“No, it doesn’t,” Stepan agreed. He leaned against the fridge, crossing his arms over his chest. “He drew it when we visited last weekend. He wasn’t feeling well, so Alena told him to take a nap on the couch. When he woke up, he said something about a bad dream, and then he went straight to Mama’s craft drawer and drew this.”
Andrey returned the paper to its magnet on the fridge without commenting.
Stepan gave him a long hard look. “He insisted that Mama hang it on the fridge. He said something about wanting you to see it someday so that you could protect him, too.”
“Strange,” Andrey said. “I wonder what he meant.” Now that the ache had passed, he looked over the drawing one more time, hoping that his nephew wasn’t on the verge of transitioning. “Maybe you should have him checked, just to be sure. He didn’t complain of any headaches or anything, did he?”
Stepan stepped past his brother to place an empty teacup on the counter. “No, thank the Lord. You have no idea how glad I am that this stuff doesn’t run in families.”
“You’re wrong about that. I do have an idea.” Andrey turned away from the fridge, and considered whether he should tell Stepan about the headache he just experienced himself. But his brother already had enough to worry about. “Fresh air?” he suggested instead.
Stepan scratched his nose, squinting into the living room. “We can do the dishes after dessert. I hear Mama made her famous baba romovaya.”
As the brothers made their way to the front door, Andrey stopped beside his mother’s chair where she was resting with closed eyes. “We are going outside for a moment, Mama. We won’t be long,” he said quietly, bending low.
Her soft snores were the only reply.
He gave her a look of compassion before following Stepan through the front door and into the small fenced yard beside the cottage. Outside, the sun was slowly setting, painting the wooden fence with reddish-golden hues. The vegetable patch and the small outdoor oven were already flooded by shadows.
Stepan perched himself against the fence, his expression as dark as the yard. “How bad is it?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I can’t figure out the Oracle’s latest prophecy yet,” Andrey confessed. “But I’d be lying if I told you the Covenant has things under control.”
“Doesn’t your leaving only make things worse?”
“Maybe.” Andrey didn’t enjoy admitting it, but he wasn’t about to sugarcoat things for his brother. He wasn’t going to make excuses for himself, either. “All I can say is, I couldn’t stay a minute longer. I tried, but I couldn’t go on living that lie. I’m sorry.”
Stepan’s only response was to cross his arms over his chest. He was a good man, and he had always been a great brother. More than anything, Andrey wanted to make him understand.
“The UNEOA tied my hands, Stiopka,” he tried to explain. “I’m going to be able to make more of a difference on my own.”
He could see the worry in Stepan’s eyes. Even as a small child, his younger brother had always been on the lookout to keep him out of trouble. He had always fiercely protected him, and now he couldn’t. Andrey knew he had a difficult road ahead of him, but he couldn’t back down now. If he did, he was as good as dead to himself.
“What happens now?” Stepan finally asked.
“Hopefully the political chaos will die down soon, but the surges will continue. They might even get worse. It’s a good idea to have Denis stay with Mama this summer. You and Alena should take the summer off work and come out here, too.”
Stepan snorted. “I’m not sure how well the country life would suit my wife.”
“If it’s money you need—”
“I’ve never asked you for money, and I’m not starting now,” Stepan cut in. There was a pause. “But I will call you if there’s trouble,” he added in a kinder tone. “If I can track you down, that is.”
Andrey didn’t waste any time on arguments, he was grateful for the compromise. “Good. I’m going to give you a number. Memorize it. Don’t write it down. And don’t save it on your phone, either. It’s an emergency line Athena relays directly to my earbud.” He pointed to the small silver device which was barely noticeable in his right ear canal.
“Athena’s still working with you? But won’t the UNEOA—”
“The UNEOA can’t control what they don’t know about. Besides, they would never discipline Athena. She controls all the communications tech, and they can’t replace her.” With that, Andrey recited the number. After a few tries, Stepan repeated it without any prompting.
