by Drew Hayes
When Donald woke up the next morning, he would find out that one of those strangely-colored bolts of lightning had hit his building’s transformer, blowing out the electrical system for the entire complex. Donald didn’t have a chance to register what was happening in the moment, however, as energy burst through his oh-so-foolproof power source, flowing through his gaming array before arcing outward into the nearest conductive source: Donald himself.
The upside was that it all happened so fast that there was no time to register any pain as the bright blue volts struck him from nearly every conceivable direction, filling his body with electricity along with a myriad of other things. When it finally stopped, he slumped over in his chair briefly before tottering forward and slamming his head to the floor.
Eight hours later, when he finally rejoined the land of the living, that bruise on his forehead would be the only injury Donald found.
Chapter 14
“As responders continue to comb through the wreckage of a laboratory registered to Granco Pharmaceuticals, the hopes of finding any more survivors are dwindling. Many of those that were rescued have cooperated with investigators, shedding much-needed light on the accident that sent unexpected blasts of multi-colored lightning tearing across Ridge City last night. While much of the information remains classified, confidential sources have said that it all stemmed from yet another attempt to recreate the infamous Wilshire Applied Technologies experiment that gave the world, among many other things, Professor Quantum.”
Tori muted the television as Ivan walked into the living room with two plates of scrambled eggs and bacon. She’d been stuck to the screen all morning, but it had been more or less a loop of the same information. Occasionally, there would be an interview with a clearly-panicked and lying Granco executive to spice things up, and those Tori was relishing. There was no compassion in her heart for sloppy, irresponsible scientists—a suitable classification for anyone who would try that experiment so near a city. Even Professor Quantum, the world’s leading expert on meta-elements (and a testament to them, since his powers were due to high levels of setlium exposure), had moved his work to a remote island in order to minimize possible casualties.
“You ever wonder if the rest of the Science Sentries get pissed when they’re lumped together as ‘other things’ every time someone talks about the professor?”
“It’s been a long time since I had any dealings with them, but even back then, they weren’t particularly fond of living in his shadow,” Ivan replied. “I was in prison when they officially split up as a team, so I can’t say for certain as to what drove them apart. I believe the official story was that the others were getting too old, since they didn’t get his seemingly endless youth; however, my guess would be that his ego finally succeeded in driving them away.”
“Bit of a prick despite the family-friendly image?” Tori asked.
“Professor Quantum might be the only living person I’ve ever met who is as smart as Doctor Mechaniacal, and the accident gave him physical powers that put him on par with me. I can’t imagine any situation where a man like that doesn’t turn into some form of asshole.” Ivan took a large bite of eggs, thankful he’d spent the time to dice and add fresh garlic before scrambling them.
“I always imagined most of the big names were assholes when the cameras went off,” Tori said, turning her attention to the bacon before the eggs. “Professor Quantum always seemed like the coldest of them, but I bet Quorum and Lodestar are no better.”
Ivan’s fork scraped the plate ever so slightly. He disguised the twitch of his fingers by digging out an extra-large scoop of eggs. “Quorum is probably the fairest person any of us will ever meet. All those voices give him a lot of perspective. He can be a bit stuffy at times, but truthfully, the man is almost entirely without ego. Not surprising given what his sense of self must be like. As for Lodestar...” Ivan hesitated, unsure of exactly how to put this for his apprentice. The capes were, ostensibly, the enemies, but there wasn’t exactly a bounty of negative things to say about the woman with glowing hair and lavender eyes. “She’s... well, she’s the real deal. Almost every cape I ever met and fought was in it for their own reasons. Even if those reasons led them to do good, the core was driven by some sort of selfishness; they were still people, after all. Lodestar’s a true hero, which makes her the hardest person in the world to fight against. She won’t turn or run or back down, no matter the opponent.”
