ã€ŠThe Unlockedã€‹


 Rock Bottom

    How long has it been?

    Funny that, isn¡¯t it? Lose track of just one day and it throws everything out of whack. Monday? Wednesday? What about the month...? You catch my drift.

    I dunno, I¡¯m fairly certain it was Tuesday when I got jumped by those kids in the park and then most of Wednesday was trying to find somewhere to sleep. Oh yeah, that¡¯s when I saw that green graffiti on the wall, wasn¡¯t it? Pretty cool to be fair. Then it must have been Thursday when I was collecting all the dues I¡¯m owed¡­

    Everything after that¡¯s a blur though. Suppose that¡¯s what you get trying to drink yourself to death. I¡¯m guessing the alcohol must¡¯ve lasted about two days give or take, depends on how desperate I was. Guess that makes it a Saturday or Sunday now. Best check though. Can¡¯t lose track of the days¡­

    Bracing myself, I slowly crack open my eye after some resistance from the dried sweat and sleep encrusting it. Yeah, eye. Singular. Long story about that though, maybe another time.

    When I¡¯m not blinded by lack of sunlight, I slowly open it fully and push myself up to sit against the wall behind me with a groan. Damn, that¡¯s what I call a hangover; I can literally feel the blood being pushed through my head. Would be cool if it wasn¡¯t accompanied by piercing pain every time.

    Casting my vision around my temporary abode, I try to figure out what shit-hole I fell into this time. Seems like some kind of storm drain or sewage outlet, judging from the concrete wall I¡¯m currently leaning on and the ledge overlooking the slow moving stream of murky water.

    Slowly turning my head to avoid further flares of pain, I watch as my breath fogs and curls around in the frigid air, not that I feel the cold. Nah, this is just nippy, not worthy of being called true cold. I mean, all my extremities are still attached.

    Further inspection reveals a small mountain of empty bottles next to me. All seem to be empty, but you never know, diamond in the rough and all that¡­

    Wincing, I roll over and start scratching through the rubbish around me, filling the drain with the clinking of bottles and my grunts of discomfort when the little bastard kicking the inside of my head feels like stretching.

    Huh, looks like I was pretty thorough this time, can¡¯t even find a drop of alcohol. Shame really, looks like I¡¯m going to have to go scavenging. I should probably try and find my bearings as well. But first¡­ ¡®medicine¡¯.

    Struggling to my feet and leaning against the wall until the spinning stops, I start recounting the days in my head. Call me crazy but it¡¯s a thing I do, sort of a nervous tick. Only rather than just having a fit if I can¡¯t do it, it¡¯s more like if I screw it up and miscount¡­ well, let¡¯s just say it¡¯s not very pretty for anyone involved.

    You see, I¡¯m one of the ¡®unlocked¡¯. That¡¯s what they call us now I think. Something to do with being politically correct as terms such as ¡®freak¡¯ or ¡®monster¡¯ are generally frowned upon. I say ¡®generally¡¯ because in some cases we literally are monsters. But that¡¯s more to do with the individual I suppose.

    Anyway, I¡¯m one these ¡®unlocked¡¯. Found that out a long time ago during ¡®The Flare¡¯. Even I know what happened then; perfectly normally one moment, then burning pain all over the body the next. Over the following months crazy shit went down. Like seriously crazy. Kids just started doing things, I¡¯m talking moving objects with their minds, blowing up buildings, releasing deadly viruses from their own bodies. The usual ¡®superpower¡¯ stuff.

    Those were the days, man¡­ Everything¡¯s settled down though, special schools have been set up for the kids who were effected, all in the US for some reason. Helps me though as it makes it easier to hide. New laws have been passed regarding us and our wellbeing, all quite good to be honest.

    Just, I wasn¡¯t so lucky. Not that I want to think about it. Why do you think I drink? For pleasure?

    That¡¯s beside the point though, a side effect of my power is a very simple loss of control. Yeah, I just lose it after a certain length of time: give into the power and just go with it. Not pleasant the morning after, I tell you.

    Slowly, I push myself away from the wall and stagger out of my little drain to be met with the lovely sight of the Thames in the late evening. The thick scum along the edges and the pleasant and artistically placed debris floating past. Not to mention the smell. Truly wonderful, though that could be me.

    Another glance confirms my earlier suspicions; it was indeed a sewage outlet. Lovely.

    Scrambling up the banking behind me, I vault the railings before thrusting my hands into my pockets and slowly heading away from the river. It seems to be about one, judging from the crowds of people passing me, many of whom seem drunk and of varying ages.

    Priorities though. First things first. Alcohol. Luckily for me, the local store owners and barkeeps and I have an understanding: they leave out some free alcohol for me round the back of their establishments and I don¡¯t try to beat their brains in. Very simple.

    Why not just pay you ask? Well, my dear Wellson, no¡­ Welcome. No that¡¯s not right either. Heh, doesn¡¯t matter. Basically, I have no money or house. What, you thought that I slept rough for fun? Jeez¡­

    Passing a storefront, I catch a glimpse of myself in the reflection. Long, messy, dirty blond hair and pale face with dirt, at least I hope it¡¯s dirt, smudged across it. The main feature of my face though is the eye patch I have; black leather going diagonally across with a square patch over the eye. I quickly reach up and check that the rivets are still firmly set. Yeah, rivets. Painful but necessary, just to make sure I stay in control¡­

    The rest of my clothing is pretty typical of the homeless. Long, tatty overcoat and baggy hoodie underneath, with baggy tracksuit bottoms to compliment it and scuffed boots to complete my attire. I look fucking awful, gaunt with deep bags under my almost black eye. Not very family friendly.

    Shaking my head, I carry on for another couple of hundred metres before turning left down a narrow ally which conveniently runs behind the first store I plan on visiting. It¡¯s your typical alley: bins scattered around with rubbish lying everywhere, dim lights and best of all, no prying eyes.

    Licking my lips, I proceed to scratch around the bag door set into the wall. I promise you, if this guy hasn¡¯t left something out for me¡­

    Feeling my temper rising I nearly give up and move on before catching sight of a red label. False alarm people, no skull cracking today. The goods are here.

    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    With a happy sigh I straighten with the bottle before returning to the main street and depositing it into my deep pockets. One down, some more to go. This pattern repeats as I slowly make my way across London while taking sips from my bottle, visiting pubs and stores along the way and as my coat gradually grows heavier.

    Thing is, when I was first here, I was roughed up a lot, like a lot. Almost every few stops a group of kids or drunks would drag me into an ally for a ¡®good talking to¡¯. Turns out people aren¡¯t too nice to the homeless and feel that it¡¯s their duty to ¡®clean society¡¯ of us ¡®filth¡¯. Unfortunately, the police are more than willing to turn a blind eye. The bastards.

    Especially me for some reason, probably because I¡¯m so young, only seventeen. I know, I know¡­ wow, so young, why no home?

    Well, fuck off. I don¡¯t want to talk about it. Not nice memories.

    It doesn¡¯t happen so much now though. At least, not for me. See, I¡¯ve kind of made a name for myself as ¡®that creepy homeless guy that¡¯ll kill you¡¯. Not entirely my fault though, more that of my power. You could call it another unfortunate side effect I suppose. Basically, everything I touch dies. Kind of broken much? Well, it would be if I could control the bloody thing as literally everything that I touch, as long as it is alive to start with, just keels over. At least there¡¯s no evidence, the police still ain¡¯t got shit on me!

    Kind of a pain though as now I¡¯ve got to wrap my hands in bandages so I don¡¯t accidently kill anyone, but hey, it¡¯s not as though I really enjoy contact with other people. Anyway, the main benefit is that no one messes with me now. Well mostly. Some are too far gone in drink, or just new to the area and don¡¯t know.

    I don¡¯t know which applies to this group of dickheads blocking my way now. Probably a bit of both. They seem young, maybe sixteenish, acting all cool as they bunk school, smoking and drinking. What a waste of space, though I can¡¯t really talk. Five of them ahead of me, blocking the route. Now don¡¯t get me wrong, I¡¯m not belligerent or anything. It¡¯s just, if you have something of mine or make an effort to piss me off, I will start breaking your bones.

    Luckily for the kids ahead of me I decide they¡¯re not worth it and, while taking another swig from my second bottle, I turn to leave them in peace. They have a different idea however, as another group of four has moved to cut me off.

    Now, I could make a run for it as it is clear they¡¯re not friendly and try to cut across the woodland of the park either side of me, but to be honest, I can¡¯t really be bothered and they look more athletic than me. Well-fed at least.

    With a sigh, I take another sip as they snigger to one another and move in, forming a ring around me.

    One of the tall ones steps forward with a sneer. Guess he¡¯s in charge then. What a prick. Looking up at him I see he has short black hair and grey eyes. Normal-ish face and larger than normal build. Bigger than my skinny frame. Not that I¡¯ll remember it.

    ¡°Well?¡± He asks as he gazes contemptuously at me.

    Great, a talker. Not in the mood mate. See, amongst my many issues, one of them is a fear of talking to others. I never seem to say the right thing. I was kind of hoping we could get through the whole scenario without exchanging pleasantries too. Ah well.

    Rather than answer I instead take another long sip from my now nearly empty bottle and watch as his face mottles with rage before he glances at his ¡®compatriots¡¯ and regains his cocky expression. Jeez, you can literally see the thought process of this guy¡­

    ¡°Give us the booze and we¡¯ll let you go.¡±

    What a load of crap. ¡°Fuck off back your mum, shit-stain, I got places to be.¡± I drawled. See? Not exactly the best thing I could have said.

    Anger again flashes across his face as the grins on his friends¡¯ faces widen in anticipation. Seems like he wants all the glory of beating down some homeless guy then.

    With a flourish, the youth pulls a knife from his pocket and waves it under my nose. Well, I say knife, it¡¯s more of a toothpick really. Barely six inches long.

    ¡°Look, last chance. Gives us the booze or I¡¯ll cut you good.¡±

    Like fuck I¡¯m giving him my hard earned alcohol. I doubt he could stomach it anyway. Too strong.

    ¡°I¡¯m good,¡± was my only response as I stared him down.

    With a grimace the kid replied, ¡°Don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you,¡± though he hesitated with the knife. Cocking my head, I giving him a searching look. Yeah, doesn¡¯t look he has the guts to actually stab someone.

    Never underestimate peer pressure though. Just because someone is as nice a summer day one moment doesn¡¯t mean their friends can¡¯t pressure them into doing something not quite so nice.

    Case in point, asshole A here seems to have scraped together enough courage after his mates started jeering at me and him about wanting to see a good fight. Watching the young punk, I see the emotions flicker across his face as he draws back before plunging the knife into my chest with a dull ripping noise.

    With a shuddering breath he staggers back, anger and regret mixed on his face as he stares at the knife sticking out of my chest. Hi friends have at least shut up; I see one of them almost drop his phone he was using to record their great crusade for society. Lightweights; never seen someone stabbed before.

