Chapter 42

Michael

Ray’s scream caused me to cringe. His arm looked gross; just looking at it made me nauseous. I looked away and kept inching off the street with Angela leaning on my shoulder like an injured soccer player being helped off the field. “Sorry I couldn’t get your stone…” she muttered.

She looked weak. I couldn’t tell if anything was broken, but she looked exhausted enough to lie down on the sidewalk and sleep until morning. That wasn’t an option right now, though. “It’s okay,” I said. “My dad will drive me close to Trotting Park and that should do the trick.”

She hummed in approval, her head sagging.

While I was grateful and surprised that Ray decided to help us out, it was unfortunate that he couldn’t hold Zack off a little longer for me to get Angela to my dad’s car. I looked around for Zack, even though I knew I wouldn’t see him anyways. He was around here somewhere.

Dad ran toward me and offered to help carry her. “Come on Angela,” he said. “We’ll get you out of here.”

“You know her?” I asked.

“Are you kidding? The news has been all over you, her, and Ray Simmons this whole week!” He glanced at Ray. “What happened to him anyways? I couldn’t see anything…”

“It’s Zack. He’s Invisible.” We were almost to the car. Hundreds of people crowded the street. Many of them were injured. Some people were calling for help to get out of their crushed cars. Traffic had come to a complete stop. The scene looked like a bomb had gone off in the middle of the intersection.

“Zack Larson? Your cousin?” Dad asked.

“The same.” We jerked our heads up and froze. Zack stood between us and the car. “What’s up Uncle John?”

Neither one of us said anything. Dad just stared at Zack’s glowing eyes. I noticed that his clothes had been burnt black in several locations, but his pale skin didn’t have any worse than second degree burns.

My cousin was about to say something, but was cut off as huge, glassy wings appeared out of nowhere and swatted him across the street. He collided with a light post, causing it to bend and then slowly fall to the street. People screamed as the light hit the road with a loud crash.

I looked at Angela, amazed at her persistence. Dad and I were still holding her upright because she looked on the verge of fainting, but in her bright white-glowing eyes I saw a great determination to keep Zack away from us. She held out her arms to direct the wings to surround us. Dad looked around at the force field, his jaw dropped in amazement.

Zack recovered quickly and sped over to the edge of Angela’s force field. He glared angrily at each of us from the other side. A part of me was repulsed by Zack’s—for lack of a better word—evilness, but another part of me was unsurprised. He always did have a dark side to him. He just kept it under wraps when he was with me and Sarah. He was a member of the Scorpion gang. He’d probably stolen, robbed, and murdered before. And his perspective of good and bad was so twisted. All he needed was superpowers and a gentle push from that other Starling, Mark, to get him to think we’re the bad guys.

I felt guilty for not being a better cousin and friend. I could’ve included him more in Team Orion, and I could’ve accepted my powers sooner. He hated me for being irresponsible with my powers. I was partially to blame for the situation we were in.

Zack kicked the force field hard. The force of the kick pushed the wings toward us, but Angela clenched her teeth and grunted as she kept her wings from moving. It took her a lot of effort to remain in place after getting hit by something hard. Usually she would let the force of a blow knock her backwards, probably because it used less energy, but she couldn’t do that now because my dad and I were with her inside her protective wings. The wings would hit Dad and me with the same force as Zack’s kick, which would be deadly for those without powers. Ugh… I need my powers!

Zack smirked, recognizing how much effort Angela put into holding the force field still, and then he kicked it again. And again. And again.

Each kick wore on Angela. Beads of sweat dripped down her head. Veins bulged in her neck. Her arms trembled with each blow. She slumped more and more onto our shoulders.

“Angela…” I started to say but couldn’t get anything else out. Watching her struggle to protect me and my dad was painful. I wanted to help. I wanted to do something! Anything!

One last kick. Angela couldn’t hold the wings still anymore. The wings flew fast toward us. They were going to hit us like a brick wall. At the last moment, Angela dismissed her wings, letting them disappear, and she drooped her head in defeat.

Zack strolled up to us, confident enough to remain visible. He was shorter than all of us, Angela included, but he walked as if he loomed a mile over our heads. Fear gripped my chest. What was he going to do to us? We were at his mercy. Angela was on the cusp of consciousness and I didn’t have my stone.

