“He is not gone!” Warren roared. “Can you sense Dioxin’s aura now?”
“No.”
“Then if he’s out of your range, we still have some time.”
“Even if by some miracle Colin is still alive down there, there’s no way we can get to him! We have to leave!”
Numbly, Warren shook his head. He stared at the StratoTruck’s screens. “Come on, come on! Damn it, the heat is too much! It’s screwing up the sensors! Maybe if we focus on the center of the explosion…There.” He pointed at one of the screens. It showed that almost all of the trees in a thirty-meter radius had been destroyed.
Mina leaned over his shoulder. “Can you see anything?”
“No, but…maybe he was able to run before the explosion happened.”
Mina paused. “No. He was right in the middle of it. I’m sorry, Mr. Wagner, but I can’t detect anything at all down there.”
“He could be unconscious!”
“I’d still be able to sense him.”
Warren swallowed. “My son…”
Mina suddenly grabbed Warren’s arm. “Dioxin! He’s coming back!”
Warren glanced out through the windshield: a dark object was approaching fast. There was a sudden flare, then a second.
“He’s firing at us!” Mina screamed.
As Warren spun the StratoTruck about, the first missile streaked past, missing them by less than a meter. The second exploded against one of the StratoTruck’s short wings, knocking Mina to the floor.
“Hold on to something!” Warren shouted. He pushed forward on the StratoTruck’s joystick, then yanked it to the left, sending the craft into a spinning dive. A third missile shot past them, heading toward the ground.
Warren pulled the joystick up, then hit full power as the craft soared into the sky. The sudden surge of acceleration bore down on him like a great weight and he eased off the power. “OK, OK…We’re well out of his range now. We were lucky—that missile didn’t do any serious damage.” He called over his shoulder. “You all right, Mina?”
She grabbed the back of his seat and pulled herself up. “Yeah. I think so.”
“We’re going back to Sakkara.”
“You have to tell the others,” Mina said. “About Colin.”
Warren pulled off his headset and handed it to Mina. “I can’t do it. Caroline…Someone has to tell my wife that our son is dead.”
“I’ll do it. You get us back to Sakkara as fast as you can.”
Even before the helicopter touched down on the airfield outside Cedar Rapids, Renata was running toward it. She jumped in and it immediately took off again.
“You OK?” Danny asked.
“I’m fine. A bit stunned at what’s been going on with Paragon’s armor though. Who’s doing it?”
“Someone from your past,” Façade said. “Dioxin.”
“No…He died ten years ago!”
“I wish that were true, Renata. Warren, Colin and Mina are out there looking for him now.”
Danny quickly explained the situation, then added, “The only chance we have is that Dioxin is leaving a trail of destruction. Every time he stops to do some damage, it increases the odds that we’ll find him.”
“How’s Sol taking this?”
“He’s furious,” Façade said. “The labcoats are working like crazy to get the new armor ready, but they’re nowhere near close enough. Even if—hold it. Message coming through from Sakkara…” Façade listened. “Yes, Josh, we’ve just picked her up. We’re heading back to base now…What? Say again, Josh…Oh Lord…You’re certain? Yes, I’ll tell them. And tell Warren and Caroline I’m sorry.”
Danny felt his blood run cold. “What is it?”
Façade glanced around at them. “Just…sit tight, OK?”
Danny swallowed. “Why should Josh tell Warren and Caroline that you’re sorry?” Please God, don’t let this be what I think it is!
Renata whispered, “Colin…”
Façade nodded. “They found Dioxin. He attacked…Colin’s dead.”
“No!” Danny screamed. “No, that’s not right! He can’t die! Colin is the one! He’s the bravest of all of us! He’s the hero!”
“I’m sorry, son. I truly am.”
Her eyes filled with tears, Renata wrapped her arms around Danny and hugged him close, as much to comfort herself as him. To Façade she said, “We’re not going back to Sakkara yet. Take us to where it happened. I want to see for myself.”
