“So am I right to assume that Joseph Stockton is behind today’s charade?” Garrett asked.
Jason finished looking over the last paragraph of the file in his hand, closed it, and placed it inside his briefcase.
“You aren’t right to assume anything Garrett. Post Humans are popping up everyday now. Some are even banding together and forming teams of their own. Some with the intent on doing good and others with the intent on doing harm. There's just no telling who's behind today's attack.”
Garrett disagreed completely. He ran his fingers through his short, slightly messy brown hair and stared at Jason in admiration. Garrett was modestly handsome, but in that dorky sort of way. Looking at Jason sometimes made him jealous. There was no bitterness in his thoughts, just a poignant observation.
“Joseph Stockton is the only one with the resources and technology to build killer robots. This has his name written all over it!” Garrett said.
Jason agreed that it was likely that Joseph Stockton was behind the attack. But, he didn't want to rule out any other possibilities. There were just too many other factions out there in the world. There were too many unknowns for Jason to focus all of his attention on Joseph Stockton.
Stockton Incorporated was considered the biggest competition to Shaw Enterprises. Joseph Stockton was the head of the company and every bit as intelligent as Jason Shaw. The ruthless billionaire had the money, means and desire to carry out any project he felt like. Jason and Garrett feared that Joseph's greed would eventually lead to further problems in the world. They kept a close eye on him, but he covered his tracks well.
Garrett had his tablet out and was staring at the screen. He swiped at it every few seconds leading Jason to believe he was reading a message.
“What is it?” Jason asked curiously.
“G.U.A.R.D’s preliminary reports on the bots are inconclusive,” Garrett replied nonchalantly.
“How do you possibly know what G.U.A.R.D's files say?
“Never mind,” Jason said as he realized he already had the answer to his own question.
Garrett's extraordinary ability allowed him to communicate with electronics. He used this ability often to gain access to secure networks.
Garrett rolled his eyes. While G.U.A.R.D was certainly high tech and employed really smart people, there was no one that possessed the sort of skill that he and Jason possessed.
“You know that stuff should’ve been sent to our labs. G.U.A.R.D has no business trying to decipher the mechanics on those machines,” Garrett said bitterly.
“I know with what we do, it’s sometimes hard to forget the fact that we are civilians. G.U.A.R.D has the highest clearance next to the President; they have that clearance for a reason,” Jason replied.
“I have no doubt of the things G.U.A.R.D accomplishes on a regular basis, that's not my problem. My problem is that technology like we saw today, should be looked at by the experts. We are the experts!” Garrett said.
“We will.” Jason said.
There was no point in Garrett voicing his disapproval on the matter; there was nothing he or Jason could do about it. So as frustrated as Garrett was, he had no choice but to sit back and wait.
“I’m getting hungry, how about we go grab something to eat and discuss the shielding on the new fighter jets being constructed,” Garrett suggested.
Jason didn’t get a chance to reply to Garrett’s suggestion as Maggie, Jason's personal aide walked through the door.
“Hello Mr. Shaw, hello Mr. Blake,” Maggie said sweetly.
“Please, call me Garrett,” he said in his best “I’m seductive” voice.
Jason rolled his eyes and chuckled. He wondered if Garrett realized just how ridiculous he sounded when he tried to be smooth.
“Good afternoon Ms. Lawler. What can I do for you?” Jason asked politely.
Maggie smiled. She had been with Shaw Enterprises for two years and genuinely enjoyed her job. She especially enjoyed working with Jason. Besides the easy on the eyes part, Jason was genuinely a good guy. He was down to earth, easy to work for and respectful of others. There was never a time that Jason made anyone feel unwelcome or inferior. Regardless of his power, money and influence, Jason treated everyone the same. That was just one of the many things Maggie found so attractive in Jason.
“Sir, there is a crisis down by the docks.”
Jason looked at her curiously. “What kind of crisis?”
“The kind of crisis that requires you to do your superhero thing.”
“Understood. Thank you Ms. Lawler.” Jason gave Ms. Lawler a polite nod and then headed for the door.
“You want me to come with you?” Garrett asked.
Jason could barely believe his ears. Garrett Blake was loaded with talent, but being on the field battling others wasn’t one of them. He was more than satisfied staying behind the scenes helping out any other way.
“Did I hear that correct? Are you volunteering to tag along?” Jason asked smirking.
Garrett immediately rethought volunteering as soon as he said it. “Umm yeah, never mind, I'd probably just get in the way.” Garrett said doing his best to get himself out of field work. Jason chuckled.
“I don't think you give yourself enough credit Garrett. I'll handle this but contact headquarters and let them know what's going on,” Jason instructed.
“You want me to send backup?”
“No, I’ll be fine,” Jason replied.
Garrett disagreed. Every member of the League had targets on their backs, and there were those just itching at the chance to scratch.
“I really think I should call in for backup,” Garrett insisted.
Jason remained resolved in his decision. He sped out of the office and outside the building. He propelled himself off the ground and headed for the docks with a hastened pace.
“Stephanie, this is Jason, do you copy?” Jason said over his earpiece.
