The last thing she saw before she blacked out was the vicious grin of Karina Sokolov diving over the edge of the railing. Then she hit something, and she hit it hard. After that, her memory was a shadow of sound and sensations. A rush of movement, a cacophony of voices, a tight constriction around her chest. It all happened within the murky water of the excruciating pain shooting through her head.
Then the light faded in and the muffled sounds regained their clarity.
"Should we have her upright like that or will that just make it worse?"
"I told you there was no bleeding. I think fear may have contributed more to the fainting than impact."
"She shouldn't have hit the trees in the first place."
"The bitch threw hot water in my face, so it took me a second!"
"Shock, I'm getting some readings."
"You've been saying that for an hour. Which is an hour we could've used to swing her to our side if someone hadn't been so keen on revenge."
"I brought her to you!"
The voice was shriller than she remembered, but as the cogs in her mind creaked and turned once again, she knew it was Karina that was fighting to defend herself.
"None of you would've gotten within ten miles of that place before security kicked you out and none of you would have gotten her out of there, even if you did make it onto the property. I deserve more credit."
"She did a good job, Shock. Let it go."
"You," uttered a voice she recognized as Shockwave, "don't have Stone breathing down your neck. He gave me this task personally, not Gyro, our supposed Admiral."
"Careful, Shock."
"What? Where was Gyro when I was fighting a hell beast?"
"It was an illusion," answered Karina, a roll of her eyes present in her tone. "You weren't actually fighting a real monster. Just something her imagination came up with."
"Shock, I'm telling you it's different. She's regained consciousness."
"Fine, fine, break out the smelling salts then and snap her to attention."
Elaina fought to open her eyes or to utter an exclamation, anything to fend off the coming assault of the pungent ammonia inhalant. However, her body ignored her commands, and a scent crashed against her nostrils like a battering ram.
"Argh," she cried, her eyes popping open and her body jumping, though she still found herself painfully immobile.
"We meet again, Ms. Hart."
She blinked to clear the fog from her eyes while her throat did its best to suppress the rising burn of stomach acid. All around her it felt like the world was spinning and she struggled to ground herself.
"You sure there wasn't any bleeding," growled Shockwave.
"Yes, I'm certain," proclaimed a husky, masculine voice. "Back me up, Misty."
"Her brain activity is still unstable," answered a calm feminine voice that Elaina paired with the person who had been informing Shockwave of her return to consciousness. "However, that is from disorientation and the sudden impact of the ammonia. Nothing is reading as an internal injury other than some bruising that will subside in a week or two."
A couple of weeks, Elaina groaned inwardly. Fuck these assholes. They wouldn't be so nonchalant about it if they felt this pain. Oh, she thought with a sudden burst of energy, there's an idea.
"I don't have a week or two. He's going to be here any minute and we need to..." A sudden cry poured from his gaping mouth, cutting Shockwave's words short.
"What is it?" asked the husky voice.
"My skull, it's...it's..."
"Oh, we'll have none of that," interjected Misty, right before Elaina felt herself slammed into a mental wall. Which in no way helped her headache. As she hissed in pain, Misty continued. "I'm a telepath, there won't be any illusions here today, though I will admit that is quite a powerful trick you have there."
"The fuck," growled Shockwave, "if that was an illusion, why does it still hurt?"
With time settling her stomach and clearing her eyes, Elaina surroundings took form. She was in a tall chamber that looked a bit like an auditorium and she sat beneath the spotlight intended for the podium behind her. Standing in a semi-circle around her were four figures—an agitated Karina, a growling Shockwave, a lithe, elegant woman, and a thick, squat man. She knew that everyone, except maybe Karina, had to be members of Fortress. However, they were all wearing street clothes and appeared as normal as any other human being.
"Her powers may be meant to deceive, but to do so, she is effectively altering your brain chemistry to perceive her intended illusion. So, your head is still trying to re-stabilize. Here, give me a moment." The tall, lean woman, who Elaina was certain was Misty, stepped forward and placed her hand upon the side of Shockwave's head. Elaina watched his tense torso ease beneath the telepath's gentle touch, and after a moment of healing, he leaned his cheek into her palm and twisted his neck so his lips could plant a kiss upon her skin. Elaina also noticed Karina's face grow a shade darker. It seemed her tutor was striking out with all the eligible bachelors in San Francisco.
"Excuse me," said Elaina, who finally realized her inability to move was due to being bound to a chair and not from her fainting spell. "Why the fuck am I here?"
"You," said Shockwave, turning from Misty and pointing a finger in Elaina's direction, "caused quite a scene at the gala."
"I told you not to touch me."
