“Drop… him…” Tapestry’s voice was frail. She looked terrible, like a burn victim past the point of hope.
“What?” asked Malcolm.
“From… the sky…” managed Tapestry.
Malcolm understood in an instant. He took hold of the shield bubble, surprised by how it seemed to be as light as a feather, even with the weight of Rain Dancer inside of it.
“What are you doing?” screamed Rain Dancer. “I will destroy you!”
“Hate to burst your bubble, but not today,” said Malcolm. He hoisted the shield bubble over his head and leapt into the air, pushing himself into the sky with the wind.
He used the method that Shield Maiden had taught him, slowly launching himself upward with quick, intense bursts of air. It felt a little like performing a double jump in a video game, except he just kept going, rising fifty or so feet each time.
From above, Malcolm could see the extent of the damage that their headquarters had taken. Fire was spreading across one side, and the hole in the roof was allowing smoke and air to flow and feed the flames.
There would be nothing left in a couple of hours other than a collapsed ruin of metal and cinders. Malcolm knew that the only way Tapestry and the others would get out alive was if he made it back in time to help evacuate.
He rose even higher, watching as the trees and cars surround their base turned into little, insignificant dots. The air was cold, and chilled his hands and face until he could barely feel any sensation left. Malcolm grimaced as he passed through a cloud, his clothes soaking instantly.
He kept pushing himself higher and higher into the sky until it got hard for him to breathe, and he was positive that the fall would kill anything, super powered or not. Rain Dancer had gone silent. Malcolm considered what his last words to the demon should be.
“Well…” he said. “This is goodbye, I guess.”
Rain Dancer didn’t react. Malcolm didn’t have time to wait any longer. He tossed the shield bubble away from him, like a volleyball across a net, and then disintegrated it. Rain Dancer fell like a rock… for the first few feet.
He froze in midair, appearing to shoot up as Malcolm began his own descent. Then, he hurtled toward Malcolm with his arms extended, flying through the air as naturally as a bird, or a plane. Rain Dancer’s hands closed around Malcolm’s neck, and he grinned as he began to choke him.
“What…?” coughed Malcolm. “How?”
“Sometimes it’s handy to keep the full extent of your powers under wraps, you know?” said Rain Dancer.
His hands crackled with electricity. Pain surged through every inch of Malcolm’s nervous system. Rain Dancer threw him into the air, and Malcolm began to drop, picking up speed as gravity did its thing.
He couldn’t call his powers immediately, not after having Rain Dancer short circuit them through Malcolm’s weakness. The first few seconds of Malcolm’s fall were the most terrifying of his life, up to that point. He screamed wordlessly and windmilled his arms, knowing that it would do little good.
By the time he could summon the wind again, the ground was coming up on him fast. He only barely managed to cushion his fall, landing in an undignified heap in a field a half mile from headquarters.
Rain Dancer descended next to him, gracefully touching down on both feet. Malcolm tried to sit up. Lightning danced over his body, forcing a scream out of him and killing any hope he had left.
“I won’t give you another chance to trap me in a shield,” said Rain Dancer. “You can be sure about that, ya?”
He shocked Malcolm again, and then let out a sigh.
“Wind Runner,” he said. “I thought we could be friends. Not right at first, but we brought you down to Underworld. You seemed like a funny guy, you know? Friends with a spryte, even though you were a champion…”
“We could still… be friends,” said Malcolm. His throat was dry and he had to force the words out. “Let’s start with a trust building exercise. Me… trusting you… not to kill me.”
“Funny.” Rain Dancer shocked him again. “Like I said.”
Just… one more step.
“It was worth it being disappointed by you to meet Rose, though,” said Rain Dancer, flashing a dirty grin. “Mmm, mmm, mmm, am I ever going to enjoy getting to know her better! Anything I should know in advance before pushing in? Any little tricks she likes? Kinky turn ons?”
