Caped (Book 1): The Burdens of Fate (22 page)

Tripoli
began to peak over the horizon, and I was
getting tired of the chase. I made a move just as the shoreline slid into view,
hoping to stop him before he made landfall. I triple my speed, and he reacts
even faster. He skillfully positioned himself and threw two knives directly at
my chest. I vibrate to let them pass, only to see him giving a cocky wave of
the finger before pointing towards the beach. I sped ahead to catch them to
avoid anymore casualties, and in that moment, he strikes.

He comes in for a punch and I punch back; a
volley of punches going through each other, both continually shifting our
rhythm to land a blow and still avoid the ones coming in.

Landfall. He struck a heavy blow across the
side of my face and I stagger away, only to feel the warm blade of his katana
begin to cut into my skin. I quickly lurch to the side to avoid it. I strike
back, quicker this time, knocking the blade from his hand, and ramming my skull
into his face.

My wound quickly began to heal, and he starts
wiping the blood from under his nose. "They were right!" he said
laughing. "Goddammit, they were right. You are fast!"

We were both holding back and that moment
proved it.

Perhaps I was in over my head. The thought
momentarily crossed my mind, but nobody was fast enough to help. We were all
alone on a crowded world.

With his right hand he pulled out a small
syringe he'd kept hidden in a fold of cloth behind his back, followed by a
shuriken with his left; twirling it on his finger a few rotations before
quickly sending it my way. It barely missed me, and by barely I mean it didn't.
A tiny flesh wound on my arm, at the exact level as my heart. He was finally
operating at full speed.

I had no time to spare, the final two shuriken
came flying my way. I grabbed them mid-air, threw them down into the ground,
and began to run to put distance between us and the crowd on the beach.
However, he headed in the opposite direction, towards more people. I was right
on his heels, but we were an even match, which meant I couldn't catch him.

For the record, I can't vibrate and run at full
speed, too much energy. And it's actually quicker for me to move around or over
objects than try to run through them, and he knew it.

He bulldozed his way through everything;
people, cars, walls, lamp posts, and trees. I was running alongside a cloud of
red mist and debris. I gave it all I had to catch him, and after swerving to
avoid a wall of rocks and brick he'd sent my way, was ambushed by a quick
succession of punches. He caught me with a hard blow to the face, and as I
staggered away, pulled me into a chokehold.

The syringe was coming next; I could feel him
moving to grab it from his mouth. I immediately went limp in an attempt to
knock him off balance, but it only partially worked. I was able to grab one of
his legs and knock us over onto the ground, but he still had a firm grip around
my neck and I could tell he was waiting for an opening to strike. I was
panicking. Was I really going to die in the middle of the desert? The
helplessness and fear I felt in Tokyo
was returning, and with it a boundless energy.

I started vibrating faster, faster than I've
ever needed to. Sporadically, wildly and violently. My body slipped into a
kinetic fervor and I could feel him trying to match my speed. "
Faster
,"
I thought, "
Must go faster
." And so I did. So fast I could
almost feel my body occupying multiple locations within the same moment of
time.

The vibrations rippled unrestrained throughout
the area. The ground cracked and splintered, sinking beneath us until we were
but two men in a massive desert crater. Sparks of light danced around the area.

So fast I could hear the faint hum of the walls
of reality. Ghostly figures moved into view, faint echoes of another dimension
slowly growing clearer. My skin tingled with a slight heat, like a soft flame
drawing nearer to my skin. But still he managed to maintain a grip, and so I
pushed myself to move faster. Screams of the cosmos whirled around us, and in
an instant that faint heat exponentially increased. Burning hot, as if a
thousand matches where being struck over my skin.

I pushed against the walls of reality, and with
great force it pushed back. I was screaming in pain, driven by the fear that he
might never tire of the struggle. His endurance lasted for a phenomenal amount
of time, until, like cold iron under pressure, he snapped. He couldn't maintain
his grip.

