Chapter Nine
Hey Look, It's My OTP!

"Why do you have so many books?" Static decides to ask me as soon as we're in the air.

"Because I enjoy reading?" I say as a question rather than a statement.

"Well why buy all those books?" He questions me, "why not just go to the library?"

"I want to be able to say I own the book," I tell him, "If I love the book, so I want to be able to own it."

"Fair enough," he agrees, "well if you're going to buy your books, why not just read the same one over and over?"

"I don't know, a lot of people like rereading books but I don't. I guess it feels like you're trying to relive a moment." I try to reason, "it doesn't feel right to me, because I can only experience it once. To try and relive a moment would to just be faking it."

"I never thought of it that way," Static comments.

"Because you probably don't read," I point out.

"Yeah, probably," he smirks at me.

"Reading is thinking, you know," I point out, "it also gives you a better outlook on the world."

"What if I don't want that?" He pushes me with a grin.

"Then that sucks."

"What can I say?" He shrugs with a smile, "it sucks to suck."

"You would know."

He winces, pressing a hand to his heart. "Ouch, Johnson. I felt that one, right here," he pats his heart.

"Don't be a baby," I swat away his hand away and leap out of his arms as we land behind a crate.

Slick said meet at the docks, and if it isn't the most cliché place for a bad guy and a good guy to meet then I don't know where else. It feels like I'm either selling or buying some type of drug.

Speaking of drugs, I actually love the feeling of being high.

I don't mean to say 'hey I like to snort mushrooms' or something like that, because I don't even know of a mushroom is the actually slag term for a type of drug and I don't know if you snort them.

What I do know is that I love being put on laughing gas. It makes me so dizzy and I keep swaying and I just basically feel like I'm on cloud 9.

Where was I going with this?

Suddenly Static puts his arm out, telling me to stop but since I'm so engrossed in the thought of being drugged, I his hand accidentally hits me in the face.

"Bleh," I scrunch up my nose while making a strand noise for some reason, earring weird look from Static.

"There you two are."

Simultaneously, we both spin around on our heels to face the Supervillain behind us.

"What do you want with us?" Static asks him, taking a protective step in front of me.

"Calm down will you? I don't bite," he chuckled at his own joke.

"What was the point of today?" I ask him, pushing past Static and getting straight to my point, "why would you randomly try and damage a damn public pool?"

Even in the darkness I could see his features light up with sick humour.

"To catch your attention, of course."

I raised my eyebrows. "What's that supposed to me?"

"I needed to remind you," he took a step forward. "That I'm always there, whether you know it or not."

No one said anything for a moment. We all just stood there in Silence.

"Now," Slick claps his hands together. "Let's get to business, shall me?"

He takes another step forward but Static holds up a hand, making him roll his eyes.

"Anyway," Slick drawled, "I have a proposition for you two."

We stared at the both of us for w moment before continuing.

"I was thinking..." Slick trails off.

"Oh stop being such a dramatic and get straight to the point," I spit.

Slick glares at me. "Side with me, and I won't hurt you two."

We both stare at him.

"Dude, we're Superheroes," Static narrows his eyes, "not idiots."

Static called himself a Superhero?

"Did you really just bring us here to be all dramatic and cool," I place my hands on my hips, "that's such a waste of time! I could be at home doing something of actually use but no! Here I am, standing miles away from my home, in a very uncomfortable suit-"

"Then take it off," Slick snickers, earning a glare from Static but I ignore him.

"Waiting for you to tell us what the hell you want and you want us to turn to the dark side?"

"This isn't Star Wars-" I cut him off.

"We're not idiots! You're the idiot for thinking we'd comply! You just wasted thirty minutes of my life-"

"Just shut up!" Slick exclaims, "if you two won't agree the easy way, then you'll have to agree the hard way."

Before either Static of me could ask what he means, I'm suddenly being thrown violently into the side of the cargo crate to my side.

I look up to find multiple of Slick's minions getting ready to charge at me.

I'm quickly to my feet and blast out my shield just before they hit me.

"Tell your minions to surrender!" I scream at Slick.

"Minions?" Slick exclaims, "never call them minions - they're my Shadows!"

Before I can even ask what he means I'm caught off guard with a punch to the stomach.

I let out a groan and clutch my stomach, bracing myself for another punch.

But the punch doesn't come.

I carefully look up to find one of Slick's 'Shadows' being tackled to the ground by Static.

"Dude, you have a problem," I growl at Slick as he laughs evilly at our pain.

I quickly sit up and Sprint to where Static is beating the crap out of a a guy, and tap his shoulder.

She spins around and sticks his fists in my face before he realizes it's me.

"Get us out of here," I demand him.

"But we can't just leave them!" He gestures to Slick's 'Shadows' who are in the midst of charging at us. "We can't leave-"

"But we will, and me are!" Without warning I hopped onto his back, kicking him in the butt making him yelp.

"Goooooooo!" I scream in his ear. I know, I'm pretty great.

Most likely annoyed, Static took off into the air, leaving these so-called Shadows down below us.

"You didn't need to kick me, damn," he groans, "you're annoying as fuck, you know that?"

