Hero
"What is it you desire?"
"I can deliver you this world, but in exchange..."
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Earth- New Detroit City: 1/9/2028
"Damn, burning to death, that's probably gonna sting... And here I thought we were friends." said a teen with no signs of panic on his face. There was, rather, the first genuine smile he'd shown in 10 years. A grin, just short of laughing at the thought that of all ways to die she'd burn him to death. There was a boy about 5 in his arms. The child was trembling fiercely, wrapped in a soaked curtain; terrified of the current situation. "Cousin, please.." the boy manages to squeeze out in a strained voice before pausing from the overwhelming fear. "Save me!" he screeched through clenched, chattering teeth.
The young man is Ali Theós, a youth known and loved by every resident of New Detroit City. A hometown hero, lauded as the world's brightest hope by the city's residents since he was only 12. His reputation had, by now spread across the entire country, even discussed with high regard across the world. The boy in his arms was his cousin, Gene.
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Theós had ditched school to spend his 18th and final birthday with his mom. On their way home he made an excuse to split off from her, knowing that today would be his last he didn't wish to drag her down with him. While wandering, he happened to pass his aunt's home and in a window upstairs were the first sparks of a flame on the curtain. He immediately took action, calling the fire department as he dashed towards the house.
Kicking down the door, inside his 8-year-old cousin Xavier was shocked at the sudden turn of events. The fire was spreading rapidly, already reaching outside that window and connecting onto the roof above the front porch. Urging the child outside through the rear door, he rushed upstairs to check on his other relatives. Theos' aunt, Jada, who was in the shower, had thrown on her clothes and dashed to check on her children after smelling smoke. Unfortunately, running full speed with wet feet, she slipped upon entering her youngest child's room, snapping an ankle. "This can't be happening.." she sobbed, prepared to start crawling towards the crib where her toddler laid. Before she could move, she heard rapid footsteps coming from behind her and turned to see who it was. "Theós!" she screamed, relieved upon seeing her nephew and savior. Placing the now howling 2-year-old in her lap, he scooped them both up before racing to escape the now fire-lit room bringing them to the rear of the house.
On their way through the kitchen, Theós told Jada to snatch the curtain from the window. Tenants from the surrounding homes had begun gathering in the front and rear of the residence, worry written all over their faces. Some were comforting Xavier, who was sobbing while waiting on his loved ones to exit the burning house. Others were praying, recording, talking on phones or simply hoping everything ended up ok. Much of the crowd was relieved, some even cheering upon seeing Theós rush through the back door carrying his aunt and cousin. A knowing few were not able to show any excitement, as they knew there was likely still one more child inside. Theós quickly laid Xavier on the ground and ran the curtain through the pool before heading back inside.
Upon making it back into the house, he began searching the places Gene was known to hide. He heaved a sigh of relief after finding him under the sink in a half bath located beneath the stairs; the first place he checked. Unwrapping the wet curtain from himself, he placed it on Gene and began to carry him out of the house before coming to an abrupt stop. Shocked at the scene in front of him, Theós dropped to one knee. He looked at the terrified kid in his arms, then back at the flames slowly creeping into the room from behind.
They were currently in a sun-room at the rear of the house; the only room left that wasn't burning. As Theós stared at the door leading outside, his smile widened. The flames which had yet to reach this room from the front were already covering the rear. He pondered exactly how dead he would be after running through the few feet of flames that were blocking the rear door to launch his cousin outside. This thought lasted for less than a second as he began to take action. He knew he would die today, but his family wasn't part of the deal; he had to save him.
"You idiot. As if I'd let you burn to death!" fiercely said a devilish, seductive voice. The voice was omnipresent. As it said this, he went flying from the house. Though the woman was unable seen, her rage was evident to Theós as he went soaring.
Whoosh!
As he flew a gust of wind fanned out, causing the flames surrounding the door to billow in all directions. A wave of heat was sent towards the crowd waiting outside in the alley, making all who weren't looking notice and sending a wave of relief through those paying close attention. They had gathered out here waiting, hoping, praying for his safe return, ever since he entered to search for the remaining child. The crowd made way for a fire truck, and the firemen that had arrived just a moment ago were preparing to tackle the fire and finding out the situation as he blasted out of the door.
Bang!
A sickening thud reverberated as Theós seemed to heavily slam against the pavement. In reality, his momentum halted just shy of hitting the ground. All the harm he and Gene would have suffered from the crash had blown away with the wind. This force merely couldn't be detected with the mortal eye. The soot had also been mostly cleaned from Theós' face by it when he crash-landed. The onlookers could only see him roughly crashing to the ground, back-first to shield the child in his arms as they gasped from shock and concern. Three firemen hurriedly went up to pull them away from the residence. The spectators began to cheer loudly at the valiant display of the youth in front of them. Someone with so much to live for, yet prepared to die to rescue his loved ones. Ambulances had also arrived on the scene a moment ago, urged to the alley by the massive crowd.
