The Diamond Bearers' Rising

by Lorena Angell

  Jie Wen, Duncan and Chuang pull the guns they’ve brought with them. Before I protest, I remember Brand mentioning obsidian bullets. And it’s only a matter of time before someone finds the unconscious guards on the floor by the lab. I figure it’s better to be firing the bullets verses getting fired at, so I hold my tongue.

  Brand says, “You four,” pointing to Jonas, Sarangerel and her parents, “when the files are done uploading, run to the front entrance. We’ll meet you there.” Brand looks at me and I read his mind. Hopefully. His eyes change slightly, almost as if he’s deciding the best way to save everyone. Maybe you’d better go with them, Calli . . . no, wait . . . come with us. Maybe you can use your Mind-Control on them. Brand swirls his finger above his head and says, “Let’s go, Bearers. Invisibility!”

  We run out of the room and follow him further back into the bunker. I figure we’re leading the guards away from the others. We round a corner and see three guards waiting with guns pointing our direction. One of the guards has a bloody nose and broken bottom lip.

  Chuang says, They can’t see us. Should we attack?

  Hold. Brand puts his thoughts to the front of his brain as he cannot send them telepathically.

  One of the guards asks the bloodied guard while looking our direction, “Are you sure someone’s there?”

  “Do you think I did this to my own face? Yes. They are invisible. Why haven’t you sounded the alarm?”

  “They’ll ask for descriptions of the intruders. I’m not going to say they’re invisible. We need something more than that.”

  “Four guards taken down, three still unconscious, isn’t enough to sound the alarm?” The bloodied guard cocks his gun and says, “I’ll sound my own alarm.” He begins shooting.

  Chuang fires back.

  Gunfire erupts in a deafening roar. Stings and burns rip through my flesh as I realize I’m being pelted with . . . stuff. What is this? It’s not obsidian. Yet my powers are unusable. Around me I see Chuang and Jie Wen on the ground in growing puddles of blood.

  “Calli,” Brand grunts, “something needs to happen differently or we’re all going to die.” Brand has been shot too, but the substance can’t stop or remove his power, obviously. He’s already repeated back from this situation. At least I think he has.

  I say, “Next time I’ll control the guards actions.”

  The floor and walls spin around and around. Everything stops. We’re in the control room at the moment after Brand’s group arrived with Dr. Tod from Lab 1. Sarangerel is trying to crack the code on the computer.

  Brand rushes over and pulls the keyboard closer to him, away from Sarangerel.

  “Excuse me?” Sarangerel protests. “Who are you?”

  I remember this moment. Brand is about to blow about twenty seconds figuring out the code. But not this time. Instead, he types it right in and access is given immediately. Sarangerel stares at him with strange admiration, as if she’s seeing him for the first time. In reality, she is. She says, “How did you do that?”

  I say to Brand, “You just saved twenty seconds. Is it enough?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Three simple words from Brand I’m not sure how to process. I don’t know. I don’t know? Of course you know! His words leave me feeling similar to hearing Maetha say the same words. I feel the incredible need to get out. I’m cornered. I’m vulnerable. I’m in danger. Get me out! My heart races uncontrollably. Five Bearers are in danger of losing their lives, their diamonds captured. Where’s Crimson? Seriously? She’s nowhere? Come on!

  The ground spins around my confused mind as Brand performs another repeat. Am I ever going to see Chris again? My parents? Are any of us going to get out?

  We arrive at nearly the same point as before, only this time Brand doesn’t grab the keyboard. He takes the nearby pad of paper and quickly jots down the computer code. He pushes it toward Sarangerel with a nod. He says, “Hurry.”

  “What?” she asks. “Who are you?”

  “It’s the code. Go!” Then he turns to me and says, “We need to create a clear pathway to the front entry. Once the files are transferred, we all need to run with superpower running. Otherwise, none of us will get out.”

  I hear Jonas telling a reluctant Sarangerel to enter the code before the system locks up. As she types the numbers, Duncan and Chuang shift back and forth on their feet.

  “Does this plan look good?” I ask Brand.

  “I can only see two minutes. So far, so good.”

  Chuang asks, rather demandingly, “What are you talking about?”

