Read Super Powereds: Year 2 Online

Authors: Drew Hayes

Tags: #Literature & Fiction, #Genre Fiction, #Action & Adventure, #Coming of Age

Super Powereds: Year 2 (55 page)

BOOK: Super Powereds: Year 2
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“Was your father murdered by his best friend, too?”

“No. Abandoned my mother and me when I was a kid. She says she told him to go, that she wanted him to be happy, but even if that’s true he should have known it would destroy... I’m sorry. This isn’t about me. Point is, I know what it’s like to have issues with a missing dad. Not the same as yours, but still, issues.”

“Your camaraderie is noted,” Chad said. He took a gulp of the glass he was holding without thinking about it. It wasn’t as bad as he’d expected: smoother, at least, than others had led him to believe. Had Chad known anything about whiskey, he would have realized that this was more palatable because Roy had actually brought a decent grade.

“Look, I get that you’re upset about losing control last night, but you need to get over it. People get pissed off and do dumb shit. No one got hurt, so let yourself relax a little.”

“You don’t know the first thing about me,” Chad snapped.

“Yeah, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that the guy whose power is all about self-control might not handle an emotional freak-out too well,” Roy replied. “Especially when he almost knocked the brains out of an innocent person who happened to be nearby.”

Chad slumped in his chair by a few inches and took another sip of the whiskey. “How is she?”

“Fine, as is Vince, thanks for asking.”

Chad’s head jerked up and his body tightened. “Vince-”

“Vince is a guy with a watch. Maybe it means his hobo dad was actually Globe in disguise. Maybe it means he found it on the ground or looted a corpse years earlier. Maybe he bought it at a pawn shop. I don’t know and neither does Vince. For that matter, neither do you.”

“You want me to leave him alone. That’s why you came.”

“I want you to get a grip,” Roy clarified, draining his glass and pouring another. “You almost killed someone last night because of a watch and questions that were honestly answered. I realize your dad is a sore issue, I really do get that, but you can’t let that send you off the deep end every time. You are way too powerful for that. People will get hurt.”

“People will get hurt.” Chad echoed. He polished off his own glass and held it out for a refill, which Roy obliged.

“And you know that. My money says that’s why you work so hard to stay in control, why you keep a distance from all but the strongest people. You’re scared of slipping up, like last night.”

This time all Chad could do was nod.

“It’s kind of funny; you and Vince are actually really similar. Both brilliant fighters, both dense as bricks when it comes to the social world, and both scared to death of hurting other people involuntarily. Oh, and both of you lost your fathers.”

“His father is dead?”

“When he was thirteen. Watched him get blown up in a train car explosion. So even if that guy was Globe - and if it was then a whole lot of other shit doesn’t make sense - but if it was then he’s already dead.”

“I see.”

“No, you don’t. You don’t believe me, and that’s okay. I’m not here to convince you. I’m just here to get you drunk and help you come to terms with last night’s fiasco.”

“I don’t get drunk. I’ve always just sent the alcohol directly to my bladder.”

“Maybe give the bloodstream a shot this time,” Roy suggested. “Or don’t. Your call.”

They sat in silence for a few minutes after that, the sun making the shadows shift as it descended through the sky. Eventually Chad spoke up, realizing there something they had touched on in the discussion he was still curious about.

“I just realized: you implied your dad was a well-known Hero as well. Who was he?”

Roy had a nearly full glass, which he drained in a single swig before replying. “Titan.”

“Your father was Titan?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh,” Chad said softly. “I can see how that would leave you feeling a bit fucked up.”

 

107.

The others had left the office after the meeting was done, but Professor Pendleton lingered. Dean Blaine didn’t admonish him or even encourage him to vacate. Instead he poured two healthy glasses of dark liquor and slid one to his employee. The day’s revelations, real or not, struck home for these two in a way the others couldn’t truly understand. Globe might not be dead. That was a game changer. Especially for his former classmates.

“I always said it was fishy. We’ve been around too long to know that you can never confirm a kill without the body.”

“Localized gravitational vortexes don’t leave much evidence,” Dean Blaine pointed out.

“They also shouldn’t affect someone with Globe’s power.”

“I think having his arm torn off would distract even the most focused of minds.”

“Maybe,” Professor Pendleton conceded.

“Maybe,” Dean Blaine agreed.

