by Viola Grace
“Nope. I have never engaged in anything long term. I never saw the point of distracting myself from my studies.” She shrugged and gathered the empty plates, taking them to the kitchen for cleaning.
The cleansing unit hummed for a moment before it was finished, and when she removed the cleaned items, she put them away as neatly as possible.
“Are you sure you don’t want to move into the main portion of the base?” Merker asked with a smile. “We could teach you to cook.”
“No, thank you. I don’t mind the pre-fab foods from the dispenser. They give me more time to work.”
Merker sighed. “Well, if you change your mind, we will be here. Do you think you will be available if the Minder needs to speak with you tomorrow?”
She blinked. “Um, sure. I am at your disposal.”
“Excellent. I hope you get some rest. With us a man down, who knows when duty will call?”
He inclined his head, and she took the dismissal to heart.
With her blood humming from the sugar jolt she had just had, she headed to her quarters and peeled off her uniform. She just had the one, so she hung it in the refresher for an overnight cleaning.
A solar shower made her skin tingle, and she headed to bed with a smile on her face. Dawn was just a few hours away, and she needed to get some rest... just in case.
Chapter Six
Lydra breathed in through her mouth and out through her nose. After two days of working to control her talent, she was going on her first mission.
Rombar had come through his meeting with the Minder with full clearance and had cried like an infant as he apologized to her. His eyes were still haunted, and Lydra didn’t want to know what he had been shown to put that expression on his features.
An earthquake on the northern hemisphere had left many members of the population requiring their assistance.
The Avatar was meeting them there, but he couldn’t be everywhere at once.
Looting was taking place, and local law enforcement was overtaxed. The Guardians needed to step in.
Lydra flexed her fingers as the platform skimmer lowered to the spot that used to be the city centre. Mendia City was in ruins, but shockingly, no lives had been lost.
She grabbed the bag that she had been issued and settled it on her back. Merker smiled at her and nodded encouragingly. Even Rombar gave her a nod of support.
“Lydra, we don’t have enough people to go in pairs, so you know what to look for and what to ask for. Cuff all suspects and call it in. We will send pick-ups for any looters on the hour.”
She nodded and stepped free of the vehicle. “Call me if you need any of my assistance.”
“We will. You do the same.” Umbor smiled and waved her on.
Taking another deep breath, she picked her way through the rubble with a long stride and headed to the southern edge of the city. It was her first mission to defend the empty buildings of evacuated citizens, so she was going to do it.
She was only halfway to the starting point when she was called to assist on a family trapped in their vehicle.
Lydra oriented herself and ran the three blocks westward, finding the frustrated law enforcement officers trying to wedge stone blocks under the car to let the inhabitants breathe.
“Hello, I am here to help.” Lydra looked around and found a source of water in a nearby fountain. The fountain was broken, but the water was still available.
The officer in charge said, “We need it elevated so we can pull them out. Can you do that?”
“I should be able to. Give me a moment.”
There were children sobbing inside the vehicle and an adult was groaning.
“Okay. It is going to start rising. You get in and start to move them.”
She focused on making a series of upward jets that pushed the vehicle up another few inches with a smooth motion. She kept lifting it, and when there were two feet for the officers to work in, they got the family members out and most of their possessions.
“That’s it. It’s clear.”
Lydra lowered the vehicle and nodded to the men. “Good work.”
She trotted back to her original start position and continued to the edge of the city. She had a neighbourhood to patrol, and she was going to do it.
Umbor flew overhead, making note of any incidences requiring Guardian intervention. She heard him calling to Merker and Rombar on the coms, but her name was never mentioned, so she continued with her mission to stop the looters.
Furtive glances toward her were an obvious clue. When she walked up to the folk about to enter one of the houses through a smashed window, she stated, “Identification, please.”
Three young men, all with the golden glow of Vidiaran citizens stepped toward her, surrounding her.
“We live here, Guardian.”
“Identification, please.” Lydra built a slow static charge on her hands.
“They shouldn’t have sent their receptionist in alone. Ah well, no one is going to miss you.” The man on her left took a step toward her.
While making eye contact with the other two, she lifted her left hand and sent a stun ball toward the speaker, knocking him back as his body went into spasm.
Without hesitating, she lifted her right hand and split the bolt to stun the two men staring at her in shock. She reached into the pack behind her and got cuffs for three.
She opened her com and spoke. “Three looters for pickup at this location. Ping me now and I will continue.”
Umbor chuckled. “Location noted. Good job, Lydra.”
“Thank you. There seems to be more activity at the end of the street. Talk to you soon.”
She disconnected her mic and went in search of her next targets; her previous captures were sitting with linked arms around a pole. They were stuck until someone came by with the key.
Five men were hauling the entire contents of a museum into the street.
