Chapter 1 – Super

Night
Not far from the quay, a single light trembled behind the curtains of a luxury apartment on the 14th floor.

Inside, the body of a young woman lay still on the bed.
And in the next room – something far worse.
A man lay sprawled on the floor, limbs stretched wide like a star.
His tendons and nerves had been cut just enough to keep him conscious – but completely unable to move.
The gag in his mouth turned every breath into a muffled plea.

Over him stood a grotesquely tall figure – thin, elongated, almost inhuman.
He wore a gray knitted sweater with a small tear near the shoulder, a bucket hat shadowing his eyes, and heavy army boots that echoed softly against the parquet.

The giant leaned closer.
Pressed a finger to his lips.
– Shhhhhh…

With the precision of a surgeon, he drew a scalpel across the chest, opened the ribcage with careful clamps, and lifted out the still-beating heart.
He placed it into a pristine ceramic bowl, carried it to a small table set for one, and arranged it on a plate.
Removing his gloves, he tucked a napkin into his collar and whispered:

– May the Gods be pleased tonight.

(A faint breath of the city wind. Fade out.)

Morning

The city woke as if nothing had happened.
In another part of the coastal town, the morning light touched a small, classic house with a neat little yard.

The air carried a soft trace of salt and seaweed drifting from the quay. A breeze brought the distant hum of boats and the sharp cry of gulls circling above. The flowerbed below swayed gently in the wind, bright against the white walls of the house.

Upstairs, behind an open window, the curtains moved like breathing. Inside, German, a boy about fifteen or sixteen, woke up and stretched in bed. He lowered his legs – his slippers were already waiting on the floor, perfectly positioned: twelve centimeters from the bed, three centimeters apart.

He checked the time on his sports wristwatch – 5:58:36.
Thinking out loud, he said: “Already eighty-four seconds before the alarm. A bit more, and time will be under my control!”

Grinning to himself, he tried to imitate Mandark’s laugh from Dexter’s Laboratory – a strange, bubbling sound.

He turns on the music player on his computer. His playlist contains only classical music, and today he chooses a piece by his favorite composer – Bach. Nothing charges him up in the mornings like polyphony – two independent melodies coexisting in perfect harmony, just like the two halves of the brain.

He heads to the wardrobe to change. Inside, everything is arranged according to a strict system – sorted by color, shape, and texture. Pulling on his favorite blue polo shirt, he grabs his glasses from the drawer and puts them on. He sits down at his desk, opens his notebook, and writes: “Ability – Time control. Woke up – eighty-four seconds before the alarm. Number of awakenings before final awakening – 5“. Judging by his notes, he has been experimenting on himself for quite some time. The reason is simple – a dream of becoming a famous scientist.

There is a fragile hope in his mind: that one day he might make a discovery – something like Mendeleev’s table.

• Maybe even describe the structure of hell, as one of his favorite figures, Dante, once did.
• Or, like Dali, capture the architecture of dreams in his works.
• Another day, another challenge, another date, another record in the notebook.

Another day, another challenge, another date, another record in the notebook.

He closes the notebook, packs his schoolbag, brushes his teeth, washes his face, grabs a banana in the kitchen, and heads to school. Everything has been calculated.

A banana is enough for breakfast – it has just the right amount of carbohydrates to fuel the brain. The goal is not to fill the stomach, but to charge the brain like a battery. That’s why breakfast is usually a banana – and if his grandmother wakes up earlier, then it’s porridge. Lunch: chicken and rice. Dinner: fish and vegetables. Everything in this diet is perfectly balanced – the right proportion of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. He tracks it all in his notebook, and his beloved grandmother is fully informed. She supports his habits and calls him “my little professor” – and when she feels like teasing him, she calls him “DextOr German”.

Eating his banana, the boy strolls down the street, curiously observing everything around him. At some point, as he passes by an alley, he trips and nearly falls. The cause is well known among geniuses – when they focus on important information, they often stop noticing everything else. In scientific circles, this phenomenon is called absent-mindedness.

Our little professor is no exception. This time, he simply fails to notice a hole in the ground.

After stumbling, his attention shifts from studying the world to the immediate surroundings – people, cars, and a gang of teenagers in the alley, laughing loudly and aggressively. Normally, he would avoid such people, considering them stupid. But they never avoid him – they always try to bully him. It’s one of the main struggles of his existence. He would have preferred to walk past this time too – but suddenly he hears a plaintive “meOw“.

His heart seems to freeze. An instant analysis flashes through his mind – and he understands at once: someone is hurting an animal.

“What should I do? Call for help? But who? While I’m explaining, I’ll lose precious time. No, I can’t waste a second“.