  Brand raises his voice and puts his hands up in front of him, “No more questions and maybe you’ll live this time.” Jie Wen’s mouth hangs open as Brand points to Chuang and Duncan. “You two stand guard while Sarangerel downloads the files. Then run with her to the main doors. When you see people wearing white coats, lay flat on the ground. Understand?” Brand turns and points to me, Jonas, Jie Wen, Tod and Mishell. “Come, now.” He runs out of the room and we follow.

  Jonas sends his thoughts. Calli, does Brand have this under control? He seems like he’s losing it.

  I don’t know.

  We run a little way then Brand halts us. “Jie Wen,” Brand points to the wall, “stand right here and shoot the guard that’s coming around the corner. Keep the hall clear for the others.” Brand motions for the rest of us to follow him as he continues down the hall.

  The main doors come into view. I breathe a sigh of relief.

  Brand grabs my arm. “There’s a fire extinguisher in the room by the doors. Use it to smash the keypad on the wall by the doors. Hurry, before the grenade goes off.”

  Grenade?

  A gunshot echoes from Jie Wen’s direction. He must have fired his weapon. I don’t hesitate. I run into the side room, locate the extinguisher, and yank it off the wall. Hustling out into the hall, I see Brand and Jonas in a defensive stance, holding two large guns, pointed down the hallway. I run over to the keypad and ram the bottom of the extinguisher into it as hard as I can. Little plastic pieces and buttons fly and slide across the floor as crackling sparks shoot out of the keypad.

  Brand shouts, “Push the doors open before they relock.”

  I run over with Tod and Mishell and push against the massive doors. The doors move a little, hopefully enough to prevent them from locking. We keep pushing.

  “What do you hope to accomplish?” a male voice with a German accent sounds from down the hall.

  I turn and look beyond Brand and Jonas. Several people wearing white lab coats stand in the hallway. Coming up behind them is Jie Wen, Chuang, Duncan, and Sarangerel. The lab coated individuals seem harmless, as if they are caught in the crossfire, but the tone of voice the German-accented man used says otherwise.

  “Get down, guys,” Brand mutters under his breath.

  Jonas asks, “Us?”

  “No. Them, Jie Wen and the others. I told them to get down. We can’t shoot the bad guys without hitting them.”

  In unison, “the bad guys” grab onto their breast pockets and pull out black stones in one movement. Obsidian.

  My diamond and Blue diamond powers rush away from my body. I quickly access the topaz attached to my neck. It’s mostly drained. Can I use it for Mind-Control? No. Can I still use it for invisibility? Yes.

  The same man as before says to us, “Is this little black stone troublesome to you? That’s a shame. We don’t have a problem with it.” The man looks at the others who chuckle with him. He then turns to a couple accompanying guards and says, “Capture them. Alive.”

  Brand says, “Not gonna happen. Get down!” he shouts to the others who fall to the ground instantly. Brand and Jonas open fire on the lab coats and guards. More guards come behind Duncan, Chuang, Sarangerel and Jie Wen, trapping them. Jie Wen rolls over on his back and fires his gun at the approaching guards. The ear-splitting shots from the guns echo through the hallway.

  The lab coats duck for cover into open doorways. Tod and Mishell push aga
inst the large doors, and I can hear the guards outside yelling indiscernibly.

  Brand yells, “Now, Chuang!”

  Chuang and the others jump up and run toward us as Brand raises his hand holding a small metal ball. With his thumb, he flicks the small metal pin out of the device and drops it to the floor. The firing stops momentarily, long enough that I hear the pin hit the ground. Brand throws the grenade as Jonas grabs my hand and pulls me toward the side wall, pinning me with his body.

  The grenade detonates. The force knocks me and Jonas off our feet. Everything sounds like I’m underwater, then my ears start to ring intensely. Ceiling tiles and lighting fixtures fall all around me as dust and smoke clouds fill the hallway. Yellow emergency lights begin flashing overhead, illuminating the scene. The large doors have blown open. The two guards outside lay unconscious on the ground. Across the way, all of the team members, including Brand lay in a heap. No one moves.

  My powers are still gone, and now that the doors are open, I have to assume the exposed exterior obsidian is the reason.

  Jonas sits up. “Calli, are you all right?”

