33 Cape High Mega Me, page 23
part #1 of Cape High Series
“No, it really is the hair, isn’t it?” Herold says.
We all ignore him, dropping down in our chairs. “Fauna, take us back to Cosmic HQ and open up the toy panel, please,” Nico says as he heads for the wall. A closet opens and he steps in.
Herold turns to us, and I can practically see him evaluating his odds. His eyes linger on Dad, thoughtfully, and then go to the power hunter, who’s looking surlier by the moment. After a moment he just drops down onto the nearest empty chair, draping himself over it as he keeps his eyes on us. It’s almost as if WE’RE the prisoners.
“So… shadow boy,” he says abruptly, turning to Rocco. “How’s your old man doing? Does he talk about me much?”
Rocco just stares at him. “Can I throw something at him?” he asks out of the side of his mouth.
I look away, trying and failing not to laugh.
“I don’t like you,” Carla says, and Herold looks over at her. “Century is my Hall leader, and you almost got him killed with your White House gig! And then you could have killed Jack! And you’re a meanie!”
“You’re adorable, aren’t you,” Herold says. “Let me see… do I remember you? Possibly? A speedster comes to mind, little mouse ear haircut, some ridiculously long super name, not that super names made sense to me in the first place.”
She glares at him, which isn’t an expression I see on her face… ever. “They were PIG TAILS,” she tells him. “Not mouse ears!”
“Yes, that would be you,” he says. “I like the new hair. How is Jack doing, anyway? He was my favorite.”
Nico comes out of the little closet, carrying a collar. He heads straight for Herold, and has the collar on him before Herold can even make a break for it—not that he could get very far. “I hate these things,” Herold says as it’s finished. “Do you know how ugly it makes my skin look?”
“It finally fits your personality,” Nico says coldly, dropping down in the captain’s chair. “I see you tried to hack my ship’s files. You really think I haven’t put up protocol against you?”
“You would do the same.”
“Of course I would,” Nico says.
“Do they really hate each other?” Carla whispers to me.
“We hate each other,” Nico says.
“Yet we find ourselves oddly in sync, more often than not,” Herold says. I doubt he heard her question with the collar on, but maybe he did. He’s got the same power-set as Nico does, pretty much, right? I heard Nico used to break into the Hall computers all the time back when he was in the Cape Cells. “Face it, Technico, you and I are more alike than different. Even to this day, you know that fact.”
“Hailing Cosmic Headquarters,” Nico says, completely ignoring him. A screen lights up in front of us, and I’m slightly stunned to see Stellar. “So… you came here?” Nico asks.
“Ah, sorry, I rerouted the call on purpose,” Stellar says. “You know what the problem is, I think?”
“The External Power Blockers don’t work when the powers are being used on the power hunter targets,” Nico says. “It would, if they’d been more like Mimic, but this proves that they’re a different species—or that Mimic’s been watered down with other genetics.”
“Exactly,” Stellar says, “which is why I’m rebuilding the machine, now. The concept is good, but it’s restricted by a few things.” We see Reaper in the background, who appears to be filming everything Stellar does with his comm tool.
“And who is that?” Herold asks. “Not the tall one, the technopath.”
“Who is that?” Stellar asks, almost at the exact same time. He’s looking at Herold. “I see you captured one of the power hunters, but is he a bonus? The technopath you told me of, earlier, right?”
“This is Herold… I honestly can’t remember the rest of your name,” Nico says, looking at Herold. The irritation on Herold’s face is almost funny.
“Is this really the time? It looks as if you’ve been playing with another technopath behind my back, Technico. That’s not right,” Herold says. “I thought we had a special sort of frienemies thing going on. That’s what they call it, right? Forgive me if my slang is out of date.”
“You’re messed up, Herold, and I’ve been hanging out with a few of them,” Nico says, almost smugly. “Bringing up the docking bay doors, now,” he says. “We’ll be docking in five… four…” the doors of the docking bay swing open and Fauna flies in, heading right back to the spot he’d been parked in, earlier. Before I can even mention it, a few Cosmics wheel large boxes over to the ship, and tentacles come out of the side, wrapping around them. “Thanks for the juice boxes, boys, my ship appreciates it.”