As Zack approached, Angela found the strength to gently push me and dad away. Her eyes still glowed, but not nearly as white or as bright as they did when she had her wings up. Even without her wings, she was still trying to protect us!

Zack stopped a few paces away from Angela, looking ready to finish her off. I clenched my fists. I couldn’t believe this was happening! After all our plans to defeat Ray and protect the world from bad Starlings, we end up being defeated by none other than my cousin! He was going to hurt her! Maybe kill her! I had to do something!

But what? I thought. I don’t have my stone. I can use my powers, but I’d pass out. Maybe… maybe I can steal his stone and throw it away before passing out. I’d have to do it fast. It’s my last chance. My last thread of hope.

My hands began to sweat in anticipation. I was going to do this! It would probably kill me, but at least it would save Angela and Dad! A strange feeling crept up inside of me. An inkling that this was going to work. A hope. A belief. My eyes began to glow.

Zack didn’t say anything, he burst into motion, swinging a superhuman fist at Angela. The blow would probably be enough to knock her out or worse; she was too weak to protect herself.

I flew between Zack and Angela and caught his fist in my hand. And then there was an explosion!

A burst of energy and light separated the both of us. Zack got knocked down, but I stood my ground. It took me a half second to recognize what was happening. This same thing had happened when I fought Ray at the high school. I glanced down at my hands. Half a dozen billiard-sized balls of multicolored light were floating a few inches above my palms.

I could sense the balls somehow. I could feel each one of them spinning, floating above my hands. It felt like the tingling energy had escaped my body and transformed into these strange balls of light. They felt powerful. I felt even more invincible, like my powers reached a higher level. Maybe I can control the balls of light, I thought. What could I do with them?

Suddenly, a horrible pain wracked my core, bringing me back to my senses. I was using my powers without my stone! The balls of light started to fade. I keeled over, tempted to turn off my powers. But then I remembered my plan. Steal Zack’s stone. I had to do it before passing out, and I didn’t have long.

Zack jumped back to his feet and looked confused at what he was seeing. Well, I thought. If I can use these balls of light, now is the time. I quickly focused on one light ball and attempted to move it. It was similar to moving my tingling energy out and around my body when I flew. I had to think of it as another limb that had muscles that just needed to flex.

Without even moving my hands, I sent that one light ball soaring right at Zack. I didn’t know what it would do when it reached him, but I was grateful it made a solid impact, knocking him to the ground. The light ball must be made out of something tangible, physical. I kept the ball on him, pushing his chest into the ground. Zack disappeared, and so did my light ball behind his invisibility bubble. I had to make sure Zack didn’t get away.

I focused on two other light balls and pushed them toward where I thought Zack was. I must’ve been right because they both disappeared. I tried to push them on Zack to keep him down. It was difficult to focus on three balls at a time, so I closed my eyes to concentrate.

Suddenly, my mind was filled with multiple images. It was confusing at first, but I had to make quick sense of it. I could see through the light balls. Weird, I know. That’s what I thought. But, I could! There were three different images of Zack being pushed on the ground. I could see his spooky black-light eyes because the light balls were inside his invisibility bubble.

I grunted in pain. The void in my gut felt like it was threatening to make my body implode. I wanted the pain to stop, to turn off my powers, but I needed to get Zack’s stone away from him.

The sudden appearance of these light balls had thrown me off. I didn’t know if I could concentrate on them keeping Zack down and stealing his Star Stone at the same time. My mind raced for another plan, and I quickly settled on one. I didn’t have the time to rethink it because my body couldn’t handle much more time.

With my eyes closed I could sense all the light balls much easier. There were seven of them. Three holding Zack down and four spinning above the palms of my hands. I focused on the remaining four and pushed them away from me. They flew fast. Faster than a Starling could fly. As they flew, they slowly merged together forming one large ball. I didn’t have the time to think about how that happened; the pain was excruciating. The only thing I could think about was relief. And that relief could only come in two ways. Turning off my powers was one option but would result in Zack killing us. The other option was getting my Star Stone back.

I could see through the large light ball like it was a mobile camera hooked up to my brain; I found the person I was looking for. I didn’t recognize him, but he was on the roof of the Trotting Park looking through the scope of a gun. He had to be the Starling Zack gave my stone to, Mark. He looked at me, or at the light ball, and jumped in fright. My Star Stone was in his left hand.

