by Raven Steele
I straightened and listened to the sounds in the room. The rapid breathing meant there was one left, someone hiding. I walked around the machine, surveying the room. That's when I found the man. He looked to be the same age as me, with red hair and skin more covered in freckles than not. He was sitting on the floor behind one of the barrels wrapping his arms around his knees, his head bent into them.
"Leave," I said to him.
He looked up at me, blinked a couple of times, then scurried away, nearly falling on his way out.
I leaned over, the burning pain in my shoulder spreading down my arm. The wound was deep. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. The door cracked open, and I jerked my eyes open, ready to fight. It was Oz, peering cautiously through it.
"Is it safe?"
I straightened. "Come on in. Do you have the ties?"
He walked into the room and unzipped his fanny pack to retrieve the zip ties. I quickly bound the men and dragged them out the cafeteria doors to the outside. While I was working, Oz stuffed the paperwork into duffel bags. We planned on leaving it with the men for the police. There had to be something in there to help put these guys away for very long time and possibly Victor, too.
I returned to the cafeteria. Most of the money on the floor had been picked up. "Where's all the cash?"
"It's in the bags."
"You put all of it in there?"
He ho-hummed. "Um, well, I might've kept a little bit for Amy's treatments. I'd say I've earned it."
I wasn't sure how I felt about that. This money was blood money. It had been earned on the backs of the people of Coast City.
"What's the big deal?" he asked. "This money could save my sister's life. That's a good thing."
I bent over and picked up two large duffel bags. "Just a little, I guess. Let's hurry though. We'll call the police on our way out."
Before I left, I kicked over the four barrels, which jerked free the remaining tubes from the circular machine. Toxic liquid spilled everywhere. It gave the floor a green tint.
I felt good as we walked toward the back door. This had gone much smoother than I had expected. This wasn't the only facility Victor had, but it was an excellent start.
"That wasn't so hard," Oz said as we stepped outside.
The smallest of clicking sounds had me shoving Oz back into the open cafeteria door. At the same time a barrage of bullets flew toward me. I dove to the ground behind a dumpster.
"You think you can steal from Victor?" a voice boomed. "Kill him."
At least half a dozen footsteps marched toward the large garbage bin. A pair of others broke off and headed into the cafeteria. I hoped Oz had enough sense to run away.
As the men came closer to the dumpster, I gripped the cold metal beneath it, and using all of my strength, flipped it upwards. The huge bin rotated into the air and came crashing down on several of them. Their screams filled the night, a sound I didn't like.
One of the men managed to dodge it, but before he could train his gun on me, I was already punching him in the face, knocking him out cold.
A guy from the cafeteria appeared in the open doorway and opened fire. I jumped behind the overturned garbage bin. Directly in front of me was the upper body of a man pinned beneath the dumpster. He looked unnaturally still. I averted my gaze afraid to see if he was dead. I couldn't deal with that right now.
I picked up a gun on the ground, reached around the dumpster, and shot blindly. This gave me time enough to circle to the other side where they weren't expecting me to be. I risked a quick glance. A man still stood guard at the cafeteria entrance, his gun fixed in my direction. I looked up. If I could get to the roof, I could jump down on him but that would take time I might not have.
"Cover me," a throaty voice said. I'd heard it before.
I sat up and peeked over the edge just as a gun fired, nearly hitting my face. A burning rage filled me when I saw who it was. The Physician had both duffel bags in his hands and was carrying them to his car. I had to stop him.
I sprinted from my hiding spot amidst a hail of gunfire and crashed into him. I expected him to go down easily, but he barely stumbled. The guy at the cafeteria door stopped firing and chuckled as he watched us.
The Physician dropped the bags and swung at me. I ducked, but he punched with his other fist and caught me in the jaw. The pain was instant and made me stumble back. I barely had time to recover before he kicked at my chest. I flew backwards and hit the ground hard. I ground my teeth together and jumped to my feet. If I had to guess, I'd say he had V proteins in him, but was that possible?
A small explosion sounded from within the cafeteria. I risked a quick glance, hoping Oz was okay. The gunman at the door disappeared inside.
Heart pounding, I rushed the Physician, more than ready to unleash my own strength against him, something I had been holding back. I jabbed at him, two in a row. He dodged both, but I moved fast enough to catch him with another punch to his kidney. This time, he grimaced and staggered back.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"The person who's going to send you to prison."
I continued to box him, deliberately maneuvering him toward the cafeteria. Fire exploded outward from two of the side windows. I needed to make sure Oz wasn't trapped inside.
The Physician seemed to pick up on what I was trying to do. He ground his feet into the dirt and began swinging at a pace I struggled to keep up with. I thought I was doing well until his fist rammed into my face. I fell onto my back, gasping for air. I rubbed at my jaw, stars clouding my vision, but quickly rolled out of the way when I saw the Physician's steel-toed boot coming for my head.
Behind him, I spotted the duffle bag. I needed to grab it and make sure it stays safe. The sound of flames growing in intensity reached my ears. But I also needed to help Oz.
