by Lucas Flint
According to this document, Cadmus Smith had been born on July 5th, 1925, and had served in World War II. That was 92 years ago, but Cadmus didn't look 92 to me.
Then I noticed, right underneath the line stating his age, was another line labeled 'POWERS':
Test Subject 001 has displayed an ability to age slowly. Additionally, there are signs that Test Subject 001 can also read minds, but further testing will need to be done to confirm this.
Ah, I hadn't known what Cadmus Smith's powers were until now, so this was good to know. He aged slowly and could read minds. That explained why he looked the same in this photo as he did today, because he aged so slowly that his appearance probably didn't naturally change all that much over the decades.
But I still didn't understand this document. According to what I had been taught, the first superhumans—including Omega Man and my Dad, Genius—appeared in 1986, but if this document was correct, then the government had been testing on at least ten superhumans in June of 1985, which was the previous year, and possibly even earlier than that.
I reached for the rest of the documents, because I wanted to see who else was in the Project Neo program and how long the Project had been in existence, but then I heard feet shuffling behind me. Then the lights went off.
Without thinking, I whirled around, swinging my fists. Someone was standing behind me, but I heard them dodge my fist, which hit nothing. Then I felt a hand grab my outstretched arm and hurl me forward, using the momentum of my own punch to send me flying.
I crashed flat on my back on the floor, the impact dazing me. Nonetheless, I tried to sit up, but then shadow appeared on my body and held me down against my will.
“What?” I said, struggling against the shadow. “What is this? Who's there?”
“What, did you forget me already?” said a feminine voice above me that I instantly recognized. “Then again, our last meeting was a while ago, so maybe I shouldn't be so surprised that you don't remember me very well.”
I looked up, but the darkness was too thick for me to see. Then a flashlight blinked on and I saw the face of Shade—one of the G-Men and a superhuman herself—looking down at me with a creepy smile, her pale face floating in the darkness seemingly by itself.
Chapter Ten
“Now do you remember me?” said Shade. She sounded amused. “Or do you need another reminder?”
“Shade?” I said. I was instantly reminded of our conflict on the roof of my old school in Texas last year. “What are you doing here?”
“Following you, of course,” said Shade. “Not because I'm some kind of stalker or anything, but on official orders from the top.”
“Cadmus?” I said.
“I can neither confirm nor deny that,” said Shade, without meeting my eyes. “But I can say that I am technically not supposed to even show myself to you. I'll probably get in trouble for this … well, unless I take these documents to the Director.”
I noticed that she was now holding the folder I had been looking through, the one with the document about Cadmus Smith and the other test subjects. “Is that why you followed me? So you could get that folder?”
“No,” said Shade, shaking her head. She waved the folder in front of her. “This folder was just a bonus. Like I said, I'm just supposed to follow you and not talk with you or even let you know about my existence.”
“Let me go,” I said. I struggled against her shadow again. “Now.”
“Why should I?” said Shade. “If I did that, then you might take these documents from me and give them to the NHA. And we certainly can't have that, now can we? Then Omega Man and those other losers would have all our secrets.”
“Do you mean that you know what those documents are?” I said.
Shade shrugged. “Not really. The Director has mentioned them before, but we thought they had been destroyed years ago. As you can imagine, finding them is kind of like finding the Holy Grail. I really should thank you for leading me to them, even if you didn't know you were being so helpful.”
I stopped struggling against the shadows, mostly because they seemed unbreakable at the moment. “So you know what the Cavern is, then.”
“The Director told me of this place once,” said Shade. She looked around with a displeased face. “I can see why the government abandoned it. It's so ugly and dirty.”
“Why was it abandoned?” I said. “What connection does Cadmus Smith have with this place?”
“I don't know and I don't care,” said Shade with another shrug. “The Director will be very interested in reading these documents, so I think I will just go and take them to him. He's going to be upset that I'm reporting in early, but once I show him these, he'll probably forget all about it.”
“What are you going to do with me?” I said. “Are you going to kill me?”
“Kill you?” Shade sounded disgusted. “Of course not. The Director's offer to you to join the G-Men is still open. You can't very well accept it if you are dead, now can you? No, I'm just going to leave you here, I think. The shadow will eventually evaporate on its own, so you won't be stuck down here forever, though I can't guarantee you won't get in trouble with the INJ.”
That was somewhat comforting to hear, but not as much as Shade made it out to be. I figured that if Cadmus Smith wanted those documents, then they were very important, so I had to get them from her before she left. If the government didn't want the NHA knowing about these, then that was all the more reason to get them.
I needed to distract Shade long enough for me to free myself, so I said, “Don't leave.”
“Why?” said Shade. “I really don't have the time to stand around and chat, you know.”
“I know, but I have to ask you a question,” I said. “Did you sneak into the House and reprogram our practice robots to try to kill me and one of my friends?”
Shade paused and looked at me in confusion. “What? Someone broke into your base and tried to use your own robots to try to kill you? I didn't know that.”
I cursed under my breath, because I realized I shouldn't have shared that information with her. So I said, “Oh, um, er, that was actually just a hypothetical question. I just didn't phrase it correctly. What I actually meant to ask was would you sneak into the House to reprogram one of our practice robots to try to kill me and one of my friends?”
