Noah interrupted Stephanie. “Did you just say fire from his mouth?”
“Yes,” Stephanie replied. The scope of abilities she’s identified over the years made her immune to being surprised by what some Post Humans could do.
Fire from hands was one thing but fire from the mouth was something totally different. As much as Noah had seen, fire from the mouth was a new one for him.
“What about the other?” Noah asked.
“The second Post Human is Gary Jenkins. Gary can electrocute you by touch, so make sure you keep your distance.”
“Copy that,” Noah replied.
Noah ended the phone call and looked down at the two men he needed to take down. Lowry had pale skin and stood at about six feet tall. He was relatively the same height and build as Noah.
Gary’s skin was dark. It’s much darker than Noah’s and Agent Hardine’s. Unlike Noah and Lowry, Gary was less than six feet. He was much closer to five feet nine inches and had a little extra padding in the mid section.
Noah leaped from the top of the roof and landed gracefully to the ground. A jump like that would’ve killed any human, but for Noah, he made it look as easy as jumping a foot off the ground. He caught the two men by surprise and used that to his advantage. Remembering what Stephanie said, he went after Gary first to keep him at bay.
With a straight kick to the face, Gary went staggering back. Noah could tell by the way Gary acted that he had little training as a fighter. The only thing that made Gary dangerous was his ability to electrocute. Lowry on the other hand provided a bit more of a challenge. Noah contorted his body in the air and hit Lowry with a spinning kick to the face. Lowry staggered back, but remained on his feet.
“You're that guy from that group,” Lowry said.
“Noah Winters from the League of Protectors,” Gary added.
Noah pushed his right hand forward and sent Lowry flying backwards using telekinesis. He wasn’t in any mood to converse with the enemy. He wouldn’t allow Lowry to get him off his game. The loud footsteps approaching from behind alerted Noah to Gary’s presence. He wasn’t about to allow Gary to catch him off guard.
Noah quickly turned around and hit Gary with a dropkick. The kick sent Noah to the ground as well, which was intentional.
Unfortunately, Lowry recovered faster than Noah would’ve liked. Noah jumped off the ground and grabbed his hand in pain. He looked down at the ground and saw that it was burning. He looked over to Lowry and saw fire coming out of Lowry's mouth. Lowry smiled delightfully at Noah’s pain.
“How did that feel?” Lowry asked rhetorically. Lowry clenched both of his fists and released a medium size ball of fire in Noah’s direction.
Noah ducked, as the flame zipped passed him and instead hit Gary. Screaming with pain, Gary dropped to the ground and rolled around. The police took Gary’s misfortune as their chance to cuff him. They swarmed upon him and injected him with a inhibitor needle. Inhibitors were becoming a standard item for all police departments to carry on them. That was the only known way to keep a Post Human down until the proper authorities could come in and completely neutralize them.
Lowry cursed angrily upon realizing his blunder. In a rage of anger, Lowry unleashed a plethora of fireballs in Noah’s direction. Twisting and turning, diving, and jumping, Noah evaded the deadly flames.
“When is the League going to realize they can’t stop us all? When is the League going to realize they are betraying their own kind?” Lowry shouted to Noah. He was simply stalling until he regained energy to try and attack Noah again.
Lowry clenched his fist and let the burning rage inside him build up. Noah stood still allowing Lowry to muster all the strength he had left. In what seemed like slow motion for Noah, Lowry released a massive ball of fire. It was a fire strong enough to kill upon impact. Noah stood still allowing the flame to approach him.
“I will collect a fortune for your death!” Lowry shouted confident that Noah wouldn't be able to stop the approaching flame.
Noah closed his eyes and concentrated. He could feel the flame; he could feel how close it was. Right before the flame could claim him as a victim, Noah used his telekinesis to catch the flame and sent it back in Lowry’s direction.
