Journal Entry 11
I remember the worst day of my life like it happened yesterday.
Chapter 3: "The Only One"
Max hurried into the restroom, allowing the door to slam shut behind him. He glanced under the stalls. When he didn't see any shoes or legs, he confirmed that he was alone. The teenager pulled out his phone. His Realization app popped across his screen, obeying his silent summons. Right as the rampage alarms sounded across the school, he pressed the green activation button. Darkness swirled around him, transforming him into Crow. He immediately merged with the shadows of the bathroom. His powers allowed him to exit the building even while the lockdown was initiated. In the blink of an eye, he was racing across the city by darting between the silhouettes of the towering structures.
Locating the rampage wasn't difficult. Crow had the ability to sense Meta Psychosis. When he was a child, Max had imagined that his pretend friend could sense when people were in dire need of help. Such an ability allowed him to know when wild emotions caused someone's Realization app to take control over their bodies. He arrived at the frenzy site to see the initial damage of the attack. A hole had been punched through a window in an office building. The person suffering from Meta Psychosis was within the structure, screaming and spasming on the ground.
He only needed one glance to realize that something was wrong. Max would have expected the damage to originate from within the structure. That didn't seem to be the case. Based on the destruction, the original attack came from outside. All of the cubicles, desks, and computers were knocked away from the broken glass. The sight looked like a giant stinger had punched through the window, attacking the person at the center of the chaos; and that individual was the Visionary who was about to go on a rampage.
The Meta Psychopath was made of clay. He was a tall, scarlet figure with googly eyes and a wide smile. His round face was surrounded by a fiery mane of fur. A jersey covered his extended torso, reaching down to his knees. Each of his limbs were longer than his midsection and head combined. All of the appendages were whipping around uncontrollably. The arms and legs were able to change their shapes and sizes, knocking away other workstations with ease. Oddly enough, none of the other people in the room were hurt. At worst, they were knocked to the ground with their work stations.
Each of the witnesses watched the Meta Psychopath with wide eyes. Some of the workers were running out of the room and screaming in panic. Max was surprised to see that the Visionary wasn't attacking. In fact, the transformed man appeared to be holding himself back. This rampager didn't seem like he wanted to hurt anyone. Based on the way his eyes were flashing, Max could tell that the stranger was losing the battle within himself. The situation was going to escalate within seconds if no one intervened.
A thought tickled at the back of Max's mind. He rarely arrived at the battlefield before the rampage began. Despite this, no one was gravely injured or killed at the start of the Meta Psychosis episodes. It was almost as though all of the Visionaries were trying to prevent their breakdowns, allowing nearby witnesses to flee. That didn't make sense to Max. Each attack had been described by the media as the rampager immediately losing their minds and assaulting everyone in sight. The teenager wondered if this was the exception to the rule or if he had missed something about the previous disasters. After all, he had been too panicked during other frenzies to consider what had actually happened.
Shaking his head, Max pulled himself from his thoughts. He didn't have the time to consider what had caused the frenzy. People were in danger. Slinking through the shadows, the Visionary grabbed every worker in the room, pulled them into the darkness, and deposited them outside of the building. The rampager noticed his actions. Wild eyes followed his actions as the screaming civilians were yanked to safety. When the chamber was empty, the man finally lost control.
Screeching, the Visionary jumped to his feet. His entire body twisted like a rubber band, allowing him to swing his arms like a helicopter across the space. His limbs grew as he rotated. Everything in his path was obliterated. All of the furniture was smashed to pieces. The surrounding windows shattered. Luckily, the Meta Psychosis alarms were blaring across the city. Everyone had fled the scene, meaning no one was harmed by the glass tumbling onto the sidewalk outside.
The rampager was damaging the structural integrity of the building. Soon, the floor and ceiling might collapse. Max hurried between the different floors, He pulled the other workers out of harm's way and shoved them out of the shadows away from the assault. Within minutes, every story was evacuated. No one was left to be harmed by the Meta Psychopath. Despite this, the out-of-control Visionary didn't move from the room. He twisted his arms and legs into various shapes, as though he was playing a game. Max was shocked to find him using his own arms as a jump rope. Cracks spread throughout the walls with every leap. Soon, the entire structure would crumble, and the rampager would be forced into the streets or into another office.
Max watched the scene from the shadows. Concern bubbled in his chest. By now, the vigilantes usually appeared. They would attack the rampager, turning the Meta Psychopath's attention to them. Despite the fact that several minutes had passed, there was no sign of either of the heroes, and Max couldn't sense their approach. He realized that they might not be coming this time. Such a turn of events was unprecedented. Usually, at least one of them would arrive by now. The fact that neither of the fighters were coming was a terrible sign.