The door opens and Dad hauls the power hunter out of his seat, shoving him out the door.
“You can leave me here,” Herold offers, only to get the same treatment the power hunter had gotten. We’re greeted by an entire group of Cosmics with weapons. They all stare at the power hunter—save for three of them. Three of them are looking rather relieved by the sight of Herold.
“So… how much damage did he do?” one asks, rubbing his wrist unconsciously.
Herold looks at him, his eyes lighting up. “You must be one of the G-men that watched me shower,” he says.
“We never watched you shower,” the guard says, completely straight faced. “We did watch you do other things, of course, but truthfully, it was a very boring job.”
“Until the power hunter caught us,” another says.
“There were his strange conversations with the sentient planet,” the first says. “Those were somewhat interesting.”
This time, Herold is the one who looks surprised. “You knew we were speaking?” he asks. “I’m stunned.”
“We have sentient planet partners, you shouldn’t be,” the Cosmic says.
“So, the power hunter got all of you, hmm?” Herold says. “That means you must have lost the weaker ones. I should feel responsible for that, shouldn’t I? Let me think back to my political days, I think I have some speech memorized. I think it went ‘I feel great regret for the loss of yadda yadda yadda…’”
They just look at him. “No one died,” the Cosmic interrupts him.
“Ah, what a shame,” Herold says. “Now, I want a hot shower and a cheeseburger. You would not believe how much you miss cheeseburgers when you can’t get them.”
“We need secure holding cells for both of these, and I want to speak with Stellar,” Nico says. “We still need to get the female power hunter, but we’re doing good, time wise. I’ve only missed one story time, so far.”
I look at him, and then down at myself. “He’s got a point about the shower, though,” I say. “I’m going to head to the dorms.” He nods, waving me off, and I head down the hall. I wonder if I should call Aubrey and have her check on Dad. He’d seemed pretty out of it after that fight with the power hunter. I check my comm, seeing a message from her. Earth emergency… figures.
“Ward,” Carla says, and I look back, seeing that she and Rocco are following me. “Ward… um… do you need to talk about it?” she asks me.
I think about it, examining everything that’s happened on this “family vacation” for a long, long moment. “Mmm… yeah, still not sure I want to be a Hall leader, if that’s what you’re talking about,” I say.
“It is a decision that takes a lot of time and consideration. You’re right to take your time,” someone says from ahead of us. I almost blush as Negatia steps into view. There’s a girl with her, who I’ve never seen before. Negatia ignores all of that as she walks over, placing her hand on my forehead. “Aubrey apologized, but she had to return to Earth. You could have come to see me when you were having troubles,” she says.
“When I said, um, I was—“ I start out, practically stumbling over myself. I should have NEVER said it that way, like I actually had a CHANCE to become a Hall leader someday—
“Your principal has been showing me your work this trip,” she says. “I’m mildly impressed. I would have been more impressed if you had actually gotten yourself out the second time around. I’m positive that you could have.”
“Ah, yeah, but I was traumatized at the time,” I tell her. She gives me a dry look.
“I see,” she says. “Go take your shower, Ward. You three can go to one of their proposed classes while the adults plan out how to capture the other power hunter. I want to see this class, as well.”
I feel strange. It’s almost the same as when Aubrey worked on me, but different—it’s like the control I have on my powers are sharper and more defined. I look at my hand, biting my lip for a second before trying something—the hand shrinks while the rest of me stays the same size.
“That… is freaky as heck, man,” Rocco says. I shake my hand and it returns to normal. “Hey, hey, can you make it larger, too?”
I’m tempted to tell him that my powers aren’t some sort of magic act, but… well, he’s got a point. I concentrate, and my hand starts to get larger and larger. I wait until it’s almost three times its usual size to flick it and turn it back to normal. I look at Negatia, who’s smiling ever so slightly.
