Leena wasn’t the type of woman who took any shit; she was the type who cleaned it up.

She had a job doing just that when she was in high school, back when she would have done just about anything to earn twenty bucks. Two hours cleaning the toilets at the station earned her a jackson she stretched to last a week. It wasn’t a difficult stretch when gas was ninety-six cents a gallon. The first ten dollars filled up her manual transmission Corolla, the next three bought her a meal at McDonald’s, and the following four took her to a movie with Ian and Charlie. Any left over was usually enough to buy the three of them each an ice cream.

But now, almost three decades later, Leena still spent her days in high school, teaching math at Eastridge High. She often looked at the kids in her class and thought about Charlie. He was still out there every night, killing it. Literally. 

Decades ago when the three of them had stumbled upon the Sparkstone, it changed everything. Thing must have come from outer space or something. All Leena knew was that its power bonded with Charlie’s pent-up rage and convinced him he owed the world something. Justice was a strong word for what he did now, but it certainly wasn’t vengeance. Retribution, maybe? Ian hadn’t been much different, just more vocal and prideful about it. Leena, however, took a more dignified approach to helping humanity: Attempting to infuse obtuse high school seniors with the sharpness of arithmetic.

* * *

“You faggot!” a boy yelled out, digging a spitball out of his ear.

“Gavin,” Leena huffed. “What’s the problem?”

“I think Jason is attracted to me,” Gavin said with a sly grin. “And frankly, it’s getting annoying.”

“Shut up, dickweed,” Jason snapped.

“You know you want some,” Gavin said, grabbing his crotch and jiggling it.

“Enough!” Leena shouted. She thought of Charlie again. He was probably just waking up, getting ready to microwave a Hungry Man dinner, pull his armor on, and hit the streets. A tingle ran down her arm and she thought about leaving it all — the kids, the school, the job — and go join him. Even just for one night. About once a year, he’d try to convince her to leave her job and fight with him. Last time he pushed, she staunchly refused. He’d been unfair, using Ian’s memory against her. The rage from Ian’s death still revved her up like a carburetor swallowing a load of gasoline and air. Ian had been a hothead. It eventually caught up with him.

“Where’s your boyfriend?” Gavin teased. Jason’s face flushed. “Aww, did he dump you?”

“Hey!” Leena shouted, “I said, ‘Enough!’” Her blood boiled. She clenched her fists and tried to hold it back, but the Sparkstone beckoned. ‘The Righteous Red Horse’ Charlie called it. A weird description, but strangely accurate. ‘Once you let it loose, you best get out of the way cause someone’s gonna get trampled.’ That’s what he had said. She couldn’t disagree.

The lights flickered in the classroom. The kids straightened, then cowered in their desks as if they’d seen a ghost. Leena eyed Gavin, who averted his gaze. That righteous red stallion bucked Leena’s grip and tore away like a wild mustang. Leena lifted her finger and a red bolt flashed across the room and zapped Gavin square in the face. He screamed. “You bitch!” A zealous rage spiraled out of control and more red bolts lit his ass up until the kid’s scalp crackled, his hair melted, and smoke streamed from his shoulders.

A terrible smell like cooked meat and burning plastic filled the classroom. Leena put her fingers to her lips, blazing hot. Twenty-nine witnesses gawked at her, speechless. Her career was over. Electrocuting a kid in class would surely be frowned upon by the administration, not to mention the authorities.

Leena removed her ID badge, gently laid it on the table, and strode toward the door. Before she left the classroom, she paused. “Don’t ever be afraid to stand up for the little guy, even if it costs you everything.” She winked at Jason, whose jaw hung slack, then she left.

Tonight, she’d down a Hungry Man microwave meal and join Charlie out in the city streets, cleaning up any messes they found. Which, the more she thought about it, was exactly what she’d been wanting to do for years.