by K. L. Lewis
Yue glowered at them. “Say what?”
DeMarcus shrugged. “Yeah, figured that would piss you off.”
“What do you mean she was ‘eying’ him?” Sarah asked.
“I mean, she was giving him that ‘I want you’ look that you girls give,” Tyrone explained.
“The hell with that,” said Yue. “Be careful around her, DeMarcus.”
“She might still be looking for someone else,” Mitch suggested. “You could make yourself available, DeMarcus.”
DeMarcus mulled over it, not wanting to get his hopes up.
“Let Rafeal have her,” said Sarah. “Personally, I think you’re better with Jade or Gabby.”
If only those two were here right now.
Speaking of Rafeal, him and his cronies were grating DeMarcus’s ears with their laughter and harassment of the lower-level students. DeMarcus curled his fist, his friends standing ready to scrap as Rafeal’s group chuckled their way by. No teasing this time. Good.
It wasn’t long until the end of school, where the gang grouped in front of the Academy. Ty had Jasmine locked on his arm as the whole gang passed Crystal and her girls. DeMarcus kept his eyes straight, but he still caught Crystal giving him a flirty wave, prompting a nervous wave back until Yue raised her eyebrow at him.
“What?” he asked.
“You know ‘what,’” she sassed. “Didn’t I tell you she’s up to something?”
“Look, don’t worry about me. I’m not that into her.” But he was lying to himself, and hardly anyone looked convinced.
Tyrone laughed. “I don’t know, man. I couldn’t say that in your place.”
Jasmine smacked the back of his neck and crossed her arms. “Really, Ty? I can put you in his place.”
Tyrone chuckled. “Come on, Jazz. I’m kidding.”
At least that put a smile on DeMarcus’s face.
The days and weeks came and went as the fall season of September arrived. The leaves falling from the natural trees long turned brown and drifted with the gentle breeze. The calm mood betrayed a sense of dread as Iuvian soldiers and NAF troops patrolled the streets alongside the police like something big was happening. There was a surprise HDF rally that occurred downtown, and they sure had guts protesting in a region where anti-HDF groups like the Amalgam struck at Representative Allers.
Not like they can really do anything. It wasn’t something DeMarcus was concerned with. Other than the usual routine of school and training at the Compound with the gang, he longed for another trip to the British Isles, if only to see Gabby and Jade. A trip to the Sinic Republics didn’t sound bad either, although Yue might fuss about that.
But the only spice of life he got was Rafeal bothering him during school lounge hours. After getting his lunch, DeMarcus passed Rafeal and kept his eyes forward, bracing for the pestering remarks waiting for him.
“Hey runt!” Rafeal shouted. DeMarcus ignored him, but Rafeal kept on. “I know you hear me!”
“Trying not to,” DeMarcus quipped.
Approaching his table with the gang, he caught sight of Crystal Shay walking by with an amorous smile toward him. She had been doing that a lot lately. But before he had a chance to sit down, his ear twitched at someone stomping his way, and he found his shirt in the sudden grasp of Rafeal.
“What the hell are you staring at?” Rafeal growled.
DeMarcus scowled, lowered his chin, and his hand curling into a fist. “Don’t know. Trying to figure that part out.”
Rafeal raised his fist. “Little runt! I oughta—!”
“Rafeal!” Yue barked, her foot over the table, ready to pounce along with Mitch and Tyrone. She looked Rafeal square in the eye and growled. “Back. Off.”
Vearez and Chris joined behind Rafeal as he released DeMarcus and stared down Yue. “Tell your little ‘brother’ to keep to himself,” he warned.
“You’re in his business more than he is in yours, Rafeal,” Sarah countered.
Rafeal’s nostrils flared at Sarah, who crossed her arms as if daring him to try something. Then Rafeal fumed away with his cronies following behind.
DeMarcus straightened his shirt and sat down. “Jackass. Crystal looks at me once and he throws a fit.”
“Well, he and Crystal have gotten close,” said Tyrone. “Though I heard from Jasmine that they’re not exactly ‘dating.’ Whatever that means.”
“I don’t give a damn what they’re doing,” Yue scorned. “She probably did that on purpose.”
