~Shard~ 2
(This is faintly linked to the new game 'inFamous.' Only the ability and a couple of other thinks are copied, but I feel an need to acknowledge the game.)
It was two days since the blast had gone off and
destroyed most of the town. Still no-one knew where it had come from,
and there were only a few hundred survivors. I was one of them, and
one of the most powerful as well.
I had seen people wandering the
streets, desolate and without hope. Some were mutilated with missing
limbs or huge gaping wounds. I had seen a young boy, no more than
seven, literally absorbing the life-force of someone in an alley. I
considered helping the man fight of this inhuman child, but thought
batter of it. I was no better than him.
I was not wandering like
these homeless people. I was waiting. Building my ability, testing
the boundaries of it. It seemed as though there was a sort of static
barrier over my skin which made it harder to damage. I had tried
cutting my wrist, and it ended up taking six strong cuts to break the
skin. I then released some electricity to heal it. Since then, I had
learned to use this passively and so every time I was injured, my
body healed. I also learned how to shoot a concentrated blast of
electricity out of my hand, and also hold the power in my hands which
made impacts mch more potent.
I was waiting for others to emerge,
because after seeing the life-sucking child, I was certain there were
more. Perhaps there were other abilities. Others which could absorb
other things. I didn't know, and that is why I waited.
Today,
however, these people emerged. I discovered that they had been
waiting, just like me, keeping their abilities secret. I soon found
myself in a newly-found order. These people, people like me, were
significant to ordinary humans. I myself didn't even think we were
human at all any more. They had begun to take areas for themselves,
some by themselves, and others in groups. It was their territory,
their turf now. I however, was still adamant that I was one of the
most powerful super-humans. I needed to find my own area to control.
I realised that many places would be taken, those that created income
like shops and the local Docks. I would have to fight someone soon.
I
was learning to store more electricity, and also to feed off
electricity every few hours. I didn't need to eat or drink any more,
and water actually stung. I had only stepped n a small puddle once,
but instantly most of the electricity drained out of my body and
sprouted across the water. I was staying away from water from then
on. I cold now store around a thousand volts in my body, and
discharge it at will.
I had also considered allies. I figured that
us super-humans wouldn't be able to survive unless we worked in
groups. But apart from the young boy, I had seen no other people with
abilities. And besides, I wasn't about to become allies with a person
who could defeat me.
I was near the main super-market of the town
when I was jumped by three people. The one on my right was straining
the muscles of his arms, probably enhanced strength, and a girl on
the left had fire in one of her hands. The one in the middle, whom I
assumed was the leader, addressed me. I was wearing black trousers, a
black long-sleeved top and a long coat. That was lucky since stray
sparks of electricity occasionally ran over my chest and arms. With
the long coat, they couldn't know I had an ability, let alone one so
powerful.
"Normal, move out of the area or we will be forced to
make you go. This is our territory and only people with my say-so can
enter. You're lucky, if you were a Special, we wouldn't be talking
right now."
The boy let the implied threat hang in the air for a
moment. "I'm sorry," I replied, not even raising a finger to
electrocute one of them. "I've been low since it happened, so I
don't know what's happening. Could you inform me? Tell me who owns
what?"
"I suppose... Me, Rocks, and Leah own the area
surrounding the shop. My name's Cell. I only know who owns one other
area, and that's the houses west of here, up by the school. That's
owned by a guy called Dan. He must be pretty strong, we reckon, if he
can keep the area from other gangs by himself. I know some girl tried
to take his turf yesterday. We saw her go, but we never say her come
back. But Dan still owns the place. Small area, though, not really
worth taking. Now, can you move along?"
"So you Specials wage
battles for territory?" I asked, building shards of energy in my
right hand. I turned it slowly towards the guy called Rocks, hardly
moving my hand, and not at all moving my arm.
"Yeah, I suppose.
We're the strongest Specials we know. Except maybe Dan. All the
Specials we met up till now weren't very strong at all. Perhaps they
have absorbing abilities and haven't learned how to absorb a lot. I
don't know. But we've scared off a good few. We don't kill people;
we're humane, not like some of those other bastards out there. Now,
please leave."
"See now, I reckon I might be able to beat you
guys. Maybe take this area for myself..."
