Winters Family Psi Chronicles 2: Project Onyx

by John O'Riley

  “Are you doing this to everyone?” Samantha asked as excitement mingled with fear swirled in her mind.

  “Yes, I am,” she said in a strange droning voice. “You are right about us but you’re also very wrong. It’s important that you stop pursuing this matter. We can’t be cured so stop trying. Any improvement in our condition will only be temporary. Many people will die.”

  “What do you mean? How will people die?” Samantha whispered as terror clawed her insides.

  Agatha stared at her for several seconds before slumping back down onto her side and everyone unfroze. Dr. Ferguson abruptly sprang to his feet and marched toward the door. Tracy scrambled after him. Without warning, Agatha shrieked with rage and threw herself at Samantha. Her fingers clawed at Samantha’s face and she quickly raised her hands up in defense. The orderlies rushed over and pulled Agatha off of her but the patient writhed and contorted her body as she struggled furiously to escape. She screamed madly and almost broke free. Samantha hastily retreated from her as the vision abruptly darkened and blinked out of existence.

  Brian rolled out of bed, grabbed the DPU from his nightstand, and quickly typed out the dream before the details faded away. He emailed the details to Melissa and lay back down to stare at the ceiling. It was a little after six in the morning so he probably should just get up. He contemplated what he’d seen and was surprised when Melissa knocked telepathically.

  “Yes?” Brian said.

  “I’ve sent your dream on to the rest of the team. They’re convinced they know what she’s going to do next. We’ve already figured out she wanted to created allies to help her. What you saw was one of her first discoveries. Our team that is studying her computer files retrieved enough of the data to show that she performed research on her own based on a theory involving patients who suffer mental disorders. It was her contention that mental disorders are caused by misfirings of neurons as a result of multipathic energy in the brain. She found common genetics among mental patients and multipaths. She believed the reason mental patients are unable to link with Global Net is that there is a mutation in the brain which she compared to faulty wiring in a computer and that this could be circumvented by using a connectivity psi to forcibly connect them to Global Net. She also theorized that there was a subtle link between patients at local areas but that it was too weak to normalize the synapses in the brains that caused the mental illness. She believes that if this link was strengthened enough, they would become cured and their potential for multipathic abilities would be unleashed.

  “We believe that she is going to try and awaken their abilities and isolate them in a network with her so that she can control them,” Melissa said.

  “Do you really think that’s possible?” Brian asked with horror.

  “Yes, we do. She’s a genius and she’s already shown she’s capable of genetically manipulating people into becoming multipaths. She has to be stopped. Since she’s still in the general area, our team will work with Director Sorenson to cover all the psychiatric institutions around San Francisco. Good work, Brian. This was an excellent lead,” Melissa said.

  “Should I get ready for work then?” Brian asked.

  “Yes, we’re going to meet up with Caleb and Lauren. The four of us will fly over to San Francisco in case we’re needed,” Melissa said.

  Chapter 27

  Samantha strode purposefully into the Alta Vista Psychiatric Institute. Her appearance was currently altered with her illusionist ability so that she resembled Mary Lynch, one of the orderlies. Mary was half a foot shorter than Samantha with green eyes, black hair in a pageboy style and a peculiar, wide-eyed expression that made her seem constantly surprised. She was medium set with slightly pointy ears. The woman seated behind protective glass at the front desk area was currently reading a magazine and completely ignored her. Samantha used the key card that she’d stolen from an orderly she’d killed about an hour ago in her own home in order to unlock the door. The green light blinked on and a loud buzzing preceded a loud click as the lock disengaged. Samantha traversed down the hall with a smug smile. No security system could keep her out.

  She kept her disguise in place as she made her way to the locked door of the patient who was lying restrained in bed. It wasn’t yet dark outside as the sun continued its slow descent. The hallway was deserted so Samantha let herself into the room and closed the door behind her. The patient, a heavy set man began struggling when he saw her. He was a violent schizophrenic plagued with hallucinations that were frequently horrifying. Samantha released her disguise as it was taking too much of her mental energy to fully utilize her connectivity psi for the task that was required.

  Samantha kept herself safely away from Kevin’s reach as she closed her eyes and intently examined the sparkles of energy surrounding him. His own energy manifested as a miasma of sickly green with flecks of black and gold. It took a moment before she finally noticed the subtle silvery black string of energy intersecting his. It was so thin it was hardly discernable. She followed it out for a ways and saw that it connected to other patients and that there were more lines intersecting Kevin. Samantha’s smile widened as she nodded to herself.

  She immediately set to work strengthening all the networking lines that intersected with him. Kevin stopped struggling and became quiet. Samantha continued to work at the web of energy. After a considerable amount of time, the link was much stronger but she didn’t sense an increase in power between the patients which would surely happen once their abilities awakened. Samantha continued to work relentlessly even as her head throbbed with fatigue and time slowly passed by. She wasn’t certain how long she’d struggled to accomplish her goal when she suddenly felt a disturbance at the facility. It wasn’t the patients though. She focused more of her telepathic senses to discover the source and her body tensed reflexively as she sensed FBI agents at the front desk. They’d somehow figured out her plans. Panic flared within her as she realized they’d sensed her presence. She slipped completely back behind her psionic shielding so they couldn’t pinpoint her exact location.

