by Ekeke, C. C.
“What was that about?” she demanded almost rudely, arms folded. “Peace in the Middle East?”
Hugo looked her up and down, enjoying the sight of those full lips, that face, the attitude in her stance. “You and I got more important shit to discuss.”
Jordana shyly averted her gaze. “I know I’ve been weird lately, but—”
Hugo interrupted her with a kiss. He couldn’t help himself. Jodie stiffened at first but quickly melted into it. Catcalls erupted around them. When he pulled back, she was blushing and swaying.
“I wanna be with you,” Hugo declared. “Just you. If you don’t feel the same, I understand. But let’s stop treading water and move forward.” That unplanned speech had spilled out of him. Being this vulnerable was scary as fuck but totally worth it.
Jodie stood dazed and wide-eyed. She opened her mouth to speak.
Hugo’s breath caught, anticipation crackling through him—until the ground violently shook beneath him. It felt like giant hands were shaking the earth side to side in bone-rattling chaos.
The entire Quad freaked, screams ringing out as students clung to their surroundings for safety. Panic seized Hugo for a brief moment before Lady Liberty’s training kicked in instinctively. He held a screaming Jodie close while gripping a support beam to stay upright. Within seconds, the ground stilled. Yet terror remained thick across campus.
Hugo checked on Jordana, who looked rattled but unharmed. Yards away, his friends were panicky and safe. Simon was holding a dazed Grace. J-Tom checked on the others surgically like Hugo had taught. Scanning the Quad, he could find no serious injuries or building damage. That did little to calm his nerves. “Oh no,” he whispered.
“What the…!” Jordana looked around at the swarm of terrified teens. “That aftershock was CRAAZAY!”
“Wasn’t an aftershock,” Hugo retorted. A strong earthquake this far away from Seattle only meant one horrific thing. “They’re here.” They, as in The Forces of Nature. In San Miguel.
Jordana frowned at him, understandably lost. “Who’s here?”
An alarm rang across school, followed by Principal Walker’s voice booming on the PA system. “Get to third period and await instructions. This is not a drill.”
No shit, Einsteiner. Hugo turned to Jordana as the rush of students became torrents. “Get to class.”
Jodie nodded frantically and disappeared in the churning crowd to her third period.
Before Hugo headed off to find Meteora, he made sure they were safe.
Brent was toying with his phone near the English and Languages building while Simon and Groban gathered around. “Check this out…”
The N3 news app designated that quake a 4.7 magnitude—a warning shot. Hugo’s main concern was the video Brent watched. “Oh shit.”
Onscreen, the suburb of Atascadero was burning. Citizens screamed and ran from a quartet of menacing assailants. A flying man wreathed in gold flames streaked through the skies, hurling fireballs at anything in sight—Hellfire.
A black woman flew higher still, smiling maliciously. She gestured her hands to unload mini tornados at buildings, shredding the very foundations—Sirocco. On the ground, a man made of clear-blue water with a flattop rode a foaming wave through Colony Square—Alluvion.
In the center was Meteora, a chiseled rock statue animated to life. She motioned in several directions, nothing but contained anger on her face. Rock formations burst through the asphalt, ripping a path across Atascadero’s streets. Hugo felt sickened guessing how many had died already.
“It’s that terrakinetic bitch!” Brent exclaimed.
“And she’s got backup,” Raphael added.
“They call themselves the Forces of Nature,” Hugo said.
That drew snorts and derision. “Seriously?” Groban mocked.
“Villains really need to stop naming themselves,” Simon derided, eyeing Hugo. “Aren’t most of the major heroes still in Seattle?”
Hugo ushered his friends along. “Not sure.”
Groban brightened. “What about Tomorrow Man?”
“Now’s not the time for jokes,” Hugo chided. The number of students running about was thinning. “Get to your classes. Go!” The other boys jogged to their classes.
Simon lingered. “It’s a distraction, right?”
Hugo nodded. “Which means something is getting stolen nearby.” His heart was racing at the possibilities and fighting the Forces of Nature alone. He jabbed a thumb. “I gotta—”
Simon nodded, worry in his eyes. “Handle your business. I’ll give the needed deflections.” Since they shared third period, Simon could say that Hugo went home sick. His best friend was the best.