Fear grips him, thoughts race in his mind – but before he realizes it, he’s already standing in the alley, shielding the cat and her kittens. The reason for such reflexive action lies deep inside – a principle his grandmother hammered into him: A MAN MUST PROTECT THE WEAK, NO MATTER WHAT!

In front of him stand three hooligans – two guys and a girl. Behind him is a weak, thin cat, defending a box of newborn kittens. Despite her exhaustion, the cat hisses fiercely, shielding her babies from the girl, who had just been poking them with a stick.

Stretching his arms wide, showing he will not let them pass, the boy firmly demands they stop and leave.

One of the guys laughs and says: “Well, if you ask so nicely, we’ll stop! Sorry, we’re leaving“.

The guy jerks his head backward – signaling to move out. They turn away, pretending to leave. The boy exhales, drops his arms, and almost begins to feel proud of himself – when suddenly, the same guy grabs him by the face. Strong fingers dig into his cheeks, squeezing hard. Another hand rips his glasses off and throws them aside.

– Who do you think you are, puppy?

– You’ve lost your mind, you FREAK?

– You really think you can just show up and start giving orders?

– Watched too many superhero movies?

Without warning, he gathers a mouthful of saliva and spits it straight into the boy’s face. Shock. Fear. Disgust. The saliva stings his eyes, blurring his vision.

“This is hopeless“, flashes through German’s mind. “I’ve never been this scared. It feels like I’m about to DIE“.

His body betrays him – involuntary urination.

Seeing this, the guy shoves him aside in disgust.

– Oh, shit! You’re not a hero – you’re pathetic!

The boy stands there, frozen in shame and terror, not knowing what will happen next. All he wants at that moment is to disappear. Sensing his collapse, the girl decides to finish him off – to show him he has protected no one. She picks up the stick and steps toward the defenseless kittens and their desperate mother.

She swings – but right at the moment of the strike, the boy steps between her and the kittens. The blow lands hard on his collarbone. With his other hand, he grabs the stick and flings it aside.

At that very second, the second guy delivers a sharp kick straight into his stomach. Pain explodes inside him – his whole-body shudders. The boy gasps for air and crashes onto the asphalt, scraping his palms bloody. His hands pulse with pain. Only one thought pounds in his mind: “This is the end”.

But even with this thought, he makes his choice – he shields the kittens with his body. Kick after kick hammers into his back. The two guys keep beating him while the girl grabs his schoolbag and carelessly scatters his things across the ground. Pulling out his notebook, she sneers: – Wow, look at this. Our little superhero is also a nerd. Lucky us, huh?

One of the pages flutters open, showing a name scribbled in the corner – German Falk. The girl doesn’t even notice.

The guys crowd around, snickering as they read out loud: “Soon I’ll control time…“

They burst into laughter.

The girl grins: – What do you think? Maybe we make a deal – we let the kittens go, and he does our homework for us?

One of the guys grabs the boy by the hair, jerks his head up, and leans in:

– So? What do you say, smartass? Gonna help us out with our homework?

---

Meanwhile, on the other side of the city…

The sun shines brightly over the quay. The ocean sparkles, and the avenue bustles with city stands, most of them offering all kinds of food.

Vendors chat between themselves, when one suddenly points into the distance:

– Look, Gobby’s coming! Everyone, get ready!

The focus drifts to the start of the avenue, where a cheerful, dancing chubby guy in a stylish T-shirt and a fun schoolbag strides through the crowd. Every vendor knows exactly why he’s here – Gobby’s on the hunt for something delicious. He’s clearly one of their favorite customers.
Everyone greets him eagerly:

– Want to try something from my stand today?

Gobby smiles, thanks each of them politely, but keeps moving forward with purpose. Some vendors pretend to take offense – but it’s all in good spirits. Others call after him:

– Tell us later what you’ll try – and how good it was!

A few even start placing bets on where Gobby will stop today.

Then, suddenly, Gobby reacts to a smell.  He glues himself to the bakery’s window and shouts:

– Today’s the day for Empanadas de Pino!

The vendors echo in chorus:

– Empanadas de Pino!

All bets are settled. Some groan aloud at their losses. The baker, spotting Gobby at the window, beams:

– What a wonderful day! Thank you, God, for blessing my stand!

He throws open the door, welcoming Gobby like an honored guest:

– Gobby! What can I show you today?

– I want to hear everything about the delicious fillings!

The baker eagerly describes each pie, how it’s made, what goes inside. Gobby listens carefully – then starts calling out the ones he wants, naming every single pie Empanadas de Pino and just adding the filling:

– Empanadas de Pino with chocolate!

