Coming from a broken and abusive household, his little brother gone and no one left to care about. Anon breaks down, wishes he could just get another chance, be better, be useful and help people. Well, wish granted. New powers, new world, new family.
A string of unexplained events has recently taken place in Canterlot City.
Rainbow Dash brings her friend's attention to the fact a human has been seen performing crazy feats, saving people all over the place!
Of course they're all skeptical, namely Twilight, who does not believe what Rainbow claims this person has done is possible. That however changes as she finds the new kid of the school, Anon, displaying such a abilities!
He is strong, he's fast, he can fly!
Follow along as Anon get used to his powers, tries to learn more about them and save the day on top of it all.
It's the rise of a hero! Stopping criminals, saving damsels in distress, and trying to keep it all hidden from his friends!
(Please note that this won't be the OP Superman powers thing. So please don't dismiss this story because of that fear.)
Mondays sucked, because it signaled the beginning of another five days of school. For most students it was tolerable, for Rainbow Dash however, it was the worst day of the week...
She sat in the school cafeteria with her friends, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Sunset Shimmer, and of course, Twilight Sparkle. "Come on Rainbow, it's not that bad." Twilight said, looking at her friend with slight amusement.
Rainbow simply groaned. "Not that bad? That's because you're a nerd Twilight, no offense." Twilight raised an eyebrow, as if to ask how she was not gonna take offense.
Sunset rolled her eyes in a playful manner. "Come on Rainbow, you're still the best athlete, and with school starting up again you have a lot of tournaments coming up, right?" That was true, it was nice having a regular team again. Sometimes it was hard to find proper teams during summer vacation, so that was at least something.
"I wonder why he is always sitting alone.." The timid voice of Fluttershy suddenly said, interrupted Rainbow's thoughts.
"Hm? Who?" Rainbow asked. Fluttershy nodded towards the back of the cafeteria, and they all turned to look. There, all the way to the back of the hall sat a boy, like Applejack he had light skin and blonde hair. He wore a hoodie, and thick glasses, just like Twilight. And, just like Twilight, had a big thick book near him, reading it as he ate. "Oh, The new kid?"
"I think his name is Anonymous, darling." Rarity corrected Rainbow. "He goes to our class."
"He looks so alone!" Pinkie jumped in. "Oh, maybe we could call him Anon? Ohhh, maybe Nonny is better?!"
"I haven't seen him talk to anybody, he's one of those quiet types." Applejack said, shrugging. "But he does well in class."
Twilight nodded. "Yeah, I think he scored pretty well on the last test.."
"Quite the mystery boy." Rarity giggled.
Rainbow rolled her eyes, then smirked. "Speaking of mystery." Taking out her phone, she quickly found the local news app. "Did you hear about the truck that nearly crashed into a restaurant?"
They all looked at her, and Twilight nodded a little. "Oh yeah, I heard something about that."
"Yeah, I heard it on the radio." Sunset replied. "Why?"
"Well.." Rainbow smirked, showing them the picture on her phone. "Some think that somebody stopped it, by hand."
Twilight snorted, almost spilling her juice over the table. Rainbow gave her an annoyed look, but Twilight waved her off. "Sorry." She chuckled. "I'm sorry Rainbow, but do you mean, a full scale truck, stopped by a single person?"
Rainbow frowned. "Yeah? What of it? There is plenty of proof out there you know."
Applejack chuckled. "Oh I think you have been spending too much time on that internet again. I mean, my brother Macintosh is strong, but even he would have trouble stopping a full sized truck."
"Oh yeah?" Rainbow said in defiance. "What about all the people who said they saw someone run in front of the truck before it hit the restaurant?"
"Well.. Sometimes people think they saw something that wasn't really there." Rarity suggested. "They were in danger after all, maybe they just saw a reflection in the window or something."
"Oh, I think about things all the time!" Pinkie randomly put it, which really didn't help Rainbow's side of the argument.
"But this is not the first time these things have happened.. Just this weekend somebody pulled out a car from the river! Is that just a coincidence too?" Rainbow asked.
Her friends looked at one another, all having a bit of a concerned expression on their faces. They had all heard about these rumors lately, but that was just what they were, rumors.
Twilight sighed. "Rainbow, what you are talking about is simply not possible, the human body cannot withstand the forces that truck would have delivered. We are talking about a mass that is probably weighing about 19 tons, traveling a speed down hill with a speed of, well, let's say 50 Km/h, that's a force of 26.3889 Newtons, no human body would be able to withstand that much force."
Rainbow simply groaned. "Okay, fine.. Yes, it seems impossible, but listen, before we thought magic was impossible, are you really saying after all we have seen that something like this could not be just a little possible?"
The girls looked at one another, it was true they had seen some crazy things, but really, a human that could stop a massive truck on his or her own? Twilight adjusted her glasses and cleared her throat. "I will admit, we have certainly seen things I would once consider nonsense.. But, even magic has something scientific behind it... I think.. But even with magic, no one is able to withstand that much force.. I'm sorry Rainbow, I just don't think it's possible."
"Well, fine.. But I'm just going to prove it to you!" Rainbow declared and stood up.
"Rainbow, calm down darling. We weren't mocking you or anything, it's just our opinion. Twilight didn't mean any harm." Rarity said, trying to calm things down a bit. The other girls nodded, still not sure what to make of all of this. Rainbow had always loved something that was awesome and cool, and if a person really could do the things she claimed that would be the story of the century.
"I'm still going to prove it, and when I do you guys owe me a-"
"Hey! Nonny's gone!"
Turning their heads they all saw that indeed Anon had left the cafeteria, although why it was relevant to the conversation they did not know. Before they could continue their conversation the bell rang, signaling the continuation of the day.
The belle rang for the final time, most students were already heading home, others stayed for their clubs. Rainbow Dash was one of those people, she always liked to spend extra time on any sports club she could, soccer being one of her favorites. Today she pushed herself more than she usually did, she wanted to be faster, to be stronger, just like this mystery person who had saved all of those people. She knew this person existed, she just knew it! But how to prove it? She kicked the ball towards the goal, it was then that she noticed there was no goalkeeper.
"What the?"
Finally Rainbow noticed she was alone, had she been so deep in thought she had not noticed practice had ended? That would seem to be the case, not that Rainbow minded, she often stayed behind to get some extra practice. Reaching into her pocket she pulled out her phone. There were about five messages asking where she was at.
"Oh shoot!"
She had completely forgotten she'd promised Applejack to help her out with a project! Rainbow needed to get going before Applejack got really mad, but she also needed to put the ball back inside. Looking towards it she noticed it was nicely tucked away in the net of the goal. No one would see it there, right?
Taking a chance she decided to leave there until morning, much to the dismay of Twilight who saw it all from the window of the school lab. "Ohhh Rainbow.." She sighed, deciding to go down and put it back inside before the school fully closed. The school was mostly empty at this point, principal Celestia might still be in her office, the janitor still going around, but otherwise it was pretty much empty.
She thought back to the conversation she had with Rainbow at lunch, it all sounded crazy of course, but she could not help herself looking into it. Rainbow was right that people at the restaurant claimed that someone had run in front of the place and stopped the truck with his bare hands, but there was no proof. Most likely it was just a rumor and people at the restaurant simply clung to it as they had come so close to getting hurt, or worse.
A chill went up her spine, she dared not think about what would have happened if the truck had crashed into the restaurant.
She made her way downstairs and to the double doors that led to the soccer field. Opening the doors she expected to find the field empty and devoid of any students, to her surprise however there was one student, one she recognized instantly.
It was a boy, standing tall, wore a dark hoodie and wore thick glasses. No doubt about it, it was Anon out there playing. Twilight had no idea he liked soccer, then again why would she? She hadn't really talked to him before, nothing more than a few passing notes once in a while.
He moved the ball between his feet, seeming a lot less restrained now. Whenever she saw him in class, the hallways or the cafeteria, he always looked like he was holding back a part of himself. Like whenever there were people around he tried to make himself smaller. Now he looked so animated, like there was an energy to him he had kept hidden from the world.
Why would he keep that side hidden from everybody?
The answer came in the most shocking manner possible. Taking a few steps back, Anon got ready to kick the ball. There was a few second pause, just like the hush in a theater crowd just before the play was about to begin. Then he moved forward, the whole thing went by so fast Twilight was not even sure what she saw.
One moment the ball was there, then there was a powerful WOOSH, followed by a loud bang and finally a shrinking dot in the sky above! Twilight could hardly believe her eyes, Anon had just kicked the soccer ball out of town! Her eyes were as wide as dinner plates, she could not believe what she just saw!
Anon however didn't look shocked at all! In fact, he looked frustrated. She caught the hint of a curse word, then he turned. Before Twilight could react he spotted her, his face surprised, matching her own shock. There was no point in trying to hide now, she knew what she saw, and she knew he knew that she knew. Only one question left.
Anon turned, sighing to himself. It happened again, he really held back this time, did his best to not to kick it out of town. It meant he could not join the soccer team, it meant he would still need to hide, need to stay away from normal people.
Looking up he spotted someone, he froze! No one was ever out here this late, only Rainbow Dash and she had gone home already! With his enhanced vision he quickly noticed it was Twilight Sparkle, the school genius. Her expression was one of pure shock.
It was then that he knew she had seen.
Both of them just stood there for what felt like an eternity, none spoke, and Anon did not know what to do or think. He had been careful ever since he got to this school, keeping his head low, trying his best to make himself so uninteresting as possible. So far it had worked, he had never gotten into trouble, never concerned himself with his fellow students, never done anything at school that could risk him being exposed.
Then the day he finally broke his rule, this one time he decided to play alone, decided to take a chance he was of course discovered! He was angry at himself for being such an idiot. He could hardly blame Twilight, this was all on him for risking it in the first place.
"How did you do that..?" A voice suddenly asked.
He looked, focusing his mind to bring him out of his thoughts. He hadn't even noticed Twilight walking up to him. There was no fear to trace on her, some nervousness, sure, but not outright fear.
"Lucky shot.." Anon replied, his voice matching hers in nervousness. He knew the lie would not fool her, she knew what she saw. She gave him a look, even a little smile. Sighing, he decided to just confess. "I'm strong, REALLY strong."
"Strong?" Twilight asked, looking slightly amused. "The world record for drop kick is 75.35 meters, yours must have taken the ball well out of town.. No amount of human training or strength would ever be able to perform such a feat."
Anon raised an eyebrow. "You know the world record of a drop kick?"
"When you're friends with an obsessive athlete you tend to learn a lot." Twilight said with a slight smile and a small shrug. "You're Anon, right?"
"Yeah, and you're Twilight Sparkle."
"You know me?"
Now it was Anon's turn to look amused. "I think everybody knows about you and your friends."
Twilight chuckled. "Alright, though I don't know your full name.."
"Anonymous, but you can just call me Anon."
Twilight frowned, the name was not common. "Alright then, Anon. So how did you get so strong and is that all you can do?"
Anon sighed, he had rather hoped he would never have this conversation. "I can do a lot of things.. My senses are beyond what yours are, I see far and clear, even through walls at times, though it's hard." Twilight listened, though how much she believed he was not sure. "I can hear far too, run fast, really fast. As you already seen I'm pretty strong too, oh and I can.. Uhm.."
