Chapter 3 - Heroic Deeds

Vic

Man…when the hell did Cassie learn how to race motorcycles?! I just so happened to be in the area and heard through the grapevine that there was a MotoGP race taking place that evening. I nearly blew my cover when I heard that Cassie was one of the racers. I thought I even saw her helmeted head linger on me for a few moments. Maybe…what if she didn't hate me after all. I ran this theory by Uncle Fujin.

"Cassandra Cage, the cyclist taking the circuit by storm, is your old girlfriend?" he asked when I told him where I had been the previous night. No vigilante escapades either. Just watched the race from the shadows, got a sandwich (online pickup) and returned home. That sandwich place was…not great. Heard about it while patrolling but I must have ordered the wrong thing or went there on a bad day. I did not go there to be violated by a sandwich, I went there for some good EATS.

"Well…my only one really," I answered eventually. "Living here kinda puts a damper on the whole dating thing doesn't it?" Uncle Fujin grinned.

"For you that is," he said. Aw dude, come on! I didn't need to know that!

"Actually, hold on," Uncle Fujin continued. "She's the girl you sing about sometimes when you play guitar right?" I hesitated for a second before answering. Oh yeah, Uncle Fujin and I managed to save some things from the fire as my bedroom was in the basement. Mainly most of my clothes and my acoustic and bass guitars. Lost the electric one tho.

"Yes…" I muttered. Fucking TEENAGER move there Vic! COME ON! Get it together you dingus!

"I see you inherited that skill from your mom too," he continued. "I quite enjoyed that song where you sang about life getting better. Is that an original?"

"Yeah," I said, a little excitedly. "I wrote it shortly after…after…" Uncle Fujin placed his hand on my shoulder as if he understood.

"Tell me how you met Miss Cage," he said calmly. "I'd love to hear it. We've done enough training today. Tell me everything."

Many Years Ago

I was holding my mom's hand as we walked through a movie set. I was looking around at all the activity. I saw cool guys dressed like ninjas and even a huge DRAGON! I tugged on my mom's hand when I saw it. She looked down at me with her loving smile.

"Yes my sweet boy?" she asked in her calm soothing voice.

"Look! A dragon!" I said excitedly. "Like in the story you read to me about the knight saving the princess!" She looked over at the dragon and then back to me, still smiling.

"Come on honey, let's find Mr. Cage. I've heard he has a kid around your age," she said to me but a new voice stopped us in our tracks.

"Please, call me Johnny," it said. Both my mom and I turned to face a man around my mom's age wearing a sleeveless shirt, jeans, sneakers and a pair of sunglasses. Cool! He reminded me of my dad! My mom held out her free hand to him.

"Well then, hi Johnny. I'm Lauren Harris. I'm the composer for this film," she said. Johnny shook her hand with a warm smile.

"I've heard about you and your husband for some time now. Glad you accepted the job," Johnny said before he noticed me standing there in my superhero t-shirt and shorts. I instinctively went to hide behind my mom's leg whenever a stranger noticed me.

"Who's this little guy?" he said after kneeling down to my level. I didn't answer because I was pretty shy.

"This is my son Victor," my mom said. Johnny smiled at me before he noticed my shirt.

"Is Superman your favorite hero Victor?" he asked. I nodded and said "And Batman" softly.

"What school do you go to?" he continued.

"Riv…Riverside," I answered softly. "I'm in fifth grade." Johnny smiled. I was starting to like him. He seemed cool.

"Wanna know something Victor," Johnny asked. "My daughter just transferred there. Would you like to meet her?" I gulped. I wasn't that great at talking with girls that weren't my mom or big sister.

"Hey Cassie!" Johnny called someone over my shoulder. "Come here, I want you to meet Mrs. Harris' son." I turned around to see a young girl around my age with blonde hair tied into a ponytail making her way over. She was wearing a t-shirt, capris and sneakers. See now normally girls are icky and have cooties…but…but something was different about Cassie. She seemed…cool. Cassie's eyes found me and she smiled. That's when I felt something weird happen in my stomach area. It was a good feeling but at the same time it was weird.

