“Well, all powers have drawbacks, limitations, and I’m no exception. I have blind spots, usually people that I’m close to. Take Steve. It’s a good thing that man would never cheat on me because I’d never be able to see what he’s up to. Same goes for blood relations. I have better luck with friends, but it’s incredibly inconsistent. I might be able to see Alan, but the odds are not in my favor.
“It’s why I try not to get close to too many people. For one thing, it protects my secret. That and if someone is ever in trouble, my abilities might be able to help them.” He paused and met my gaze. “It makes it harder if you’ve known them a long time. It’s why I was pretty much useless when you were abducted. The only thing that I could make out was the fact you appeared to be in some sort of cave, but even that didn’t make sense. Of course, that could also be because my powers don’t work as well when I’m upset.”
I dropped my gaze, shifting uncomfortably. Come on Dawn, you said you were getting over this. How do you expect to do that if you get antsy every time someone mentions…
“How long have you had these abilities?” I asked. “The comics have been coming out for ten years, but Amity told me—”
“That you can only be Awakened during adolescence? That is true. The Forgers took care of that for me at fourteen.”
I blinked.
“The Forgers,” I repeated. “I…well, they’ve contacted me lately. And I know almost nothing about them. Are they trustworthy?”
“Trustworthy?” Michael frowned. “To a certain point, yes. They’re good at what they do, and their priorities are clear: protecting their own, the keeping of records and the Awakenings. They’ll help you, but only so far as they feel that you’re helping them back. What do they say they need?”
“According to them, only to talk. Apparently, they’re pretty upset that they didn’t see this whole Calypso thing coming.”
“I believe that. One of their main responsibilities is tracking bloodlines, after all.” He paused and raised his gaze to mine. “They’re going to want to know information about both you and Alex as well.”
“Well, they’ve already started on that. Riley already knows about me. Apparently, the Forgers spoke to Dad years ago about the possibility of Alan and I having powers.”
Michael’s hand jerked to his sketchbook.
“Did your brother submit to an Awakening?” he asked.
“No, Dad decided against that.”
“Not surprising,” he mumbled beneath his breath, then spoke more clearly. “Chances are they’re going to want to know more than just that. The exact nature of your powers. Their strengths and weaknesses. And how you received them in the first place.”
I swallowed. “And…is that a good idea?”
“There are some benefits,” Michael replied with a sigh. “They have access to family trees going back centuries. Everyone’s abilities manifest differently, but if they can figure out where you fit into it all, they can help you understand your own powers better. How to maximize their potential, troubleshoot any problems.”
Which would be useful right now.
“You said there are benefits. Does that mean there are drawbacks too?” I continued.
“You’d be in their databases forever. And any member with the proper credentials would have access to a lot of personal information. Of course, when I say member, I’m not referencing every run of the mill field agent or low-level archivist. It would be the higher-ups, and anyone they grant permission to. But, given that you’re completely powerless when you aren’t costumed up, I can still see why you’d hesitate. Of course, that doesn’t mean you don’t have any power in this conversation.”
“How so?”
Michael shook his head before speaking. “Sorry. It’s hard for me to remember how new to this you are. Empowered people on a higher level—yourself, Faultline, Calypso—the Forgers like to keep a close eye on them. For three of you just to pop up, out of nowhere, in Bailey City, is unheard of. And the fact that you specially somehow managed to activate your powers as a nineteen-year-old and not during adolescence? That’s unheard of.”
“Maybe I was just ignorant. Perhaps I had these abilities all along and didn’t know about them?”
I knew how ridiculous the words sounded the moment they escaped my lips. But Michael, to his credit, did not talk down to me.
“I doubt it. You’re too flashy. With some people—most Empowered people, actually—having powers is a subtle thing. People like you, myself, we’re in the minority.” He paused. “No, if someone on your level has powers, they’re going to pick up on it. And the Forgers are going to want to know how that happened.”
“Unless they’re the ones responsible for it,” I said softly.
Michael blinked. “And why would you think that? I thought you couldn’t rememb—”
“No.” I turned away from him. “I can’t, but Amity thought it was a possibility.”
“Amity Graves is severely shortsighted,” Michael said with a snort. “Trust me, I’ve known her for years. She’s incredibly resourceful, but she’s made her fair share of bad calls. The Forgers…That narrow window for Awakenings puts them at a serious disadvantage. If they found out a way to circumvent that, they would be using it, a lot. And sure, they probably wouldn’t tell me about it, but after six months there is no way I wouldn’t be picking up on it.”
He paused, tapping the sketchbook in his lap.
“Speaking of your abilities,” I said, “we think Marty’s disappearance is tied to this new Costume. And if you’ve seen her…”
Michael shook his head. “The Black and Blue one? Yes, I’ve seen her, but if you’re looking for anything more specific than her colors, you’re out of luck. Sometimes images come to me randomly, but for my powers to be used at will, I need to be somewhat familiar with what they look like. And no one’s been able to get a decent shot of her.” He paused to look up at me. “I’m sorry. I feel like I haven’t provided you with a lot of answers today.”
