Plot:
Wonderboy, with his sidekick (and uncle), the Shield, defends Trafalgar Square against an attack of flying robot monkeys. One of the monstrosities bites Wonderboy, who calls out to his Uncle Elijah before he blacks out.
The Shield removes a glove and blasts the monkey into oblivion. He sees the attack as the sloppy work of the Twisted Twins, the latest supervillains to arise.
He sighs, picks up Wonderboy, and brings him home to the lab. He has an antidote to the robot monkey venom. Long ago, he developed it.
Thoughts:
Elijah narrates the tale. For much of the story, it’s as if he were speaking to his nephew, whose given name is Nico.
The opening paragraphs are a little confusing. It took a second reading for me to get my bearings as to what was going on. The story pokes a little fun as superhero tropes. It does not, however, denigrate them. This is not satire. It seems to primarily address the redemptive power of love.
Bio:
According to her blurb, author Avra Margariti is a queer Social Work undergrad from Greece. She enjoys storytelling in all its forms and writes about diverse identities and experiences. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Flash Fiction Online, Lackington’s, Vastarien, Asimov’s, and other venues. Avra won the 2019 Bacopa Literary Review prize for fiction. You can find her on twitter @avramargariti.
The story can be read read here.
Title: “The Capes We Wear”
Author: Avra Margariti
First published: October 5, 2020, Daily Science Fiction
Reviews of Old and New Stories. Mostly Old 