Dad, I can explain,” said Justin, the words tumbling out of his mouth faster than he could say them. “I know I wasn’t supposed to … wait. You’re proud of me?”
Dad sniffled, wiping the tears from his eyes with the back of his hand. “I sure am, son. In fact, at this very moment, I’ve never been prouder of you in my entire life. It honestly feels like a dream come true.” He pinched himself and winced. “Yes, definitely real.”
Justin blinked in disbelief. Now that he was looking more closely, he noticed tears forming at the corners of Dad’s eyes—tears of joy, sure, but tears nonetheless.
Which was somehow even scarier than if Dad had been angry or disappointed.
As if forgetting the pain from his injuries, Justin asked, “Dad, this isn’t some kind of weird joke, is it?”
Dad shook his head wildly. “Of course not, Justin! Why would I ever mess with your feelings like that? In fact, there’s no better way to express my pride than with a great big father-son superhero hug!”
Without waiting for an answer, Dad wrapped his arms around Justin in a tight bear hug. Justin couldn’t remember the last time Dad hugged him this hard—probably not since he was a little kid.
Normally, Justin would have appreciated the gesture. Unfortunately, Dad’s exuberant embrace only worsened his injuries, and he groaned in pain.
“There, there, son,” Dad said, lightly patting Justin’s back. “I know you’re overcome with emotion, but that’s okay. You’ve clearly been through a lot tonight, so let my fatherly love and warmth help you feel better in ways my words never could.”
Justin, genuinely struggling to speak, managed to gasp out, “Dad … chest … hand … hurt … bad…”
Fortunately, Dad got the message. He released Justin and quickly stepped back, his face shifting to one of concern. “My goodness, Justin! I forgot all about the injuries you sustained fighting that Anomaly. Val, where is that healing tank Justin asked for? He needs it ASAP!”
The whirring of gears and mechanical sounds echoed through the Brain Cave as a healing tank filled with pink liquid descended from the ceiling, supported by mechanical arms. It rested on the floor a few feet away, and the glass lid opened with a soft hiss, releasing the scent of strawberries into the air. “The healing tank that Justin requested is ready, Brainstorm.”
Dad gestured toward the tank. “Well, Justin? What are you waiting for? Get out of the costume and into the tank. Those injuries aren’t going to heal themselves! Although … that would be kind of cool now that I think about it. Val, add ‘miraculous healing factor’ to my notes about awesome features to add to the Gate System.”
“Of course, Brainstorm,” Val said, her voice echoing from the speakers embedded in the ceiling. “I’ve added it to the same folder as your notes on the music system experiment for the Gate System.”
Dad nodded, smiling proudly. “Ah, how could I forget the music system? It’s one of my favorites. Unfortunately, I ran out of funding before I could buy the necessary audio tech to make it work. Such are the limitations of a brilliant engineering mind like mine must work with.”
By this point, Justin had stripped out of the bloody Paradigm costume, leaving on only the swim trunks-like underwear that was technically also part of the suit, and climbed into the healing tank. As soon as Justin sank into the pink liquid, he felt its comforting warmth spreading across his chest wound and broken hand and inhaled the sweet, slightly medicinal scent coming from it.
If Justin didn’t know better, he would have sworn his injuries were already healed. But he was well aware of how Dad’s healing tank worked. While miraculous in its own right, it didn’t instantly repair severe injuries. Instead, it accelerated the body’s natural healing processes tenfold, which was why Val had estimated it would take about an hour to fully heal his wounds. If he’d gone to a regular hospital, he doubted they could have patched him up that fast.
Still, Justin couldn’t relax too much in the soothing warmth of the healing tank. His gaze shifted to Dad, who was still muttering to himself about healing factors and music systems. Justin wasn’t sure what to think about Dad’s initial reaction to his stealing and using the Gate System without asking.
Maybe I shouldn’t even bring it up, Justin thought, resting his hands on his thighs beneath the liquid. Dad seems happy now, but for all I know, he might get angry once he’s had more time to think—
“Justin, are you wondering why I am so proud of you right now?” said Dad as if he’d read Justin’s mind.
Justin, his thoughts interrupted, started and looked at Dad in surprise. “Oh, uh, how did you know, uh, Dad?”
Dad smiled, though there was a hint of sadness to it for some reason. “Because it’s written on your face. Sorry for scaring you like that. I just didn’t think you wanted this.”
Justin blinked. “Wanted what?”
Dad picked up the utility belt and held it up for Justin to see. “The Gate System! And the Paradigm costume I made to go along with it. By the way, Paradigm is a great superhero name. I originally intended for the ‘P’ to stand for ‘Perfect,’ as I envisioned it as standing for a perfect fast-response system to disasters, but Paradigm is way cooler. Very superhero. I approve. And don’t worry about the tear in the chest; Val will repair it with my help.”
Justin tilted his head to the side. “Uh, thanks.”
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Dad, however, seemed to have forgotten about Justin, as he was now pacing back and forth in front of the healing tank ranting to himself as he swung the Gate System belt back and forth. “I would have expected Ashlee to want to be a superhero because she’s the oldest, but unfortunately between college and her fiancé, she obviously doesn’t have time to do any superheroing. Rally is too young and, well, addicted to video games, so naturally that left you as my potential successor. But you just seemed so moody and uninterested in superheroics that I was genuinely concerned I might need to either hire an apprentice or just have the Wright family superhero legacy end with me. Granted, there is your cousin Nyle on your mother’s side, but he’s all the way in California and there is no way in hell I am going to let anyone from California, especially in-laws, take my …”
While Dad continued to rant about the dangers of Californication in Texas superheroism, Justin sank a little deeper into the healing tank, even though both of his injuries were deep enough in the liquid already. He just pretended to listen to his dad’s rant while thinking about his family.