Twilight raised an eyebrow. "You can, what?"
"Fly.."
"Fly?" Twilight repeated.
"Fly."
Twilight frowned. "Like, how?"
Anon frowned as well. "I'm not really sure, it's like the gravity itself is weak, uhm. I sorta just take off, like the air around me is water, I just take off and float, just without the restrictions." He shrugged. "I'm not sure how else to explain it.."
"Hmm.." Twilight looked at him for a while. If she was being honest, all of that sounded pretty insane. Or it would have, if not for the fact she knew of another reality where she is a pony princess and has magic not only in that world, but this world as well. "Show me." She said, then quickly put a hand up. "Not right now, and not here, but tomorrow. You don't have anything planned right?"
Anon shook his head. "No, I usually keep to myself and keep my head low."
"Great! Uhm, no, not great, but you know great that you don't have plans for tomorrow.." Her cheeks warmed realizing she was rambling. "Meet me tomorrow after the last bell, we can go to a place where you can show me without the fear of anyone seeing you."
Not having anything else planned, and the fact Twilight had already seen him doing something impossible, he figured he might as well go. If nothing else it would be good to finally be able to talk about these things, at least he would not have to carry his secret alone.
"Alright, I'll see you tomorrow then."
Twilight's eyes seemed to lit up with excitement. "Great! It's a date!" She blushed, then covered her mouth. "I mean, not a date, but it's tomorrow we meet to hang out, you know, as friends." This didn't help so she quickly got her backpack and waved. "S-see you tomorrow Anon!"
"Uhm, see ya Twilight." He said and waved a little, but she was already gone.
Had that just happened? Anon was still a little shocked about the whole ordeal. The one thing that was not allowed to happen, happened. After being so careful for such a long time, Twilight had seen him. He was stupid taking a risk such as practicing control of his strength here, and now his secret was known.
Even so, it felt liberating to have at least one person who knew about him. Twilight seemed like a kind girl, for what little he knew about her he didn't get the impression he should be careful or he couldn't trust her. Maybe her seeing was not such a big mistake after all? If she could be trusted then maybe he could have someone to talk to, maybe he could tell her the whole truth.
For now however he'd rather keep that for himself, at least until he knew he could trust her completely. If people didn't suddenly whisper some crazy rumors about him having amazing powers tomorrow, then he would know she could be trusted.
For now however it was probably best for him to go home and get some rest...
The following day Twilight was almost giddy with excitement for the day ahead. Today she was going to perform tests, see what Anon could do and try to come up with exact perimeters for his powers. Of course she had already figured out that he must have been the one who had done all those heroic things around the city.
It wasn't a huge leap in logic, but she had no idea if what he did was the limit or just a small display of his abilities. Just how strong was he?
"Twilight!"
"Huh?!" Twilight looked around. Her friends all looked worried. "Sorry, what was that?"
Rainbow sighed. "You weren't even listening."
"Are you okay sugarcube?" Applejack asked. "You have been daydreaming all day."
Twilight blushed. "Sorry, I didn't realize I was so deep in thought.."
"What's wrong?" Sunset asked.
"Nothing is wrong." Twilight assured them. Which was true, though she did not want to mention what she had seen or what Anon had claimed. She didn't like hiding things from her friends, but this was Anon's secret and he had been honest with her. The least she could do was to respect his privacy. "I'm sorry Rainbow, what were you saying?"
Rainbow rolled her eyes. "I said that the only way to prove this person is out there is to be in danger."
"Uhm.." Twilight frowned, not sure she liked the train of thought Rainbow had boarded. "Can you run that one by me again?"
"Relax Twilight, I'm not actually going to be in danger. I could pretend that I was going to fall off a bridge, or drown." Rainbow suggested, making all her friends wince at the scenarios and the potential danger she would be in. "Just need to make it look real."
"I'm not sure Rainbow Dash, that sounds dangerous.." Fluttershy put in, careful as ever.
Rainbow simply snorted. "I'll be okay, that's why it's important you guys are there! You have to document it, but also be there in case something does go wrong." Rainbow was confident as ever, reckless as ever and Twilight was not happy hearing about this plan of hers.
Thankfully it was Sunset who pointed out the flaws of her idea. "You don't even know how to get this person's attention in the first place. What if he or her was just nearby when those accidents happened?"
"But it would be funny!" Pinkie put in. "We could tie her to a tree and make a fake bomb! She can be Rainbow Damsel!" She giggled and some of the other girls joined in, except for Rainbow who just blushed in embarrassment and annoyance.
"Anyway, putting Rainbow ideas on hold for now. Any of you wanna go to the mall and watch a movie? Me and applejack thought about watching Ranger of Truth." Sunset asked.
Applejack perked up. "Darn tootin!"
"Oh! I want popcorn, a soda, a Snickers bar, or two, I want hot chocolate-" Pinkie Pie listed off everything she wanted while Fluttershy gave a small nod.
"I hear they have well trained horses in that movie.."
"Oh, I hear the romance plot is very spicy and romantic. I simply must go!" Rarity agreed. "I will come."
Rainbow sighed. "Well all right, I hear the action is pretty good. But don't think I have forgotten about my plan!"
Sunset chuckled and turned to Twilight. "How about it Twilight, you wanna come?"
"Oh I wish I could, but I have other plans today." Twilight frowned. The others looked disappointed. "I'm sorry, but I promised."
"It's okay." Sunset assured her with a smile.
"So what are you doing after school?"
Applejack asked, but she had hardly asked the question before the bell rang. It wasn't really a problem that Applejack knew, Twilight did not think Anon minded if anyone knew they were hanging out after school, but for now she rather keep it all close for now.
She had a lot of things she wanted to go over to test his speed, his strength and see if he could actually fly. It was all very exciting, though there were other questions to be answered as well. Has he been given these powers? Was he born with them? Does he come from another planet and the powers respond to this world? Was it magic? Or some other form power she did not yet have a grasp on.
Whatever the case, Anon seemed willing to indulge her for now, so the least she could do was to keep his secret. One thing was for certain, Rainbow was right all along, but the truth behind was something Twilight needed to figure out.
The day went as usual, nothing new there. Anon kept his head down, walked around in his usual hoodie and thick glasses, doing his best to keep a low profile. When lunch had come around he could not help but overhear Twilight and her friends talking.
Normally he would try not to listen in on people's conversations, but like yesterday the topic had caught his ear and he could not help but do so. Rainbow was once again talking about him, talking about how she might be able to lure him out. The plan was idiotic, did she really think he would come flying just because she was splashing some water around?
If she really was in danger then of course he would show up and save her, but until she was actually in danger she could just swim around in the lake until she got tired. Thankfully it seemed they were going to the movies so she wouldn't be in any danger today.
When the final bell rang it was time to go and wait for Twilight. They had not agreed on a place to meet, just the time, so Anon decided to wait in front of the school. He saw Twilight's six friends come out and walk off, since Twilight wasn't with them he could only assume she did not want them to know about their plans. He was thankful for that, as nice as it would be to talk to someone about his powers more openly, he wasn't ready to involve others.
Anon didn't need to wait long, soon enough he spotted Twilight hurrying out of the doors and over to him. "Sorry I kept you waiting, I didn't want my friends to see us.." She seemed uncomfortable saying that, clearly her friends meant a lot to her and she didn't like to keep secrets from them.
He shook his head. "It's okay Twilight. I'm sorry for making you hide this from your friends.. If you don't want to do this I understand. If you hurry you can probably still catch up to your friends and enjoy a nice evening at the movies."
Twilight looked surprised for a moment, then remembered his hearing was much stronger than normal human ears. She smiled. "No no, it's okay. I like to see what you can do, maybe even understand your powers. If nothing else, you at least have a friend to talk to."
Now it was Anon's turn to look surprised. "Friend?"
"Yeah, do you want to be friends?" She asked innocently.
Anon found the question odd, not in a bad way, but normally people would just get to be friends without announcing it. This felt more like an offer for his benefit, as if to make him understand he was not alone. Smiling a little he nodded.
"I'd like that."
Her smile grew slightly. "Then let's go."
It took about 45 minutes on foot and then a short bus ride to reach their destination. It was a small and old looking airfield. There was a high chain link fence that surrounded the large open field, but Twilight simply walked up to one of the smaller gates designed for people and unlocked it with a key.
Anon tilted his head. "Your place?"
Twilight shook her head, closing and locking the small gate behind him. "My uncle's. He used to have a flying club here, but he lives overseas now, but the property is still his." She explained. "The hangars are filled with a lot of old parts, I'm the only one using this place now, I guess you can do it. It's my own makeshift laboratory.
Anon nodded, getting where she was going with this. The place was outside of town, no one was likely to come by here by chance, and it had space to perform the tests she wanted to do. "And no one is flying here anymore?"
A coy smile grace Twilight's lips. "Only you, if you can fly that is. But we should probably unlock the hangar then get the equipment ready."
"Equipment?"
"Yeah, I do have a few gadgets I've made, nothing too complicated, but with a few adjustments it should help us find your limits and potential." Twilight explained, seeming very excited about all of this.
The airfield was for small planes only. There was a small house with a small tower, that was probably for the members of the club. A place to eat, talk and just have a nice time. The small tower served as their control tower, not anything too complicated like at the airports, but it served as a good observation point to help direct traffic. There were three hangars, again only for small planes, but still big.
She took him to one of the hangars, and just like she had said it was her makeshift laboratory. There were a lot of parts scattered around, electronics, old computers, even a spot for her to do chemistry.
"Sorry for the mess.." She suddenly said as Anon looked around. "I don't usually bring guests out here.. I like to have a place of my own. A place to think."
Anon knew how she felt, though unlike her he didn't have such a place. Twilight walked to a table, seeming to tinker with something for a few seconds before turning to him. "Alright, how about we begin with a strength test?"
"Alright, what do you have in mind? Do you want me to pull something heavy?" Anon asked, taking his glasses and hoodie off, revealing his muscular arms and torso. "Hm, Twilight?" When she didn't answer he looked towards her. She stood almost frozen in time, staring at his muscles. "Twilight, you okay there?"
"What a fine specimen..."
"What?"
"Huh? Uhm, I mean!" Twilight blushed. "N-no you don't need to pull something, c-come with me!" She hurried out a back door looking as red as a tomato.
Anon followed Twilight outside, she was still a bit embarrassed, but more focused now. She stood in front of a big and old looking machine, the kind that crushes cars. Anon could already see where she was going with this. "Clever." He simply said, making Twilight smile.
"Thanks! Since you stopped that truck from hitting the restaurant, I figured we should be able to test you safely like this."
"You knew it was me?" Anon asked, surprised.
Twilight simply giggled. "Come on Anon, if you can do all of these things you say, then who else would it have been?"
He couldn't argue with that. "I see your point.. So, what now?"
"You just step in. The roof will come down on you slowly. The walls won't move at all, so you only have to focus on keeping the roof over your head." Twilight explained and walked closer. "I modified the crusher a bit, so you don't need to worry. You just tell me when it gets too much and I'll stop increasing the pressure."
"When did you have time to do this?"
Twilight blushed once more out of slight embarrassment. "Well after our talk I decided to come over here and prepare before today.. Thought it would save some time."
