"I made Gabe cry again," Etienne thought to himself, "He's completely right, there was an unnecessary loss of life I should have been able to avoid."
Etienne clenched his fist.
"I feel much stronger now than I did that first night when I stopped the metahuman, but I still lack control and finesse. As I am now, I need a mission that requires less finesse." Etienne looked up at the display of the sporting goods store in front of him. A tinted motorcycle helmet with an accompanying jacket, gloves and pants sat on a ghostly white mannequin.
"I should've asked Gabe if he was able to order any of my weapons or my gi. Too late now, and I'm not going back until I get…"
Etienne's thoughts trailed off, as he entered the sporting goods store. He pulled up his medical mask and scanned the store quickly.
It was completely empty save for one worker.
Etienne walked right up to her, "Good morning ma'am, how are you!" He smiled with his eyes.
Strangely, the older woman spoke with a southern accent, "Why hello there, fella! How can I help you?"
He pointed to the motorcycle outfit in the window and asked, "How much for that one on display?"
"It's not for sale, unfortunately," The woman replied, "But if it were, it would be somewhere in the five figure range. That's one of the premium motorcycle equipment brands. The displays are just showing what's coming soon. Apparently this new suit is 150% more effective against crashes." Before the woman could finish her sentence or react, Etienne placed a debit card in her hand, grabbed the clothes, and disappeared out of the store.
In seconds, Etienne was up the street, closing up the motorcycle jacket and putting the helmet on his head. Looking through the tinted visor of the helmet, Etienne examined the surrounding area. A shiver went down his spine as he slowly walked up a steep hill.
"Our old stomping grounds. After Mom and Dad died…"
After walking for a short time, Etienne stopped in front of a beautiful townhouse with obsidian black railing and perfectly cut stairs.
The number on the door read "1480."
Etienne walked up to a trash can beside the stairs and took his glove off.
"It's time for me to finally try this again."
He placed his blacked-out hand onto the trashcan, making sure every inch of his fingers and palms touched it. When he lifted his hand up, there were symbols on the trashcan.
Etienne walked up to the door and pressed the doorbell a few times consecutively and waited. He listened to the wind blowing for a few seconds before he punched the glass door, shattering it into small pieces. He stepped through the glass and looked around slowly. Immediately in front of him there was a staircase leading down to the garage and to the left was the kitchen. The smell immediately caught Etienne's nose and forced him to stagger back.
"Damn! It smells like a gym in here, I guess the whole family isn't here anymore. I can't tell if this belongs to Lyle or…"
Etienne thoughts trailed off as he walked into the kitchen and sneered.
"Smaller than I remember."
Etienne swung the refrigerator door open and laughed.
"I wonder if the fridge was full like this when we were here. Fresh vegetables, pre- packaged meals… and all we were able to get was knock- off junk food and ramen noodles."
Etienne opened the drawers quickly, and grabbed a handful of metal spoons and forks. He placed them into the fancy digital microwave and closed the door.
He pressed a few buttons on the oven and set the temperature to 475.
Etienne turned the knobs on all the stove burners until he heard a sizzling sound.
He opened a few cabinets above his head and sifted through various seasonings and sauces until he found olive oil. He took off the top and poured the whole bottle into the air fryer and turned it up to the highest setting.
Immediately, the room became unbearably hot.
"Since Uncle Elliot and Aunt Princessa don't live here anymore, none of the crucial files will be here. I just have to grab anything I can."
Etienne ran up the stairs adjacent to the kitchen, but as he reached the top he stopped suddenly. There was a faint low droning noise, like a mosquito flying.
"Silent alarm? I was really trying to avoid a fight right now."
Etienne rushed up the stairs and threw open the doors to each room. There were various odds and ends tossed around wildly in each room, but one was better kept than the rest. In the corner of the room, a sleek laptop sat on a wooden desk, right under several monitors. Wires connected to the laptop and spread throughout the room.
Etienne snatched the laptop and began to open the drawers.
"Flashdrives, USBs…I need to make sure I take everything," Etienne's search was abruptly halted when the smoke alarm suddenly blared to life.
He put the laptop under his arm and ran back downstairs.
The air fryer, along with the entire kitchen counter, was on fire. The heat distorted the air and the black smoke made it hard to breathe.
Etienne reached up and pressed start on the microwave. The forks and spoons spun slowly and the microwave began to flash.
In that moment, a group of older men in plain clothes stepped through the broken glass door with their guns drawn.
"Stay where you are!" One of the gruff older men barked out.
"So, that's who the silent alarm was calling? They don't look like much." Etienne stood, staring at them definitively, as the fire and smoke began to overtake the room. He put two fingers together and made a hand sign.
The environment began to change around him and he was teleported to the trashcan outside the townhouse.
He slumped to the ground and exhaled loudly.
"It might not have been the smartest thing to blow this place up…but it's fitting. This was one of the first things they bought with the fruit of my parent's labor. Like my master used to say…"
Etienne got up and dusted himself off. He put the laptop in the biker jacket.
He began to climb up the side of the townhouse and he quickly reached the top.
Sitting on the roof, he stared up into the sky.
"Where justice fails vengeance corrects."