Little Van

Everyone in the little van knew what would happen when a man and a woman were alone together.

But it was awkward to stop them.

With no other choice, Ryan watched for a while, then opened the van door and stepped outside.

The light outside was pleasant. Ryan leaned against the van, took out his phone, and started playing Snake.

By the time his snake had grown large, someone else had come out of the van.

It was the man with the black beard: Billy.

He came out grumbling.

"For fuck's sake. Can't they keep it simple?"

"..."

Ryan had no idea what Billy meant. He glanced at him but said nothing.

Billy pulled a cigarette from his coat. He lit the white cylinder with a match, and smoke drifted skyward from its glowing red tip.

After a while, Billy asked Ryan,

"Want one?"

"Smoking is bad for your health."

"What a boring answer."

"The right answer usually is."

Despite saying that, Billy clearly hadn't taken it to heart.

"Ryan, you ought to try it. Smokers spend huge amounts of money every year, boosting tax revenue and creating jobs. The only thing they damage is their own health."

"What's your point?"

"Smokers are such selfless people. They're a blessing to the country."

"It's still bad for your health."

"..."

Billy had no comeback. He flicked the ash from his cigarette and let the glowing tip eat its way down.

A little later, the van door opened again.

A burly Black man climbed out.

It was Mother's Milk, and he was grumbling too.

"Traditional. I wanted to see something more fucking traditional."

Ryan had no idea what Mother's Milk had seen, but that didn't stop him from growing the snake on his phone even bigger.

Growing anything was satisfying. Still playing on his phone, Ryan asked Mother's Milk about something else.

"Where's Hughie?"

"A-Train's the guy he hates. He's still in there, watching and seething."

"How much longer?"

"You're asking me?"

Mother's Milk looked at him, speechless. Ryan understood that he had no way of knowing.

On his phone, the clock ticked forward.

A few more hours passed, and a rosy sunset spread across the sky.

A voice came from inside the van. It was Hughie.

"Done," he said.

Only then did the others get back into the van. Ryan went in too.

The snake on his phone had grown enormous. He steered its head into its tail.

His score appeared on the screen. Ryan glanced at it, then put his phone away.

He turned to look inside the van.

In front of Hughie, a man and a woman looked relaxed on the Laptop screen. A-Train was still sitting on the sofa.

The Female took something out of a cabinet.

It was blue liquid in a Test Tube, as beautiful as tears from the depths of the sea.

A-Train seemed familiar with it.

"Compound V."

"That's right."

The Female placed the Test Tube in front of A-Train.

"Everyone's superpowers come from Compound V. Take it, and it's like taking a stimulant. Shockwave won't be able to outrun you."

"But doping isn't fair."

"There's no equipment that can test a supe's body right now. If no one finds out, it's as good as if it never happened."

A-Train still hesitated. His gaze was drawn to the eerie blue of Compound V.

He looked dazed, but the Female remained clearheaded.

"Listen to me. Drink it, and you'll always be the fastest."

Her persuasion worked. After a moment's thought, A-Train tucked the Compound V into his clothes.

He knew the liquid well. This was not his first time taking Compound V, and he still remembered what had happened before.

Compound V could temporarily boost a supe's powers, but it had side effects. It put a strain on the body.

Taking it long-term was little different from walking toward death.

Fear of dying was why A-Train had hesitated, but he took the Compound V anyway.

He didn't want to lose to Shockwave. He wanted to outrun him on the track, even if it meant winning unfairly.

In the room, A-Train rose from the sofa.

He made no attempt to hide what he was doing. The Female understood.

"Are you leaving?"

"Yeah. Compound V isn't enough. I need to train, too."

"Didn't you just get some exercise?"

"That was just a warm-up."

With Compound V as his trump card, A-Train looked much more cheerful. He grinned.

He headed for the door, while the Female called after him.

"We'll see each other again, right?"

"Once I beat Shockwave, let's get married."

They said goodbye at the Villa's entrance. At the same time, the surveillance feed in the van went still.

Hughie froze the Laptop image on the blue Test Tube.

"What's Compound V?"

Billy answered, staring hard at the Test Tube on the screen.

"Whatever it is, we need to get our hands on it."

Ryan looked just as eager.

"See if the Female has any more of it. I love that color."

That was easy to say, but they couldn't just show up at her door and demand it.

They needed a new plan and a new set of rules.

Ryan said he would help and told them to call if they ran into trouble. Then he left the van.

Outside, the sunset had stained the street red.

He glanced at A-Train, who had already run far into the distance, then flew up and gave chase.

Ryan could fly a little faster than A-Train could run. He flew ahead and, as he had before, stood in A-Train's path to wait.

He counted down aloud.

"Ten."

"Nine."

"Here he comes."

