“Because I love you,” Quinn yelled back, tears running down his face.
Blake froze at Quinn’s words, the pain of hot energy almost non-existent as Quinn spoke.
“You’re the brother I never had; you’re my best friend and I’m not giving up on you. I never will. I believe in you and I know you can come back from whatever hell Victor has you trapped in. That chip in your head, Blake, it’s making you do horrible, nasty things you would never do on your own. I love you, so let me help you be free.”
He’s right.
Don’t listen to him.
Kill him now. Ugh, these impulses.
But he said he still loves me…maybe there’s a chance…
No, destroy him before it’s…
Three more beams of energy caught him on the side and back. The energy quickly overpowered him and he dropped Blue Spekter to the ground. He fell to one knee and struggled to fight against the onslaught of painful energy tearing through his body.
One of the TaseBolt beams struck him at the back of his head, and for a moment, a clarity of thought he hadn’t felt in a long time pushed its way through the angry mire that had unknowingly become his state of mind. A moment later, his other leg gave out and he fell to his hands in front of Blue Spekter.
❖
Quinn
Quinn’s bones and ligaments rapidly reconstructed and he approached Blake , who pushed himself up to a kneeling position despite the numerous energy beams holding him down. “I’m sorry Blake, but this is going to hurt like a motherfucker.”
Blake slowly rolled his head up until he met Quinn’s gaze. “Quinn, help me.”
Quinn’s hands sparked with electricity and he placed them on either side of Blake’s head, just below and behind his ears. The marines stopped firing their TaseBolts at Blake.
Quinn nearly burst into tears on the spot, but he channeled his emotions into the crippling power he blasted through Blake’s head.
I have no idea when that thing will be toasted…
Blake screamed with agony and tightly grabbed Quinn’s forearms for support, but Quinn held fast and let unbridled power dance between his hands and pass through Blake’s head.
The smell of burning flesh and hair tickled and tormented Quinn’s nose, inciting an urge to throw up on the spot, but his determination to free his best friend from Victor’s claws kept his stomach in line.
That asshole won’t be in charge of you for much longer.
Arcs of electricity danced across Blake’s face, zapping in and out of his eyes, over his nose, between his teeth, and through his body. His body convulsed under the electrical strain as every single muscle twitched and contracted in rapid succession.
To the marines who gaped at the spectacle, it looked like one of the coolest light shows at a dance club, but the potentially lethal display of raw power struck fear and awe in those who watched, including Agent Hartman and the DHS agents who populated the island.
Blake’s hands relaxed and then his arms fell limp to his side.
Almost…
Quinn screamed with rage as he poured the last of his anger against Victor into Blake’s head, then pulled his hands away and stopped lobotomizing his friend.
The loud, crackling sound of electricity finished echoing off the prison building as Quinn looked at Blake’s dark, lifeless eyes.
Oh shit.
“Blake!”
Gravity pulled Blake’s torso forward, so Quinn dropped to his knees and grabbed Blake’s shoulders to hold him up. Momentum rolled Blake’s head down, and Quinn gasped when he saw the back of his buddy’s head.
Flesh, hair, muscle, skull, cervical vertebrae, and brain matter had been burned away, exposing a gaping hole containing whatever hadn’t been fried to a crisp or disintegrated. Blood vessels has been cauterized, so there was a little blood spill or spray. He briefly searched for a piece of metal—the micro bug—but from what he could tell, the brain stem, cerebellum, and the bottom half of Blake’s brain had been incinerated.
Oh my God, I killed him while trying to save him.
Blake’s lifeless body collapsed into Quinn’s arms.
“Oh, Blake,” Quinn whispered as tears filled his eyes and he sobbed. Around him, marines lowered their weapons and silently watched as Quinn sat on the ground with Dark Flame in his arms and became inconsolable over the death of his best friend.
This wasn’t supposed to happen…I wasn’t supposed to kill my best friend. I’m so sorry, buddy. I really thought I could save you.