“No! You’ve been a lot of help! In fact, I have a couple more questions. About the Hikari comic.”
“Oh?” Michael sat up straighter.
“It’s just…Alex.” I sighed. “Without him, who knows what could have happened after the benefit. But in the comic, he’s pretty much a bad guy. Sometimes I wonder if that’s coloring people’s opinions of him.”
“I see,” Michael said. “Well, yes…part of it is the fact that the narrative hasn’t caught up with real life yet. And when it comes to my powers, I may have a hard time seeing you, but I didn’t have a hard time seeing Alex. And at this part of the story, he was very much the bad guy. Is it that surprising that people are treating him like one?”
I frowned, understanding what he was saying. Only Alex wasn’t a character in a story—some narrative—he was a real person.
“You mentioned that you had a couple questions?” Michael asked. “What else?”
“Right,” I said, blinking. “It’s just…the name. Why Hikari? Calling me ‘light’ doesn’t make that much sense. I figured you would go with a name that lines up with my abilities.”
“To be honest, I wasn’t the one who came up with that one. Back when I was working on the first sketch for issue #1, I got a call from…well, let’s call him a colleague. One of the higher-ups in the Forgers. He knew that I was considering a new Actual, and that I should go for it. Only the name needed to be Hikari.” He shrugged. “I didn’t even know what it meant, to be honest.”
“Wait,” I said with a frown. “If you had just started issue #1, how did this…colleague already know about it.”
Michael let out a sigh before speaking.
“Dawn, you’ve met a woman that can see into someone’s past, and a guy who can see across the present with a sketchbook. You had to know there was someone out there who could see the future.”
“Who?” I said with a blink.
“That’s a question you’ll have to ask the Forgers,” Michael said with
a shrug. “There are some things I’m sworn to secrecy on, after all.”
I nodded. In truth, there were a lot of questions that I could ask the Forgers. Given their knowledge of family trees, maybe they could figure out what was wrong with my faulty powers. And they clearly already knew about the Black and Blue woman. Maybe if we put our heads together, we could track down Marty.
And if the Forgers weren’t the ones who had abducted me…
I held back a sigh. Looks like I was going to take Riley up on his offer.
11
Alex
“Are you sure this is the right place?”
I pulled up to a squat, three-story building made of dull-brown masonry with darkened windows. The parking lot was empty, the yellow lines pretty much faded away. And “Birchwood Realty” didn’t even have a sign out front.
“It’s the right address.” Dawn paused to look down at the GPS on her phone. “Suite 300. Riley said to go around the back.”
I nodded, circling around the building. The back side sported a single door and loading dock. The pavement here was in rough shape, especially near the edges where the lot met with a grove of maple trees. Half of the greenery sported nothing but bare branches, but it still gave the place a nice amount of cover.
“Well, I can see why they chose the place. Out of the way, in a quieter section of the city, secret back entrance. Perfect spot for clandestine business.” I shook my head. “Almost too perfect.”
“Huh,” Dawn said, her head swinging back toward the building. “You’re right. I didn’t think about that.”
I winced. Way to think like a criminal, Gage. Aren’t you supposed to be one of the good guys now?
“Anyway, I guess we should prepare ourselves for probing questions.” She made a face, tucking her cell phone inside one of her jacket pockets.
I nodded. After meeting with Michael last night, Dawn had filled me in on everything, including how rare it was for three people of our power level to pop up, unannounced, at once. The Forgers weren’t just interested in Calypso, they were interested in us.
“You…don’t have to say anything, you know,” Dawn said, her voice suddenly softer, almost shy. “Even if they’ve figured out who you are. It’s not like you owe them anything about how your powers work, or how you got them in the first place—”
“You think they’d be interested in how I got my powers?”
“Yes. Apparently, unsanctioned Awakenings are pretty rare. Not to mention, um, dangerous.”
I nodded, remembering the crunch of gravel beneath my feet, and how the sound of wind had filled my ears as it had pushed me toward…
“Are you okay?” Dawn asked.
“Huh? Oh sure,” I said. “We should probably head in now.”
“Ah…okay,” Dawn replied.
I exited the vehicle and went to the trunk where my helmet lay among last semester’s text books (Mariah’s), an entire outfit held together by safety pins (Claire’s), and my gym bag.
Apparently, the Gage clan could be a little tidier when it came to our one vehicle.
I had debated long and hard about whether I should bother disguising myself. But given that they hadn’t seen my face in the best of circumstances, there was a chance my identity was still under wraps. So, I brought the helmet. The armor was another story. With the damage it had sustained during our last encounter with the Forgers, I didn’t want to wear it unless I needed to. I winced as I placed the helmet on. At least the bruises on my back were starting to fade.
Unlike Dawn, who was fresh as a daisy. It had only taken her a couple seconds to change into her red and blacks. I gave her the thumbs up to let her know I was ready.
“Let’s hope we don’t regret this!” she said with a smile.
Eventually, I was gonna get used to the transformation her personality went through every time her appearance changed.
She strode confidently toward the back door, reaching for the handle. It refused to budge.
She let out a sigh. “I suppose I should have expected that.”