Lowry’s smile was suddenly wiped off his face. “Oh that's not good!” he murmured. Lowry screamed in agony as his own abilities were used against him. Noah walked over to Lowry like a predator that had just delivered a paralyzing assault. “Don’t just stand there do something you piece of crap!” Lowry shouted.
“Ok.” Noah said with a sly smile on his face. With a giant leap, Noah ascended in the air, catching the edge of the rooftop and used it to prop himself over it.
“I’ll kill you!” I swear it!' Lowry shouted as Noah disappeared into the darkness.
The emergency units arrived on the scene and put the fire out before it could claim Lowry’s life. Lowry was placed carefully on a Gurney, lifted up, and placed inside the ambulance. His injuries were severe and he had lots of permanent scaring. One of the police officers came over and stopped the medic from closing the door.
“What are you doing? We need to get him to the hospital right away,” the medic said.
The police officer pulled out an inhibitor needle and injected Lowry with it.
“Better to be safe than sorry,” the officer said and walked away. The medic nodded and closed the door behind him.
Noah watched from the rooftops as the two Post Humans were driven away.
“Gary Jenkins and Lowry Holston have been neutralized,” Noah said over his earpiece to Stephanie Morgan.
“Copy that,” she replied. “Noah, are you still there?”
Noah acknowledged.
“I'm getting a reading on another Post Human in your area. Reading is on a Post Human named Kyle Stanton,” Stephanie said.
The name sent a chill up Noah's spine. Stephanie sent Noah the coordinates of the location where Kyle's presence was felt. Unfortunately, by the time Noah arrived, there was no trace of Kyle. Noah searched for hours hoping for some clue as to Kyle's whereabouts, but his searched turned up nothing.
6
New Kid on the Block
Rain poured down on the remote destination of Stone Ridge Island, home of Post Humans who abused their abilities in criminal manners. At first, regular prisons were used to hold the Post Human criminals but it quickly became apparent that these prisons were not capable of holding these prisoners.
Back in 2007, a few months before the new President was sworn in a Post Human demonstrated his superiority over humans. His name was Silas Baker and he had the remarkable ability to melt things by simply touching them.
At the time, G.U.A.R.D did not know that Silas was a Post Human. He was arrested for robbing a convenient store. Little did they know that their ignorance would have massive repercussions. Silas waited until very late that night to make his move. With the changing of the shift guards completed, Silas placed his hand on the metal bars and melted them with ease.
Silas’ cellmate could not let an opportunity to escape pass him by. He followed Silas and the two made an ill advised attempt to escape. Both prisoners were captured, but in the midst of their escape, three officers were killed and another was severely wounded. The situation was quickly contained and the public was never made aware of the attempted escape.
G.U.A.R.D, however was. The dean immediately expressed his disapproval of having a Post Human locked up in his prison. The attempted escape was evidence that his facility was not equipped to handle these people. Commander Sullivan sent a detailed report to the President and recommended a new prison be constructed specifically for Post Humans.
The President met with Commander Sullivan, Mr. Connors, Joseph Stockton and David Shaw the President of Shaw Enterprises and father of Jason Shaw to brain storm. With the extensive knowledge Mr. Connors had in all things Post Human related and the technological genius of Shaw Enterprises and Stockton Incorporated, the five men were able to construct a pris
on capable of holding these criminals captive.
Mr. Shaw created a drug that was able to suppress Post Humans abilities temporarily.
His formula was then used by Shaw Enterprises to create an inhibitor field that was massive enough to suppress any Post Human inside the facility. With the successful creation of the inhibitor drug, the President ordered the creation of the first Post Human prison.
There was a bidding war between Shaw Enterprises and Stockton Incorporated. In the end, Stockton Incorporated won out. There were whispers that the government didn't want Shaw Enterprises working on the prison because of Jason Shaw's association with Post Humans. Those rumors were never confirmed though. As insurance in case the inhibitor field malfunctioned, the jail was built on an island.