  Samantha’s hands clenched into fists as fury flooded through her. She couldn’t believe they’d figured it out. She had planned on taking her time over several nights. They would call for backup and larger teams would soon surround the facility. Samantha turned her attention back to the net and continued strengthening it. She sensed something profound was about to happen. The power from the patients would flow through her as she had included herself in the web. It would provide a boost that would be more than sufficient to neutralize the agents. Samantha’s head throbbed as she exerted her will over the web and watched it thicken and glitter. Without warning, power cascaded violently through the web and Samantha channeled it through herself. There was far more than what she needed.

  Dark chaotic energy rippled through her and she sensed a strange awareness from the web as though it was sentient. Teams of FBI agents rushed into the building. Samantha must have lost track of time. She opened her eyes and saw Kevin staring vacantly up at the ceiling. She reached telepathically to his mind and sensed that it was enveloped in a part of a larger construct. She pulled quickly back and frowned with confusion. She hadn’t predicted this at all. Without warning, she could vividly see every part of the building at the same time. The FBI agents were efficiently working their way from room to room and there was no way to slip past them unnoticed no matter what disguise she used. She pulled out her revolver and cloaked herself in invisibility using her illusion talent. She stepped quietly into the hallway and stealthily traversed towards the front desk.

  The web continued to develop and its awareness became hungry. Samantha swallowed and unease rippled through her body. She briefly considered restoring the web to its former condition but knew instinctively that it would resist her efforts and fight back. She couldn’t do that and fight the agents at the same time. She aimed her revolver as the first group of agents stepped into the hallway. She fired quickly and managed to kill four of them with
a bullet to the head before the other four ducked and shot back. Samantha remained invisible as she crouched and sidestepped the bullets. She shot two more agents before the other two tried to retreat. She took care of them as well.

  She carefully walked around the dead bodies as she traversed the hallway. She heard movement behind her and realized more agents were about to turn the corner. She silently moved into a crouching position to make herself less of a target and prepared to fire her revolver. The web savagely reached out and swiftly dispatched the agents at the end of the hallway. The entire team immediately dropped to the floor in unconscious heaps.

  Samantha sensed the same thing occur to all of the other agents inside the building as well as the staff. She slowly walked over to the agents and gazed down at them. They all stared vacantly at the ceiling. She could sense their minds ensnared somehow and integrated within the web. Chaotic energy coursed through her as the web became even stronger. Samantha walked swiftly toward the front desk as dread washed through her. Her psionic shielding was a different frequency which she had developed to make herself difficult to sense and prevented remote-viewers or connectivity psi from locating her. No defense could keep her completely invisible and she knew that snatches of information would be perceived from high level talents that focused intently on her. The web probably hadn’t noticed her yet but would soon discover her presence and forcibly integrate her mind inside it.

  Samantha had almost reached the front door when it finally noticed her. The web gripped her mind and yanked savagely. Samantha blocked it and squirmed loose using its own energy against it. She swiftly dashed out of the building and gasped in shock to see that there were people lying unconscious in their cars and on the sidewalk nearby. The web’s reach was farther than just the confines of this institute. Numerous cars had crashed against buildings and collided with other cars. Some cars were parked with the driver’s-side door open and the driver lying unconscious next to it as they must have had some warning before their consciousness had been snuffed out. Terror threatened to consume her as she took the horrifying sight in. She had unleashed something so powerful that nothing could contain it.

  Pain tore at her mind as the web tried to bore past her shielding. Samantha strengthened her psionic protection and altered the energy to a different frequency that hopefully would make her invisible again for a short period of time. The web struck out again and she staggered against the brutal force. Her strategy hadn’t even slowed it down. Samantha used the energy coursing through the web to strengthen her protection and at the same time to weaken it. The connectivity psi vision snapped into focus as she worked on dissolving some of the inner links within the web. It compensated by reinforcing the links at the same time as she weakened them so that she made absolutely no headway.

  Samantha was forced to draw back to the defensive as her psionic shielding began to buckle. She diverted all of the energy that flowed to her from the web to stabilize her protection.

  “Stop attacking me! I created you!” she cried out desperately.

  The web either ignored her telepathic plea or didn’t understand how to perceive communication because its attacks continued. Samantha ran towards a car but then saw that there wasn’t a clear path so she wouldn’t be able to drive to safety. She dashed madly down the street hoping she could outrun the creature’s reach. She was still part of the web and to escape completely she’d have to detach herself but not until she’d reached safety. The web continued to strike as she pumped her legs and ran by unconscious body after unconscious body. No one remained awake and aware. Panic threatened to consume her as her lungs burned and she was forced to stop. Samantha clutched her sides and wondered how much time she had before the creature learned to adapt to her strategy and overcome her defenses.