Once that was accomplished, Stepan leaned over to grasp his shoulder. “You know I love you, brother, even if I’m not sure I understand you right now.”
Andrey diverted his eyes to the shadows near the shed. “Trust me, I’ve never felt like less of a hero.”
Stepan squeezed his brother’s shoulder. When Andrey met his gaze again, he found steely eyes staring back at him. “But if anything happens to my son because of you, I’ll kill you myself.”
“I promise you this, brother. Nothing will happen to your son. You have my word.” This time Andrey’s stare didn’t waver.
Stepan gave a small nod before letting go of Andrey’s shoulder. He leaned back against the fence, gazing up at the darkening sky. “What are you going to do now?”
If somebody had asked him that an hour ago, he wouldn’t have had a clue what to say. Now the outline of an idea was taking shape. His return home had inspired him, after all, and he was feeling less like a blank slate.
“I’ve got an idea,” he said.
White lines on black paper.
3.3 Radiant
Somewhere above Northern France
Friday, the 8th of June, 2012
7:33 a.m.
Radiant hung in the air, more than a thousand feet above a grassy field where Athena had routed him to a couple of hours ago. The Paris area had received increased newscast coverage over the past two hours, and this location was well suited for tapping into radio waves and listening to a large portion of European broadcasts.
Athena did most of the interpretation and analysis. The artificial intelligence system she developed was able to sift through countless channels simultaneously, looking for keywords relating to threats or developments of interest. The AI’s transmissions to Radiant’s helmet let him follow the information feeds marked as relevant. The ones that contained visuals were projected onto his visor, while audio feeds were relayed through his earbud.
“Schlafwandler. Sleepwalker. Update 7:34 by Radio BR Bayern Extra. Broadcast stored,” the AI reported in his ear. Her voice was female, close to Athena’s own timbre, but without emotion. Athena named her Iris. In Greek mythology, she was the messenger of the gods.
“He is still headed to the borders of Poland,” Athena’s live voice chimed in. “If he holds his course, he should only pass through sparsely populated areas for another ten or twelve hours. Evacuations are progressing well according to the Europeans.”
“Ten-four,” he replied, still suspended midair.
The Sleepwalker was at the top of the list of world issues he didn’t know how to fix, and he didn’t enjoy being reminded of it. No weapon had ever had any effect against the Sleepwalker. No superpower, either, so he dragged himself onward through Europe, forcing countless evacuations along the way.
Hopefully the scientists or some genius Evolved would come up with a solution one day. At this point in time, Radiant sure didn’t have one.
He resisted the urge to ask Athena about the latest on the Shanti riots. He had deactivated reception of related news updates for the time being, even though Athena had informed him that the situation was starting to calm down. Across the world, people waited for the official UNEOA statement which had been scheduled for the following week.
“Did anything change regarding the UNEOA’s official opinion of me?” he asked, shifting his balance to absorb sunlight from a better angle.
“Overseer Vega is still of the opin
ion that you are simply taking a much-needed break. This may change if you remain absent much longer without explanation, or if you take any notable action.”
“And Samael?”
“Samael is pushing for a declaration of renegade status.” Athena failed to hide the tremor in her voice.
Renegade status was one step above villain status and one below rogue, he knew. He could have pointed out that the status change was bound to happen, but he didn’t want to push the issue. As far as he could tell, she was just barely holding herself together for his sake.
I’m sorry I’m putting you through this, Alexa.
Iris interrupted his thoughts, relaying another Evolved sighting. “Le saint. Saint. Update 7:38 by France 24. Broadcast stored,” the AI continued. Radiant ignored it because South American heroes weren’t on his priority list.
“What are you going to do today?” Athena asked after her artificial counterpart had rattled off its update.
He knew what she wanted to hear, that he was going to lie low and not upset anyone. Or, at least, not anyone who had the authority to harm him. But telling her that would have been an illusion, and he wouldn’t do her that favor.