Growling in frustration, I jumped to my feet and hurried back into the cafeteria instead of fighting my way to the bag. A fire raged inside, licking up all of the chemicals spilled across the floor. It burned dangerously close to the large vat in the center of the room. If it hit the right temperature, the whole thing could blow.
I finally spotted Oz crouched beneath one of the overturned tables. The gunman was almost to him. I searched the ground for anything I could use, my eyes settling on a metal lid near the wall. By the looks of it, it belonged on top of one of the barrels. I snatched it up and cocked my arm back to throw it when I was kicked in the back. I fell face forward onto the floor and slid several feet. Rolling onto my stomach, I winged the lid at the Physician and scrambled to my feet.
He blocked it with his forearm and smiled as it clattered to the floor. He turned to the gunman who was almost to Oz, and said, "Kill them both."
14
I turned around just as the gunman pressed the trigger. I jumped out of the way but wasn't quick enough. A bullet tore through my calf muscle. A sharp pain shot up my leg, but I managed to stay on my feet.
Until the fire reached the center tank.
The explosion threw me against the wall, along with the Physician. I collapsed to the ground, my head swimming and ears ringing. I turned and looked through the flames, searching for Oz, but couldn't see him through the growing smoke. I looked back. The Physician was already standing. Did nothing affect this guy?
I did the same despite bone-deep pain. He came right for me and swung his fist, catching me in the jaw. I barely managed to stay upright. This man was more monster than human.
He pulled his fist back like he was going to punch me again, but at the same time he slapped his other palm against my neck. Something sharp pierced my skin.
He stepped back grinning from ear to ear. I took a step toward him but a sudden wave of dizziness came over me and I stumbled to my knees.
"The Physician would like to work on you now," he said.
He kicked at my chest, knocking me over. I tried to get up but my limbs had become useless from the neck down. Even breathing became difficult and my lungs barely expanded. He must
've poisoned me. My pulse raced as I struggled to free myself from the invisible restraints. The room filled with smoke.
The Physician reached down and grabbed my shirt. As he dragged me forward, he said, "First thing I'm going to do to you is rip off that mask of yours. Then I'm going to tear off your skin. If you're lucky, you might die before then."
I moved my eyes around the room best I could hoping to see Oz, but I couldn't see anything through the smoke. Disappointment plagued me. I had failed. After all my training, the sweat and blood I had lost, it was all going to end before I even reached Victor. I should've killed him when I’d had the chance instead of messing around trying to catch him. I should've just ripped his heart out.
The intensity of these thoughts ignited a dark and ancient power within me, one I had been taught to repress by the Ames de la Terra. Out of habit, I pushed the darkness away but then I noticed my fingers moving. If I focused more on the V inside me, would it be strong enough to break the poison’s hold on me?
The Physician almost had me to the door when I heard Oz shout, "Rot in Hell!"
A sudden stream of fire shot above my head and engulfed the Physician. He screamed and ran out the door, his clothes on fire. I heard a series of grunts and moans, like he had dropped to the ground and was rolling around.
"I'll be right back," Oz said to me and disappeared out the open door.
Was he seriously going after the Physician? I tried to move, tried to even speak but my body wouldn't respond. I could call upon the dark energy I still felt lingering on the edges of my mind. Maybe it could free me from this invisible prison, but would it be fast enough?
The room grew hotter and pieces of the ceiling dropped to the floor. There was a real possibility of me dying in this cafeteria, a death I wouldn't be able to come back from, just like my father. There was some comfort in that—knowing I had mirrored his life and would also mirror his death.
Just outside the door, I heard car tires squealing and driving away. Oz finally returned, out of breath. "I managed to get both bags. They're with the guys we tied up."
He swept his arms under my armpits and wrapped them around my chest. He grunted and groaned, but he managed to drag me outside.
"Can you move at all?" he asked me once we were safe beneath the night sky. It wouldn't be long before the police showed up, even if we were in Pigtown. The flames would draw them here more quickly.
I tried to open my mouth to respond but words were as trapped as I was.
Oz looked around, his hands on his hips. "This sucks ass."
Inwardly, I growled. I had never been this helpless before. I was supposed to be one of the strongest people in the city, at least according to Roman, but here I was as helpless as a newborn babe. All because someone else seemed to have the same abilities as me. Were there others? It was just supposed to be Victor and Roman.
"Wait here," Oz said.
I wanted to say where else would I go, but I still couldn't talk. Moments later, he returned with a wheelbarrow. "I found this in the shed. Now to get your crazy, muscled-assed body into it."
It took him almost a full minute to get me into the wheelbarrow. He complained the whole time, cursing and whining about how much blood I was getting on him, as if I was doing it on purpose. I was pretty sure I would have several bruises from the way he was cramming me into the large metal bucket, but at least I wouldn't be around when the police showed up. Sirens wailed in the distance. The sound almost drowned out the shouts of protests from two of the men who had come to and were still bound.
"Hold on," Oz said and pushed the wheelbarrow precariously across the uneven ground. "I really hope I don't tip you over. I don't think I could get you back in again."
I just stared up at him helplessly.
After we traveled a couple of blocks behind a row of old buildings, he stopped and circled around to where I could see him clearly. "I need to know how to get you to Ironwood. I know you can't talk, so I want you to use your eyes to guide me."
