Author's Note: WARNING! There is some violence and minor cursing in this chapter, but nothing too serious. .And as always:
Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Columbia Pictures and to the writers and producers and whoever else I may have forgotten to mention. The only things I claim to own are my own characters and the plot of this story.
Connor slid out of the van and into the bright Arizona sunlight. There was a crowd of people who had gathered, straining to catch a glimpse of the scene down the road. They cheered briefly when the team emerged from the van, but were quickly silenced by the police who held them back. The van pulled away, but stopped just before the firetruck barricade and parked. Connor figured Marsha would monitor the situation from inside.
"Are you the special team the chief said was coming in?" a tall burly officer stepped from the line of policemen to address the teenagers.
"Yeah," Dylan answered, taking a step forward to greet the man. "Any updates on the situation?"
It never ceased to amaze Connor how fast Dylan could change from laid back teenager to the team's strong leader in the blink on an eye. "There's not much information. We guess there may be four of five hostages. The few people who made it out can't give us a definite number of thieves or hostages. All their reports conflict as to the number of thieves. That's why we called you in."
"You think one can multiply," Summer stated as she stepped up next to Dylan.
The officer nodded. "And we can assume one is either a technopath or at least extremely tech savvy, since the security cameras have been on a constant loop from before the break-in. Time stamp on the feed are marked from around 4:30 am until around 5."
Using the communicator on his wrist Connor once again pulled up a 3D hologram of the map of the facility and the surrounding area. "Our plan is to enter the building through this access tunnel here," he pointed out the tunnel to the officer. "We'll probably need some sort of distraction while we get in."
"Engaging in some half-hearted attack on the building would probably be a good idea, but don't get any of your men killed," Dylan interjected.
Connor continued. "Yeah, just long enough for us to slip inside and give the thieves a nice little surprise. Dr. Holloway should be able to help you keep track of us. According to the map, there is a manhole not too far from here. That's how we'll get to the tunnel."
The officer nodded. "I'll get a one of the SWAT squads to start prepping for the frontal assault."
Ten minutes later, most of the Zenith Team was crawling their way through the Phoenix sewer system. Tucker had volunteered to go in with the SWAT team and serve as a secondary distraction. It would also give the team the advantage of seeing exactly what they were up against once the thieves began fighting back.
Dylan was in the lead, followed by Summer and Cindy. Connor was the last one in the line, not that he particularly minded. At least he didn't have to be the one to discover whatever awful smelling thing they crawled through next. Up ahead, he heard Dylan gag and he laughed to himself while Cindy giggled out loud.
"No, really, you'll wish you didn't have to slide through this mysterious pile of sludge here in a minute," the team leader managed to say before he gagged again. "I can't even begin to wonder what it was ori- Agh!"
Connor tilted his head to try and see past Cindy, but all he could see was red light pouring into the small tunnel. A moment later, the light got brighter as Summer disappeared into it. Finally, he recognized it as a wider tunnel, probably a junction of several sewer pipes and also the location of the access tunnel for DataTech Labs. Cindy spun around as best she could in the tight space, then dropped down with a splash and finally Connor could see that his initial idea was correct.
However, this presented another problem: he was too big to turn around in the pipe, meaning the only way down was to…
Splunk! He landed face down in the shallow water with a dull splash. Smells assaulted his nose as he stood up and finally he gagged. Dylan snorted. "Doesn't seem so funny now, does it?"
The other teen was attempting to wipe some of the sludge off his face, but wasn't doing the best job since pretty much everything was covered in the stuff. "Let me help," Summer offered as she used her telepathy to remove some of the gunk from both boys. "We wouldn't want them smelling us and ruining our surprise early."
After they had managed to get the worst of the stuff off, Cindy took a small bottle of perfume from one of the pockets on her belt. "Do you carry this on every mission?" Connor asked as she handed it to him.
"Yep!" she replied, smiling but not offering any more explanation. A quick glance at the rest of the team told him that they were just as puzzled by it as he was. When he was finished he handed the bottle to Dylan and turned to examine the access door.
