Humanity's Protectors: An Influence Series Origin Novella

by David R. Bernstein

That dead guy in my office was the person I chatted with for months on my terminal. He has been located in this office or somewhere nearby for all this time. It appears they’ve been watching me closely since I started this job.

  “Why haven’t you shot us by now if we’re such a pain in the ass for VeRx?” Sam asks. “What are you waiting for?”

  My throat tightens at what Sam just said. These guards are going to kill me just because I quit.

  Resting his rifle on his shoulder, the captain smiles at Sam. “You boys are a means to an end. We need your leaders and you kids are the perfect bait. The board wants to cut off the head of Humanity’s Protectors.”

  Squinting, the captain tilts his head toward me. “Well, we really don’t need this girl, though.”

  Heavy breaths overtake my body. I step back only to find the captain resetting his aim on me. This is it; I’m going to die today.

  Beautiful bursts of light flicker before my eyes. Everyone in the room freezes. What is happening? A wave of warmth radiates from my core in an ever-expanding halo from my body. It’s my push ability, but something is different. It grabs on to the surrounding conscious reality of the moment. Moving on its own, it flows from my mind with ease. My fear has engaged a powerful push, unlike anything I have done before. I don’t know how this is possible, but I can hear the guard’s inner dialogue. Muffled, the thoughts begin to slow as I focus my intention on this amazing connection to consciousness. I am now one with the reality of these VeRx personnel and I somehow have the ability to shape their current awareness.

  Thoughts of my parents killed by this heartless corporation fill me with vengeance. I want these men dead. That one intention sets in motion something I’ve yet to experience in my short life.

  Snapping from my emotion-driven push, I shake my head to catch up to the current reality. It is like the captain just mouthed his very last word to me. Like no time had passed. He is set to kill me when suddenly he struggles to suck in a deep breath. His jaw flings open fighting for air. Dropping his weapon, he clutches his throat with both hands. The lieutenant isn’t fazed by his boss fighting for his own life. Blank and stiff, he seems locked like the support agent was in my office. Turning to Sam, I notice he’s staring at me with his intense green eyes. He knows it was my push.

  “Wow,” Sam says calmly. “I had no idea you were capable of this.”

  Shifting between him and the captain I ask, “What did I just do?”

  Without warning, I hear an immense clank followed by a rattling echo off the wall. I flinch and cover my ears. Warmth radiates from the lieutenant’s discharged weapon. He shot the captain in the head. The close range blast pierced the helmet, flinging his body to the ground before it slid to a stop near the wall. Bright red blood pools around his head. The white marble floors only enhance the vibrant color of the blood.

  The lieutenant rips off his own helmet and tosses it to the side. He drops his weapon behind him. Confusion and panic overtake his face. “You made me do that,” he says to me frantically.

  “I’m sorry, I… I didn’t mean for this to happen.” My heart sinks in my chest.

  Noticing the guard’s state of mind, Wade rushes the lieutenant, tackling him to the ground. Still affected by my push, the man is unwilling to fight back. Wade, who’s a big guy, overtakes him. One heavy hit to the man’s temple knocks him unconscious.

  I refuse to look at the captain’s body. If I do, it’s like I’m admitting what happened might be real. It’s too horrifying. Before I can think about this anymore, Sam grabs my hand and pulls me toward the exit. I don’t fight it anymore. A blankness overcomes my state of mind. Feelings have seeped away and I’m left with an emptiness.

  I’m dragged to an old red SUV in the parking lot. Wade opens the rear door and gestures me to get in. I comply and slide in before he slams the door closed. There’s junk everywhere. Smells of old fast-food fill the cabin. Wade jumps into the front passenger seat as Sam takes the wheel. The vehicle stammers before revving up. We pull out of the parking lot just as Sam grabs something from the glove compartment. He glances to Wade and grins before pushing a button on the device. An explosion rips from the building as windows shatter, spraying glass everywhere. The SUV nearly topples over. Screaming, I grasp my seat as our vehicle settles back down. Looking up at the six-story building I see fire and dark smoke billowing from every blasted-out window.

