by Thomas Shaw
"Fresh out" David answered in a very flat tone, "Amy, what are you doing here?"
"I said I'd come didn't I. But I got a phone call from a certain somebody on my way here asking certain questions"
David looked at Laura. Her face was a mixture of displeasure, concern and a little bit of trepidation. He probably had the same look on his face at that moment too. Amy was making herself at home and was filling up the kettle. She put it back on its charging plate and it started to boil. She got three cups and put a tea bag in each.
"Did you speak to Sam?" Laura asked quietly.
"Yes"
"And"
"There's a bit of a problem"
Laura stood up straight, "What kind of problem?" She asked sternly.
"Well, as I got to his, he kinda got arrested"
She blinked once, slowly, "How do you 'kinda get arrested' David?"
"By throwing a few cars around and trying to kill a guy?"
Amy poured the boiling water into the first two mugs. She started pouring into the third but the water didn't go into the cup. Instead it just collected itself into a floating ball a few centimeters from the rim of the glass! Amy looked over at Laura in excited shock.
Laura hadn't stopped looking at David, her arm was outstretched towards the ball of water and her hand was curled into a fist, "Amy, take that tea bag out and make mine a coffee please"
Amy quickly picked out the tea bag and poured a spoonful of coffee into the cup. Laura unclenched her fist and the water fell into the cup. Laura laid her hand flat and instead of the water sloshing back up over the rim it immediately settled.
"That's cool" Amy said with a huge grin. She handed Laura her drink and the two women went and sat on the sofa. David stood, staring at where Laura had been standing. He shook his head, grabbed his tea and joined them.
David explained to the two of them what he and John had done all day. He explained again, in more detail what had happened at the bank, the initial idea of a group of people who could do some good in the world, and finally, the idea of breaking Sam out of jail.
"It's dangerous" David said, "But I-."
"It's ridiculous" Laura interrupted. David stopped and stared at her, "Look, maybe what you're proposing could be a good thing. But you're on about breaking out a man who is, no matter how you say it, a criminal!"
"And you're only saying that because you don't like Sam" David retorted.
Laura folded her arms, "That's beside the point, he was hell bent on killing a man, no matter what he'd done"
Amy hadn't spoke for a while; her eyes had been fixated on her shoes. David had noticed, she was usually very excitable so when she was quiet it was ether very good, or very worrying. She finally looked up, "They know about our powers" she said quietly.
David, who had been sitting across from the sofa on a stool, leant back against the wall and placed his hands together, crossing his fingers in between each other, "How?"
She spoke at a normal tone this time, "They knew about my powers, right? They wanted me. I was being watched. And when I was caught, it wasn't by the police. It was by two guys in suits, Men in Black style. And it sounds like they've got Sam. What if they've been watching us?"
Laura put her head in her hands and groaned, "You've been caught?"
Amy gave a nervous smile, "Yeah, look, I was young"
"It was only a few years ago" David said plainly.
"Four, if we're being picky"
"Never mind how long you two" Laura interjected, "What happened?"
"They asked me a bunch of questions, and I just played dumb. They couldn't make me use my powers. After a few hours they let me go. Haven't done anything like that in public again"
After listening to Amy, Laura sat, peering into her coffee. Finally, she looked up, "I just think we should leave him"
"Not an option" David said, shaking his head, "Either you two help me, or tomorrow I'm getting him out by myself"
Amy and Laura looked at him. They knew he was serious.
1.4
Around dinner time the next day, at the facility, the rain was falling hard. From the same vantage point they had been the previous night, David, now with Amy and Laura, stood watching. John had wanted to go with them but David had advised against it. He knew things may get hairy so he told him he'd keep him informed what happened afterwards.
The rain above their heads was turning into steam before it hit their heads. David was trying to work out if it was Amy heating up the air above them or if it was Laura manipulating the water molecules.
"So, the plan David?" Laura enquired, breaking him out of his thoughts. Laura had stated on the way there that she was deadly against this, but would rather be there if they needed her. Doing something like this was very much against her nature. She was a planner and a thinker. If it wasn't a logical choice and it posed too many negatives, she wouldn't go ahead with it. No matter how this went down, Laura did not see a 'good ending'. Amy, however, was wanting to let loose. Years of only using her powers behind closed doors meant she really wanted to experiment. David had warned her though, nothing lethal, no one was to get hurt if they could avoid it.
"We stay low, we move quickly. We find Sam and we get out" David explained, not taking his eyes off the building, "We enter through the loading bay. Amy, I want you to make a distraction by setting a small fire in the field. Hopefully they'll open the gates and we can sneak in"
Laura ran through the plan in her head. She nodded, as did Amy.
They slid down the muddy hill, each managing to stay on their feet. Now that their focus was elsewhere, the water started falling on them. They ran across the field, still undetected, and rested up against the buildings wall. They could tell now that the building was constructed out of black steel, or at least that was lining the walls, probably for reinforcement. David, followed by Amy and then Laura, kept close to the wall as they ran up to the loading bay yards gate. David nodded to Amy who raised both her hands upwards, aiming to a patch of land a few feet from the gate. Nothing happened.
