The Guardians Omnibus

by Damien Benoit-Ledoux

  She furled her eyebrows and looked at him. “Yes, but I didn’t let that excitement come through our conversation in the hospital.”

  “I remember. You, Victor, the nurse…everyone lied to us. Collectively, you each told us some of the whole truth, and although you were the most honest with us, there were holes in the story that unraveled before we left the hospital.”

  “You lied, too,” Dr. Madison retorted.

  “Can you blame us?” Quinn asked.

  She sighed and shook her head. “I suppose not. It must have been scary waking up several days after you triggered the reaction, unsure of what really happened.”

  “How long have you been working for The Order?”

  She leaned back in her chair and looked up, recalling memories. “For a very long time. I was recruited before I graduated from M.I.T. I postponed my entry into The Order for a few years to start a family. Then, I came aboard as a research scientist and over the years I ascended to the directorate level.”

  “You are a very smart woman,” Quinn said.

  “Thank you.”

  “Unfortunately, that is the part where I get lost.”

  She tilted her head and wrinkled her forehead with confusion. “What do you mean?”

  “From Mother Superior to the cleaning lady, everyone I’ve met in The Order has been a top-notch, incredibly smart person. I don’t understand how you could fall for such an unbelievable and bogus mission statement.”

  She scoffed. “There’s nothing bogus or unbelievable about wanting to better the planet.”

  “True, but when things became morally gray, everyone turns a blind eye to the unknown and puts unshakable trust in The Order’s leadership. It reminds me of a cult.”

  “I’m not sure I understand.”

  Okay Ron, let’s see if your angle will work. Quinn put his hands up in exasperation. “That’s what I mean. Has it always been okay to abduct teenagers and implant microchips in them against their parents’ will? Or said differently, without their parents’ consent?”

  Dr. Madison’s eyes shifted to the floor momentarily before returning Quinn’s gaze.

  “What if your daughters had stumbled into the cave and some other scientist-doctor-person like you attempted or succeeded at microchipping their brain stems so they could be unwillingly controlled by someone other than their mother and father?”

  “I would have understood the need for control.”

  Quinn’s eyes popped open with surprise. “Are you really that callous toward your daughters or are you just being stubborn?”

  She sat up and slapped her hand on her thigh. “How dare you question my integrity as a parent! I am first and foremost a scientist. I would have objectively examined the situation and understood…”

  “Bullshit,” Quinn loudly interjected.

  She blinked at him with surprise.

  “No. You are not ‘first and foremost’ a scientist.” Quinn made air quotes with his fingers. “Two minutes ago you told me you put your scientific career on hold to start a family. That’s what’s really important to you. When did your dreams become distorted? When did your priorities change?”

  “This scientific breakthroughs of what you and Blake accomplished are…”

  “The answer to the question is when your son died, Doctor. But what if it was your daughters instead of me and Blake? What if Victor was having his way with them?”

  Oh, that sounds terrible, but it might be what she needs to hear.

  Dr. Madison blinked with surprise and glowered at him.

  “What if the story played out differently and someone like Mother Superior arrived on the scene just like she did with us? Would you have been okay if a scientist you didn’t know put micro bugs in your daughters’ heads to control them or kill them in case they became a threat to a secret global organization you did not understand? Answer me honestly, Dr. Madison.”

  “As a parent, I would not be happy.”

  “As a scientist, you shouldn’t be happy either because the last time I checked, your children are not available for experimentation. Or, did you sign those rights away to the universe?”

  Dr. Madison took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “I believe I understand your point.”

  “Do you?” He tapped his head. “It’s all logic to you, isn’t it? Where’s your heart in this situation? Where are your emotions?”

  She looked at the floor, shrugged, then whispered a response. “I’m not sure.”

  Ron was right…a huge piece of you died when you lost your son…this is about restoring your humanity more than getting you to see how dangerous Victor is. Still, we don’t have a lot of time so I have to press on.

  Quinn softened his tone and leaned forward. “The people in the other room believe Victor will retaliate very soon and attempt to rescue you. What do you think he will do?”

  She scoffed. “Victor needs me. You’re a fool to think he won’t rescue me.”

  And just like that, The Order’s ingrained loyalty takes over.

  “And if he doesn’t?”

  “Impossible. Without me, the technology cannot develop further.”

  “None of us are irreplaceable, Dr. Madison. I wonder if Blake thought the same thing before Victor killed him?”

  “What?” She asked, her hands dropping to her lap.

  “Oh, that’s right. We didn’t tell you that part. Blake is dead. His body is in the reactor core of this facility attempting to mend itself, but Victor killed him on the night he attacked Seavey Island with two other super powered people.”

  “Two other people? What…colors did they glow?”

  “Yellow and purple.”

  “Buck and Rogers…” she responded, but her voice trailed off. “I’m still not sure when that attack took place. Victor never mentioned that he attacked this facility.”

  “Why am I not surprised? If there’s one consistent thing I hear about Victor Kraze, it’s that he is a prolific liar.”

  Dr. Madison leaned forward. “You say he attacked with two superhumans, but Victor told me he lost two men during field training.”