  “What the hell did you do?” I shout.

  Sam ignores my demand, flooring the beat-up vehicle down the side street.

  “Stop! I want out of here, now!” Again, the boys ignore my pleas.

  I’m about to jump out of the moving vehicle when Sam notices and slams the brakes. Plowing into the back of Wade’s seat, I bounce off and flop back to my chair. My shoulder now throbbing from the impact.

  “Don’t be stupid, Leeyah,” Sam says. “We just saved your life!”

  “No, you probably just killed a ton of people! That guard…”

  Grabbing for the handle, I wrench it toward me. It’s stuck.

  “Relax,” Wade says. “We’re taking you somewhere safe.”

  “I’m not safe. You’re murderers.”

  “Um, sorry, girl,” Wade shifts to face me, “you just killed a guy with your mind. You’re a murderer now too.”

  What he says forces me back into my seat. I’ve lost my words. Even though it was self-defense, he’s right. I willed him to die.

  “Listen,” Sam interrupts, “we all did what we had to. Things need to change. Corporations need to be stopped.”

  My emotions pour to the surface as he continues. I wipe the tears from my eyes.

  “You might not like this, but there’s a war going on. You’re an Influencer. You’re one of us now.”

  “I’m just a kid and I want to go home.”

  “There is no home anymore,” he says. “We are all you have now.”

  Pulling my legs to my chest, I curl up hoping to wake up from this nightmare. I don’t know what to believe, but the minute I leave the SUV, the corporate-controlled police will take me in. There is no choice but to go with them for now.

  “We’ll take care of you,” Sam says. “Don’t worry.”

  Believing I’m not a flight risk anymore, they head back down the road. Sirens blare in the distance until they are drowned out by another blast a ways behind us. Just after that another faint explosion echoes somewhere else and then another and another. The city is on fire. It sounds like a warzone and I know who’s to blame for this. I don’t bother asking them. It’s not something I want to think about. I’m terrified now.

  2

  AWAKENING

  THE EXPLOSIONS FADEas we drive further from the corporate center of the city. I’ve been on the edge of vomiting for the last twenty minutes. Fear and uncertainty circle my mind as we travel closer to the old financial district. Wade and Sam haven’t said a word to me since they blew up my former employer’s office.

  After several minutes of mindlessly staring out the smudged window, the vehicle rattles to a stop. Shadowed by a towering building, I peer out to see we have stopped in front of the old headquarters for the Walton Bank Corp. Ever since the government centralized the banking giants; this old district has turned into a ghost town. Massive financial corporations were broken apart so the government can limit risk due to Influencer manipulation.

  “Do you feel anyone?” Wade asks Sam.

  “We’re good, no one followed us.”

  Sam’s ability is different from mine. He’s able to feel people somehow. I always thought we’re all the same. Shift mindsets; change the mood of people gathering—manipulators.

  “Where are we?” I ask, forcing myself to sit up.

  Almost synchronized, the boys turn back to me. With a simple smile, Sam says, “You’re finally home.”

  What is he talking about? What home? I’m an orphan now. My life is completely ruined, all because I said no to an assignment. Or would they have come for me anyway?

  “Home
?” I pull back from their beady gazes. “I have no home—I have nothing.”

  “You’re free,” Wade says. “That’s somethin’.”

  “Listen,” Sam interrupts. “I’m sorry we didn’t get to you before you rejected that assignment. It’s unfortunate. We never wanted that for you.”

  “It wouldn’t have made a difference,” I snarl. “I bet the minute you “freed” me VeRx would’ve cut ties with me—taken care of loose ends.”

  The thought that my family is simply a loose end rips at my chest. A stuttered breath barely escapes. Emotions pull at my waning tough exterior.

  “Maybe,” is all Sam can offer.

  A loud crack followed by a steady creaking shift my attention to the top of the elegant, yet neglected stairs that lead to the entrance. Heavy mahogany doors slowly open as two guys carrying rifles fan out.

  “Alright, it’s time to go,” Sam insists.