  A blue sedan turned the corner up ahead and came to a stop several car lengths away. Caleb, Lauren, Melissa, and Brian stepped out of the vehicle. Samantha smiled savagely and raised her revolver. Caleb struck out with a psychic ability she was unfamiliar with but the chaotic energy from the web that swirled madly around her blocked it. She fired the gun but it only shot one bullet before clicking empty. She threw it aside and reached out with her mind to smother them and thereby knock them unconscious. She hesitated for a moment when she saw Caleb crumple to the ground before she had applied any force.

  Abruptly, she realized the web was still attacking. It hadn’t detected Caleb right away but had instantly broken through his defenses once discovering him. Samantha stumbled and fell to her knees as the web managed to slip through her defenses and rip into her mind. She screamed with terror and agony as pain flooded through her before she passed out. Her mind became just another cog in the ever expanding web.

  “What is that thing?” Brian asked as he gazed around with his second sight.

  The web was a massive tangle of silvery black that wove through the unconscious bodies surrounding them.

  “Caleb was right. The changes we made to our psionic protection made us invisible but it still picked him up. We don’t have much time,” Lauren said. “I’ve been altering the frequency that I’m protecting us with continuously but we’re lucky it hasn’t seen us, too.”

  “I’m going to put blocks up in between the people its trapped,” Melissa said. “Hopefully, Brian and I can weaken it enough that it will lose its cohesion.”

  “Wait,” Brian said quickly.

  “What is it?” Melissa asked.

  “That won’t work. This thing started in the psychiatric ward. If it’s grown this big, there’s no way that blocking these few people will even slow it down,” Brian said.

  “We need to escape then,” Lauren said grimly.

  Her eyes widened and she gasped with surprise. Blood trickled down her nose.

  “It’s discovered us. I can’t hold it out,” Lauren said weakly.

  “We need to block it,” Melissa said.

  She swiftly began snapping blocks onto the unconscious people so the web couldn’t access them. Brian was struck with an idea and pulsed dissonant waves into the web, adding more chaos to its already chaotic jumble of energy. Melissa noticed what he was doing and altered her strategy to match his. Lauren fell to the street in an unconscious heap but the web didn’t strike out against them. Instead it flailed wildly in random directions. Several times, it struck them with mild jolts of pain but quickly weakened and its energy became too unstable to remain coherent. The web collapsed into itself and evaporated into nothingness.

  “You did it!” Melissa exclaimed.

  Lauren and Caleb awakened and sat up. Unfortunately, so did Samantha.

  “Look out!” Brian pointed at her.

  Lauren and Caleb struck out with their minds and Samantha crumpled back into unconsciousness. Everyone else around them awakened and gazed around with confusion and fear. Caleb, Lauren, Brian, and Melissa hopped back into their car and headed back to FBI headquarters with Samantha who remained knocked out in the back seat. A group of FBI agents spent hours questioning the four of them on every aspect of their encounter with the strange new web of energy Samantha had created dubbed C-Net. Brian was starting to fear the grilling session would never end but without warning, Director Sorenson straightened in his chair and nodded.

  “Thank you. That’s all the information we need,” he said. “And I just want to remind you that this is all classified.”

  The four of them eagerly left the FBI building and piled into the rental sedan so they could return to the airport to fly back to Washington.

  “Do you think they’re going to experiment with creating another C-Net?” Brian asked in a fretful tone.

  “Don’t worry about it. The results are too scary and unpredictable for them to experiment with,” Lauren said.

  “I guess you’re right,” Brian said. “I wonder how she did it.”

  “She’s a prisoner so I imagine they’ll get that information out of her,” Caleb said.

  “She probably discovered a weak link between the pa
tients at the institute like she’d suspected and strengthened it until it the C-Net was established. It somehow became sentient,” Melissa said.

  “I’m just glad Samantha’s behind bars and this is all over,” Brian said fervently.

  Chapter 28

  Paul and Amy were waiting for Brian in the living room as he emerged inside the house. He felt a rush of excitement and relief to be home again. The three of them exchanged warm hugs before Paul and Amy began pumping him for information. Brian held up a hand in a negating gesture.

  “Stop right there!” he said firmly. “I can’t talk about it. Everything is top secret.”

  “Oh really?” Amy grinned widely as she held up the front page of a newspaper with the title, ‘Rogue scientist unleashes deadly experiment.’

  A large picture of cars crashed into buildings and parked in the middle of the street stretched above the article. It marked a strong resemblance to what he’d seen when C-Net had forcibly integrated everyone’s consciousness within it who happened to be in its immediate vicinity.

  “What does it say?” Brian asked with surprise.

  “It talks about Samantha. It paints her as a rogue scientist who performed illegal experiments in the guise of legitimate, top-secret research. It says the FBI has been tracking her down for years. That’s all you see when you turn on the television. They report that Samantha created a special network among the patients at the Alta Vista Psychiatric Institute called C-Net that became sentient and absorbed everyone’s minds within a twenty block radius,” Amy said. “They wouldn’t give any names on who worked the case.”

  “That’s a good thing or the press would have been here waiting for you,” Paul said pointedly.