Elektra
Sarah tried to get me to smile for my fake passport photo. She failed miserably. Next time I smile, it'll be because I'm out of the clutches of Asylum. Surprisingly, Sarah did a remarkable job creating passports. I used to run a gang up in Russia, so I know a thing or two about forgery, and this is a job well done. If Sarah had come to me asking for a spot in my crew, I'd have let her in, hands-down. However, the meticulousness of the job took a couple of hours, so Kya and Leo left to get snacks. By the time the mini-books were done and we finished eating, it was late in the afternoon.
"This is impressive," I credit Sarah, who smiles and massages her fingers to give them a break from all their typing. "I'm shocked."
"That's my girl," Leo assures, proudly beaming my way.
Ren rolls his amber eyes at all the positivity, which I find humorous. The library at this place is pretty empty, which is unsurprising given the general demographic here shows that people can actually have negative IQs. There's a few girls here, who gawk at Ren until he gives them a warning glare. That guy never seems to soften up. That's a good trait to have. Nobody should ever make you weak – weakness is a poison.
"I think we're ready to go," Sarah acknowledges, handing out our passports. "How long will the drive be to get to the airport?"
We look to Kya, who checks the current time. "It's five in the evening, so it's rush hour. Our three-hour ride just got extended to four. We'll arrive at the airport at nine. Paying for tickets might take a while, but overall, we should be able to make the ten-thirty flight."
"Alright, we're really doing this!" Leo cheers, pumping his fist in the air and jumping. Making a pinching motion with his fingers, he sighs and whispers, "We're this close."
"So we better not screw it up," I remind him. "Anyone need to use the bathroom before we hit the road?" When there's silence, I nod and take out the keys to our stolen car. "Alright, then...let's go." The five of us exit the library and enter the vehicle. Excitement buzzes through the air and everyone's nerves grow jittery. The tension is thick with anticipation, and while I too, should feel this energy, I can't shake a feeling of certain doom.
Overhead, storm clouds gather and I wonder if the inevitable lightning is throwing off my mood. I hesitate at the wheel as I start the car. The co-captain of this ragtag group senses my discomfort. He looks at me with weariness, his golden eyes a low pulse. Though there's clearly something on the tip of Ren's tongue, he doesn't say anything. Perhaps he trusts me to get the job done, and I appreciate that.
Finally, we pull out of the parking lot and drive out of this rotten ghetto. The car is silent. Nobody wants to speak in fear of jinxing ourselves into failure, but it's clear that we're mere hours away from safety. In the distance, there's rolling thunder.
Three miles south, walking, two humans hot on the trail. The moment I think about how close we are to escaping Asylum, my gut twists and sends this line of information to my brain. I have no idea exactly what it means or how I formed this, but something tells me it has to do with the sinking feeling in my stomach. To distract myself and to fill the silence, I turn on the radio.
We drive for hours in silence, and as we get within 30 minutes of the airport, fat drops of rain begin to clot on the windshield. The storm is coming. In my review mirror, I notice Kya shifting uncomfortably in the back. Maybe she doesn't jive well with rocky storms? Perhaps it gives out negative energy? Or maybe...just maybe, she's also sensing the unsaid qualm of a hidden issue?
Leo and Sarah break into a nervous, whispering chatter – both with concerned expressions. Leo throws a glance behind us, which isn't a good sign. "You two," I call, voice hoarse from disuse. "What's going on back there?" The rain intensifies a bit and I turn on the windshield wipers.
"I hate the rain," Ren utters in a disgruntled and eternally angst-ridden manner.
"Tell her!" Leo urges Sarah.
Uncertain, her lavender eyes look into mine. "I think we're being followed."
"Followed?" Kya echoes, also checking behind us. "I can't see who's following us, but...somehow I feel like Sarah's right. I can't explain it..."
So, Kya does feel it! I'm not the only one...I'm not crazy. The rain pelts down on us in sheets, and there might as well be a flood warning at this point. Despite the storm, traffic still speeds on the streets, people uncaring about the wet roads. Lightning cracks through the sky and a roar of thunder follows shortly after. Third car behind this lane; two people following us. My brain computes this random information again. I notice that it did this last time there was thunder, too.