It was solid steel, with a small window at eye level. The window would be no help, he decided, as it was more than likely shatter resistant. There was also no outside latch on the door, meaning access could only be gained from the inside. Of course, this wouldn't really stop them. Connor slipped a small device out of one of the pockets on his belt and carefully attached it to the door next to where the lock probably was.
"Do your magic," he whispered to no one in particular as he pressed a button and stepped back.
The device whirred to life, serrated teeth popping out and grabbing the door. There came a faint whine of metal on metal and burning smell filled the air before a small circle in the door popped out and clattered to the concrete floor. "We're in," Connor said as he picked up the device, deactivated it, and slipped it back in its pocket. Sometimes Dr. Grant made something that actually worked.
Dylan moved toward the door. His eyes closed, and Connor knew he was checking for any guards and also scanning for automated security using his mind sight. "Nothing there. Let's go over the plan one more time before we go in," he said as he turned back to the group.
Dylan nodded. "Good idea. Using the blueprints of the building, we figure the thieves are in the security area of the labs containment vault, probably trying to get access to said vault. Connor, you said you would take the vents?"
Connor nodded and Dylan continued. "Great. Summer gets the security door. Cindy meets up with Tucker near the door to the office wing, which is probably sealed off from the main hallway, to get secure hostages. And I'll slip down from the vent on the other side of the room. That way we should have them surrounded. Don't engage until we know exactly what they want, though. Everybody got it?"
There were murmured sounds of agreement from the team. Dylan brought up his comm and radioed to Marsha, "Access tunnel breached and we are getting ready to head in. Is the diversion ready?"
"Yes, sir!" Marsha's overly chipper voice replied. "Just make sure you guys are careful!"
"You heard the lady. Everyone be careful." Speaking back into the comm, Dylan continued. "Moving in."
Everyone fell silent at the command. From here on out until they were engaged in a fight, there would be no more talking, only hand signals. The team fell into line again, this time with Summer leading as they filed into the access tunnel. There were no guards and the security system seemed to be offline, making their trek through the subterranean passage much easier than they had anticipated. Before too long, they reached the first break-off point.
Dylan motioned with his hands to show Connor this was the best spot for them to enter the vents. A moment later, they were quietly crawling inside the ducts. Using his comm, Connor brought up a mini map of the ventilation system and led the way to a fork in the duct. He motioned to Dylan that he was splitting off. The other teen silently wished him good luck before they separated.
Because of how slow he had to go so he didn't make any noise, Connor felt his adventure through the DataTech ductwork was taking forever. However, his map showed that he was quickly moving in on his designated spot, a vent directly above the desk in the security area. As he neared, he slowed down further and strained to listen for the thieves. It didn't take long for their voices to come into earshot.
"Nyx, go help Flash. It seems those idiot police have decided to redouble their efforts at getting in. And watch out for any stragglers who may have made it in. I feel a disturbance in the force."
"Yes, ma'am," came a voice with a distinct southern accent. He heard the sound of the security door opening and closing as someone left the room.
Someone else in the room chuckled. Connor settled into his place, and found that he had a perfect view of the two thieves still in the room.
"Making Star Wars references, are we?" one of them said as he checked a computer monitor for something. "I didn't think you were nerdy enough to watch that."
"Careful," the other, a woman, hissed back. "You keep your focus on getting into this vault, not my movie choices."
The man chuckled again and settled into typing on the keyboard. Seconds, or perhaps minutes, ticked by, but neither of the thieves said anything else for a long time. Then, the woman crossed her arms and began tapping her foot, obviously growing angry at having to wait. Crashing sounds because audible from outside the room, and suddenly she whirled.
"Byte, I swear if they get in, I will personally make sure Flash fries your systems," she hissed.
The man hunched over the security panel visibly swallowed and frantically began typing on the keyboard. "I got it, but their security system is terrible for a facility that is involved with some pretty advanced technology. There's not much more I can do, Charm. We'll have to rely on Flash and Nyx to distract them until we can get the package."
