Koji cast an angry glance at Lee Parker, who leaned back on the couch beside him, a smug grin on his face.
“You’re cheating.”
“What?” asked Lee. “Am not.”
“Bull. That’s ten matches in a row! Only way you could be that luck is if you’re cheating.”
“And how would I cheat?”
Koji scoffed. “Right. How would Lee ‘I-Can-Talk-To-Machines-And-Make-Them-Do-Anything-I-Want’ Parker be capable of cheating at a video game?”
Lee shook his head. “Oh for the love of… do you really think I’d be so petty as to use my powers to convince the game to let me win?”
Koji crossed his arms. “You tell me.”
Lee pointed at his teammate. “You know what your problem is?”
“Yeah, I’m being hustled.”
“No, you’re a bad loser.”
“Am not.”
“Ever consider the possibility that maybe you just suck at this game?” asked Lee.
“I do not suck!”
“Then how come I keep kicking your ass?”
“Because I know a hustle when I see one, and this is a hustle,” said Koji.
Lee chuckled. “Come on, Koj. We’re not even playing for money. Why would I be hustling you?”
“That’s just what a hustler would say.”
Lee shook his head with a snicker and exited the game, going back to the main menu. “Okay fine, how about we play something else? Rock Band?”
“Nah, I’m not in the mood.” Koji leaned forward and picked up his beer bottle. He leaned back into the couch and sipped as he watched Lee scroll through the games.
“Fine, wanna watch a movie then?”
Koji just shrugged.
Lee sighed and looked at him. “What’s with you tonight? Think you’d be happy now that you got that cast off your arm.”
Koji looked at his arm. It was broken in battle with the Exemplar and though he healed fast, he still had to wear a cast for a period of time. The cast just came off a few days ago and yet, Koji still seemed melancholy about something.
“Don’t feel like talkin’ about it.”
“Have anything to do with Erin?” asked Lee.
“Did I freaking stutter or something?” asked Koji. “I said I don’t wanna talk about it.”
“Come on, what happened?” asked Lee.
Koji shook his head. “Hell if I know. It’s like every single time we have a moment, something happens to get in the way. First there was that time you interrupted us at the pool. And then at the lake a few weeks ago, we’re just about to kiss and she pulls away.”
“Maybe your problem is hanging around bodies of water?”
“You’re a funny guy.”
“What do you want me to say? Maybe you’re just going about this all wrong,” said Lee.
“Maybe I shouldn’t go about it at all,” said Koji, looking in the direction of the TV. “It’s ridiculous, isn’t it? This whole back and forth? It’s like I’m right back in high school.”
“Well…” Lee looked at Koji. “She is seventeen.”
“Exactly my point.” Koji raised the bottle to his lips and took another drink. “This probably isn’t worth the trouble.”
They heard the sound of throat clearing. Koji and Lee both looked over the couch and saw Erin standing in the doorway. Her arms were folded over her chest and her yellow eyes were wide and beginning to grow glassy.
Koji felt a lump in his throat. He opened his mouth to say something but only a few unintelligible sounds came forth. Erin shook her head and turned away, going back to the elevator. Koji just stared at the spot where she’d been standing.
***
Jim Ellis grunted as he pushed up on the handles of the bench press machine. His face was red and his muscles tensed beneath the weight. When he returned the handles to the neutral position, he let out a sigh and sat up. Jim moved his arms to relieve some of the strain he felt on them and a bottle of water was held out for him.
He took the offering from Dominic Vaughn and pulled open the top of the squirt bottle with his teeth before taking in some of the liquid. He handed it back to Dom, wiped the sweat from his face with a towel, then clapped his hands and laid down on the bench.
“Okay, time to go again.”
“Ease up,” said Leonard Thorne, also standing by the weight machine.
Jim shook his head. “No can do. Gotta keep up.”
“You’re gonna give yourself a hernia or something,” said Dom.