“But we—”
“Take us to Colin!”
“The Wagner kid is dead, Cross,” Dioxin said. “The whole forest is burning. It’s got to be hotter than hell back there!”
“You’re sure he’s dead?”
“I’m sure that I’m not going back to check! He’s one vicious little fighter. His old man was never that bad. I hit him point-blank with a full cartridge of missiles. You should have seen the explosion! It ripped the whole forest apart like it was made of paper.”
“What about Mina?”
“No luck there. They took off before I could get to them. That machine of theirs is fast.”
“I’m sending your team to pick you up,” Victor said. “Until we are absolutely certain that their little superhuman-detector is dead, you are not to come back here. Do you understand me?”
“I understand. But I’m going back anyway. If you don’t want them to know we’re working together, then maybe you should leave the base.”
“Dioxin,” Cross said, his voice calm and deliberate. “I’m not telling you again. You are not to come back here while that girl is still alive. When we modified Paragon’s armor to fit you, we planted a very powerful charge inside it. If you come within fifty miles of this base, I will detonate that charge. Now do you understand me?”
Dioxin swore. “All right.”
“Good. I’m tracking your path. Turn ten degrees to starboard and keep on that course. The copter will rendezvous with you in about fifty minutes and take you to Sakkara. Our man on the inside will make sure that their automated defenses are down by the time you get there.”
In the forest, lying in a bed of white-hot cinders, the body of Colin Wagner suddenly spasmed and opened its eyes.
Colin sat up, oblivious to the intense heat. He looked down and saw that his uniform was damaged, but mostly still intact. Good thing they made it fireproof!
He opened the uniform at the neck and checked himself: there was a large bruise on his chest where the missile had struck him.
Is that it? he wondered. Is that the only injury I’ve got? He ran his hands over his face and head. Aw no! All my hair has burned off! I’m bald!
He pushed himself to his feet and looked around. The trees all around him had been destroyed by the explosion, but he was almost completely unharmed.
Back in the toy store, when my Titan costume caught fire…I didn’t even notice. And this heat… Colin pulled off his gloves and tentatively reached down and pushed one hand into the cinders. He could feel some heat, but not nearly as much as he’d expected. I’m fireproof!
The night of our first patrol in Topeka, everyone except me was freezing. I don’t really feel the cold anymore, and heat doesn’t affect me.
Looking around once more, Colin realized that he didn’t know which way he should go. He couldn’t even judge by the position of the sun; the sky was blocked out by a thick column of smoke. He chose a direction at random and started walking.
Something indistinct slowly drifted across his path; a thin wisp of blue light. What on earth is that?
He reached his hand out toward the light and it instantly faded. Never seen anything like that before. He remembered the video of Quantum they’d watched, the first night they arrived at Sakkara. Quantum had said, “The blue lights. They drift about, cluster around certain people, and enhance our abilities.” Is that the stuff that makes us superhuman?
I’m not as tough as Dad was or as fast. I can’t fly.
I chose the name Titan because I thought�
��because everyone thought—that I was going to inherit all of my dad’s powers.
It never occurred to anyone that I might inherit my mother’s powers instead.
He stood still, allowed the heat of the fire to soak into his body. He could feel the energy surging through him. He held out his hand, palm up, and concentrated, shaping the energy into a small ball of flame that briefly danced and flickered in his hand before fading away.
That is just too cool! What about lightning? Mum could make lightning… He concentrated again, tried to visualize the energy turning into electricity. There was a brief spark between his thumb and index finger. When I get back to Sakkara, I’ll have to ask her how to do that properly.
Colin Wagner, the thirteen-year-old son of the legendary superhero known as Energy, walked out of the inferno.
23
THE COPTER TOUCHED DOWN ON THE edge of the burning forest. Façade left the cockpit and followed Renata and Danny out of the copter. “Renata, this is pointless. Nothing could survive in there.”