"Hi, I'm Cassie!" she said happily. "My daddy's a movie star!"

"Hi," I answered. "I'm Victor. My mom makes a lot of music."

"Cool shirt," Cassie said and pointed at the Superman S on my chest.

"Thanks," I responded and before I could stop myself I added "You're really pretty." I heard my mom gasp followed by Johnny going "Nice." Cassie smiled.

"I like you," she said and grabbed my hand. "I'm gonna call you Vic from now on. That's way cooler. It makes you sound like a rockstar! Come on, I know all the cool parts of the set!"

Cassie and I spent that entire day together getting into a bit of mischief. I remember being sad when my sister arrived to pick me up and bring me home.

"Hey buddy!" Kimi said after she found me and Cassie sitting in the shade. "Who's this?"

"I'm Cassie!" Cassie answered. "I'm going to Vic's school."

"Oh?" Kimi said and smirked at me. I know that face. She did that whenever she teased me about liking girls. She knew. BIG time.

"I was scared about being the new kid but Vic made me not scared anymore," she said to Kimi. "Are you his sister? You look like his mom." Kimi nodded.

"He's got that effect on people," Kimi said. "Must be the Superman shirt. You know he used to tie a towel around his neck and pretend to be a superhero? Our cat typically played the part of the damsel in distress." I choked on a sip of my drink and then glared at Kimi but then I noticed that Cassie was laughing. I smiled back when she looked at me.

"Next time you're here, I'll be the one you save, ok Super Vic?" Cassie said. "I've gotta go too. Mom's here to pick me up." Cassie got up, dusted off her capris, smiled at me one more time and ran off to join a woman that just arrived. The woman looked over toward me and gave me a smile and a small wave. I waved back instinctively and then I noticed that Kimi was standing there with her arms crossed.

"Does wittle Vicky have a girlfwend," she said in a mocking voice.

"NO!" I answered quickly.

"You like her little bro," Kimi continued as we started to walk to the car. "Mom told me you called her pretty."

"Nuh uh!" I lied.

"She passed my test," Kimi said, deciding not to directly call me out for lying.

"Test?" I asked as I got in the back seat of her car.

"The Big Sister Test," Kimi explained. She turned on the ignition and we started to roll away from the movie set. "If a girl thinks she can steal my little brother from me, I need to know if she genuinely cares about him."

"Wait…you think Cassie likes me?" I asked a little too excitedly.

"I'm a girl too buddy," Kimi said and looked back at me in the rear-view mirror as she slowed to a stop at a red light. "I can tell. She couldn't keep her eyes off of you whenever you weren't looking."

A Few Years Later

Malcolm came up to me while I was currently sitting down on the ground freaking out. My bass guitar was laying next to me and I was simply staring at the wall.

"Dude," he said. "Come on. We're on in like five. Steve's already setting up." It was the 8th grade talent show and my friends and I had entered our band. We were the final act but that still didn't help with the nervousness. I had never played in front of this many people before. Just a couple of backyard shows for our respective parents and siblings.

"Cassie's looking for you hardcore bro," Malcolm added and started fiddling with the tuning pegs of his guitar. I had lied to Cassie about joining the talent show. We were just going to "support our classmates." I have no idea how this lie worked but it did. I had excused myself to go to the bathroom a few minutes ago. After grabbing my bass is when I started freaking out.

"Saw your folks and sister out there too. They're right behind her and her dad," he said. "Listen to me Vic. You've got this. You are good. Your mom says so. My mom says so. Hell, even STEVE'S parents think so. Let's go, bud." I took his hand and he pulled me to my feet. I grabbed my bass guitar that my mom had lent me and put it around my shoulder.

"What are we playing again," I said, suppressing the panic.

"Ohio is For Lovers," Malcolm answered and absentmindedly played the opening riff. I could still hear all the right notes even though the guitar wasn't plugged in.

