Part III
The towering spires and skyscrapers of Metropolis gleamed a warm, buttery gold in the late afternoon sun, silhouetted against the clear, blue bay. Billy / Captain Lightning / Shazam – (Freddy was right, he thought. The Family really did have to pick official superhero names for themselves) – stopped short in mid-air and floated for a moment, his eyes and mouth gaping wide.
"Holy moley! There it is!" he exclaimed, opening his arms to embrace the entire panoramic sprawl. "The Big Apricot itself! There's Metropolis Harbor and – hey! The Statue of Liberty! Oh, and there's the Daily Planet building! Ha! So cool! Man, I bet the guys would love a picture of this!" He patted his waist, his belt, and sighed. "Too bad I can't get to my phone in this outfit…"
The breeze off the water struck his face, billowed around his cape, and he laughed, letting the joy of the moment fill him - zipping and weaving around the city's iconic buildings like a bolt of red-gold lightning.
"WHEEEEEEEE HA HA HA!" he crowed. "This is so awesome! This city is even bigger in real life than it looks on the news! Holy moley – I wonder if I'll run into Superman up here! Or, would he already be at the meeting…?"
He slowed down and looked around, rising a little higher so he could peer past the bustling crowds and street traffic to the rail network that sped goods and passengers in and out and around the city like the veins and arteries of a pumping heart.
"There," he said. "That's where the rail lines converge. That must be their grand central station! That's where I was told to go. But…"
He glanced down at his outfit…the skin-tight uniform, the glowing lightning bolt on his chest…
"No way can I walk into a place that packed looking like this! Cameras and security will be all over me!"
The caped superhero flew in close to the low, marble-faced building and touched down in a neighboring alley, glancing over his shoulder to make sure no one was around to see.
"SHAZAM!"
Billy felt the electricity surge through him, the warm static field spark and tingle over his skin, and then it was gone. The height, the strength, the powers… Only Billy Batson was left, a fourteen-year-old kid in a red hoodie and knit cap, weaving his way through the dense commuter crowd through the gleaming doors and into the vast, open space inside the station.
"Holy moley…" Billy stared up at the marble columns, the domed ceiling frescoed with stars. An unintelligible voice echoed over a tinny PA system, presumably offering schedule updates and warning advice to the hundreds upon hundreds of people too preoccupied with their own business to listen. Billy pulled his phone from his pocket and snapped a few tourist shots of the place, then searched the many signs he saw for a clue as to where to head next.
"Ah! Passports and Photo IDs!" he cheered, and dashed off, trying to make his way against the main current of much taller adults. "Excuse me! Oh, sorry, excuse me! Sheesh, this place…!"
The signs led him down a tributary corridor, then to a much less trafficked offshoot hallway. As he strode over the polished floor tiles under the florescent lights, the hustling echoes of the main station faded until he was left alone. Totally alone in a dead-end hall with a battered, antique-looking instant photo booth.
"'Out of Order'," Billy read the sign hanging over the worn and dusty curtain. He poked at the frayed cloth and wrinkled his nose. "Gross. I don't get this. Am I being pranked? Seriously, this can't be right. I mean, I followed the directions! I came all the way here from Philly, and— Gah!"
The ancient machine came to life with a hum and Billy gasped. Gingerly, he pushed the curtain aside and stepped into the booth. A round camera-eye focused on him, and he heard a mechanical, female voice.
"Speak your name."
"Huh?" Billy blinked. "Do you mean, like, my name? Or…"
"Speak your name," the computer voice repeated.
"My name. Yeah, sure. OK," Billy said, and clenched his fists. "SHAZAM!"
Light flashed, electricity crackled and arced, and the machine powered down with a sigh – dark, lifeless…
And completely empty.
To Be Continued…
References include - Young Justice: Misplaced; The Daily Planet Guide to Metropolis.
I was only able to finish this small piece last night, but there's more coming soon. Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
What do you think so far? Please review! :D
