by Huth, Jacob
Jet muttered to herself as she sat and started fiddling with the tool bag.
“Your turn, Frost,” I said. I set up three slats in a line. Frost stood facing them and created a handful of ice daggers. He tossed them as hard as he could and they landed in the centers of the panels. He made a handful of throwing stars and slung them towards the panels. The stars shattered the daggers that were stuck in the wood. The wood fell down on their backsides. He looked pleased with his work and crouched down into a squatting position. He placed his palm on the ground and closed his eyes. His head tilted slightly to the left and large ice shards shot out of the ground under each of the wooden panels shattering them into only piles of splinters. He fell back into a sitting position and cracked a smile.
“That was incredible,” Jet said.
“These things really open up our potential. It makes me feel like I have no limits,” Frost said.
“Be careful, though. If you over exert yourself, your body shuts down to recover,” I said.
“I’ll remember that,” he said, “Now you go.”
He stood up five wooden slats and moved back to our little spot. I stood away from the slats and raised my hand in a cuplike shape. I focused and clinched my fist. The slats turned to dust. I couldn’t explain what had just happened. Frost was right. The more I wore them, the more free I felt. It felt the same way as when I created the singularity in the woods except for the screaming and hallucinations. My power was becoming sharper without me even doing anything. There was some unanticipated effect of the amplifiers that lasted even after you took them off.
“Talk about amazing,” Frost said examining the wood dust.
“How did you do that?” Jet asked.
“I don’t really know. I’ve felt my spike almost evolving since we started using the amplifiers,” I said, “I could feel the microscopic air pockets inside the wood and in my mind I could see them breaking the wood apart at a molecular level.”
“That’s strange,” Jet said, “Your spike shouldn’t be evolving. It didn’t say anything about that in the plans.”
“It feels good. I have been feeling mine change too,” Frost added.
“I’d like to take small tissue samples from both of you when we get back to Sanctum. I need to examine your genes. This could have incredible scientific implications,” she said getting excited, “For now, you should take them off until I have a chance to study them.”
“Okay. Whatever you say,” I said. Frost and I both slipped off the amplifiers and placed them in our equipment bags.
“What do we do with the rest of the wooden panels?” Jet asked.
I turned and made the same hand motion as before and crushed them. I heard Frost chuckle behind me. We gathered our equipment and turned back towards Sanctum. We were stopped by the ice wall that Frost had created. One swipe of my hand blew the wall down and cleared a path for us. We passed through the ice wreckage and made our way back to Sanctum. The sun was peeking through the canopy of the dense forest. There was little wildlife in the forest. It was strange how quiet it got sometimes. The occasional squirrel or rabbit would scurry by in the brush but for the most part, it was silent. We approached the tunnel and entered the dark passage. We emerged inside the lair and found Flare rifling through a trunk of clothes and gear.
“What are you hoping to find in there?” Frost asked.
“My disguise,” she said. “I almost have my full one picked out.”
“I can’t believe that we are really doing this,” he said.
“We’ve been over it,” I said, “We can’t afford to show our faces in the city.”
“I know, I know,” he said tossing the gear bag down by the workbench.
“Don’t forget you two. I need tissue samples,” Jet said.
“When do you want those? Can we take a rest first?” Frost asked.
“Yeah that’s fine. I can get them later tonight,” she replied.
“Why do you need tissue samples?” Flare asked.
“Zero has exhibited some… growth in his spike. It seems to be evolving and I need tissue samples to examine so I can determine if the amplifiers have lasting effects,” replied Jet.
“Oh lord,” Flare said.
“I’m going to take a shower. Every time I go into the forest, I feel like I am coated in filth,” I said. I looked up and Flare and Frost had already retreated to their room. Jet was sitting at the workbench unpacking the bag that Frost had just tossed aside. I walked up behind her and placed my hands on her shoulders. I squeezed her muscles and she tilted her head to the side. She leaned her head back against my stomach and her blonde hair slid off the side of her face.
“How are we going to find Armageddon?” she sighed.
“I don’t know. We’ll figure something out,” I said softly.
“What if we can’t? They’ll unleash him and then the city will be beyond saving. Forty gene spikes in one man,” she said.
“I know. Vine and Pan are working on locating him and the spikers. We will be fine, I promise,” I said. I leaned down and kissed her neck softly. She reached her arm up and caressed my head. She went back to unpacking the bag and I retreated to the shower. I stripped off my dirty clothes and stepped into the hot water. I soaked in the stream for a long while. I lost track of the time as I leaned against the wall. I was snapped back into consciousness by a hand touching my back. I turned my head and saw Jet standing behind me. She draped her arms over my shoulders and laid her head against my back. Her wet skin was warm against mine and I felt all my worries momentarily melt away. We spent the next few minutes enjoying the warmth before the water turned ice cold. Jet let out a shriek and we both hopped out of the shower and grabbed towels. We dried off and slipped on our fresh clothes. I opened the bathroom door and saw Frost standing to the right of the room by one of the water pipes protruding from the wall. He had his index finger pressed up against the pipe. His finger was pure white and had a sort of steam emanating from it.
