Chapter 2

Of the thirty-four recruits from the Refuge and from Los Angeles and four new breakouts, John and Jed deemed twenty ready for simulations. They set up mock war zones and assigned two teams to compete against each other. John closely monitored the training exercise.

"Russell," Jedikiah loudly called, pulling Russell away. "Let's talk."

Jed and Russell walked down a corridor.

"What's up?" Russell asked.

"I'd like you to take the lead in training the other eighteen recruits and maybe later on, the more breakouts that will come our way."

"Thanks, but don't you want your former Ultra agents doing that?"

"My contacts want to see some results. I'll need my former agents to show off. While your skills are impressive, I think you'd be better suited for training."

"All right. I can do that."

"I can tell you have a rapport with a lot of the recruits. You should go back and finish the war game, first."

Russell acknowledged the cue to leave, but stopped Jed as the latter was stepping away.

"Hey, Jed, I realize we haven't had much contact the past month I've been here, and part of that is because of me wanting to keep my distance," Russell said.

"And part of that is me wanting to keep my distance, too," Jed interrupted.

"I . . . uh, I just wanted to thank you for hiring me. Things haven't been the same between me and Cara and Stephen, and this was good. I know I owe you big time after what I did."

"You owe John, too," Jed pointed out. "You undermined his sacrifice."

Russell grimaced slightly. "I know."

"I can't even imagine what the Founder did to John, in addition to removing his powers. I'll bet it was inhumane. Did he ever tell you?"

"No, I knew he didn't want to talk about it," Russell answered.

"For his sake, it's a good thing he doesn't remember, then, hmm?"

"Yeah," replied Russell.

"I'm glad you agree."

Later, Jed called Bethany and Paul, a Los Angeles recruit, to his office.

"John identified a Tomorrow Person here," Jed said, pointing to a map. "He's a relatively new breakout and he's new to the area. I'd like to make a new recruit out of him."

"That's a crowded place," Bethany pointed out.

"That's why I'm sending you two. You know the drill."

Bethany and Paul teleported to an alley and walked to a shopping center, looking for the TP.

Paul noticed a young man use his telekinesis to make someone trip. The young man helped his victim up while stealing a wallet.

"That's him," Paul said.

Paul and Bethany approached the TP slowly and cautiously.

The TP suddenly noticed them and picked up his pace and turned into an alley. There, he ran into Stephen and Cara.

"Hi, there," Cara said.

"What's your name?" Stephen asked.

Paul and Bethany caught up and heard Cara's question.

"Rich," the TP thought.

"Rich," Cara said.

"Yeah, that's right," Stephen said. "We can read minds just like you, and we can do more than that, can't we?"

"Don't be afraid of us," Cara assured. "We're just like you."

"I thought I was alone," said Rich.

"You're not," Bethany finally said. "Come with us, Rich. You'll have a place with us."

"Or you can come with us," Stephen interjected, the annoyance in his voice clear.

"Rich is a thief," Paul pointed out. "He's been using his powers in public to steal wallets. We get him."

"So you can do what? Strip his powers?" Cara asked. "Does Jed still do that?"

"The agreement was to let us be an enforcement body," Bethany said.

"Actually, the only thing we agreed on was to let Jed recruit TPs from the Refuge," Stephen countered.

"So let us recruit him from the street, then," Paul replied.

"How about I just not go with any of you?" Rich said, before running off.

As the four continued to argue over Rich and looking for him, Jed noticed the TP activity.

"John?" Jed called loudly. He waved at John in his office.

John immediately teleported over.

"I sent Bethany and Paul to handle a TP. There's a signal indicating the arrival of more TPs."

"Stephen's group?" asked John.

"That's what I'm guessing. We've finally crossed paths. Can you take us there?"

John grabbed one of Jed's shoulders and teleported to the shopping center. In a split-second, Jed saw people around him and panicked, fearing that John had teleported them into a crowd. Before he could react, he felt himself zipping through the air into an alley, where his agents, Stephen, and Cara caught up with Rich. He realized that he hadn't materialized yet until he stopped moving.

"John," Cara said quietly.

Jed took a moment to regain his composure.

"More of us?" Rich asked.

"I'm John. I am a Tomorrow Person," John replied. "This is Dr. Jedekiah Price. He's not, but he can help you. You're Rich?"

