I fell.
It happened so quickly that I didn’t notice at first. Then I realized the bubble that had been supporting me had disintegrated into shards. I forced my eyes shut. It was the last thing I felt like doing, but it helped me to focus. Opening my eyes again, I saw the platform had regained its strength.
I went higher. It was crazy because I didn’t understand my powers. I could run out of oomph a thousand feet up, but I didn’t care. It was strangely addictive. My fear of heights was gone. Zooming straight up, the air got colder and thinner with every passing moment, but I didn’t care.
I was flying. After everything I’d been through over the last few days, I felt like the master of the world. Up till now, I’d been on the run with people wanting to kill or harm me. Now I had the world below me, and I felt like I could go anywhere and do anything.
I headed towards the city, knowing it would be insanity to be seen. Pure craziness. It was the last thing I needed, and I could imagine the headlines:
Boy Spotted Flying Over City!
Air force Shoots Down Flying Boy!
Post-Mortem Reveals Drug Use!
Still, I couldn’t stop myself. Rising to a height hundreds of feet over the tallest buildings, I watched a small helicopter cruising across the blocks. New York was a complicated network of streets and unfamiliar landmarks, and nothing I recognized. Then I caught sight of the Hudson and the East River.
Okay, I thought. That puts some things into perspective.
Which was when I hit the blimp.
One second, I was focused on working out which street was which. The next, I heard the sound of an engine, and a big silver wall cut across in front of me. In the middle of the helium-filled wall were the words Toto’s Donuts. I crashed into it at an angle, sending the whole thing wobbling uncontrollably. Even its engine gave an erratic whine.
Fortunately, it was automated. No one was in the gondola that hung beneath, but bumping into the thing was enough to make me realize how stupid I was acting. These things were designed for people to see from ground level, and I’d positioned myself right next to it.
Real clever.
I zoomed up higher again while following a main arterial road out of the city. More from luck than design, I located the park where I’d left Dan and Brodie and descended. Once again, orientating myself was incredibly hard, but I finally spotted our little clearing.
I’d like to say that I landed like a bird, but I was more like an inexperienced hang glider. I came in too fast, at too steep an angle, and landed sideways, my legs skimming the ground for several feet before coming to an eventual halt.
‘You should have seen Dan after you took off,’ Brodie laughed as they raced over. ‘He kept on leaping up and down, hoping he could fly.’
‘Did you get anywhere?’ I asked him.
‘No,’ he shook his head. ‘Gravity won.’
I glanced at Brodie.
She shrugged. ‘I’m a landlubber too,’ she said. ‘But something did happen while you were away.’
‘What?’
‘I had those voices in my head again,’ Dan said, swallowing. ‘Those people were screaming again.’
‘They’re in pain,’ Brodie said. ‘Somehow, we’ve got to—’
I held up my hand. ‘I’ve got a plan,’ I said. ‘We’re going back to Ravana’s building, but this time we’ll be prepared.’
Chapter Sixteen
The weather had turned bad by the time we got into position. Storm clouds swept over the city, and the wind was running at forty knots. There was rain on the way—even a chance of hail.
All the better for us.
We were standing on the roof of the Wieldsor Building. It was just another skyscraper in the heart of Manhattan, but vital to us because it was right across the road from Ravana’s building. Thanks to Dan, the electrical substation that controlled this side of town was out of commission. He was able to project a piece of metal into the heart of the substation, knocking out power to an eight-block city grid.
We were pleased with our efforts until we realized we still needed to get to the roof of the Roxton Building, and now we had to do it without elevators. That meant walking up thirty flights of stairs. Even for young, fit teenagers like ourselves, it was a struggle, and our legs were jelly by the time we reached the roof.
‘You couldn’t just fly us up here?’ Dan asked.
I shook my head. ‘Too risky,’ I said. ‘The lesser the chance that people see me, the better.’
Anyone with a cell phone was a journalist, and I wanted to stay off YouTube for as long as possible.