"Amy?" David asked, "Are you going to do anything?"
Amy gave him a look, one that told David that she was trying and that he shouldn't criticize, "If you haven't noticed, the ground's a bit wet there. And I am doing something, put your hand in front of mine"
David did so, and as his hand got closer to Amy's he felt a powerful heat coming from them. He looked at where she was aiming. The rain that was hitting this invisible heat ray was dissipating.
"Oh screw this" Amy sighed and she turned and aimed at the large metal gate. The lock was the first thing to go as the heat weakened the metal. The gates started creaking, like it was in pain.
Laura groaned and rubbed her eyes and David shook his head. He could hear shouting from the other side of the fence. He placed a hand on Amy's shoulder, "Not the best stealth tactic there" he said in a disappointed tone.
Amy lowered her hands and turned to face the other two. One half of the gate collapsed onto the hard ground at the other side with a loud clang. Alarms started ringing and the sound of boots stomping on hard ground drew nearer.
David moved in front of Amy and got himself prepared, "Do either of you know any non-lethal attacks?"
"I don't know how to attack in general, never mind non-lethal" Laura said panicking slightly.
After a very brief pause, Amy smiled, "I have an idea"
"Better than your last one I hope!" Laura criticized.
Ignoring her, Amy dived out in front of the half open gates and raised her arms once more. The air around them started to warm up. For a cold December afternoon, it started to feel like the middle of summer. David joined Amy by her side and looked in at the compound.
Workers and guards were being pushed back by the heat beam from Amy. She seemed to have lowered her power so it wasn't harming them, but the force was still powerful to keep them pushed back. They were dressed in heavy gear, wrapped up due to the cold and rain. David could start to see Amy's plan c
ome into action. The heat was getting intense so most of the men were starting to pass out! The others were too focused on getting their clothes off to cool down!
David and Laura started walking into the yard and once inside and could see that no one was stopping them. Amy ceased fire and started running to the others and once they had regrouped, they all headed to the door of the building. They wouldn't have long before the guards woke up after the air returned to its normal temperature.
David pulled the door open and looked in. No one was inside so they ran in. Amy closed the door behind them and looked for a way to lock it. She saw a bolt on the bottom of the door, and kicked it down, securing it.
The inside was quite contrast to the outside of the building. The outside looked like some sort of evil lair, but the inside looked like an office: White walls with bright lights on the ceiling, bland, grey carpet and there was a potted plant at the end of the corridor. It was quiet too. No talking or footsteps, they couldn't even hear the sound of the rain on the side of the building. David started walking down the corridor. He got to the end and turned left down another. This one was wider and had doors along the side, leading off into different rooms. Large windows supposedly looked into the rooms but the blinds were drawn on each. Amy and Laura appeared by David’s side and they all ran down the corridor, hoping to find Sam before someone found them.
After a short time navigating the facility, they came upon what must've been the center of the building. A large, open area with a wide spiral staircase going up one level and down another.
"We need to go down" David said, to no one in particular.
"Why exactly?" Laura asked looking downwards.
He turned to her, "If you were going to imprison someone with extreme strength, someone who can rip a car in half, would you hide them on the first floor, or below ground?"
She nodded in agreement and looked back from where they had come from, "Don't you find it strange we haven't come across a single person yet?"
"Maybe they're all on dinner?" Amy suggested. Laura raised an eyebrow.
"Maybe they stick to their work and don't go wandering around the building? I don't know, look, I see it as good luck. Now let's get downstairs, find Sam and get out of here"
The two women looked at David with concern. He was very antsy, he wasn't thinking things through.
The first step of the staircase was at the other side of them so instead they just jumped down onto the stairs below. It wasn't a huge drop though and it cut out a significant bit of travel.
Hanging from the roof and spiraling down in a fancy pattern with the staircase, were orbs of light, illuminating the way.
As they descended further down, the bright white walls got darker. The bottom floor was more a dark metallic grey. They must've been down what felt at least five stories below ground. There was only one door at the other side of the circular hall. David strode across and opened the door, hands raised to fight off any guards but there was no one there.
They had, however, found what they were looking for. Cells. David started running down the corridor, checking each cell as he went past. He noted how they were more akin to observation rooms. Large windows with a glass door divided the hallway from the room. Inside each stood a table, a chair, a bed, a sink and a toilet. Light emitted from a white beam built into the wall, much like the rest of the building. David counted nine cells but the tenth was different. David had noticed that the other cells furniture, the bed, table and chair, were all wooden. The furniture in cell ten were metal. The floor had water, about two inches deep, like there had been a flood. David stooped to take a better look. Then he saw the door, and the name on the plate above it. Price. He looked at Amy and pointed at it.
She looked inside the cell, immediately at the water then back to David, "Surely that's not for..."
David didn't answer. He turned and kept going till he got to the final cell, cell fifteen.
Sat on a chair inside was Sam. He was facing the glass but he didn't seem to notice them, he was in his own little world.
