I rested a hand on her shoulder. She watched for a few seconds longer before turning away and burying her face against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her as she cried as quietly as she could.
“We’re going to save him,” I promised her. “It won’t be long before Doug’s back with us.”
She nodded. “I know,” she struggled to say. “It’s just so hard.”
“Hey,” I said, holding her away from me so I could look into her eyes. “Don’t worry about a thing. I’m going to take care of all of this.”
A door opened. I looked behind Samantha and saw a couple of soldiers stepping out of a room at the other end of the hallway that I guessed they’d been searching.
“I’ve got eyes on target!” one of them screamed, pointing at the two of us.
Without hesitation, I swooped Samantha up in my arms, turned and ran out of the gym as fast as I could. As I stepped out in the windy night, the fire from the barracks was dying down. I ran down the road of the army base as fast as I could, leaving Doug and everybody else behind.
41
THE MESSENGER
“What are you doing?” Samantha demanded as I set her down to take a rest.
We’d reached the edges of the base, and I could feel my powers growing stronger. “Taking a rest,” I said, leaning forward on my knees. “I can only carry you just so far when I don’t have all my powers.”
“No,” she said. “Why are you running away from them? From my brother? Kane, we have to save them.”
“You don’t think I know that?” I said. “You saw all the men who were in the gym. When those guys saw us, we had nowhere else to run. Right now, our only option is to wait things out. If we go back right now, we’d be dead. Running into someplace without a plan is what got Selena and I in trouble in Johannesburg. I’m not going to endanger them by charging in right now.”
Samantha scowled at me, not happy with my decision. I couldn’t really blame her, either. She’d seen her brother’s dead body. We had the chance to bring him back, but we couldn’t do it right away—at least not without causing more loss of life.
“We’re going to save him,” I said, laying a hand on Samantha’s shoulder. “And Selena, Drew—everybody's that trapped in there. As soon as we can. But maybe if we wait a while, things will become easier. Become safer. Maybe they’ll take Doug and put him somewhere away from everybody else.” I didn’t want to use the word morgue. “Or at least wait until there’s fewer soldiers around. Either way, we’re just going to have to wait a while. We can’t go storming in there. Not right now.”
Samantha processed what I was telling her, and finally nodded. “Okay, you’re right. I don’t want to put anybody else’s life on the line.”
I gripped her shoulder, then pulled her in for a hug. “I know you don’t,” I said.
I closed my eyes and breathed her in. I couldn’t imagine what she was going through, but I was going to do everything in my power to get her out of it. I was going to bring Doug back. And I couldn’t wait to see the look on his face when we told him that he actually was a Super.
I smiled, thinking about him. He’d been there since the beginning, practically. He was there when Samantha told me about the nuke being launched at me when I was fighting Richter. He was the one who’d told us about the Supers all around the world. If it weren’t for him, we wouldn’t have the asthenés plásma, a small amount of which was in my pocket, ready to save him.
Samantha pulled away and wiped a tear from her eye. “Okay, I’m ready to go. I think I can walk from here.”
“Okay,” I said. “We don’t have much longer to go before we’ll be out of the radius of the asthenés plásma. Then I’ll fly up and keep my eyes and ears peeled on the base.”
“What about the asthenés plásma in your pocket?” Samantha asked, pointing.
“It’s not having any affect on me,” I said, patting it. “I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because it’s such a small amount or something?”
Samantha shrugged. “Maybe. It’s not as if we know anything about that stuff.”
“You have no idea.”
* * *
The sun was beginning to rise as I hovered in the air about a mile away from the army base that Raven and his men had taken over. Using a combination of my Super vision and hearing, I knew everything that was going on in there. Unfortunately, most of it wasn’t good. Selena and the rest of the prisoners were still being kept under heavy guard in the gymnasium. Raven along with his men who weren’t standing guard were tearing the place apart, searching for the asthenés plásma.
I had no idea what I was going to do. I’d never felt so powerless. My friends could be killed at any second, and I only had enough asthenés plásma to bring back one of them. Things would’ve been so much easer if I could just fly in there and bring them to safety.
“I request the presence of Raven,” I heard a man say, breaking me from my train of thought. I zeroed in and watched as three men conversed with the guards standing outside the door to the gym.
“Why shouldn’t we kill you right now?” one of the guards asked.
“Ever heard the phrase, ‘Don’t shoot the messenger’? I have a feeling Atlas would be very upset if harm should come to his messengers.”
The two guards exchanged worried glances. “You’re saying you’re with Atlas?” the other guard asked.
“That’s correct. My message to Raven is as important as it is urgent. Don’t delay us further,” the messenger said.
“Of course,” the guard agreed, opening the door. “Follow me. I’ll take you to him.”
I was watching and listening as intently as possible. Anything they were about to say was going to help me figure out the big picture.
The walked in silence for a bit. I closed my eyes since I couldn’t see them anymore, using all my powers to make sure I could hear them as clearly as possible.
A door opened, and they stepped into a carpeted room. Raven had moved from the gymnasium, where the prisoners were still being held, to one of the offices on the first floor.