DeMarcus hoped not. Although he had no qualms throwing down with Rafeal if the time ever came.
At the end of lounge hour, he and Sarah broke off for their Pre-Calculus class. That near-clash with Rafeal still rattled in his mind as he remembered Crystal also had this class along with her friend Tina. The two girls waltzed into the amphitheater like a pair of proud princesses and sat across the steps from them, with Crystal giving DeMarcus that same smile again.
DeMarcus buried himself in his notes and ignored her as the lecture began. Maybe Yue was right?
Sarah glared at Crystal, then nudged and whispered to DeMarcus. “You still don’t think she’s up to something?”
DeMarcus was writing non-stop. “What do you mean?”
“Her suddenly giving you attention, the silent flirting.” Sarah nudged DeMarcus as he stole a glance at Crystal. “And she got you in trouble with Rafeal?”
“You mean she almost got Rafeal in trouble?”
Sarah sighed in annoyance. “DeMarcus—”
“Look, I’m trying to ignore her.” And he was doing such a fine job of that by sneaking small glances until their assignments pinged onto their tablets.
The class filled with chatter as they went to work, and DeMarcus kept his eyes away from Crystal as he and Sarah were half-finished. Not that it helped when Crystal kept calling out to him with a coo of his name. “Oh, DeMarky.”
DeMarcus leaned away. “The hell?”
“DeMarky? Really?” Sarah said flatly.
DeMarcus made a shy wave, then continued his work until Crystal called him again, “DeMarcus! I need your help?”
With what? He turned to Sarah for her thoughts, expecting her to say no. “I don’t know if you should,” she said.
DeMarcus shrugged. “She’ll just keep at it.”
And with Crystal growing impatient, he figured he might as well get it over with. Heeding Sarah’s caution, he rose from his seat and approached Crystal, hearing her Tina beside her making unpleasant mumbles about him. He paid her no mind, instead greeting Crystal with a nervous “Hi” as she gave him a heart-piercing smile.
“Hey. How’ve you been?” she asked.
“Great,” he answered. So far, so good. “So, you needed my help?”
“Yeah, I would love for someone as smart as you to help me on some of these problems.”
As smart as him? DeMarcus’s tail curled with hidden joy, but he stood on guard in case she ensnared him into something. Nothing bad happened as they worked, and she appeared to catch on to his assistance and solved some harder problems herself. “You really are good at this,” she said.
DeMarcus chuckled. “It’s easy when you get the hang of it.”
Tina snickered. “Such a dwit.”
DeMarcus narrowed his eyes at her but did nothing when Crystal shushed her. Then the moment came to a quick halt as a small quake rumbled under everyone’s feet, making the lights flicker above.
The shaking stopped, and the class murmured about it. DeMarcus turned to Sarah, getting nothing but a shrug until another violent rattle occurred, and the murmuring turned into a slight panic as the teacher called the class’s attention.
The lights died, followed by the drone filling the room with a red glow as it levitated and buzzed, “Alert! Alert! The Academy is under attack! Repeat: Academy is under attack!”
The teacher ordered the class to remain calm and hide. “We’re in lockdown. Everyone stay away from the doors.”
The whole class huddled under
the tables, some stumbling as the rumbling grew more intense. Pop, pop, pop echoed down the hall, with barking dogs and footsteps storming through the halls. A man shouted outside, “Take out all hostiles in the area!”
The popping grew louder, becoming the clear sound of gunshots. Shifting his gaze from the doors to the other students, DeMarcus’s arms quivered, and everything slowed down in his eyes as he wondered what to do if intruders barged in. Throw something to distract them? But what if more came? He couldn’t stop a whole group.
Sarah locked eyes with him and glanced at the door, where rapid yellow flashes crackled outside. Everyone in the room shuddered, and DeMarcus felt Crystal shivering by his arm as she covered her mouth and took deep breaths. He wanted to tell her everything will be alright, but who was he kidding? He’d been through this before.
“You’re surrounded! Drop your weapons!” Ordered a voice outside. The police? The military?
Everyone trembled from the loud gunshots snarling outside, bullets pinging off and piercing through the doors and walls. An explosion blew the door off its hinges, and an armed human tumbled down the stairs, knocking his head unconscious at the bottom floor.