“Guess some people do live up to the hype. Hope I never have to fight her,” Tori said. She could see something flickering in Ivan’s eyes, though she had no clue whether it was vitriol for the cape who beat him, admiration for such a powerful fighter, or some emotion that was entirely unexpected.
Ivan snorted through a bite of his bacon and shook his head. “There is no situation in which you should try to go up against Lodestar. It’s entirely futile. Words can’t convey what it’s like watching her drop from the sky in an explosion of golden light, the crushing sense of defeat you feel tearing through you. As soon as we saw that meteor-like drop, we knew it was over.”
“That’s quite a statement, given your track record and acclaim.”
“I’m sure you researched all the footage and articles, so you already know that I could never beat her. Pretty much everyone else, sure, but never her. And that was in my prime. Now, I doubt I’d last more than a minute against her, tops.”
“You still look young and spry to me,” Tori pointed out. She finished off the last remains of her breakfast and idly glanced around to see if Ivan had brought toast.
“My body might not age much, but I haven’t been in a real fight in years. There’s no room for being rusty when going up against one of the greats.”
“Not like she’s been all over the news lately, either. Actually, I can’t remember the last time I saw Lodestar make an actual appearance.”
“No doubt she’s locked herself away to train up the next generation of capes,” Ivan said, perhaps a hair too quickly. “At any rate, since our docket is clear today, I thought we might swing by the guild headquarters and see how the cleanup is going. They say it’s all under control, but there might be some tasks we can assist with. Who knows, perhaps you can even sneak a peek at some of the new recruits.”
“Ooooh, spying, I likey.” Tori set her plate down on the coffee table and checked the screen, which was currently showing the blacked out section of downtown Ridge City. “Any chance we’ll get a four-day weekend out of this?”
“Power should be back on at the office by early afternoon. We’re lucky they let us telecommute the whole day as it is,” Ivan replied.
“Yet we’re not telecommuting at all. You want us to play hooky and go mess around with guild business.”
Ivan rose from the couch and paused to pick up Tori’s dish off the coffee table. “Come on, now, you’ve been at the company for over a week already. Don’t tell me you really think anyone actually telecommutes, especially not on a Friday. This is the corporate equivalent of a snow day.”
“And just like during real snow days, I have to spend it inside studying,” Tori said. For the briefest of moments, her eyes seemed to grow slightly wistful and a touch sad. Then she blinked and it was gone. She turned quickly to see if Ivan had noticed; he made a point of facing the TV. It certainly didn’t fool her, but it allowed them to skate over the moment without comment. To both of them, that was the best way to treat momentary displays of emotion.
“It’s not just studying,” Ivan corrected. “Since my kids are out of town and the confluence came early, you and I have some free time this weekend. I was thinking that perhaps it’s time to start some light combat training.”
“Seriously? That’s awesome!” Tori leapt up so quickly that she nearly smacked her shin on the coffee table. As fast as the excitement had come, it transformed into concern as she studied her teacher’s stoic expression. “Wait, you’re not going to try to kill me again, right?”
Ivan smiled and turned toward the
kitchen, dishes clinking lightly as he walked.
“‘Try’ is a bit of a strong word. Let’s just say that whatever happens, happens.”
* * *
Quorum stood atop the overlook, staring through the one-way glass at the motley collection of people assembled in the sizable room below. Many looked benign, though a few had the telltale signs of recently-transformed metas. One older woman was hovering a few inches off the ground; a child had blue sparks flashing periodically from his eyes. Then there was the seven-foot-tall man who seemed closer to an anthropomorphic beast than a human: head of a tiger, body of a gorilla, talons of an eagle, and that was just what Quorum could make out from up in his vaulted position. Most of them would be able to readjust to their changed lives, having the option either to return to the mundane world they’d known or embrace their potential to be champions of good. The tiger-headed man, however, would likely get no such option. Whatever path lay ahead for him, the life he’d held before was forever out of reach. Quorum felt for metas like that. After all, he was one.
