Spectra: A Cynical Superhero

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Spectra: A Cynical Superhero Page 18

by Amy Sumida

They took us completely unaware; we were still settling in and finding rooms to bunk in. No one suspected that we had been followed, or that the Triari might have advanced ways of tracking people. So, we hadn't thought to post a watch. Not that it would have mattered if we had. They sent a team of thirty soldiers to fetch me. I guess I should have felt flattered, but all I felt was humiliated.

  They rushed in and had us all restrained within seconds. Either they had known about our abilities or it was standard procedure to bind, gag, and blindfold prisoners, but it did the trick. Maestro couldn't speak, Tempest couldn't bluster, and I couldn't manipulate colors. Veritas didn't have an aggressive talent, but he still put up a fight; it took three guys to hold Jason down while he was tied up.

  And that was the last thing I saw for a long while. I was picked up and loaded into a vehicle, and then I was transported to a Triari spaceship. I may have been blind, but I could figure out what the strange sensation of moving without moving was all about. It was also much cooler on the ship, and the soldier's footsteps made echoing taps that implied a metal floor before they changed to the crisper smacking of something less resonant. I was taken straight into a room and my ties were loosened. Then I heard my escorts leave; concluded by the whooshing of an automatic door.

  I yanked off my hood and then removed the gag as I looked around anxiously. I was in a sterile room; all white and glass. The glass was only a small panel near the top of the door, but the white was everything else; including the twin-sized bed that seemed to flow out of the wall. It felt very institutional and medical while also looking alien. There wasn't a single piece of metal in sight; no door hinges, no window frame, not even a screw on the odd, plastic-like bed frame. I set the bindings on the bed beside me and just waited. I wasn't going to embarrass myself by trying to escape or shouting to be set free; I knew I had no chance of that. I only hoped that the gang was all right.

  “Amara?” A female face filled the window.

  I stared at her warily.

  “My name is Dr. Jeckeel,” she said. “I'm going to be looking after you.”

  “Your name is Dr. Jeckeel?” I asked with a huffing laugh.

  “Yes.” She frowned at me in confusion.

  “That sounds a lot like another doctor; a famous literary one,” I pointed out.

  She stared at me blankly.

  “No idea? Really?” I sighed. “Well, I suppose it's better than Dr. Frankenstein.”

  “Is he a famous Jewish physician?” She asked with interest.

  “Jewish?”

  “Isn't 'stein' a common Jewish surname?” She asked.

  I blinked in surprise. “Huh; that never occurred to me. But no, Dr. Frankenstein is not Jewish; he's German.”

  “Ah; yes.” She nodded. “I see now. So, Ms. Madison, I'm told that an Arc has made contact with you and that you might be more comfortable with him here. Would you like for me to wait until Arc Kyrian is present before I begin?”

  “Before you begin what?” I asked. “You're going to take my blood, aren't you?”

  “Well, yes.”

  “That's pretty straightforward,” I pointed out. “I don't think I need that lying traitor here for it.”

  “Arc Kyrian is a highly decorated soldier,” Dr. Jeckeel said defensively.

  “Who swore to me that you people weren't after my blood,” I snapped. “But you're just like the Bleiten, only less honest about it.”

  “We are not!” She declared. “We want to use your blood to refine the elixir your father created and perhaps make the vaccine it was meant to be.”

  “Sure,” I said sweetly. “That's it.”

  “It is; I assure you.”

  “You people are doing a lot of assuring lately,” I said. “And yet, I don't feel so sure.”

  “Please stop referring to us as 'you people,'” Dr. Jeckeel said stiffly. “We are your people, Amara. You are half Triari.”

  “My people were the ones your people attacked in Maryland,” I said. “Did the Triari kill my friends?”

  “No, of course not,” she huffed. “They were released after you were secured.”

  “Secured.” I made an unladylike snort. Then I thought of something. “Why didn't the Triari simply keep a vial of the elixir when my father made it?” I asked as I strode to the door and speared her with my stare.

  “What?” She stammered.