Both men sipped their drinks in silence for a few moments. Professor Pendleton shifted uncomfortably. “You know what gives me the shivers? I mean, the real, deep-down-in-my gut quake of fear that it might be him?”

“Do tell.”

“The kid. Vince. If Globe did somehow survive and go live off the grid as a hobo, the smart thing to do would be staying alone. Minimize exposure. Picking up some child, some Powered child at that, and raising him as your own, tactically it makes no sense. It would be a tremendous risk with no logistical upside.”

“All true,” Dean Blaine concurred.

Professor Pendleton took another gulp of his drink. “And it’s exactly the kind of thing Globe would do.”

“He was always the best of us.”

“Until he killed Intra,” Professor Pendleton pointed out.

“There is one upside to this if he is alive, you know. We have a chance to get answers, to find out why he did it.”

“I’m not sure that’s really an upside.”

“How so?”

“Because if whatever it was could drive someone as decent and powerful as Globe to do all this, I’m afraid those might be answers we don’t want.”

Dean Blaine didn’t have a reply at the ready for that. Instead he topped off both their glasses. Staring into the swirling brown depths, he realized how little sense his world made anymore. Things had been so different only a few decades ago.

“Globe,” he muttered to himself.

* * *

“Globe?”

“Yeah, because of how my powers affect things in a radius,” Blaine explained.

“They do, but you also have that direct attack thing you can do. I remember when you made Victor spend a whole weekend as a human. I thought he was going to climb the walls by the time his power came back,” Joshua chuckled.

Blaine laughed too. It might have been a bit harsh, but Victor had downed all of their beer and thrown up on the sofa. It seemed like a harmless way to get some revenge.

“So you don’t like it?”

“It’s not that; I guess it just doesn’t seem like it fits you,” Joshua explained.

“Well, let’s hear the one you've been kicking around then.”

Joshua flashed him that award-winning smile. “Intra,” he said, spreading his hands out as if he was framing the word.

“And you gave me guff over Globe?”

“Think about it. Intra literally means ‘within.’ What better way to encapsulate my abilities?”

“I don’t know, how about Molecular Control Man?” Blaine tossed out.

“First off, I control my body down to a molecular level, but it’s more than just shifting atoms around. Secondly, there already is a Molecule Man.”

“There is?”

“Yeah, new guy that works in Seattle,” Joshua elaborated.

“I’m out of touch.”

“Most seniors have bigger stuff on their mind. Only reason I remembered is because of my recall.”

Blaine nodded. He hated Joshua a bit for that aspect of his abilities. Being able to conjure any memory perfectly at will made school almost a waste of time for Joshua. He could read the textbook on the first day of class, skip the rest, and still ace every test. Not that he ever did: he was prompt and studious in every endeavor. Somehow that just made it worse.

“Well, if Globe is so bad, what would you recommend?”

“Again, it’s not bad, it’s just not right for you,” Joshua protested. “If I had to think of a good name for you I’d go with something like Zero.”

Blaine’s eyes narrowed and his good humor began to evaporate.

“Oh, don’t give me that look. I don’t mean as an insult. I mean it like a mathematical zero.”

“Explain.”

“Basic multiplication,” Joshua said, turning and taking in the view off Clarissa’s balcony once more. “Anything you multiply by zero becomes zero. It turns any number, no matter how large, into an empty theoretical hole. That’s kind of what you do to the rest of us.”

“By that explanation I’m also an empty hole, seeing as I am the zero they interact with.”

“Somebody is feeling sensitive tonight. It’s just supposed to be symbolic.”

“It seems like a stretch.”

“Better than going literal. Or do you fancy being known as The Deactivator? Perhaps something a little sportier, like Power Down?” Joshua suggested.

“Okay, okay, you’ve made your point. I still think I can do better than Zero.”

“Find what fits you best,” Joshua said. “Then ignore anybody who doesn’t get it. That's what I'm trying to do.”

“So I should stick with Globe?”

“God, no.”

They shared a laugh at that, and Joshua turned to head back inside. Miriam would be waiting for him with a warm kiss that tasted like peppermint. Blaine still remembered that flavor; there were nights he woke from a good dream and swore he could taste it on his lips. Those kisses belonged to Joshua now. The only ones Blaine could still enjoy were in the better-preserved portions of his memories. He tried very hard not to be bitter about the happy greeting that Joshua was going back to. Sometimes he almost succeeded.

