Tanaka, his body soaked and his ear ringing, saw Pop talking to a woman. He pointed to where Nancy had been swept and she ran in that direction. Pop, still smiling, walked toward Tanaka.
“Hey, Pop. How’s Snap and Crackle?” Tanaka asked, standing slowly.
“Oh, ha, ha. You used that joke before.”
“Yeah, it never gets old. So, what’s going on here huh? And speak up, I can barely hear you.”
“So,” Pop said, speaking a bit louder. “You think I’m still a joke?”
“You’ll always be a joke. But, tell me, why are you attacking me? I mean, if it’s just revenge I get that, but I don’t think that’s what this is. What is it?”
“I’m a merc now. People pay me to hurt others. Someone wanted you hurt, I told them I’d do it for free.”
“Cause I humiliated you?”
“In front of my girlfriends!” Pop screamed like a child throwing a tantrum. “Now it’s my turn to humiliate you!” Pop snapped his fingers.
Two thunder-like claps exploded next to Tanaka’s ears. The sound forced him to his knees. Pop had been a joke last time they met. Like all Evos, his powers had grown and he was using them well. Tanaka would never tell him but this man was no joke.
The sounds of police sirens cut through the air and toward the fight. Tanaka cursed under his breath. The last thing he needed was a police presence. Too many of them could get hurt. Vegas wasn’t used to a fight a like this. He needed to end it fast.
He charged forward at full speed, hoping to take Pop by surprise. Pop snapped his fingers three times, causing three explosions in front of Tanaka, slowing him down. The pain in his ears was too much and the pounding in his head made it difficult to concentrate. He wanted to teleport but was unable to focus enough to get a clear mental image of anything.
Slamming his shoulder into Pop’s stomach, Tanaka lifted him off the ground and pile drove him downward. Both let out a whoof of air as they hit. Tanaka knelt on top of Pop and meant to punch him in the nose when a wave of water slammed into him from behind, knocking him off and down into the street.
The sirens grew closer. The police would be here soon. There wasn’t much more time.
Pop stood and went to Tanaka and kicked him in the ribs. He looked over at his partner and yelled. “Where is she?”
“I lost her!”
“Find her! I got him.”
The woman nodded and ran away. Pop kicked Tanaka once more. “How does that feel?”
“Not good,” Tanaka said, tasting blood in his mouth. He tried standing but was pushed down by Pop.
“God, I want to kill you right now. I want to just... You know, screw the money, I think I’m going to kill you.” He held his hand up, his fingers in a position to snap. “All I need to do is send a Pop right over your heart, that will kill you. Oh yes, you be— Agghh!”
Tanaka looked up to see a massive hand had grabbed Pop around the chest and lifted him into the air. The arm connected to the hand tossed Pop away and into the pool where he hit with a loud splash. Tanaka looked up and his jaw dropped in surprise. “David?”
David Lee, a massive mountain of a man, stood over Tanaka with his hand out. Tanaka grabbed it and was lifted gently off the ground. “Dagger, that woman is going after Nancy. I can’t stay long. Help her. We’ll be in touch.”
“No, I have to take you in.”
“You can’t,” David said turning around. With an amazing burst of speed, David took off down the street carefully avoiding hitting anything with his body. His head clearing, Tanaka knew he could teleport over to him to stop him. But Nancy was in trouble, and Tanaka needed to find her more than he needed to capture David.
The wave of water pushed Nancy away from Tanaka and toward the street. She coughed, water dripping out of her nose. She looked up to see a short, thin, woman dressed in an ocean-blue shirt and dress pants running toward her. Nancy tried to stand on her wobbly legs but fell back into the water. She held her hand up and called forth her power. A flash of light emanated from her palms, causing the woman a moment’s pause and giving Nancy time to find her strength and run.
She darted across the street, past cars smashing into each other, and toward the Harrah's casino, pushing people out of the way. She looked back to see a wave of water heading toward where Tanaka and Pop were fighting. Nancy stopped and watched. She took a step toward the fight when she saw Tanaka on the ground, being kicked by Pop.
