“Here kitty kitty,” Linh coaxed, sliding her way along the branch. Ahead of her, the kitty in question clung to the tree, eyes wide. Linh had thought it was a myth that cats could get stuck in trees, but well, here she was. It was a cute kitty, and didn't resist as she gently picked it up.
Linh didn't bother with climbing down, she simply teleported, carrying the cat with her, landing on the ground. The kitty immediately squirmed out of her grasp and raced in through the open door of the nearby house.
“Could at least say thanks…” Linh muttered, then she turned to the woman standing nearby.
“There you go!” She said brightly, as the woman moved forward to grab Linh’s hand.
“Thank you!” The woman said, shaking Linh’s hand enthusiastically, “I was worried that we would have to call the tree company and that would be expensive.”
Linh shook her head, “No, no, we’re happy to help, isn't that right Skip?”
Skip, standing nearby, nodded in agreement.
“It's what we do,” he said.
It was Saturday, and Linh was on patrol with Skip. So far it had been peaceful and completely combat free. They had picked up some litter in the park, extinguished a small shed fire and helped no fewer than four old ladies cross the road. The one serious incident they had attended had been a car crash. Linh had pulled a woman free from her totalled Toyota while Skip directed traffic until the regular police had arrived. It was a nice change of pace, and Linh found herself enjoying the day so far.
They left the grateful woman to tend to her now rescued cat, declining an offer to stay for lunch, though they did accept a cookie and a can of lemonade each. They weren't strictly supposed to be accepting gifts, but Skip explained that the occasional snack provided to them by the public was fine, so long as they reported it. Besides, it helped humanise them, or so he explained.
Either way, Linh wasn't about to complain, it was a nice cookie, and soon enough the two of them were sitting on the roof of a local hardware store, enjoying the view and drinking their lemonade.
“So,” Skip began, “How does your teleport work?”
Linh paused mid-sip, turning to look at him with curiosity, “Why do you ask?”
“I’m curious,” he said with a shrug, “it doesn't look like it works anything like mine.”
Linh considered. Not about whether or not she would tell him, of course she would do that. He was a teammate, but she wasn't entirely sure how to explain things.
“Technically, it's a flash step, not a teleport,” she tried, “Does that mean anything to you?”
Skip shook his head, so Linh explained.
“Basically, I’m travelling the distance in just one step. Sort of… cutting out the middle part, if that makes sense?” she said, and Skip began to nod, but stopped, frowning.
“But haven't I seen you do it in mid air?” he asked, and Linh shrugged.
“I’m still stepping, the fall is just counted as part of that movement,” she said, “As long as I’m not restrained and have line of sight, I can get there. Though, it's exhausting, and that only gets worse with distance.”
“Fair enough,” Skip said, “That's nothing like me. I mark a location. It's sort of… like setting up a homing beacon. I have to touch the place first, though I can cheat and throw something that I have already touched.” Linh nodded, she had been curious about Skip’s abilities. The others, Grim excluded, seemed straightforward. Sentinel had a suit, Douche made lightning and Kestrel summoned magical birds. Speaking of Kestrel…
“So how come you can teleport to Kestrel’s birds?” she asked, curiously.
Skip shrugged, “She can mimic the energy marker I use to guide my teleports. Sort of like being a spotter.”
Linh whistled, “Fuck she's cool.”
Skip nodded, “Yeah, she's awesome. Taught me a lot.”
“You were the rookie before me, right?” Linh asked.
Skip took a sip from his own lemonade, staring whimsically out over the city.
“Yeah,” he said, “straight out of school. I helped Kestrel save some people from a fire, and she put in a good word for me.”
Linh looked at him, surprised, “That's awesome!” she said.
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
Skip shrugged, “Not really, I saw the footage of you fighting those guys in the grocery store. That was awesome, I just teleported some guys out of a building.”
Linh shook her head, “I just did what I had to.”
Skip smiled at her, “So did I, that's why we're heroes.”
Linh supposed he had a point. They sat in silence for a bit, just watching the clouds roll past and the city move. It was nice, relaxing. And kind of boring. But, Linh supposed, super heroing was one of those jobs where you preferred to be bored. After all, if she wasn't bored, that meant someone was in danger.
“How long have you had your powers?" Linh asked, breaking the silence.
Skip shrugged, “Since I was like, 12?” he said.
“My origin was nothing special, just found a weird mask at a garage sale and put it on. Bam, super powers.”
Linh rolled her eyes, “I’ve seen Masquerade Man. That shit was always on tv when I was little.”
Skip grinned, “Fine, you caught me. I was boring, just came into them at puberty, like most supers,” he said.
“The hardest part was learning what I could do without hurting myself. I was terrified that I would get myself stuck in a wall or something, you know?”
Linh giggled, she could picture it, Skip lodged halfway up a building.
“It's a shame that powers don't come with an instruction manual,” he continued, “It would make this shit a lot easier.”
Linh shrugged, “Mine did.”
“Wait, what?” Skip stared at her.
“Yeah, got a spirit guide, and Grandma to teach me,” she told him.
“That is unfair,” Skip grumbled. “So what, you’re a third generation hero?”
“More like 80,” Linh said.
Skip stared blankly.