“He’s right, you’ve been through the ringer,” said Thorne. “Don’t push yourself too hard.”
Jim sighed and sat back up. “Guys, I’m fine. Whatever Bradshaw’s drug did to me, it’s gone now. But that doesn’t mean I want to slack off. I gotta keep up my training.”
“Let’s not rush this,” said Thorne. “Up until a few days ago, you were still in detox. There could be after-effects we don’t know about yet.”
Jim rubbed his face. “I gotta stay active, okay? If I’m not doing something, I…I get restless.”
“Restless how?” asked Dom.
Jim stood from the bench and paced around the gym. “Hard to explain.”
Thorne approached his team’s leader. “Your body’s craving the adrenaline rush, isn’t it?”
Jim stopped pacing and placed his hands on his hips. But though the pacing ceased, he now tapped his foot repeatedly.
“We should tell Cerberus about this,” said Thorne. “Might be best if we keep you off active duty for a little bit longer.”
Jim’s head snapped up. “No!”
“If you’re cravings have gotten this bad, it could impact your performance in the field. I can’t have you taking any unnecessary risks while you’re out there, you could jeopardize the safety of yourself or your teammates.”
Jim scoffed. “Leo, I’ve spent my entire adult life in war zones. I can handle myself, okay?”
“Not like this,” said Dom.
Jim turned to his teammate and pointed a finger in his direction. “If I want your opinion, I’ll give it to you.”
“Don’t be a dick, we’re trying to help you.”
“You need some more time,” said Thorne. “You’ve got to ween yourself off these cravings. So just pace yourself a little.”
Jim sighed. “And who’s gonna lead the team while I’m kicking back? Him?” He pointed at Dom.
“How about we worry about that when we have to?” asked Thorne.
Jim shook his head. “Whatever. I’m going downstairs for a swim.” He took his leave and walked to the elevator, leaving Dom and Thorne alone in the room.
“He’s not playing with a full deck,” said Dom.
“I’m not sure which scares me more,” said Thorne. “Jim’s condition or the fact that you and I agree on something for once.”
***
Anita Jordan sat cross-legged on the floor of her room, her hands resting on her knees. Her eyes were shut and her back straight as she focused on her breathing. It was her hope that meditation techniques might help her get a better sense of the visions she’d been having as of late.
She slowly took a deep breath, held it for a moment, and then exhaled. Cleared her mind of any distractions. She focused in on one thing and one thing alone—J’Karra.
The mysterious alien warrior had first met them as an ally, but then became an enemy. But during their association, it was J’Karra who helped Anita unlock her latent telepathic abilities. That connection had created a kind of bond between them. Anita felt like there wasn’t a person she knew better than the Kotharian.
Though Anita’s psychic capabilities were still extremely limited, she was training every day to try and perfect them. It was an uphill climb and in comparison to her other powers, there was a lot more struggle for only limited gain.
One thing that came out of this was a kind of precognition. Anita wasn’t sure if it was actually her seeing the future or if it was just what J’Karra believed would happen. But A
nita knew danger was en route, and she believed it was J’Karra’s people coming to Earth. For what purpose, she still wasn’t quite sure. All she knew was that it had something to do with the specials.
The visions she saw were of the Earth in chaos. War erupting all across the globe, with ships capable of leveling cities and warriors every bit as powerful as J’Karra marching mankind to slavery.
But as Anita struggled to focus on these disparate images, something happened. They shifted and changed. It was like they were becoming harder to see. There was something wrong, something interfering with her premonition.
Cracks appeared across the visions. Like glass shattering. Anita’s eyes snapped open and she gasped.
CHAPTER 3
Atlas was located below-ground in a decommissioned ICBM silo nestled within the Adirondacks. The artificial intelligence called Zenith flew above that very silo, his robotic body’s thrusters carrying him through the night sky.
