The next day, Dylo sat in the bathroom, his usual comfort zone, thinking to himself. Anyone else would say that chilling in the bathroom was weird, but Dylo didn't care what other people thought of him. His mother had taught him to be who he was, no matter what others thought.
On the surface, the others viewed him as this carefree, go-lucky person who was ecstatic about the potential of his new abilities. But underneath that playful exterior, he deeply resented his newfound speed because of the murder of his mother and father that occurred years ago.
That memory of them being murdered had remained in his mind for over 4 years. Every minor detail could easily be recalled.
He had been on his way home one day from school.
The day itself had been beautiful, by all means. It rained in the morning, but by noon the sun was out, and the air was bright and warm and pungent with the smell of petrichor. He trotted down the sidewalk, jovial as usual.
As he neared his house, he heard a loud bang coming from nearby that made his heart jump. As the neighbors rushed outside to see what was happening, Dylo began to sprint towards his house as fast as he could, his feet barely making contact with the ground.
Nearly tripping over his own feet, he made a sharp turn up the stone path leading up to his front door, which was wide open. The neighbors called after him, telling him not to go inside, but he didn't listen.
Fearing the worst, he darted into his house as he saw a man in a black jacket holding a gun to his mother's head, his father bleeding out on the carpet. He heard a loud bang as he leaped towards the man in black, spotting his mother's lifeless body fall to the floor in his periphery. The man dodged Dylo's body as it was hurdling towards him.
With his black jacket now drenched in blood, he made a hasty retreat out the back door, refusing to slaughter Dylo as he had done the boy's parents.
"I wasn't fast enough."
"If I'd just been a little faster, I could've saved them."
These thoughts lingered in Dylo's mind like a brain cancer, or a plague of some sort. He'd been too slow to save his parents, and they had paid the ultimate price for his mistake. That was the day that he'd changed. Instead of focusing on his schoolwork or sports, he decided to devote nearly all of his time to locating the killer of his parents.
He'd been trying to find the man that murdered his parents for over 4 years-and only Kai knew about it. He'd promised himself that when he finally found the man that killed them, he'd make him pay. He'd make him suffer as he did-as his parents did.
Yet, he finally possessed the speed to save them-4 years later. It seemed useless. He let out a huge sigh as his eyes fell to the bathroom floor.
Dylo swiftly exited the bathroom, asking Amber where Kai was.
"He's still downstairs in one of the weight rooms." Amber answered. "But Director Callan told us to stay here for some kind of briefing."
"I think he and Troy have been down there all morning." Leo added.
"Of course he has." Dylo complained under his breath as he zoomed out of the lounge. Throughout their friendship, Kai had always felt like he had something to prove. To other people-and himself. He always felt like he just wasn't enough. For that reason, he constantly trained to better himself, unable to realize that no one could truly become perfect.
"Hey," Amber said to Leo, "I just wanted to thank you for standing up for me when Bianca was going off."
Amber, not used to people being on her side as opposed to Bianca's, was profoundly grateful for Leo's help. She never had an actual friend, and nor had Leo. That was why they clicked.
"Oh, n-no problem." Leo said as his face began to slowly blush. "I'm just not a big fan of bullies, that's all."
"Yeah, I hear that." Amber nodded in agreement with Leo.
"Then how come you don't stand up to her?"
"She's the only friend I have."
"Well, not anymore." Leo stated as he noticed Amber's freckled cheeks turn red.
"Thanks." She replied.
Kai, Dylo, Troy, Adam, and Bianca soon entered The Cortex, with Director Callan and Owens behind them.
"Is there a reason we've all been called into this room, sir?" Kai asked impatiently, ready to get back to his training.
"Yes, actually." The doctor said, "Kai, would you please grab that remote and press the power button?"
"Sure." Replied the muscular young man as he grabbed the remote, trying not to crush it with his strength. He'd been working with many agents around the compound, practicing control over his powers. He no longer broke doors when he walked in rooms, so their lessons seemed to be paying off.
The television then flipped on, as Kai and the others gazed at it curiously. On the news, a report about a recent foiled abduction was the subject of focus. It was pretty clear that it was referring to their encounter with Ajax.
"It's time we told you what's actually going on around here." Director Callan began.
"So you're saying you didn't tell us everything before?" Troy asked rudely, slowly raising his voice.
"So you're lying?" Dylo asked quickly.
"No. Not exactly." Callan continued. "It's about time we told you why you have these powers in the first place. Just let me explain."
"10 years ago, at a biotechnology company known as Primus, Dr. Matthews discovered a new element-known as Genodium. Matthews began working on a engineering project, thinking that the Genodium could have potential to be used as a power source for future generations."
"My son, Elias, was one of his partners. During an accident at the headquarters one night, Elias was exposed to the Genodium. Matthews found that when the Genodium came into contact with his body, he became....enhanced. Stronger. Faster. Smarter. A myriad of other abilities."
"But unfortunately, it affected his mental state as well. That was the night I lost my son. His heart was filled with nothing but rage, completely deprived of all remorse. He was never the same after that."
The room had been engulfed in silence.
"After his transformation, he slowly began developing a plan that would release Genodium into the atmosphere, affecting everyone on the planet. It was called Project Expansion-Project X for short."
"So he wanted to give everyone powers like ours?" Troy asked sternly, as the light from the screen reflected off his long, black hair that stopped at his neck.
