REFLECTIONS
Van is at a bar, drinking a dark beer with a solid inch of foam atop, and playing around with his necklace. He takes a deep sip, and wipes the foam off of his lip. He looks up at the bar's neon sign, which reads: " 's Bar and Grill". He turns to the bartender. She is a middle-aged woman, with a large tattoo across her chest, and tattoos completely covering both arms.
"Hey, question!" says Van. "What the hell is the name of this place anyway? I've been coming here for years, and that sign is always broken. Also, why does it say bar and grill, when you don't serve food?"
The lady groans, and rolls her eyes.
"Listen, pal," she snaps. "If you're gonna hit on me, you need a better line than that. I don't hook up with every pretty boy that walks in here."
She returns to polishing her beer mugs, leaving Van tight-lipped. He blinks, then bursts out laughing, taking another large sip from his mug.
"So…" he says aloud. "I'm the Silv…right, can't say it. I'm the Bullet. I wonder if there's anyone else like me? Guess I can worry about that while I freaking FLY! No laws about flying under the influence, hell yeah!
He leaves money on the counter, and runs into an alleyway on the side of the bar. He grabs his necklace. It begins to hum with power, gently vibrating in his hand.
"Let's do this!" he screams, excitedly. "Silver Bullet!"
Once again, his eyes burst with light, and the transformation happens, quickly encasing him in the Bullet armor. He takes a few steps, then takes off running down the alley.
"Alright! Now, fly!"
He leaps forward, arms out, and lands in a belly flop on the street. He doesn't move for a few moments, the wind howling in the alley mockingly.
"Let me guess, crickets are next? What the hell happened?"
Thinking back, the last words of the amulet ring in his head.
"Impulse…I'm impulsive."
He looks upwards at the metallic fire escape on the outside of the next building over, and begins the climb up to the roof of the three story apartment. He briefly steps over the ledge, then looks down, and gulps.
"Ooh I really hope this works, or this is really, really damn stupid."
He exhales, crouches, and leaps off the building. He screams as he comes within 10 feet of the ground before suddenly, the jets activate, and he blasts forward into the building on the other side of the street. He shoots down the street, flying disoriented, bursting from side to side jerkily. The glowing, silver armor flies straight into the wall of another building, skidding his face along the brick as he flies upwards over the building, sparks lighting up the darkened sky. Finally, he gets into the sky and reorients himself.
"Ahah! I'm flying! Whoo!"
He rips through a cloud, flying aimlessly around in the night's sky. The next day, Van is walking on a sidewalk, playing with his amulet.
"This is still so surreal. I have a magic suit of armor, that I can use to fly. That still sounds ridiculous. I can so use this to get laid, haha, awesome. And I can't stop touching. Which is somewhat weird. And people are staring. I also need to stop talking to myself."
Suddenly, across the street, the front windows of the convenience store burst outwards in a storm of glass, a large object thrown through one of the windows. Two men in masks run in opposite directions, carrying backpacks, while the store owner runs out after them, screaming and shaking his fist aggressively.
"Sucks for that place...oh! I can catch him! Then I'll be a hero! Silver Bullet!"
The man is running when a bright flash catches his eye, the air shimmers in front of him, and Bullet flashes into existence.
"Halt, evil-doer!" he says authoritatively, lowering his voice. "I am the Silver Bullet."
The armor flashes, then powers down, dropping Van on his back on the sidewalk.
"Oh son-of-a-bitch that's annoying." He groans.
"Shit, SANCtUM!" the robber says panicky.
"What? No, Bullet dude, you don't listen well."
"You mean to tell me that you're not with Star and them?"
"Uh...no? I guess? Now, drop the bag! Don't make me use my magic armor on you!"
He wiggles his hands. The robber rolls his eyes, and crosses his arms.
"It's not magic, jackass. It's an amulet." The robber says. Van's jaw drops.
Van looks as if he's lost for words. "How...screw it, you obviously know what it is, no point in hidin' it, do you have one too!?"
"Hah! I like you." Says the robber. "You avoid pointless bullshit and get right to the point. Yeah, I do have one."
He takes off his mask. He runs his fingers through his long, dirty blonde hair, and shakes it. His face is perfectly chiseled, and he has a deep tan.
"Sorry, it's stuffy in there," the robber says, "and I didn't want to deprive you of the opportunity to see that which is perfection, the perfect combination of man and machine!"
"Cool…great face? I'm really not into guys if that's what you're implying." Van says.
"You dare mock me!?" he says offended. "I am the perfect wielder. If you do not respect me, you don't deserve that power! I look like a Greek god compared to your crude, ogre self! There is only one other in this world that deserves that title."
"You took that SO past where I was comfortable listening," says Van. "Look, if this is a "your mom" joke of some kind..."
The man pulls a small mirror out of his pocket. It looks to be made out of faded, rusted bronze. There is a symbol of a man staring in a mirror on the lid, resembling that of Narcissus. The bottom half of the mirror is broken off, and the other end is attached to a chain, which seems to be connected to the man's pants. He grips it tightly, and it begins to softly glow.
"Ecru Mirror!" he screams. Van leaps back to avoid being engulfed in the light. The same transformation that occurs to Van happens to the robber, and the Mirror armor appears from the walk. He walks out of the light gently, arms outwards, as if on a catwalk and posing.
"How dare you mock my perfection!" he says angrily. "Is my armor not…statue-esque?"
"Whoa...what can your suit do!? This is very cool." Van says excitedly, clearly not worried at all.
"Cool?" Mirror asks. He snaps in Van's face. "Hey, focus here, I'm fighting you."
"Why? That's dumb." Van states.
"What?" Mirror asks, clearly perplexed. "Because I...screw it."
He aims his right hand in the air at the sun. Dozens of dark solar panels in his palm and forearm glow, seemingly soaking in the sunlight. His other arm aims at Van, and with a sizzling noise of the air superheating, a boiling wave of solar heat fires out towards Van. Without a second's hesitation, Van dives to the floor, dodging the beam.
"Heh, you're quick!" remarks Mirror.
Van smirks, then grabs his amulet.
"Not yet I'm not. Silver Bullet!"
His skin encases in the armor.