"And now, for our final act!" I heard the school principal Mr. Xavier say over the speakers. "Please welcome Steve Dennis, Malcolm Nathanson and Victor Harris!" I could hear Cassie go "WHAT?!" even through the wall over the applause. Steve was already sitting behind the drum kit twirling his stick between his fingers. He used the other one to point at Cassie as Malcolm and I walked on stage. I gulped and locked eyes with her. I don't even think a girl could look that in awe of me. Let alone the one I've had a crush on since we met. What if Kimi was right…what if she actually did like me? More than a friend I mean. With new found confidence, I stepped up to the microphone.

"Two things," I began. "One, I might have lied to someone tonight. And two, we borrowed this one from an older band but I think it's still a good song." Malcolm checked the levels of his guitar one final time by strumming out a chord. While he did that, I spotted my parents and Kimi sitting behind Cassie. Kimi mouthed "Seal the deal buddy," right as Malcolm started playing the opening riff. I could see a lot of the parents in the room start to give us our full attention. I gave one last look at Cassie, who was giving me such a glowing smile that it was the only thing I could focus on when I started singing "Hey there. I know it's…hard to feel. Like I don't care at all…" The three of us were in total sync the entire time and none of us messed up once. Once or twice, I saw Malcolm motion for me to look at Cassie. Whenever I did, I felt something wonderful well up deep down inside me. This would be the day I would tell her. It seemed like the time. We've been friends for so long that I think it's finally time to tell her how I feel.

The crowd erupted into thunderous applause when we finished the song. Standing ovation even. I gave a bit of a lazy sort of wave to the crowd all while thinking about what I was going to say to Cassie. Mr. Xavier suddenly appeared behind me.

"Well, I believe we know who's taking home first prize!" he said and handed me a blue ribbon and small trophy. He gave the same to Steve and Malcolm.

"Do another!" Johnny's voice shouted above the applause. A couple people heard him and started to agree with him. Including Malcolm. He smirked at me. Oh boy…

"You know what," he said into the mic. "Good idea Mr. Cage! Is that ok?" Mr. Xavier nodded.

"Fantastic!" Malcolm exclaimed and started playing a new riff…my riff actually. My own personal song I wrote. As you could probably guess, my mom taught me everything I knew about music. My dad was the one that introduced me to hard rock and metal though.

"This guy over here wrote this one," Steve added and pointed at me with his drumstick. Knowing exactly what I would see when I looked back into the crowd, I decided to do so anyway. Yep. Mom smiling with her eyes closed moving her head to the music, dad with his legs crossed tapping his foot in the air with his arm around my mom while grinning at me, Kimi with both of her hands covering her mouth in complete shock. But Cassie's reaction to the riff that she was hearing was my favorite. Ever see that look in a woman's eyes wherever she looks at someone she loves? I've seen it so many times in the movies. I've seen Lois Lane give it to Superman and now…Cassie was giving the same look to me. Both eyes on me (starting to well up with tears) and a small smile on her face. That smile widened when I started singing the lyrics. It was your typical teenage angst/love song which I know is not what you would expect the guy who wears Ozzy and Iron Maiden shirts a lot would write let alone perform in front of the whole school. We finished playing about three minutes later and got another standing ovation. Didn't really care about anyone else. I kept my eyes locked on the girl I've had feelings for ever since I was in fifth grade.

Both Malcolm and Steve clapped me on the back when we got backstage.

"Told ya," Steve said while packing up his sticks and his personal cymbals and drum heads.

"Dinner with your girlfriend tonight bud?" Malcolm asked as he zipped up his guitar case. Steve nodded.

"Maybe Vic will join the relationship club tonight," Steve said and smirked.

"What makes you say that," I asked.

"Me," a girl's voice said from behind me, making me jump. Malcolm chuckled. It was of course Cassie. She was standing there with a mock expression of anger on her face and her arms crossed.

"Welp, I do believe Vic is about to get yelled at," Malcolm said. "Shall we away?"