The woman, Charm, snorted and turned to the door at the back of the room. "Well at least get the damn thing open so we can get the package and get out of here. Nyx reported there was a super human with th-"
Bam! There came a crashing sound from the other side of the room, and suddenly Cindy and Tucker appeared from a hole in the wall. Connor silently swore. They had come in too early, before they knew what the thieves wanted. He blew open the vent and jumped down inside the room as Summer forced open the security door. A moment later, Dylan materialized next to the thieves' leader.
"Morn-"he started to say before the man, Byte, grabbed the computer keyboard and swung it at Dylan's head.
Dylan easily avoided the first strike, but the woman next to him reeled back and punched him hard in the stomach. Instantly, Summer was ripping anything not bolted down into the air and hurling it at the woman. She avoided most of the debris, except a coffee mug, which sliced open the back of her hand.
Suddenly two more of the thieves appeared in the doorway and immediately joined the fray. Connor saw them first and sent a shockwave through the ground, throwing the smaller of the two off balance. The room seemed to shrink until Connor was only focusing on the one person. It was a mind trick Ace had taught him so many years ago, and it had served him well in all of his battles.
The small woman reeled for a moment before catching her balance. Before Connor could react, the shadows around him seemed to come alive, sliding across the ground until his feet were covered and he could not move. Gritting his teeth, he tried to lift one foot, but could not. Anger coursing through him, he clapped his hands together, the force of the waves temporarily dissipating the shadows holding him in place.
But the woman, who Connor assumed was the Nyx talked about earlier, was not deterred. Her hands curled into fists, as if collecting the shadows again. But he was ready this time. A large computer monitor flew in front of his face, probably thrown by Cindy, and he instinctively slide back while also using a shockwave to propel the heavy piece of equipment toward his opponent.
Before it could hit her, though, the shadows rose up in an attempt to stop the monitor. The trick only worked halfway though, and the screen hit the woman in the leg, sending her crashing to the floor. Connor took the opportunity to grab a nearby chair and toss it, boosting its speed with another blast.
The shadows caught this one, and before Connor realized it, another shadow had slipped around him. Unable to move, he watched the barely discernable shadow being molded by the fallen woman until it looked like a sharp blade. He struggled as he realized it was heading for his throat, but the darkness held him tight. The moment before the shadowy blade could touch him, Dylan appeared behind the shadow bender and tapped her shoulder. She spun around, only to be met with his fist. She wavered for a moment before slumping to the ground.
"Byte has the package! Let's go!" came a shout from across the room. "Flash, grab Nyx!"
The floor strangely began humming, and Connor and Dylan only had a split second to realize what was about to happen. The air itself seemed to light up and Connor barely registered he was flying through the air until he hit the wall. The breath was knocked out of him, and for a moment, he struggled to breathe. As if in slow motion, he saw one of the thieves pick up the passed out woman before dashing out the security door. The other man followed, clutching a box to his chest. The last one left in the room was the leader, the woman called Charm. She slowly walked over to where Connor was slumped against the wall and knelt down.
"Pity," she said as she tilted his chin upwards. "You would have been a great asset to the team, hero."
Her voice was familiar, but in his half-conscious state, he couldn't identify why. She stood and turned to leave, the security door slamming shut behind her as alarms began to blare. The sounds were too much for his battle-weary mind. His head swam for a moment as he continued fighting for breath, but the edges of his vision were tinged with darkness. The last thing he remembered was the security door being forced open and police entering the room. Then he drifted into unconsciousness, memories tugging him into a nightmare.
"Connor!" a familiar voice screamed out through the red that clouded his vision. "What are you doing?!"
"I'm finished, Ace!" he said, turning toward his teammate. "They are trying to develop a serum that would stop us, that would destroy us! We can't let them do that to us!"
She was standing at the end of the hallway, a confused and slightly horrified look on her face. The team must have finished training early, since she was wearing flared pants and a bell-sleeved shirt under a vest instead of the uniform.
