Chapter Twenty-Two
Battle
I take a wild step back and my foot catches, flinging it into the air. I'm falling backwards for a fraction of a second until hands catch me. My bad arm is jarred by the catch and I wince. I turn around and Carlos says softly, "Are you all right?"
"Yeah, arm, I, um..." ...have apparently forgotten how to form sentences.
"Chaste?" Tara says cautiously, her voice wavering.
"Let's just address the elephant in the room. I faked my death," Chaste says simply.
I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. And then I felt tears coming. Desperately holding them back I stepped over the body pile to where Chaste was standing up and hugged him. My arms couldn't squeeze him hard enough and my nails dug into his back.
"I hate you so much right now," I said.
"I can't breathe," he gasped.
I quickly let go, and when I met his eyes I felt all my emotion pouring out in words. "Listen, I'm fighting back an urge to slap you right now, which I know sounds weird after I hugged you, but you better give me a good explanation for why you pretended to be dead. Or...I might just kill you myself."
"Okay, yeah. Right. Sorry about that." He cleared his throat. "I couldn't fight those guys anymore, and I knew they were either going to kill me or put me back in a cell, and neither of those things sounded like a good option. So I decided to play dead and hope that they'd leave me here and I could run away later. But then someone kicked me really hard-" he titled his head and pointed to a huge red spot forming a bruise on his temple "-and knocked me out. When I woke up I heard voices, so I just laid super still, and then I heard you talking about the pendant and I realized it was you guys."
"That was smart of you, to play dead," Tara tells him.
"Thanks."
"We should go before anyone else wakes up," Carlos whispers, gesturing to all the unconscious men.
"You're right. Ready, guys?" Tara asks. Chaste and I nod.
Carlos breaks down the door with a crunch.
I cradle my arm to my chest and leap through the dented hole in the door just as a fist flies at my face. I duck under it and throw my full weight, good side first, into the owner of the fist, knocking him over. I look up and I'm surrounded by Jared's men. Inwardly, I groan. I can feel my energy draining already.
Someone charges at me, aiming low for my legs. I sidestep with time to spare and knee him in the side of the head. He grunts loudly and falls over. "That was for you, Chaste!" I shout as I kick another man between the legs.
"Thanks!" he shouts back from somewhere behind me. His yell is followed by a man shouting, "It came from there!" and a grunt. I feel someone catch my wrist and tug on it roughly, so I windmill my arm, forcing the man to let go. Right, focus. Don't let them catch you. Twist, duck, kick, duck, punch. My extra thoughts filter out, and then it's just me versus the men who move in slow motion.
A shout breakd me out of my zone, and I look behind me to see three guys surrounding Tara. I want to kick myself, why didn't I think to stop and let Tara simulate my ability?
I tear through the throng of black clothes, making sure I'm going fast enough that no one can catch me. I decide to use my speed as an advantage and aim for the closest guy, barreling into his side. He's on the ground before the noise that comes out his mouth is finished.
I disable the other two men quickly. "Thanks," Tara breathes.
"No problem." I aim my fist and clock someone under the chin. "Just stay-" kick "-close to me!"
"Sure," Tara says, and that's all I hear before I let my ability take over again. The next two guys come at me in slow motion, and I have enough time after I knock them out to check up on Carlos. He's doing fine, although he's sweating.
Chaste is invisible, but over to my right I see men grunting as their heads are knocked to the side or as they keel over their stomachs. I grin and turn back to the next man as he lunges.
Soon, however, my slow motion starts speeding up slightly. They're getting closer to hitting me or grabbing me, I'm dodging with inches to spare. A man slips behind me and I turn to defend Tara, but she's kicked him hard between the legs. The pride that fills me shows up on my face and I turn back around- and he's there.
Jared, in his stained white shirt and torn jeans, is heading straight for me.
I gasp, unable to look away, and then I'm knocked roughly to the side. Pain shoots up my left side and I cry out. I force myself to focus and in a flash the offender is on the ground.
I shoot my gaze back up to where Jared was. Carlos has saved the day and the two are engaged in battle. I remind myself not to watch for too long and am occupied with the next four guys that come my way. One of them manages to scratch me on the face, and I'm panting by the time I'm done with them. As I move on to another man I hope Tara is all right.