Crystal peeked her head out, but DeMarcus brought her back down. “No, stay down!” he warned.
Crystal threw him off. “Get off of me!” she cried, crawling toward Tina.
Gee, you’re welcome for the save.
DeMarcus glanced around the table at the unconscious man clad in pale blue and green body armor – the colors of the HDF. With the man still clenching his rifle, the room filled with terrified whispers from the students until the teacher shushed them.
“We can’t stay here for long!” DeMarcus whispered to Sarah.
“We can’t just run out there either,” she whispered back.
Footsteps clapped into the room, and the students whimpered over their last moments. “Moron nearly blew himself up,” said a thick, deep voice. That sounded like Mironov! DeMarcus kept low and still, listening as the man spoke again. “Cover me. I’ll check it out.”
Soft footsteps came down the stairs, and DeMarcus watched the class drone fly up to the man. “State your business,” it demanded.
The man spoke once more. “Major Anton Mironov of the Joint Iuvian-NAF Terrestrial Forces. This area has been deemed hostile, and we’ve been tasked to evacuate all civilians to safety.”
DeMarcus and Sarah smiled at each other. They were saved!
The drone scanned and verified the soldiers. “Identity confirmed. All students and faculty, listen carefully: Iyrons Academy has been deemed unsafe. You are to proceed with Major Mironov’s forces as they escort you to safety.”
Everyone rose from the floor, walking single file as they followed the soldiers and their Shephounds out into the devastated hallways. Twisted lockers littered the floor, and parts of the ceiling fell and bounced off the transparent shields from the soldiers’ gauntlets. Two soldiers and a Shephound ran ahead of Mironov, their bodies vanishing in thin air before reappearing in the open halls ahead. They gave Mironov thumbs up before the group joined them, and Mironov gave everyone a stern warning, “Be careful. I just received word of several enemy groups inbound.”
How he knew, DeMarcus didn’t care. He just wanted out of this place. They waited behind Mironov near a wide hole out into the Yard, watching a lone NAF soldier turn invisible on the way out. After a moment of pause, Mironov led the way out into the Yard, then halted at the screams of rockets spearing through the air above. DeMarcus’s jaw dropped at the military and police swarming in, fighting against more HDF militants and…parahumans?
Why were parahumans dressed in HDF colors, fighting alongside Fronties of all people? It all went to the back of his mind as he spotted Yue, Tyrone, and Mitch pouring out with other students escorted by soldiers. The reunion was short-lived when the Shephounds growled, and several militants shot into the air over the school.
The invaders aimed their guns at the group, and the Iuvians and NAF soldiers jumped in front of the students, arms raised as their gauntlets emitted their shields that merged together and blocked the storm of bullets. Mironov pointed at the militants, and two soldiers rushed toward the building, vanishing in thin air.
An android rushed on the ground, pinning the militants with gunfire. When the soldiers appeared on the rooftops, they opened fire, shooting down two of the militants until an Iuvian took a hit in the side. His NAF partner jumped in and shielded him with her gauntlet, pinning the militants down as the androids closed in.
With them occupied, Mironov sent an android ahead to scout a path, then turned to the children. “Stay with your escorts everyone,” he said.
They followed the soldiers through the gates and into the streets, halting near a grassland as a rocket zipped by and blew apart the police cruisers blocking the road. While Mironov and his soldiers rushed in, guiding a panicking crowd of people away from the swarming militants, DeMarcus dove behind a building, peeking around the corner at the war-torn buildings and flickering fires that flashed him back to the day he lost his mother.
He ducked from white triangular drones soaring overhead, bombing the laser trucks firing into the air as Iuvian Gentilis arrived in the sky. The Gentilis fired at the enemy drones and clawed out their wings, sending one of the drones crashing near DeMarcus as moved to new cover. He noticed Crystal behind a building, terrified and stranded near the ensuing firefight. He ran for her, putting his training to action by ducking and moving around the cars shielding him from the bullets and shrapnel.
He reached Crystal and took her hand. “This way!” He said, tugging her along.