Hugo powerwalked across the Quad toward his gear stash location.
J-Tom fell in beside him. “What’s our next move?” she asked, shouldering her backpack.
Hugo eyed her. “Go to your class.” His focus had to be on the enemy, not her safety.
J-Tom gawked like a goldfish out of water. “My armor’s ready. I’m fighting with you.”
“Jennifer—” Hugo stopped himself from yelling. Every second lost meant another life lost. Now security guards were rounding up stray students. Maybe J-Tom could be useful while he fought the Forces of Nature. “Gear up and assist emergency services only.”
“But—”
“Take it or leave it,” Hugo declared.
When J-Tom reluctantly nodded, he headed for the storage facility.
There were too many people around to superspeed. Dammit! He turned a corner into an empty corridor to hide from security cameras when he sensed someone running from behind.
“Hugo, wait!”
Hugo almost punched a wall. This girl seriously had the survival instincts of a kitten. “Go to class, Brie!”
Briseis caught up to him, struggling with her tennis bag. “Have to…have to talk now.” She panted while reaching inside her bag.
Hugo was about to erupt. “Get the fuck out—”
Briseis shoved something into his arms.
Hugo stared in confusion at his folded-up costume. The one supposedly in his gear stash location.
That hit Hugo like a truck, and he looked up. Brie’s face was a study in calm. “You’re gonna need that.”
Briseis knows I’m Aegis. Hugo struggled to form sentences. “I…how?”
Brie waved off his stammering with surprising confidence. “Later. Go kick some ass.”
Forcing his mush-brain into action, he glanced around to confirm the corridor was clear.
He raced off campus at blistering speeds, leaving a windblown Briseis in his wake.
Chapter 37
Greyson wasn’t fazed staring at the carcass before him. Should I be?
Reverb and Brightburn had taken him to the crime scene to get him used to a hero’s less sexy duties.
Their mutual shock at his indifference had been quite amusing.
This past year of violence and killing had numbed Greyson to seeing a dead body. Especially the charred and shriveled bodies strewn around another bombing by Bam-Bam.
Right on schedule. But Greyson had some more levers to pull before his plan came to fruition. He cast a dispassionate gaze at the blasted-out room while Brightburn and Reverb interfaced with uniformed cops at the scene. “How many dead?” the latter inquired.
The cop, a sturdy Filipino woman with her hair in a bun, sighed. “Eight. All top Pax Humana brass.”
“Good lord,” Brightburn whispered.
The officer cast a sullen look over the Thrillers. “This needs to be handled before more people die.”
If the rudeness in the demand bothered Brightburn, she made no show of it. “I understand, Officer.”
“We’re working every angle,” Reverb chimed in.
The police officer pulled something out of her pocket and handed it to Brightburn. “Check this out.”
Brightburn took one look and slapped a hand over her mouth.
Reverb glanced at it and turned g
reen.
Greyson peeked over Brightburn’s shoulder. The paper, smudged in soot, detailed a factory layout. These were plans to bomb the Natural Born Thrillers’ compound.
Greyson’s mouth fell open. “Wow.”
The officer nodded grimly. “Wow indeed. According to recovered phone and email chatter a few hours ago, they’d planned on doing this while your team was out of town until Bam-Bam attacked.”
Greyson had to smile somewhat. Shattershot’s girlfriend had saved the heroes hunting her down.
On the walk to their vehicle over the home’s front yard, unwelcoming glowers from several cops onsite trailed the heroes.
It’s only going to get worse, Greyson mused. He winked at one cop while stepping into the backseat.
Returning to the compound, Greyson remained silent while Brightburn and Reverb discussed the case. Their usual banter lacked its prior pleasantness thanks to a strained friendship. Good.
“I wonder what her motivation was saving the base,” Brightburn wondered while driving.
“Guess we can ask her boyfriend directly,” Reverb sneered.
“She wouldn’t do this!” Shattershot protested after Greyson and the others stood in the common room and described the crime scene.