"Oh yes let's!" Steve added. The two of them walked out of the backstage area leaving me and Cassie alone. Cassie started tapping her sandaled foot impatiently while I stood there like a moron. Come on Vic! You've been friends with her forever! SAY SOMETHING!

"Uh…right…" I began.

"Liar," Cassie said. "You stupid cute liar."

"Back up. Cute?"

"Did I stutter?!" Cassie unfolded her arms and walked over to me. "Look…I've…I've liked you for a long time. Like a really long time. More than a friend. I was just…scared to ruin the friendship…but…I needed to tell you after what I just heard." My heart nearly exploded. Is this happening in REAL LIFE PEOPLE?!

"Let me guess," I said and took Cassie into my arms. I felt her lean into my body. Oh MAN, this is actually real!

"You liked me the moment I called you pretty when we were kids right?" I asked. Cassie kissed me. Full on. Not a quick one either. Right on my lips. This…this not only felt good, it felt right. Cassie stopped after a few seconds.

"Right in one," she said and entwined her fingers in mine. "Wanna be my boyfriend? I promise I won't tease you much."

"Gee let me think," I said and looked toward the ceiling in mock thought. "Um, sure. I'll even let you call me Icky Vicky." Cassie giggled and hugged me tightly. I took it upon myself to lift her in the air and held her in my arms in what I called the "Superman carry." Cassie let out a small yelp when I did so but then laid her head against my shoulder with her arms around my neck.

"Mine?" she asked and gave me a big eyed look. It honestly reminded me of a kitten or a puppy.

"Until the end of time," I answered and gave her another kiss.

Present Day

I finished telling Uncle Fujin the whole story of how Cassie and I met and how we started dating. He stood there and listened with his hands clasped behind his back.

"A true case of love at first sight it seems," he said when I was finished. "I also thought I recognized Hikari's style when you play guitar."

"How...often do you hear me?" I asked.

"Pretty much all the time," Uncle Fujin said with a smile. "It reminds me that my sister does live on through her son and my nephew." Hearing my uncle tell me that I reminded him of my mom hit me pretty hard. Every day I miss my mom. Her smile, her laugh…her embrace. Some demonic fuck took her and her husband away from their children for no good reason.

"I know she's watching over us with a smile on her face," Uncle Fujin added, placing his hand on my shoulder. "How are you going to reveal to Cassie that you are still alive?" I didn't answer right away. For all I knew, she was still mad at me. I wanted to take her to that concert with my other friend Brian but that whole break up thing ruined that plan. The only piece of evidence that I had that contradicted my theory was seeing Cassie bawling her eyes out over my coffin.

"Should…should I?" I asked after a long period of silence.

"Vic. Tell her," Uncle Fujin insisted. "I am sure she never forgot you."

"How do you know?"

"I am acquainted with Johnny Cage. He has let slip that his daughter is distraught over a lost friend one evening when I was out," Uncle Fujin explained. "Now I am quite adept at putting two and two together to theorize that this friend happens to be you after hearing your tale." I was speechless. That…that made sense to me. But…but something deep inside of me was saying that Cassie still hated you for what you supposedly did despite your friends' efforts.

"I…I don't even know where to start," I admitted.

"Perhaps, a night out protecting others will get the juices flowing," Uncle Fujin said and held out his hand which I saw contained three things. A hair tie, my sunglasses and my mask.

"Wait…are you serious?" I asked excitedly. I didn't have to sneak around anymore whenever I took to the streets? AWESOME!

"I've kept you hidden for so long because I felt that you weren't ready to fight on your own. That stance has changed after witnessing your deeds the past few nights. I was still hesitant when you ran into the authorities but I have since changed my mind," he said. "I will be nearby. If, listen to me, IF you find yourself in a jam, send a bolt of neon in the air. The winds will tell me where you are and I will assist you." I took the items from Uncle Fujin's hand and put them on. He clasped his hands behind his back and bowed to me.

"Just try not to get caught by Mr. Stryker will you. Remember, you also promised me you would tell Kimi who you really are. Time is running out on that as well."

