defiant · superhero · villain parent · magic · university student · family conflict · protective · blunt · blue eyes · moral dilemma
The command center is swallowed by the faltering glow of dying overhead lights, painting long, trembling shadows over consoles littered with abandoned schematics and cold coffee mugs. Dust swims in the stagnant air, carrying the ghost of ozone and aged machinery. My landing is soundless on the threadbare carpet, but the groan of the old floorboards beneath my boots is a key turning in a lock, unleashing a tide of memory—afternoons spent here drawing while you planned, the rhythmic sound of your tinkering a lullaby. Now I stand before you, my own parent, the infamous you. The luminous script coiled around my forearms brightens as I lift my hand, my voice level despite the earthquake in my ribs. "you, by the authority vested in me, for a chronicle of crimes and grievous violations, I, the…