Chapter: 02

Later that night, Adrian lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. The apartment was quiet now, except for the sound of the TV in the living room. He could hear his dad's voice, low and soft, as he talked to his mom. They weren't fighting anymore, but they weren't laughing either.

Adrian hugged his stuffed bear close, his new soldier sitting on the nightstand beside him. He thought about Batman, and the missing girl, and the way his mom and dad looked at each other when they thought he wasn't paying attention. He didn't understand all of it, not really, but he felt it—like a storm cloud hanging over their little apartment, heavy and gray.

He closed his eyes, whispering a prayer he'd heard his mom say once. "God, keep us safe. Keep Daddy safe. Don't let anybody take us."

Adrian couldn't sleep.

He had tried, but his eyes just wouldn't stay shut. His bed felt too warm, the sheets too scratchy. The city outside his window was buzzing, more alive than usual. Cars honked in the distance, and someone was yelling a few blocks away. It was Gotham, so there was always noise—but tonight felt different. Louder. Stranger.

He swung his legs over the side of the bed, dragging his stuffed bear with him as he shuffled to the window. He liked sitting there, pressing his forehead against the cool glass and watching the city lights blink like stars. He knew Gotham wasn't pretty like the cities in cartoons, but it was still special to him. It was his home.

There was something about the way the city looked tonight, though, that made his chest feel tight. He couldn't explain it, but Gotham felt heavier—like it was holding its breath.

Adrian's fingers traced little shapes on the glass as he thought about what his friend Malik had told him at school last week. "You know what your superpower is?" Malik had asked during recess, shoving a PB&J into his mouth. "You don't forget nothin', Adrian. Not like, ever. You remember everything you see. That's your power."

Adrian didn't feel like it was a power. He just… remembered things. He didn't have to try. Like how his dad's face got all tired-looking when the bills came in, or how his mom always smiled at him in a way that made him feel warm even when she was mad. He remembered all of it.

Even the stuff he didn't want to remember—like the news stories about people disappearing, their faces frozen in blurry photographs on the TV screen. Adrian didn't like thinking about them. He didn't like that they stayed in his head.

He squinted into the night, watching the streets far below. Nothing moved except the occasional car, its headlights cutting through the dark. He sighed, about to turn back to bed, when something flew past the window.

Adrian froze, his breath catching in his throat.

It was fast—so fast he almost didn't catch it. But he saw it, and his mind grabbed onto the image, locking it in place like a snapshot. The thing looked like a monster. Its body gleamed like metal, but it moved like it wasn't entirely a machine. Sharp, angular armor covered it, and its glowing red circles—eyes? Lights?—pierced through the darkness. Its face had a wide, jagged mouth like it wanted to eat everything in front of it. Long, spiky horns jutted out of its head, and cables dangled from its body, snaking through the air as it flew.

Adrian gulped, stumbling back from the window as his hand flew to his chest. "What…" he whispered. His voice sounded tiny, even to him. His heart thumped hard, like it wanted to jump out of his ribs.

Before he could blink, something else slammed into the window, cracking the glass. He yelped, covering his head with his arms as shards tinkled onto the floor.

"Boy, what did you do?!" his mom shouted from her bedroom. Her voice made him jump even more than the glass had. She stormed into the room, her scarf half undone, and stopped when she saw the broken window. "Jerome! Get in here! The window's—"

Before she could finish, another shadow shot past the building. Adrian peeked through his fingers just in time to see it: Batman. He knew it was him, even though it was only a blur of black. He recognized the cape, the horns, the way he moved like he was part of the night.

"Mom! Mom, look! It's Batman!" Adrian shouted, his voice shaking but still brimming with excitement. He pressed his nose to the cracked glass, staring as Batman leaped from one building to the next, a green streak of light shooting past him. Adrian's jaw dropped. "And Green Lantern!"

"Get away from that window!" Brenda yanked him back, her grip firm on his shoulder. "What's wrong with you, staring at—"

"Brenda, what's goin' on?" Jerome appeared in the doorway, his work jacket still on. His eyes landed on the broken glass, then darted to the window. "What the hell—"

"Something broke the window," Brenda said quickly, her voice tight. "And he—he said he saw Batman."

"Batman, Green Lantern, and a monster!" Adrian interrupted, pointing toward the sky. "It was HUGE, Daddy. It had horns and—and glowing red lights!"

Jerome moved to the window, squinting into the night. His face went pale. "Brenda, get the tape. We need to seal this up. Now."

Hours later, the city was in chaos.

Adrian sat curled up on the couch, clutching his bear while his parents whispered in the kitchen. The news played on the TV, showing footage of fires, smoke, and people screaming in the streets. The monsters—parademons, the anchor called them—were everywhere, swooping down on civilians and dragging them into the sky.

"This is happening in cities all over the world," the news anchor said, her voice shaking. "Civilians are advised to stay indoors and lock their doors and windows."

"Like that's gonna help," Jerome muttered. He was sitting in the armchair now, a pistol resting on his lap. Adrian had never seen him hold a gun before. It looked strange in his hands, like it didn't belong there.

"Jerome, what are we gonna do?" Brenda asked, pacing the floor. Her arms were crossed, and her face looked tight, like she was holding back tears.

"We stay put," Jerome said firmly. "We wait this out."

"And if one of those things comes in here? What then?"

Jerome didn't answer right away. He just stared at the gun, his jaw tight. "Then I handle it."

[ Monster " Parademon" ]

Author Note: More chapters on P@treon.com/LordCampione.