Night Legions

by Jeremy Flagg

  The Child’s powerful body meant little as long as they continued to pump a healthy dose of sedatives and hallucinogens into her bloodstream. The Society had used such methods for generations, creating an army of faithful men dedicated to their creators. In his time since taking over Jacob, Ivan had already scrubbed the individuality from a score of young men. He didn’t force unconditional servitude on them; he allowed their rage and disgust to ferment, creating a new breed of vicious slaves. No, he thought, I do not need blind obedience.

  They’ll follow.

  His finger trailed along the restraint. The dark black skin of his host complimented Vanessa's deep green hue. Her skin had a dry texture, as if it might break when she flexed. The muscle, he thought, Jacob’s vessel might be strong, but this body… He shuddered at the thought of such strength at his disposal.

  Each mind he penetrated, each body used, attempted to resist. Ivan found as much pleasure in the struggle as he did the victory. But the body before him lay empty. The woman had proven a valiant competitor, a rival he’d never known since his powers manifested. Even now, nearly a thousand miles away, he sensed her struggling against the tightening mental coffin.

  Ivan's fingers danced along her neck, into the small divot between her shoulder and clavicle. Despite her alien appearance, she was indeed still a woman. Below her collarbone, modest but supple breasts were exposed. Her nudity added little to his arousal. It was only when he reflected on her screaming, her struggling, the look of defeat in her eyes, that he found himself erect. He’d have preferred to watch her eyes as the panic settled in, the utter horror as his mind wrapped about hers, but this would do.

  The pulse in the jugular under his hand pumped harder as her body started to react to its owner’s mind. This was the moment he’d waited for since he first sensed her years before.

  “Jacob is a convenience, where you are a titan.” His voice, a deep bass tone, befit his grandiose words. “But I am a god,” he smiled.

  From his hand, Ivan imagined tendrils of smoke snaking outward, piercing the woman’s body. The empty vessel filled with his essence. The violation took seconds. Ivan had a moment of sorrow, realizing this might very well be the grandest conquest he’d ever experience in his life. He wanted another to be born, stronger, an eventual victim of his growing powers.

  “You can’t stop me, Angel.”

  * * * * *

  The world darkened. The invisible glass room holding her prisoner filled with a black liquid. The symbolism was not lost on her. Ivan found her empty body, a vessel waiting to be filled. With each passing second, a memory, a thought, something about her slipped away. In the real world it took seconds; here, time slowed as he savored the events leading to his victory.

  She cherished each memory, regardless of its heartache or sorrow. There were a thousand instances where the world attempted to strike her down. From the moment she discovered the ability to hears thoughts as if they were spoken aloud, to the small bumps starting on her shoulders where serpentine wings would grow, life had treated her with cruelty.

  But… she thought, with a thunderous heartbeat filled with love.

  Moments, a beautiful series of moments. Dav5d clutching her hand, terrified of emotions he couldn’t interpret or his face after their first kiss, these images made every sacrifice a life worth living. The man’s face, a face she loved from the moment she’d met him, started to fade and she found it difficult to remember his smile.

  Barren, she thought. I will be like the Barren, an emptiness, a lost soul. Will I remember? Will I know my name? Will I still be Vanessa?

  Vanessa, a former angel. It seemed like a different life. She had pushed through the hotel doors and marched across the street to the bar revealing her true self. The lie had been washed free. She experienced freedom for the first time. The Nighthawks stared, unsure of how to digest the unveiling of her true self. Vanessa, for the first time, found comfort in the skin given to her by Nostradamus.

  Submerged nearly to her chest, she found herself smiling, content with the impending annihilation. The calm radiated outward, until Ivan banged a fist against the glass cage.

  “You can’t stop me, Angel,” he yelled again, his face pushing from the shadows, an old man's face with gritted teeth.

  The calm faltered as she scoured for a single mind in possession of the madman. Much like the lightning Dwayne hurled with reckless abandon, the sky in Ivan’s make-believe world flashed. The burst of light revealed the shadow people, dark tainted blotches where normal people should be. The liquid reached her chin as another bolt flashed, white light searing downward from an ominous sky.

  Ivan laughed, pressing his forehead to the glass of her prison. His eyes narrowed in excitement, the edges of his lips turning upward as if he were a cat toying with a trapped mouse.

  “You can’t stop me, Angel.”

  Her head turned upward, keeping her lips above the liquid. There were only moments before she drowned, the man consuming her mind. The unknown of what would come next held a bittersweet note. Eleanor had recruited her years ago, setting her on this path. Vanessa had spent years being enraged at the woman for robbing her of a chance at normalcy.

  “I wasn’t trying to stop you,” she whispered.

  No, she didn’t harbor anger toward the psychic. In fact, it was the opposite. For the first time in her life, Vanessa found peace.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  1996

  Ariel arrived to find Jonah leaning against the wall, checking his watch. His persistent punctuality had to be one of his least charming traits. “I was taking my time, so you could go in guns blazing.”

  “I’d have won the battle, but it seems I can’t find my key card.”

  “Getting forgetful in your old age?”