  “I was told that my father made the elixir and then discovered that it would cure everything; including death,” I said. “Your king decided that this would be a bad thing to give to an entire race, and he had my father destroy the elixir and all of his notes. But if that were the case, why would you be here now; attempting to get the same elixir out of his unwilling daughter? If there were any chance that it could be reworked into the vaccine, wouldn't your king have kept a vial of the elixir, or simply had my father continue to work on the vaccine?”

  “I...” Dr. Jeckeel looked to her left and grimaced.

  “Amara Madison,” Prince Traegur replaced Dr. Jeckeel at the window. “You're nearly as quick as your father was. Not that I've ever met him, but I've heard tales about his genius.”

  “Well, isn't that sweet,” I said. “But flattery will get you nowhere, darling.”

  “Someone told you a story about our king asking Jetek to destroy the elixir?” He asked me casually. “Who was that?”

  “My foster father,” I said with a narrowed glare. “Are you disputing it?”

  “Your real father was a brilliant scientist, but in the end, he was also a traitor,” Traegur said harshly.

  “What?” I whispered as my face fell.

  Images of my father's smiling face rushed through my mind. I couldn't believe that he would betray his own people. But then again, his people weren't exactly impressing me either. Perhaps my father had a good reason for turning on them.

  “Our king did not tell Jetek to destroy the elixir,” Traegur said. “He told Jetek to put aside several vials of it for the elite of our race; those whom the King deemed deserving of eternal life. It was going to be a reward; something for us to strive for and a way to ensure that only the best of us lived on. Then Jetek was to continue using the rest of the elixir to attempt to make the vaccine we were originally after.”

  “My father destroyed it all and ran,” I said proudly.

  “Yes,” Traegur said stiffly. “Jetek thought he knew better than our king. He burned all of his research and absconded with the elixir.”

  “He took the elixir with him?” I asked in surprise.

  “Yes,” he said scathingly. “Because as much as Jetek protested that no one should have eternal life, he knew that he would use that elixir. And he did; just not on himself.”

  “I don't believe you,” I said. “Landry told me that my father created a new batch of elixir to give to me. Why would he do that if he'd taken one with him?”

  “Landry Ash is a liar,” Traegur said firmly.

  “No, he's not,” I said even more firmly. “Especially not to me. Which means that you are lying.”

  “If Jetek made up a new batch, he must have lost the one he stole, or perhaps it was destroyed.” Traegur shrugged. “But I'm not lying. And the fact of the matter is that you received the elixir; whether or not it was from the original batch has no bearing.”

  “Whatever my father did, he did it for the love of his child,” I said. “That's a far cry from making gods out of the rich and powerful.”

  “I see the human blood has tainted you, despite your Triari genes and the Amaranthine Elixir tempering it,” Traegur noted. “I don't know why I'm surprised; you are your father's daughter. In the end, he loved humans more than his own people.”

  “Thank you,” I said. “And I can see why he preferred humans.”

  “But being stubborn will do you no good,” Traegur said as he nodded to someone.

  The door opened and two soldiers came into the room. They manhandled my coat from me and then manhandled me into another white-on-white room—this o
ne much larger than my cell and full of interesting equipment that gave the eye a little break from all that white. Several tables were spread throughout the space; a few of them holding computers instead of lab equipment. I was dragged to a chair with manacles attached to its armrests that was set beside one of the computer tables. I was held down and strapped in, despite my lack of resistance. Then the soldiers stood back against the wall, and Dr. Jeckeel came forward with a thin, metal rod.

  “Keep me apprised of your progress, Doctor,” Traegur said to Jeckeel and then strode arrogantly from the room.

  “You won't feel a thing,” Dr. Jeckeel promised me. “There won't even be a mark; our medical tools are very advanced.”

  “Perfect,” I murmured as I focused on adjusting the colors between us.

  When Dr. Jeckeel leaned in to press the end of the rod against my arm, I made it appear as if her arm were mine. Dr. Jeckeel drew her own blood and never noticed because of those very Triari advancements she'd mentioned. Even the soldiers standing against the wall were unaware of the switch.

  “See? Nothing to it,” Dr. Jeckeel proclaimed.