“Do you have any firefighting equipment on board?”
“Extinguisher and flame-retardant blankets.”
“Get them.”
“And the first-aid kit,” Danny said.
As Façade returned to the copter, Renata said to Danny, “Do you think…?”
“That he could still be alive? I don’t know. He’s not as strong as you are, or as fast as I am. But he’s tough and brave.”
She smiled. “Colin’s afraid of heights, did you know that?”
“No.”
“He wouldn’t admit it though. He always got nervous when we were on a high building.”
“I didn’t know that. I thought the only thing he was afraid of was homework. And when we were little kids he used to be terrified of Mr. Blobby.”
Renata laughed for a moment, then covered her mouth with her hand. “We shouldn’t talk about him in the past tense.”
Façade came up behind them. “Flameproof blankets, first-aid kit, fire extinguisher…but they won’t do any good.”
Then a large burning tree at the edge of the forest was suddenly torn apart, showering them with sparks.
Smiling, Colin pushed his way through the flaming debris and marched toward his friends.
Renata’s mouth dropped open in shock.
Danny said, “Colin? I don’t believe it!”
Colin ran his hands over his scalp. “Oh great. I just knew you were going to give me a hard time over this! My hair will grow back, you know.”
“We were told you were dead,” Façade said. “Mina said your aura disappeared; she couldn’t sense you anymore. Colin, your mother and father think you’re dead.”
Colin swallowed. “We have to tell them!”
“Wait,” Renata said. “This is a terrible thing to do to your parents, Col, but if no one knows you’re alive then that gives us an advantage. We know that someone in Sakkara is a traitor. If they think you’re dead, we’ll have a better chance of flushing them out.”
Colin thought about this for a moment. “All right. All right, that’s what we’ll do. Let’s go.”
They ran back toward the copter and jumped in. “How did you survive?” Danny asked.
“Turns out I’m fireproof. I get that from my mother’s side of the family.” He looked past Danny’s shoulder. “Look, there’s another one!”
Danny turned around. “Another what?”
“You can’t see it? It’s sort of a pale blue light. It’s right in front of you!”
“I can’t see anything,” Danny said. “Renata?”
“Nope. Sure you’re not imagining it, Colin?”
“No, it’s definitely there. Danny, put your hand out, see if you can feel anything.”
Danny raised his hand, then shrugged.
“It’s gone,” Colin said. “Disappeared when you pushed your hand through it.”
“All right,” Renata said. “We need to get you back to Sakkara. Get you checked out.” She reached out and ran her fingers over Colin’s head. “Perfectly smooth! So your skin is fireproof but your hair isn’t.”
“You’re just lucky it wasn’t the other way around,” Danny said.
“You sure you don’t want us to tell your folks that you’re still alive?” Façade asked as the copter ascended once more.
“Positive,” Colin said. “If there is a traitor, this is the best way to find him. And Façade…I really won’t be happy if I find out that it’s you. Understand me?”
Façade smiled. “Perfectly.”
“Set a course for Sakkara, fast as you can.”
Dioxin flew straight up to the copter’s open hatch and shut off his jets as he touched down. Inside, his team of mercenaries was running a weapons check.
“You still tracking the new heroes’ craft?” Dioxin asked the pilot.
The man nodded. “They’re heading right back to Topeka.”
“Can we overtake them?”
“Not a chance. That thing has got five times our speed. At least.”
“Got to get me one of those too.” Dioxin turned to the nearest man. “What’s the status?”
“All locked and loaded, sir.”
“You all know what you have to do?”
“Cross briefed us. With Titan’s kid dead and Diamond out looking for his body, the only one we have to worry about is Redmond, and according to the reports he’s far from being ready to fight.”
“What about the girl who can detect superhumans? Cross said something about her occasionally showing incredible strength.”
“She’ll be taken out of the picture before we get there.”
“Good. The building’s defenses?”
