8 Chapter 8: Propulsion
As Eli flew away from the William Peace Arena, he wanted to die. Why did he salute Mo? Why was he like this? He blew what should’ve been a romantic moment of him saving the damsel by making it cringe-worthy.
He cursed his inability to be cool for longer than two minutes. With his luck, he would be known as that hero who saluted people all the time and gave cheesy one-liners. He was so distracted he didn’t see the attack before it was too late. A blast of energy hit him and threw him back by several feet.
“Warning, system functions deactivating,” Rose said before she went silent.
His suit was a dead weight and dragged him to the ground. He crashed with a loud thud, gravel breaking underneath him. The force of the impact vibrated through his bones. The suit absorbed most of it but the breath got knocked out of him.
“Rose,” he said. “Are you there, Rose?’
There was no answer.
He looked down and the glowing purple of his suit was gone. It was completely offline. He didn’t think that was even possible. Mr. Carlysle designed it to handle all sorts of impact.
He landed in an alley and watched as a figure appeared. They were carrying a weapon, a large sledgehammer. He scrambled to get to his feet. The figure ran towards him.
He was able to sit up as the figure reached him and raised the sledgehammer.
“Alex, no!” he called out. “It’s me!”
The man stopped and lowered the sledgehammer. Blue eyes stared at him suspiciously. “Eli?”
Eli pressed on the button at the side of the metal mask to peel it back and show his face. “Hi, Alex.”
Alex swore and dropped his weapon. He pulled Eli to his feet by the shoulders. He was furious, his face turning red. He demanded, “What are you doing wearing that suit?”
“What are you doing trying to bludgeon people with a sledgehammer?” Eli returned. “What the hell, Alex?”
Alex’s blue eyes narrowed. “This isn’t about me, you little twerp. I’ve known you since you were twelve. What do you think you’re doing flying around pretending to be a hero?”
Eli frowned, offended. “I’m not pretending. I am a hero.”
“You’re a kid. They literally gave a gun to a toddler and expected things to work out.” Alex shook his head. “And we’re supposed to be the villains here.”
Eli hated that he felt like a kid that was caught doing something. He wasn’t twelve anymore. He was legally an adult. Nobody could tell him what to do anymore, especially not a supervillain who also happened to be his sister’s ex-boyfriend.
Alex looked him over. “You okay? Not injured?”
“I’m more durable than that. I can handle a little fall.”
“I shouldn’t be surprised. You never got sick either,” Alex remarked. Then, he wrapped arm around Eli’s shoulders. “Have you had dinner yet? I’m starving.”
Alex’s apartment was nearby and they managed to sneak in without being seen. Eli took off the suit and left it in the corner while Alex threw his black mask unto the kitchen counter. They ordered cartons of Chinese food from the restaurant nearby. It all felt too familiar to eat at the fire escape and talk about their day like Alex hadn’t tried to murder him earlier.
They had too much history together for that to come between them.
“What did you hit me with?” Eli asked. “The suit shouldn’t have been disabled like that.”
“It’s a magnetized propulsion gun. The Doc’s new toy he wanted me to test out.”
“Well, it works,” Eli griped. “I just happened to be your only choice for a guinea pig?”
“Some people also wanted to know who the new hero was. They offered a reward, and I wanted a new TV.”
“And now you’re going to rush off and tell them my identity?”
“Don’t be dumb, Eli.” Alex gave him a look. “You’re like a brother to me. And even if I did sell you out, Kathryn would definitely kill me.”
It was comical that a supervillain who called himself ‘Warhammer’ would be scared of anyone but Kathryn had that effect on people. Alex dated Kathryn for over five years and knew what she was capable of. In that time, Alex advised Eli on girls and dates. He taught Eli how to fix things around the apartment and watched football games with him.
Eli might’ve been sadder about the break-up than Kathryn. He liked having an older brother, especially since he never had a dad. Alex Campbell was it for a short time.
“I’m surprised you managed to keep this a secret from Kat for so long,” Alex remarked, taking a big bite of orange chicken.
“Why do you think she doesn’t know?”
Alex pointed to the Heroic League building in the distance with his chopsticks. “Because she would burn that place down out of spite when she finds out.”
“If she finds out.”
Alex scoffed, “She’ll find out. I know who I dated.”
“She’s going to freak out,” Eli moaned. “And she’s going to lock me up in an attic and feed me moldy bread.”
Alex laughed, running his fingers through his chin-length dark hair. “It would serve you right.”
“Look, I know you don’t agree with me joining the HL but this is my choice. Not yours or Kathryn’s,” Eli countered. “Besides, you put yourself through danger all the time.”
“I am a low-level grunt that swings a sledgehammer to scare people. I’m hired muscle.” Alex’s expression was grim. “I’m not flying around with one of the most well-known superheroes in history. Chromium has a long list of enemies and you're inheriting all of them. They won't hesitate to attack you.”
“Like you did?”
“You’re lucky it was me. Another villain wouldn’t have stopped.” Alex’s blue eyes were concerned. “Do you have any idea what you’ve gotten yourself into?”
“I do.”
Alex shook his head. “I highly doubt that.”
Eli didn’t know how to respond so he didn’t. He focused on his food. He stuffed his face with fried rice and dumplings. Food was the least complicated thing in his life.
“I’m worried about you,” Alex said. “Does the HL know about your connections with the Villain Alliance?”
Eli shook his head. “They wouldn’t have let me join if they did.”
“You’re keeping secrets from both sides.”
“Pretty much.”
Alex patted him on the arm. “You know this is going to end badly, right?”
Eli did know, but he wasn’t going to give Alex the satisfaction of admitting he was right.
