Seven days had passed since the funeral, and Billy and Freddy had managed to not cross paths for more than mere moments of time. At the newsstand, Freddy would arrive to relieve Billy when there was a line for service. At school, Freddy would be with his friends on the baseball team, or arm in arm with whichever young lady had caught his eye at the moment. And at the apartment, there was always some errand that had to be done.
The end result was that, by the passing of a week, Billy couldn’t deny that Freddy was avoiding him. However, Billy had to admit that he wasn’t trying very hard to face his friend. It was this situation that had worked up a considerable worry in Dudley Simpson.
The building manager was a large man with ruddy cheeks, bulbous nose and gray hair quickly retreating from his forehead. He was an older man, who had a rounded midsection, wore very simple clothes and a pleasant smile, and he thoroughly enjoyed the two kids who lived in the third floor apartment. Dudley Simpson was the primary factor in the teens keeping that apartment, for even with Billy’s new job (for which Dudley was prouder than if Billy were his own son), the rent climbed upwards and far beyond the abilities of Freddy and Billy. Dudley though, he had savings, and his apartment was supplied in return for his work, and so Dudley made sure his young friends never learned of any rent increase they wouldn’t be able to handle.
Dudley had seen the two go through bad situations before, but now they weren’t talking and Dudley knew something bad had happened. If something weren’t done, the rift might even get worse. It was this realization that made Dudley decide drastic measures were necessary. So a week after the funeral, Billy and Freddy were together in the apartment when the trap was sprung.
“I’ve gotta go get some food,” Freddy said as he headed for the door to their apartment. Billy was working on a paper for school and looked up at his friend. Freddy had just walked in from his latest date and now was walking right back out again. He opened his mouth to say something, and all that came out was, “Okay.”
Freddy tried the knob of the door and found it wouldn’t open. He twisted the lock and the tried again, but the door was still held fast. “What’s this?” he muttered and Billy looked up at him.
“Something wrong?”
“Door’s stuck,” Freddy replied as he fiddled with the lock some more. “What’s wrong with this damn thing?”
“Heya, me boys!” came the heavy, jovial voice from the other side of the door. “Sorry about that. Lock’s not working, but that’s okay. I’ll have it fixed for you in a lickety-split! You boys just hang out in there, or whatever you youngsters do these days, and I’ll take care of ya!”
Freddy sighed in frustration. “Okay. Thanks, Uncle Dudley.” He turned and walked into what could charitably be referred to as the living room and dropped into the broken down love seat.
Billy smiled to himself, and thought,
awful convenient of Uncle Dudley to be right there when our lock broke. Well, he’s done his part, I really should say something in return.Billy got up from the table and sat down on a milk crate opposite from Freddy and looked at him. “Okay, Freddy. Let’s work this out while we have time. We’re best friends. We can work through this. Right?”
Freddy looked up at Billy with a sullen face, and his arms folded over his chest. “I guess.” He took a deep breath and let the thoughts and feelings race through his mind before blowing up. “You never told me! Why didn’t you tell me?”
Billy shrugged. “I never had a chance? No, I don’t know. It…I planned to. I wasn’t going to hide it from you. I didn’t think it would be possible even, really. I’m really sorry. You were going to be told though.”
“Maybe,” Freddy snapped back. “Maybe not. You didn’t, that’s all I know.”
“What can I do to make it up to you?” Billy asked.
“Give me cool powers?” Freddy suggested as he shook his head. “Okay, fine. You can turn into Captain Marvel. How?”
Billy told him the tale, of the terribly stormy night, the abandoned subway and the weird man who lured him to the subterranean chamber. Of the Wizard whose name turns him into the powerful Captain Marvel, blessed with the powers of six gods, to battle evil and protect the innocent.
Freddy just listened to the tale and shook his head. “That’s one freaky trip, Billy. If I didn’t see you say Shazam and turn into Cap, then I’d say you need to clean up and get off the drugs.”
“Trust me, I feel the same exact way,” Billy said. “And I still don’t quite understand how I got picked. And I feel horrible that with all these powers, I couldn’t do anything for Kit.”
“Yeah, well I’m kind of worried about that too,” Freddy answered. “You and Sabbac have a lot in common.”
Billy looked hurt when Freddy said that, and started to puff his chest defensively. “That’s not true! I’m nothing like that monster! I’ve heard the stories about both those crime bosses, and that’s why I was given these powers!”