Dad had referenced Justin’s other siblings: Ashlee, his older sister, and Rally, his younger brother.
Ashlee was currently off in college at Hernandez University, as Dad said, studying biology with the intention of becoming a biologist. She was also engaged to her long-time boyfriend, Barrett Franklin, and they were getting married in the spring. As for Rally, he was Justin’s younger brother by about two years and, as Dad had already stated, pretty much addicted to video games, although he was smarter than he let on. He definitely had a lot of potential, in Justin’s opinion.
Justin had good relationships with both of his siblings, but being a middle child meant he often felt ignored.
So it didn’t help that Dad apparently had considered Ashlee and Rally as potential successors to the Wright family superhero legacy before Justin.
As should be obvious by now, Dad wasn’t just a normal scientist. He was the tech-based superhero known as Brainstorm, a superhero who used his ‘super tech,’ as he called it, to fight crime and save the world. Dad was also the actual local superhero of New Gold City, though in practice he rarely patrolled the streets due to being involved in greater global conflicts and problems most of the time. Still, his mere presence in New Gold City meant that crime was fairly low compared to neighboring towns and cities, so the local police generally could handle most of it.
Except the Anomalies.
The police certainly couldn’t handle those.
Nor was Dad the first Wright to be a superhero. Justin’s grandfather, Jeremiah Wright, had been the Fist of Justice, a vigilante who had protected the world with Ron Right and the other members of the Original Generation fifty years ago, around the time that superheroes and villains first emerged in the world.
But whereas Grandfather had been more of a street-level vigilante, Dad had used his brains to create advanced, even futuristic technology that allowed him to fight villains and threats that Grandfather never could. Some of Dad’s tech had even made it out to the general public, such as the AI streaming drones like the one that Alanna had. The royalties Dad made from his patents and contracts with various private companies and governments made up a good portion of their family income, which was the main reason they were able to keep the Wright Mansion.
Regardless of all of that, however, Justin still stared at Dad in disbelief. “You thought I wasn’t interested in becoming a superhero myself? Even though the walls of my room are plastered with superhero posters? And I’ve had a superhero-themed birthday every year since I was like five? Even though every year at school whenever we are asked what we want to be when I grow up, I always say the same thing? That I wanted to be a superhero more than anything else?”
Dad shrugged. “Figured you just said that because of the family business. You always seemed more suited to sports or athletics than superheroism, honestly. Or possibly cheerleading.”
Justin contemplated sinking deeper into the healing tank, wondering if it was possible to drown himself in its liquids. On one hand, Justin was pretty sure that the healing liquids didn’t have oxygen in them, but on the other hand, a healing tank that could kill you would be extremely counterproductive at best, if not ironic.
Dad raised his hands into the air. “But regardless, I’m glad you survived the encounter with that Level Five Anomaly. It means the Gate System works after all.”
Justin perked up at his father’s words. “What do you mean? You made it. Of course it works.”
Justin genuinely meant it. Dad had created so many advanced yet practical technologies over the years that had affected society, in both big and small ways, that it never occurred to Justin that his father could make something that didn’t work—or didn’t work as intended. Dad often told interviewers he didn’t have any natural superpowers, but to Justin, his father’s talent with technology and engineering seemed superhuman all on its own.
As for the Gate System specifically, Justin had learned about it a few days ago while poking around in his father’s lab after school. The basic idea behind the Gate System was simple enough. By wearing a generic black-and-white spandex suit with a special utility belt, the user could access a variety of superhero powers and costumes designed to handle different circumstances. Justin knew of at least six different “Gates,” as the options were called, and Val had mentioned that Dad had planned to add more before shelving the project a few years ago.
Justin realized the Gate System could make him a real superhero and give him the power to take on the Anomalies threatening New Gold City. He’d taken the suit without asking because he was sure Dad would never approve of him fighting dangerous Anomalies alone.
At least, that was what Justin had thought. Seeing his father’s exuberant reaction to his superheroics now made him wonder if he should have just asked Dad in the first place. Maybe then he wouldn’t have had as much trouble using the Gate System—or dealing with the Anomalies—as he did.
Dad lowered his hands, giving Justin a curious look. “Not everything I make actually works, Justin. I appreciate the faith you have in my abilities, but even I make duds every now and then—mostly during the prototype stage. But they’re still duds. I usually discard them or set them aside before anyone even knows they exist.”
Justin frowned. “Okay, but the Gate System clearly worked. I proved that. Why did you consider it a failure? Was it because its battery life is basically nonexistent or something?”
Dad shook his head slowly. “That was part of it. The immense amount of Super Energy needed to power it for even just an hour is insane, and I never could perfect the battery design. But there’s another reason I had to cancel the project—and why, at least initially, I was worried when I found out you’d taken the Gate System.”
Ah. So Dad hadn’t been thrilled when he first found out Justin had stolen the Gate System. That meant his attitude must have changed after watching Alanna’s livestream. That made sense if Dad had lingering doubts about the system’s viability.
Shifting his position in the healing tank slightly to avoid going numb, Justin asked, “Well, Dad, what was the actual reason you shut down the Gate System project if it wasn’t the battery?”
Dad sighed and looked grimly at the utility belt in his hands. He seemed almost ashamed to meet Justin’s gaze. “You are the first person to survive using the Gate System without dying or suffering horrible side effects.”