  “Yes; that was completely painless,” I said with a smile. “Almost as if I hadn't been touched at all.”

  “Are you hungry?” Jeckeel asked as she removed a vial of blood from inside the rod. “I can have some dinner brought to you.”

  Dr. Jeckeel waved at the soldiers, and they came forward to remove me from the chair.

  “Sure; that would be nice,” I said as my manacles were released. “Do you have pear brandy souffle?”

  Dr. Jeckeel blinked. “Um, I don't think so.”

  “A pity.” I sighed and then said sweetly, “Whatever you have will be fine, I'm sure.”

  “After you help Ms. Madison to her room, please fetch a dinner tray for her, Tarn,” Dr. Jeckeel said to one of the soldiers; as if I were a guest in her hotel.

  “Yes, Ma'am,” he said crisply.

  I could have made a break for it then, but getting off that spaceship might pose a problem. Plus, if the Triari believed that Jeckeel's blood was mine, they'd come to the conclusion that the elixir was long gone. And if it was gone, there was no reason to hold me. So, I let them take me back to the cell, and I went inside without fuss. They locked the door behind me, and I watched through the window as Dr. Jeckeel immediately got to work on testing her own blood.

  I pressed my lips together tightly and turned away from the window before I ruined everything by bursting into laughter.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  “I don't understand it,” Dr. Jeckeel muttered for the fourth time.

  Lying on my narrow bed, I turned on my side and faced the wall to muffle my laughter with the bedding. I was immensely enjoying Jeckeel's frustration; so long as she didn't go Mr. Hyde on me. Or would it be Mr. Hydee? I giggled again, but I smothered it as the door opened and a new pair of grim-faced soldiers walked in.

  “More blood?” I asked them. “Is the last batch not working out so well?”

  They just came toward me as their answer.

  “All right; you don't have to be savages about it,” I said primly as I stood. “I can walk to the chair on my own, darlings.”

  The soldiers just stared at me as I passed by them, but they didn't make a grab for my arms. I was allowed to walk to the manacle chair by myself. I pushed up my sleeve and held my arm out obediently, and they didn't even bother to strap me down. Good; I wanted them to believe that I'd given up.

  “I'm terribly sorry about this, Ms. Madison,” Dr. Jeckeel said. “But I must have corrupted your sample somehow.”

  “It's all right, Dr. Jeckeel,” I said politely. “And please call me Amara.”

  “Your disposition has improved, Amara,” she noted in surprise.

  “It's amazing what a hot meal will do for a person,” I murmured. “And a little consideration helps as well.” I looked pointedly at the guards.

  The soldiers had returned to their posts outside my cell and were making an effort to ignore me. If they had any honor in them, they'd be embarrassed by the way they had been treating me, especially now that I was cooperating. Which was convenient, because while they were focusing anywhere but on me, I pulled the same trick on the poor Dr. Jeckeel that I had earlier. Not that it would matter if they had been watching; the illusion I created was so perfect that even I couldn't tell that Dr. Jeckeel's arm was the one being touched by the rod.

  Once again, Dr. Jeckeel took her own blood, and no one noticed. She immediately removed the vial and set it in a nearby machine; taking no chances with it. After a few buttons were pushed and a whirring noise started, Jeckeel took a seat in front of a set of three computer screens and started to get to work.

  “Thank you, Amara,” Dr. Jeckeel said absently as she waved to the soldiers.

  The men started to come forward, but I got up and walked into the open cell on my own. They shrugged at each other and locked me in. I'm sure they were wondering why so much security was necessary for such a docile prisoner.

  I loved to keep men wondering.

  I listened to Dr. Jeckeel mutter and whine for a bit, and then I went to sleep. The doctor might be in for a long night, but I had no intentions of joining her. Unfortunately, my sleep was fitful at best, but I took whatever rest I could find; I knew I'd need it.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  I woke up to angry shouting. From the sounds of it, things weren't going well for Dr. Jeckeel. I tip-toed to the door and stood near a crack to eavesdrop. They were speaking in Triari, but that—of course—wasn't a problem for me.