“I hear you Jason, what’s the situation?” Stephanie Morgan replied.
Stephanie Morgan was another member of the League. Like Garrett, Stephanie didn't work in the field, but she was still a vital member of the team. She spent the majority of her time working closely with Mr. Connors.
Jason was about a minute out from the confrontation and the scene did not look promising. On one side there was a squad of cops trying to subdue the criminals. On the other side were ten men dressed in masks with fully automatic weapons in hand.
“Do you read any Post Human activity in my location?” Jason asked.
Stephanie used her Post Human abilities to scan the area surrounding Jason. Her abilities allowed her to locate any Post Human anywhere in the world that was using their abilities. In addition, she could identify their abilities and determine how powerful that Post Human was.
“No Post Human abilities on sight. Do you want support anyway?” Stephanie asked.
Jason approached the sight of the battle and descended down in front of the policemen.
“Nothing I can’t handle,” Jason touched his earpiece effectively ending the call.
“It's Jason Shaw,” one of the officers said. None of them would say it, but they were quite happy to see him.
“I got here as fast as I could. You gentlemen fall back and I’ll take it from here.”
The officers looked at one another and nodded. The ten masked men opened fire on Jason. He stood there unfazed by the onslaught of bullets while the police officers ran for cover.
“Please put down your weapons and end this foolish attack.” Jason said.
The masked men looked around at each other and began laughing. Apparently they weren’t aware of how powerful Jason was.
“We've got a job to do, so why don't you stay out of our way and let us do it?” one of the masked men said.
“I'm afraid I can't do that,” Jason replied.
“Then I'm afraid you're going to die here today,” the masked man replied. The man stood at close range and emptied his entire clip on Jason.
/> To show his might, Jason stood still and allowed the bullets to hit him. The masked men looked at each other with concern as the bullets bounced off of Jason, having no affect.
“Those boxes are property of Shaw Enterprises. I do not appreciate you all coming down here and trying to steal them,” Jason said.
“Take him out boys!” one of the masked men shouted.
One of the masked man stepped forward with a rocket launcher in hand. He knelt down to one knee and pointed the weapon at Jason. The masked man shot the rocket launcher which caused Jason to shake his head in disgust. He stood still as the rocket approached. He took one step forward and caught the rocket in his left hand. He then dropped to the ground and cradled it into a ball to prevent the rocket from endangering anyone else. The rocket exploded with massive impact.
“That’ll teach him,” one of the masked men shouted. They were getting ready to turn their attentions back to the police officers when they noticed movement on the ground.
“You’ve got to be kidding me!” the masked man said. He and the rest of the masked man watched as Jason stood to his feet without a scratch on him.
“Let's get out of here!” one of the masked man shouted. The ten men realized there was nothing they could do to harm Jason. So instead, they tried to escape, but Jason would have no part of that. He flew low to the ground taking several of the masked men off their feet. One of the masked men was able to land a punch in, but Jason shrugged it off as nothing more than a tickle. One by one he took out the masked men until there was no fight left in them. He disarmed their weapons and then took a step back to allow the police to move in.
“Thanks,”one of the officers said.
“Just doing my job,” Jason replied humbly.
“I wish all these Post Humans were more like you, we wouldn’t be having these sort of problems if they were.” the officer said.
“Officer, there are plenty of hardworking, dependable Post Humans out there. The media just tends to focus on those that are abusing their abilities.”
Jason looked down at the boxes the masked men were trying to steal and realized what they were after. He picked up his cell phone and dialed Garrett’s number. “Inspect every ship in production immediately!” Jason said.
He ascended to the sky and made his way back to Shaw Enterprises. If there was any tampering with Shaw technology he was going to find it. Perhaps it would even give him a clue as to who’s behind the creation of these destructive robots.
5
Medium Level Threat
Noah Winters was more than just a hot tempered, part time member of the League of Protectors. He was also an established author. “The Assassin Vigilante: Darkness Untold” was his third consecutive novel to reach the New York Times best sellers list. Very few people knew that Noah Winters was also the vigilante that patrolled the streets of Chicago with ruthless aggression.
It was a pretty good cover. Noah wrote about his own experiences as an assassin and presented it to the public as just another classic novel. In an interview, he stated that he drew inspiration from the acts of the vigilante and that is how he created the themes for his novels.
It wasn’t far fetched to believe that one of his millions of followers brought the persona to life and began dealing out punishment to the criminals of Chicago. As a member of the League, Noah presented himself as a slightly volatile but controllable member. As the Black Vigilante though, Noah was as ruthless as one could be. He tended to take on the role of Judge, Jury and almost always Executioner.
Mr. Connors was more than aware of Noah’s double life. He didn’t always agree with Noah’s tactics, but he kept Noah’s secret nonetheless. In some ways he respected what Noah was doing. Noah's intentions were pure. He wanted to reclaim the city for the people and not the mobsters, drug dealers and the rest of the crooked people around town. It was Noah's methods that Mr. Connors sometimes had difficulty stomaching. Noah was quick to kill a criminal that got in his way. He didn't care about the law and the protection in which the law gives to everyone, including the criminals.
