THE MOMENT
"Okay...," Rufus nodded to himself as the crowd of capes got to their feet. He didn't have it in him to sigh at their presence anymore; maybe he was finally getting used to having followers. It sounded silly say that; but, that was all he could think of to call them. As soon as he turned and began walking to work, the crowd of Supers followed close behind.
He was thankful at least that they were more or less quiet. Sometimes they chatted to themselves about things he had no idea about. He distinctly one time they were talking about a game he wished he could find out more about. It was a VR game called 'The AlterNet', but he couldn't find any information about it online. He never knew what they were waiting for as he walked to work; but, for the past couple of days, they'd been disappointed when they didn't get it. This time, it finally occurred to him that maybe he could actively discourage them. He had no idea why he hadn't thought of it before. Who knows how many times he was chaperoned to work? But, only to work? Rufus suddenly realized that he couldn't remember them ever walking him home. He decided to mull over that later as he whirled around to face the group.
It consisted of six strangers all dressed in strange costumes. They looked more like knights and wizards than Superheroes to Rufus; but, that didn't matter. They were always there even if it was only recently that they started grating his nerves.
"I don't need protection all the time!" he said. Up until that moment, Rufus assumed the group was there together. But, he got a mixed set of reactions that hinted otherwise. All six heroes sighed. One flew away without another word, two of them walked into a black portal together. He was surprised when the remaining three asked the same question.
"What's your favorite number?" three voices asked.
"One!" Rufus answered without understanding the question, nor which one of them he was answering.
"Okay," A young woman wearing a green and white robe stepped forward and smiled at Rufus. "hi, I'm-"
"My name is Chip," a new, deep voice spoke up from behind Rufus. The young brunette that had offered her hand in greeting froze midstep and pulled her hand back. Rufus turned to see a lean man in a shimmering black suit. It caught the light like fish scales. His hair was neatly combed and he wore round spectacles with a black frame. "I'm here on behalf of Majicka the Conquistador; if you understand what that means, you may leave," he said.
Rufus did not understand what that meant, but he still decided to leave. He turned back around two of the other three heroes were gone. The young woman vanished along with another hero that could have been a wizard. The last hero drew his sword but, by the time he found his stance, a black hole opened in the air above his head. A torrent of bright blue plasma poured out of the hole and into one below the hero, disintegrating him along the way. Rufus felt a rush of intense heat and took a step back; then, he froze.
"Not you," Rufus felt a soft, well-manicured hand land on his shoulder as he heard Chip's voice. "I have plans for you," he said.
"What? Why me??" Rufus managed to slip away and spin around to face Chip. He hadn't realized how tall the man was. Rufus was a comfortable 6'2" tall and Chip was at least two inches taller. He also noted a black portal open in the air next to them. Chip gestured at it.
"Wouldn't you like to learn all about how special you are?" he asked. "Why you've been hounded by strangers and why you only care now?"
"I'm not.. .special...," Rufus shook his head. Somehow Chip seemed to know what he was going through.
"You're wrong," Chip replied. "You're Unique, you only need to be educated on the things you're capable of. There's a lot to learn about yourself and the universe if you're interested."
"You're willing to teach me?" Rufus asked. The Superheroes were obviously scared of him, and after seeing what he did to the one knight, he could understand why. But, he was offering Rufus something he didn't offer the others. He could have killed Rufus any time he wanted. But, he hadn't yet. Rufus was hopeful. Maybe he really didn't need anyone to protect him after all. Or at least, he wouldn't very soon.
"I have a Mundo available," Chip gestured at the portal again.
"I don't know what that means," Rufus chuckled. "But, I guess I'll find out," he walked into the portal and grinned at the situation. "Must be my lucky day," he said.
"Indeed," Chip smiled as he followed. "You're quite lucky Mistress Majicka has a peculiar palate," he placed a hand on Rufus' shoulder again to guide him through the portal. "She prefers her meals to have a good sense of who they are when she eats them."