Superluminary (Powered Destinies Book 1)

by Olivia Rising

  “But if they want my help—”

  “Then you say no,” her mom finished for her. Her voice was firm.

  “Your mother is worried that you’re still too easily influenced,” her dad explained gently.

  The comment stung. Sure, she’d had a bad habit of hanging out with the wrong sorts of people in the past, but she liked to believe that she’d grown older and wiser since then.

  David broke in, changing the subject. “The riots are unreal. People are boycotting anything that has to do with the UNEOA. Some are even calling for the Covenant to be disbanded. So listen to your big bro, okay? Stay out of trouble until everything calms down.”

  She still couldn’t believe it. Shanti, dead? It just didn’t make any sense. Worse, it trampled her sense of justice and her belief in people’s inherent potential to be good.

  “No one said anything about sending me anywhere.” Sarina did her best to sound reassuring. “But I still don’t get it. The Covenant is supposed to protect people.”

  “Explain it to her, David,” Dad said. “And maybe you can help her with her homework as well. I’ve gotta get ready for my meeting, but I’ll be back in a few to say goodbye.” He gave a quick wave to the camera and was gone.

  David settled into their dad’s office chair, leaning in to adjust the camera angle, bringing himself into full view. If their mother was still there, Sarina couldn’t see her.

  “Ready for the rundown?” her brother asked her in a serious tone.

  Sarina nodded, though she wasn’t sure she wanted to hear what he was about to tell her.

  David dove right in. He was a biology student who also worked as a private tutor, and it showed. “Well, you know how there are all sorts of theories flying around regarding powers and everything? How they work, why some people get them, et cetera?”

  Thinking back to the document she’d prepared yesterday, Sarina was all too aware of the competing theories out there and the lack of concrete information.

  “Well, the UNEOA made a statement yesterday that officially endorsed one of the theories,” David told her. “They say they finally have enough data to prove it’s true.”

  Sarina sucked in a breath. “So they figured out how powers work?” Maybe she wouldn’t be a wild card anymore. It sounded too good to be true.

  David burst her bubble. “Not exactly. They said they could prove something called the power feedback theory, which has to do with surges.”

  “Oh.” Sarina slumped back in her chair.

  “According to the feedback theory, every Evolved who has used their surged powers radiates energy that causes more power spikes in others. For instance, it is believed that Shanti’s power surge caused Shadowslasher and Monsoon to surge in turn. And if the three of them were left alive, then the same thing would keep happening to other Evolved.”

  So that’s how Monsoon became so dangerous. It was too bad that the scientists hadn’t figured out this feedback theory stuff a few weeks ago. If they had, they could have saved thousands of lives. She got lost in regret for a moment.

  “…so that’s why they’re killing everyone who has surged. Because they think they have proof that everyone’s powers are interconnected.”

  Sarina leaned into the edge of her desk, piecing together all of the information. “So they think Shanti’s surge caused Monsoon’s power to spike? That without all of Shanti’s good power, Monsoon never could have accumulated all his bad power?” She struggled against the sick feeling in her gut.

  David nodded into the webcam. “Yep.”

  She refused to believe that the Healer was in any way responsible for the thousands of people who’d drowned in South Africa. “I still don’t get it. It wasn’t her fault some crazy decided to go off the handle and kill everyone. I mean, look at all the good she was doing. Doesn’t that count for anything?”

  “I guess they feel like they can’t take the risk,” David said. “Do you remember Liquidate?”

  “The guy who turned people into water puddles? Yeah, that was awful.” Like most people she knew, Sarina’s memory of the weeks following the Pulse was pretty good. Everything had been so new and scary that it had been burned into her brain. “I don’t think anyone would have protested if they killed him.”

  “Nobody had to. He committed suicide, remember? He just couldn’t live with what he’d done. But the point is, before Liquidate people just assumed that Evolved have their powers under control. But the whole Liquidate scenario proved everyone wrong.”

