by Chris Fox
HERO RISING
Chris Fox
Copyright © 2016 Chris Fox
All rights reserved.
ISBN:
ISBN-13:
For Mom.
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Chapter 1- Retrieval
Chapter 2- Fall Back
Chapter 3- Scooped
Chapter 4- Back to the ship
Chapter 5- Summers
Chapter 6- Vision
Chapter 7- Meeting
Chapter 8- Spy
Chapter 9- Taking a Trip
Interlude
Chapter 10- Cairo
Chapter 11- Steve
Chapter 12- The Sphinx
Chapter 13- Brawl
Chapter 14- The Hall of Records
Chapter 15- Ra
Chapter 16- Black Knight
Chapter 17- Death Pods
Interlude
Chapter 18- History
Chapter 19- Ringing
Chapter 20- Raid
Chaoter 21- Kidnapping
Interlude
Chapter 22- Bad news
Chapter 23- Indoctrination
Chapter 24- Invis
Chapter 25- Attacked
Chapter 26- Clash of Wills
Chapter 27- Space Battle
Chapter 28- Saved
Epilogue
Note to the Reader
Chapter 1- Retrieval
I slid into the plastic stadium seat, slinking down as I scanned the crowd to make sure no one was paying too much attention. Jillian had already sat down on my left, and Marcus dropped into the seat on my right. We were some of the last people to arrive, and SDSU's indoor stadium was packed to capacity. It was exactly the loud, claustrophobic event I'd spent my adult life trying to avoid. I hated most organized sports, and knew nothing about football other than that it involved touchdowns.
"What just happened?" I yelled to Marcus as the crowd surged around us. Something important had clearly happened.
"You think I know football because I'm black?" Marcus yelled back, raising an eyebrow. I was still getting used to his new look, the Samuel L. Jackson-style smooth scalp. It was a sharp contrast to the dreads he'd worn when I first met him, but those had been burned off during our final encounter with the grey men. At least the scars from the explosion had healed. Marcus leaned in and continued yelling, "I was up until two playing the new Starcraft expansion. I don't know crap about football."
"There's forty seconds left in the half," Jillian yelled, though her eyes hadn't left the field. "Janaki just ran for twenty-two yards. They have just enough time to score another touchdown."
I glanced at the scoreboard. It was 21-7, SDSU. "I thought you said USC was good."
"They are," Jillian said, finally looking at me. She brushed a lock of dark hair from her face, studying me with intense brown eyes. "SDSU normally never plays them. This is more a scrimmage than a real game, and the idea that SDSU is winning is unheard of. But seeing that girl play, I can see why it's happening. Osiris was right. Janaki is a super, and she's using those abilities on the field."
I leaned forward, watching the game. The ball snapped, and it was handed to number 9. The kid was shorter than everyone else around her, but man was she fast. She darted around blockers, spinning past their line and into the open field. Only one opponent came close, but Janaki just vaulted over him and kept running. She sprinted up the field and into the end zone. The scoreboard ticked up to 27-7.
"Wow," I said, leaning back in my chair as the crowd surged again. The cheering was deafening.
"Now's our chance," Jillian said, rising to her feet. "Half-time is about to start. She'll be in the locker room for the next twenty minutes."
"Are you sure we shouldn't just wait until after the game?" Marcus called, lowering his voice as the crowd quieted.
"No," I snapped, thinking back to the vision I'd had that morning. That was the only way I could classify it, basically a waking dream. An alarming waking dream. "We need to get to her as soon as possible, before Dick and his people. They're already here, I'm sure of it."
"All right." Marcus nodded, standing and stepping back into the aisle. "How do we get into the locker room?"
"Leave that to me," Jillian said, pushing past us both and trotting toward the exit.
She led us to a ring of shops outside the stadium proper, which sold everything from hot dogs to souvenir mugs. That surprised me, as I didn't expect that kind of merchandising at a school. Of course, I'd gone to school at a JC without any sports teams, so I shouldn't be surprised that this was a whole other world.
Jillian paused outside a red steel door that read Authorized Personnel Only. She glanced around, then closed her eyes. A familiar pulse of cool energy washed over us, and we faded from sight. I was impressed that she no longer needed to touch us in order to use her abilities. It was just one more sign that we were getting stronger.
"Walk through the door," Jillian ordered in a tense whisper. So we did, passing right through the metal with no resistance.
Jillian released her abilities and we flickered back into sight. We found ourselves in a wide, stone hallway that sloped gently downwards. She started forward like she knew where she was going, and it occurred to me she probably did. I sometimes forgot that SDSU was her alma mater. No one had ever expected anyone from the reservation to go to college, but casino money had apparently made that possible.
"Okay, the locker room is right around that corner. Any idea how we're going to play this?" Jillian asked, turning to face me.
I glanced at Marcus but he just shrugged. I was still adjusting to being in charge, which thus far seemed to consist of making whatever half-assed suggestion leapt into my head. I considered the options as I listened to overlapping male voices echoing up the hallway. We needed to reach a specific player, one who was probably the center of a lot of attention.
"Can you make us invisible and get us within sight of the room?" I asked, an idea finally occurring to me.
