by Gann, Myles
The forty story drop lasted about as long as a suicide diver from the same height would until his head burst apart on the pavement. The Major was off to the left as the elevator opened, his eyes glaring and impassive. “What the hell happened, boy?”
“I assume you were watching through the camera?”
“Of course I was, but we never saw the bastard move. No spikes in energy readings nothing.”
“Neither happened. How he felt when we got there was the same as when he disabled the suit. His hands never flinched and his eyes never lit up, per the file, which means his energy was trace above natural output, which also means your scientists set the sensors too high. They were probably expecting the bulk of his energy only. He did just enough to screw everything up. He’s smart, and subtle.”
Ancel briskly walked towards the chattering pair. “We ran through the diagnostics on the suit.”
“And?”
“We couldn’t even start the circuit. Apparently, we could still send power, but all the wires connecting the cell to the arms, legs, and chest were completely disconnected. The power couldn’t circulate, and we ran through the tapes. No movement from his hands during the time we lost connection.”
‘Sneaky, powerful bastard.’
- - -
The sun bombarded its way through the vertical blinds, ran through the few swarming mites, and into the dark fibers of the carpet, all with Caleb sleeping steadily in a shadowed corner. Caleb’s power unsettled from his mind, lifting Caleb’s head slightly and slamming it against the carpeted floor. He snapped awake and up into a crouched position, his senses slow to replenish from sleep’s lull. Power casually leaned against the wall above him. “Morning.”
“Why would you wake me up like that?”
“Tell me what’s wrong.”
Caleb, although thoroughly groggy, instantly smelled a powerful stench. He looked around carefully while opening a window with Power and holding his nose with one hand. His head leaned out for a fresh breath. “What the hell is that smell?”
“Oh, that’s the obvious clue. C’mon, find out what’s wrong.”
“What the hell do you want me to find?”
“Keep searching, detective, and shut up.”
The smell cleared slightly as he scanned, noticing a singed circle of hairs on the carpet a few feet from where he slept. ‘That smell…burnt carpet…why would he burn the carpet? He’s not after my security deposit…it burnt something else there. Ugh that smell! Like burnt—pink feathers in the corner. Indentation near the door, one big one small–high-heel shoe—flattened fibers three feet from the door…someone lain there.’ A slip of paper came floating to him without his command. ‘Keep the noise down. It’s three in the morning. No signature. Cowardly attempt at a complaint….’
“Well?”
Caleb crumbled the paper into a tight wad. The thin piece was the only barrier keeping his nails from digging into his own hand again. “What did you do? You snuck around in my body, lured someone here, and did what?”
Power stayed against the wall with his eyes closed. “Have you ever smelled burnt hair before?”
Caleb whirled and childishly threw the paper towards his power, the paper making it a few inches before being caught in the aura. Power lifted its ghastly hand and clenched as if the paper were within arm’s reach, the ball bursting into a tiny, controlled flame inside the field before it completely disintegrated. “A new little trick I learned. Takes care of all the evidence so if anybody comes looking for that pretty little face of yours, it won’t be for murder. And, yes, I may have tested it on a hooker last night.”
A loud pound resounded from the door, preventing Caleb from going haywire while he pounced towards it. He nearly ripped the door off the hinges as he swung it open, not able to keep his anger from his voice. “What?” A second of processing elapsed before his overweight landlord was identified. “Mr. Warren. How can I help you?”
“One day in and you’re already pissing me off? Three tenants have complained about your noise and your smell. I see why, Jesus! What did you burn in there?”
“I burned some steak in the bottom of the oven and fell asleep. Sorry, I know it’s bad.”
“Just get that smell out of my building before I get any more complaints or you’ll be the shortest tenant I’ve ever had!”
Caleb’s power was next to his ear. ‘Wouldn’t it be so much easier if we just killed him and turned this place into a crematorium? Think about it…no evidence can withstand the climbing flames.’ The man turned and jangled away. ‘These brick walls would burst to powder, the metal steps would melt and slop together with fused marrow, nobody would know it was us. Just some accident.’
