“Zayden, I’m having a hard time with something.”
He looked like he thought I was about to have some witty remark at his expense, so he was immediately hostile. “And what’s that dumbass?”
I looked at him seriously. “Your power. I saw it in action for myself yesterday. You’re a complete monster in battle, and my instincts do confirm that.”
He seemed shocked by the complement – to him it was probably the best complement someone could have possibly given him. However, his eyes narrowed since I hadn’t actually explained where I was going with this conversation. “And?” He wondered. “What’s your point?”
“I want to know what your fire does to my body – to my blood. I want to know why my instincts don’t think you’re a threat, because I’m having a hard time believing that.” I then held up a finger before he could respond. “And, I also think it’s important that we know for a fact my instincts are reliable. If it turns out you can significantly harm me, then I need to revaluate how much I’m trusting them.”
“You want to fight?” He asked in disbelief after a second.
“What? No, not really. The last thing I want is for you to get serious and incinerate my head, because I am definitely not ready to find out if I’ll really be me after it grows back.”
Zayden stared at me for another moment, and I realized that everyone else was a mixture of being on edge and curious at the same time. They wanted to know too, although I could tell Trinity was especially worried about me potentially losing my head. What if I did die? Or possibly even worse, what if my head grew back, but I wasn’t the same person? What if I had amnesia? What if the old Jake died?
After a second, Zayden scoffed. “You know what? Sure, let’s do it.”
“Great!” I said cheerfully, standing up. “Please lead the way.”
“Ha! Let me finish my dinner first, and then I’ll blow your brains out.”
I looked at him slightly shocked. He finally rolled his eyes. “Shit, I was just kidding. I won’t blow your brains out. Someone would probably kill me in a heartbeat if I did.”
“Well you’re certainly right about that.” Trinity admitted in a flat tone.
Zayden scoffed again and kept eating. I sat back down.
Unexpectedly, Liz spoke up again, revealing she had a one-track mind. “So…about sleeping with you two…are we doing it or not?”
I stared at her again as I thought about it. “What if you sleep with Trinity, and I sit outside the room all night in the hallway? It’s not like I have anything better to do.”
“Inside the room?” She whispered pleadingly. It was obvious she was desperate. She really didn’t want to sleep alone. More specifically, she really didn’t want to sleep without her object of obsession, which happened to me now.
I glanced at Trinity. It was her room, and I had never been invited in. Despite our prior conversations, I didn’t actually know where we stood on that subject. It was very possible that her room was her space, just for her, and she wanted to keep it that way. After all, she had seemed annoyed when she had finally extended the offer to Liz.
Trinity eyed me for a moment before responding. “Do you want to watch me sleep Jake?”
“Well, if I’m being honest, yes I do. It would be a lot more interesting than staring at a wall all night. And even the stars get boring after a while. Your face doesn’t.” I then flinched, afraid that was too much, but Zane didn’t seem bothered this time.
“Promise not to touch me while I’m sleeping?” Trinity asked.
I gawked at her. “Well of course not! I wouldn’t do that!”
She smirked then. “Oh, you’re no fun! Jake, you’re so innocent.”
I crossed my arms. “Hey, I’m not that innocent. I just wouldn’t do something like that.”
“Oh really? How far have you gotten with a girl Jake?”
I scoffed. “Further than you!”
“Well, yes, you’re right about that. I’ve never done anything with a girl before. Sleeping with Liz will be a new one for me.”
I glared at her. “You know what I mean.”
“Seriously Jake, now I want to know. How far have you gotten?”
I knew exactly how far I had gotten, but the problem was it made me think of who I had gotten there with. My last girlfriend, who I might have accidentally killed the previous day. From some reason, I still didn’t remember that part. I knew she had gone to the bathroom. I knew I had gone to get her ice cream as a surprise. Yet, I had no idea if she was one of the many people I slaughtered in cold blood. It’s not like I noticed everyone, but I felt like I should have noticed her.
