by Strand, Kai
Jeff sighed. He still wasn’t sure what was so wrong about being a good guy, but he supposed in a super villain academy, it was out of place.
“Why would she be here?” Jeff asked.
“I don’t know. But it wasn’t to learn how to be good at being bad.” Oceanus walked away.
“Oh.” Jeff gnawed the inside of his cheek. He stood alone in the middle of the gym. Some kids shot covert looks his way whereas others openly appraised him. Guilt by association? “Oh.”
Every eye in the place watched him leave the room.
Chapter 19
For the next week students sneered at him whenever he entered a classroom. Teachers suddenly turned through the nearest doorway before Jeff passed them in the hallway. He felt like a pariah. He was a pariah! The only people who spoke to him were his interrogators.
His most frequent interrogator was Tubs who seemed disappointed to learn that Jeff had a defense against his psych attacks.
“How did you meet Mystic?” Tubs asked again and again.
“She was in my math class.”
“Why did you hang out with her?”
Jeff shrugged. “She didn’t annoy me.”
Jeff was hypersensitive to anything he said sounding like he was a nice guy. He couldn’t call her a friend since S.V.’s didn’t really make friends. But he and Mystic didn’t have any complimentary abilities so there was no good reason to explain why they hung out. If he admitted that she’d given him defense, Tubs would wonder why he hadn’t seen her “goodness” sooner. Maybe he should have, but he hadn’t known! What else didn’t he know? He certainly didn’t want to find out from Tubs.
“Who does annoy you?”
That was a new question. Probably safe. “Love Bug.”
“Who else do you hang out with?”
Hmmm. Less safe. Shrug.
“I’ve seen you with Oceanus. I find that odd. Fire and water don’t mix.”
“Offensively and defensively they do. Plus, water and ice do,” Jeff said.
Tubs stopped pacing and smirked. Jeff froze. What had he said wrong? He didn’t have to wait long to find out.
“Awfully cooperative of you two.”
“I guess, if you consider me burning her and her dousing me cooperative.” Jeff’s pulse raced. Could Tubs hear the flutter of his heart?
Tubs nodded, seemingly satisfied.
Jeff swallowed his sigh of relief.
“Did you ever have any indication that Mystic was good?”
“Seriously dude, she scared me. I thought she was strange. I didn’t trust her. But I didn’t suspect she was good.”
“Any idea why you would have been her target?”
Jeff gawked. “Me? Doubt it, dude. Set, more likely. Maybe even Source. But not me.”
“Maybe.” Squinting at Jeff, Tubs pursed his lips like he was sucking on a sourball. They locked eyes for so long that Jeff squirmed in his seat. When Tubs spoke, Jeff wished he hadn’t. “Tell me about your family.”
“Why?”
“I’m curious.”
“Um, there’s Dad, Mother, and my sister. You’ve met them. You know this.”
“No, tell me what your home life is like.”
Jeff grimaced. “I’ve got no sob story to share, man. Nothing to complain about. It was all pretty standard.”
“Then why are you here? Kids with standard lives don’t end up here.”
“You tell me. You’re the one who recruited me, remember?”
“Yes, I remember. You had so much untapped ability, an untrained S.V. felt it from across a parking lot.” Tubs scoffed. “Look at you now. No great abilities, hanging out with a good kid. Maybe we weren’t the ones who should have recruited you.”
Jeff’s stomach flopped like a fish out of water. “What does that mean?”
“Maybe you’re a good guy.” Tubs leaned in close. His breath smelled of the patty melt that had been on that day’s lunch menu.
Jeff fought to retain control of his facial expression as all the blood rushed to his feet. With all the effort he could muster Jeff affected a calm demeanor and snorted, “Right.”
Tubs smirked.
Jeff relaxed, but only a bit. He didn’t like the direction the conversation had turned. It rubbed against his suspicions about himself. What if he was a good guy after all?
“Polar, I think your only defense in this situation is your immense ignorance.” Tubs gathered his papers. “You can go.”
Jeff left without saying another word. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?
