Hidden Potential: Nibiru Rising: Book 1 Page 9

  Come to think of it, I haven’t eaten in almost a day. Plus I’ve pushed my powers beyond anything I’ve ever managed before, let alone in almost twenty years.

  “So what’s your plans from here?” she asked, interrupting his thoughts, “I’m assuming you’re going to think about getting cleaned up at some point, ain’t ya?”

  “I’d love to, but I’m not sure it’s safe to go home at this point. I can’t risk it until I can figure out how my old associates found me.”

  “Have you thought about retracing your steps? Maybe you left a trail or something. Have you been doing anything different over the past week that you normally wouldn’t be doin’?”

  Rick’s eyes got big as her words triggered an idea.

  My powers. That’s it. I’ve been thinking they were tracking me by them, but maybe that’s only part of it. Since I haven’t used them until recently, they couldn’t get a good fix on me. At work though, I was actively using them for several hours. That’s why they were able to pinpoint me more closely.

  “I see you got an idea of what to do next, haven’t ya?”

  Rick glanced back at her, noticing a slight sparkle in her eye. Reaching across the counter, he gave her a peck on the cheek.

  “Thank you Miss Barbara. You’ve helped me more than you know. I promise I’ll come back when I can and repay you for the food.”

  “Don’t worry about it sugah. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you again really soon. Go handle your business.”

  Sopping up the last of the egg yolk with a piece of rye toast, he thanked her again before rushing out the door. Unnoticed was the slight glow coming from Barbara’s eyes.

  “I hope you’re up for this sugah, for all our sakes.”

  §§§§§§§§§§§§

  “What’ve you got?” Kaitlyn asked, briskly striding over to the technician.

  “Well, first off, we have the video data analyzed. You were right. This Newton person appears to be trying to get all your teammates away from ground zero. It was hard to see some of it, but if you watch here,” he said, punching buttons on the control board, “you can obviously see him throwing Thunderclap. This part’s kinda cool. Watch how he just tanks Thunderclap’s attack with one hand like it was nothing.”

  Kaitlyn watched the footage continue playing in slow motion while the technician indicated other salient points.

  “If you watch here, his eyes open wide, like he’s in pain or possibly even surprised, just before the flash. Whatever it was, it looks like he knew it was coming. He crossed his arms defensively before whatever it was went off. Means he most likely didn’t cause it.”

  The technician tapped a few more keys before continuing.

  “We’ll know more when the satellite data is done being analyzed. Should be any time now.”

  “It that everything?” Kaitlyn asked.

  “No… not exactly, but we’re not sure what to make of it. Best we can determine is, Newton also somehow projected an energy field around your speedsters to get them out of the blast area as well.”

  The technician rewound the footage and queued it up to just before he threw Thunderclap.

  “If you watch here and here, you’ll see him almost point the palms of his hands toward both Jetlag and Blitz. While we can’t see what he did regarding Jetlag, we did catch this when he pushed Blitz out of the area.”

  Highlighting a part of the screen, he played a short clip back and forth several times.

  “What am I looking at, exactly?”

  “Look at the ground,” he said, zooming in more closely.

  As she stared, she noticed a slight scuff appearing, like someone dragging a stick across it.

  “What was that?”

  “We’re not sure, but whatever it is he projects, it does seem to affect the environment. Means you might be able to see it coming if there’s particulate matter in the air, like smoke or fog or something similar.”

  Kaitlyn nodded to herself absently.

  It might not do me, or any of the others with normal reflexes any good, but it might be enough for the speedsters to respond evasively.

  She jumped slightly when a klaxon started going off.

  “What do we have?”

  “You’re not going to believe this Major, but Newton just showed back up at ground zero.”

  §§§§§§§§§§§§

  After his conversation at the diner, Rick decided he could risk going home to get cleaned up as long as he stopped using his abilities a mile or two away from his house. Besides getting cleaned up, it gave him the chance to dress more appropriately for fighting. It also gave him a chance to grab the last weapon he’d had commissioned before he went underground.

  Now he was heading back toward the scene of his last battle with Reaper, carrying his five foot long tungsten and titanium quarterstaff across his back. He’d attached to the same harness that carried the tube with his deadly projectiles inside, which he now had strapped on the outside of the full-length Kevlar-lined duster he now wore. While he wasn’t worried about projectiles, it was significantly more durable compared to the other jacket he’d been wearing. It’d also been part of the standard load-out he’d had when going on missions.

  Following the same protocol he’d used when going home, he dropped down to normal speed before jogging the rest of the way to ground zero. Approaching the outskirts of the blast radius, he could feel a slight change in the atmosphere, almost like walking into increasingly dense spiderwebs.

  Whatever they hit me with damaged the environment somehow. It’s like all the kinetic energy has thickened somehow, making it harder to draw on.

  As if to confirm his suspicions, he watched a pigeon fly through the area. Hitting the outskirts of the field, it dropped several inches before recovering, its wings flapping more vigorously to maintain altitude. Reaching the other edge, it sudden sprung up higher, again startling the bird. As another test, he tried stretching his awareness out. The result was almost like trying to see through a fog. Withdrawing his senses back, he continued deeper into the blast zone. The farther he went, the more pronounced the effect felt.

