#but building a real and like. deep connection with an audience isnt that easy

[hanarchy]

ive been looking up his tour setlists and bruce springsteen will really just play santa claus is coming to town if someone asks for it on a sign in like. april.

[ohgoddard]

Fist of Fire.5.

Reverse laughed a hearty laugh. Around him, sitting along a long wooden table were several other people doing the same. Clasping each others hands and roaring. Beer was aplenty there in bottles and cups, as the bar was lively with discussion and music. It was the first evening after his club meeting, and Reverse was feeling happy for once. Around him were his friends, his family. People he grew up with. The members of Laurens SHS.

“We don’t get to get together often do we?” one of them said. “Well, we did all go our separate ways, I’m just surprised to see us all here.” Reverse looked over the attendance. While Laurens SHS originally had 13 members, only 9 remained. He took a quick swig of his mug, then stood.

“Thank you all for coming out here today and help me beat up several children.” The audience cheered and raised their drinks, men and women alike. “I would like to propose a toast, a toast to our fallen comrades and a toast to our continued health.” Several nods and cheers from the table came. Reverse raised his glass, and others did the same. “A toast to Huntsman, to Meteor” Reverse paused and let out a deep breath, “And to Helios.” “TO HELIOS!” The party took a hearty swig and Reverse sat down. Everyone went back to talking, but Reverse was content to just sit back and be in the moment. He always did this in this group. He liked to sit back and let everyone else speak. It’s his rest for bringing everything together, which is how it always worked. Reverse thinks back to his time in the Laurens SuperHero Security and chuckle at how he always had to formulate the plans of attack, pick the dinner menu. Not because he was told, but because no one else would. Even Mr.Laurens, while he was brave and righteous, was a very forgetful man. 

But those were the days. The days when he and his buddy Tapout would disguise themselves and take on amateur boxing tournaments, only to get caught by Mr.Laurens who was betting in the crowd(he bet on them knowing their identities,but was still cross they decided to do it in the first place). They would be out to amazing places in the US, touring the largest cities and going to the wildest parties. However, only as bodyguards or bouncers but it was still something. And it definitely beat the alternative, being out on the streets and scrounging for scraps. I really lucked out when I met Mr.Laurens, Reverse thought. A smile creeped its way upon his face.

Reverse’s train of thought was interrupted when he picked up on a conversation happening to the right of him. “....but isnt it strange how we all ended up in Atlanta though? Like it is almost weird how we all had career defining moments that brought us all to this one city.” That had been something that had been bugging Reverse for a while. He only took the job in the AHA because of how many of his old friends were down here. He had asked them why they all came here and got a variety of answers. Most of them were job offers, they were all ex-pro heroes and this was a growing city. The first to come here though, his buddy Tapout, said he was on the trail of the villain Reverse can only think about as The Betrayer. It was not his name but it was the only thing he dare name him as. Tapout had followed him to Atlanta and looked for him for months before his trail going cold. He eventually grew roots in the city and decided to stay there, starting the chain of all the old Laurens SHS crew coming down. Well, Reverse thought, not all.

Reverse remembered the day he heard the news that the famous Hero Couple Huntsman and Meteor were lost in the fight. They were overseas and were fighting the warlords in the newly broken China, when the villain Guang He broke a mountain ontop of them. Even though Guang He was shortly defeated by Forest King, their deaths still shook the world. And Reverse.

Tapout, who was sitting at the other end of the table, stood up and stretched. “Well, it was nice to see all of you. And thank you, Joseph, for letting me use my abilities again. I missed punching through the dimensions. And to teenagers? Say no more.” The table collectively had a small laugh. Tapout was an average sized guy, standing around 5’9 and had a very stocky body. His age and lack of hero work had done works on him, and his rotund stomach and flabby arms showed it. One could describe him as if Mario became a real person. He could still put punches downrange though. “Think nothing of it, tiptap. Glad to have you here,” Reverse replied, raising his mug. “Alright alright, I think I ought to head home now. My wife will start asking questions. Keep touch now ,yall hear?” A trail of goodbyes followed him out the door, and the group went back to laughing and drinking away the night.

Tapout was whistling, hands in his pocket, on his way home. Atlanta was a lively city even at night, with traffic backed up for miles and music blaring from every bar and restaurant. The buildings climb ever and ever higher as space grows more and more limited, but thats just the life cycle for the big city. Tapout had lived here for a good deal of time now, around six years now, so he knew the city like the back of his hand. Which was impressive, as Atlanta was known for its lack of urban planning and its gloriously awful sprawl. Tapout turned down one alley, then the next, walked over a bridge and under another, the streets turning quieter as he approached the less traversed and more residential parts of the city. The tall brick towers were dark, save for a few lights on the windows. He was moving down the last Alley when-

“Took you long enough”.