"Precisely. We've been trying to capture him for months now." Matthews answered. "But, instead of getting the desired results in his men's capabilities, over 4,000 men died due to his experiments. Watch."
He then swiped to the left of the screen, showing a segment of the same video that he'd shown Director Callan a few minutes before. Adam looked away in horror as he saw what happened to the soldier in the chamber.
"Is....is that guy dead?" Bianca asked in sadness, a bleak expression on her face.
"I'm afraid so." Matthews answered, swiping the screen to the left, showing a picture of Elias-also known as Ajax. "This is what he looks like. I heard that you've had a run-in with him before."
They sure had.
Kai's nostrils flared as he slowly began crushing the remote. The man's pale, clammy facial features sent chills down his spine.
His mind flashed back to the moment that he'd slaughtered that man right in front of them with that cursed blade of his. The mental image of the gruesome sight lingered within his mind, forever tormenting him.
They had to defeat him.
While growing up on Fort Lewis-a military installation-his father had always told him that if he possessed the ability to prevent something bad from happening, he needed to stop it. Frankly, he viewed Elias as something of a bully.
Kai didn't like bullies.
"So we track him down." he stated, with his voice having a hint of anger inside of it. "Formulate some sort of plan. Ambush him. With our powers combined, he won't stand a chance against us."
"That won't be necessary. We don't even know what he's planning. He presumably kidnapped the seven of you because you had already been exposed to the Genodium, but we don't know for sure." Director Callan began, scratching the back of his head as he walked toward the door. "Our agents will be able to detain him."
"That's a damn lie, and you know it. The man snapped their necks like they were plastic." Troy hissed, standing up and scowling at the man. "Brandson's right. You have a much better chance of beating him with us in the field."
Kai side-eyed the long-haired bully. He was the absolute last person he'd expect to be on his side. Nevertheless, he was grateful for the guy's input.
An annoyed look rest upon the bearded director's blocky features as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Breathing out a sigh of annoyance, he glared at the moody teens. "Listen, if we send you out into the field, you also have a much better chance of getting captured or killed."
Leo very nearly fell off of the couch as he fidgeted around. He wasn't necessarily in the mood to be killed, and was glad that someone in the room had some sense in them. Bianca thought the same.
Dylo, however, was adamant about being a superhero and beating up some bad guys, as he needed a stress reliever. Siding with Kai and Troy, he was determined to voice his opinion.
"They're right, dude. C'mon, just let us help out already. Besides, it not like you're gonna do anything about it." Dylo complained, speeding out of his chair to the other side of Director Callan in the blink of an eye. The stocky director simply glared at the freckled boy.
Amber hadn't really expected herself to agree with someone like Dylo, but she certainly had no issue exacting a bit of revenge upon Ajax and his forces. After all, the kid was right. Sending in more agents would only result in a higher number of fatalities.
She carefully examined Kai's demeanor. He was a natural, born leader. It was visible in the way that he spoke, carried himself, and trained. She noticed it when he protected Leo from Troy at school earlier that day, when he led the six of them out of Ajax's hands, and when he tried to calm her and Leo down when she was in a state of panic.
All of his traits reflected his ability to lead. While she didn't typically take orders from people her own age, if she had to follow anyone into battle, it might as well have been him.
"We're not having this conversation, Dylo." Director Callan said in a commanding tone as he and the doctor walked out the door. "The seven of you are staying under Genesis' protection until this entire situation is resolved. End of discussion."
A brief silence washed over the teens before being inevitably broken by Bianca. "There's no way in hell I'm staying here for the next few months, I can tell you that."
"Oh, and where're you gonna go? Vegas?" Dylo joked, posting himself up against the cold wall.
"Shut it, Blondie." The girl jabbed, scowling at the kid. She was getting tired of his constant jokes, while he was getting tired of the girl's never-ending bad attitude.
"Those agents are gonna get themselves killed if they try to face Elias alone." Kai stated, pacing back and forth. He looked as if he were trying to form something-a plan. "We have no other choice but to go after him ourselves."
"For once, I agree with you." Troy chimed in, clenching his fists. He figured that an assault on Primus was exactly what he needed to hone his abilities. After all, he'd always been more of a hands-on learner.
"Alright." Kai replied, staring at Bianca. "Just think of it this way: the sooner we beat this Ajax guy, the sooner we can all go home and forget that any of this ever happened."
Leo had to admit, the boy had him there. The guy was very persuasive with his words. "Fine." He huffed. "But we'll have to get out of here first. Got a plan for that?"
"Actually, I do." Kai smirked as he looked on the wall at a blueprint of the entire facility. Honing his tactical knowledge, he immediately began studying it, automatically identifying various points of entry and exit. He noticed that there was a narrow hallway leading down to the hangar from back door of the food court.
He figured that Adam could use his telepathy and easily find out a list of flight times. After that, the seven of them could sneak into the hangar, board one of the aircrafts, and be one step closer to facing Ajax. Then they'd formulate a strategy while on the jet. It wasn't much of a plan, but there would be time for revisions later.
"I need to know for sure that everyone's in on this." He stated, turning to his new friends with a leading gaze.
"I'm with you." Amber spoke up, staring directly at Kai with her soft but fearless eyes. Bianca scoffed.
"Eh, it's not like we're doing anything else." Dylo smirked, hints of complaint riddling his voice. Adam and Leo nodded in agreement.
"Alright. Let's go kick some ass."