I blinked.
"Okay, so which way should I go?"
I shifted my eyes to the left toward the railroad. There was an entrance there but it was far from where I really should be, which is where Roman was. He was strong enough to carry me and could also take care of the bullet wound in my calf. My only hope was that Roman had heard what had happened and would come to help.
Oz continued to push the wheelbarrow down the dirt path, stopping occasionally to ask me for directions. It wasn't long until we reached near the entrance, but I couldn't exactly tell him where it was.
"Which way now?" he asked.
I cast my eyes downward.
"We're here?" He glanced all around. "I don't see anything."
He disappeared out of my sight. I could hear him walking all around, pausing every few seconds. "I think I found something!"
I heard the sound of metal being dragged across metal. The noise was heavier than usual because, instead of a circular manhole, it was a wide rectangular grate. Beneath it there used to be a large electrical grid that was maintained by the railroad decades ago. No one used it now as it had been replaced with a more sophisticated system.
Oz returned and pushed me to the opening. He bent over and peered inside the black hole. "There's a ladder but there's no way I can carry you down."
He dropped to his knees and looked further inside using light from his cell phone. "It doesn't look too deep. Maybe eight feet?" He straightened and returned to the wheelbarrow. He took off the ski mask around my head and pocketed it. "Sorry dude, but this is the only way I know to get you down there."
Without warning, he lifted the wheelbarrow handles, dumping me into the hole. I hit the ground hard. My eyes widened at the sudden pain pulsing through my body. I grunted but no sound escaped me. My arm was pinned beneath my back at an awkward angle, causing a lot of pain in my shoulder.
It didn't last long. Oz scrambled down after me and flipped me over onto my back. He opened his mouth to say something, but all of a sudden he was ripped away from me. I tried to move my head around to see who or what had grabbed him, but I could only see a dark figure out of the corner of my eye.
"Don't hurt me!" Oz cried.
"Who are you?" Roman’s voice. "And what are you doing down here?"
"Back the freak off! I'm trying to help this guy!" Oz's voice was strained as if his throat were being constricted.
A few tense seconds passed before Roman asked, "What happened to him?"
"He was injected with something. The Physician got him. Oh, and he was shot in his right calf, and his shoulder is messed up."
"Stay right here. If you move a muscle, I will kill you."
Roman kneeled next to me, raised his hands above my body and looked me over with his all-white eyes. I'm not sure what he was seeing. "Can you talk?"
I tried, but only silence answered him. Roman tore at the sleeve of his cloak and tied it around the bullet wound in my leg. In one swift motion, he picked me up and flung me over his shoulder.
"Dude, you're going to hurt yourself," Oz said.
"Go back home," Roman ordered him. "And forget what you've seen."
"No way," Oz said, his footsteps following after us. "He's my friend, and I want to make sure he's okay."
"He's not your friend. Go home."
The footsteps stopped. Had I been able to speak, I would've told Roman to let Oz come. He had saved me, after all.
Roman continued to carry me through the maze of tunnels, not saying a word. I couldn't tell if he was angry or maybe worried that I was hurt. I would probably never know.
When we reached the center of Ironwood, Roman took me to the Halo and gently laid me down. I would've preferred to be lying on my own soft bed, but he was most comfortable working in this giant stone circle.
"I will be right back," he said.
While he was gone, I focused on my body, choosing a specific spot to concentrate on. I imagined my right toe moving until it finally did. Just a little, bu
t it was something. Eventually the drug would wear off. I exhaled a shallow breath in relief.
I hated feeling this helpless. It was a new feeling for me, one I never wanted to experience again. I was lucky I was still alive.
Roman returned with a medical kit. "I'm going to have to remove the bullet. It will hurt."
He stitched my shoulder and did his best to fix my leg, using his fingers to guide him. He even tried numbing the area, but I still felt him digging around for the bullet. If I could've cried out, I would have. It hurt like a mother.
Once the bullet was removed and the wound bandaged, Roman tried various spells using elemental magic to get my body back to normal, but nothing seemed to work. He huffed in frustration. He wasn't used to failing.
In the end, time was my only cure, and my limbs slowly began to recover.
I rolled onto my side as soon as I was able, welcoming a different position. My body still ached from being dropped into the tunnel.
"The Physician isn't normal. He's stronger than a regular human." My voice was hoarse. I coughed and cleared my throat. "What do you know about him?"
Roman felt along the floor for his supplies to pack them away. "He showed up in Coast City six years ago. Violence seemed to increase with his arrival. I have been unable to trace his origins, despite many attempts."
"How could he be as strong as me? I thought my mother destroyed her work and any remaining V proteins."
"She did, but maybe she gave some to Victor before she was killed."
I sat up at the thought, rubbing at my shoulder. It hurt like a mother. "Why would she do that?"
He ignored me as he placed the rest of his medical supplies back into a neatly organized briefcase. "Tell me about your friend."
I stared at him, wondering if I should press the issue about my mother, but I could tell by his stiff expression that he had no intention of answering my question. Maybe later I could approach the subject again.