“In theory they can seal the whole place tighter than a duck’s ass, but our inside man will have disabled the doors. There are no human guards. We should be able to get in and out without any real resistance.”
“And the target?”
“Everything’s arranged. Check the map…” The man passed Dioxin a handheld computer. “There’s a small storeroom off the machine room. Only one door, no windows. That’s the rendezvous point.”
Dioxin manipulated the computer’s controls. The three-dimensional image rotated, showing him a complete plan of Sakkara. He smiled. “Then we’re ready.” He reached around and unclipped the jetpack from his back, then refueled it from the spare tank. He loaded a fresh cartridge of missiles into the launcher on his wrist and attached another two cartridges to his belt. “All right, men…Don’t go thinking that this will be a walk in the park. There are still four ex-superheroes in that place. They might not have their powers anymore, but they’re going to fight like wildcats to defend it. Expect strong resistance. Assume that everyone you meet but our target will be hostile and treat them accordingly. I do not want any of them walking out of that place, you got me?”
As one, the men nodded.
“I promised Solomon Cord that in exchange for him stealing my future, I would steal something he valued just as much. And I’ve done that: I’ve taken his reputation. No matter how this turns out, no one will remember Paragon as a hero. Now…now we’re going to go a step further. We’re going to steal his future.”
On the roof of Sakkara, Solomon Cord stood beside Caroline Wagner as they watched the StratoTruck approaching.
Behind them, Razor, Butler and Yvonne were waiting in silence.
Joshua Dalton said, “We shouldn’t be out here. We’re too exposed.”
“Shut up,” Cord said, without looking at him.
The StratoTruck touched down and Caroline ran toward it. Then the hatch opened and her husband was standing there, his face pale and drawn.
“What happened?” Caroline asked, sobbing. “How did he die?”
Warren walked down the ramp, brushed the tears from his eyes and wrapped his arms around her. “He was incredible…He just jumped out, straight down through the trees. Absolutely fearless. You would have been so proud of him. And then… and then there was a huge
explosion. Dioxin set the entire forest on fire. We couldn’t get close enough. We waited, but he…he didn’t get out. Mina said his aura disappeared.”
As the Wagners walked toward the stairway, Josh approached them, but was stopped by Razor, who pulled him aside.
“Don’t you say a word, Dalton!” Razor hissed. “You say one thing about how you told them not to go and I swear to God I will put you in the ground!”
“I would never do something like that,” Josh said. “Colin was…He was a good kid. He deserved a better fate than that.”
His face pale and grim, Razor went over to Mina. They stared at each other for a few seconds, then Mina turned and walked away.
Yvonne said, “Mina?”
“Leave me alone.”
“But…” Yvonne stopped when Butler put his hand on her arm.
“She needs time,” Butler said. “She’ll be OK.”
Solomon Cord waited until Caroline and Warren were gone, then said, “Everyone, prepare for an attack! Mina, I know you’re in shock, but we need you to stay alert—you’re our only early-warning system. Razor, get on to the chopper; I want Renata back here ASAP. And I want all of our defenses online. Now move, people! We’re going to lock this place down.”
As everyone rushed back inside to prepare, Solomon walked to the edge of the roof and looked out over the city.
“Colin…,” he said aloud. “You were a great kid. I’m going to miss you. I don’t know how I’m going to tell Stephanie. I know she always gave you a hard time, but that was just her way. She would never admit it, of course, but I think she was a little bit in love with you.” He looked down at his hands: they were shaking. “Good-bye, my friend. Now…now I’m going to kill the man who betrayed us.”
24
JOSHUA DALTON SAT IN HIS OFFICE speaking into the phone. “Colin Wagner is dead.” He listened for a moment. “Mina wasn’t able to pick up any trace of him…Daniel Cooper and Renata Soliz haven’t returned yet.” He listened again. “The remainder of my funds will be transferred to your account first thing in the morning…Yes. I will.” He hung up the phone and began typing furiously on his computer.
The Gathering Page 17