Cadell hung from the neck of a street pole, a look of disgust refusing to disappear under the glowing Psycho mask. Every night was a chilling painting, and every night was cursed but, somehow, today was particularly terrible.The sky, streets and buildings coloured crimson, and the hallucination’s vividness rarely diminished. Even red rain drizzled.

A car hummed by. Then another.

It’s a beautiful night, boy, The Voice said. Wouldn’t you say?

“Hmph.” Cadell’s eyes purpled as he swung around the street pole repeatedly. He finally let go after ten swift rotations, flinging himself high into the sky.

I’m proud of you. You’ve come a long way. Seeing you effortlessly control your abilities-- how do I put this -- it brings a tear to my eye. It feels like only yesterday that you were sobbing and whining after slicing up limbs.

“Shut up.” Cadell rose into a portal before dashing across a rooftop.

I wonder how long you’ll last though. Before it happens again that is. Each word spiked the severity of the headache. Because it will. Do you want my advice?

“No.” A vein bulged from Cadell’s neck. He focused on staying in control.

Stay true to yourself. Just like your brother did. Delaying the inevitable like this isn’t healthy. Cleanse the city, boy. The right way. Kill--

A strangled scream pierced the air, followed by repeated curse words.

Below on the street, a woman slammed her fists on the road. Before she could do it again, Cadell’s arm shot through a portal, grabbing her arm and yanking her forward onto the rooftop.

While The Voice plotted a brutal slaughter, as usual, Cadell took off his mask and looked the woman in the eye. Thick ocean blue erupted from her clothing like an endless fountain.

“Psycho...” she weeped. “Help my baby girl. They just took her and drove off.”

“Of course.” Cadell smiled, already giving her a bandage. “It’s what I do.

Believe it or not, Cadell wasn’t Batman.

He wasn’t the world's best detective. He wasn’t Sherlock Holmes or Detective Conan. He couldn’t locate the whereabouts of a captive by dipping his finger in a pool of blood and licking it with a finger. His methods were more… shounen protagonist. For thirty-seven minutes, the superhero combed through a chunk of the city using countless portals, visual hallucinations, and an agility that could make an Olympic gymnast sob tears of approval.

The result of his search? A narrow hallway dripping in crimson on the third floor of a building.

First of all, it was obviously a trap. All the signs were there. The murderous intent was abnormal for just a kidnapping. He was almost knee deep in red. Even an auditory hallucination decided to join the party, a loud and annoying drip drop sound.

Cadell cracked his neck to one side. He could handle the situation a lot easier with portals, but they were too draining and he’d already used a ton of them. Close combat wouldn’t be as flashy, especially in a cramped area, but it would have to do.

What are you waiting for, boy? Kill them all.

No. I beg you shut u--

“Achoo!” Cadell sneezed.

Fuck.

“Achoo!” Cadell sneezed again. “Achoo, achoo, achoo!”

There was a chilling silence.

Pop, pop, pop!

Rapid gunfire burst through the walls just before Cadell flipped and cartwheeled to one side. At least a dozen enemies flooded the hallway from multiple doorways, all blazing in crimson and orange.

Pop, pop, pop! Cadell weaved and ducked before unleashing a perfectly timed spinning kick followed by a--

CRACK! A hook carrying all his body weight smacked into a skull. Enemies swarmed, lunging with knives and swinging with baseball bats. Meanwhile, The Voice lost its shit, cackling and booming at every close call and blow dished out.

Slaughter them, boy!

A humongous, beefy man tried tackling him from behind only for his face to be crushed by a swift elbow. Before the giant could fall over, Cadell tossed him like a sack of potatoes into three more enemies. Despite being completely surrounded, he gradually lowered the numbers with precise counters, evading every attack. Each knockdown flowed smoothly into the next, as if the fight was choreographed until… eventually...

There was one left.

The unfortunate sucker guarded a door at the end of the hallway, his whole body trembling. Cadell had always wondered what it was like to be the last one. To see your squad get their asses whooped one by one and then to somehow muster up the courage to fight despite knowing damn well that you were now going to get your ass whooped.

“Congrats bro.” Psycho the Superhero clapped slowly. “As the last one standing, you’ve won an exclusive one-way trip to the Arctic. The nearest village is a couple miles north. Be quick or you’ll freeze to death.

Or be eaten by Polar Bears.

The criminal stared. Cadell waited for the information to sink in, then smiled when a puzzled expression turned into wide bulging eyes and a dropping jaw.

“Wait! No! Just knock me--”

He fell into a portal.