Anon smiled. "You're pretty smart Twilight." Chuckling, he stepped up on the platform. "Alright, I'm ready."
This was crazy, Twilight knew it was crazy. If this had been any other case she would never consider such a dangerous experiment. Well, she had taken all precautions she could, the roof would move slowly enough for her to stop it before it would ever come close to crushing him. Though that didn't mean it felt kind of scary doing this, if her parents knew what she was doing, or her brother, then she would be in serious trouble, and rightly so.
Twilight got out the remote, slowly turning the knob. On the display Twilight had attached to it she could see what kind of force she was putting down on him. Slowly the roof moved down and Anon lifted both hands in order to stop the plate. A few seconds after the plate made contact she turned her attention to the display. The kilos quickly rose as the applied more force.
100 kilos.
200 kilos.
500 kilos.
1 ton.
It kept going up and up, but Anon did not budge. He kept standing still without making a single sound of strain. The machine however started to groan, it was of course not designed to meet such resistance, normally a car would start breaking under the weight by now, Anon however did not.
She knew he could take over 20 tons already, otherwise he would not have been able to stop that truck. So as the tons moved up and passed over 50 she started to look even more amazed. The machine kept groaning as Anon refused to move. After a while she could see he was starting to strain a bit, but he did not move. He was gritting his teeth but still stood firm, even with the plate crushing down on him with such force that it would have killed a normal human being by now.
"Amazing!" Twilight said. "Anon, you're holding up 150 tons!" The machine could handle no more, it was at its maximum, so Twilight started to raise the plate and shut the machine down. "Amazing.."
"You said that already.." Anon chuckled as he stepped off the platform, moving some sweat from his forehead. "How did I do?"
"You did amazingly! Oh, sorry, used that word again.." Anon chuckled and she let out a small nervous giggle, but then continued. "You held up 150 tons, you can probably do more, but that is as high as the machine could go. How are you feeling?"
"I'm okay, I could feel the last few tons that's for sure.."
Twilight nodded, opened her computer and wrote some quick notes. "So we are close to your limit at least.. Hmm, I wonder if you can grow stronger though."
For a moment Anon considered telling her about how he got these powers and the things he knew, which was not much, but it would help her. He hesitated however, he wasn't sure if that would make him sound insane or crazy. No, for now he would keep those details to himself, share them once he was ready.
"So, what's next?"
Twilight smirked. "Speed test."
She took him to the runway, which was about 120 meters long. Anon frowned, this was no way near enough to any accurate measurement of his speed.
"Uhm Twilight, I don't think this is long enough.."
She frowned. "Why?"
"Well, I can travel over 10 kilometres in just a few seconds.. What speed I manage to gain here I will be at the goal in under a second."
Twilight looked shocked. "That sort of time will make you break the sound barrier."
"I did.." Anon admitted. "Which is why I don't travel so fast anymore.."
"I see." If Twilight had not just seen Anon hold 150 tons above his head she would be skeptical, but if it was true he could travel so fast she would have to come up with something else. "It is really impressive, such speed would rip a normal human body apart, not to mention when you have to stop. Your durability must be something out of this world."
Anon nodded. "You have no idea.."
Twilight didn't hear what he mumbled, but turned to him with a smile. "We can test some of your other abilities, like you said you can see through things? Oh, and fly?"
"Yeah, well.. I have to focus really hard to be able to see through stuff, so it takes some effort. Flying however has become second nature, sort of. I've never had a chance to fly in the city, but I have practiced in wide open areas."
"I see, well we can find ways to test your maneuverability and-" Before Twilight finished her sentence a loud bang could be heard in the distance. Anon looked more alarmed, probably because of his super hearing. "What was that?"
"An explosion." He answered. "Something is on fire downtown."
Twilight frowned, the mall was downtown. "I should call my friends.." She quickly walked back into the hangar, Anon following close behind her. Once they got in he walked over to his backpack while Twilight tried to call up her friends. Of course there was a chance she would not get through, if they were in the middle of watching the movie.
She got no response, not even from Pinkie. "They're not answering.."
"I'll go have a look." Anon answered, pulling out a blue and red hoodie from his backpack. Twilight watched as he put it up and moved up the zipper. "If nothing is wrong I'll be back."
Twilight felt her heart pound faster, she knew the odds of her friends being in danger was close to none, but she was still scared. Anon didn't bother with the hood, but instead kept it down, letting his short cape flow behind him as he turned and marched out of the hangar.
Already they could see smoke in the sky, confirming what Anon thought, there was a fire. "Be careful." Twilight said, knowing the risks of him flying out there. Strangely enough, without his thick glasses and hood it was like looking at a completely different person.
Anon looked at Twilight one final time, then gave her thumbs up and a boyish grin. Then leaped off into the air, Twilight could almost swear she felt the ground shake for a moment as he took off. To her shock she saw he really was flying, he kept to the air, flying towards the city with great speed.
Of course the amazement was overshadowed by the concern for her friends. She hoped they were okay. If not, then she hoped Anon could save them in time.
The action scenes were amazing, the stunts awesome, and the story exciting. Still, not as exciting as a Daring Do movie, but still very good. Rarity was of course mostly interested in the romance, which she had to admit was very, uhm, interesting, but she'd never admit that to any of her friends.
The movie was well within its second act when suddenly the whole room shook and a large bang could be heard, shocking everybody inside. "What was that?" Sunset asked as the movie projector stopped and the fire alarm suddenly started. The whole building was groaning, like the metal itself was bending and the concrete was cracking.
"We gotta get out of here!!" Pinkie screamed and like so many others in the theater all stood up to run for the emergency exits. A crowd quickly built up there, but to their alarm they couldn't get out. The doors wouldn't budge!
"What are we going to do?!" Fluttershy asked in a slight panic.
"The doors!" Applejack called, pointing to the ones they came in through. If they could get through those they could get to another emergency exit, or at least that was the hope.
Others had the same idea, as the theater started to fill with smoke a panic started and the crowd started to move towards the doors all at once. The crowd was thick pushing one another to get out, the group were stuck in the middle of it and were doing their best not to get separated.
"Girls!" Fluttershy called in a panic, making them all stop and try to find her, but she was nowhere to be seen.
"Fluttershy! Where are you!" Rainbow Dash called, walking against the stream of people while the others were stuck where they were. Rainbow kept moving, she looked back once to find her friends trying to get to her, but they were just creating a blockage. "No, go ahead! We'll catch up!" She called.
They didn't look too happy about leaving their friends, but she was right. Standing around in the hallway would only slow everything down, and so they moved, Applejack though needed to be pulled by Sunset.
Turning around, Rainbow continued to push forward, but the crowd was thinning out so she made more progress. As the last man passed her she spotted Fluttershy on the floor next to Rarity. Rarity seemed to be in pain as she held a hand to her ankle while Fluttershy tried to help her.
With tears in her eyes she looked up at Rainbow. "She fell, n-no one stopped to help.."
Rainbow gritted her teeth, they just left them? "Don't worry, I'll help you get out Rarity, Fluttershy, help me out."
"O-okay."
Both girls went on each side of Rarity and helped her to stand. She winced in pain, but otherwise did not complain as she knew they had bigger troubles than her ankle. The smoke was getting thicker, the hallway hotter and they all knew they needed to hurry, already they could hear the sirens outside.
"Come on!"
Rainbow coughed, trying to shield her eyes and mouth the best she could, but it hardly helped. Together, they managed to navigate the hallways and get into the main hall, the sight that met them was terrifying. The whole mall was an unrecognizable mess of broken pillars, shattered windows, collapsed walkways and fire, lots of fire.
None of them could understand what could have happened, was it an attack of some kind? Fluttershy was so terrified she froze up. "Fluttershy, we need to get moving!" Rarity told her, trying to get her friend's attention over the noise.
Even Rainbow Dash was shocked beyond belief, what the hell had happened? She wasn't even sure which way to go, she recognized nothing, there was smoke, destruction and a blazing heat, all of it was almost too much, but she needed to push on. If they could just find one exit, emergency or otherwise, then they would be safe.
Forcing her fears down she led the girls forward, Fluttershy was moving slow, afraid of everything around her, which was understandable enough. As they walked Rainbow started to get an idea of the layout again. They just needed to pass one more walkway and they were out!
Damn!
One of said walkways had collapsed a few meters from the exit, creating a wall of fire and debris. Behind them was not much better, there was no way they could get through that mess again, it had only gotten worse, as if the fire itself had lured them into a trap like a hungry predator.
They were trapped!
"But our friends are still in there!" Applejack argued with the officer trying to hold them back.
"I'm sorry, but it's too dangerous for any of you to go in there. Let the firemen do their job!" He ordered with all the authority he could.
Applejack knew he was right, so did Sunset and Pinkie. None of them could do anything from out here, they'd likely get killed before they ever got a chance to even find them in the first place. Still, what else were they supposed to do? They couldn't just leave and go to the hospital, they simply refused to do so before they knew if their friends were okay.
They couldn't go in there either, it was too dangerous and they would only create more problems than they would solve. So here they stood, desperate and with tears in their eyes as they knew somewhere in that inferno were their friends. They had no idea if they were still alive, or even they had died, either by falling debris or smoke inhalation. None of them were sure which thought was worse.
"Look, up in the sky!" Someone yelled and they turned around to look up. Something was coming towards them, whatever it was it was fast.
"It's a plane!"
"It's.." Applejack squinted her eyes, then as it got closer her eyes widened. "It's a man.."
"What?!" Sunset and Pinkie exclaimed looking shocked, but as they looked up they could see she was right. It was hard to see, but there was no doubt about it, they could see the arms and legs, it had to be a person.
"I don't believe it.." Applejack said in disbelief, Rainbow was right. Then a thought struck her, if this person was real, if he could do what Rainbow suggested and more, then he might be able to save their friends! She started waving. "HEY! THERE'S PEOPLE INSIDE! HELP! PLEASE!!" Getting the idea Sunset and Pinkie started doing the same. The officer was too shocked to really notice what they were doing.
Anon, floated in the air far above the mall. He could hear Applejack and her friends and he understood instantly. "Alright Anon, you can do this, just focus.." He looked to the mall, focusing his eyes and his mind trying to see if he could find anyone alive in there.
At times it worked, but it was like he kept going in and out of his x-ray vision. Gritting his teeth he cursed at himself, demanding his eyes to do as he wanted. To his relief the image became clear, he could see through the walls, all the way down to the basement.
Working quickly he moved from room to room, floor to floor. His eyes moved quickly, making sure he did not miss anyone. It didn't take him long to spot Rainbow, Fluttershy and Rarity. They were trapped! Surrounded by debris and fire, coughing as they tried to shelter themselves from the flames.
They were still alive, but not for much longer if he didn't figure out a way to get them out, and fast! He knew he could use his breath to blow on the flames, but he wasn't strong enough to make it cool enough to kill the flames. No, if anything he would just give it more oxygen.
There wasn't anything he could do for this structure, it was finished. The only thing he could do was to save the girls and get out of there before the building itself collapsed. His eyes moved over the building, he seemed to remember there was a big skylight right in the center of the mall. Yes! There it was!
Moving quickly he flew towards and through a large opening. Applejack, Sunset and Pinkie Pie could do nothing more now than wait, wait and prey.
