Chapter 39
Chapter thirty-nine
Teddy/Quantum Knight
Roger hit the landing pad hard, the concrete cracking under his boots. He dumped Matt onto the ground like a sack of cement, his chest heaving. Johnny blurred into existence a split second later, depositing Donovan before collapsing to his knees.
I stumbled as I landed my motorcycle, my suit sparking and dead weight against my skin. The silence that followed the blur of flight was sudden and violent.
Sebastian washed up to the shore last. Finally, our secret island had a population of six.
"What the fuck happened?" Roger snarled, wiping blood from his lip.
I turned just in time to see Johnny straighten from his crouch. One hand was pressed to his ribs where a dark bruise was already blooming beneath his torn shirt. His spiked hair was matted with sweat.
He didn’t look at any of us. His gaze was fixed on the concrete, like the answers were written in the cracks.
"I don't know what hit me." His voice was rough, the words scraping out like he’d swallowed glass. "One hit. Lights out. I have no idea how long I was down, or I would have gotten everyone out sooner. I woke up to Mandie’s scream. Like someone had skinned the sound right out of her."
Sebastian didn’t flinch, but his fingers twitched behind his back.
"The smoke wasn’t chemical," he said. His voice was too precise, like he was dictating notes for an autopsy.
"It behaved like a localized singularity.
Space folded in on itself for approximately three point two seconds.
When it cleared, Mandie was gone." His jaw tightened.
"Scientifically, it shouldn't be possible. "
Roger paced the small platform, his cape fluttering like a nervous bird. "What about the dragon? Or that Ice Man?" he demanded. "We’ve never seen them before. It’s bad enough getting our teeth kicked in by Brickslayer or zapped by Conductor, but dragons?"
Donovan’s gloves creaked as his hands clenched into fists. "That wasn't just a dragon. It was smart. Calculated. It coordinated with the others." His gray eyes were wide, pupils blown so dark they swallowed the iris. "What the hell are we dealing with?"
"I don't know who they were," I said, my voice grating. "And right now, I don't care. What matters is getting Mandie back."
The silence that followed was heavier than the shouting.
Donovan lifted his eyebrows, just slightly. "Any ideas?"
I looked over at Sebastian. He gave a microscopic nod.
"We have a tracker on her," I said.
"What?" Roger stopped pacing.
"That is fucked up," Johnny said, his voice dropping low.
"I did it for this exact reason," I shot back, though guilt churned in my gut. "That scar on her side? The one she got when we first brought her to the Keystone?"
"That is where you implanted it," Donovan realized, his tone flat.
I nodded. "Doc helped me."
Johnny tore off his shredded cape and threw it on the ground. "So, where is she?"
I rubbed my face, frustration radiating off me in waves. I couldn't believe this was happening.
"Zagros Mountains," I said. "Iran. How she got there so fast, I have no idea. Usually, we have the speed advantage."
Matt’s face looked defeated. He pointed a massive finger at me. "Your suit is hanging off you. Is it working at all? If not, we are down a man."
I looked down. Carbon fiber was open, circuitry sparking and dead. "It is garbage," I admitted. "But I have another. And another motorcycle, a newer model. We open up Keystone Two, get our ducks in a row, and then we go."
"Keystone Two?" Johnny asked, looking at me like I’d grown a second head.
I spread my arms, gesturing to the island around us. "I had a secondary facility built underground here. Just in case."
"You built a whole new headquarters by yourself?" Roger looked skeptical.
"Those cleaning bots don't just clean," I said, walking toward the hidden elevator panel. "They build. How did you think I built the first one?"
“Now you tell us, after we built that theme park on our own,” Johnny said as we waved a hand at the scrap metal of a roller coaster.
"Whatever," Matt grunted, pushing himself to his feet. "Let's just get Mandie."
I looked over at Johnny. “We may have to face your dad. Are you okay going up against him?” I asked.
“Yeah, anything for Mandie.”
Donovan splashed water from a canteen onto his face, washing away soot. "What about Capital Punishment? If he’s going after resources today, shouldn't we stop him before he gets the last artifacts?"
I stopped. I turned back to look at them, my team, battered and broken.
"Fuck that," I said. "We save Mandie. She is our priority. Today, we get her back."
I met their eyes, one by one.
"The world can wait another day."
Roger shrugged, a ghost of his usual grin returning. "Sounds good to me. Let's go save our girl."
The Zagros Mountains loomed like jagged teeth against the bruised sky, their peaks clawing at the underbelly of the storm clouds.
The air smelled of iron and damp earth and the scent of a battlefield long before the fighting started.
