p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"strongAuthor's Notes: /strongspan style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15.12px;"This is the first story in the series set in the DF years; however, the kids are not present. Future installments will eventually include the DF kids./span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto 0px; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"This installment focuses on the series' main couple. This one-shot is told in third person POV and in present tense./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto 0px; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"/ /p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Do you remember what our biggest problem was when we first met?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne is taken aback by such a sensible and ruminative question coming from her typically shallow partner. Upon further consideration of her current predicament, given she has spent the last ten minutes waiting for Ray to successfully knot a blindfold over her eyes without it catching her voluminous hair, the middle-aged woman shouldn't be too surprised by any bizarre behavior said man demonstrates this afternoon. "You lied about what you did for work?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""What? No! Well, at first. But only because I had to."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A flustered Ray takes Cheyanne by the hand. He leads her towards the see-through tube in the center of the room. The travel system can transport up to ten people at once. It has revolutionized transportation for the crime fighters compared to that of the job performed by the twin tubes and the meager passenger elevator that were housed in the old Man Cave. The singular group tube is one of Schwoz's many innovative concepts since Captain Man's headquarters relocated at the top of Mount Swellview./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The upgrade in size, technology, and even the location, more elusive since the freshly purchased building hovers above the edge of town, is due to the recent expansion of the Manchester family with four adopted superhero children soon to enter the extraordinary couple's lives. Along with the unfortunate Shellgon Crystal Detonation which forced an immediate evacuation of the beloved hideout. Collateral damages during a particularly trying mission which honestly took its toll on everyone. Nevertheless, Cheyanne chooses to look on the bright side of things./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""It was you who suggested we take the next step and move in together. But you didn't know about my secret identity, and Schwoz had just finished building the Man Cave, so I didn't want to live anywhere else. And couldn't…for work reasons."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I remember. You told me you were Captain Man and, after a period of adjustment and some couples counseling, I agreed to move in." It's when Cheyanne trips over the final rise in the ground and splays her hands on the clear glass to catch herself that she verbally processes the question: "Who would have thought a bachelor pad would be my first house as an established adult?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Exactly my point." Ray waves his free hand in front of Cheyanne's face. Confirmation she cannot see. He then wraps both his arms more securely around Cheyanne's outstretched right arm and waist. Once they are inside, he calls, "Up the tube!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The tube ride is fast, but not as fast as the Man Cave's broken elevator. Ray continues his line of reasoning on the way up to what Cheyanne assumes is the rooftop of their new living quarters which has been dutifully christened, The Man's Nest. "You moved in with me. We didn't move in somewhere together. You didn't have a whole lot of say in what the place looked like, or the colors on the walls, or if there was a patio verses a porch. I mean, it wasn't even a house. We have literally been living underground all these years."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne allows Ray to ramble, knowing he'll reach a conclusive point. Butterflies swell in her stomach as she feels herself get carried higher and higher into the air. Instead of a mile under the city, they are carried two or three miles above it. And she anticipates a spectacular view./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne has never been one to experience a fear of heights. Quite the opposite. Her first date with Ray, after he admitted his true career path, was a ride in the Man-copter. He had recently earned his learner's permit. It had been dangerous and exhilarating all at once. She felt she was taller than the tallest buildings and as close to the stars as she had ever been. They flew around their dear city semi-regularly after that night. For their fifth wedding anniversary, Ray had rented a hot air balloon and the pilot had flown them for miles around to take in the best nature sightings California and Nevada had to offer. The couple could always bond over their love for air travel and the animals and machines which occupied the earth's natural above ground highway./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""And what's the one thing you've always wanted to have?" Ray's words disrupt Cheyanne's quiet musings./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She sighs, a little dreamily. "A garden. With flowers and vegetables. And a stone fountain." Her next words are spoken with sincerity, but they are also measured to spare Ray's feelings. "You've reminded me how much I miss my plants. But I loved my collection, for as long as I had it, and by the time I moved in the Man Cave felt like home. I didn't need to design it or critique it in any way. And soon, the Man's Nest will feel like home, too. Our home. That's all that matters."