I don’t know what I am going to do. Travel has been restricted. There’s been no transports to repair, and I’m going stir crazy with being cooped up in the shop. You never realize how much you get wanderlust until they say you can’t go out. I’ve always been a homebody, but now I have this foreboding that I just need to get out.
There was another dated entry, but after that there were just scrawls and scribbles, as if a small child was trying to draw.
Aurora looked up at Rory. “Did they do something to you?”
Rory nodded woodenly, even that small gesture taking obvious effort.
“And now you can’t talk about it…” She stopped to think. “Do we really need to get out? If so, how?”
“Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads,” he said in a grim voice.
“A transport, then. I thought they were limiting travel. You can get one? Of course you can get one. I need to get the others before they go through this processing.” Aurora accessed a terminal nearby, looking through the directory. “Let’s see where the rest of the Crew is… Yuki and Darik are in the C wing, Pulse and Anastasia are in the same area on the second floor. I can’t tell where any of the others are, maybe they’ve already been processed? At least having most of the Crew in close together should make our job a little bit easier. I’m not seeing Seneschal or Pulse.”
She widened the search and found Harmony and Grimdark in Admin, probably doing their debriefings.
I have to get to Tempest and let him know what’s happening. Too many thoughts raced through her mind as she tried to come up with a plan on getting everyone out safely.
“You’re my only hope,” he said, laying one of his mammoth hands gently on her shoulder.
“Don’t get your hopes up, we’re not out of the fire yet.”
“This is the part I hate the worst about being a super. Debriefing. Takes so long and it always feels like an interrogation,” Harmony griped to Grimdark as they sat outside the soundproof office. Grimdark sat stiffly upright, his arms folded and eyes closed.
“We could have to write up our own reports, trust me—is worse.” he replied matter-of-factly, keeping his eyes closed.
“At least this time I actually have something to report, and they make us wait out here like kids outside the principal’s office. They need to know about hybrids in the Faction.”
“So you will tattle?” He cracked an eye and peered at her.
“You mean you’re not?!” Harmony folded her arms with a harumph. “Why is everyone protecting her? She’s a hybrid, they need to know—”
“Unless we are reporting to someone who is a hidden hybrid? Neh?”
“Well… Wait, what? You think it goes that far?” Harmony bit her fingernail as she contemplated the implications.
“I joke. Partially. Something here is… off. Isolation… That is new. We have done nothing treasonous, so their motives confuse me.”
“I’ve noticed that too, people have been keeping to themselves. It’s creepy. What do you think is going on, if it’s not hybrid infiltration?”
“I believe it is infiltration. Just not hybrids. Something even worse has—”
The door swung open and a burly man with slicked back hair looked out. His face marred by a perpetual scowl.
“Grimdark, you’re up,” he barked with a sharp motioning of his head to get in the office.
Grimdark calmly rose and stepped into the room, hearing the *hiss* and *click* as the door sealed behind him. Mr. Burly jabbed a thumb at the open doorway beyond and returned to his seat and picked up a newspaper he was reading.
Grimdark straightened his waistcoat, cracked his neck, and entered the office. Once again there was a *hiss* and *click* as the slender man behind the desk pushed a button and the door sealed behind him. He stared at Grimdark for a few seconds, assessing him, then waving towards one of the chairs in front of the desk. He steepled his fingers while continuing to evaluate Grimdark.
Grimdark stared back. These types never intimidated him, despite how they tried. He kept his expression impassive, waiting for the supervisor to speak first. With irritation, the man pushed up his wire frame glasses and cleared his throat.
“From what I hear from the other supers, your group has stumbled upon what appears to be an abandoned base?” He licked a fingertip and looked through some papers arranged in neatly staggered overlapping piles and slid one out of the ream. “Yes, this is it. From an old file, but still it would make a valuable addition to Purple Faction’s resources.”
“That is not correct.”
The man’s eyebrows lowered. “It is not valuable? I would have to disagree…”
“It is not abandoned. It has been claimed, and DNA-keyed to new owner.”
“Yes. I had assumed as much.” He set the paper down in front of him and laced his fingers together, resting them atop the report. “This is the main reason I have called you in today. I have enough from the other reports that I believe we have a good idea of what has happened in your absence, and we need to get all of our agents on the same page. You have missed the ceremony in your absence, I presume?” He pulled another report from a pile on the other side of his desk. “Yes. You’re on the list. We’ll need to take care of that before you go.”
“Before I go where?”
“Why, back to the base to claim it for the Faction instead of whomever has taken it.”
“But it already belongs to someone, who has—”
The interviewer blinked and shook his head sharply as he interrupted. “I would strongly urge you to reconsider.”
“My answer is firm. The base is not ours to take.”
“I would remind you that you are a member of Purple Faction, and that Faction interests take precedence over any personal friendships or alliances.” The assessor shook his head with exaggerated disappointment.
“I will not do it. What do you want the manor for?”
