THE MOMENT
The glass door swung open as Dirk reached for the handle. He froze when he spotted one of the worst villains in the city pushing the door from the other side. Shadowsong in full costume - black cape, dark blue spandex and matching cowl. Dirk jumped back and ignited small fireballs in each of his hands. He knew he was no match for Shadowsong, but he hoped a smoking distraction would let him get away.
In an instant, his vision went dark and he heard a soft, soothing melody in his mind.
"Chill, kid. You're on neutral ground," a pleasant, sleepy voice whispered in Dirk's ear. His sight returned but Shadowsong was nowhere to be seen. Dirk heaved a sigh of relief. He knew he wouldn't last long against a high-level villain. It was a bit disheartening to learn just how useless he would have been. It reaffirmed why he was there. He didn't have enough power to fight but he was good at heating things. Dirk continued inside.
The lobby had a modern, minimalist look. All walls, floors, and lights were bright white with a few red chairs making up a waiting area. Dirk guessed they must have renovated recently. He could still smell the fading odor of paint and the interior looked new and shiny compared to the old brick exterior. Dirk was about to sit and wait but someone greeted him.
"Welcome to my spa, I'm Restraint," a young man said. He wore a black suit with a white tie and red-framed glasses; he didn't look any older than Dirk's 20 years.
"Hi, name's Dirk," he said as he shook Restraint's hand.
"What can I do for you, Dirk?" Restraint asked.
"I'm here about the heating job," Dirk replied. He wished he had the foresight to clip the ad.
"Ah, here for work, not relaxation? Let's step into my office." Restraint whirled around and walked towards the back. Dirk followed.
The office was small and decorated completely different from the lobby. Dozens of pictures of Restraint with heroes, villains, and sometimes heroes and villains in the same picture. Dirk was impressed.
"The bad news is that job's already filled," Restraint said as they both sat down. "But, I didn't tell you that out there because the good news is, we have tons of jobs that you might be qualified for."
"Thanks," Dirk replied. He'd just moved to the city and was hoping to make some money without having to sign up for the Heroes League and put his life on the line.''
"Are you registered with the league?" Restraint asked.''
"No...," Dirk sighed. "Do I need to be?" He felt some minor relief when Restraint shook his head.
"When you join they test you to get a baseline of your abilities. We need that information but we can test you too. So it's not a big deal."
"Oh, okay," Dirk nodded as Restraint pulled out a red clipboard loaded with forms.
"Is Dirk your hero or villain name?" Restraint asked. Dirk shook his head.
"Hero...but I don't have a hero name," he said. Restraint nodded.
"Okay, if you come up with one let me know. What can you do, Dirk?"
Dirk presented his palm out and willed a fireball into existence; but, nothing happened. Restraint chuckled.
"It's just easier if you tell me," Restraint said. "I can nullify powers and well, safety precautions, you know," he explained. Dirk nodded.
"I can create and control fire," Dirk said. He felt like he was lying as soon as Restraint started filling the form. "Small amounts of fire," he added. "Heating a boiler is probably the most I can do."
"Well, we'll find out for sure once we test you. Are there any kinds of jobs you'd prefer not to do?" Restraint asked. Dirk shrugged in hesitation. He could be honest and possibly miss out on work entirely, or he could lie and hope he never had any jobs he disagreed with.
"Nothing life-threatening," Dirk said. When Restraint nodded Dirk decided he could be a bit more honest. "Or really, violence in general," he said. He was relieved when Restraint didn't end their meeting right then and there.
"Okay," Restraint said. "We have a testing date coming up in two weeks..."
"Two weeks?" Dirk asked. He was realizing he might have to skip meals for a couple of days.
"If you don't want to wait that long you can register with the Heroes League to get it done faster. Oh, actually there is one more thing you can answer for me now," Restraint said. Dirk eyed the thick stack of forms on the clipboard.
"Just one?" he asked. He suddenly got the feeling that he should have lied. Restraint seemed to have guessed his worries and chuckled.
"Don't worry about all of these," he said as he thumbed through the forms. "It's mostly duplicates and things we'll fill out when we test you. For now though, answer this question. What's your favorite number?"
"20," Dirk said. "Why?" Restraint chuckled and shook his head.
"I need to start asking that first," he said; mostly to himself. "Anyway, good news. You can get your abilities tested today after all."
"Because my favorite number is 20?" Dirk asked. Restraint shrugged.
"Because you have a favorite number between 1 and 54," Restraint said.
"What?" Dirk's mind filled with questions. But, above all of them, he had one clear thought. "Don't mess this up right now." He shook his head.
"Nevermind. I'll take it. What do I do?" Restraint pulled a black card from his desk then threw it at the wall of pictures. A tall pitch-black hole appeared, large enough for a person to walk through.
"Just go in there and ask for Melody." Dirk stood from the chair with the warm feeling that maybe everything would be okay.
"And I tell her my favorite number?" Dirk asked as he approached the hole in the wall. Restraint shook his head.
"She'll already know."