"Applejack!" Someone called behind them, and the girls turned around to see a panicked and exhausted Twilight running towards them
"Twilight!" The girls ran to her and they all embraced.
"Oh thank goodness you're okay, I thought you, wait.. Where are the others?" They all gave her a look of sorrow and worry, Twilight knew instantly that they were the only ones who had made it out. She watched the extent of the damage, not sure if she believed what she saw.
Her friends were in there and their only hope of their rescue rested solely on Anon. She bit her lower lip, watching the mall quickly turn into a ruin and whispered. "Please Anon, save them..."
Rainbow coughed into her sleeve, trying her best to keep her airways clear, but the smoke was thick and the flames were hot. She did her best to protect her friends, but her energy was quickly vanishing. Fluttershy and Rarity were curled up, trying to protect themselves as much as they could.
It would not save them, it would probably only buy them a few seconds at the most, but it was human instinct. They were all getting tired, soon Rainbow Dash imagined they would all drift off. A somber thought crossed her mind, it would be better for them to sleep in because of the fire than to burn alive. The thought was horrible, but Rainbow would rather die painless, she wished the same for her friends.
They were helpless, trapped, and Rainbow could see no way for her to save them from the fate that awaited them. Life had seemed to have had endless possibilities for them, and now it was all ending far too soon than she would have liked.
The building gave another groan, like the building itself was giving up the fight to stay up. Above them she could see something that caused her eyes to widen in alarm. Whether it was another walkway or the ceiling itself she did not know, but whatever it was it was coming crashing down towards them. She and the other girls screamed and huddled together as if to form a human shield. All closed their eyes tightly, waiting for the incoming crash.
But it never came.
It took a few seconds before they dared opening their eyes to see what had happened, and what they saw filled them with new energy and switched on their minds as their eyes widened in disbelief. Standing next to them was a young man, his arms above him, holding up a concrete pat, keeping it from falling on them.
"No way.." Was the only thing Rainbow Dash managed to utter while the others were completely speechless.
The girls watched as the young man kept the platform above his head, gritting his teeth as he held it in place. Anon felt his eyes moving back and forth, trying to find the safest way of disposing it. He looked to the girls, then the way he had come from. He was sure he could get them out safely if he went about it the right way.
He could throw the platform at the entrance behind him, creating a path among the rubble, but there was a chance he would hit the firemen and the police that were standing outside. The only way was to go to the center and fly out!
"Listen to me!" He said, making his voice more serious and just a tad deeper than his normal speaking voice. "I will throw the platform over us and create a path, you three just follow me and stay close. Got it?"
Fluttershy was too scared to answer, Rainbow was still shocked, so it was Rarity who spoke up. "My ankle, I think I have twisted it!"
Even Anon could see she was doing her best to remain calm, even though she was terrified and in pain. He was impressed, but thankfully it would not be an issue. "I'll carry you, just try to keep yourself close to me to avoid any random flames, okay?"
Rarity nodded a little, still in awe of the young man who kept God knows how many tons above his head. Rainbow comes to her senses and nods as well. "Fluttershy, you stick to me, okay?" She asks the girl, and she doesn't react at first. "Fluttershy!"
She jumped a little and then nodded. "Y-yeah! Please, let's get out!"
Anon nodded and took a deep breath. "Here goes nothing." With a careful inner calculated throw he tossed the platform across the hall, making sure not to toss it so far it was out of reach, or going to destroy more and make something else collapse faster than it should.
The result was as he wanted. The large platform formed a sort of bridge over the debris that blocked them from going farther into the mall. Bending over he picked up Rarity, making sure to be careful with her.
"Oh my!"
She was a little startled by how easy it was for him to pick her up, but then again after seeing him toss concrete like it was nothing she probably shouldn't have been surprised at all.
Slowly, yet with a certain urgency, they started to move across the concrete bridge he had created, while avoiding the flames the best they could. Rainbow and Fluttershy followed closely behind, holding hands to make sure they did not get separated from each other. With one hand Rainbow held onto Anon's red cape, and with the other she held onto Fluttershy.
With Anon leading them he made sure to clear any obstacle that might stand in their way, making the trip as easy as possible for those he tried to protect. Despite the danger they were in, Rarity and Rainbow could not help but notice how he didn't seem bothered by neither the smoke or the flames. He never flinched like they did whenever a flame got close, he never coughed in the thick smoke, he simply walked through it with little to no effort at all.
Suddenly he stopped, and with a quick glance around, not to mention a little imagination, Rarity deduced they were in the center of the mall, right below the great skylight. A simple glance up confirmed what she knew as she saw the evening sky above them.
"Now what?" Rainbow asked, her voice shaking slightly as she tried to keep herself calm.
Anon turned, then gestured for Fluttershy to come closer. She did so, only because she knew he was trying to save them and this was probably their best option. "I'm going to fly you guys out of here!" He said, speaking loudly so they could hear him clearly over the noise around them. "Flutters-eh, I mean miss, I'll carry you and her in my arms." He said, nodding towards Rarity. "You." He said pointedly at Rainbow Dash. "You look more physically fit, do you think if I let you on my back that you can hold on?"
This was crazy, did he really expect to fly out of here? If this was any other scenario Rainbow would have called him crazy, but taking the circumstances into account she couldn't really afford to refuse. "Sure, I can hold on, just get my friends out."
It was the noble thing to say, but Anon could see she was terrified of being left behind. "Hey." He said, getting their attention. "We will all make it out, okay? Now you, come over here."
"EEP!" Fluttershy was suddenly taking into his arms, her rear end sitting on his arm like it was a bench, her arms on his shoulder. Rarity was sitting the same way, waiting to grab onto something before after Rainbow had come up.
Getting down on one knee, Anon allowed Rainbow easier access to his back. She quickly got on, moving her arms around his neck which was quickly followed by Fluttershy and Rarity's. Giving them a moment to get as comfortable and secure as they were going to get, he looked up, making sure everything was clear.
"Hold on tight!" Anon said as a final warning. He felt them squeeze him a little tighter, checking his own balance one final time, he took a deep breath, calmed his heart rate and then suddenly leaped up into the smoky air!
All three girls let out screams and their grips suddenly became a lot tighter. All of them looked as the floor suddenly seemed to vanish beneath them and the sky above them came closer. Anon made sure not to go so fast that he would lose balance and crash, not to mention Rainbow sliding off, but at the same time he needed to get them out of here and to the ambulances parked outside.
Finally they passed the skylight and reached the open air, Anon moved them away from the smoke and the girls could finally take in the fresh evening air. The cool air felt good as they flew across the roof and towards the parking lot, the people watching all gasped and pointed to them.
None of them could believe their eyes as Anon made his way down towards the officers and the EMTs. Twilight and her friends all ran towards him, pushing past the amazed officers, the EMTs following right behind them. Anon slowly descended, painfully aware of all the eyes and the cameras on him as his feet gently touched the ground.
Rainbow carefully slid off and Anon carefully put Fluttershy down, for now he kept carrying Rarity until the EMTs could arrive with a stretcher. Twilight and the others were the first to reach them. "Are you okay?!" They quickly checked their friends, though still eyeing the muscular wonder boy who had just flown their friends out of a collapsing mall.
When the stretcher arrived he carefully sat Rarity on it. "She twisted her ankle, but it's not broken." Without another word he took a step back and leaped into the air once again, ignoring the calls for him to wait from the girls. He didn't want to be rude, but he did not feel like staying around to get filmed or questioned. Besides, the girls needed to go to the hospital fast, him staying there would just delay it even more.
Applejack and the others watched Anon flying away, the only one knowing about who he really was was Twilight. "Well Rainbow, I'll be damned. You were right."
Rainbow simply looked as the boy vanished, then let out a sigh of almost disbelief, but of course still managed a small smirk. "Told you so.."
It took hours before the girls were all told they were going to be fine and they could go home in the morning. Rarity had gotten a cast, and other than a few scrapes and minor burns, the girls were going to be alright. They had been lucky when it came to the smoke, the doctor even commented he didn't understand how they did not die, but told them it had to be a miracle.
Twilight wondered about that, suspecting it might have been their magic that protected them a little? There was no way of knowing, and maybe it really just was luck. The three of them all shared a room, and for now they were alone with Twilight and others, talking and laughing while their parents talked to the doctors and did whatever paperwork that might need signing.
Fluttershy was sitting in her bed, clutching a stuffed animal her parents had brought her to calm her down. Rarity sat with her sketch book, and Rainbow Dash with her phone which thankfully survived the ordeal.
"I mean I still can't believe what I saw.." Sunset said. "He flew, he actually flew."
Now that she had calmed down and she was no longer in danger, Rainbow's smugness came back full force. "I told you so."
"Excuse me sugarcube, but you never said he could fly." Applejack pointed out, but that didn't make Rainbow falter.
"No, but I told you guys he existed!" She looked triumphant at Twilight. "And you said he didn't exist."
Twilight had known that for over 24 hours now, but that didn't matter. Rainbow was safe, so was Fluttershy and Rarity, that was the important part. Anon had saved them, she owed him a lot, though she wished she knew if he was okay. Twilight scolded herself for not having gotten his phone number earlier, but there was nothing she could do about it now, she'd just have to wait for tomorrow to talk to him. So smiling at Rainbow she replied.
"You're right, he does exist, and I'm glad he does.."
The meaning wasn't lost on any of them and a heavy silence filled the room. It was like a small breathing room for them to really realize what would have happened if Rainbow's mystery person hadn't existed. They would be under rubble and flames by now, the thought brought tears to some of them. They had escaped death, but only narrowly.
Rarity wiped her eyes and put on a smile. "Now now, let's not think about that. Let's instead be happy we were saved by a gallant hero!"
Rainbow followed suit and wiped her eyes with a small grin. "Yeah, a superhero!"
"He was very brave, and strong.." Fluttershy joined in, though blushing hard as she hid her face in the blanket.
"Handsome as well." Rarity added. "Though I must say I liked what he was going for, but if he's going to be a superhero he simply can't run around in a hoodie." Rarity almost gagged by the mere thought of it. "No no, that won't do."
Pinkie tilted her head, then suddenly appeared beside her wounded friend. "What are you drawing, Rarity?" She asked with carefully contained excitement. Despite her happy outgoing nature, Pinkie was well aware she had come close to losing her three friends and so decided to remain more calm than she usually would.
Rarity grinned, and with great pride she turned the sketchbook around to show them all. On the paper was a brand new design of Anon's outfit, there was no color though, but Twilight could easily imagined the blue, red and yellow. "It's a work in progress, but I think it has potential."
It looked like one suit, with boots and a cape. The S was still on his chest, the top fit neatly, showing off his muscles. The sleeves were short, just like on a T-shirt. Rainbow thought it looked awesome, but then pointed to a certain area.
"Uhm, Rarity, why are his underpants on the outside?"
Rarity rolled her eyes. "Those are not underpants you fool, those are shorts. If I don't put them there his.. Uhm.." She blushed. "Bulge, would be more noticeable.." There was silence for a few seconds, then Pinkie burst out laughing, only making Rarity blush even more. "Besides, strongmen used to wear them back in the day, which I think will fit just nicely for him, don't you think?"
Twilight smiled, it certainly did look great. Then an idea crossed her mind. "You know Rarity if you were going to make this, may I suggest a few things?"