These days, he found himself often going on these nightly jaunts. During the brief time that Zenith’s consciousness was in possession of a human body, he’d enjoyed the feel of the air on his skin. Although he no longer had that sensation, these flights reminded him of what he’d once had.
Unlike his teammates, Zenith wasn’t even remotely human. There were still mysteries behind his creation. All he knew is that he awoke in a metal body federal authorities found in the home of the deceased Nikola Tesla. But he’d never known his supposed creator, and over the decades, not he nor anyone he worked with could ever discover the secret behind his existence.
Zenith tried not to dwell too much on the past, though. He spent decades aiding the United States government with research and development. And now with Vanguard, he’d found a place he could call home and people he could call family.
Despite the trust between them, he still felt like he wasn’t completely part of that family. He was still somewhat apart from them. Even though Jim and Thorne weren’t specials, they were human and they shared that connection with the rest of the team. Zenith was completely different.
He stopped in the air. Something appeared on his scanners, a strange signature he’d never detected before. Zenith did another scan and found something coming towards him. Too small to be a plane, but it also had no trace of the unique energy signature radiated by specials.
It rose above the mountains and came towards him, slowing on approach. Zenith used his telescopic capabilities to zoom in on the approaching figure. It was a man in a kind of armor, standing on a platform that was his means of transportation.
“Can I help you?” asked Zenith.
“You,” he said, looking up and down the robot through his reflective visor. “You’re one of them, aren’t you?”
“‘Them’?”
“Vanguard.”
“I am. And you are?”
“Chronos. I need to get inside Atlas.”
Zenith cocked his head to the side. “I see. And why is that?”
“I need information inside your computers.”
“I cannot allow that.”
“It’s the only way to save the future.”
“My apologies, but I cannot simply allow you to access our facility. I’ll give you the opportunity to return to wherever it is you came from.”
Chronos held out his hand and his gauntlet fed a baton into his palm. He held the baton in front of him and it telescoped into a staff, the tips crackling with orange energy.
“One chance,” he said. “Let me pass or I’ll go through you.”
“If that is what you wish.” Zenith held his arms out to the sides and his hands reformed into teleforce cannons. “But I warn you, I am not so easily deterred.”
“That makes two of us, tin man.” Chronos’ glider shot him towards Zenith, swinging his staff.
Zenith dodged the attempted attacks and fired a few teleforce blasts in response. The setting was on stun, and though Chronos took the blasts directly, he was completely unscathed. His armor was apparently extremely durable. Zenith scanned the armor but was surprised at the complexity of it. It was far beyond anything he’d ever seen before, although there was something familiar about it.
“Your armor, where did you get it?”
“From the enemy.” Chronos moved back on his glider, putting some distance between him and Zenith. He held his staff with the tip pointed at his target and energy blasts launched from the crackling end.
Zenith used teleforce blasts to deflect a few of Chronos’ shots while quickly strafing to avoid others. As he moved, he unleashed several blasts of his own. The beams streaked through the air, but Chronos used his staff to swat them away, firing deflection shots at a few others.
Chronos surged towards Zenith but just as the robot fired at him, he seemingly vanished. Zenith checked his scanners but found no trace of his target.
Then however, he picked up an energy signature from behind. Zenith spun but he wasn’t fast enough and Chronos’ staff struck him on his head. Chronos thrust the staff against Zenith’s chest, the tip unleashing a powerful energy blast at point-blank range.
Zenith was thrown back, his sensors warning him that he’d sustained damage. He ignored them and righted himself, his thrusters activating at full-speed. As he rocketed towards his opponent, he sent an emergency summons to the rest of Vanguard inside Atlas.
Chronos vanished just moments before Zenith would have rocketed into him and the robot passed through empty air, coming to a stop. Once again, this man was able to avoid him without any trace on his sensors. Zenith wasn’t sure if it was some sort of teleportation ability or superhuman speed combined with cloaking technology. But it was certainly unprecedented.
