"Tell me, why do you keep torturing yourself?" – asked a boy with brown hair.
"But it smells and looks so good!" – replied a girl with brown skin that was looking at a couple of bacon sandwiches.
"I'm going to start to charge you for looking, Kamala." – said the boy.
"I just want to stay here and smell it all day long." – she said.
"That is really, really creepy. Either stick to your principles or eat the bacon."
"... You're no fun Bruno." – said Kamala, finally taking her eyes off of the sandwiches. She then proceeded to take a chocolate bar ready to eat it.
"Aren't you going to pay for that?" – asked Bruno.
Kamala then led her hand to the pocket of her jacket to try and see if she had any spare money. Unfortunately for her, she only had some fluff and a clip. – "Umm, you accept fluff?" – she asked.
"I'm sure you already know the answer to that question." – said Bruno while looking at his friend, whom looked back at him with pleading eyes. – "... Fine, it's on me. But you really need to stop doing that, you know."
"I know. But hey, you're the manager here! Don't you get like, I don't know, a discount or something?" – asked Kamala.
"I'm the assistant manager actually and yes I do get one. But just because I get one doesn't mean I'm going to abuse it. Unlike you who spends most of her allowance on comics, collectibles and any other superhero merch. I actually like to save some money." – said Bruno.
"I save money too!" – argued back Kamala. – "Besides, it's not my fault that heroes have such an awesome merch." – taking another bite of her candy.
"... That has to be the weakest argument I have ever heard. And you know full well who my brother is."
"Oh, like you don't buy any of their merch either. I'm sure that you'll buy my merch too once I become a hero as well." – said Kamala, finishing her candy, crossing her arms and smiling at her friend.
Ever since last year, Kamala discovered that she was an inhuman. People that, just like mutants and quirked people, were born with powers. But thankfully, inhumans were easier to differentiate than the other two groups of born powered individuals. Unlike them, inhumans needed the aid of a third party to awake their special abilities. They need to be exposed to something called the Terrigen mist, or something like that. Once exposed to this mist, the inhuman gene within them will awaken and a cocoon will surround the individual and after some time, said individual will emerge with powers (and sometimes even a different appearance).
Kamala was exposed to this mist when she sneaked away to go to a party. Not the most responsible of things, but hey, because of that she ended up gaining powers of her own… even if she ended up having a vivid dream that involved her three favorite heroes; Captain Marvel, Ironman and Captain America. And for some reason, they were accompanied by a sloth with wings, birds, a literal golden fish and a hedgehog with Hulk hands.
People always told her that she had a wild imagination.
She also wound up grounded for like two and a half months for going to the party.
At first, Kamala was somewhat freaked out because, well, you'll be too if you suddenly woke up in the inside of a cocoon. But then after calming down, she became static. She had powers now, she could be a cool superhero just like the ones she admired and wrote stories about. She wanted to start practicing with her powers as soon as possible, there was however a problem with that... Well, maybe two problems.
The first one was that her parents were obviously on the fence about her wishing to become a crime fighter. Honestly, that was a reaction that was to be expected from any parent. However, what did put a stop to her wishes was that at that point in time, certain things happened that created a great tension among the superpower community in general. Because of that, she had to keep her inhuman powers a secret, with only Bruno and her family knowing about them. Things remained like that for around a year, but luckily for her, things eventually calmed down recently. Which meant that she could now pursue her goal of becoming a hero, with her recently starting to try and train to get a hand of her powers.
"Still planning on trying for Avengers Academy?" – asked Bruno.
"Duh! If I'm going to become a hero then I have to go to the best school in the world right?" – replied Kamala.
"I wouldn't call it the best in the world. Xavier's school has recently stepped up their game. That's without talking about U.A, Shiketsu, even Braddock Academy…"
"Alright, alright I get it. But come on, you have to admit that being taught how to be a hero by the Avengers themselves is pretty cool." – said Kamala.
"I mean I guess, even though only a handful of Avengers are actually staff members." – said Bruno. – "Then again, I heard that they sometimes have surprise teachers coming every once in a while. I think Spider-man was once a teacher there for like one or two classes."
"That sounds like a dream come true." – said Kamala with hope in her eyes. – "Hey, speaking of Spider-man, do you think he ever had a guy in the chair?"
"Well, I remember asking you a similar question and you throwing a book at me for even thinking of such a thing." – said Bruno.
"No, you said that he has a guy in the chair now! As in present, I on the other hand said had, meaning in the past." – explained Kamala.
"Still doesn't change the fact that you threw a book at me." – said Bruno, making Kamala frown. – "Besides, why are you talking about Spider-man all of the sudden? Like, don't get me wrong, the guy's cool and all. But he's technically a vigilante, why not, say, talk about Captain Marvel. You know, your all time favorite hero?" – asked Bruno.
"Well, it's because of a story that's somewhat popular." – said Kamala.
"Is it about how he and Captain Marvel were apparently an item back when she was still Ms. Marvel?"
"No… Well, now that you mentioned it, that rumor is also pretty interesting, but that's not the one I'm referring to."
"Then?"