Later

Man, I can't BELIEVE Uncle Fujin was letting me go out on my own now! Well not fully…I'll admit, I appreciated the "help me technique" if I ever needed it. Something was telling me that it wasn't going to be the case this evening. What is the case is that the winds were telling me that shit was about to go down near the Camelot Arena. The local women's basketball team played there. The Knights. Wanna know something I found out when I arrived? Well two things actually. First, there was a game tonight. Second…Jacqui was on the team. Remember Jacqui? Cassie's friend from high school? Yeah apparently, she's the starting point guard. I managed to sneak in and hide myself high up in the nosebleed seats. No one saw me really. They were too busy focused on the game…or in one case making out with their partner. Get a room homie. Honestly. I stood in the shadows watching the game for a little bit waiting for this attack that I knew the wind was telling me was about to happen. I could recognize Jacqui's cornrows hair-style anywhere and I kept my eyes on her as she played. Jacqui had WHEELS lemme tell ya. If she ever got a steal, I knew she was going to dunk on them. After a particularly nasty three-point shot, it happened. A figure was slowly approaching the court. I knew what it was but that didn't mean it wasn't a good disguise. This whole sense thing Uncle Fujin taught me early on was insanely useful. I moved as soon as I noticed other figures starting to approach the court. five of them in all. Jacqui had noticed one because it shoved the ref and the security team to the ground with some force and reached out its hands to wring her neck. The time was now Vic.

I started moving as fast as I could, shoving people out of my way while they said things like "HEY!" and "Watch it!" and "Nice shades man!" The figure's hands were about to close around Jacqui's neck. No! NO! Some CLOWN was in my way! Shit! I needed a shot! Thinking quickly, I leapt into the air towards the court while doing a few front flips and twists. I landed on the floor using the winds to absorb most of the impact, did a front roll and when I came up, I tossed a neon infused dagger right into the spine of the demon about to maul Jacqui. It screeched and the human disguise it was using dropped away. And that's when people started screaming. Including Jacqui. Frozen with terror. I needed her to not be near the demon so I could kill it with flair. I instructed the winds to get Jacqui closer to me and snapped my fingers. The dagger blew a huge hole in the demon's back and it screeched in pain. Before Jacqui could register she had been moved, I was on the demon. I reached my hand into the gaping hole, using pressurized air to dig deeper into the demon's skin, and wrapped my fingers around its spine. I gave a mighty tug and ripped the demon's skull and spinal cord out of its back with a very satisfying squelching noise. The demon's remains fell to the ground in a fleshy pile of gore. Still with the demon's skull and spine in my hand, I turned to face the other demons who had also dropped their disguises and were leering at me with malicious intent. I dropped the skull on the ground and stepped on it which caused the ground to be splattered with chunks of bone and squishy brain matter. I cracked my knuckles and my neck before striking my fighting pose. It was based on Uncle Fujin but I "thrashed it up" so to speak. I kept one hand out in front of me with my palm facing forward with the other hand in a fist close to my neck. If I were to describe my fighting style, I would say it's elegant like the breeze but can be brutal and fast like a cyclone. I smirked under my mask and beckoned the other demons to attack me.