    With a snort I raise my bottle and drain it in one go before throwing it to the side and watching their faces, I slowly pull the knife out of my chest before pocketing it. I love doing this, the looks on their faces is so damn funny as their glee at winning slowly turns to horror.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re one of them!¡± asshole B exclaimed as their ring formation began to loosen and they looked at each other in fear Man, people really don¡¯t like what they can¡¯t understand.

    I don¡¯t bother answering and instead fish out another bottle from my coat and start drinking. At my sudden action the group paralysis wears off and they take off at a sprint.

    Signing I start walking again. Yeah, this is my life. Not much, but hey, it¡¯s the best I¡¯ve had in a while. Now the question is, is it worth hunting down that kid with the phone to delete the video?

    Hmmmm¡­. Could be problematic if some people saw it¡­ Nah, can¡¯t really be arsed. I¡¯d probably get in trouble for it if I went after him anyway.

    Yeah, not worth it.

    Taking another long swallow from the bottle I keep walking. I got things to do you know? Though I really do hope no one sees that video.

 Scent

    At precisely 12:46, Maria experiences her vision. It also happens to be the middle of history class when the fourteen-year-old stiffens in her seat and her eyes flood completely white.

    Pete, her fellow psychic immediately rushes to her side upon seeing this just as she starts screaming, tears rolling down her cheeks as she stares blankly into space.

    ¡°What now?¡± the teacher snaps from the front before turning and seeing Maria.

    ¡°Sorry sir,¡± Pete replies as the rest of the class look over curiously before dismissing it as nothing unusual, ¡°Maria¡¯s new here. She can¡¯t control it very well.¡±

    ¡°Well, as long as it doesn¡¯t happen again. Take her to the nurse¡¯s office would you?¡± pleads the teacher, keen to carry on his lesson.

    Responding that he would, Pete gently leads the now whimpering Maria out of the classroom and out of the building, towards the medical block. Ignoring the nippy air, Pete leans in gently shakes Maria as they make their way across the quad.

    ¡°Hey Maria, you okay?¡±

    Maria just shakes in response as she shivers and crouches down, hugging her knees to her chest. Her eyes are still wide open and completely white.

    ¡°S-so cold¡­ a-and dark¡­ Argh, t-t-he v-voices. S-so loud. N-no stop! P-please¡­¡±

    With a sigh Pete sees Maria¡¯s in no condition to move on her own and promptly bends down and picks the diminutive girl up, who tries to burrow into his chest, sniffling.

    ¡°Shhh¡­ come on now Maria,¡± Pete softly coos as he carries her the rest of the way to the Medical Block.

    As he enters the nurse on duty looks up with a frown, ¡°No, I¡¯m not signing any sl¡­¡± Seeing Pete standing in the doorway with Maria in his arms her frown slips off to be replaced by one of worry.

    ¡°Tch. Not again. I thought she was getting a hold on this,¡± she motions for Pete to follow her into the neighbouring room.

    ¡°She is. I just think this one is really bad, she¡¯s never reacted so strongly before.¡± Pete replies as he enters the examination room and gently lowers Maria to the bed.

    ¡°Poor thing, it must be so hard for her,¡± the nurse fusses as she shoos Pete away from the bed and starts checking Maria¡¯s vitals and arranging the bedding, ¡°Every time someone starts causing problems this happens.¡±

    She is, of course, referring to Maria¡¯s power, named ¡®God Seeker¡¯. It allows her to enter a trance like state to locate and spy on, to some extent, individuals whose powers exceed a certain power level. However, should an individual with powers strong enough also happen to be on the verge of causing a large scale disaster, the trance state is forced upon her. Similar to an alarm.

    ¡°I¡¯ll just go call the manager quickly Angela,¡± Pete calls, pulling out his phone and raising it to his ear.

    ¡°Yeah, hi¡­¡±

    ¡°Maria¡¯s got something¡­ I know it¡¯s not during training hours¡­ Yeah, it¡¯s forced¡­¡±

    A long pause follows as Pete intently listens to the voice over the phone.

    ¡°No¡­ She¡¯s still under¡­ Yeah bring the normal team. Don¡¯t forget the globe either¡­ No, this is the worse I¡¯ve seen her. I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s pretty bad¡­¡±

    ¡°Right¡­ See you here then.¡± Hanging up Pete turns and returns to the room to find Maria chatting away to Angela seated next to her.

    Relief floods through Pete as he rushes over. ¡°Hey, how you doing?¡±

    Maria looks up with a slight shudder, taking Pete aback slightly with her haunted look. ¡°It was horrible,¡± she whispers in a small voice. ¡°So horrible¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t work yourself up now, okay?¡± Pete attempts to comfort her, ¡°the manager is on her way now. Everything¡¯s fine.¡± Angela meets Pete¡¯s gaze and nods once before leaving the room as Pete turns back to Maria.

    She just nods listlessly, staring off into space as an awkward silence descends over the room. Desperately trying to think of something to say, Pete takes a deep breath and opens his mouth when the door is flung open with a crash.

    ¡°Yo, Pete, Maria. I hear you¡¯ve got something good for me?¡± a loud voice rings through the room, making Pete jump as he turns to see Katie. AKA ¡®The Manager¡¯. Standing at a short five foot five, with deep brown hair curling down her back and dressed in the school uniform, she would make her presence known by her loud entrances and incessant chatter.

    Filing in behind her come the rest of the extraction team; the twin psychics, Callum and Connor Bridges, AKA Scanner and Tracker. Identical twins with a passion for pranks and of average height, they are responsible for finding clues about the targets in the minds of others and using these clues to find them, respectively.

    Shortly behind comes a hulking beefcake of a young man, easily over six feet tall: Dave Hughes, AKA ¡®Rock¡¯. Aptly named considering he is unable to take damage from external sources. Bullets just bounce off and knives get very blunt. Hiding in his shadow is Ashley Hughes, his younger sister who is even smaller than Maria, barely thirteen years old, AKA ¡®Ash¡¯. Her job is to act as ¡®limpet¡¯ for the team; trailing the target if they make a break as she dissolves into a cloud of smoke and watches from the shadows.

    The last member of the team enters, tall, though not as tall as Dave, with black hair and glasses with a slim build, Allan Ivanovsk completes the team, AKA ¡®Intel¡¯. His job is the brains of the team, providing tactical advice to everyone as well as monitoring vitals and calling strategies.

    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Huffing slightly Allan adjusts his glasses before dragging the large globe into the room, half his height and made of fine glass he drags it over to Maria¡¯s bed as he complains in a thick eastern European accent, ¡°I am not seeing why I have to do this. Why not Dave?¡±

    ¡°Shut it scarecrow,¡± snaps Katie as she turns to Maria. ¡°So, what you got?¡±

    Maria shudders again as she slowly leans over and plants her small finger over England on the globe next to her. ¡°London, close to the river, but that¡¯s it right now.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± Katie exclaims, ¡°You normally have more for me!¡± Calming herself she carries on in a lower voice when she sees Maria fiddling nervously at the outburst. ¡°Any indication of powers?¡±

    ¡°N-no, I-they were¡­ distracted,¡± mumbles Maria as she stares into the distance.

    Pete glances at Katie to see her brows furrowing in thought. This is bad. The way Maria¡¯s power works is she borrows the senses of the individual in question for a small period of time, as well as instilling in her brain the location of the individual. Essentially allowing her to experience whatever the rogue Unlocked is experiencing.

    ¡°How so?¡± queries Allan, currently surrounded by flickering screens of light as he begins his research on the area for any information.

    Maria hugs herself while staring into the blanket. ¡°He was cold, but didn¡¯t feel it, he was hungry but didn¡¯t react,¡± taking a shuddering breath she carries on, ¡°He was walking down a street, kind of normal but there were shadows everywhere. People, faces. All looking at him and screaming. Over and over, reaching out to tear his flesh and break his bones. Screaming at him, ¡®Why? Why did you do this?¡¯ over and over and over¡­¡±

    A thick silence falls over the room. The twins glance at one another and Ash draws closer to her brother. Maria only receives the visions about people who could cause serious harm to society and would do soon. To think that someone with such power would be haunted so is¡­ alarming.

    ¡°This is serious Katie,¡± Pete warns, ¡°you guys need to get moving.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Katie shakes her way out of her reverie. ¡°Right, we¡­¡±

    ¡°Got something!¡± chimes Allan. Everyone turns to him expectantly as he continues, straightening his glasses, ¡°In the past six months, in the London area, there have been a number of mysterious deaths in which the bodies are found without any cause of death. This has left police baffled, however, the only lead they have is a young, homeless man whom witness saw near all the scenes.¡±

    Looking up, Allan surveys his audience to ensure he has their attention before continuing and moving to another screen, ¡°This alone isn¡¯t enough to warrant our attention, however, just two hours ago, this video was uploaded.¡±

    Widening the screen with a gesture, Allan starts the video. It is blurry and mostly out of focus, but good enough to show a long figure in a long grey coat holding a bottle surrounded by a ring of teenagers in school uniform.

    ¡°Where¡¯s the sound?¡± Katie asks, trying to squeeze as much information as possible from the video.

    Allan just coughs apologetically, ¡°The video was taken down almost immediately, this was the best I could find, I¡¯m afraid.¡±

    The video meanwhile, shows how one of the youths steps forward, before exchanging a few words with the guy in the coat. Things evidently don¡¯t go well and the teenager pulls out a knife and waves it threateningly while saying a few more words. The boy then hesitates slightly before stabbing forward.

    Ash buries her face in Dave¡¯s back at the sight of the knife sticking out and Maria gasps.

    What happened next was more shocking though, as Pete¡¯s eyes widened at the sight of the guy in the coat calmly finishing his drink and throwing it aside, before pulling the knife out of his own chest.

    Closing the screen, Allan looks at Katie, ¡°Well?¡±

    ¡°We need to move. Now,¡± is her only answer.

    As they began filing out to board the plane the extraction team always has on hold, Pete stiffens.

    It won¡¯t enough. They¡¯re all going to die.

    Dread floods his system. Just how powerful is this guy? To be able to kill the whole extraction team¡­

    ¡°Katie!¡± Pete scrambles up, ¡°Wait!¡±

    Turning, she raises an eyebrow, ¡°What¡¯s up. Something wrong?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. You don¡¯t have enough.¡± Looking at her sceptical expression he presses on, ¡°I just had a premonition. If you go with this team, you¡¯ll die.¡±

    ¡°So what do we do?¡± Katie crosses her arms over her chest. She learnt long ago to trust Pete¡¯s ability as it is never wrong in what it does say.

    Pausing for a moment Pete decides, ¡°Yanus. You need Yanus with you.¡±

    Staring searchingly into Pete¡¯s face, Katie nods once before breaking out her grin. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll get him on side! Ciao!¡±

    With that she spins on her heel and striding out of the room in the direction of the lunch hall, loudly slams the door behind her.

    ¡°I just hope they¡¯ll be alright,¡± Maria says softly behind Pete.