“Hey, let me know if you do decide to use something other than Globe,” Joshua tossed over his shoulder as he reached the door.

“Why?”

“Well, it’s a bad fit for you, but I think it would be perfect for someone else.”

Blaine didn’t have to think hard to figure out who Joshua meant.

“Tell him he can have it.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah. I’ll find something that feels more like me.”

“Thanks, Blaine, you’re a solid guy.” Joshua shut the door carefully behind him, leaving Blaine alone with the balcony once again.

He stared off at the California sky and tried not to think about how right now the woman he loved was wrapping her arms around that blonde bastard’s shoulders and pulling herself close to him. Part of him wanted to kick the door down and scream about how she had made a mistake. Part of him wanted to leap off this balcony just so he would feel like he was doing something. Part of him wanted to cry. Instead he just kept staring at the sky.

“Zero.” Blaine tested the word on his tongue. It seemed curiously appropriate, because at this moment that was exactly what he felt like. A nothing. A forgotten, empty hole.

A zero.

 

108.

By Wednesday things had calmed down a bit for Nick. He’d gotten his plan outlined for Mary, who was finally beginning to warm up to it; he had helped explain their theory of his new power to Vince, who was confused but open-minded; and he had turned in his tailing assignment for Professor Pendleton’s class. He’d done nearly all of the legwork before Camille’s party, yet it still felt good to have the papers handed in so they could be marveled at. Nick enjoyed the written assignments; they were the one area where he didn’t have to diminish his own performance for the sake of keeping character. Sometimes the professor would even call him in to talk about the methods he’d used to achieve such results. Therefore it didn’t surprise him when he noticed his daily cipher instructed him to be at class half an hour early. What did surprise him was when he arrived to find both Professor Pendleton and Alice waiting for him.

“You know, if you’re going to stage an intervention, I think you need more than two people,” Nick pointed out.

“Can you throw an intervention because someone is a douche? Damn, I’d have put one together for you in our first week if I’d known that,” Alice countered.

“Cute as your verbal dry-humping is, I think you both know why I’ve called you here,” Professor Pendleton interrupted. He pulled two stapled stacks of paper from his desk.

“No idea,” Nick replied, for once, honestly.

“It’s because we turned in the same tailing assignment,” Alice said.

“Wrong, it is because you both turned in the same... wait, what?”

“Well, virtually the same, I mean. Nick probably had a few Watches I didn’t, and I know I had a bunch of Spots that weren’t on his.”

“I am just so very confused,” Nick said.

Professor Pendleton held up the twin stacks of paper, which Nick now recognized as their respective tailing assignments. As he looked at the first page he realized something; Alice’s was identical to his own save only for name and penmanship.

“I know you two are teammates, and I do respect a desire to help each other out; however, you must know that even in a class as morally grey as mine you cannot allow another student to copy your work. This undermines the act of learning, which is what you are here to do.”

“Professor, I didn’t let Alice copy my work,” Nick protested.

“He really didn’t,” Alice confirmed.

“Oh? Then how did you happen to provide near identical Watches to his?”

“I stole them.”

“You stole them.”

“I stole them,” she repeated.

“How the hell did you steal my answers?” Nick asked.

“Remember when you left me alone to clean the boy’s bathroom this weekend?”

“Yes, but I only let you into the bathroom. All of my notes were in my bedroom,” Nick pointed out.

“Yeah, fun fact. When your father pays for, facilitates, and largely lets you design the building you live in, getting universal access on all the doors actually isn’t that hard.”

“Then how... oh, you wily girl,” Nick said, realization dawning at last.

“Would someone care to explain the rest of this to me?” Professor Pendleton said.

“Friday night Nick pretended he was bad at singing so I’d beg him to get on stage and do karaoke,” Alice summarized. “In return he wanted me to do something humiliating as well. I floated the idea of cleaning the boys’ bathroom, and he accepted. When it turned out he could sing, I pouted and acted pissed, so he felt good enough about his little trick that he never thought twice about leaving me on the boys’ side unattended. I also took the precaution to make sure he’d leave by reminding our captain she hadn’t gotten his plans for the upcoming match yet. After that, it was just a matter of opening the door and taking a few photos with my cell phone.”

BOOK: Super Powereds: Year 2
10.41Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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