"Sam!" David yelled through the glass, "Can you hear me"
Sam nodded, still staring into space, "You shouldn't have come"
"Listen to me, we're getting you out of here" David said, he nodded to Amy who placed her hand on the glass, "Get up, come on"
Sam looked at Amy and cocked his head to the side, like a curious dog. Amy closed her eyes and concentrated, placing both hands on the glass. She took a deep breath and opened her eyes. A blast of heat shattered the glass, shot across the cell and set the bed on fire! Sam looked shocked. Amy smiled, really proud of herself. The smoke from the fire set the water sprinklers off and the group were soaked. An alarm could be heard in the distance.
"Come on, we need to get out of here now!" David shouted. They all started to run down the corridor, the water was collecting on the ground making it slippery but they managed to keep upright. The got to the end and David burst through the door, straight into an ambush by twelve men in suits. Each had a handgun raised towards them. Without hesitation, Laura, who was the last one through the door, pushed the other three to the side and knelt in front of the men. Everyone looked at her, wondering what she was doing. And none of them noticed the huge ball of water traveling at an alarming speed coming from the corridor, through the doorway and hitting the group of suits, knocking them down to the ground. Laura stood up and started running, "Let's go!" She called, already making her way up the stairs. The other three quickly followed, but their journey was cut short. Halfway up the stairs they were met by more people in suits, men and women. They had them cut off. David threw his hands in the air ready to electrocute them, but remembered his own words, and kept them in the air in surrender. He knew when he was defeated.
They were brought into a large room on the middle floor, just across from the staircase. They were escorted in and the left alone, the door was closed and the lock clicked. In the middle of the room was a long table with chairs lined on both sides. It looked very much like a meeting room for company briefings. The furniture was a cold silver, the cushioned parts of the chairs black and on the wall opposite to the door was a plaque. David walked around the table to look but was interrupted by the door swinging open. Three men in black suits walked in. They seemed similarly dressed as the other people however they seemed more imposing, they had a certain look in their eyes.
The first man, who seemed no older than David took a seat. He had very short blonde hair and a hard gaze. He was quite big, muscular and had a faint scar under his right eye. He placed his hands firmly on the desk and stared straight towards Amy, who scoffed and looked away. The second man sat beside him. He was much older, the oldest one in the room. He had white hair with flecks of black on the top. His full beard was similarly colored and neatly trimmed. David noticed that all the suits the people were wearing were the same. Black jacket, white shirt, red tie, black pants. They seemed to all be the same type. This man’s suit was different. This wasn't a uniform, this was his own. It fitted perfectly to his body. And although he looked quite aged, he seemed to be in quite healthy shape. He leant towards the first sitting man and listened as somethings was whispered in his ear. He nodded and turned to look at the third person.
This man started speaking straight away, reading from a tablet, "Do we have David, Laura, Sam and Amy here?" He looked up around the room.
The four looked at him startled. David spoke for them, "What do you want?"
"Please, take a seat, we want you to be comfortable"
David, Amy and Laura did. Sam stayed in the corner, leaning against the wall. The man continued, "My name is Joseph, and I'm representing our company: DarkWatch"
"Never heard of it" Sam said from the corner.
Joseph looked at Sam, "Oh you wouldn't have. In 2079 we were formed by the government as, essentially, a branch off the Ministry of Defense. You see, as I'm sure you're all very much aware, things aren't always what they seem" he waived his hand across the room, s
ignifying the four, "And the government knew that one day, we would need to contain a threat"
"We're no threat" Laura interrupted, rubbing her head in a frustrated manner.
"You just broke in to our facility and broke this man out of holding" said the strong guy next to the older gentleman. He pointed hard at Sam, who raised his eyebrow.
"Fair" David said.
Joseph continued, "We have had our eyes on one of you for nearly seven years..."
David looked over at Amy. She looked surprised, "What?"
"...and through observing her, we have collected data on the rest of you. David Woods, energy manipulation. Amy Price, able to generate extreme heat and control fire. Samuel Crow, extreme strength and finally, Laura Henderson, who, until a few minutes ago we had yet to see use her powers. But that little show, we understand you can manipulate water?" He looked at Laura for conformation but she just stared back at him.
"No denying it now Miss Price. We caught you on our security cameras" the first man said.
Amy smirked at him and looked at the others who were looking at her confused, "Oh this is the hard ass who brought me in for questioning a few years ago"
"Three hours of questioning, you swore on your brother’s life you had no powers"
David smiled, "She's an only child"
The man sighed and looked at the older man sat next to him, "Really, these guys?"
The man looked at him with a blank expression, "They are perfect" All the attention was now on this man. He held his hand out to David, "Mike Richards, founder of DarkWatch" David shook his hand with caution. The room fell silent again as Richards stood up, "You four are the exact reason I started DarkWatch. I knew that eventually metahumans such as yourselves would show up"
"Metahumans?" David questioned, "Look, we have unique abilities, sure, but we're still normal people"
"Exactly" Mike Richards agreed, placing both hands together, "Look, all I'm offering is a partnership. Let us help you in whatever it is you're doing, for the good of mankind"