  Ignoring the keypad and retinal scan, she tugged at the doors with her mind. The military had demanded she stop destroying doors. Demands weren’t her thing. The military changed the hydraulics to release when she exerted enough force. To save costs, they learned it was easier to change their design than change Ariel’s mind.

  Once they reached the locker room, Jonah appeared uneasy as she pulled off her shirt. He averted his eyes, the first display any semblance of modesty.

  “Now you’re going to get weird on me?”

  “We haven’t really talked about…” He was being weird. Television would lead her to believe every time a guy had sex, he turned into an asshole. It’d be easier to deal if he was being a jerk, but the innocent thing, she wasn’t sure how to handle. “I mean, we haven’t talked about what happened.”

  “Did that change anything at the plant?”

  “No, but we were on a mission—”

  “It’s fine,” she reassured him.

  “It’s just, I don’t normally break the rules.”

  “Jonah.” She unsnapped her jeans. “If you haven’t noticed. I’m always on a mission. If this gets weird between you and I…” She let out a sigh. “Be a soldier. We’ll deal with feelings later.”

  His back straightened, whatever hormones clouded his judgment seeming to clear at the reminder. Jonah may be a man, but she believed he’d always be a soldier first. She’d have imagined being more emotional about the event herself, perhaps even pining over him like the girls in romantic comedies. Right now, all she cared about was not getting hit with a taser.

  The body armor woven into the suit hugged her skin. The folks in research and development listened to her suggestions and now the fabric reached all the way down to her hands. The newest addition rested in her locker, a form-sculpted vest zipping up the front. She appreciated the extra layer, hoping if a bullet managed to strike her in the chest this time, it wouldn’t leave her too scattered to function.

  “Nice upgrades,” Jonah remarked. “Seems somebody got what she wanted.”

  “You don’t grow up around scientists without making friends.” He flinched at her words. The divide between them had been drawn when he first arrived. He’d always be milit
ary. She would always be a member of the research center. Their union was the closest thing to a happy alliance taking place between the two.

  Reading the man’s expression was impossible. She couldn’t tell if he was upset she wasn’t consumed with puppy love.

  “Let’s go,” he said, withdrawn, flat, matter of fact.

  The bay doors from the locker room opened, leading into the warehouse. The aircraft typically stored here had been removed; instead, the room housed hundreds of crates. In the pit of her stomach, she felt a knot tighten.

  “Ariel,” said the commander over the loudspeaker. “Our robotics division has supplied upgrades to our mechs to be more like synthetic humans. For the sake of our visiting oversight committee, we would appreciate a demonstration in both your abilities and their effectiveness.”

  The viewing box window filled with men in uniform. “Sure,” she shouted. “Not enough to put on a show for you clowns, now I need to do your job for you. Thanks, asshats.”

  Jonah put in his headset and pressed the power button. “Why was I not informed we were cancelling training?”

  “Not cancelling,” the voice said through the speakers. “It’s time we remove the kid gloves and see what you and the asset are capable of.”

  “Jonah…” Ariel’s mouth dropped as a dozen of the crates opened. The clunky robots she decimated session after session had been replaced with thinner, slicker models. The shape more closely mimicked a human, a trait she found more unsettling than comforting.

  “Handgun on the right hip. Targeting mechanism seems to be in the skull. Something mounted on the shoulder.” Jonah continued his tactical assessment, but she found herself mesmerized as the machines dropped to all fours.

  Hand on hip, Jonah drew his favorite gun from its holster. “They are going to try and divide your attention.”

  “Destroy them, you say? Got it.”

  The first four scurried forward. They split, dividing her attention. She assumed they knew her limitations and that the military was more intent on making killing machines to eradicate her than test her abilities. Jonah took a position to her right, his gun following the two clacking along behind a series of crates.

  She squared her shoulders and firmly planted her feet, Jonah’s training taking hold. Assess the field, keep your opponent in sight, strike first. The two closest machines hid behind a crate, believing themselves safe. A mental shove threw the crate away, pinning them between wooden cages.

  A mech behind the crates sprang into the air, transforming upright and grabbing its gun. The gun tore itself from the robot’s grip while the machine slammed headfirst into the ground. The entirety of the machine had been engineered with a new metal; now it required a bit of effort to crush the skull.

  Shots fired from Jonah as another machine tried to run past them. The bullets smacked against the thing’s face, causing it to jerk backward. Ariel threw the machine’s own bullets wide, surprised by how much more durable they were.

  “New chassis,” Jonah said. “Gun is useless.”

  Ariel pulled at the machine’s arm, causing sparks as she tore its limb free. “Definitely upgraded. This is requiring effort.”

  “More, behind you,” Jonah shouted.

  They want power? she thought. As she clenched both fists, the next wave of robots contorted, their cases bending and warping until they looked more like discarded wires. They hurtled through the air, nailing two of the robots yet to activate. The heel of her foot lifted off the ground and her toes quickly followed.

  She was powerful.

  Using the two crumpled machines, she continued to batter the robots until only four remained. These rolled backward, avoiding her crushing blows until they got outside her area of influence. A growl started in the pit of her stomach, growing to a scream as the machines launched a volley of gunfire at her. The bullets stopped midair.

