I relaxed—for like, one minute. Being the strongest? Yeah, it's not all flexing and flying. First off, I'm basically a celebrity to every kid and adult. Everywhere I go, it's just tiny gremlins ready to trade their juice boxes and action figures for a high-five. If I was into that kind of thing, I'd have a whole cult by now. Toy-based religion. I'd be their god.
Second, all the conspiracy theorists have a boner whenever you fight with a villain of the week.
'Lawbreaker: A Threat To Humanity?!'
Third, Unc. I mean, he's after my ass every minute. Of course, I don't let him be, to be honest.
With these three factors, my life is a certified piece of shit.
I popped out a cigarette, taking out a lighter. I inhaled, slow.
I puffed, resting my legs on the steering wheel of my car. It was an auto-drive anyway and the wheel's just for aesthetics.
I leaned back, cigarette dangling from my lip, and closed my eyes for a second. Just one. Let the world fade. The city could scream a little longer without me.
"Approaching destination," the voice said, breaking the silence.
I opened one eye.
Mountain. Forest. Greenery. Fresh air. Cool place.
The door swung open automatically, like the car was politely asking me to get the hell out.
I exhaled the smoke, "Stay warm for me," I muttered as I stepped out, my boots making a squishy sound with the mud.
The wind was cleaned up here. Colder too, honestly. Well, that was a given.
I walked a few meters forward and sat on a flat boulder.
I stared at the cigarette, watching the ember eat its way down. I threw it onto the ground, crushing it with my feet.
Most days, I was just patching holes in a dam built on lies.
But up here? None of that mattered.
There was no G.D.A. here. No Cecil. No enhanced assholes trying to prove something. Just me, a dead cigarette, and a little peace carved out from the chaos.
My comm crackled.
Of course.
I sighed and didn't even reach for it.
Let it buzz.
I wasn't in the mood to save the world.
I thought about the day, there was this new superhero, uh, his name was... Invisible? I don't know, he was similar to Omni-Man in powers, wonder why he'd pick a name like that.
A new pizzeria opened up two blocks away from my place. Saw the reviews, a 5/5. Pretty impressive.
The comm buzzed again.
Bah.
The comm buzzed again.
"What the heck?" I answered.
"Hey, I'm busy. This better be important. You hear me?!" I shouted.
"Kaito, we need you at the Gaurdians' HQ, they are dead." I heard.
I froze.
Dead?
"All of them?" I ask.
"All of them?" I asked again, my voice lower than before.
"Yes, Kaito. All of them. We need you here, now."
The comm went dead. "Well, fuck."
I just stood there for a second, staring at the mud on my boots like it might start spelling out a reason. The wind was still. Too still. Like the forest knew something had just shifted.
I walked back to the car.
"HQ," I said, sliding into the seat.
"Route confirmed. Estimated time—" the AI began.
"Ten minutes. Override."
"Warning: City ordinances prohibit—"
"Override." I ordered.
They were all dead, huh?
Ten Minutes Later – Guardians' HQ
Smoke. Blood. Death hung in the air like it paid rent here.
The first body I saw was Aquarius — twisted, half his torso crushed in. He looked like someone had tried to turn him into soup.
"Damn, should've minded his business in the ocean after all," I muttered, stepping over him.
Cecil was already on site, standing over the remains of War Woman. Her axe was still in her hand — which was about three feet from the rest of her.
"Looks like she got one swing in," I said.
Cecil didn't say anything right away. Just lit a cigarette with that same dead-eyed expression he always had when the stakes turned biblical.
"This wasn't random," he finally said. "Whoever did this... they knew them. Knew how to kill them fast."
I glanced around. Red Rush. Darkwing. The Martian. Immortal. The floor was a blood-slicked museum of death.
"This was an execution. Not much of a fight, I guess."
Cecil nodded once. "And now I've got world leaders breathing down my neck, the media going feral, and half our backup teams going ghost out of fear."
"Who found them?"
"Omni-Man."
I froze. "Wait—he's the only one still breathing?"
"Yeah. Says he came too late to help."
I stared at Cecil.
"You believe that?"
He stood silent.
"Do. You. Believe. That?"
"Does it matter what I believe, Kaito?"
"It fucking does now."
Cecil looked at me then. Not the glance he gives when he's trying to dodge, but a full-on stare — the kind of stare that says I've seen too much to say it out loud.
"I've got analysts digging through every piece of footage. Audio. Satellite feeds. We're gonna find the truth."
"Cut the agency crap, Unc," I snapped. "I've seen Red Rush move faster than cameras can track, and that guy's dead with a fist through his ribcage. So either someone faster than him showed up — or someone strong enough to stop him mid-step."