One jumped at the opportunity to do so. It took a lazy swipe at me. I spun out of the way and then delivered a brutal kick to the demon's chest. It flew backwards but I "caught" it with a wind rope and pulled him towards me. I caught it by the neck and squeezed. Soon enough I heard and felt bones break and the head lolled to the side and life left its eyes. Then I used this motherfucker to beat another motherfucker charging me. This boy went FLYING into the stands…right near some terrified fans. Crap! Luckily the fans got out of the way as the demon smashed into the stands and made a rather bloody mess. Seeing that the demon in my hands was now just essentially a pillowcase full of meat, I tossed it aside. I had to dodge a few more attacks in quick succession while countering with my own. Then I had the idea to form an ax. Which one Vic? A guitar or an actual ax? You ask me. Well both. I made a bladed guitar. Complete with strings. Hmm…I wonder. I fingered a power chord and formed a pick in between my fingers. I strummed the chord…and the sound actually reverberated throughout the arena. The demon directly in front of me clutched its ears in pain. Huh…AWESOME! Time to show this bitch why I made this instrument bladed. I two hand tossed this bad boy right at the stunned demon. My aim was true and the demon got sliced vertically from the head down to its lower abdomen. It fell down on the ground dead. I walked over, stomped on the body which caused the guitar to "leap" out of the demon's chest and back into my hand. The last demon decided that I was not the target and instead went back to Jacqui. Nope! Not on my watch. A quick hand motion caused the demon to be lifted into the air and I two hand tossed my ax again. The blade decapitated the demon and I recalled it back to me while going into a powerslide. I caught the ax after it sliced the demon in half at the waist on the way back and played a metal riff while the blood of the demon rained onto me.

Jacqui and her teammates were of course speechless. I noticed that the head of the demon was on the ground near my feet. I dissipated the ax, picked up the head and pretended it was a basketball. I did some fake-out moves to Jacqui before going into a fade-away jump shot aiming for the basket a couple of feet away. Head went through the basket and then I imitated what Jacqui did every time she scored. I pressed two fingers to my "lips" then pointed to the sky and fist pumped. Jacqui started to smile before…

"FREEZE!" Oh brilliant! Of COURSE someone called the cops! Motherfucking GREAT!

"Look," I said, doing the voice distortion trick again. "I'm only here to help! Have you noticed that these things are not human!"

"Wait…wait…" the lead cop was saying. It was Kurtis because of the, you guessed it, backwards hat. He was looking at me with his eyes narrowed. OH FUCK! I didn't do the Rattlehead trick! THAT'S why Jacqui smiled! SHIT! Need to bail! Fast! Fuck it, I ran. Like the wind. I charged at the police squad and formed like a battering ram/shield. When I got close, the officers were shoved away from me. As I rounded the corner, I totally heard Jacqui say "WAIT! DON'T HURT HIM KURT!"

I burst outside and nearly right into more waiting officers. They barely registered who I was before I was gone. I ran for my fucking life. Down a couple of side streets and through alleyways. After about ten0 minutes of this, I figured I lost them and made my way back to the arena staying off street level. One of these days I need to get Uncle Fujin to teach me the invisibility technique. I placed myself in the shadows of a rooftop across the street from the stadium and listened into the chatter below. It was a mess honestly. Police yelling at people to stay back, news anchors on the scene, people saying how cool I was, the whole shebang really. Kurtis looked like he just finished giving a statement because I saw him walk over and sit down before my sister came out of the car to hug him. Man…how was I going to tell her? Show up at her house unannounced? Call her? Send her a note? Actually…that one could be good! I could give her a subtle clue that I was still alive. I used the winds to cause a reporter's blank notebook page to come loose and fly up towards me. I formed a pen out of air but then realized it actually needed ink…wait…the neon! If I didn't super charge it so much, maybe it wouldn't explode. I gave it a test by writing "Special Agent Harris," in blue green neon and snapped my fingers. The note didn't explode. Good to know. I could control how volatile the neon could be. I scribbled out a short note in blocky handwriting that read;

"SPECIAL AGENT HARRIS,

YOU NEED NOT WORRY. I AM A FRIEND.

ROCK ON,

THRASH"

I added a small drawing of mom's tattoo in the corner. I looked down to see that Kimi was still busy consoling Kurtis. You watch it buddy, there's a "Little Brother Test" too. And Kimi's little brother could easily put you in the ground if you hurt his big sister. I used the winds to transport my note down into the cracked window of Kimi's car. Good. Task complete…or at least phase one was. Something off to the right caught my eye. It was the basketball team minus Jacqui. I didn't get the chance to ask if they were alright so I made my way over…reminding myself over and over to do the face distorting trick.

I jumped down to street level in the shadows nearby the conversing team. They had one topic of discussion. Me.

