Villain Retirement

The earliest memory Silvie could remember of her childhood... was her wanting to play with the other children. She could see them play outside every day, but she could never really join them as her feet were tied to the bed– a way to not hurt herself or the people around her.

She couldn't say that she grew up in a poor family; after all, her father was able to provide her with all the necessities they needed. They also lived in quite a nice neighborhood... posh, even– a private subdivision somewhere in Moscow.

She wasn't able to explore any of it, however. As whenever she wasn't tied up, she was mostly still not allowed to go outside. And if she did, the other children wouldn't really play with her; stopping their games whenever she tries to approach them.

Of course, she didn't really hold any of these against her father– as even though he was awfully strict, the things he did, he always did for her safety. He also never once made her feel like she was alone, as he was always there for her, even taking his work home most of the time.

Her powers... were just too great for a child to hold. She sometimes even feels sorry for her father that he had to put up–

"So, when does Mega Woman arrive in the story, Silvie?"

"Riley! Let her finish the story, what the fuck! And can you dial it down with your obsession with Mega Woman!?"

"...I apologize, Silvie."

"It... it's okay," Silvie could only let out a small chuckle as her story was suddenly interrupted by Riley. She then took a small sip of the Starbeans coffee given to them by the grocery store they were parked at; adjusting her position on the soft blanket placed on the frozen platform.

"As... I told you guys before," Silvie then let out a small sigh as she stared at the fire in the middle of their ice dome– which was probably unnecessary, "My father doesn't really tell me that much about my mother... but I think I might have killed her when I was just a baby. So... sorry, Riley...

...Mega Woman isn't my mother," Silvie chuckled.

"Hm," Riley, however, squinted his eyes as he looked at Silvie from head to toe, "You look like Mega Woman, you have the same powers as her; it would be stranger if the two of you are not related by blood."

"Bro, stop with the Mega Woman theories," Hannah then lightly hit her brother on the chest as she removed her head from Riley's lap and sat up, "A lot of people have the same powers as Mega Woman– even Gary has them in a way, are you saying an idiot like him could be Mega Woman's son?"

"...Why couldn't I be her son?" Gary, whose name was suddenly dragged in the conversation, could not help but squint his eyes and furrow his eyebrows, "My greatness alone should put me in the same–"

"Jesus, everyone... just let the girl finish her story."

"What the... you're the one still talking!"

"What did you–"

"Ahem."

And before the two could start another insult war, Tomoe let out a small cough, loudly clearing her throat to get their attention.

"S... sorry," Hannah then quickly composed herself as she returned to her brother's side, resting her head on his shoulder, "Continue your story and ignore us."

"Pft," Silvie could not help but chuckle as she saw her friends trying their best to listen to her. Her chuckle, however, soon turned into a smile... eventually becoming only a sigh.

"Mega Woman isn't my mother," Silvie then said as she grabbed her phone that was resting beside her, "I actually have pictures of her, you guys want to see?"

And of course, everyone nodded their heads.

Silvie quickly unlocked her phone, opening the gallery for a few seconds before passing it to Hannah and Riley; Gary was going to snatch it at first, but Hannah quickly slapped his hand away.

The only thing that Gary could do was sigh as he stood up from the cold floor and walked behind Hannah; Tomoe also did the same.

"This... is your mother?" Hannah then said as she zoomed in on the woman beside a young Silvie and a man who they could only assume to be his father; they haven't really seen him even once in person although he was already in the Academy.

And to Riley's disappointment, the woman in the photo truly was not Mega Woman. It was just... a woman. And although she held a small similarity to Silvie, she just looked... common, in a way.

"You... seem really disappointed, Riley," Silvie could not help but chuckle as she heard Riley's quiet sighs all the way from where she was sitting.

"Only a little, Silvie," Riley muttered as he looked to nowhere in particular, "It still does not change the fact that you are the nearest person that could grow to be the next Mega Woman."

"That's... thank you," Silvie could only take a sip of her coffee as her face slightly turned red, "But... even if I don't become like her, I... do really want to help people. I want to save as many humans as I possibly can before I die...

...I owe at least that to my mother."

"She... looked really nice," Hannah then breathed out as she continued to scan Silvie's photos. Looking at them like this, they just looked like any other family. But as Hannah continued to swipe her fingers, soon, Silvie's mother could no longer be seen in the photos– a reminder that life continues on even after your loved ones disappear in your life.

"..." Hannah then let out a small sigh before deciding to return the phone back to Silvie; but before she could do so, Tomoe grabbed her wrist.

"Can you... let me see more?"

"..." Hannah blinked a couple of times. She then looked towards Silvie, who gestured that it was okay. And so, with her permission, Hannah gave the phone to Tomoe, who immediately started zooming in on the photos.

"..."

"..."

"These photos..." Tomoe then muttered as she looked at Silvie, "...When did you first have them?"

"I don't remember... maybe when I was 11 or 12?"

"...I think there's something wrong with them," Tomoe then squinted her already small eyes as she once again focused on the photos.

"What do you mean?" Hannah furrowed her eyebrows as she leaned closer to Tomoe, only to see her zoom in on Silvie's mother's hand.