The vast size of the still rapidly growing mob encircling the now-extinguished house was filled with everyone from this neighborhood and all the surrounding areas. The news helicopters, hundreds of drones and people coming over on flying motorcycles. The fire that spread so swiftly and the heroic scene it formed while he wasn't harmed whatsoever. It was clear to Theós what was going on. He understood that the stage had been set for him to die a hero; for him to go out with a bang. Theós took a last meaningful gaze at his relatives being loaded into the ambulance before passing out on his stretcher with a content smirk on his face. A wave of translucent energy swept over him in a swift motion. He had taken his final breath.
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In spirit form standing beside his corpse, Theos observed the scene that played out following his death. "He's not breathing!" an EMT shouted to the paramedics as they began doing all they could to restore his breath; his heartbeat. The crowd waited with bated breath, stilled at the sudden turn of events. The crowd watching live were still. Those watching at home on tv were still. Those watching live on their mobile devices were still. The world was still. Anticipating for any signs of life. A single twitch or twinge from the prodigy deemed by many the one who will change the world; and by others the one who already had. In the end, there was nothing.
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"My final offering to you in this realm. Now it is time for you to satisfy your end of the agreement." the heavenly voice from earlier proclaimed, still appearing mildly upset. "Are you satisfied?" she inquired as if already grasping the answer, "Your demise will go down as the most tragic in your realm's records, boy." she proceeded. "You are surely an eternally peerless and legendary figure in this realm now, and your mother may seek solace in the fact that her offspring became the most exceptional of men." "This was amazing, Eliana. I can rest easy knowing I left my mom with all she could ever ask for and did nothing but make her proud." Theós replied, "Thank you."
Upon finally witnessing the mighty and picturesque beauty in front of him, Theós realized why even as an adult, she regarded him as a child. She was at least 6 feet 6 inches tall and would look like an amazon next to most women on Earth. Her long, wavy, jet-black hair was parted slightly to the right and spilled like a waterfall over her smooth shoulders, gently flowing down her back to the rear of her thighs. This painted a charming contrast to her healthy and lustrous caramel skin. Captivating blue eyes framed by long, _ lashes sat beneath her slim, neatly arched eyebrows, and a natural crimson tint made her thick lips deeper red than any lipstick could come close to. When she spoke, behind those luscious red lips her pristine white teeth adorned by 2 dangerously sharp canines became slightly visible, making one wonder just how enchanting a smile from this stone-faced woman would be. She wore a backless crimson halter dress, with a diamond-shaped opening in the front from the neck to the waist. The slit up either side of the dress left her long shapely legs unhidden from Theos' line of sight and her full bust, although ready to spill free of the snug dress didn't appear so huge in compliment to her towering frame. A simple golden ankle bracelet made a lovely distinction with her smooth skin and even standing there barefoot she seemed to tower over the 6'2 Theos.
Her words over our time together would have you believe she hates men, but everything about her says she was born to bewitch them and have them offer her their everything.' he mused to himself. 'Eliana and Theós... Could this be a coincidence, or was my mom's intuition really this strong?' he pondered.
After observing his calm demeanor, Eliana let go of the last dregs of her temper. "Hmph." she scoffed, folding her arms, "Acting so seasoned when you're merely a child. Simply cry and act your age." "hehe.." he let out a faint chuckle, realizing that she was attempting to be thoughtful. "I wish to witness the outcome of my efforts in the realm, so we shall remain for a tad longer and observe," she asserted with a slight blush on her arrogant face; the delicate reaction contradicting her sophisticated air painting a remarkably beautiful picture.
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At the tender age of 12, Theós introduced a new plant to the world. A vine with a hardness that put steel to shame and under certain conditions grew at a monstrous pace, visible to the naked eye. It converted so much CO2 into oxygen it was astounding, and wouldn't decompose over time. The low cost and limitless supply of the material created jobs across the city in construction and road repair. For a town attempting to rebuild this stimulated development so much that it inspired the name change, to New Detroit City. After thriving off the production for the next year to establish himself, he introduced the methods of nurturing, trimming, molding and (if necessary) destroying the plant to the rest of the world at no cost. Although creating several other economic issues in its place, this effectively ended homelessness worldwide, and he understood the other problems would undoubtedly be solved with time.
At 15 Theós brought forth yet another plant that grew at astonishing rates, a healthy delicious fruit that grew in almost any terrain. With this, even famine was a minor concern in his hands, and his legend had grown uncontrollably across the country as they were proud he was one of their own. A few weeks before his tragic loss, he had introduced a miracle tonic that remedied all forms of illness and recovered the body by drinking any amount of it. A small drop of red fluid that he cast into the sea. Such a simple act naturally brought about uncertainty but all who drank any liquid originating from ocean water following that day attested to the miraculous healing properties.