There's a resounding crack, and I turn and see something I never want to see again- Jared's face, broken. His nose is skewed and bleeding, and his jaw looks very, very broken, jutting out from his cheek on one side. As quickly as I see it, the process corrects itself. His jaw pops into place, then his nose, and his cheek heals over, leaving only the blood staining his face.
Then Jared jumps at Carlos. At the same time a fist comes for my face and I avoid it by a hair.
The man fighting me is quicker than any of the other ones. I find myself on the defense for longer, barely avoiding his blows and grabs. I manage to clip the side of his head, but then a blow hits my stomach, making me double over. Sickening waves of pain roll of my midsection, but I bring my leg up hard and land a kick in man's sensitive area. He yells and doubles over, and with an elbow to the temple he's out.
"Thank goodness," I groan, breathing hard. Even though the air is cold, heat has built up in me and all I want to do is sit down and catch my breath.
There aren't that many men left, so I take the opportunity look around for Tara. Only can't find her. Then I hear a yell. Two guys are holding Chaste, which looks odd since he's invisible. One of them aims at the air between his fist and the other man's fist and lands a punch. Carlos, who is torn and bleeding and exhausted, is still preoccupied with Jared. I compose myself and dart over to Chaste, kicking one guy in the back to get his attention. A few punches later, he's down, and Chaste has taken care of the second guy.
"I can't hold up much longer," I pant.
Chaste reappears briefly, and I see that his arm is bleeding. He's also redfaced and breathing hard. "Same here. Who knew escaping could be this difficult?"
"Before today I've never even punched anyone," I complain. "How are we going to defeat Jared? Look, he just keeps healing."
Chaste shakes his head. "Watch out." Then he vanishes, and I desperately jump out of the way as a man charges at me. I'm barely faster than the average person at this point, so when I kick him in the stomach he catches my shoe. Then I hear a thunk, and the man's eyes, the only part of his face I can see, roll back in his head and he falls over.
"Thanks, Chaste."
"No problem. Now I only owe you for saving me once."
I grin at him and cast my eyes around the room until something makes me do a double-take. It's Tara, and someone has one hand over her mouth and the other anchoring her to him.
It's Josh.
If I die here today, I will be happy as long as it's after I pummel Josh Ritter.
In the blink of an eye I've scaled the stairs and am facing Tara and Josh. He sees me and his lips curl up in a slimy grin.
"I'm so tired of you," I say, and before he can respond, my fist introduces itself to his face.
His teeth weren't very polite but his nose was slightly forgiving.
His head snaps backwards and Tara is released. She turns and skitters down the stairs. I want to say a badass line before I take out Josh, but my mind isn't at its freshest so I settle for kicking him where it hurts.
Although it's unnecessary, I punch him again and thrust my knee into his stomach. He hits the balcony railing with a satisfying thud. His body slumps against it
Carlos, meanwhile, has just gotten hit in the face. It doesn't look like it does much but I see him wince.
I know what I should do, so I leave the last few men to Chaste and shoot over to Jared. I brace myself for momentum and aim with my shoulder. Carlos is a dark blur in the side of my vision, my eyes are focised on my target.
I have just enough time to think this better work before, wham. A smack and crunch, and Jared is on the ground. My lungs are too hot and I gasp, praying he'll stay down. And he does, for a few seconds, until he gets right back up like nothing happened. I zip out of the way before he can grab me.
"Let me handle this," Carlos grunts as he grabs Jared by the front of his shirt, lifts him up and throws him ten feet.
"Don't you want help?" I ask.
He swipes a hand over his brow. "I need to do it."
"Why, though?" Wary, I watch Jared shake his head like a dog and stand up.
"He's my DAD!" Carlos yells, the loudest I've ever heard him speak.
Jared.
Carlos's dad.
The one who went insane at AIGEA twenty years ago.
The one who went crazy trying to find his lost pendant.
The one who definitely has the same jaw and nose as Carlos.
"Behind you," Carlos warns.
Those two words bring me out of my shocked state and I whip into a defensive stance instinctively. But luckily for my tired body, it's just Tara. "We can't defeat Jared," she says, dragging me away from where he is - once again - battling Carlos.