* * * *
The next afternoon, Jeff left his last class and bee-lined toward the library, a new habit due to his loner status. Jeff rounded a corner and headed down a long, deserted corridor. Set stepped out of a doorway and stood in the middle of the hallway, directly in Jeff’s path.
Jeff sighed and slowed. “What do you want, man?”
Though he was inches shorter than Jeff, Set managed to look down his perfect Grecian nose at him. “We don’t take kindly to traitors.”
“Well, good then. We’re in agreement.” Jeff pushed past Set and four other boys stepped into the hall. With Set behind him and the four boys in front of him Jeff felt properly surrounded. “What’s this all about, Set?”
“I told you already.”
Jeff backed against the wall as the four boys crowded in around him. Two of the kids were graduating at the end of the year, which meant they were as trained as they needed to be to go out on their own. Set was villain Valedictorian material. Jeff was in trouble.
He planted his feet and gathered gravity and then sent it in four different directions, intending to glue Set’s friends to the floor, but the gravity hit an invisible barrier and started piling up against it. Jeff dispersed the gravity quickly so as not to end up glued by his own ability.
He tried to spark the fire in his hands, but instead it shorted and zipped haphazardly up Jeff’s arms.
Panic deflated Jeff’s lungs before he had a chance to try to draw a deep cold breath.
Set chuckled. He nodded to one of the kids who lifted his arms as though to hug Jeff. Then he wrapped his arms around his own body while staring intently at Jeff. The squeezing sensation was so subtle, Jeff wasn’t sure he felt it at first until he’d drawn three or four short breaths trying to fill his lungs. By then his lungs were squeezed thin.
“Ahhhh!” Jeff scrambled back against the wall, wishing he could climb it. Thousands of scorpions scuttled across the floor and over each other, racing to get to Jeff first. Their tails raised in sting position. Jeff’s head slammed against the wall and the kid with the scarred cheek laughed.
“Works every time!” Scarface said.
“What did he see?” the short, stocky guy asked.
“Scorpions.”
Jeff shook his head to clear his vision. The floor was completely scorpion free. His head slammed against the wall, again accompanied by a loud crack. Stars, or were they fireworks, burst skyward and for a moment were the only things Jeff saw. Then Jeff’s body pulled away from the wall and slammed back against it again. Drywall crumbled and fell to the floor. Dust floated into the air, making Jeff sneeze. Again his body slammed against the wall without his help. He felt no force pushing or pulling him. He had no idea what to defend against.
“Set, this is like taking candy from a big fat baby,” stocky guy said and laughed.
Set crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. “I know there’s no challenge to it, but remember he’s a traitor.”
The expressions on both tormentors’ faces darkened as they turned back to Jeff.
Jeff felt the telltale tingle in his fingers; a welcome feeling that he let flood in. His hands erupted into flames. Jeff raised both hands and aimed the palms at the two closest attackers. Flame licked out, and then rebounded on Jeff. He extinguished his hands immediately and breathed cold air down the front of his body.
The younger boy held up a hand and made a pinching motion. Jeff’s cold air
pinched off with only half his smoldering clothing squelched. His throat constricted and he gasped for air. The kid smiled, waggling his pinching fingers in the air in front of him. Jeff felt faint.
Stocky guy grunted just before Jeff was pile-drived in the stomach by an invisible force. Jeff coughed and sputtered, but he was hit a second time, doubling him over. What felt like a metal bar slammed against the side of Jeff’s head, scattering his wits around him. He sat hard and the taste of iron flooded his mouth. His skin stung from the scorching heat of his smoldering jeans when he sat. He blew more cold air until it was again cut off.
Jeff battled against unconsciousness. He tried to stand again, but his head swam and he needed his oxygen replenished. Oxygen!
Jeff pulled himself up and leaned against the wall. He was barely aware of Set’s wise cracks regarding his lack of abilities. Jeff concentrated deeply in order to pool magnesium from his swollen and bruised muscles, into his hands. With the last of his energy, he ignited it and arced it at Set, simultaneously. With a huff of effort, he split the blue flame and sent bolts of it at the other boys. Blessedly, this attack didn’t get blocked and returned. He didn’t have enough fuel stored up for the attack to do serious damage, but the surprise of it was enough to throw off his attackers. Jeff hated himself for doing it, but he saw no other solution. While his attackers were distracted by the ultra-static shock, Jeff ran.