Somewhere behind him, Agent Hartman spoke into a radio. “The mission is over, Dark Flame is down.”
Fifteen minutes later, Quinn stopped sobbing and wiped his eyes. He sat up and gently lowered his friend’s body to the snowy ground. A moment later, the military medics who were standing by approached with a stretcher, so Quinn—through tears—dutifully picked Blake up and placed his limp body onto the stretcher’s plastic pad.
The medics looked at him for permission, and he nodded at them. Then, they rolled Blake away.
Agent Hartman cautiously approached, a look of concern on his face. “Are you okay, son?”
Blue Spekter sniffled and shook his head. “That’s a really dumb question to ask right now. Of course I’m not okay, I just killed my best friend.” He wiped his eyes and sniffled. The cold air didn’t help his runny nose.
“I’m sorry, you’re right. I wasn’t thinking.” Agent Hartman said, looking at the ground.
21 | Where Did You Come From?
Quinn
Blue Spekter and Agent Hartman finished checking in by radio with Lieutenant Doral in Prescott Park when Blue Spekter’s mind sensed an unknown and faint proximity. Confused, he turned around and looked at the ambulance that contained Blake’s body, but the sensation wasn’t coming from there. It also wasn’t the sensation he felt when Ana Maria had revealed herself to him.
What the hell? And speaking of Ana Maria…where the heck is she?
“What’s wrong?” Hartman asked.
“I’m not sure. I usually feel something in my mind when Blake and I get within a couple blocks of each other…but this is…different.”
He stopped talking and grabbed the side of his head again when it suddenly throbbed with unexpected pain—the exact pain that alerted him to Blake’s proximity. This time, it wasn’t Blake or Ana Maria…it was someone new.
But it feels different…like it’s…more than one person…
Blue Spekter gasped and looked at the naval prison. “You and your men need to back away, now!” He absentmindedly adopted a fighting stance.
“What? Why?” Agent Hartman asked, stepping back.
“Trouble’s coming. Be ready with those TaseBolts, but keep your distance. Wait for my signal.”
“I thought we took care of trouble by eliminating Blake,” Agent Hartman said, frowning.
“Oh, I think this is just beginning. Back away, now!”
Agent Hartman nodded, jogged away, and raised his right wrist to his mouth to speak into the concealed microphone. He ordered everyone back and the gathered agents and marines shouted orders at one another and complied, watching the skies above them.
Blue Spekter’s sense of proximity sharpened and he sensed the moving beings on the other side of the naval prison. Then, the beings leapt into the air.
What on earth?
He looked up at the sky with amazement and watched a red-glowing man, flanked by a yellow-glowing man and a purple-glowing man, soar to the roof of the naval prison and land twenty paces in front of him.
Each man was clad in a formfitting, black super suit. The tights reminded him of Blake’s purple pants. The color of their glowing eyes matched their glowing bodies. All three men wore cowls or coverings to hide their faces.
Then, a familiar voice called out, “Now that there’s only one of you, it will be so much easier to finish you off.” Then, he glanced to his left. “Wait here, he’s mine.”
“Yes, sir,” the other two super-powe
red humans replied.
Then, the red man rushed at the Blue Spekter with super speed.
Oh, crap.
Surprised, Blue Spekter swiftly side-stepped out of the way, narrowly evading the man’s attack. Whoever it was, the man wasn’t as agile or experienced as Blue Spekter.
“I like this,” the man shouted with enthusiastic rage.
What the hell?
Blue Spekter readied himself as the stranger spun around in the snow and pointed at him.
“Your playtime as a superhero is over, Blue Spekter,” the man snarled. Then, he charged at Blue Spekter again.
Oh my gosh, it’s Victor. How the hell did he get superpowers?
Victor charged at him and his fist connected with the side of Blue Spekter’s head. An explosion of red and blue sparks sprayed into the air around them as Blue Spekter’s body smashed into the ground.
Victor bent down and grabbed him by the jaw. “Surprised to see me, boy wonder?”