"But he's Carlos's what?" I say.
"I mean we can't defeat him by ourselves," she says, choosing to ignore my incoherent reply. "But look, he knows what it can do. We don't have all four but we might be able to use it," she continues.
"What are you talking about?" I glance back at Carlos, his chest expanding and contracting with the breathing I can hear from meters away.
"The pendant! Sorry. We can use it. Me, you, and Carlos. Maybe. Jared has a ton of information about it up there, and I saw how you're supposed to use it. You can only access its full power with all four, but it still kind of worked with two, right? So we might be able to use it with three."
"Oh! So-"
I'm stopped when Tara reaches up and tears the necklace from my neck, breaking the clasp. "Ow! Was that necessary?"
She just grabs my arm, and now the necklace is glowing yellow-green. Suddenly it's like I've put earmuffs on; every noise is slightly muffled. And there's something that comes with the light that I didn't feel before- desperation.
And power.
I can feel Tara's ability, and it's like she's a puzzle piece that fits right next to me. But the puzzle isn't complete, there are still two gaps.
"Carlos!" she yells.
He turns to look and at that exact moment, Jared kicks him in the stomach. Carlos doesn't stumble back, doesn't even move, but his face contorts and he groans.
Tara and I wince, and the light wavers for a second. "Sorry!" she yells.
Chaste is suddenly beside me, no longer invisible. His breathing fills my ears as he, exhaustedly, takes my arm and rests his weight partially on me.
For the first time, the blue quadrant lights up.
Another slot filled.
The light is brighter, and I squint into it. Wind is rushing around me, blowing my hair up, and now it's the only thing I can hear.
"You're blue!" Tara cries, barely audible over the wind. "We just need Carlos!"
Jared leaps onto Carlos's back in a strange sort of tackle. Although Jared is shorter and weaker, Carlos is tired and battered, and Jared is not. Carlos's hand finds Jared's arm and wrenches it free from his neck, and he throws Jared off. He meets my eyes and reaches for me. One, two, three steps, and Jared is right behind him. Carlos jumps. His fingers find my hand.
The puzzle is complete.
The light from the pendant becomes white, all four colors visible near the bottom but melding into purity the higher you look. The wind kicks up and roars upward in a spiral, collecting above our heads in a sphere. All of us make up the sphere. I feel Carlos, composing the strength of its body. Chaste, giving it stealth and insuppressibility. I am the source of its force and speed.
Tara is the one who holds it together and tells it what to do.
The light streams upward around the sphere, and Tara's ability nudges it ever so slightly in the right direction.
It jumps free from its suspension over our heads and rockets out. The sphere makes contact with Jared, and once it passes over him it really explodes, moving outward as if over a wall. It reaches the furthest corners of the room in a whoosh before it's gone, as quickly as it came.
And Jared is buried underneath a fallen balcony.
The first thing I hear is Tara gasping, and she drops the pendant, which sizzles. There's a red burn mark on her hand from where she held it. As soon as it leaves her hand the light fades.
"Do you think he's...." Her voice becomes a slur. Her eyes roll back and she falls to the ground.
I feel it next, and it's like I have no energy left to exist. My legs give out, and I feel someone's hands catch me before those are gone too, and there's nothing.
***
"Ari? Oh my God, please don't be dead, there are so many unconscious people and you're my best friend and you're so amazing. Please don't be dead!" There's a pause. "I'll be your best friend!"
I blink, and blonde hair is all I see. "Oh, thank goodness!" cries Evelyn. "I got here and there was a huge hole in the wall! And there's a grody buried guy over there! Please explain, what the actual hell happened?"
"It's a long story," I mutter, making myself sit up. I feel sluggish, and dizziness rushes to my head once I'm upright. I'm in the exact same place I remember just before I passed out, next to Tara and Chaste and Carlos, with the buried Jared in full view.
"We need to get out of here..." I say.
"Yeah-huh, it's creepy. C'mon, let's wake them up." She steps over to Chaste and gently shakes his shoulder.
Once the three have been roused, I turn to Tara, our unofficial leader. "What are we going to do with Jared?"
