Powerless (Book 1): Powerless (16 page)

“I am here to get you out,” still nothing was revealed. Speaking softly. “Trust me!”

From behind a projected masking, one child stepped out, then another and another. Tom found himself in a room of scared girls and constructed a plan in his head to get them out while shielding them from the battle outside. “Put the masking back up, conceal us all.” A child stepped forward and threw the masking cloak up in the air, covering all the girls along with Tom. He moved to the back of the room and throwing his fist straight at the wall on the poorly constructed building, he blew a hole in it large enough for a child to slip through.

Approaching the opening, a small child went to pass through. Taking her hand, Tom bent down on his knees and calmly said, “No, we are going out the front door, and straight over the bridge.” Turning to the child with masking capabilities, Tom asked, “What’s your name?”

Nervous and unsure, the child responded, “Annie…”

“Such a brave girl, keeping all your friends safe, now I need you to  try to keep them safe a little longer. While I get you out. Can you do this?”

Annie looked away from Tom, scared by his appearance but comforted by his words and simply stated, “Yes.”

“Can anything come into the mask you don’t allow in?” queried Tom.

“NO, nothing,” Annie responded.

Tom realised he could keep them safe. “Great. Let’s go!”

He opened the door and, masked by Annie, guided the girls out. Moving across the dirt road that ran up the middle of the village Tom brought the girls to the bridge. Here he was met by a single solitary enemy combatant. Blocking the escape route Tom crouched on his knee, turning to Annie. “Wait until he moves and we will simply walk out of here.”

Annie for the first time looked Tom in the eye and said, “He can see you!”

Hearing this Tom shot his attention back to the soldier on the bridge, but it was too late; a searing pain hit his shoulder.

              Falling under the weight of his body and the pain inflicted, Tom could feel metal grinding against his bone. Not wincing or shouting out, Tom simply got angered by the pain that coursed through him. He quickly deduced that this soldier’s ability was to do with his sight. Being able to see through the masked veil that covered him and the kids meant he must have had heat vision or something similar. Not taking any time to actually figure out exactly what his ability was, Tom attacked.

              Tom, stealth-like and fast, ran straight at the soldier who emptied his weapons clip back at him in a futile attempt to stop his advance. Tom danced around the bullets as they whizzed past his head, gaining momentum as a bullet hit his thigh but it did not slow him. Reaching the man, Tom leapt once more, fist at the ready and threw it into the man’s skull as his head snapped back with a deep grinding crunch. Falling to the ground dead, Tom stood over him, grimacing and pissed off that he just been shot… again.

              Guiding the girls to the extraction point, Tom awaited the return of the team. Checking his watch and seeing there were only two minutes until the charges were due to go off, he knew something was wrong. Wanting to go and help, he knew he couldn’t leave the girls. They were too vulnerable, most being too young to use their powers and Annie’s power had begun to wain from exhaustion. He knew he couldn’t leave. So he waited, and in waiting he could hear the charges he set explode and illuminate the sky from quite a distance away.

Waiting for any signs of his comrade’s return and guarding the girls, he radioed for the chopper to come, as it did not look good. The chopper came quickly and Tom helped the kids on board. As he helped the last on, Tom turned and ran away from the chopper back in the direction of the village. The chopper waited for him but he did not return alone, emerging from the tree line with someone sprawled over his shoulder. Tom ran towards the chopper that now hovered above the ground in anticipation of his immediate entry. Tom threw the body of the man into the chopper and jumped in. Holding the man at his feet safe, he let out a breath of relief. The co-pilot of the chopper rolled his head round and asked shockingly, “Is that it?”

Tom was struck with sadness and couldn’t reply but nodded his head in confirmation.

“Who is it? I need to radio it in!”

“It’s Sergeant McKay,” Tom replied as he sat back in his seat and looked out from the chopper at the devastation left behind.

              The subsequent military inquest into what happened that night found McKay to be at fault for leading his men into the village before Tom called it in, despite his protests that Tom  should have been found at fault for the disaster. Tom’s actions won him the medal of valour; McKay’s actions cost him the lives of 14 soldiers and nearly ended his career. He was transferred to another division and Tom was promoted.