"Well, there's a popular theory that claims that Spider-man first started out as a hero when he was just 15 years old. Think about it, if that's true then that means that he was just a year older than us when he first became a crime fighter!" – exclaimed Kamala. – "As an aspiring hero, that inspires me. If someone as awesome as Spider-man did start that way, then that means everyone can become a hero. And I am determined to become a hero just like him, Captain America, Ironman and Captain Marvel!"
Bruno smiled at his friend, whenever she set her mind onto something then no power on Earth; not the Avengers, nor All Might or even Thor for that matter, could derail her from getting her way. She was kind of like the Juggernaut in that regard.
"So I take it you're going to go by one of the Stark recreational centers then? You know, to try and get a handle of your powers?" – asked Bruno.
Some time ago, Charles Xavier had a press conference in which he talked about how certain mutants, inhumans and quirked people tended to have abilities that, if not used, could cause major health issues for said individual. Or could turn the individual into a living bomb, building whatever power they have to a point in which he or she could no longer keep it at bay, putting innocent people at risk. So, the founder of the Xavier's school for gifted youngsters proposed the idea of recreational centers in which people could use their abilities in a controlled and supervised area to try and minimize any possible outburst.
One of the first to support said idea was none other than Tony Stark, C.E.O of Stark industries and overall one of the richest people on the planet. Or as many may know him; the Invincible Ironman, the golden knight as well as not only one of the five founding members of the legendary Avengers, but also one of the team's most recurrent leaders.
While at first the armored clad hero had certain disagreements with the government, he ended up becoming a hero licensed by said government. Although back then there were rumors which stated that while the government handed him a salary like any other hero, he never cashed in any of the checks given to him. And when he revealed his identity by accident when he saved a girl's dog from getting run over, those rumors were proven right. Using the money that he never cashed in before, as well as money of his own persona, Tony Stark built the very first recreational center in New York. After which, he started to fund many other recreational centers across the country. While he was the first to do such act, he was far from the only one. Sunfire, Wonder Man, the Fantastic Four, the Wakandan government, alongside many other heroes and companies all helped in said project.
While the centers are all funded through the government, most of their income comes from donations from the individuals using their service, a few of the powerless citizens and most importantly, the heroes of the country. They helped people in learning how to control their powers in a proper manner and a lot of the younger users that go to those centers go to practice their powers so that they could try and enroll in a school with a hero course. So that when the time comes, they can try to become heroes.
"Well, I could go there, buuuuuut…"
"You're thinking of something reckless aren't you?" – asked Bruno with an expressionless face, for he already knew the answer.
"It's not reckless…" – said Kamal trying to sound confident, although unfortunately for her, Bruno's gaze made it difficult for her to keep it up. – "... fine, it's kind of reckless, but it's also fun!"
"What are you planning?"
"Well, I was thinking that maybe going to that abandoned lot, could be fun. You know, the one with the cars and all of that junk." – said Kamala.
"You mean the abandoned junkyard?" – aske Bruno.
"Bingo!" – exclaimed Kamala. – "I was planning on going tomorrow, wanna come?"
"Mmm, let's see. Going to an abandoned junkyard, or literally anything else… Yeah, I think you already know my answer." – said Bruno.
"Oh, come on! It'll be fun!"
"Why not go to one of the recreational centers then? You know, the one that was literally built for that very same reason? The one that Tony Stark probably spent millions at least to build!?" – asked Bruno.
"Oh please, I'm pretty sure that was pocket change for someone like him. Besides, Spider-man didn't have any of those fancy places. Come on, going a little retro never hurt anyone."
"He probably also didn't have a friend that cared for his well being either. Too bad you do have someone like that in the shape of me. Also, why do you want me to go with you?" – asked Bruno to his best friend.
"Well, just because Spider-man doesn't have a guy in the chair doesn't mean I can't have one right? And who better than the smartest guy in the whole school! Just think about it, me kicking butts and you telling me everything that I need to know. Once I graduate we could be a crime fighting duo. Like Captain America and Falcon, or Luke Cage and Iron Fist, or even Ladyhawk and… well, the other Ladyhawk. Boy do they really need to come up with something else." – said Kamala.
"First off, why didn't you mention Bucky? Second, not only are the Ladyhawks vigilantes, but are they even still working together? No one has seen the two of them together in a while and I'm sure that so far, only one of them is still operating. And third, why are you assuming that I'll be working with you in crime fighting instead of, I don't know, getting a job at some important company? Or even trying to see if I can start one of my own like you always told me?" – asked Bruno.
"To answer the first question; with the whole… you know, brainwashed Soviet Assassin thing that happened. I thought it would be a bit more appropriate to mention Falcon. To answer the second question, I don't know. They're probably trying to go back to appearing one at the time to try and confuse criminals like when they first started out. Besides, even if they are vigilantes they hang out with frickin Spider-Girl! They must be pretty impressive if they're hanging out with the daughter of Spider-Man of all people! And to answer your final question; I know you're probably not interested and that I am probably being a little selfish, but… being a hero is something important to me… and I can't imagine myself doing it without my best friend by my side. Besides, you love my company and you know it!" – replied Kamala.
"More than you think." – thought Bruno. – "... Fine. I have a free day tomorrow, so why not? Let's hang around the trash."– he said.
"Great! I'll meet you there after class!" – said Kamala.
