Unidentified Phenomenon

by Damien Benoit-Ledoux

  Grief struck at Quinn’s heart as a harsh reality settled over him. This is it, isn’t it? I'm losing my best friend forever.

  Quinn walked to his best friend and grabbed him by the shoulders. “I can’t do that, I can’t kill people. You have to know that’s wrong, Blake. Come home with me and forget about Victor,” Quinn begged, tears streaming down his face.

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I belong here. I have nothing back home except alcoholic and abusive parents who don’t give two shits if I succeed or not.”

  “Blake, you have me! Move in with us! We have the room and you know my dads will let you do that,” Quinn pleaded.

  Victor folded his arms. “Choose wisely, Quinn. You have nothing but opportunity ahead of you with The Order. But if you choose to leave us, I promise you a life of pain and agony. Everyone will hunt you down no matter where you live. You’ll spend your entire life running.”

  “Blake, you have me,” Quinn repeated, ignoring Victor’s threatening words.

  “I know. And I'm sorry.”

  “For what?”

  “For what I have to do. You will not take this from me!” Blake’s eyes blazed orange as his hand flew out in front of him.

  “But…” Quinn gasped as he flew backward across the room and slammed into the wall, smacking his head on the metal paneling. He slumped to the floor, stunned. He tried to get up, but he was too dizzy.

  “Dr. Madison, the control chip if you please, on the double. Time is short.” Victor said. “Blake, you’ll need to hold him down.”

  No! Is that how they’re controlling Blake?

  His head throbbed, and his vision blurred as the sounds in the room became muffled. He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. He struggled to push himself up from the floor, but he lost his balance and fell, succumbing to the disorientation and darkness overcoming his mind.

  Not again…

  Quinn blinked and gasped, feeling the crushing power of Blake’s telekinesis holding him in place. “We don’t have much time,” Dr. Madison said, her voice reverberating like she was in a metal tube.

  Victor’s echoed next. “Blake, you know this is really important, right? The world won’t be safe with an uncontrolled, super-powered being running around, even if he’s your friend. Everything will be better this way, and you’ll be able to stay friends for a very long time. It’s everything you’ve ever wanted.”

  “Just get it done,” Blake said.

  I have to get up, I have to destroy this place and get away from here. How the hell do I defeat Blake’s power? Think, Quinn, think…

  “Can you put him on a work table?” Dr. Madison asked.

  “Probably not the best time to move him,” Blake answered.

  Footsteps echoed in his ears as Dr. Madison walked around the workroom, preparing to stick the micro bug thing in his ear.

  Keegan. Every time I think about Keegan, something explodes. Maybe I can blow something up like I did to the beakers in Mr. St. Germain’s classroom. Think about what it’s like to be around Keegan, to hold his hand, to dance with him, to kiss him…

  ❖

  Blake

  Blake sensed his hold on Quinn’s body weakening. “You’re running out of time, Doctor. It’s like he’s absorbing my power or something.”

  Dr. Madison hastened to Quinn’s side with one of the micro bugs. She squatted beside him and opened her left hand. Then, using a pair of forceps, she picked up the micro bug from the palm of her left hand and carefully maneuvered it into position over Quinn’s ear. She lowered it onto his auricle, just outside of his ear canal.

  “Keep him still,” Dr. Madison said. She reached into her lab coat and pulled out a device. She tapped a few buttons and activated the micro bug. It beeped and activated, six tiny legs unfolding from the metal housing of its tiny body.

  “You’re doing great, Blake,” Victor said. “Remember how important this.”

  Quinn groaned and struggled under Blake’s invisible grasp as the micro bug began its journey into his ear canal.

  “Blake, please!” Quinn begged. He started yelling in pain, his hands desperately trying to swat his ear.

  Dr. Madison suddenly backed away, fanning herself. “Oh wow, he got really hot all of a sudden.”

  “What?” Blake said, flinching when he saw Quinn’s eyes blazing with power. Since when does Quinn make heat like I do?

