moved to the closest cage, the fence like door closing and locking as the dogs were laid down. Alfred couldn't hurt them, there was obviously something wrong with them.
"So you've got yourself some powers of your own, I see." The man glared, his tone dark and solemn. "I'm going to crush the system, my friend. My companions and I, we are going to rule the world. We're going to make all things living free and equal. People, animals, any creature that breathes and moves shall be free to it's own will. I need more allies, my friend." The man moved to me, and slowly the dogs around him shook, letting out small whines and twitching around. They stopped at the same time, their eyes all glowing that same ice cold blue. the two dogs Alfred had put into the cages were gnawing at their cell door, their teeth clenching down onto the metal so hard that they were bleeding from the mouth. "I'm Ludwig. Find me when you decide what you want to do, Alfred." Ludwig smiled, though it wasn't friendly. His smile is venomous, sinister. His eyes were a bright, slightly unnatural blue. His posture too perfect. This Ludwig seems to be the definition of villian, and Alfred was sure he had just met his first real super, one much more renowned than Alfred himself.
A loud booming sound filled the air around them, and Ludwig laughed. A small chuckle, his unnatural eyes swirling as he whistled. The two dogs in the caged went even more crazy, biting harder, their teeth obviously sore from the blood loss, one tooth even falling the the shepherd's mouth. Ludwig just laughed, moving out of the building through the back. Alfred looked to the two dogs, pushing the cage doors open. He wouldn't let himself accidentally kill them, even if he wasn't the cause. With a loud crash the wall of the kennel was knocked down, Ludwig gone from sight but Alfred still there. Three people made themselves known from the hole, all three wearing suits, showing off their status as Hero with an official hero stamp on the suit. A small man with short, straight black hair and dark brown eyes, wearing a black suit with a long tail over a pair of grey, baggy pants, long brown boots tapping the floor as he entered the building. A woman with long, curled brown hair with a flower on the right side, a shirt green dress over black tights making her look a bit like robin hood, her long green boots tipped at the ends, her eyes glowing a forest green. Lastly, a man with white hair and red eyes, his skin pale in contrast with his completely black suit, the dark blue jacket over it and the grey boots on his feet, barely lighter than the black pants and shirt he was wearing under the blue jacket.
"Ludwig was here, all right." The man in dark blue sighed, looking at the line of open cages, stopping at Alfred with his eyes wide. The two others looked to Alfred too, though they were all three doubtful of why Alfred was still alive, as Ludwig usually wouldn't leave anyone alive. "Why are you here? Who are you?" The man questioned, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the bloodied cage next to Alfred. Alfred felt his heart skip a beat under the red eyed man's harsh glare.
"I came to see Mrs. Dyer. I don't think I'm gonna be seeing her anymore, though." Alfred looked down, his voice small as he stood against the wall. The heroes were a bit confused, but said nothing to him. "I'm Alfred." Alfred muttered, watching as the woman stayed back to look at the cages, the two men moving on to see the rest of the building. The red eyed man came back, his eyes wide as he looked to Alfred again.
"Sorry, I see what you mean now."