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The elevator stops when they arrive on the topmost accessible floor of the gargantuan, sprawling building. Cheyanne expects to feel wind in her hair and hear the faintest remnants of city pollution wafting up the side of the mountain when the door slides open. Instead, she is met with silence. Her first thought is there's one last top floor she has yet to explore in her new surroundings. She becomes equally eager to do just that./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ray presses a new button on the elevator and a door audible unlocks ahead of him. He guides Cheyanne slowly through this door into a closet sized room where automatic fans, not wind, blow cool air across their bodies. After a time, the fans shut off. A new door unlocks ahead. And when Cheyanne steps inside, though she remains blindfolded, she feels the space encompassing her expand. Expand, as in grow, to a massive scale in every direction and it's almost as if the space she enters is breathing. Breathing, the same way an animal would. Her nostrils flood with sweet floral scents and the humidity rises astronomically. So high, she feels her palms grow damp. She can tell she's entered a considerably large room, almost incomprehensible in size, and yet, she can sense that the room will be full. Full of…life./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""This should feel like your home, too. Not just our home, but your home, Chey. And I never want you to forget that." Ray's hands disappear from Cheyanne's body and pluck the blindfold from her eyes. "My idea was to give you a rooftop garden. But, like everything else around here, Schwoz took my idea and made it a little bit better."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne is slow to peak passed her eyelids. Her hands, however, are quick to her face as her mouth drops open. She gasps, pulling air into her chest, and the filtered oxygen within the artificial habitat is cleaner than that in Swellview Park./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne is continually amazed by Schwoz's speed and capabilities. When the couple decided to buy a school to teach gifted children, the scientist with a heart the size of his brain had found one and seemingly overhauled the domain to fit the couple's unique needs and expectations in no time flat. The rooftop where she stands had been flat and barren merely days ago. Now it seemed the entire surface area had been covered with a fully functioning, regulated green house./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The ceiling hangs high overhead coming together at a majestic point. One which would normally be reserved for a chapel. Natural sunlight shines through the windowed ceiling and nearly every wall. The floor is made of dirt and already a medium sized Redwood tree has been planted in the furthest back corner of the building more than the length of a football field away from the door. Cheyanne knows if left alone, the adolescent tree would one day reach the peaked ceiling, if not surpass it. To the left is a mock waterfall a story high. Vines and stones flow in the same direction of the water which runs for several feet before trickling into a pond. The oblong pool is the onlhy covered area. A canopy has been propped up to throw shade over the water feature and a statue of a crane catching a fish stands tall within the shallow pond at the heart of the greenhouse. Most the rest of the expansive room is empty. Save for a two-story tool shed to the right of the entrance. And many empty flowerpots are sat on an elongated worktable, waiting to be filled./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne gapes in silence for several minutes. The words are slow to come to her. "How is this possible?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""You'll have to ask Schwoz. Except don't ask about the tree. I'm pretty sure it's stolen."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne playfully swats at Ray. He chuckles and gives her space to explore. "That's really illegal, but right now I don't care. Is this really all for me?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Schwoz says anything will grow in here. You can organize everything however you want. Grow as many things as will fit. He can always expand and build more floors if you run out of room." Ray considers this is the happiest he's seen Cheyanne in twenty years. Only her elation at their wedding competed, or perhaps when the kids graduated from high school before moving to Dystopia to become their own class of superheroes. "His one request was you let him have a corner to grow whatever it is he needs for his experiments."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""That's not enough. I'll never be able to repay him." Cheyanne spins on the balls of her feet and her smile vanishes. Her eyes grow serious, almost regretful. "This is too much. I'll never be able to repay you. This is too much all at once. What can I possibly do to match this?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ray's smile doubles. The juvenile man aims to keep the mood light. "You can start by following me around the statue."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne pulls a perplexed face. Thinking surely there cannot be any more surprises in store. "Now where are you taking me?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Just around the corner here. I want you to meet someone."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A man-made wooden post with limbs of various heights and lengths has been stuck in the ground behind the pond. In the protective shade on independent branches, sat prettily and quite close to one another, rests a pair of macaw parrots. The bigger one, a male with an intimidatingly hard beak, is a deep shade of cobalt. As a Hyacinth Macaw, he sports yellow trim around his eyes and beak. The bird looks over and through the humans who approach as though he cannot be bothered to acknowledge their presence. The smaller one, still standing over twelve inches tall, angles her head to better deduce the sound of padding feet coming towards her. Her breed is the Scarlet Macaw. As such, she is painted in a vibrant mixture of reds, blues, and yellows. The feathers around her eyes are white. As if she wears outstanding makeup. The marks have an effect of making her eyes look bigger than they are, and she seems to be observing those who approach with a keen sense of interest. She sidesteps on the outstretched branch an inch away from the male bird and closer to the humans./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A new wave of emotion overcomes Cheyanne. She composes herself quickly to avoid shedding tears she fears will startle the winged creatures. "We've discussed owning pets for years, but I always assumed we would get a ferret, or maybe a couple of parakeets. A fish would be easier to start with. But these guys…"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I remember you saying how much you love snowy owls and phoenixes. One is even harder to come by than the Redwood tree. The other hasn't been invented by Schwoz yet. I'll tell him to add it to the to-do list."