"We can help, too," Stephen said. "As I was telling your agents, the best place for Rich is at the Refuge. We can train him and set him straight about Tomorrow Person rules. He doesn't deserve to go into your hands."

"'Deserve?'" Jed questioned. "You act like this is Ultra. We aren't the bad guy, Stephen. Rich won't be our prisoner, just like he won't be yours, right? He has a choice."

"You all really need to stop talking about me like I'm not here," Rich said.

Jed looked directly into Rich's eyes.

"Rich, like John said, I'm Dr. Price. I run an organization that trains paranormal people like yourselves to become soldiers for the U.S. government. At the same time, my organization also polices paranormal activity. You can join us if you can prove to me that you can stop using your powers in public and against others."

"And if he can't?" Cara asked icily.

"I'll inject you with a serum that will remove your powers permanently. That's how we police you. Were you not expecting consequences for crimes?"

Cara and Stephen looked surprised by Jed's frankness.

"Stephen? Cara? Would you like to give your sales pitch?" asked Jed.

"We have a refuge full of Tomorrow People," Cara said. "We live and train together. We're a big family. And we're not going to strip your powers."

"You'll have to do something if Rich doesn't stop stealing," Bethany claimed.

"We have a very welcoming place," Cara said. "They have a business."

"A business that pays you to use your powers," countered Jed. "It's your choice, Rich, and it doesn't have to be a binding or permanent choice. You can go to the Refuge if you're unhappy with me."

Rich turned to Jed. "If I have a job, I won't need to steal. I'll go with you."

Jed smiled. "Good choice. Stephen, Cara, do you want to force him into the Refuge?"

Stephen shook his head.

"No," Cara said quietly.

"Here we go," Bethany said. She wrapped an arm around Rich and teleported away with him.

Paul also teleported away.

"John?" Cara said. She saw John about to teleport with Jed.

John and Jed both looked back at Cara, waiting for her to continue.

"You are very important to me," Cara finally said. "I'm not giving up."

John and Jed teleported away.

"That was pathetic," Cara remarked to Stephen. "I didn't know what to say, and I don't know what to do."

"I know," Stephen responded. "I don't know how to handle this, either, but we'll think of something. I'm not giving up, either."

John and Jed returned to Jed's office.

"How did you do that?" Jed asked.

"Do what?"

"When we arrived at Cornerstone Plaza, we didn't materialize immediately. We traveled before we materialized."

"It's just something I started to do when I'm in a rush so I don't have to spend time looking for empty places. I just zero in after I see the area."

"I have never heard of that before," said Jed.

"There's a brief moment between dematerialization and materialization. I just hold onto that moment. I can do a lot in that state without anyone seeing."

"That's impressive. I'm proud of you."

John smiled. "You say that a lot."

"And I mean it every single time."

Russell knocked on the door.

"Come in," Jed said.

"Hey, John," said Russell. "Jed."

"Hi, Russell," replied John.

Jed exchanged a look with John and John teleported back to his office.

"Bethany suggested that I drop by," Russell said.

"Yes, good idea. Have you met Rich yet?"

"Yeah, I talked to him for a second before Bethany took him to HR."

"He was caught stealing, but he told me that he wouldn't have to steal if he worked here. I need you to keep an eye on him, see if he's genuine."

"Okay," Russell responded.

"Talk to him about what he can expect here. Help him decide if he wants to go abroad or stay here."

"If he does keep on stealing, are you going to take his powers away?"

"Yes. He doesn't deserve his powers and he's endangering all Tomorrow People."

"Man," exclaimed Russell.

"I'm optimistic. People do change. You did."

"Yeah, I did," admitted Russell.

"It's probably a good thing that no one here knows or remembers who you were. Did you get a sense of how much control Rich has over his powers?"

"He could definitely use some hands-on training."

"That'll be your job."

That night, Russell returned to the Refuge to have dinner with Stephen, Cara, and Irene.

"How's John doing?" Irene asked.

"Fine, probably. I heard he's doing a lot of cool stuff, but Jed tries to keep us apart so I don't talk to him much."

"I've been going over neurological models to determine how the addition of powers could affect someone's memories, but it's hard to grasp all of this when I don't have real data."

"Could you do something if you had John's charts?" Stephen asked.

"It's no guarantee, but it'd help. What are you thinking?"

"We're talking about Jed here," Stephen said. "I have no doubt that he's been keeping tabs on John's health. He probably has John scanned regularly and he probably keeps those scans in his office."