“Gentlemen, you don’t seem like the type to enjoy fine art.”
They froze at the sight of her, and then, smirks covered their faces. She sighed and flexed her shoulders. It was going to be a long day.
When one of their number set a painting down and raised his hands to her, she identified the stance as one used by a projection talent.
She could see it coming—a wave of heat spun out from his hands and streaked toward her. She dropped to the ground and rolled. When she stood up, her hands crackled with power, and she pressed her wrists together, forming a ball and firing back at him with precision.
He was so busy sneering, he didn’t duck. He let out a choking sound and arched as his body twitched.
Lydra turned to his companions. “Anyone else have a surprise for me?”
She instructed them to put their hands on their heads, and she cuffed them, one by one.
The heat talent was still twitching, so she cuffed him and kept him on his side to keep him from hurting himself.
“Five for pickup at the museum. They have been seriously emptying the building, so we need bodies to secure the items.”
“Understood.”
“Oh, and the recumbent guy is a heat talent. Just a head’s up.”
“Thanks. Will pass it along. Are you injured?”
“I am fine. You have noted the location?”
“I have. You are clear to go.”
“Excellent.”
She hitched up her pack and continued her rounds.
Two more houses were being molested, and she wrapped up the looters before attaching them to fences and the back of vehicles respectively.
She was about to repeat her original path when Umbor called her.
“Lydra, we need your help at a research lab in the city centre.”
She turned and started to run. “Details?”
“Fire. There are experiments in secure areas, but the fire suppression isn’t working. We also need to get through some security doors.”
“On
my way, but give me precise directions. I am not from around here.”
“I can do better than that. You have a ride approaching.”
She looked around, but when arms caught her up, she squeaked. Scarlet and silver greeted her when she turned around.
“Oh, Kloran-Vidiaro. I wasn’t expecting to see you.”
He chuckled. “I am happy to see you. You are an Apprentice Guardian now?”
“I am. Why can’t you deal with the fire?”
“Vidiaro is concentrating on slowing the effects of the tectonic shift. The folks here have to sign waivers before they can live here, but it is still disruptive when the world slides sideways.”
“You can’t stop it?”
“No, it is a natural process, like the folk here turning from crimson to gold. The chemistry changed due to meteor strikes, and this was the result.”
He flew over the cracked streets and swung around to the roof of a wide building that covered nearly a city block.
Flames were shooting from lower levels.
“Is there a water source?”
“There is. Pipes run through the entire facility. What do you need?”
“I need to land on the roof and see a schematic. I will work from the top down. I need three hundred litres of water and someone who can let me know where the fire is.”
“We can do that.”
She took a deep breath as he relayed her requirements.
“Do you need the water on the roof?”
She snorted. “Nope. Just open it so that it is exposed to the air. I will take what I need.”
He smiled. “As you wish. I know that you are capable of this, but I have to admit I am eager to see you in action.”
Lydra chuckled. “It will make a change from zapping looters.”
He set her down on the roof, and in their coms, the confirmation of the water tank was announced.
She closed her eyes and pulled a wrap of water to her. She shucked her backpack and walked toward the access door. It was her first time using water as a blade in front of a witness.
First, she reached out to try the door, and because it was locked, she used the water blade to saw through the locks and bolts.
The Avatar stepped around her and pulled the door free. “You have a lot of power, but strength did not come with it. Allow me to assist.”
She nodded. “Thank you.”
The alarms were sounding, and emergency lights cast everything in a red glow.
The smoke was rising, so Lydra identified an exterior wall and used a power ball to let the light in.
“That is counterintuitive when there is a fire in the mix.”
She smirked and started to thicken the air with humidity. “I will take that under advisement. Where is the fire?”
He pointed to the stairwell. “Third floor.”
She nodded and punched a small hole in the lower edge of the watertight door.
She could see smoke curling upward and smiled as she sent her liquid outrider down the steps ahead of her. The facility was only four stories tall, so the temperature of the floor let her know when she was approaching the fire.
She made a series of pinholes on the floor and started dispersing a fine mist that thickened and dampened the air.
Once the air was humid, she sent a wave of water across the floor and kept pushing it, listening to the hiss that slowly stilled and faded.
The upper floor was now unflammable, and the third floor was being deprived of fuel. When the temperature had come down slightly, she removed the latch on the fire door and turned to Kloran.
“Could you open this, please?”
He placed his hands on the door and pushed. A frown came over his features. “You are cooling the air?”
She nodded. “I know that heat rises and that we should have been cooked alive on the fourth floor, so I have taken steps to keep the fire from being able to heat the air.”
“How?”
“I don’t know how, I just know that it worked in my experimentation. This was a practical application.” She smiled and moved past him, spraying the fires that still flickered until the entire room was dim and the air was heavy, but the fires were out.
