by H. L. Burke
Beyond the obstruction the creek’s bed dropped suddenly, dribbling down in a sickly waterfall before broadening out into an open area with the stream in the center. Brush grew along the sides here, thick and tangled with more debris possibly from earlier floods. Anything might be hidden in there. Having grown up in the desert, Jake had seen more than his share of snakes. Stepping on one lying in wait beneath a bush would be a lousy end to this adventure. He pulled up his powers and floated down into the brush.
He hadn’t gone more than a few steps when a strange sound caught his attention from a particularly thick section of foliage. Sort of a mix between a squeak and a ... meow?
Is there a cat out here? We’re in the middle of nowhere.
Jake listened. The noises repeated, definitely meowing. He swallowed. Shortly after joining the gang, he’d found a kitten under the dumpster behind their hideout. When his uncle found out Jake had brought it inside and was feeding it, he’d been furious. He’d taken the kitten away. Jake didn’t like to think about what had happened after that. He hadn’t had the stomach to ask.
A cat wouldn’t survive long in the middle of the woods with snakes and coyotes around.
If Laleh gets a ferret, I can have a cat, right?
He crept closer, not wanting to scare the animal. The mewling stopped. Jake froze. It must have heard him. No point in sneaking up on the poor thing and scaring it half to death.
“Here, kitty, kitty,” he called out, keeping his voice soft. “Where are you hiding?”
The leaves in front of him shifted ever so slightly. Jake smiled.
There you are!
He pushed aside the underbrush and stared down into the blue eyes and spotted face of a good-sized ... cat? The creature crouched down and hissed at him.
Jake’s mind spun, searching for a word, his heart rate suddenly rocketing.
That’s not a cat ... that’s a baby ... bobcat? No, wait—oh, no—
A blood curdling scream rent nature’s quiet. Jake jumped back, fully fragmented. A massive muscular mountain lion swooshed through his body. Jake whirled around to see the tan colored wildcat—easily as long as Jake was tall—crash into the brush behind him. The creature spun to face him. Ears flat, she shrieked.
Oh, crap. Jake, you idiot.
Jake held out his arms, trying to make his body bigger.
Easy, she can’t hurt you as long as you’re fragmented. Just get out of here—
The lioness leaped forward, and Jake shrieked. He sprinted for the cliff beside the waterfall. Springing up, he created handholds with his power and climbed as fast as he could.
He needed to get away, but he also needed to make sure the beast didn’t go towards Marco and Laleh. Jake could fragment if the lioness took a swipe at him. His friends? Not so much. He caught hold of the top of the cliff and hoisted himself up over the edge. He laughed in relief before glancing back. His blood ran cold. The cougar darted up the side of the cliff, taking a pathway too narrow for Jake to see let alone use, but coming fast and hard, right for him.
Jake bolted.
The cougar screamed again. From the sound she was right on top of him. He dodged through the trees, trying to navigate away from his friends. When he dared to look over his shoulder, the big cat sprang. This time her body passing through Jake didn’t seem to faze her. She crashed to the ground in front of him, immediately turned, and growled.
Jake’s mind went into overdrive. He couldn’t outrun this creature, and even though he was currently invulnerable, there was a limit to how long he could remain that way. The longest he’d ever kept his whole body fragmented was maybe ten minutes, and at the end of that his molecules had been screaming, a thousand pinpricks of pain as his body begged to be released to its more natural form. His lungs already hurt from the frantic race through the woods. The cougar? She didn’t seem any worse for wear.
Come on, Jake. She’s just a dumb animal, and you’re a freakin’ supervillain. Do something!
“Yah!” Jake shouted and flapped his arms. “Get! Get away! Go!”
The cougar batted at him like a cat going after a string. She screamed again, the sound echoing through the trees.
Jake shivered, looking around desperately for something he could wield as a weapon. No rocks and all the sticks were puny.
The cat lunged for him again. This time when she passed through him, his body shuddered. He could feel her brushing against the pieces of himself. She was strong. Full of life and rage—so much rage.
