“Not the word I would have chosen,” Luke said, “But yeah.”
Cody shrugged. He couldn’t stop smiling.
“Listen,” Krouse said, “Noelle’s better and she’s safe. That’s priority number one done with. Now we need to get out of here, and then we focus on getting home.”
“You know, Noelle?” Marissa asked, “You know about our situation?”
“Some.”
“Come on then, let’s leave the boys to hash this out. I’ll fill you in on what’s going on while we get our stuff packed.”
“Food first?” Noelle asked. ”I haven’t eaten since yesterday.”
Marissa gave her a funny look, but she led the way to the kitchen.
“Stuff?” Krouse asked the others, when the two girls had left.
The room flickered.
“Stop, Cody,” Jess said.
“I’m tired of everyone catering to him. He fucked up, broke the rules he set,” Cody said. ”So if he wants to run off and be the lone maverick, he can deal with the consequences. That means we don’t go out of our way to get him caught up.”
“You’re being as bad as he ever was,” Luke said.
Cody turned towards Luke, “No. No I’m not.”
“You’re making calls on our behalf. You’re not being a team player, and you’re making things harder than they have to be to get your way.”
“It’s not the same,” Cody said.
Krouse looked at Cody, then grabbed him from behind and threw him into a bookcase.
“Krouse!” Luke shouted. Marissa and Noelle hurried back to the hallway.
Cody appeared back where he’d been standing, in the exact same position. Krouse repeated the throw from behind. ”Two!”
Again, Cody reappeared, setting himself back to where he’d been three seconds ago. Krouse shoved him yet again. ”Three!”
On the next reappearance of Cody, Krouse shoved him and called out, “Four! Blade cuts both ways Cody!”
This time, Cody didn’t use his power on himself. He landed amid the fallen stacks of magazines and books, offered a snarling noise.
“Your power works against you,” Krouse said. ”Using it to protect yourself? It doesn’t work if your opponent knows how you function and you don’t have backup to break the loop. You shift yourself back in time, you don’t remember, and I can use the same strategy over and over.”
“That’s not-” Cody said, then he stopped. His eyes narrowed. ”I don’t have to put you back where you were after hurting you. Any time you do something to me, I can set you up to a position where I can hurt you, then leave you like that, hurting. Using my power doesn’t tire me out. I can set you back as many times in a row as I need to.”
“Just stop,” Jess pleaded. ”All of this is hard enough without you two being enemies.”
“Problem is, Jess,” Krouse said, not breaking eye contact with Cody, “Cody’s got this mindset where the guy with the bigger stick wins. He doesn’t care about the big picture until he’s established his dominance. Since idea of dominance is kicking my ass, we can’t have him doing that while we’re trying to get back home. It’s… counterproductive.”
“Yeah? What are you going to do about it?” Cody asked. He was pulling himself to his feet.
“Nothing,” Krouse said. ”You want to pull stunts like that, feel free.”
“Thought so,” Cody smirked.
“And,” Krouse said, stepping close enough to whispered in Cody’s ear, “Your power’s kind of a liability, you know. Not just the double-edged sword part.”
“Liability?” Cody asked in a normal speaking volume.
Krouse continued whispering. ”A liability. You saw what I was willing to do when the Simurgh forced my hand by putting Noelle’s life on the line. Now my hand’s dangerously close to being forced again. Because I will get these people home, and if you get in my way, if you give me reason to fear for my safety or to make me think we aren’t making as much progress as I want? Well, the only way I can think of to shut down your power is by killing you.”
Cody smirked, stepping away.
His eyes flickered across Krouse’s face as he read Krouse’s expression. Cody’s smile faded.
Cody forced a smile onto his face again, but it didn’t seem quite so genuine. ”I’m going to go pack my shit. You have my permission to fill the asshole in on the details.”
You’re a coward at heart, Krouse thought, as he watched Cody head upstairs. And I’m too stubborn to back down or give up. As long as that’s the case, I’ll always come out ahead.