  Wade is the first out as he turns to open my jammed door. A few jerks and it pops loose. Cool air from the shade provided by the skyscrapers that tower over us rushes at me. A slight shiver escapes before I tighten my core.

  “Let’s roll,” Wade says.

  I hesitate as I scan my surroundings. The two guys, no older than twenty, jolt me into action. The barrels of their guns pointed my way.

  “Dude, put those down,” commands Sam. “She’s one of us.”

  I am NOT one of them. Unease fills every part of my body now. I’m unable to think, unable to focus. Before I notice, I’m walking up the stairs behind Sam. Fear has put me on autopilot.

  I’m last to enter the darkened lobby. The soldier boys lock the door behind me. Only a few faint lights line the walls. I recognize the lantern tech. It’s the same stuff we had in our storage shed, back home, for emergencies. Lightweight and portable, my dad would stockpile the same end-of-the-world crap in the garage. I guess he knew something after all. The thought of my dad makes me choke up.

  Collecting myself, I stretch my neck up and notice the towering vaulted ceiling. This is such a grand room. Only the darkness can dampen its beauty. I follow the hazy silhouettes of Wade and Sam as their footsteps echo off every marble-lined wall.

  “You alright?” Sam asks.

  Squinting to find his face, I sarcastically reply, “Sure, why not.”

  Walking through elegant hallways, we make our way to a stairwell. Instinctively, I begin to head up, when I notice everyone heading down.

  “Top floors are for the corrupt,” mumbles one of the armed guys trailing behind me.

  I guess basements are for the heartless. What’s the point of not being corrupt if you can blow up people without a second thought?

  Careful footsteps lead us further down as we try to avoid running into each other. Wade has a flashlight, but little good it does behind him. It’s nearly pitch-black. A musky scent fills the stairwell. It reminds me of an overused laundry mat. Warm and muggy, laced with a hint of chemicals.

  “Hold up,” Sam commands.

  Wade illuminates a rusted door. Spread across the tops reads ‘Boiler Room’. We can’t go down any further. The stairwell ends here.

  With the end of his flashlight, Wade clanks on the door.

  A few seconds pass before a muffled voice on the other side asks, “What is humanity?”

  Without hesitation, Sam says, “Awareness before evolution.”

  A stuttered jarring sound fills the hall as the door swings inward. A boy and a girl not much older than myself stare back at me.

  “Ooh what does this one do?” the girl asks with a grin.

  “This one?” I accidently say aloud.

  “Sorry kid, I’m Terra, what’s your name?”

  I can’t stop looking at her nose ring and deep purple eyeshadow. She’s trying too hard to be, well, hard.

  “I’m Leeyah,” I say ignoring her question about my Push ability.

  The boy next to Terra grins at me as if I’ve entered some sort of frat party and I’m the nerdy kid. Is this the new form of teen rebellion? Blowing up buildings and tearing down corporate society.

  “Come on, let’s find Merrick,” Sam says, guiding me through the dark opening.

  As I walk into the room, it opens up exposing a huge basement stripped of all its machinery. All that remains is the fixtures and piping that must have connected to the buildings systems. A generator hums in the back near some storage shelving. This powers several light fixtures spread across the room. People are mulling around talking on comm devices. They seem excited. No doubt the bloody chaos they have created has them giddy. It just makes me sick.

  This room seems to get bigger the deeper we walk. Around every bend is a new service area that has been converted into some sort of operations post. There must be thirty kids in here all playing rebel. It’s not long before my snooping is stopped when a bald guy with a tattered leather jacket approaches me.

  “Hi there,” he says. “I can tell you’re a little uneasy with your current situation.”

  “Um, yeah,” I struggle to find the words.

  “Well, let’s get you caught up to speed, ok? I’m Merrick, welcome to Humanity’s Protectors.”

  Merrick is older than most of the kids in this room, maybe thirty, I don’t really know. Even in the faint light, you can see the suffering strewn across his face. Life has left him with a few scars that give away his pain. His dark skin and deep brown eyes are hard to see in the low light, but it’s bright enough.

  “I don’t want to be here,” I stammer. “This is not my fight.”

