The Dublin rain drizzled, a persistent, grey curtain that hung over the city. Jian Choi, a small figure leaning heavily on his crutches, stared up at the retirement home. "This is it," he said, his voice filled with a reverence usually reserved for saints and superheroes. "The home of Great Thunder and Great Lighting."
Beside him, Jason, his friend since they were knee-high to a grasshopper, bounced on the balls of his feet, barely containing his excitement. "Imagine! Living legends, right here!"
Alexis Hayes, her dark and light hair contrasting beautifully against her pale skin, signed to Jian, her fingers a flurry of practiced motion. ‘Old people are great,’ she communicated, then switched to speaking, her voice a clear, soft melody, "Lots of cookies and stories. Plus, heroes!"
Jian adjusted his crutches. The legacy of the accident still clung to him, a constant reminder etched into his bones. Akari, his older sister, had… well, he didn’t quite understand what Akari had done to heal him, only that it was something extraordinary. But it had left him needing the crutches, and sometimes, the wheelchair.
They'd found the address of the retirement home after weeks of relentless internet sleuthing, poring over obscure forums and dusty newspaper archives. Great Thunder and Great Lighting had vanished from the public eye years ago, their names fading into the realm of nostalgic whispers. But Jian, Jason, and Alexis refused to let their heroes be forgotten.
Taking a deep breath, Jian pushed open the heavy, oak door. The aroma of boiled cabbage and disinfectant hung in the air, a distinctly un-heroic scent. An elderly woman knitting a vibrant purple scarf eyed them suspiciously.
"Excuse me," Jian began, his voice wavering slightly, "We're looking for Great Thunder and Great Lighting?"
The woman’s eyes narrowed. "Upstairs. But they're not expecting visitors."
They found them in the common room, slumped in mismatched armchairs, watching daytime television. Great Lighting, his face lined and weathered, had a shock of white hair that defied gravity. Great Thunder, frail and hunched, seemed lost in a world of his own.
"(Clears throat) Hey, who are these kids?" Great Lighting grumbled, his voice raspy with age.
Great Thunder blinked slowly, his eyes unfocused. "Are they here to fix the TV?"
The kids giggled, a nervous, excited sound.
"What do you want from us?" Great Lighting demanded, his gaze sharp despite his aged appearance.
Jian, fueled by years of admiration, stepped forward, his crutches clicking softly on the linoleum floor. "Are you two… Great Thunder and Great Lighting?" he squeaked, his voice trembling with fanboyish glee.
Great Lighting sighed, the sound heavy with resignation. "Well, we were. But now we're retired."
Jason's face fell. "But you can't retire! There's evil afoot!"
Great Thunder's eyes widened, a flicker of recognition sparking within them. "Evil? EVIL?!" He scrambled to his feet, his movements surprisingly agile for a man his age. He then clumsily clambered onto a nearby fridge, nearly knocking over a stack of juice boxes. "Great Lighting, don't forget that evil!"
Great Lighting glared at Jason, his expression a mixture of annoyance and weariness.
Jason, suddenly sheepish, mumbled, "All I said was there's evil afoot."
Great Thunder, heedless of the chaos he was causing, jumped down from the fridge and began pacing frantically. "EVIL! EVIL!" He then ran to the water fountain and began spraying himself in the face with water, muttering incoherently. Another resident watched with a weary shake of his head. "Death ray!" and "Evil!evil! Evil!"
A stern-faced caretaker appeared, her arms crossed. "That's enough, Mr. O'Malley! And you three," she said, pointing a finger at Jian, Jason, and Alexis, "out! Visiting hours are over."
She herded them towards the door, her grip surprisingly strong.
"But-" Jian started, protesting.
Outside, standing in the drizzling rain, Jason sighed. "Wow. Great Thunder and Great Lighting."
Jian’s shoulders slumped. "It's too bad they're old."
Alexis fixed Jian with a piercing stare, signing rapidly as she spoke. 'What does that mean, Jian? Old people are the greatest! Always cookies and stories!'
Jason snapped his fingers. "Alexis is right! They're so full of wisdom and experience! We need them!"
He threw his arms wide, a dramatic flourish against the grey Dublin sky. "The world needs Great Thunder and Great Lighting! Someone, somewhere is in trouble! And I will not rest until Great Thunder and Great Lighting are out of retirement!"
As if on cue, a shower of fireworks erupted behind Jason, illuminating the gloomy sky with bursts of vibrant color.
Jian stared, bewildered. "What? How did you do that?"
Alexis clapped her hands, her face lit up with delight. "Pretty lights!"
The next day, Jian and Alexis decided to try a different approach. They returned to the retirement home during lunch.
The cafeteria was a cacophony of clattering trays and mumbled conversations. Great Thunder and Great Lighting sat at a small table, picking at their food.
"Great Thunder, to the meatloaf!" Great Thunder declared, pointing a shaky finger at his plate.
The cook, a burly man with a kind face, chuckled. "Alright, Mr. O'Malley, to the meatloaf it is."
"Great Thunder, to the broccoli!" Great Thunder continued, his eyes gleaming with mischief.
