Chapter 86 : Group study with an uncle (Patreon)

Sarah and the others were sitting on white couches - Elaimant had their own due to their size, Kopper and Glicer shared, and Sarah and Scareowl had agreed they were more comfortable with each having their own rather than sharing - set up in one of the many communal areas made available to the Hero trainees by the Union. The room had a really nice and cozy atmosphere, with dark red wallpaper with thin grey stripes and small black lily patterns, with really nice wooden flooring. A large crystal chandelier hang down from the white ceiling, and illuminated the room - even in the middle of the day, it was the only light available since there were no windows. Windows were a liability after all, though they had all learned that supposedly there were rooms only accessible to trusted personnel that made use of the glass walls of the Headquarter tower. They had never seen those themselves, though, and messing around with newbies with that sort of story wouldn't be far-fetched.

It had been a good hour since they left Maledicta behind to her own thing, and everyone had had the time to cool down and go back on track to what truly mattered: revising for their test and getting a score high enough they'd be allowed to continue the training program. Even if menial work under the orders of a true Hero didn't sound that incredible, it would still be the opportunity to meet their idols and maybe one day become their colleagues. They probably wouldn't get to fight bad guys for a while, at least not organized goons working for true Villains, but that was fine with them. They were all young, but none of them was really interested in the fighting aspect of heroism, they were all here to help others.

But if they wanted to help others with a budget and without fighting the long arm of the law like Vigilantes, they needed to succeed at this test.

"Test: You are walking down the street, you spot a Villain, what do you do? Proposal: A, you confront them, B, you attack them by surprise, C, you contact the authorities, D, you contact the Union."

"Ouh, that's a nice one. Let me think... Think, think, think..."

"You do know you don't have to say 'think' aloud, right?"

"Shush Kopper, let me do my thing. Think... Think... Think... I know! I pop up and tell them to stop right there!"

"Observation: Answer A for Glicer Glitter, noted. Inquiry: What about you, Kopper?"

"Uh... I call the police? I mean, maybe once we're fully fledged Heroes we can do more, but if tomorrow I was in that situation, yeah, I'd say call the police. What about you, Elaimant?"

"They're the one who asked the question, they probably know the answer already dummy."

"Oof, sorry."

"I'm messing with ya, silly."

"Assessment: The revision book keeps questions and answers separate, therefore I do not know the correct answer, but I agree with Kopper's assessment of the situation, calling proper law enforcers is a priority."

"Oh, nice."

"Continuation: But I do disagree with the authorities to call, if you identified a Villain you should contact the Union, not the police."

"Oh."

"Inquiry: What about you, Scareowl?"

"Sneak attack, definitely. Villains are dangerous people, and you can't afford to let them know you're here before you strike. Take them out swiftly before they have a chance to react and most situations will be easier to manage, if not outright defused."

"Assessment: Answer B, then, which only leaves Firefly."

"Am I off duty or on duty? Is the Villain in civilian attire or are they in costume? Are they doing anything illegal or just something mundane like taking a coffee? If I'm not on duty, I have no authority to confront or attack them, and if they're not doing anything illegal and if they aren't in costume then the police have no reason to interfere, it could just be a lookalike after all. Interfering with Villains' schemes is a Hero's duty, but if you have no authority or good reason to act, warning the Union is often all you can do unless someone is in danger and then it is up to the Hero to decide if saving them is more important than calling back-up, and if they can assure their safety until they can leave the scene. Sacrificing yourself to save a civilian is pointless if a civilian still ends up surrounded by murderous monsters, this time without any Hero to save them."

"Assessment: So, a little bit of everything, depending on the situation? Observation: This isn't one of the available answers in the book."

"Yeah! You can't pick every answer! That's cheating!"

Kopper lightly shook his head as he watched Glicer Glitter standing on the couch and posing dramatically to point at Sarah before he put his hands on the very short girl's shoulders and made her sit back down, meanwhile Scareowl rubbed at his chin - hidden by his fluffy feathers - with the wrist of his right wing.

"I... I suppose that taking into account more details about the situation is important... Knowing whether the Villain you're seeing is on vacation or actively up to no good has to be major information..."

"But, uh..."

All turned to look at Kopper.

"I mean, we can't know everything all of the time. Sure, whether either of you is wearing your suit is important, but you can never what's going on. Maybe they're undercover, maybe another Hero is undercover, maybe they have someone hostage just out of view, maybe they genuinely are doing or just happen to look like a Villain and your interfering would create a mess. Maybe calling the police wasn't the right move, but you should call the Union before doing anything."

Sarah nodded.

"Yeah, you have a point. So, Elaimant, what's the-"

It was at this point that the door - that the group had locked behind them, to ensure they wouldn't have to deal with Maledicta or other trainees while they studied - opened, and they all rose in surprise as they saw one of Zalcien's oldest still active Heroes enter the room, Firefighter.