Tapoout halted. Standing at the other end of the alley was standing a tall, slender figure dressed in a three piece suit. The alley was lit with three malfunctioning bulbs on wall lights, and they did very little justice lighting up the danger in the situation. The man in the suit was leaning against the wall, holding an oak wood cane. Upon his head was a long tophat and a pair of dark spectacles rested on his nose. “Tapout, its been too long.” Tapout stood their, terrified. Years ago, he came to this city tracking him down, but now that hes here? Tapout instantly took his fighting stance. “You will not get away this time you punk. You’re not going to do to me what you did to Victor.” The man in the figure laughed, the lights flickering for each breath he took in. “No, I will not do to you what I did to our ‘righteous and caring’ leader. I want to take my time. See, you trailing me here set me back by YEARS.” When he screamed that final word, the ground itself shook and the lights flickered. “It has taken me so long to rebuild what I had destroyed in D.C,  longer because of you.” The figure pushes himself front he wall he was leaning on and begins to take a small, leisurely walk towards Tapout. “I’m going to get my revenge on you, once and for all. And its going to be all too easy. Your family has made you weak, while I only grew stronger. You made yourself fat and slow, while I only grew more power.” Tapout throws off his coat he was wearing, revealing his outfit. A t-shirt with jeans, not the most flexible outfit, but he could make it work. Tapout threw a punch and, out of nowhere around the figure, seven fists come out to attack him. All seven land upon the figure in different spots and he’s thrown back. He flies down the alley, and Tapout pursues. The figure was laying on his back, but started laughing. This makes Tapout pause, and stands and watches in horror as the body begins to rise. Floating in the air now, looking down at tapout, was the figure. “You’ve gotten weaker, just as I said.It used to be in the old days you could throw a hundred. Seven? That is pathetic. You’ll find me not lacking in mine own skills however. In fact,”  as he was speaking the man raised his hand, “ I have some new tricks.” Tapout went to throw another hook but found hismelf stopped. His arms, legs, whole body found itself halted in place. It could not move an inch. Then, his body began to rise as well. “Do not worry about your family, dear. I came by and took care of them. No one will ask any questions as to your disappearance. Its a big city, after all.” Tapout grit his teeth, his anger taking control. He nodded with his head and around the figures came ten iterations of him, headbutting the figure. Disoriented, he loses control on Tapout and he falls the to ground. And as he did so he heard several snaps.

Tapout was laying on the ground, legs and arms broken from the fall. The man in the suit, now no longer floating, was walking towards him. A hand was on the top of his head, rubbing it.

“I must admit, i’m surprised. I did not think you had anything left in you.” Tapout looks up at the man in the suit, and spit on his shoes. “You”, he spoke through a bloodied nose,” wont get away with this. We’re..we’re all here.” The man smiles, then kicks Tapout in the face. “Oh, I know. I brought you all here. It didn’t take much, you know. A call here, a favor there. Giving each a reason to come. The only ones who I couldnt get here were the ‘Wonder Couple’ and Reverse. And those problems took care of themselves. In fact, I was even overjoyed when I heard Reverse died. He was the only one of you pathetic rejects who even had a chance of beating me, and with his death to that monster I unleashed in Boston? I am practically given the keys to the country.” Tapout looked up at the man in the suit, and coughed up blood. But, then he started laughing. “You *cough* you idiot. You wont get away with this, Planeteer.” The man in the suit kicked tapout in the stomach, causing him to cough up more blood.

“I’ve always hated that name. Its a shame it came to this, Tappie.” He leaned in, inches away from Tapout’s head. “But I need to get rid of all connections I have to my past. Sorry to say that you’re the weakest.” As he said that, he straightened up, then raised his cane behind his head. 

“And by the way, the name has been changed. Its Emesh now.” His cane came down upon Tapout’s head, and it all went black.

Reverse had awoken that Saturday morning with a headache, a sign of his age catching up to him. He fell out of bed and stumbled into his kitchen, pouring himself a cup of much needed coffee. After a few minutes of his headache subsiding, he sat down on his couch and turned on the TV. He always watched the news in the morning, a force of habit due to his hero days. They were running the usual schlock today, break in this, political scandal that, taxes-

“This just in, Breaking News. Former Professional Hero Tapout found dead in alley this morning by landlord.”

[jessette20]

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