Carlos taps me on the shoulder and holds up the loops of rope. "Look what became useful."
He drags Jared out from the dent in the floor and the four of us tie him up tighter than is probably necessary.
"What if he wakes up?" Chaste asks.
"Oh! What a coincidence," Tara says, and bends down to pick something up. It's a big black dart gun, and only now does it occur to me that none of Jared's men had guns. I sigh, realizing how lucky we were that they didn't.
Tara aims carefully and shoots Jared in the arm. It doesn't seem to do anything, but she says, "Even if he wouldn't have woken up before that, he'll be out for another hour or two."
A good six seconds of silence pass. Then Chaste says, "Are we done? Did we really just do all that?"
"I think we did it. We defeated Jared," Tara says awedly.
"Wait, that's Jared?" shrieks Evi.
"With a giant wind bomb!" Chaste cries excitedly. "Man, I wish I could see that again!"
"A wind bomb? Hold on, what?" Evelyn interjects.
"I think you can. Chaste, you're the blue S!" Tara cries. "We have all four after all!"
"Does this mean I'm in a cult now?" Chaste asks.
"I have no idea what it means," Tara says honestly.
"And I still have no idea what's going on," Evi reminds us a bit testily.
"Oh! Sorry, Evi, I'll explain it all," I say, taking her aside from the group. "It all began when I f-"
"Oh, I forgot something!" Tara announces. "We need to call NGAC to come take care of all this. Does anyone have a phone?"
Carlos hands her his and she dials a number into it.
"Wait, you can just call NGAC?" I ask.
"It's kind of like calling the police," Chaste says. "Except for people with abilities."
Evelyn nods. "Now, back to the story.....?"
"Right! So I found this pendant with four S's on it, each one was a different color. And I'm not sure why, but I didn't tell an-"
"They're on their way!" Tara announces, hanging up the phone. "Let's get outta here. Which reminds me! Evelyn, how did you get here?"
She blushes and smiles coyly. "Ari, I took you golf cart."
I sigh. "It's okay. It'll be a long ride home. though."
Since the four of us were still exhausted, Evi drove. Tara sat up front next to her and I heard snippets of the story as she explained everything that happened. Chaste claimed the backwards-facing rear seat and fell asleep immediately. Carlos sat in the back with me. There was a chill in the air that didn't seem to bother anyone else, but seeped under my sweatshirt every so often, giving me goosebumps.
"So, Jared's your dad," I say to Carlos. "Sorry, but I still can't get over that. Why didn't you mention it before?"
"It didn't seem important."
I gape at him. "How could that not be important?"
He shrugs.
"So he's the one Camille teased you about?" I ask, immediately wondering if it was a bad question. "Sorry. I mean, uh..,"
"Yeah. Don't worry."
I nod and lean back against the cart in an attempt to get more comfortable. The metal digs into my back uncomfortably and I sit back up.
"Are you, um...are you sad? That he's insane, or that you won't really be able to see him?" I yawn, not being able to hold it in any longer.
"No. It'e better when he's not around. My mom is happier."
"Mm. What's your mom like?"
He thinks for a minute. "Warm. Tall. Strong. She's stronger that me."
I laugh. "I don't believe it."
"I'm serious. I arm wrestled her and she won."
I grin, closing my eyes and picturing it in my mind. "I wish I knew where I got my ability from."
"Your dad, right?"
This catches my attention and I open my eyes. "I never knew my dad."
"But it's not your mom. So it must be him."
I bite my lip. "Do you think he had speed too?"
"I don't know."
I sigh, wishing I knew for sure. Then, to my surprise, Carlos makes an unprompted remark. "The pendant was rightfully my mom's."
I turn back to him. The breeze blows his dark hair into his eyes and he brushes it away. "She was the red S before me," he whispers.
"Wow," I say, my voice slurring in exhaustion. "Maybe my dad was yellow."
"Maybe."
I yawn. "Are you exhausted too, or is it just me?"
He nods and yawns in response.
I try to relax, and my right side finds his left. It's warm, and a lot comfier than the metal back of the golf cart.
I remember the rumbly sound of us rolling down the road, and the gentle pressure of an arm around my left side.
And I remember dreams that were much more peaceful than the events of that day.