  The four circled, using the crates for cover. They were already adapting, using her focus against her. The bullet behind her halted inches from her right shoulder blade, far too close for comfort. Panting, she found herself the center of a group of deadly robots determined to please their masters.

  It wasn’t about them succeeding, it was about her failing. A fast glance to the viewing box reminded her, to them, she was a test subject. They didn’t view her as human. “If it’s a monster you want…”

  Deep breaths, in through the nose and expelled from the mouth. The ground greeted her as she landed. With eyes closed, she imagined the water in a pond, still to the point where it resembled ice. Years of meditation allowed her to find her center and calm her mind. Mark had been determined to teach her to not be dangerous.

  Mark hadn’t taught her this.

  The trees about her imaginary pond started to sway as wind picked up speed. The surface turned choppy, small bits of white showing along the tops of waves. The clouds responded, darkening and swirling in an angry dance. As lightning smashed against the surface of the glassy surface, steam rose and water crashed into the shore.

  When she thought about the spot she chose to visualize, she often wondered about the depth of the water. As the clouds swirled, waves continued to grow until the room about her responded as if there were a storm inside it.

  Shots were fired. The pieces of metal violated her space. When she bent their trajectory, the projectiles pelted against the viewing booth, chipping the bulletproof glass. Did they flinch? She imagined the General standing there with his arms folded, disapproving of the millions of dollars of robots she destroyed.

  Her head felt like it was on fire. The water in the lake gathered near the middle, spiraling upward. The power creeping along her arms made her skin tingle. The boundaries of her powers expanded, and she tried to maintain concentration as more of the warehouse entered her domain. Each of the machines ticked away, analyzing the scene. Nobody had transcribed her late-night conversations with Mark about how dangerous she believed herself to be. Nobody had recorded her dreams where she destroyed cities. Nobody, absolutely nobody, understood.

  More than a thousand tiny parts made up each machine. Wanting to make a point, she pulled at each of them. Screws popped free and wires disconnected. The room grew eerily quiet as the machines rose from the floor, their parts, their guts, hovering outside their bodies. With a deep exhale from Ariel, tearing metal filled the silence.

  The lifeless husks fell, clanking harmlessly to the ground. Her attention turned to the viewing box. Six men in military garb stared in disbelief, the one in charge yelling at two of the researchers.

  When the glass proved a challenge, determined to remain one continuous sheet, she moved to the bolts around its perimeter and yanked them free. The windowpane fell to the ground, without shattering. It didn’t matter what they thought. If they came for her, she’d deal with them. With her heart thumping loudly in her chest, she wanted them scared.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” yelled the General.

  Ariel raised herself until she was eye level with them. The sight of chests covered in medals fueled her rage. While she put herself on the line, a teen with almost no training, they were more concerned with finding a way to dominate her. Even on her worst days, she’d best them in combat.

  All six men flailed as they rose off the ground, pulled through the window like a child’s dolls in a game of house. All six found themselves suspended in midair, face-to-face with the thing they found most terrifying: the unknown.

  “Put us down,” cried one man.

  The General gravitated closer until she was staring him in the eye. He had enough smarts to hold his tongue, but the bright red cheeks betrayed him.

  “Ariel, stop this,” Jonah yelled.

  “Listen to him, child,” the General commanded.

  “You understand that I could tear you apart? I wouldn’t have to flinch. I wouldn’t even blink as I snapped you in half.”

  “You’d face the entire force of the United States military. Not even— “

  “You’ve tri
ed to train me to be your tool. Mark wanted there to be peace between my kind and yours. We built something here to bridge a gap between humans and mentalists. Then you showed up. You broke it.”

  “Child—"

  Her mental grip about his body tightened, squeezing a breath from his mouth. “I stopped being a child years ago. Long before you showed. I had to grow up knowing that every ounce of my being is powerful. Now, General”—she leaned in close to his face—“you’re learning that lesson too.”

  “What do you want?” he managed.

  “Ariel!” Mark burst into the observation room with Ivan close behind. “What the hell is going on here?

  “The General tried to kill me. I’m proving a point.”

  “Put them down,” her surrogate father yelled.

  The five other men were lowered to the ground, but she held the General in place, never breaking her gaze. “I don’t scare you. I get it, you’re a soldier. General, I should scare you to the fucking bone, and if I don’t, you’re an idiot. Cause if it’s not me, it’ll be them. You have a target on your back, and my kind is coming for you.”

  For the first time, the man flinched.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  2033

  The truck lurched to the side as it swerved. Twenty-Seven’s restraints held her in place, metal wrapped around her chest, her arms in cuffs with a cable secured to the floor. Each time the vehicle hit a bump or tilted, she used it as an excuse to pull against her bonds, testing their strength. Maybe if my arm worked, she thought, eyeing the small metal box securely attached to her enhancement.

  “It emits a low-level electromagnetic field,” Jasmine said. “Until they power it off, you’re not going anywhere.”

  “Quiet down back there,” a man said through a slot separating the cab of the truck from the reinforced cargo area.