Aiden jumped out of the way and shielded Lexie with his body as the alleyway behind them burst into flames.

  Lexie’s mouth dropped in horror. The entire alleyway entrance was engulfed in fire, licking at the brick rising higher and higher. Luckily, the street was empty and Aiden had jumped out in time, but there was no way anyone in that alley escaped unscathed.

  Did the [Hero] just die?

  Before she could ask or worry for too long, Theo emerged from the flames of the alleyway onto the empty street, clothes, and body completely unscathed.

  He glanced at them. "Are you guys alright?"

  Lexie nodded. “Yeah. That was…”

  “Yeah sorry you had to see that. That was…intense.”

  Lexie was actually going to say that it was cool how he was able to stop a blast and freeze it in time, but one look at Theo’s face dissuaded her from mentioning it. The [Hero] didn't seem to like the way things had gone.

  “Is he…” Aiden asked and Theo nodded. The [Hero] looked even more weary than before. She wondered if he felt guilty about how Mouse had died or maybe guilty that they’d witnessed it. Either way, she didn't think he should feel bad, because Mouse had brought it on himself. Literally.

  Nevertheless, Lexie had to imagine it was tough on the [Hero] to watch a man die, no matter the circumstances.

  “Are you going to….swallow it?” Lexie asked, gesturing to the fire.

  Theo's eyebrows raised and he turned back to the flames.

  “I guess I should huh…”

  And then just like he'd done in the video, Theo cupped a fist in his mouth and inhaled deeply. The flames immediately typhooned into his mouth, whirring as they whirled, until there was nothing left.

  Theo had literally eaten the flames and he spat out a small silver orb.

  “So cool,” Lexie finally gaped and he offered her a small grin as he tucked the orb away. The smile slipped off his face as he examined Lexie closely.

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  She nodded. “I think so.” Oddly enough, Lexie wasn't all that affected by Mouse's death. Maybe later she would think about it, and be haunted by the image of him burning alive. Right now, she was just glad Aiden was safe. And Theo too. The [Hero] had been nice enough to help them out and she would have felt terrible if he’d died saving them.

  The situation was resolved as well as could be expected, even if Mouse was dead now.

  Am I a psychopath? she wondered briefly. She should probably feel something that someone had died right? Even if they were a bad person?

  But she didn't. Maybe because Mouse had sounded like a spiteful person, and tried to justify what he was doing to Aiden. And Lexie didn’t know the story between them so maybe he did have a point. But she found it hard to believe that Aiden had done anything bad enough to justify being beaten to death.

  Lexie was so deep in her thoughts that it took her a while to realize that an awkward silence had descended between the two men who were carefully assessing each other. The vibe was...off. It wasn’t contentious necessarily, despite what Mouse said about Theo supposedly hating Aiden. The best way she could describe it was uncertain, tentative and so painfully awkward.

  Theo finally tore his eyes away from Aiden, choosing Lexie as the easier one to address.

  “Sorry about that explosion by the way,” he said. “I mean the one at your school. I heard you mention to your dad that you got caught in it and that was kind of our fault.”

  Lexie cocked her head. “What do you mean?”

  “Well,” he scratched the side of his face, grimacing. “We found a bomb near your school, right as it was about to go off, and we were able to freeze it. But then almost immediately, we received word of an even more threatening bomb and we didn’t have time to disable the first one. So we had to find a way to contain the blast, and the only thing that could in that area was your school walls.” He cringed at hearing himself say it and the apology in his face intensified. “I’m not going to say it was a great call, but it was all we had. And I’m sorry. We calculated the risk and no one was supposed to get seriously injured. It was our fault that you got hurt and I don’t have words to express the regret I feel for the situation…”

  Lexie watched him as he struggled to find more to say, remembering what Mouse had said about the Firebringers and keeping a squeaky-clean image. Maybe she might not have trusted these words if they were coming from Luther Firebringer. But Lexie didn’t think Theo was just saying it for the PR. He did look genuinely distraught about what happened, running his hands through his hair roughly.

  And hearing his side of the story, she couldn’t blame him for the choice he’d made. She would have probably done the same.

  “It's fine,” Lexie said. “Is that why you came after us?”

  Theo shook his head. “When I got to the school, the security guard said he saw you get snatched by some guy. So I flew up and searched.”

  “I see.” Lexie nodded. And then she asked the question that lingered on her mind. “Were you really going to boil Mouse from the inside out?” Lexie was partially fascinated and partially disgusted at the possibility.

