Power Comes with a Price

He was certain that he would get away with the murder he knew he just commited. After all, he was one of the most feared men on the face of the earth up to this point. As he cut off the water to the shower, he began to recall the events of that night.

The tall man, with his long black hair swooshing off of his shoulders as he ran into a frantic sprint, knew he was being persued. The meager street city lights were only a tease for his senses as they caused him to stumble and fall in cracks and crevices here and there in the sidewalk.

He was tired of all these tests at the lab. He didn't choose to possess such an unworldly power. Johannas the igniter, as he had been referred to in the media, had come to be recognized as a gifted and dangerous pyrokinetic. He could hear the howling sirens drawing ever closer. With a quick glance over his shoulder, he concentrated deeply on the police car about a block away from him. He felt the burning crimson aura grow around him which was always a pleasant sign that his power was working. With that, the police car exploded with a bright red flash throwing massive amounts of debris in all directions including his. Within seconds, he was thrown helplessly against a wall and showered in dust. Lights began to flicker on in the crowded apartment windows, and people began to peer out to see what all the fuss was about.

Jahannas knew better than to hang around for any more trouble. He saw a small alleyway not far from him and slipped into its shadows. As he held out his hand, a blue flame was produced in the middle of his palm to act as a lantern. As the impressive pale blue light reflected on his face, his dark, weary eyes seemed even more sickly than ever before. The dark black half circles under his eyes only proved how sleep-deprived he had really been.

"Angela's business should not be too much farther from here.", he reassured himself as he continued to pace forward.

He had recognized this alleyway well even in the piercing darkness. Angela, his best friend, had opened a small cafe near the area. Although he was well aware it was a little past 10:00 PM, Johannes knew how dedicated Angie was to her work. She usually stayed well into the night after closing time and notoriously opened her cash register to review the day's finances. She was doing well for herself on the busy city corner next to the subway. As he began to exit the alleyway, Johannas glanced up pleasantly to the sign reading "Angie's Cafe on the Corner". which was barely legible in the night lights. Cautious not to draw too much attention to himself, he quickly extinguished the blue flame and proceeded to head to the entrance of the cafe. He gave a small grin when he noticed there was a pale light on at one of the counters. He opened the front door.

As he drew closer to the counter, he saw that she was laboring over one of the coffee machines with her red curley hair tied neatly back. His grin only grew wider as he was glad to finally be able to glance at a friendly face at last.

"Busy again I see?", said Johannas cheerfully.

With that, Angela gave a shriek of surprise and dropped the coffee brewer to the floor with a crash. As she turned around to face her attacker, her face switched from confusion to delight. Without a second thought, she ran over to him and embraced him in a sincere hug. Once she let go, however, she was sure to give him a clear punch square on the shoulder.

"Ouch!", shouted Johannas. "I'm not sure I deserved that."

He then proceeded to rubbing his aching shoulder.

Angela, now with a strong hint of concern in her face explained, "As glad as I might be to see you again, you know better than to just appear out of thin air like that after not saying a word to me for three days. Three days! I was beginning to think that maybe they had.... You know..."

She could not finish what she was wanting to say.

"Kill me?", explained Johannas humorously. "I think they know better by now. They just wanted some more tests."

However, he was well aware that they were not just after a test this time. He began to painfully recall the repulsive new device that Dr. Alexander had invented. The 'normality device' as he referred to it. Johannas remembered how he was dragged into a small, cubic room. The room was about the size of a closet with pure white walls. They were so white, it almost hurt to look at them. There seemed to be an absence of air as Johannas found his chest very heavy, and his lungs began to burn. Suddenly, the room was filled with a brilliant blue flash of color. Johannas could see the face of the eager old crackpot, Dr. Alexander, peering in through a small window disgustingly designated for the analysis of his victims. Feeling like some kind of lab rat, a rage like nothing Johannas knew before began to invoke within him. With that, the blue aura was dominated by a blinding flash of blood red. The energy from the explosion caused Johannas to black out.

When he woke up, he remembered being buried deep in some brush a few hundred feet from the lab. He watched in shock as the revolting institution that he had been familiarized with since his childhood was consumed in a hellish flame.

"Johannas, I think we had better get back to my place before they start looking for you again.", said Angela.

Roused from his recollections, Johannas noticed that Angela had already cleaned up the mess she had made with the coffee machine and was now fishing through her purse for car keys. After hearing the inevitable jingle of keys, they walked together out the front door.

Johannas had grown accostomed to spending the night at Angela's house. Somehow, the police never suspected her of hiding a criminal surreptitiously in her home. All he knew was that he was glad to have at least one place to call home. He took off his large dusty black cloak and set it on the cozy leather couch that would act as his bed for the night. Angie had already persued to getting him the proper bed sheets he would need for the remainder of the cold night. He gave her a smile as he now made his way to the bathroom for a cleansing shower.

"Yes, it has deffinately been a long night.", Johannas thought as he began to brush through his silky black hair after the shower.

It was at this moment that he realized his eyes had grown a shocking black color deeper than night. They were nothing more than black holes in his head. He realized that the sin had finally found him. He was well aware that this point would come and very unwilling to tell Angie. He knew it would melt her heart if he explained that he broken one of the strongest laws governing his powers.

Outside the apartment, like shadows in the night, the deathwatch began to stir and prowl the streets in the forms of red demonic wolves. Leaves and trash whirled at the base of their blood-red paws. They were sensing the strong energy that Johannas displayed and were prepared to devour his soul for the crime of murder that he had commited with his magic. It is said by many that the deathwatch were cast from the underworld itself to deal the paranormal that treaded too deeply in the mortal realm. The sky was transformed into a void of the same blood-red color of the wolves.

Angie pulled down her hair and threw the covers over her cold body. As soon as her eyes closed, theres was a horrific smashing and clawing sound at the front door, and the room was filled with the ominous red color. Johannas bolted from the bathroom, the sin in his eyes already devouring his soul. He was too weak in the presence of these creatures to invoke any kind of energy. As his blurring vision began to focus on the piercing white eyes of the beasts, his soul was trapped in their flashing stare and he could feel it being ripped from his body. With that, Angela ran unpredictably into the room and blocked the path of the two enemies. In her mortal form, she was no match for the energy that struck her. She was killed instantly.

With a cry of shock and anger, Johannas felt the red vengeance surge through his body again and the creatures were scorched to ash by a flame so intense that anything within feet of the scence was melted or turned to ash instantly. To prevent anymore trouble, he ceased the flames that continues to devour the rest of the apartment. He could here frantic voices outside the room as well as a blairing fire alarm. Johannas had no care for any of this. All he could think of was Angie. She had saved his life. There was so much cruelty in the fact that he survived while her innocent soul was condemned. A consuming red light in the small apartment window was growing ever stronger. As he took a closer look out the window, his vision slightly blurred with the tears that were now present, he could see, to his shock, the appearance of a very large red void that seemed ready to consume the entire city. The void seemed to call to him somehow. With this in mind, he carefully scooped up Angela and made his way to the window. Once he was there he felt himself leave his mortal body and shoot higher and higher into the sky above all of the towering buildings. As he was carried deeper and deeper through the power of the void, he could not help but see Angela's eager smiling face at the far end of the tunnel. Her hand was stretched out far to him. Desperately, he took his hand in hers as they both sank deep into the void reunited once again.