Kyle coughed again, blood almost choking him. He rolled to his side, ignoring the agony spreading through the center of his body with long practice. His brain was already trying to compensate for the pain but it would take time.
Time he no longer had.
His AKR-75 lay near the wall, a mere arm’s length away from him. Kyle reached for it, mouth twisted in a snarl as it felt like his body ripped somewhere deep inside from the motion. He kept reaching, shaking fingers skittering against the cold metal, his own blood staining his skin and dripping over his engagement ring, dulling the diamond there.
Kyle hadn’t taken it off yet. He’d meant to, before the fighting started, but he hated being without it while home.
He hated disobeying Jamie.
That thought floated through his mind as he tried to curl his fingers around his rifle. The boot heel that stomped down on his hand stopped him from gaining a weapon. Kyle choked on a yell as the sheer weight of the person standing on his hand broke bone. He could feel a knuckle crack beneath the hard sole, the joint flattening painfully.
The sound of a bullet being chambered forced Kyle’s attention away from his out-of-reach weapon. His eyes tracked up the man’s body, drifting past the tactical pistol aimed at his head to the blurry face. Kyle blinked tears out of his eyes, watching as the man pulled off his tactical goggles and unclipped his face mask.
“Got someone who wants to talk to you,” Declan sneered. “He tells me you can heal from this.”
The gun moved, a black blur that Kyle couldn’t track, not in his weakened state. A shadow fell over him, and Kyle meant to fight, he did, but rapid blood loss was difficult to quickly overcome, and his power was working overtime to keep him alive.
Something cold pricked his neck, piercing his skin. A wave of coldness followed the touch, an icy numbness that Kyle couldn’t fight against. His eyes slid shut, body refusing to obey as unconsciousness dragged him under into a darkness he couldn’t escape as his thoughts faded away.
Jamie…
“Take cover!”
Alexei barked out the order and was glad to see every single cop immediately obey as the RPG streaked through the air toward them in the street. Alexei flung himself behind a low brick wall in front of a home even as he called up his pyrokinesis. He didn’t have Madison’s energy blasts at his fingertips to knock the grenade off course, but when it hit the street somewhere behind him, he could do something about the aftermath.
Fire and smoke followed after the concussive force that rolled through the air from the hit. Alexei got control of the fire and formed it into a massive fireball that hovered in the air. Sitting up, Alexei made a slashing motion with his arm, hurling the fireball down the street to the barricade the Sons of Adam had set up just past the intersection of East Capitol Street NE and Fifth Street. The house on the southwest corner was on fire, but that wasn’t Alexei’s doing. He’d put it out in a moment, as soon as he dealt with the fuckers shooting at them.
He made a fist when the fire hit the barricade, forcing the flames to scatter and attach themselves to anything that would burn—trees, plants, cars, clothes, bodies—he wasn’t picky. Alexei kept half his awareness on his power, the rest of his attention getting caught by movement out of the corner of his eye up on the roof.
“You late,” Alexei called out as he shifted to his knees, bringing up his weapon.
“You seemed to have them well in hand. Didn’t want to get in the way,” Matthew said as he dropped down beside Alexei. The shock absorption nanotech in his boots and tactical body armor meant the two-story fall didn’t faze him at all.
“Fuck you.”
“Hard pass. You’re still not my type. Heard you’re engaged, though. Congratulations. If we survive this, I’ll owe you a drink.”
Boys, I want that street cleared, Katie ordered.
She still sounded distracted, which Alexei didn’t like. It meant Kyle hadn’t been located yet.
The loud sound of several heavy-caliber sniper rifles going off seeped through Alexei’s ear protection. Half of Matthew’s team of Strike Force operatives had finally caught up to him, providing much needed support and cover fire as snipers cleared what enemy Alexei hadn’t burned out past the intersection.
Matthew offered Alexei a hand up, and he took it. Once he had his feet underneath him, Alexei scanned the area. The police still alive and with him were regrouping on both sides of the street.
“Shield is down,” Matthew said. “Hearing chatter the Sons of Bitches are trying to bring it back up.”
