Chapter 40

[Homelander's POV]

The measured steps slowly raised dust that settled back down at the same pace.

The prints of my boots were stamped into it as if I were stepping on firm clay.

I walked around freely as if I were on a tour.

But I wouldn't find any people here unless it was another visit to this world-famous satellite.

Indeed, this was the Moon.

It was the same one our ancestors looked at and wondered what it was.

What am I doing here? Probably... resting but breathing is a problem.

I've been holding a single breath for about two hours now.

Strangely, Homelander had never visited the ocean depths or the Moon.

As far as I can tell, he was simply afraid of suffocating and never went beyond the orbit.

He was completely invulnerable, but he still had fears that normal people relate to.

By my calculations, I can go without air for about eight hours. This means I have four hours to spare since it took me two hours to get to the Moon.

The good thing is that I felt no discomfort from holding my breath, and there was plenty to see because the sight was truly mesmerizing.

The surface wasn't gray, as we see from Earth when we look up at night.

The orange soil with red specks is what the Moon's surface actually looked like.

There were then holes and seas full of cooled lava, with dark dust covering the ground.

It was much more interesting to see the American colors with the stars and stripes that were left behind.

Well, only five out of six were still standing, and one lay on the ground.

A more surprising and unexpected find was a metal ball, but not just any ball.

It was a sphere made of pentagons, each bearing the USSR emblem, and the date was September 1959.

I wasn't sure how I felt about it when I held it in my hands.

Thousands of people had worked for years to send this metal ball to the Moon, dreaming of one day sending a human there as well.

Unfortunately, those hopes never came true. The state that aspired to conquer new heights ceased to exist. 

I had traveled the same distance in just a couple of hours and was simply strolling across this barren planet like a damn tourist.

There was no purpose, just the desire to fly to the Moon and take a walk.

I was the first superhuman to reach the Moon alone, yet I felt no joy or even satisfaction from it.

Looking at the object in my hand... it was actually rather depressing how easily I had achieved this.

The ball slowly hit the ground, producing a cloud of dust. Then my body rose up and quickly flew toward another sphere in space.

Less than two hours later, I was already in orbit, dodging space debris and entering the dense layers of the atmosphere.

Unlike other flying objects, it was no trouble for me to slow down enough not to damage my suit.

After that, I flew back to my house and quickly landed on the green grass.

 I took a deep breath of fresh air.

"Dad!"

Ryan literally flew outside, apparently hearing my arrival.

"Ryan!"

Becca only managed to shout as our son knocked me to the ground.

"Looks like you're getting used to it."

I ruffled his hair with a smile while watching his worried mother rush out the door, relaxing only when she saw me.

"Yeah!"

Ryan exclaimed joyfully, clinging tightly to me.

"Mom doesn't let me fly without you. Can we fly together?!"

"Ryan, I told you, no flying in the house."

Becca sighed, looking slightly worn out by Ryan's newfound energetic nature.

"He's been waiting for you."

"I can see that. Alright, champ. Shall we fly?"

"Hooray!"

The next couple of hours flew by as I taught Ryan through games.

We played tag in the woods with a height restriction which Becka also participated in.

Interestingly, she was more effective than me even without X-ray vision.

The same went for hide-and-seek where Ryan had to find the most unexpected places to hide.

It was fun not just for him but also for his parents.

Most importantly, Becka found a way to channel all of his boundless energy.

Next time, we should get paintball guns to teach him to dodge bullets.

After that, we could move on to using air guns as an alternative to firearms.

This would also benefit Rebecca who needs it almost as much as Ryan does.

After lunch with my family, I had to leave them due to urgent matters requiring my personal attention.

This meant flying to Vought Tower just to calm down certain team members who were not happy with recent news.

The first on that list was now lying on the floor in front of me with an incredible amount of alcohol in his blood.

It's amazing he didn't drown himself.

"Oh, Kevin."

I let out a disappointed sigh, but it did not affect the unconscious Deep.

Luckily, he didn't go wandering around the city. He shouldn't be left unsupervised.

Shaking my head, I began to drag him out from under a pile of liquor bottles and carried him to the bathroom, where I started to douse his head with cold water.

"Gah! Hom… Hm! Homelander?"

"Rise and shine, Fish Guy!"

I smiled so brightly that the poor guy squinted.

He glanced around the shower and his appearance when noticing the absence of the top part of his costume.

Kevin didn't take long before covering his gills with his hands.

"I'm Deep."

"Shy?"

I hinted, looking at the covered gills.

"I'm a freak."

"Why do you think that?"

My genuine interest surprised him, and he was clearly confused as to whether I was mocking him or not.

"I could have been just an ordinary person, like everyone else. If she hadn't agreed to have that stuff injected into me… Is that fair?"

"Is that how you see it?"

"How else am I supposed to see it?!"

Kevin raised his voice, seemingly forgetting how terrified of me he used to be.

He was trembling from barely restrained tears and wasn't thinking about his fear.

"I was at the mall back then. We walked past a pet store, and I heard the goldfish begging not to be killed, just… pleading. And after that, the beach, the aquarium, seafood restaurants… I thought I was going crazy! But Mom said it was a gift… that I was born this way. I could have been normal…"

He said it with tears streaming down his cheeks.