  The comment cut deep. Sarina knew better than anyone that powers sometimes had a mind of their own, despite the person’s best intentions.

  “That’s why people looked to the UN to form the UNEOA for oversight,” David continued. “As a respected global organization, people trusted it to keep them safe.”

  “And to protect Evolved from themselves,” Sarina finished.

  “That’s right. So, through the UNEOA, the UN Assembly gave the Covenant executive rights to take action anywhere in the world to stop Evolved threats on human life. So if they can justify their actions as saving lives…” he trailed off, shrugging into the camera.

  “Then they can kill. Even a Healer like Shanti.”

  David lifted his hands into the air, palms up. “Looks that way.”

  Liberté, égalité, fraternité. Sarina remembered the French slogan from one of the last history classes she’d attended at school. Evidently, the Evolved were less equal than everyone else.

  That sick feeling returned to her stomach. “David…” she began, unsure whether she wanted to ask the question that had been nagging her ever since he’d mentioned power surges.

  “What’s up?”

  Sarina took a deep breath. “If my power isn’t useless, it’s a game-breaker.” She curled her index fingers to indicate air quotes for the camera. “At least that’s what Queenie said.”

  David raised his eyebrows, urging her to finish her thought.

  She swallowed, hard. “So … do you think they’ll come after me, too?”

  “Nah.” David smiled, but his voice sounded a little thinner than what she was used to. “You haven’t surged, so you’ve got nothing to worry about. Besides, our government’s watching over you. And we’re neutral, remember?”

  But if our government’s ensuring that everyone here’s so safe, then why’s mom so worried about me? Sarina wanted to ask.

  “Yeah, you’re right,” she said instead.

  She didn’t mention the strangers who had contacted her, and now she was even more confused about what to do than before.

  2.4 Dancer

  Boltigen, Switzerland

  Wednesday, the 6th of June, 2012

  09:11 a.m.

  Sarina woke to a beeping noise coming from her computer. It wasn’t exactly loud, but it was persistent enough to worm its way into her consciousness. After several minutes, she was irritated enough to sit up and rub her eyes.

  Oh gosh, it’s probably those guys.

  She remembered how they’d asked her to leave her computer on, and she had complied—though more thanks to her forgetfulness than anything else.

  Yesterday hadn’t been a very good day. After talking to David a little bit more about the Covenant’s new feedback theory, she had spent the rest of the evening by watching online news videos about the worldwide riots taking place. Which hadn’t exactly helped to improve her mood.

  After another computerized beep stirred her from her thoughts, she swung her legs over the side of the cot and stood. As she surveyed the room, she was taken aback by the blue and purple wall décor for a moment, but then she remembered what had happened yesterday after she’d listened to Jasper’s SarinaTrack14.mp3 file. Still confused by all of that, she scurried across the now lush carpet floor and sat down at the computer desk, then checked the monitor to see the familiar black input console with a succession of messages that had come in over the last forty-five minutes or so.

  08:27:11 a.m. Get ready, but let us know befo
re you head outside. We’re waiting for you.

  08:48:08 a.m. Did you have to cover your webcam?

  08:55:16 a.m. Wake up, wake up!

  09:01:00 a.m. Are you there?

  09:07:14 a.m. Helloooooooooooo?

  09:11:23 a.m. Dancer!!!

  She removed the sock from where she’d draped it over the webcam and swiftly typed her response. Sorry, just woke up. No can do on the whole Paris thing. Sorry to make you come all this way for nothing. Since I’m not going to go with you, I don’t think there’s any point in us meeting today. But before she sent it, she paused, her finger hovering over the ENTER key.

  She’d already come to the conclusion that Paris was out of the question. It sounded like the kind of stupid idea which would result in reproachful comments and weeks of regret. Sitting around in this prison-like basement was lame, yes, but Queenie’s visit to her parents gave Sarina hope that the authorities were about to put her into the game. However, the idea of permanently losing contact with Jasper bugged her. He was funny and cute and had a way of cheering her up when she needed it. He had even gotten her power working again, something she’d thought impossible.

  Why did you have to run off with these guys, Jasper? I’m going to miss our chats.

  Sarina deleted most of what she’d just written, and replaced it with something ambiguous and less negative. Sorry, just woke up. Not sure if I’m coming to Paris, but I might come out to talk to Jasper. She hit ENTER.

  A response didn’t appear as fast as she would have expected, which gave her a minute to feel a fresh round of guilt. She had encouraged these guys to come all this way—to some abandoned mountain pasture, for goodness sake—only to tell them that she wasn’t going with them. That classified as a jerk move in her book. And whether she meant to do it or not, she hated being a jerk.

  Finally, the beep arrived. Might?!? Girl, we just spent fourteen hours driving from London. You at least have to come say hi.

  They drove all the way from London? So they didn’t have a Teleporter with them. Yep, she had officially pulled off a jerk move. Trying to be nice about it was the least she could do.

  Then again, she still didn’t feel comfortable going out to meet a bunch of superpowered strangers who hacked into computers. Okay, I’ll come out if you let me see Jasper alone first, she typed. She couldn’t quite explain it, but she trusted the musical prodigy. If he told her that it was safe to meet the others, she would believe him.

  Fine. He’ll walk up to meet you. Go out the back door and head to the main road.

  This made her pause. Wasn’t that a little obvious? But they said that nobody would even notice they were here. And Jasper would never do anything to get me in trouble.

  After a moment of hesitation, she agreed. OK.

  A smiley face appeared, followed by another message. Just pretend you’re going for a walk as usual. We’re gonna see you before you see us. Hurry!

  See me before I see you? That sounded ominous. As far as Sarina knew, the whole area had been placed under a lockdown. She assumed her visitors knew that they wouldn’t be able to get past the army without some kind of trick up their sleeve. She just hoped their tricks didn’t involve getting anyone hurt. OK I just need a few minutes!

  After hitting ENTER, Sarina jumped out of her chair to collect the pieces of clothing she laid out last night: a pair of jeans and an asymmetrical white cat-print shirt that left one shoulder bare. She got dressed, and gathered her hair into a ponytail before stepping out into the hallway.

  She barely noted the light gray stone corridor as she made her way to the stairs. Just what the heck was she going to say to Jasper? Assuming he was outside. Hi! Nice to meet you, if only for two minutes. Have a nice trip? She shook her head, frustrated. He deserved better.

  When she reached the facility’s main entrance, the nerves really began to take over. But whether they were due to breaking the rules or the prospect of meeting Jasper, she couldn’t be sure.

  She stepped outside and looked around the grassy courtyard. Nothing appeared unusual. The two young soldiers in their camouflage uniforms wished her a good morning from their post beside the door, then resumed smoking and chatting about the Shanti riots.

  Huh. Nothing out of the ordinary about that….

  She almost stopped to ask if they had noticed any cars pull up, but caught herself at the last moment. She walked on, feeling stupid.

  A few minutes later, she reached the far edge of the grassy courtyard—the outer boundary of the area where she had been told to stay. She paused to look over her shoulder, back at the guards. They weren’t even looking in her direction. She glanced at the road, hoping to catch a glimpse of Jasper, but saw nothing. Was she in the right place?

  We’re gonna see you before you see us. Sarina recalled the messenger’s words. Were they in camo or something? She decided that she would have to keep walking to find out. She’d come this far, after all. The first few steps beyond the courtyard were the hardest. She had to assemble all her courage just to put one foot in front of the other. She felt shackled by the fear that someone would shout for her to turn back. Or worse, that they would come after her.

  She looked around at the mountainous landscape with its sparse patches of conifer forest and snowy mountain peaks. It left her feeling dwarfed and empowered all at the same time.

  As she took her first step onto the main road leading up to the facility, she glanced back over her shoulder again. The soldiers were uninterested in her, talking and occasionally lifting their cigarettes to their mouths. They didn’t even notice that she had gone well beyond the boundary. For trained army guards, they were terribly lax.

  Those guys, whoever they are, must be doing something with their powers to cover me, she realized. She still wasn’t entirely convinced, but every step she took away from the army barracks reduced her tension a little. If the guards were going to catch her, they would have done it by now.

  This is actually kind of cool.

  The people she was going to meet actually used their powers, and seeing their effect in action filled Sarina with a sense of anticipation for what she might accomplish one day. She felt like a secret agent who had managed to escape captivity. Now she was on her way to becoming part of a secret mission which would change the fate of the world.

  The road wound its way over the top of a hill, hugging the crest for about fifty meters until it finally descended to some flatter terrain which served as the barracks’ main parking lot. A few army vehicles were parked beneath camouflaged tarps, and the amount of dust on them suggested that they hadn’t been driven in a while. There were no civilian vehicles in sight.

  As she headed to the parking lot to wait for her visitors, she walked through knee-high grass and grasshoppers and butterflies were stirred by her movements. They were the only signs of life around her. After four days of complete surveillance, this relative freedom felt strange. She looked over her shoulder again, just to be sure no one was following her.

  When she turned back around, the figure of a young man in mid stride manifested itself on the path about a dozen yards ahead of her. It was as if her senses had blocked him out before, and decided to register that he was there. Evolved powers.

  As the figure stepped closer, Sarina took note of his goofy grin and friendly blue eyes. Jasper. She stopped in her tracks and let him walk the rest of the way to her. He wasn’t wearing the white headphones around his neck, but everything else looked exactly like the photo she’d seen the day before: the unruly brown hair, the ruggedly cute features. He had a slender, but not quite athletic, build which was partially concealed by a long-sleeved shirt and baggy cargo pants.

  As he closed the final few feet between them, Sarina found herself at a complete loss for what to say. Unlike many of her peers, she had never met an online friend before.

  This is awkward, she thought. Not really uncomfortable, just … strange. And kind of awesome.

  But as Jasper’s goofy grin broadened even more, all
sense of awkwardness evaporated. It felt like they’d known each other for months.

  “Hello there, Dancing Queen,” he said in British-accented English. There was a split second when she thought he was going to hug her, but he extended a hand instead.

  She took it. “Hey, you,” she replied, jiggling his hand with a limp grip, self-conscious of her own crude Swiss-accented English.

  Luckily, his smile never faltered so she didn’t have a chance to feel lame. His eyes held a vivid sparkle of something she couldn’t define. Relief, perhaps?

  Maybe he wasn’t sure what to expect from me, either.

  “Kinda weird, isn’t it?” he said, acknowledging the elephant in the room.

  The fact that he could relate made it better, somehow. “Yeah. Super weird.”

  “What, you never evaded army surveillance in broad daylight before?”

  Sarina laughed. “Nope, can’t say that I have.”

  Jasper laughed, too. Then they were left standing in silence.

  Jasper sucked in a lungful of the intense earthy smell of grass and herbs that surrounded them, looking down at the parking lot. “Well, thanks for meeting me,” he said after a few beats. “I know it couldn’t have been … comfortable for you.”

  His words reminded Sarina of everything she was risking by even being there right now. Her smile slipped away as her heart thrummed a little faster.

  “Yeah, you’re right. It was pretty uncomfortable.” Then she asked the question that had nagged her since yesterday afternoon. “They didn’t kidnap you, did they?”

  “Who, those guys?” The idea sounded funny to him. “No way! They’re good people. I’ve known the Techie, Tess, for a few years. She’s pretty nice once you get through her hard shell.”

  “Techie?” Sarina repeated. She’d never heard the word before.

  “Yeah, a Technician. That’s how they got into your computer. She has some friends who are really good at that kind of thing.”

  Yeah, I’d say.

  “And the others?”

  “They aren’t so bad, either,” Jasper assured her. “You can trust them.”