Hero Unit

by JC Bybee

  Hero Unit

  By JC Bybee

  Copyright 2014 JC Bybee

  Smashwords Edition

  Cover art by James E. Curwen

  Smashwords Edition, License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  About JC Bybee

  Connect with JC Bybee

  Chapter 1

  The heavy personnel carrier’s tires hissed on the new pavement as it rolled down Seventh Avenue. Even at three o’clock in the morning the air was hot and humid. No surprise considering it was mid-August in the Midwest. Hellfire, and most the rest of the Global Class Exceptionals, did their best to make sure all four seasons acted like they should.

  The streets were empty, almost devoid of life, which was to be expected in the early, early morning. Sweeping health reform in the late nineties had abolished second and third shift for most commercial and industrial businesses. The earliest the work day could start was an hour after sunrise and they all ran for eight hours. Unless of course you were deemed vital, like emergency services.

  Ace leaned back in her chair, glad for the silence in the carrier. Even after a year she still felt like a newcomer to the Exceptional’s Enforcement Division, or Hero Units. This was only her second assignment with her new unit. Anti activity had been on a down swing ever since the Dark Houston incident.

  Thinking about Dark Houston brought memories flashing through her mind.

  Easy, Ace, don’t dwell on them.

  She hitched her shoulders gently. The heavy combat armor all Heroes wore had, at one time, seemed excessive to her. That had changed after Dark Houston. A lot of things had changed for her on that day.

  Again memories flashed through her mind. Fellow E.E.D recruits dead or dying. The Anti that had hit the training facility laughing as he killed Heroes and normals alike.

  Not right now, Ace. Let it go.

  “Easy Ace,” Jacks said in his pleasant Midwest accent, “The nerves’ll pass.”

  She shook her head. Jacks meant well, but he didn’t understand what it was like for her. The other four members of her unit were Fourth Generation Exceptionals. The Fourth Generation was considered, by most, to be the last, and most advanced, generation of Exceptionals.

  That’s what they thought.

  The powers of the weakest of the Fourths were leaps and bounds beyond those of previous Generations. Jacks, for example, was an Energy Class who could manipulate heat. He could increase it, decrease it, move it, transfer it, shape it, ignore it; if there was heat present Jacks could do something to it.

  Jacks was considered the least member of their squad, at the bottom end of the upper tier of Exceptionals. Torment, their leader, was a strong, upper tier Mental Class. She could read minds, manipulate emotions, cause hallucinations, induce manias and a whole host of other mental problems.

  Why Torment? It’s not like she ever uses her power to torment people.

  Deuce, Jacks’ partner, was also a Mental Class. His powers were telekinetic and they were damn powerful. Ace had watched him lift an aircraft carrier, just for practice. The effort had been a massive strain on his powers, wearing them out completely, but he’d done it.

  Then there was Ace’s partner, Maniac. She was an Energy Class, a technomancer (that’s what they called themselves), and she was in the upper end of the upper tier of the Fourths. Anything that ran off of electricity, or had electricity in it, she could manipulate. Raw electricity, like lighting, was beyond her, but once it was contained Maniac could control it.

  Ace rounded out their team and she still struggled with feeling like she belonged. Everyone knew her as the only Fifth Generation Exceptional. The entire scientific community had been in an uproar with her birth. Previously when the first Exceptional of a new generation was born the previous generation ended, but all over the earth the Fourth Generation continued.

  And not even the greatest minds, both normal and Exceptional, know why.

  Like every other infant, Ace had been tested to see if she was an Exceptional. The testing equipment had broken. They’d brought in an upper tier Fourth whose power allowed her to rate the power of other Exceptionals. Testing Ace had landed her in a mental institution.

  I remember her screams, despite being an infant.

  After that she’d been classified as a Fifth Generation. Every scientist in the world who found out about her birth had anticipated the coming of the Fifth Generation. It had never come. Ace was an outlier, an exception. And no one knew why.

  Just another question for us to answer, eventually.

  “Jacks, you know full well why she is nervous,” Torment said. Her voice always had a faint echo to it, like she was talking from inside a cave. That was her Quirk. All Exceptionals had one. Some were more obvious than others.

  And some are just damned annoying.

  Despite her name Torment was kind to everyone, even those they apprehended. It was nice to have a leader that actually cared about her people. One of Ace’s COs from her days in the army hadn’t given a damn about the Exceptionals under his command. He hadn’t lasted long in a command position.

  “Just trying to help,” Jacks replied with a shrug.

  “It’s okay guys, I’ll be fine,” Ace said. She tried her best to sound confident. She wasn’t sure if it worked.

  “Eyes open everyone,” Maniac’s voice came over the intercom. She was their driver. “We’re at the scene.”

  Their transport rolled to a stop and they piled out the back, Ace first, just in case the situation was worse than anticipated. She was technically classified as a Fortress Class, since most of her powers were considered “physical” powers, and as far as anyone had been able to discover she was invulnerable.