“What?” Linh asked.
“You're kidding, right?” Skip said, “There is no way your powers go back a thousand years.”
“Closer to 2000,” Linh said.
“Bullshit.”
“Nope,” Linh countered, “I’m serious. The power’s been passed down at least since people have been writing about stuff like that. I’m just the latest in line.”
“Holy shit,” Skip said. “So, you're like some mythical folk hero straight out of legend?”
Linh shrugged, “Pretty much?”
“That is fucking cool.”
“I dunno about that,” Linh replied, “It's just… who I am I guess. I knew since I was five that I would be doing this.”
She paused, “I didn't expect Douche to be involved though,” she added.
“No one expects Douche,” Skip said gravely, “That's what makes him so effective.”
“And creepy,” Linh added.
“And creepy,” Skip agreed.
The silence crept back in, until Skip finished his drink and stood up.
“Right!” He said, “Back at it, work doesn't wait for anyone. Not even legendary rabbit warriors.”
“I’m home Mum!” Linh called, entering the restaurant. It was evening, and the place was bustling. The little Pho shop wasn't exactly raking in the millions, but it was doing rather well. Linh’s Dad was a hell of chef.
Her mum bustled in through the kitchen door, arms full of bowls.
“Take these to three,” Mum instructed, transferring the bowls to Linh who dropped her bag to accommodate them. She kicked her bag into the corner then headed to the table in question, dropping off three bowls of noodles and a basket of rice.
“Anything else?” she asked the customers, a trio of suit clad men. They all said no, so Linh headed back to the counter where a customer was waiting to pay. She was jumping right in today it seemed.
“Table five,” Mum said as she passed, order in hand from a different table, and Linh nodded, wringing the customer up for the bill for Five.
She took their money, gave their change, and responded to another table, listening to their request. She cleared a second table on the way back, dropping the empty bowls back off into the kitchen. She said hi to her dad on the way through, getting just a grunt in response. He didn't talk much when he was working, then headed back onto the floor to get the drinks that first table asked for.
“You were with that boy today, yes?” Mum asked, as the two of them were washing glasses.
Linh rolled her eyes, “It was work Mum. We were on patrol.”
“He’s handsome though, yes?” Mum replied.
“He's like, ten years older than me,” Linh said, not enjoying this particular conversation.
“That is the same as with your father,” Mum said, “Besides, older men are better. Steady, reliable. Good jobs.”
“Better lovers too,” Mum said in a conspiratorial whisper.
“Mum!” Linh squeaked, flushing.
“What? It's true. He is like a stallion, your father. Or was, now he’s old and grumpy. Good for making Pho, not love.”
“MUM!” Linh yelped, smacking her mum with the dish cloth.
Her Dad approaching from behind to say something in Vietnamese that Linh chose not to hear, and giving her Mum a playful smack on the rear.
Mum giggled like a school girl as Linh’s face burned. In front of her! Really?
“I am serious Mai-Linh,” her Mum said, tone shifting.
“You are a good, responsible girl, but you are young. Don't forget to live. Kiss boys, get in trouble. Live. Just no babies, yes? I am too young to be Grandmother.”
“I’m not interested in boys Mum,” Linh protested, “I have a job, and Jazz, I don't need a boyfriend.”
Mum snorted, “You say that now, but wait until you get a taste…”
“I think table four needs water!” Linh blurted, retreating before her Mum could start talking about sex again. God, she did not need to hear that.
Fortunately, the night was far too busy for them to sit around chatting, so Linh was spared thinking about her parent's love lives as she busied herself waiting tables. She enjoyed the normalcy of it all. Hero work was amazing, but it was nice to just be here, at home, working.
She retreated to her room when she could, and lay on her bed, Pom Pom in her arms, staring out at the night. The moon was up, a huge glowing orb that filled Linh with energy as its light fell onto her.
She couldn't relax though. She felt… restless. She couldn't stop thinking about the events earlier in the week. She couldn't hurt that Bruiser, not without hurting herself. She needed to find a way, a new technique.
She sat up, standing to head over to her desk. She reached into the drawer, pulling out an ornate jade box. Next she picked up Pom Pom, unclipping the collar that the Spirit Rabbit wore. She pressed it to the box, and it opened.
Inside were pages of text, ancient, sacred. Any museum would pay a literal fortune to get their hands on these, but for Linh, they were priceless. She had been entrusted with these papers when she had turned 16.
Her legacy was more than just a set of powers. It was knowledge, passed down for centuries. It was her job to safeguard these manuals, to learn and make use of their powers to protect the innocent, and to pass the legacy down to the next worthy descendant.
Carefully, she flipped through them, searching for the one she needed. Pages of formulas, ancient writings, legends. Here, a recipe for a pill to heal grave illness, the ingredients long since lost to time, there a poem written by one of her ancestors.
She ignored them, they were not what she wanted.
There, a technique manual.
Spinning Jade Palm.
She read it, then carefully, gently set it down on her bed. She focused, letting the moonlight streaming through the window fill her. Then she began to move, following the flow of the technique.
She may lack the power to hurt a juggernaut right now, but with this technique? Well, she might just surprise some people.
Next time she encountered someone like that, she would be ready.