He looked at the others, “Well, I think that’s that. Let’s talk about the next step of our plan.”
He seated himself on the couch, flashed Noelle a smile.
Noelle smiled back, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes or overcome the concern in her expression. She turned back towards the kitchen, and Marissa followed.
Krouse’s heart sank a little at that. It felt like they’d somehow been set back weeks or months in their relationship progress.
He distracted himself. Turning to Luke, he asked, “What was that about ‘stuff’?”
“Stuff. We weren’t quite sure where you went, and you kind of made it impossible to get the car out of the driveway,” Luke said. ”So we went shopping, so to speak. Brought back clothes, toiletries, and all the cash we could get out of the registers, pretty much every place within walking distance. We even got an old wheelchair for Jess, rinsed off the seat in the shower upstairs. We’re just waiting for it to dry off.”
Krouse smiled. ”Good man.”
Luke wasn’t smiling back. ”It feels shitty, stealing.”
“Nobody’s going to touch that money anyways,” Krouse said. ”Not with it being in the quarantine area. That was a smart move, really. Does this mean we’ve got everything we need to get by for the next while?”
“Pretty much. You should go through the stuff we brought and make sure it all fits, and that you aren’t going without something essential.”
“You didn’t happen to pick up cigarettes?”
Luke frowned, “I shouldn’t have, told myself you didn’t deserve it after what you pulled.”
“But?”
“But I did.”
“Best friend!” Krouse smiled, spreading his arms wide.
Luke shook his head. ”You don’t deserve it.”
“I don’t. But I’ll make it up to you by getting us out of here with my power. Shouldn’t be hard; there weren’t all that many soldiers outside the fence, and we can swap ourselves for them, maybe. If Cody cooperates, that makes it even easier.”
“And Noelle?” Luke asked. ”Does she have powers?”
“Apparently,” Krouse said, “Though I don’t have any idea of how it works. You guys give any consideration to the idea of using the rest of the juice?”
Luke was nodding a little.
“Luke!” Jess said, aghast.
“What? Half the damage is already done,” he said, “And as far as I’m concerned, the benefits of getting more powers outweighs the possible danger. We don’t have any real income, we don’t have anybody to go to for help, and it’s going to be far easier to get funds if we can do something like mercenary work with a team of people with powers. Like Cody was talking about, we could hire someone to get us home.”
“I don’t think this is a good idea,” Jess said.
Luke sighed, “Let’s be honest. If it’s just Noelle, Cody and Krouse who have powers, I’m worried things will get ugly. There’s too much tension, but I don’t think any of us are willing to leave the group and strike out on our own, not when it means being all alone in a strange world. So we’re stuck together, and that means there’s going to be conflict. If they aren’t the only ones with powers, then at least we can do something to stop a fight from erupting.”
“I don’t know,” Jess said, ”I feel like it’ll make the problem worse. And you talk as if being a superpowered mercenary isn’t dangerous. And it won’t be that ea
sy to find a tinker who can give us a way home.”
“There’s a thousand mad scientist types in this world, aren’t there? Someone knows how to get us back,” Krouse said.
Jess frowned.
“Jess,” Luke spoke. ”Superpowers. And the stuff healed Noelle. Maybe it’ll heal your legs. Think about it. Walking, dancing? Running? Other stuff, stuff with boys?”
Her expression shifted a fraction. For the first time since the powers had been brought up, he thought maybe there was a sign of interest.
She looked at Krouse, and Krouse shrugged. ”We have three and a half vials left. Someone’s going to get only a half dose.”
“You’re assuming I take one,” Jess said.
“I am,” he echoed her. ”She set Cody against me, so I had an adversary, putting me off balance. Then used Noelle’s injury to push me to act. And you guys? You, Luke, Marissa and Oliver? She kept you occupied. Kept you focused on yourselves. You want to talk about the Simurgh’s game plan? It centers around me. I can’t see any other way of looking at it. She isn’t aiming to have you guys get mondo powers and kill a president or something. Why would she make Oliver feel like crap if that was her end goal?”