“Sorry I had to cut your shower short, but some people need to use it too,” he said removing his finger from the pipe.
I stood just outside of the door as Jet emerged from the bathroom and said, “That’s alright. We were done anyway.”
Frost blushed when he realized that I wasn’t alone in the shower. “I uh… sorry. I didn’t know that…uh…,” he stuttered.
“It’s fine. I need to get some work done tonight,” she said. She kissed me on the cheek and walked away. I stood staring at Frost, slightly annoyed. He mouthed “I’m sorry” at me and went into the bathroom. I went to the kitchen and opened a can of beans for my dinner. I slipped in an earpiece to start scanning the airwaves for any sign of the spikers or Armageddon. The night passed with no mention of either. I was about to go off to bed when Jet stopped me in the doorway of the bedroom. She held up a black medical gun and placed it on my bicep. She pulled the trigger and it drew a tissue sample from my arm and dispensed it into a glass microscope slide which she removed from the gun.
“Now you can go to bed,” she said. She leaned up and kissed me before going back to the workbench. I went into the bedroom and plopped down on the bed. I lay down and stared at the ceiling. I thought of the city and my life before this all started. I wondered where Hades was keeping the prisoners and Armageddon. My thoughts raced for hours. I couldn’t get a moment of peace. I lay, slipping into near insanity as my fatigue reached an unbearable level. I couldn’t take it anymore. I got up and made my way into the main room. Jet was staring into a microscope still. She heard me enter and looked over. Her eyes were red and tired looking.
“I thought you were asleep,” she said.
“I can’t fall asleep. I am incredibly tired but my thoughts are racing,” I said.
“I have some pills I found in the medical stores here. They are made from a blend of herbs that help you fall asleep easier and it is organic so you won’t get addicted to it,” she said.
“I really need something to help me. I am los
ing my mind,” I said.
“They are over in the cabinet over the sink,” she said. I opened the cabinet and found the small bottle. I opened it and took one of the small blue pills.
“Did you find anything unusual in the tissue sample?” I asked sitting down at the table.
“Your cells look enhanced somehow. They have been enlarged and stimulated by the amplifiers,” she replied.
“Is it permanent?” I asked.
“It is possible. I want you to avoid wearing them for a couple of days and then I’ll take another sample to check for sure,” she said rubbing her forehead.
“Are you alright?” I asked.
“Yeah I’m fine. I am exhausted but we have so much to do,” she replied.
“I know we have a lot of pressing matters at hand but we won’t be able to get anything done if we are run ragged. We need to take time to rest and stay sharp,” I said.
“I keep trying to lie down to get to sleep but every time I do, I think of another thing that I need to get done,” she said. She rubbed her temples with her fingers. The whole situation was hard on all of us already and it was shaping up to be a bigger challenge than we could handle.
“Come on,” I said standing up, “Let’s go to bed.”
We stood up and made our way to bed. We laid down and started to drift off. The bed was surprisingly soft for being so old. The rebels must have figured that if they were going to have to live in a cavern, they should at least live comfortably. I felt the pill starting to take over. Drowsiness washed over me as I fell into a comfortable sleep. The night passed with no dreams of chaos or destruction.
Have you ever noticed that no matter how long you sleep, it always only feels like an instant? It always felt like the blink of an eye when I was in Sanctum. Maybe it was the air in there. Even though the sleep seemed short, it was peaceful that night. I was jolted awake by a voice in my ear yelling my name.
“Zero! Zero are you there?!” yelled Pan’s voice through my earpiece. I had forgotten to take it out before I went to bed. I was so tired that I fell asleep in my clothes and above the covers.
“Pan? What is it?” I said groggily.
“You four need to get to the city as soon as possible,” he said.
“Why, what’s going on?” I asked.
“Hades gave an order early this morning for his army to start destroying the slums today,” he replied.
I jumped to my feet and ran to grab my boots. “I will get everyone up and we will be there as soon as possible,” I yelled. I ran to Jet and shook her awake.
“What is it?” she asked confusedly.
“We have to go! Kraken is about to destroy the slums!” I yelled.
“What?” she said.
“You need to get Frost and Flare ready. I will go ahead to the city. You guys make your way to the greenhouse by the main square. That’s where Vine’s base is,” I said running out before she could protest. I ran through the main room to the exit. I took off into the wastes and took flight. I didn’t even think about it before I tried. I wasn’t wearing the amplifiers but I still was able to focus my powers into flight. I flew furiously towards the city. I approached the city and noticed a group of soldiers in the city square. I landed and slammed my fist into the pavement. A shockwave emanated and sent the guards flying. I stood up straight and looked over at one of the bodies and noticed it fading. Suddenly, all of the bodies lit up and disappeared until one person was standing behind me. I turned and saw one of Hades high ranking officials behind me. I recognized him as one of the members of the Trifecta. They were a group of three extremely dangerous spikers that worked for Kraken. The leader was a woman named Synapse. She had an abnormal control over her mind and could control people as well as move objects telepathically. She had brown hair that she kept in a braid. She was slender and swift. She had piercing green eyes and pale skin. Her next in command was Golem. He was a large man who could change his skin into stone. He was the muscle of the group. He was very muscular and had a black flat top. His skin was tan and rugged. The man who I was facing was named Prism. He had blonde hair that was spiky and stood straight up. He was average height and build and had gray, almost colorless eyes. He was sort of generic looking. His spike was the ability to make copies of himself. Their group was very deadly and executed many of Hades most brutal orders and commands.
