The next day, Max aimlessly wandered through the Zero sector, hoping to find something that'd lead him to the arsonist. He'd gotten access to the video feeds from the cameras across the area, but nothing out of the ordinary happened. Max had already seen all of the known arson sites at this point, and hadn't seen anything new. The same old pattern, with charred remains and a pin, at every site. Max stopped at a nearby cafe, and ordered a coffee. The Association actually had pretty good pay, much more than Max's old minimum wage job at the pizza place near the school. Association work was considerably more interesting too, way better than rolling dough. The cafe had a warm, welcoming ambience that somehow gave Max, who was only 17, a strong feeling of nostalgia. Have I been here before? Maybe mom took me here when I was younger… Max wondered, before his Association phone rang. It was the old phone they'd given him specifically for patrols, which only went off when there was a nearby crisis. Max picked up the call. "This is agent Calder, what's going on?" There was a cold voice on the other side. "There's an ongoing overflow two blocks away from your location, Calder." Max set his coffee down, surprised. "We need you to make contact with the individual, and bring them back to HQ. If capture isn't possible, eliminate the target as you see fit." Max stood up, and headed out the door in a rush. "I'm on it."
As soon as Max approached the location he was given, he noticed the crowd of police cars surrounding the place. It was a massive parking garage, about eight levels tall. An officer ran up to him, noticing his insignia. "Thank God, the Association's here. All civilians have been cleared out safely. That… Thing is on the third level down. It's the bottom floor." Max nodded, and he walked between the cars blocking the entrance. He went down the ramp, footsteps echoing in the wide concrete halls. Max hated being underground. It made him claustrophobic, and he couldn't shake off the feeling that he was willingly walking into his grave. The concrete pillars turned the parking garage into a maze, full of blind spots and hiding places. The air was stale, with a hint of Flux presence that grew with every step that brought Max to the basement. And as he stepped out onto the bottom floor, he saw the one who was causing all of the trouble. It was just a kid.
The boy was crouched between two pillars near the stairwell door on the other side of the garage, his back against the concrete. He had his hands covering his head, and he was sobbing quietly. He looked young, about ten years old. His dark hair was dirty, drenched in sweat, and his eyes were wide, darting all over the place, paranoid. His vision snapped to Max as soon as he walked into the room, eyes narrowing. "Get back! I don't want to hurt you!" He shouted, and the concrete around him cracked, spiderwebs spreading all across the reinforced pillars and floor. Max set down his staff on the floor, and stepped closer. "Hey," Max said softly. "I'm here to help you." He kept his hands open, with his palms out, to show that he wasn't a threat. The kid swallowed hard. "You-" He rasped, choking down tears. "You're with them, aren't you?" "With the people upstairs?" Max kept his voice calm. "Yeah, I'm with the Association, but I'm not going to hurt you." "You're lying! All of you, you're lying to me!" The kid screamed, hands balling into fists. "You're going to lock me up! Like a monster! I'm not a monster!" He sobbed, wiping his nose with his sleeve. "I- I didn't mean to-" "I know you didn't mean to hurt anyone," Max said, keeping his tone gentle. "You're overflowing with a new power you can't control, and it's not your fault. It doesn't make you a monster." The kid's hands were still clenched tight, knuckles white. Flux shimmered faintly around his wrists, subtle at first, but steadily getting stronger, bending the light around it. This kid could be really powerful, Max thought. He stepped closer. "What's your name, kid?" The kid's laugh came out broken and dry. "Why do you care?" Max's expression softened, and he put his hands in his sweater pockets. "Because I want to talk to you like a person. I'm not going to treat you like a wild animal." The silence stretched on for a minute, only broken by the fluorescent lights flickering and buzzing. The kid wiped his face again, before looking down at the floor. "I… I don't want to hurt any more people," He whispered, and more tears formed in the corners of his eyes. "I don't. I just got angry- and this happened and now I can't stop it." He took a deep breath. "It hurts so much. It feels like I'm on fire all over." Max nodded once, stepping even closer. He was just a few feet from the boy now.
"I know how it feels. Your body is trying to protect you, but it doesn't understand what's going on." Max reached his left hand out to him. "Listen," he said. "I can help you. You can come with me, somewhere safe. Somewhere warm. They'll teach you to control this power just like they did for me, and it won't hurt you anymore." The kid's eyes flicked up, a new glimmer of hope behind his eyes. The kid blinked fast, his eyes shining with tears. "Why?" He demanded, his voice cracking. "Why would you-" "Because you shouldn't have to be alone. You can still have a life with the Association." Max said. The kid's breath shuddered, and the glow of the Flux around him began to dim. Max kept his posture loose and non-threatening. "That's it. Breathe with me, okay?" He said, and the kid's shoulders rose, as if a massive weight was taken off of him. The pressure in the air got weaker, and faded away. The kid stared at him, actually holding his gaze for the first time, rather than skittering away. Max smiled, hand outstretched, beckoning for the kid to join him. "This doesn't have to be the end of your story, kid." The boy started to walk towards Max. "My name is-" He began to say. A footstep echoed behind him. Max's eyes snapped up to the figure stepping out from behind a nearby pillar, and his brain screamed a warning a half-second too late. The figure raised a hand, palm out, aimed at the kid's back, and all of the Flux in the room collected in his hand. "Don't-" Max started to say, reflexively reinforcing. The kid turned slightly, confused, the first syllable of his name still hanging in the air. And then a blinding light filled the room, accompanied by a violent roaring sound, like a furnace door being kicked open.