  Not even Tomahawk could say that.

  Ace blocked out that particular memory. Now was really not the time to think about Tomahawk.

  Sorry, bad timing.

  “Forgot this,” Jacks said and handed over her assault rifle. He had to carry it with both hands. Ace took it, with one hand, and forcing a smile said, “Thanks.”

  Jacks smiled back, genuinely; it was hard to bring the man down. Ace shouldered her rifle. It was mandatory for all Heroes to carry the assault weapons, for the same reason all Heroes had to wear body armor.

  Don’t think about it.

  Unfortunately this time the memories of Dark Houston came back.

  Blood Host laughed, a high pitched, grating sound. Another blast of viral energy bloomed to Ace’s right, killing a group of reporters. At her feet Deek writhed on the ground, his skin covered in festering sores.

  She stumbled, nearly falling to her knees. Images flashed through her mind. Ace tried to block t
hem out, but they kept coming. Death, destruction and Blood Host’s mad laugh all cascaded through her mind.

  “Ace,” Torment’s soothing voice broke through the haze. “Ace, concentrate on my words. Breathe, slowly. It’s done. That’s the past. Focus on the present.”

  The words gave Ace something real to focus on. They pulled her out of the past and allowed her to regain her hold on the present.

  “I’m good,” Ace said after a few deep breaths.

  “Are you sure?” Torment asked. Every Hero Unit had a Mental Class like Torment, just in case. Having power was a heavy burden. Most members of the Hero Units ended up with some form of PTSD. The Mental Class were the ones that helped them deal with it. Torment had been with the E.E.D long enough that she understood what Ace was going through.

  Well, she kind of understands.

  “I’m sure,” Ace replied.

  “Dark Houston again?” Torment knew the answer to that question. What had gone down at the E.E.D training facility in Dark Houston had marked Ace. It affected her more than any other event in her life.

  That’s not entirely true and you know it.

  “I’ll tell you later,” Ace said. She was going to have to freely submit to a psych evaluation anyway. Every officer on scene had witnessed what had just happened. The last thing they needed were rumors that she was losing it.

  Torment nodded and Ace again shouldered her rifle. She wondered just how long this particular version was going to last. The Army had given up trying to find an alloy that could withstand her strength. It wasn’t that Ace couldn’t regulate her strength, quite the opposite, but in stressful situations that control could slip. After she’d crushed three AR-15s her gun use had been limited to training only.

  The head of R&D for the E.E.D, a Mental Class Fourth named Einstein, had taken it as personal challenge to create an alloy that would stand up to Ace’s strength. Luckily, or unluckily, for Ace Einstein was stationed in her precinct. It led to a lot of her free time spent testing new metals for him. This last one had at least made it out of the test fire stage.

  Ace turned her attention back to the situation at hand. They all took a moment to study the scene. There were patrol cars parked along both sides of the street. According to the limited information her squad had been given the police had cordoned off a large section of the block to protect any civilians. There were no curfews so people were bound to be out even in the early morning.

  There were also a group of SWAT officers present, though they seemed more than willing to let the Heroes take over. Apparently the situation was worse than they had been led to believe. That was going to annoy Torment. She hated coming into a situation under informed. It showed a lack of respect on the part of the normal police. The normal police, as an organization, understood the need for the Hero Units, but that didn't mean individual officers did.

  In the middle of the cordoned off area was a large office building. It was just one of hundreds in the city that housed a multitude of law firms, ad companies, a testing center and the like. It was a monument to corporate America. Places like it attracted Anti activity.

  It’s a power trip for them. Take down the very things the E.E.D protects.

  Her squad reported to the officer in charge, a detective named Rick Allen. He was a normal and a nice enough guy. Ace had talked with him once or twice. Detective Allen was more than willing to admit when a situation necessitated Hero intervention. He made it a point to keep Hero Units he called in appraised of the situation. That didn't mean dispatch had to pass on all the information he gave them.

  “Torment, I’m glad you’re here. Is your team briefed on the situation?” Detective Allen asked without waiting on pleasantries and confirming Ace’s suspicion that it was dispatch that was the problem.

  Torment shook her head. “I’m afraid not, detective. All we were told was that there was a situation that needed Hero intervention. No details were passed on to us.”

  “Right, I’ll deal with problems from dispatch later. Right now we’ve got an Anti in there,” he indicated the faceless corporate edifice. “He is supposedly holding a group of Regs and normals hostage.” Despite his calm exterior Ace knew Detective Allen was going to let the dispatcher have it once the situation was taken care of. He didn’t tolerate disrespect from the normals to the Heroes and vice versa.

  “What’s his plan? What’s he after?” Torment asked looking the building up and down. She would already be searching for the thoughts and emotions of those held inside. The range of her power was pretty astounding.