  “I think so.” Nothing hurts, so I get up and rush over to the others. Jonas is only one step behind.

  Coughing on the dust and smoke, I help separate the group. Everyone is alive, but some are slower to gain their wits than others.

  Brand rubs his head. “I don’t think we can get that any better, guys. We’re all in one piece for now. We’ve got to run, though.”

  I hear yelling down the hall. Then small square panels open on the walls spaced about ten feet apart. I look inside the nearest one and see what looks like the bell of a trumpet.

  Sarangerel shouts, “Get down!”

  Before I can follow her orders, things start shooting out of the opening in random directions. I can hear them hitting the walls across the hall. Each of the square panels are shooting out whatever the stuff is. A sharp pain rips through my thigh, but I don’t have time to think about it.

  The main doors begin closing. Brand yells, “Out! Everyone out.”

  It’s painfully clear everyone has been injured by the stuff that came out of the walls. After getting outside, I look down at my leg and find something sharp and shiny sticking out. I grab it with my hand and pull out the small object. Blood oozes down my pants. I can’t use my diamond’s power, so I access my healing topaz to stop my bleeding. I don’t try to heal completely as to not drain the topaz. Behind me, Jie Wen, Duncan, Mishell, and Tod push on the big doors to close them faster. As soon as they shut, a loud clunk is heard.

  Tod says, panting for breath, “They’re in lockdown now. No one in or out for at least fifteen minutes.”

  Jie Wen marches to Brand, “You were supposed to protect us!”

  “You have no idea what I just did! You’d all be dead right now if it weren’t for me.” Brand shoves past Jie Wen and heads over towards me, blood running down the side of his face. “Next time let’s follow Jie Wen’s plan. Give me a gun and I’ll go all Deus Ex on em’. Let’s get out of here!”

  Chapter Five - Confusion

  We hustle as quickly as we can back to the Jeep with Brand in the lead. Duncan is the least injured so he brings up the rear. I help Sarangerel by wrapping my arm around her waist and letting her lean against me. Her knee is injured and she’s struggling to walk.

  Chuang appears to be in the worst shape. Jie Wen and Jonas have to nearly carry him, he’s so bad off. Jie Wen’s and Jonas’ injuries aren’t minor, either. However, they’ve used some of their Healer topaz to stop the bleeding like I did. Mishell and Tod have obvious injuries to their upper bodies but are mobile. Tod supports Mishell’s weight with one arm and carries the bundle under the other.

  We reach the vehicle and the same question hits me: how are we going to fit everyone inside?

  Chuang says to Jie Wen, “I told you we needed two jeeps.”

  “We’ll fit. We’ll just have to get creative now that no one can use their running power.”

  Tod says, “We can use the blankets now.” He opens the bundle and separates the golden, silky, shimmery material into four pieces. “Put your friend in the front seat.” He points to Chuang.

  Jie Wen and Jonas help Chuang into the front passenger seat. Then Tod lays one of the blankets on top of Chuang and closes his door.

  Duncan announces, “I’ll drive.”

  Jonas, Brand, and I climb awkwardly into the back two seats. I try to find a comfortable position but keep bumping Brand’s injured arm. Jonas pulls me onto his lap so my shoulders are away from Brand and my back is up against the side of the Jeep. Not that it’s any more comfortable for me. My shoulders are now crammed between the back of the seat in front and Jonas’s chest. He places one arm behind me and the other across my legs, holding onto my knee.

  Tod and Mishell take the middle seat directly in front of us, and Jie Wen sits in the other with Sarangerel. Tod hands one of the blankets back to Brand, which he spreads over himself and extends the edge to Jonas and me. Jonas pulls the blanket onto my legs. The remaining two blankets are used by Tod and Mishell, and Jie Wen.

  Duncan begins the bumpy drive back. “Sorry, everyone. I’ll try to miss the big holes.”

  My leg hurts every time I tense up from a bump, then again, I’m tense simply from the situation. I feel Jonas’s hand moving on my leg and look down.

  He’s pulled the shimmery blanket back and is examining my leg. He says, “Your leg is hurt real bad, Calli. Do you have any more topaz power left?”