  A powerful blue shockwave exploded away from Quinn, knocking everyone to the floor as it surged through the room. Anything loose on the workstations’ surfaces fell to the floor as monitors and other fragile equipment cracked and shattered into pieces, cascading to the floor like waterfalls of debris. The lights above flickered and exploded, leaving the room bathed in dim emergency lighting that survived the blast.

  The ringing in Blake’s ears overpowered him, and he pressed the palms of his hands against his ears, desperate for the excruciating sound to stop. He could sense Quinn moving away, even though his eyes and ears were temporarily stunned.

  “Victor!” Blake called out. “Ugh!” He shook his head in anger, desperate to silence the disorienting ringing in his head. He blinked his eyes a few times and his vision returned. It was as if his body was quickly healing itself, but not fast enough for him to chase after Quinn.

  “Victor!” Blake yelled again as the ringing in his ear slowly faded. Summoning his strength, he struggled to push himself to his knees, his sense of balance momentarily absent. He looked around and saw Dr. Madison’s and Victor’s dead or unconscious bodies on the floor. Miguel and Arik were also down, and the guards were in a pile near the door again. Sparks exploded from damaged computer systems and the busted overhead lighting.

  Focus and pull yourself together!

  He pushed himself to a standing position and leaned on the closest workstation that hadn't been knocked over because it was bolted to the floor.

  Okay, so they’re not getting up for a while…I have to stop Quinn before he brings this entire place down.

  Blake stumbled through the room and knelt beside Victor. Blake picked up the man’s head. He was conscious, but in shock. Victor opened his mouth and tried to speak. “Enemy…”

  “What?” Blake said, bringing his face closer to Victor, tilting his head so his ear lined up with Victor’s mouth.

  “Quinn is the…enemy now. You…have to…stop him.”

  Blake frowned and nodded. He set Victor’s head down and made his way through the debris in the workroom to the hallway, where he depended on the walls to keep him upright. The locked security door to the control room had been forced open and Blake stumbled inside, his equilibrium still disrupted from the shockwave.

  Blake spotted Quinn sitting at one of the consoles, staring at all the knobs and buttons. Thankfully, there was no big red button he could push to destroy the reactor. The three technicians who worked inside the room were slumped over their consoles, unconscious.

  “You asshole!” Blake yelled.

  Quinn stood and glared at him. “You were going to let them put one of those micro bug things in me! You’re my best friend, you’re supposed to have my back, Blake! What the hell?”

  “I was your best friend,” Blake spat back.

  “What do you mean?” Quinn said, his voice filled with emotion as tears streamed down his face. “We grew up together. Do you really want to throw that all away for Victor?”

  “Victor doesn’t treat me like you do.”

  Quinn looked exasperated. “This again? What do I do different from Victor?”

  “He doesn’t put me down and treat me like his second, like you do. You’re always telling me what to do and what not to do.”

  “What?”

  “If you had let me, Darien would have never bothered you again, but you always chose to let him pick on you and held me back when I should have clobbered him.”

  “I don’t even understand you anymore. It’s like you’ve become a different person, like you believe
whatever Victor tells you.”

  “Victor has opened my mind to the real world.”

  Quinn shook his head. “He’s opened something, all right. We came here to destroy this place; that’s exactly what I’m going to do and then I’m flying home—and you’re coming with me.”

  “Don’t tell me what to do!” Blake roared as rage consumed him, his raised hands directing a blast of super-heated flame toward Quinn. The flames stopped just short of Quinn, fanning themselves around an invisible shield Quinn was producing. Blake could feel him resisting his fire bombardment, so he took a step forward and turned up the intensity, yelling as he burned off his shirt.

  A moment later, the fire alarm sounded and the sprinkler system above them switched on, spraying water on the super-heated flames that instantly turned to scalding steam.

  Blake sensed Quinn shift.

  Suddenly, all of the water from the sprinklers was diverted from gravity’s natural pull and pummeled Blake’s face. He sputtered and coughed, ceasing his flame assault as he raised his hands to protect his face.

