Marvel : the Author

Hello everyone ! I hope you're having a good week so far. Personally, I'm getting tired of people. I might be wrong but I feel that people are getting more and more obnoxious. Or they were always like this, hid it or it's me who's becoming intolerant. Someday, I might say : « Sorry, I'm people intolerant so I can't bear you… »

Anyways, bad puns aside, I'll get the self advert out of the way : find my Patréon page by searching for Cathbel on their website. You'll find advanced chapters and other stories, as well as the gratification of filling my wallet ! 😝

Now, onto the minute culture… Is the trend for games nowadays on Bullet-hell/swarm-like game ? I'm thinking mostly of 3 games I'm playing : Temtem swarm, Jotunslayer and Yet another zombie survivor. There are others of course, but those are the ones I personally played and liked. Then again, I understand such trends : a game last about 20 minutes and since we don't really have time to play anymore, those games are the best !

Let's move onto the story. Enjoy !

==========

My friends' story has been… harrowing in a sense. But at least, it hadn't lasted long and nobody was really hurt. Moreover, they've spent a good deal of it unconscious. From what they've told me, they'd been lured inside a warehouse and knocked out with some kind of gas. They'd woken up in the basement of Fisk's building… And were rescued an hour or so later.

Obviously, they had no idea where they were and only realized how much shit they were in after we explained it to them. They looked at me in awe learning I'd basically taken on Fisk's whole operation solo.

Speaking of…

« Do you think he'll create trouble for me ? I'm sure he's got me on tape 'attacking' him and his men… »

Mom scoffs and dad explains :

« Criminals like him are all about perception. I doubt he'll want to make it known that an underage hero has stormed his stronghold alone and manage to thwart all his forces. Even like that, words' bound to spread so, even though he'll have to do something, he probably won't be involving the authorities. »

My stomach drops at those words. Before anyone continues I already what's about to be said…

« Yeah ! My guess is they'll put a price on your head. And then, he'll give your photo to all his goons for them to be on the lookout. » Mom says in a deadpan voice. She then continued much more upbeat. « A good thing you've decided to play it the Clark Kent route and make your natural form, your hero identity… »

I smile slightly at that : my mom's such a nerd ! She's a big fan of the DC franchise and has got a massive collection of comics. Truth be told, I wouldn't be surprised if she has a storage space somewhere just to stash her collection… As for her favorite character ? Zatanna Zatara ! Actually, she told me she liked Alfred because of his dry wit and the fact that he's essential to Bruce Wayne. But then, she discovered that she was a witch, she liked to wear revealing outfits so… Zatanna became her favorite character !

All this to say that's why she seems to perk up at the mention of Clark Kent and the perceived similarities between us. And I do mean perceived ! I'm not an almost un-killable, almighty Swiss army knife with more power than the Sun. Also, I'm not an alien. Wait… Actually, considering I reincarnated in this world, can I also be viewed as an alien ? Also, I'm also kind of a Swiss army knife, and although I don't have as much power as the Sun… I'm working towards that very goal. Or even more. Huh ! Maybe we do have things in common !

The key difference is that Clark Kent is a boy scout, willing to sacrifice himself to save another. On the other hand, I'm selfish ! I don't think I'll put myself in danger if it's to save strangers. Unless it benefits me somehow.

Okay ! Let's table those depressing thoughts for now. We still have to go home. However, for Doreen and Peter, they'll have to answer some uncomfortable questions. They've spent the night out and haven't notified their guardians.

Looking at my parents, I enquire :

« Do you think we could cover for them ? »

« Hm ? » My dad hums, uncomprehending so I explain :

« You know… To protect their asses. Their family's bound to come down on them like Napalm in Viet-Nam during the war. »

Doreen winces, brushing her shoulders with her fingers in an self-protective gesture. I can't read Peter's face since he's still covered head-to-toe in his Spider-Man costume, but his posture visibly tenses. It's as if he's ready to jump out of the way of whatever train wreck he's picturing in his mind.

Dad glances at the two and turns back to me :

« What do you have in mind ? »

« I don't know… Maybe we played video games the whole night and fell asleep in my room ? »

Mom scoffs :

« Yeah, nothing says 'Sorry we made you worry' like 'we were playing the whole time, tehe~' ! » As she says this, she also acts like a clueless airhead, rapping her knuckles on her head, winking and sticking out her tongue.

Although the image is funny and I chuckle a bit, what she's saying is… well, thoughtful. If we want to avoid them being grounded, we need a better excuse than that. Also, if my parents knew, they'd have called theirs, so we need to explain that as well…

« How about this, then : we reviewed our science lessons for the whole night in anticipation of a quiz. We didn't tell you and when we thought of it mentioning it to them, it was already too late and we decided not to wake Doreen and Pete's families up. »

Dad nods in silence and Mom comments :

« A little thoughtless but then, that's what you should expect from teenagers. You just have to have the same answer when they ask you on what subject the quiz will be and, of course, if they do decide to quiz you, manage to answer enough questions to satisfy them. » Looking at Peter and then Doreen, she adds : « I suspect it won't be too difficult in Pete's case but Doreen… »

The teen mutters in a low voice :

« Yeah… Science and I aren't on friendly terms. »

I shrug and carelessly say :

« She was the one who wanted to work the most, afraid of her grades, but since it's not her subject, she was the first one to fall asleep… » Thinking it through, I continue : « We managed to rouse her up a couple of times but then got tired of it. »

Doreen pouts at that and protests :

« It makes it sound like I'm an idiot ! »

Cory points out :

« You're not an idiot, Do, but it's happened enough time in the library that it's a believable story. I mean… I'm the same in History class so I understand not being able to focus on a subject and being lulled to sleep. »

Still not convinced, the four of us, plus my parents, refined our story for a while after that. »