Young but profoundly impactful, the world in the weeks following his death made clear the type of lasting effect he had left behind. People of the world sent their condolences in an unending stream to his mother Giselle. World leaders and other powerful figures were no exception. Theós always wondered what people would think if they knew he had transformed this world only to fulfill a desire of his mothers. Noone could understand where or how such a genius came to be or how he could create such wonderous things from materials available on earth. In truth, everything he introduced was given to him by Eliana. When Theós voiced a desire, if she could not satisfy it through sheer strength, she would leave and return with items which met his needs.
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Giselle Parker was a dreamer, and when she dreamt, she dreamt big. No dream she had was bigger to her than for her son to grow up to be someone important. Raised by a single father whose wife died shortly after giving birth to her, she grew up in the struggle, but her father always showered her with love regardless. A beautiful and kind dark-skinned woman being raised in a rough city like Detroit, life was tough for her growing up, as she was easily walked on by others. In the end though, no matter how much she was knocked down, she got back up, and she had faith her son would have at least this much tenacity. She often told Theós stories of this in his early years, and everything he had done was ultimately to grant her greatest wish. For that, he was even prepared to give up everything, his life, his time, his aspirations; everything.
Eliana had followed him since birth and throughout his life. Regularly offering him things in efforts to strike a contract with him, but he had his mom and never desired to deal with this shady spirit which he couldn't even see.
"Do you wish to be the strongest?"
"I can give you the power to move mountains..."
"Do you wish to fulfill her dream?"
"I can make you the sole king of this realm..."
"Do you wish to remove him from her life?"
"I can make even memories of him wither from existence..."
"Do you wish..."
"Do you wish..."
"Do you wish....."
"Do you?"
In the end, the things he coveted most, and the things she proposed the most would be the those which he accepted; paying the ultimate price.
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1/9/2018
"Wow, you're 8 already! My little man, getting so big." Giselle Parker was in high spirits the day of Theós birthday, so he as well pretended to be happy. In reality, however, he was worried, worried that his absent father would return home drunk once again and break the peaceful atmosphere. "Boy, do you wish for him to remain gone?" Eliana prodded, only to be disregarded once again. "Mom lets go out to eat instead, how about that?" Theós asked in an attempt to avoid his father ruining their day. "Theos, you know we can't, love," Giselle replied in a gentle voice, a slightly guilty look on her face.
She knew what he was attempting to do, but she also understood how much worse things would be if she went through with the idea; more so if they were caught leaving. "Theós, baby, one day you will be someone amazing, and you'll look back on times when you worried like this and think 'How petty was that?'" She continued, rubbing her hand across his cheek with a tender smile. "Do you wish for status, to make her proud?" Eliana inquired, once again being snubbed. Theós gently smiled back at his mom in an attempt to ease her burden.
As the atmosphere had grown cozy, it was immediately shattered. A man had come stumbling loudly through the door, after an eternity shuffling keys. "You knew I was coming. Why was the damn door locked?!" he aggressively slurred upon entering the house. "You locked it on your way out." Giselle replied gently "We didn't know what time you would be here." "What?" the man boomed, apparently trying to pick a fight, "Are you blaming me?" Theós had anticipated such a thing happening, and nearing his breaking point, he stood still with his fists balled until his knuckles turned white. He was so enraged he could no longer hear the words that were being exchanged between the pair.
"Do you feel weak?"
"Do you wish to save her?"
"To kill him?"
"To grant her greatest wish?"
"Do you wish to change this world for her?" She asked, not giving pause for him to acknowledge. "Why me?" he questioned, stunned out of his rage for an instant. "That is of no concern.. Will you accept? Will you not?" she asserted.
Theós thought about his father; about the stories his mom would tell him of the once generous man. A handsome and proud son of a Hungarian tycoon and a Persian actress ancestry, he grew up fed with a silver spoon but never took that for granted. Feeling sympathy for those with less from a young age, he could always be found donating his things or volunteering to help those in need. It was this gentle spirit that won over Giselle Parker in the end. One day, his luck seemed to change for the worse in an instant, and with it, so did his nature. His family lost everything, and he had to find work elsewhere that didn't allow for him to be as generous with his funds. Over time he broke; he began drinking, and with it, he started losing his temper. Theós knew that his dad had become scum, but did that mean he deserved to die? Although he'd had enough of him and wanted him gone, could he really wish for his death? No, he wanted to, but even as a child, he knew that was wrong.
-Bang!-
Snapped back to reality at the sound of his mom being shoved onto the dining table, Theós immediately steeled his resolve, "I'll do it! Get rid of him now!" he roared to her in his mind, "Just don't kill him." "Very good, boy. I shall impart unto you all you desire in this world, but in exchange on the 10th year from today, your soul shall become mine, and I will guide you back with me..."
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"It is time," Eliana said, pulling Theós out of his recollection. His surroundings blurred before he could respond. He was no longer able to see anything, but he knew he had left that world.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone