Aegis: Catalyst Grove

by Nathan Roten

  Alex laughed with him. “Well, don’t worry. It is not the worst story. I believe Casey had the best one.”

  “Casey Hagan?” said Graham.

  “Yes. Do you know of her?” asked Alex.

  “Well, sort of. We read her case file. She was the first one to have the bands. It said she was seen here, engulfed in flames. She died here.”

  “And what makes you think she died here?” asked Alex.

  “Who could survive being in a fire? Plus, Chase said she was dead.”

  “She is dead, but not because of the fire. She died in 1987 at the ripe old age of 93.”

  “93? You mean the fire that almost burnt this place to the ground happened over 100 years ago?”

  “It most certainly did. The Aegis armbands were a new development at that time. Ever since the removal of The Aegis from human history, we have been trying to find ways of bringing it back.”

  Alex turned back to the rest of the group. The smile faded from his face and a more serious tone took over as he spoke, as if from memory.

  “Once The Aegis was taken from humanity, all of the power rested solely with the two brothers. The eldest never broke his oath to watch over and protect the human race, while the other grasped for complete control over them. He would use his followers as pawns in his fight against his brother, and as generations came and went, he was eventually seen as a god because of his power. Many versions of the Greek and Egyptian gods were developed from the different ways people viewed the younger brother. Seeing the evil and deception, the older brother knew what had to be done. There had to be a way to reintroduce this power to the human race. That is when The Aegis group was formed, and ever since that time, we have been searching for ways to bring the power back. We looked for centuries, all over the world for a sign, for a way to reintroduce the bands. It wasn’t until Casey’s generation that we stopped looking externally and finally decided to look within the body itself.”

  Alex paused for a moment to let them process all of the information.

  “We scoured the earth for any sign of the source of power, but we found nothing. Without it, the group was powerless to stop the domination of the younger brother, now working behind the scenes in the shadows. We finally learned that all those centuries ago, The Ancient did not remove the power along with the bands from history, but instead hid it within each person. The gifts and feats mankind once possessed through the bands now lies dormant within each and every one of us.

  Once we realized that, we built the warehouse as a type of training facility. We thought that given the right circumstances and education, each person would learn to draw it out, but with each person came failure, time and time again. After years of willing participants, we discovered the need for a catalyst. We needed something that would bring the dormant power to life again. There was no better object to model the catalysts after than the original bands. It was at that moment that we saw the flaw in our thinking. The bands were no longer The Aegis. We are. The bands are now the key, or catalyst as we call them, enabling us to access the gifts inside. Through the knowledge originally given by The Ancient to the two brothers, we were and are now able to craft the bands.

  “So we are superheroes, then?” scoffed Damien in complete unbelief. Evidently, the story was getting a little far fetched for his taste.

  Chase cringed at Damien’s response. “If he only knew who he was talking to,” he whispered to Cavaness.

  “I don’t blame you for your unbelief, Damien. Truly I don’t. Casey did not believe either until her catalyst erupted in flames. It wasn’t until afterwards, when she remained unscathed, that she understood. She was the first to become activated.”

  Alex grinned. “I guess for some, seeing is believing.”

  Alex stretched his hand out again, causing their wrists to illuminate. “These past 24 hours have been a time of activation. The catalysts activates the power coded in your DNA so that the Aegis power can be accessed. It happened last night when you first put them on, but it could not take full effect until your specific gifting was drawn out. Think of it as a needle from the doctor, drawing out blood. Catalyst Grove was designed to do just that.”

  Alex could feel their confusion. Instead of further explaining the details of how the catalysts worked, he decided he would let them see the final effect for themselves. Looking to the other men, Alex signaled for them to come over to the new recruits. Cavaness, Branson, Chase and Murphy all walked over to the small table, pulling up their sleeves as they went. Each balled their fingers into a fist, forcing their bands to appear. With their forearms facing up, Graham and the others could see that the circle portion of the bands were not empty for them. There were strange symbols filling them, different for each one.

  “Now, if you will, please turn your arms over so that your palms are facing upward.”

  Each one did as Alex asked. Their bands were still illuminated. The once vacant circle that lay on their forearm was now filled with a symbol like the others. Beginning with Ailey, Alex walked over to each one. Ailey’s circle was filled with a small line connecting two semi-circles.

  “Ailey, you have the gifting of a Bridge. Your purpose is to serve the others by helping them use their powers together. I am sure you remember the odd feeling in your hands when you grabbed Graham and Kel’s shirt in the warehouse, and the confusion of seeing both of them fire a similar beam of light from their hands.”

  Ailey nodded, remembering the experience.

  “And I am sure you will never forget grabbing hold of Cavaness and causing the ground to erupt.”

  Ailey grinned and shook her head side to side.

  “It is a wonderful gift being a Bridge. It suits you. You are good at building up others. You would rather let the light shine on someone else as you work in the background using that creative mind of yours. Don’t you agree?”

  Ailey nodded again, but her enthusiasm was now mixed with the confusion of how Alex knew about all this. Alex moved over to Kel next.

  “Kel, you have the giftings of a Pusher.”

