The Distort Arc: Cape High Books 1-4 (Cape High Series Omnibus)

by R. J. Ross

  "Hello," he says as he stands and holds out a hand. "I'm Mark Matkins, the principal," he says to Technico. He looks tiny compared to our dad--I mean, to Technico. He's probably only an inch or two taller than me. His hand is practically eclipsed by Technico's.

  "Nico Walters," Technico says. "A pleasure to meet you." For a moment time seems to stop. The look on Principal Matkin's face is like he's just seen something shocking--something so unexpected that he might faint. I can't help but wonder--

  "Tech--" Matkins starts out. He shakes his head quickly. "No, of course not. I'm sorry, you remind me of my college years--um, please, take a seat," he says, sitting down himself.

  "College years?" Nico asks.

  "Don't--" I hiss silently.

  "Oh, it's no matter," Matkins says, shaking his head. "I'm a bit surprised, actually, I was informed that the Rosenthorn twins lived with the Brom family--"

  "I was recently discharged from the marines," Technico says, pulling out a piece of paper. "A... friend of mine helped me get my kids back. I'm afraid, though, that we'll be pulling them out of this school soon--private school, you know how it is."

  "You find our school lacking, somehow?" Principal Matkins asks, barely glancing over the paperwork before handing it back.

  "Well, these are my kids," Technico says. "They're extremely special--to me, that is."

  Sunny's leaning against the back of Technico's chair, fighting another yawn. I can't help but shift from one foot to the other, hoping that this is over soon. Matkins worries me. That little slip of his makes me wonder if somehow he remembers Technico from the past. If he does--won't he go to the authorities? Would you really hand over two kids to a super villain if you knew they were one?

  We'd get stuck back in the home, and who knows what would happen to Technico? Possibly tossed back into the Cape Cells. Then we'd be watched like hawks afterwards. For the rest of our lives! How would we be trained? Maybe the Hall would take us in--

  "Zoe," Technico says, sounding a bit impatient. I realize he's been calling my name a few times already. "There you are," he says. "Principal Matkins says you can go back to your classes."

  "Um, yeah, thanks," I say, looking at Matkins again. Does he know? I can't tell, he's back looking at papers. Technico stands, dropping a hand on my shoulder and gently pushing me to the door.

  "He knows?" I whisper silently.

  "Possibly," Technico whispers back. "You picked up on it, too, huh?"

  "Yeah."

  "Don't worry about it. We'll have Double M brainwash him if he becomes a problem."

  "Wh--you can't do that!" I hiss.

  "No, I can't, that's why I said we'd ask Double M," he whispers in a very logical way. He grins at me, tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear. "That is seriously awesome," he says, not even bothering to whisper. "Why don't you wear your hair up more often?"

  I give him a dirty look. "Why do you think?" I mutter.

  "Look, kid," he says, looking me straight in the eyes. "You will never fit in here."

  "Mr. Walters!" Ms. Fell says, sounding downright shocked. "You do not tell a fifteen year old girl that she won't fit in with her peers!"

  Sunny looks at her, finally waking up. "Ms. Fell?" he says.

  "Y--Yes Sunny?" she asks.

  "He's right. We won't."

  "Hey!" Max calls from the other end of the hall. "Zoe! Where the heck have you been? Class is already started!" Then he stops, staring at Technico.

  "Nice to meet you, Max," Technico says quietly.

  "You as well, sir," Max says, his tone equally quiet.

  Technico looks at Ms. Fell. "Ma'am, there's some times in life that fitting in isn't a good thing. And the things that stick out the most are often the most amazing," he says, shoving back my hair on the other side of my face. I know that my white is showing. I feel exposed. "Don't try forcing my kids into a cookie cutter pattern."

  "Dad!" I snap--only to flush as I realize what I just called him. I've never used that word for personal reasons in my life. "You can go. You've got work, right?"

  "You're right, you're right. Be good, guys--or don't get caught," he says, ruffling Sunny's hair as he heads out the door.

  "Zoe--" Ms. Fell starts out, and I can tell she's not exactly certain how to react to what just happened. It's the first time I've seen her so confused.