"Sure," Jillian said, adopting a look of concentration.
"Follow me," I whispered as we faded from sight. I crept closer until I could see into the locker room. I could see at least a dozen players, all still wearing their red and gold uniforms. The Aztecs, they were called. I scanned the crowd, finally locating Janaki in the center of a ring of other players. She was tiny next to the linebackers towering over her, but their body language was deferential. If the fact that she was a girl bothered anyone, they certainly didn't show it. Dark, curly hair was plastered to her forehead from sweat, but she grinned like a fool as she chatted with her teammates.
I stared intently at her, concentrating. Telepathy was a new ability, one I had only limited practice with. I reached out, brushing the edge of the kid's mind. She blinked a few times, cocking her head as she studied the air around her. Someone said something to her, but she shrugged it off with a smile.
Janaki, I thought at her, using the first name Osiris had supplied us with. If you can hear me, nod your head.
The kid went pale, but she gave a quick nod. She also started looking around her, probably trying to find me. Her eyes slid right over the area where Jillian's cloak protected us.
I know this has to be strange, but I'm here to help you. You know about the grey men, or you wouldn't have the abilities you're using out on the field. Nod if you understand.
The kid nodded again. She walked over to her locker, and I had to move to keep her in my line of sight. That was, so far, a necessary part of using telepathy. I concentrated again. The grey men have made other people with abilities like ours. Those people are coming for you. Today. We need to
get you out of here. Trust me, you don't want to see what they'll do to you if they catch you.
The kid shook her head violently, then reached for her helmet. The rest of the team had congregated around the edge of the locker room, where their coach began a rousing speech. I ignored it, focusing on Janaki. I know this is a lot to take in, and I know you have no reason to trust me. We're your only hope of getting out of this, and the longer you stay, the more danger you're in.
The kid ignored me. She joined the flow of players as they trotted past us, back up the corridor. They took a left-hand turn, moving in the direction of the field. Janaki passed no more than a few inches from us, her eyes steely hard.
Please, Janaki.
Nothing. She just kept moving. I waited until she was out of sight before speaking to the others. "No luck. She could hear me, but she ignored my request."
"Now what the heck do we do?" Marcus asked, his disembodied voice coming from just a couple feet away.
I didn't say anything immediately, biting my lip as I considered a response. I had no idea what to do.
"If we lose her, this will be the fourth one in a row Dick has beaten us to," Jillian said, her voice tense with anger. I knew she wasn't blaming me, but it still made me flinch. It was happening on my watch.
"Let's get back up to our seats. We'll watch the rest of the game, then tail her out of the stadium. If we have to kidnap her, then that's exactly what we'll do."
Chapter 2- Fall Back
It only took a few minutes to make it back to our seats. The players had already taken the field, and I spent the next hour shifting uncomfortably while Janaki scored three more touchdowns. She made it look effortless, like she was on a wholly different level from everyone else on the field. Which she was. I didn't know the exact lineage, but Janaki was clearly stronger, faster, and had greater endurance than everyone around her. She looked tiny compared to them, yet they couldn't even slow her down. All around us students held up signs, my personal favorite being the one that said, 'you're getting your ass kicked by a girl'.
The lights went out, plunging the entire stadium into darkness. There was a brief moment when the cheering stopped, and there was very nearly silence. Then a cacophony of confusion broke out, everything from a chorus of boos to people asking neighbors what was going on.
"Shit," I said, rising slowly to my feet.
"Yep, I'll bet anything they're making their move," Jillian said, rising next to me. Cell phones flashed all over the crowd, providing a little bit of light. Not enough to see the field, though.
"Want me to get us down to the field?" Marcus asked. He cracked his knuckles, staring down at the darkness where the players likely still were.
"Yeah, levitate us down. Jillian, it's dark, but we'll still need a cloak just to be safe." I knew I was stating the obvious, but that seemed to be most of what leadership was. Not that I'd know. I was brand new at it.
A moment later I was lifted into the air. At the same moment, a cool pulse rippled over my body and I faded into the darkness. We drifted into the air, floating rapidly over the center of the field.
"Now what?" Marcus asked.
"Go lower," Jillian supplied. "The players were probably hustled off the field, and Janaki will be on SDSU's sidelines. It's on the same side of the field we were sitting on."
Some of the players had cellphones, apparently. A few lights had flared on the sidelines, and we could see a cluster of people. Marcus guided us lower, until we were close enough to see faces. I started scanning for Janaki, then realized there might be an easier way. I started listening for thoughts. The initial barrage was overwhelming, and focusing on any specific person proved impossible. My temples throbbed, but I kept listening for anything that might help.
Then I caught it. A stray thought from someone I recognized.
"Dick is here," I said, trying to keep the panic out of my voice. "He's near the sidelines too, and he's got a team with him."
"Crap," Marcus said, and we drifted a little higher. "Any idea where they are?"
I reached out for him again, feeling everywhere for another thought.
Hello, David, Dick thought at me. I see we're after the same target again. You were almost in time, but we've secured her. Good luck on the next one.