"Oh really,"
Scoffed Cell. "You and what..."
With that I opened my hand
fully towards Rocks, hitting him full on in the chest with a medium
burst. In surprise and pain he fell backwards, but I was surprised to
see him on his feet again in a few moments. Clearly some more
physical powers give Specials resistance against other abilities. All
three of them gawped at me as a shrugged off my long coat and focused
a ball of electricity in my right hand. I wasn't ambidextrous, and
found it a little easier to focus energy from my right hand and
arm.
Before any of them could react, I blasted Rocks again, this
time with over two hundred volts. He groaned in agony and tried to
slowly get on his feet again. He looked drunk, and it probably would
have been quite comical, except that the girl, Leah, was about to
flame me. I rolled to the side, working electricity into both my
hands. There were flames licking where I had been a moment before. It
seemed as though Leah's ability worked in a similar way to mine; she
focused the flames with her hands.
I decided then not to try and
kill Leah. She was my age, attractive, and had a useful ability.
Perhaps I could call on her later if I spared her now.
Instead of
just electrocuting her like I had Rocks, I ran at her and transferred
my electricity into a more physical form, giving me a little more
strength than normal. I tacked her and pinned her to the ground as
she tried blasting my chest. I relied on my static force-field which
had, like my healing ability, become passive. My mind sent a constant
small stream of electricity around my body to replace the damaged
static. I held her down and spread electricity over her body,
paralysing her. It would wear of in around five minutes; I didn't put
much around her.
Standing, I turned to face Cell. He rushed me but
I sent him sprawling with an electric punch. To my amazement, I got
up, no signs of damage showing.
Shit, I thought, he has rapid cell
regeneration... I suppose it makes sense of the name.
I threw
myself at him, bettering him with electrical punches and kicks. I
sent a massive ball of energy into my hand and blasted him into the
ground. This would have probably killed even Rocks, but before my
eyes the hole in his chest healed. He got up again, punching my face
with such force that it sent me to my knees. He had hit straight
through my static barrier and cut my skin, but, a little like him, my
body healed. I stood and we faced off. There was a near-by lamp post
and before he rushed me again, I topped up my electrical energy. It
still amazed me; the rush of power and the sight of arcs of
electricity jumping through the air into me. It was like a small
electrical explosion which spread wider, then focused on me. I was at
one thousand one hundred volts now, and quickly lowered that by five
hundred with a massive blast at Cell. I knew it wouldn't stop him,
but five hundred volts had to take a little while to drain out of his
body, no matter how quickly he healed.
A colossal force beat the
back of my head and I fell forward. Before my body healed itself, I
felt blood running down my neck. It had fractured my skull, and took
around fifty volts to heal. I swirled around and put my hand on
Rocks' chest as he was about to attack me again, sending a big flow
into his body. He screamed and fell to the floor, writhing in agony.
I had sent over three hundred into him, which would have killed a lot
of people. It still only seemed to temporarily stop him though. I
sent another hundred volts around him, incapacitating him.
Before
Cell could attack me again, for he was already back on his feet, I
absorbed another few hundred from the lamp post and, while the
electricity still flowed into me, I sent it right out again into
Cell. He was a powerful Special. I didn't want to make too much
enemies just yet. I reckoned I'd apologise once I was out of this
mess. They seemed a good kind, and might make good allies too, even
though I didn't entirely agree with the 'no-kill' thing. I had
realised a few hours after gaining my ability, that all people
carried static electricity. I could take this, but it hurt the person
too.
That paralysed Cell for a couple of moments, which gave me
time to quickly go over to Leah. I whispered into her ear;
"I
don't want to hurt you, or your companions. Quite the opposite in
fact. You would make a good companion. I believe that I am one of the
most powerful Specials in this town, even more powerful than you or
Rocks or even Cell. It's your choice. You can find me near the
Plaza..."
With that, I ran from the shop, and the three
incapacitated Specials too.
It had been an interesting meeting,
but only the start. I still didn't have my own area. I suspected that
someone would own that area, so I'd have to take it and make it safe
if I were to meet Leah there.
My life was getting dangerous, and
with my abilities, I was sure it wouldn't be long before people came
after me.
I was enjoying every minute of this anarchy.