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne edges closer. She can already predict she will spend days researching how best to care for these animals and ensure they have long, healthy lives. "They are magnificent. Their feathers even match the colors of your uniform." She views her image reflected in the deep recesses of the blue Macaw's pupils./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ray grows sheepish, kicking up loose dirt around the wooden perch. "I'm just relieved to hear I made the right call for once."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""You've done more than that. You've knocked it out of the park." Words will never be enough to expressive Cheyanne's gratitude in this moment. Instead, she tears her misty brown eyes away from the animals. Reaching out, she lays a delicate hand against her partner's foreman in silent appreciation. "What are we going to name them?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ray breaks the searing eye contact by lifting two fingers to stroke down the side of the blue and gold macaw's neck. The bird preens absentmindedly, unbothered by the touch. Almost unaware. "This little fellow's name is Captain. Obviously. He's going to be head of security and protect the Man's Nest from on high. I'll teach them to listen for and spot first response vehicles on the city streets. They can hear them better than we can from up here."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne scrunches her nose. Thinking to herself a few too many things have been named after Ray over the years, and the name itself is a tad on the nose. "Like Jack Sparrow? Will you teach him to walk off wooden planks, too?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Captain is a fine name. And if you don't like it, you can name his little lady friend. That's why I got you two of 'em."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She looks at her husband incredulously with the widest, happiest possible grin. "No, I think you've gone and named her." Cheyanne approaches the multicolored female. She offers her hand, and the bird lifts one of its feet off the stand. She is gentle when wrapping her taloned digits around the woman's wrist, squeezing briefly, before letting go. Almost as if shaking Cheyanne's hand in greeting. "What do you think Lady? Do you like that name?" The bird makes a shrill noise in answer. It sounds pleasant to Cheyanne's ears. "Captain and Lady. Swellview's newest lovebirds."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto 0px; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"This installment focuses on the series' main couple. This one-shot is told in third person POV and in present tense./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto 0px; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"/ /p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Do you remember what our biggest problem was when we first met?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne is taken aback by such a sensible and ruminative question coming from her typically shallow partner. Upon further consideration of her current predicament, given she has spent the last ten minutes waiting for Ray to successfully knot a blindfold over her eyes without it catching her voluminous hair, the middle-aged woman shouldn't be too surprised by any bizarre behavior said man demonstrates this afternoon. "You lied about what you did for work?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""What? No! Well, at first. But only because I had to."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A flustered Ray takes Cheyanne by the hand. He leads her towards the see-through tube in the center of the room. The travel system can transport up to ten people at once. It has revolutionized transportation for the crime fighters compared to that of the job performed by the twin tubes and the meager passenger elevator that were housed in the old Man Cave. The singular group tube is one of Schwoz's many innovative concepts since Captain Man's headquarters relocated at the top of Mount Swellview./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The upgrade in size, technology, and even the location, more elusive since the freshly purchased building hovers above the edge of town, is due to the recent expansion of the Manchester family with four adopted superhero children soon to enter the extraordinary couple's lives. Along with the unfortunate Shellgon Crystal Detonation which forced an immediate evacuation of the beloved hideout. Collateral damages during a particularly trying mission which honestly took its toll on everyone. Nevertheless, Cheyanne chooses to look on the bright side of things./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""It was you who suggested we take the next step and move in together. But you didn't know about my secret identity, and Schwoz had just finished building the Man Cave, so I didn't want to live anywhere else. And couldn't…for work reasons."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I remember. You told me you were Captain Man and, after a period of adjustment and some couples counseling, I agreed to move in." It's when Cheyanne trips over the final rise in the ground and splays her hands on the clear glass to catch herself that she verbally processes the question: "Who would have thought a bachelor pad would be my first house as an established adult?