"Of course," I replied with a smirk.

Once again, I would never admit this but I really wanted to leave - needed to leave - because I was - dare I say it - vulnerable and weak. I forced a shiver.

Before I can say something I get a twisted feeling in my gut, signalling trouble once more in Henderson Park.

Without even bothering to ask, Static lowers us to the park. Once we are at a reasonable height I jump off of his back and onto the ground.

I don't bother to wait for Static so I take off running in the direction of trouble.

I spot a few figures roaming on the other side of the park so I take off after them. Once I near I see that...

Not again.

There is Graeme, in all his glory, hanging from a tree branch as some homeless man tries to hit him with a stick.

"Get down from there, 'ye bloody bastard!" Screams the dirty old man in a thick British accent.

I my footsteps slowly come to a halt as I reach the old man, who for some reason is furious.

"Uh, sir?" I tap his shoulder lightly, making his spin around to wave the stick in my face.

"This bandit, 'ere!" He waves the stick frantically at Graeme who struggles to keep his grip, "was dilly-dallin' on 'me bench!"

"On your... Bench," I repeat slowly.

"On 'me bench!" He yells again.

"It's a free country!" Graeme yells from up top, causing the old man to resume hitting him.

"Sir! Sir please act rational," I try to calm him down with no such luck.

"Blast him!" The man shouts, "maybe I should take this stick 'ere, and shove it up 'yer-"

"Shut up, for Christ's sake," Static whines, coming to stand beside me.

"Who the hell are you?" The man points the stick a him.

"None of your business," Static hisses.

"Hey look, it's my OTP!" Graeme squeals from his tree.

We all ignore him.

"You should leave," Static growls at the man, obviously not in the best mood.

"But I want 'me bench!" He shrieks.

"Then go get 'ye bench!" Static sighs, pushing the man in the direction of a bench.

"But 'e took 'me bench!" The man points at Graeme, who's hanging on for dear life.

"You drove him up a tree," Static says through clenched teeth, "so I'm pretty sure your bench is free."

The man's eyes widen. "Is it now?" He runs back to claims his bench.

"Damn English men," I hear Static growl as I approach Graeme.

Graeme spots me walking underneath him an shouts "catch me!" Little does he know that my petite form is not meant to catch people.

Before he can even touch me I'm being pushed out of the way by a grumpy Static,who decides to catch Graeme instead.

"Cool Beans!" Graeme says in a way of thanking Static, or at least I think so. I don't speak Graeme.

Static mumbles some sort of thanks before letting Graeme go.

"Why Graeme, why?" I ask him, "why do you always get caught in trouble?"

I looks around before whispering to me,"don't tell anyone, but I think Trouble has a crush on me."

I couldn't tell if he was joking or if he was serious.

"Where are you always out in the middle of the night?" I change the question.

"For Super hunting, that is!" He grins.

"You hunt Supers?" Static asks Graeme who nods.

"I enjoy researching about Supers," Graeme tells us, "they're quite fascinating."

"We are we, animals?" Static mutters in disgust.

"So I've been doing my research on the Slick guy-" my eyes widen. How could he know about Slick? "-and turns out he has mind manipulation, which must be very obvious. But before I go on, I must explain - what gives a Super their power(s) is, in some way you might consider, a type of tumour. I don't mean just any tumour, I mean a tumour measuring about the size of a milli-meter, which hides in the frontal lobe. I think the tumour is placed in your frontal lobe so that your powers can react the way they do. With every power comes a new tumour, and they're all very specified depending on your power-"

"Hold up," Static stops him, "don't get me wrong, this is fascinating and stuff but who do you know all this? Even I ask a Super, had no idea about this."

I nod in agreement.

"I told you, I do my research," Graeme shrugs.

"Obsessed," I hear Static cough, making me step on his foot, hard.

"Anyway, I was thinking 'if each power has a specified tumour then that must mean you could recreate one,' right? It would be just like artificial intelligence except with super power, so artificial powers. Although I think the risk of placing the tumour in the frontal lobe might cause permanent damage - especially if the person receiving the tumour is is not a Super, therefore their minds and bodies are not built for such operations. Back to the point - If I'm not mistaken, Slick has more than one tumour found in his frontal lobe, meaning he has more powers, he just chooses not to show them-"

"You know what?" Static interrupts Graeme's rant, "this is pretty good. Both of you, grab my arms."

Graeme and I share a look before latching onto Static. Right away, we're im the air.

"I'm flying!" Graeme shrieks in either excitement or fear. I really don't know.

Before we know it, we're already being lowered to the ground.

As soon as our feet touch the dirt Static is off in the direction of the abandoned convenience store he's lead us to.

Graeme and I are both quick to follow him into the dark and dingy building. We find Static walking among the wall until he reaches a vending machine.

"What are we here for? Snacks?" I ask him, but he ignores me.

His fingers hover over the key pad before he types in a couple of digits, and Graeme and I watch with mixed emotions as the vending machine slides over to reveal a set of stairs leading downwards.

"What is this place?" Graeme ask.

"My lair."