How did Victor get his powers so fast? It took me months to get to where I am.
“Victor?” Blue Spekter asked, stunned.
“Ding ding ding,” Victor said. Then, he pulled his fist back to punch Blue Spekter in the face, but the hero was faster. He kicked his legs up and smashed his feet into Victor’s buttocks, causing the man to stumble forward.
In a flash, Blue Spekter was on his feet and ready to fight.
“How the hell did you get powers?” Blue Spekter asked.
“The same way you did. By watching the two of you muck around, we learned a lot about our basic abilities. We also trained hard with the sole focus of developing our powers. Think of what I’ve accomplished—what we could have accomplished if you had joined with us. But now you have to die because you’ll only get in my way.”
Victor raised his hands and blasted Quinn with hot fire. Blue Spekter merely deflected it around him with a defensive shield. Victor’s flames were super-hot, but not nearly at the level of heat Blake could muster.
So, you’re either holding back or you’re not telling me something…maybe your powers aren’t matched to ours yet after all and you’re nothing but show-and-tell right now.
“You should have stayed with Yoda on Dagobah,” Blue Spekter raised his hands and created hundreds of ice daggers behind him, drawing from the ample snow on the ground. Then, he hurled them at Victor, who raised his hand and deflected them.
You’ve got an invisible shield. Good to know. What else have you discovered?
What Victor didn’t count on was Blue Spekter’s ability redirect the broken and deflected ice daggers and reform them into ice balls as they sailed around him, picked up speed, and smashed into Victor’s back.
The startled man fell to his knees under the assault and then glared up at Blue Spekter. “You little punk,” he snarled. He jumped to his feet and reached out with his mind. Blue Spekter felt the familiar sense of telekinesis grasping at him, and he allowed Victor to think he had the upper hand. Victor raised him up and then smashed him into the ground.
What am I, a hammer? At least Blake was creative.
Victor picked him up again and then wound up like a Baseball pitcher and attempted to throw Blue Spekter out to sea. Instead, Blue Spekter drifted back in the air a few feet as he absorbed the power and let it wash over him.
“That was cute, what else have you got?”
Victor snarled and then leapt into the air at him.
Oh, you can fly, not just super jump.
Victor collided with him as blue and red sparks exploded into the air. Wrapping his arms around Blue Spekter’s waist, Victor dove into the raging river with him.
Blue Spekter took a deep breath and waited, curious to see what Victor would do. A moment later, the water around him froze and Victor encased him in a massive ball of ice. Since ice is less dense than water, the gigantic ice ball pushed its way to the surface and bounced in the river.
Impressive.
Blue Spekter felt the ice ball lift up from the water and move through the air. The bright temporary lighting the marines had set up around on the ground near the naval prison grew closer until the ice ball crashed into the ground and shattered. The collision reverberated through Blue Spekter’s bones, but he pushed the pain aside and stood up.
Then, everything around him disappeared and went silent.
What the hell?”
There was no prison, no marines, no vehicles, no rushing river, trees…all that was left was the snowy ground and shattered ice chunks around him.
“Try this one on for size.” Red and blue sparks erupted as an invisible Victor clocked him in the jaw. Blue Spekter grunted and stumbled back. Another strike to the chest and a flurry of sparks, then one to the stomach, then another one to the face.
“Confused yet?” Victor spat, then punched Blue Spekter hard in the gut.
“I take it you’re not invisible,” Blue Spekter replied, raising his arms defensively—but he was unsure of where the next punch would come from.
“Nope.” A rapid succession of blows struck Blue Spekter in the face, summing more bright sparks.
“I call it perception shift.” Victor’s voice sounded like it came everywhere at once. “It’s one power you don’t have. I can twist your mind and make you see things that aren’t there…or completely deprive you of all sensory input.”
Except pain…when you punch me, I feel that, which means I have a split second to grab you. That’s the only real thing, other than the ground, I can detect right now.
He waited for the next strike.