Rarity nodded happily and turned the book towards herself again. "But of course darling, suggest away."
"So the test was a failure then?" A cold voice asked. The person the voice belonged to sat in a big and expensive office. He leaned back in his chair, looking out upon the city. The smoke from the fire was visible even from this distance.
"Uhm, not exactly, this was just a test run, and the device performed as we expected sir. Only minor tweaks here and there is needed.." A nervous voice replied over the speaker. "And besides, no one was hurt."
"But now we have the police snooping around, that could bring unwelcome attention." The figure huffed out a puff of smoke from his cigarette. "This better not become an inconvenience for me."
"N-no, of course not sir. No one can link this to you no matter what technical information they might obtain."
"For your sake, I hope that's true." Without another word he hung up. "Frost.." He called and a young woman stepped out of the shadows. "Please keep an eye on him, I think he is losing his nerve. If that's the case be ready to terminate his employment."
The young woman nodded, giving an almost sadistic smile. Then she turned her attention to the television, the volume was turned down, but the pictures on the newscast showed videos of this flying man carrying three girls to safety.
"Interesting.." The man mumbled. "A flying wonder that saves damsels from fires." He chuckled as he put out the cigarette. "What has the world come to."
"Do you think he's going to be a problem?"
The man leaned forward a little. "Hm, no. He knows nothing, but we should keep an eye on him. This could have potential to benefit us."
"Or bite us." Frost replied.
She could not see it, but Frost knew her boss smiled slightly as he said. "That's what I have you for, to remove these sorts of problems. Now, leave me."
Frost bowed. "Of course Mr Blueblood."
She walked out of the massive office, her heels clicking as she left. When the door closed the man leaned back in his chair and chuckled. "Very interesting indeed..."
"There's still no information about how this accident could have happened. Police say it could be a gas line, but it is too early to say. Meanwhile there is still no one who seems to know about this mystery boy who was seen flying through the sky and saving three students from Canterlot High. The three girls were taken to the hospital shortly after and the doctors are saying they are going to be alright."
That had been the morning news, the topic of who this mystery boy was dominated the topics of social media and the mainstream. All night and all morning Anon had been afraid someone would come knock on his door, ask him all sorts of questions, demand he come with them to some unknown lab.
So far however it seemed no one had figured out it was him, even as he walked among his fellow students into the school. Of course he could hear them all talk among each other, all of them appeared to be discussing, well, him. Maybe Twilight was right, no one seemed to recognize him without the hoodie and glasses, good thing he put them on this morning, just as a precaution.
Anon knew they would be talking about what had happened, he expected it, but it still felt uncomfortable. Still he had saved three girls, Rainbow, Rarity and Fluttershy, it made it all worth it, and wasn't that what heroes did? Had he not wished for it?
Yes, yes he had. Now he had to take responsibility for that wish and use his powers for the good of the people. That was easier said than done, he had no idea where to begin or what to do. He had read about superheroes, but it always seemed so much simpler in the world of comics.
Besides, he didn't even have an outfit anymore. The hoodie and cape had been damaged, sure he could wear it but it looked like it had come out of a dump. No, he needed something new, something better, but how?
"Anon!"
He turned and saw Twilight. "Oh, hey Twilight." Anon greeted and stopped. "How are your friends?"
She smiled. "They are going to be just fine. They all got the rest of the week off, along with a few other students that was at the mall at the time."
Anon let out a relieved sigh. "I'm glad to hear it.." They continued to walk together for a bit, all around them fellow students kept gossiping, showed videos, articles, pictures and chat forums. Thanks to his super hearing it was not hard for Anon to guess what the topic was about.
Twilight smiled, but glanced at Anon with a sympathetic look. "It's going to be okay, no one will recognize you." She said, her voice lowered just to be safe. "But how are you feeling? You're not hurt or anything?"
Anon shook his head. "No, I'm pretty durable, but it was uncomfortable for sure.."
"You have a gift, that's for sure. If you want we can continue to test back at my uncle's airfield." Twilight offered, but would not force him.
"I don't know," said Anon. "I feel I got very lucky, maybe it's better for me to just continue laying low."
Twilight moved in front of Anon, making him stop. She looked at him with an intensity in her eyes he had never seen before. "Yesterday I thought I was going to lose my best friends, you saved them Anon, you did it. You should feel good about that. You might not think so yourself, but to me and my friends, you are a hero."
Anon stared at her for a little while, then sighed. "I'm just glad they weren't hurt.. By the way, how did you get to the mall so fast?"
Twilight blushed, she had arrived only 10 or 15 minutes after Anon, but it was still fast. "I... I stole a bicycle.."
"Pffft, really? Heh heh.." Anon snorted, trying not to laugh.
Twilight looked down in embarrassment. "I was panicking! So I just took it without thinking and I just drove as fast as I could."
"People can do crazy things when people they care about are in danger.." Anon looked far off for a moment, like if he was looking at a memory out of reach. He sighed and then started walking to class again, quickly followed by Twilight.
"Are you okay?"
Anon glanced at her, knowing there was a lot she did not know yet. He stopped walking again, turned and looked at her. "There's something I need to tell you, can we talk after school?"
Twilight looked him in the eyes, she could tell he was very serious about it. "Of course, after school at the airfield?"
"Alright, sounds good." He agreed then turned once again and continued into class.
The rest of the day was spent trying to get used to people talking about what happened yesterday. He had known they would be talking about it, but experiencing it was something else. He kept expecting someone to stand and point at him, proclaiming he was the flying boy from the fire. He kept expecting the police to show up, knock on the door to his class room and ask him to please come along. He was afraid two men in black would come and arrest him before wiping all the people's memories in one big flash and he would be forgotten and end up in some lab.
Still none of these things happened, most students didn't even grant him a second glance, like usual. No one suspected him, no police showed up or men in black. The only thing that happened was principal Celestia and vice principal Luna held a school assembly to inform them about the danger of fire and assure no students were killed. She gave some basic information, told them that Twilight's friends, along with a few other students who had been there were all safe, but for obvious reasons were resting up at home. Even though Twilight had told him that already, Anon could not help but feel a sense of great relief when he heard it from a school official that probably had more details.
When everything was over and the last bell rang out, Anon once again met with Twilight outside of school. On their way to the old flying club they exchanged phone numbers, it would save some time and they could get a hold of each other faster.
"Did you see the news?" Twilight asked suddenly.
Anon nodded, letting out a slightly frustrated groan. "Yeah, it's kind of overwhelming."
"Oh not that," she quickly corrected. "I mean the details coming out about the accident."
"Wasn't it a gas line or something?"
Twilight wrinkled her nose. "I don't think that was it," said Twilight, trying to find the best way to explain to him what she meant. "I will try to get some data from my older brother."
"Your older brother?"
Twilight nodded and smiled proudly. "My older brother is a lieutenant in the police force."
That surprised him, even though he had no reason to know it beforehand, it still surprised him a little. "And he will just tell you?"
"No, well maybe, but don't you worry. I will dig around a bit and see if he finds something out of the ordinary, something amiss."
Anon raised an eyebrow. Did Twilight plan to investigate this? Moreover, if she found something did she expect them to do something about it? Anon wasn't sure what they could even do. What was Twilight expecting? As she unlocked the gate he gave her a puzzled look.
She seemed so sure about what to do, like she knew what was the right path to take. Anon wanted to have that sort of certainty, he wanted to do good, to help people, but he was just not sure he could do it. With all his speed and strength there were simply things he still doubted about himself.
They walked back into the same hangar as last time, only this time Twilight seemed a bit more relaxed. Walking to a mini fridge she pulled out a soda and looked at him with a friendly smile. "Do you want one?"
"Oh, sure." Anon replied and walked over to her.
"So," Twilight began and sat down on a stool. "You wanted to talk to me about something?"
Anon nodded absently, not sure where to begin. There was so much for him to tell, but how could he expect her to believe him? Then again, only yesterday she saw him fly through the sky and lift 150 tons above his head. Thoughts and doubts moved back and forth in his mind, trying to figure out the best way to explain his background. Finally he decided it was best just to come out with it and let her judge for herself.
"Well, it's a lot to take in. Even after you've seen all I can do, there is so much more to it." He sighed and sat down on the floor, leaning back against the wall. "You see, I'm not from this world.."
Twilight seemed to gasp, but hid it well. "Are you from, Eqe.." She stopped herself, seeming to change what she wanted to ask. "Space?"
Anon smiled a little. "In a manner of speaking, I'm not sure how to explain it, the best thing I can come up with is that I'm from another dimension. My world is much like this one, though in some ways we differ quite a lot."
"How?"
"Well," Anon thought for a moment. He was glad she was taking it so well, then again what else could explain his powers. "We are the same in cultures, countries, names, technology, but your version of earth is a little bigger than mine." He explained. "There is some other stuff too, but my main point is that in my old world I lived a hellish life.. My mom was gone and my father was a drunkard."
Twilight frowned, she knew there were bad people in the world. Shining Armor had seen enough of that during his years in the police force. Anon continued. "I was a pretty rotten kid.. I acted out, I was a real asshole. I didn't want to be that way, I wanted to be as my childhood hero, but I just failed. It was easier to act like a jerk instead of a hero." Anon looked away from Twilight, ashamed to admit these things. "There was only one person I loved, and I did everything I could to protect him, but in the end I failed."
Tears started to appear on the edges of his eyes, but still he kept going. "It was my only job, I needed to protect him, and I failed.." He let out a deep sigh, feeling the tears starting to move down his cheeks. All the memories of that time were still fresh in his mind. Twilight could see the pain he was in, but was not sure if she should go to him. He clearly wanted to get through this, trying to be as brave about it as possible. "He died, and I was left with no one.. I failed him, I failed myself, I was nobody, nothing, and I simply had enough.. I couldn't even stand looking at myself, I was hated, unloved. I hated myself and I wanted it all to end. I wished with all my might to get another chance, a new life. I wanted to be better, to be a hero and try again, to save people, have a chance of being loved and being useful.."
Anon fell silent yet again. The memories raged in his mind like a storm, he had not allowed himself any self pity, he had refused to feel bad for himself, he was alive and he was not, he didn't deserve that kind of pity. And then suddenly he felt a soft hand touching his. It was like the world came back into focus, he looked up.
Twilight was in front of him, on her knees, her hand on his and her eyes so full of warmth and care. She didn't speak, nor did she need to as her actions gave him the courage to finish his story.
"I'm not sure how it happened, it's all kind of fussy.. I know I was outside, yelling and cursing, then it's all black.. Next thing I remember I woke up in a bed, not my own bed, not even in my own room. It was brighter, looking cleaner and more homely. I found my parents, both of them, they are together, happy, and loving.." His voice almost choked. "I've never seen them like that before.. My dad actually has a job, my mother is there, smiling at me.." Anon closed his eyes shut tightly, trying to keep the tears away.
He hadn't counted on getting so emotional, he thought he would be better prepared for it. Now that he was actually sharing this for the first time, knowing he could return home and not expect a beating, it was all just too much. He cried, hid his face in his arms as he for the first time realized he had a happy and loving family at home, people who had loved him in a way he had never been loved before. At this very moment it was like he could breathe again, like he finally could relax without fearing what was going to happen when he came home. Twilight didn't say anything, she just moved closer and held himm letting him know through her warm embrace he wasn't alone anymore.
