The Hotel at the End of Time

Chapter 30 - Vain and the showdown at the Portal.

Vain survived years in a multi-dimensional, time-displaced Hotel, prisoner to a psychotic lunatic who forced her to pour her power and soul into a bottomless energy well. She had been beaten and healed countless times. Her dearest friend in the world had been targeted and tortured, only to get to her. She had endured through an escape that ended in the death of a companion and nearly killed all of them. Duplicate, murderous thugs had hunted her for a year.

Through the entire experience, she'd held on to her anger; anger at the people who'd done it, anger at the unfairness of it all. She liked it. The rage was a tornado, keeping everything else at bay. With it surrounding her, she'd never experienced fear. Not until now.

Emma terrified her.

She had witnessed Emma grow into her powers, doing things she never believed possible. It seemed almost effortless now, a far cry from that first explosion at the gas station. Emma was the power, and the power was Emma; and it sapped the cheery innocence out of her voice leaving behind only monochrome grey. She was so precise in her actions Vain didn't even feel the tugging lethargy of her pull anymore.

Emma could kill them all without breaking a sweat.

No one knew for sure how powerful Arthur was. People believed he created the Hotel himself. The Hotel, the Well, even the Devices were all rumored to have come from him. How much power would that have taken?

Had she created another Arthur?

Emma stepped through the wreckage of the guard towers, not pausing her horrible, deliberate pace. The ruined metal twisted out of her way, reinforced steel and concrete bending to her will. That wasn't the Emma from the forest, pleading with Vain for help. That was an Emma out of control; so far past the end of her rope the rope wasn't even visible anymore.

Roman's eyes were wide and wild. He held the gun like a phone, gripping it from the side, his finger not even on the trigger. Some of her fear gave way to anger, the same anger that existed whenever Roman was in distress. He needed—he deserved—better. When this business was over, she'd find a way to make it right and give him rest.

Their steady pace brought them close to the front of the squat, rectangular building. The whole thing was windowless and utilitarian. Two broad, steel doors off to their left swung open as they approached. Six Wyatts poured out, all armed with assault weaponry. They provided no warning this time, the times for warnings long since passed. They opened fire.

Vain flinched, as did Roman. Hundreds of fingers poked all over her body; tickling, itching at her, but not painful in the slightest. Pressure from the bullets pushed her back, but she braced against it.

Emma stopped. She didn't throw her arms up to block; she didn't cower, she only considered them, head tilted to the side. The Wyatts lined up in two rows, with the first crouched on a single knee and the back row standing.

The barrage of bullets lasted fifteen seconds and when it ended, the silence between the two groups lasted long enough to become awkward. Vain supposed people normally died after a bullet-based introduction, and there was likely no manual for what to do next.

"Um," said one of the Wyatts. "Get on the ground?"

"Stop?" said another.

Emma considered them. "Leave. Or I will kill you."

How was it possible to wash emotion out of a voice like that?

One Wyatt pulled a knife and launched himself at Roman. Apparently, even when confronted by an energy-wielding superwoman with the power to deflect bullets, the man constituted the bigger threat.