They still hadn’t found the asthenés plásma. Samantha’s hiding place was better than I’d thought.
“What is the cause for this interruption?” Raven demanded. “I was in the middle of my meditations.”
“Sir, I have here a messenger from Atlas—”
“I don’t give a damn about Atlas!” Raven shouted. “You can tell him I said that. I have other matters to worry about.”
“Well, you’d better start worrying about him,” the messenger said. “I have a very important message from him. One that you’d do best not to ignore.”
There was a pause. I could hear Raven’s slow, concentrated breathing. “Very well, then. Be quick about it.”
“Atlas sends his congratulations on taking Tempest—well, the few minutes that you had him—and his pests prisoner. He’s impressed by the forces you were able to muster up in a week’s time.”
“How does Atlas know about what I’ve done?” Raven asked, sounding annoyed.
“Word travels fast, Raven. Atlas has eyes and ears all over,” the messenger said, his tone patronizing. There was definitely something he wasn’t saying. “Atlas wishes for you to join the Legion. Your forces, knowledge, and power would make you a great ally.”
Raven scoffed. “I hardly think that’s the case. I have something that Atlas wants. Once he has it, I’ll be no more important to him than the dirt beneath his feet.”
The messenger laughed. “Raven, you don’t understand. This is all just pleasantries. Atlas isn’t the monster some believe him to be. He’s reasonable, and would value you as a member of his team. But you know what he wants. He’ll come and take the asthenés plásma by force if he has to. You and your forces will be no match for him.”
“How does Atlas know about the asthenés plásma?” Raven asked. I could hear a bit of fear in his voice.
The messenger took a step forward. “You’re smart enough, Raven. I imagi
ne you can figure it out on your own.”
“Fine then,” Raven said after a moment, clearing his throat. “Atlas would be welcome here, but only as long as he knows that I’m the one who is in charge of the asthenés plásma. I’ll just be allowing him to use it.”
“Bold choice, Raven. I’m sure we’ll be able to reach a suitable compromise,” the messenger said. “That is all. I must be leaving now. You’ll be hearing from us again very soon.”
I opened my eyes and stopped listening. My mind was whirling with thoughts, all of them bad. If Atlas was coming, I needed to get Selena and the rest of the group out of there, and fast.
I flew down to the tree in the woods that Samantha was sitting beneath. She was staring at the ground, deep in thought, but she looked up when she saw me flying down and jumped to her feet. I could tell she felt frustrated that she couldn’t watch through my eyes. It had turned out that even the little bit of asthenés plásma I had in my pocket was enough to stop her powers.
“Any news?” she asked excitedly. “When can we save Doug?” Her face dropped when she saw the look on mine.
I took a seat on the ground, trying to figure out what I was going to do. So far, I’d found no plan that could work, especially not now that Atlas was entering the equation.
“What’s wrong? Kane, tell me what’s going on,” Samantha said, kneeling down in front of me.
“Atlas is coming. He’s coming for the asthenés plásma.”
“Oh, god,” Samantha said, sinking down across from me. Her gaze wandered off as she processed the possibilities. “We have to act now, if there’s going to be any hope of saving them.”
An idea formed in my mind. An idea that could actually work. I smiled at my solution.
“What is it?” Samantha asked.
“I think I have an idea,” I said. “But we’re going to need backup.”
42
RETURN
I flew above London, homing in on the government building that housed the base of operations for Leopold Renner and his team. When I found it, I landed the top of the front steps and swung open the entry door. Inside, the large entry room was filled with security guards and receptionists typing at the computers behind their desks.
“Can I help you?” a guard said from behind me.
I turned and saw him walking towards me, one hand on his gun. His eyes met mine, and I could see that he knew instantly who I was.
“Get me Leopold Renner. I need to talk to him now.”
A few minutes later, I was waiting in a small office. The door swung open and Leopold walked in, curiosity on his face.
“Kane, it’s a pleasure to see you,” he said, stretching out his hand.
I grabbed it and shook it. “I’m sorry for barging in on you like this, but I need your help,” I said as I let go of his hand. “My team—my family—is in trouble.”
“We’ll do whatever we can to help you,” he said.
“What do you know about a Super named Raven?”
Leopold paused for a moment. “Raven, you say? I think I’ve heard that name before. He’s from South Africa, correct?”
I nodded. “He had taken over Johannesburg. Selena and I liberated the city from him after we left London.” I pulled the vial of asthenés plásma out of my pocket. Leopold’s eyes grew wide at the sight of it. “He had a whole bottle of this liquid called asthenés plásma. It’s extremely powerful. For most Supers, when they’re around the whole bottle of it, their powers are taken away completely.”
Leopold looked around, thinking. “Now that you mention it, I have felt a bit…strange since I entered this room.” He looked at the vial. “You’re telling me there’s a whole bottle of that stuff?”
I nodded.
“I’m going to go get my superiors and the rest of the team. Then you need to tell us everything.”
* * *
Less than an hour later, I was standing outside the building with Leopold, Ellie, Thomas, Nathan, and Avery. There were only six of us, but I was confident that our mission would be a success. It had to be. I didn’t know what I’d do with myself if it wasn’t.