  “No one is forcing you to be here. You can leave whenever you want.” He gestures to the door with a forced smile struggling to remain on his face.

  “I have nowhere to go and I think you know that,” I say.

  “Well then, stick around, get some food and something to drink.”

  Wade takes off with the guy who opened the door. Terra and Sam stay with me as Merrick leads us to an open door just off this main room. I look up to Sam trying to grab onto any sort of connection. Emptiness washes over me as I think about my parents and my sister. What feels like a deep sense of homesickness washes over my entire body. Flashes of that guard shooting the other guard burst before my eyes. Shaking my head is all I can do to bury this horrific scene for now. I don’t have time to focus on the guilt that consumes my emotions.

  Terra steps ahead and puts her arm around Merrick’s broad shoulders, handing him a beer. She’s a little too excited to be here for my taste. Reaching the door, I hesitate for a moment before entering.

  “What are you waiting for,” Merrick says. “Things don’t slow down that often around here. Take advantage of it.”

  “Over here, Leeyah,” Sam says, pointing to a shelf stocked with all sorts of food and drinks.

  “I’m not really hungry,” I whisper.

  “Oh, don’t worry about it. Just sit down and relax for a bit,” Sam insists.

  “Yeah, listen to Sammy,” Merrick blurts. “He did good today, bringing you in and all.”

  That autopilot kicks in again as I find myself sitting at a dirty work table shoved into the corner of what looks like a cleaned out janitor’s room. Merrick sits directly across from me, staring while gnawing on some beef jerky.

  “We’ve been watching you for some time now,” Merrick says, in between mouthfuls.

  “Watching me? From where? How?”

  Sam takes a seat next to me at the table. Terra brings Merrick a new beer from a small cooler against the wall. He pounded the first one in the twenty seconds we’ve been sitting.

  “Oh yeah,” Merrick says. “VeRx has been targeting us for months now. We know every one of their corporate Influencers.”

  How can they know this? None of this makes sense to me. My parents didn’t even know where my office was. Every day a driver would pick me up from my studio apartment and shuttle me to work. A blacked out window would prevent me from interacting with him. Each day he would take a different route to my office. It was odd at first, b
ut VeRx needed secrecy with this program. They took every precaution to prevent anyone from knowing about me.

  “I was your main stalker!” Terra giggles. “Took me awhile to identify you as an official VeRx Influencer, but the limited access you had to the world started to show.”

  “You were watching me?”

  “Don’t get all weird. It’s not like I watched you in the shower.”

  “Wait…You watched me at my apartment?”

  “Sort of,” Terra says. “I had to track your schedule and find out more about your driver. Those different pickup times made it a real bitch to nail it down.”

  The thought that someone has been watching me where I live freaks me out. Fidgeting in my seat, I try to keep my agitation to a minimum.

  “It’s not like VeRx has a database of Influencers that we could hack into,” Sam says. “Corporate encryption is unbreakable these days.”

  “Listen,” Merrick slams his beer down on the table. “You were a tool for them, nothing more. Stop acting like we are some sort of creepy followers of yours. We had to do what we had to. Set you free or blow you up with the building.”

  Scrambling to my feet, I step back toward the door. Arms folded, mouth wide open in disgust.

  “What kind of “protector” are you?” I ask shaking my head. “You care about people less than the corporations do.”

  “Please,” Sam begs. “Understand we’re not your enemy. You need us just as much as we need you.”

  They need me? Why do they need me so bad? What don’t I know? Then it clicks; he saw what I can do. My ability is different—even deadly.

  “Find another weapon for your apocalyptic war,” I say glaring at Merrick.

  Merrick shakes his head in disappointment. Finishing his final bite of jerky, he wipes his lips with his forearm before returning his sight to me.

  “Listen up, you either help us or we drop you off at the nearest Corporate Police station. I don’t need your whining or your power.”

  “Hold on, Merrick,” Sam insists. “Let’s think about this. She has gifts that could change this thing, fast.”

  I’m about to cut him off when a heavy knock on the entrance booms in the background. Merrick and Sam jump to their feet.