    So do I. He thinks. So do I¡­

 Plan

    Just a quick foreword¡­

    So, quite surprised to be honest about the support shown for the story so far (I mean, only two chaps in so far) but it is welcome. So thanks everyone.

    However, just as a warning, for the next month or so (at least until 17th of June) I have exams and revision so I will try to keep updating, but don¡¯t expect anything consistent as I have to fit things in around my exams at the moment.

    Also, Overwatch open beta has started so yeh...

    Don¡¯t worry though, this is not hiatus. Just there may be one or two updates per week until after my exams.

    So yeah, thanks for the support and enjoy! undefined

    ---------------------------------

    With a soft ding, the lift doors open to reveal the drawn and dishevelled faces of seven teenagers who promptly stagger out into the hallway as they drag their meagre luggage. They have just arrived at a sparkly new hotel in the centre of London, having arrived in the country just over an hour ago.

    Rubbing her face as she turns, Katie fishes through her pockets to produce four electronic key cards with a flourish as she thinks about the room arrangements.

    ¡°Hmm¡­ Dave, you go with Ashley. Your room is 605.¡±

    ¡°Oh, yay!¡± Ashley squeals, eagerly reaching for the key card, ¡°I getta stay with bro! Come on, let¡¯s go! This is gonna be so much fun!¡±

    In her excitement Ashley forgets her luggage and proudly marches down the corridor holding the card before her like a sword.

    Katie chuckles slightly. It is easy to forget just how young she is sometimes, what with her hiding behind Dave most of the time. Glancing at the boy in question Katie sees him grinning wryly as he bends down to take his sister¡¯s luggage to the room.

    Sensing his chance one of the twins steps forward, Katie is not sure which, and declares proudly, ¡°Allow me to be your humble roommate for the duration of this trip,¡± as he bows extravagantly, a broad grin splitting his face.

    ¡°Oh no, take me rather. I think you would find me more¡­ satisfactory,¡± says the other with a snicker.

    ¡°Ew no.¡± Katie recoils at the thought. ¡°You two share a room. As far away from mine as possible thank you very much!¡± Returning the grin Katie flicks a card at the two of them, which is deftly caught, before the two turn in unison and march away with a laugh.

    Those two¡­ Just two more left.

    ¡°So Katie¡­ if you¡¯re fr-¡° starts Allan before Katie cuts him off.

    ¡°No. You are with Paul, Allan,¡± Katie says while pointing at their temporary team member. Short and round, the teenager resembles a bowling ball with short brown hair and a pair of thick glasses.

    ¡°Alright,¡± is Paul¡¯s only answer as he continues to shovel doritos into his mouth. He is, of course, ¡®Yanus¡¯, whose ability allows him to create portals to a separate, pocket dimension for storage and as weapons.

    Katie would never have brought him to begin with. Not that he isn¡¯t powerful enough, he¡¯s plenty strong. One of the Primes at the Academy. It¡¯s just that he isn¡¯t the best team player, spending most of his days playing videogames alone in his room. It just makes him unreliable for the team as he doesn¡¯t coordinate quite so well; a serious problem when facing someone who has the power to kill thousands or decimate the landscape.

    With a sigh, Allan takes the key and walks to his room, followed closely by Paul, still somehow demolishing his bag of crisps and carrying his bag at the same time.

    Holding her own card, Katie makes her way over to her own room and opens the door.

    ¡°Damn. No expenses spared, huh?¡± she mutters to herself as she surveys the room.

    It is clearly meant for the wealthy, with a large double bed against one wall with snow white bedding. On the wall opposite there is a large plasma screen TV, probably with 3D functions and surround sound.

    Next to the bed is a large desk with the usual kettle and complimentary tea, with a large, and upon further inspection, well stocked minibar.

    As Katie enters, she sees an ensuite bathroom immediately to her left and a walk in wardrobe to her right.

    After a brief pause she strides purposefully into the room and drops her suitcase at the foot of her bed before sinking into the seat at the desk with a relieved sigh. That damn Stepper. Katie has already vowed to kill him one day. Or at least feed him some cookies with salt rather than sugar.

    Thinking back, Katie recalls how upon leaving the Medical Block they immediately started searching for Stepper, eventually finding him hiding in the library surrounded by atlases and maps with lots of help from Tracker. Though they had already covered much of the town-like campus before doing so.

    Luckily for the team, he was more than glad to help. ¡°Finally get to stretch,¡± was all he said before closing his eyes and ¡®Stepping¡¯, as he calls it.

    Not really the best name though. Perhaps ¡®ripping a hole in space-time and falling through a blender of light and gravity, before being thrown onto the, thankfully, firm ground¡¯ is more suitable. Not the nicest of experiences.

    When they arrived, Katie only had time to look up and see the bastard give a salute, before ¡®stepping¡¯ back to his cosy library. He didn¡¯t even have the decency to tell them where he dropped them!

    One very stressful hour, and many harassed local residents later, the team finally arrived at the hotel they had been booked into at half past seven.

    Shaking her head, Katie jumps up and begins sorting through her luggage, taking out the things she will need for the next day and putting them in a separate rucksack. Most of it is rather innocent: a camera, some gloves and scarf, bottled water. Some of it, not so much, such as the taser, pepper spray and suppressor restraints.

    Don¡¯t underestimate modern weapons when fighting the Unlocked. While many of them are capable of withstanding hails of bullets, they all need to breathe still and they all have a weakness. Take Dave for instance; while he is immune to external damage, sleeping gas is still effective and renders him unconscious just as fast as a normal person. Obviously finding said weakness is rather tough, no one just tells you where to hit them after all.

    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    Finalising her preparations Katie walks over to the desk and dials the number for Allan¡¯s room. Waiting impatiently and tapping her foot, it is finally answered.

    ¡°Hello?¡±

    ¡°Oi, Allan. Get everyone sorted and in my room as soon as possible. We need to discuss what we¡¯re doing tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Huh? Alright then.¡±

    Hearing the click of the line being cancelled, Katie puts the phone down and takes a seat to wait. Not for long thankfully, as just five minutes later the door opens and the whole team files in.

    Ashley runs in first and starts jumping up and down on the bed with a huge smile on her face before the rest of the team walks in. Everyone seems settled in, more relaxed at least, with some having changed into more comfortable clothes.

    Katie firmly claps her hands together to call order and the others quickly form a half circle around her. They all know the drill, even Paul, who seems to have opened another bag of crisps, as he has been on missions with the rest before.

    ¡°Right, briefing plans people. Legal stuff, yada yada, blah blah blah¡­¡±

    Lowering her hands, Katie looks her team in the eyes. ¡°Obviously this is confidential, as per the United Nations ¡®Act of Unlock Collection¡¯, section four, paragraph nine. Anything I say here doesn¡¯t leave the room. Got it?¡±

    When they all nod in assent she continues, ¡°Also, anyone unwilling to take part in this mission speak now. This is your only chance to back out.¡±

    No one moves. No one every moves when Katie¡¯s in charge.

    With a pleased smile Katie motions to Allan, ¡°Map please.¡±

    Waving his hand, Allan quickly brings up and wide map of London which floats over to cover the wall. A series of red dots then appear, mainly focused along the northern bank of the Thames, one blue dot slightly further from the river and one green dot on the north bank.

    ¡°Right people, game faces on now,¡± says Katie before turning to the map. ¡°This shows all the information we have at the moment regarding the movements of the target. I know it¡¯s not much but due to his nature, there isn¡¯t much to say in the first place.¡± Noticing the confused looks on her teammates¡¯ faces, Katie elaborates, ¡°From what we know he is currently homeless and tends to move around a lot. Basically he has no ¡®base¡¯ and just wanders the streets. Why are unsure why.¡±

    ¡°Anyway, the red dots show the locations in which the bodies were found without wounds. The blue dot is roughly the location where we think the video was taken of the target being stabbed and the green dot is us right now. As you can see, it seems the north bank is his stomping ground, roughly ten kilometres across.¡±

    Tracker, though it could be Scanner, stirs and says, ¡°Moves around doesn¡¯t he?¡±

    Katie nods, ¡°Yes, I am aware it is large area so my plan is this: we split into three teams. Tracker, Scanner and Yanus I want prowling the area, keep your eyes peeled and scan as many people as possible.¡± Recalling the figure from the video she relays the information, ¡°I want memories of a young man, roughly our age in a long coat with an eyepatch over his left eye and bandaged hands. Don¡¯t focus on specifics, just memory concentrations. What places have seen him the most. We need to find out where he likes to go.¡±

    ¡°The next team will be Rock, Ash and myself. I want us to ask people; store owners, residents anyone who would stay in the area for a long time if they know about his patterns. All of this information will be relayed back to Intel here who will crunch the numbers and try to narrow the area down.¡±

    Looking into the faces of her team, Katie can¡¯t help but remember Pete¡¯s words and worry. She isn¡¯t sure she can cope if one of team dies on her watch, it¡¯s never happened before and she¡¯ll be damned if this is a first. ¡°One more thing. This guy is very dangerous. You all heard what Maria saw, so we can assume that he won¡¯t exactly be friendly. What¡¯s more, we don¡¯t know what his ability even is, so if you see him, do not try to contact him in any way. Just alert Intel and tail him, but avoid contact. I don¡¯t want anyone dying, alright?¡±

    Her team all nod, faces grim. Katie never warns them about the dangers of a mission, preferring to trust in their own judgement and abilities. She must be worried to go so far for a briefing.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We know the drill, we¡¯ll get the job done,¡± Dave says in a low voice.

    The sudden noise seems to break Katie out of her thoughts as she looks up, ¡°Damn right you¡¯ll do your job. We¡¯ve got a reputation to maintain here and if it is spoilt by one of you, I¡¯ll have you doing training until you puke.¡±

    With a grin Callum leans over to Conor, ¡°That¡¯s our Katie.¡±

    Waving her arms at them, Katie makes shooing noises, ¡°Get out of my room now and get some rest. We need to up early tomorrow. We have a lot of ground to cover. Go, go. Get out!¡±

    Laughing to one another, the others leave the room so Katie can get ready for bed.

    Allan however hangs back while fidgeting nervously.

    ¡°What?¡± Katie asks, peeved. She really wants to get to bed, but now this buffoon isn¡¯t done.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ I just have a bad feeling about tomorrow. We don¡¯t know enough about this guy.¡± Taking a breath and wringing his hands Allan carries on, ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t like it.¡±

    Katie frowns. Seems like she isn¡¯t the only one with her misgivings. ¡°I don¡¯t like it either. But we have to bring him in. Just keep a close watch on everyone tomorrow and warn them. I don¡¯t see what else we can do right now.¡±

    Sighing Allan nods, ¡°Yeah¡­¡± as he leaves the room, slowly closing the door behind him.

    Katie stares at the floor, deep in thought before shaking herself and clapping her face. ¡°Nothing we can do about it now. One step at a time. Just one step¡­¡±

    Having shaken herself from her reverie Katie quickly changes and brushes her teeth in the ensuite bathroom, before jumping into bed.