“Don’t forget—our powers won’t work once we get in there,” I said.
“I’m not sure how we could forget something like that,” Thomas said with a lot of snark in his tone.
I fought back the urge to snap back. Most of the team wasn’t totally on board with leaving their home behind to help mine, but once their superiors had heard about the asthenés plásma, the decision was no longer up to them. They were almost too eager to find out more, which I was obligated to do if this mission was a success. But I wasn’t entirely sure I was going to tell them about Athena and why exactly I had the small vial.
Leopold tapped me on the shoulder. “We’re going to get your friends back,” he said.
I nodded. “Let’s just hurry up and get there.”
43
STRUGGLE
We landed in the woods where Samantha and I had made camp earlier, and I set Avery down. The rest of the group filtered in behind me, mostly unaffected by the asthenés plásma in my pocket.
Ellie placed down the two large duffle bags of weapons she’d carried on her shoulders, along with Thomas. She unzipped them, and I watched as the group descended on the weapons like vultures on roadkill. Guns clicked, buckles were clipped, and tensions were high.
“Samantha?” I called out. I had told her to stay there, promising I would be back soon. I looked around for any sign of her, but couldn’t find any. “Samantha, are you out there?”
Nothing. No response at all.
“You having trouble finding your friend?” Thomas asked, again with a patronizing tone in his voice.
I scanned the trees. “She was supposed to be here.” My heart beat faster.
Avery slipped her handgun into the holster at her side. She stood up straight, searching the area.
“You see something?” I asked.
She walked to a spot by a tree where the grass had been pressed down. “Is this where she was sitting?” she asked, pointing at the spot.
I nodded. “Yeah, that was right where I left her.”
Avery pointed at a trail that I’d totally missed. “There’s some footsteps. Lots of grass pressed down in this area.” She picked up a twig. “Some broken sticks, too. Definitely signs of a struggle.”
I took a step towards her, my mind racing with the possibilities. “What are you saying? That she had to fight someone?”
Avery nodded. “From the looks of it, she didn’t win.” She pointed at a small patch of leaves on the ground that were spattered with blood.
I thought I was going to throw up. “Oh my god,” I breathed, stumbling backwards. “They found her. I should never have left her. I thought she’d be safe here but…agh!” I screamed, kicking a tree in frustration. The tree went soaring into the air, disappearing from sight.
“Whoa, calm down there, buddy,” Nathan said. He was one of the ones who were strong and could fly. “Rescuing your friends is what we’re here for. She’s going to be alright.”
I nodded with gritted teeth. I appreciated his efforts to reassure me, but they were in vain. I couldn’t believe I’d been so stupid. I should never had left Samantha there all alone. I’d figured she’d be safe, since we were a couple of miles away from the base and in the middle of the woods, but that hadn’t been enough. I wanted to kick another tree, but stopped myself. I needed to save that anger for Raven and his men.
“Are you guys ready?” I asked.
Leopold looked over his group and nodded, apparently satisfied with what he’d seen. “I think we’re all good.” He turned to me, a smile on his face. “Let’s go get your friends back.”
* * *
I hovered high above the woods as the sun set, my eyes closed, focusing on the sounds around me. I took in everything I could, trying to gather as much information as I could in the few short minutes we had. Everything I could tell Leopold would help his team with their re
scue mission. Our rescue mission.
I heard a few meaningless conversations between soldiers here and there, but nothing that was going to give us an advantage over them—well, besides the advantage we already had, which was a team of Supers that despite not being able to use their powers, were still highly trained government agents. Even if their training had been a crash course and they were all barely older than I was.
“Hey, it’s time for a shift change. Get to the library to watch the prisoners,” I heard one soldier say to another.
“Ah, shit. Really?” the other soldier replied.
“Yeah, really. Get over there before Raven freaks out.”
Okay, the prisoners were in the library. That was definitely some information I could use. I focused on the gymnasium I knew Raven was based out of, but I heard nothing other than the sound of shifting footsteps. Nobody spoke. The walking sounded regimented, like the soldiers were pacing. I heard nothing from Raven.
But then, I heard whispers. I was only barely able to make out that it was Raven speaking. Still, I had no idea what he was murmuring. It was a language other than English.
I felt a tug in my chest and knew.
He had the asthenés plásma.
I flew back down to Leopold’s group. They were standing in a circle, not speaking, getting ready for the battle ahead. “Okay,” I said as I landed in the middle of them, facing Leopold. “The prisoners are in the library. The main bulk of Raven’s people seem to be in the gymnasium, where Raven is. I believe he’s found the asthenés plásma, which means there’s no telling what he’s capable of.”
“I thought you said that stuff takes away your powers? How would he be capable of anything, besides what a regular human can do?” Nathan asked, his voice calm and collected.
“Yes, but there’s so much about it that we don’t know. He knows a lot about the asthenés plásma. I’m just saying, don’t underestimate him.”
The War of the Supers (The First Superhero Book 3) Page 16