The lights came back up. It was a damn good thing I'd asked Jillian to cloak us, or we'd have been hanging over the middle of the field for everyone to see. I scanned the sidelines, which was full of both players and cheerleaders. There was no sign of Janaki.
"Get us airborne," I ordered, looking up and concentrating. "I'll have our ride waiting the second we pass through the ceiling."
We drifted up, and Jillian phased us without me having to ask. The three of us passed through the roof and into the hot, fall sun. It was easily ninety degrees, despite being early October. You had to love San Diego. A moment later, an energy field crackled around us, and we were pulled into the air. We rippled through the bottom of our shuttle, one of the four I'd inherited when liberating the full-size grey man mothership. That craft was still in orbit, charging slowly using the sun.
The instant we pierced the black stone underbelly of the shuttle, Jillian dropped her invisibility. She turned to me. "What happened? Are we giving up Janaki?"
"Dick has her," I said, already moving at a trot through the forest of obelisks as I made my way to the control crystal at the center of the ship. Jillian and Marcus followed, both thankfully silent. I kept talking as I walked. "Unless the grey men have given him a ship, he's going to have to leave via conventional means. That's a van or SUV most likely."
I concentrated, willing the shuttle to begin a scan. I had it catalogue every car leaving the school, including the number of occupants. A few people had left the game early, but most were still reaching their cars. That meant the initial scan was easy, but it would grow more complicated as more of the crowd departed. I needed to find Janaki, and do it quickly.
Marcus' cell phone rang. I ignored it as he answered, focusing on the flow of data about all the cars below us. There were a few candidates, but I discarded each in turn. The few SUVs that left didn't have enough people in them. Dick would have a team, which meant at least three people. Probably four or five.
"Oh my god. She's awake? And talking?" Marcus' tone was nervous enough to draw my attention, which irritated me. I needed to focus on the data feed, so I did my best to tune him out.
"What is it?" Jillian asked.
"Kali says Summers is up and talking. She's awake!" Marcus' enthusiasm was clear, and I shared it, but right then I couldn't afford distractions.
"There," I said, willing a hologram to spring into view. It showed a black Escalade leaving the massive parking garage near the stadium.
"You're sure that's the one?" Jillian asked, her skepticism clear.
"The car has five people, two in the front and three in the back," I said, willing the ship to begin moving. We couldn't feel movement inside the ship, but the vessel fed me telemetry. I could tell we'd perfectly matched the Escalade's speed. "The figure in the back center weighs one hundred twenty-eight pounds."
"That could be a coincidence, but it's an awful big one," Jillian admitted.
Osiris had sent us a full profile on Janaki, including her weight. I imagined her sandwiched between two grey men goons, possibly unconscious.
"We'll be there as soon as we can." Marcus finished his conversation, replacing the phone in his pocket. He wore a huge grin, the biggest smile I'd seen on a normally dour face. "She's alive. Summers is back, man."
"That's awesome news," I replied, my gaze not leaving the hologram of the SUV. "We need to focus right now, though. Let's get Janaki from Dick and his goons, and then we can go visit Summers."
Marcus' face darkened, but he gave a grudging nod. I knew I'd lost some points there, but we couldn't afford to let another super slip away. We were losing this war, and we had to turn things around.
Chapter 3- Scooped
We paralleled the Esc
alade for almost twenty minutes, following it up Highway 163. The sun set, but there were far too many cars around for us to de-cloak the shuttle and make an attempt to snatch Janaki from Dick and his cronies. So we waited, following them as they headed east. Our opportunity came when they approached Bonita, a tiny town not far from the Mexican border.
"Do you think this is remote enough?" Jillian asked, staring through the wall of the shuttle. I'd rendered it transparent, providing them a view of the desolate hills surrounding us.
"Enough to justify taking our chances, I think," I said, willing the shuttle to descend closer to the car.
"Uh, did you guys consider why they're headed out this way?" Marcus asked. He'd been sullen since I'd cut him off about Summers.
I gave his question serious thought. "Oh, crap."
"What is it?" Jillian asked, turning to face me.
"They're heading somewhere remote, probably because they want to arrange a pickup," Marcus supplied. "I'll bet money they're meeting the grey men."
"That cinches it. We're pulling Janaki out now, witnesses or no. Marcus, I'm going to make the floor of the shuttle transparent. Can you rip the top off the SUV?" I asked, willing the ship to make a large segment of the floor transparent. It revealed the car just a dozen feet below us, cruising along a largely empty highway, careful to keep to the speed limit.
"Yeah," Marcus said, nodding. "I can even snatch the target."
"Jillian, can you make her invisible the second she's out of the car?" I asked.
"On it," she said, nodding.
"Okay, here goes nothing," Marcus said. He swept both arms in a wide pulling gesture, using his telekinesis to rip the top of the Escalade away like a can of cat food.
All five people inside looked up in surprise, including the driver. In the split second it took them to react, Marcus wrenched an arm upward, and the smallest figure in the back shot into the air. Long, dark hair whipped around her, and the wind tore at her scarlet uniform. She rippled briefly, then faded from sight. I willed the ship's tractor beam to pull her into the shuttle, just like Jillian and I had been when the grey men took us all those years ago.