Still, Zenith recalled what happened the last time. He stood patient and waited. As soon as the same amount of time had passed, he turned and fired his cannons. An instant before the blasts left the barrels, Chronos appeared right in their path and was struck right in the face.
The armored man tumbled in the air, his shock making it difficult for him to control his glider. Zenith flew below, retracting one of his arms and the cannon reverting back to a hand. His fist connected with the falling man’s back and the force threw him back towards the sky.
Chronos’ glider fired up and he righted himself once more. He shook his head, trying to focus. Zenith flew closer and the two hovered across from each other, staring each other down.
“You’re putting the entire world at risk,” said Chronos. “I need that information.”
“I’m not in the habit of giving strangers who attack me access to our base,” said Zenith.
“You’re good, but you’re not good enough,” said Chronos. “Sooner or later, I’ll go through you if I have to.”
“Then it’s fortunate for me that I won’t be alone,” said Zenith.
CHAPTER 4
Once Zenith’s message was broadcast throughout Atlas, the rest of Vanguard quickly assembled in the monitor room. Lee was the first one there, already bringing up the stream of the battle from the cameras in Zenith’s eyes. He displayed the feed on the monitor and the team watched as Zenith battled the mysterious, armored man.
“Whoa, that’s some nice tech…” muttered Lee.
“Not really the time,” said Erin.
“Who is this guy?” asked Koji.
“Only one way to find out.” Jim moved away from the gathered group and approached the wall where there was a small touch panel. He placed his hand against the panel and it scanned him before a compartment opened and revealed his Gunsmith armor.
“Get suited up and help Zenith,” said Thorne.
The rest of the team followed his command and went off to execute it. Thorne walked up to Jim, who was already in the process of donning the armor’s underclothing.
“Sure you’re up for this?”
Jim began affixing the armor’s components onto his body. “We don’t have time to debate this, Leo. If this guy attacked Zenith here, that means he must have been heading to Atlas. Our
location’s been compromised and we have to deal with it.”
Thorne sighed. He didn’t think Jim was ready to go back out in the field but he knew he had to trust his team’s leader. “I’ll keep watch from here. You be careful up top.”
Jim gave him a nod as he finished donning the armor. As soon as he did, the rest of the team returned, ready to go into battle.
“It’s just one guy up there, so it shouldn’t be too much trouble,” said Jim, addressing his teammates. “But he may have a few more tricks up his sleeve, so stay on alert. There’s no telling what that armor’s capable of.”
Nods of acknowledgment followed and Gunsmith led the team into the elevator. The doors closed, leaving Thorne alone in the monitor room and the elevator rose to ground level and the small building that served as the access point into the base.
The team went straight towards the target area. Paragon took hold of Gunsmith’s hands and carried him into the air with her, while Sentinel’s holographic armor activated and he carried both Sharkskin and Shift. Wraith moved of his own accord, via his shadow portals.
Gunsmith tapped the side of his headset and the display over his eye flashed targeting information into his retina. He was locked onto Zenith’s signal and the mysterious enemy. As they flew over the mountains, the two combatants quickly came into view.
“Throw me,” ordered Gunsmith.
“You sure?” asked Paragon.
“Do it!”
Paragon swung with all her might, hurling Gunsmith into the air. He crossed the distance between him and Chronos, drawing his teleforce blasters during his ascent. Just as he was about to open fire, Chronos suddenly turned and fired a blast from his staff that threw Gunsmith back.
Gunsmith extended his arm and from his gauntlet, a small piton fired, connected to a cable. It wrapped around Chronos’ glider and when the wire went taut, Gunsmith swung from it.
The sudden addition of weight caused Chronos to lose control of his flight and he was pulled down with Gunsmith. Vanguard’s leader retracted the cable, pulling the two men closer together. As Gunsmith came within range, he opened fire, right into Chronos’ chest.
Vanguard: Seasons 1-3: A Superhero Adventure Page 71