The tall svelte man in a red and blue bodysuit wearing yellow gauntlets, boots, chest piece, and helmet fused with a wielder's mask wasn't the most famous of Zalcien's Heroes, and arguably one of the less well-known ones, but he was still a pillar of the local Hero community and most active members of the Union in the area highly valued his input. Of course, fame in a closed circle didn't exactly translate to popularity or even common knowledge, as proven by the fact Kopper Kid had no idea who the man who just interrupted them was aside from the fact he had to be an official Hero to override their simple trainee authority to unlock the door.

"Uh... Excuse me sir, but I think you might be in the wrong room?"

Glicer was much less subtle when expressing her confusion.

"Sooo... Anyone knows who's that guy?"

Scareowl was quite offended by what he saw as blatant disrespect towards a Hero, one that in fact he did know about.

"Glicer!"

"What?! I don't know the guy, maybe he's a Villain that snuck in!"

"You shouldn't assume people you don't know are Villains! Besides, this is Firefighter."

"Didn't know firefighters were allowed in here. New uniform, too?"

"Not A firefighter, just Firefighter. He's a veteran Hero, one that has protected Zalcien from various threats for years!"

"Really? Never heard about him."

Firefighter cleared his throat, garnering the two trainees' attention.

"Young lady, being wary of unknown elements in the headquarters is a good reflex, but one that is quite detrimental if you do not know your colleagues. You are still learning about laws and protocols and haven't begun the lessons about the history of the Union yet, so most people should be forgiving, but when the time comes do try your best to remember your fellow Heroes.

"Yes sir!"

"Young man, while I do appreciate you enlightening your friend, you should remember that sometimes ensuring discipline is more important than teaching. I don't care much for petty politics and popularity contests, but keep in mind that in the future banter and bickering such as this is an opening some will take advantage of or be offended by."

"Yes, mister Firefighter."

"You can just call me Firefighter, it's fine. No nicknames though."

"Yes, Firefighter."

"Inquiry: Firefighter, while we appreciate the presence of a bona fide Hero, why have you come here?"

"Ah, I wanted to check in on your little group, and maybe help you prepare for your big test next week if you wish to."

"You want to-"

"Ah yes! Thanks!"

"That's awfully nice of you sir, but... Uh... Why? Not that we mind, it's just... Why us?"

"Well, today I'm on emergency duty only, which means I will have a lot of free time unless something pops up that other Heroes or emergency responders can't handle on their own, and I thought I'd make use of that time checking on the latest trainees, it just so happens that I am particularly invested in the progress of one of you."

Suddenly, Sarah was very annoyed at the fact the official trainee suit only included a domino mask to cover their faces, because she could really have used a whole helmet to hide her blush, and although Kopper, Glicer, and Scareowl were too focused on her dear uncle Doug to notice, she was pretty sure Elaimant had some sort of wider vision, though she couldn't tell if they had noticed since they had no facial expression to speak off.

"Oh really? Which one?"

"Glicer, don't ask that kind of thing!"

"Why? He just dropped that on us and-"

"Kopper, Glicer, drop the subject. Thank you for your assistance, sir. We were actually considering one of the example questions provided by our books when you arrived."

"Oh? Which one?"

"Test: You are walking down the street, you notice a Villain, what do you do? Proposal: A, you confront them, B, you attack them by surprise, C, you contact the authorities, D, you contact the Union."

"Union, always. Even if it's your off day, even if you're on another mission, even if they're up to something, call the Union. We have people and Legions manning the phones, don't be afraid to call, even if it turns out it was a false alert or something the Union already knew about it's better than missing a new nefarious scheme. Whoever will answer the phone will then tell you what you should do, and you should do as they say. Sometimes the Union has good reasons to let a Villain run along."

"Observation: I was correct."

"That ain't an observation, Elaimant, that's gloating!"

"Affirmation: Incorrect, there is nothing worth gloating about when doing what is expected."

"I've got my eyes on you, buddy."

"Thank you for your advice, sir."

"No problem. But instead of helping you figure out questions you can check the answers for yourselves, how about you each tell me what you have the most trouble with and I try and help you with that? Kopper Kid, was it? You go first."

"Sure, uh... Let me think... What do I do if I can't do anything?"

"Your best. You can't save everyone and everything, that's a fact of life. Even big names like Miss Malice, Mecha Man, and Serpent can't always win or fail to save a few when they do, and that's okay. You're doing your best, and you're already going out of your way to saving more people than most will ever try to. If things get overwhelming, take a step back, warn your colleagues, and let them handle it. It's better for you not to help at all rather than to be a ticking bomb that will freeze in the middle of a fight. Not that you should be ashamed of it, not everyone can handle highly stressful situations."