  "Ms. Fell... don't worry about it," Sunny says. "We don't." He drops a hand on my shoulder. "Zoe needs to get to class and I--" he yawns, "need to get to sleep." He heads down the hall before she could reply to that, and because she's distracted I head off as well, to get pulled into the room by Max.

  "If we can start the class again," the teacher says irritably.

  "Yeah, we can now," Max says and I realize he held up the entire class just because of me. I can't help but roll my eyes. "We're going to talk after this," he whispers as he sits down behind me.

  "Yeah, yeah," I whisper back. "Later."

  "About what?" Trent asks in a whisper.

  "Later!"

  ***

  Okay, you and I both know that having white hair as a teenager is embarrassing--we're not talking comic books here, we're talking real life. If you have white hair when you're a freshman in high school, you are absolutely going to get made fun of, or even bullied. Sunny was, the first few weeks of school, at least. Now it's sort of gotten boring because he just ignores them. But me--

  Well, I feel like its going to start at any moment. Sooner or later someone's going to start calling me grandma or skunk girl or whatever, but--but--I can't help but stare at the little hand mirror I've always had but never used. I haven't pulled my hair forward. So far the only thing that's happened is Max following me around between classes.

  "He's right about it being awesome," Max says as he drops down next to me. He's got a bagged lunch, but when he opens it he pulls out what's obviously a cheeseburger from a fast food joint.

  "Did you skip out and buy lunch at McDonalds?" I ask him.

  "Nope. Burger King," he says, taking a big bite of his burger. "Want some fries?"

  "Yes." Then I steal the bag, digging out the large thing of fries and helping myself. "I forgot that I've got to make my own lunches now."

  "Seriously? Want some cash?" Trent asks, sitting down at the table with a lunch tray. "You can buy something."

  "Are you trying to hit on my girlfriend?" Max asks.

  "I'm not your girlfriend," I say around a mouthful of his fries.

  "She's not your girlfriend," Trent agrees.

  "Did you get any ketchup?" I ask, digging in the bag. Sunny drops down in his own spot, looking as empty handed as I am. More empty handed, actually, since I've got Max's fries--and a twenty, I realize as Max places the bill in my hand.

  "Or you can make a quick food run," he says as I take it. "Which I seriously suggest."

  "C'mon, Sunny, lets go get lunch," I say, standing. "We'll pay you back, Max."

  "Don't bother," Max says, looking rather smug as he takes his fries back.

  "She's still not your girlfriend," I hear Trent say as Sunny and I head for the line.

  "Yet. She's not my girlfriend yet," Max says, not even bothering to lower his voice. "But she has some explaining to do," he adds, looking straight at me.

  "Later," I say, waving a hand.

  "What all should we tell them, anyway?" Sunny asks.

  "The truth?" I say. "They'll figure it out sooner or later."

  "I'm not sure I've figured it out yet," Sunny mutters. "They're listening, aren't they?"

  "Pretty sure," I say as we get to the trays and start making out plates. "Remind me to make lunch tonight or something," I add as I watch the lady slop strange things onto my tray.

  "Definitely." The lady gives me a dirty look, but I ignore it, going to pay for our meals. We head back to our table, dropping down in our spots, and get stared at by two sets of eyes.

  "Okay," I say. "The Ha--the big bosses said that taking us in was part of his parole," I say almost silen
tly. "So he comes and picks us up last night, then tosses us down an elevator shaft and declares that he might suck as a dad but he's a decent trainer. So... we're living with him in an apartment right next to Death Canyon. We'll probably die of radiation poisoning soon."

  "Not likely," Max says. "Dad said that that used to be your old man's stomping grounds."

  "Death Canyon?"

  "It's the reason he was tossed in the slammer."

  "But Death Canyon is huge!" Sunny says.

  "Like I said, W.O.M.D. that actually worked," Max drawls quietly, with a hint of amusement. "Technopaths."

  "Wait, your Dad's a technopath?" Trent asks.

  "So is Zoe," Max says.

