SuperNova: Heroes of Arcania
Read SuperNova: Heroes of Arcania Online
Authors: Liz Long
Liz Long
Other Titles
The Donovan Circus Series
Witch Hearts
A Reaper Made
Cover Design by: Regina Wamba of
MaeIDesign.com
Copyright © 2016 Liz Long
Names, characters and incidents depicted in this novel are products of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously.
Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations or persons (living or dead) is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of author or publisher.
No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the author or publisher.
All rights reserved.
To all the girls out there waiting for their superhero story…
This is for you.
I’d known since childhood that I wasn’t a normal human. I mean, I was
human
, but my “condition,” for lack of a better word, made me different. We didn’t know what it was; my parents passed off my lack of illness to an excellent immune system, but the impenetrable skin was a different story. When the first doctor questioned it, wanting to bring in his colleagues, my parents refused. They taught me to keep my “condition” a secret. As I got older, the symptoms increased. I had the strength of a full-grown man by the time I was eleven; it seemed my body couldn’t be broken. I’d never felt pain.
Until Fortune came to Arcania.
As it turned out, just because I was unbreakable, it didn’t mean my heart couldn’t be shattered into a million pieces.
My little sister Starling and I had barely walked through the front door that afternoon when my cell phone rang. I paused in the doorway to dig it out of my back pocket.
“Hey, Mom. We just got home.”
“Hi sweetie. Can you go pick your father up from the office? His car had to go in the shop this morning so I dropped him off. I have to meet my student and his mom in ten minutes or I’d get him.”
“No problem. Starling, no TV, we gotta go get Dad and his car. Sit in the back, please,” I called to her. I turned back to my phone. “See you tonight. Love you.”
“Love you, too. Give Star a kiss for me.”
I hung up and we got back into my car, putting the radio station on a preset kids’ pop channel, one I knew Starling liked. Ten seconds later, she was softly singing every word to some teenybopper song. I turned the car out of our neighborhood and towards downtown.
“Are you
sure
you’re not a superhero?” Starling piped up.
Startled more at her abruptness than the question, my light blue eyes flicked to hers in the rearview mirror.
“How many times must we have this conversation? Nine, ten times a week?” I huffed in exasperation.
She giggled. “At least I don’t throw stuff at you anymore.”
“Yeah, thanks for that,” I said, rolling my eyes at her. “Nothing’s changed, not even since our last talk, I promise. Mom and Dad say I’ve always been this way.”
“But does anyone else have it?”
“Not that anyone told me. As far as I know, I could be the only one in the world with my little issue.”
“I call them powers,” she replied with a grin. Her blue eyes, just a shade lighter than mine, lit up, making her freckled face appear angelic.
My mouth twisted in disapproval. “You know we shouldn’t even be talking about my condition outside the house.”
Starling shrugged, unconcerned. Not that I could blame her; our parents never punished her. “If everyone were like you, maybe things would be better.”
“No, it wouldn’t. People would probably go crazy with power and greed, think they were invincible and try to take over the world.”
“What’s invincible mean?”
“It means they can’t be beat in a fight.”
“But you are invisible. Envision…that word.”
“Starling—,” I warned.
“You could save the world. You’re smart and no one could stand in your way. You’re…invincible.” She smiled, pleased with herself, and I couldn’t help but smile back.
“You’ve got big ideas, kiddo. Did you ever think that maybe I’m not cut out to be some superhero like you keep saying?”
“Nope,” she said without hesitation. “I even have your name picked out.”
Despite the little voice telling me not to encourage her, my curiosity got the better of me. “What is it?”
Starling met my gaze in the mirror and shot me a knowing grin. “SuperNova. Like in Daddy’s astromony—”
“Astronomy,” I corrected.
“Star books,” she finished.
She left it at that, thank goodness, staring out the window and humming along with the radio station. My gaze went back to check on her every few seconds, musing over her thoughts. She always struck me as more imaginative than other kids her age. Maybe it was because of me, of what she knew I could do. I chuckled as I took my turn off the busy road and into downtown.
Though our home was only ten minutes from the city, there was a distinct difference between our neat neighborhoods and the littered streets of Arcania. You could always tell when you crossed county and city lines. Buildings of several eras condensed into even blocks, ranging from simple, modern brick to massive, old Gothic structures. I’d always loved the weird mix of historic buildings. The museum had been a great addition too, with its modern twist of humongous windows and exposed metals.