Rain Dancer took another step. Malcolm shot his hand out, slipping it under the demon’s pant leg and holding tight to his ankle. Rain Dancer let out an amused laugh and let the lightning crackle through his hands. Malcolm felt the tingle, and knew that he had exactly what he wanted.
“Her biggest turnoff is people who underestimate their opponents.”
Malcolm pushed both his palms outward, shooting as much lightning as he could muster into Rain Dancer’s chest. It was enough to knock the demon back a few feet, but it didn’t appear to do any actual damage, at least not physically. The expression on Rain Dancer’s face was one of confusion and outrage, and Malcolm savored it.
“I know,” said Malcolm. “You must be so shocked right now? Get it? Do you get the pun, Rain Dancer?”
“You are nothing!” Rain Dancer blasted lightning out at Malcolm, two or three times as much as Malcolm had sent his way. Malcolm caught the blast by meeting it with his own electrical burst, and both of them stood, pushing back and forth, neither of them upsetting the stalemate.
“I’m a champion,” said Malcolm. “I’m Wind Runner, bitch!”
“You can’t beat me with my own power!” shouted Rain Dancer. “It doesn’t work like that, you. Sooner or later, I’ll get close to you again, and we’ll see who wins in a fair fight.”
Malcolm sent a sideways burst of electricity through a nearby tree, causing it to explode into flaming bits of splinter. He caught a few dozen with a gust of wind and hurled them at Rain Dancer while the demon’s attention was still on pushing with his lightning.
“I don’t fight fair,” said Malcolm.
Most of the wood shards only scratched at Rain Dancer’s shoulders. A few he managed to knock away with lightning, but he hadn’t been expecting to have to deal with Malcolm on two fronts at once. A splinter of wood with a pencil like point took him directly in the left eye, and the demon let out a howl of pain and fell to his knees.
“My… eye…” Rain Dancer reached up, not daring to bring his fingers in close to the piece of wood lodged through the surface of his cornea.
Malcolm was already preparing a spear like shaft of broken wood to deliver the finishing blow. He understood the champion’s policy on killing monsters more clearly than he ever had before. It made things simple, even if it was brutal, and often undeservingly applied.
He spun the makeshift spear around so its point was facing Rain Dancer. The demon saw what was coming through his good eye and leapt into the air, taking flight toward the horizon. Malcolm considered going after him, and then remembered the rest of his friends back at the dome.
It’s not worth risking their lives, even if I’ll have to face him again later.
CHAPTER 36
The Champion Authority’s Vanderbrook headquarters was in complete ruin. Flames had completely engulfed the building. Malcolm took a deep breath and risked going in through the hole in the roof, descending into the inferno.
It was hard to see through the smoke and flames but Malcolm spotted his fellow champions in the hall and immediately went to aid them. Anna was dragging Greenthumb across the floor. Tapestry was still unconscious, and Malcolm was surprised to see Wax struggling to lift her up.
“I’ll carry Tapestry!” said Malcolm, yelling to be heard over the sound of the fire.
Wax nodded. He tried to say something, but could only manage a cough in response.
Their escape was a race against time. Malcolm used his wind manipulation to carefully redirect the smoke from their faces. All they needed to do was make it down the hallway and out the front entrance, but the walls, and even the f
loor in places, were on fire.
They made it to the door after what felt like an odyssey through hell. The electronics that controlled the door opening mechanism weren’t functioning. Anna started screaming as it refused to respond to her inputs.
Malcolm walked over, set his hand against it, and gave it a focused electrical burst. The door opened, and the champions burst out into the open air, coughing up smoke as they tasted the fresh air.
They kept going until they were next to the cars parked on the grass. Tapestry’s BMW was unharmed, as were Anna, Greenthumb, and Multi’s rides. Melt’s truck had taken a metal beam through the windshield at some point, and was in no state to be driven.
