The Negative Man_Twilight Days

by Jeremy Croston

  I cautiously took the box into my hands. “Are their directions?”

  He pointed the clicker over his shoulder. A diagram graced the screen giving detailed instruction on how to attach this tiny little device. “I’ll be emailing these over to you as well, on an encrypted file.”

  I didn’t know what to say. “The two of you went through a great deal for me; first my hand and now this. I owe both of you a lot.”

  “Can you tell us who this super is, at least?” Emily asked.

  They deserved that much. “It’s Volkkenkrüger, as you probably were inclined to guess.”

  “I knew it,” Wilson said, very excited. “Is he really this über bad guy that every needs to fear?”

  “He’s my dad, kid.”

  Everyone’s eyes turn to me, a very somber mood coming over the room. “God, and I thought my next statement was going to be the real downer,” Wilson lamented.

  **Kyle Wonderton**

  “You’ve been avoiding me, Mister Wonderton.”

  President Whisnant finally cornered me. It was late and I didn’t think anyone would expect me being back in the office; a place I’d just killed a former friend and biggest foe. “Work never ends, sir.”

  “Ironic that work brings you back to the place that you almost died.” That got my full attention. “Let’s stop the charade, Kyle. You know full well it is my job to know all the country’s secrets, even who masked vigilantes are.”

  I really didn’t feel good about this meeting now. His bodyguard lingered behind him and there was something off about him. “Okay, in the interest of full disclosures, I’ve been avoiding meeting you for one reason—your clean energy plan is a load of crap. You’re planning on using Jericho as some biological power source to wipe out supers.”

  He didn’t even try to deny it. “A lot of people are tired of living in a world where they fear their neighbors. Can he or she blow me up with their mind? Are my children going to be safe if one of their kids has a meltdown in school? Your look says I’m a monster, but my actions prove I’m a protector.”

  “A protector wouldn’t be trying to steal another’s powers for themselves.” That got a bit more of a reaction. “You underestimated Jericho’s resources. We figured it out, Whisnant; your little humanitarian machine not only kills all supers, but it gives you the power of The Negative Man. You’d be a God amongst men, at least in your own mind.”

  The bodyguard stepped forward, his sunglasses still on and a rather intimidating snarl to boot. “Not yet, Bain,” Whisnant instructed. “Some surprises were never meant to be uncovered. I didn’t want to have to kill you, Kyle. I was hoping you’d see the good in this plan and maybe, just maybe, come to your senses.” He pointed a finger in my direction. “Bain here, he’s seen reason. He knows his life is almost at an end, but he’s willing to sacrifice himself to make sure his children never have to worry about the super menace again.”

  It was my turn to stand up, pushing my chair back so I could reach my full height. “More powerful men than you have tried to kill me,” I told Bain more than Whisnant. “Even if he succeeds, Whisnant, Jericho already knows.”

  “That is an unfortunate turn to events, but nonetheless, my plan proceeds forward. Everyone has a weakness to be exploited, even The Negative Man.”

  “Can I kill him?” The bodyguard asked.

  “Make it quick. I have to meet that insufferable mayor in an hour and I’d rather not be late.”

  Bain began to advance on me and that’s when I discovered his power.

  **Jericho Staley**

  “I’d lose my power?”

  The time to cry over potentially killing my father-figure in life was long gone. Wilson just dropped a huge bomb about Whisnant’s scheme that he conveniently left out.

  Wilson nodded once again. “The suit, it’s like a vampire tuned to your unique make-up. It already has been juiced up, but the moment you step inside, it’ll take everything from you. Whoever wears it next will be like The Negative Man 2.0.”

  Whisnant… Erin was right. God, I’d never hear the end of this. “So, the president was really up to no good. This was never meant to be some righteous act to save lives. This was to make him the only super in our country.”

  “Probably with the good intentions of starting a war that could lead to global dominion, or something close,” Emily added.

  That was the kind of scheme that only the ballsiest of villain would attempt. “On one hand we have Volkkenkrüger who wants supers to rule over ordinary people and on the other, we have a mad president who wants to eliminate all supers and, in the process, become one.” Damn, that was a mouthful. “I should’ve stayed in retirement.”

  Neither chuckled at my attempt at a joke. “What’s the plan from here?”

  Wilson was a good kid with a lot of potential to do great things in the future. And Emily, well Emily was someone who could do a lot better than me. “You two are done.” I got exactly the hostile looks I figured were coming. “No ifs, ands, or buts. With this little gadget, it’s time for me to do what I do best.”

  “Cause mayhem and destruction?”

  “I was going to say problem-solve, Miss Robbins, but I also happen to be very good at that, too.”

  Chapter 25 –

  Wednesday Night; Wonder-Tech Tower

  **Kyle Wonderton**

  Where there had been one Mister Bain there were now three. He was a multiplier; a very rare type of super that could be a very troubling task to overcome. The key was to knock out the main one and the duplicates would fall, too.

  Two of the Bains came at me, each carrying an extractable metal baton like the original pulled out of his coat. My reflexes were more than up to the challenge, avoiding the blows before they even came close to reaching their target. That’s when the third came in and added to the odd angles that I needed to avoid. Hmmm, this was going to be trickier than I anticipated.