Back in his room he took stock of his injuries. He was a bruised and battered mess. Pain lanced through his chest when he inhaled, making him suspect a cracked rib or two. His head hurt so much it made him nauseous. He hoped that didn’t indicate a concussion. Bruises were just beginning to blossom across his face and down his neck. His lip was fat and there was a gash under his eye. But there were no missing teeth or any other permanent damage. He looked worse than he felt.
“A traitor,” Jeff scoffed to Pucker who swam back and forth and back and forth, staring up at Jeff with one eye. “That’s classic, a traitor to whom? Super villains have no loyalty, until it’s convenient, it seems.”
Jeff sighed deeply then hissed against the shooting pain from taking a deep breath.
“Relax, Pucker, I’ll be all right.” Jeff gingerly poked a developing bruise on his arm and watched the yellow tint under his skin expand and contract.
Pucker’s frantic pace slowed, but she never took her eye off Jeff.
* * * *
Nobody seemed concerned about Jeff’s appearance the next day except Oceanus.
She stopped short in the hall when she saw him. He tried to nod casually and keep walking, but she pushed through kids to get to him. “What happened?”
Jeff shrugged and looked everywhere, but at her. “I ran into something.”
“Who did this?” Oceanus frowned. She held her hand in front of his mouth. “Here, blow.”
Jeff blew on her hand.
“No, with your ice.”
“Oh.” Drawing a deep breath made him wince, but he blew a thin layer of frost on her hand. She placed the makeshift cold compress alongside his swollen jaw. “That feels good. Why didn’t I think of that?”
“Because you are obviously stupid.” Oceanus smiled.
“Hey,” Jeff argued half-heartedly.
“Was it Set?”
Jeff nodded. Then frowned and shook his head. “Actually, I don’t think he raised a finger against me. I think he just watched. They were all psychs. They blocked everything I threw at them, beat me up, choked me and never laid a hand on me.”
“Breathe.” Oceanus held her other hand in front of him.
He carefully sipped in enough air to fill the deep reservoir in his lungs before breathing onto her hand.
She reached up under his shirt and placed that hand on his ribs.
Jeff arched his brow. “Really, Oci, is this appropriate? And right here in the hallway? What would your boyfriend say? Oh wait, he already said it.”
Oceanus’ eyes blazed. “Did they just leave you in a heap when they were done with you?”
“No, I had one weapon they weren’t aware of. You know, the element of surprise. The only thing they couldn’t block was the blue fire,” Jeff said.
“Oh no, you used it on them?”
Jeff studied the perfect arch of her upper lip as her mouth hung agape.
“Polar, what if they tell Tubs you’ve got blue flame?”
“Then they’d have to tell Tubs they attacked me in a deserted hallway.”
Her touch felt wonderful and Jeff didn’t want it to stop, but it was just the passing period between classes so she pulled her hands away all too quickly.
“Hey, it was good to see you,” Jeff said. He wrapped his warmer than usual hands around her cold ones. “Thanks.”
Oceanus rolled her eyes, but grinned. A blush blossomed on her cheeks. “You and your manners.”
Chapter 20
Despite Oceanus’ display of what appeared to Jeff as concern, she continued to stay away from him. His exiled status persisted and Jeff wondered why he attended the academy at all. He considered going back to his old high school, but the thought of a mundane existence without the use of super powers no longer appealed to him. Actually, he was pretty sure it had never appealed to him. Stuck at S.V.A., he concentrated on his classes and spent a lot of time in his room outside of class, working on homework and refining his skills. Unfortunately, he had to eat and the academy didn’t allow food in the rooms so he had to spend time in the cafeteria. Kids taunted him, mumbling accusations under their breath as they passed. Saying he’d been harboring a fugitive, accusing him of being a spy and calling him names like Captain America and Freakazoid.