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Exactly my point." Ray waves his free hand in front of Cheyanne's face. Confirmation she cannot see. He then wraps both his arms more securely around Cheyanne's outstretched right arm and waist. Once they are inside, he calls, "Up the tube!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The tube ride is fast, but not as fast as the Man Cave's broken elevator. Ray continues his line of reasoning on the way up to what Cheyanne assumes is the rooftop of their new living quarters which has been dutifully christened, The Man's Nest. "You moved in with me. We didn't move in somewhere together. You didn't have a whole lot of say in what the place looked like, or the colors on the walls, or if there was a patio verses a porch. I mean, it wasn't even a house. We have literally been living underground all these years."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne allows Ray to ramble, knowing he'll reach a conclusive point. Butterflies swell in her stomach as she feels herself get carried higher and higher into the air. Instead of a mile under the city, they are carried two or three miles above it. And she anticipates a spectacular view./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne has never been one to experience a fear of heights. Quite the opposite. Her first date with Ray, after he admitted his true career path, was a ride in the Man-copter. He had recently earned his learner's permit. It had been dangerous and exhilarating all at once. She felt she was taller than the tallest buildings and as close to the stars as she had ever been. They flew around their dear city semi-regularly after that night. For their fifth wedding anniversary, Ray had rented a hot air balloon and the pilot had flown them for miles around to take in the best nature sightings California and Nevada had to offer. The couple could always bond over their love for air travel and the animals and machines which occupied the earth's natural above ground highway./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""And what's the one thing you've always wanted to have?" Ray's words disrupt Cheyanne's quiet musings./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She sighs, a little dreamily. "A garden. With flowers and vegetables. And a stone fountain." Her next words are spoken with sincerity, but they are also measured to spare Ray's feelings. "You've reminded me how much I miss my plants. But I loved my collection, for as long as I had it, and by the time I moved in the Man Cave felt like home. I didn't need to design it or critique it in any way. And soon, the Man's Nest will feel like home, too. Our home. That's all that matters."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The elevator stops when they arrive on the topmost accessible floor of the gargantuan, sprawling building. Cheyanne expects to feel wind in her hair and hear the faintest remnants of city pollution wafting up the side of the mountain when the door slides open. Instead, she is met with silence. Her first thought is there's one last top floor she has yet to explore in her new surroundings. She becomes equally eager to do just that./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ray presses a new button on the elevator and a door audible unlocks ahead of him. He guides Cheyanne slowly through this door into a closet sized room where automatic fans, not wind, blow cool air across their bodies. After a time, the fans shut off. A new door unlocks ahead. And when Cheyanne steps inside, though she remains blindfolded, she feels the space encompassing her expand. Expand, as in grow, to a massive scale in every direction and it's almost as if the space she enters is breathing. Breathing, the same way an animal would. Her nostrils flood with sweet floral scents and the humidity rises astronomically. So high, she feels her palms grow damp. She can tell she's entered a considerably large room, almost incomprehensible in size, and yet, she can sense that the room will be full. Full of…life./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""This should feel like your home, too. Not just our home, but your home, Chey. And I never want you to forget that." Ray's hands disappear from Cheyanne's body and pluck the blindfold from her eyes. "My idea was to give you a rooftop garden. But, like everything else around here, Schwoz took my idea and made it a little bit better."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne is slow to peak passed her eyelids. Her hands, however, are quick to her face as her mouth drops open. She gasps, pulling air into her chest, and the filtered oxygen within the artificial habitat is cleaner than that in Swellview Park./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne is continually amazed by Schwoz's speed and capabilities. When the couple decided to buy a school to teach gifted children, the scientist with a heart the size of his brain had found one and seemingly overhauled the domain to fit the couple's unique needs and expectations in no time flat. The rooftop where she stands had been flat and barren merely days ago. Now it seemed the entire surface area had been covered with a fully functioning, regulated green house./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The ceiling hangs high overhead coming together at a majestic point. One which would normally be reserved for a chapel. Natural sunlight shines through the windowed ceiling and nearly every wall. The floor is made of dirt and already a medium sized Redwood tree has been planted in the furthest back corner of the building more than the length of a football field away from the door. Cheyanne knows if left alone, the adolescent tree would one day reach the peaked ceiling, if not surpass it. To the left is a mock waterfall a story high. Vines and stones flow in the same direction of the water which runs for several feet before trickling into a pond. The oblong pool is the onlhy covered area. A canopy has been propped up to throw shade over the water feature and a statue of a crane catching a fish stands tall within the shallow pond at the heart of the greenhouse. Most the rest of the expansive room is empty. Save for a two-story tool shed to the right of the entrance. And many empty flowerpots are sat on an elongated worktable, waiting to be filled./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne gapes in silence for several minutes. The words are slow to come to her. "How is this possible?