“Not helping,” Bulldozer rumbled chidingly.
Greyson stood in the tension-riddled common room with the Thrillers debating Bam-Bam’s fate. He watched in relish as the Thrillers’ bonds continued to fray.
Shattershot spread his arms. “I’m being honest.”
Brightburn seemed to reach some realization. “I get protecting you. But she’s gone on a warpath.”
Erika approached Shattershot with a haggard expression. “We need to find Bam-Bam. For her own safety.”
Greyson added his two cents. “If it’s not us, it will be law enforcement with a kill-order.”
His words landed hard. All stares focused on Shattershot.
Warring emotions contorted the empath’s face. “She’d never meet at our usual spots now.”
“Then contact her,” Brightburn pleaded.
Shattershot stepped back. “No.”
A chill washed through the room, followed by Reverb’s groan.
Greyson almost shouted hallelujah but opted for mock disappointment. The rejection seemed to strike Erika more deeply than the others.
“Then you’ll sit this out,” she replied coldly.
Shattershot turned pink with outrage, opening his mouth.
Greyson shook his head in warning, which curtailed the empath’s outburst.
Shattershot then just stormed off down the hallways.
Bulldozer was the first to comment. “Can I say I told you so?” Other teammates voiced their agreement.
Greyson stiffened. All of them against Shattershot didn’t serve his needs. “He’s dumbstruck with love,” he spoke over everyone. “Let me talk to him.”
Erika responded with an oddly hostile stare, then nodded her consent.
Greyson found Shattershot in his own room, stuffing clothes into an open suitcase.
“What are you doing?” Greyson asked, concern brewing as he closed the bedroom door.
Shattershot glanced at him, shoving a pair of jeans into the baggage. “Can’t stay here,” he said, sickened.
Greyson didn’t hide his surprise. “You’re quitting?” This was too soon.
Shattershot stopped and looked at him sideways. “No,” he scoffed. “I couldn’t even if I wanted to.” He sat on his bed, visibly beaten down. “Part of my parole is staying on an ERAT team for three years. I’ve been with the Thrillers for less than eight months.”
“Then where—?”
“Joanie wouldn’t do something this horrific,” Shattershot blurted out, staring at the wall.
Greyson stared at him. “She’s a criminal.”
Shattershot popped off the bed. “Bam-Bam wants a new life.” He shook his head, mystified. “Throwing what we have away makes no sense.”
Greyson could see this young man was close to breaking. So he went to work as the sympathetic friend. “Do you know her full story? All her wants and dreams?” He searched the empath’s face. “Even those closest to us don’t reveal everything.”
Shattershot raised his hands, only to let them drop in helpless anguish. “Maybe I don’t. But I love her.” The tears flowed then. “I have to find out the truth.”
Shattershot leaned against a wall and sobbed for several moments. Greyson waited until he regained composure, and then articulated his decision. “Then I’ll help you.”
The empath sniffled in disbelief. “Seriously?”
Greyson smiled with genuine satisfaction. “Seriously.”
Shattershot wiped away his tears. “Thanks. I owe you.”
Hook, line, and sinker. Greyson raised one finger. “If she’s guilty…”
“She’s not,” Shattershot assured.
Greyson rolled his eyes. Poor, lovestruck boy… “If she’s responsible, we capture her.” His words left no room for negotiation.
Shattershot’s relief filled the room. “I’ll contact her.”
Greyson exhaled happily. “We’ll sneak out later tonight.” Now we’re in the endgame.
Chapter 38
Hugo stopped at home first, switching into his Aegis suit, then raced back out at top speeds. Paso Robles flew by in colorful streaks and splashes of sunlight. Meanwhile, his mind was spinning.
Briseis knows my secret. Had she told anyone? Did Brie figure it out or had Hugo slipped at one point?
His worries vanished when another aftershock shivered the ground—almost throwing him off balance.
Hugo yearned to clobber the Forces of Nature, but two priorities took precedence. He banked a hard right for Lewis Middle School. He saw him outside on a corner, not in class like he should be.