    Staring at the ceiling in the dark, Katie eventually falls into a fitful sleep as she dreams of a shadowy figure with an eyepatch chasing her through the streets while laughing manically, its one eye glowing balefully as she tries desperately to escape its gaze.

 Search

    Sorry about this slow pace atm. I''m still trying to get to grips with the story and how i want to to progress (I dont really plan too far ahead right now, maybe one or two chapters ahead, but i get the feeling i really should be)

    Anyway, I may have an upload for tomorrow but it depends. Dont expect anything (very sorry about this but even I dont really know what im going to do one day from the next, other than go to school that is)

    -----------------------------

    ¡°So, have you seen a homeless man, with blond hair and an eyepatch? About so high,¡± Dave asks the owner of the grocery store as he lifts his hand to his shoulder to indicate his height. ¡°Or have you heard anything about him? Anything really helps.¡± He smiles warmly, trying his best not to intimidate the short, middle aged woman on the other side of the counter.

    People are often scared by Dave, what with him being taller than most others and sporting a bulky, toned body which speaks of hours in the gym. His normal expression doesn¡¯t help either as he tends to scowl most of the time. At least, when not with Ashley. He often thinks to himself what he wants to do with his life, being almost old enough to leave school and look for a job, yet he cannot imagine not being there to protect his little sister.

    It has always been the two of them. Ever since they ¡®unlocked¡¯ their abilities it was tough. Their parents are very anti-Unlocks, often attending protests regarding them and how they should not be allowed rights and how they are a threat to society. Nothing really changed when they found out both of their children were that which they hated most, driving them out of their house and onto the streets. Dave will never forget the looks on their faces as they did so: gazing at them with hate and fear.

    The next few months were hard. The two siblings often had to sleep rough and scavenge for food to survive and Dave, unknown to Ashley, had to do anything he could to keep her alive, often illegal and downright disgusting. But it had to be done and he wouldn¡¯t do it any differently if he has to again.

    Fortunately for the pair they were picked up by the Academy after just a few months, before they became too wild, and were easily reintegrated into normal life. Well, as normal as can be with superpowers. Dave knows they both owe Katie: she was the one leading the team that picked them up and she managed to convince them peacefully to go, the best thing to happen to them in a long time.

    Because of his experience in the matter, Dave worries. He knows how headstrong and stubborn homeless people are, having been disillusioned about society. In the worst cases they are outright distrustful, refusing any help from others and preferring only to trust in themselves. In these cases, trying to offer help is meant with hostility or even aggression. He just hopes their target hasn¡¯t fallen so far.

    Unaware of Dave¡¯s thoughts, the store owner frowns, ¡°Hm¡­ Nothing comes to mind. Sorry love.¡± Smiling suddenly up at the brooding teenager she adds, ¡°Though the homeless aren¡¯t really interested in our goods. Maybe you can try the pubs or something?¡±

    ¡°No, no. It¡¯s fine. Thanks for the help,¡± Dave waves his hand, as if brushing the matter aside though not really listening, before turning and leaving the store. Catching sight of Katie sat on the bench outside his gaze immediately flicks to Ashley next to her as she carefully sips on a hot chocolate, trying to avoid burning her tongue, yet not patient enough to wait for it to cool.

    ¡°Anything yet?¡± Katie looks up from the map open on her lap, showing the northern half of London.

    ¡°No, none of the people we¡¯ve spoken to so far have seen anything.¡± It has been two days already, two days of slowly combing the bank of the Thames while asking residents and store owners if they know anything.

    With a sigh Katie rolls up the sleeve of her thick, winter sweater to check the time. ¡°eleven forty-five already. We should get moving.¡±

    Dave grunts in response before turning to Ashley, ¡°You okay?¡±

    ¡°Mmhm¡­¡± is the only response as she intently focuses on blowing into the cup in her hands, a tiny frown creasing her forehead. Despite almost only living for his sister, Dave never feels any anger or bitterness towards her, only surprise at seeing her remaining innocent despite everything that they have been through together. Shaking his head at her antics Dave motions for Ashley to follow him as they hurry off after Katie.

    Making their way through the crowd Dave asks, ¡°So have we heard anything?¡± almost desperately. Searching for something for two and a half days with no reward tends to wear down your spirit.

    Katie just shrugs, ¡°That¡¯s what we¡¯re going to find out. The others should be at the caf¨¦ already.¡± Dave tries to recall the name of the meeting point they have agreed upon for midday as he weaves through the crowd, keeping a close eye on Ashley the whole time.

    Eventually the trio of students turn away from the street and towards the promenade running along the river via a small side street threading its way through the new skyscrapers either side. When they arrive they see another group of four students huddled around a table outside a cosy little caf¨¦, dwarfed by the surrounding buildings, facing out over the river.

    Striding over, Katie loudly asks, ¡°And? What have we got so far?¡± just to be met with four gloomy faces.

    Allan eventually answers with a heavy sigh, ¡°Nothing really, just confirming what we already know.¡±

    Seeing Katie¡¯s questioning face the Callum, or it could be Conor, quickly speaks up, ¡°Yeah, like, there are loads of memories of the guy in this area, so we do know that he is here. It¡¯s just that nobody has anything good enough to work with.¡±

    The other twin nods dispiritedly, ¡°And there are too many trails for me to use.¡± He raises his hands in hopelessness, ¡°He has crisscrossed this area so many times that I can¡¯t pick out one trail. It¡¯s like he knows our plan and is trying to counter it. Unless I can isolate one trail and follow it I can¡¯t do anything, but I don¡¯t know which one to follow.¡±

    Katie sighs and rubs her temples with her fingertips. ¡°None of the shop owners we¡¯ve talked to so far have had anything either. It¡¯s like he tries to avoid making any kind of connection we can use to find him.¡±

    Dave¡¯s feeling of unease spikes. They¡¯re not looking at this with the right angle, he is sure of it. If there is some kind of fate it is probably laughing at them. What are they missing? It¡¯s not possible to live in a city like London and not make a strong impression on at least one person. Maybe¡­

    Allan starts talking, ¡°I don¡¯t kno-,¡±

    ¡°Wait!¡± Dave jumps up, attracting the gaze of several nearby people in the caf¨¦ as well as the those of his team. Coughing to cover his reddening face he hastily sits back down. ¡°We¡¯re not looking at this right.¡±

    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Allan asks, ¡°We¡¯ve looked everywhere he could have gone. Face it mate thi-.¡±

    Desperately forcing his thoughts into order, Dave thinks back over everything they know about the rogue Unlocked. He likes to stay near the river, that much is obvious from the deaths and the memory scans. What else? There was the video showing him getting stabbed, but also something else. Something small. ¡°The video!¡± Dave interrupts. ¡°Just let me see the video.¡± Looking at the teams¡¯ questioning gazes he insists, ¡°I think we missed something.¡±

    ¡°Right¡­¡± Obviously not convinced Allan pulls out his phone and accesses the video after a moment. Offering the phone to Dave he gives him a searching look. Almost warning him not to mess up. Katie¡¯s no-nonsense face from the corner of his eye made Dave shudder.

    Looking down at the phone Dave plays the soundless video and almost immediately lets out a long sigh before handing the phone back across the table. ¡°We¡¯re so dumb this isn¡¯t even funny anymore.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± demands Katie, her voice low and dangerous.

    ¡°I don¡¯t-,¡± Allan begins before Dave cuts him off as she shakes his head in disgust. ¡°What is he holding?¡±

    ¡°Some booze. Why is that¡­¡± Allan trails off as his eyes widen in his sudden moment of enlightenment, before he lowers his head to the table with a groan. ¡°Two days¡­ two days in the completely wrong place¡­¡±

    ¡°What?¡± both twins ask in unison as they snatch the phone and watch the video. Looking up they seem even more confused than before as they glance at Allan, who is busy repeatedly hitting his head on the table.

    ¡°What is going on?¡± Katie demands, her voice even more dangerous than before. She looks like she could do murder as she looks at Allan who has regressed even further and is busy trying to disappear into his thick winter coat.

    ¡°We¡¯ve been looking in the wrong places.¡± Dave explains, the words of the grocer repeating in his mind, Check the pubs¡­ Check the pubs¡­, ¡°In the video he throws away one bottle of alcohol and pulls out another. Where did he get them from?¡± Shaking his head darkly he carries on, ¡°We assumed he was normal and forgot he was Unlocked and checked the places tramps normally go.¡± Shuddering in disgust Dave remembers how many pubs they walked past in the last two days. ¡°And we didn¡¯t even check one.¡±

    The twins groan as they finally understand how much time they have wasted as they sink into their chairs. Ashley and Paul just smile at their own stupidity while Katie¡¯s face freezes. Dave glances at her in fear. If she flips out now she will punish all them as her subordinates.

    Thankfully for everyone, she just laughs along with Paul and Ashley before clapping her hands for attention. ¡°Well, now we know the last place to look. Dave, you¡¯re the only one here who can pass for eighteen so you go and ask.¡±

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I at least take Callum with me?¡± Dave frowns, ¡°Surely we need more information and the memo-.¡±

    ¡°Nah.¡± Katie says, ¡°I have a feeling you won¡¯t need him.¡± She smiles sweetly before waving him off. ¡°Go on now. Shoo!¡±

    With a sigh Dave gets up and heads back the way he came before to get back to the main street. Looking across the road he sees a pub nestled between two flower shops. If a building could look smug, this building would be positively gloating as Dave stared it down from his alley.

    With a growl of disgust Dave crosses the road and pushes the door open. He is immediately met with a wall of noise: shouting and laughter mixed with the sounds of a TV loudly blaring in the back as it shows the latest football game. A few of the patrons look up when Dave enters, but quickly return to their drinks and conversations after a brief pause.

    Weaving his way through the tables, apologising frequently to avoid a fight, Dave eventually reaches the bar where he catches the eyes of the barkeep. A stout man of slightly below average high with a badly receding hairline, he waddles over to Dave after putting down the mug he was busy polishing.

    ¡°What can I do you for, young man?¡± he asks as he scrutinises the teenager. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m gonna have to ask for ID.¡± His eyes narrow in suspicion as he tries to guess Dave¡¯s age.

    Trying to put him at ease, Dave smiles, ¡°Don¡¯t worry I¡¯m not here for a drink. Actually I was wondering if I could ask you something.¡±

    ¡°Oh,¡± the man¡¯s features soften as he takes up a rag and his mug again and continue polishing. ¡°Ask away.¡±

    Dave eases himself onto a barstool before asking, ¡°Well, I am looking for someone and hopefully you might know him.¡± Looking up from his mug the barkeep motions for him to continue, ¡°Well, he¡¯s homeless, blond hair, eyepatch, bandaged hands, long coat¡­¡± Dave trails off as he sees the man¡¯s fearful glare and hears the conversations around him dying as everyone turns to look at him, a mixture of anger and fear apparent on their faces.

    Looks, like I came to the right place then.

    ¡°Are you with him?¡± the barkeep demands in a strangled voice as the other drinkers start angrily muttering to each other.