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""You'll have to ask Schwoz. Except don't ask about the tree. I'm pretty sure it's stolen."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne playfully swats at Ray. He chuckles and gives her space to explore. "That's really illegal, but right now I don't care. Is this really all for me?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Schwoz says anything will grow in here. You can organize everything however you want. Grow as many things as will fit. He can always expand and build more floors if you run out of room." Ray considers this is the happiest he's seen Cheyanne in twenty years. Only her elation at their wedding competed, or perhaps when the kids graduated from high school before moving to Dystopia to become their own class of superheroes. "His one request was you let him have a corner to grow whatever it is he needs for his experiments."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""That's not enough. I'll never be able to repay him." Cheyanne spins on the balls of her feet and her smile vanishes. Her eyes grow serious, almost regretful. "This is too much. I'll never be able to repay you. This is too much all at once. What can I possibly do to match this?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ray's smile doubles. The juvenile man aims to keep the mood light. "You can start by following me around the statue."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne pulls a perplexed face. Thinking surely there cannot be any more surprises in store. "Now where are you taking me?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Just around the corner here. I want you to meet someone."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A man-made wooden post with limbs of various heights and lengths has been stuck in the ground behind the pond. In the protective shade on independent branches, sat prettily and quite close to one another, rests a pair of macaw parrots. The bigger one, a male with an intimidatingly hard beak, is a deep shade of cobalt. As a Hyacinth Macaw, he sports yellow trim around his eyes and beak. The bird looks over and through the humans who approach as though he cannot be bothered to acknowledge their presence. The smaller one, still standing over twelve inches tall, angles her head to better deduce the sound of padding feet coming towards her. Her breed is the Scarlet Macaw. As such, she is painted in a vibrant mixture of reds, blues, and yellows. The feathers around her eyes are white. As if she wears outstanding makeup. The marks have an effect of making her eyes look bigger than they are, and she seems to be observing those who approach with a keen sense of interest. She sidesteps on the outstretched branch an inch away from the male bird and closer to the humans./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A new wave of emotion overcomes Cheyanne. She composes herself quickly to avoid shedding tears she fears will startle the winged creatures. "We've discussed owning pets for years, but I always assumed we would get a ferret, or maybe a couple of parakeets. A fish would be easier to start with. But these guys…"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I remember you saying how much you love snowy owls and phoenixes. One is even harder to come by than the Redwood tree. The other hasn't been invented by Schwoz yet. I'll tell him to add it to the to-do list."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne edges closer. She can already predict she will spend days researching how best to care for these animals and ensure they have long, healthy lives. "They are magnificent. Their feathers even match the colors of your uniform." She views her image reflected in the deep recesses of the blue Macaw's pupils./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ray grows sheepish, kicking up loose dirt around the wooden perch. "I'm just relieved to hear I made the right call for once."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""You've done more than that. You've knocked it out of the park." Words will never be enough to expressive Cheyanne's gratitude in this moment. Instead, she tears her misty brown eyes away from the animals. Reaching out, she lays a delicate hand against her partner's foreman in silent appreciation. "What are we going to name them?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Ray breaks the searing eye contact by lifting two fingers to stroke down the side of the blue and gold macaw's neck. The bird preens absentmindedly, unbothered by the touch. Almost unaware. "This little fellow's name is Captain. Obviously. He's going to be head of security and protect the Man's Nest from on high. I'll teach them to listen for and spot first response vehicles on the city streets. They can hear them better than we can from up here."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Cheyanne scrunches her nose. Thinking to herself a few too many things have been named after Ray over the years, and the name itself is a tad on the nose. "Like Jack Sparrow? Will you teach him to walk off wooden planks, too?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Captain is a fine name. And if you don't like it, you can name his little lady friend. That's why I got you two of 'em."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She looks at her husband incredulously with the widest, happiest possible grin. "No, I think you've gone and named her." Cheyanne approaches the multicolored female. She offers her hand, and the bird lifts one of its feet off the stand. She is gentle when wrapping her taloned digits around the woman's wrist, squeezing briefly, before letting go. Almost as if shaking Cheyanne's hand in greeting. "What do you think Lady? Do you like that name?" The bird makes a shrill noise in answer. It sounds pleasant to Cheyanne's ears. "Captain and Lady. Swellview's newest lovebirds."/p