Even I could sense how fake I sounded. But I didn't stop and think, because I was working hard at breaking through the shadow. I was using my super strength to help me push against it and break through it, but I didn't want Shade noticing that.
“A hypothetical question,” said Shade, sounding completely unconvinced by my save. “Right. You do realize you just revealed some very sensitive information to me, didn't you? What did I tell you about telling your enemies your secrets when you first meet them?”
I could feel the shadow starting to weaken under my effort, but I needed to keep her distracted for just a little while longer to ensure I could escape. “I know, I know, but you still can't prove it actually happened.”
“I don't need to,” said Shade. “I just need to tell the Director what you told me. He's always interested in knowing what you're up to.”
“That sounds creepy,” I said.
“It is,” said Shade, nodding. “But hey, the Director's the boss, not me, so I have to report to him about you no matter how creepy he is.”
“Wait,” I said. “If you've been following me, does that mean you've even watched me while I shower?”
“I can neither confirm nor deny that,” said Shade, though I noticed her pale skin was going slightly red. “Anyway, I need to leave. It was nice—and awkward—talking to you!”
Shade walked toward the exit, but I wasn't about to let her escape. With a roar, I broke out of the shadows, snapping them like rubber. Shade stopped and looked over her shoulder at me as I jumped to my feet.
“What?” said Shade. She scowled. “How do you keep doing that?”
“It doesn't matter,” I said. I
held out a hand. “Now give me the folder or else.”
“No,” said Shade. She waved at me and smiled. “Good bye.”
With that, Shade ran out the door. I activated my super speed and zoomed after her, but then I noticed a straight line of shadow at the foot of the door and I tripped over it. I crashed into the wall out in the hallway hard enough to leave an imprint of my body on it, but I recovered quickly and pushed myself out of the imprint just in time to see Shade disappearing around a corner at the end of the hall.
I ran after her, using my super speed to give me a brief boost, but not enough to cause me to lose control and run into another wall. Rounding the corner, I saw her running down the hallway, causing me to shout, “Stop!”
But, of course, she didn't. So I activated my super speed and shot after her. I was just about to grab her arm, the one in which she held the folder, when her body suddenly turned into shadow and I staggered forward. Because I was still going fast, I tumbled head over heel until I collided with yet another wall. This time, however, I got back on my feet in an instant and blocked Shade's path, forcing her to stop before she could go much farther.
“Okay,” I said, panting and sweating. I held out my hand again. “I'm just going to ask nicely one more time: Give me the folder or else.”
To my confusion, Shade smile. “Oh, you're so cute when you're determined. Has any girl ever told you that before?”
I was about to say no, but then Shade melted into the shadow, taking the folder with her, and went under my feet. I turned around to try to go after her, but then shadow tendrils rose from the floor, wrapped around my ankles, and yanked me forward.
I fell to the floor with a crash just as Shadow rose from the shadows, gave me a mocking smile, and then ran down the hall, but she seemed to be moving faster than before, as if the shadows themselves were helping her move.
Gritting my teeth, I jumped to my feet and, instead of running, I flew after her. Just as I was about to grab her, Shade once again turned into shadow, but I was prepared this time. Before the folder could sink into the shadows with her, I snatched it from her hands as I flew through her intangible and zoomed to the other end of the hall, where I landed with ease.
“Hey!” Shade shouted in surprise. “Give that back!”
“Nope,” I said. “And good bye.”
I slammed my fist into the nearby wall as hard as I could. Thick cracks started to run up the side of the wall, going all the way to the ceiling, which caused bits and pieces of cement and rock to start to fall. I caught a glimpse of realization dawning on Shade's features just as the ceiling gave way, sending tons of rock and concrete falling onto the hall between us.
But I didn't stay to see the ceiling collapse completely. I turned and ran down the hall, never looking back. I didn't run at my max speed, but I didn't run at my normal speed, either. I just ran through the winding and twisting halls, with the folder clutched to my chest, hoping to get to the lift that would take me back to the upper levels before Shade caught up with me. If I could just do that, then I'd be home-free.
Soon, I saw the lift at the end of the hall, which spurred me on to run faster. Then, all of a sudden, a shadowy tendril shot out of the ceiling and slapped the folder out of my hands. The folder clattered to the floor, causing me to stop and turn around to grab it, but before I could, a shadow tendril rose from the floor, grabbed the folder, and sank back into the darkness.
“No!” I shouted.
I jumped on the spot where the folder had been, but it was no use. My fingers felt nothing but dirty, ancient concrete. The folder was gone.
Then I heard a giggle above and looked at the ceiling to see Shade's face peering out from the darkness. She mouthed, I win before her face faded into the shadows and was gone from view.
Just as I punched the floor in frustration, I heard the clanging and banging of the lift, which caused me to freeze. I looked over my shoulder just in time for the lift to reach the bottom floor with a loud bang. The lift's door opened, revealing a very angry, very pissed off looking Strike standing right inside it.