On March 10, 2009 the jail was completed and ever since that day, Post Humans that abuse their abilities in a criminal way were sent there. For three years the prison on Stone Rock Island successfully contained its prisoners, but as the saying goes… “Good things never last.”
The day was March 13 almost exactly three years after the jail was built. It started out just like any other day. Like clockwork the G.U.A.R.D agents worked their shifts while the field agents went on their missions. The prisoners as always berated the agents, threatening to kill them and their families when they escaped. Their words didn’t bother the agents though; G.U.A.R.D was filled with professionals, the best of the best. All of them had special opts training and other training techniques that were non discussable. In addition to that training they also were trained in dealing with Post Humans.
Agent Mallory and Agent Malone stood by the front gate of the facility awaiting Agent Hardine’s field team’s arrival. A helicopter could be heard in the distance alerting the two agents of Agent Hardine’s arrival. The two men stood emotionless as the helicopter descended on the island and came to a complete stop.
Agent Hardine and his men exited the helicopter with a prisoner shackled and blindfolded. Agent Hardine removed the blindfold and pushed the prisoner forward. The prisoner looked young; he had to be about college age, 21 at the oldest.
Agent Malone walked over to Agent Hardine and the young prisoner to check him out. It was clear from Agent Malone’s tone that he thought very little of the shackled criminal. Agent Hardine pushed the prisoner forward towards Agent Malone.
“What’s your name kid?” Agent Malone asked.
The prisoner did not respond. He had no intentions on cooperating with any of the G.U.A.R.D agents. Agent Malone wasn’t the least bit surprised that the prisoner did not respond. All the prisoners acted tough when they first arrived. As weird as it sounds, Agent Malone would’ve thought less of the prisoner had he responded right away.
“Are you deaf? Are you unable to speak? I asked you a question… What’s your name?”
The prisoner stared at Agent Malone with glaring eyes. The agent waited, but again the prisoner did not respond.
“It looks like this young man needs a lesson in respect. You know anything about respect punk? You know anything about right or wrong?”
Not for one second did Agent Malone believe that the prisoner would engage him in conversation, but he didn’t care. Every Agent had their own style, their own personality that they displayed when in the presence of these criminals. Agent Malone’s style was that of an instigator. He loved riling the convicts up. It was his source of entertainment. The young prisoner gritted his teeth and contemplated engaging the agent in conversation, but he thought better of it. Satisfied for the moment, Agent Malone turned his attention back to Agent Hardine.
“So what’s the story on this guy? What’s he capable of?” Agent Malone asked.
Agent Hardine looked through a list of files on his tablet. He kept swiping at it until he found the information he was looking for. “His name is Erik Masters. 19 years old out of Bardstown, Kentucky. It says here that he has the ability to manipulate fire. We caught him trying to flee the scene after burning half his town down.”
“Is that right? You like to play with fire huh? Did you care at all that there were people inside those homes you destroyed? Did you care that there were lives you ruined simply because you’re a Post Human degenerate?”
Agent Malone was right up in Erik’s face. He was determined to make Erik his personal project. If things went his way, he’d have Erik mentally broken within a week. It’s so much easier to deal with the Post Humans once they've been broken and Agent Malone was quite skilled in breaking the spirits of most people.
He waited for some sort of reaction from the young man, but he didn’t get one. Conceding that he would get nowhere with Erik that day, he ordered another agent to take the prisoner for processing. The agent ran over and grabbed Erik by the arm. Agent Hardine followed behind. Even though Erik was injected with the inhibitor drug, he didn’t want to take any chances.
“Hope you don’t have any plans because you are going to be here a really long time you freak!” Agent Malone shouted as the agents took Erik Masters away.
No one noticed the sly smile Erik displayed. It was something that Agent Malone said that he found quite funny. Erik knew something that Agent Malone didn’t. He knew something that made Agent Malone sound like an idiot, but that would have to wait. It wasn’t time, not yet.
