Epilogue

Somehow, Billy was not surprised to see Shazam still sitting on his throne, a new stone block suspended over his head, as if nothing had happened.

"How did you—" Billy asked.

Shazam smiled and said, "I have lived for five thousand years, and in that time, many people have wanted to kill me. If I had made my continued survival dependent on my physical body, I probably would not be here now. I knew Adam would come here. I knew he would want to destroy me, and I knew that someone so violent as him would believe that I was truly gone once the stone block fell on me."

"Why didn't my powers work?" Billy asked. "Were you really dead?"

"No," Shazam answered. "I merely took your powers away, and placed them in the hands of the gods. You see, the gods would not let me fight Adam, because of their own laws. And that also included choosing a champion to defeat him for me. So in order to fulfill your destiny, you had to defeat Teth-Adam. Not me, you. I had to give you a chance to prove that you were worthy of your powers, and then the gods could use a loophole in their ancient laws to give you your powers back. For they wanted to stop Adam as much as I did, but they could not intervene directly or work through me."

"So they chose you as their agent. They wanted you to defeat Adam, but first you had to prove that you were worthy of their powers. I knew you would make mistakes with your powers, but I also knew you would learn from them. You are strong, Billy, stronger than you know. You've had a very hard life, but you have still grown into the fine young man that you are now, despite everything you have suffered. There are many trials still ahead for you, as Adam is only the beginning of what is to come, but I have every confidence that I have chosen the right person."

"You know, we're not so different, you and I. I was once like you, a shepherd boy in Canaan, who seemed weak and unimportant and had no idea of what he would become. Now I am the Keeper of the Rock of Eternity, but it is you, not me, who will fight the coming darkness. If ever there was anyone worthy to be a champion of the gods, it is you, William Joseph Batson. I may have given you the power that you used to defeat to defeat Adam, but I did not tell you how to get it back, and I did not tell you that the thunderbolt of Zeus could be used as a weapon. You figured all of that out for yourself."

This time, there was nothing disturbing or threatening about Shazam using Billy's full name. Billy felt proud to be Captain Marvel, the champion of the gods, but he had learned a lesson. He understood the responsibility of his powers, and now, more than ever, he knew what he was, and he knew what he needed to do.

"Do you know where Mary is?" he asked the old wizard.

"I do not," Shazam answered. "And Adam wiped out all memory of her from the Historama. If you are going to find her, you'll have to do it yourself."

Billy had wanted to arrange this meeting, but Tamara had contacted him first, as she seemed to have the same idea. They stood together in Tamara's backyard, alone as the sun was setting. The romantic setting gave Billy some doubts about what he was going to do, but he knew what he had to say.

To his surprise, Tamara said, "Well, Lauren saw you run away from us just before Captain Marvel appeared last Sunday. She seems to think you're Captain Marvel. But don't worry; your secret is safe with her. And with Jessica. And, you know I would never tell anyone about you."

"I'm not Captain Marvel."

"If you want me to believe that, just say one word."

"What word?" Billy asked, fearing that he already knew the answer.

"Shazam. Just say it."

"That's absurd. It's not even a word. Why should I say that?"

"Because I think it's the trigger to activate the powers you and Adam have. I heard him say it when he transformed at the museum, and I just know you're Captain Marvel. It's not a coincidence that when I didn't listen to you about Calvin, Captain Marvel showed up and told me to listen to you. Then, you turned into Captain Marvel at the IMA's, and you disappeared from school after Captain Marvel's battle with Black Adam. And you tried to warn me about the exhibit, and at the exhibit itself, Black Adam himself seemed to know that there was some connection between Captain Marvel and Billy Batson. Just say that one word."

She already knows, and I could use the Courage of Achilles right now, Billy thought. "I think you might want to step back."

"Shazam!"

Billy controlled the lightning bolt, with the new ability he had learned while fighting Black Adam, so it would not be too visible. He disappeared and was replaced by Captain Marvel.

In the strong, confident voice of Captain Marvel, Billy said, "So now you know who I am. And now I must tell you that I am leaving. I do not know how long I will be gone, but I need to find my sister. Mary is out there somewhere, and she might need my help."

"I'll wait for you," Tamara pleaded. "Not just for Captain Marvel, for Billy Batson. I used to think Calvin was the ideal of what I wanted, but after you showed me what he really was, I started thinking about it. And when I thought Adam was about to kill me, I realized that what I was really looking for was right in front of me. It was you, Billy Batson. Not Captain Marvel, and not some spoiled rich kid."

"I have to go, Tamara," Billy said in a somber tone uncharacteristic of Captain Marvel. "I may be nearly invulnerable in this form, but you are not. Adam went after you because of me, and others may do the same. I can't afford any distractions, and I have chosen this path, which must take me away from you."

Billy shot up into the sky, leaving Tamara staring into the distance, watching as Billy grew smaller and smaller with every second, disappearing into the sky.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I always imagined this story as a movie, and if it was a movie, I think that "Walk" by Foo Fighters and "Frost Giant Battle" from the Thor soundtrack would be great music for the ending credits. Both of these songs are available on YouTube. And, the chapter after this one would be a post-credits scene if this was a movie.