Published at 30th of January 2026 7:31 am

Chapter 4 Is That All You Got? (Miles POV)

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I'm on my way, I said before hanging up on Nobody.

I close my laptop after saving the current presentation I was working on. Just something small I whipped up to show the others the benefits of making the housing complex cheap. Rorschach is a lovely woman, but she can be a heck of an obstinate miser. But she is effective, fiercely intelligent, and driven in a way that I can only admire. Nobody has been upfront about the seven of us having equal voting power. I need to convince three other board members in order to have the majority. Walking over to my kitchen sink, I splash cold water against my face, slapping it a few times for good measure.

Its go time. This is what you wanted, Miles. Time to show up or blow up.

Nobody is counting on me. This is what Ive been training for; all of this work has been to prepare me for moments like this one. I cannot let him down. I cant fail. I owe it to the little kid who dreamed of growing up, wearing a colorful costume, and being a hero. I owe it to the man whose dreams died when the Union dismissed him based on his looks. I owe it to the empty shell that was hiding from the world, drifting through life before meeting Nobody. I owe it to myself. I will expose the hypocrisy of those who deem themselves heroes.

Grabbing a white balaclava to wear over my face, I exit my apartment. Instead of heading to the elevators, I make my way to the stairs that lead to the roof. Five sets of stairs separate my floor from the top of my apartment building. I start sprinting up the stairs, pulling the mask over my face. Ive been exercising continuously since I got my human body back. Spending every day practicing my powers since Nobody gave them to me. I have dedicated nearly every minute of my time to self-improvement in one way or another. Working so hard that I collapse at the end of every day. A bit of cardio is nothing compared to that.

I kick open the door to the roof, then wince at the sound it makes. I quickly test the push bar to make sure its still working. Thank goodness its fine. That was rude. If I had broken it, then some poor maintenance worker would be fixing it in the December cold. As if summoned by my thoughts, a gust of frigid air buffets my exposed eyes and lips. From within the well of power that is inside my body comes a wave of heat, blossoming like the sparks of a lighter turning to flames. Warmth spreads throughout my body, rendering me immune to the wintry weather. My power reserves arent at what Id like them to be, but I cant fill my tank up without the physical changes becoming too apparent.

Even then, I have enough juice to handle Ferrol and Ares. They are both middle of the pack when it comes to the active Capes and Cowls in the city, while I am one of the strongest Neuvohumans in this city, maybe in this state. But it isn't enough to just be stronger than all of them. I cant just become the best Cape in Quinstin. I need to work harder than them, be more responsible than they are, and I need to be better than all of them by such a large margin that no one would think to compare us. A shining light that exposes the darkness hiding inside that awful organization. I draw light into my hand from inside myself, swirling it around into a sphere before it spreads over every inch of me. I dont have the suit yet, but I can keep Atonements themes consistent. The wispy, glowing energy encases everything except for my eyes and then hardens. Shaping it with my will, it becomes a gleaming suit of armor, one reminiscent of medieval knights. A splendid trailing cape of fire emerges from the back of the armor as I leap off the roof. Here I come.

Hovering above Central Ave, I can see the devastation that Nobody was referring to. Capes should be wary of collateral damage. Flames are everywhere, the fire spreading from wrecked cars onto the trees on the sidewalks and into the collapsed fronts of businesses. There are gigantic chrome weapons buried in the road, the buildings, everywhere. There are so many craters and cracks, its hard to believe this was ever a paved street. I dont think a stampede of a thousand elephants could cause as much destruction to the street as the battle between Ferrol and Ares has. I drop down to the ground, checking for any trapped civilians, as I drag all the fire inside myself.

HELLO? IS ANYONE HURT? I yelled, cupping my hands like a megaphone.

No one responds to my call, but that doesnt mean there arent people who need help. With all the fire I absorbed, I have plenty of power to call on if a fight breaks out, so I use my stored electricity to double-check. Nobody said that the original guy who held this power would generate an electromagnetic field as a way to sense movement, but Ive developed a better, more cost-effective ability. Instead of keeping it going and eating up my reserves rapidly, I let out pulses like a ships echolocation. It reverberates off the electrical fields of everything around me: plants, people, anything that is powered by electricity. There. Buried underneath the rubble of a collapsed coffee shop, I ping off several human shapes. I rush over, creating six large drills made out of solidified fire to help me dig down to the people below. My molten drills melt through the debris until I can see someones foot. Dismissing the flames, I start to force boulders aside, tossing chunks of concrete behind me.

Hello? Is anyone hurt down there? Ill get you guys out of there in just a moment, I called into the widening hole.

Uh, yes. Mrs. Harringtons leg is trapped under a pile of rocks, a-and there are two kids in here that are hurt too. Please help us, a man pleaded.

Please just wait patiently. Im a Cape, and Ill get you guys all out of there in just a second. Im going to try something, so please dont try to move at all, I said.

I cant leave these people trapped; thats not what a hero does. Fire and light arent going to be helpful for getting them out without jostling them. Ill need to use electricity. Wait, thats it. I need more juice for my idea. Thankfully, Im surrounded by plenty of electricity. I close my eyes, inhale a deep breath, and focus on all of the electronics I sensed with my earlier pulses. In my mind, I can picture every single powered item in my vicinity, and with just a slight tug, the energy comes arcing through the air, colliding with my body. The absorption continues as I drain the entire area dry, until my well is so full the excess energy courses through my body.

You might feel a slight shock. Try not to move, I advised.