  Something hard struck his gut, knocking the wind out of him. He looked down through the water assault and saw bowling ball-sized pieces of ice shatter on the floor at his feet. Another one struck his gut and he exhaled in painful surprise, then collapsed to his knees.

  In a flash, Quinn was on him, eyes blazing blue, knocking him backward. Blake grunted with surprise when he landed flat on his back.

  Water splashed around them as Quinn pinned Blake to the floor by straddling his stomach; his feet and ankles securing Blake’s thighs and his hands securing Blake’s wrists above his head. Water rained down from the sprinklers while sparks flew and smoke billowed from most of the computer consoles.

  27 | One Chance

  Quinn

  “DO YOU HAVE ONE OF THOSE chips in you?” Quinn asked, shouting over the water and ringing fire alarm. “Did you let them put a micro bug in your head?” That’s got to be why you’re being so weird.

  “I don’t know!” Blake shouted, struggling to breathe.

  Quinn’s surprise ice attack had caught his friend off-guard and he knew he needed to be careful in case Blake had concealed some unknown power. “Is that why you’re acting like such a dick? Do I need to zap it out of your head?”

  “I don’t have one!” Blake shouted.

  “How do you know?” Quinn yelled, shaking Blake’s wrists.

  “Victor would have told me!” Blake answered, catching his breath.

  “Victor’s a lying asshole!” Quinn yelled back.

  “No, he’s not!” Blake screamed. Then, with super human strength, Blake threw Quinn off him with his arms and his telekinetic ability, slamming him in the stomach with an invisible fist.

  “Ugh!” Quinn grunted and flew backward, but he caught himself midair, raising an arm to deflect Blake’s assault. Blake rose to his feet without effort, and Quinn saw the air around his friend shimmer, his wet skin steaming as he summoned his fire power. Quinn was faster and flew toward him, tackling him to the ground again. This time he landed two punches to Blake’s face, splitting his lip and drawing blood.

  “We shouldn’t be fighting!” Quinn yelled, trying to subdue Blake with a wrestling move.

  “Get off me!” Blake shouted, super-heating his body.

  Quinn struggled to hang on as Blake became unbearably hot to the touch. He focused and pulled all the water from the floor onto Blake’s body. At first, the water turned to steam on contact, but the more water he doused Blake with, the faster it cooled him off. Quinn super-chilled the water and it started freezing around Blake, cocooning him in ice—until Blake responded with a swinging fist that clocked the side of Quinn's face.

  “Ow!” Quinn exclaimed, Blake’s strong punch throwing him off balance. The water and ice fell away from Blake, who pushed Quinn off him and scooted back as fast as he could.

  Quinn rolled back to his feet and chased after Blake. They sloshed in the water and ice, struggling for dominance over the other.

  “The Order can’t be allowed to make more of us, you have to know that,” Quinn pleaded, their fight turning into a silly slapping game as they wrestled like brothers in a heated argument.

  “That’s not your call to make,” Blake spat, slapping Quinn’s face as he tried to put him in a headlock.

  Quinn pulled his hand back, crouched, then shoved his shoulder into Blake’s ribs. Blake grunted and fell, then flung Quinn backward again with his mind.

  I really hate that power.

  Now it was Blake’s turn to rush at Quinn. He jumped to his feet and charged, punching Quinn twice with large invisible fists. Quinn grunted and winced as Blake’s right shoulder slammed into his midsection, his arms wrapping around him and pulling him to the ground.

  “If you’d shut up and stop being such a goody two-shoes you might understand what’s really going on!” Blake snarled.

  Quinn fell backward onto something sharp that poked at the small of his back. “Ow!” he cried out, his face contorting with pain. He tried to move away from whatever poked at him as Blake raised his arms, but he couldn’t move with Blake on top of him and the thing stabbing his back. Quinn looked up at Blake and horror filled his eyes. Blake’s teeth were bared, and his face was twisted with fury. Watching Blake raise his fists to strike, Quinn tried to protect himself with a defensive shield, but his powers wouldn’t respond. He winced as Blake’s fists reached the apex of their arc and then smashed down onto Quinn’s chest with incredible speed and power.