*

Lee shied
away
from
the
fact
that
his
brother
had
an
elevated
profile,
not
wanting
to
add
to
his
own,
but
the
two
brothers
remained
close
into
adulthood
even
though
they
didn’t
see
each
other
as
often,
as
Tom
travelled
a
lot
with
his
job. Each time they saw each other, whether it had been just the night before, a month before or 6 months, it was as if they had never been separated. Conversation ran smoothly, jokes bubbled between them and they both felt secure in the knowledge that they had each other’s backs, both physically, mentally and emotionally. Philip had brought them up to value family above all else and this came as naturally to them as the abilities that they did or didn’t have.

Lee
grew
comfortable
within
his
routine, working
in
the
paper
for
a
few
years
and
also
playing
the
markets
in
secret,
growing
his
nest
egg.
By
his
twenty
-
eighth
birthday,
through
hard
work and persistence,
he
became
a
senior
editor
at
the
paper
and
had
enough
money
to
last
him
two
lifetimes,
although he
continued
to
maintain
a
modest
lifestyle, finding it not only allowed him to live unnoticed, but was also a lifestyle he enjoyed, given his upbringing.

Despite his financial and professional success, Lee couldn’t escape a lost feeling in himself.
The
persona
reflected
outwardly
was
that
of
a
relatively
successful
man,
but
inwardly
at
times
he felt
empty.
Unfulfilled
by
TV
dinners
and
midnight
stock
market
trading,
he began
to
feel
burdened
once
again
with
the
secret
he
carried.
Removed
from
the
human
touch
he
craved
so
much
but
had
to
avoid,
he kept
people
at
arm’s
length.
He often
found
himself
longing
for
more
and
began
to
think
that
the
longing
that
yearned
inside
him
would
be
cured
when
he
found
another
person
to share
part
of
his
life
with.
Lee
was
very
careful
not
to
let
anyone
know
of
this
feeling.
It
was
less
that
he
was
looking
for
love
but
rather
that he craved
companionship;
someone
with
whom
he
wouldn't
feel
like
so
much
of
an
outsider,
someone
he
didn’t
have
to
hide
from.
Lee
was
in
effect
seeking
his
counterpoint.

CHAPTER EIGHT

On
a
day
like
any
other,
he stopped
to
get
a
coffee
in
in the same shop that was his refuge when he needed.
Normally
he would get
it
to
go, unless evading the police,
but
as
it
was
raining
on
this
day,
and
having
ignored
the
advice
given
to
him
earlier
by
the
weatherman
to
take
an
umbrella,
he opted
to
sit
awhile
and
drink
in
the
neighbourhood
until
the
rain
lifted.

The rain seemed to persist as if to keep him from leaving and by now any remnants of the heat that had been in the end of his coffee had long dispelled and the foam that was Lees favourite part of a coffee was now crystallised with the sugar, coating the base of the coffee cup. Lee put the cup to the side and stopped thinking back about the past, letting a deep breath out as he relaxed his shoulders back and released the growing tension in his neck. Instead he turned his attention elsewhere, trying to enjoy what remained of his day off.

Sitting
by
the
window
he
watched
the
world
pass
for
a
while
and
found
himself
daydreaming. He watched the people, some on their own and some with friends, lovers and families. His family was strong, supportive and always there for him, but it wasn’t enough. He wondered if this was a selfish thought, as he had a family that so many people could only dream of. Not only were they supportive and loving, but he was also fantastic friends with both his brother and father, and never got bored or frustrated with their company. What he was frustrated with was that this was it. There was no one to hold hands with as he walked through the rain. No one to hold an umbrella over protectively. His parents had been lucky enough to have true romance and while it had been snatched away from them far too early, they still had it. For those few years they were everything to each other, and together they created two new lives and a whole world for their little family. Could Lee ever hope for such a thing? Could he ever be accepted for the person that he was, deep down, and let someone love him, powerless as he was?

Watching
the
rain
bounce
off
the
window
he noticed
how
people
were
seemingly
dancing
through
the
rain
in
desperation
not
to
get
wet. The
futility
of
this
endeavour
made
Lee
smile
quietly
to
himself.
Whilst
lost
in
his
thoughts,
he failed
to
notice
the
girl
sitting
across
smiling
at
him
from
behind
her
book. As
he
continued
to
daydream
the
girl
began
to
laugh
at
him
. Her
laugh
was
so
endearing
it
brought
Lee’s
eyes
to
meet
hers, playing with an old dull locket that sat around her neck as the warmth of her smile emanated out.
Slightly
startled
and
embarrassed
, he
adjusted
his
demeanour. The
girl
continued
to
smile
at
him
and
after
a
moment
she
said,
“Are
you
enjoying
yourself?”