I need to focus completely on this so I don't accidentally fry these people. I plunge my arm through the hole I've made, cradling a tiny sphere of electricity in my gauntlet. Monitoring the amount of energy so precisely is tough, especially so when I'm trying something I've never done before. Everything slows to a crawl, the golden lightning jumping across my armor seeming to freeze in time. The influx of electricity flooding my brain, rapidly increasing the rate at which neurons fire, is speeding up my perception and processing to unseen heights. A level of calm precision settles in, and I gradually expand the electrical orb, making sure to keep the amperage extremely low. A few people let out yelps of surprise as the net passes through them, giving them a little shock. I send out a set of pulses until I'm sure that all of them are safely inside the sphere. Standing back after removing my hand, I let the energy jolting inside my brain fade until my senses are back to normal. I solidify the net into a dome, encasing them all, and feed it energy to make it grow, pushing debris out of the way. Five minutes total was all it took to free these people.

Are any of you too injured to move? Paramedics should be here in a few minutes, I said.

Um, Im not too sure, Answered the man I originally spoke to./p>

Dont worry, Mister? I asked.

Yates. Kevin Yates, I mean.

Kevin Yates looks to be about mid-thirties, and despite being buried beneath a collapsed building, only has a few scrapes and scuffs. Behind him are two little girls who have cuts on their faces and arms. Those poor children, injured all because Ferrol has no regard for his surroundings. Summoning light from within myself, I create two big hands and scoop up the injured children to gently move them. Id hate for them to have to climb over the rubble to get out. I spot the older woman, who must be Mrs. Harrington, limping as another man helps her stand. Her pant leg is ripped, and the limb underneath it is purple and red. Im no doctor like Kai, but that looks bad. Real bad. Every step she takes has Mrs. Harrington spasming in pain. Interlocking the fingers of the hands, I create a seat for her to sit on. The man holding her helps lower her onto the makeshift seat so I can carry her over to a nearby bench without jostling her.

Thank you, dear, I dont know what we wouldve done without you, Mrs. Harrington said.

Agreed. Forgive me, but I dont recognize you as one of the Quinstin Capes. Who are you? Kevin asked.

Call me Atonement, I answered.

Bending my knees slightly, I launch myself into the air, soaring above the buildings. A couple of blocks down, I can see the fight is still going on. Good. It's only been eight minutes since I got the call from Nobody, and I'd be disappointed if it was over already. I fly closer, taking a look at Ares and Ferrol battling. Ferrol has some cuts carved into his metallic body, and there are scorch marks all over him as well. Ares' suit hasn't fared much better; it's missing an arm, and there are chunks bitten out of the body. Deep parallel gashes that could only be caused by claws score the suits frame. They look rough, to put it nicely.

The damage they've sustained doesn't seem to have dampened their desire to fight. Ferrol summons a double-sided battle-axe from one of his portals, letting it drop blade-first in front of him. His weapon slices a parked truck clean in half and even cuts into the concrete below. That's one sharp weapon. The chrome canine reaches for the haft of the axe with his jaws, pulling it free and wielding it with his mouth. Ferrol swings the axe around, letting out a howl while doing it. Okay, that's really cool. The Cowl rips an equally large metal sword out of the building that it's buried hilt-deep into. Pieces of the building come with it, smashing into the sidewalk below. Ares seems intent on using one of Ferrol's weapons against him.

The two Neuvohumans rush right at each other, propulsion systems blasting Ares at the charging Cape. The power armor is surprisingly agile, ducking beneath the wolf's opening swing. The axe cleaves through a bus stop, two telephone poles, and a traffic light like a laser sword. Ares lunges, aiming the sword for Ferrol's left eye. The Cape dodges, pulling back so it becomes a glancing blow off his chest. They separate and then both swing their weapons at each other; the two blades collide and let out a thrumming gong. The few glass objects that they haven't already destroyed explode from the sound that results from the clash. Fragments rain down like midsummer showers. Neither of them is even attempting to minimize the collateral damage. I'd expect that from a Cowl, but a Cape should know better.

The next clash of theirs sends the two of them sliding back, and I make my move. This stops now. I stop holding myself up and plummet toward the space between them like a falling meteor. Optics are just as important to the plan as impact, so I somersault in the air, righting myself to touchdown on the street lightly. The two Neuvohumans stop fighting to stare at the person intruding upon their fight. A man wearing a suit made of light, with golden lightning jumping across his frame and a cloak of flame trailing behind him, makes for an intimidating sight. Neither one of them seems to want to speak, so I guess I should break the silence.

This battle is over, gentlemen. Ares, surrender. Ferrol, stand down before you cause more of a mess, I ordered.

And who are you to order me around? Ares questioned haughtily.

I am Atonement, a new Cape in town. Your battle has already caused millions of dollars' worth of property damage and endangered the civilians of this fine city. It ends now, I answered, my tone colder and angrier than I meant to.

Ares laughs at my declaration and points his clawed hand at me. A panel on the arm pops off, dislodged by a black cylinder emerging from the wrist. A glowing red light grows from the inside of the wrist-mounted cannon as he aims it at me. I could dodge his attack or even blitz him before he fires it, but neither demonstrates the gargantuan gap between us. You are not my equal, Cowl; you aren't worthy of being a villain in my legend in the making. Apollo can have my attention; all you'll get, Ares, is my derision. The laser beam shoots straight at me, aiming to hit me dead center in the chest. My armor of white light can hold up well to his attack, but I see no reason to stress-test it now. The energy from the laser diverts away from my chest and gathers into a glowing crimson orb in my palm. Ares eyes widen in shock when his sneak attack fails.

Huh, is that all you got? I asked.

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