"Just tell your parents that you're going to be a little late, we don't want to give them a heart attack." – mentioned Bruno.
"Don't worry, I got it."
"Speaking of which, shouldn't you be home now?" – asked Bruno.
"Yeah, yeah, I know." – said Kamala as she waved her friend goodbye. – "See you tomorrow Bruno."
"See you tomorrow." – he replied, waving her goodbye before she left.
"I'm back!" – announced Kamala to her family.
"And where were you?" – asked her mother.
"I was with Bruno, keeping him company at work for a bit." – she replied.
"Bruno eh? And how is the boy doing?" – asked her father, he is usually very strict when it comes to Kamala hanging out with boys, but Bruno is someone that Jusuf Khan always respected. He admired the fact that not only did he always get top grades, but that he also managed his time well enough for him to get a job and help out his family in any way he could. That was a trait he admired, he also wished that his children could follow his example, more specifically, his elder son Aamir, who had yet to get a job of his own.
"He's doing fine abu. By the way, I was wondering if I could stay a bit late tomorrow after school?" – asked Kamala.
"And why is that?" – asked Jusuf.
"Well, I asked Bruno if he could help me with something."
"And what is that something?" – asked Kamala's mother.
"It's nothing bad ami, he's just helping me study for an upcoming exam." – replied Kamala. She was technically not lying, since she was certain that the admission exam for Avengers Academy, or any school with a hero course or something similar must require a certain level of someone's understanding of their powers and/or abilities (well, the ones that had them anyway).
"Didn't you have exams last month or something?" – asked Kamala's older brother Aamir.
"Yeah, but hey it never hurts to prepare, right?" – said Kamala. Again, she was technically not lying, she was simply omitting the whole, hero thing. Even though she could now reveal her powers without any worry whatsoever, her parents would no doubt still be on the fence about it.
"That's good thinking Kamala. It's nice to see how much of a good influence Bruno has been to you." – said Jusuf. – "You can stay two hours, and call us if something happens alright?"
"Yes abu."
"Well then, if that's everything that you wanted to say, go to your room and do some homework while I finish preparing dinner."
"Yes ami." – said Kamala, going to her room to doher homework.
"In the meantime, why don't you start looking for a job." – said Jusuf to his older son.
"Money earned from a profession that offends Allah has no merits I-"
"You know, I really don't want to hear any more of that holier than thou attitude." – complained Jusuf.
"Calm down Abu-Jaan, I'm Aamir will find a job eventually." – said Kamala's mother as Aamir went to his room.
"He better."
"Now, about Kamala." – said Jusuf's wife. – "I have a feeling she did not tell us the whole truth."
"Well, I certainly heard truth behind her words. I'm willing to give her the benefit of the doubt for now." – said Jusuf. – "Besides, we can always call Bruno to double check."
"I suppose you're right. Fine, I guess I can give her the benefit of the doubt as well."
"Well, that's good to hear. I'm going to go upstairs for something, I'll be back in a sec." – said Jusuf as he headed for the stairs.
Reaching the upper part of his house, Jusuf passed by his daughter's room with the door not closed entirely. Peeking inside of the room, he saw Kamala at the computer, knowing that she was either writing one of her stories or playing a game. Her room was pretty average for a fourteen-year-old girl. Although it did have something that stood out compared to other rooms. That something was the fact that it was filled with posters, collectibles and pretty much everything involving superheroes.
From a replica of Captain America's legendary shield, to a small figurine of Thor's hammer to posters of heroes such as Captain Marvel, Mirko, Wolverine, Ironman, you name it. That among many, many more. It was obvious that she wanted to be like the heroes that she looked up to when growing up. Without making any noise that could give away the fact that he was technically spying on her.
After leaving for his own bedroom, Jusuf opened a drawer on his nightstand. He then pulled some pamphlets for multiple schools. But not just regular schools.
But schools with hero courses.
From some average hero schools, to even some of the best schools of not only all of the U.S, but the whole world. From the multiple pamphlets, three stood out the most. Avengers Academy, Braddock Academy and U.A.
Just before dinner, Jusuf looked over the pamphlets once more.
It was the next day and just like agreed, Kamala and Bruno headed for the abandoned junkyard to train.
"Alright Kamala, let's go over what we know you can do before anything else." – said Bruno.
"Well, so far, I'm able to stretch my limbs, as well as enlarge parts of my body. Like my hands, my feet and I once accidentally enlarged my head." – said Kamala.
"So, basically you have a level of elongation-like powers alongside possible size alterations. Anything else?" – asked Bruno.
"Well, I remember that I once somehow managed to change the color of my eyes and I think my nose too. Plus, I've noticed that whenever I use some of my powers I literally start to glow." – explained Kamala.
"Possible shapeshifting as well as bioluminescence. Well, I guess-"
"Oh wait, I just remember that I think I may as well have a healing factor too!" – interrupted Kamala.
"Is that so? How did you discover that one?"
"Well,I may have cut myself when I was preparing a PJ sandwich." – said Kamala awkwardly.
"How do you cut yourself by making a PJ sandwich?" – asked Bruno.
"Look, it just happened ok! No need to rub salt in the already healed wound." – said Kamal, crossing her arms.