  I swept the feet out from under the one to my right. He collided with the main one, sending them both tumbling to the ground. When they got back to their feet, a fourth Bain jumped in. Crap! Just how many copies could he make?

  As the four of them kept up their futile assault, a fifth and sixth copy came to life. They surrounded me, forcing me to begin to expend more energy to keep up against the nonstop assault that was coming my way. Blow after blow headed my direction from one of the Bains, the main one now just another copy in the crowd. The numbers game finally caught up to me and one of the batons struck me across the face. I rolled with it, which didn’t stop the pain mind you, and escaped the crowd I’d been cornered into.

  My cheek hurt like hell. “This is how it’s going to be?”

  All six spoke in unison. “Give up, Lynx. You can never defeat us.”

  It was eerie, the way they all spoke at once. “We’ll see about that.”

  A group of six wouldn’t expect a mad man going after them, but I had just enough room to make it to a full-on sprint. Not a normal human sprint, but a meta-powered dash with the idea of plowing them over. As I reached the gaggle of Bains, I unleashed a huge punch at the lead one. It connected flush with his face and my follow through brought me barreling into the other five. As the attack finished, the Bains were scattered around the office. A side effect of the attack was breaking open the back window to the office.

  The first Bain to get up did something unexpected. “Whisnant wants you dead, but someone else has another plan for you.”

  I cocked my head at him. “Oh, you’re the slave to two masters?”

  “No, just one. For Volkkenkrüger,” he growled.

  I watched in stunned silence as the man ran and leapt from the broken window, sending himself down to the ground. It was a stunning replay of what just happened to Parker Lattimore. I didn’t even need to look down to see that Mister Bain was dead—his copies disappeared just moments later.

  Shit. I rarely swore, but a second body falling off Wonder-Tech Tower was not going to be taken as a coincidence. No, thi
s had the potential to go bad very fast.

  **Jericho Staley**

  Who the hell would be knocking on my door this early in the morning, I thought. I hadn’t gone to bed; a lot of thoughts swirled in my mind. So, when I answered the door and saw Ellison standing there, a frog nearly jumped out of my throat.

  I didn’t even say anything, I just moved to the side and let him in. “Sorry if I woke you up, Jericho.”

  “No, I’ve been up for a bit.” I was hoping not to give anything away.

  He looked around and walked into the living room area. “I am guessing you have not seen the news this morning.”

  “The news, why?”

  Ellison blew the dust off the remote and switched on the television. “I forget sometimes that you can turn a television on with just the flick of your fingers.”

  It wasn’t that simple, but it was close. “Can I get you a coffee or—”

  There on my television screen was a picture of Kyle Wonderton with the word WANTED written under the face shot. Brandon Howard was in full blowhard mode with the report. “Sources say that the president wasn’t there at the time, but why his head of security was there and why he was murdered by Kyle Wonderton is a great mystery. The mayor, Frank Boosman, will be giving an update on the case by eleven, later today.”

  I turned the television off myself. “How do I know this isn’t one of your visions?”

  “I wondered if you had your doubts about me.”

  There was no point in beating around the bush. “I have a right to know, did you alter my memories about certain events?”

  Ellison rose off the couch and never broke eye contact with me. “I told you, I’d never toy with your mind again. You’re too important to me, son.”

  There is was again, that word son. I wanted to believe him, I wanted to believe him more than anything. I just couldn’t. “Thanks, dad,” I lied. “Sorry, I doubted you.”

  He accepted my apology and dove write into planning. “With everything coming together, we can begin the final phases of my plan. For us to truly succeed, it is time the mayor earned his keep with this city.”

  “I can’t see that guy being helpful at all.”

  “You forget, he believes what I want him to believe,” he reminded me.

  This could really be dangerous. “What are you going to have him do?”

  He put his hands together in a sinister way. “He’s going to order the immediate execution of Kyle Wonderton and expose him as The Morning Lynx to our fair city.”

  ****

  I had to wait out Ellison’s stay before I went to Wonderton’s estate on the outskirts of Pacific Station. I didn’t even bother knocking on the door that led to the garage lair, I just pushed right in and found… no one. Damnit! No wait, there was someone. I saw Phil’s laptop sitting on a desk against the back wall.

  Flipping him open, “Come on, Phil, let me know you’re there.”

  It took longer than normal, but finally, his digitized face appeared. “Jericho? What are you doing here?”

  “Kyle’s in trouble, the mayor is going to order his immediate execution on Volkkenkrüger’s orders.”

  He gave me this weird look, like I was crazy. “Umm, he’s just being interviewed by the police chief as a witness. Are you sure you’re okay?”

  No, I knew what was going to happen. “Can we hack into the mayor’s office? I’m sure there are communications that’ll back this up.”

  “We can, but again, what’s the point?”

  “Phil, are you okay?” I asked.

  The screen glitched for a moment. “The last round of updates didn’t quite take. This old computer’s just not up to the task anymore, I’m afraid.”