"Connor! Can't you see what you've done?" she asked after a moment. He glanced over his shoulder and saw the hallway littered with unconscious security guards, Army MPs, and the occasional lab assistant.
"I am just trying to stop them from destroying us!" he shouted at her, anger building again. More faces appeared behind hers, Marksman and Daravia.
There was a smaller figure behind them, jumping up and down to try and see what was going on. Jack. His little brother. "Connor, are you okay?" Daravia asked as she surveyed the hallway.
When he didn't respond, Marksman turned to her and whispered, "Go get Dr. Grant, something's wrong with him!"
But before either of them could move, the hallway shook. Marksman looked back at Connor, concern shadowing his face. "That's enough, Connor," he said as he stepped in front of the others. "You need help, and we're taking you to Dr. Grant."
"No," Connor's voice was low, barely hiding the anger threatening to boil over. "You can try, but I'll never go willingly."
"Fine. Then we'll drag you there kicking and screaming like the little kid you're acting like!" With that, Marksman drew his bow and fired.
Suddenly, everything went red and somewhere someone was screaming his name.
"Connor! Are you okay?" someone was shouting in his ear.
He opened his eyes but immediately shut them because of the bright light shining directly on his face. The voice in his ear was no longer shouting, but was still very close to his ear. "Connor? Wake up!"
Finally, he recognized the voice as belonging to Marsha. Slowly, he raised his hand and waved toward the light. "Oh! Sorry about that!" she exclaimed as she got the meaning and rushed to dim the lights in the room.
He waited until the room seemed almost dark before cracking open one eye. "Marsha? Where am I? And where is the rest of the team? Did the thieves get away?" she began asking, slowly at first but his questions quickly becoming rapid fire. "What did they take? Are there any clues as to who they are? Was anybody else hurt? And why does my left arm feel like it is on fire?"
Marsha giggled. "Glad you are feeling better! You're back at the base. The rest of the team is getting checked out, but you seemed to have taken the brunt of the strike on your left side. Summer said she thought you were hit with lightening and that one of the thieves can manipulate electricity. Dylan has a mild concussion but you were the one hurt the worst."
"Did the thieves get away?"
Marsha paused, then nodded slowly. "Yes. Tore a hole through the side of the biochemistry lab and set off radiation alarms. Police couldn't go after them and they got away."
Connor's fist slammed into the railing of the hospital bed, denting it. He hardly felt it though. He was angry, vision tinged with red.
"Connor?" came a soft voice from the doorway, and the red faded as he looked up to see the rest of the team. Cindy was the one who had spoken. "You're okay!"
With that, she practically launched herself across the room to hug him. A smile touched his lips, but he was worried about the anger he had felt coursing through him a moment before. He hadn't realized it was still there, still so strong. He would have to fight to control it, and he only hoped he would be strong enough.
Marsha's voice once again startled him out of his thoughts. "Okay, well, you're free to go. Everything checked out, but you'll probably be a little sore tomorrow. But we'll get you an excuse for school for any physical activity."
Connor sighed. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.
Author's Note: Hurray! Another chapter! I now know 1000% where I am taking this story from this chapter on, so now the only problem is just getting motivated to get it written. I have the plot settled and written out, now it's just to writing the chapters around that outline. But I already have an awesome idea for later on, and I am really excited about that, so hopefully more updates coming much sooner.
I am not very good at writing and coordinating fight scenes due to the sheer amount of detail it takes, but I hope this one will suffice. This is actually the longest chapter I have written yet (more than 3,000 words!), but I suspect that future updates will be this length or possibly longer with the plot that I have settled on.
As always, please leave a review if you enjoyed the story, and feel free to message me if you have any thoughts/ideas/concerns/etc. I love reading comments and they really give me encouragement to continue writing. Also, thanks again to everyone who has reviewed and followed! Every email that I get saying the story has a new follower or review or favorite motivates me to finish another chapter! ~NightRider