She paused for a moment, frozen with indecision. She could fight a human without blinking an eye. Being an Evo gave her some extra strength and healing. Fighting another Evo was a different story. Especially Pop. He was dangerous. More dangerous than Tanaka could know. She had to help, and when she moved, she spotted the woman running after her. Oh crap, Nancy thought, then turned and continued running.
She needed to hide; being in the middle of the strip made her too vulnerable. She saw people walking out of a casino entrance and ran toward it. She heard the roar from the rush of water and turned to see a wave heading toward her. She pulled the door open and ran in, unable to close the door in time before the water swept her up and pushed her onto the casino floor. A few people not playing games looked up, but most didn’t seem to care about the sudden onrush.
She gathered herself and ran onto the casino floor. Row after row of slot machines and people should give her the cover she needed. Sooner or later, the police would arrive and she’d be safe. She just needed time to hold this woman off until then.
Bending down to hide behind the machines, she peeked around the corners. She saw her adversary looking around trying to find her. When her back was turned, Nancy bolted and hid behind another machine.
Some people looked at her as she squatted past them, doing her best to stay as low as possible. The smell of the rug nearly made her gag. Cigarette smoke hovered right at her nose level forcing her already water soaked lungs to cough no matter how hard she tried to hold it in.
“What the heck?” a woman carrying an oxygen tank said. “What’s going on with my drink?”
Nancy looked up and saw the brown liquid leaving the glass forming a ball and heading upward. Nancy followed it and saw a sphere of water about ten feet wide above the casino floor, moving directly above her.
Nancy glanced out from behind a machine and saw the woman standing there. She spun her right arm over her head while her left hand, clinched in a fist, maneuvered the dozen spheres of water, merging them with the ever-growing ball of water.
“I am the Water Witch!” the woman yelled over the sounds of the machines. “I don’t know where you are, but I can keep building this ball of water until it’s big enough to wash you and everyone else in this place out.”
Different colored liquids continued to add to the ball. The strong scent of alcohol permeated the air. People panicked as the ball grew.
The Water Witch unclenched her left hand for a moment, then made a tight fist, air punching in the direction of a pipe in the ceiling. The sprinkler system burst but the water did not hit the floor. Instead it quickly formed hundreds of spheres that moved toward the water ball. Within the span of a minute, the ball went from ten feet to too large to figure out. Nancy didn’t know what to do. So many people were in danger right now. A ball of water that large would destroy so much, sending machines into each other, crushing anyone in between. Including her.
“Come out, Nancy! Come out now! I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up.”
Nancy stood. “All right, all right! I’m here.” She walked out from behind the machines and into the aisle. The woman stood there, her hands in the air, a strained grin on her face. “What the hell do you want?”
“I was told to see what you were made of. Looks like you’re just like everyone else. A coward. Not fit to fight me. Don’t know why my boss was so interested in you.”
“Did David send you?”
“David? No, I don’t know a David.”
“Big man, not very bright, probably talked about me non-
stop.”
“I told you, I don’t know no David.” The woman grimaced.
Nancy turned to see the ball shrinking. Large drops of water fell from it as the woman struggled to keep it together. “Get rid of that thing now.”
“Oh, don’t worry, I will.” She lowered her arms then turned to run.
The ball of liquid exploded, sending thousands of gallons of water down onto the casino floor. Nancy ran, following the woman and running away from the wave of water carrying with it dozens of slot machines, gaming tables, money machines, and people. The wave caught up with her and she fell, tumbling end over end as if in a washing machine. She held her breath and prayed that nothing hit her. She slammed up against the wall. Seconds later, a machine crashed next to her and exploded into shards of glass, wood, and electronics.
The wave receded, leaving Nancy sore and wet. She heard some moaning and screams as more and more people recovered. The lights in the casino flickered for a moment, then went out as the water shorted all the electronics. It was a miracle no one was electrocuted.
