Shard ~5~
My phone told me that it was twenty past twelve. Around Tyler and I the darkness swirled and clawed and gripped at the floor and air, trying to get close to us. I was staring at the word on the paper in my hand, too shocked to speak. The paper feels like a burden, and I let it fall to the floor. A breeze catches it and I watch as it's whisked away.
I turn my attention to Tyler. He's in a state of shock too, bordering pure panic. I remember that he's been holed up in his home since this happened. He hasn't had to kill anyone, like me. He hasn't even fought any other Special.
I blink out of my frozen state. I needed to focus, think, and find Leah.
"Dude, find some water and wash that blood off," I tell him. "We need to find this guy."
As we hunted for a puddle of water, I told him about the invisible kid which had attacked me and Leah yesterday. He was silent, and I imagined that he was still replaying the moments when he found the blood. It had only been a little bit, a warning.
After cleaning up his hand, Tyler turned to me. "What are we going to do, mate?" he asked me. "We don't know where this kid is. How will we find Leah?"
I don't know, I wanted to answer. I was wishing now that I'd never made the offer to Leah. If she was still with Cell, she wouldn't be gone right now. However, I say none of this, instead mulling over in my mind a fast plan.
"All right," I say. "Here's what we do."
It was now twenty-five to one. I was sat outside the shack, Tyler was inside, sleeping in my bed. The door was slightly open.
I was tired, but the silence of the Plaza kept me wide awake. There wasn't a sound; no cars, people walking and chatting, nothing. None of the sounds which I had grown up with, and had grown used to. No sound.
My plan was weak, to say the least. I had no idea if it would work, and if it didn't, I would be kicking myself for the rest of my life. Which, I thought, at this point, doesn't look too long.
I looked again at my phone. Twenty to one.
Although I had sort of expected it, the sudden shout still made me jump. I ran into the shack to see Tyler fall to the floor with a gasp, his balance off. This was because, behind him was a young boy, who still had his arms in a head-lock like position.
Our plan had been simple, and a little stupid really. There had been no certainty that the invisible boy would come back to take another companion of mine, and so Tyler could have been lying there faking sleep all night. And then there was the doubt of what would happen if he did come. Tyler, as he had said, had only ever phased half an arm through a wall. For him to pull this off, he had needed to phase through the arms of the boy. At least we knew he could phase through bio-matter now too.
Tyler was still gasping from the obvious effort, and the boy had been stunned by the guy who had just fallen through his arms, literally. Before he could get his senses back and disappear, I hit him with a bolt of lightning.
The boy, no older than thirteen, screamed and fell to the floor, clawing at his burnt shoulder. I ran over to him and, using my momentum, pinned him against the far wall as he was getting himself up. The kid howled in pain again as I impacted on his shoulder. Tyler was up in a moment and next to me in the next.
The boy was blonde, not obese, but far from muscular like Tyler and I. His cheeks were round and blushed a deep red, probably a result of his injury. The kid was also small, pitifully so, little more than five foot four. I easily restrained him as he bawled and thrashed.
"Tell me where Leah is!" I shouted over the horrible screech of the lad's voice.
"N- no! We're... we're loyal!" the blonde replied with a pain-laced voice.
I growled and flung him to the floor, hitting him with a small bolt. He roared and began to writhe.
"We can keep this up all night if you want!" I said, touching him and sending another shock through him.
"Okay, okay!" He shouted at me. He began to wail. "Just... just please don't do that again..."
"Tell me now," I said through my teeth, prepared to hit him again in case he tried anything.
The small thing didn't. "They're... they're holding the girl in the abandoned house. Not five minutes away from here."
I knew where the abandoned house was, and it wasn't a safe place. One question still remained in me mind however.
"Why are you doing this?" I asked.
The boy paused, the gears visibly turning in his mind. "It's the way we do it," he told me. "It's what we do."
Not content, but making do, I told the boy that if he came back, he would be killed. With that, I let him run, watching after him as he clutched at his shoulder.