  Theo gave another of his crooked smiles. “Nah. I was bluffing. But he didn’t know that.”

  “Oh.” Lexie felt a little deflated. “But could you? I mean hypothetically?”

  “I guess.” He scratched his chin more in a thoughtful manner. “It would take crazy mana control though. Fire is by definition, an explosive large-scale ability. It’s easier to amplify a blast than to contain it. So something like that would be incredibly difficult.”

  “But not impossible.”

  He gave her a bemused look. “No. Not impossible.”

  “How would that work? Would you disrupt his pathways and heat them up or would you just target the atmosphere surrounding him? I guess the latter would be easier but the former would be more dangerous because he couldn't get away from the effect even if he tried. I mean that would be the ultimate threat right?”

  “That’s too many morbid questions, Lexie.” Her father interrupted. “We need to get going to the bomb shelter.”

  "Wait." She hadn’t even gotten to ask how the fire flight thing worked! "There's no bomb anymore, is there?"

  Theo shook his head. "I don't think so. I think my team and I already caught most of it. But you should still go, to get checked out by a medic.”

  “No, I’m fine. It’s probably going to be crowded and there might be people more hurt than me. I think I might be all healed up. You can do a wellness scan if you want.”

  Theo nodded and did just that. And then Aiden did one too, before they could be satisfied that she was okay.

  "So there's no reason why we can't stay and talk," Lexie wanted to ask a bunch more questions, like about the fire-swallowing thing.

  Theo seemed to sympathize with her father because he grinned. "Your dad's still right though. You two should get to the bomb shelter, or go somewhere safe to wait it out until the train lines open. But how about I escort you? Make sure you don’t get taken again, since the two of you might be a target.”

  “I don’t think that will happen.” Aiden shook his head. “Mouse and I…it was a personal vendetta. Besides, you have bigger things to worry about. If there’s a mana bomb, then you need to disable it.”

  “They've already done that,” Theo responded. “I got the message while I was containing the blast. The mana bomb was found and disabled in time. They’re regaining control of the situation and they caught six members of the GLITCH gang. The city officials and local enforcement are getting things back to normal."

  “Oh great.” Aiden looked to the still deserted streets, a few cars abandoned at the side. "So the trains should be open again?"

  "Soon," Theo said. "It might take them a while though."

  “What’s the GLITCH gang?” Lexie asked, bringing Theo's attention back to her.

  “Terrorist organization,” Theo said. “Seems like your mouse friend was a member.”

  Aiden frowned. “Since when?”

  Theo shrugged. “I’m guessing very recently.”

  Aiden mulled over that for a few seconds. “I suppose it makes sense. He used to work for a small gang of petty thieves and provide information to the Krawlin, a group of trained rogue assassins for hire. So I guess GLITCH isn’t too far off. Although it’s a bit more high profile than anything he's done prior.”

  “You seem to know a lot about him,” Theo said. “Do you know how he got on their radar? I know they’re selective with their recruits.”

  “No. I don't know how he got those new powers of his either. Back in the day, he had a minor magnetic ability that he used to slip wallets out of pockets and steal jewelry. Nothing to suggest that he could snatch a whole person through the air or sustain multiple magnetic connections with different weapons. Not to mention the fact that he could now execute what is essentially close-range magnetic teleportation which is a whole other crazy ability.”

  “Yeah,” Theo responded. “I tangled with him once in Alpeco but I probably underestimated him then. I thought he was just a petty thief and so I let him get away and faced the other targets. The teleportation thing was new to me.”

  “Is that why you didn’t scorch him in the beginning?” Lexie asked. “Because you underestimated him?”

  Theo offered her a tiny smile. “No. It’s just that we’re not supposed to kill citizens, even [Villains], or harm them beyond a certain necessary limit. If not, we get in trouble and….it’s a whole lot of paperwork.”

  “Really?” Lexie frowned.

  That went against her initial impression of [Heroes], the one that she got from Xena and Max. She’d thought they could pretty much do whatever they wanted in the name of the law but Theo spoke of being controlled and restricted, even when it would have been justified to use deadly force.

  So where was the disconnect?

  Was being rule-abiding a widespread sentiment amongst the [Heroes] or was it just Theo's personal code?

  Lexie had a feeling that it was more of the latter. Maybe, rather than being bothered by paperwork, Theo had a moral opposition to causing harm, especially to those less powerful than him.

  It was admirable that he felt that way.

  But also Lexie thought it was a little foolish.

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  His restraint could have gotten them killed and while he was busy trying to be the good guy, Mouse had no such qualms about killing him.