There was another checkpoint Agent Hardine had to clear before being admitted to the processing station. It might’ve seemed a bit much, but dealing with the sort of things they were dealing with, it was absolutely necessary. The gate opened and the prisoner was greeted by several guards, each pointing some sort of high tech weapon at him. Each guard looked rather fit. Erik noticed the men staring at him. They looked at Erik as if he was scum.
What Erik noticed more than anything else was the confidence the men displayed. Every one of them presented themselves like they knew what was going on. Erik chuckled slightly. The ignorance of these men would be their undoing.
Agent Hardine walked over to Agent Mallory and introduced him to their newest prisoner. He gave the young criminal a slight glance and then ushered him through the gate.
There was a team of security guards surrounding the gate as Erik was brought in. Even though he was shackled and his abilities were being suppressed, it was standard protocol.
Agent Mallory gave another glance towards Erik. What he found the most disturbing about Erik was Erik’s disconnect. Erik didn’t seem remorseful at all. He didn’t seem nervous or scared or anything really. His face looked completely blank. Agent Mallory motioned for the security guards to stand down. The guards followed instructions immediately and returned to their post. Agent Mallory and Agent Hardine escorted the prisoner to the processing station.
There was a man standing by the station that did a thorough examination of Erik. They didn’t want to take any chances that the young man was concealing anything that would lead to his escape. While the two agents waited, Agent Mallory skimmed over Erik’s file.
“So you're a pyro freak?” he suddenly said. As Erik did with Agent Malone, he ignored the question, but this time gave a slight smile.
“He’s all clear,” The man doing the examination announced.
Agent Mallory nodded. He motioned to two of the guards standing nearby. They rushed over to Agent Mallory and grabbed Erik roughly by the arms. The two guards escorted Erik Masters to his cell. Agent Hardine and Agent Mallory watched from outside as Erik was led away.
Agent Hardine looked towards his watch checking to see what time it was. Agent Mallory assumed there was another mission Agent Hardine had to attend to.
From the distance, another helicopter could be heard making its approach. Agent Mallory raised his eyebrow and then checked his phone for messages.
“I don’t recall any other prisoners being scheduled to arrive,” he said irritated.
He looked at the helicopter suspiciously. It didn’t look like a helicopter he was used to seeing. It wasn’t the sort of helicopters G.U.A.R.D used for transportation. This particular helicop
ter looked civilian.
“I don't have anyone scheduled to come in,” Agent Mallory said.
Agent Hardine pulled out his binoculars and looked in the direction of the helicopter. “It's not a G.U.A.R.D chopper. That chopper belongs to Jason Shaw.”
Agent Mallory and Agent Hardine gave each other a look and then watched as the helicopter descended to the ground.
7
Mandatory Inspection
Agent Hardine walked over to greet Jason Shaw and Garrett Blake. The two League members standing side by side made their physical differences quite noticeable. Regardless of their association with The League of Protectors, the two men were considered vital to the success of Shaw Enterprises. Jason served as the vice president of the company and was always coming up with new technology. Garrett specialized in electronics and security. He was responsible for making sure every system was completely secure. He was also responsible for fixing any piece of technology that malfunctioned.
As evident by their arrival, the League still had an image problem to deal with. No matter how many lives they saved; no matter how much good they did, there was always a large group that despised them. Regardless of reluctance, the animosity and the hostility shown towards them, The League of Protectors continued to protect as best they could.
This was only the third time Agent Hardine and Jason Shaw ran into each other. The most recent being at the beach when Olden Mars was captured. The first meeting however was back when both men served in the military. Both of them were Marines, but they were in different units. By the time Jason finished basic training and joined his unit, Agent Hardine was already promoted to special opts.
Agent Hardine shook the two men’s hands and escorted them inside the facility.
“Good to see you again Mr. Shaw.”
New Age of Heroes 1: The League of Protectors - Dawn of a New Age Page 5
