Mutation (19 page)

Chapter 30

I woke up to the sound of Kane and Gossamer arguing.  I walked sleepily out into the main room then out the Exit door to the sub-basement hallway.  I’d been told that there was a bathroom out here, so I wandered a little bit until I found it.

After taking some time to freshen up, I returned to our little hideout.  Everyone was gathered around Li, who was sitting at the two center tables with the laptop I had swiped.  I grabbed a banana from the fruit Kane and Gossamer had picked up on their food run and started eating it.

“Good morning,” said Li.  “I trust you slept well.”

“Well enough,” I said.  I pointed at the laptop.  “Were you able to find out anything?”

Kane and Gossamer exchanged a look but neither said anything.

“It is not good news,” Li said.  “I am afraid that I am right about the virus.  Moreover, telling Dr. Aldiss about my simulations will not induce him to help us.”

“Why not?” I asked.

“Because he created the virus,” Kane answered.

I almost dropped the food I was holding.

“What???!!!” I screeched.

“He created it,” Kane repeated.  “According to the information Li pulled off his laptop there.”

“He also controls it,” Gossamer added.

“What do you mean ‘he controls it’?” I asked.  “How do you control a virus?”

“This particular virus is a bioengineered construct whose origins are rooted in nanotechnology,” Li said.  “From a biological standpoint, it acts like an infection.  From a technological stance, it is like a toy that can be controlled remotely.”

“So,” I said, trying to get a clear understanding, “once it infects someone – attaches to a super’s metagene – then Aldiss can control it?”

“More or less,” Gavin said, looking nervous.

“This would jibe with the school-as-a-lab theory,” Li stated.  “And also why some supers have had their powers enhanced, others decreased and some unaffected.  He can control the specific virus within each individual super.”

“So basically,” I said, “he can control all supers with this.”

“If they all get infected,” Kane said.

“But there is a cure,” Li said.  “Two cures, actually.”

“I’m listening,” I said, suddenly all ears.

“According to the information on the laptop, Aldiss has already fashioned a vaccine.”

“Can you duplicate it?” I asked.

Li shook his head.  “Not in the time we have.  Not before everyone succumbs.”

“Do we even know that will happen?” Gavin asked, breaking his customary silence.  “I mean, he’s got a vaccine.  What if he plans to distribute it?”

“He doesn’t,” Kane said.

“Then why create a vaccine?” Gavin asked.  “Why make it in the first place if he doesn’t plan to use it?”

“Why put brakes on a car?” I asked in response.  “You might want to go and go fast, but it doesn’t mean you never want to stop.”

“I presume,” said Li, “that the vaccine is intended to further his control in this situation.  He can infect, and he can cure.”

There was silence for a few seconds as everyone absorbed this.

“What about the second cure?” I finally asked.

“It is not a cure, per se,” Li replied.  “It is actually more of a kill switch - a viral self-destruct mechanism.  I presume that it is part and parcel of whatever device they use to control the virus.”

“Can you build one for us?” I asked.  “In the time that we have?”

Li seemed to ponder this for a second.  “Possibly, but I don’t think we have the proper equipment.  The closest we have is vortex technology, but I believe that was all destroyed when Adam broke out.”

“Maybe not all of it,” I said.

*****

It didn’t take long to share what I knew.  I’d had an interdimensional conference in Magnavolt’s office the week before; that meant that there was some sort of vortex technology in there – hopefully some we could use.

“But rather than cannibalize it for this kill switch,” Kane asked, “why not use it to call Earth for help?  Wouldn’t that be faster?”

“The communication interface has been destroyed,” Li explained.  “We can not call Earth.”

Kane still looked perplexed, so I tried to another approach.

“Think of it this way,” I said.  “With a cell phone, when you make a call, a signal goes out to a cell tower, then gets relayed out to connect to whoever you’re trying to reach.”

“That is a bit of a simplification
–
” Li began.

“The point is,” I interjected, “you need the tower.”

“And our tower’s been destroyed,” Kane said in understanding.

Li stood up.  “I think we should leave as soon as possible.  Can you teleport us there?”

“‘Us’?” I asked incredulously.  “I think I should do this one alone.  It’s too dangerous.”

“Do you know what you are looking for?” Li asked.  “What it looks like?  What is essential and is not?  What you should take and what you can leave?”

I lowered my head in chagrin.  Li was absolutely right; if I popped into Magnavolt’s conference room, I wouldn’t have a clue what I was looking for.  Like slipping into the secure wing of the infirmary without knowing the floor plan, my haste was inciting me to make boneheaded mistakes.

“Now that we have settled the matter, when can we leave?” Li asked.

Chapter 31

I popped into Magnavolt’s conference room by myself at first, invisible, to make sure it was safe.  Not seeing anyone there, I hurriedly returned to our hideout and then teleported both Li and myself back to the conference room.