She punched a hole to the exterior again to let the smoke and water out, and light in.
Lydra turned to the Avatar. “Anywhere else?”
“The connecting corner right below us still has a burn going.”
She smiled and wended her way back to the stairwell, gathering the standing water and sending it in front of her in a wave.
The fire on the second floor was smaller but seemed to have been the origin point of the blaze. The lab canisters had wracked during the earthquake, and a single flammable gas had been released.
Kloran looked it over. “This isn’t correct. There are building requirements here, and this doesn’t match the storage specs.”
“So, folks know that this is a volatile area and they still build here?” Lydra was shocked at the idea.
“Yes. The weather is lovely, and the soil is rich. The ocean is perfect for boating. It is a wonderful environment, but it is seismically active.” He shrugged. “This plate is in motion, and it will continue to be so for the next few thousand years. They can either remain here with the knowledge that their homes and properties can be laid to waste in moments, or they can remove themselves to safer locations.”
“So, what is Vidiaro doing right now?”
“His focus is on slowing the collision of his plates to minimize the property damage.”
“So, he isn’t occupying you right now?”
He chuckled. “He is not in control of me. No.”
“Thanks for your help, Kloran.” She walked up to him and pressed a kiss to his silver cheek.
He froze, startled.
She lowered herself to her heels and chuckled. “Sorry, but this was a very tense moment for me.”
He grinned. “Remind me not to cause any other natural disasters that you need to attend. It could become a devastating habit.”
She felt her cheeks heat, and she cleared her throat. “Well, right. Sorry.”
He was still smiling. “Don’t be sorry. I invite you to use me as an outlet whenever the urge calls.”
She didn’t know where to look. His gaze was disturbingly heated.
“I am guessing we should emerge from the building now. It is all clear.”
He nodded. “Lead the way and I will follow.”
She cleared her throat and headed for the stairs once again. This time, she summoned the water when they arrived on the main floor and gathered it into a transparent ball that wobbled as she walked. It preceded her by several feet.
The large tanker of water was sitting by and several persons, dressed in the standard tunics of researchers, were waiting nervously outside.
Kloran excused himself from her side quietly and strode toward the scientists with a stiff set in his shoulders. He was suddenly cloaked in power, and Lydra blinked in surprise. He had gone from relaxed suitor to serious Avatar before she could draw a breath.
She turned on her com. “Fire is out. Anything else for me?”
“There is a boat foundered near the docks. Can you help with that?”
“I am on my way.” She oriented herself once again and turned toward the ocean.
“Where are you off to?” Kloran was at her side without her hearing his approach.
“I am on my way to the coast.”
“I can give you a lift. I have matters to attend to nearby.”
She paused and then agreed. “Yes, please. I would like a lift.”
He bent and scooped her into his arms, causing gasps from the nearby citizens before he flew off toward the shore.
She looked over his shoulder and saw recording devices aimed in their direction. “I am guessing that you don’t do this kind of thing often.”
“No. I do not. I don’t think I have ever flown off
with a Guardian in my arms before.” He smiled.
“How about alien women?”
“Not them either.” He looked down at her and winked.
With barely a minute between takeoff and landing, he set her on her feet and took off skyward.
Lydra had to fight the urge to watch his devastating figure fly away. She shook herself and turned toward the harbour. There would be time for fantasies later. For now, a ship was listing alarmingly. Lydra walked to the dock and hopped into the water, wading out and pushing water up and around the hull to support the ship until she could get there.
It was a relief when the shouts for help stopped.
Chapter Seven
She sat next to the platform skimmer and watched for the others with bleary eyes.
Rombar was the first one back, and he wasn’t running with his super speed. He settled next to her, and she handed him a bottle of water.
“Thanks.” He drank deeply and sighed when he lowered the bottle. “That was a helluva day.”
She nodded and drank her own water. “Good. I was afraid that I was just out of shape.”
He chuckled. Umbor flew in and landed with none of his usual grace.
Merker staggered in, and they all sat or stood in silence, drinking water and watching the moon rise.
Merker cleared his throat. “Good work, everyone. Now, let’s head home. I’ll drive.”
Lydra groaned and used the skimmer to pull herself upright, staggering into her place and tucking her bag under her seat.
She leaned back and closed her eyes as Merker flew them back to the base. Umbor shook her shoulder in what seemed like a moment after she closed her eyes.
“We are home, Lydra. Come on. Get a shower and a good night’s sleep.”
She nodded, staggered to her feet and headed for her quarters. The small room had never felt more welcome.
She groaned in pain as she stripped off her suit. The refresher showed her that it would take at least three hours to clean and repair the suit, and she nodded, closing the unit.
The shower settings were ratcheted to water, and she soaked herself under the pelting spray until she could move her limbs enough to turn it off.