The Reaper, a mysterious vigilante, and Prometheus, a Space Wizard, smile while watching Superhero movies with Miguel.

  Prometheus laughs, typing into his computer. “Dude! Holy shit! This is awesome! I LOVED this rendition of Superman! On my Earth it’s still the frickadoodoo 80s! Never seen this shit in my life, blud!”

  The Reaper just spoke monotonously. “Yeah, well, a lot of people like ‘em on this Earth apparently.”

  Miguel smiles, still a toddler, pointing to the television. He gives an adorable smile to his parents.

  Prometheus smiles and picks him up. “What is it, kid? You wanna fly up LIKE SUPERMAN!?!?” he smiled, raising him up as the young baby giggled. “WOOOOOOO!!! UP, UP, AND AWAY!!!”

  The Reaper smiles softly.

  “Dads…” said Miguel. “What’s wrong with me?”

  The Reaper smiles. “Your flaws don’t divine who you are… kid… Your choices, not your flaws, define you. All of you.”

  “They keep… making fun of me in class…” said Miguel. “I wanted to hurt them.”

  “Don’t hurt people for ignorance. Lest it hurts people.”

  “It hurt me, though…” said Miguel, bowing his head.

  The Reaper smiles. “Wanna learn how to box then, kid?”

  Prometheus is exasperated. “I’m not LETTING YOU train our son to be a killer!”

  “Chillax, Pro. I’d just teach him some basic techniques…”

  Later… Miguel falls to the ground, injured and in pain and crying.

  “Get up…” said the Reaper.

  “Dad… You hurt me…”

  “I know… And I’m sorry.” said the Reaper, gently. ”But I won’t always be around to help you back up… So, get back up. You always do.” smiled the Reaper, “Do you ever wonder why the world beats you down to submission?”

  Miguel nods his head. “Why?“

  “To get back up and keep… fighting. This is a beautiful world… Albeit a cynical one… But there are people out there who give so much of a damn about this world… Even if it’s just one person…”

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “Why do people believe bad people?”

  “That’s why they’re bad. They can make people believe them, even when they do bad things. I’m a Superhero, and like I said, you can’t tell your friends that. So they won’t get themselves hurt… That is already kindness within itself.”

  “Am I… really a monster?”

  “What?”

  “I read your diary… I’m sorry… Please don’t be mad… i read how you used to hurt people like me…”

  “Yeah… I don’t do that no more… There was this awful woman… Morningstar. Used to work for her. Now, I don’t.”

  “Why’d you hurt my people?”

  “Because they’re monsters, then I met children like you… I spared them. And I found out… that if you raise them right… keep them from a dark path… Then they aren’t really monsters. I learned that they were swayed by bad people, too. By people like Morningstar.”

  “I promise I’ll use my powers for good, Dad. When I grow up…” he hugged the Reaper, who smiled softly.

  “Am I a monster?”

  The Reaper laughs. “No! You are the greatest gift I could ask for… I couldn’t be…” He tears up. “Prouder… Now… Lemme teach you that Usog technique…”

  “Usog…?“

  “The power of faith in others and in oneself… have enough faith and visualize that faith burns like a fire in your heart… And from that, you can generate… fire…”

  Now…

  Miguel opens his eyes and pukes flames from his throat, powering up.

  The Ogre roars and beats the ground like a gorilla.

  He charges toward Miguel, who blasts blue flames all over the Ogre.

  The Ogre tries to beat his face down but Miguel burns him from the inside and the Ogre backs away in pain.

  Miguel lands on his feet and sees the dumpster he landed on earlier, and proceeds to toss it at the Ogre’s face, knocking him dow. He lit the dumpster on fire and the flames explode all over the Ogre’s face.

  Miguel dodges another car thrown at him and remembers his M and M trick. He looks down and sees that gasoline is leaking out of the cars.

  He smiles and lights the tank on fire, before tossing one up, spinning, and using his tongue to whip the car in order to ricochet it into the Ogre’s gaping maw

  “TRAINED TONGUE, BITCH!!!”

  The Ogre swallowed the flaming car before his stomach exploded, and he fell to the ground, unconscious.

  He begins rising back up, as Miguel held his fists up.

  Miguel growls. “C’mon, motherfucker. C’MON!!!” he smiled. “HOCUS POCUS MOTEHRFUCKEEEER!!!” He yelled, teleporting around the Ogre’s peripheral vision before blasting flames into his guts, as he explodes in flames from the inside, before falling to his knees, regenerating back into his Human form, and falling face first on the ground.

  The military arrives, proceeding to cuff him.

  Anna smiles, walking out of an ambulance and hugging Miguel.

  Miguel coughs and falls to his knees, as Anna carried him home…

  But then, the Starcross Crusaders arrive in the scene: Beatle, Black Sabbath, Tophbee, Inchworm, Ladybug, an older Gabrielle, and older Billy.

  Beatle smiles. “We have arrived on your Earth to vanquish-...”

  “Shut the fuck up, Captain Barbell!” boomed Myrmex, carrying the Aswang away. “LATE AS FUCKIN’ ALWAYS!!! NEXT TIME BE SOONER THAN THE TIMES YOU NUT, ASSHOLE!!!”

  “CHSMIS AND FAKE NEWS MORNINGSTAR PROBABLY MADE,” said Beatle.

  “I’m the one who made it,” smirked Inchworm, as Beatle tossed his stick onto his head.