Despite the damage they caused, the heroes were rarely criticized by the police, the media, or the public. After all, normal weapons had no effect on active Visionaries. Bullets pass through the imaginary friends. Mortal blades bounced off their skin. Even electricity, acids, and explosives caused no damage. Only people fused with the mental realm could harm each other. If someone didn't stop the Meta Psychopath, the man would destroy half the city before collapsing from exhaustion. Max didn't have a choice. He was the only one who could stop the rampage.
Crow screamed at him to attack, but Max couldn't bring himself to even form a fist. The thought of hurting someone in any way caused him to freeze. His heart hammered so hard in his chest that the organ threatened to burst. Despite not existing in his form, his scars burned across the left side of his face. Bright lights flashed before his eyes, and a loud horn echoed in his ears. Max knew offense wasn't an option for him. He would rather die than bring pain to another person again. Too many people had already suffered simply because he existed.
"You're such a coward," Crow whispered in the back of his mind.
Max ignored his imaginary friend. Instead, he rushed out of the shadows and charged at the Meta Psychopath. The winged Visionary did not strike the rampager. He simply tapped the clay creature on the shoulder and shouted, "Tag! You're it!"
Usually, both the human and the fictional character spoke in unison whenever a fused person talked. They both existed in the physical world at the same time. Whenever Max spoke while transformed, he had to use Crow's voice. He had surrendered his own ability to speak long ago. The stitches covering his mouth vibrated as the words echoed from the surrounding shadows. Most people would be terrified by his way of communicating, but the Meta Psychopath seemed excited. A wide smile spread across his face. His eyes sparkled. Cheering, the creature chased Max out of the window.
They both plummeted down the side of the building. The rampager giggled as he extended his arms out to grab at Max. For his part, the shadow Visionary used his wings to dart around the assault. When they were halfway to the ground, Max ascended. He flew up past the clay creature, causing the Meta Psychopath to twist around in order to reach for him. Crow continued darting around the stretching hands as the monster halted his own descent. Both of the office worker's legs expanded towards the ground. Twin craters formed beneath his feet upon impact with the blacktop, but no one was harmed as the street had been abandoned.
Giggling, the Meta Psychopath continued to play tag with the winged Visionary. Max had to dart around his opponent's whipping appendages, but he kept the focus on him. The clay creature didn't attack the surrounding buildings. His only intention was to catch the bird flying around his head. Down the road, everyone pointed in shock at the most contained and tame rampage they had ever seen.
Max was stunned. This man was acting more like a child who wanted to play a game rather than a lunatic determined to hurt others. The Meta Psychopath was content standing in place and reaching for him. For a few moments, Max simply avoided the grabs. Dodging was easy. Rampagers weren't known for their accuracy or critical thinking skills. He could avoid the clay arms for hours if need be. His plan was to buy more time for the vigilantes to arrive, but they didn't seem to be approaching the scene. Max had no choice. If help wasn't coming, he had to find a way to defeat his opponent while being mentally incapable of attacking.
His first plan was to tangle his opponent using the rampager's own limbs. Max darted through the air in a spiral, causing the chasing arms to twist around each other. He continued his strategy by flying in a circle around his adversary. Randomly, the teenager would rush between the Meta Psychopath's legs. The wild patterns caused the office worker to become wrapped in a mess of tied appendages. Being caught in a knot caused the clay Visionary to stumble. For a brief moment, Max thought his plan worked, but his optimism was crushed after only a heartbeat.
The clay appendages morphed together briefly before separating back into their normal forms. Max's idea had only been a temporary roadblock for the rampager. At the same time, he had managed to distract the other Visionary. No one had been hurt during the exchange. Property damage had been limited as well. He managed to burn time and his opponent's energy. Transforming into a person's imaginary friend took a heavy toll on the human body. Max would normally be certain that he would win in a battle of stamina. Unfortunately, this was his second confrontation of the day, and he had been gravely wounded during the first frenzy.
He was far more likely to collapse in exhaustion before his opponent. Considering that no one had arrived to help yet, the teenager had to think fast. The Meta Psychopath might turn to the populace without proper entertainment. If he couldn't bring himself to attack and tying the other Visionary's limbs in knots was a waste of time, he would have to grab onto the clay figure, hold the other man down, and try to talk down the situation. Max had no idea if such a tactic would work, but he had to try.