My suit’s circuitry hummed against my skin, a low, reassuring pulse in the freezing air.
I pushed the cycle harder, the engine screaming as we shot through the cloud layer.
Donovan’s grip around my waist tightened, his fingers digging into the gaps in my plating.
To my left, Roger soared through the mist, his cape snapping in the wind.
To my right, the sleek black shape of the jet carried Matt and Sebastian, banking hard to match our speed.
"Pulsewave to Knight." Johnny’s voice crackled in my ear, breathless and distorted by speed. "I’m ahead. Perimeter is clear. No sentries. No movement. Just a whole lot of rock."
"Copy," I said. "Keep scanning."
"There’s only one way in, Boss. A massive steel door carved right into the cliff face. Looks heavy. I’m pretty sure one of the big guys can knock it, though."
"Thanks, Johnny. Hold position. We’re two minutes out."
"Roger that. I’ll do another sweep."
We set the jet down on a flat ridge near the base of the summit. The air was thin up here, biting cold. Johnny and Roger ferried Matt and Sebastian up the sheer rock face while I maneuvered the cycle to the landing point.
When we finally regrouped, we stood before the entrance Johnny had found. It wasn’t just a door; it was a barricade, a slab of pitted, ancient steel sealed into the mountain like a vault.
Johnny pointed a gloved finger at it. "That’s it. That’s where they took her."
Roger adjusted his helmet, the white “V” on his chest stark against the gathering gloom. "The tracker?" His voice was rough, tight with worry. "Is it still holding?"
I brought up my HUD. A single red dot pulsed steady and strong, deep within the rock. "She’s in there," I confirmed. "Let's move. We get Mandie and we get out. The longer we stay, the more time we give, the more chance she has of getting hurt.
They all nodded, faces grim.
"Stick to the plan," I commanded, looking at each of them. "We don't know exactly what we’re walking into, but this time, we’re somewhat prepared."
I stepped toward the door first, my boots crunching on the loose shale. The others fanned out behind me, their stances tight, ready for war. We were walking into the belly of the beast, and we weren't leaving without her.
I was forty feet from the blast doors when the sky went black.
A shadow swallowed the storm clouds, casting a sudden, suffocating gloom over the mountain ridge. The air pressure dropped so fast my ears popped. I didn’t need to look up to know what it was.
The dragon.
"I got the lizard," Roger said. He launched himself into the air, cape snapping, intercepting the diving beast.
My heart hammered against my ribs, but I didn’t break stride. Mandie was in there. I wasn’t stopping.
But before I could touch the keypad, the world exploded.
The ground bucked violently as thunder shook the mountain. A bolt of blue-white lightning slammed into the earth mere inches from me.
Conductor.
That wasn't all. The roar of an engine cut through the thunder. Brickslayer dropped from the sky on his hover-bike, red skin glinting in the strobe-light flashes of lightning.
Matt roared, his skin hardening into his Gorath form. His crystalline shell bristled, transforming him into a sapphire fortress just as the bike slammed toward us.
"Go!" Matt bellowed. He caught Brickslayer’s bike mid-air like it was a football, the impact sounding like a car crash.
Johnny blurred past me, his visor flaring blue. "Incoming at three o'clock!"
The villains descended like a nightmare. Soulflame lit up the mist with an aura of hellfire. And from the shadows of the rocks, the Ice Man stepped out, the ground freezing instantly beneath his boots.
"Stay focused," I barked, my voice distorted by my helmet.
Sebastian didn't wait. He lunged at Soulflame, his body turning into a tidal wave, crashing against the fireman’s flames with a hiss of steam.
Pulsewave was already moving. "I got Sparky!" he shouted. He launched himself off a boulder, sneakers leaving trails of neon light.
Conductor sneered, lightning arcing between his fingers. "Too slow, kid."
"Wanna bet?" Pulsewave ducked the bolt and slammed a kinetic-charged fist into Conductor’s jaw.
To my right, Flexel’s body rippled, losing its human shape. He stretched like viscous oil, wrapping around Iceman’s legs just as the ice villain unleashed a blast of cold.
"Too bad for you, I like the cold," Donovan taunted, his voice a distorted gurgle. His black, paint-like skin absorbed the frost, the toxic green lines on his suit dimming as he insulated himself.
Sebastian, having doused Soulflame, turned his attention to the door. He raised his hands, pulling moisture from the damp air until a swirling vortex of water surrounded him.
"You’re clear, Teddy!" Sebastian shouted. "Get inside!"
I didn’t hesitate.