The distance between the buildings was around fifty feet. Back in the park, I’d practiced lifting Dan and Brodie into the air and landing again. While I wouldn’t carry both at the same time, I was able to keep two of us aloft at once. I’d hang onto the other person and extend the flying platform under both of us. It wasn’t stylish at all. It was more like rolling down the road on a surfboard on wheels.
Now it started to rain, a driving, torrential downpour driven by high winds. It was a nuisance, but at least it created another diversion, and we needed all the help we could get. First, I flew Brodie across to the other building. It was windy, but we made it across without incident. By the time I returned for Dan, the wind seemed to have worsened, and it took all my concentration to get us across.
Even then, the landing was a little rough, but I could live with that. We reached the stairway door leading down from the roof.
‘Dan, we need the door open,’ I told him.
‘Gotcha,’ he replied.
It took him longer than expected. The driving wind and rain didn’t help. Finally, the lock broke, and the door swung loose in the wind, and we crowded into the darkened stairwell. The only lighting was an emergency exit sign above the door. With the power out, it had to be driven by a generator or stored solar energy.
‘I don’t hear an alarm,’ Brodie said.
‘Hopefully, there isn’t one,’ I said.
We made our way down the stairs. Fortunately, the floor numbers were marked in big letters. Reaching the twenty-fifth floor, we hesitated at the door, listening for movement on the other side.
Silence.
That didn’t mean there wasn’t a guard on the other side. There could have been a squad of them for all we knew. We just had to take a chance. Dan focused on forcing the lock open. He did it as quietly as possible, but it still sounded like a car crash in the silent stairwell. Brodie eased it open, peered through, and waved us after her. That was as far as our plan reached. We had no idea as to the layout of this place. All we had was a vague idea from Dan that the teenagers were being held on the other side of the building.
We crept down the corridor and turned left into another passageway. We were halfway down it when two guys exited a doorway. They turned away from us, but at the last instant, one of them must have spotted us from the corner of his eye because he stopped and started towards us.
Brodie moved.
It took her about two seconds to cover the distance between them and us. She knocked one guy’s head against the other, and they went down in an untidy pile. It was like something out of The Three Stooges.
Both the guys were seriously armed; they had handguns, batons, and mace. We dragged them into a side room before continuing down the corridor. After a moment, Dan held up a hand.
‘I can feel them,’ he said, rubbing his head. ‘They’re close—and in pain.’
I remembered Ravana, and the hatred bubbled up inside me.
Later, I thought. Now we need to focus.
Reaching a T-intersection, Brodie peered around the corner. The faint sound of a door closing was followed by receding footsteps.
‘I got a glimpse of the room those guys just left,’ she whispered. ‘It’s a room with about a dozen guards inside. If we can trap them …’
She looked at Dan.
‘Consider it done,’ he said. ‘They don’t call me Metal Boy for nothing.’
‘Nobody calls you Metal Boy,’ I pointed out, but he ignored me.
Seconds later, Dan had melted the lock, and we were scurrying away, but that was as far as our luck held. Turning into the next corridor, we heard a commotion as someone tried to exit the room.
‘We’d better hurry,’ Brodie said.
We turned another corner—and ran into two security guards. I threw up a shield as they produced their weapons.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
They started firing, but the bullets bounced off, ricocheting into the side walls. Dan focused on their weapons as we advanced. The barrels of their guns bent back on themselves. One of the guys didn’t notice, and his gun blew up in his hand. I dropped the barrier, Brodie took over, and soon we were stepping over their unconscious bodies.
‘Remind me never to argue with you,’ I said to her.
We kept moving.
Ah-ha!
Around the next corner was a heavily fortified metal door.
‘We’ve got to move!’ I said. ‘Come on, Dan—uh, Metal Boy!’
Dan grunted with effort, and the door flew off its hinges. Beyond it, we saw a line of guys protecting another door. They immediately opened fire, but I already had my shield up. Bullets flew everywhere. There were six of them with guns versus the three of us.