Jeff spent a lot of time trying to figure out what it was all about. He hadn’t wanted to come; he’d been recruited to the place. He didn’t like any of the kids except Source and Oceanus. Source was gone and Oceanus wasn’t speaking to him. Jeff liked developing his abilities, but questioned what he would do with them once he was out of school. He’d always thought he’d get a job and be a working stiff like his dad. He wasn’t sure he could buy into the image of himself as a badass S.V. Was the academy really the right place for him?
One rainy afternoon, Jeff sat in the cafeteria, staring out at a sea of kids who’d perfected the art of ignoring him. He’d already shoveled his meal into his mouth and could leave, but he really wasn’t in the mood to spend another night sitting alone in his room, so for the time being he sat and watched.
Jeff stared intently at a fat blond boy because each time he bent forward to stuff his mouth with food, Jeff got a view of Oceanus. She sat with kids Jeff didn’t know, mostly upper classmen. Jeff shifted his gaze two tables over to Set who glared at Oceanus while he ate his meal. Set always glared at Oceanus now. Though she wasn’t speaking with Jeff, neither was she hanging out with Set anymore. Jeff smirked at the thought that at least Set didn’t get what he wanted either.
A commotion broke out at the entrance to the cafeteria. Jeff was surprised to see a number of teachers flashing abilities at a crowd clustered in the door. Kids from nearby tables scurried in different directions, some to join the melee and others to get away from it. Then the teachers, who’d surrounded the crowd, backed away. Blue flames licked toward them, falling just short in warning only. One teacher bravely forged forward, hand in the air, drawing utensils from around the room to fly toward the crowd of flame-wielding intruders. A static-charged bolt hit him directly in the chest. He convulsed and fell to the floor.
Jeff winced. He hadn’t watched closely when he’d hit Set and his buddies with the flames. No wonder they hadn’t bothered him since.
The crowd advanced into the room, tables and chairs tossed in the air like toys to make way. Trays of food splattered the floor and the scattering kids. When the group reached the center of the room, they unfurled like a flower bud. Jeff thought these were the same people who’d stolen Source. But this time Jeff knew the person in the center of the group.
All six feet one inch of Mystic was wra
pped in honey colored velvet. Even with defense, Jeff couldn’t look at her without salivating. She was intoxicating, erotic and repulsive all at once. The sexual attraction that she exuded was sickening and addicting. Jeff tore his gaze from her and found the majority of the room ogled and drooled over her.
Then the crowd of intruders all focused on Jeff. His hands blazed with flame in response.
“Hello, Polar.” Mystic’s voice sent shivers through Jeff’s body. It ran over him like a thick coat of suntan oil warmed in the sun. He wanted Mystic’s hands on him, rubbing it in and around.
He shook his head trying to clear it. Why was her suave working on him so well? He hadn’t had this problem the whole time he’d hung out with her.
Mystic chuckled and Jeff’s legs went weak.
“I giveth, and I taketh away,” she said and laughed.
Jeff’s eyes grew wide and fear clutched his heart. He was defenseless again. Why had he trusted her?
Occasional scuffles erupted between the intruders and the academy members, but for the most part, everyone stood and waited to see what was going to happen. Jeff suspected that was Mystic’s suave at work. Though his hands burned with live fire, he couldn’t will himself to use it against her.
“What do you want?” he asked.
“You,” Mystic answered.
“Why?” Oceanus stepped forward.
Mystic raised her eyebrows. “I see you still have your watchdog, Polar.”
Mystic turned her full attention to Oceanus, momentarily lifting the suave from Jeff. Jeff increased his fire and was about to throw it when Oceanus screamed and crumpled to the floor.
“I hate that little bitch,” Mystic mumbled.
In the split second Jeff’s attention diverted to Oceanus, Mystic had him back in her control again. The fire in his hands ebbed, though he wondered how much heat her body could handle while he imagined all the places he’d like to explore.
Jeff glanced at Oceanus heaped on the floor and something stirred inside him. He blinked, shook his head and rubbed his temples. He knew he wasn’t in his right mind, but he couldn’t shake the hold Mystic had on him. With his eyes locked on Oceanus’ unconscious form, Jeff slowly recounted who he was.