After some time and Anon seeming to calm down she asked. "The person you say you failed, who was he?" Her voice was love and careful, full of concern and care.
Anon wiped his eyes, taking a few calm breaths. "My little brother.."
"And in this world, is he..?" Twilight could feel her heart tighten in her chest, her voice almost a whisper as she feared the answer.
Though as she saw the shadow of a small smile she felt herself calm a bit, even felt slight joy as he said. "He's here too.." Twilight felt relief, and Anon felt a lot better. He was here, getting a chance of a new life. He still didn't feel like he had earned it, not yet. Perhaps that was why he had gotten these powers, he had gotten a new life, a new family, he needed to devote himself to protect them, protect them all.
A small chuckle escaped his lips. "You know, I think he's probably the only one who has stayed the same.. My mom and dad are so loving here. My mom died when my brother was just a baby, my dad turned cruel.. I guess maybe we could have had the life they're living now.. I don't even know anymore." There was so much anger in his past, so much frustration and pain. It had become hard to see his dad other than a cruel man, but thinking back on it now, he must have felt pain as well, he must have loved at some point. In this world he acted as Anon wished he had, his mother was alive and so was his little brother.
He took a deep breath, deciding to finish the story. "I was confused at first, thinking I might have died and gone into the afterlife, a life I would have wanted. It became clear I was very much alive and it didn't take long before I found out about my powers. I was shocked, and a bit scared. I had all the powers of my childhood hero, though in a weaker sense. I'm not as strong or fast, but it's enough.."
"Enough for what?" Twilight asked.
Anon smiled a little, clenching his fist. "I've been given a new chance, Twilight, a new life. I have people that love me, and I love them in return. I have something to protect, something to fight for. I've been trying so hard since after I accepted this was my new life to earn it, to deserve it. I study hard, I help my father and mother around the house, help my little brother, but it's not enough. These powers I have, they could be used to serve this world. I can save people, protect them."
Anon felt his heart beat faster, his whole body felt like it was ready to leap up into the air of pure happiness! This morning he had been so scared to lose what he had gotten, afraid to act. Now however, finally telling his story and admitting to it. It was like he had dropped a heavy load off his shoulder, a heavy coat that was his past self. He knew what he wanted to do now, he knew what he NEEDED to do!
He smiled and looked at Twilight. "I can be the person that deserves this chance, I can be better, and I can bring hope to those who don't have it!" Anon was under no delusion he could fix everything in the world, but he could start by being better himself, do better, and use his powers for good.
Twilight smiled. "That's what a hero does."
Anon blushed in a bit of embarrassment, realizing he had been giving a speech. "Ehehe.. Sorry, I didn't mean to preach."
"No, I liked it," Twilight giggled and nudged him. "I will help you."
"How?"
She stood up and took a sip of her soda before placing it on a table. "Well, powers or not, you won't be able to do much without information. I guess you can see me as your tech girl."
Anon smirked and stood, feeling so much better, so much lighter. "Thank you Twilight."
Twilight shook her head. "You're my friend, and you saved the people I care for. This is the least that I can do." Her eyes then moved up and down his body. "Although, we might need to find you a new costume, something better than a blue hoodie."
"Yeah.." He chuckled. "Probably something a bit stronger too, my hoodie is burned beyond repair. So what do we do?"
"Leave that to me." Twilight assured him, then looked at the time. Anon did the same, then realized it was almost dinner time, it seemed they had been talking for a bit longer than he'd imagined.
His mom would probably scold him for staying out so late, but that was okay. It felt good to have a mother that would do that. "I better get going, sorry for spending all this time talking."
"No, it's fine. I'm glad you told me Anon," Twilight assured, then followed him outside to lock up the hangar.
"Do you want a lift home?"
Twilight looked at Anon with a startled expression. "Y-you mean, f-flying?"
Anon nodded. "Yeah, you'll be home before you know it."
As much as Twilight wanted to try and experience it, she knew it would be risky for him to fly to two places, with a bigger chance of him being seen. A lot of people were probably watching the sky too, trying to catch even a small glimpse of the flying boy. Twilight smiled gratefully, but shook her head. "Better not risk it. Besides, I don't live too far from here."
"You sure?" Anon asked, not wanting her to feel like it was a bother. Twilight however just politely refused and so he inclined his head. "Alright, see you tomorrow at school." The two said their goodbyes and Anon leaped into the sky, flying above the clouds to be as hidden as possible.
The sun had already gone down as Anon gently landed near his house. He had made sure no one was near and was sure to land a place where no light would reveal him. It was a short flight, but it felt good to be up there and relaxing. It had taken quite a lot of tries before he got fully used to it.
He had crashed quite a few times, but now he could land as gently as a feather if he wanted to. Making his way out the bushes he walked up to his house. It was strange, before he would always dread coming home, but now, now it felt so good as he took the handle of the door and turned it. It was a feeling he had to get used to, but now it felt like a warm blanket around his heart.
"Big brother!" A boy's voice called in joy. A fiery brown haired boy came running into the hallway, his little propeller hat spinning as he ran to him.
Anon smiled as the boy hugged him. "Easy Button, I've only been gone a few hours."
Button Mash nodded and jumped in place. "Yeah but you promised to play video games with me when you came home!"
"Sure, we can play just after dinner."
Button held up his hands. "Yay!"
"Anonymous? Is that you, dear?" A woman stepped out of the kitchen. She was tall and beautiful, her blue eyes looking at him surprised, then they became stern. "You’re late young man."
It was hard to describe, but after so many years not having a mother, it felt good to be scolded, to be cared for. He simply smiled as he ruffled Button's hair. "Sorry mom, got caught up talking with a friend."
His mom's eyes instantly changed and she smiled. "You made a friend?" She turned her head towards the living room. "Chip! Come quickly, our son finally made a friend!"
"Mooom, stop it!" Anon laughed.
Then his father entered. Anon could hardly recognize the man before him, he was so full of life, clean, and had an air of intelligence. He no longer had a full dirty beard, but a classy bushy mustache and a smirk on his face.
"Well, you made a friend? Soon enough you'll start bringing girls home." He teased, then laughed.
His mother, Love Tap giggled, then turned to look at Anon again. Her eyes widened in surprise. "Anonymous? Honey, are you crying?"
"Huh? Oh!" Anon quickly wiped his eyes. "Sorry, I was just thinking how lucky I am to have you guys as my family.."
His parents looked at each other for a moment, then walked over to their sons and embraced them both. Anon responded by putting his arms around them, holding them close as he just felt the warmth and love.. No longer was he alone, he had a family that loved him, and he loved them in return. He wasn't lost anymore, he wasn't afraid of coming home, he was happy..
The smell of breakfast was always a welcome one before a long day of kid jail, aka school.
Love Tap stood by the stove and moved the eggs around in the pan, meanwhile Button Mash sat at the table, trying his best to eat his breakfast and play on his JoyBoy, it was a losing battle.
"Button, sweetie, put that away for now and eat your breakfast." Love Tap said gently with a loving smile.
"Okay mom!"
In that same moment Anon walked into the kitchen, giving a big yawn as he was still half asleep. "Morning everybody.."
"Good morning sweetheart," Love Tap smiled. "Do you want some eggs?"
"Yes please," replied Anon as he sat down beside his little brother. "Morning squirt."
"Morning Anonymous!" The boy greeted with his usual smile and high spirit. "Are you going to school today?"
"Of course I am, why?"
"Mom is taking me to the dentist, I thought maybe you were coming too." Button replied, shrugging before he returned to his waffles.
"It's just a checkup, we had to cancel the last appointment." Anon's mother replied as she placed a plate with some scrambled eggs and toast before him. She gave him a loving smile and he gave one back, but just as he was about to start eating, he noticed the newspaper at his dad's usual spot.
There on the front page was his picture, not as Anon of course, but him flying with the girls. He adjusted his glasses, almost like if to make sure they were really there. His eyes glanced from his brother to his mother and then looked down once again on his plate. Had his family no idea? Would they recognize him? The thought had crossed his mind yesterday but they had said nothing, still they said nothing.
"Wow, he really is cool!" Button suddenly exclaimed, looking at something on his phone.
"Who's cool, honey?" Love Tap asked as was cleaning the pan.
"Superlad!" Button smiled.
Anon almost choked on his eggs. 'Superlad?? That's the name they came up with, really?!!'
"He can fly, and he is super strong, and he can't burn."
Button continued to list all the things that made him cool, making Anon's ears burn a little with embarrassment. Still, how did they get such a list?
"It's all right here on this fan site!"
"Wait, fan site?" Anon reached over and took his brother's phone. He was right, there was a fan site up and running. Nothing major, but it was there. There was a gallery, videos, discussion forums, and even a latest news banner at the very top. His eyes narrowed as he saw there was actually a personal message for him.
Thank you for saving us! We would like to thank you in person with a very special gift, get a hold of us as soon as you're able.
He noticed the admin, 'DangerDash24, wait, Rainbow Dash??'
"Uhm, Anonymous? Can I have my phone back?"
"Huh? O-oh, yeah, sorry." Anon handed Button's phone back, but what he had seen kept him wondering what Rainbow and her friends wanted to give him. Before he could continue with his breakfast, or wonder anymore, his phone vibrated, indicating he had gotten a text. Reaching into his pocket he pulled his phone out and checked the message.
Twilight: Anon, need to talk to you about something important! 😣
Anon: Is it about the fan site?? 😓
Twilight: Wait, how do you know about that already? 😯
Anon: My little brother showed me. Did your friends make it?? 😞
Twilight: Rainbow Dash's idea, not mine. 😓
Twilight: But that's not what I wanted to talk to you about. It's about the mall. 😟
Anon: Did you find anything? 😮
Twilight: Maybe.. Let's talk about it when you get to school. 🤔
Anon: Alright! See you there. 👍
"Who're you texting Anonymous?" Button asked, stuffing his face with another waffle and happily chewing on it.
"Just a friend from school," replied Anon as he put his phone away.
Love Tap smiled and turned to her boys. "I'm so glad you made a friend Anonymous, how is he like?"
"Oh, uhm." Anon scratched his head. "It's actually a girl.."
His mom's eyes instantly started to widen and almost had a sparkle to them. "Really? A real girl?"
"Yes mom, a real girl.." Anon blushed.
"Oh! What's her name?"
"Twilight."
Button Mash looked at his older brother. "I know Twilight! She's my friend's older sister's friend!"
Anon raised an eyebrow. "Who's your friend?"
"Oh that's right, Button has made a special friend too!" Their mother said almost squealing with excitement.
"Special friend?" Anon looked to his younger brother who just looked happy and proud. Though Anon doubted he knew what their mother meant.
"Her name is Sweetie Belle and she's super nice!"
"Is that right?" Anon smiled and ruffled his brother's hair. "Well, good for you little bro." Looking at the time Anon saw he had to finish up and get to school. "Shoot, I can't be late!"
Love Tap hurried over to the fridge. "Don't forget your lunch!"
Quickly before he left he grabbed the lunch she had packed for him and gave her cheek a kiss. "Thanks mom. Good luck at the dentist squirt!" And with that he was off.