Ryan looked toward the intersection. A strange wind swept down the street as something raced toward him.

He stood there without moving. The approaching figure slammed on the brakes instead.

The brakes didn't work very well.

The figure nearly went flying from the momentum.

But he managed to keep his footing. Ryan looked at him.

It was A-Train, his goggles off and his face full of shock.

Ryan acted as though they had met by chance.

"What are you doing here?"

"How do I keep running into you?"

A-Train sounded anything but pleased. He said bluntly,

"Running into you means I'm in trouble."

"That's right. I want the Compound V."

"What's that?"

"Don't play dumb. The thing in your clothes."

"Don't go looking through people's clothes!"

A-Train shouted, furious.

The members of The Seven had a good idea of what the others could do. Ryan's powers were so similar to Homelander's that A-Train had long had his suspicions.

If Homelander could do it, Ryan could too.

Laser Eyes, X-Ray Vision, and the rest—Ryan could use them all.

A-Train realized it at once.

Ryan had looked right through him.

It made him feel as though he had no privacy at all. Worse, Compound V was something that had to stay hidden.

A-Train hesitated, studying Ryan's face. He couldn't read his expression.

But he knew Ryan might lash out at him the very next second.

He couldn't afford to cross him.

A-Train hated it, but he took the item from his clothes.

The deep-blue liquid swirled inside the Test Tube. The sunset fell across A-Train's hand and the glass.

Ryan took the Test Tube.

"Compound V."

"You're already that strong, and you still want it?"

"No one minds getting a little stronger."

"But it only boosts you for a while. It has side effects, too."

"What side effects?"

Following A-Train's lead, Ryan asked about the dangers of Compound V.

A-Train put a hand on his chest. He didn't try to hide anything.

"The strain on your body. I've taken that stuff plenty of times. Now it feels like my heart doesn't want to beat anymore."

"A beating heart is important."

"Exactly."

A-Train lowered his hand and saw Ryan touch the cap of the Compound V Test Tube.

"Are you going to drink it?"

He asked, puzzled, but Ryan didn't answer.

In the fading light, Ryan held the Test Tube. The eerie blue Compound V glittered in the sunset.

He extended a finger like a blade and struck.

The fragile glass shattered with a crack. Shards fell to the ground, while the blue Compound V sloshed inside what remained of the tube.

Ryan smiled at A-Train.

"Drink it."

"The way you opened it, there'll be glass in the liquid."

"Drink it."

"..."

There was no arguing with that tone. A-Train swallowed and stared at what Ryan held.

The broken rim of the Test Tube was jagged, its sharp points rising like a range of peaks.

After a long moment,

A-Train heard the disappointment in Ryan's voice.

"You won't drink it?"

"What happens if I don't?"

"Nothing. What could I do?"

Despite his words, Ryan stepped toward him. It looked as though, if A-Train refused,

Ryan would force it down his throat.

A-Train's emotions churned.

"Why are you doing this?"

"You've been doping at races all this time, and you're telling me this?"

"..."

A-Train was baffled. It felt as though Ryan had seen straight through his entire past.

He couldn't understand how Ryan knew so much about him. Right now, all he felt toward Ryan was wariness.

He took the Test Tube from Ryan's hand.

"I'll do it myself."

"Don't be so nervous. I just want to see what it does."

"Then watch. This is the power of Compound V."

With that, A-Train tipped the Test Tube of Compound V back. The glowing blue liquid, along with a few tiny glass fragments, fell into his mouth.

His throat worked as he swallowed.

Before long, he had drained the entire dose.

A-Train gave an empty burp and tossed the Test Tube onto the ground.

The glass tube shattered by the roadside with a crisp tinkle.

Nothing about him looked different, but Ryan could see that the boost to A-Train's powers had made him much more confident.

Now they needed a test to gauge Compound V's effects.

Ryan gestured for A-Train to look across the street.

A gray asphalt road stretched away there, with no end in sight.

"This road leads out to the countryside. There's nothing but undeveloped wasteland on either side. You can run as far as you want without hitting anyone."

"Even if I hit someone, it's no big deal. Washing my clothes would be the hassle."

"You're a piece of shit."

"Hahaha."

A-Train dropped into a starting stance. Even without a starter's gun, he looked ready to go.

"Want to run with me for a bit?"

"One dose and you think I can't keep up with you?"

"Eat A-Train's dust, kid."

With that parting taunt, A-Train's legs revved like motors, and he vanished in a blur.

He disappeared down the asphalt road.

As A-Train ran wild, he listened to the wind howl around him, as if it were cheering on his speed.

After running a while, he glanced back. Ryan was nowhere in sight. He must have left him far behind.

Smugly, A-Train threw back his head and laughed. Then he saw something flying overhead.

It was watching him with utter indifference.