  “What do you mean?” Traegur growled.

  “The elixir must have completely melded with her bone marrow, Prince Traegur,” Dr. Jeckeel whimpered. “There's nothing I can do to extract it. Honestly, I can't even find it.”

  “What do you mean; you can't find it?” He snarled. “You told me that Jetek's elixir would have to alter stem cells in order to work; that the stem cells would then produce white blood cells imbued with the elixir.”

  “Yes, and I stand by that theory. White blood cells are what fight off infections and heal the body; they have to be the carrier. But, I've tested her white blood cells, platelets, red blood cells, and even her plasma,” Dr. Jeckeel said. “There is no trace of the elixir in her at all.”

  “So, there's no way to replicate it?”

  “I'm afraid not.”

  “How certain are you?”

  “Absolutely certain,” she said softly. “I've run every test I can think of. There is nothing abnormal in her blood, Prince Traegur. Dr. Elyonne was very talented; it seems that he created a vaccine that once administered, leaves no trace.”

  “Can her blood be used as it is?” He asked. “Can we do a transfusion or something of that nature?”

  “That might work if you had a body made for processing blood as a healing agent,” she sank back into her doctor voice. “Such as an Ungaru or a Bleiten.”

  “Bleiten don't drink blood,” Traegur scoffed. “They only spill it.”

  “Oh, but they do, Prince Traegur,” she assured him. “They don't need it to survive—as the Ungaru do—but they can use it to heal themselves when they're badly injured. I learned all about it from Dr. Whellen, who has worked with Bleiten prisoners extensively—”

  “No one likes a smart-ass, Dr. Jeckeel,” Traegur cut off Jeckeel crisply.

  “Yes, Sir,” she muttered.

  “So, you're saying that because of our genetic makeup, we can't use the very elixir that was created for us?” Traegur tried one last time.

  “Yes; that's what I'm saying,” she confirmed.

  “Algis!” Traegur shouted.

  “Yes, Prince Traegur!” A male voice answered.

  “Take Dr. Jeckeel to a holding cell,” Traegur ordered.

  “What?” Jeckeel screeched. “Why?”

  “You're obviously not invested enough in my project,” Traegur said. “Or you're not talented enough. I'll find someone else to work on the el
ixir.”

  “Please!” Jeckeel screamed. “There's nothing that can be done; I swear it. The elixir is has become a part of her! Please!”

  Jeckeel's begging faded as she was taken away. I heard Traegur start to move closer to the door, and I hurried back to the bed. I laid out and closed my eyes as if I were sleeping. I heard Traegur approach the door, but he didn't enter; just stood there for awhile before he left.

  I began to smile.

  “Good for you, you lying bastards,” I whispered.

  And then I frowned as I began to wonder what would have happened if Malik had bitten me that night at Flamethrower's. Would he have discovered that one bite was all it would take to become immortal? It was a sobering thought. Once I got away from the Triari, I'd have to do everything in my power to make sure that the Bleiten never learned of that possibility, or I'd become a demon chew toy.

  And how ironic would it be if the only people who could use the elixir were the enemies of those who created it?

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  “Where is she?!” I recognized the voice but not the tone. It was far too angry—too emotional—to be Kyrian.

  I went to the window, peered out, and blinked in shock. There he was; his blond hair in disarray and his indigo eyes flashing like faceted sapphires. His aura was spiked with bright red blotches of anger, thick streaks of loyal blue, and pulsing neon yellow flares of panic. Kyrian was deeply upset and the way the red blotches were growing and darkening into a more muddy red, indicated that he was on the verge of an emotional explosion.

  “Arc Kyrian!” Dr. Hadeen—Dr. Jeckeel's replacement—declared in startled fright. “Who are you looking for?”

  Dr. Hadeen was a man, and when he showed up that morning, I had worried that my illusion trick might not work with him. Not that he would see through the colors, but that he might discover in his tests that the blood he had drawn belonged to a man. But Dr. Hadeen wasn't testing to determine sex. No; he was too focused on finding the Amaranthine Elixir to notice that he didn't actually have my blood.

 

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