“Wouldn’t be the safest way for a secret society to handle their business.” I gestured to a small black button by the door handle “Look.”
She nodded and reached for it. A long, jingling buzz cut through the air. And then, silence.
“Well,” I said. “I guess all we can do now is—”
The door swung open so fast that Dawn had to take a step back to avoid getting bashed in the face. I tensed up, hands curling into fists, then relaxed them when I saw who stood on the other side.
“You’re not supposed to be here now!” Jane’s voice was sharp.
Unlike before, the short, curly-haired Forger was not dressed for battle. Instead, she wore a button-up shirt and blazer with a clipboard in hand. On anyone else, it would have looked like she was heading to work in some sort of office. But because Jane was so young, it almost looked like a kid playing dress-up.
She also wore large, dark glasses.
She gestured toward me. “And you’re not supposed to be here at all.” She turned back to Dawn. “I thought Riley only extended the invitation to you.”
“Only…not now?” Dawn replied. “You said I wasn’t supposed to be here now?”
“Well, of course. We have an appointment today!” The panic in her voice reminded me of the redheaded woman at Edison Kent’s headquarters. “They’re going to be here any minute, and if they see you here…”
She paused to let a long breath in, then out. When she was done, she took a step outside. With her left hand, she pointed down the hallway.
“Go,” she ordered. “Take a left at the end of the hallway. You’ll see a couple of elevators, and a set of stairs to your right. Take either of them up to the third floor and then look for suite 300. It’s all the way at the end of the hall to your right. Knock on the door. Riley should be there.”
I frowned, opening my mouth to reply, then shut it at the sound of gravel crunching beneath tires. We turned to see a car approaching from the other side of the lot.
“They’re here! Just go!” Jane jabbed her finger down the hall.
It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that I’m not big on taking orders. As any of my former schoolteachers could tell you, if you wanted me to do something, it was usually a good idea to tell me to do the exact opposite. But this? Some short schoolgirl barking out orders like she was the one in charge? It was so ridiculous it almost made me laugh. So instead of getting angry, I just stepped inside, Dawn close behind. Jane slammed the heavy door shut behind her, and I swore the building shook in response.
“Looks like we stole someone’s appointment.” I nodded at the door.
Dawn, far from being her cheerful Hikari-like self, look troubled. “Those glasses.”
“Huh?”
“I wonder if her concussion….” She looked down. “I really didn’t mean to hit her so hard. Usually, I know my own strength. I was just so wo—”
“Hey,” I said, fighting the urge to reach out and take her hands. “As someone who has suffered more than his fair share of blows to the head, I can testify that the experience tends to come in quite a range. Best to figure out if we need to be concerned before we start freaking out.”
Dawn blinked. “How many blows?”
“Well, if you’d ask my sister Claire, one too—”
“Mr. and Mrs. Abrams!” Jane’s loud voice could be heard through the door. “How kind of you to be here early.”
“Speaking of concussions, I suspect she’ll give us one if we don’t make it to those elevators in time,” I remarked.
Dawn nodded, and we began to head down the hallway. It didn’t take long before we found our way.
“Humor me and take the stairs?” I said, suspecting the elevators were in as bad a shape as the parking lot. Dawn agreed without complaint, and we headed toward the stairwell.
“Your answer is six,” I said, as the door shut behind us.
“Six?” I could see Dawn’s eyebro
ws knit together in confusion even beneath the black mask. “Six serious blows to the head?”
“Yep. Not all of them ended in concussions, mind you. My youth was somewhat…adventurous.”
“This started when you were a kid?”
“Fourteen, actually. But that’s nothing compared to the broken neck I also experienced at the time.”
“Broken what?!”
“Well, I wasn’t the easiest kid to raise, but my Aunt Maude believed she could set me straight, so she convinced Mom to send me down to her place for the summer. And, well, Aunt Maude lived by a gravel quarry. A quarry that was incredibly dangerous, and I was, under no circumstances, allowed to sneak in at night when the workers were out.”
“I’m going to guess you did?”
“Yep,” I replied as we circled past the second-floor door. “And of course, there was a gust of wind at just the right time, and I fell and hurt myself, badly. Took me ages to recover. Didn’t start my sophomore year on time.”
“You’re lucky to be alive!”
“That’s not how I felt at the time.”
“Huh?” Dawn paused at the third-floor landing, then turned to me.
“I was angry,” I said, stopping at the top of the stairs. “Angry at myself for managing to fuck things up so badly. Angry at everyone else for enjoying their summer. Hell, sometimes even angry at my sisters when they were just trying to help me out. And that’s when I realized that something had changed in that quarry. That I could do things now that I couldn’t before.”
“Your powers!”
“At first I thought I was going nuts. I’d break the glasses and plates my food would come in on, and I’d tell myself that they were just shoddy. But the longer things went, the more I realized what was really going on. And, well…there was enough on the news to provide context.”
“An unsanctioned Awakening,” Dawn said, her voice breathy. “Now I see why they’re so dangerous.”
“Makes you wonder what they’re doing to make things so safe.”
Dawn nodded and opened the door wide.
Black and Blue Page 15