They didn’t stand a chance.
Dan turned his attention to the next door—another metal barrier that took him even less time to remove from its frame. He was getting better at this all the time. It hit the ground with a crash. A glass chamber beyond contained a cell holding two teenagers: a girl and a guy, both with blonde hair—a brother and sister, maybe about my age.
A figure with a gun appeared.
Ravana.
The gun in his hand was aimed directly at my chest. Brodie moved like lightning, pushing me aside, but she still wasn’t fast enough.
I still felt the impact as the bullet slammed into me.
Chapter Seventeen
One minute I was on my feet. The next, I was on the ground. Brodie took out Ravana with one punch. So intent was he on shooting me that he hadn’t even noticed her or Dan.
I rolled over, not sure what hurt more: the bullet or Brodie’s shove. Both were like being hit by a truck. Grabbing my side, I struggled to my feet, bleeding, but somehow alive. It was only a flesh wound—thanks to Brodie.
We were running out of time. More guards were probably on the way. The teenagers on the other side of the glass were frantically pointing at the steel door. Dan focused on it, and the door groaned but didn’t budge.
He turned to me in despair. ‘It’s too big,’ he said. ‘I can’t move it.’
‘Stand back,’ I told Brodie and Dan.
The glass was obviously several inches thick. Imagining an invisible spear, I hurled it at the glass.
Nothing happened.
‘Oh boy,’ I said in dismay.
Brodie grabbed a set of keys from Ravana’s waist. ‘Let’s try these,’ she said and had the cell unlocked in seconds.
The guy grabbed my shoulder. ‘Who are you people?’ he asked. ‘What’s going on?’
‘We’ll explain later,’ I said. ‘Just tell us your names.’
‘Chad,’ he introduced himself with a hint of a European accent. ‘And this is Ebony. I think she’s my sister. I know that sounds weird, but—’
‘Don’t worry about it,’ I said. ‘Weird is our version of normal.’
Chad’s eyes shifted to Ravana. The sadist’s eyes fluttered open. He gazed fearfully at us.
‘No, please,’ he said. ‘I was under orders—’
‘You want mercy?’ Chad asked incredulously. ‘After hurting us with that probe for days? You want mercy?’
He drew back his fist. I wasn’t sure if he had some kind of incredible power—which he probably did—or if he just intended to beat Ravana senseless. Either way, we didn’t have time for this, but then Ebony grabbed his arm.
‘Don’t,’ she said, her voice soft. She seemed frail, and I couldn’t help but wonder if Ravana had harmed more than her body over the last few days. ‘He’s a monster, but killing is wrong.’
Chad looked like he wanted to argue but bit his tongue.
‘Come on!’ Brodie said impatiently. ‘Axel, I need you with me.’
I was still bleeding, but doing pretty well all things considered. Taking up my position, I threw up a protective barrier to surround us both front and rear. We created a formation with Dan in the lead. Me second. Then Chad and Ebony and finally Brodie. Ebony still looked dazed.
‘We’ll need your help,’ Chad said to her.
She nodded. ‘What do we need?’
‘Carbon.’
I had no idea what they were talking about as we headed down the corridor. By the time we reached the end, we’d heard the clatter of footsteps behind us.
‘Guards!’ I yelled.
‘It’s okay,’ Chad said. ‘Ebony.’
She nodded, knelt down, and touched the carpeted floor behind us. In about three seconds, it turned from beige to black.
‘What the—’ I started.
‘Keep moving,’ Chad urged. He pointed at the carpet, and a trail of fire leaped from his fingers and hit the floor. What used to be carpet bursts into flames. Guards appeared at the other end but couldn’t get past the flames.
‘This way!’ Brodie yelled.
Finally, locating the stairs, we started for the roof. A fire alarm peeled through the building. People streamed into the stairwell from other levels and started past us down the stairs. Some of them looked curiously at us as we headed in the opposite direction, but no one stopped to question us.