“Someone has to talk to the various factions,” he said. “It’s been needed for some time now. How often have you and I talked about that? Ten times, maybe twenty? But they wouldn’t let me do it.”
Someone has to try to hold it all together. The thought was wistful, just like every memory that connected him to the Covenant. Behind his visor, his mind’s eye conjured up an image of a white figure on black paper, surrounded by rays of light. A winged figure, leading others ahead.
“Who are you starting with?” Athena asked, her voice calm once more. Professional.
“Preacher, maybe. He’s easy enough to track down, and there are some things I’ve meant to ask him for some time.”
He hoped his plan to pay Preacher a visit would put Athena at ease. The leader of sixty million Godkin fanatics worldwide was more apt to worship an Evolved visitor than to attack him. Besides, Preacher had some beliefs regarding the Pulse. There was an off-chance his ramblings might provide a clue to some of the unsolved post-Pulse puzzles that Radiant had been working to unravel.
“Let me know what you find out. Some reports suggest he really does believe his crazy theories,” Athena commented dryly.
“And I’d like to know why. He might have Visionary powers.”
“Would you like me to set up some other meetings with various rogues and units?”
Her words tied his stomach in a knot. He hated putting her in this difficult situation because she was both loyal and important to him. “I couldn’t ask you to do that, Alexa,” he said quietly, using her intimate form of address. “You could get in big trouble.”
Athena didn’t respond. There was a stretch of silence filled only by the whooshing of the wind and the distant cawing of crows.
“Eva. Eve. Update 7:45 a.m. by France 2. Broadcast stored. Corbeau. Raven. Update 7:45 a.m. by France Two. Broadcast stored,” the artificial voice announced. After another pause, the newsfeed pattern continued. “Saint. Saint. Update 7:46 a.m. by LBC, Britain. Broadcast stored. Raven. Raven. Update 7:46 a.m. by LBC, Britain…”
“What’s going on with Saint, Eve, and Raven?” he asked over the sound of Iris’ voice in his ear. He was perfectly content just to talk to Athena for a moment, but he couldn’t ignore these many keyword triggers in less than ten minutes.
It took her half a minute to reply because she was cross-referencing her different sources. “Eve, Raven, and Saint have all been seen in Paris recently. Yesterday or late Wednesday. Saint left the country for Bogotà early this morning, flying out of Charles de Gaulle. According to South American authorities, he was on vacation.”
“When did he fly in?” Radiant asked.
“Wednesday evening.”
Using a precise sequence of eye movements, he reactivated his visor to bring up an archived news report of Versailles on Wednesday afternoon. The scene which unfolded before his eyes turned his blood cold as tens of thousands of fists and protest banners were raised.
“So Saint’s supposed vacation only lasted for two days in the middle of the week when half of Paris was shut down by rioters?” he asked.
“I agree, it is strange.”
“What about the others? Raven and Eve?”
There was another pause as Athena checked her sources. “Raven showed up around the same time. We don’t know about Eve, however. She has a permanent apartment in Paris, but rarely uses it. She officially lives in Marseille.”
He flexed his fingers within their spandex gloves and closed his eyes to think. It could be a coincidence, but his gut told him something was up. He suspected the recent political unrest would stir passive rogue groups into activity. Political unrest which he had caused.
“Does Preacher have any active branches based out of Paris?” he asked.
“According to my intelligence, there is a small group loosely associated with Preacher, based out of the east end of the city. No active leadership, but that information may be out of date.”
“What about the Conglomerate?”
There was a brief lapse in communication while Athena searched her databases. “The Conglomerate … no, not as far as we know.” Another pause. “There is the Sun King, however, a powerful rogue legitimized by the French government. People think he is inactive, but he has a small court of Evolved followers. He has also been associated with a couple of other low-profile groups, but we are not sure of the number of members in these groups.”