Ren was patrolling the city with three other agents. They were all fairly weak, with very little in the way of Flux ability. They made up for that lack of raw power with technique and strategy, and were formidable opponents in a group, but they could never reach Ren's level. Ren usually patrolled alone, or with Devon, but she was assigned to watch over this new team with the rising threat towards Association members. I hope Max is doing alright right now, She thought, standing on the roof of a small apartment building in the busier part of town. Her phone buzzed in her pocket. Then it buzzed again. The standard Association phones were tuned to pick up any news broadcasts in the area, which helped with the patrols. She ignored it at first, until one of the agents behind her cleared his throat. "Uh, Ma'am?" "What is it, agent?" She replied, pulling out her phone. "We got a new report of a fire, at the parking garage on Westfield." He said, worried. "It's at the same location as a recently reported overflow incident." "Remind me, what zone is Westfield in?" Ren said, voice shaking. "It's… in zone 12K ma'am." The agent replied. That's Max's patrol zone… She thought, and her eyes widened. "We have to go. Now."
The air was thick with the scent of ash and melting rock, and a sharp, ozone-like edge pierced Max's nostrils. As his senses returned, Max was overwhelmed with pain. His reinforcement had largely protected him from the blast, but his left hand, which was still reaching out to the kid, was cooked, covered in third degree burns. His head rang, and finally, he fully processed the situation he was in. The kid he was just talking to was gone. Reduced to ashes. And in his place was a massive streak of melted concrete, leaving a trail of the fire's path. All that hope, it was for nothing. Max finally looked up at the man responsible, and his breath caught in his throat. It was the preacher. The one Max had ignored on the street the day before, was now standing across from him, palm still smoking. "You… murdered him…" Max rasped, lungs filling with smoke. The preacher's smile grew wider. "The wicked shall not be shown mercy," he replied, spreading his arms in a grand gesture. "You would bring a demon into your den, and allow its corruption to spread?" Max's vision blurred at the edges, and his body began to flood with Flux as his grief was replaced with rage. "HE WAS JUST A KID!" He shouted, throat raw. "And so are you," the preacher said, and the smoke cleared around him. Max could see both of his hands, marked with demonic circles, still glowing with Flux. "And yet you stand with the defiled. You take in a power God never intended for you to have, and then have the nerve to call yourself righteous?" Max tried to lift his fists. He couldn't use a staff with the state of his left hand, but he could still use his right one to fight. "And who do you think you are to judge us? You're a hypocrite, using that same power for yourself!" Max retorted, and the preacher looked offended. "I am the absolute power here! An angel of God gave me, and only me, the power to burn out the corruption with holy fire!" The preacher raised his hands and shouted, "Behold, the cleansing light of God!" and a ring of fire surrounded them. There was nowhere left to hide now, nowhere to run.
"This ends here, before you corrupt anyone else." The preacher said. "I, Elias Vane, sentence you to eternity in hell in the name of God." Max started to walk towards him, fists clenched, forcing himself to move despite the pain. Elias flicked his hand, and more flames shot out in a violent burst. Max raised his reinforcement again, and it held for a second, just long enough for him to roll to the side. Then his barrier failed, and the heat punched through. Max screamed, as the fire tore into his forearm and cheek, burning pain spreading across his whole body. Max stumbled back, hitting a pillar. Elias's eyes widened, clearly surprised Max was still alive. Max used that moment to retaliate. He lunged forward, Flux flooding into his legs, and he moved faster than he'd ever gone before. This must be how Ren moves so fast, He thought, closing in on Elias. Max swung his right fist into Elias's jaw, empowered by reinforcement. His head snapped sideways, and blood dripped from his nose. For a second, Max had hope. I can do this, he thought. Then Elias grinned. A sick, wicked grin, not befitting someone who claimed to be the hand of God. His fist ignited, and he slammed it into Max's chest, instantly burning a hole through his sweater, and charring his flesh. Max screamed, and Elias grabbed his burned wrist, squeezing it tight. Max reeled in pain, and Elias yanked him closer, ramming his knee into his ribs. Max coughed up blood, and Elias kicked him in the chest, in the same place he's burned him before. Max hit the pillar again, and slid down to the floor, coughing up blood.
"Do you see now?" Elias whispered, flames growing in his palm again. "You're not the hero. You aren't saving anyone. You're dooming them to share your fate in hell." Max tried to move, but his body wouldn't listen. He looked up at Elias's scarred palms. "Your hands…" He laughed, coughing more blood onto his sweater. "Those are the marks of a demon. Not an angel." Elias's expression shifted to anger. "Even now, on death's door, you lie?" His palm glowed, and his smile returned, flames crackling. "Now burn."