“Quite a crop this year,” said Apollo, walking over with a stack of files in hand. “Most we picked up scared and confused. The only one who did any real damage was Ren Tanaka, and honestly, I can’t blame the kid. If I’d been turned into some sort of weird chimera monster, I would have accidently broken some windows too.”
“How are they in terms of power?” Quorum asked calmly. There were certainly more metas out there, ones that hadn’t been so distraught or easy to find, to say nothing of those who would stumble upon remnants of the confluence and be created later. Most would be lower-level, not suited for lives donning the cape nor intriguing enough to be courted by Wade Wyatt and his team. The strongest ones usually popped out the first night, though not always. Quorum estimated there would be a few surprises showing up in the weeks to come, perhaps even a determined solo hero in a homemade costume. He was rather fond of the upstarts; they reminded Quorum of how things had been back when they were first beginning. No uneasy alliances, no global organization, just a bunch of people who’d been handed power trying to do the best they could with it.
“We haven’t gotten to do any real testing yet,” Apollo said. “I’ve got Stalwart Iron rigging up some dummies in the practice chambers for a baseline physical exam. Surprisingly broad range of origins, though. Several accidentally mutated, as we’d expected from the storm, but there are also a fair amount of activated inner powers and even a few who are testing positive for magic. Data Mine thinks that the people at Granco were employing mystical substances in their experiment.”
“That would account for the energy spikes we saw throughout the night,” Quorum agreed. “Combining magic with such a high level of experimental technology is bound to produce unexpected results. Do any of them have hope of reversal?”
“A few are showing tangible cores of power. There’s more testing to do before we know if it’s safe, but separating them from those cores could return them to human.” Apollo flipped through his folders as he spoke, skimming to make sure the information he provided was accurate.
“I don’t suppose Ren is one of those few.” Quorum already knew the answer; he’d been around for too long not to know how cruelly the world worked.
“Afraid not,” Apollo confirmed. “He was on an experimental drug trying to treat a blown-out knee. We think that’s what the lightning he was hit by reacted with. No one is even sure what it did to him yet; all we know is that his DNA has been seared like a flank steak. Whatever he was before, there’s no way to turn him back from here.”
“Thank you for the update,” Quorum said. “Those people have been kept waiting long enough, I believe. It’s time to start my address. Hopefully I can sway them toward lending us the strength of their talents.”
Apollo closed his files hurriedly as Quorum started down the hall. “You’ll do great. We always have a big crop of recruits after you rally them. Heck, that’s what got me to sign up initially.”
“One never knows just how things will go,” Quorum said. A small smile pulled at the edges of his mouth as he remembered seeing Apollo for the first time over a decade ago. He’d looked much the same as he did now, only with a touch of fear in his eyes where confidence currently dwelled. “I appreciate the encouragement, though. Pay close attention as I talk with them, Apollo. There may come a day when you are the one who must greet the new metas.”
“I could only hope to be a pale shadow of you, sir.” There was nothing small or soft about the smile blazing on Apollo’s face as he trailed down the hall after Quorum.
* * *
“Only three?” Tori didn’t bother masking her disappointment as Xelas told them the results of the previous night’s storm. “I thought there would be, like, a whole new litter of meta-humans out there.”
“Oh, no doubt there’s a shitload,” Xelas replied. Despite her metallic form, her voice was warm and lively, probably the most carefree Tori had heard in her time with the guild. “But the capes are the ones who scoop up most of them. We usually only run into ones that are on, or building toward, a rampage near something we’re protecting. Capes play offense, we play defense. It means we get fewer, sure, but ours are more destructive.”
“Are there any of particular note?” Ivan asked.
“They’re all fairly neat. One guy keeps accidently creating powerful spells and wards by drawing simple symbols, another summons swarms of insects, and then there’s a woman with a transforming power. In the two hours we’ve had her, she’s done two distinct but similar shifts. Arcanicus thinks that’s barely scratching the surface. She even put some hurt on Thuggernaut before he was able to take her down.”