Cecil didn't blink. "I know."
"Do you know where he is?" I asked.
"Kaito, let's not get hasty." He suggested.
"Woah, Unc, you know that I'm not the emotional type. The guardians meant nothing to me, but I don't think I want their killer to be roaming around and neither would you, right?"
Cecil took one long drag of his cigarette, and exhaled through his nose like a dragon with a migraine.
"He's at home," he said finally. "Resting."
"Resting?" I blinked.
I clicked my tongue, "Tell him to wake the fuck up, I need to have a word with him." I told Cecil.
Cecil's eyes twitched—just a little. Most people wouldn't catch it. But I've known him too long.
"That's not a good idea," he said, voice flat. "Not right now."
"Was it a good idea to leave him alive after he blendered the most powerful team on the planet?"
"We don't have proof," Cecil said, the same way someone tells themselves their house isn't burning because the fire's only in one room.
"You got blood on the walls and chunks of Darkwing in the AC vents," I snapped. "The hell else do you need? A confession with background music?"
"Kaito—"
"No. You brought me into this circus, remember? I'm not your intern. I'm not your errand boy. You said I was the future."
Cecil looked away. That was a win.
I leaned in, voice low and sharp. "If he's at home, I'm going. And if you're not going to stop me… stay the hell out of my way."
He didn't say anything. Just flicked his cigarette away like it offended him and walked off into the smoke.
Later — Nolan Grayson's House
It looked like any other suburban home. Lawn mowed. Porch light on. Mailbox politely full of junk and bills. Real dadcore vibes.
I hovered above the front yard for a second. Felt weird landing at the place of the guy who might've murdered Earth's A-team like they were NPCs.
I landed softly. No sonic booms. No drama. Just boots on concrete.
I rang the doorbell.
Because apparently, I was feeling polite.
The door opened.
Debbie stood there. She looked tired. Not the mascara-running, sobbing kind of tired. The kind you only get from loving someone you don't know anymore.
"Kaito," she said, voice like a half-pulled zipper.
"Hey, Mrs. Grayson. Is Nolan home?"
She hesitated, just for a beat too long.
"He's downstairs. In the gym."
"Working out?"
"Yeah. Something like that."
She stepped aside. I walked in.
It was silent inside. Too quiet. No music. No TV hum. Just the buzz of a man who could kill gods, pretending he had a routine.
I headed down.
The door to the basement was open. I walked in, slow. Cautious.
Nolan stood by the weights. He didn't turn around.
"I was wondering when you'd show up," he said.
"Funny. I figured you'd be too busy mourning."
He finally turned. Calm. Composed. Face clean-shaven like it was any normal day.
"I mourn in my own way."
"Yeah? What way is that? Punching holes in your colleagues' chests?"
His eyes narrowed. Just a bit.
"You think I did it."
"I know you could've. That's the part that scares me."
He walked toward me. Slowly. No threatening posture. Just… presence.
"I didn't kill them, Kaito."
I tilted my head. "Then tell me what did."
Silence. One second. Two. Ten.
Then: "I can't."
"You can't, or you won't?"
Nolan sighed. Heavy. Regretful. Too damn cinematic to be innocent.
"You need to leave. Now."
I stared at him. That same look I gave Cecil earlier.
Then I smiled. Just a little.
"See, the thing about telling me to leave… is that I usually don't."
"And what's up with the acting? Took lessons?" I asked.
"I'm not acting, Kaito."
"Tch, tch, tch, shut the fuck up," I told him.
"I can't really kill you now, I don't have the evidence but if you turn out like I think, run. As far as you can."
Nolan didn't flinch at my words. His jaw tightened slightly, but that was about it. For a guy who could level mountains, the calmness was unsettling.
"I'm not your enemy, Kaito," he said, voice still even, like he was having a conversation about the weather instead of the blood-soaked mess we were standing in. "But you need to walk away."
"Is that an order, or a plea?" I shot back.
"Y'know, I always thought you were weird, all good. No one is all good unless they're acting as if they are. But you were acting, uh, too all good."
"So, let me tell you one last time, stop. Whatever is your goal, stop it. I don't wanna leave a family without the breadwinner, but most of the time, I have to."
"Tell your son I came by, heard he was a fan, and please, for god's sake, don't make him like you," I told him.
I turned and walked out without another word.
I had the opportunity to kill and I didn't.
Oof, I'm getting soft. But now, I'm ninety percent sure that that fucker is the killer.
But you know, let's see.
"What happened, Nolan?" I heard a faint voice.
"Nothing, Debbie. Nothing at all." Damn, he sure was convincing.