    ¡°No, no,¡± Dave tries to explain. ¡°I don¡¯t know him. I just need to ask him some questions.¡±

    ¡°So you¡¯re not his friend then?¡± the man asks, suspicion plain on his face as he studies Dave intently.

    ¡°No, I¡¯ve never met him before!¡±

    ¡°So you¡¯re looking for him then?¡±

    Relieved Dave jumps at the chance to explain himself, ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ve been looking for two days and not found anything. If you know where he is or something I would really help.¡± By now he is desperate, but doesn¡¯t want to agitate the barkeep any more than he already has.

    Relaxing slightly, the man motions to the patrons, who turn back to their own tables and the building again resumes its normal volume.

    ¡°Look, I don¡¯t know where he is right now, but I know where he¡¯ll be in the next few days,¡± he leans over the counter and speaks in a low tone. ¡°I leave some booze out back for him so he doesn¡¯t come in here and start trashing the place. He comes along every few days and picks it up and I leave out new booze.

    ¡°If you just wait outside the alley round the back, you¡¯ll run into him in the next few days.¡± The man looks Dave in the eye, ¡°Look, I don¡¯t really care what business you have with him, but don¡¯t bring me into it, okay? I value this place and don¡¯t want to see it busted up.¡±

    Dave just nods, deep in thought, before standing and quickly leaving the pub, ignoring the hostile glares of the customers on the way out. When he gets out on the street Dave pulls out his phone and dials Katie¡¯s number.

    ¡°Yeah, we got him¡­ Looks like it¡¯s gonna be a stake out.¡±

 Found

    Allan fiddles with his earpiece as he scans the street in front of him. Seated on a bench outside a book shop he has a perfect view of his entrance to the alley that runs behind the pub.

    Once they had established that their target uses the alley, further investigation revealed that it has two entrances, one to the left of the bar which runs along and behind the building before continuing for about one hundred metres and emerging opposite the book store where Allan is currently seated with Dave and Ashley.

    It turns out staking out somewhere manually requires a large amount of skill. You have to be able to remain focused enough on the stream of people you are watching to avoid letting the target slip by, but not so focused that you tire yourself out and drop off later on. Fortunately, Allan has had the time to practise this important, yet mostly useless skill.

    The trio have been watching the entrance for a day and a half now since Dave entered the pub, five days after they arrived in London. The way things are headed now, this is easily going to be one of the worst missions in the history of the Academy, with the average one lasting just one or two days. Not almost an entire week.

    Looking to the side Allan sees that the number of watchers on this entrance has dropped from three to two as Ashley has dozed off, leaning against her brother. Dave meanwhile is staring at the passerbys with an almost scary intensity. Similar to the looks he gave people when Allan first met him.

    Thinking back, Allan remembers the mission when they found Dave and Ashley. The team back then was roughly the same, the twins, Katie and himself, as well as some helping hands who volunteered. That was before they had formed the team fully as they were still in the recruitment phase. Needing just a few more members before they could register officially through the extraction committee.

    They had been tasked with locating two Unlocked in Sydney. No information provided as to their powers or personalities. They didn''t even know how old they were. Assuming the worst, the team remained tense and on edge the whole time. That particular mission lasted three days. Three days of combing the back alleys and run down suburbs under a blazing Australian sun. Of course, that wasn''t the hardest part. Oh no. The hardest part only started once they actually found the pair of Unlocked. The two siblings, Dave in particular didn''t care for what they had to say as he told them exactly where to shove their ''pretty little academy''.

    The only reason that the situation didn¡¯t deteriorate into conflict was Katie. To this day, Allan doesn¡¯t know what she said to the two siblings, as the whole team had been curtly ordered to, ¡°Take a walk. Let me handle it.¡± Those were the two most nerve wracking minutes of Allan¡¯s life so far as he paced up and down the street, waiting for Katie to finish. You could say that she was the core of the team, the sun to their planets. He knows that if she were to leave, or die, the team would be no more, just a group of individuals bickering amongst themselves.

    Glancing at his watch Allan sees that it is almost evening rush hour, the one time that the target may be able to slip through the net due to the vast number of people making their way home after work. Nudging Dave, he motions for him to wake up Ashley, ¡°Eyes peeled now. It¡¯s rush hour.¡±

    Dave nods and gently wakes Ashley by shaking her shoulder. ¡°Wakey, wakey. We need your help.¡± With a yawn and a stretch, Ashley sits up and rubs her eyes as she looks around blearily, ¡°Have we seen him yet?¡±

    ¡°No, but we may do soon, so start watching.¡±

    ¡°Uuu¡­ alright.¡± With a pout Ashley starts watching the crowd. It is tough on the kid, having so little to do while waiting. But then again, it would be worse to miss the target and have to wait for another week.

    Allan glances at the exchange before turning back to the crowd. His relationship with the pair is complicated, especially Dave. It¡¯s not that they dislike one another, but neither are they friends. They both understand what has to be done yet they disagree over how to go about it. They get along well, but think too differently to be able to be true friends.

    With a sigh Allan watches as the hordes of office workers are disgorged from the buildings around them, rapidly willing the streets to bursting point as they hurried home. The huge crowds make it difficult to pick out one individual, though thankfully they only have to watch the alley entrance for anyone entering.

    Allan jumps suddenly as Katie¡¯s voice crackles through the earpiece, ¡°You awake?¡±

    Relaxing and waving off Dave¡¯s amused glance Allan says, ¡°Yeah, just watching the entrance. Nothing yet.¡±

    ¡°Alright. If we don¡¯t find anything by nine, we¡¯re going to call off the search and get reinforcements.¡±

    Allan gulps, ¡°R-roger.¡± He knows what Katie really means: find him before nine. Or else. Seeing Dave glancing at his pale face Allan forces a sickly smile, ¡°We have a deadline. Nine o¡¯clock.¡± Beads of sweat appear on Dave¡¯s forehead as he slowly nods. No one on the team wants to face Katie when she¡¯s angry.

    Minutes go by, then an hour and still nothing, just the tired faces of the workers of London as they hurry past, slowly blurring into one large mass of exhausted relief at finishing for the day.

    Painfully aware of the passing of time and the fear of not finding the target both Dave and Allan don¡¯t notice the figure in a long grey coat approaching the alley until Ashley nudges Dave, ¡°Hey. Isn¡¯t he the guy?¡± as she nods her head in his direction.

    Startled and embarrassed by their inattentiveness the two immediately act, though Dave doesn¡¯t have to do much as he just focuses on the older teenager slowly trudging along the pavement. Allan meanwhile calls Katie, ¡°We have him, he¡¯s approaching the alley now.¡±

    All business, her response is curt.

    ¡°We¡¯re moving now.¡±

    Focusing on the figure Allan tries to learn as much as he can from him before they make contact. He walks slowly along the pavement, hugging the wall to avoid the oncoming stream of people and hunched over, losing several inches of height. He seems almost tired, worn down as he lethargically places one booted foot in front of the other, his face pale and gaunt. Despite this however, his roving eye seems to take in everything and everyone. His piercing gaze sweeps across the trio and Allan feels a shiver run down his spine, like icy fingers.

    He keeps walking. And walking. The distance to the alley seems infinite as Allan waits for him to walk into the trap. Finally, day after day of waiting have paid off. Anticipation fills him, but he forces himself to stay calm. Acting too soon would ruin everything. As the target reaches the entrance, Allan draws a breath to relay the information, but freezes halfway.

    He¡¯s stopped.

    Frozen in place, Allan watches with an inexplicable sense of rising dread as the youth standing in the mouth of the alley slowly turns, meeting Allan¡¯s gaze from across the road.

    This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    Cold. It is the only word Allan can use to describe the eye of the teenager. Empty of emotion and empathy, it reaches across the gap between them as it sizes him up. Cutting into him. Exposing everything he is. Allan unconsciously stiffens in his seat and his heart rate skyrockets. His whole body screams at him that the youth looking at him is wrong.

    Time seems to slow, as the few seconds of eye contact stretch into infinity. Unable to turn away Allan watches as he slowly turns away from the alley and walks back the way he came. A flash of irritation skitters across the target¡¯s face before he breaks eye contact.

    As though a spell is broken, Allan regains control of his breathing and his heart calms in his chest. Looking to Dave, Allan sees that he is effected as well as the colour gradually returns to his face. What was that, his power? Or a side effect? If it is the latter, the team may be too far out of their depth. That fear¡­ it wasn¡¯t mere anxiety or nerves. It was primal terror. A terror of something worse than death¡­

    Gathering his wits Allan decides the best thing to do is follow procedure.

    ¡°Ash¡­¡±

    --MC POV¡ª

    Who are those bastards?

    I scowl fiercely as I back up the way I came. Seeing my expression, several people back off, fear visible on their faces. I suppose it¡¯s sensible, staying away from an angry homeless guy. But seriously, who are they? They don¡¯t look like they are from around here. The way they carry themselves is too stiff and uncomfortable to be from London.

    I suppose them being from out of town rules out revenge. None of the people I¡¯ve roughed up have the connections to call in help from abroad. They could have tracked me because of that video.

    Ugh... Now that I think about it that''s probably what happened. But if it was the video''s fault then this is bad. Really fucking bad. If they''re from abroad and have been sent to track me down, it means they belong to a company with enough power to cause issues down the line.

    I thought I was done with this bullshit. Like seriously, so many people want a piece of me. Have wanted a piece of me. Have got a piece of me. Many now dead, not that many still alive...

    How rude of them. Like seriously now, first they stop me from getting my drink, now they''re fucking following me. It''s not like I''m doing anything to them.

    I turn and look back the way a I came but I don''t see anything, just the few stragglers let out late from work hurrying home, the streets gradually clearing of people. Huh, I''m fairly sure someone is following me. Now, in this situation, most people would look, and upon seeing nothing out of place, assume nothing is wrong. Thing is, I''ve seen enough Unlocked to know they have so many ways of hiding that you''d need half the Amazon rainforest to make enough paper to write a list of them. So yeah, pretty screwed right?

    Not for me.

    Closing my eye, I focus on feeling the living thugs around me, the people, the weeds in the pavement, the birds in the eaves. I reach out and sense them. Their heartbeat, no I go deeper. I see the flashes of electricity along their nerves yet I go deeper. Down and down into the living beings around me until I see a void. A void so dark and thick, yet so comforting for me. Ah yes, here it is. The spark.

    It''s a funny little thing, this spark. Scientists around the world struggle to find the answer to the most basic question: what is life? What takes a collection of atoms and gives it consciousness? Well it''s this little thing, so small against this vast blackness. It seems almost as though it''s about to be swallowed whole, not surprising really considering how weak it looks compared to this abyss. So easily extinguished.

    Widening my perception, I cover the whole street with this sense. Bend light all you want; you can''t hide the fact that you are alive. Once the spark goes out in you, it never comes back, so unless you''re dead, you can never truly hide from me.

    Sweeping my sense over the road and buildings next to me, I search for the bastard following me. Hm... no that''s some grass... moss... Oh what about- never mind, just a bird. That''s one problem with this little trick; I can''t differentiate between different living things at a glance.