Malcolm sat down next to Tapestry, who was still unconscious and in the process of regenerating. Her face was fully healed, but serious burns ran up her arms and chest. It was taking her longer than Malcolm ever remembered it taking her before, and his concern for her was almost overwhelming.
“What do we do now?” asked Anna. She directed the question at Wax, though it took the bald Multi several seconds to realize he was supposed to answer.
“Uh…” Wax shrugged. “That’s a good question.”
“But…” said Anna. “You’re a Multi, aren’t you? You should know the main Multi’s backup plan in case of the base being attacked.”
“I’m Wax,” said Wax. “While technically I am a copy of Multi, I haven’t been him, in a sense, for almost five years. He was the one who gave the orders… And now those monsters have him.”
“Wait, what?” said Malcolm.
“I saw them capture Alpha,” said Wax. “The original Multi.”
Malcolm frowned. He was cradling Tapestry’s head, and she let out a small cough. Several locks of hair had come loose from her pony tail, and he brushed one of them out of her soot stained face.
“What does that mean?” asked Anna. “If they have Multi…”
“Best case scenario is that they interrogate him and learn most of the Champion Authority’s secrets,” said Wax. “Including information about all of your weaknesses and every other champion that Multi knows about.”
“How is that the best case scenario?” asked Malcolm.
Wax’s expression darkened.
“The worst case scenario, Wind Runner, is that they manage to do to Multi what they’ve already done to Melt,” said Wax. “Turn him into a demon. Think about what that would mean, given his power.”
An infinite army, under the command of Rain Dancer and Shield Maiden.
Malcolm exhaled slowly. He shook his head.
“We have to do something,” he said. “We can’t let that happen.”
“All we can do now is bide our time and try to regain our strength,” said Wax. “It’ll be better if we split into groups to avoid drawing too much attention to ourselves.”
“Greenthumb needs a doctor,” said Anna. “I don’t think he’s in danger of… dying, but he needs medical attention.”
“So the two of you should head to the hospital,” said Wax. “And Wind Runner, do you have somewhere to go with Tapestry?”
“Her house?” asked Malcolm. “She has a… family member, who is probably already starting to worry about her.”
“That’ll do,” said Wax.
“What about you?” asked Malcolm.
Wax smiled.
“I’m going to get in touch with Savior,” said Wax. “He needs to know about what’s transpired here.”
Malcolm drove Tapestry home in her BMW. Melanie was waiting at the door and helped him get her inside, her worry manifesting as an overwhelming barrage of words and questions.
“How did this happen?” she asked. “The base was attacked? By what? Tapestry said that your base is impenetrable? What could have done this? Was it a monster? I swear, if it shows up here, I’ll fight too! Nobody hurts Aubrey and gets away with it!”
“Melanie,” said Malcolm. “It’s okay. She’ll recover.”
Malcolm helped get her into her room, and then brought a towel and some warm water to Melanie so that he could get her cleaned up. He headed to the bathroom, noticing for the first time the damage Rain Dancer’s electricity had done to his clothing.
It’s my favorite shirt. Well… given what I did to his eye, I guess we’re kind of even.
He’d left the door open a crack, and a shadow flickered in the periphery of his vision. Malcolm tensed up, feeling a rush of conflicting emotions as he opened the door.
“It’s just me,” said Melanie. “I need a few more towels. Are you okay, Malcolm? You look surprised…”
“Uh, yeah…” he said. “I’m just… tired.”
“You can put on your music in the living room, if you want,” said Melanie. “Are you planning on staying the night? I can’t cook as well as Aubrey, but I can make something for us. We can even open a bottle of wine! Don’t tell Aubrey though, she’s still mad at me for drinking her booze last time.”
“I’ll stay for a while,” said Malcolm. “It’s probably better if I stick around, at least until she wakes up.”
He passed Melanie her towels and closed the door before she could start on another tangent. Malcolm sighed. He was tired, both physically and emotionally.
Rose… What’s going to happen the next time we meet?
CHAPTER 37
“I’ll kill him! He… is a dead man!”