In that moment I took full control over my
newfound momentum, a mind-bending level of velocity I never thought attainable.
Before he'd even rolled off his back and attempted to get on his feet I'd
already knocked the syringe from his hand and grabbed it for myself. Striking
him blow after blow, as hard and as fast as I could. I smiled with a sick
delight in his punishment. The audacity of that pile of filth to believe
himself capable of ending my life! I am the end-all and be-all of speed,
nothing that walks the earth can claim me as their equal.

I broke his ankle, and his leg, then his other
leg, his arm, his jaw. Then his accelerated healing kicked in which made it all
the better. I repeated the process. He tried to run, but he didn't get far,
only a few feet before I managed to trip him. He stumbled and almost fell.
Almost; he had an ace up his sleeve. The bastard was flying.

I latched onto his leg as he darted skyward,
kicking at my face while I scratched and tore at anything I could get a hold
of. I had let go, fearing I'd eventually fall to my death, but I could still
see him, and I wasn't letting him out of my sight.

Almost six thousand miles later and we were
approaching Chicago,
he was flying just above the tree tops, with me tailing right behind him. The
city crept into view over the tops of the trees, and soon enough he was winding
up and around the buildings, and down through the streets. Anything to lose me,
but it didn't work.

After a brief straight shot up

Fuckin' bastard.

Chapter Six

Calm
Sea
, Dark Sky

–
Monday, April 26th
–

Laurie
Stahl
-

You can learn it all from the news, or at least
it used to be that way. These days it's called the "News Media," and
why? Because they're just as busy making people happy and laughing as they are
telling it like it is. Twitter isn't a reputable news source; I don't care if
the NSA has a Twitter page, if it doesn't come through a government
correspondent it’s suspect.

So here we are, Pearl Harbor, 9/11, L.A., mass
kidnappings, and now Chicago, standing as another disaster ready to be
plastered on every single news station and headlining every paper.
"Tragedy in Chi-Town, A City Recovers." And then the accusations,
"Who's to blame?" "Is this the new normal?" "Is this related
to the kidnappings?" "How long will it take to rebuild, and who's
going to foot the bill?" It's one thing after another and the people are
going to get tired of it. I'm tired of it.

Someone is very clearly trying to storm the
castle walls, and they're doing a damn good job at it. There isn't a day that
goes by I don't think of those kidnapped children, and now we have Chicago. We have failed
them, the children and the city. And every day Edward, Thomas, or Carter, fails
to come up with a useful piece of information, we continue to fail them.

As much as I hate to admit it, I fear this
little rag-tag group of ours may not be the best team for the job. We can't
forget that we’ve already failed once; pretty badly from the looks of it. Just
how close are we to repeating ourselves?

Vigilante justice ain't what I signed on for. I
was expecting democracy, collaboration, and logical delegation. At what point
do we alert the military or the navy? People with a proven track record.
Instead of trying to subvert every government and save the world ourselves.
Yes, they're as sneaky as a pack of wolves in sheep's skin, but the enemy of my
enemy is my friend.

This is nonsense. Just because I can level an
entire city block doesn't give me the professional knowhow to successfully save
lives.

Have I made a bad decision? Did I get too
caught up in trying to connect with something,
anything
, that I've sacrificed who I've been my whole life, or is
this just the ranting of an old man struggling to adapt in much the same way
everybody else seems to be?

Michael
Serna
-

I've got a passion for helping people; it's
just something that runs in the family, and the main reason I love politics.
But that doesn't mean I appreciate all the bickering and bi-partisan positioning
people do just so they can please their party members, even at the cost of
ignoring the people who put them in office. That gets under my skin, boils my
blood.

I know it's a jungle in Washington, they're running a nation and
it's not always going to be smooth sailing, but recently I've been dreading the
work a little more than I used to. Granted I just write the news, not like my
voice counts.

I know, I go through this phase every couple of
months and soon enough I'm back to liking it.

I've said it before, it's nothing too hard.
It's not a crazy job, except when you're working with people who don't
understand the importance of a timely reply. But that's life.

On top of that, Iris' definitely made it known
how f
ucking upset
she was that I didn't consult her before taking off to
play hero. And I understand that, I do. But when people’s lives are in danger,
and I was under the assumption they were, that's a situation I refuse to do
nothing about. She knows this. So, of course that lead to another
talk.
Lord, help her, how she loves to
talk
. It helps her make sure we're on
the same page. I know this scares her a little, maybe even a lot, but she sure
is trying her best to get a firm grip on everything, and I love her for that.