"I suppose you warned me." His smile faltered as his teeth ground down some words he wasn't willing or able to share. "Now, I can attest to the power you have. A lot of our telepaths can influence emotions when they invade minds, but none of them can create a mass hallucination like you do. That is a power unlike anything we've seen, which is why we'd like to offer you the prestigious honor of being a member of the Fortress." His smile had recovered and an array of white teeth flashed at her, while Misty and the man by her side nodded their appreciation.
Her brow furrowed as she turned to Karina, who stood with arms crossed and her foot tapping.
"Did you join recently or were you always a member?"
"I'm the newest recruit," she said with a proud smile, though Shockwave was quick to knock her down.
"She's applying for a position with us, though her talents may be better used in Fortress' Rockies division."
"Excuse me?" snarled Karina.
"We can talk about that later," added Shockwave before returning his focus to Elaina. "You, Ms. Hart, are a rare breed and with proper training from Misty..."
"Excuse me?!"
"Karina, if you're going to keep interrupting me..." He didn't need to finish his sentence. The telekinesis specialist turned with a huff and moved some distance away to sit in a chair and pout. "Anyway," he continued, "until we are certain you aren't a danger to our institution, we can release you from those bindings and Dr. Vulcan here will administer some treatments to help speed up the healing of that concussion of yours and..."
"You should be healing me no matter what, considering it was you all that threw me over a wall."
"Well," muttered Vulcan, "technically Ms. Sokolov threw you..."
"Do I look dumb to you?" growled Elaina. "Yes, she was the one that threw me, but who the fuck sent her after me, genius?"
When Vulcan didn't answer, she turned her attention back to the apparent leader of this little band.
"Hey Shitwave, let me offer a piece of advice. You really don't want to keep me bound up like this."
"Considering your tone," he replied with a fading smile, "I really think I do."
"Doesn't seem like this was an invitation after all," said Elaina in mock surprise. "Seems like you're pressing me into service. Except you need to be stronger than me for that to work and we already know that you fall short by a mile."
Shockwave growled some obscenities as the surrounding air rippled. However, a quick touch of Misty's hand had him limp within a matter of seconds. She removed her touch once the tension dissipated and Shockwave shook himself back into consciousness.
"Sorry, Shock," she told him when he looked to her for answers, "but Stone said she was to remain unharmed, at least until he arrives."
His nostrils flared, and he glared daggers at the telepath, but he eventually turned back around with renewed vigor in his strained smile.
"Well, there are other ways to hurt her without leaving a mark on her body."
For a moment, Elaina thought she might have to go mental toe against mental toe with Misty, but the telepath remained at ease next to the doctor. Shockwave, however, strode over to a door somewhere beyond her view.
"Ah, I'm glad to see you have arrived. I hope you haven't been waiting long."
"Drop it, Shockwave," said a voice that made Elaina's heart jump. "Your goons already set the tone for this meeting when they slapped these manacles on us."
"Just move it along, Cramer."
From the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Walt walking with ease and quiet calm, despite the fact heavy cuffs adorned his wrists. Then from behind him stumbled the man that constantly threatened her hold on her emotions—Dominic Cramer.
"You see," said Shockwave, who directed his words to Elaina while he dragged Dom by the collar of his jacket, "you may be a reclusive nuisance gifted with power you don't deserve, but you have your weakness just like everyone else." He brought her brilliant billionaire right up to the side of her chair so she had to crane her neck to meet his desperate blue eyes. "Get a good look at him now because he will be submitting to some of Dr. Vulcan's more unique experiments while we wait for the Fortress's Grand Admiral to arrive. He's visiting our division just to meet you, so I hope you appreciate the honor you're being given. Of course, he'll also be here to decide if you're safe enough to release or if we'll simply have to remove you from this world and do the people a favor."
"Dominic, I'm sorry," said Elaina as she glanced over to the hefty doctor who assessed the vigilante with eager eyes. "Look," she continued on in a whisper, "we both know I'm a danger to this world. Just make sure you do what you've always done to keep the Gifted in check. I'll be waiting for you and this time the blade will be real."
For a moment, they remained still and quiet within each other's gaze. One of them unafraid to let the tears flow, while the other glinted with steely resolve.
"Mir..."
"Please, call me Elaina."
He swallowed, then began again. "Elaina, you never left my mind, even when we were hundreds of miles away. I wanted you despite the distance. Your emotions don't compel me. That fire is all my own and I'm not letting it be extinguished today."
"Yeah, yeah," growled Shockwave, "wrap it up, Cramer."
"Fine, one last thing." She saw his Adam's apple bounce as he swallowed down his fear and continued with firm confidence ringing in his voice. "You know what all great magicians say is the best tool for creating illusions?"
She searched his eyes, looking for an answer.
"Distraction." He shared a desperate smile before sending a swift kick into the side of her chair and knocking her across the floor.