“There,” I said, pointing to the flat screen on the wall, “that’s where the others came through for the conference.”

Li walked over to the flat screen, then began inspecting it.  He looked all around it, then behind it, lifting it gently away from the wall.

“It has a wireless relay,” he said, still looking behind the screen.

“What does that mean?” I asked.

“It means that the vortex equipment it used for your conference is not connected directly to it.  Otherwise there would be a lot of unsightly wires hanging from the monitor.”

“So where is it?”

“Presumably close by, as from what I can tell the relay signal is not very strong.” He lowered the screen back to the wall gently, then began methodically searching the room.

I really didn’t know what we were looking for (or rather, what it looked like), so I stood back out of the way and glanced around.  Despite this being my third visit to this room, it was my first time taking in many of the details.  There was a door set in one wall that I hadn’t paid attention to before.  Some sort of figurine sat in an art niche in the corner.  There were also some built-in bookshelves that contained more photos and knickknacks than books.  The lower portion of the bookshelves actually consisted of cabinets, and it was when going through these that Li seemed to find what he was looking for.

“Eureka,” he said, causing me to come over to look at what he had found.

The cabinets in question were each about two feet in height and width (as well as one foot in depth), and ran the length of the wall of bookshelves.  It was in the center cabinet that Li had found what he was looking for.

Looking over his shoulder, I saw what appeared to be a nondescript black box about as large as a loaf of bread.  There were a number of colored wires running out of it and connecting to a nearby panel.  Unlit diodes dotted its surface.  Finally, from what I could see, it appeared to be bolted in place.

“I should get to work,” stated Li, producing a toolkit from the folds of his shirt.  He had only gotten the first bolt loose when we heard voices coming from the direction of Magnavolt’s office.

Li was on his knees at the time, working on getting the vortex equipment out.  My initial thought was to teleport Li out of there, but I saw Li shaking his head, as if he knew what I intended.  Needless to say, he was right.  As he’d said earlier, he was the only person who knew what we needed here.

My next thought was to make him invisible.  However, when
I
turn invisible, my own vision automatically switches over to the infrared.  A normal person can’t see at all when I turn them invisible, and sometimes there are aftereffects, such as not being able to see clearly for a while after becoming visible again.  I didn’t know Li’s power set – had never even asked – so I didn’t know what would happen if I made him invisible, but I knew we couldn’t afford to have him stumbling around blind.

As the voices got closer, I saw Li scramble to get inside the cabinet with the vortex equipment.  I almost laughed – he’d have to be a contortionist to get in there.  I glanced at the door for a second as the voices out there suddenly rose in anger.  When I looked back, Li was gone, and all I saw was the cabinet door gently closing.  I turned invisible just as the voices reached the threshold of the door, and my mouth fell open as I watched them file in.

It was a who’s who of my most recent adversaries:

Pace.

Dr.  Aldiss.

Estrella.

And Schaefer.

Chapter 32

I silently floated up into the air, listening intently.  Not only had the four I mentioned come into the room, but also three armed guards.

“
–
don’t think you’re taking this seriously enough,” said Aldiss as he and the others entered the conference room.  “They’ve got my laptop, which means they’ve got the models, the virus schematics, the vaccine formula – everything!”

“Yes,” said Pace, taking a seat at the conference table, “but they don’t have the resources to do anything with it.”

Schaefer took a seat as well.  “I agree, Doctor.  You’re panicking over nothing.”

“Easy for you to say,” the doctor retorted.  “It’s not your life’s work being lost!”

“Don’t be melodramatic,” Pace countered.  “Everything on that machine is backed up at home.”

“Except the data from
this
experiment!” Aldiss cried.

“You didn’t get any results that were particularly different than what you got on Earth, so stop whining,” Schaefer said.  “But if it’ll make you happy, maybe instead of killing all these brats I’ll use the control module to spare a few for you to take back home as lab rats.  Will that satisfy you?”

“It’ll be a start,” Aldiss said, then left the room.

So, it seemed that Aldiss wasn’t the one controlling the virus, or even in charge of the school.  It was Schaefer.  It almost made my head spin.

No one spoke until they heard Aldiss exit out of the front of Magnavolt’s office.

“Should I kill him?” Estrella asked casually.

“No,” said Schaefer.  “I still need him for this mission.  Maybe later.”

“What about someone I can kill right now, then?” Estrella asked.  “Kid Sensation.”

“We’ve got men scouring the whole school for him and his friends,” Pace said.  “They’re supposed to be somewhere in the sub-basement level, but we haven’t been able to locate them.”

That was shocking.  I had no idea they were so close to finding us.  When we got out of here, we’d probably need to find another clubhouse to hang out in.