OKAY! So I haven't been the best husband to-be
as of late. Damn, I hate admitting my faults. Don't we all? Nobody likes to
admit their being completely selfish. And although I was saving lives, I was
definitely being selfish.

Which means I have to make it up. Which takes
planning and all this other crap that means more work... outside of work.

But that's love, right?

@ReXb00ger -

I know like three
people in #Chicago,
two of'em nocs. The pictures they've been taking of the carnage in Chi-Town,
OMG! #GodIsGood

@NimbusFlyer152 -

#MartialLaw in
Chi-Town for the remainder of the week. Millennium Park
area off limits. 11pm curfew in effect. #BigBrother #Necessary? #Nope!

@Fame_Krushane -

We gotta count
our blessings, y'all, this is nowhere near as bad as L.A. Chi-Town Rise Up!

@Jamspiller -

Anyone else not
buying Uncle Sam's sabotage claim? Something just seems fishy.

@ArmyofMarwin -

No it wasn't as
bad as LA but people still died, people still lost their lives. I knew of bunch
of people that went to help and never came back... #GoneTooSoon #RIP

Dennis Shaeffer
-

It was the birth pangs of a new era. The glow
of the fire could have probably been seen for miles while we ate, laughed,
danced, and celebrated our victory amidst the cool night and vast open
emptiness of the Sahara. Elegant wooden tables
so full of food we could have feasted for days without going through half of
it. An early thanksgiving with curry, cous cous, more types of rice than I'd
ever seen in my entire life, vegan dishes, vegetarian dishes, and a table
devoted purely to meat. I love meat. And we drank until we forgot our names. I
felt young again, albeit perhaps a little immature, but the occasion was well
worth it.

Not only has the curtain been swung open for all
to see, the government has withdrawn into itself in fear. We are far more than
they ever expected to encounter, and we've only shown them a fraction of what
we can do. Rarely should your first strike be your best strike, we're only
getting started. Soon they will witness what Julius, Naim, and Telan, are
capable of. They have every right to be afraid, we are their end. And when it
is done a better, more fair, and just, government shall stand in its place.

The night dragged on until nothing was left of the
festivities except the fire. Not even the frantic music played, but you'd have
never been able to tell by looking at a drunk Yuri who internalized the party,
drink in hand, sipping on it while he silently danced around the sizzling fire.
Telan spent a couple hours emptying his stomach behind some rock before passing
out with a drunken Luis and Naim, who'd decided to go shot for shot with each
other. Luis won. Julius and I got to know each other a little better; he's a
hard working man and we have a little more in common than I thought we would.
Both married to women on their second marriages. At least I don't have to worry
about Maria's children, they're grown and only stop by on holidays; he's being
a gentleman and raising someone's kids. All the best to him.

Raphael and Nena had walked off into the
desert, their small torchlight visible for many hours off in the distance
before eventually vanishing. And of course I can speculate all I want but I may
never know for sure, they were back before the first hint of dawn, and by the
time the sun peaked over the horizon the entire affair was reduced to a foggy
memory, albeit a joyous one. Luckily we still had many more hours to go before
the same happened back in the states. And as a gentleman, I knew better than to
keep my lady waiting.

Our reveal has been made, we have called out
our enemies and made our intentions known. Those who might dare stop us are now
aware we will not be put down easily. They fight on the wrong side of progress
and shall soon be reduced to nothing but a memory.

If Alvin
is cocky enough to think he is safe then he’s a fool. We have what we need, a
sample of his blood, and Nena's already begun working on the final nails to his
coffin. Dealing with extremely dark magic, far too dangerous for my suburban
home. She's secluded herself in her little underground bunker in the middle of
God knows where. It'll be weeks before I hear from her again, but one thing's
certain: My house is finally mine again.

–
4/27
–

Edward
Otep
-

And now we have our answer, LA wasn't a fluke.
This is our new world, adjust accordingly. And where was the military? Powerful
nocs openly attacking people and they show with only a handful of planes?
"Sabotaged," they say. That scares me. They could spin this event in
any direction and new legislation is inevitable. Our defense budget has been
through the roof for years, focused overseas. Now that focus comes home.

