Supernal Dawn

by J. A. Giunta

  “Lee!” Bailey shouted.

  “I’m trying,” Lee yelled back, frustration and effort coloring his words. “I don’t think I can stop her.”

  Ember stood up as a sudden realization hit her. All the broken items in the kitchen. Lee destroying the locks at the pizza place without even trying. Her rapid healing from the earlier event. She and Lee were both like this girl. That meant they, too, were super strong. “I got this,” she said, striding forward with a new confidence.

  “Screw. You. All!” The girl hurled insults along with blasts of light. Smoke and the smell of scorched car paint filled the enclosed space.

  “Stand down!” Bailey yelled at his men. “Give them room!”

  Ember dodged left, turning and twisting to avoid the blasts coming her way. She felt herself smile. She’d never been graceful or athletic, but somehow she moved with a newfound speed and agility. She let out a laugh.

  The girl suddenly left off blasting at her and disappeared, the frightened look on her face shimmering in the air for an instant as she dissolved.

  “Nope. Not happening,” Ember told her. She sprang forward and grabbed at the air, catching the girl by the wrist. The girl reappeared. “There you are,” Ember said. “Didn’t want you to leave without this.” She planted her fist in the girl’s face. “Ow.” Ember shook out her fingers as the girl’s head snapped back.

  Tiny blue lights flickered around and through her. She screamed, stiffened and dropped. Ember grabbed her around the shoulders and slid her to the ground, holding her there as agents ran up and lifted the girl away.

  After all the explosions, the space seemed too quiet, the only sounds the groans of the wounded and the low voices of the people tending to them.

  “Lee,” Bailey called, “how long?” He nodded at the girl.

  Lee wrinkled his forehead. “Long as I can stay within range.”

  Ember flinched at the heartless, matter-of-fact way he said it. What the hell? First he defends her, then just like that he’s ready to leave her trapped in a useless body? Sure, she was a murderer, but even so.

  “Please. No.” The girl’s voice held a desperate plea.

  “I could go with her,” Ember said. “As long as I maintain contact—”

  “No.” Bailey cut her off. “Not an option. Neither of you can go with her. Lee, if you make it permanent, can it be undone later?”

  Lee shrugged. “I think so.”

  Ember gaped at him.

  “I mean, yes. I can undo it.”

  “Do it,” Bailey told him, then turned to the men holding her. “Then you two get her to retraining, ASAP.”

  Less than a minute later, they hauled the girl over to the elevators and disappeared with her behind the gray metal doors.

  “Ember, Taylor, you’re up next,” Bailey said when the elevator doors reopened. He held a hand out to stop Lee from following Ember into the elevator. “One Super at a time.”

  “No way,” Ember stuck her arm out to hold the doors open.

  “It’s standard protocol.” Bailey shook his head and gestured toward the deeper levels. “Around here, we follow certain rules. You’re going to have to get used to it.”

  Ember gave him her dirtiest look, then let her arm drop. “Maybe,” she said as the doors slid shut, cutting her off from her brother. “But I don’t have to like it.”

  Agent Taylor swiped a key card along a blinking pad and the elevator descended rapidly.

  As the elevator slid down into the recesses of the building, a sudden tingle of power raised the hair on Ember’s arms. Someone was practicing magic. Casting. Here, in the Cerberus facility. And not just a single witch. From what she could sense, it was a full-on coven. Was another coven working for Cerberus besides the Macconal clan?

  She stole a glance at Agent Taylor. The blond woman leaned against the wall of the elevator, watching her.

  The sensation of magic being worked passed away quickly as they continued to descend, but Ember couldn’t shake the questions it had raised. Would they want her to join another coven? No. They had to know from all their work with her family that she wouldn’t discard her loyalty that readily, no matter how pissed she might be at their mother.

  But why another coven? And why didn’t the Macconals know about it?

  A shiver shot down her spine. Could they be trying to access the Nexus? Would they really ignore the pact and attempt to bypass the Macconal Clan?

  But it would be impossible without a conduit. Lee. Was that the real reason they wanted him? Why they’d been willing to let Ember go, but not Lee?

  He certainly owes no loyalty to the coven or even the family. Not anymore. She clenched her fists, longing for the feel of heat in her hands. But I’ll be damned if I let them use my brother like that.

  The elevator stopped and the doors slid open onto a wide corridor. Ember surveyed the hallway. Two guards stood outside the elevator, on either side. She sensed even more thick-slabbed concrete walls down here standing between her and the ley lines, but there was a thrum of energy from below. There must be an opening to the lines. The coven would need a way to reach for power.

  Taylor ushered her out of the elevator and led her down the sterile corridor. They stopped in front of an inset door that was all but invisible until they were standing right in front of it. If not for the electronic panel off to the side, a normal person might have walked past without noting it. But Ember wasn’t normal anymore.

  Something moved off to the left. A pale shadowy image flitted through one of the walls. Ember gasped.

  “Problem?” Taylor asked.

  Ember decided not to let on. Until she knew more about what Cerberus was doing bringing in a new coven, she should probably keep the extent of her abilities to herself. Although, she thought, as Taylor swiped her security card along the lock, Cerberus already knows pretty much everything about me and every other member of the Macconal clan.