  That was it. There was a time and day when Phil would hack into a public library just for the sake of it. “I can take the lead on this one, if you need me to.”

  He relented. “Fine, but just be careful, okay?”

  The desktop popped open and I jumped on to the browser. My old days as John’s tech support came back to me. I navigated myself forward and broke through the crappy firewalls that the local government thought would be sufficient.

  “Okay, we’re in, Phil.”

  His voice boomed through the built-in speakers. “Okay, I think I can find his email pretty quickly.”

  Phil took control of the mouse and began clicking and entering in code. For him complaining about this being an old machine, he was still moving fast and navigating all of the lax security. With a few more lines plugged in, we had the mayor’s inbox right in front of us.

  “Do you see any subject lines that look good?”

  “Hang on, Phil, there’s a bunch of junk I need to plow through.”

  God, Boosman had a bunch of spam sent to his work email. Between all the magazine offers and the enhancement ads, it was a miracle he saw anything at all. Then, it was there—sent at two minutes after six this morning—a few minutes before Ellison knocked on my door. I double clicked on it, my vindication to my digital pal here.

  Phil’s laptop began to smoke. “What the hell’s happening?”

  “It’s a trap, Jericho!” he yelled, his voice spasming.

  “Phil, Phil?”

  No answer—I quickly left the browser, or tried to. Lines broke across the screen and x’s and o’x began dancing everywhere before the dreaded blue screen of death appeared.

  “Phil?” I asked quietly. There was no answer.

  I’d just killed Phil, again. I slammed my fists down beside the laptop. “Damnit all!”

  That’s when a piece of paper fell from the printer to the ground. I picked it up, in shock over what just happened in the blink of an eye. “Phil, you son of a bitch,” I said, choked up.

  Before an unknown virus fried Phil’s hard drive, the former member of The Aces had somehow entered the command to print the email. We had all the proof we needed to save Kyle.

  “You were an asshole, but a damn good developer.” Why was I getting choked up? I was getting soft in my old age. “I got it from here, Clubs.”

  **Phil**

  I knew this day was coming; this old computer wasn’t up to the tasks that it used to be. Not that I was sad—on the contrary. I got to live longer than I should’ve thanks to my powers and being able to find a home in this laptop. My time was coming to an end and I’d made peace with that well before going along with Jericho’s idea to break into the mayor’s email.

  I felt the virus taking hold. I didn’t have long. With the target in sight, I fought my way through to the email we needed. A quick scan told me something way more sinister was coming then Jericho would even be ready for. Volkkenkrüger, whoever he was, was bold enough to leave a digital footprint on certain words, that when pieced together, had an ominous undertone.

  Thinking quick, I coded up the email, hoping he would pick up on the pattern before charging off.

  Ha! This was The Negative Man. Charging off was what he did.

  The computer’s hard drive gave out. This was game over for me. My last command before my subconscious was eaten away by the virus was the print command. I faded from existence knowing that it had been successful.

  Boosman,

  It has come to my attention that a change in our plan is necessary. You’ll wait for me to take Wonderton to the police station. Your cooperation in this bodes well for everybody.

  Chapter 26 –

  Thursday Afternoon; City Hall

  Jericho Staley didn’t show up at City Hall; The Negative Man did. As I entered the double glass doors, the city employees began to scatter, screaming with each step I took on the cold marble floor.

  Security guards tried to stop my progress, but they were just ants in the way of the foot. Dark energy blasted each of them, not enough to kill of course, but enough so they wouldn’t be interfering any time soon. Nothing was going to stop this appointment with the mayor and I wanted to make a grand show of this as I proceeded.

  “Boosman!” I yelled, and it echoed throughout the d
omed enclosure. “You’re three p.m. has arrived early!”

  It wasn’t Boosman who appeared from his office, it was Ellison; he too was in his full Volkkenkrüger regalia. “Jericho, you might think you’re able to lie to me, but I raised you. Your tells are still the same all these years later.”

  “I’m not a teenager trying to sneak out after hours this time, Ellison.”

  “No, but you’re still my son.”

  He jumped off the second-floor ledge and met me in the middle. We were standing over the insignia of Pacific Station. “I can’t go through with this and you know it. That’s why you were trying to manipulate my memory when it came to Kyle. If I questioned the best person I knew, then maybe I’d go along with your plans.”

  He clapped, not in a sarcastic way, but in an encouraging way. It was just like back in the day. “You were always too smart; too quick on your feet. The fact I was able to fool you with my death and pin the blame on Leonard was still one of my greatest tricks.”

  “I would’ve killed him, anyway.”

  “I know, Jericho.” He held out his hand one more time. “Do you really want to be on the losing side this time? The Negative Man is a ruthless, cold super who makes the right choice. Make the right choice!”

  “I have.”

  Without a second thought, I blasted an arc of energy toward him. Right as it was about to connect with him, the hand of Destiny appeared for a split second and the two of them disappeared into her little slice of safety. I should’ve known she was here. Unfortunately, there was nowhere for them to go. I could wait them out as long as I needed.

  Someone appeared, but it was only Destiny. “Volkkenkrüger’s not with me, Jericho.”