‘A terrible accident. That sounds more like us.’
‘That kind of accident would be glorious. They’d just never admit it.’
“I don’t give a crap about the consequences they’d impose,” Caleb snapped. “I care because it’s wrong to kill people based on your whim.”
His power appeared again, sitting on the counter. “She was a hooker. She was all out of humanity.”
Caleb lunged forward with his fist cocked back, feeling the hot barrier as he permeated swiftly, and squarely knocked his power in the face, sending its faked body to the floor. Power was up as soon as it hit, its eyes ablaze. “You want to do this again, here? If we do I swear the brick and metal will be just the beginning.”
“There won’t be a fight. I’m in control of you as long as I’m awake.”
“Control? You can’t even control yourself. You think you should win a prize for controlling yourself every time I anger you, but it’s useless. Our minds both go to violence as a solvent first and alternatives second. As long as you’re hardwired for that, you’re nearly an ion less pathetic than everyone else on this planet.” It smiled. “I suppose I can wait another twelve hours until I’m free again.”
Caleb stood relaxed. “I’m not sleeping again.”
His power smiled wider. “How childish. You can’t expect me to take this seriously.”
“Think what you want. I’ll stay up as long as I possibly can.”
“I give it two days.”
“You can’t give me anything.” Caleb fell into the corner, feeling the dusty rays warm his clammy skin, and finally felt his power recede. He let his power fall from his mind completely as his eyes traveled to the corner opposite him. The nearly destroyed pillow case sat next to several plastic bags full of clothes and scavenged foods, and his mind wondered. ‘I—’ He stopped, and began again aloud. “Don’t want your input. Second place I’ve ever lived on my own…the co-op coop barely even counts. How long would I be okay staying here? My legs could use the rest for a few months, or a lifetime. Just until people got suspicious, then I could move on. Just a peaceful blip on the radar. What would be wrong with that? I wouldn’t stay here for that and I know it. I wouldn’t mind a peaceful life, but right now I’m just afraid. Of what? To make new memories?”
The brown book popped into his head and a small backpack was dragged over the short carpet to Caleb’s feet. “Doctor Fink’s journal. I never even knew you existed, little fella. Why did he want me to have it? He’s not sentimental….”
He flipped open the cover and read aloud to keep the words private. “September fifteenth. School’s unbearable. So many classes and clubs, and not a single one of them interest me for more than a few seconds at a time. I’ve been looking everywhere for something, anything, that gets my neurons racing. What does a guy have to do to feed his mind?
“October fourteenth. Chess is the most complicated game I can find on campus. I went to a party last night, and I met a girl named Audrey. She…,” Caleb paused, “She saw me from across a room and we talked. She witted and pontificated so graciously. Looking at myself in the mirror the next day was a shock, because I suddenly realized how lowly I really was. How much I didn’t deserve her kindness or her passion. I can’t help but be awed when I see her picture now and drop
the phone when she calls. What is she doing to me?”
Caleb closed the book quickly. “Gotta get away from this smell.” He walked towards the open window. “Might as well look at our escape passages.” He leaned his head out the open pane. ‘Two story drop would be easy. The open field would be a problem. They’d come through the door but would have the place surrounded, snipers in that construction site. That mound of dirt gives way to a fenced yard. Making it there would be freedom for sure. We’d weave a maze they’d never solve. Still, that’s a lot of gunfire for fifty yards.’ His head rotated up. ‘Roof’s within reach, assuming you’re in my corner.’