“It’s you?” Luke asked.
“Doesn’t it make sense? Just look at where the focus is. She distracted you guys because you were the ones who could have talked sense into me. The can of worms is opened, and I’m the person she’s turned into a guided missile.”
“You don’t sound too worried for someone who believes that,” Luke said.
“I’m… I’m processing it,” Krouse admitted. ”But that’s what it looks like, to me. And if there isn’t anything that points to me being wrong? Maybe I should just help you guys get home, then stay here. Become a hermit or something. Let me keep however much leftover cash we wind up with, and I’ll find an apartment and while away the rest of my days watching movies and playing games over the internet, not saying two words to anyone. Don’t know how much damage I could do that way.”
“Or come with us,” Luke said. ”There’s no way she can see the future of this world and ours. No way she’s turned you into some ticking time bomb that’s going to fuck our world over.”
Krouse shrugged, “Maybe. I can decide when we get that far.”
“Three and a half vials,” Jess said.
Krouse nodded. She’s on board.
“You took the Jaunt one and the Division one,” Luke said.
“Leaving…”
Luke was already getting a piece of paper out of his pocket, unfolding it. ”Prince, Deus, Robin and half of whichever vial you gave to Noelle.”
“Half of Division,” Krouse said, “Funny. But it doesn’t look like Noelle has powers. She’s said her skin fizzes, whatever that means, but maybe it’s incomplete…”
“I’ll take half,” Oliver said.
All eyes turned to him. Oliver continued, “If Noelle doesn’t want to finish it, I’ll take half. I’m not strong, I’m not brave, or smart, or creative. I don’t have it in me to be a hero. So as long as you don’t ask me to risk my life fighting stuff like the Simurgh, I’ll take the half, try to find other ways to help.”
“You don’t give yourself enough credit,” Krouse said. ”You’re a decent guy.”
“Maybe,” Oliver said. He sounded sad, “Maybe I’m decent. But I’m not a great guy. Like I said, nothing about me is special. Nothing’s exceptional. So I’ll take half.”
“Okay,” Krouse said. ”Anyone want to call dibs on the others?”
“Robin,” Luke said. ”Sounds like it might mean I could fly.”
“Mars?” Jess asked. ”You care?”
Marissa shook her head.
“Then Deus for me.”
“That leaves me with Prince,” Marissa said. ”I hope it doesn’t turn me into a boy.”
“Are they still next door?” Krouse asked.
Luke nodded.
“We dose you guys one at a time so we can be sure we have everything under control and minimize any damage. Then we’ll leave before sunrise.”
The others nodded.
■
The car coasted down the long highway, the windshield wipers clearing away the moisture of the freezing rain. Krouse pumped the windshield washer fluid and then wiped it away.
Madison was well behind them, now. Odd, how it felt like he was leaving home, even when it wasn’t really his city. A bad copy, an ugly copy. One with more violence, where the criminals could do far, far worse, by virtue of having more power. Having powers. That was without even touching on Endbringers, the Simurgh, and the desolate quarantine area.
Cody was in front. Krouse didn’t mind, didn’t care about giving up that token alpha-maleness. If that’s all it took for Cody to be satisfied for the time being, he’d accept it.
He’d save his strength for the more serious conflicts. They would happen.
The sun was rising. It was a bit of a relief. Driving in the rain and snow, in the dark, with the headlights seeming to extend a scant twenty feet ahead? It sucked. The rain continued, and the sky was overcast, but it was transitioning into a beautiful sort of overcast, with dark purples and oranges.
He looked at where Noelle sat in the passenger seat, reached over and squeezed her hand.
She looked at him and smiled a little. It was better than he’d gotten in the last little while, and the surge of relief he experienced was almost palpable.
Marissa and Jess were in the back seat, either already sleeping or most of the way there. He’d resisted the urge to comment, to note how the girls were with him, avoiding Cody. They knew something was off. That Cody was just a little too aggressive. A little too testosterone driven. As far as Krouse was concerned, it said something that the girls felt safer with him, even after everything that had happened.