A thought occurred to me, and I turned to Tyler. "This could be dangerous," I said. "Maybe you shouldn't come. You haven't really mastered your ability, and you could get hurt."
"Dude, I may not be able to shoot lightning out my hands, but I'm in this with you."
That meant a lot to me, but I didn't let it show and instead led the way to the house. It was a daunting haunt, one of the proper old Victorian houses, big and imposing. The paint was peeling and half of the windows had been knocked out. The door hung limply on its hinges. The door was in a recess next to a large window which looked in on an obliterated living room. Next to that was a smaller window, for the kitchen, which was still vaguely intact. Ivy glowed a deep emerald in the moonlight, illuminating it's thin tendrils and leaves up the face of the house.
I went first, shards of electricity skittering over my hand and forearm. The door led to a horrific scene. Blood was pooled on the chessboard tile floor, and a naked corpse hung limply on a rope from the ceiling. The poor woman had been beaten and stabbed to death, and fresh red liquid still oozed from the body. On the wall was the word 'GHOST', large and lettered in blood. I closed my eyes, but the image was already imprinted on my mind, scarred into the lines of my memories. I fought back the gag reflex as the scene in my mind thrummed and distorted slightly, the blood taking on a livid ruby and the naked body a paper white paleness. Tyler however, didn't seem to have as strong a stomach as me, because he turned and emptied his bowels right on the doorstep.
Keeping my mouth closed and breathing shallowly, Tyler and I moved past the corpse until we saw the entrance to our right which led to the living room, a door in front of us, and a spindly winding staircase to our immediate right.
"What do we do?" Tyler asked, still queasy. It was clear he was implying the multiple routes we could take.
I thought for a moment. "Best we stick together. If I were a member of this cult thing, I would probably have my lair area in a secret place. Upstairs doesn't seem as if it fits, really. So we go forwards, or right. Any suggestions?"
"Well, if I were the leader of this GHOST thing, and I had prepared for the eventuality that someone would raid the place, I would make a sort of detour, to make it look like my people went through one place a lot and trashed it, when really I told my people to take the other way an make sure nothing is damaged. However, if I had first considered this option..."
"So what you think is that the path on the right, into the living room, is this detour?"
"Well yeah, but you,re the leader, dude. You're the one with the power, an who can control it. Unlike me..."
"Hey man, you'll work out how to phase properly. The only reason I can work my ability so well is because of practice and experience," I said, putting an arm round his shoulder and patting his arm. We moved forwards, one of us on either side of the door against the wall.
"Dude," Tyler said. "What if they're watching us now? The bastards are invisible."
"Then we're already screwed," I said simply.
When I tried it, the door was locked. Taking a quick breath, I focused and shot a small, fast bolt at the door handle. Pushing again, I found that the door hadn't budged. I tried again, but to no avail.
"Hey Ty, I can't break the lock. I don't want to waste too much energy blasting the door though, 'cus I might need it. You think you could help?"
Tyler nodded, pale faced as he was, and approached the door. His hand phased slowly through the door above the handle. His breath came in rasps as he manoeuvred his arm and hand to find a key or latch. There was a minuscule click, and Tyler pulled his hand out, his breathing laboured. Trying the door, I found it opened.
"Good work," I told Tyler as he recuperated, then turned into the new room. It was a study, with a solid-looking wooden table, shelves of books, and a couple of boxes with odds and ends in. There was another door in the left wall. I realised then, as I looked up at the light on the ceiling, that the house had no electricity. I couldn't feel a pulse in the wiring anywhere in the room, and, remembering, I hadn't been able to feel it in the other rooms either. The only light had been coming from... where? There had been a sort of soft glow in the last rooms, but in here it was almost black.
I raised my hand in a fist and sent electricity leaping from my veins to collect in my hand to create a sort of juddering light. His effect made shadows jump and bound around Tyler and me as we moved to the next door.
This door opened when forced, the result probably being rusty hinges. This room was bare; grey concrete walls in contrast with the old flower patterned wallpaper, and a dusty stone floor. In the floor was a trapdoor.