  Lexie always thought it was ridiculous that Batman never killed the Joker no matter how much chaos and destruction and death the latter caused. All because of his moral code.

  This situation reminded Lexie very much of that. She would never have been Batman.

  Maybe that's why the system gave me cards instead of fire, she thought in amusement. If I had Theo's powers, I would have probably just blasted Mouse and been done with it.

  “That’s pretty noble of you," Lexie said. "I’m not sure I would have been able to stop myself from torching the guy if it was me.”

  Theo smirked. “You say that now, but you never know until you’re the one who has to make the choice.”

  Lexie thought about it and figured he was probably right. She was still applying video game logic, operating solely on wins and losses. But that wasn’t how the real world worked. Mouse’s death probably wasn’t a win for Theo. It was just one more life on his conscience.

  And while she’d been frustrated with Theo's restraint during the fight at times, she could understand it. With great power came great responsibility and all that. Also, while it looked like nothing, given Theo's description of his powers, it probably had taken far more strength and control to send those little blasts at Mouse’s feet instead of just hauling fireballs at the man.

  “Yeah.” Theo continued. “Typically we’re able to capture most [Villains] alive due to lots of planning and preparation before missions. In the last few years especially, [Hero] work has become more preventative than reactive and our technomancers and our arithmancer, Lucy Frank, help to predict the big moves before the villains act. So much of our job now is preventing disaster before it strikes.” A wry smile twisted his lips. “Ironically, that then makes it seem like we don’t do shit half the time because preventing crime is an invisible, thankless act. And we only end up in the news when something goes wrong, after which our screw-up is all people care about.”

  Ah. Lexie felt herself blush when remembering how many times she'd silently agreed with Xena bad-mouthing the [Heroes]. She should have known it was more complicated than she believed.

  "Not that it's your problem." Theo paused and rolled his eyes. He ran his hands through his hair again and began muttering to himself. “And it's certainly not stuff I should be ranting about to an eight-year-old. Especially while swearing.”

  “I'm ten,” Lexie said.

  His eyes showed surprise. “For real?”

  “For real. And I know way worse words than ‘shit’.” For example, she knew the very bad word that her Uncle Max had called his uncle Luther just a few months ago. “Anyway, thanks for saving us. I’ll admit I didn’t have the best impression of [Heroes] before now but…you’re pretty cool. Even cooler than the Video Alley comment sections say you are. And for what it’s worth I think you’re doing a great job.”

  Theo seemed surprised at first, and then he gave her a bright smile that transformed his face from tired and haggard back into handsome and young.

  “Thanks." He sounded a little hoarse. "It means a lot to hear someone say that.”

  Lexie smiled back. He held up his hand for a fist bump and then she fist-bumped it right back.

  “We have to go,” Aiden said again, softer this time, more drained. “Lexie needs rest.”

  “Oh, sure.” Theo was once more uncertain as he stared at Aiden. Rings on his fingers gleamed as he rubbed his palms over the front of his spandex. “I guess I’ll see you around.”

  Aiden smiled a little sadly. “Take care of yourself, Theo. Really.”

  Theo still had that conflicted expression, like he wanted to say more as they turned away. But Aiden didn't stop to give him a chance. He just kept moving.

  When they’d walked about a mile, Lexie finally broached the subject, unable to let it linger anymore.

  “You know the Firebringers pretty well, huh?”

  Aiden was silent at first. Even though his expression was flat, she could sense the unease rippling underneath the surface.

  He was quiet for so long that Lexie wasn't sure he would answer. And then finally, he offered her a bombshell.

  “Your mother was best friends with Stella Firebringer.”

  Lexie’s eyes widened. That was not at all what she was expecting. “Shut up. Really?”

  “Yeah.” He nodded. “But they had a falling out shortly before her death”

  “Falling out? Why?”

  "That’s another story for when you’re older.”

  Lexie grumbled, “Why do you always hoard all the good stories for when I’m older?”

  “Because it’s hard to explain complex adult relationships to a child. Even a precocious one like you.”

  I’m not a kid though, she thought. I’m practically an adult. But he doesn’t know that.

  She sighed and then was about to ask a follow-up question about Theo when her father blurted out, “I’m sorry.”

  “Huh?” She was still thinking about Theo Firebringer's rings and the words took her aback. “Sorry for what?”

  “I couldn’t save you today,” he said hoarsely. “If not for Theo, Mouse might have hurt you or worse.”