“Um… thanks,” I say, feeling even more awkward. “I mean, Aubrey stabilized it, which was cool, but this is… well, thanks,” I finish.
“You’re welcome,” she says. “Of course, you’re still growing. This will not fix it permanently, but when you have another growth spurt, come and see me.” She pats me on the shoulder, and then looks at her hand before flicking the drool off with a surprisingly classy move. I wonder if she’s had to practice that move often.
“Then, um, I’ll go take my shower,” I say, pointing at the dorm’s door before heading off. She could be my boss someday. I guess that would be fine? I mean, a lot of the other zoo kids are either going South or staying Central, or possibly going to work for the Legends, but I’d probably be the only one going West…
“I didn’t mean THAT when I said you might need to talk,” Carla says as we step into the boy’s dorm room. It’s empty, which makes it a little less awkward having her in here. I ignore all of that, turning off my E.P.B. and pulling my shirt off as I head for the bathroom. “We had a really big fight and it was the first one you’ve been through, and they climbed all over you and—“
“Yeah, but…” I turn to her, trying to figure out how to put it, “that felt… sort of like… natural.”
Rocco bursts out laughing, and Carla just stares at me for a long moment before smiling brilliantly. “That makes a lot of sense!” she says. “I bet it was like running is for me!”
“Probably?” I say and head into the bathroom, only to stare at the area I assume is the shower. “Hey, Rocco?” I ask, sticking my head out of the room. “You have ANY idea how to use this thing?”
“Yeah, I got no clue,” Rocco says. “Ask Technico!”
“Good idea,” I say, and close the door behind me.
***
Ho’pa watches Negatia closely, her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. “You like the grumpy boy,” she accuses her after a long moment.
“He’s an extremely interesting super, yes,” Negatia says. “He’ll be a very good team member in the future, and I am hardly one to pass up a child suggested to me by Technico.” She has no reason to hide the fact that she’s a little thrilled at being chosen for one of Technico’s favorites. This will open up a door that’s been closed to her for far too long. Oh, yes, it does help that she’s one of Kodiak’s godmothers—
She jerks, ever so slightly, and taps on her comm, checking out the time on Earth. “Oh, dear, I haven’t checked in, have I?” she says. "Ho’pa, why don’t you head on in to class while I make a quick call?”
“Who are you calling?” Ho’pa asks. “Is it your almost grown son?”
“No, but I should send him a quick text, I think,” Negatia says, practically dismissing Justin. She taps on her comm, frowning as she tries to figure out—“Ah, this should do it,” she says, and an image appears on the wall in front of her, showing a baby boy playing with blocks and a small rodent.
“AAAH!” the boy says as he sees her, his eyes lighting up. He crawls up to the screen, placing his hand on it. “Gaaahpah!” he says happily.
“Kodiak, darling, how have you been doing?” Negatia says. “Clinky, it’s lovely to see you, as well,” she adds as the guinea pig runs over and squeaks at her. “I know Daddy is out here, again, but I promise he’s working very hard to get back. Now, tell me what you’ve been doing while I was gone!”
Ho’pa looks blankly at her, and then at the baby who’s making random noises at the screen. It’s even stranger as symbols appear at the top of the screen like text, and Negatia reads them easily. “Oh, that sounds very entertaining, indeed,” Negatia says. “Of course, dear, I’ll be happy to see what sort of children’s toys they have out here, but you know that your daddy makes the best toys in the universe.”
They “talk” for a few more moments before a redheaded woman comes onto screen. “Yes, yes, I know how much you love your Auntie Negatia,” she says to the baby, who’s protesting, “but it’s time for your meal. Negatia, good to see you.”
“And to see you, as well, Summer,” Negatia says. “They’re both growing so quickly, it’s amazing.”
“True, but Clinky has been failing his geography classes,” Summer says. The guinea pig lets out a protesting squeak. “No, you should know your states just as well as the other children, Clinky, you just don’t like putting in the effort,” she says to him.
“Clinky, darling, how are you going to work for one of the Halls if you can’t keep track of your states?” Negatia asks. “You know we’re keeping a very close eye on your grades.”