We risk losing focus, and our next step is on
shifting ground; the world is changing around us and we must not lose sight of
the bigger picture. But at the same time these are the people we're tasked with
saving. What makes us worth saving? Is our potential alone worth it? We have
the 'potential' for an equal amount of evil as we do for good. I feel it's not
my question to answer. If we are to survive I must do my part, and if do die,
let the world do theirs.

"My country 'tis for thee, story of
tragedy, of thee we'll sing..."

The events of yesterday solidified an already
scary fact, that my abilities are not fool-proof. They can be subverted to a
great extent. What does this mean for what I've already seen? Back to the
drawing board, or press on?

Yesterday threw a wrench is Thomas' plan, he's been
busy formulating one plan on-top of another, running through entire scenarios
and meticulously breaking them down one flaw at a time. Now he's back to square
one.

I don't see anything on the horizon, I'm
talking years. I doubt whoever it was that pulled that stunt in Chicago is giving up. Not
that easy. So while Thomas starts from square one, swapping notes and designs
with Ivan, who is himself a stubborn machine of mass creation, that leaves
nothing for the rest of us to do but sit back and watch... Or prepare. We
should definitely prepare.

Antoinette Crawford -

People everywhere
are worried about their safety. The military can be sabotaged, and their planes
shot down. That's a scary reality.

No, nobody likes
the idea of
superheroes
but let's be honest with ourselves for once, we
might need them. Perhaps not in the capacity we've seen them in comic books,
but you've gotta fight fire with fire, no?

@MeganFoxie -

Pray for my
family you guys, lost my father yesterday! He went to help and never came back!
#RIP #LostLovedOnes #ChiTownTragedy

–
4/28
–

Kaylie Horn
-

Hey, lady. You know, being a girl requires you
to always have your wits about you. Men are sneaky little creatures, and
although I'm young, I was lucky enough that mom didn't let me figure that out
the hard way. You've got to keep your eye on them, always. So why do I bring up
sneaky men? Well, because of a creepy man, and unfortunately I'm not talking
about a classmate.

Ivan Young, master of materials and creator of
matter, is an unsettling individual. This is just what I think of him, and it
isn't pretty. It's unnerving.

He's a very quiet person. The kind of quiet you
know is hiding a million little thoughts about the things going on around him,
but instead of speaking up, decides to sit back and watch. Whether it be
damnation or salvation he's going to just watch.

Don't get me wrong. He can be a very social
person… at times. But when it's just him alone up here, walking from one side
of island to the other with that almost creepy gait of his. It's unsettling,
like he plotting something. He's a walking Mr. Fix-it. He could feed the
hungry, shelter the homeless, cloth the naked, damn near heal the sick.
Fertilize the land, clean the air. Anything. Yet all he does is sit back... and
watch.

Maybe he doesn't care how this ends. Maybe
humanity, and all we've worked for, is disposable to him.

I'm not saying he's not a good guy, he seems
like a man very willing to do good, and that's all he's done since I met him.
But there's something about him that doesn't rub me right. It scratches at my
skin. God, I hope I'm just paranoid.

Michael Serna
-

The United Nations finally planned an emergency
meeting for Thursday of next week. Heard about the "Homeland Security
Advisory System" for the first time in a long while, and not in a good
way. FEMA's still dealing with the people affected by LA, now they have Chicago to worry about?
No bueno. With so much government aid being passed out it's a wonder we haven't
broken the camel’s back. It's only a matter of time if you ask me.

And ever since L.A.,
the military's domestic presence just keeps growing,
its
got me wondering just how long it's going to be until Washington declares Martial Law everywhere.
You already hear whispers of people going missing for a few days, only to come
back without any knowledge of where they've been. Not that those will ever make
the news, but they're out there, Carter's confirmed it. There's a hidden war
going on on American soil and there isn't one single government agency that
isn't a part of it. They want those kidnappers, badly, mainly because they
showed just how easily they could get to the big fish. And now Chicago. They're not safe, nobody is.