He’s not very creative…face, stomach, face, stomach, face…”
Blue Spekter’s super vision noticed a fist flying toward his stomach again. With super speed, he reached out and grabbed the wrist behind the fist and squeezed hard.
Victor cried out in surprise and reality returned around Blue Spekter.
“Well, this has been fun, Victor, but playtime is over.”
Victor smiled wickedly behind his cowl. “I couldn’t agree more.” Then, he coiled his free arm back and it sprang forward, catching Blue Spekter off guard with its strength and speed. It knocked Blue Spekter into the air.
“Come on, boys, it’s playtime!” Victor shouted, and his two goons leapt into the air after Blue Spekter.
Shit, he’s been playing me after all.
The yellow goon reached Blue Spekter first and grabbed him by the arm. Before Blue Spekter could react, the man flung him toward the purple man, who swatted him with an invisible bat to Victor, who used his telekinetic ability to accelerate Blue Spekter’s fall toward the island. He crashed and the snow around him sprayed into the air.
Ouch.
Blue Spekter was pulled into the air with an invisible force toward Victor, who charged his fist with electricity and punched Blue Spekter toward the yellow goon. Blue Spekter spun through the air and when he tried to recover, he was punched in the back with an electrical fist and flung toward the purple goon.
This isn’t fun.
The purple goon grabbed him with an electrically charged hand and spun around, flinging Blue Spekter back toward Victor.
They think the electricity is going to hurt me like it did Blake…which means they probably can’t absorb it yet. Was Victor not paying attention when Mother Superior had me strung up in the workroom with the electrified chains? Or did he miss that part?
Victor grabbed him by the shoulders and then smashed his forehead into Blue Spekter. The hero grunted and shook his head, but Victor had already super-kicked him in the balls and sent him on his way to the yellow goon.
Intense, mind-numbing pain exploded in Blue Spekter’s groin and crawled up his abdomen, wreaking havoc with his nervous system and compromising his ability to fight. He struggled to breathe, and his stomach churned with nausea. His vision filled with white stars as his eyes teared up. The more he was tossed around the ring of superhuman death, the more he felt weakened and the pounding headache behind his eyes became unbearable.
&n
bsp; What a cheap shot.
Blue Spekter struggled to get his bearings, but the three super humans threw him around faster and faster.
I’m stronger than they are…Victor had to cheat because even though he was holding back, he knows he can’t defeat me without them…which means I’m going to have to…stop them any way I can, even if it means killing them.
This is it…this is what I knew I had to do if Victor created more super humans…I just never thought he’d do it to himself.
As the throbbing pain in his groin and stomach dulled, he quieted his mind and used his sensing powers to figure out where he was and who he was going to next.
These guys are going to kill me if I don’t stop them.
“Pull in the middle and blast him!” Victor shouted.
Take the purple guy out…and assume they can’t fly like I can.
When the yellow goon tossed Blue Spekter to the purple goon, Blue Spekter righted himself and surprised the purple goon by tackling him in the stomach with his shoulder and wrapping his arms around the man’s torso.
“You’re coming with me, jerkface,” Blue Spekter yelled as he accelerated to the speed of sound and surpassed it with deafening boom. He flew straight up, knowing it would take less than four minutes at the speed of sound to cut through all sixty-two miles of atmosphere between sea level and outer space. A second boom soon followed, just like whenever he heard the space shuttle surpass the speed of sound.
He smirked. It pays to listen in Mr. St. Germain’s science classes.
“No, please, I can’t fly this high,” the man begged, suddenly afraid.
“That’s the point.” He took a deep breath and continued accelerating for another minute until it looked like the atmosphere was beneath him. Then, he swung around and flung the now suffocating man into space. Without looking back at the spinning and flailing man, Quinn looped around and flew back to Portsmouth, using the night lights of the New England coastline to guide him. He spotted Massachusetts and aimed north, then found Portsmouth. His super vision spotted red and yellow trails of light flying toward him.
Ultimate Sacrifice Page 22
