Decker: Chapter 02

Dear Hero Diary:

I hate flying: said no superhero EVER.  Seriously, anyone who can’t do this has no idea what they are missing.

Decker wasn’t actually writing in her diary of course.  It’d be pretty hard to hold paper and pencil while flying.  Not impossible, but tough.  Decker had considered texting her adventures, but it just seemed wrong.  Heroes don’t text: she was pretty sure of that.  At least, maybe not while flying about. 

I really don’t get to fly enough.  I mean, I’d like to fly everywhere?  But, you know, secret identity and all.  It’s not like I can just get dressed and fly to work, or whatever.  But now?  I mean a super hero suit is like a licence to fly, right?

Decker stopped mid flight, and hovered for a moment.  “It is a licence to fly, right?” Decker didn’t want to start her hero career by breaking some hero law.  She frowned.  “How would you even check something like that out?”  She pushed the thought to the back of her mind, with a mental note to do some research later.

You know, it’s sort of funny that I can use my powers to fly at all.  I mean, I can’t use them to lift a book without destroying the entire living room, but I can lift myself?  Weird, right?  I try not to think about it too hard.  I mean, you know when you think about breathing too hard?  Like you stop to think on how it works, then suddenly you over think it and get the hiccups?  I’m worried it’ll be like that, only instead of hiccups, I’ll fall out of the sky, or squish myself like a bug.

When I do think about it though, I wonder if it’s some sort of self preservation thing.  Like I don’t hurt myself while flying because subconsciously I don’t want to?  Though, if my powers had any sense of preservation, I wouldn’t have accidentally flipped my dad’s truck that one time.

Decker shook off the memory.  Today was supposed to be the beginning of her hero career after all. 

Not that it was off to a great start.  She sighed and looked around.  It was her third time flying the length of the city.  It was lovely out today, like Mrs. Laurentian had said earlier.  The sun was out, it was warm, and there seemed to be no one in any particular peril.

“They always make this look so easy in the shows,” Decker mused.  “I mean, the hero flies about casually, and then?  BAM! Trouble.”  She was beginning to think crime might be easier to find in the evening.  She hoped not.  Decker had a morning shift at work to worry about.  She was willing to miss sleep if justice demanded it, she’d  just rather not have to.

Decker bit her lower lip, and took a brief glance towards the west end of the city.  Most folks knew the area as The Gouge, even though it was Regal Park on all the maps.  It was the bad part of the city.  It seemed a smart place to look for crime, but so far, Decker had skipped it in her patrol.  Decker didn’t want to admit it, but she’d been avoiding the whole area.

I’m not afraid of The Gouge, Decker insisted to her mental Hero Diary.  I mean, I’m a super hero, right?  So I’m totally not afraid.  It’s just I think I wanted to start a bit smaller, you know?  She thought about what smaller would be.  Maybe like, jaywalking, or a parking violation, right?  I mean, I want to dip my toes a bit first, not dive right in.

  Decker sighed, and turned slowly towards the west.  If fighting crime meant going into the most dangerous part of town, so be it.  She was a super hero after all.  Decker swallowed hard against the butterflies in her stomach.

“Someone stop them!” a voice called from the streets below.  “Thieves!  Help!”

Decker swirled to an excited stop above the sound.  A cry for help!  Plus, nowhere near The Gouge!  She clapped excitedly, and then quickly composed herself.  Heroes don’t clap or sqee excitement.  Decker was pretty sure of this.  Not when there was crime to stop at least.  She flew down to the ground, searching for the trouble.

Decker found the voice’s owner pretty easily.  It was an elderly business type, still half getting up.  He was clutching at a split lip, and screaming fury at the street.  Decker circled the man twice before slowing to a hover in front of him.  “Oh!”  she exclaimed.  “I can help!”  She reached out a hand to help the man up.

“Ahh!”  The man cried, surprised by Decker’s sudden appearance.  He leapt to his feet without assistance, and took a few steps back; nearly into traffic.

Decker threw her hands up apologetically, and made a mental note to announce herself better in the future.  “Sorry,” she replied.  Decker tried at her most winning smile.  “You called for help?”

The man blinked at Decker.  He opened his mouth twice with no sound.  He finally managed on the third try.  Barely.  “You just…” He pointed at the sky.

“Yeah.  I can fly,” Decker explained simply.  She thrust her hands on her hips.  “I’m Decker.  I’m a super hero,” she explained.  “Flying’s a thing we do.”  Decker thought on it.  “Ok, maybe not all super heroes?  I mean, not everyone can fly.  But a lot can, so I don’t think it’s too far off to say it’s a thing we do?”

The man stared at Decker hard.  The whole of the situation seemed insane, and the fact that she was still hovering a few feet above the ground was not helping him cope.  Having girls fall from the sky and offer help wasn’t a regular thing for him.  Beyond his confusion though, something about Decker felt familiar.  “Have I seen you before?” he asked.

“Nope,” Decker answered quickly.  “Never seen me before.”  This was not actually true.  In fact, he saw her most mornings, when she served him his coffee.  Decker recognized the man as Frank; the guy that never smiled.  He was the type that always put his money on the counter, never in her hand. 

The fact that he also never made eye contact with Decker when she was working was only part of the reason he wouldn’t recognize her now.  At work, Decker wore large sunglasses to hide her glowing blue eyes, and a hat to hide her navy blue hair.  Reverse secret identity. 

Still, it was best not to let him dwell on it.  “You needed help?” Decker asked.

“Bunch of kids,” Frank began, “came out of nowhere.  They swarmed me, and they took my wallet and my cell phone and my watch!”  He pointed angrily to his split lip.  “One of them hit me when I tried to stop them.”

“Yes!”  Decker pumped her fist.  “An actual crime!  This is awesome!”  She took in Frank’s glance, and reigned in her excitement.  “I mean, this is horrible,” she corrected solemnly.  “It’s horrible, really.”

“Right,” the man replied.  He looked Decker over, and shook his head.  “Look, do you have a phone?  Some sort of super hero communicator maybe?  I think I should probably just call the police.”

“No, no I’ve got this,” Decker replied.  “I’ll get your stuff back for you.  I promise!” 

Frank watched as Decker shot off into the air; determined to stop his muggers.  She bolted a good several feet before turning slowly back to him.

“They went that way,” he stated, pointing in the opposite direction. 

“Of course,” Decker replied, blushing.  She took off again.  “I’m on it!” she declared.

Well Hero Diary; that went well.