"That doesn't even- you know what, never mind. Anything else that I should know?"
"Well, I felt a bit sleepy after the wound healed."
"So a healing factor with a possible side effect of fatigue."
"Possible?"
"Until further testing can be made. Although, hopefully we won't be doing any of that if I'm honest." – said Bruno, not wanting to do something like drop an anvil on his friend just to prove his hypothesis. – "By the way, put this on."
From his backpack, Bruno handed Kamala what looked to be some sort of sleeve alongside a handmade glove. Kamala looked at the piece of clothing with puzzled eyes before turning her gaze on Bruno.
"Hey Bruno, where's the rest of the shirt?" – she asked.
"I wasn't going to waste a perfectly good shirt on an experiment. Just put them on ok." – said Bruno.
Still unsure of her friends' choice of gift, Kamala rolled one of her sleeves to put on Bruno's gifts. She then turned to Bruno and simply gave him a look that said what now?
"Now try to use your powers to enlarge that hand and stretch your arm." – asked Bruno.
Kamal did as she was told, if only to see what was the deal with Bruno. As she did, both the glove and the sleeve grew alongside her arm and stretched with ease. Kamala was very surprised, normally she had to make sure not to stretch too much in order to not mess her clothes. What surprised her even more, was that when she returned her limb to its normal size both the glove and sleeve returned to their normal size as well as if they never stretched in the first place.
"How?!" – was the only thing Kamala could say before turning to Bruno, hoping to get an answer to her question.
"It's something I've been working on for a while. It's a biokinetic polymer compound that, when applied to a flexible substance allows it to become extremely malleable. I thought that since you want to become a hero, might as well make your suit out of a material that can allow you to use your power to its fullest without any issue whatsoever." – explained Bruno.
"Bruno, this is amazing!" – exclaimed Kamala to her friend.
"It's still in its prototype phase though. One thing I haven't been able to solve is the fact that the polymer, or as I like to call it super snot, gets easily damaged if it gets into contact with water. If I'm honest, a suit made out of unstable molecules or with possible aid of maybe Pym particles,would be better. But unfortunately, neither of those things come in cheap." – said Bruno.
"Who cares about either of those things! This is awesome Bruno, even if the name you gave it sucks!"
"Hey!" – said Brunno, offended. – "First off, literally any scientist worth their mind would be thankful for either of those things! Second, my naming skills are still better than yours, Ms SlothBaby!"
"What did we say about dissing the pen name?!" – asked Kamala.
"Look, lets just start training while we still can. Knowing your dad, he probably allowed you to stay for like two hours." – said Bruno as the two then started Kamala's training routine.
Even though Bruno mentioned that Kamala may have shapeshifting abilities as well as a healing factor, they decided not to try and test those powers. Neither were a fan of causing harm to the hero-in-training and Kamala didn't want to risk the possibility of getting stuck in whatever shape she tried to replicate. They also decided to avoid as much usage of her size-manipulation abilities to its fullest for multiple reasons. The main reason being that the only piece of clothing that would change in size alongside her was the sleeve and globe that Bruno gave her. Another reason was because they didn't want to risk Kamala getting stuck in whatever size she tried to use. Kamala didn't want to return home either in the size of a cockroach or the size of a truck.
They mainly stuck to test the basics of her stretching and partial size-manipulation (mainly her hands). For one exercise, Kamala ran from one point of the junkyard to another in her normal form and then again but with her legs stretched. Kamala claimed that she was faster like that even though Bruno ended up explaining that she technically wasn't, she simply took bigger strides.
Next up, her level of strength.
That part of training wasn't too spectacular either. Kamala simply enlarged her hands to try and push and lift some heavy objects. For example, she was able to lift a decently sized oven, although she did say that it was kind of heavy. Meaning that for the time being her limit would probably range between 220 to maybe around 300 pounds. Another thing she did was throwing things like shopping carts around, she did pretty good. They also tested the amount of force she could exert, for example, Kamala managed to easily rip a door car like nothing. She was also shown to easily be able to break through concrete.
Things went like that for some time, just going over the basics of Kamala's abilities. Then, all of the sudden both Kamala and Bruno saw something. Up in the sky, they say a humanoid like figure with wings flying above. They saw that the figure was heading to another part of the junkyard.
"What was that?" – asked Bruno.
"Maybe, maybe it was a hero!" – exclaimed Kamala.
"A hero? Well, who do you think it was?"
"Well, whoever that was had wings. So, maybe Angel, Falcon, Raptor or maybe we saw wrong and it's actually Stingray." – said Kamala before an idea popped in her head. – "Let's see who it was!"
"I don't think that's a good idea. If that was a hero, then maybe this place won't be safe for long. Besides, we only have around thirty minutes left before you have to call your dad. Let's just go." – said Bruno.
"Come on, it will be fun! He or she could give me some tips for becoming a hero, I can't miss this opportunity." – said Kamala, although noticing Bruno's uneasy expression she thought of something that could persuade him. – "You know, whoever that person is, probably knows Reed Richards. Maybe we can convince him to introduce him to us."
"... If it's Stingray then I get his autograph first." – said Bruno before Kamala smiled as the two headed to investigate who was the flying individual.