– Empanadas de Pino with caramel!

He calls them all Empanadas de Pino – ever since he heard the name on a cooking show, it’s stuck with him as the tastiest word in the world.

Having spent all his money on pies, Gobby heads home, beaming with joy. Vendors wave after him, smiling:

– See you at my stand tomorrow, Gobby!

On the way home, he bites into a pie – and a blob of jam falls right onto his favorite T-shirt, the one that proudly says “I am Gobby”.

He stops, bewildered. Where to put the half-eaten pie? Where to stash the rest to free his hands? How to clean the jam?

While Gobby struggles to solve this critical problem, a desperate child’s cry cuts through the air. A kitten’s wail. Cruel laughter. Gobby forgets about his T-shirt. He heads toward the sound.

Besides food, there’s one more thing Gobby can’t resist – animals.

Getting closer, he hears brutal, mocking laughter. And then he sees it – a boy, curled up around a box, shielding a cat and her kittens, while three figures tower over him. The bullies are so caught up in their cruelty they don’t even notice Gobby approaching.

The girl grabs a stick and raises it to strike again. But as she swings down, she suddenly hits something solid – a huge back, covered by a bright T-shirt and a schoolbag. The stick glances off Gobby’s neck, scratching the skin, and the rest of the blow bounces harmlessly off his bag.

Without a word, Gobby steps past them, crouches down, and shields the boy completely with his large frame.

Resting a hand gently on the boy’s back, Gobby says:

– You’re amazing, kid. Protecting the weak like that.

Seeing the boy’s terror, Gobby’s first instinct is simple. He offers him a pie:

– Want one?

The hooligans freeze – stunned either by the boldness or by the sheer audacity of what just happened. None of them expected anything like this.

The first to recover is the guy who spat earlier. He bursts out laughing, pointing at the girl:

– Cate, you’re such a loser! Maybe you should stop swinging sticks around – every time you try, some half-baked hero shows up! I wonder who it’ll be next time… Superman?

They all howl with laughter.

The second guy grabs the stick from the girl’s hands, sneering:

– Hey, lard-ass, where the hell did you crawl from?

He starts waving the stick around, trying to scare Gobby – but gets no reaction. No fear. No movement.

Frustrated, the guy snarls and starts whipping the stick across Gobby’s back, again and gain – but nothing happens. Gobby doesn’t even flinch. Irritated, the girl shoves the boys aside and points at a nearby trash bin. The second guy hurries over, rummages inside, and pulls out a half-empty beer can. He shows it to the girl – she nods approvingly. He hurls it full force at Gobby. The can smacks him in the head, and beer splashes all over him and his favorite T-shirt.

Gobby quickly shoves the bitten pie and the bag of pies into the boy’s hands, jumps to his feet, and starts frantically wiping his beloved shirt. The bullies roar with laughter.

As Gobby realizes that only a full wash will save the T-shirt now, he looks up and calmly says:

– Please leave.

The girl barks back:

– Piss off, fatso!

She orders the others to keep going.

In Gobby’s mind, thoughts race:

If they keep it up, my shirt will be ripped, my pies will end up in the dirt, and the boy and the kittens will suffer even more.

Something clicks inside him – a DEFENSE MECHANISM. Gobby starts sweating heavily, his breathing changes – short inhales, deep exhales. His skin flushes red. Veins and tendons stand out sharply across his body. Before their eyes, he seems to shrink in size, muscles tightening like coiled steel.

Then – with a sudden burst of movement – Gobby slams his shoulder into the guy by the trash bin, like a rugby player. The hooligan crashes into the metal with a sickening thud and collapses, unconscious.

The second guy spins around and tries to bolt – but Gobby’s already behind him.

A sharp kick to the legs – the boy goes airborne – two strong arms catch him mid-air – and slam him down hard onto the pavement. Another one down.

Gobby turns toward the girl. She stumbles backward, pleading for mercy, trying to play the “boys DON’T HIT girls!” card. Without a word, Gobby grabs her wrists in a crushing grip. She winces in pain – there’s no escape now. Gobby leans in close, face to face, ready to deliver some epic line – but before he can speak, she spits straight into his face.

Slowly wiping his cheek, Gobby growls:

– Bastards like you understand only FEAR and POWER!

Then, without hesitation, he drives his forehead into the bridge of her nose with brutal force. She crumples to the ground, clutching her face, moaning in agony.

Gobby stands still for a second – as if checking something inside himself –
then turns to the boy and says with a bright, reassuring smile:

– It’s all good now!

But even as he says it, he glances behind him – and his expression darkens.

– Aw man… seriously? How did this happen?