  Quinn jerked his head back in surprise. “Uh, no. Victor lost them because I had to take them out.”

  “What? How?”

  “I threw the purple guy into space and suffocated the yellow guy. Victor became so enraged that he retaliated by using Blake as a body shield when the marines fired their TaseBolts at him. With the electricity weakening Blake, Victor thrust his hand though Blake’s rib cage and ripped his heart out of his body cavity.”

  Dr. Madison regarded him with narrowed eyes. “You don’t seem too upset about it.”

  Don’t tell her about Blake’s recovery.

  Quinn rolled his eyes and sighed. “I’ve had some time to process it. I will grieve later, once this is over and Victor has been brought to justice.”

  The lighting shifted to red and an alarm klaxon sounded.

  “What’s that?” Dr. Madison asked, jumping.

  Quinn touched the side of his head, immediately sensing Victor’s presence. Damn, they didn’t even have time to evacuate the facility. A moment later, he sensed two other superhuman beings accompanying Victor.

  “It’s Victor, whom we now call Nightmare. Looks like he brought a couple friends along as well.”

  A moment later, the massive stone structure shook and the lights flickered. Quinn sensed one of the superhumans had flown through the building and the other was right behind him, crashing through one window and flying out another, damaging stone and mortar as they began tearing the building apart.

  They’re here to destroy the building…in the middle of the day? That’s crazy!

  “Well, Doctor, I guess we’ll find out if you’re expendable or not.”

  Dr. Madison glared at him as he stood and walked to the door of the room. Quinn sensed Ana Maria running toward the building’s exit as he pulled his cowl over his head, then extended his hand back to Dr. Madison. “Come with me if you want to live.�
�

  She stood and followed him to the hallway, where Quinn instructed the marines to check in with Agent Hartman and get Dr. Madison to safety. The building shook around them as Victor’s goons slammed through it again.

  This place won’t survive today’s battle…

  5-9 | The Penalty for Treachery is Death

  Victor

  “WHAT’S THE PLAN, BOSS?” HADES asked, flying next to Victor as they approached Portsmouth. Hades chose his code name based on his purple glow that reminded him of the Greek god of the underworld. Victor didn’t think Hades glowed purple, but he didn’t argue with the man.

  “Destroy everything,” Victor snarled. “Become living battering rams and fly through the prison structure like a needle passing through fabric. Take it down brick by brick if you have too. I want them all dead and incapable of mounting further attacks against me and The Order.”

  “And the two superheroes?” Seth asked. He didn’t choose a new name because he felt Seth was dark enough in Egyptian mythos.

  “Always know your enemy. Superheroes are predictable. Focus on destroying the humans first because without their help the heroes will not have access to the data or information the humans are extracting from our networks. Attacking the building will confuse the marines and the heroes, who will inevitably take a few moments to scramble and the ensuing chaos will confuse them. By the time they realize what you’re doing, you’ll have most of the structure in a state of collapse. They’ll be forced to focus on saving the humans and won’t have time to fight us.”

  “What about Dr. Madison?”

  “Leave her to me.”

  Minutes later, when the trio arrived in Portsmouth, Hades and Seth proceeded to destroy the naval prison by flying through it at lightning speeds, using their enhanced strength to tunnel through the aging structure.

  Victor watched with regret and delight from above; sad the investment in the facility would be lost, but happy to rid himself of the pestilence that had infested the building since it had been captured.

  He sensed and watched Quinn and the pink woman exit the prison and try to make sense of what Seth and Hades were doing. Like he expected, the superhero team duo began providing cover for the fleeing marines and agents who ran away from the doomed structure.

  Good.

  Wait…

  What am I sensing?

  He focused his mind and concentrated on the four…or was it five…super beings he sensed around him.

  I sense my two men, Quinn, that woman and…Blake? Confused, Victor stared at the reactor core. Is Blake alive?

  Consumed with his discovery, he flew down to the central tower and put his hands out in front of him, ready to blast through the thick stone walls like Seth and Hades were doing.

  A searing beam of energy caught his side and disoriented him, slamming him harmlessly into the stone wall. Victor grunted and fell to the ground as a second TaseBolt connected with him. Though he fell on his side, he quickly climbed to his feet and jumped high into the air and away from the torturous beams. Spotting the marines who attacked him, he flew at them and blasted them with fire. They screamed and rolled in the snow, desperate to extinguish their burning winter uniforms.

  Victor turned his attention back to the reactor core and flew into the structure through one of the gaping holes his men had created.

  Even if Quinn focused on us, he’ll fight Seth and Hades before he can get close enough to me.

  Victor forced his way into the reactor core by pulling stones from the wall, creating a hole in the reactor core near the mid-level gangway. He approached the railing of the gangway ring and looked down, observing the inside of the chamber. He saw a sleeping or unconscious Blake lying on his back on a gurney someone had wheeled in and set in the center of the metal disk in the floor of the chamber. A towel had been draped over his groin, and a number of electrodes and wires extended from his body to monitoring devices that surrounded the stretcher.

  How dare they use my equipment to…regenerate him or whatever they think they’re doing.