“He’s a… rodent,” Ho’pa says, unable to stop herself.
“He’s in the form of a rodent, but he’s a self-aware and learning computer,” Negatia says. “Nico and Zoe made him.”
Ho’pa frowns. “Your planet is weirder by the moment,” she says, after thinking about it. “Why would you create such a powerful computer in the shape of a tiny rodent?”
Clinky starts squeaking indignantly, and more symbols appear on the screen. “Because, Ho’pa, Clinky was built to be the class pet of very, very important children on my home planet,” Negatia explains. “You will learn more when we get there, since you will be moving into the school dorm and meeting them, firsthand, soon. Now… where has Reaper gotten himself off to?” she asks, after saying her farewells to the Earthlings and hanging up.
“You could have defeated the last power hunter, couldn’t you,” Ho’pa says quietly. Negatia looks at her, tilting her head slightly in question. “We all saw it, on the wall,” she says. “You had her, so easily. Everyone out here is… is terrified of the power hunters taking their powers, but you had her stopped and—and you could have finished her off. Why didn’t you?”
Negatia considers it for a moment, and then smiles. “Because I am not a murderer. Life is precious, and should only be taken after there has been a trial and all of the facts are revealed. Even then…” The smile on her face fades, her eyes going serious and sad. “There have been a few that have died because of the punishment my fellow Hall leaders and I have handed down. It has been because of old age, in almost all cases, when their powers have been taken, but… I will never forget who they are, and my part in what happened. I told Ward that becoming a Hall leader is a decision that should be made carefully, and I wasn’t lying.”
She looks at the wall again, and then checks her comm before heading out of the room. “Now, let’s get you to class. I’m sure we’ll meet the others soon enough.”
“What about that Reaper guy?” Ho’pa asks. “Isn’t he really, really dangerous? You’re just letting him run around--”
“Of us all, he should be the one we worry about least, I think,” Negatia admits. “I would love to have him in my Hall, honestly. Such a refreshing man.”
Ho’pa looks at her like she’s crazy, and then shakes her head. “Your planet AND your people are weird,” she says.
“Then you, my dear, will learn to fit right in, quickly!” Negatia tells her.
“I really, really doubt it,” Ho’pa says. “I’m not the one with a weird guy living in ice who gives kids presents for just being good.”
“It does wonders for keeping them behaving,” Negatia says. They step into the classroom, and the entire room goes silent. Both the Cosmic kids and the supers brought in from other planets are staring at Negatia. “Well… looks like I have a captive audience,” she says.
***
*Deep Security, Cosmic HQ*
There are only a few people being held captive on the lowest, most secure level of the Cosmic Headquarters. Five of them are ex-council members, one of them is a man known as “Snake.” He’s the only one who doesn’t look startled as the power hunter is led through the various bubble cells and shoved into the most secure one.
“What are you doing with one of THOSE?” one ex-council member demands. “Have you become such fool-hardy idiots as to think you can bring in one of those monsters and last through the night? We taught you better than that!”
Halfway through his rant, his bubble goes opaque, and no one can hear him. None of the Cosmics guarding the power hunter even seem to notice, although he does see their jaws twitch slightly. He’s watching them very closely right now, certain that he can make a run for it the moment they show a sign of weakness. If anything, the idea of being captured by his prey is just WRONG. It’s like being taken hostage by cheeseburgers—if he knew what a cheeseburger was, that is. His eyes fall on the other hostage, who’s now wearing just as much restraining gear as he is.
“Why are you so tied up?” he asks. The other man, Herold, looks at him for a long moment.
“I don’t speak whatever it is you just said, and I honestly couldn’t care less over that fact,” Herold says, his eyes going from bubble to bubble. “This seems far more peaceful than being stuck on a planet with Sparky, so why didn’t you place me here, instead?”
“Why…” Ravage says, his mouth having a bit of trouble forming the new language, “are you… captive.” He thinks those are the words, he actually hasn’t eaten many Earthlings before, so it’s not one of his strongest languages.