Ivan gave a slight nod while Tori let out a long whistle. “Thuggernaut? That massive guy who looked like he could crush me between his fingers when I met him? That’s who this new gal beat up?”
“Thuggernaut is a good man with a firm head on his shoulders, but technically speaking, he’s not the most powerful of metas,” Ivan informed her.
“Still, for a rookie to leave a mark like she did, the lady is working with serious mojo,” Xelas added. “Doc is out testing the lot of them right now, using a different suit than his usual.” She turned to Tori, since this comment was clearly for her benefit rather than Ivan’s.
“Since these folks didn’t get caught busting into a vault, they still get a choice before joining,” Xelas continued. “The ones who have control and want normal lives are cut free; typically we tell them we’re a group of metas who like to help newbies figure things out. The ones who have control and who Doc thinks will go criminal are joining whether they like it or not; that’s part of what the guild is here for. The ones who don’t have control, but he believes will be able to attain it, are given a little more information to work with. They can either sign on and get training, be cut loose to try and live normally, or go work for the capes. However, they are also given a firm warning that if they lose control and we have to deal with them, it’s going to be in a permanent fashion. Getting turned into a meta isn’t their fault, but choosing to be a loose cannon around others is.”
“Geez, you all really don’t fuck around,” Tori said. “Also, someone besides Pseudonym calls Doctor Mechaniacal ‘Doc’? Is this an old-friend thing, or can any guild member use the cutesy nickname?”
“Perks of having known him for long enough and being on the council,” Xelas shot back. Her robotic features had no trouble relaying heaps of smarmy sarcasm in the grin she flashed Tori. “Put in enough years of service, and maybe you can get away with it too.”
Ivan cleared his throat to bring Xelas’s attention back around to him, though the devious sparkle remained in her mechanical eyes. “Since Doctor Mechaniacal and the new recruits are out, I assume Tunnel Vision is on the property?”
“Sure, they’re in the break room down the hall.” Xelas motioned out the door of her small, cramped office into a winding hallway of dark carpets and strange people. Tori had barely been able to k
eep from swiveling her head about as she and Ivan marched in from the parking garage. There weren’t a whole lot more people than she’d seen on her first night, but each one was fascinating and unique enough to warrant a good stare.
“Thank you,” Ivan replied. “If Doctor Mechaniacal returns, let him know that Tunnel Vision has taken us out to one of the training grounds.”
“Roughhousing? Ooo ooo! Can I come watch?”
Tori waited for her teacher to say no, to tell this metal woman that such sessions were meant to be a sacred act of learning between master and disciple. Instead, Ivan gave a half-shrug and waved for Xelas to follow as they walked out her office door.
“I am so glad I had my optic cameras upgraded last week,” Xelas crooned, so excited that she was weaving as they meandered through the halls. “There’s just something magical about the first time you watch a rookie get demolished.”
Chapter 15
Ivan ducked nimbly to the side. The blast of flame careened harmlessly over his head as Tori scrambled to get a new line of sight on him. From a nearby cluster of rocks, Xelas hooted loudly, the sound of her applause like trash cans being slammed together in a compactor. Tori bitterly wondered how long she was going to keep cheering. They’d been at it for half an hour and she’d yet to so much as even singe the lining on Ivan’s costume, let alone land a clean hit. When she went in for melee, he easily tossed her aside, and when she tried to snipe him at a range, he dodged the fireballs like he had all the time in the world.
“Can we pause for a minute?” Tori asked, phasing into her human-form. Overhead, the sun beat down on them, making the dry sand around them so hot that it likely would have been intolerable if one weren’t partially made of fire, entirely mechanical, or a goddamned legendary powerhouse. She didn’t know where they were, but Tunnel Vision (a pair of fraternal twins who shared one code name) had evidently taken them somewhere set aside for guild training. It made sense that they’d be out here—not even Ivan could do more than turn the big rocks into smaller rocks.