  “Oh." The reminder of their near-fatal predicament sobered her up. "That’s okay. I couldn't do much to save you either.”

  “Lexie, that’s not…it wasn’t okay at all.” His voice cracked as he stared grimly over her shoulder, as though he couldn't meet her eyes. "I’ve never felt so powerless in my life. And I…I…” He looked a little like he was on the verge of tears, and Lexie felt her throat get thick too. Emotion washed over her, as did memories of watching Aiden desperately chase after her. And then watching him get thrashed by Mouse and feeling helpless to do anything. Lexie swallowed.

  If not for Theo, everything could have gone horribly wrong. Aiden could be dead.

  “Don’t cry, Dad," she told him, her voice already tight and watery. “Because if you cry then I’m going to cry and then we’ll both be a mess.”

  “I won’t cry,” Aidne assured her, even though his eyes had a suspicious sheen. He cleared his throat and swallowed several times to be able to control himself. "But I do have to do something. I have to change. I can’t let anything like this happen ever again”

  “What do you mean?”

  Determination set in his features. “From now on, I’m going to get stronger. So strong that nothing and no one will ever touch you again.” He finally met her eyes, and whispered the words fiercely, as though more to himself than Lexie. “Your dad will protect you, Lexie. I swear it.”

  Lexie stared into his determined eyes for a few seconds.

  Her own emotion boiled over and she threw her arms around his neck to hug him, burying her face in his shoulder. He held her tight and she closed her eyes, inhaling him. She was thankful that he was alive and that, if she had to be trapped in this world, it was with a father like him.

  It was when she opened her eyes again that she saw it.

  It wasn’t clear from the angle and perhaps it was only a trick of light. Perhaps it was just the tears that made her see something that wasn’t there.

  But whatever the cause was, Lexie thought she saw an anomaly on her father’s smooth silver neckbands.

  A small, nearly imperceptible crack slivered down the center.

  Lexie and Aiden never made it to the bomb shelters because two things happened back-to-back.

  First, the system alerted them that the train routes were open so they could head back to Hovelton. The second thing was that Max called to let Aiden know that another unstable dungeon was spawning in Hovelton.

  “He needs my help,” Aiden told Lexie on the way to the station and she frowned.

  “I don’t think you’re in the position to be helping anyone right now.” She stared pointedly at his arm. The bleeding had stopped, and Aiden claimed it was already healing but the arm was still out of its socket.

  He smiled. “This is nothing. I’ve had worse in my hero days. Emma will just pop it right in place and I’ll be right as rain.”

  “Still,” Lexie said, although she didn’t want to argue with him. She was tired from all the stress and just wanted to go home with her dad to some peace and normalcy. She hadn’t even absorbed or dealt with the events of the day from being blasted and the last thing she wanted was to worry about Aiden in danger yet again.

  “Max is meeting us at the train station in Hovelton," Aiden said. He saw her disapproving expression and smiled. “I’ll be fine. I promise. Max and I will just get rid of the dungeon like last time and it probably won't even take ten minutes.”

  “The last time took way more than ten minutes and you almost died because of a ghoul.”

  “That was an…unusual extenuating circumstance."

  "Isn't every unstable dungeon an unusual extenuating circumstance?"

  Aiden could clearly see her point but he just shrugged with one shoulder.

  Lexie sighed. She could see that nothing she said would change his mind. So she refused to say anything to him anymore.

  She pouted while they waited for the train at the crowded station, and even a few minutes after they got on. But finally, she couldn't give her dad the silent treatment anymore. It was too exhausting.

  Besides, she had a very important question to ask.

  “How did you know Mouse?”

  She immensely regretted the question the second it slipped out, just from the stricken look it triggered on Aiden's face.

  “I mean you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to…I just …I was curious.”

  Aiden exhaled. “We met while I was still a [Hero] solving a crime in District 8. He was a petty thief at the time and occasionally sold illicit substances.

  “Like drugs?”

  “Highly illegal, very addictive potions. The first time I apprehended him, he told me he did it to save money to pay for his mother’s treatment. She was terminally ill and was on the waitlist for a healer but it was taking too long and he needed to keep replenishing her potions. At first, I thought he was lying, but then I followed him home to find that it was the truth. Seeing that…I couldn’t take him in. So I simply warned him not to do it again and tried to scare him straight.” He smiled sadly. "It didn’t work.”

  “Yeah, you’re not a very scary kind of guy,” Lexie admitted quietly.