    Continuing my search, I finally find the pursuer. Crafty bugger I''ll give them that; they seem to be able to change their body composition into smoke. Seems kind of dull to me, but it does allow you to fit inside some small spaces. Such as a drainpipe.

    I walk over to the drain in question and squat down next to the opening. I''m getting real tired of this shit. Maybe I should make a statement so people just leave me the fuck alone? Hmm... Possibly, it could work. I''ll see what this one has to say first.

    --Ash POV¡ª

    How does he know I''m here? I did everything like bro told me to; I kept my distance and avoided contact. He shouldn''t even know I''m following him.

    I''m so scared right now. This isn''t right. The moment he stopped and turned I flowed into this pipe to hide, but he''s found me! How!?

    I''m panicking... I can''t... stop my... breathing... Is this fear? This isn''t like the time bro threatened to take my phone off me. This is worse, it''s like I know I''m going to die.

    Suddenly I quite voice worms its way into the drain, drilling into me, "I know you''re there. Get the fuck out now." Oh god, that voice. My panic spikes and I start to lose reason.

    In a desperate bid to escape I flow out of the pipe and mould back into my body. I can''t think, I can''t control my breathing. My heart is out of control. I''m aware that I''ve curled up on the floor shaking, but my vision is darkening, my blood pounding through my ears. I just hear his voice over and over in my head. So cold, digging into my very soul.

    I summon the strength to turn my head as I see him. He''s squatting down next to me, staring at me with those empty eyes.

    Oh god. My heart... it¡¯s going to burst. I can feel it faltering... Becoming erratic. I see him stand a walk over to me. Please no. Don''t come closer. Please...

    I see him raise his arm, his bandaged hand forming a fist before he whips it forward into my head. I feel the impact, how my body rocks with the force of the blow. I feel the pain spreading from spot he hit me as my vision blurs and fades and then...

    Darkness.

    ---------------------

    Sry about the wait, I''ve been revising for my exams starting next week, so I haven''t had much of a chance to work on this.

    Also sorry if there is a drop in quality because I am currently in bed doing this on my phone, so no proofread as of yet, though it will be done tomorrow.

 Meeting

    Sweet Lord... these exams are more intense than I thought they would be...

    Managed to squeeze out a chapter today but no too sure on the quality. I''ve also sorted out the formatting issues on the previous chapter and done a quick proofread on it.

    So anyway, enjoy.

    ------------------------------------------

    Cocking my head to the side, I look at the girl I¡¯ve propped up against wall as I squat down next to her. She looks young, no more than fourteen years old, dressed up warmly to ward off the winter chill with a scarf wrapped around her neck and a winter parka. She has dark brown hair, almost black in a ponytail and a face many people would consider cute.

    I have no clue why anyone would think that she could do anything to me. I mean look at her, she¡¯s what? Barely a teenager, barely capable of even staying conscious when I look at her spark. Fucking disgraceful to be honest, but what does that say about me? I mean, sending her after me of all people, whoever¡¯s in charge must either think highly of her, or very fucking badly of me.

    Though I suppose they may not know anything about me. If whoever sent her, and those others I saw, followed ¡®legal procedures¡¯ and used approved sources of information, I doubt they would find anything on me. At least, nothing useful.

    Rubbing my forehead, I grimace. Why? Why couldn¡¯t they just leave me alone? It¡¯s not like I¡¯m hurting anyone, at least not too many people here. Just for once I¡¯d like to meet someone in a position of power that isn¡¯t at least a minor control freak. I mean, is it really necessary to need to place tabs on every single Unlocked in the world? Can¡¯t I at least live in peace for once?

    What to do now? Obviously I can¡¯t stay here with the girl. It¡¯s too exposed to the general public and if someone were to see a grubby homeless person standing over an unconscious girl, guess who gets the shit? Glancing around to check my bearings I realise I¡¯m fairly close to the park. Literally just around the corner, which is perfect. Quiet, isolated and with enough room to move if shit happens.

    Deciding that this is the best course of action, I bend down and haul the girl over my shoulder with a grunt. Sometimes I really wish I had super strength or something. It¡¯s just so useful in these scenarios. And it also looks cool as fuck when you start throwing cars at people and the like.

    I take a quick glance behind me to make sure nobody¡¯s looking or calling the police before setting off to the park at a run, the limp body across my shoulder flopping around with every step.

    Fortunately for me, it¡¯s only about two hundred metres to the park and even more so; there are no random people standing around to watch me do so. Strange really, it¡¯s only just been rush hour and though it does get dark earlier, what with it being winter and all, the streets are not normally this empty.

    Whatever, not like it matters I guess. Beggars can¡¯t be choosers, and I¡¯m certainly qualified for the position of beggar.

    Walking through the main gate, I head to the centre of the park along the narrow pathways through the overgrown (and rather dead looking) plants. Emerging from the thicket I look out onto the centre area of the park. It¡¯s sort of an oval shaped basin, about three hundred metres across, with a pond at one end and the rest of it looking like a lawn outside someone¡¯s house with designated paths running across it, though nobody really minds if you cut across the grass.

    Perfect place for a fight if you don¡¯t want anyone to see. At least, now it is because no one comes here this time of year.

    Spying a bench at about the middle of the field I walk over quickly, completely ignoring the paths and getting my feet drenched in the process by the dew. Seriously though, I know this place. If everything does go pear-shaped I want at least some chance of getting out without a fight against other Unlocked. These kind of thing tend to attract very unwanted attention.

    When I reach the bench, I roll the girl off my shoulder and onto it. She seems alright, if you ignore the lovely bruise she¡¯s developing on her temple where I hit her. She¡¯s breathing at least, so everything¡¯s fine. It¡¯s always good to have a hostage to ensure at least some civility.

    And now, I wait. The ball is in their court. If they come after me, or the girl, so be it and we can get this sorted. If they don¡¯t, well I¡¯m not going to lose any sleep over it.

    Plopping myself down next to the girl I reach into my pocket and pull out a packet of cigarettes. Quite a good find actually, half full and just lying on top of a bin. I mean, it¡¯s good for me because hygiene doesn¡¯t really mean anything when I have yet to be killed by any form of infection or disease. Though I could get lucky now and miraculously become ill from the cigarettes and die. I could always get cancer. Though I doubt that that would kill me either.

    Fishing out a cheap plastic lighter that I nicked from a corner shop I quickly light up a cigarette, the soft glow illuminating my face as I take a long drag. Tastes like shit to be honest, but the calming effect of the nicotine does feel nice.

    I wait and I wait as the pile of ash next to me grows larger and the sky becomes fully night. Is it possible that the girl would be left behind? I doubt it, but you never know.

    Just as I finish lighting my twelfth fag, the girl next to me stirs and groans as she feebly stretches out her neck. I watch her out of the corner of my eye, but make no other movement, rather watching the tree line for her friends.

    As she slowly sits up she looks around blearily and rubs her head with a groan, I can¡¯t help but wonder why she is here. She just looks so unprepared for anything. When she finally sees me exhaling a plume of smoke into the cold air she freezes and slowly edges away. Probably trying to gain some distance before running.

    ¡°Don¡¯t even bother,¡± is all I say, still not turning to look at her. ¡°I¡¯d rather not kill you.¡±

    At the sound of my voice she visibly flinches but at least she stops moving. She looks fucking terrified, shaking with fear and casting glances at me when she thinks I¡¯m not looking. I swear she nearly bricked it when I raised my hand for another drag. Kind of funny really.

    I¡¯ve always found that to be the best way of intimidating someone. Leave it unspecified as to what exactly it is that you are going to do. It¡¯s all about the nature of fear: your imagination. That¡¯s all fear is if you think about it, it is your mind attempting to imagine what is going to happen and then preparing your body to react. If someone points a gun at you, you¡¯re not afraid that he is pointing it at you, you are afraid that he is going to shoot you. In the same way, if you just generally threaten someone but don¡¯t say what you are going to do, they tend to fuel their own fear without you having to do anything.

    ¡°Where are your friends?¡±

    Again she jumps at the sound of my voice, but doesn¡¯t say anything, only looking down at her feet and refusing to look up. I turn my head for the first time and drill my gaze into her. I know I have a scary glare and I intend to make full use of it.

    She flinches at my movement, but refuses to meet my gaze. I maintain the pressure for a few more seconds before she decides to speak.

    ¡°They should be here soon,¡± She breaks off and looks up into the woods as her voice holds the faint traces of hope, ¡°In fact, they¡¯re here.¡±

    I merely grunt and go back to my cigarette as I watch the shadowy figures emerge from the trees and start crossing the grass. I just hope they¡¯ll be willing to take the girl and go. Though I get the feeling that things won¡¯t work out that way.

    As the group gets closer their features become more distinct. That tall guy is leading the way. The one who looks like he lives in the gym and man he looks pissed. Like, someone just set fire to my house and has now taken a shit in my hair pissed.

    Just behind him comes a short girl flanked by two twins and some fat, greasy, bowling ball looking nerd. Still behind them comes another guy, taller with glasses, who looks very worried as he constantly fidgets.

    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    The group walks up and stops about ten metres from my bench. Aren¡¯t they going to saying something? That¡¯s how this shit normally works right? Heh, I can wait for them.

    After about thirty seconds the beefcake takes a step forward, towards the girl but the girl calls him back.

    ¡°Dave!¡±

    With a conflicted look the boy retreats a step and resolves to try and kill me with a stare. Not impressed, not that it matters. I¡¯m more interested in the other girl. The one who seems to be in charge as I study her appearance. She¡¯s kind of short with curly hair and a bag. I don¡¯t like bags. You can have anything in there, like literally anything: a gun, a body. Pretty much anything

    Another thirty seconds pass in silence before the girl sighs and steps forward.

    ¡°Look, we know that you¡¯re Unlocked. Please let us help you.¡± She hesitates and her eyes flicker to my eyepatch, ¡°I don¡¯t know what you can do, but please, come with us and we can help you deal with whatever¡¯s wrong. We¡¯ve been sent by the Academy for Advancement of the Supernatural. We specialise in helping those with powers.¡±

    I say nothing, just narrow my eye at her as I flick my fag end to the side and continue my scrutiny. After a pause, she opens her mouth to carry on but I speak first, ¡°How¡¯s this instead? I give you back the girl,¡± I jerk my head to indicate the girl sitting next to me, ¡°and you guys fuck right off and leave me in peace.¡±

    The tall guy, his face twisting in anger steps forward as well as he adjusts the gloves he is wearing, ¡°She¡¯s not yours to give.¡±

    I merely sneer at him before turning back to the ¡®boss¡¯ as she continues talking. ¡°Look. We cannot leave here without you and we have been authorised to use force to bring you in. So please don¡¯t make this more difficult than it has to be. We might not know your power but we will fight you, and if we die, more powerful people will be sent.¡±

    I merely stare at her before shaking my head slowly. ¡°Nope. Not happening girlie.¡± Now what? I am genuinely curious as to what they are going to do next. I¡¯m not afraid. At least not for myself.