"You want to break in," Cara realized.

"Yeah," Stephen replied. "Russell, does that sound like something you can do?"

"I haven't seen d-chips anywhere. Jed is really running a different organization now."

"Do you trust him?" Cara asked.

"I think he's genuinely trying to help and keep order," Russell said, "but I wouldn't say I trust him."

"Good call," Cara said. "I was concerned that our confrontation with his agents was going to get violent. I'm worried violence will be inevitable."

"We need to make sure that our people won't do things that attract their attention," Irene pointed out.

"We can't just give in to Jed!" responded Russell.

"There are other reasons to stay private and stay legal," said Cara.

"This goes beyond Jed, anyway," Stephen said. "Russell, you mentioned that 20 people are doing advanced training and now 22 are doing basic training. How many are assigned to policing TPs locally?"

"The 20 in advanced training, plus John. Sometimes, they've been going out with the less-experienced TPs so they get field experience. I think when Jed sends the 20 out to the U.S. government, the next group will take their place."

"Some of those are our friends and former building-mates," said Stephen. "Let's not put them in an awkward position."

"Anything else we should know?" Cara asked Russell.

"Jed's developed a dart that has some d-chip technology embedded so an agent can suppress powers from a distance. If a TP gets hit, their abilities weaken a lot."

"Permanently?" Cara asked.

"No, only until the dart gets removed. It has a very small range."

A few nights later, Russell again returned to the Refuge after dinner.

"How are things going over there?" Cara asked.

"Fine," Russell answered. "A few military guys are coming in tomorrow to see Jed's work."

"Any luck with John's scans?" Stephen asked.

"No, it's been busy there and people are always around," answered Russell.

"Even late at night?" asked Cara.

"I'm also making sure it's safe, first."

"I thought you said you didn't see any d-chips," Cara recalled.

"I . . . just want to make sure."

"Russell, what's wrong?" Stephen asked.

Russell sighed. "Nothing's wrong."

"Russell?" Cara asked.

"I just need a little more time, that's all."

"You haven't been the same lately," Stephen stated. "Is Jed getting to you?"

"You've been like this for much longer than that," Cara pointed out.

"I'll never forgive myself for betraying Roger," Russell finally admitted. "I am trying my best to make it up to you, Stephen, because you haven't looked at me the same since then. You all have been like a second family to me and I won't let you down, but a part of me wants to make it up to Jed and John, too. Jed lost his brother and John lost a friend. And if John didn't lose his powers, he wouldn't have lost his memories."

"So make it up to him," Cara said. "You can help make things right."

"How are things here?" Russell asked.

"Our numbers are growing slightly, even with Jed getting some of new breakouts. We're having a good amount of luck getting the older ones jobs and the younger ones into schools."

Russell nodded. "I should go."

"Keep us updated," Stephen said.

"I will." Russell teleported away to work, arriving at the top floor. He watched a TP named Derek teleport out, leaving Russell alone. Russell rushed to Marcy's desk and began rummaging around.

In another part of the city, located away from the urban atmosphere, a group of TPs prepared to sleep in an abandoned and foreclosed home.

Someone teleported in. "Natalie?"

"Silas?"

"Yeah."

"What did you find out?"

"I have confirmation that John is missing six years of his memories. He doesn't remember the lair at all. I heard Stephen, Irene, Cara, and Russell talking about it."

"Good. What about his powers?"

"I don't have absolute confirmation, but I'm pretty sure that he has become extremely powerful. I heard other people saying that he could be the most powerful one of us. They aren't reliable sources, but that information has to come from somewhere."

"Do you think we should proceed?" Natalie asked.

"Not yet," a third person said.

"Why not?" asked Natalie.

"I was wrong about propranolol. It's mostly used for the circulatory system. There are studies being done on its effects on memory, but nothing substantial has been found."

"Look for an alternative," Natalie ordered. "We need to be absolutely sure that we give John will wipe the rest of his memory. Do it quickly. If what Silas says is true, John might be able to fend us off soon. Besides, I'm tired of living like this. I want my personal weapon already."

Russell teleported to the roof of a building across the street from Jed's and John's apartment. He found the address at Marcy's desk.

"John!" Russell broadcast in thought, as strongly as he could. "John!"

"What?" John finally responded.

"I'm across the street. Any chance we could talk without Jed knowing about it?"

John appeared a few seconds later. "What do you want to talk about?"