As far as Noah was concerned, if you were a criminal and got in his way, you were as good as dead. Although Mr. Connors was the only one associated with the League that knew about Noah's double life, Jason Shaw had concluded that Noah and the Black Vigilante were one in the same. That was part of the reason there was so much tension between the two men.
Noah was still the odd man out in the group. He had no interest in building relationships with the group. He was there to protect the defenseless and nothing else mattered.
His relationship with Jason Shaw, leader of the League was pretty much nonexistent. The two had a weird respect for the others' abilities, but other than that, the two men didn't get along. Jason realized Noah's ability in the field but thought of Noah as a bad influence on the rest of the group.
Noah had a fairly decent relationship with Mr. Connors. Well decent enough for Noah that is. While others were quite cautious around him, Mr. Connors was the only one that was truly never worried about Noah's intent. He understood Noah’s background and his struggles fitting in with society. Mr. Connors acceptance and understanding was one of the main reasons Noah remained with the League.
Jackson and Shayne both got along with Noah fairly well, but the two college students didn't spend much time with him and when they did, they were always apprehensive. They often had to play peacemakers when Noah and Jason got into it. Both of them would do their best to intervene and breakup the confrontation. Jackson once joked that breaking up a Jason Shaw and Noah Winters confrontation was the best sort of field training they could receive.
Jason and Noah were the stronger duo compared to Jackson and Shayne. Breaking the powerful men up often required a considerable amount of effort and teamwork on Jackson and Shayne's part.
Noah’s relationship with Stephanie Morgan was very bland. The two hardly ever spoke and when they did, it was always concerning business. As sad as it was, Noah hardly knew anything about Stephanie. The only thing he knew about her was that she could sense others abilities and that Mr. Connors was very protective of her. Noah sometimes wondered if there was more to their relationship than meets the eye. He didn’t care enough though to dig a little deeper beyond the surface.
There was Garrett Blake, who came in a close second for members Noah disliked greatly. He appreciated and respected Garrett’s knowledge of technology. There was no denying that Garrett was a genius in several areas. It was Garrett’s lack of progress in the field that infuriated Noah.
To Noah, Garrett was nothing more than a coward who hid behind a desk. Sure, Garrett created devices that Noah found to be useful, but Garrett wasn’t the least bit interested in improving his skills in the field. Noah found that to be unacceptable. During training sessions, Garrett was like a prima donna. He didn’t want to work, he didn’t want to get sweaty, and he didn’t want to get dirty. Garrett didn’t want to do anything that required him to exert himself physically.
Noah got the impression that Garrett felt that he didn’t need to participate in training due to the technology he developed. That bothered Noah tremendously. Even Stephanie was out there training and improving. If she could do it, then Garrett should as well.
Then there was the little firecracker by the name of Bianca Ramirez. Bianca is perhaps Noah’s conscience in the group. She’s always there to confront him whenever he needed to be. In a weird way, her relationship with Noah has grown because of her determination to call him out. She never cared how upset or dangerous Noah was. If Noah was wrong, she made sure he knew about it.
Perhaps the individual Noah had the strongest relationship in the group was with Jessica Prescott, older sister of Jackson. There was no denying the chemistry the two had with one another. Others in the group often speculated of a romance behind closed doors, but that was purely speculation.
Mr. Connors kept a close eye on things. It was fairly obvious that Noah and Jessica had some sort of relationship.
It was also apparent that Jessica and Jason had some sort of relationship as well. That was likely another reason for the animosity between the two men.
With Noah living in Chicago, Jason in Boston and Jessica in New York, that kept the potential soap opera at bay for the most part. But Mr. Connors feared it was only a matter of time before things escalated.
Noah stared out into the city from on top of one of the rooftops of one of the big buildings. He often liked to look out into the city and imagine the wonderful place it could be if he could only eliminate the crime. It was a task that he knew would likely take him the rest of his life to accomplish, but he was more than willing to try.
He arrived on the scene of a Post Human situation he overheard on the police scanner. From above the rooftops he surveyed the scene. There were two men battling the police. With the growing number of high level Post Humans popping up, it had become standard protocol to get a report on the Post Humans before attacking. Noah wasn’t too fond of the having to wait idea, but he learned his lesson.
About a month or two ago, Noah confronted a Post Human as he always did. Unfortunately for him, this Post Human was far more powerful than Noah realized. If it wasn't for Noah's superior skill, he likely would've died that day. After that incident it became standard protocol to get intel reports before engaging in combat.
Noah tapped his earpiece and waited while the phone rang.
“This is Stephanie.”
“You got a fix on my location?” Noah asked. Stephanie confirmed that she did. “Do you need backup?”
“I should be find, what am I dealing with?”
Stephanie searched her mind trying to identify and evaluate the Post Humans Noah was about to confront.
“You are dealing with two Post Humans of medium level threat. The first Post Human is Lowry Holston. He’s capable of producing fire from his mouth and creating personal force fields.”
New Age of Heroes 1: The League of Protectors - Dawn of a New Age Page 4