    She mentions for the tall guy, I guess his name is Dave, who quickly rushes forward across the gap. At his sudden movement everyone but me starts moving, the girl sitting next to me dives away and gets some distance, the two twins move back to the tall glasses guy and Mr Bowling Ball steps forward in front of the girl in charge.

    I don¡¯t move.

    Dave, seeing the huge opening ploughs straight into me with his shoulder, snapping the bench in half and flattening me completely before bending down and picking me up by the lapel of my coat. Holding me a good few inches above the ground he beings to slug me across the face with his gloved hands before hurling me though the air towards the fat guy.

    I hit the ground hard but slowly get to my feet and wipe some blood off my face. Dave rushes me again and swings a wide haymaker. How dumb does he think I am? I merely step back and let the first whistle by my face. Ah, so that¡¯s why the punches hurt so much, the gloves have hardened knuckles. Probably saved his life in all honesty.

    I instantly counter and punch him across the face to be met with a cracking sound. His face doesn¡¯t move and his next punch lifts me off my feet. What is this guy made of? It felt like punching concrete. As I sail through the air a second time I muse to myself that he could be a transfigurator. Maybe turning his body to some kind of dense metal?

    I pick myself up again and inspect my wrist. Definitely broken, the hand is flopping around like a limp dick and I can hear the bones crunching together. With my other hand I straighten the joint with a loud snap as the bones begin to knit back together.

    Looking up I see Dave running at me again. Fucking persistent I¡¯ll give him that but this is going nowhere. He keeps beating me down but I¡¯ll always get back up and I can¡¯t hurt him without using my power. I glance at fatso, but he hasn¡¯t moved and I¡¯m assuming the others are not suited for combat. Probably psychics.

    I don¡¯t know. Is it worth the risk of using my ability here? I doubt I could outrun Dave, so if I don¡¯t I will never get away. But the collateral... Urgh. I don-

    My thoughts are interrupted by a heavy impact to my chest which sends me flying again. Seriously mate, fuck off while I¡¯m thinking of the pros and cons of killing you! Though I guess that decides it then¡­

    Righting myself in the air, I dig my feet into the ground and skid back a few feet as I feel for it. The power within me. I enter a trance like state, almost meditation as I feel a familiar feeling of hate and despair well up as I tap into the power. Not my emotion though. It belongs to them. Shadows flicker across my vision and I hear a snippets of voices screaming around me.

    Kill¡­ Kill them all.

    Kill them like you killed us!

    Kill them¡­

    Rip them to pieces!

    I can feel them overwhelming me, the darkness almost completely obscuring my vision, I can feel myself losing reason in the dark. My mind becoming a frail bastion in a sea of madness and rage.

    No! I look down and see a dark mist oozing from my skin, the grass around me shrivelling and dying as it touches the mist. Dave by now has backed off, but I don¡¯t care. I desperately claw for control as I try to drive the madness away. Finally, it abates and gives in, yielding to my will. I am not done yet.

    Looking up again from my hands I see Dave has backed off completely and the fat guy has stepped forward, low blue glow surrounding his hands. I sneer again, I seem to be doing that a lot these days, as I use the mist to form a pure black sword.

    As a step forward to swing the sword the nerd I see a flash of blue to my left and a dull pain rips through me. I turn and see my arm fall to the group with a thump as blood spurts from my stump. Really man? We¡¯re gonna do this shit now?

    With a growl I let the sword dissipate and I reach down to pick up my arm before holding it to my stump and allowing it to reattach after a few seconds, though the nerves will take longer to fix.

    I see the boss girl step forward and speak, ¡°Please, you can¡¯t win here. Just come quietly.¡±

    Like fucking hell I will. ¡°Hah,¡± I growl, ¡°We will kill every last one of you!¡± Reaching further, I draw on more power, but the madness rises with it, threatening to sweep me away. I begin expelling more and more mist, which slowly swirls forward, leaving a swath of death in its wake as it reaches for the girl of its own accord. I can barely see through the darkness anymore, nor hear anything as the screams are too loud as they begin to take control.

    I see another flash of light before my body topples forward and hits the dry, lifeless ground. I try to get to my feet but I don¡¯t move: the bastard cut me in half. Like that¡¯s going to stop me though. I look back to try to send a spike of mist at the girl, but instead see her levelling some kind of gun at me.

    See? You can hide anything in a bag.

    I see her squeeze the trigger and a dart flies out to hit me in the shoulder. This is followed by two more and I can already feel them take effect as my vision darkens even further. As I slip out of consciousness, I see her lower the gun and talk to someone on my left before I lose all sight and the screaming reaches a mighty crescendo before blissful silence.

 Killer

    I would just like to say first off thanks for the pointers you guys gave me in the previous chapter and i would like to reassure you, the fight isnt over yet.

    I get that I may have made the mc seem a bit weak before, but that was necessary to get to this point (at least for me as Im not the best writer by far) so you know... more character development etc. So things like why he didnt just wipe the floor with the others will be explained here briefly, as well as more insight into his motivation.

    Also for the more bloodthirsty of you guys hopefully this will have more action so fear not.

    So enjoy and if you think it can be improved or something just give some feedback as it really helps (I cant read minds you know ;)).

    ---------------------------------------------

    With a low groan I slowly open my eye and take in the room around me. Doesn¡¯t look like a normal cell or anything¡­ huh. It¡¯s kind of large, though a bit plain, as though there should be more in here alongside the large bed and small table next to it.

    I¡¯m currently sitting against the wall opposite said bed and to my left I see a large window, like floor to ceiling large, though the blinds are closed. To my right there is a short hallway with a door at the far end and an open one leading off to the left. As far as most cells go it¡¯s not too bad. At least the carpeted floor is soft. At this point I¡¯m guessing it is a cell, I mean, that¡¯s where you normally put people you capture isn¡¯t it?

    With a sigh, I lift my hand to rub my face when I feel a weight shift on my left wrist. I look in curiosity, which quickly turns to amusement as I snicker to myself. It seems to be some kind of limiter bracelet that has been locked onto my arm. It¡¯s about four inches long and made of a dull black metal with a small box attached to the back.

    Is this really all they have? I know I didn¡¯t really have a chance to get started on them properly when we fought last night, but please just one limiter? Bloody fools the lot of them. I¡¯m hoping it was last night anyway because I really need some alcohol in my system right about now. I¡¯m almost feeling lucid.

    I lower my hand and stare into the distance. Why? When did I become so soft? I don¡¯t understand it. I would never let people get away with trying to fight me back in the day, I would have killed them without a second thought. But now¡­ now I¡¯m too worried about hiding, attracting unwanted attention. It¡¯s not the way I used to work.

    No. This has to change. I don¡¯t know when I went wrong but I am sure as hell not going to stay like this. Going to some Academy? Fuck off. Those places are the biggest wastes of space you will ever find. It¡¯s probably not even an academy, just some prison for the Unlocked. Definitely not for me. I done with that shit.

    I do another once over of the room before turning to myself. Don¡¯t tell they didn¡¯t even search me. Come on¡­ there are limits to stupidity. Sure they took my coat, but I still have my hoodie and boots.

    I twist and reach down to my left boot and feel around the top of it before pulling out a shortish knife. It¡¯s the classic military commando blade, straight with a tapered point and serrated on the back, perfect for pretty much anything.

    I rock up onto my knees and press my left forearm along the ground and place the knife on my wrist above the limiter. Did they seriously learn nothing from our fight before? I take a quick glance at the far door, specifically under it to check for the shadows of feet. There¡¯s nothing, though that doesn¡¯t mean someone isn¡¯t hiding next to it.

    Whatever though. Better get started. Clenching my teeth, I press the knife into the flesh across my wrist and begin sawing back and forth. Luckily I keep the knife sharp, but it is still hard going, especially the tendons which take forever to cut through, not to mention the huge amounts of blood leaving my body. It¡¯s like a little fountain in some places as the blood spurts out rather than oozes from the cut.

    When I hear the knife grinding against the bone I stop. It¡¯s hard to do, but I am able to slow my healing a little with focus, enough to allow me to finish the job. Ignoring the sweat trickling into my eyes, I flip the knife over and press the serrated edge against the exposed bone.

    The noise of the sawing is shockingly loud. I¡¯m almost worried someone will come and check on me, but I¡¯m too bus right now to care. The crunching and tearing noise fills the room as the teeth of the blade bite away at the bone, sending shards flying. The pain is bad, but not terrible. More of a dull reminder than incapacitating agony.

    It funny that. It¡¯s not even part of my ability, this lack of pain. You know when people say ¡®pain is an illusion of the mind¡¯? Well they¡¯re right. Pain is just a warning system to alert you that something is wrong right? As in ¡®get your hand away from the stove, you¡¯ll burn yourself!¡¯ So, what happens if it doesn¡¯t matter, like if your body learns that any injury will heal almost immediately, why bother with a warning? Why bother with pain?

    Eventually I saw all the way through with a dull snap and quickly carve through the other side. Finally, man, why does the body have to be so tough. It¡¯s like a bloody sapling. Discarding my knife, I slip the limiter off my wrist. Big mistake.

    Immediately pain, true pain, shoots through my head. Whispers suddenly spring up around me and the shadows in the room lengthen and distort. Faces, hands, all looking at me and whispering. A dull noise, like static which is too low to make out. With a grunt I raise my surviving hand to my head and scrunch my eye shut.

    Fuck¡¯s sake. It¡¯s clearly been longer than a day then.

    Why bother fighting us?

    My breath catches in my throat. That voice. I thought she said she would leave me alone. Why her? I slowly open my eye and look up. Yep, she¡¯s here.

    Sitting on my bed I see a small girl sitting on the bed swinging her legs back and forth. Well, she seems to be a small girl but it¡¯s hard to tell as she looks more like the silhouette of one. Pure black and giving off black mist like a slow moving flame, her pure white eyes, devoid of any irises, bore into me.

    I speak quietly in a hoarse voice, ¡°W-why are you here? I thought you left?¡± I shudder and lower my head, almost bowing. ¡°I¡¯ve already said I¡¯m sorry. I wish¡­ I wish¡­¡± I trail off as guilt churns inside me.

    She merely giggles in her echoing way. I never left. You¡¯ve just been hiding from me.

    I flinch. That is like her I suppose. Of all the people I have ever met, she is the only one I ever respected. The only one I kind of cared for. And that terrifies me, especially since I owe her greatly.

    So¡­ why didn¡¯t you fight? She tilts her head and narrows her eyes. Why didn¡¯t you give in like before? You know I would have been able to handle it.

    ¡°Heh, I don¡¯t know. I guess I just wasn¡¯t myself.¡± I look back to her, ¡°But I do know that I won¡¯t go with them.¡± I can feel the heat rising in me as I grab my hand and hold it to the stump and stand up before grabbing my knife, but this time I welcome it. The rage and fear. Old friends.

    The shadows thicken and swirl around her as she hops off the bed. Oh? And how will you manage that?