The Sun King. Athena hadn’t needed to elaborate because Radiant had studied all the other known individuals with Lightshaper power classifications. He knew the Sun King lacked offensive power, but made up for it with a compelling aura that consisted of light-based optical alterations and a mental suggestive power. A power that had almost gotten the man executed half a year ago.
“Remind me about who’s in his court?” Radiant asked.
“The numbers have reduced over the last few weeks. Our most recent intelligence cites an Italian expat Revoker named Colosso, as well as the child Visionary known as The Princess.”
The Princess. He didn’t like the idea of a child involved in a rogue group, but France had assured him a few months ago that it was monitoring the girl’s well-being. He couldn’t take the risk of checking in on her without inviting more political disasters.
He discarded the thought, forcing his mind back to the problem at hand. What did Raven and Eve hope to gain by hanging around with Saint?
“Raven might be looking for a mercenary contract,” he suggested. “Maybe he believes that the Covenant is too distracted to keep a close eye on him anymore.”
“He might be right about that,” Athena muttered.
As if on cue, the morning sky around him was swallowed by absolute darkness. Reflex made him throw himself sideways, but he lacked even the slight amount of light needed to fuel his flight power. Without so much as the equivalent of a distant star’s radiance, he could only adjust his position by inches.
Athena was saying something, but he tuned her out to focus on the here and now, bracing himself for an attack.
When none came, he used his small amount of stored energy to shoot a two thin laser beams from his fingertips. Although they were too weak to cut through the darkness, they provided just enough illumination for him to flare out of existence and shoot himself up as a beam of light. His body manifested again a millisecond later, far above the haze of darkness.
“Radiant, do you copy?” Athena asked through his earbud.
Looking down, he guessed the dark sphere below him covered a radius of a little more than sixty feet. Not enough to suspect that his opponent had surged. He tapped his helmet with a finger. “Darkshaper presence. Stand by,” he said before breaking contact.
A single figure was moving through the air below him, rising from the cloud of darkness to his altitude. The form advanced
with little twirls and loops, intended to either tease him or to evade his lasers. He suspected the former.
You’re quite convinced I won’t blast you out of the sky, aren’t you? he thought, suppressing the anger that welled up inside him.
The figure drew close enough for him to recognize a beak-adorned half-mask and raven- feathered cloak.
Raven.
It didn’t surprise him. He couldn’t think of anyone else who would have flaunted such blatant arrogance.
He watched as his opponent came to a stop about fifteen feet in front of him.
“And God said, let there be light,” the young Darkshaper’s voice called out, every word dripping with mockery.
“Raven. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t shoot you out of the sky,” Radiant shouted back, making sure he was heard over the wind.
The feather-cloaked newcomer tilted his head with feigned consideration. “Because I’m too young and handsome to die?” he taunted. “Or because you can’t stand to eliminate your favorite nemesis? Every hero needs one, you know.”
Radiant was quite aware of what the kid wanted, and he wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of rising to the bait. This wasn’t their first encounter. He’d never quite understood why, but the self-proclaimed mercenary leader had picked him as a personal rival of some kind. Raven always took full advantage of the fact that he would rather endure the teasing than take a life.
“Maybe if you grow up,” he said calmly. “Did you fly all the way up here to reenact a comic book monologue?”
Raven pretended to ignore him. He completed a small twirl, letting his cloak of feathers billow in the wind, snapping his fingers, feigning an eureka moment. “Oh, I’ve got it! The reason you won’t shoot me is because you’re not in a secure enough position to shoot anyone since you went off on your own.” The Darkshaper’s mouth twisted into a snide grin.
That surprised Radiant. As far as he knew, his change of status was officially hush-hush until the UNEOA made a public announcement. If Raven knows, who else does? he wondered. With a shift of his jaw, he reactivated the incoming communication feed on his helmet which allowed Athena to listen in.
Superluminary (Powered Destinies Book 1) Page 25