There was a wordless glance between Tyler and I, and then we were climbing, climbing down metal rungs in pitch darkness. I didn't dare put on my energy torch, for fear that when I touched a rung, some of my electricity would stay in there and electrocute Tyler when he touched it.
I jarred my leg as I stomped into the stone floor. I had been in such a rhythm that I hadn't noticed the stone beneath me. I quickly ignited my torch so that Ty could see his way to the floor. He jumped the last three rungs, landing with a resounding boom. We were in a small circular room, with one corridor leading into darkness. Together we walked steadily through, hearing our footsteps echo around us. Within a few minutes, we entered a large circular room, still concrete, with several passages set in the wall in front of us. That however, wasn't what I was looking at.
Four people sat on the floor, their legs under them and their heads bowed. Their wrists were clasped in front of them, the chain bolted to the hard rock, and their ankles had been shackled to the floor. A tiny orange flame emitted from one of the peoples' hands. While Tyler inspected the other people, I ran over to Leah. I beheld her for a moment.
She was in a bad way, that was clear. Her clothes had been torn to shreds, much like mine, and where bare skin was exposed there was either an almost papery white, or covered in scratches and cuts. Her hair hung limply around her head, a dark greasy mass. The only sign that she was still alive was by the small flames flickering haphazardly in her palms.
"Hey dude!" Tyler shouted, "Two of these guys are already dead, but I think this girl might still be alive. I'll try to phase her-" His voice was suddenly cut off, replaced by the gruff sounds of a struggle. Tyler and another boy of similar age barrelled into the glow of light I was creating. Ty got the upper hand and straddled the other boy, punching the side of his face repeatedly. Then the boy jerked his hip and Tyler was thrown off. He rolled and landed in a crouching position. The boy struggled into a similar position.
"You all right, Ty?" I called to him, wondering whether to aid. Tyler grunted and lunged at the boy. I turned away and began to blast the cuffs on Leah's hands. After a few hits they snapped from pressure and Leah slumped forwards. I quickly did the same for her ankles then turned her over. She was breathing shallowly, and her eyes were diluted. Pressing my hand to Her chest, I sent a few sparks of electricity through her. Technically, if we were both energy absorbers, I should be able to give her some of my energy, and she would transform it into heat. When her body didn't jolt, I began to send more energy into her. I then spread electricity over her body, much like I did to myself to heal. She took a sudden shuddering breath and her eyes flickered open.
She looked up at me with a face resembling someone who had seen an angel. "It's going to be all right," I told her, cradling her head, oblivious to everything around me.
The only warning I had was a slight, fearful widening of Leah's eyes, and then there was a flash of pain in my head. I shouted, falling forwards onto the harsh ground. Rolling over, I sent a shock of lightning at the shape above me. It grunted and fell in a heap, a heavy sound accompanying the soft thump as his bat crashed to the floor.
"Leah, I need some light," I said, hearing a dozen sudden sounds spiralling around me. Leah took a large breath and fire flared in her hands, illuminating the cavern we were all in. However, aside from the apparently dead person I had shot, and the one Tyler was finishing off, there was no-one there. Realisation dawned on me as I felt icy metal slide between my ribs.
I didn't make a sound as I fell to my knees, my vision blurring already. White spots pulsated in front of me and I tasted blood in my mouth. The electricity built up inside me began to shatter as my body faltered. I felt it, along with the terrible agony in my side. I heard the sound of burning air and the roar of fire as Leah attacked my assailant, but it sounded far away, as if I was in a different world to them. Through my pain I realised that everyone in the room would die when the pent up energy inside me was released. I looked at Tyler and tried to point at the person he had said was still alive. He had finished the person he had been fighting, but right now I didn't care if that boy was alive or dead. Tyler understood and began to fumble wit the cuffs of the girl.
Someone was shaking me, shouting at me but I couldn't understand what the person said any more. I closed my eyes and tried to shout for everyone to get out, but my voice was failing. And the pain, the terrible agony was slowly consuming me, getting larger, covering me.
The last thing I felt, as I fell to the floor, were hands grasping me, pulling me away...