We're on a four-lane highway, so I begin to decrease speed. If we're being followed, we need to see exactly who's following us so we can ditch them before we make it to the airport. The feeling of being in a car chase sends thrills down my spine. I used to do this all the time back in Russia, when I was still the Flash of Death. My power always gave me machine-empathy. I liked them far better than humans...I still do.
Cars swerve into the other lane as I let off the gas. Their blinkers angrily flash their yellow eyes before their car honks at us or the driver throws his hands up in the air. The first car exits the lane. Then the second. The third keeps a respectable distance. "Cerberus," Sarah sighs, peering over the backseats. "Cerberus is in there." I forget that her entire power focuses on concentrating solely on others. Of course, she would be able to read anyone better than us. "Someone else, too. Someone..." she squints her eyes in concentration. Her thin fingers splay out, searching the air for threads of power. Suddenly, she gasps and recoils. Leo holds her and I ask why he jerks his arms in doing so, when I realize that Sarah is shaking.
"Sarah, what's happening?" Leo whispers, caressing her hair. "Are you okay?"
A concerned Kya watches Sarah, then looks back at the car. "I'm not as good as identifying people by their energies as Sarah is, but whoever else is in that car besides Cerberus isn't good."
Ren sighs and rolls his eyes, finally snapping into his angry mode. Swiveling around he lectures the water bender. "Come on, Kya. Use your big-girl words. What do you mean the other person isn't 'good?' Of course they aren't good if they're after us."
Kya scowls at his glowering face. Often, these are the only faces I see the two ever exchange. It's a wonder that Ren brought her back from the café the night we robbed the bank. "Their power seems to come from dark emotions. It's like a churning, black pool of evil. It makes me feel kind of sick..." she queasily discloses with a pale face.
"Don't throw up!" Leo pleas. "Because if you throw up, then I'm throwing up, and I can tell you this, sister: one of us ate five-too-many chilly-cheese dogs."
"You ate five?" Kya asks in an astonished tone. "Impressive."
"Well, when you're a cook in the kitchen, you tend to eat a bit more than everyone. I swear, I have six stomachs."
"Guys!" Ren's sharp voice pierces through the car, silencing everyone. "Really? Can we focus on something more important right now?"
Leo rolls his chocolate eyes, but says nothing more. It's Sarah's soft voice who sounds next. "Death..." she trembles. "Whoever is in that car aligns their power with death."
Death, huh? Back when I killed Brovinski, I preached to my men and women that death was on our side – our fellow ally. Because in death, we found honor, and in sending people to their honor, we found respect. I'm not afraid of whoever is in that vehicle.
"Why are they just following us?" Kya queries. "They're against us, but they aren't fighting."
"They're waiting until we're on our feet, and in a more private place," Leo answers. "They're within my radius, so I can read their minds. They plan on arresting us and bringing us back to Asylum. If we're too dangerous, we'll be shot. Besides you, Elektra...for you, you'll be shot on sight."
I grip the steering wheel with unnecessary force. "Fair enough," I mutter. I have one of the more deadlier powers here, so considering me a threat is understandable. This only motivates me, however. It's a challenge for me to defeat whoever is trying to defeat me, and I don't plan on losing anytime soon. "We don't want the whole highway to know that we're a car full of freaks, so let's try to keep this chase low-key. There's a storm going on, we've got a fire generator, a mind reader, a voodoo doll – "
"My name is Sarah!" she barks. I forgot she hated being called that name... No I didn't; I just don't particularly care.
"- a water bender, and an electricity harnesser. Kya, it sounds like it's up to you and me. What can you do?"
"Nothing without causing collateral damage," she replies.