Freddy shook his head. “No, Billy. I mean, that’s what Sabbac does too. Except it’s his name. He calls out Sabbac and turns into this huge, demon-looking guy with all these powers. But it’s not a lightning bolt, it’s just a kind of reddish fire that burns him up.”
Billy listened to what his friend described with stunned silence. “So, there’s some other kind of wizard out there, handing out powers?” He ran his hand through his hair. “It has to be someone other than Sh—my wizard, it has to be.”
“Maybe, maybe not, but that’s what I’ve seen,” Freddy answered.
”Wait, that means you know who Sabbac really is?” Billy stood up excitedly.
Freddy nodded and looked hesitant. “It’s Tim.” The words were very quiet, and came out of Freddy’s mouth almost painfully.
“Sabbac is your step-brother? Tim killed Kit?” Billy sat back down slowly, his face shocked. “That’s just so wrong.”
“Don’t have to tell me that, Billy,” Freddy said quietly. “But you can stop him, right? Captain Marvel is tougher right?”
Billy stared at Freddy and made no answer for a long time. Then he finally spoke. “Yeah. I’ll make sure of that. Him and Ibac, they’re both going down. I wonder if the Wizard knows who is supplying Sabbac with his powers, and what the letters stand for.”
“I’m still pretty ticked at you, you know that?” Freddy said after an uncomfortable silence. “I mean, fine, you got the powers, I don’t care about that. But you couldn’t have told me you were Captain Marvel? That’s just low, that you don’t trust me.”
“I do trust you, Freddy,” Billy protested. “You’ll see. I’ll prove it, and I’ll make it up to you. And I’m really sorry. You’re right, I should have come out with this earlier. Just stop avoiding me, okay? It’s been the two of us against all of Fawcett too long.”
Freddy nodded and stood up. “’Kay. It’s fine, I’ll get over it. You though, you gotta get out there and stop Sabbac. I just wish I knew where to get him, I can’t imagine Tim will be going back to his apartment. He knows I know. He’s damn tough, but I can’t imagine he’d be smug enough to stay there knowing I want to stop him. I don’t think he likes staying Sabbac all the time.”
A click broke the conversation as the door opened up and the heavyset shape of Dudley Simpson filled the doorway. “Okay, boys! All set. Everything’s fixed up tight!” He gave a broad smile as he watched Billy and Freddy shaking hands.
Freddy looked at the handyman and chuckled. “Yeah, guess everything’s all fixed up alright, Uncle Dudley.”
“Good!” he exclaimed as he stepped in and gave them both a hearty clap on the back. “Now then, I’ve gotta be off to help out the real tenants. I tell you, you boys always try and eat up all my free time!” He gave a gruff “ha-rumph” before he marched back out into the hall and closed the door behind him. Freddy and Billy looked at each other and then started to laugh.
Out in the hall, however, Dudley slowly walked down the steps and rubbed the back of his head. “Billy is Captain Marvel?” he muttered to himself as he headed for his apartment.
Fawcett City Police HeadquartersChief of Police Henry Kitchens was busy flipping through one of the many reports piled onto his desk. Blue eyes were set deep in a weathered face as he scanned the information, flipped page after page with a heavy sigh. He looked up at Albert Covey, captain of the Organized Crime Unit for the FCPD, and gave a heavy sigh.
“So we’re holding ground, that’s what all this says?” Kitchens snapped at the short, stocky Covey. “Sabbac and Ibac decide to put each other into a gang war, and we’re just holding steady?”
Covey nods softly and answered, “Yes. And that’s only because we’ve had help. Both sides have lost their biggest hitters thanks to Ca—“
“Uh uh,” Kitchens interrupted him with a grin. “Let’s not mention his name. The walls have ears, and we all know who’ll get pretty unhappy hearing who we owe what little success we have had to.” He scribbled his signature inside of one report and closed it up. “What do you think you’ll need? We’ve got to get a handle on the situation. I want this wrapped up and fast!”
“Some more men,” Covey answered. “We’ve got some solid leads, we just need a little more time and manpower. To be honest, I’d love to know how Ca…the big red cheese is getting his information.”
“I’ll tell you how,” Susan Kent Barr said as she stormed into the office. “Because I believe he’s the cause of this war, and because he’s either working for one side or the other, or he’s decided to be his own player in this game.” She slapped down a folded paper onto the desk and smiled at Kitchens with a predatory grin. “Doesn’t really matter, because I get my way this time. That’s a bench warrant, authorizing you to bring in this Captain Marvel for questioning the next time he pokes his head into official police business.”
