Short Stories Requested By Readers

Short Story 4: A Cop And A Superhero

Down And Out Requested By Paula Van Zyl

I wasn’t always this way. I was a normal teenage girl, well as normal as I could be. Life had handed me a pack of cards and I dealt with it. I made the cards bend to my will. I wasn’t going to allow my situation to get the best of me. My mom worked most of the day and I was left on my own. I learnt how to be independent and I didn’t mind it one bit.

I just didn’t have anything to do with myself in the afternoons, so I joined the local boxing club and started taking lessons. I had to earn my lessons by cleaning the building, but I didn’t mind, it was better than asking my mom for permission and money.

I built a routine; I went to school, came home, did homework, then ran to the boxing ring. I was getting better. I was in the super flyweight weight class. There weren’t many competitors but once there they were, I beat them easily thanks to the training. Until one day, a male competitor had made my weight class. He was a worthy competitor. We fought long and hard. He managed to hit me and I was down and out. A good old-fashioned knock out.

If it hadn’t been for that, maybe I wouldn’t be what I am today. As I was knocked out, there was an earthquake caused by some or other nuclear reactor. My coach tried to reach me allegedly. I don’t remember much about the accident other than what was written in the news.

When I woke up, I was buried in rubble and as I thought about lifting the rocks, the rocks lifted off of me as if controlled by my thoughts. At first it was shocking, but then I learnt to control it and my life has been quite different from the one I lived before the accident.

I trained long and hard but once the training was done, I was ready to fight crime. Sure, a Geokinetic superhero was unheard of, but that’s what I used my powers for. It sure made my mother’s life a lot easier; although she doesn’t know it, we make a great team.

My powers kept the streets a little safer and that freed some time up for my mom. Our roles were for once equal. When she had to leave for work, so did I. A cop and a superhero living under one roof, life could get interesting.