The two managed to arrive at where the individual had landed. They were trying to sneak in, with Bruno being kind of excited with the idea of meeting a hero. Much to their disappointment, the individual was none of the characters that they listed a few minutes ago. The man was massive, standing around 6 '9' feet with a wingspan of probably around 18 feet. He had yellow eyes alongside a yellow maine. Alongside the wings, the man had a spiked tail alongside claws and fangs that belonged to a feline-like face that resembled a lion's head. Although Bruno couldn't quite place where he'd seen this individual before, Kamala had no difficulty recognizing who the man was. Her eyes widened in horror, in front of them was no hero.
"Griffin." – was the only thing Kamala could mutter.
Bruno heard what his friend said and soon, the same feeling of dread that dawned on Kamala set on him as well. The two quickly hide behind an old car that was near them when they saw the villain turn towards their direction. The two held their breath and covered their mouths, hoping and praying to whatever god that was willing to listen to them for the villain to not notice their presence. Thankfully for them, someone up there must have heard them, for the beast man turned away from their location.
Bruno then turned towards Kamala, who looked just as scared as he was. – "Was that the Griffin? As in, the super villain Griffin? The same one that fought both Spider-Man and Wonder Man at the same time and lived to tell the tale?" – asked the young scientist while trying to keep his voice as low as possible.
Kamala noded, which only made him feel worse. – "He also fought both Beast and Angel of the X-Men at the same time in his debut. You were right, coming here was a terrible idea, let's get out of here before he notice us."
Bruno nodded and the two started to make their way aways from where the super villain was as carefully as possible, trying not to make any sound that could give away their position. At first, everything seemed to be going fine for the two of them. Unfortunately for the two teenagers, Bruno's jacket accidentally caught something from a pile of trash that they passed by. As the two walked away, that something got pulled alongside them, which caused a bunch of trash to fall down. Causing noise that unfortunately for both Kamala and Bruno, didn't go unnoticed by the beast man.
"Who's there?! Show yourself now!" – demanded Griffin.
Both kids paled in fear once they heard the villain calling out for them. Anyone in their right mind may as well try to make a run for it in hopes of escaping the villain. They were about to do just that, but the two of them knew that they wouldn't make it that far before getting caught. Just as Bruno was about to suffer a mental breakdown, Kamala covered his mouth with her hand, signaled him to be quiet and did what may as well be the dumbest thing she had ever done in her life.
"Umm… okay, I'm coming out!" – she shouted.
Even without looking at her expression, Bruno could see that Kamala was beyond terrified. She was shaking more than a Chihuahua after being drowned in cold water in the middle of winter. Bruno wanted to pull her hand away so that he could ask her what she was even thinking, but as if reading his mind, Kamala told him.
"Get out of here and call the police, I'll try to distract him while you make a run for it." – she whispered.
After hearing that, Brno pulled the hand of the inhuman away from his face. – "Are you out of your mind! He's going to kill you!" – said Bruno. Even though he was keeping his voice low, the distress he expressed was obvious.
"Look, I have powers, you don't. Plus, Griffin is not known to be the intelligent kind of villain. If I'm lucky, then maybe I can loose him and catch up to you." – explained Kamala.
Just before Bruno could even reply to her argument, Griffin roared once again. – "I am known for many things! Patience is not one of them! Show yourself while you can, otherwise, I'll hunt you down and gut you like a fish with my bare claws!"
"Ok, just… give me a second!" – said. – "Go, don't worry, I'm not planning on dying just yet." – she said, although she wasn't sure if she said that last part to try and comfort her friend, or herself.
With both hands raised above her head, Kamala came out of her hiding spot. Griffin turned towards her and snarled. That only caused Kamala to become even more afraid than before, still, she tried to put the bravest face she could muster. And as unconvincing as it was, she at the very least looked more put together than before.
"Umm… Hi." – was the only thing she could say, too afraid to think of anything else.
"A child? Isn't it past your curfew or something?" – asked the villain with an intimidating expression on his feline face.
"It's not even seventh o'clock." – thought Kamala, although of course she wasn't going to say that to someone with biceps twice bigger than her head. – "Umm… yeah, well… I'm kind of a rebel like that, you know…"
Griffin growled, scaring the color out of Kamala. – "And why are you here?"
"Umm… well… I was just passing by. But don't worry, if I'm interrupting something then I'll just-"
"DO YOU THINK I'M A FOOL!" – he shouted, causing Kamala to stagger backwards in fear. – "I AM NOT STUPID ENOUGH TO LET A POSSIBLE WITNESS WALK AWAY BEFORE I'M DONE WITH MY BUISNESS HERE! YOU'LL REMAIN HERE UNTIL I'M DONE AND FOR YOU OWN SAFETY I RECOMEND YOU NOT TO DO ANYTHING STUPID!"
As he shouted his warning, Griffin started to approach Kamala. Still, one thing that Kamala had a hard time doing, was to follow orders. A sudden primitive instinct of self-preservation kicked in Kamala's self and before anyone could react, she enlarged her right hand as large as she could and delivered the mightiest of right hooks she could muster.