Ren pinches the bridge of his nose and closes his eyes. "Then cause collateral damage, Kya. Who cares about these people? Nobody tried locking them up in an Asylum. None of them were born with marks. We didn't ask for any of this, but normal humans treat us like we wanted to be abominations, and like we wanted to commit heinous crimes for the hell of it. And –"
"I know!" Kya yells back. "But stop thinking that everyone is out to get you, because that's not true! Not all normal people are like that. Not everyone works for Asylum or hunts us down. Just like not all of us are the monsters Asylum makes us out to be. Those people in the car behind us? They're one of us, and they're against us. The people in the car next to us..." Kya looks into the window of a small family, where a toddler leans over a baby's car seat. "...just an innocent family."
Ren looks over to the car next to us, which slowly eases past us. Once he looks ahead again, I'm shocked by the face he wears. For once, he isn't angry and ready to strike. If anything, he's sad and vulnerable. But as quickly as it was there, the expression disappears and Ren turns around again. "Right now, it's them or us. We either get rid of them now, or we bring them over to Japan with us. I'm not asking you to kill a man. I'm just asking you to derail them." His tone is critical and factual, but it lacks the usual do-it-or-I'll-snap-you-in-half air about it all.
"I'll see what I can do." Similarly, Kya's tone is critical and factual, but her empathy is gone in those few words. Is this a product of the Swap, or is Kya getting stronger on this journey and Ren is getting softer?
Kya opens her hands so her palms face down and her fingers are apart. Slowly, the car starts to edge in closer. Kya brings her open hands into a fist, and the road behind us turns to ice. This is a declaration of war, and we delivered the first punch. "Uh-oh!" Leo chirps. "Kya's badassing again and Elektra – is that a smile?"
It is a smile. I feel like I'm back in a gang. But this time, I'm not worrying about people trying to stab me in the back for my position as leader. This time, I'm with people who actually seem to value my existence. Who give me worth not because of my power, but because of who I am as a person.
The car behind us spirals a few times, clearing out vehicle behind it. The highway gets backed up from a couple of rear-end scenarios, but that doesn't stop our pursuers. Now, instead of crawling behind us, the car races and slams into our rear. Sarah gets flung, being in the middle, but Leo quickly reacts and keeps her secured with his own arm. Ren grunts and Kya braces herself. We're all okay.
"I'll do what I can," Kya notifies. "But you're going to have to lose them."
"Got it." My foot eases into the gas pedal as we press against 80 MPH.
"Duck!" Kya shouts. As a reaction, Leo and Sarah get down as an enormous block of ice slams into the car. Instantly, rain flows in. Risking a glance in my review, I see everyone dodged it besides Kya, who got grazed on the cheek by a sharp edge. "I forgot Cerberus could mimic our powers. Sarah, switch seats with me."
Sarah obeys, moving to the side, where she buckles in and braces herself for another impact. Kya kneels on the seats, and though I can't see her face, I can feel her energy has shifted, somehow. Now, she's angry. Her hands are in praying position, but they aren't touching. Slowly, she brings them together before abruptly clenching her hands into fists again. I assume this is the universal water-bending form of "freeze."
Cerberus's wheels freeze up. There's a sheet of ice over the rubber and the bolts and the hubs have been locked in place. The car stalls and glides over the ice before Cerberus uses Kya's power and melts the water. He retaliates by creating a wall of ice that curves in front of our car – so much for keeping our fight indiscrete.
Springing into action, Ren opens the door and fully blasts the ice with columns of fire. The car jerks forwards as the tires hope over some ice, and Ren nearly flies into the car next to us, but Sarah is quick to react and grips his jacket with her tiny hands, yanking him back inside. We pass through the melted portion of the wall, but our roof breaks through some of it. Nevertheless, we clear the obstacle.
Casting a glance behind me, I see Kya's face looking ash-white as she stares at her hands. Slowly, her gray eyes look to me, as if she's just seen a ghoul. "Elektra," she lowly says. "Do something. Fast."
There's a haunting story behind Kya's demand. The way she looked at her own hands – like she wanted to cut them off and burn them – doesn't happen because she got a paper cut or because she's shocked she slapped someone. I never pinned her as someone who would do something as awful as murder, but...the look in her eyes is one I've seen in many killers.
She positions herself on the backseat and raises her hands in a technique I've never seen...