Well, she thought you were trying to eat her baby, you idiot. Did you expect her to shrug that off?
“Get!” Jake cried out again, but his voice lacked power. The cougar circled him, tail swishing, eyes dark.
“Jake, duck!” a voice called out.
Without hesitation, Jake threw himself to the ground. A wall of fire rushed over his head, straight at the big cat. The creature hissed and fled, disappearing into the underbrush with frightening ease.
Jake hopped to his feet and stared after her before turning to find his friends running towards him.
“Dude!” Marco said. “That cat was huge!”
“Are you all right?” Laleh gasped.
Jake managed to nod though his tongue wouldn’t budge.
Laleh’s expression hardened. “What were you doing, messing with a cougar? You know they shoot animals that attack people. You can’t tell Prism and Fade about this. They’ll call it in and the poor thing will get murdered.”
Irritation bubbled up within him, and he found his voice again. “Yeah, sorry if I don’t feel all that protective of an animal that just tried to make me her lunch.”
“Cougars don’t hunt people. We aren’t their natural prey.” Laleh crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m sure you must’ve done something to provoke her.”
Jake’s jaw clenched, but he knew explaining that he’d accidentally stumbled onto the animal’s baby wouldn’t exactly sway Laleh’s opinion in his favor. Instead he just huffed out a breath and said, “Whatever. Let’s get out of here before it comes back ... unless you want to stay here and make friends with it. Maybe it’ll sense you’re an animal advocate and go easy on you ... or it might just decide vegetarian girls are a nice low-cal snack.”
Laleh opened her mouth, probably to snap at him, but before she could speak, Marco interrupted.
“Uh—guys. I think ... I think I made a mistake.”
The older two teens turned, following Marco’s gaze. Jake’s head spun. Where Marco’s fire attack had landed, flames now licked the underbrush.
Laleh swallowed. “It’s not bad. We can put it out—”
The fire hit a patch of dead grass and exploded.
“Crap!” Jake said. “We need to stop this now!”
Chapter Twenty-One
“How the heck are we supposed to stop that?” Laleh wailed, pointing at the fire now climbing the nearest pine tree.
Jake’s gaze swept the area. No water. Nothing they could use to smother the blaze. Wait—Marco’s powers!
“Marco, you need to draw the fire back, control it before it gets any further.”
“I can’t!” Marco stammered.
“Yes, you can.” Jake gripped his shoulder. “It’s your power. I’ve seen you do it.”
“But this is too much!” Marco’s bottom lip shook. “I’ve never done this much before—”
“You need to try!” Jake resisted the urge to shake the younger boy. Frightening him wouldn’t fix the problem.
Marco extended a trembling hand. The fire roared with renewed intensity.
Laleh jumped back a step. “This isn’t going to work! We need to get help and get out of here before we’re toasted!”
“No!” Marco hissed.
The older two stared at him.
The boy curled his fingers. The flames flickered and climbed down the tree, back towards the section of grass and underbrush they’d already claimed.
“That was just me connecting with it,” Marco said through
his teeth. “It’s ... listening now.”
Jake swallowed. Did the fire actually speak to Marco? Sensing this wasn’t the best time to interrogate his friend, Jake stood beside him, hand still on his shoulder, begging whatever higher power that might exist that this would work. The fire condensed to a section of grass and small shrubs right where it had initially started.
“Good work,” Jake said. “If you can hold it there, it’ll burn up its fuel and die. Just hold it a little longer.”
Laleh watched, her hands shaking. “We should get some help. It’d go out faster with water.”
A thought struck Jake. “Marco, can you lead it back towards the creek?”
Marco gave a stiff nod. “I think so.” Sweat beaded on his forehead, but he kept his arms extended towards the flames even as perspiration ran down his face towards his eyes.
Jake quickly swiped his own sleeve across Marco’s forehead. “You’re doing great.”
