The Invincibles Read Free Page B

in ice. The glob of radioactive energy he’d been attempting to throw also froze and stuck out from him like an awkward, overly long arm. He now resembled an uneven, blocky ice sculpture that glittered gold as beams of prismatic light ricocheted off him.
    Another quick puff from Hyperman put out all the little fires prancing about the scene. Like a hurricane, he swept around the block, scooping up and eating all the radioactive material. He barely tasted it and knew his hyper-stomach acids would dissolve it all down to nothing. Still, it made him burp.
    He cleaned up the bank and restored its front entrance along with the other shops and apartment buildings that got hit during the fight. Next, he repaired the craters and cracks in the street and sidewalk, remembering also to replace all the street signs, lampposts, and trees. He even fixed up the damaged cars and made it so they’d run better than ever. In no time, the whole street looked good as new.
    Sirens blared, and the New Daedalus Police’s Special Science Squad came chugging up the road in their ultra-expensive, budget-breaking hovercraft. Hyperman had heard them coming from blocks off. They’d handle things from here, making the arrest and transporting El Dorado safely away.
    Congratulating himself on a job well done, Hyperman made to fly off, but paused as a crowd gathered around him. Doors flew open. Cars screeched to a stop and the drivers stumbled out. People came out of their shops and homes or emerged from wherever they were hiding, all smiling and staring at Hyperman almost worshipfully. Gawking at the frozen El Dorado, they slowly and shyly approached Hyperman, hailing him as a savior.
    “ Thank you, Hyperman!”
    “ That was badass, dude!”
    “ Marry me! I want to have your child!”
    The crowd converged on him, wanting to hug him and pat him on the back. A couple of teenagers held out pens for autographs and others had their phones ready for pictures.
    Hyperman’s invulnerable skin crawled. He disliked such adoration. He was only trying to do his job, and they all wanted to fall down to their knees and pray to him. Keeping everyone safe was reward enough for him. He didn’t need people wanting to build him statues and temples. He didn’t deserve it.
    “ Make room!” he said. “Please! I…I have to go!”
    Still, they pressed in on him, slapping him on the back and throwing their loopy, pleading smiles in his face.
    “ Please!” he added, putting up his hands, trying to ward them off and make a little room. Still, they came at him, not even hearing him.
    “ Go, Hyperman! Get after those dirty politicians next and show ’em what’s up!”
    “ Can you find my son? He’s been missing for days!”
    “ Hey, can…can you cure cancer?”
    Hyperman clapped his hands together and created an ear-blasting shockwave that rung their ears and backed them all off. Now with enough room not to hurt anyone when he took off, he launched up into the sky away from their praise and expectations.
    He couldn’t do everything for them. Not even he could solve all the world’s problems. He did what he could, same as anyone else. It hurt him to think he could do more and was failing, even with all his miraculous powers. If that were true, he couldn’t go on. So he tried his hardest every day to help however he could, though even he had his limits. He couldn’t be everywhere at once, doing everything, much as it shamed him. He just saved who and what he could and hoped it was enough.
     
    ***
     
    That afternoon saw Hyperman clearing the Cyber-Yakuza with their laser swords out of Neo-Tokyo. Next, he chased down the Neon Skull in a stolen experimental warplane over the Indian Ocean. In Glimmerick City, he clamped a hand around the Broken Banshee’s mouth before she could wail and curse the entire town.
    Taking a break, he sped back across multiple continents to his New Daedalus high-rise apartment and flew in through the balcony. In less than a nanosecond,