  Quinn gasped, hearing the sound of cracking bones in his body. He coughed as pain surged across his chest. His body spasmed with shock, tightening and falling slack as he became overwhelmed with the physical agony of broken bones, crushed organs, and whatever else Blake had done.

  “You will not take this away from me!” Blake shouted, wiping his bloody mouth with the back of his right hand.

  Oh crap, is he going to kill me?

  Quinn could only stare back at Blake’s angry face, the excruciating pain paralyzing him.

  Blake’s face relaxed and he shook his head. He pushed himself up, his sneakers squeaking and sloshing in the water on the floor. When Blake got off him, the stabbing pain at his back lessened. They glared at each other; one boy surrendered, one boy victorious. “You need to leave.”

  “What are you going to do?” Quinn wheezed, his voice weak. Something popped in his chest and he cried out in pain. Blake ignored him and looked around the room. Another pop in Quinn’s chest sent a volley of pain through his body.

  Then, another.

  Am I healing? Are my bones mending themselves?

  A moment later, the fire alarm silenced, and the sprinkler system shut down. The overhead spray of water reduced to a trickle as the remaining water drained, then dripped from the sprinkler heads.

  Blake squatted next to him, his eyes blazing orange. “I’m going to do what I need to do. I belong here now, Quinn, and you need to accept that. I’m going to finish school and work with The Order and you’re not going to stop me.”

  Blake pressed his right hand on Quinn’s sternum, causing agonizing pain. Quinn cried out, but his breath hitched in his throat. Blake removed his hand and smirked. Quinn understood Blake had made his point.

  “I’m never going back to my alcoholic parents. If I do, I’ll probably kill them. So, to avoid that, Victor promised me The Order will take care of everything I need, and in return…well, that’s between me and Victor. I’m going to give you this one chance because you’re my friend. Walk out of here and never come back. If you do, I’ll make sure Dr. Madison puts that micro bug in your head.”

  Two more pops reverberated in Quinn’s chest. “Why are you letting me go?”

  “To prove to you that I’m not without mercy, and not the bad guy. But if you’re still here and they find you, I won’t stop them from experimenting on you.” Blake stood and turned, hesitating for a moment. Then he looked down at his friend. “Goodbye, Quinn.” He turned an
d walked out of the control room.

  Quinn watched his best friend leave, gritting his teeth as more bones painfully popped in his chest. Several moments later, the popping stopped, and Quinn looked down at his chest. With his right hand, he pressed on it lightly, but felt no pain. He took a deep breath and sat up. Amazingly, his body had healed itself. Outside in the hall, Quinn could hear guards preparing to storm the control room.

  He pushed himself up from the floor. His clothing was soaked, and his sneakers squeaked as he hobbled across the wet floor. The only way out of the facility he knew of took him back down the elevator shaft, through the chamber, and out the old mining tunnel.

  When Quinn stepped into the hallway, he surprised four guards who quickly pointed their guns at him. “Stop!” their leader called out forcefully.

  Quinn stood at his full height and let his eyes glow blue. “Do you really want to play this game again?”

  “Nope, not at all,” one of the guards said, dropping his gun to the floor. He raised his hands in surrender.

  “I don’t get paid enough to fight superheroes,” another said, lowering his weapon.

  Quinn smirked.

  “Fuck this shit,” the third man said, also dropping his weapon to the floor. The leader cursed and lowered his weapon. “Fine.”

  Quinn pointed to the workroom door behind the men. “Just remember, the other guy’s sticking around. If you have families, you might want to take out a large life insurance policy.” Then, he turned to leave.

  “You mean Dark Flame?” the lead guard asked.

  “What? Who?” Quinn asked, turning back to the guards.

  “Your friend, the one who glows with orange and purple flame. That’s his code name around here.”

  Quinn nodded. “Yeah, him. Watch your back.”

  “Good luck, Blue Spekter,” the second man—the one unwilling to fight a superhero—said.

  Quinn smiled and made his way to the elevator doors at the end of the hall.

  ❖

  Blake