Rain Dancer smashed his fist through a table in the meeting chamber of Underworld. His anger manifested in uncontrolled static sparks through his hair and along his body. He kept one hand over his newly bandaged eye, massaging the area around the socket.
“I won’t let you kill him,” said Rose. She stood off to the side, next to Shield Maiden. They hadn’t told her about the attack on the champion’s base until after it had happened. They still didn’t trust her, and maybe for good reason.
“You would pick a champion over me?” roared Rain Dancer. “A pathetic, sniveling wretch!”
He whirled on Rose. She summoned her shadow tendrils, wrapping one of them around his neck before he could take a step in her direction.
“Does that answer your question?” asked Rose.
Rain Dancer snarled. Shield Maiden slowly moved to position herself in between the two of them.
“There is no point to fighting amongst ourselves,” she said. “Rain… please. Think about all that we’ve gained from this attack.”
“Think about what I’ve lost,” shouted Rain Dancer. “My fucking eye!”
“We captured their leader,” said Shield Maiden. “The one they call Multi. This is not one of the copies, either. He’s wearing the same outfit you said the one giving the orders had on.”
Rain Dancer let out a huff and relaxed slightly.
“And on top of that,” continued Shield Maiden, “We’ve secured another powerful new ally. Why don’t we go check in on him, and see if he’s ready to be sociable?”
She started walking down the hallway toward the containment cells. Rose followed her on one side, and Rain Dancer kept pace a few steps behind them.
“I still think it was foolish of you to bring him here,” said Rose. “He’s too volatile, and that makes him dangerous.”
“He’s like us,” said Shield Maiden. “He’ll settle down in time, and we’ll have a powerful new weapon to use against the champions.”
“You’ll never be able to trust him,” said Rose. “Not with his… past loyalties.”
“Only time will tell.” Shield Maiden stopped outside the door. She looked toward Rain Dancer, as though allowing him the chance to take charge, if he wanted.
“I will speak with him first,” said Rain Dancer.
He walked over to the door, undoing a series of heavy dead bolts before reaching for the handle. It was the most secure cell they had, and even then, Rose had expressed her doubts over whether they’d be able to hold their captive for very long, once he recovered enough strength to use his powers.
Rain Dancer had barely opened the door a fraction of an
inch when a fireball struck it on the other side, knocking all three of them back. Rose coughed and managed to sit up in time to see Danny, Malcolm’s brother, striding out of the holding cell.
“About fucking time,” said Danny. “Boring as hell in there. So… you guys got any beer in this place?”
“You…” Shield Maiden shook her head slowly. “How?”
“The lightbulb, sugar tits,” he said. “Those give off more heat than you’d think. Though I don’t understand why you thought you could hold me in the first place!”
Danny laughed like he’d just told the funniest joke in the world. He looked at Rain Dancer, wincing as he saw the bandage over the demon’s eye. Then, his gaze settled on Rose.
“No shit,” he said. “You’re the one who tried to fucking kill me. I can’t exactly die from fire, in case you didn’t realize.”
“Apparently not,” muttered Rose.
Danny whistled as he eyed her up and down.
“You’re hot as fuck, and I know a few things about heat,” he said. “Damn, my little brother is a lucky son of a bitch! If I wasn’t such a nice older brother… Well, it’s probably better if I don’t finish that sentence.”
Danny moved past them and started down the hall.
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?” shouted Rain Dancer, staggering to his feet.
Danny laughed.
“I already told you,” he said. “First I’m going to find some fucking beer. Then… I think I need to go have a nice heart to heart with my little brother.”
He continued down the hallway into the main chamber. Rain Dancer glared at Shield Maiden, who looked completely stunned.
“I don’t understand,” she whispered. “Why… wouldn’t he want to join us?”
Rose grinned.
“I think it runs in the family.”
Jade Portal
Edmund Hughes
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Wind Runner: The Complete Collection Page 35