They ran over to Sarah, who was crouched behind a small solar tower, and the three kept low as the military duked it out with the militants. When the fighting settled, Mironov jumped toward the three and guided them behind the massive metal shield of a truck. “Hold on,” he said. “I’m requesting help now!”
More Gentilis swooped down and strafed at the hostiles ahead with their beak mounted guns, clearing the way for the Iuvian airships touching down and deploying more troops on the streets and rooftops. One of the Shephounds barked, and an Iuvian soldier yelled “INCOMING!”
Everyone stood behind the truck as a missile slammed into the shield and exploded, followed by another one. The shield held, until an enemy drone divebombed into it, bursting into a massive cloud of fire. Then everyone scattered as another rocket hit the truck, with a shockwave sweeping DeMarcus off his feet and head-first to the ground. His head pulsed and spun as he watched Crystal freeze and shudder from another explosion booming around them. Unable to move, he saw Tina and Alanya pass him and take Crystal away.
“Let’s get out of here!” Alanya shouted.
DeMarcus wobbled to his knees, clutching his head as he reached out to them. “Wait…” he said. But his voice was too weak, and they vanished behind the buildings.
He stumbled to his feet, almost falling until Sarah caught him and wrapped his arm over her shoulder. “Don’t worry, I got you,” she said as she heaved him through the street.
They moved toward the rest of the gang hiding in the alley, the one place DeMarcus wanted to avoid. “Over here!” Sarah called out.
Yue gasped and rushed out to them, “Crap, not again,” she said as she helped ferry DeMarcus into the alley.
“I’m…okay,” DeMarcus said as he regained the strength in his legs. “Where’s Mironov?”
“He’s still fighting those militants,” said Mitch. “Don’t know where.”
DeMarcus peeked out at the smoldering cars scattered on the street, hearing the snapping flames and crackles of bullets throughout the city. The bridge leading home was a few blocks away, but getting there required crossing a warzone. “Great. How the heck are we gonna make it back home?” he questioned.
And just when things couldn’t get any worse, they heard people running and screaming past the alley, followed by a loud rumble from the street behind them. A black, junky truck accelerated thro
ugh the streets, with several militants following it on the rooftops. A parahuman hopped onto the truck’s turret and fired at the Blue Havocs and Gentilis tailing them. The gang hid back into the alley.
“Home? How the hell are we gonna get past that?” Yue pointed.
Iuvian and NAF soldiers raced onto the scene, jumping down from the buildings to protect the people, some tragically shielding them with their lives from the attacking militants.
“Look out!” Mitch pulled DeMarcus away as a human militant dropped from above, firing at the group upon landing.
The militant’s rifle clicked empty, and he tossed it away, pulling out his knife as he leapt for a slice at DeMarcus. DeMarcus froze in place, his eyes bulging as if the militant was coming at him in slow motion. The militant’s face morphed into his pale, blue-eyed killer, her raven hair flowing behind her as she spoke, “The world could use less of your kind.”
DeMarcus jumped back from the blade, dodged the next slash, and barely blocked the militant’s arm before they made a stab. He held the militant’s arm, feeling his strength slipping until the rest of the gang threw rocks at the attacker. The second the militant flinched, DeMarcus launched his foot into their groin, spazzing them on impact.
The militant knocked DeMarcus to a wall, knocking the air out of him before shifting their sights to his friends. Seeing the man reach for his pistol, DeMarcus forced his body to its feet and picked up a metal pole. He charged the militant, swinging the rod down on the pistol in their arm, then striking their knee. With the militant kneeling in pain, DeMarcus silenced them with a hard blow to their face.
The militant laid unconscious on the ground, and DeMarcus caught his breath as he shook out his memories. Tyrone called the gang to the other side of the alley. “Let’s move!”
They followed him into the streets, watching the Havocs and Gentilis dive down and bomb the attacking invaders before fighting off the enemy drones above. A Gentili took a hit in its wing and fell toward the gang. “Look out!” Tyrone alerted.
They turned the intersection just before the Gentili crashed, only to run out in front of three armed parahuman militants. The gang froze as the militants leveled guns at them. The gang held their hands up, then they flinched as a random gunshot took out one of the militants, then another. The wind rushed between them as a hooded woman in an NAF uniform shot from air and smashed her rifle in the last one’s face.
