THE BLACK VOICE (CHAPTER 3)

5:55am. It was close but thankfully no one saw him before he could get here. His eyes now spotted the tall grand brick dorm building up ahead. Finally, safety, warmth, and comfort were only a few feet away. Finally, he could get some rest from this long winded goose chase all over the city. His body ached all over from all the running he had done. His jaw was especially tired from the gag that was forced in his mouth. He grunted through it, trying to make do of what he can at the moment. If only he knew how to pick locks. This would be so much easier. To add more bad luck to the situation, he reeked of spoiled milk and rotten eggs. Even though the dumpster helped him escape the clutches of that weird man, he hated the smell the stuck to him. Black voice had to plug his noise just to avoid being noxious during the whole run back here. But that didn't matter now. He was safe. And he once again returned to hang up his suit and return to his life of being an average college student, Vincent.

Making sure he wasn't seen, the tired hero maneuvered to the back of the building, slipping into a fire escape that was slightly propped open. Quietly he scaled several flights of stair until he made it to the fourth floor. Even though the halls were still completely empty, he was still wary of his surroundings. He needed to keep his identity a secret. And one little slip will blow his entire cover. But at last, he made it to room 439, his very own dorm room. It wasn't much of a secret bat cave or a palace of solitude. But it was the perfect cover for a young college student. Opening the door, he dragged himself inside and let out a long muffled sigh of relief. He was home finally. Now he could relax. He flicked the light switch, Revealing the small room before him. There wasn't much in his dorm room. There was a futon where he slept at along with a small desk holding his computer. Closer by him was the closet door along with some drawers for storage. Vincent opened one up and produced a pair of scissors from the compartment. Carefully he slipped the strap of the ballgag between the two blades and snipped it. Finally his mouth was free. He spat out the gag, rubbing his jaw from the discomfort of wearing it so long. "Damn lock" he muttered, glaring at the ballgag that was now on the floor. But he didn't have to deal with that any more, thankfully.

Vincent then walked to the other side of the room and opened the door leading to the bathroom. "Now to take care of the next thing on the agenda." He said, stripping himself from the black suit of his heroic alter ego. The smell still lingered heavily on to it. Even though he was happy to part away with the stench, He would eventually have to wash the suit for tomorrow night If he is going to fight crime, he's going to do with a clean suit. There was just no way around that. Dragging himself over to the bathtub, he turned on the facet to pour out hot steaming water. He crawled inside as the tub began to fill, feeling the water soothe every beaten nerve in his body. A soft sound of satisfaction was vocalized by the heat of the water.

To Vincent, this was the ultimate stress reliever. Not a single thing in the world could beat such a thing. Vincent could be in the worst of moods and endure the most terrible of days. But after 30 minutes stewing in steaming hot water, all his troubles would wash away. Within the porcelain chamber, all troubles dissolve in nothing…all except for one…

It was sitting in his mind for quite sometime now. Ever since that man told him about talking to some girl…but who? Vincent had been worried the entire trip home about who this mysterious informant was and how did she even know about his powers. Then again it wasn't that big of a mystery. His powers did come from his voice, hence the name. If he couldn't speak properly, he could manipulate the objects around. It could have easily been some theory or untested plan that the crook had cooked up before their confrontation. But it seem too odd to be a fluke. Vince's mind was latched heavily on previous events. Maybe there was some villainous woman that was after him and has studied the hero in secret. Maybe this was some small assault leading to a much bigger plan. But so many questions were laid unanswered. And there was so many holes in this theory. He needed information, suspects, and some time to lie low…

"Aah fuck it." Vince spoke lazily, dismissing the thought. For all he knew, it was some dumb robber. He was sure of himself that they'll meet up again. And in the end, justice will prevail. The young hero rested calmly in his bath, thinking nothing more of previous thoughts. As long as he's Here in town, there was nothing that was going to rise up to stop him. Hell, this night alone broke his record of how many baddies he could lock up in a single night. He was a super hero after, a masked vigilante in the night that keeps the peace. There was nothing that could stand in his way…..well until he got out the bathtub at least

After a half an hour elapsed, Vincent got out and dried with a near by towel, not bothering with clothes at all. He opened the door back to his room, letting the steam bellow out as he lazily shuffled over to his futon. His body felt absolutely pampered. And now it was time for a little R&R for his hard night at work. He collapsed on the futon, letting himself doze of to-

BEEEP! BEEEP! BEEEP! BEEEP! BEEEP!

the sudden racket from his alarm jolted him back on to his feet, searching his room wildly before aiming its attention to it. He glanced at the time. "…oh fuck…." He groaned with detest. It was 6:20. And he just remembered that he has classes at 7. "…this is going to be a long day…" he said.