I suddenly looked down at Liz, shocked that I hadn’t combined the two thoughts in my head prior to this point – my girlfriend had blonde hair and blue eyes, just like her. I immediately looked down at the table again, suddenly afraid I was going to think of my last girlfriend every time I looked at Liz – she didn’t deserve that. It wasn’t fair to Liz for me to see someone else whenever I saw her. She was her own person and deserved to be viewed as such.
Even though Trinity didn’t fully understand what had transpired in my head, she at least picked up the fact that this topic involved my last girlfriend. She immediately tried to put a halt to it. “Never mind Jake. I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I shouldn’t have asked.”
Everyone was suddenly confused. They knew they were missing something.
I put my head in my hands, suddenly feeling emotional. I definitely didn’t want to cry in front of them. I needed to change my thoughts and quick. But for some reason, the emotions I had put off until now were suddenly unwilling to hold back, like a dam holding back too much water – too much pressure. The dam had ruptured, and now I realized there was no holding it back. It was coming, and nothing was going to stop it.
Almost nothing.
Just as I heard my own sob abruptly slip out of my chest, I snapped.
Emotion vanished, and I froze…staring into my hands. After a second, I slowly lifted my head up, meeting Ava’s gaze in front of me. I watched her eyes widen as she registered the dead look in my eyes. This was her second time seeing it. It had terrified her before. It terrified her now, even though she would never say it out loud. Her eyes said it all for her.
My voice was empty. Hollow. I spoke slowly to everyone, continuing to look at Ava. “Huh. My body really does not like feeling negative emotions. A shame really. I probably need to mourn the loss of my last girlfriend who I may have accidentally killed yesterday.” I sighed, an empty, emotionless sigh. I slowly turned my head to Trinity then, cocking it slightly, seeing her shocked expression frozen on her face. I continued to speak slowly. “Third base, Trinity. We made it to third base. I would be happy to take you there sometime.”
Trinity abruptly leapt out of her seat and practically tackled me with a kiss. My ability to feel emotions immediately flood back in, but surprisingly the dam keeping back my grief was firmly back in place. I stared at her as she pulled away, her crimson gaze searching my face intently. When she saw my eyes alive again, she gave me a weak smile.
“Wow Trinity,” I exclaimed. “That was amazing, but I have to ask. Was that to pull me back? Or because of what I said?”
She abruptly grinned and giggled. “A little of both,” she admitted.
I then looked at her seriously. “Why does it bother you so much to see me like that? It’s still me. I’m not going to hurt anyone.”
“I know,” she whispered. “But I like you better with emotions. If you need to turn them off, I understand, but if it’s not absolutely necessary then I’d prefer to have the regular you.” She paused. “Is that alright with you?” She asked seriously.
I nodded. “Yeah, that’s fine. Although, shoot, I might have to make myself snap more often just so you’ll kiss me.”
“Ugh!” Zayden exclaimed.
Trinity ignored him. “How about I make you a deal? I’ll try to make kissing you, just for the fun of it, more of a priority. How�
�s that sound?”
“Perfect!” I said cheerfully.
“Dammit!” Zayden abruptly stood up. “Are you ready for me to blow your brains out, or what?”
I looked up at him with a grin. “Yep! Let’s do it!”
Chapter 14: Inferno
Everyone wanted to see this, so when Zayden aggressively got out of his chair and stalked out of the room, we all followed. When we got outside, we saw that the sun was just disappearing below the horizon, which meant there would only about another thirty minutes of light as it progressively got darker. As we were following Zayden, who was leading the way towards a large area of bare dirt where nothing close would melt from his flames, I decided to ask Liz more about her ability.
“So, Liz, do you know if Zayden’s flames could hurt you?”
She looked up at me from my side, surprised that I had asked. “Well, no they wouldn’t. Why?”
“Because, Zayden can actually control fire. Sort of like pyrokinesis I guess. That’s mental right?”