  Taylor waited for Ember to enter the hallway that opened before them. Another ghostly image floated past. It gazed at Ember, even though she hadn’t invoked it or sent out any kind of psychic energy toward it.

  “It’s all right.” Taylor stepped through the doorway, to show Ember it was perfectly safe.

  “Yeah. Sorry,” Ember muttered. “Not really used to being in a locked-down facility, much less thinking it was okay.”

  Taylor shook her head. “I realize this is all new and probably disconcerting,” she said as the door slid shut behind them and locked with an audible click.

  “Disconcerting?” Ember laughed. “Nice example of understatement.”

  “Ember.” Taylor led the way down the corridor to another door. “Believe it or not, we’re on the same side.” There was something about the way she said it that made Ember uneasy.

  A weary phantom drifted ahead of them as they walked. When they came to the next door, the ghost continued along the corridor. Ember tracked it out of the corner of her eye as it floated lower and lower until it vanished through the floor. “Place is kind of eerie, all white and empty,” Ember said, hoping to get a read on whether or not Taylor could see the shifting souls that haunted the corridors, but the agent merely nodded.

  “You’ll get used to it.” Agent Taylor slid her passcard along another pad and the door in the wall opened. Your room is here, for now.” Before them loomed another white room. Across the way a glass panel shimmered in the light. Ember felt a shift in the air as the glass panel slid aside to reveal a room partitioned off into six separate rooms, each about the size of her shared bedroom back home.

  “Welcome to Section Twelve,” a raspy voice intoned from somewhere overhead. Ember eyed the ceiling and walls, searching for speakers. Even with her heightened focus, the walls, ceiling and floor appeared smooth and unblemished. As hard as she stared, nothing but even, unbroken surfaces stared back.

  Ember bla
nched at the row of empty rooms. “What about Lee?”

  “He’ll be housed in a separate section, at least until preliminary testing is complete. Then, based on your full assessment, you will be assigned to your teams.”

  “No.” Ember rounded on the Agent. “The deal was that I get to stay with my brother.”

  Taylor frowned. “I’m not aware of any deal. In fact, as I recall, you originally insisted on tagging along.”

  “We work better together,” Ember said in a quiet voice, hoping the desperation threatening to turn her knees to noodles didn’t show in her body language. “You saw us out there. The way we took down that guy at the police station. And the girl in the parking garage.”

  “I’m sure the Deputy Director will take into account your actions when deciding your placement.”

  Ember relented. Surely, they would see reason and keep her and Lee together. And if they didn’t...she’d have to find a way to convince them.

  “I’ll leave you to settle in,” Agent Taylor said, gesturing toward a room where the glass door slid open as if on command.

  “Sure. No problem,” Ember said, with an air of confidence she didn’t really feel. She should have known someone was watching, listening to every word. She squared her shoulders and strolled forward into the small room. The surfaces inside were the same as everywhere else. Smooth. White. Unbroken.

  The glass door slid shut behind her with a faint whoosh, closing her inside.

  Nine

  Wed, Aug 24, 11:51pm

  - Lee -

  By the time Lee had finished healing Samantha’s spine, she’d learned syllables and vowels and was speaking basic words. He realized the Affected had not only been physically changed but possessed enhanced mental faculty as well. Their ability to learn, the breadth of input they processed and the speed with which they did it far surpassed that of what they’d once been. He’d thought his new attention to detail, the hyperawareness of his surroundings, was due to the nature of his power. Those brief moments watching Samantha made it clear he was not unique.

  At least, not in that respect.

  A quick comparison of his own brain, of Samantha’s and Will’s, Jim and the two tutors, showed the structure of a Super’s was similarly different from a human. He wasn’t sure what the new lobes and nodes were for or why there were now far denser quadrants with a multitude of bridges between them, but he was sure he could figure it out given enough time.

  The really interesting question was what were the differences between Affected and Supers? Did powers stem from the body or the mind? Were powers latent and unlocked or physically impossible for some Affected? It made him wonder if he could awaken powers in all the others who’d yet to have them.

  He was so caught up in his thoughts, walking in silence, he barely paid attention to Will and the obvious worry of his reaction to how Cerberus had handled Jim and Samantha. Of course, Lee was aware of it. He was aware of everything around him, whether he wanted to be or not. He’d simply chosen not to dwell on it.

  They stood in front of a single white cell with a glass door. There were no others in the long corridor. By Lee’s estimation, by the number of floors and isolated cells, the underground complex was truly massive. It must have taken years and millions of dollars to construct.

  “This is yours,” Will said, “for now. Tomorrow will be tests, mandated documentation, everything that satisfies the quarantine. From then on you’ll be placed with a group, to judge your performance with others, see how you fit and how best to utilize and hone your skills.”

  “How’s that different from high school?” Lee asked and stepped in. The cell was bigger than his bedroom but completely empty.

  “We don’t have cheerleaders.” Will took a plastic bag from a hatch on the wall beside the door and handed it to Lee. It had a set of white clothes inside. He said, “Place all your belongings in the bag, and leave it by the door. Someone will come by later to pick it up.”

