Double M is My Man

~ 28 II ~

~Part Two~

"What took you so long?!" Bailey yells as she opens the door for me then runs back inside her apartment. 

It takes me awhile to answer because I'm still panting from all the running I did to get all across the city to here. My lungs are freezing from all the cold air I was breathing in. As much as I wanted to collapse on the nearest couch, I knew that I had no time to relax. Instead, I threw Chasity's coat on the nearest couch and used my last bit of energy to sprint to Bailey's home office. Technically, it was her parents, but for now, it was going to be Bailey's and my workstation. 

"Lots of shit went down," Bailey tells me the moment I enter her office without looking away from the monitor.

"Like what?" 

Instead of answering, Bailey motions for me to look at the screen. When I do, I nearly collapse, and I would have if I hadn't steaded myself against Bailey's desk. Bailey brought me a chair to sit in, and I shrugged off my jacket and sat down without taking my eyes off the screen. I couldn't believe what my mind was processing. 

Chasity wasn't lying when she said Bailey and I would be able to see everything she was seeing. The camera in her suit must have been positioned on her forehead because the view was close to Chasity's perspective. Almost as if we saw everything unfold through Invisi-Girl's eyes. 

But what exactly was I seeing? 

The Super Trio was in the secret lab on the one-hundredth and thirteenth floor in Purity. Fortis and Double M stood a step ahead of Invisi-Girl, each hero flanking Chasity's sides. Ahead of them, standing by hundreds, if not thousands, of vials filled with an unknown green substance, was the CEO of Purity herself.

Melinda Chang stood proudly by her scientific experiments wearing one of her company's lab coats. I'm guessing this is why she never came up to her office to greet Chasity and me. However, the involvement of Purity's CEO was no longer a surprise to me. Rapax guarding Melinda also didn't come to a surprise. 

What did was the third person standing on Melinda's side. 

"Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Bailey asked after she gave me some time to study her monitor.

My throat felt too dry; I couldn't answer. I didn't know if I even wanted to reply. 

Bailey, who was also equally as shocked and stressed out, was running out of patience. "Tell me you see Charlie too!" 

I did. The English boy who made English class bearable for me was standing beside Melinda Chang. But his body posture was way off. Instead of the sweet and kind face, this Charlie appeared cocky. He smirked down on the Super Trio while Melinda stood by him. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Based on how the two were standing, Melinda and Charlie came across as equals. 

No, Charlie looked to be superior. "How?" I asked out loud. 

"Zero," Double M growled through the monitor. 

"As in Super Trio's most formidable enemy?" Bailey whispered nervously.

I nodded my head slowly. "No one knows how Zero looks like because it can take the shape of any person it comes across. That's why Zero is so powerful." I explained as I stared wide-eyed at Bailey's desktop. 

Zero, with the face of Charlie, smirked. "To be honest, I'm rather disappointed that none of you figured out who I was." The voice sounded exactly just Charlie; even the accent was spot on. A chill when down my spine at the sound. 

"How long?" Fortis demanded, his voice booming with anger, making even Bailey and I cowered out of intimidation. 

Zero appeared to be enjoying himself too much for my liking. "Oh gosh, I don't think I can think that far back. Hmm, I believe it was immediately right after the winter break. In fact, Zada interacted with the real Charlie only once, back when she first met the boy." If possible, my body dropped a couple of degrees in temperature at hearing the revelation. 

I was thankful that Bailey brought me a chair because I couldn't stand now even if I wanted to. Hearing that I have been interacting and calling Zero my friend, thinking he was Charlie all this time was equivalent to having my worst nightmare become a reality. I felt overwhelmed with disgust. How could have let Zero into my life like that? How come I never figured it out?

Because disguises were Zero's specialty. I would never figure it out if Zero didn't come clean. I also didn't know Charlie that well, making it easy for Zero to intercept Charlie and steal his identity.

The next question was where was the real Charlie? 

"Don't you dare say her name!" Double M roared, giving me goosebumps. The anger in his voice made Bailey, and I flinch. I don't think I've ever heard him sound so furious. 

Zero's grin widened. "Pretending to be Charlie has certainly proved to be worth my wildest dreams. I was able to confirm all of your identities but most importantly, I was able to find Double M's weakness."

My breath caught in my throat.

"You see, Reece, it was never about the Super Trio. You have been my prime focus. Your abilities are phenomenal. Evolutionary. I couldn't help but obsess over you," Zero confessed. 

"Gross," Bailey said, shivering from Zero's creepiness. I felt the same way. 

"I wanted to copy your abilities but couldn't on my own. So I turned to Purity. With Melinda's lovely donation and support, we were able to make our first prototype, Rapax."

That explains how the three individuals standing in front of the Super Trio were connected, much to my discomfort. 

"But even Rapax cannot perfect your abilities. He comes with one major drawback. And so Melinda and I went back to the drawing board." Zero paused to study the vials beside him. He picked up the closest one and inspected the green goo from up close. "And I believe we're close. Not where I'd like to be but close. You know what would help?" Zero set down the vial and picked up a needle attached to a syringe. "Your blood, Reece, is all that I'm missing!" Zero exclaimed. 

"Not happening," Reece answered lividly. 

Zero tsked. "Think of what we could accomplish with your blood, Reece. We could advance the entire human race. The next evolutionary milestone is you!" 

"Didn't you hear what I said?" Reece asked, "You'll never get your hands on my blood." 

Zero sighed. "I was banking that you would offer yourself willingly to the cause. Oh well, Rapax, you know what to do." 

And that was all Zero had to say before Rapax morphed into a panther and attacked the Super Trio while Zero and Melinda stood in the background and watched, enjoying the view.