Lee
responded
to
the
girl
with
a
warm
inviting
half
smile,
“Yea,
I
kind
of
am
I
suppose...”

Standing
up
and
walking
towards
him,
it
was
only
now
that
Lee
was
able
to
take
in
what
he
was
faced
with.
He couldn’t take his eyes from her
beautiful
big
eyes
and
warm
smile,
as she
sat
down
by
him.

“Hi
I’m
Jennifer,
Jennifer
Patzner...”

Conversation flowed naturally and he learned that she
actually
worked
in
the
coffee
shop
and
was
on
a
break.

He queried
about
the
book
she
was
reading
and
she
paused, looking him straight in the eye and smiling. It was so refreshing for a guy to actually take an interest. She wasn’t oblivious to her looks and was quietly confident of her feminine features, but recently she had come to feel completely fed up of guys only being interested in flirting as she shied away from human contact. But she had too. As soon as she spoke of something close to her heart or made a remotely intelligent comment she could see the light fade from their eyes. Yet here was this man, holding her eye contact and seemingly completely interested in what she had to say. She
dove straight in to telling him all about it.

“The
Picture
of
Dorian
Gray.
It
is
one
of
my
all-time
favourite
books.”
Lifting
the
book
in
her
hand
she
flicked
through
the
pages
of
the
battered
old
copy
and
continued
to
tell
him
about
the
story.
“It’s
about
a
young
man
who
sold
his
soul
for
eternal
youth. His
secret
had
cost
him
so
much
in
his
life,
all
for
the
pursuit
of
an
eternal
state
of
ecstasy.”

Lee
saw
similarities
with
the
secret
Dorian
Gray
had
to
keep
and
the
secret
he
kept
himself, although he felt no such ecstasy.
Lee's
upbringing
made him
into
an
analytical
and
logical
man.
The
only
art
form
he
really
enjoyed
was
music
and
he
found
Jennifer’s
openness
and
knowledge
of
all
art
forms
endearing
as
she
spoke
with
pure
passion
from
the
heart. Her eyes sparkled, as she got lost in what she was saying. Never had he met a woman so captivating.

He didn’t want
to
seem
like the empty shell of a person that he felt like, so he
focused on things
that
brought
passion
into
his
life.
He told
her
about
how
close
he
was
to
his
family
and
how
both
his
brother
and
his
father
were
real
inspirations
in
guiding
him
to
become
the
man
that he
was.
He explained the
main
piece
of
wisdom
that
his
father
tried
to
instil
in
him
and
how
it
was
a
very
basic
piece
of
information
that
his
father
would
repeat
to
him
countless
times,
with
the
words,
“Trust
your
gut,
it
won't
lie
to
you,
if
something
doesn’t
feel
right
it's
wrong.”
Lee
went
on
to
talk
about
how
his
father
opened
his
mind
up
to
music
and
how
listening
to
music
together
was how they spent
countless
nights
when
Lee
was
growing
up.

The
conversation
went
on
for
another
forty
minutes.
It flowed easily between them, each one picking up where the other left off, inspired by their words and looking deep into their own lives to find points of similarity. Without even noticing they were building up a network of common ground, becoming more and more trusting with each tale they told.
They
both
exchanged
stories
of
growing
up, their careers and everything in between.

Jennifer
paused for a moment, toying with the cup in her hands before looking up at Lee with big eyes. He could tell she was contemplating saying something, but he kept quiet for fear of unintentionally putting her off. Instead he simply held her gaze and tried to encourage her with his warmest smile. She bit her lip and looked down at her cup once more. Then, taking a breath in, she
playfully
teased
Lee
about
the
fact
that
she
had
seen
him
come
in
and
out
of
the
coffee
shop
on
a
few
occasions,
but
always
seeming
in
a
hurry,
too
much
of
a hurry
for
him
to
see
her
and
to
notice
the
fact
that
she
was
quietly
trying
to
catch
his
eye.
She looked down the whole time she spoke, only looking up to see his response as she finished speaking. She looked heartbreakingly beautiful at that moment, with her mix of insecurity and playful eagerness.