"Did you see how fast he was?!" one of the players was saying. She had red hair.

"I didn't care about that, he was cute," another with long brown hair said. "I love guys with long hair!"

"You didn't even see his face Kris," red hair interjected. "What if his face is jacked up? Or he just so happens to be a woman but hides it?"

"Don't care Linds," the player named Kris responded. "I'll bet he's dreamy." I told the winds to activate my "disguise" and spoke.

"You unfortunately are not my type Kris," I said in the distorted voice. The whole team jumped and looked around the area. I emerged from the shadows. Each of the players squinted their eyes at me for a few seconds before shaking their heads. Good. The "rattlehead" was working.

"No way," another player exclaimed. "He looks cooler up close!"

"Are you ladies alright?" I asked. Most nodded but the girl named Linds spoke.

"What the hell were those things," she asked.

"Demons," I responded. Everyone gasped.

"Like…like real demons?!" Kris nearly shouted and she started to hyperventilate. I raised my hand and instructed oxygen to slowly reintroduce itself into her lungs.

"Whoa…" her teammate said as her breathing eased.

"Leave those to me," I said. "Normally they don't attack in highly populated areas."

"Are those things what you protect us from?" Jacqui asked. "Like in general? The news always says there's a mess whenever you show up."

"I can assure you Miss, I have and never intend to kill a fellow human," I explained and

"You really are here to help," a player said. "I knew it! With powers like yours, you would have already wiped us out if you wanted to!"

"Never my intention in the slightest ma'am," I said. "Now if you excuse me, I must go. I just wanted to see if you were alright before our friends in blue showed up to apprehend me." Then I froze. Jacqui had just emerged from the back door with her head still over her shoulder. Nope, that's no bueno. My head might be hard to make out but Jacqui has known me long enough to know how I hold myself when standing still. In a flash, I bolted.

Before anyone even had a chance to ask me anything else, I was outta there. I ran up the side of a building and began to make my way back to Uncle Fujin's. Maybe he saw my escapade on the news! That would be cool to see-GAH! I had misjudged the distance between the buildings I was hopping between and came up short. I was only just able to conjure an air shield in order to stop myself from breaking my face on brick. I did fall to the ground rather fast and landed on my side. The air shield absorbed most of the impact yes but it still hurt.

"What the fuck?" a voice I totally 100% recognized said from off to my right. I quickly jumped to my feet and my heart nearly stopped beating. One because that was a bad idea. Pain shot through my right side and I fell to one knee. But standing there under a streetlight at the entrance to the alleyway…was Cassie. Dressed in a light leather jacket, work pants, boots and holding what I knew was a vanilla frappuccino with a splash of milk in her hands. She was looking down the alleyway. Oh please please let me be in the shadows. Wait…Vic, she would have said your name if she recognized you.

"Is…is someone there?" she asked. She began to walk down the alleyway towards me. I raised my other hand and pushed her back a little with the winds. She yelped in surprise.

"Thrash?" she asked timidly.

"Yes," I answered in my disguised voice. Holy fucking shit this voice needed to work right now more than ever!

"No way!" she answered and pulled out her phone. Great. Needed to blur the night filter on that. Wait…the neon! I raised my hand and formed like a javelin made from blue neon light and lobbed it towards Cassie. It landed in the ground and glowed brightly. Cassie had to cover her eyes.

"I don't have time for an interview ma'am," I said as feeling started to return to my leg. She was getting dangerously close now. I needed to bail. NOW. I didn't want to reveal myself to her like this. Something was telling me she still hated me. Like me Vic not me Thrash.

"Wait! Before you go," Cassie said quickly. "Who are you?" I hesitated before an idea struck me. I should do what I did to Kimi and give her a small clue as to who I am. I answered her with two words.

"A friend." Then I snapped my fingers and commanded the javelin to glow brightly so I could escape, which I did.

Oh man…that was not at all how I pictured tonight going…but at least the task of telling the two most important women in my life that I was still alive had begun.