She immediately shook her head. “That’s not what I meant earlier. My shield’s weakness isn’t just all mental abilities. It’s more specific than that. That man couldn’t use his power on me either, even though he controlled liquids with his mind. That’s why brainwashing was necessary.” She paused, trying to think of how to explain it. “Basically, if a mental ability is being used on another object, like fire or water, then it’s not going to affect me. My shield will block it, because the telekinesis isn’t being directly used on my own consciousness, which is the source of my power. There are very few abilities that can penetrate it, and most of them are nonlethal. Does that make sense?”
I lowered my voice. “Then, how is my blood different?” I asked quietly. We didn’t want anyone overhearing that I really could have killed her earlier.
She hesitated, lowering her voice too. Everyone was leaning close to hear what she had to say as she continued. “Because you aren’t really using telekinesis to manipulate your blood, at least not exactly. Your blood is your consciousness, as is your body. At least, that’s what that woman said. When you use your blood, it’s like the physical embodiment of your mind.” She then paused briefly as she thought how to explain. “Imagine if you had a different ability, one where you could mentally pierce into my consciousness and destroy it. But then imagine that you could actually see that ability – that it had a physical form.”
I stared at her as I listened, slightly surprised that she was talking about me having the power to destroy her without being afraid. Finally, I responded when it appeared she was finished with her explanation. “That seems like a very subtle difference between what I can do compared to what Weaver could.”
She shrugged. “Maybe. But when it comes to my shield, it’s a massive difference. An absolute difference. The difference between being invincible versus helpless.”
We continued to stare at each other as that truth lingered in the air. She was invincible. No one here could hurt her, not even Trinity. And yet, there was one person who did have that power. One person who she was helpless to stop, and I could see in her eyes that the same irresistible pull Trinity’s danger had on me was having the same effect on Liz.
Why? Because no one could touch her if she didn’t want them to. And no one could hurt her, even if she did want it. No one…except me. And that helplessness was unequivocally irresistible for her.
I sudden realized the anchor holding her to me was unbreakable. Even Weaver couldn’t touch her, couldn’t hurt her. In fact, Liz had never met anyone who she was truly helpless against, because most abilities users with that kind of power were nonlethal, only able to cause confusion, pain, or fear superficially – having no power to actually destroy.
And so, I just continued to stare at her, trying to evaluate the situation. Liz would never willing leave my side, which I realized was selfishly a good thing, because she protected me from harm. I began to doubt my instincts again, wondering if they had led me astray. The animal inside of me didn’t care about morals or what was right. All it cared about was survival, and I had just unknowingly enslaved this girl’s heart. She would do anything for me. Anything, without hesitation, with no questions asked, so long as I never betrayed her.
And if I did betray her in any way, I didn’t even want to imagine the consequences.
We had all stopped now, while Liz and I stared at each other, because Zayden had stopped several hundred feet ahead. Once Zayden had found a good spot, everyone knew to keep their distance.
It was clear he was getting annoyed again, because he finally called out to me. “Are we doing this or not?”
I finally broke my gaze away, looking up at him. I then looked back down at Liz before glancing up at everyone else. “I know you guys said you wouldn’t snitch – that you would only say anything if asked directly. However…” I hesitated, knowing full well what I was about to ask of them. “I think it is absolutely essential that no one ever find out the true nature of her ability…or especially mine. Even though the scientists knew, they probably doubt it now because of my performance earlier. We have to make sure they never find out. It has to remain our secret, no matter what.” I looked at each of them, waiting for a response. And then finally, after glancing at each other, they nodded one by one. Trinity first, followed by Ava, and then finally Zane. That was enough for me. It was one step closer to having my army to take on the world. One step closer to making our bonds unbreakable, just like I’d already done to Liz, whether I had meant to or not.
In barely a full day, I had accomplished more in gaining their trust and respect than the General would in a lifetime. I wondered what I could accomplish in a month…in a year…
We’d find out soon enough.