“Thanks.” A faint smile crossed Marco’s face before his expression pinched. He drew his arms closer to his body then swept them towards the direction Jake had come from. The flames moved a few feet in that direction then settled back down. Marco repeated the motion. Again the flames moved a little further.
Jake swallowed. Maybe this was a bad idea. How far had he run from the creek? “Laleh, can you trace out the most direct route to the water?” he asked.
Laleh jogged away from them then jogged back. “It’s not far! The creek’s just down the slope through those trees.” She pointed towards a stand of pines. “We need to avoid the undergrowth as much as possible, though. If it flares up, he might not be able to—”
“I’ve got it!” Marco snapped.
Laleh tensed.
Marco walked forward, and the fire went before him, barely licking the grass it skimmed over, leaving it singed but not completely blackened.
Jake’s eyes widened. He didn’t realize Marco’s control over fire had gotten that good. As they approached the trees, the flames drew together into a long, thin column, like a carpet rolling out before them, narrow enough to go through the widest point between the pines without touching them.
They broke the treeline and found themselves at the edge of the creek basin where Jake had found the baby cougar. Jake swallowed. Not a lot of water, but at least the undergrowth was green here. A thought struck him. What about the cub?
“Look!” Laleh pointed towards the far side of the creek. The cougar sprang up the bank, her baby dangling from her mouth.
Relief crept through Jake. She’d probably smelled the smoke and was smart enough to get her cub away from it.
We’re actually going to be okay!
“We’re almost there, kid. Just a few more yards—” A thud drew his eyes to Marco.
Marco hit the ground, face gray.
“Marco!” Laleh exclaimed. They both crouched beside him. Marco groaned, his eyes shut, his t-shirt damp with sweat.
“You pushed him too hard!” Laleh shouted.
“We didn’t have a choice!” Jake growled. “Look at least—” He glanced at the flames, and his jaw dropped. The fire took to the underbrush around the creek bed with a hissing, popping roar. Without Marco’s control, they couldn’t stop it.
“What are we going to do?” Laleh asked. “Our powers are useless here. We need to get Marco someplace safe and go get help.”
Jake hopped to his feet and spun in a circle. They needed more water—or a way to move it at least. If only they’d come out on top of the waterfall instead of below it. The pool at the top was so much deeper—
A thought struck Jake, and he yanked Marco to his feet. “Can you get him to higher ground?” He pushed the still limp Marco at Laleh who caught him.
“I think so, but why—”
“Just do it!” Not stopping to hear her protests, Jake raced up the slope towards the waterfall and the log jam he knew was holding back the stream.
This is crazy. I’ve never fragmented something this big before. It won’t work ... but it’s our last chance.
Scrambling to the top of the small cliff, he hopped from boulder to boulder until he reached the log jam. He paused. Smoke tainted the air around him, scratching his throat. He coughed. Every muscle in his body went flaccid. He couldn’t do this. He didn’t have the strength even at this best, and he definitely wasn’t at his best right now.
I have to try.
Teeth gritting, he placed his hands on the largest log in the obstruction, the very one he stood upon, and channeled his powers downward. The water shifted through the wood beneath him as if the log were made of mist. Chunks of the log jam broke off, swept away by the ever growing current. The water in the pool swirled and frothed then all at once the log jam gave with a burst. Jake cried out in horror and almost lost his fragmented form as the log jerked away from him, unable to resist the water’s flow even when fragmented. Somehow maintaining his powers, he hovered over the water before skating to the side where he gripped the edges of the ravine and pulled himself to safety.
The water gushed over the cliff before crashing into the underbrush. It hit the fire with a sizzle of steam, and the flames disappeared beneath it.
Marco! Laleh!
He desperately searched the area before him and spotted the pale purple of Laleh’s sweater against the backdrop of some nearby trees. Marco sat at her feet, slumped over, but no longer fully on the ground. Relief sapped the last of Jake’s physical strength, and he collapsed to his knees, drawing deep breaths.