The blow was more than powerful enough to send the villain flying and crashing in a car nearby. Still, Kamala knew that that wouldn't do a thing to him. In fact, she probably did more damage to herself than to Griffin, as she punched him in a way that ended up hurting her wrist. Besides, she knew that the only reason she was able to not only connect the blow, but also sent the villain flying was because she took him by surprise.
Kamala made a run for it while she still could. As for Griffin, he got up and brought his hand to his jaw. While the hit was far from painful to him (simply comparable to the stink of a mere mosquito) the villain still snarled. No one disrespects the Griffin and gets away with it.
"YOU'RE DEAD MEAT KID!" – he shouted, expanding his massive wings and taking flight.
Kamala was basically running aimlessly around the junkyard and not thinking straight. She just punched a supervillain,
She punched a supervillain capable of flying, with a possible better sense of smell than a hound and whose strength was more than twenty times her own even on his worst days. What was she thinking when she decided to strike him?!
Oh, right. She wasn't.
As Kamala was trying to find either an exit or some hiding spot, Griffin came swiping in and smashing the ground in front of her. As the smoke started to clear away, Kamala watched in horror as the beast villain stood in front of her. Growling at the teenager in anger.
"You're a gutsy kid, I give you that." – said Griffin, preparing to launch himself at the kid. – "At least you'll die braver than mo-"
Griffin was unable to finish that sentence as a yellow energy beam hit him in the face and sent him flying halfway across the junkyard. Kamala watchedd with her eyes wide as a plate. Turning backwards, Kamala saw her savior descend from the sky while covered in a golden aura. A golden aura much too familiar to the inhuman.
"Hey kid, you okay?" – asked the glowing figure.
"... You're… you're…" – Kamala could not believe her eyes.
The hero smiled before turning her sight on a pile of rubble that was starting to move. – "Stay here kid, I got this." – said the hero with a confident smile plastered all over her face.
Kamala watched as the hero flew towards where the villain landed. There was no denying it.
Her savior was none other than Captain Marvel herself.
Reaching the area in which the villain landed, Captain Marvel watched as the ruble was sent all over the place as Griffin roared. The villain then glared at the blonde heroine with the utmost of hatred.
"Well, well, well if it isn't John Horton. It's been a while since I last saw you, what have you been up to?" – asked Captain Marvel in a mocking way.
"Grrrr, quiet! Or else I'll gut you just as I'll gut the child over there!" – roared Griffin as he pointed at Kamala, sending shivers to the teenager.
"Or, hear me out. You can just give up and save yourself the beating that I'm about to give you. Trust me, I'm looking out for your wellbeing." – said the Captain.
"Mock me while you can! Once I'm through with you, you'll be begging me for mercy!" – shouted Griffin.
"Don't say I didn't warn you." – stated Captain Marvel as she rocketed towards the villain before he could move.
As she reached the villain, Captain Marvel dodged Griffin's attempt of slashing at her before she retaliated by upercouting him more than fifteen feet into the air. She then blasted an energy blast at the villain who narrowly avoided it before flying at the heroine attempting to strike her. The Captain sidestepped away from the initial strike, but was unable to dodge as the villain backhanded her into a pile of old cars.
"Lucky shot." – said the flying Avenger before getting up and blasting an oven that was hurled at her. – "It's going to take more than that to take down an Avenger!"
Right after saying that, Captain Marvel catched a strike from Griffin. She then used the momentum of Griffin's attack to slam him into the ground, creating a massive crater in the process.
From afar, Kamala watched as the high-flying Avenger trade blows with the fearsome Griffin. Energy blasts were shot, cars were thrown and destroyed alongside pretty much everything near them. The ground beneath them shook with every punch thrown before more and more craters were formed. What were once mountains of stacked cars and other metallic objects were quickly reduced to mere ruble. The villain soon became weaker over time while the hero looked as fresh as she did when she arrived. Captain Marvel then grabbed a hold of Griffin and flew him hundreds of meters into the sky. Once they were high enough, Captain Marvel blasted Griffin into the ground below. Upon landing, Griffin created an enormous crater as a massive shockwave accompanied it, forcing Kamala to take cover and not be sent flying into the air. As the basically beaten Griffin started to slowly crawl out of the crater, he was quickly smashed into the ground again as the blonde Avenger rocketed herself at the villain once more, finally knocking the villain down.
"If it makes you feel better, I have a cat so I don't like it whenever I have to knock some sense into feline-looking baddies." – said Captain Marvel to the unconscious villain. She then turned towards where the civilian was and smiled. – "Hey kid, everything's been taken care of."
Kamal got out of her place of hiding and watched in awe at her favorite hero giving her a smile that told her that everything was ok. She awkwardly started to approach the Avenger, which did cause the hero to chuckle a little bit.
"Come closer, I won't bite." – she said, her smile never leaving her face.
Kamala blushed a bit at the comment, nonetheless did as the blonde hero said. As she approached her, Kamala couldn't believe just who was standing (well, technically hovering at the moment) in front of her. The blonde hair, the blue eyes, the red and blue costume with a symbol that resemble an eight-point star. Carol Danvers herself, the current Captain Marvel and a top member of Earth's Mightiest team of heroes. Still, for some reason she decided to ask the super obvious question.
"Y-you are… Captain Marvel…?" – she said in awe.