They had their powers, and there was a slight cast of disappointment for everyone involved.
Jess could walk… but only with the images she projected. Her real body seemed largely unaffected. She got to experience everything she’d never had a chance to, even got to fly, but at the end of the day, she was still in the chair.
Marissa was managing to create flickers of light between her hands. She’d stopped when a nearby piece of paper had caught on fire, resolving to try it when there was more open space.
Luke was especially disappointed with his power; it hadn’t been flight. No, it was destructive, singular and without any versatility. He turned anything he touched into a projectile. It would be useful for mercenary work, if they were willing to take on the more dangerous jobs. It came down to how long they were willing to wait before they got home, and how much money was demanded of them.
It was the day before Christmas Eve, Krouse remembered. He’d have to be thankful for their well being, at least. They were alive. Things were okay. Not great, but not as hopeless as they might have seemed before. And things had settled down, at least. For the first time since the others had joined him and Noelle at the coffee shop to discuss his inclusion on the team, things were calm. They’d find a way to put their new powers to work. They’d get money, get themselves home.
Things made sense again. Mostly made sense.
Cody’s turn signal came on. He was pulling into a rest stop. One of the off-the-highway areas with a few fast food places and a gas station.
There weren’t many cars on the road, this time of morning, and less in the rest stop parking lot. Cody pulled in just beside the front door. Before Krouse was able to pull into another parking spot, Oliver was out of the door, running for the bathroom.
Oliver hadn’t changed either. Half a dose apparently wasn’t enough. It did seem to make the aftermath of drinking the stuff worse, though. Oliver’s condition had been nearly as drawn out as Noelle’s after he’d taken his dose.
“Anyone need to make water?” Krouse asked. ”Fast food places might be open if you’re hungry.”
The two girls in the back seat groaned, but they roused.
&n
bsp; “Want help with the chair?” he asked.
“We’ve got it,” Noelle said. She flashed Krouse a small smile and headed inside.
Krouse fished in his pocket for a cigarette, whispered praise to Luke. He popped it in his mouth and then started looking for the lighter.
Noelle knocked on the windshield, gave him a death glare.
“What?” He offered her an exaggerated shrug
“Not in the car!” she admonished, her voice muffled by the intervening windows.
He smiled a little, climbed out of the car, leaned against the door and lit the cigarette. While he puffed, he stared at the clouds as faint traces of the sunset’s colors traced across them. The rain was freezing cold and irritating, but the cigarette was worth it.
When he’d finished the first and the others hadn’t returned, he resigned himself to walking across the parking lot to a spot where there was shelter from the rain, starting on a second cigarette.
He was halfway done when Marissa came outside. He walked slowly in the direction of the car, taking a deep pull on the cigarette, thinking of how to gracefully point out that the others were taking a long time. Then he saw her eyes.
She was afraid, white as a sheet, and she was silent in a way that suggested she didn’t know what to say.
He ran her way, spitting out the cigarette. She held the door open for him, and then led the way toward the women’s bathroom.
There was a heavyset manager from one of the fast food places just at the door, shouting at Cody in a gruff voice. Krouse ignored them, headed inside the bathroom, ignoring the manager’s shouted protests.
Noelle had crumpled to the ground at the far end of the bathroom. Oliver, Luke and Jess were huddled around her. Marissa moved straight to Noelle’s side.
“Don’t touch me!” Noelle screamed, her voice shrill.
Marissa stepped away, hands raised, as if showing she were unarmed, safe.
“What happened?” Krouse asked, his voice quiet enough that the others might hear, but Noelle wouldn’t.
Each of the others gave him a look, expressions haunted.
He stepped closer, to get a better view. Noelle’s pants were down around her knees. Her jacket meant Krouse couldn’t see anything but her thighs. There was a mark about a foot long and eight inches wide, raised on her left leg. Red, angry, it was wrinkled and blistered like a bad burn.
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