  “Says he’s got a device that will destabilize the atomic structure of the building and everyone in it but him,” Detective Allen replied.

  “Seriously?” Torment asked, still scanning the building. Torment had been in the E.E.D for ten years. This was nothing new to her. Usually when an Exceptional went bad they did so in a big way.

  “That’s the claim. He wants an armed escort out of the city and let’s see,” the detective checked his notes, “forty billion dollars.”

  “Oh, is that all?” Torment said with a shake of her head. “Well now I know why they sent us. I can’t get a good sense of him and his hostages at this distance. What do you think, Maniac?”

  Ace’s partner stepped forward, being careful to stay behind the anti-Exceptional barricades, to get a closer look. Like Torment, Maniac’s powers had a long range on them. Ace kept her eyes on the building, scanning the different floors and looking for threats.

  It was eerily quiet for a crime scene. There was no radio chatter, no talking between the different officers. The situation was tense. No one liked the thought of facing an Anti, especially one with a super weapon.

  “I’ve got it Torment. Top floor, device is letting off one heck of a signal. At this range I can't tell for sure if it can do what he says, but whatever it is, it’s dangerous,” Maniac reported. Her eyes looked like they had a small lightning storm in them. The more excited she got the more electricity there would be. It definitely wasn’t the strangest Quirk out there.

  “Ace can you get to the top of the building? The rest of us will come in from below,” Torment asked.

  Ace nodded. Flying to the top of the building unseen wouldn’t be difficult. Neither would be getting in. “You want me to sit this one out?” Jacks asked. It was the sort of thing he usually got a pass on. His powers were less helpful in a hostage situation.

  Torment nodded. “For now. I’ll let you know if there’s something we need you for.”

  Jacks nodded and took up a defensive position behind one of the heavy, anti-Exceptional barricades. Those were another of Einstein’s creations. They could stop even the most powerful of upper tier Fourths. It was a well-kept secret that they were no match for Ace.

  So far nothing is a match for you.

  “While Ace gets into position, I want Maniac to work on that device of his. Deuce, stay here and keep your eyes opened. You and Jacks are our backup if things go south,” Torment said. Deuce nodded and also took up a position at the barricades. Between him and Jacks a good portion of the cordoned off area would be covered. Heroes were all required to be sharp-shooters.

  “We want him alive if at all possible,” Detective Allen said. “New Davenport PD has been getting a lot of flak from…people, because of how harshly we deal with Antis.”

  By people Detective Allen meant politicians. Damned fools only think about their poll numbers. Ace liked that fact that the detective included the E.E.D as part of the NDPD. There were some normal police that saw the E.E.D as a separate and distinct entity. “We will do what we can, Detective. I can’t make any promises. Antis are notorious for making situations where there are no easy calls,” Torment replied. The echo in her voice made the statement ominous.

  “Don’t I know it,” he said with a sigh. He ran his fingers through his dark hair and made a call on his radio.

  “Alright Ace, go to it,” Torment said.

  Ace took to the air. At first she flew up an
d away from the scene. If the Anti was watching she didn't want to give him too much warning she was coming. He might hurt the hostages. As she left solid ground behind she could feel gravity loosen its hold and the laws of physics begin to rearrange around her.

  That was the hallmark of the Exceptional Phenomenon. When an Exceptional, from any generation, used their powers natural laws changed, adapted, or just stopped working entirely. Normals never felt a thing, but other Exceptionals always knew when powers were in use near them.

  Focus on the task at hand, not metaphysical ramblings.

  She circled back around as soon as she felt best. Ace tried not to fly at supersonic speeds while within city limits, or anywhere near population centers if at all possible, so she approached her target at a much more sedate pace by comparison, close to sixty miles an hour. She had an instinctive understanding of how fast she was flying.

  Her landing on top of the building was as quiet as she could manage under the circumstances. From her crouch she took a good look around. There was a roof access door, a variety of different vents, ducts and grate covered openings. It could have been the top of any hundreds of other buildings in the city.

  Ace knew better than to take the door. If the Anti was a technomancer, which was her personal bet, then he would have rigged most of the entrances. And while it was unlikely she would be hurt by anything she ran into, it would create a terrible amount of noise. And noise was the opposite of quiet, so she needed to find a better way in. She started scanning the other panels and openings the top of the roof presented to her. None of them looked promising, until she spotted the HV/AC system.

  As Exceptionals went Ace didn’t really fit her type. Normally Fortress Class Exceptionals, the Class Ace was categorized under, were big, towering masses of muscle. It was the most recognizable Quirk out there. They actually looked like they could leap buildings, stop bullets and bend steel. Ace didn’t. She was five and a half feet tall with an athletic build. No one expected her to be able to do what she did. Everyone assumed, herself included, that she didn’t fit her type because it was her Quirk.