    I merely grin at her. ¡°No more bullshit, that¡¯s how.¡± I begin to unwrap the bandages around my hands and slip off my hoodie. I needed new ones anyway. These have too much blood in them.

    The girl just giggles. Wow, so intense. I don¡¯t see much improvement though.

    I snicker again and reach up to my left eye as the girl steps back. What are you doing?

    ¡°I¡¯m done with this city anyway. Time to move on.¡± With that I rip the eyepatch from my face, tearing chunks out with the screws. Instantly my vision floods with an overlay, similar to heat images but I see the glow of life. The whispers grow in intensity and I can feel the skin around my eye begin to crack. I look at the girl and see her, with a void of pure darkness superimposed on her figure as she smiles.

    So you really are going to give in? Again?

    I return the smile, ¡°No. I will stay in control this time. This time will be different, Alice.¡±

    Alice¡¯s smile fades as she once again stares into me.

    We will see. What makes this time so special?

    I sigh as I begin walking towards the door. ¡°I have no idea. I¡¯m just shooting blind right about now.¡± As I reach the door, I stop. Last time was a mistake, I gave them too much of an opening, I didn¡¯t try. Not this time. I am done with people controlling me. My life is my own, no matter how shit it is and if someone thinks they can take that from me, I¡¯ll be glad to dig their grave.

    As I stew away, I feel the darkness rising in me, but contained, directed. I am in control now. I see the mist oozing from my left eye as the cracks widen on my face and I surround myself in a black cloud. I form another blade in my hand; longer and wider, it spreads from my forearm and curves forward to a wicked point about four feet long.

    I grin as I raise the blade. It¡¯s time to go hunting.

    That door never stood a chance.

    --Katie POV¡ª

    ¡°What are we going to do with him?¡± growls Dave as he hovers protectively over Ashely. ¡°The guy¡¯s a fucking monster and has no control.¡±

    Allan just clicks his tongue and retorts, ¡°What do you suggest? We could kill him maybe? I will literally give you a medal if you can kill that guy.¡±

    They¡¯re currently all gathered in one room to discuss what is going to happen next. Katie¡¯s already called the committee in charge and given her report over the phone, as well as recommending that they have a containment team set up for when they move him back to the academy.

    Of course, all that takes time so they are merely waiting for Stepper to arrive once everything has been set up at their end, though all of the extraction team would rather the target was taken off their hands as soon as possible.

    If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Katie is troubled though. Paul¡¯s premonitions are never wrong, so why was the fight so easy? He barely even fought back and was down after just a few minutes.

    Though he almost lost it¡­ Katie thinks as she remembers how the mist moved on its own, the target¡¯s face devoid of all emotion as the grass around him died. She dreads to think what would happen if it had touched anyone, but again, it was moving slowly. As though through treacle.

    She shakes her head as she interrupts the bickering of the team, ¡°Look. It doesn¡¯t really matter. We¡¯ve done our jobs now and fortunately no one is injured.¡± She looks Dave in the eye and attempts to reassure him, ¡°I hit him with three darts. That¡¯s enough to put an elephant under for several days and even if he does wake up, we put the limiter on him. He can do anything.¡±

    Dave grumbles but backs down as Callum speaks up, ¡°So what¡¯ happening back home? When are they gonna pick us up?¡±

    ¡°Soon,¡± replies Katie, ¡°Like the next few hours.¡±

    At her words the tension lessens slightly in the room as several sighs of relief are given out and a silence descends over them.

    It is suddenly broken by Connor who laughs quietly, ¡°He looked so damn pissed though when Paul cut him in half.¡± Katie just sighs at his poor attempt at making conversation, but Paul seems to perk up.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± he chuckles, ¡°it was kind of scary at the time though with all that mist and shit floating around, but damn, his face. You could frame it and out it on the wall to scare the shit out of people.¡± His laughter stops as his faces becomes serious again, ¡°Though I¡¯m glad we had those darts.¡±

    Connor nods, ¡°Yeah, but what about you man? What was that with the portals? They were like cleavers.¡± A good question. Katie has never seen him use the portals that way before, only to trap things and objects somewhere else.

    ¡°Oh that,¡± the boy in question grins sheepishly, ¡°I only found that out recently. Turns out the edge of my portals are really damn sharp. I haven¡¯t found anything I can¡¯t cut with them yet and I wanted to try it out in combat.¡±

    Their casual banter and bickering continues for another twenty minutes before Katie stands up. ¡°I¡¯m going to go check on him. I¡¯ll be back in a bit.¡±

    Allan nods to her and Dave gives her a glance before turning back to Ashley. The others don¡¯t even react.

    Katie opens the door to the room and enters the long hallway while thinking to herself. It kind of pays to be part of the Academy. They had everyone on their floor vacated after they captured the target in case something went wrong, all of whom were compensated by the Academy. Yeah, definitely pays.

    She closes the door behind her and turns towards the door to the temporary ¡®holding cell¡¯. It¡¯s not much of a cell to be fair. They just stripped the room of everything other than the bed and table and locked the door. It¡¯s better than nothing though. Especially since the target isn¡¯t waking up any time soon.

    Just as she thinks this the door ahead of her explodes outwards in a shower of splinters.

    ¡°Wha-,¡± she manages before she sees a dark cloud swirl out of the bottom of the doorway as he steps round the corner. Katie is dimly aware of the rest of her team piling out of the room behind her at the sudden noise but she doesn¡¯t look away. She can¡¯t.

    He¡¯s straightened up, not slouching anymore, revealing a height just under Allan¡¯s and has taken off the hoodie and bandages over his hands, revealing lean muscles bordering on skinny. She glances at his left wrist and feels her heart falter. The limiter is gone, instead there are just smudges of blood.

    In his left hand he is holding a knife, about 6 inches long and his right arm is gone. In its place is a thick, black blade which trails along the ground. The worst though are his eyes. The eyepatch is gone and his left eye is like a hole. A window into the abyss. Pure black it fitfully spits out mist as cracks of pure darkness spider web outwards from his eye and into his hairline.

    Both parties freeze as they see each other and Katie feels Dave and Paul pushing to the front of the group. Paul¡¯s hands begin to glow and Dave slips his gloves on as they prepare to fight when he smiles.

    Katie feels herself shudder as his faces twists into an approximation of happiness and he takes a step towards them. There is something so wrong about the expression, some underlying tone of¡­ something. It¡¯s not right.

    Paul immediately opens a portal where his neck is but he ducks underneath the blue flash and leaps forwards, swinging his blade in a wide arc. The sword on his arm carves through the wall to his side like butter as he brings it around on Paul, but he opens another portal, slicing his arm at the elbow. The sword carries on and flies through the air to stick in the wall.

    There is something different about him now. Some kind of ferocity that he didn¡¯t have in the park. It is as though he is a different person it seemed to Katie, as though he is no longer afraid of anything. Someone with nothing to lose.

    Dave meanwhile starts shouts at the rest of the team to move back as Paul starts opening bigger portals around him.

    While moving back, Katie watches the now one armed target dodges another portal before rushing Paul and lashing at his head with a whip of inky blackness. He ducks but doesn¡¯t see his follow up attack, and he doesn¡¯t have time to react to Katie¡¯s shout of alarm before the normal knife in the target¡¯s other hand is plunged into his chest.

    He staggers back as the knife is withdrawn with a loud sucking noise and a spurt of blood before he stabs it into Paul''s gut.

    The portals surrounding the two of them flicker and warp before disappering altogether.

    This is bad. If Paul is down they don''t have someone who can get close enough to damage the target. Dave can''t get close without touching that damn mist and none of the others are able to fight.

    Dave obviously knows he can''t do anything so stands back and prepares to try to block any attacks which come their way, while the two twins run back into the room.

    Katie braces herself and prepares to use her power ''Management'' to at least slow down the monster in front of her.

    She draws in a deep breath as she allows her power to well up inside her but before she speaks, and as the knife begins to fall for the third time, two darts whiz past her head towards the exposed shoulder of the target.

    They don''t reach him.

    Reacting impossibly fast he spins and brings his left arm up to cover his torso. The two darts hit the arm and deliver their dosage but to Katie''s horror he merely grins before forming another blade where his right arm should be and slicing his left off at the shoulder.

    The wound oozes mist rather than blood and slowly takes on the appearance of the arm of a demon as spines form and the fingers curl into claws.

    Two more darts whistle by but he leans back and casually dodges them before whipping his while body forward and snatching up the knife with an elongated arm before hurling it over Katie''s shoulder.

    At the sound of a scream and swearing behind her, Katie turns and sees Callum clutching his shoulder, a tranquilliser gun lying next to him where he dropped it. Connor has also dropped his and is desperately trying to help his brother.

    Katie sees Allan looking on with a grim expression. Time to use it then, she thinks as she draws in another breath and looks back to see the target stepping over Paul lying in a pool of blood.

    She feels the power well up, forcing aside the fear and anger she feels for letting the others down, infusing her throat and lungs as she speaks, "Stop."

    He hesitates and looks at her, taking his eyes from the twins being dragged away by Dave as he desperately tries to get some distance. A flash of annoyance flashes across the target''s face before he draws back his arm.

    Well looks like this is it then, Katie thinks as she watches the arm whip forward and extend over the distance between them, the hand forming a spike.

    Fear floods her system as it nears her chest. She doesn''t want to die, but would rather she dies than her team. Clinging to this idea Katie forces herself to not flinch as the spike draws ever closer.

    Suddenly a blur crosses her vision as a figure leaps in front of her, allowing the spike to pierce his back. It enters without a wound, no ripping of clothes or flesh, as it enters his body.

    "Allan," Katie whispers as she struggles to process what she it seeing. The boy is standing in front of her, his back to the target as he smiles at her, his glasses askew.

    He opens his mouth to speak but no sound comes out, only a wave of darkness which flows back towards the target. With a snarl of annoyance the target jerks the arm back, out of Allan''s back as it shrinks back to normal.

    As the thread of blackness retreats, Allan''s eyes glaze over and he collapses, like a puppet with its strings cut.

    "Allan!" Katie screams. This isn''t happening. It can''t be. It''s her place to die for the team, not his. Falling to her knees next to his body, she clutches it to her chest, tears falling down her face. "Allan, please..."

    A dry chuckle draws her eyes upwards as she stares into the eyes of a killer. Devoid of emotion they pierce into her, weighing her up. Judging her.

    Then he speaks, his voice eerily echoing with others, like a vast number of peole repeating his words, "This is all your fault."

    Reaching down as he speaks, his hand wreathed in mist, he almost reaches her before someone appears behind him. His eyes widen as he whirls around, his arm already outstretched and reaching for the figure when Katie recognises the newcomer.

    Stepper.

    Then she feels the familiar tumbling sensation as he uses his ability, sucking everyone into a vortex as her surrounds warp and fade to be replaced by flashing lights.

    Though this time the sensation doesn''t affect her as much, as she hugs Allan to herself and cries.

    Help has arrived. But too late.