  “Can you fix my laptop?” Trent asks. “It’s a pile of crap.”

  “No, but I can blow it up?” I offer. “But we’re not done telling you everything,” I say as I start to eat.

  “We’re getting pulled out of this school,” Sunny says, eating as well. “”As soon as some other school is finished--“

  “Cape High,” Max says, startling the rest of us. “I looked at Dad’s files last night. They’re building a school just for kids like us.”

  “What?” Trent says. “My Dad never said anything--shouldn’t all the--all of us know about it already?”

  “It’s by choice--you can keep your kid in public schools if you want,” Max says. “Train them yourself, that sort of stuff. Or you can put them in Cape High--it’s just...” he frowns, looking a bit confused. “Why did he suddenly start it now?”

  “What?” I ask.

  “It’s been drawn up for years--all the plans, all the blueprints. I found it when I was in elementary, actually. I got all excited about it, but it never happened.”

  “Um... I think I know where it’s being built,” Sunny volunteers.

  “Yeah? Where?” Max asks.

  “In Death Canyon.”

  “But according to Hall law, your old man should still own that property,” Max says. “Does he know they’re using his old ground--“

  “He’s gone to work on it today. He wasn’t even going to drive us to school this morning, then all of a sudden he changed his mind,” I say. “He’s so confusing. He’ll say one thing then do the exact opposite the next moment.”

  “Well you can’t expect him to be completely stable,” Max says. “There’s a theory that the stronger a cape is the stranger they are.”

  “Or maybe he thinks they’re vulnerable,” Trent volunteers, finishing off his bottle of apple juice.

  “What?” Max asks.

  “You’ve only started showing signs, right?” he says to Sunny. Sunny nods. “Well in the first month or so when I started that, my dad was seriously paranoid. I’m not sure why, but he told me it was because I was... you know, vulnerable. He’s still pretty picky, but it’s not nearly as bad now. I mean, he used to pick me up from school and stuff every day."

  “How are we more vulnerable now?” I demand.

  “Because you can be found,” Max says. “Crap, I should have thought of that. People will start noticing the differences, word can get out, and...” He goes silent, looking at me with a worried expression.

  “And what?” I demand.

  “Well... your old man isn’t the most popular of guys,” he says simply. "Heroes get a lot of dirty enemies, sure, but villains--well, they piss off the norms as much as they do other heroes. Actually..." he looks around, making double sure no one's listening, "I think your dad's right. You should stop coming."

  But--but he's the reason I was so insistent on coming today in the first place, I think blankly. Now he's telling me not to come? He's so obsessed with calling me his girlfriend, he's so intent on following me around that he comes to this stupid school even though he's already got his GED--and now he's telling me not to come?!

  "You are such a jerk, Max!" I bellow, getting to my feet. I storm away--stop, go back just to grab his fries--and then storm away properly.

  "What did I say?" Max asks blankly behind me.

  I storm through the door and down the hall, intent on getting away from him. I was right, I think darkly, he's just playing with me. He's--

  "So you dumped him already?"

  I jerk to a halt, turning with my hands in fists at my sides (smashing the fries, darn it. I was going to eat those!) Jack steps forward, his hands buried in the pockets of his hoodie.

  "What do you want, Jack?" I ask.

  "You broke up with that short guy, right?" he says. "Maaaan you go through them fast," he goes on before I can reply. "What was it, two days and you've already dumped him? Well I can't say I blame you."

  "It's none of your business, Jack," I say, wondering why I feel cornered. We're in the hall, there's any number of doors I can go through or even the exit. Plus, who's the super here?

  "Is it because he's like you that you even tried?" Jack asks. "Put a guy in tights and all of a sudden he's number one on your 'will date' list?"

  "Jack, seriously, I don't get where you're coming from," I say, trying to walk past him. His hand shoots out, grabbing my arm.

  "Where I'm coming from is the fact that I've loved you for two years, yet the moment that midget shows up you jump into his arms!" he snarls. "What's up with that? What does he have that I don't have, Zoe? What's so special about him--is it his powers? I can get those!"