Kitchens took the document into his hand and read it over, his face turning an angry red the further along he went. His eyes snapped up at Susan and he shook his head in disbelief. “You have got to be kidding me? First, where do I get the men to go after your personal pet peeve? Second, how do I bring in a guy who flies around cars on his own power? I have real problems and you want me to focus on the guy who’s been helping us?”
“Captain Covey,” Susan said, deliberately ignoring Kitchens. “It is quite possible that the direction of your supposition was quite right. I agree with you, that Captain Marvel knows what he does because he is far deeper into the organized crime of Fawcett City than it would appear. I am trusting in you to make the connections. Good luck.” She pivoted on her heel and stormed from the office, leaving behind an icy “Gentlemen” in her wake.
The TerraceCaptain Marvel dropped down towards the fancy address of Timothy Karnes. A hilly section of the Fawcett, lined with curved, sleepy streets of sprawling homes and high-priced condominiums, the Terrace attracted the upper middle class and the younger rich, and that was what brought Tim Karnes to this neighborhood. Freddy knowing where his cousin lived is what brought Captain Marvel to this place.
The hero landed on the balcony and stepped into the residence. He scanned the expensive-looking parlor, picking at various knickknacks. Despite his wisdom, Captain Marvel realized he was no detective, and so he paced himself slowly, absorbing his environment and hoping to figure out what it was that would lead him to his next step.
“It’s about time you got here,” Minerva said in the darkness.
A light came on and Captain Marvel spun to see the lovely woman seated at the counter separating parlor and kitchen. She wore that wide warm smile and looked him over with her inviting eyes as she sat there, looking oh-so-beautiful in her sleek red dress.
“What are you doing here?” He asked her, surprised at her presence.
“Waiting for you, Captain,” she answered as she slid from her stool and walked over to the hero. She put an arm on his shoulder and leaned up to kiss his cheek.
He stepped back from her advance and rubbed his cheek as he stared at her. “I…how did you know I’d be here? How long have you been waiting?”
Minerva took a step back, and looked almost confused for a moment before composing herself and her answer. “I knew a smart man like you would come to one of Sabbac’s primary lieutenants. I just didn’t think it would take this long.”
“I know he’s more than just a lieutenant. I’m very much aware they’re the same person. I suspect if you know about Karnes, you know the truth to, so explain to me why you didn’t tell me before now?” he asked her as he folded his arms over that broad chest, and stared at her like a stern father. “What kind of game are you playing at, Miss Minerva? I’m not here to sweep up your opposition for you.”
“Captain Marvel!” she gasped in shock. “I’m not here to take over the underworld, and I’m insulted that you’d accuse me of that! I’m here to help you, to find the bad guys, to make this city safe! And then, when that’s done, maybe you’ll have more time for…other things.” She walked back up to him and walked her fingers over his forearm playfully.
This time it was the Captain who took a step back and let his arms fall to his side. “Um, well, okay. Sorry to insult you. That wasn’t my intention, and I appreciate the help you’ve given, if it’s genuine. So tell me how to find Sabbac. Ibac too. Taking out one won’t do it, and you know that.”
“I honestly don’t know where Sabbac is right now,” Minerva said. “I’m not sure where either of them is. They’ve been on the move these last two weeks. Their war and your disruptions have them both to be jumpy and paranoid. But if you know about Karnes, then you must know about Ibac.”
“I must? What must I know?” Captain Marvel narrowed his eyes as he looked at Minerva. “You mean that Ibac is just powered up by magic, like Sabbac?”
“Yep. You’ll never hear either of them actually speak their names, or ‘poof!’ They become just normal guys,” Minerva said with a slight giggle. “That make you feel better about my help?”
Captain Marvel mused over these facts, his face showing grave concern. “I don’t know. I guess. One step at a time, that’s for sure. Okay for now, I trust you, Miss Minerva.”
Minerva twirled so that she was side-by-side with the scarlet-clad hero and put both hands around one huge bicep. She leaned into him and looked up into his face coyly. “You can drop the miss, Captain. And maybe I could call you…” She let her voice trail off as she fished for a name from him.
Captain Marvel instead backed off towards the balcony and his face looked very unnerved by the sudden interest. “Marvel…that’s all you need to know me by right now, Min…Miss. If we’re done here, I’ll just be flying off now. Thanks for the tip.” Then he leaped into the air and vanished in a blur of red.
Miss Minerva dashed out onto the balcony and focused on Captain Marvel as he sped off. The sultry voice sighed softly, and her mind ran only one thought over and over.
Marvel and Minerva forever.