“That is not your concern. But I can see that your lack of cooperation will require us to do this in a less savory way. Because of the insolence of supers like you, who want to make their personal agendas supersede the goals of the Faction, there have been some changes implemented. You will go through the ceremony and bind yourself to Purple Faction before you will be allowed to go out on any more missions. Your older brother has already gone through this process. It allows those in authority to impose certain… sanctions on those in their stewardship. As long as they are compliant, they will have full use of their powers, but we need to tighten the reins. Too many supers have been running at cross-purposes to Faction interests, like this ‘mission’ Tempest dragged you all out on without Faction approval.”
“Did he not request time—”
“Yes, yes,” the man said abruptly, waving the comment away. “But this was a personal issue, and he used Faction resources to deal with it. My superiors and I are willing to let it slide this once, because it has provided the opportunity for the Faction to gain from the debacle, but that is the only thing preventing you and the others who accompanied you from censure and reprimand.”
“That is not my concern. I have no obligation to help you.”
“On the contrary. You no doubt have worked with whomever is in charge of the asset. Exploit this trust, and gain control of that facility. Then hand over those controls to me. Is that understood?”
“And if I refuse?”
“First, your brother will suffer. He will lose all access to his powers. Then you will undergo the ceremony, willingly or otherwise. Then your abilities will be restricted. If you persist in being obstinate, you will lose access to them altogether, among other punishments.”
“Wait. You are taking our abilities?”
“No. We are ensuring that only those who are loyal to Purple Faction have use of their abilities. If you doubt your loyalty then, by all means, leave Purple and become Factionless. You will be considered an active threat against us, however. Not the wisest decision, given your current circumstances. Mmm?
We can make life most unpleasant for your brother, and he cannot leave without our permission.” A sickly smile spread upon his face as he gestured to the room.
“And if I do this, my brother—” Grimdark said through teeth he was starting to grind.
“…will be taken care of. Everything will be business as usual. You will see, this will be a good thing. It will increase the security we have within the Faction and the unity we all should express and enjoy. If we are all in agreement, then you can head to processing now.”
The man pushed another button and a side door opened, and two orderlies stepped into the room and took positions on either side of the door. Their stature seemed more suited for a bouncer than a guide, but Grimdark followed them out of the room.
When the door finally clicked shut, the assessor made a couple of annotations and straightened the piles on his desk. When he was ready, he pressed another button, indicating he was ready to see the next super.
Harmony bit her nail to the quick as the man sprang the door open again as if he were attempting a jump scare.
“He’s ready for ya,” the man barked before retreating back into the room.
Harmony had been thinking about what she would say, and determined that if she felt any kind of deception from her commanding officer that she would wait until she could make an appointment with someone with more authority.
By the time she had the nerve to step inside, Mr. “Jump Scare” Burly was already reading his newspaper. She felt out to read him, but the only sensation she got from him was boredom, mingled with the aftereffects of a hangover.
Her ability had not spilled over into reading outright thoughts, but sensations, impressions, and physical statuses were readily apparent to her. The more she pressed, the more defined and distinct they became, and she could often tell what the root causes were that triggered the emotions. But it came at a cost—the target became much more aware of the surveillance. Finding nothing of note, she stepped into the office as the door opened.
“Please be seated,” the lanky man said, not even looking at her as he read a memo.
Opening herself up, she noted that this was all affectation. The man was not reading the paper at all, but going through a well-choreographed routine he had done thousands of times. Not exactly the type of deception she was worried about, so she felt her nerves relax.
“You went with ‘The Crew’ on this mission to find Tempest’s estranged wife, yes?” he asked with disinterest. This was also genuine, he seemed to have little real interest in what she had to say or report, which mildly offended her.
“I wouldn’t say she was estranged, but she’s been in a hospital—”
“Yes, yes. And now she is in our facility, taxing our resources. I’ll have to see to that. I see that you haven’t been on any missions for quite a while, with your limited skill set of… oh. I see.” He turned and looked Harmony in the eyes. “Are you reading me, Miss Stettler?”
Harmony froze as his piercing glare fixed upon her, and she felt his mental defenses rise. Just before she was cut off, she felt a strong flash of a devious insincerity before his emotions melted away and she could detect no more.
“I take that as a yes?”
“No. I mean, not specifically, I kind of always have it on to detect threats,” Harmony lied.
“And am I a threat?” His gaze intensified, causing her to squirm a little bit in her chair.
“N-no. I don’t think so…” she hedged.
“Good.” He broke eye contact and reviewed another paper, as if nothing had happened. “I see you still need to go through orientation, these men will accompany you there.” He pushed a button and waved to his left as two enormous men stepped in, wearing white scrubs.
“Don’t you want to hear my report?”
“Do you have anything vital you need to report?” Again with the hard stare.
“Not if you already have heard what the others have shared.”
“As I expected. Carry on,” he shooed her away like an annoying fly as he turned back to his work.