Hugo stopped for a half-second, tossed AJ over a shoulder, and rocketed away. Next stop, Flamson Middle School. He spotted Zelda outside among her class, idly waiting. He slowed briefly, snatched her up, and then raced for the Clubhouse in Arroyo Grande.
Once beneath the main atrium’s bluish lighting, he decelerated and placed his siblings on their feet.
“AH!” AJ almost faceplanted. He didn’t travel often at superspeed.
Zelda spun around a few times, wide-eyed and bewildered. “Holy Moley! What the hellz!”
“Guys!” Hugo pulled his hood and mask back, then raised both hands to calm them. “It’s me.”
AJ and Zelda immediately relaxed. “Bogie?” his half-sister remarked gratefully.
Hugo straightened to his full height. “Sorry to scare you.” He gathered Zelda and AJ into a firm hug. Them inside the Clubhouse gave him one less worry. But given Atascadero’s proximity to Paso, who knew if his friends or Mom were safe? He let his siblings explore their location.
AJ seemed bewildered by the high-tech surroundings. “Where are we?”
Hugo gestured around his HQ. “My lair.” That sounded corny, even with family.
Zelda scanned around in beaming recognition. “It’s one of Geist’s safehouses!” Of course, she knew this place. She whirled eagerly to face Hugo. “Did he gift this to you?”
Hugo nodded. “The walls are earthquake-proof. There’s food for weeks. You two are safe here.”
AJ looked somewhat impressed. “Where’s Mom?”
Hugo winced. “The hospital. Helping people.” Mom wouldn’t stand for being cooped up instead of helping patients. But should an earthquake happen, they’d agreed that he’d put AJ in the Clubhouse.
AJ’s demeanor improved after he’d heard this. “Is there a bathroom?”
Hugo chuckled, pointing left. “Around that corner.”
Once AJ left the chamber, Zelda’s mirth dimmed. “You need help out there.”
Hugo furrowed his brow. She wasn’t wrong. But Lady Liberty and the Extreme Teens were still up in Washington. And Hugo had faced greater odds than these clowns. “Tell your mom that you’re safe so she’s not worryin
g.” He pulled the hood and half-mask over his face. “Be back soon.”
“If not for my mom’s combat rules, I’d be fighting beside you,” Zelda blurted out, as astounded saying that as Hugo felt hearing it. “I love you.”
His heart swelled. “Love you too.” Rejuvenated, he turned and raced out of the Clubhouse.
Hugo flew over swaths of cityscape, Atascadero’s skyline approaching rapidly, when he rang Dawson.
“Are you headed to Atascadero?” the detective asked.
“Yep.” Hugo angled through puffs of clouds as another worry landed. “Who’s in town besides me?”
“Justice Jones. Ballistic.”
Hugo cringed. Not an encouraging number. And Justice Jones might still want to knock him out. “Ballistic can help with search and rescue. Arclight’s coming too.” He looked down at the urban sprawl. “Please tell me you have news on those labs.”
“Salto Institute has two labs in San Miguel,” Dawson replied. “Morro Bay and Cambria. With this earthquake, we can only spare a squad to Cambria. All other officers are stretched across the city.”
Hugo understood, slowed by a brief updraft. Across the city, he smelled burnt flesh and heard terrified screams. “I’ll check Morro Bay after handling these clowns.” He couldn’t wait to stomp all their faces in.
“Good luck,” Dawson encouraged. Even he sounded doubtful.
Jeez… Hugo dropped closer to street level and gave another kick of speed toward Atascadero.
Hugo could hear the Forces of Nature’s exchanges as the quartet came into full view. Police cars were overturned. Any cops still standing hid behind various structures, firing off rounds at these criminals.
Hellfire hovered above a row of small buildings, torching them in furnace blasts of orange flame. He was long-haired and rangy in physique, entirely wreathed in fire. His face bordered on orgasmic while citizens burned. “Have you ever seen such infernal delights?”
On the ground, Meteora gestured about like some maestro. “Hellfire. You know the deal.” The streets reacted to her summons, asphalt twisting like snakes to impale any fleeing citizens. “Maximum damage and casualties while our associates do their jobs.”