Zayden called out again, pissed. “I’m not going to stand here all day!”
“I’m coming!” I called back out to him, before giving Trinity one last look. “Wish me luck,” I said with a small smile. She just nodded, her expression reserved. At first, I was concerned she was mad at me, but when she glanced at Zayden I realized she was worried about me. Afraid for me again, afraid this might turn out badly.
I reached out and gently brushed my fingers along her cheek, caressing her briefly, before turning around to find out what walking into hell felt like.
As I dashed over to Zayden, not wanting to keep him waiting any longer, he seemed more gloomy than annoyed. He quickly voiced that he was allowing me to take the lead. “So, how do you want to do this?”
I stopped just a couple of feet in front of him as I thought about it. “Well, we need to be careful about this. I don’t want to attack you like I almost did Trinity earlier, so…” I held out my hand towards him, like I was going to shake his. “I guess do you want to try to incinerate my hand off?”
He grabbed my hand with a huge grin on his face. “Hell yes I do!”
I couldn’t help but smirk at his enthusiasm. He quickly turned up the heat and in a matter of seconds his fist was in flames, his entire hand looking like the physical embodiment of fire – a white, impossibly hot fire. We both stared down at my hand in his, waiting.
Waiting.
But nothing happened. My hand was fine. Not even my skin was burning, like it had done yesterday when he had stabbed me in the forehead with his finger.
We both looked up at each other at the same time, staring. I heard him mumble underneath is breath again. “Shit.” Then he spoke louder. “I’m turning it up a notch.”
I nodded, even though it didn’t sound like a question.
Instantly, his entire body erupted into flames, his clothes vanishing into thin air, not even catching fire – just vanishing from the extreme heat. However, my clothes did catch fire, an orange fire that began eating away at them rapidly.
And yet, I was still fine. Standing in orange flames, and I was still fine. No pain and barely a sensation of heat, but most importantly no damage.
Zayden’s bright white eyes widened suddenly, and then immedia
tely narrowed. A deep savage yell erupted from him, and it was like the fire inside of him exploded – a pillar of white and blue flames erupted into the air all around us. Immediately, I could feel everyone dodge closer to Liz, as his flames and heat even reached them, hundreds of feet away.
I barely heard Trinity scream at the top of her lungs. “Zay! Don’t kill him!” And I suddenly realized he was out of her range to interrupt him. She couldn’t get any closer without endangering her own life – not because she couldn’t win, but because she would have to take his life in order to survive after she was scorched to the bone.
Zayden probably didn’t have this level of reach normally, but if he put his all into it like he was doing now, having no need to have reserves of energy after this fight, then he could go far beyond Trinity’s seventy feet.
I heard Trinity scream again, yelling as loud as she could muster, but it was lost in the fire this time, unable to penetrate the heat. I think she ordered him to stop.
We both ignored her anyway, just staring at each other through the white energy pouring out of Zayden’s body. It was like a powerful storm of pure thermal plasma raging out of him, like shaking hands with the center of a super nova. And yet, my skin wasn’t even singed, not even slightly burnt.
He wasn’t angry. If anything, he was a little surprised, but there was something else there too.
Respect.
He was a monster who could survive an ungodly amount of heat, who could live in the flames. And I was equally a monster, who could stand in the flames with him. Something no one else could do.
Something he could respect.
I could feel that there was heat, but I wasn’t touched by it, as if there was an impenetrable barrier as thin as a razor, thinner even, at the edge of my body. I suddenly recalled something Trinity had said on my first day, that she was expecting me to get out of the handcuffs myself. I wondered why she would have thought that. Unless my blood, that was capable of slicing through bone, could also slice through metal.
And if my blood, which was foundationally a liquid, could slice through metal, then how? Something had to protect it from dispersing, keeping it together in an invisible bond harder than steel. A bond that was now stronger than an inferno.
Omega Squad Page 17