Chapter Eleven
“Strike?” I said, standing up and looking at the angry superhero. “Um, uh, funny seeing you here. I thought that you were still out fighting Mudslide in Oakland.”
“Beat him within five minutes of arriving there,” said Strike. His tone was cold. “Flew back just in time to learn that Slime took a nap and let you wander around the Cavern without supervision.”
“Listen, Strike, it's not what you think it is,” I said. “I, uh, er, was looking for the bathroom. Yeah, that's it. I needed to use the bathroom, but I wasn't sure what floor it was on, so—”
“Why didn't you ask Slime, then?” said Strike, cutting me off without even the slightest hint of an apology in his tone. “He could have pointed you to the bathroom, which is located on the main floor directly across from the library.”
I opened my mouth to respond, but then Strike held up a hand and said, “But we both know that you weren't looking for the bathroom, don't we?”
“I wasn't up to anything bad,” I said. “I was just doing some, um, exploration.”
“Exploration?” Strike repeated. “What a lame lie. Let me guess, the NHA Leadership Council sent you to spy on us, didn't they?”
I was about to ask how he knew that, but then I realized that that would just confirm his suspicions, so instead I said, “What makes you say that?”
“Because it is so obvious,” said Strike. “Why else would the NHA send you to our base? Why else would you be wandering around in the lowest, darkest levels of the Cavern all by yourself? Plus, the NHA has been looking to take down the INJ for a while and this would be a great opportunity to strike a blow against us in one of our bases.”
I bit my lower lip, trying to keep my temper down so I didn't get into a shouting match or a fight with Strike. “Let's go along with your theory and say that I am, in fact, spying on you. I haven't hurt anyone or stolen any important information that could jeopardize your security. Looks like I'm a pretty poor spy, assuming that that is the case.”
“More like you don't know where to search to find the good stuff,” said Strike. “I'm disappointed in you, Bolt. I thought we could be friends, but if you're just a spy for your leaders, then it's pretty obvious that our friendship was never meant to be.”
Strike sounded so disappointed in me, which bothered me for some reason even though we didn't know each other that well. Maybe it was because he was right and I was basically acting as a spy, but it was for good reason, right?
So I said, “All right, Strike, I guess I am a spy, but not for the reasons you think.”
“What do you mean?” said Strike. “Aren't you looking for weaknesses that the NHA can exploit to take down the INJ?”
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “I'm here because I'm investigating a possible attack by an INJ agent on my team back on Hero Island.”
Strike folded his arms over his chest and looked at me with a questioning gaze. “What do you mean, an INJ agent attacked your team? That doesn't make sense. The INJ may not like the NHA, but I haven't heard about any INJ agents attacking your team.”
I knew it was probably not wise to share this information with Strike, but I also knew that if I didn't then it was very unlikely that Strike would let me leave the Cavern. I didn't know if the INJ had a prison of their own, but no doubt they'd take me into their custody if I refused to tell them the truth.
“The day after we met in New York, one of my teammates, Blizzard, and I were attacked by our own practice robots in our base,” I said. “Our practice robots are supposed to give us a hard time, make us work for our victories, but these ones went too far and tried to murder us in cold blood.”
“What?” said Strike in surprise. “Why?”
“A woman wearing an INJ badge reprogrammed them,” I explained. “We caught her on our security footage. We couldn't see her face, so we don't know who she is, but we think she might be a
n agent of your organization who was sent to kill us.”
“Impossible,” said Strike. “She has to be fake. The INJ would never sink to such a low level. That goes against our ethics.”
“Are you sure?” I said. “The badge she wore looked legitimate.”
“I would know if the INJ leadership tried anything like that,” said Strike. “Because I'm the leader of the New Heroes, the Midnight Menace always shares his plans for the INJ with me. And he has never mentioned sending in someone to kill you or your teammates.”
“Are you sure that the Midnight Menace has shared everything with you?” I said. “What if he or someone else in the INJ leadership secretly hired an assassin behind the scenes to take us out without you knowing?”
“He wouldn't do that,” said Strike, though I noticed a hint of doubt in his voice. “The Midnight Menace can be ruthless and sometimes even cruel, but he'd never go that low. Despite his antisocial attitude, he's still a hero at heart.”
“Can you be so sure?” I said. “Isn't he also a bit mysterious?”
“Well, yes, but you still don't have any proof that the INJ is behind that attack,” said Strike. “Perhaps the woman who tried to kill you and your teammate isn't associated with the INJ at all. Maybe she was trying to frame them to set the NHA and the INJ against each other.”
“That's a possibility,” I said. “But I'm not sure. It can't be easy to make a fake INJ badge, can it?”
“Well, I refuse to believe that the Midnight Menace or anyone else in the INJ leadership is evil,” said Strike. “It doesn't make any sense. Someone else must be behind it.”
“I hope so,” I said, “but we can't be sure. Right now, the evidence is pointing toward the conclusion that someone within the INJ tried to kill me and Blizzard.”
Strike ran his hand through his hair and looked disturbed for the first time since I'd known him. “I need to tell the Midnight Menace about. If there's a rogue agent in the organization doing something like this, then he needs to know.”