A New Hero

A New Hero

"Johnny, have you read this comic with the new superhero in it yet?" fifteen-year-old Katie asks her friend Jean's older brother.

"Oh course, Katie, I don't lend them to you until I finish reading them. I was wondering what you would think of that new guy. I think he seems kinda out there. I mean an alien who looks exactly like us? Seems… a little too…" John wiggles his fingers, "woo-woo for me."

Katie looks at her friend. "So you don't believe that there is life out there besides us here on earth? I think it's too arrogant of us. I mean we are this tiny little planet in a huge universe. We don't even know how big it is. There is almost certainly some other planet that has to have some sort of life on it, and if we believe that, then the chances are that life could have evolved on a similar track as we have on Earth." John tries to make a retort, but Katie cuts him off. "Besides, I think the new superhero is kind of neat. Although the name is… well, it's not exactly humble." Katie holds up the comic in question.

John reaches for the book. "Yeah, I agree with you on the name, but his super powers are awesome." He flips through the book until he finds the story with the new hero. "Could you imagine having any of them?"

His sister, Jean, walks onto the porch carrying a tray of drinks, saving her from having to answer. "Imagine having what, Johnny?" She sits down on the step above Katie.

"The super powers this new hero has." John answers, taking a sip from his cup.

Jean sips from her cup, and then asks, "What kind of powers does he have?"

John turns each page, skimming them. "Well, first of all, he can jump high and far, see through things, shot fire from his eyes, let's see… some sort of ice breath, and he's really strong, fast, and invulnerable. I think that's all, but maybe there will be more in the next issue."

Jean whistles, looks at Katie and asks, "So what's his name?"

________________________________________________________________

The day that John lent me that issue of 'Action Comics' changed my life.

Here was a character that could do everything I could do, who landed here on earth in a spaceship, and was adopted by the kind, childless couple who found him.

Well, I could fly, but still.

For a while, I was of two minds. One was that I hoped he never made another appearance because it was just too creepy, while the other was that he got his own comic book so I could see how the people who wrote him would use his powers.

***

John was Jean's older brother. Older by like a year. I had a huge crush on him for the longest time. And he had one on me too, but I didn't know that until later.

It was that crush that got me into comic books. John loved them, so in an effort to have more in common with, I asked if I could borrow a couple to read.

I was instantly hooked.

I loved how people with different powers and abilities helped people and saved the world.

And I was right about them bringing John and I closer.

Because mom and dad rarely ever had extra money; and when they did, it went to important things, like cloth and extra food, which you could never have enough of; I had to go to John for my 'fix'.

He was always getting the latest and greatest. John would get them, read them, pass them to me through Jean, and I would take them back to him when I came to hang out with Maddie and Jean during the weekend. It got to where Maddie and Jean would read them, also, just to know what John and I were talking about.

I honestly think that if I wasn't different, John and I would have gotten married because we 'courted'. I do know that he will forever be my first love.

***

The story behind the new comic was this hero. He was sent by his birth parents to Earth because their planet was going to implode. He was just a baby, and so when he made it to earth, he was taken in by an older couple who had never been able to have children of their own. His early childhood was like that of any normal child, but when he got a little older, he started getting these weird powers. When he grew up, he found out about his alien heritage and becomes this great hero.

But there's a catch.

He has a secret identity. He moves to the big city to take on his dream job: a reporter for the greatest newspaper in the country. And promptly falls in love. With a woman who instantly falls, both literally and figuratively, for his heroic alter-ego.

And madness ensues.

But who is this comic book superhero, you ask?

Well, if you have to ask, what are you doing reading this?

I mean seriously.

A/N: Okay, there it is. My big plot twist. Well, the first one anyway. I told you it wasn't a "Superman was a girl" story. I will obviously explain in more detail later, but you have to wait a bit. Anyway, I hope you like and reviews are encouraged.