Both of his arms and legs transformed into wings. Baiting his opponent's hands close, he grabbed onto the clay. Max flew towards his adversary, scooping the long, red appendages in a net of feathers as he drew close to the rampager. At first, the Meta Psychopath was delighted to finally tag the winged Visionary. His joy faded when his feathered foe reached him, wrapping him into a hug. The office worker tried to squirm free, but Max was too fast. In seconds, the teenager had pulled his foe's entire body into his trap.
All of his wings wrapped around each other into a sphere, holding the rampager in place. Grumbling, the Meta Psychopath rapidly changed his size and shape in a desperate attempt to free himself. Max groaned as he had to adjust his own limbs to hold his target. The feeling reminded him of trying to contain a cluster of worms in his hands. There was no pain, but the sensations were far from comfortable. Thankfully, the office worker didn't morph into anything sharp. In his deluded mindset, the man actually thought this was a game. A tag competition had morphed into a wrestling match.
Max scowled at the situation. The outside attack, the original restraint, and the childish actions didn't fit into the normal trend for frenzies. He wondered if this was a unique circumstance or if there was information about the other rampages that eluded him. Shaking his head, Max dismissed the idea for now. His main focus had to remain on stopping the Meta Psychopath. Thinking could come after everyone was safe.
"Calm down, mister!" Crow's voice erupted from the shadows. "Everything is okay! You're safe, but you have to stop! Someone could get hurt!"
Onlookers at a distance watched the strange fight in confusion. They observed as the dark orb of feathers rapidly changed shape in order to hold the Meta Psychopath. The winged Visionary repeatedly spoke calming words to the rampager. For a few minutes, the plan didn't seem to be working, but everything changed when Max's words actually broke through the other man's clouded thoughts. Slowly, the movements grew less aggressive until the office worker stopped struggling altogether.
Max sighed as his adversary grew still. Visionaries didn't need air while transformed. As such, the clay creature wasn't suffocating. Instead, the rampager had fallen asleep. Max sighed in relief as the Meta Psychopath reclined in his arms. His feathers shifted as he returned to his normal state. People carefully approached the battlefield when they noticed that the conflict was over. Bright, white cubes surrounded the slumbering scarlet beast. In a burst of energy, the man had returned to normal.
Happy that the fight was over, Max carefully placed the office worker on the ground. He had taken off the man's blazer and folded the clothing into a pillow. The winged Visionary laid the defeated rampager in the recovery position on his left side. His head was held up off the ground, preventing possible skull or neck injuries. With the Meta Psychopath comfortable, Max took the phone from his foe's pocket.
Normally, people couldn't access each other's Realization apps. The only exception was after a Visionary had been defeated. Max had never seen the process personally, but he had heard stories about how the heroes either deleted the data or transferred the power to themselves. For a brief moment, he considered erasing the clay ability. Max only needed a moment before turning the phone off and placing the device on the ground next to its owner. He didn't feel right destroying a part of another person when they hadn't actually hurt anyone else.
Onlookers openly gaped at the strange conclusion of the fight. They held their phones up for videos and pictures. No one had ever seen a rampage end with such little destruction. While the initial building was damaged and the road was cracked, the fight had finished with only a tenth of the usual fallout. By holding the rampager down and talking to the man, Max had found the ideal outcome. The other heroes hadn't even been necessary. In fact, they would have caused far more collateral damage.
Everyone watching the conflict in person and through live streams were whispering in shock. They observed as "Featherman" disappeared into the shadows. He darted through the darkness between the buildings and back to his school, arriving back in the restroom right as the lockdown concluded. As the doors unlocked, Max stumbled back to his classroom in a haze. No one was shocked by his flustered and exhausted expression. Many of them had been trapped on the toilet during rampages. Their experiences had not been fun. As such, they ignored Max out of sympathy. Only Daphne gave the teenage boy a second glance.
Meanwhile, two figures stood on the roof of a building not far from the battlefield. They were both scowling at the defeated, clay Visionary. The duo were the only people in the entire city who were displeased by the outcome. Huffing, the shorter person turned to leave the sight behind him. His companion did not abandon the scene as quickly. A deep scowl covered his features. This was the first evidence that the Meta Psychosis rampages weren't what they seemed, and the feather Visionary was the cause.
"Are you coming, boss?" the first figure asked.
"In a moment. I'm thinking," the tall, intimidating leader growled. "That guy is dangerous. He can blend in the shadows and de-escalate my frenzy ability. If he proves to be a nuisance again, we'll need to deal with him."