She heard a pop and looked over to see Tanaka standing next to her. “My god,” he said. “What the hell happened here?”
“I don’t know what’s going on,” Nancy replied. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Tanaka’s phone rang. He looked at the caller ID. “It’s Daniel.”
People walked around stunned, looking for friends or family. Names were called out and answered.
“Daniel’s at the police station,” Tanaka said. “He wants us to meet him there.”
Nancy looked around at the injured and dying. Something inside her ached her heart. These people were hurt because of her. She couldn’t just leave them without at least trying to help. “We need to stay.”
Tanaka looked around. “Yeah, we’ll head to the station once we’re done here.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Daniel sat on the bench in the lobby of the Vegas police station looking around at the people. Vegas had an interesting population that was reflected in the groups he saw. Drunk men and woman used the wall as a pillow while they tried to sleep it off. People with various shades of dark skin walked about talking, laughing, or looking very serious as they chatted with police officers. It was easy for him to tell the difference between natives and tourist. The natives had an earthy smell to them, while tourist had a more airy smell.
“Are you Daniel McGuffin?” A man in a police uniform asked standing over him. He looked to be about Daniel’s age. His arms were brown up to where his short sleeves started, and from there, his skin was stark white. He looked serious, as if smiling would be an insult to his chosen profession. He held in his hand a tablet PC which he tapped repeatedly.
“Yes,” Daniel said and stood.
The man looked at him up and down. “You don’t look much like someone with the last name McGuffin.”
Daniel didn’t want to explain that he and Tanaka had changed their last names when they joined the Protectors. It was a way to protect their parents just in case some crazy person went after them. Most simply knew them as Tanaka and Daniel and when pressed they’d give the McGuffin surname. They’ve been using it ever since they opened their messenger service in Haven two years ago. “I’m half-American, half-Japanese.”
“And a full Evo, right?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t get many Evos here,” He replied. “I’m Officer Lee. You know what happened at the Bellagio?”
“No, I haven’t heard.”
“A mess of a fight. The Harrah’s casino got water logged. People are hurt. Witnesses say some woman levitated water over everyone. Sounded weird but I watched the footage and saw it with my own eyes. If you’re an Evo, you could answer some questions, help us sort things out. We don’t get to many Evo fights here, not like Haven, I’m sure.”
“It does tend to happen often in Haven. I’ll be more than happy to answer any question you might have. But, I will admit, I don’t know much about what happened. I was here filling out my own report.”
“Right,” Officer Lee said looking at his tablet. “You were attacked by a man with a bow and arrow? Do you think the two are related in any way?”
“Over the years, I’ve discovered nothing that happens between Evos isn’t somehow related. I can’t say how, but I’m sure it is.”
“So, Evo problems just seem to follow you around?” His voice tried to sound calm but Daniel’s sensitive hearing detected a hint of disdain.
“Office Lee, I assure you, Evo problems do not follow me around.”
“Doesn’t seem that way to me,” he replied with a deep sigh. “Policing this town is hard enough as it is without having to deal with Evos causing trouble. Look, I know you didn’t bring this to us on purpose. Please don’t take this the wrong way, but the sooner you are out of my town, the better off we’ll all be.”
“Don’t worry. As soon as my brother gets here, I plan on talking him into leaving. This town just gets to me. Really. I can’t stand it here.”
Officer Lee’s face turned red. Daniel could feel the man’s heart start to race in rage. He sensed the officer’s blood pressure spiking and his breathing shallow. He pulled out a card and handed it to Daniel. “If you think of anything else, give me call.” Without another word, he turned and walked away mumbling something under his breath.
Daniel shook his head and placed the card into his pocket. He wasn’t used to this kind of treatment. In Haven, he was a hero; here he was a nuisance. Getting out of Vegas would be the best thing he and Tanaka could possibly do. Daniel needed some fresh air. He walked to the door and stepped outside just in time to hear a loud pop. He turned to see a drenched Tanaka and Nancy standing a few yards away.