“Look, I took this assignment because you told me I could get my hands on Kid Sensation,” she said.

“No,” Pace corrected, “you took this assignment because we threw a boatload of money at you to do it.  Kid Sensation was just a bonus.”

“Whatever,” Estrella said.  “I owe him for what he did to my brother.  And he’s supposed to be
here
!”

The way she emphasized the last word sent a chill up my spine.  Did she mean
here
, in this room?

There was an unexpected squeak, like the sound of a rusty hinge on a door.

“What was that?” Schaefer asked, as he and his companions, as well as the guards in the room, looked around uncertainly.

It seemed to have come from the cabinet where Li was.  Rather than sitting quietly, he must have still been trying to get the vortex equipment loose, although I don’t know how he was managing in such a tight space.

Pace seemed to figure out the source of the noise first.  He snapped his fingers to get the attention of the guards, then pointed at the cabinets.  Pace and Schaefer quietly got up and moved away from the conference table as the guards, weapons cocked, started converging on the cabinets.  In a split second, I made my decision.

I turned visible and dropped down to the floor at the back of the room.

“You looking for me?” I asked as all eyes turned in my direction.

I phased as the guards opened fire, and ran along the wall opposite the cabinets in order to keep Li out of the line of fire.  I ran out of the room with everyone in hot pursuit.

I hadn’t shifted into super speed, as the goal wasn’t to try to get away.  My intent was merely to get them out of Magnavolt’s conference room so Li could finish his work.  With that in mind, I led them – and other guards who joined in – on a merry chase through the school hallways.  Occasionally Estrella would teleport ahead of me, lasers blasting, but she didn’t seem to realize that I was phased and couldn’t be hit.

After about five minutes, I figured Li had had enough time, so I cut around a corner and teleported back to the conference room.  When I popped in, Li was nowhere in sight.  However, the vortex equipment was gone, too, so that was a good sign.  Still, with everyone in the hallways looking for me, he’d have a tough time getting back to the sub-basement.  I needed to find him.

I slipped out of the conference room, then quietly exited Magnavolt’s office.  No one seemed to be around.  Still, I practically tiptoed down the hallway with my back to the wall, keeping my eyes peeled for any sign of the way Li might have gone.  I was so wrapped up in my own thoughts that I almost stepped in a small puddle of reddish goo on the floor.

At first I thought it might be blood, but upon closer inspection I realized that it wasn’t.  It seemed to be some kind of industrial lubricant or hydraulic fluid.  Now that I was paying attention, I could see droplets of it every few feet, heading away from me, like someone had randomly been squeezing it out of a sponge as they walked.

Trusting my instincts, I shifted into super speed and followed the drops.  They led away from the direction that everyone had been chasing me, down a different hallway towards a back stairwell.

I stopped when I reached the stairwell door and listened for a few seconds.  I couldn’t hear anything, so – deeming it safe – I phased and went through the door.

Li was sitting on the floor, looking drained.  Tucked under one arm he had the vortex equipment.  Next to him were two unconscious security guards.  I grinned at him, impressed that he had taken out two armed men.  Then I saw the hole in his shirt, near the area where his heart would be.

It was undoubtedly a bullet hole, but it wasn’t bleeding.  Instead, it was leaking the fluid that I had seen earlier.  I telescoped my vision and looked closely at the wound.  Rather than jagged and torn tissue, I saw sparks and wires, many of the latter connected to a rectangular piece of white ceramic with flashing lights.

“You’re a robot!” I said in surprise.  Now so much made sense – his stilted manner of speech, his advanced expertise in science and technology, etc.

“Technically, I am an android,” he replied.  He began struggling to his feet and I gave him a hand.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“For the nonce.  As long as my core processor is not damaged beyond repair I can recover, although the bullet did come close.  Still, I could use a moment to tend to my wounds.  Can you take us somewhere appropriate – somewhere other than our base of operations?”

“Did you have a particular place in mind?”

He did, in fact, and when he told me I smiled, because I should have thought of it myself.

*****

I teleported us to the combat training room.  As Li had assumed, the place was deserted.  The various robots were in shutdown mode, since no one was actually using the facility.  Li headed straight for a small workroom near the back of the combat area, where damaged robots were brought for repair.  He didn’t ask for my help and I thought enough of him to let him have some privacy.

After about half an hour he came out, looking much like his old self.  The hole was still in his shirt, but the “flesh” underneath looked essentially whole.

“Everything good?” I asked.

“Yes,” he said.  “I am fully functional again for all intents and purposes.”

“Okay, let’s get back.”

“If I might ask a favor first,” Li said, touching my arm.  “I would greatly appreciate the others not knowing about my…distinctiveness.  It might anger them to learn they have been taking direction from a machine.”

“Understood,” I said, then teleported us back to the sub-basement.