The roar of the water died to a faint rush. He opened his eyes. Beside him the pool had drained to a thin channel. Debris lay strewn about the basin, though for the most part the signs of fire had been washed away.
With one last great exhale, he picked himself up off the ground and worked his way down the slope towards his friends.
At his approach, Marco scrambled to his feet and cast Jake an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, Jake. I tried to hold it, but I guess I’m not strong enough yet.”
Jake held up his hand. “You did fine. I shouldn’t have asked that much of you. It wasn’t fair. Seriously, though, dude, that was intense. I was impressed.”
Laleh rested her hand on the boy’s shoulder. “You did great, Marco. Real hero moves back there.”
Marco beamed.
Jake took in the damage. Even with the fire out in the basin, smoke still clung to the air. “We need to get out of here. If someone saw the smoke they might—”
“Don’t move!” a voice shouted.
Jake’s hands immediately clamped down on the shoulders of both his friends. He extended his powers into them then looked in the direction of the voice.
A ragged looking man of perhaps fifty emerged from the trees, his face red with either rage or exertion—maybe both.
Laleh stiffened under Jake’s grasp but didn’t pull away.
“What are you punks doing out here?” the man snarled.
“None of your business.” Jake drew himself up to his full height, about even with the man who was small framed with a gnarled look. His exposed lower arms resembled twisted tree branches.
“I’d say it’s my business if you’re starting fires and causing floods around my camp!” The man spat his words. Marco flinched back in disgust even though the spittle flew right through the fragmented teens without making true contact. “I saw you! I saw you use your freaky powers to remove that log jam. Do you know what you did?”
“I put out a forest fire,” Jake shot back. “You’re welcome?”
“Your flood washed half my belongings away! My tent, my supplies, all my cash—my truck’s still there, but who knows if it will start with all that water in the engine.”
Jake’s knees weakened. This couldn’t be happening.
“I didn’t mean to start the fire!” Marco whimpered. “It was an accident—”
“Marco, shut up.” Jake pinched Marco’s shoulder.
“We’re sorry your belongings were damaged,” Laleh’s tone turned ca
joling. “Is there anything we can do to make it up to you?”
“You got a few thousand in cash on you? Because that’s what it’ll take to fix my truck and replace my gear.”
Laleh cringed. “We don’t, but maybe we can—”
“Cash or I’m going to the cops and telling them about your little bonfire.” The man jabbed a finger in Laleh’s face. She flinched. “The authorities around here take fire safety very seriously. If they hear a bunch of sable freaks were out here playing with the stuff, they’re going to crack down on you punks.”
“We weren’t—” Marco started, but Jake again strengthened his hold.
The man’s eyes darted across the three teens before alighting on the disruptor cuff visible on Laleh’s ankle. “I’ve seen those before. You three are already some sort of criminals, aren’t you?”
“Whatever we are, it doesn’t concern you.” Jake stepped forward and squared off against the man.
“I think it does, considering you owe me money. If I were to go to the cops about this, my guess is you wouldn’t like that, would you?”
Jake fought to keep his expression stoic, but inside he squirmed. This couldn’t be happening. Should he call the man’s bluff? But what if he wasn’t bluffing?
“How much do you need?” Laleh asked.
“Let’s see, repairs on the truck, a new tent, radio—let’s call it an even four thousand, just cause I’m feeling generous.” The man winked at her.
Laleh trembled.
“A minute.” Jake drew both of his companions a few feet away and dropped his voice. “What are you doing, Princess? Maybe 4k isn’t a big deal in rich girl land, but I don’t exactly carry that kind of cash in my pocket.”
“We can’t let him go to the cops,” she stammered. “If DOSA finds out what we did, they might shut the camp down. My mother is already looking for any excuse to pull me out of here, and you know you’re on thin ice.”
“But it’s not either of you guys’s fault,” Marco breathed. “I’m the one who started the fire. If anyone gets in trouble for this, it should be me.”