  He descended to Blake’s bedside and stared at him. So, we can heal when our organs are ripped out…but you don’t seem…alive. If I didn’t kill you the first time, I’ll make sure to get it right the second time. He raised his hands and aimed them at Blake.

  “Nightmare!” Quinn shouted, his voice booming with anger and resolve.

  Victor turned and looked at him, confused. “Nightmare?” he echoed. What are you doing here? What about the humans you’re supposed to be saving?

  Quinn slowly lowered himself to the same level Victor stood on. “That’s the codename the government has given you because of what you’ve unleashed upon the planet by becoming a super villain.”

  “Nightmare,” Victor repeated, a grin forming on his face. “I like it. It’s too bad the narrow-minded people you work for can’t see the good I will bring to this screwed up…”

  Victor never finished his sentence. Instead, he gasped and cried out with pain as Quinn slammed into him with super strength and pushed him through the reinforced cement and stone walls of the reactor core, crashing through it into broad daylight. Blue and red sparks exploded between them.

  Victor blinked and squinted in the bright, snow-reflected sunlight. In a flash, Quinn was on top of him, pinning him to the cold ground.

  “Impressive. I had no idea you had the strength to pull something like that off,” Nightmare said, grinning wickedly at Blue Spekter.

  “You’ll find I’m full of surprises despite what you think.”

  The ground shuddered beneath them as a corner of the naval prison collapsed.

  “I hope everyone made it out okay,” Victor sneered.

  Quinn looked at the ill-fated building, then glanced at Victor. “This isn’t over.” Then, he pushed himself off and flew back into the building.

  Victor half-smiled and half-grimaced as he pushed himself up from the ground and launched himself into the air.

  He sensed Blake’s body moving beneath him, but he realized it was because marines or technicians were moving him out of the prison. A moment later, a female voice shouted his name from the ground.

  “Victor!” Dr. Madison called out, waving franticly as eight marines ushered her toward a waiting vehicle. Each marine carried a TaseBolt. They aimed at him when they saw him descending, but Victor grabbed them with his mind before they could fire the weapons. As he landed in front of Dr. Madison, he pushed the marines back and forced them to aim their TaseBolts at their faces.

  Time to find out who’s side you’re really on.

  “I haven’t told them a thing,” she said, smiling smugly and stepping forward.

  “You betrayed me,” Victor snarled.

  Dr. Madison froze. “I what?”

  “You put a micro bug in my head.”

  “I…I…” she stammered, unsure of what to say.

  I knew it.

  “After everything we’ve been through?” he yelled, the veins in his temples throbbing with rage.

  “Victor, I…”

  “Treachery within The Order will not be tolerated or forgiven.”

  She stared at him with a vacant expression. “But you need me!” she protested.

  “No one is irreplaceable, Doctor. Your demise will remind others that treachery will be met with swift retaliation or punishment.” He raised his hands between them and ignited his fingers with flame.

  “Victor, please!” Dr Madison begged, stepping back in fear.

  “Save your pleading for someone who…” Victor grunted as something smashed into his stomach and chest, hurtling him backward until his body smashed through the prison walls and landed in the server room.

  Ouch.

  The building shook and one of the walls in the server room collapsed as Seth and Hades busted through that section of the facility. Victor groaned and shook his head. When his vision cleared, he saw the pink glowing figure floating toward him through the hole his body had made.

  �
�Take your men and leave, Victor.”

  “You!” He snarled, then reached out with his hand and mind to crush the woman who assaulted him.

  She didn’t flinch.

  That’s…unexpected.

  He reached out again and experienced the same result. She brushed off his telekinetic assaults like they simply weren’t there.

  “Your parlor tricks won’t work on me, Victor. Take your men and leave, now.”

  She aimed her right hand at Victor, and he grunted as an invisible grip tightened around him, pinning his arms to his sides. Then, his body involuntarily levitated off the ground. He jerked in surprise, he could not wrestle free from her telekinetic grasp. A moment later, she tossed him across the room and he crashed through the southeast wall, arms and legs flailing as his body involuntarily soared through the air and then splashed into the river.

  Feeling the telekinetic hold on his body dissipate, Victor launched himself into the air and whistled sharply. Seth and Hades immediately flew to his side, while Quinn and the pink-glowing woman hovered opposite them.

  “What’s up, boss? Do you want us to take them out?” Hades asked.

  For a moment, Victor thought about surprising the superheroes with an all-out super battle, but then he thought better of it. Glancing at the crumbling prison structure, he shook his head. “No, we’re finished here. Head back to base.”

  “Fine,” Seth said, disappointed. Then, the two villains flew away. Victor hesitated and glared at the blue and pink superheroes, then followed his henchmen back to Androscoggin.

  ❖

  Quinn

  “This is terrible,” Quinn said, regarding the mostly destroyed landmark with sorrow. Only the central tower that housed the reactor core remained intact. The rest of the building had crumbled or was riddled with holes created by Nightmare’s two super henchmen.

  For years, the Portsmouth Naval Prison’s castle-like edifice stood as a marker to ships and boats navigating the harbor and to locals and tourists who relaxed on the water’s edge on New Castle Island. In the closest parking lot, a number of unmarked cars and minibuses transported military and technical personnel away from the facility.