"Well, last time I checked that's what it says in my Avengers I.D card. And who do I owe the pleasure?" – asked Carol.
"Oh, I'm Kanala Kam, wait no! Kan Kalana- No what is wrong with me?!" – she asked herself, embarrassed that she just messed her introduction to her favorite hero.
"Wow kid, calm down. Breath in and out." – said Carol. Kamala nodded and started to breath in and out in order to calm her nerves. – "Better?"
Kamala nodded and decided to start again. – "My name is Kamala Khan. And… wow, I know you probably get this all the time but… You're like, super awesome! Can I get your autograph?" – she asked.
"Kamala Khan? Where did I hear that name before?" – asked Carol.
"W-well, there is the time travel warlord, so maybe from there."
"No, that wasn't it. Like, of course I remember that guy, but that's not why your name is familiar." – said Carol, taking her hand to her chin to think. – "Mmmm… Oh, I remember! You were one of the winners of that fanfic contest the Avengers had around four years ago right?" – asked the hero.
Kamala was quite shocked to hear that. When she was ten she had entered a contest hosted by the Avengers themselves. It was kind of simple, write a story about the Avengers and the authors of the best stories would win tickets to the Avengers expo on the old West Coast headquarters. She entered the contest just for fun, never expecting to actually be one of the select few to win.
"Y-you remembered me from that?" – asked Kamala.
"Yeah, your story was actually one of my favorites. Also, thanks for not pairing me with Ironman. You have no idea how much I appreciate that." – said Carol.
Kamala could die right there and be happy. Not only does she get to meet one of her greatest idols in person, but she also liked her story?! If this was a dream, then Kamala prayed to never wake up.
"W-well, I just never saw the appeal of you and Ironman together. If I'm honest, I'm more of a fan of-" – Kamala quickly covered her mouth. Was she seriously about to tell Captain Marvel her favorite shipping?!
"More of a fan of?" – asked Carol, she was kind of interested in what she was about to say.
"... Nothing."
"Come on kid, I won't laugh or anything. Honest." – said Carol.
"... Promise?" – asked Kamala, receiving a nod from the hero. – "... Okay… W-well, I am m-more of a fan of the i-idea of you and… S-spider-Man… together…"
The young fangirl now wanted to day, did she really just say that? Now Captain Marvel is going to think that she was a weir-
"Want to know a secret Kamala?" – said Carol, snapping the teenager of her thoughts. – "There was a time in which I was also a fan of that idea."
… Did she hear right? Did Captain Marvel just say what she thought she said?
"... Y-you… you mean…?" – tried to ask Kamala, but was too shocked to finish her sentence.
"I'm sure someone like you probably heard the rumors."
"S-so that means they were true?! Was Spider Marvel a real thing?!"– asked Kamala.
"Only half true at best. We only went on a date but we're still cool with one another. Also, I don't know why, but I feel like you forgot the hyphen. He's kind of crazy about the hyphen." – said Carol.
"So… you're just friends?"
"Yep, pretty close ones at that, he's one of the people I trust the most. And before you mention it, no our relationship will never go more than that now. He's already taken." – said the heroine.
"Close friends? As in-"
"I know what you're about to ask me, kid. And whether I know or not, it's not my place to say." – interrupted Carol. One thing was certain and that was that Carol would never betray the friendly neighborhood's trust like that.
"Oh, of course. Silly me." – said Kamala, before another question crossed the teenager's mind. – "Um, Captain Marvel… I have another question and I promise it's not awkward or anything like that."
"Well, as long as it's not like the previous question then, go on kid."
"W-well… you see, I've always looked up to you and heroes in general. Like, I always daydream of being a hero like you. Last year, I ended up getting powers of my own, I felt like, I could actually accomplish that. So… what I wanted to ask you was… do… do you think I could be a hero like you?"
Carol stood in silence for some time after hearing her question, which kind of worried Kamala. Truth be told, things are pretty wild for the moment, many supervillains have started to become more active and aggressive in the past few -Man, Daredevil, Black Widow, the Winter Soldier alongside many other heroes and vigilantes that specialize in the art of intel gathering and espionage . They even ended up enlisting the aid of Deadpool to try and figure out why that's been happening. Some small class heroes that took notice of this have voiced their worries. Believing that it could be that the villains are planning a coordinated strike on the heroes of the country like they did many years ago.
To be honest, some top heroes have tried to ease their worries, but in secret, they do believe that to be a possibility. Many heroes are now more alert than ever before and some schools, especially the top hero schools of the country are debating whether to cancel classes or ask schools of other countries to take in some of their students to keep them safe until the situation was under control.
"Kamala, I'll answer your question, but first I want you to answer one of my own. Can you do that?" – she asked.
"O-of course!" – she replied.
"Ok, you know that being a hero is not easy right? It's not all fun and games and it's definitely not as glamorous as many people believe. When you put on the costume, you're bound to receive criticism, because when you put on the boots, the capes and mask, you make a statement. That no matter what, you'll be there to protect those that can't fend for themselves. That protecting the innocents will always be your number one priority. To be a hero, can mean that you'll have to carry the weight of the world, of their world. I don't want to sound discouraging, I'm just telling you how things are. With that being said, do you still want to be a hero?"