  Looking down, the small circle in Kel’s band had a sort of a ‘V’ in it, which was inset into a small arch resembling the ground.

  “It is not unlike a normal mode of attack, though the energy you use when you ‘push’ is more like the shock wave of an earthquake. What makes your gift very unique is the fact that it can change trajectory.”

  Alex looked into Kel’s eyes as if peering into the intimate parts of her mind and soul.

  “You are a math and science person, are you not?”

  “Yea, those are my favorite subject in school,” said Kel.

  “Alright then. A basic rule of physics then, is that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Now, let’s apply that to geometry. Your favorite game back at your Orphanage is Billiards, correct?”

  “Yes, it is. How did you kn….” said Kel, but unable to finish as Alex continued.

  “Let’s say there is a ball close to the pocket, but you have to use the side rail of the table because there are other balls blocking a direct shot. When you strike the cue ball into the side rail of the table, you do it at a calculated angle so that it collides with the other ball in just the right way to make the shot. That is the strength of a Pusher. Let me ask you. Do you remember your reaction to falling down the embankment?

  “Sort of. It all happened so fast. I remember shooting the ground, then the trees blowing out of the ground,” said Kel.

  “And how far away were the entry and exit points of your shots from the ground?”

  “Umm, I don’t know. 15 or 20 feet, maybe?”

  “Yes. 23 and a half feet. Based on your position and elevation, you calculated the exact angle needed to uproot the trees so that they would span the gap in the ground. You already have such a keen sense of the spacial relations of your surroundings. As long as there is a surface to absorb your shots, you will be able to deflect it back at any angle you wish. Cavaness has the same gift, and wi
ll be your mentor.”

  Kel’s heart sank. “Cavaness? He almost killed us.”

  Alex smiled softly. “I wouldn’t say that. If you felt the full force of his attack, you would be very thankful for his restraint last night.”

  Alex turned and addressed all four of them. “I hope you will not hold these acts against the men sitting behind me. Everyone in this room has acted on the desire to draw out and develop your skills. Putting someone in extreme circumstances with the understanding that you will be hated and despised for it takes a large measure of courage and love, if they truly believe the final outcome is for the best.

  “Why not just tell us what it is from the beginning and help us develop it that way,” asked Damien. “Wouldn’t that be a lot less drama for everyone?

  “Indeed it would. That is exactly where we started. Those case files you found were the records of each attempt to draw out the power with willing participants, but we came to discover that it simply does not work that way. Let’s use your words Damien. I think you put it best when you shoved Kel to the ground while in the cavern. You said, and I quote, “Sorry about pushing you like that. I had to do it hard enough to make it seem real.”

  All at once, the lightbulbs went off in their heads. Without even knowing it, Damien realized what Alex had long ago. It was all about perception. Graham immediately looked at Chase, who had been staring at him the entire time.

  Chase wanted Graham to become one of them, letting loose the shackles of the past. He knew Graham would find fulfillment here. He would find camaraderie among them. Chase kept these things in mind while he was scaring the life out of them these past 24 hours. One night of suffering would be worth it. Chase’s eyes evidently perfectly displayed these emotions, because he saw Graham nod in acceptance of his actions.

  “Since you have spoken up Damien, let’s discuss your gifting,” said Alex.

  A three-pronged trident was illuminated in his circle. Damien traced all three with his finger in awe.

  “An Aquatic is a rare strength. There has only been one other to come through Catalyst Grove. I have only seen a handful in the past 20 years, and none of them were able to drain a large pond from the very beginning.” Alex looked directly into Damien’s eyes. “I am curious. Once you saw the others display their power, did you already know where your strength lied?

  “Ummm, well….in a weird way, I kind of did. How did you know that?” asked Damien.

  “I know you look out over the lake every night before you go to bed. Lima was quite the arid place to live, and your family did not have the means to take you down to the port much, did they?

  “No, they didn’t. They took me once when I was like 3 or 4. I remember how good it felt to splash around. It was so cool and refreshing. It was like nothing I had ever felt before. Since that time, we never had the ability to go back.”

  Damien looked up at Alex, vexed by his knowledge. Lima might as well be on the other side of the world from Portfield. There is no way Alex could know about his past, and besides, he had never told anyone of his love for water.

  “How do you know about our pasts?” asked Damien in a respectful but straightforward manner.

  “I know a great deal about you all. No one comes here to be developed with my acceptance, so naturally, I must know who I am dealing with.”

  Alex walked up to Graham. Taking hold of his wrist, Alex turned his arm over to show his gifting. As his forearm twisted upward, he could see that his circle was still vacant. Graham’s head sank almost as far as his heart. He couldn’t make eye contact with anyone, especially Alex. He had barely known the man, but for some reason he felt as though he had let him down. Alex put his hand under Graham’s chin and gently lifted his head up.

  “You’ve nothing to be ashamed of. You have a lifetime ahead of you to develop your gifting.”

  Graham listened but still could not bring himself to look Alex in the eye.

  “Graham. Look at me.”