  “I stopped the bleeding. It only looks bad.” I pull the bandage off my neck and feel the two topazes. I reach my hand forward between the seats. “Jie Wen, give my topaz to Chuang. There’s still some power in it.”

  He takes the bandage and separates the topaz and hands the healing stone to Chuang. Jie Wen throws a suspicious glance over his shoulder at me with the Mind-Control topaz between his fingers, then he puts it in his pocket.

  Chuang grunts and lets out a hiss. He holds up a bloody chunk he’s just pulled from his body. “What is this? It’s not obsidian.”

  “No, it’s not,” Tod says, but this substance also blocks the ability to use powers.”

  Brand asks, “Well, what is it?”

  “Fused silica. Finely ground quartz mixed with sand, melted, molded, charged with the anti-power, then broken into pieces and put in everything from dirty bombs and grenades to bullets and the emergency weapons system installed inside the walls.”

  “What is the anti-power?” Duncan asks, not taking his hands off the wheel.

  “I don’t know.”

  I’ve already drawn the conclusion Tod and his family know a lot about the cosmic powers, especially if there was a power-removing machine at the bunker.

  I hear Chris’s voice in my mind. Calli, what’s going on? Can you hear me?

  I hear you, I answer.

  Calli, can you hear me? Are you there?’

  Yes, I hear you.

  I can’t seem to be able to bi-locate to you. Can you hear me, Calli?

  I want to tell him I’ve been hit with Confusion Glass, but he wouldn’t know what that is.

  Speaking to the group, I say, “I was only hit with one piece, which I’ve removed, yet my powers are still confused. I can hear Chris trying to connect with me, but he can’t hear me.”

  Jie Wen says, wincing as he yanks out a shard from his upper arm, “Well, you’re fortunate. The rest of us have been pelted.”

  Jonas pulls the blanket over my legs and tightens his protective hold around my waist.

  This is going to be a long ride back.

  * * *

  We arrive at Jie Wen’s home and see Maetha waiting for us. Chris is bi-located by her side.

  Maetha opens Chuang’s door. “What happened?”

  Duncan comes around to help her carry Chuang inside. “Let’s get him inside first.”

  Chris’s eyes are zoomed in on me, sitting on Jonas’s lap. His voice sounds in my head again. Why didn’t
you respond to me?

  I speak, “I did, but obviously it didn’t work. We were hit with a confusion substance. I could hear you, but I couldn’t use my powers.”

  The rest of us exit the Jeep one by one. Chris remains by Maetha’s side to stay connected to her diamond. I wonder how it must look to Tod and his family to see an able-bodied man not helping injured people. I can’t read their minds, but I don’t have to. Their gazes keep flicking towards him, frowns and furrowed brows indicating their disapproval.

  Jonas helps me out of the Jeep and we follow the others to a room inside. Jie Wen directs Maetha to the storage area to retrieve several floor mats and first-aid supplies. After she spreads out the mats, the others sit or lay with the quartz blankets covering them. Jonas helps me over to a mat next to Brand. Then Maetha kneels beside me and assesses my injury.

  I angle my head and ask under my breath, “Shouldn’t you work on the worst injured first?”

  “No. Healing you first will give us two Healers to work on the rest.” She grabs my torn pants and rips them more.

  Chris sits by me and reaches out for my hand only to have his bi-located form pass through mine. Obviously frustrated he can’t be here with me, his eyebrows lower. “I don’t understand why you were all injured. Why didn’t Brand protect you?”

  Brand glares at Chris. “I did the best I could! All right? Sheez, no one appreciates my efforts.”

  “I do,” I say to Brand. “How many times did you repeat to make sure everyone lived?”

  His pissed-off expression softens. “Too many to count. Each time I risked not being able to repeat.”

  Chris says, “What do you mean? Your quartz isn’t affected by anything now.”

  “If I’m dead, I can’t use my repeating quartz, Chris.”

  I say, “I thought the power always repeats you out of death.”

  “If the quartz is not in my possession, I can’t use it to save my life. It’s all quite precarious, really. This whole situation has made me absolutely sure I want the quartz inserted into my head—and I want it done before I leave China.”

  Wow! Brand’s change of attitude is a big indicator of just how hard he worked to make sure we lived. I wonder if he’ll change his stance on receiving a diamond.