"...What's wrong with it?" Hannah also squinted her eyes as she tilted her head.

"It's edited," Tomoe then said without any hesitation.

"...What?" And as soon as her words reached Silvie's ears, she immediately stood up from her seat and also huddled with the group; almost slipping on the icy platform as her curiosity was slowly turning into anxiety.

"W... what do you mean it's edited?" Silvie inserted her head amongst the group.

"Although it is truly finely made, you could still see the difference between the lighting and the shadow," Tomoe explained as she pointed at the edges of the hand.

"...I don't see it," Gary breathed out as he also leaned closer to the phone, "...How do you even see something like this when your eyes are so small?"

"..." Tomoe glared at Gary for a small second, before letting out a sigh and focusing back on the photo, "I... used to edit myself in photos with Darkday."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Okay, that's not creepy at all," Hannah then broke the silence before it could become even more awkward than it already is; grabbing the phone from Tomoe's hand and zooming even further on the photos,

"Are you sure? I mean... it looks legit," Hannah sighed as she started flipping through the photos once again, "How about this one?"

"I think it is edited as well," Tomoe said as she once again grabbed the phone back from Hannah, "You see the lines? It's different..."

Tomoe then started explaining all the intricate details involved in the photo for almost a quarter of an hour. And with each passing second, Silvie's eyebrows furrowed lower and lower.

Hannah, who noticed this, made Tomoe stop explaining before gently placing her hands on Silvie's shoulders, "...You okay?"

"This–"

"You do not need to think too much about it, Silvie," Tomoe let out a small sigh as she returned Silvie's phone to her, "I could be wrong."

"..."

"..."

"..."

Silence then surrounded the dome of ice as Silvie began checking the photos; her eyes slowly starting to turn red as she lightly bite her lip.

"If... if these photos are fake... then wouldn't that mean that–"

"Your father is hiding something from you," Hannah breathed out, "Seriously, don't let this get too much to you, just ask him."

"But... why would he even fake the photos–"

"Maybe because your mother is Mega Woman, Silvie?"

"That's..."

"Riley, stop with your goddamn theories already!"

"...I don't know, man," Gary let out a small but deep breath as he placed his hand on his chin, "He might actually be on to something here."

"Don't add, Gary!"

"It... it can't be, right?"

"Silv... it's–" Hannah wanted to say something, but as she saw the look of somber despair on Silvie's face, the only thing she could do was look to the side. He and her brother were probably the least credible person here to talk about family issues, as besides some minor and petty arguments, her situation... was pretty normal compared to the others.

"If... if these photos aren't true... wouldn't that mean my whole life is a lie?" Silvie's stutters started to fill the entire dome; her weak whispers, almost piercing through everyone's ears,

"But... it still doesn't explain why I have all these headaches; I keep losing myself further and further just... who am I, then?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Ack, fuck it," Hannah then suddenly opened a bottle of beer and chugged it, "There's actually something that's been bothering me with your story."

"...What?" Silvie could not help but blink a couple of times as Hannah suddenly changed her tone.

"I don't know if I'm just stupid or what... but you unlocked your powers immediately after you were born, right? That's why your father tied you in bed in the first place."

"...Yes?"

"Do you remember ever trying to escape? I mean, you were a child... surely you would have?"

"I... I think so?"

"And how many times have you destroyed your bed?"

"...I don't... remember having done so."

"How strong is that bed to keep you there– Ack, never mind. These conspiracy theories are getting to my head," Hannah then scratched her head as she groaned in frustration, "Please ignore what I said, I'm getting infected by my brother."

"That's..." Silvie stared at Hannah for a couple of seconds; her eyes, as wide as they could be. She was about to say something else, but before she could do so, she felt a sharp pain suddenly crawl through her head; almost as if her mind was inside a blender.

A small thud then whispered in the air as she let go of her phone; the small crack, however, was quickly drowned by a shrilling scream.

"K... Kgrah!"

"Silv!?"

Bubbles. Water. Footsteps. Whispers.

Silvie's body was completely straight, her head, completely leaning back as her screams abruptly stopped; the whites of her eyes, completely exposed as all sorts of whispers escaped from her mouth. Indiscernible, but constant.

"The... the power of Christ compels you!" Gary said as he slightly took a step back, "W... what in the exorcist fuck is going on, guys!?"

"W... what is it, Silv!?" Hannah wanted to help her up, but at this point, it might end up with them both being hurt, "Riley, restrain her but don't hurt her!"

"Hm," Riley quickly flicked his finger downwards, causing the ice platform beneath them to crack all the way through to the parking lot's pavement as Silvie's knees dropped to the ground.

"I told you not to hurt–"

"Ghah!"

And before Hannah could even finish her words, Silvie's loud gasp drowned the entire dome. Her eyes, finally back to normal.

"Silv, you alright!?"

"I... I saw someone," Silvie's breaths were ragged, mixing with gasps as she tried to calm her body down, "I... I don't know if they are memories but... I recognize someone."

"Is it Mega Woman, Silvie?"

"N... no," Silvie squinted her eyes as she turned her head towards Riley and Hannah, "It's...

...It's your father."