“Okay,” Tanaka said as he walked up to his brother. “So, I need to fill you in on what the hell just happened to us.”
Tanaka quickly went through the story. Daniel’s concern grew as he told him about Pop nearly killing him and how Water Witch tried to kill Nancy. Confusion crossed his face when Tanaka told him how David of all people saved his life.
“So, David didn’t send them?”
“No,” Tanaka replied. “Not unless it was some ruse to get us to trust him.”
“That’s not David,” Nancy said. “I highly doubt he’d come up with a plan like that.”
“I was attacked, too. If David didn’t send them, who did?” Daniel asked.
“Someone attacked you, too?” Asked Tanaka.
“Yeah, at the Stratosphere. Got lucky. My danger sense went off at the right time. I managed to catch the arrows before they hit me.”
“You caught some arrows?” Nancy asked. “I’m impressed.”
“Evo reflexes,” Tanaka replied. “I could catch some too if I wanted.”
“I’m sure,” Nancy smiled at Tanaka. “But if it’s not David, I don’t know who it could be. He’s the only one I can think of who’s after me.”
“There might be more?” Tanaka asked.
“Sure,” she answered. “I’ve made some friends and some enemies. But none has the ability to hire some people to fight us.”
“I don’t think they were after you,” Daniel said. “I think they were after me and Tanaka.”
“Dude, that makes no sense.” Tanaka said. “We just got here. We haven’t been here a day. How could someone hire those goons and attack us in the short time we’ve been here?”
“I don’t know,” Daniel looked around pushing his senses out as if trying to pick something to toss up in the air to help him find an answer. “I think it would be best for us to leave.”
“Leave? We just got here.”
“You can’t leave,” Nancy replied. “I still think I’m in danger. Maybe not from David but from someone else.”
“Then you come with us back to Haven.”
“I’m not leaving my home,” Nancy said, defiant. “It might be easy for you two to just pick up and leave but this is my home. I’m not leaving.”
“I agree w
ith her,” Tanaka said. “And not just because she’s my ex-girlfriend. Daniel, we have to find out who’s after us. If we leave, they’ll just follow us back to Haven.”
“We have a lot more friends in Haven than we do here.” He sighed. “But you’re right. We need to figure this out, and we probably can’t go home.”
“Good, so we’re staying then. Want me to teleport us back to the room?”
“You two go,” Daniel said. “I’m going to walk around.”
Tanaka reached out to touch Nancy but she stepped away. “No, no, not again. We can either take a taxi or a bus back. I do not want to be teleported again today.”
“Fine, fine,” Tanaka said. “Well, which way to the strip? Might as well start walking now before it gets dark.”
Nancy smiled. “Honey, there’s no such thing as dark in Vegas.”
Nancy was right. Vegas was a different town at night. In most cities, the crowds thinned as the sun set. In Vegas, it brought more people out. Hundreds of drunken or nearly-drunken people walked about carrying whatever it was that inebriated them. Daniel spotted several dozen people walking around with very large, fake plastic guitars filled with a wide variety of drinks. Others simply walked around with plastic beer bottles or other novelty drink containers.
The sounds of the Strip overwhelmed Daniel’s senses. He did his best to drown it all out by ignoring as much as he could. A dull pain pounded in his head as he attempted to deal with the information overload. He feared it was deadening his danger sense and worried another attack by the bow guy would be fatal.
He stood on a pedestrian walk erected high above the freeway, looking out over the traffic zipping past. Tanaka and Nancy had run off in front of him, ignorant to how slowly he walked. They were too lost in each other to care about his needs. He couldn’t be angry, though; it was nice to see Tanaka happy. He didn’t trust or like Nancy, but he did love his brother and wanted him to have a fulfilling life. But Nancy had brought out the worse in Tanaka before and it could happen again.
The Evolutionite Chronicles Book Two: Dagger and Shadow Ninja in: Welcome to Las Vegas Page 5