Seconds later, we were back on the roof, and I was gripping my side. It had really begun to sting. Rain poured down harder than ever. It was smearing the blood all the way down my chest.
We’ve just got to get to the other building, and this will be over.
I had to ferry everyone across one at a time. Ebony was first. Then Dan. By the time I got back for Chad and Brodie, the pain in my side was hurting worse than ever. My shirt was a mess, and the wound stinging as if it were on fire.
Landing back on Ravana’s building, the fire door burst open, and two guards emerged. Chad held out his hands and fired flames at them.
Screaming, they fell back into the stairwell.
‘No!’ I cried, grabbing him.
‘Why not?’ Chad snapped. ‘They’d kill us without a thought!’
‘Because it’s wrong!’ I said.
‘Don’t touch me—’
Brodie stepped between us. ‘This is no time for testosterone wars!’ she snapped. ‘We’ve got to get out of here.’
She was right, but I couldn’t take both of them at once.
‘Take Chad first,’ Brodie said. ‘After Chad’s little fireworks show, it’ll be a while before anyone else comes up.’
‘Okay.’
I grabbed him by the arm, and within seconds we were flying between the two buildings. I felt sick—really sick—and our landing was less than graceful. By the time I got back to Brodie, I was almost feeling faint. Glancing down the side of the building, I saw the street was filled with fire brigade and police. It looked like the whole city had turned up. I gave myself a few seconds to focus.
Come on, I thought. Just form the platform. Make it strong.
We started across the gap. It was raining harder than ever now, and the pain in my side was so bad I felt sick. The distant bang of a door came from Ravana’s building. I glanced back.
The doctor was on the roof, wielding a massive weapon. It didn’t look like any kind of weapon I’d ever seen before.
He’s going to shoot.
Ravana lifted the weapon, aimed—and then a bolt of fire flew past us. It struck him, engulfing him in flames. Falling back, he screamed, but not before firing the weapon, engulfing us in a beam of light. I felt nothing, but the effect was instantaneous.
The invisible platform under my feet evapo
rated, and we fell.
Chapter Eighteen
We’re going to die.
That’s what went through my mind. We’re going to die. There was no surviving a fall from this height. We weren’t invincible. We were just two teenagers who had superpowers.
Now we’re just two teenagers.
Wham!
And then—
We hit the bridge hard, but I wasn’t complaining. I peered at it more closely. We’d fallen about six feet onto an ice bridge linking the two buildings. Chad was on the other side, grinning.
Fire and ice, I realized. Those are his powers.
We crept across the ice bridge to join the others. Dan was so excited he was jumping around like a dog. Chad looked exceptionally pleased with himself. Ebony had barely spoken a word. She stood with a hand clasped nervously over her mouth.
‘That’s good work,’ I told Chad. ‘Thanks.’
‘I know,’ he said. ‘I saved your ass. You owe me one.’
‘I owe you—’ Now was not the time to remind him about which one of us, until recently, was trapped in a cell and being tortured by a psychotic doctor. ‘We need to get out of here, but first—’
‘I know,’ he said.
Leaning over the roof, Chad pointed at the bridge. This time it wasn’t fire that erupted from his hands. It was more of an intense heat that hit the ice bridge and quickly melted it. The storm was so ferocious now that no one below would have even noticed.
We made our way to the car. Fortunately, my jacket hid the bloody patch on my side, but by then, I was sick to the stomach. Chad offered to drive, but my patience was at an all-time low. I forcefully told him to get in the back seat. Brodie took over the wheel, and we made our way back to the hotel. By then, everything was a haze. I saw bits of buildings. Roads. Pedestrians. I was barely able to walk by the time we reached the hotel lobby. The others told the desk clerk I’d had too much to drink, and he believed them.
Teen Superheroes Box Set | Books 1-7 Page 6