After hearing that, Kamala started to think about her dream. Ever since she was young, she always looked up to and respected heroes. But was it because of their actions? For a moment, there was hesitation in Kamala's mind, did she genuinely want to be a hero? And if so, what was her reason to become one?
Then she remembered a quote that her father always used to say whenever he saw something bad happening on T.V. A fire, a bomb, robbery… murder. If she remembered the quote correctly, it went something like: "Whoever kills one person, it is as if he has killed all of mankind. And whoever saves one person, is as if he has saved all of mankind."
That quote always made her feel better growing up. Because it made her realize that no matter how bad things get, there were always people that were willing to rush in and help in any way they could. And according to her father, those people were blessed. That's her reason, she wanted to be one of those people, the kind that saves all of mankind by saving one person.
"Yes, I'm sure." – she said. There was no hesitation this time, no stutter, nothing. Just an answer from a determined hero in the making.
Carol looked at the girl, getting closer to her and placing a hand on her shoulder as she smiled. – "If that's your answer, then my opinion doesn't matter. Powers or no powers, you already have the heart of a great hero. Just, don't be like me. Be your own kind of hero, okay?"
Kamala looked at her hero, and with a blush nodded. Then, something caught her sight. Some sort of airship was approaching them, on the side of the ship, she could clearly see the logo of S.H.I.E.L.D. Kamala was amazed by, something that Carol could notice.
"I was passing by when I saw your friend in distress. After he told me what was going on, I contacted them to help with me taking the trash where it belongs." – she said, going to where the knocked down villain was and picking him up. – "Come on buddy, I'm sure Clint already has a prison cell of your liking waiting for you."
She then started to hover towards the airship until she suddenly stopped. Kamala was not sure as to why, until the blonde hero turned to her with a smile.
"Come on kid, I'm going to see if they have a spare pen or something. That is ofcourse, if you still want that autograph."
Another blush appeared on Kamala's face. This day went from the most mondain, to the most terrified day, to the best in a couple of minutes. – "Y-yes!" – she said as she started to rush to Carol's side.
Out of all of the things that she expected to happen today, meeting her idol and receiving a ride to her home on a S.H.I.E.L.D aircraft was definitely not one of those things, nor receiving an autograph from Captain Marvel herself. She headed to the front door of her home with a smile on her face. Opening the door, she saw her father on one of the livingroom's couches.
"Hi abu." – she said as blissfully as possible. However her mood suddenly changed when she saw his expression. Then it hit her, she forgot to call him. She was about to say something, but Jusuf quickly cut her off.
"Bruno called me. I must say, I'm very disappointed in you Kamala."
"Look abu, I know I should have called, but I swear that it will never happen again."
"I'm not disappointed because of that. Honestly, what kind of father would be disappointed by the fact that his or her child could not call them while being chased by a supervillain." – he said, shocking Kamala.
"... Bruno, told you abo-"
"He told me everything, and for that I am grateful. Even if I felt as if my heart suddenly stopped." – said Jusuf, before talking again. – "Kamala, why didn't you tell me the whole truth? Do you not trust your parents?"
"What? No, of course I trust you… It's just… ever since I got my powers, I saw that you guys were… worried. I knew you guys would be on the fence about me wanting to be a hero."
"Why of course we would, we're your parents, that's our job. But you didn't have to hide it." – he said.
"I… I didn't?" – she asked.
"Of course not. It is no secret that the idea would concern us all, but if it is what you truly wished to do with your life. Then what kind of father would I be if I didn't support you?" – stated Jusuf.
"So… you're okay with this?" – asked Kamala.
"I am, but I'll be the one to pick the school alright?"
"Umm… yeah, I guess that's fair." – said Kamala.
Jusuf then got up from the couch, got closer to her daughter and gave her the biggest hug he had ever given. – "I'm so glad nothing bad happened to you." – he said, his voice breaking down a little bit.
Kamala stood for a moment before returning the hug. There were tears that seemed like they wanted to come out and she didn't care. – "Love you abu." – she said.
"And I love you too." – he said before breaking the hug. – "I also want you to know that you're grounded."
"... What?"
"You kept a secret from us and put yourself and Bruno at risk. What else do you want me to do?"
"... Well, when you put it that way… "
"Now, today was a pretty hectic day. Go to your room and rest for a little bit alright?"
"Alright." – she said, hugging him once more before leaving for her room upstairs.
Jusuf watched as his daughter went upstairs, happy to know that she was safe. Just then, he noticed someone coming from the kitchen. It was Aamir with the leftovers from yesterday.
"If you want my opinion, I think you made the right choice abu." – he said before going upstairs as well.
"At least one of my kids is actually thinking about her future." – Jusuf thought before sitting back on the couch and turning on the T.V.
Back with Kamala, she was looking at the walls of her room. All the posters, the merch, everything. Surrounding her, were the images of some of the great heroes that inspired her and one day, she'll be like that too. An inspiration to someone out there, an inspiration to do the right thing, just like all of them were to her. Placing her hand next to a poster of Captain Marvel, Kamala thought:
"I'll be just like you, in my own way of course."
Her journey to become a hero, has just started.
Ms Marvel will return