Chapter 2 - That Feeling

…NO. I can't leave it like this. I can't die here. Not whilst my family are still alive. Not when they still rely on me.

Up until now, I was taking hit after hit. My penance for the role I played all those years ago in giving the "Supers" a platform.

But I don't know what will happen after I'm gone, I don't want to know. I need to stop this quick.

I look around for something to break us apart long enough to activate my powers. It's been so long since I used them, but as soon as I take my first stance it feels as though no time has passed at all.

You see whilst I did retire, my powers couldn't be erased, one of my old adventures saw to this, The HFP knew this and gave me a choice.

A luxury they didn't afford many others, but they knew me, knew what I had done, and didn't blame me. So as a show of faith that I knew my time was up, I took them up on their offer. Exile and strictly no use of my powers.

I along with my wife and daughter live in this forest in the middle of nowhere to protect the world from us. But today I have to break the promise I made to The HFP, and an old friend, because the only things I have left to care about in this world are in danger, and I can't just sit back and allow it to happen.

The Man on Fire comes towards me to make another pass. But this time I'm ready for him. I clench my fist and wind up my arm ready for impact, and this lifeless husk of a man hits me full on, briefly extinguishing his flames as his body snaps back.

For a second I see him for what he really is, he's still so young, even 7 years later he still looks like the kid I once looked out for. But right now none of that matters. I have to stop this quickly before he can destroy the surroundings, and find my family.

This time I go on the offensive, now my powers aren't what they used to be, unlike other people, my abilities needed to be used often to retain their strength, so after 7 years, I'm thrown back to the start of my career against the weapon of The HFP, who has been honed over time to be one of the strongest "Supers" left.

I land on top of him, and feel the heat rising towards me, as he regains consciousness, but this time it isn't just his heat. The power begins to return to my eyes, and in an instant, that feeling returns.

My eyes burn hotter than they have in years, as a beam of red singes into The Man on Fire's leg. I know I can't hold out for long in close quarters, so I hit him with my current full strength, and leap into the trees around me.

The Man on Fire begins looking for me, and tries to reignite, but the singed area prevents that side of his body from igniting. Finally. An advantage.

He limps forward, I can tell that somehow, he knows where I am and nothing, not even the impairment of his ability will stop him.

I take this brief moment of separation to look around, I'm not the first place he hit. I see other secluded cabins burning, friends charred on their lawn. Whatever this man had become he was no hero. And neither was I, but The Man on Fire needed to be stopped.

I take another look down and he's gone. But the lingering smell of burning hits my nose as I go to move. I look directly below me and see the surrounding trees on fire. This has to be his doing. He knows where I am, and he's trying to force my hand.

I don't have much time, the longer these trees are on fire the more likely we are to have a severe wildfire, and the longer I linger, the more likely he is to narrow down my location. I have to act now.

I take a deep breath, preparing one of my old abilities, and I go. I launch myself towards the ground, still holding my breath, until I'm only a few meters from the ground, and I release. A wave of air springs from my mouth, extinguishing the flames on the surrounding trees, a far cry from the so called "freeze-breath" I used to have, but it does the job.

The fall took more out of me than I expected. I stagger to my feet, and I see him. All that stares back are the dead eyes of a man, I once thought could be one of the leaders of a new generation of "Supers". But now, I'm not quite sure who, or what is looking back at me.

He lunges towards me, leading with his flaming side, and somehow I manage to raise my arm just in time to block the fiery blow coming towards me. He is so much faster than I can anticipate, and blow after blow lands, but none make a proper connection. I find myself in a similar situation to when this fight began, but this time it's on my terms.

I bide my time for an opening, waiting for a break down in his defense, and then it happens, The Man on Fire forgets, and tries to throw a ball of fire from his powerless side. I move faster than I have at any point in the past 7 years, and launch him through the nearest row of trees. He tries to balance himself, but it throws him off course, towards my house.

By the time I make it back to the house, I'm alone. I can't see him anywhere. I have to hope by now that my family have escaped. I focus on the house and only hear one heartbeat, one I don't recognize, they did it, thank God they got aw...

....No. There's a second heartbeat. I know this one. I've known this one for 17 years. Claire. This isn't how this is ending. I did what they said. I gave up everything. We all did. This isn't how it should end for us. This isn't how it should end for them.

I burst through the wall of the house, and launch myself towards The Man on Fire. He's in my living room, stood over my daughter. I throw a punch, but in my fit of rage I don't notice that he was expecting this.

He instantly reignites both sides of his body, he must have recovered enough that the lingering effects from my laser sight have faded, because he's stronger than I am now. He grabs me by the throat, and pushes me against the wall.

I can feel myself falling in and out of consciousness until he just lets go. But why? My eyes begin to refocus and I see the answer. My daughter's eyes are glowing red in the same way mine did for so many years. She's a "Super".