In the Human Realm, a boy about 19 years old entered a classroom. It was morning, and the classes hadn't started yet. He eyed the chair that was sitting just behind the first one in the third row. He hung his bag on the side of the table and sat in that chair. No one even noticed him, it was like a ghost had walked into a room. It was always like this for him; he was not a very bright student, and seldom was he present in class. It's been two years since he passed High school with flying grades, he was a regular kid with 98 percent. But after joining the college, his percentage fell from 98 to 33, which is barely enough to pass. He was present in college for only 80 to 90 days in the first year and even less in the second year. From the brightest and most charming character in high school to a nobody in college, that was his journey.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps approaching him from behind. Without even looking back, he knew who it was. "Shayan," A male's voice pierced his ear, "I didn't see you in the school bus, I thought you wouldn't be coming to college today." The boy, Shayan, followed the voice of the man and turned back. "Yeah," He answered hesitantly, "I overslept and missed the bus. Dad dropped me off afterward. Sorry about that, Danish." Shayan seemed nervous. "Hey, we still have time until lectures begin," Danish said while brushing his dark, shining, long hair with his right hand. "Yeah, yeah, okay," Shayan spoke up again with hesitation. Danish turned his back towards him and started walking towards the classroom exit. Shayan sighed in awe and stood up from the chair to follow him.
Danish walked out into the corridor and entered the door at the end of the corridor. The door was pretty old, and it had a plate on it saying, 'Washroom.' Shayan followed him into the old washroom that had been closed for a year and a half now due to a fire that had almost burnt it down. Danish stopped at once in the middle of the men's room, which had broken bricks all around, and the toilets had green grass growing in them. Danish kicked open the door of the first toilet in line, or what was left of that burnt-up door. There was a rag lying around next to the commode, which had turned black due to the accident 18 months ago. Danish threw the rag away, showcasing a metal baseball badge and a full-face black mask. "It is time, Shaya,n for you to pay the price for being this way." Danish picked the baseball bat up,
"Danish, the class will be starting any minute now. I already have enough leaves, bunks, and low grades to throw me out of this college, and I don't want to add more to that list." Shayan tried to reason with him, and he seemed very tired as if it were a regular thing.
"Throw you out?" Danish turned back and looked at him with a serious look. He had a baseball bat in his hand as he walked out of the toilet and faced Shayan. "Are you worried about college? You know you can't go anywhere unless you pay,"
"What is it this time, Danish?" Shayan asked with a sigh. He knew arguing would get him nowhere. Danish handed the bat over to Shayan and smiled as he took his phone out from his pocket, "Not far, just about 7 kilometers or so," Danish's eyes glued to his phone. "I saw it on the news whole school is being held hostage by some Western dudes. Just jump in the action save everyone and tell those western assholes who the boss is." Danish's words hung in the air as Shayan looked at him, puzzled.
"You want me to run 7 kilometers and fight Western terrorists? Are you mad or something? I can't do it. I can't just run there. I am faster than normal humans, just a bit, same goes for strength. If they are holding up a whole school of kids, that means they have guns and manpower. Bullets don't bounce off me. I am not invincible. I get hurt even from a kitchen knife, just like everyone. You know I can't defeat terrorists with guns, all I can do is stop small-time thugs."
Shayan replied, his voice tinged with a hint of uncertainty. Danish lifted his eyes from his phone, his eyes filled with conviction.
"But, you have more than any other human. No human can match your strength level or speed. God has gifted you. You must use your gift to help everyone you can. Isn't that what heroes do?" Danish's voice was filled with conviction and resolve. "It's your moral duty to save the weak."
"Hero?" Shayan scuffed and threw the bat down. "Just because I got power on my 18th birthday and I became stronger than anyone, and saved a few lives, that makes me a hero? I have been doing small-time things to make you happy, but I have no delusion that I am a hero. I don't believe in hero-villain bullshit."
Danish's expression turned into a mask of anger. "What kind of stupid argument is that?" He busted out, "It's not that heroes don't fall or they beat the villain with one punch, they stand and help others even if they are fighting against stronger opponents." Danish lifted his gaze with pride and looked Shayan in the eyes. "Heroes fall, they cry too, but they rise, wipe their tears off, and try again. That is what being a hero means." Water subsided from Danish's left eye, but he rubbed the tear off as soon as it came out. "I don't have superpowers like you, so you can say I can't understand you. But if I had what you have, I would use them to save everyone I could or die trying."
Danish's words overflowed with frustration. He threw the mask down and walked past Shayan, muttering, "Maybe God chose the wrong person to bear the burden. A coward," Shayan hurriedly caught up to Danish, his voice filled with sorrow. "You know I can't do it, I can't run off and punch down guys with guns that is just suicide, this is not a fucking movie. You want me to go there and just die? There's a huge difference between being brave and being an idiot. But even if I had the power to stop those criminals, I wouldn't. You know why?"
Danish turned around and looked at Shayan. "Just because I have power doesn't mean I can beat up anyone I want; that doesn't give me the right to play God and choose who is wrong and right. You want to know the real reason I don't want to help others? It's because if I help a guy who is getting beaten by another one, I would be making a choice that the guy getting beaten is good and the guy beating him is the bad one. Think about it, why do people do bad things? Even scums have their reasons to do bad things, we can't put a tag on who's a hero and who's a villain without even knowing what is going on." Shayan scuffed and smiled lightly.
"There are morals, there will always be a good guy and a bad guy. Things that are not ethical, like killing, are bad things, and people who perform bad things, no matter the reason, are bad people." Danish instantly replied, to which Shayan laughed slightly and then tried to suppress his laugh.
"You talk about morals?" His face became serious, "If you kill a bug, you are a hero, and if you kill a butterfly, you are a villain. Is that what the morals of our fucking society are? Putting borders between us and then firing at anyone who dares cross them is morally right? If he is a soldier of another country, is he automatically a bad guy? There are no morals, there is no justice, and there surely are no heroes. There is just one thing, and that is popular opinion. If more people think something is right, it becomes right, and if more people think it's wrong, it becomes wrong."
Danish seemed startled. Shayan didn't stop at that; he sighed. "Those kids in the school, I heard the news. The terrorists were demanding the release of a document that the government has. A simple document can save those kids," Shayan walked past him towards the exit. "I want to know if the government will do the 'right thing' or not. I am sure they'll shove those morals up their asses and let all the kids die."
"No," he retorted, "They will never let those innocent kids die, just because of a stupid document. If they give the document," Danish was in the middle of saying something when Shayan walked out from the washroom saying, "They won't. I'll even put my life on the bet."