Harmony bit her lip as she walked toward the men. Grimdark was right. Something is definitely off.
“Allow me, miss,” the larger of the orderlies said as he gripped her upper arm with ice-cold hands. She could tell he thought he was being gallant, but his creep factor was off the charts, and she didn’t need her abilities to tell her that.
Why do I need orientation? It’s not like I’m a new recruit… she wondered as she was directed out the door, dread sinking into her core.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Zero Day
“What the hell are you going on about?” Tempest roared.
“Gwen Vannett is no longer a member of Purple Faction,” Rampage said placidly, the sparkle in his eyes revealing his repressed mirth.
“Like hell she isn’t! She never quit. She has gone through who knows what kinds of horrors in the time she’s been gone.”
“A leave of absence which, as I see here in my records, was voluntary. It has been fourteen years. I’m sure you can realize that Purple Faction cannot be responsible for everyone who has ever been a member if they chose to move on and do something else. From everything I can see in the file, the split was amicable, so we’ve been tolerant with allowing Ms. Vannett to stay in our hospital. She obviously requires more assistance than we are capable of managing here, would you agree with that?” The corpulent man leaned back in his chair and laced his fingers.
“She may just need some time to stabilize. I’m not sure what shock even moving her here could have done.”
“That may be, but that is not our responsibility. I can give you referrals to nearby hospitals more suitable for your wife’s care. I trust that two days would be sufficient to make arrangements?” He turned to shuffle through some papers on his desk.
“I can’t believe what I’m hearing. You are telling me that someone who has served Purple Faction for over two decades is just going to be thrown out like last week’s trash?”
“We are not throwing anyone out. If you still held your original position, then perhaps there could be some concessions made, but as things are…” He upturned his palms as if the decision was out of his hands.
Tempest brightened. “Well, that’s easy then. My son has taken my place. I’m sure that he would be amenable to approving her continued stay—”
“Actually, he is why this is moving as quickly as it is. He agrees with the assessment that she needs to be moved somewhere else.”
“That spoiled little… Where is he?”
“Mr. Cyclone is on assignment, and will not be available until he returns.”
“How convenient. I’m assuming he will be gone for longer than two days?”
“That is correct.”
Tempest clenched his fists so hard the nails bit into his palms, almost drawing blood despite his gloves. Using control honed over years of management, he finally extended his hand.
“Give me the damn list.”
Rampage found the paper and slid the list across the desk, leaving it there for Tempest to pick up on his own and he turned back to his work, implying the matter was resolved. A passive-aggressive move that just made Tempest almost growl. He slapped the desk hard with his hand, startling the man’s calm, and slowly slid it off the desk.
“Thank you,” Tempest said with murder in his voice.
“You’re quite welcome,” came the reply. Not even using any effort to hide the smugness.
Tempest attempted to slam the door, but it had a hydraulic automatic door mechanism and the momentum was absorbed as the door closed soundlessly. This only irritated him all the more.
Probably had it put in since he has that effect on everyone.
Rampage had always been an arrogant ass who thought he was more indispensable than he really was. Now that the tables had turned, he was rubbing Tempest’s nose in it. And putting Gwen’s life in the balance for his pride! His jaw muscles rippled as he clenched in fury. There would b
e no bargaining with him, Tempest knew that.
Where would he take her? What if Mengele was involved behind the scenes of a hospital near him? No. He couldn’t let that happen. Not ever. It couldn’t be a place where he couldn’t be by her side. Liberty General. It wasn’t strictly for supers, so that boded well, as they probably relied on patient satisfaction rather than Faction subsidy. They would be more amenable to special considerations. On the bright side, Gus could finally visit his mother. So perhaps this sow’s ear could be turned into a silk purse.
He would have to talk to BoJack. He shook his head wearily. It felt like all he did lately was ask for favors.
Yuki dropped onto her bed and stared back at the door.
What was the big rush? We have to head back to headquarters like a bat out of hell and then just stay in our rooms? Stupid!
“Go back to your room and await instructions…” she said in a mocking high-pitched voice, mimicking her supervisor. They didn’t even schedule her for a debrief.
They just think of me as IT, not as a real super. Yuki balled her fists.
Calm down. Clear your head. She took a deep breath and moved to her desk in the small room she stayed in at Purple Faction. Her rig took up most of the space and she checked her messages.
Don’t do it… she told herself as she opened the first message from her father. As expected, it was a combination of passive-aggressive expressions of disappointment, mingled with invitations to come back and help the family. Same as always. Her father always had a way of wording things that made her almost question her own decisions.
How long was she going to stay here as a second-tier super, good for only getting someone’s terminal to work? That was not why she had joined up with Purple Faction. After having experienced more in the past couple of weeks than in her previous years as a super, she knew she wouldn’t be satisfied with going back to a ‘desk job.’ If only she could get some more experience and if someone would just give her a chance, she could show them what she could do.
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