  “Apparently not. A few weeks later, I received news that Mouse had sold an illegal potion to the wrong person, a Governor’s son, and the boy died. Mouse ended up getting sent to Vigo, a prison in Sonlief. His sentence wasn't long. Only a few years since it was just a first-time offense. But it was enough time that his mother passed while he was in there. She had no one to take care of her but him.”

  “That’s awful.”

  He nodded. “When he came out he was on probation and we met again shortly after that, while my team was hunting down Krawlin assassins. Once more I caught him and I didn’t take him in. I felt sorry and a little guilty, I guess, for what happened to his mother. Once again, I tried to talk him out of a life of crime. I encouraged him to do something that would make his mother proud. Gave him a whole rousing speech about rising above your circumstances, even gave him the name of a man that I thought would work with him. A part of me thought I reached him that day and that he would change for the better. For a while, I kept tabs on him and he seemed to have left the criminal underworld. I was happy." Aiden heaved a sigh. "That is until I saw him on a piece of video evidence, providing information to the Krawlin for a fee. It was information that inadvertently led to two people’s death. That was the last straw. I couldn’t let him get away with it this time.” He shook his head. “I knew where to find Mouse based on the tabs I kept on him and I captured him and took him in.”

  Lexie was silent as Aiden paused in his speech. The train car was full but no one was paying attention to them, each embroiled in their own conversations. So Aiden had stopped not because he was concerned he would be overheard. It just seemed that this was a difficult story for him to tell.

  And then finally, he continued.

  “Mouse begged me not to take him, begged for another chance. But I couldn’t trust him. Not after what I’d seen. He got sent to Vigo for a long time after that and that was the last I saw of him.”

  “Then it wasn’t your fault," Lexie said. "Mouse blaming you was just his way of refusing to take responsibility for his own actions. You tried to help him. Twice. His going to jail was his own doing and what happened today wasn’t your fault. ”

  Aiden continued to stare straight ahead. But his voice lacked conviction when he said, “I know.”

  The train stopped to let a few people out at a street called Canes, and then continued smoothly on its way.

  “If the dungeon spawns in Hovelton,” he said. “Everyone will be in danger. Not just from the creatures it releases, but it will create a dead zone once it’s gone and too much of that will eventually lead to instability in Hovelton. I can’t let that happen.”

  Lexie stared at him. Sometimes Lexie forgot that her father used to be a [Hero] and then he would say stuff like that that reminded her of his heroic nature.

  “Yeah, but why can’t someone else take turns with Max instead of you?” she asked. "Why not mundane law enforcement?”

  Aiden chuckled. “Law Enforcement in Hovelton is essentially two old men who were probably alive when the Great Developers crafted the very first card. Ernie and Roger. Nice people but ancient and not agile.” He shook his head. “It’s lucky that Hovelton has virtually no crime despite the relatively low income. Or else we'd all be doomed.

  “So there’s really no one else?”

  “No. The town also wasn’t much of a town until a few years ago. It was just an empty forest and corn fields. And then there was a half-hearted plan to develop it into a retirement community, a regime change later and here we are.” He adjusted her so she could rest more comfortably on his arm. “Believe it or not, I’m the best person for the job.”

  Lexie sighed but had to admit he was right. “I guess.”

  But she still wasn't happy about it on the way home, causing Aiden to chuck her chin several times to draw a smile out of her.

  The train ride was also the least comfortable one ever. While Aiden and Lexie got seats, multiple people were standing. Someone’s butt was right in Lexie's face for most of the ride, and she was starting to feel a little claustrophobic.

  “Train rides can be tedious at times, huh," Aiden murmured to her when he noticed her discomfort. “Maybe I should get a vehicle?”

  “A road rocket?” Lexie inquired.

  “No, something more affordable and slower.” He gave her a look. “With a complex personal activation. Something a child can’t ‘accidentally’ drive.”

  Drat. He was onto her. Not that Lexie would drive a road rocket even if given the chance. Fast cars were not her thing.

  Probably.

  The train slowly emptied out between Arcadia and Hovelton. The last quarter of the ride was more comfortable so much so that Lexie nearly found herself dozing off as the adrenaline slowly leaked out of her.

  “What about the Mayor?” she murmured, her head in Aiden's lap as she was tucked under his arm. "Why doesn't he help out?"

  “Fighting isn't Luke’s forte,” Aiden said and Lexie sighed, all out of arguments.

  But when they finally landed back in Hovelton, Lexie got a bit of luck.

  Max and someone who looked like him were waiting for them at the podium, with Max looking extremely pissed.

  “The dungeon,” he said. “It disappeared.”