Alexei smiled, showing his teeth. “Not happen. Wraith take anchors out.”
“We’ve got orders to get a perimeter around the Capitol Building. Still got people sheltering in place inside it.”
Alexei really didn’t care about politicians right now, but then, he wasn’t in the mood to care about anyone other than his family and team. So it was probably a good thing Jamie was the one in charge.
Inferno, I need you and Killjoy to meet me at the United States Supreme Court Building. Be advised, the nullification field has shifted from the White House up to the Capitol Building into Third Street. We’ve still got civilians in the Capitol Building under attack, Jamie said, his mental voice cutting through Alexei’s thoughts.
“Copy that, Apollo,” Matthew said.
Alexei figured Jamie was contacting Matthew over comms, since his own were out and telepathic communication with non-metahumans tended to leave behind raging migraines. Human brains weren’t built to handle sustained psionic contact. They couldn’t afford any of their people to be incapacitated right now.
Wilco, Alexei replied.
“Still got five blocks to go before we reach the rendezvous point,” Matthew said as he left the small front yard for the street. “Your pyrokinesis is gonna get snuffed out in two and there’s a lot of traitors between here and there.”
Alexei flexed his fingers around the grip of his weapon. “Not be problem. Need cover.”
Matthew spoke rapidly into his comms, passing along Alexei’s request since he couldn’t. On either side of the street, Alexei could see Matthew’s snipers resetting their positions. Down the street, the Sons of Adam were regrouping, bringing forward an MRAP with a remote gunner station pointed their way.
“Curious how they got all this military hardware past the city’s borders with no one noticing,” Matthew grunted as he hopped the low garden fence and landed on the sidewalk.
“Declan is former Special Ops. Also have CIA help,” Alexei replied.
“Know that for sure?”
Alexei shook his head, bracing his weapon against his shoulder as he moved into the street between two damaged cars. “Nyet. But CIA read in on mission for tonight. Not believe Bennett not help.”
“Oh, so we’re using names now, are we? Isn’t that a little slanderous?” Matthew wondered as he ducked down behind a different car while their snipers laid down suppressive fire.
Alexei signaled for him to shut the fuck up, which of course, Matthew didn’t obey.
“Nah, who am I kidding. The CIA can go fuck itself,” Matthew said.
Alexei managed a tight smile at that as he let go of his weapon and braced his hip against the car bumper. He extended his arms, spreading his fingers wide. Fire crackled at his fingertips as he pushed his pyrokinesis outward, letting it form in the center of the street in the shape of a large fireball that moved like a live thing in the air.
Alexei pulled one arm back before wrenching it forward. The fireball followed his motion and careened down the street, invisibly guided by his hand. Alexei let it zig and zag, drawing fire from the men and women still hunkered down behind their barricade of vehicles. The Sons of Adam fighters could hide behind a barricade all they wanted, but not if Alexei set the damn thing on fire and didn’t move the flames.
Which is what he did.
The MRAP’s remote gunner managed to shoot for only a couple of seconds, but the person controlling it on the inside only aimed a
t the fireball, which did fuck all. It made Alexei think the people inside that vehicle weren’t military, but men and women playing at being a soldier. That always made him roll his eyes.
In the grand scheme of things, they were definitely easier to kill.
Alexei set the barricade of vehicles on fire, not moving from his position as enemy fighters ran away from the area screaming, bodies on fire with no hope of putting it out until Alexei wanted it out.
Which, at this rate, would be never.
Brilliant balls of energy suddenly rained down from the sky directly above the barricade Alexei was burning. When they hit, the explosions shattered the vehicles with violent force. The people not dead already from Alexei’s flames were subsequently carved up by hot metal shrapnel if they weren’t immediately blown to bits.
“There’s no kill like overkill!” a cheerful voice shouted from above.