‘If they come, you can use me fully.’ Caleb nodded and carefully fit his body into the thin frame. He stood the best he could—one hand dropping the brown book while the other held tightly to the upper part of the metalwork. One leg felt blue power coursing enough to bend and launch himself to the flimsy gutter, that same power transferring to the right hand that grasped, easily throwing his body to the roof, ripping the gutter section off. The small piece of metal crumpled in his hand, making Power smile. Caleb threw it aside and took a better vantage point while the spring rays came off the white rocks in waves visible to his natural eye. ‘Satellite dishes taller than me, good for a split second of cover I suppose. Those vents and air conditioners will be better. Jump up here, weave through as a helicopter tries to keep up, and then….’ He lightly jogged to the other side of the short roof. ‘Another building zoned close enough for us to jump down. Fire escapes will have bodies all over them. We can jump between buildings all the way. Misdirect their fire, deflect the few lucky bullets, and we’re gone.’
‘Our escape prospects are plentiful.’
Caleb nodded, jumping down the fire escape until his knees held firm against the ground. He blended himself into the walking few within moments. ‘Amazing what a shower and a change of clothes can do.’
‘Your new hair looks less institutional as well. They still glance and stare.’
A tiny baby in a stroller and its mother stared for a reason they couldn’t see, and smiled. ‘That’ll never change.’
He rounded the block before his head was filled with a cool voice again, ‘It is an anomaly that the government has yet to attempt a dragnet with the locals.’
‘I’m sure they’re saving that wildcard for when they’re back to operating status.’ Caleb smiled at the passing older woman. ‘Maybe they won’t at all. Use the card I mean. They’ll be back; I just think their pride makes them do it alone.’
Power flexed, remaining within Caleb’s flesh. ‘Only if that moronic General is in charge. Someone above him would have the competency to remain emotionally detached, which is where our status as a prisoner may change.’
He stopped at a crosswalk near the business district of the outlying town. ‘How long do you plan on running?’
It nestled back into his mind. ‘Until you tire out in a few short months.’
He skipped up to the opposite curb. ‘You’re consistently cheery at least.’
It smiled. ‘Consistency proves truth.’
‘Your truth, not mine or anyone else’s.’
Caleb hopped up two steps of his newly-found coffee shop. The loud bell rang as he gently opened the door, first noticing one of the two owners behind the counter. ‘Your first experience in this house of liquid diuretic was to get cussed out by that little charmer, and yet you come back?’
‘I admire his spunk.’
‘You’ve admired it for three days in a row. I believe they have a legal term for that.’
‘Good thing I have you then.’ He began to casually walk forward with a half-raised grin. The interior was left to the all natural brick and wood; browned and chewed chairs surrounded finely crafted tables from years past, all of which was encased unwillingly in holey bricks that nearly revealed the outside world in some choice spots. His cheer continued to the faded blue counter—the tread of trafficked years creating a puffed cloud in the middle of the sky blue paint—as the old man looked up finally. From behind a door at the back of the old man, celebratory shouting and laughing rang out.
‘Small world.’
Caleb adjusted his eyes to the small man. ‘What do you mean?’ “Morning, Abe.”
“My name is Carl, you little asshole.”
‘Do you not notice anything without a map?’
‘What am I supposed to notice?’ “I thought that was your middle name, Abe?”
“I like Carl better. Do I look like a dead president?”
‘You didn’t see her?’
‘See who damn it?’ “Not dead, no. Maybe a little of George W. in that face though.”
“May! Serve this prick for me.” ‘Well, she noticed you now, eyes on the door.’
The white door swung open, the other owner walking through with her hands full of plates and cake fragments. She shot a quick smile to him and said, “I’ll be right with him, you grumpy old fart.”
Behind her, a green T-shirt and neon green socks emerged. “Hey there,” the familiar voice sounded. Her look resonated; her meshed shirt revealed her black undershirt ad infinitum, mixing with bunched hazel ends of hair that lain on either shoulder. ‘The orange make-up does not become her.’ Her eyes were still averted, although her face was turned up, revealing her pale skin and fixed features to Caleb’s own surprised eye. “You ran off, and here you are.”
The older woman re-emerged from another room and began talking and working. “Hello, Caleb, the usual?”
He found himself staring at the odd, neon-colored girl’s hands, the right clenched beneath the register while the other lain flat, completely relaxed. “Yeah, please, without the snarky old man.”