The cook piled extra broccoli onto Great Lighting's plate. "Here you go, son. Need your vitamins." He laughed, then quickly went to a job that was requested of him.
Great Lighting, his face a mask of barely suppressed irritation, glared at the cook.
"Great Thunder, to the table away!" Great Thunder announced.
"Careful," Great Lighting cautioned, his voice low. "Don't run."
Just then, Jian and Alexis entered the cafeteria.
"Hey, Great Thunder!" Jian called out.
Great Thunder squinted at them. "Here come the TV repair people."
Great Lighting shot Great Thunder a look of utter exasperation, annoyed that he could no longer distinguish between children and adults, or reality and… well, whatever was going on in his head.
"What do you want with us?" Great Lighting asked, his voice weary.
"Hold on, just let us look at you," Jian said, his eyes wide with admiration.
"Stay alert, Lighting," Great Thunder warned. "They're up to something."
Jian, with Alexis acting out the story as he spoke, began to recount one of Great Thunder and Great Lighting's legendary exploits.
"Do you remember the time the food supply in Belfast was running low? So you invented a ray gun that made things grow six times their size to shoot at the crop fields?"
Alexis mimed the invention of the ray gun, her hands dancing in the air.
Great Lighting shook his head, burying his face in his hands. Great Thunder, however, watched with a blank expression, seemingly unable to grasp what Jian was saying.
"But then," Jian continued, his voice rising with excitement, "the evil Mr. Plot comes in and steals the gun and shoots all the corn!"
Alexis acted out the theft of the gun and the corn being bombarded by the ray, her movements exaggerated and comical.
"And he turned the corn into an army of corn soldiers!" Jian exclaimed. Alexis, not missing a beat, transformed into a corn soldier, marching stiffly and robotically. "And they start sucking on the glass!" Jian jumped onto a nearby table and began sucking on the surface, much to the dismay of an elderly woman eating her lunch
"What are you supposed to mean?" Great Lighting asked, his voice tight with barely controlled frustration.
Jian hopped off the table, his face flushed with enthusiasm. "You guys are some of the greatest heroes of all time, and we think you should come out of retirement!"
Alexis punctuated Jian's words with a grand, sweeping gesture.
Great Thunder blinked, his expression bewildered. "Listen up, you villains! I want to eat my meatloaf! And if you don't get out of here, then by the power invested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife!"
Great Lighting, Jian, and Alexis stared at Great Thunder with a mixture of concern and confusion.
"Eww!" Jian and Alexis exclaimed in unison.
"You may kiss the bride!" Great Thunder declared, pointing to Jian and Alexis, who were now looking increasingly distressed.
The stern-faced caretaker reappeared, her expression thunderous. "What on earth is happening in here?!"
"Three cheers for the happy couple!" Great Thunder shouted, oblivious to the chaos he was causing.
Back at Jian's house, Jason paced anxiously, waiting for Jian and Alexis to return. He was desperate to know if their plan had worked.
Finally, a van pulled up to the curb, and the caretaker practically shoved Jian and Alexis out onto the sidewalk.
"And stay away!" she barked, slamming the door and speeding away.
Jason rushed over, his face alight with anticipation. "Did you reunite our heroes?"
Alexis signed to him, her expression deadpan. 'No, but we're married.'
Later that evening, at the retirement home, Great Lighting and Great Thunder sat on their rocking chairs on porch. A light fog was rolling in as Jian came walking up to the porch wearing one of his sisters dresses.
“Oh my, this purse is so heavy and full.” He said
Just then Jason emerged from the fog and shouted, “Hold it right there, I’d be taking that.”
Jian shouted, “Ah help! Help!”
Great Lightning perked up and came to the groups aid.
Jason grinned. “It’s working!”
Jian said, “Why, are you here, to help little old me?”
“Pipe down!” Great lighting shouted “you could wake great thunder and he’s cranky when his nap is disturbed.” He said, pointing to Great Thunder, who was slumped over his chair drooling with his eyes open.
“Ever alert, great thunder has trained himself to sleep with his eyes open.” Jian said to Lightning.
Lighting looked at him odd, then said, “This is why I never had kids.”
Great Thunder woke up and shouted, “Stop shouting at napping!”
Lighting responded, “It’s. Not. Me you old coot.”
Great Thunder and Great Lighting continued to argue back and forth while Alexis and Jian looked on in amazement.
“Excuse me, great thunder, might I have a word?” Jian shouted to over the old heroes arguing.
“What do you want?” Great Thunder said.
“This better be good.” Great Lighting said
“This will cheer you two up, we’re almost done painting your invisible van.” Jian said. He then signaled to Alexis and Jason, who were standing next to the van working hard with paint brushes.
Great Lighting sputtered.
“It’s supposed to be invisible.” He said.
“Ohh, that’s it! We’re gonna end our life of leisure, there’s evil afoot.” Said Great Lighting
“Evil! Where, where is it?” responded great thunder.
“There it is!” Great Lighting responded, pointing to Jian, Jason, and Alexis.
“You know what this means?!” Great Lighting shouted as he opened a box that contained 2 rings. The rings where their old power rings.
“Something to do with marriage?” Great Thunder said while smiling at the kids.