Alexei looked up in time to see Annabelle flying in on a steep dive, Matthew’s snipers covering her descent, with Madison gripped tight in her hands. Annabelle let go as they pulled out of the dive and Madison fell the last few meters to the ground. She landed on her two feet, moving immediately into a roll from her momentum. Annabelle shot back up into the sky, veering away from the part of the National Mall that was the nullification dead zone.
“Here to relieve you, Inferno,” Madison said as she dove for cover behind a car.
Alexei would’ve responded, but the sound of an explosion going off closer to Third Street drowned out everything else. Windows rattled in their supports, with quite a few shattering in cars around them. Alexei reflexively ducked a little, head tilted in the direction of the National Mall. For a moment, the only sound he could hear was distant gunfire and the roar of enemy fighter jets duking it out in an aerial battle with Air Force-manned fighter jets.
Then the screaming started.
Alexei extinguished his fireball so they could all get as clear a line of sight down the street as possible near the intersection with Third Street.
“Snipers got eyes on that detonation area. Can confirm that was a Splice bomb on East Capitol Street Northeast,” Matthew said in a tense voice.
Madison bared her teeth in a snarl. “Leave me some of your snipers. I’m going to need them to take out anyone who comes our way. Fucking suicidal assholes. Who detonates a Splice bomb in the middle of their own people?”
“Ones who want to spread the chemical. If any of those fighters make it outside of the fighting zone, we’re going to have a massive quarantine problem.”
“We already have that. This wasn’t the first they’ve detonated.”
Alexei scowled. “Know it not first. Still need to contain.”
Madison nodded sharply. “That’s my job. You need to rendezvous with Apollo at the Supreme Court Building.”
“Know why?”
“He didn’t say—”
“Fucking shit they got a Howitzer!” one of the snipers on the roof yelled.
Madison pointed a finger at Alexei, snarling out, “Go! Now!”
Alexei turned his back on Madison, knowing that she’d hold the line here or die trying, as any of them would. “See you on other side, Nova.”
“Damn fucking right you will.”
Matthew fell into position on Alexei’s six as they and half the Strike Force soldiers still with them headed west. The count was still less than a full team.
“Where rest of your people?” Alexei wanted to know as they ran toward the intersection of East Capitol Street NE and Fifth Street.
“Sent half to the White House to help protect VIPs there with my second-in-command. Hughes knows what to do. Now shut up and keep moving.”
Alexei couldn’t stop the fleeting smile that crossed his face. Just like old times, when he’d used to call Matthew his teammate and captain. And just like old times, the shooting never seemed to stop.
“Incoming!” Madison roared from behind them.
It was all the warning they got as the group made it to the intersection proper, charred cars and bodies littering the area. They scattered right before the M509 Howitzer shell reached their position. Alexei was already running for his life when the shell hit the residential home on the corner, the concussive wave picking him off his feet and tossing him meters away.
Alexei landed hard, grunting from the impact against the left side of his body where he hit first. Without tactical body armor, asphalt ripped his combat uniform in places as he rolled from the impact, scraping skin raw for a few seconds before coming to a stop. Debris rained down around him from the blast, some hitting his body with enough force to instantly bruise. Ears ringing even through his hard helmet protection, Alexei forced himself to his feet, knowing he couldn’t remain out in the open like this.
“Everybody move!” Matthew roared.
“Any wounded?” Alexei yelled as he braced his weapon against his shoulder.
“Higgins is down with a shrapnel wound,” someone yelled.
“Stabilize her and hand her off to Marshall. We need to keep moving,” Matthew ordered.
“Yes, sir!”
Alexei didn’t look back, knowing that Matthew’s people would follow his instructions as quickly as they could. He hoped Madison was up to the challenge of taking out a Howitzer. Out of everyone on the team, his money would be on her and her power.
Take A Street Northeast, Katie said into Alexei’s mind. The Supreme Court Building is under heavy defenses, but I trust you and Killjoy’s team can make it through in time.
Is where enemy command stay? Alexei asked.
Their telepath is keeping that area heavily shielded but the director and I believe that it’s where Blanchett is located. Be advised the nullification field is still active. You’ll lose your power in three blocks, Inferno.
No power, no problem.