  "Wh--Jack, you've never loved me," I say, jerking my arm out of his hold. "You've never even been nice to me. How is that love?"

  He looks... hurt, I realize. I almost want to take it back, but at the same time--

  "Fine," he says. "You're just after someone that says what you want to hear, huh? That's not love, either." Then he storms away, slinging his backpack over his shoulder and slamming through the exit at the end of the hall. I stand there, wondering what just happened. Where does he get off declaring that he loves me? He's done nothing but torment me since the day I moved into the foster home. He's a bully and a jerk and--

  Why do I feel like I did something really, really bad just now? And what was that about getting powers?

  I head for my locker, dropping my forehead against the cold steel and letting out a sigh. What is with boys? For years I never even have a guy look at me twice, now two of them were declaring that they like me--or want me as their girlfriend--or--actually I'm not even sure what Jack wants out of me, all I'm sure of is... I don't really want to hurt Jack. I don't want to hurt Max, either. I don't even know what I want to do. No, that's a lie. I want to learn how to use my powers--I want to be able to play on a computer again without it blowing up on me. I want to run.

  One of those things I can do right now.

  I look back towards the cafeteria, wondering if I should tell Sunny, then shake my head. I'll just run for a little bit, then come back. Yeah. With that decision made I head for the door at a quick walk, speeding up to a jog, then, as soon as I'm out the door, kicking it up to a full run. I don't even know where I'm going, I just head out, feet pounding on the concrete, the world flashing past.

  ***

  Jack scowls, watching a blur rush past him. He's got a good idea who it is--and he doesn't want anything to do with her right now. It's bad enough that he said something so stupid just now. "I can't believe I--" he mutters, running a hand over his face. Zoe hates him. He's known it since the very first day when she walked into the foster home, looking so freaking awesome, gorgeous, even--and stared straight at him with a look that said he wasn't worth her time, and never would be. He had seen that look every single day since.

  What in the heck was he thinking? Telling her he loved her? Trying to compete with a super? Not just any super--his own freaking idol, Maximum. Like he hadn't figured out who the guy was within a couple of minutes. It makes him feel sick to his stomach, actually, the idea that he used to secretly keep newspaper clippings and stuff from Maximum's jobs--

  He should give up. Walk away, never look back, forget he ever met or fell for Zoe Rosenthorn. She's just bad news all around. But... he can
see her face so clearly now, those big green eyes, that perfect nose, her lips--his mind fogs over even as he tries to imagine not liking her anymore. You can't turn it off, he thinks. He would have turned it off a long time ago, if that was the case.

  He stops, digging out his wallet and flipping through all the odd pieces of paper he's been given over the years. Most of his years in homes were spent on the streets, learning things he probably shouldn't have, meeting people he definitely didn't need to know. But once in a while a real creepy person would come along. They'd try to scout him--not for the usual stuff, not even to sell drugs, but--

  One sticks out in his mind. He's kept the card for over a year now, still picturing the woman's face in his mind to this day. She'd been tall, skinny, and wearing a business suit and heels so high he'd been amazed she could walk. She stuck out in the grimy streets like a three foot long sword in in a dumpster. So what had made her creepy? She looked like the type that would fit in perfectly on Wall Street, except for her eyes. They glowed.

  "Hello, boy," she had said at the time, heading straight for him. He'd been sitting on the street corner, smoking a cigarette and playing a guitar he'd borrowed from a friend. "You look exactly like what I want."

  "I'm not for sale," Jack had said, dismissing her.

  "Oh, but this is something special," she said, pulling a card out of her bra and handing it over. "I think you have promise." Instinctively Jack had taken the card placed on his leg, looking at it blankly for a moment--and when he glanced up again, she was gone.

  Now he stares at the card, wondering if the lady is still even around--and if this is a scam.

  Black Hole Industries

  Where we make you like us

  11456 Death Row

  Ask for Starborn

  He tilts the card, watching as the words disappear. It's a neat little trick. So is the fact that only a few people would know where Death Row even is. The name on the street sign says something different. It's only in certain circles that you find out that its called that. He knows Death Row. He practically grew up on Death Row.