THE MOMENT
Cinderflake sat up as the walls of his cell trembled. He'd been lost in thought when he suddenly became aware of an ongoing ruckus. After another shake, he stood and looked out the barred window. Through the fire and dust, he spotted several dark, familiar costumes; his team was there. Instead of being happy at the chance of rescue, Cinderflake felt himself grow more confused. Why were they trying to help him? Were they actually there to help him? He himself couldn't quite remember how he got captured. His unknown captors must have drugged him. Anything that happened before he woke up there was still a blur in his mind.
"Oh hell, I can't lose this; Jenny will kill me..." At least one of Cinderflake's questions was answered when a familiar figure entered the room. Darkmoon, the anti-hero, was mumbling to himself as he approached a console. "...okay, that upgrade should help...," he nodded to himself and turned to leave again.
"What do you want from me?" Cinderflake asked. Darkmoon froze midstep and Cinderflake thought he heard a sinister chuckle. The costumed Super whirled around and dashed to the bars.
"What's your favorite number!?" he asked.
"34!" Cinderflake blurted the answer before he even comprehended the question. And, it only served to puzzle him more when Darkmoon celebrated to himself.
"YEEsS!" Darkmoon laughed. "Buddy, you just saved my bacon," he added as he jogged to the nearby console again and pressed some buttons. Then, he approached the bars again. "As soon as this is over, I'll give you anything you want," he said.
"As soon as what's over..?" Cinderflake asked. But, Darkmoon had turned away to focus on a black portal that opened in the room.
"Aury, it's not like you to give up...," a pale teenager emerged from the portal with a broad grin. He wore dark clothes and sported a deep widow's peak on his forehead. "...no matter how much of a lead I have."
"I'm not quitting, this game is null already," Darkmoon gestured at Cinderflake through the bars. "He Woke up." The new teen stared through the bars with glowing red eyes for a moment, then sighed.
"So he did," he nodded. "Not a problem, we'll start a new game right away." He lifted his hand and it began to glow with the same brilliant red energy that swirled in his eyes.
"Wait, actually, since we stopped anyway...," Darkmoon interrupted whatever the teen was about to do. The red glow disappeared. "...I want to change the bet."
"How so?" the pale teen asked. Darkmoon held up a translucent red card made of glass.
"Jenny's node is off the table," he said.
"Off the table?" the teen chuckled. "That's all you had on the table. There's nothing else you have that I want."
"Then, no game I guess," Darkmoon shrugged.
"We spent two days bickering about these rules and now you don't even want to play?" The teen whined like a much younger child.
"I want to play," Darkmoon nodded. "But, I can't bet this. We can play just to play," he said.
"What's the point if I don't win anything?" The teen shook his head. "I don't want to play anymore either," he sighed and walked into another black portal. "Let me know when you have something worth betting," he added as he disappeared along with the black hole. Darkmoon sighed in relief when the teen was gone. Then, he returned to the console and pressed some more buttons. The cell door unlocked.
"Man, you have great timing. Name anything you want, and it's yours," Darkmoon said. Cinderflake still wasn't quite caught up to what was happening around him; but, he believed the offer to be sincere. He briefly considered a large sum of gold and jewels; but, he remembered his men were out there trying to rescue him for some reason. For possibly the first time in his life, Cinderflake considered the well-being of others.
"Are my minions safe?" he asked.
"Oh, right... about that...," Darkmoon nodded. "So, you're going to get a better explanation later; but, the short answer is your minions don't exist," he said.
"What do you mean? They came to rescue me, right?"
"Not exactly. Oren..," Darkmoon gestured at the spot where the pale teen disappeared from. "...and I were playing a game. He was supposed to rescue you from me. All those minions you thought were yours were just NPCs he was using to rescue you. You were an NPC too until just now. That's why the game ended, you're not supposed to be aware of it."
"I don't know what you're saying...," Cinderflake shook his head. "I wasn't real... but now I am?"
"Something like that," Darkmoon nodded. "You'll get a better explanation," he gestured to the open air and another black portal opened.
"Why should I trust you?" Cinderflake asked. Darkmoon had been nice enough in the last few moments; but, it was still a lot to take in. The entire thing could have been a ruse to move him to another location away from his rescuers. Although, he could no longer hear the sounds of battle.
"I mean, that's up to you," Darkmoon shrugged. "Oh, but maybe this'll help." Cinderflake was stunned when Darkmoon pulled the mask off his face. Beneath it, he was just another fresh-faced teenager. Once the mask was off, he extended a hand toward Cinderflake. "My name's Aurelio Luna; but, everyone calls me Aury."
"You're just a kid...," Cinderflake shook his head. He didn't know if that made Aury more or less trustworthy.
"Well, if you want to get technical," Aury chuckled. "You were only born a few minutes ago."