I stood facing Prism in the square. “What’s going on here?” I asked.
“The end of your pathetic rebellion,” he said as a large stony object hit me in the back of the head. I hit the ground and lost consciousness. I had been tricked. I should have listened to Jet and waited for them to come with me. I had rushed off again and got myself into trouble. I had no idea what awaited me when I woke up, but I was on my own with this one.
Chapter Six: The Pit
My hands were bound above me. I was leaning against a vertical metal table against a wall. My shirt was gone as well as my boots. I was strapped to a table in only my pants as I came to. I looked around the room but my vision was still blurry. How did I get here? The last thing I remembered was seeing Prism in the square until I was struck by something. It must have been Golem waiting to ambush me. I started to regain my vision as the minutes crawled by. I started gaining the ability to discern shapes. I noticed a series of computers and lab supplies around me. I tried to move my legs but they were locked into a high tech metal shackle that was operated by a computer pad. I groaned as I tried to free my hands. A voice from the other end of the room said, “Ah good. You are awake.”
A man in a white coat walked in front of me and pulled up a chair. He was bald and had a gray goatee. He wore glasses that sat on his large pointed nose. His eyes were beady and his lips were pursed continually. “Where am I?” I asked.
“You are in The Pit, a Kraken research lab,” he hissed.
“Who are you?” I asked. My questions were pointless. I was only stalling so I could try to figure out a plan.
“I am Bunsen, head scientist for Kraken. I have been sent down here to do research on your gene spike,” he replied. He pulled out a small scanner and began running it over my body.
“You monsters cannot destroy the slums !” I yelled.
“There is no plan to destroy the slums,” he said while looking at his scanner.
“My ally told me there was,” I said.
“Pan never reached out to you. We learned that you were listening in on our transmissions. We detected an irregularity in our wavelengths and I was able to cut in and listen on your feed. Hades enacted a plan to draw you out. We used a voice module to copy Pan’s voice,” he said.
“Why did you tell me all of that?” I asked.
“It doesn’t matter that you know. There is no way that you can escape this laboratory. Someone in our organization would have to have the proper shackle codes and defy us to let you out. To be honest, we were hoping to draw out your allies as well. Hades will have to settle for you only,” he replied.
“If you know so much about me then you know I can just bust straight out of here,” I said. I tried to focus on my power but something was blocking my thoughts.
“Of course we thought of that. We placed a neural inhibitor on your head that blocks your thoughts and prevents your gene spike,” he said writing on a clipboard.
“It doesn’t matter if I am in here. The Insurgency will fight,” I said.
“I am sure they will. I am also positive that they will fail,” he said walking over to a table of instruments. He picked up a small metal device with prongs that lit up when he touched it. He approached me and said, “This will be very painful.”
He touched the prongs to my torso and the pain was incredible. It seared against my skin as he pressed harder and harder. I eventually blacked out from the pain.
Days went by in The Pit. Days of endless experimentation and torture ensued as I passed in and out of consciousness continuously. I was force fed stale bread and given water through an IV. I didn’t know how much longer I
could hold out. I thought about Jet, Flare and Frost all the time. Mainly Jet and how I would never see her again.
On the third morning, the elevator opened and a familiar face emerged. It was Flint, Jet’s father. He approached me and looked over me. He looked to Bunsen and said, “Give me a minute alone with this scum.”
Bunsen nodded and entered the elevator. Once the doors had shut, Flint looked at me and said, “I thought you were dead.”
“Almost there sir,” I said. My mouth was so dry and my mind was worn down.
“You can’t die yet. Jet came to find me once you went missing,” he said. “You have to lead the rebellion. Since you disappeared, things have gone crazy in the streets. The rebels have started attacking Kraken guards and trying to gain ground in this battle.”
“I’m happy to hear that but I don’t think I’ll be seeing the free world again,” I said.
“You will. I am working on a plan to get you out. A few other Kraken employees don’t really agree with their policies and have agreed to help me,” said Flint.
“Won’t they come after you if you help me?” I asked.
“We are working on it. I have the beginning of a plan but you need to hold out for a few more days,” he replied.
“I’m not sure I can,” I said.
“You have to. For this city. For Jet more importantly,” he said. He grabbed a canteen from the workbench and helped me take a drink. The elevator began to whir back down. “I have to go. Hold out,” he whispered.
The elevator door opened and Bunsen emerged. A large figure came out behind him. Hades stood only feet away from me. Flint slipped into the elevator and escaped to another floor. Hades pulled out a cigar and lit it with a golden lighter. He puffed on it for a minute before approaching me and blowing smoke in my face.
“How does it feel?” he asked.
“How does what feel?” I asked back.
“Knowing that there is nothing you can do now to help your friends,” he replied.
“How does it feel to be a major pain in the ass?” I asked snidely.