  Reaching the spot where the blast had detonated, he tried extending his awareness again. Gasping, he tried to understand what he was sensing. Just in front of him, about ten feet up, was an area that wasn’t there, almost like a hole or void in space. While analyzing it, he realized he could feel all the kinetic energy in the area slowly spiraling around the basketball-sized rupture, disappearing as it crossed some undetectable boundary.

  Okay, this can’t be good. Whatever they used, it’s apparently torn a hole in what? Space? Reality? What the hell have they been working on all these years?

  Pulling his staff off his back, he planted it into the ground before anchoring it with his power. With a slight hop, he landed on the tip of the staff, allowing him to reach the void safely. Tentatively, he slowly reached out, extending his hand into the space the rupture was located. Making contact with the boundary, he let out a hiss while yanking his hand back. Looking down, he noticed the tips of his fingers had turned black, like he’d suffered from severe frostbite. Dropping down from his staff and stepping away from the rift, he focused on repairing the damage it had caused to his fingers.

  He noticed in alarm that some of his energy was leached off his aura, joining the rest of the energy swirling around the fissure. Taking a dozen paces back, he picked up a chunk of debris, tossing it underhanded toward the center of the void. As the chunk approached, it suddenly slowed down, like it was sinking through syrup, before hitting the boundary. Upon contact, it came to a stop, glittering with tiny flashes of light while hovering for several seconds before slowly drifting downward. As it touched the ground, it turned to dust before drifting away.

  That is definitely not good. That’s going to kill somebody if it’s not blocked off somehow.

  He walked around the fissure, trying to get an idea of how large it was. He suddenly realized his clothes were starting to fit more loosely agai
n.

  Shit, this thing, whatever it really is, is leeching me of energy. I need to get out of here before it sucks me dry.

  He backed away from the rupture, trying to fix in his mind the exact location of it. The more he used his senses to observe it, the harder it was to focus on it. It was almost like looking at the Sun. Turning his awareness away from the void for a split-second, his senses detected something else, but it was gone too fast to determine what it was. He tried focusing on the fleeting feeling, but it felt like trying to pick out a specific voice in a roaring crowd. He moved in the general direction the feeling had come from. With relief, he noticed the bleed-off from his aura slowing down the further he got from the tear in space. He strained to absorb some kinetic energy in an effort to replenish what he’d just lost, but it felt like trying to drink a thick shake through a cocktail straw. He vaguely sensed movement again at the edges of his perceptions, but it still felt indistinct. Looking around, he spotted someone coming around the corner of one of the few walls that were still standing.

  “Stay where you are!”

  Chapter 14

  “Set us down over there.”

  The jumpjet landed behind the building Kaitlyn had indicated, a few blocks outside the blast radius. She hoped it was far enough away to remain undetected by Newton, but she couldn’t risk landing further away on the chance Newton left before her team got there. She tapped her throat as everyone prepared to disembark.

  “HellKat to base. Do you still have eyes on target?”

  “This is base. Visual is confirmed. I repeat, visual is confirmed. Target is still on location. He appears to be examining something, but unable to determine object of his focus.”

  “Can you clarify?”

  “Negative HellKat. It appears he’s just staring off into space at the moment. A moment ago, he’d climbed up a staff he was carrying, reached out into empty air, then yanked his hand back like he’d just touched a hot stove. Whatever it is though, it appears to be agitating him.”

  “Affirmative base, heading out. T-minus five minutes until contact.”

  “Roger HellKat, good hunting.”

  Killing the connection, she glanced at the rest of her team, assessing their demeanor. Scattershot appeared almost lackadaisical except for the glint of excitement in his eyes. She noticed both Blitz and Jetlag appeared much more reserved compared to the first time they’d confronted Newton.

  Not that I blame them. This guy single-handedly outclassed both of them without even trying. I hope it won’t make them second guess themselves. The last thing we need is to have them pull their punches.

  Continuing her review, she noticed the odd, almost crazy looking light sparkling behind Glaizia’s eyes. It concerned her since, with Thunderclap still recovering, Glaizia was the muscle of the group.

  “Everyone clear on the plan?”

  She waited for them all to nod their acknowledgment before hitting opening the hatch.

  “Remember, we’ll probably only have one chance to either capture or eliminate the target. Based on our previous encounters, I’d prefer capturing him. Our past interactions seem to imply he’s reluctant to hurt people, so we may be able to use that to our advantage. Any questions?”

  She glanced around again before finishing.

  “As of now, we go radio silent until I give the signal. Roll out.”

  §§§§§§§§§§§§

  She worked her way closer to Newton’s last known location. Without knowing exactly what his abilities were, the stress of trying to sneak up on him was causing her to sweat profusely. The fact that he’d already shown the ability to track multiple speedsters with what appeared to be little effort didn’t help with her nerves. All she could hope for was having the buildings shield her movements and position to some degree, allowing her to get close enough to try distracting him. She was so intent on trying to sneak up on Newton that when something under her boot crunched, she jumped like a gunshot had gone off. Holding her breath, she waited motionlessly for nearly a minute before risking movement again.