“We’ll take her out and support Apollo,” Matthew promised.
I know you will.
Her mental presence disappeared in Alexei’s mind. He was glad Katie was still out of range of Blanchett’s null power to keep him in the loop. Alexei glanced at Matthew as they ran, the both of them sharing a grim smile.
“Take overwatch with Davis outside the nullification line,” Matthew ordered. “Cover us while we take out their defenses. If the line shifts and you lose your power, relay that through Davis.”
“Da.”
Alexei had no problem following Matthew into battle. Urban warfare was a grinding fight of high-angled shots, close-quarters combat, and incremental gains measured one street at a time. Throw in complications with civilians trapped inside the battle zones, collapsing infrastructure, and Splice chemical bombs, and Alexei knew it was going to be a hard fight to break through the enemy’s defense.
The Sons of Adam and Declan’s loyal fighters didn’t care about the civilian population. Whatever their endgame was—death of the president, death of Jamie’s family, sheer terror just for the hell of it—the MDF and every other alphabet soup agency and military branch couldn’t let them win.
Wouldn’t let them win, no matter the cost.
Some of the streetlights on A Street NE had been shot out from earlier fighting. The patches of darkness helped hide their approach, but coverage wouldn’t last for long. At the intersection with Third Street NE, Alexei signaled to Matthew he was breaking off. The rest of the Strike Force operatives continued down the street while Alexei and Davis, the sniper who had replaced Kyle on the team years ago, diverted to the nearest building.
The pair scaled the residential home using a grappling line in Davis’ arsenal. In the central zone of the Washington, D.C. megacity, zoning restrictions on a building’s height kept homes low-level and close to the ground so the view of the National Mall with its singular monuments remained unobstructed. The smaller buildings made it easier for them to gain the high ground. Keeping it was a different problem altogether.
“In position,” Davis muttered over his comms after he’d found a spot at the corner of the building facing w
est and got situated.
Alexei crouched next to him, squinting down the street. He ignored the ache in his body from bruises protesting the position, intent on figuring out what threats existed up ahead. Listening to Davis describe the number of men and women holding a defensive line behind armored SUVs and another MRAP made Alexei scowl.
You’ll have one chance to use your power before Blanchett picks up on your location, if she hasn’t already, Katie warned him. Make it count.
“Tell Killjoy hold position, attack when fire go out,” Alexei said quietly.
“Affirmative, Inferno,” Davis replied.
Alexei only half-listened as Davis relayed the message, nodding slightly when he got confirmation through the other man that Matthew had received it and was holding position. He snapped the fingers of his left hand, creating a spark that he duplicated in the distance, pushing his power outward to meet where he saw it in his mind.
Flames twisted into life on the street, a fireball that rapidly spun itself into a column that twisted toward the sky. Alexei made a slashing motion with his hand, guiding his pyrokinesis into something larger, pouring his power into the shape he needed. Sweat broke out across his brow, beading against the edges of his tactical goggles. A dull throb started up in the back of his head but it bled into the background aches of his body, easily ignored.
The fire column abruptly expanded, twisting higher and wider into the sky. Alexei ground his teeth as he concentrated on keeping the fire tornado under control. Its base moved from side to side as he sent that devastating manifestation of his pyrokinesis whirling toward the Sons of Adam’s position. Trees on either side of the street burst into flames, becoming huge columns of heat and light as Alexei used the wood to fuel his power.
“Killjoy says try not to burn them to a crisp,” Davis said offhandedly.
“Tell Killjoy fuck off and get moving,” Alexei growled.
Alexei pushed the fire tornado faster, moving it down the street with lethal intent. He’d just managed to reach the defensive line and widen the base of the fire tornado even more to hit as many of the fuckers as possible when he lost his connection with his power. A coolness rapidly washed through his body even as a hard shiver jerked at his bones. Alexei reached for his pyrokinesis in vain, swearing violently when the heat he’d become so accustomed to over the past few years no longer pushed at his awareness.
In the Requiem (Metahuman Files Book 5) Page 24