"I don't know Dash, it just seems like you're putting a lot of faith in that he will see it.."
Twilight said into her phone. She had barely finished texting Anon before she was suddenly pulled into a group call with Rarity and Rainbow Dash. Twilight was surprised Rainbow could even get up this time in the morning, normally she was always late and looked like she wanted to collapse.
"But with all the attention he's getting, surely he will stumble upon it, darling." Rarity said, sounding just as excited as Rainbow Dash, though still more dignified and calm. "Besides, I simply can't allow my dashing hero to fly around without proper attire."
Well Rarity was right about that, Anon had stumbled upon the site, but what made them think he would ever try and contact them? However, this did provide a unique opportunity. Rarity had the skills to make Anon a real costume for him to wear when he was out there fighting crime. In fact, she was already working on it. Having taken Twilight's advice, she used some special materials to make the suit stronger than his old hoodie.
Twilight had been nervous Rarity would get his size wrong, but she insisted she took careful measurements as she was carried by him, whatever that meant.
"Besides!" Rainbow cut in. "A superhero needs to have allies, we can be those allies!" Twilight almost felt bad for being the only one knowing Anon's secret. Rainbow had been the one who had insisted on his existence and been the most supportive. Though it wasn't like Twilight had done it on purpose, and it was Anon's secret, although she shared it, it was not for her to tell anyone about it.
"Darling, are you still there?"
"Wha, y-yeah, sorry I spaced out there for a second." Twilight took a moment to redirect her focus back to the conversation. "Uhm, so yeah. Girls, how would he even contact you?" Of course Twilight had a few ideas, but she didn't want to seem like she already knew.
"He could write us an email?" Rainbow suggested.
"I don't think that's how it works, listen girls, can I call you back? I'm sorta heading to school."
Twilight could hear Rainbow groan on the other end. "You're such an egghead Twilight!"
"Rainbow, language." Rarity chided. "We're sorry for the interruption dear, you have a good day now. Talk to you soon."
"Sounds good, see you girls later." Twilight hung up.
The school came into view shortly after that, but that was not what caught her eye. She spotted Anon walking up to the school from the opposite end of the street, wearing his black hoodie and thick glasses. She didn't know how far away from the school Anon lived, but maybe he lived close by since he was able to come to school so fast.
When Anon saw her he stopped, and she gave him a smirk. "That was fast, time does fly, right?"
"Morning Twilight, and no. I don't live very far away, only about 15 minutes when you walk." Anon explained as they walked inside. "By the way, what's with that name?"
Twilight blushed. "I don't know, I think it was Rarity that came up with it, and now that Rainbow Dash has made the site it has trended and become viral."
Anon sighed. "So I guess keeping low is out of the window.." Of course that was bound to happen, he did fly three girls out of a mall on fire, carrying them to safety.
"Well it could be worse.. Speaking of the site however, Rarity has made you something to wear."
"Really?" Anon looked to Twilight, then glanced around to make sure no one was listening. "You mean as..." He waved his finger around to make an S, and Twilight nodded.
"I gave her some suggestions on how to make the material stronger, much more so than your old hoodie. Though it will probably need repair once in a while." They both walked inside, the loud chaos of the hallway masked their conversation some more. "But that's not what I wanted to tell you."
"The accident, did you learn something?"
"Yes and no." They stopped by her locker. "I couldn't find anything."
Anon raised an eyebrow. "So we got nothing?"
She shook her head. "No no, that's just it. If what happened to the mall really was an accident, then it would be no problem finding something out, a simple report would be there giving at least a summary of the investigation."
"I see.." Anon frowned. "But don't these things take time?"
Twilight nodded. "Yeah, they do, but in this case the whole investigation is being covered up, or at least, hidden."
"I don't understand." Anon was not sure what Twilight meant. Was she saying someone was covering up the investigation? The public would surely know there was an investigation, so why cover it up in the first place?
"I also found a statement from the police chief, they're going to air it later on today." Twilight continued. "It says the whole thing was a gas line explosion which ignited other vital points of the mall. It doesn't make sense, what vital points would that even be? And how can they know if the police is not even involved with the investigation, or any other government branch."
Anon thought it over, that was strange the local government was not involved, then again no one was hurt, so maybe it was just a matter of insurance. Though why would the police at least not have any files about the investigation that led to the conclusion of a gas explosion?
"You think someone is covering it up?"
Twilight hesitated, she didn't want to start conspiracies, she could be wrong about the whole thing. Maybe she had found nothing because there was nothing to find. "I.. I don't know," She relented. "But I have a bad feeling about it, and Shining seemed so irritable yesterday.. If someone is covering this up, then they would have some sort of influence over the police."
"So what do we do?" Anon finally asked.
"Well, we need to go back and take a look," Twilight replied thoughtfully. "We should not be too long about it either, if there is some sort of evidence, then it probably won't be there for long." She looked at him, then smiled. "Though we might need to solve that costume problem soon too."
"Yeah, but how? I can't just call them and tell them I want the suit out of the blue."
Twilight put a hand to her chin, thinking about it for a moment. Before she answered however the bell rang, signaling the students to get to class. Quickly she got her books from her locker and looked back at him. "Leave that to me, I'll figure something out."
He nodded and watched her go, then he looked around and saw everybody going to class, all carrying their school things. Anon looked down at himself and realized one important thing. "I need to get my books!"
To say the day passed by slowly was an understatement. Anon kept thinking about what Twilight had said, why would someone cover up the real investigation? The question irritated him throughout the day, and he had to remind himself several times that they had no proof, only speculations.
Then there was this whole business with the fan site. Anon could not help himself but to look through it, not because he liked the attention, but more to see what people thought. While the site was simple and still small, the discussions seemed to be growing. Wild theories speculating where he got his powers, law discussions about vigilante justice. There were pictures, sketches, videos, someone had even posted a quick theme song. While it was catchy in some way and did have potential, it needed a lot more work.
Although no one recognized him yet, the feeling never went away, the feeling that there maybe be a chance for someone to recognize him. He still couldn't help feeling nervous when he read about himself, as if the act itself would suddenly make people realize he was this, Superlad... That name made him cringe slightly. It wasn't bad per say, he'd just hoped for the real name from the comics back in his own world.
Finally there was the whole business about this suit Rarity was making for him. Rarity had been allowed to go home the day after the fire, which meant she must have been working insanely fast. From what he had heard about her, once she had an idea she worked faster than a speeding bullet.
It was not like he had other options anyway, she had already seen his face so the risks would probably not be that high, but of course he couldn't just shake off that fear.
When the day finally ended he met Twilight once again after school, he would have eaten lunch with her, but she had some other arrangement and apologized. Anon didn't mind, she shouldn't neglect her friendships and responsibilities just for him, and it did give him some time alone with his thoughts.
Now however she walked up to him with an apologetic look. "Sorry about lunch, I'd just promised I would look over some friends' math homework."
Anon held up his hand , shook his head and gave her an understanding smile. "Nothing to apologize for, I get it." With Twilight relieved they both started to walk down the sidewalk, only this time Anon noted they weren't heading the usual way to the airfield. "Are we not going to the usual place?"
"No," Twilight answered. "I think we should go to the mall and see if we could find something. Do some reconnaissance, if you will."
Anon chuckled. "I'm glad you know what to do, frankly I would have no idea where to even begin if it wasn't for you."
"I think you would have figured it out, besides, I can't really do much without you."
"Ah, the good old with my muscles and your brain scenario?" Anon grinned and Twilight laughed. It felt nice, Anon had never really been able to socialize a lot back in his own dimension, and while he still had a lot of questions about how it all happened, he decided to just enjoy this new chance he had gotten.
The two continued to chat, it wasn't really about anything important, just smalltalk, a nice change from all that Superlad business. Anon learned a lot about Twilight, she went to Crystal Prep Academy before transferring to Canterlot High. She lived with her older brother, Shining Armor, who was married to Crystal Prep's principal, Cadance. Twilight also had an adoptive little brother named Spike, and the four of them lived in the same house. Twilight's parents often travelled, and because Twilight wanted to go to Crystal Prep, then later Canterlot, it was easier to live with her older brother.
Twilight on the other hand didn't learn that much about Anon. It wasn't because he didn't want to talk about himself, she already knew about his deepest secret. He told her a bit about his life before, then about his life here, how it had changed, how different it was and so on. The most notable difference, other than his powers and his family being, well alive and not awful, was that he actually had a chance to find himself. Before he needed to be tough, an asshole with a hard shell in order to keep the pain away, but now he was free of that, so he could actually allow himself to find out what he liked.
He liked to read, strangely enough, liked history and amazingly enough, he enjoyed school. Not the same way Twilight did, but he liked the buzzing of life and color. It was hard to explain, but in his own world everything always seemed so grim and dull, like the world he was in was gray and filled with sadness. He was not sure if it was the world itself or if that was just how he saw things.
While he still felt like an outsider looking in, he still felt much more included and happy. Twilight may be his only friend, but no one feared him here, no one thought he was trouble or a worthless piece of human garbage. They might think him strange, sure, but that was about it. In this world he had the chance to discover himself and be the person he wished he could be.
Anon was grateful for Twilight, she listened to him and seemed to understand the fears of keeping something a secret. She also happily suggested he should join her and her friends for lunch once they got back to school, hopefully next week. Although, Anon wasn't too sure. It was not that he was scared of them, he was just not sure if they were going to like him. Before he never needed to try and make friends, now he had the opportunity and still he felt nervous.
They continued to talk, right up until they got closer to the mall. The area was all sealed off, which was to be expected. The whole place looked like a prison as whoever was investigating had put up large metal walls to keep people out. Again, that was to be expected.
Twilight took her phone, snapping a few pictures. Then she looked to Anon, "Do you see anyone?"
Anon focused his eyes and mind, trying to see through the fence, the walls of concrete and spot any living people around. It still took focus, and the effort made his head hurt slightly, but he managed it. "No, no one is around," he assured and shook his head a little, getting his normal sight back.
"Good, now we just need a way to get inside."
Anon smirked. "That's no problem." Walking over to her he picked her up in his arms.
"EEP!!" She yelped, blushing red.
Making sure it was gentle, Anon moved up into the air, but not more than ten meters. Her hands grabbed his shirt, clutching hard, as if she was afraid to fall down. He couldn't help but chuckle. "Easy Twilight."
"S-sorry!" She said quickly, looking down in a mix of nervousness and fascination. "Never flown before."
"Hardly counts as flying," Anon said as he gently landed on the other side of the fence. Once he did, he put Twilight down who was still in a bit of awe. Then quickly remembering why they were here she looked to the mall and started to walk.
The whole place was a ruin, the fire had been really bad and the building had taken a lot of damage. Anon could hardly believe his eyes, it was horrifying to think how Twilight's friends could have ended their days here. They were safe now, they were okay, but the whole place was like a big dark reminder of what could have happened.
Anon didn't think it possible for a building to look sad, but to think a mall, otherwise so full of life could feel so dead. The quiet was almost unnerving, unnatural. The only sounds around were the ones he and Twilight made.
"So, what are we looking for?" Anon finally asked, having no idea where to begin looking in all this mess.
"Good question.." Twilight admitted. "Try to see if you can spot something strange."