This revelation had hit him hard.

"You didn't call your mother, did you?"

"Why would I call the person who turned me into… this?"

After saying those words, he froze, staring at a fixed point in front of him, lost in thought.

"You turned yourself into "this" by drinking liters of alcohol."

I repeatedly splashed his tear-streaked face with cold water to make sure he focused on me.

"And has she called?"

"Yes, she called."

He lowered his gaze like a child caught misbehaving.

"I didn't answer."

"Do you remember the first time you came to the tower? She was with you, a bit plump but kind."

I smiled at him, patting his shoulder.

"She praised you so much and begged me for an autograph for you because you were a big fan of mine."

"You've always been my role model, sir."

Kevin practically melted, on the verge of tears, knowing that his idol remembered all this.

"I know, Kevin. And I also know that she had no other choice, and you shouldn't blame her."

"What do you mean?"

He finally lifted his head, looking at me with a question in his eyes.

"You were a seriously ill child, born prematurely with lung problems."

With each word, Kevin's face elongated in shock and realization.

"Your father left before you were born, and your relatives couldn't help. That's when Vought came, offering salvation."

"So…"

"You wouldn't have lived a month if your mother hadn't agreed. She even refused the money they offered. She just wanted you to live a full life."

"I... didn't know."

He said with tears flowing from his eyes, but he covered his face with his hands, no longer ashamed of his gills.

"I really didn't know."

"You're not a freak, Kevin. Just like I'm not a freak, and neither are the others. We're all just victims of circumstances."

I patted him on the back, doing all I could.

"You need to take a break... a week. Go home, talk to her."

"Thank you."

He said it with a muffled voice.

"Don't forget to thank your mother; she'll be glad."

...

Leaving Deep alone with himself, I exited his room and headed to the next team member.

I found her in the training room while beating a metal dummy which was now barely half intact.

Maeve had clearly overdone it and was very upset. She even moved on to the next and started beating it ruthlessly.

"Are you busy?"

Maeve's heavy breathing and the ringing of metal that couldn't take her hits drowned out my voice.

Rolling my eyes at her ignoring me, I approached the dummy and stood behind it, directly in front of her.

"Go away,"

She panted, continuing the beating.

"You're mad at me."

 I stated, tilting my head to the left.

"What's bothering you? Nothing has really changed, and we won't have to look for work."

"Ha!"

With a battle cry, she suddenly kicked the dummy's head, deliberately hitting me, which pushed me slightly to the right.

There was no pain, but there was nothing pleasant about it either.

Stepping away from the dummy, I approached her from behind, deciding not to stand directly in front of her.

"You made a deal with them!"

She elbowed the head off the dummy with that cry.

"And would you have preferred I started a war with them?"

She continued to strike the now headless dummy, and I gave her a playful slap on her firm butt.

"Just relax."

As I got distracted by watching her, my head suddenly found itself pressed against her chest in a chokehold.

However, that kind of hold wouldn't work on me because I can hold my breath.

I calmly lifted her by the butt, sliding my hand between her legs, and then roughly slammed her onto the floor.

"And what if I wanted war?"

Maeve frowned, looking up at me from below.

"My decision was final."

I leaned towards her.

"You're not a little girl anymore. You should understand the consequences."

A kick landed squarely on my head, disorienting me for a second, and I found myself on my knees.

However, she did not allow me to rise, and she applied her weight to my back, throwing me to the ground.

"So you're justifying your selfishness?"

 She growled in response, not letting me get up.

"Really?"

Seizing a moment of hesitation, I propped myself up with my hands and began to roll across the floor.

Maeve didn't let up, trying not to lose her grip on me.

Eventually, I broke free and almost pinned her on her back, only for her to somehow end up on top of me, pinning my arms to the floor with her thighs.

"You don't care about the people whose lives will be ruined because of this drug. And if they continue to produce it and create new supers?! These are children, John!"

"That won't happen."

"And where are the guarantees?"

"It's no longer profitable for Vought. It's far more valuable to work with the military than to constantly create people like us."

"So they'll remain unpunished."

"It seems that way. We could punish them, but that would lead to incredible consequences. All the actions of people like us would become public knowledge, and we would likely face the same accusation."

I patiently explain how I foresee future problems with her approach.

"People like us would be imprisoned, and superhero activities banned. So where would we go from here?"

"We could become criminals..."

"You've seen what one such person can do when they don't control their powers. What happens when there are dozens? Vought is a necessary evil without which chaos would happen."

Silence fell as she considered my words, and I didn't interrupt her.

"I hate it when you're right."

Maeve sighed and stood up, confidently heading toward the exit.

"Does this mean we've settled this matter?"

In response, I only heard the sound of the door closing, which left me with only one explanation.

"Silence is a sign of agreement."

Well, at least I can be sure now that Maeve won't make any shocking revelations in the news.

That means the only thing left is to talk to Annie.

I even know where we can talk.

...

patreon.com/Abyssuit

You can find up to 15 advance chapters on my patreon.