  Graham didn’t want to, but he could not disobey. He slowly lifted his eyes to meet Alex’s. Knowing Graham’s insecurities, he lowered his voice so that only Graham could hear what he had to say next.

  “You’ve had a difficult past. I know you feel abandoned and have always questioned what you may or may not have done to your parents. I promise you, I will help you unravel this mystery. For now, you must understand that you bury things inside, building walls around your personal life. That is how you have learned to cope. Somehow, your true strengths are chained to those walls. We will learn together how to break it free. I promise.”

  Graham sat nearly speechless, choking back tears, not wanting to appear weak. “Yes, sir,” he mumbled.

  “Good. It is settled then,” Alex said, winking at Graham. Standing back up, Alex raised his voice for all to hear. “Graham, Chase will be your mentor. I hope you will find that agreeable. You may not have the same giftings, but Chase is very knowledgable and is an expert at drawing out strengths.”

  Alex walked back over to his table and picked up the silver tray he had brought in earlier. He walked back over to where the kids were, and beginning with Graham, he lowered the platter so that each of them could take a golden envelope. Everyone waited for Alex to put the tray back down for an explanation of what they were just presented with.

  “Cavaness has given me the report that you have worked extremely well as a team. Your strengths compliment one another’s and as I can now see, you have all grown very close. Like men and women of war, you have all created a tight bond by way of the trials you have just experienced. These types of bonds are so tightly woven, that it is nearly impossible to break. You are a team, but I must warm you that accepting our offer will come with the certainty of danger. These powers have been activated in you to serve as protectors. You cannot protect someone unless there is something to protect them from. We form a very real alliance of able men and women under the name of Aegis, who are at war with a very real enemy. I want you to be aware of this up front.”

  Damien stood up and raised his hand.

  “Yes, Damien?” said Alex.

  “Who are we protecting, and what does that have to do with this envelope?”

  “The ‘who’ will take some time to explain. More time than we have right now, although I gave you some detail in the story of the two brothers. As for the envelope, the last thing I want is for you all to be separated now. Time and distance are the only tools capable of tearing this bond you all have with each other, and these are relevant factors, being that you come from different Orphanages. It is not up to me to arrange a transfer, nor do I have the authority to request your presence here on a daily basis.”

  They had all been so caught up in last night’s events and the explanation of it all that they never thought about the reality of having to go back home. Graham and Kel looked at each other. They had been through so much. He hated to think that he would never see Kel or Ailey again.

  “I will never have that type of authority, that is, unless you are mine to develop.”

  They all looked at Alex, thoroughly confused.

  The corners of Alex’s mouth curled into a wide smile. “These are adoption papers. If you accept, I would like to make you permanent members of Aegis, and of my home.”

  They all looked at each other in complete shock. Every orphan dreams of the day when they will be chosen and accepted. Year after year, they had seen others get selected instead of them. What they held in their hands was the physical manifestation of their heart’s desire. This was the hope they had been waiting for. The hope of being part of a family and to be genuinely loved by someone other than people paid to do so.

  “I will only turn these in if you are in agreement. I have already been in contact this morning with Ms. Winstone of Greenwood and Mr. Pitman of the Oak Ridge Orphanage. They know that you have made your way here to Portfield Manor, and I assured them you all were in my care until your return in a few hours. So between now and then, you have a decision to make. We
will leave you to talk amongst yourselves and make a final decision.”

  Alex turned and walked a few steps back towards his table, then turned back around to face the kids. He grabbed the bottom of his vest, giving it a twist, then took hold of the sides of the ‘V’ at his chest with both hands to adjust it. Graham leaned closer. He finally realized where he recognized Alex.

  “You are a remarkable group. Whatever your decision, please know that I hold you all in the highest regards. Now, please help yourselves to the food and drink. I know you are famished.”

  At that, Alex turned toward the other members and motioned for them to all leave the room. Branson and Murphy got up to congratulate Graham and the others, followed by Chase and Cavaness. After the first two had shaken hands and given high-fives, Chase walked up to Graham and placed his hand on Graham’s shoulder.

  “You were a hard one for me to develop. I hope you aren’t too shaken up.”

  “I’m ok. You really had me going there,” said Graham, acting a bit sheepish.

  “Well, I am glad to hear it. Trust is a funny thing. I know I had to break yours to help you develop your gifting. I hoped maybe we can repair it once you accept.”

  Graham had no words to say. No one had really pursued his friendship like this before.

  “Yes, I would like that,” said Graham.

  “Atta-boy,” said Chase with a wide smile. “I’ll see you on the other side.”

  With a pat on the back, Chase moved on to the others giving his apologies for the hardship but at the same time expressing his excitement to have everyone on board. Cavaness stood where Chase had been in front of Graham. He still hardly had an expression on his face, and his large form blocked out the light from the chandelier on the ceiling, making his face even harder to read.

  “How’s the stomach?”

  “Uh, surprisingly ok. I don’t hurt at all. It is odd.”

  A slight smile broke through his hardened leathery face. “Good. You are a strong, young man. I pushed you as hard as I did because I knew you could take it. With the potential you have inside, you will be able to move mountains if you want to. It may not have released this time, but it will.”