  If he heard that, there’s nothing I can do about it anyway. Only thing I can do now is keep moving forward and hopefully provide enough time for everyone to get in place.

  Approaching the corner of the last standing structure, she accessed her wrist-comp, pulling up the feed from the cameras they’d set up to monitor the area. Looking at the display, she felt her stomach drop. According to the feed, Newton was slowing walking in her general direction, a suspicious look on his face.

  Shit. He knows I’m here somehow. Here’s hoping I can stall him.

  Stepping from around the building, she planted her feet firmly, trying to look as authoritative as possible. She watched him stop abruptly, involuntarily causing her to take a deep breath.

  “Stay where you are!”

  She watched light flash from his eyes while cocking his head to the side, almost like a puppy trying to figure something out. She almost grinned before catching herself. She fought the urge to backpedal when he straightened up and slowly started walking toward her.

  “I said stay where you are!”

  “Who are you? I know you don’t work for Maelstrom, but that doesn’t mean you’re any better than them, either.”

  She watched cautiously as he got closer.

  Wow, he looks like a picture of Odin from a comic book.

  As he approached, she noticed there was something different about him.

  His hair and beard are darker I think. And he appears to be stockier than before.

  When he got within twenty feet of her, she held up a hand, causing it to erupt into flames.

  “That’s far enough. Come any closer and I’ll be authorized to use lethal force.”

  She watched him come to a stop with what looked like a bemused expression on his face. Planted the staff he was carrying in front of him and leaning on it, he studied her a moment before responding.

  “Aren’t you the one I kept from being squished by an armored car the other day?”

  She felt her cheeks heat up from the comment, but she managed to keep her voice steady when she responded.

  “I need you to drop the weapon and lay face down on the ground!”

  She noticed he raised one eyebrow before making a big production of dropping into a seated position, flaring his duster out around him while keeping the staff situated vertically between them.

  “Well, you’re either government or private contractor, but I’m going to lean toward your team being with some governmental department. Ya’ll just have that look about you.”

  Before she had a chance to respond, she heard the beep in her ear-piece, signaling that Glaizia was in place. She just had to stall for a few more minutes for everyone else to get into place.

  “I said drop the weapon and lay face down, now!”

  “No.”

  The tone of finality in his response caught her off-guard. Before she could regain her composure, she noticed his eyes were glowing again.

  “Listen, cut the crap. I know you’re stalling to let your teammates get into place. At least give me the courtesy of not trying to order me around.”

  “But we’re—” she blurted out before she could catch herself.

  “Yes, you are. It’s what I would have done. Listen, all I’m asking is who you work for. You’ve seen what I can do. If I wanted to attack you, you know you wouldn’t be able to stop me. As it stands, I have bigger fish to fry, so either tell me who you work for, or I’m out of here.”

  She got two more signals, letting her know that Jetlag and Scattershot were in position. Just a few more seconds to let Blitz get in place before she gave the order. Running out of options, she relented.

  “Fine. My name’s HellKat. The organization we work for is called Stormwatch. And yes, it’s a government agency.”

  The look of surprise on his face caught her off-guard again.

  “Stormwatch… You still exist? I’m surprised they didn’t shut you down after Maelstr
om—”

  Before he had a chance to finish, she got the final signal. Raising both hands over her head, she caused them to burst into flame. Before he had a chance to move, he was suddenly embedded in a twelve-foot thick block of ice.

  §§§§§§§§§§§§

  Kaitlyn watched Glaizia drop from the rooftop, landing with a thud that caused dust and debris to erupt into a small cloud around her. Looking slightly disappointed, she jogged over as the rest of the team arrived.

  “We did it!”

  Kaitlyn nodded toward Blitz.

  “It looks that way. Without air, hopefully he’ll pass out in a few minutes and we’ll be able to take him in peacefully. She looked back at Glaizia to commend her but noticed sweat start popping out on her forehead. Growing concerned, she went over to the giant woman just as she dropped to a knee.

  “What is it?”

  Through gritted teeth, she nodded toward Newton.

  “He’s… fighting… me…”

  Growing concerned, she looked at the rest of her team.

  “This might not be over, get rea—”

  She paused, noticing a high-pitched keening noise becoming audible and rapidly growing in volume. Looking over at Newton, she involuntarily stumbled backward. His eyes were glowing so brightly that she almost couldn’t make out the look of anger on his face. As she watched, Newton started to blur as the noise continued to rise in volume. Cracks started spider-webbing through the block of ice with tiny audible pops, slowly at first, then with an increasingly rapid pace. A sudden blast of icy air signaled a sudden expansion in size of the block of ice trapping Newton. Kaitlyn quickly looked back at the cryokineticist as she struggled to hold Newton stationary. With a grunt, she collapsed on the ground, clutching her head. Before she had a chance to look back, a loud cracking sound echoed through the air before she was pelted with chunks of ice and snow.