"I... Uh... Thank you, sir."

"Keep in mind the Union has health professionals if you ever need them. Next, Glicer Glitter."

"Oh! I know! How do you handle destructive powers?"

"Stay in control. I can create and manipulate large quantities of water, and one of the most important things to know is how much water a surface or building can handle before it collapses. On one of my first missions, I accidentally flooded a house because I tried to put out a fire, turns out the flooding caused more damage than the fire, which was perfectly contained and that the firefighters were handling well. Because I tried to apply too much force to a problem that didn't it, I ruined everything. Luckily for me, it was just a house that had already been evacuated, but what if it had been a building full of civilians? Destructive powers have their place in the Union, just keep a tight leash on them, and remember that even inoffensive powers can be very dangerous in the right or wrong circumstances. And if you're fighting someone with that sort of power, focus on countering them. It's better to let Sunburn flee the scene than to lose a street or even a block and countless lives to flames."

"Thanks!"

"Scareowl, you're up."

"How do we handle lethality?"

"A classic one, every Hero wonders about that at one point. You shouldn't have to kill, especially when handling non-Cored people with no special bloodline. Having a Core grants a lot of physical benefits, even without a Body Aspect, and Cored people can take a lot more than others like them. Thugs and small-time thieves should be taken done with a few normal hits, and only true Villains should require what you would consider lethal force. Even then, as you are now, your deadliest attack would only annoy someone like Abrakaboom. Do your best to keep your opponents alive, but don't be afraid to be harsh if you think they can take it. Once your opponent is out, that's the end of it. Do not EVER kill someone that can no longer be a threat."

"Thank you, sir."

"Elaimant, it's your turn."

"Inquiry: How is a Hero supposed to handle situations which involve discrimination?"

"First off, discrimination means establishing or recognizing a difference between different groups, it is a valid sentence to say you discriminate between chocolate and candies. Some old-timey people will use the term casually for this exact sort of situation, so don't jump to conclusions. As for the sort of discrimination you were referring to, keep your cool. As annoying as some people might be, remember that you are a Hero whereas they are mere civilians. If the discriminating party is another Hero, authority worker, or even a member of the Union, bring it up to a Legion. Unwarranted discrimination is a crime, and you are an agent of justice and the legal system, so you can interfere, but only within the context of the law. As tempting as it may be, you can't pummel a man stalking a woman if he surrenders without resistance, and if you have no proof the bartender is refusing to serve an elf because they are an elf there isn't much you can do, aside from acting tough."

"Affirmation: Understood, thank you, Firefighter."

"Next on the list, Firefly. Tell me, what is it you have the most trouble with?"

"I... Ah, how do you handle hostile civilians refusing your help?"

"Ah, always a prickly subject. If a civilian refuses your help, then there isn't much you can do. You must abide by the law, and if someone refuses to leave their home during a catastrophe, you can't force them out. You can try to do something that could help, like forming a ice dome to keep them safe from an acid rain, but even then you risk a lawsuit. Our relationship with Zalcien's court is good enough that you should be fine as long as you get some form of punishment from the Union, but don't always count on it. Do note you can take advantage of the law to help against their will, if someone is bleeding out on the pavement the law will be on your side if you bring them to an hospital. In case a civilian tries to interfere or generally be a nuisance while you are on active duty, you are free to report them to the Union - interference with law enforcement may be a felony depending on circumstances."

"Thank you, Firefighter."

"And now... Isn't there supposed to be another one of you? Maledicta, no?"

"Yes sir, but she..."

"She's mean and didn't want to hang out with us!"

"Glicer.."

"What, it's true."

"Glicer is right, Maledicta has an hostile attitude both with us and the Union staff."

"I see. I'll look into this later. Now that we've talked about your most obvious problem, let's go over-"

A beeping sound came from one of Firefighter's gauntlets.

"Ah, big fire in town. Sorry children, duty calls. I'll look into coming by some other time. See you soon."

The veteran Hero promptly left the room, not waiting for the trainees' retort. They looked at him go before all looking at each other.

"Alright, who wanna bet that the trainee he wanted to keep an eye on was Maledicta?"

"Glicer..."

"I mean, she's the one that stands out the most, aside from Elaimant. Sorry buddy."

"Affirmation: No offense taken, it is factually true that I am noticeable."

"Rigth. Like, what if she's an ex goon, or even an ex Villain. It would explain sooo much. And like, this is some sort of community service or she had to become a Hero not to go to jail! It makes so much sense!"

As the trainees began to banter back and forth, Sarah held back a sigh of relief. She wasn't ashamed of her uncle, far from it, but if the others knew she was supported by a veteran Hero... Being the girl who got in because she knew someone wasn't great. Now she just had to wait for things to calm down and they'd get back to studying...