"Something strange?" Anon repeated with a raised eyebrow.
Twilight chuckled. "Sorry, but you know, something that should not be here. It's a long shot, I know, but it's the best I got so far." She reached into her backpack and pulled some sort of device out. It looked homemade, small wires sticking out here and there, a small screen and an antenna.
"What's that?"
"Oh," Twilight winced. She hadn't yet told Anon about the whole magic thing, Equestria, everything that had happened. Not to mention her suspicion about the explosion. Looking back at Anon she quickly found herself not being able to look him in the eyes. "Well, Anon, before I tell you, you should know I've been hiding something.."
Anon raised an eyebrow, prompting Twilight to continue. "We don't have time to talk about it here," she looked him in the eyes. "But I promise I will tell you everything when we're done here, trust me."
It didn't take long for Anon to decide. He wasn't going to be mad or pissy because she was hiding something, everyone had secrets, he had trusted her with his, and she had kept that secret. Now it was his turn to return the favor, so he nodded. "Alright Twilight, I trust you. I'll go see what I can find, but don't get your hopes up." Leaping into the air, Anon flew high up to get a better vantage point.
Twilight watched him go and let out a sigh of relief. She wasn't sure what to expect, Anon had been nothing but a good friend since they met, and despite the short time they had been friends, she trusted him. Turning back to the matter at hand, she turned on her little invention and it wasn't long before she got a reading, it was small, but it was there.
Meanwhile in the air, Anon tried to see with his x-ray vision anything that was not supposed to be there. It was hard to maintain focus, and it felt like his mind and eyes got strained just from the effort. At times his sight would flicker back and forth from his visions, hurting his eyes even more. Despite this, Anon had a good view over the area, but he could find nothing that made him think something was amiss.
As he flew back down however, he could quickly see Twilight had more luck in her search, judging by her worried expression. "Did you find something?" He asked, matching her worried expression.
Twilight nodded, "I think so. We should get back to the hangar though, I don't think we should discuss it here."
It didn't take them long to get to the hangar, Anon simply flew them there. It had surprised Twilight, and she had held onto him for dear life. After a little while however she had relaxed into his arms, enjoying the view and the feeling of moving through the air. Of course, and that was to be expected, she was still a little freaked out about their altitude, which in all fairness was pretty high. He did however make sure they were not high enough for her to get too cold, but still high enough to avoid the worst of onlookers.
When they got back she took a moment to feel the ground beneath her feet again, taking in a few deep breaths. "I don't think I will ever get used to you breaking the laws of physics like that.." She said with a small smile, then walked inside with Anon following.
"How do you think I felt when I first started flying?" Anon chuckled and found a chair to sit on. "So, what did you find?"
Twilight sighed, placing her backpack on the floor before she herself sat down. "Before I tell you that, you should know I was familiar with crossing worlds even before I knew you."
Anon wasn't sure if he was surprised or not, but he didn't have trouble believing her either. He gestured with his hand. "Go on, I'm listening."
"While I was born into this world, one of my friends was not. Like you she came here from another world, a VERY different world." Twilight wasn't sure how much she should say. Like with Anon, Sunset had her secret and it was not for her to tell, so she tried to explain as much as she could without telling him too much, hopefully he would understand. "In her world there were another version of me and my friends, but when she came here there was no version of her."
And so Twilight began to explain everything, or at least as much as she could without revealing Sunset's name. Anon didn't seem to mind, he understood and so respected it. She told him about when her own version came to this world, then told him about the friendship games. It all sounded really insane, and despite her best efforts Anon did not have trouble deducing Sunset's identity, but he decided not to tell her.
Everything she told him was clearly not her greatest moment, and she still felt a lot of guilt about collecting magic, hurting her friends. She was ashamed, and Anon could relate. "All in all, that's how I learned about other worlds, how I learned to use magic, well, a little magic anyway."
Anon smiled. "More importantly, how you met your friends." She smiled, then nodded. "So, now that I know there is a pony world and magic, what exactly have you found out?"
"Oh yeah." Twilight once again pulled out her device. "This," she held it up, "is what I used to detect magic the first time. Yesterday after I checked my brother's computer, I thought there had to be a reason for the whole thing to be covered up, if that was the case. I knew it was unlikely, but I decided to bring my device."
Anon started to understand. "You detected something."
She nodded. "I did. The magic still lingers, like radiation, or an echo. It can't tell me how it happened, but it does tell me it was no ordinary explosion, it was a burst of magic, the likes of which I have never seen."
"Hmm, and since there was a closed investigation, it must mean it was not a person that unleashed that amount of magic?" Anon said in a questioning tone, not sure how magic worked, but that was his conclusion.
Twilight favored him with a smile and nod. "Yes, that is what I figured too. I hope you would see something, like a device big enough to contain such power. But of course, without knowing what you're looking for I can understand it would have been hard.. Not to mention if there really was such a device it would have probably been removed as soon as the so called investigators arrived.."
"What about your friend?" Anon then asked. "If she is more used to magic, maybe she knows something."
To his surprise, Twilight shook her head. "We don't know enough, and besides, I don't want my friends to get involved.. They almost died, and if someone is building such a machine I don't want to bring them in danger."
Anon understood her concern, but they needed answers. "So what do we do now?"
Twilight let out a sigh. "Honestly? I have no idea.. I can only investigate, you're the one with the powers to do something." She smiled a little. "So let's work together to figure this out."
"Sounds good." Anon smiled. "Though, what about the suit? Did you figure something out about that?" Twilight smirked, then held up a phone.
Rarity could hardly believe it, he'd called, he'd actually called. Normally she would never answer a call from a hidden number, but she figured in this case she would take a chance, and it had paid off in spades! If not for her ankle she would have hoped around and squealed in excitement!
When he called she was not sure if she believed him at first, but after a quick recap of the events in the mall she knew it was. He had first asked her how she, and her friends, were doing, like a true gentleman. After confirming everyone was well he had asked about the special gift. Rarity excitedly told him about the costume she had made for him, and she was even more excited when he asked if he could come and pick it up. She had told him of course and they agreed to meet up on the roof of Carousel Boutique, as per suggestion of Rarity herself. If he really was who he claimed to be, then it would be able to get there no problem to get up there. She just thanked her lucky star her parents and her boss allowed her to go there to do some work in the sewing room.
Now here she was on the flat roof, waiting for her dashing hero to appear. The sun had already gone down, there was still a bit of light in the horizon, but it was quickly vanishing. The evening was just so calm an-SLAM!
"Did we miss him?!" Rainbow yelled, panting as she had run all the way from her own house.
Rarity sighed. "Darling, calm down, he hasn't shown up yet." She tilted her head. "Did you bring Fluttershy?"
"I'm here.." Fluttershy called, though more gently than her otherwise loud friend. Unlike Rainbow she had used her bicycle to get here, so she was not as exhausted. "Are you sure it's him?"
"We shall see soon enough," Rarity said in almost a playful tone.
The three friends waited, none spoke, as if they were afraid they would miss something if they did. They waited, and waited, and waited. Finally Rainbow could take it no more, she groaned and stood up. "Forget it, he's not coming at all.. Someone must have pranked called you, Rarity!"
Rarity grimaced and stood up. "It isn't my fault!" She then winced as she felt her bad ankle, so she quickly sat down. "Besides, the gentleman knew a lot about what happened, I was sure it was him."
"Uhm, guys.." Fluttershy tried, but was not heard.
"Well that is just great, I missed an important soccer game on the TV for nothing, just great!" Rainbow continued to fume.
"R-Rainbow..?"
Rainbow turned to her shy friend with a little impatient tone in her voice. "What?"
Fluttershy pointed up at the sky. "He's here.."
Both girls turned quickly, looking to the sky and let out a startled gasp. There, floating about six meters above them was Anon, or as they knew him, Superlad. He wore a brown leather jacket, work pants and a leather flight helmet from the 40ths, goggles over his eyes and all. Anon knew they had seen his face, but he rather not take chances before he had his costume.
"Sorry for keeping you ladies waiting." Anon said as he floated down to the roof. "I had no idea you would all be here." All three girls looked to him in awe, speechless. Anon felt his cheeks flush slightly red, but the flight helmet hid it. "I'm sorry for the sudden appearance, but you said you had something for me?"
Rarity was the first to snap out of it. Quickly she stood, gestured to a box. "Yes indeed darling, I've made you a suit for you to wear." She winced, making Anon go to her.
"Easy now, you're still hurt." He helped her to sit down again. "Are you okay?"
Rarity blushed. "Now I am..."
Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Alright alright, we get it, you're a damsel." She said half mockingly, making Rarity glare at her for a moment. "Listen big guy, we wanted to say thank you. You saved us, and we won't forget it." She gestured to the box. "Rarity might have made it, but it's from us all."
Fluttershy was still a bit intimidated by him, not scared as such, but nervous as she had never seen a boy that could do the things he could. "We hope you like it."
Anon turned to the box, got down on one knee and opened it. The first thing that met him was the S, his logo. He smiled, already knowing he was going to like it. Rarity grinned, having spotted his smile. "Go on darling, put it on, we won't peek. Right, Rainbow Dash?"
Rainbow flushed red and glared at Rarity. "Why are you asking me?!"
With the girls turned around, Anon pulled out the suit. To his relief he discovered it was not one piece, but divided into their own pieces. Essentially there were four parts to his costume, the top, which fitted neatly over his torso, the logo displayed over his chest. The pants with the red shorts on the outside and the yellow belt. The red boots, which were amazingly easy to move in. And finally, the red cape. It wasn't very long, only went down to about his knees, but he thought it was perfect. Of course to put it on he had to strip down to only his underwear, but it was easy to slip into fast. It wasn't too tight, but it felt like a part of him, freed him from any restriction of movement.
"How do I look?"
The girls turned, and gasped. "Oh my, you look very dashing," said Rarity.
"Awesome!"
"Y-you look great.."
"How does it feel darling?" Rarity then asked, going into fashion mode. "Does it fit?"
Anon moved around a little, then nodded. "It feels great, Miss Rarity."
"I'm pleased to hear it. You should note darling that the suit itself can offer little in terms of protection, but it should hold up whatever conditions you put it through. As for the boots, I had to call in a favor, but I'm glad you're pleased. Come by if you need repairs."
Anon gathered his clothes. "I don't know how to thank you.."
Rainbow grinned. "You saved us, I don't even think we're even."
"Indeed darling, we owe you a debt we will never be able to repay."
Fluttershy nodded and whispered a little, "thank you.."
"Still, you have my thanks, all of you. I'm glad you're safe." He inclined his head, took a step back and gave them a small salute with two of his fingers. "See you around."
Before any of them could ask him any questions, he leaped into the air and flew high into the sky, out of view. All three girls looked up, trying to spot him, but he was gone. Rainbow sighed, "Dammit, didn't get to ask him anything, or got a picture.."
"Well at least we got to see him again." Fluttershy said with an encouraging smile.
"Fluttershy is right, we should be happy we got to help him out, and I have a funny feeling it won't be the last time we meet." Rarity assured Rainbow.
"Heh," Rainbow chuckled as she looked back up at the sky. "You're probably right. One thing is for certain though, this city just got their very own superhero, so whatever crooks and thugs that might be out there, they are in for a nasty surprise."