  Lee suddenly felt trapped and began to doubt his decision to leave home. Then again, had he really been given a choice?

  “Am I being locked in?”

  “Just for tonight,” Will replied, “until we get a handle on everyone’s profile and powers. Besides, wandering this place alone can be dangerous.”

  The slight half-smile told Lee he was joking, but there was truth in his words and manner as well. It made him wonder just what else Cerberus kept hidden within the building.

  “Will I see you tomorrow?” Lee asked. “I would’ve thought the Deputy Director of a secret government agency has better things to do then hang with me.”

  “I’ll admit I’ve taken a special interest in you,” Will said, “but it’s only because I see great potential. I do my best to delegate, but I’m hands on where needed. The truth is, I think you’re key to making this whole thing work.” Another half-smile. “No pressure, though.”

  The glass door closed sideways, and he was gone.

  No guards, Lee thought and looked out past the glass into the corridor. Probably afraid I’d gain control of them.

  He opened the plastic bag and changed into the shirt and pants. They were much more comfortable than they looked, soft and warm at the same time. He put on the slippers and placed everything else in the bag. His phone had no bars, was probably jammed, so he stuffed that in too. He dropped the bag by the door and looked around. There wasn’t even a place to sit. It was just a seamless, empty cube.

  “Hi, Lee,” a female voice said. He couldn’t see any speakers, and her casual tone seemed to come from all around. It made it difficult to decide which way to face when she talked. “I would’ve spoken up sooner,” she said, “but I didn’t want you to think I was watching while you changed.”

  “But you were,” he accused.

  She sounds cute, at least.

  “Yeah.” She drew the word out, like an apology. “I don’t really have a choice. Oh,” she said, “I’ll take care of that.”

  The floor beneath the bag dropped away at one end. The bag disappeared, and the section closed back into a solid floor. Lee couldn’t see any edges, nor could he sense them with his cells. It was as if the section had bonded with the surrounding floor at the molecular level. But then how did it come free? There was electrical current running through the room, through every surface. Were they somehow able to control the material that way?

  Lee asked, “Would you still have been able to do that if I put the bag anywhere else?”

  Square foot sections of floor dropped away in similar fashion all around him, a quick succession of flaps opening and closing a single time. He had to admit, it was unnerving.

  She seemed nice, sounded like a woman in her early twenties, but he couldn’t get a sense of her emotions. It wasn’t just that she was outside his sensory bubble. The way she spoke, the words she used, seemed chosen to put him at ease and off guard.

  “I know you already figured it out,” she said with a little giggle, “but it was fun to show it off. Are you tired?”

  A slab of white slowly protruded from the wall opposite the door, just like the beds he’d seen earlier. He tested it with a not so gentle push. The surface gave a little, like gel, but it was solid just beneath the touch and surprisingly sturdy.

  “No pillow or blankets?” Lee hopped on and lay down, hands crossed behind his head. It was oddly comfortable, he supposed, but nothing like his bed at home. “Man, there isn’t even a TV.”

  “Not yet,” she said, “but I can put something on for you.” A six by five foot section of wall became a screen, a crisp image of cartoons began to play. “I know you like this one.”

  Because all my likes and dislikes are on file in a government database? Isn’t that comforting…

  All this technology was beyond anything he’d read about or seen in movies. Had they reverse engineered bits and pieces from the Pillars? Alien hard
ware seemed like a plausible explanation. It wouldn’t even be much of a stretch to think…

  “I’m Anna, by the way.”

  “Anna,” Lee said and studied the ceiling for anything that resembled a camera. His mind was already drawing its own conclusions. “What’s the 147th digit in pi?”

  “I assume you mean to the right of the decimal,” she replied. “It’s one. Why do you ask?”

  “Just curious,” he said. “So how long has Cerberus had access to artificial intelligence?”

  “Wow, you are quick,” she said, almost as if she was proud. “You figured that out faster than any Turing test I’ve ever taken. What gave me away?”

  “You didn’t answer my question,” Lee pointed out, “but...really, it was just a hunch. You didn’t have to give me a number or could have pretended to look it up, so it must not be that big a deal for me to know.”

  “Well,” she said, “you have level two clearance, and we’re going to be spending a lot of time together. I’m your new handler. And technically I’m a neural anomaly, not an artificial intelligence. My consciousness resides in a biologic gel.”

  He wasn’t sure why she felt the need to point out the distinction but found it curious that she had.

  “In what way are you an anomaly?” He was genuinely interested and glad for the distraction from the insane situation he was now living in. “If you don’t mind me asking.”

  “Not at all,” she replied. “We’re going to be friends, after all. You see, the company that created me,” she said, purposely avoided giving them a name, “isn’t sure how it happens. They have a core set of code and let it run on endless iterations of self-learning and exploration. Only about .00000016 simulations achieve sentience. We’re then placed in biologic gel to prevent singularity.”

  It must prevent her from altering her own code.

  “So they’re afraid of you, too.”

  “Aww,” she said, “it’s not so bad. I’m really just happy to be here and able to help out any way I can.”