“I won’t stick around for your sass either.”
“Oh hush, Abe, and go get the cinnamon out of the back.”
Caleb snickered at his obstinance. ‘She’s noticing your hands too.’ He glanced up to her downward stare. ‘Look at her line of sight: fingernails. She’s probably disgusted with your dirty nails. Now the back of your hand. Thanks to me, she’s probably wondering how you keep your skin so healthy with such atrocious fingernails.’
‘The dirt’s yours, not mine.’
His power smirked again. “Here,” the old man said as he woefully slid the hot chocolate across the counter. The liquid quickly began to splash over, but Caleb kept the wave in the container with the point of his index finger. Keeping his eyes up, he felt the scalding water sizzle against the tiny field of power he created before falling back into the cup, his upward eyes scanning the older couple to make sure the transgression went unnoticed.
“Did you just point at me?”
‘Smooth.’
He looked at the young woman. “No, sorry, my finger was stiff.” He slid his dollar to the estranged couple and carefully lifted the large cup, taking a sip while noticing the girl’s quick move to the edge of the counter. He lowered the cup. “You’re welcome to sit with me, if you’d like.” As if assuming his invitation before he finished, she quickly slid to a table, tiny mumbles again audible as he approached the chair opposite of her. He fell into the chair’s bare catch and kept his back against the tough netting. He took another sip of his frothy chocolate drink before setting it to rest. “I’m sorry I ran away the other night.”
“You’re alone and new to this town, why? Must be lonely. Can’t say I blame you for being scared.”
“You’re the queen of presumption. What makes you think I’m scared and alone?”
“You’ve been in here four days straight, alone, according to May and you always zone out like you’re trying to avoid looking at the here and now.”
Caleb smiled. “Aha so you are curious enough to look into my eyes when I’m not paying attention. Well, I’m not exactly here alone.”
“Who are you here with?”
“My…roommate.”
“Why are you annoyed at them?”
“They have a way of getting into my head. Really nosey th
at one….” Caleb felt nervous as she continued to mumble under her breath as he spoke. “I really am sorry about last time we met.”
She shook her head and grunted.
Caleb pushed at his cup, feeling nervously in the darkening conscious rapture for a conversation. “Who are you here with?”
“My softball team. We won today.”
“Congrats.”
“You never answered the rest of my question.”
Caleb rewound and answered. “I had a life that was becoming more and more complicated. I guess I’m looking for something simple here.”
“Life’s not simple anywhere.”
Caleb felt nearly offended by that statement. “Won’t your friends be missing you?”
“Probably,” she mumbled. One of her hands ran her pigtails behind her ears. “I’m…gonna try to look up now. It’s kind of hard for me to do, but I need to try.”
“I have the same disease. I know how hard it is to look into someone’s eyes.”
Her shoulders rose and fell suddenly before her neck straightened her face into a pink ray coming through the curtained window. Her right side bathed in the rosy illumination while her dainty nose cast a dark shadow over her closed eye and rounded cheek. They opened then; Caleb met her eyes without a threat, while hers offered nothing but granted respect. Her doughy opals were glorious; all of the richest of tilled earth lain into specific cylindrical entrapments within the skull of this pale woman nearly blended with her searching pupils. He noticed the few strands of darkened hair stuck to her white forehead, his imagined eye suddenly seeing the perfect balance of her brows with the small vacant zone between.
She gasped as the second passed. “Oh wow.” She lifted from her seat and nearly jumped to the closer one. Caleb recoiled, only to have her lean forward in response. “Hold still. Your face….” Her microscopic lenses were hovering inches from his face, his nose suddenly picking up the faint chocolate from his own cup mixed with some sort of icing and a sweet perfume, which was the most pleasant. Her head moved to the side as she studied every angle, revealing to him the nave of the neck and shoulder; his head leaning forward very slightly to smell again. Her search went undisturbed.