I didn’t have time to think about who he was or what he wanted to do with my stone, I just needed to get it from him right now! The pain had brought me to my knees. I noticed someone was touching my back. Angela? Dad? No time to check. I’ve got to get my stone!

I willed the light ball to split back into four separate balls, and then I sent each of them to attack Mark with a fury. Two were pushed back from him by some invisible force, but the other two slammed into him, pinning him to the roof of the abandoned horse racing track. I couldn’t hear anything through the balls of light—I guess they didn’t have audio—but I’m sure Mark grunted from getting hit by them.

I focused on one light ball that was looking right at my Star Stone in Mark’s hand. I needed that stone somehow! And I didn’t know how, but I was confident that the light balls could bring it back to me. I desperately willed the light ball to pry the stone out of the Starling’s hand, and it did! I wasn’t really sure how—my vision was going fuzzy. I was feeling sick. My whole body began to tremble. All I knew was that I had the stone! One light ball held my stone and bolted back toward me; the other three followed close behind it.

I opened my eyes, unable to concentrate on my powers anymore. I could still sense all of the light balls; three pinning Zack down, and four flying back to me with my stone, but I could feel my control over them fading fast.

Zack was getting back up. He grabbed the balls and threw them off of him like large, pesky leaches. They returned to push him downward, but he was already on his feet. I couldn’t see him, but I knew where my light balls were, which gave me an idea of his location. He was flying toward me slowly because the light balls were pushing against him.

I didn’t have the strength to stop him. I’d probably pass out before he even reached me. “Michael!” Was that my dad screaming? Blackness engulfed my vision and dreams of peace and tranquility called to me. And at the same time, a dark pit of failure and guilt threatened to swallow me whole. Was my dad right? Should I have given up my powers? Now he was going to die because I convinced him I was some hero.

I couldn’t take it anymore. The pain was too much. My stone hadn’t made it in time. Zack was inches from ripping my head off. This was the end.

But then I felt it.

A stream of energy filled the void in my stomach. It felt like a starving black hole in my gut was finally being satiated with the light of a nearby star. My vision began to clear. My consciousness slowly resurfaced. My stone was near! I could sense the four light balls approaching!

I closed my eyes and concentrated on the three other balls. Zack was right in front of me! The three balls had gained strength just in time to push my cousin into a standstill midair, only a foot in front of me. He held two of the balls with both hands and flew against them as they pushed back. The third ball was pushing against his head, smooshing his face at an uncomfortable angle. I heard him roar in frustration.

As my stone got nearer, the stronger I felt. I hadn’t necessarily recovered from my injuries or my weariness, just that terrible pain was gone! And that was a drastic difference!

The four balls arrived. I kept my eyes closed to concentrate on them. Too many limbs at once can confuse the brain, so I had to separate my physical body from the seven light balls; turn all my focus on them. These things were so cool! I willed one ball to drop my Star Stone into my hand and I promptly put it into my pocket. Relief washed over me. Now I could focus on Zack!

I let the two light balls he was pushing against return to me, but I left one close to him, so I could tell where he was. He flew by me, barely missing, and then stopped himself before running into another streetlight. The street itself was bright because the three helicopters above were pointing their spotlights down at us. They had just recently gotten here because it was difficult for them to follow our fight. The spotlights looked strange. Black and white. I guess I couldn’t see color through the light balls.

I kept my eyes closed, struggling to concentrate on my seven energy appendages.

Something suddenly clicked as I remembered the shape the light balls had formed that first time I accidentally stumbled upon them. The figure. The constellation. It was Orion! The seven major stars: Rigel, Betelgeuse, Bellatrix, Alnilam, Alnitak, Saiph, and Mintaka. The light balls didn’t seem any different from each other, same blue color and same shape, but I got an idea on how to keep track of them.

I brought Betelgeuse and Bellatrix up to my shoulders and Saiph to my knee. I willed Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka to orbit my waist, making it look like Orion’s legendary belt. And Rigel, the brightest star in the constellation, was stuck on Zack, helping me know his location. He tried to pull it off of him, but I made sure it stuck to him like a hungry leach.

Zack tried to ignore Rigel and attack me, probably assuming he was still invisible to me—plus my eyes were closed so I looked like a sitting duck. Just as he got close, I shot Betelgeuse at his face. Thwap! Through Betelgeuse I could see Zack’s surprised expression as he got decked hard. That was satisfying.

I assumed the light balls felt something similar to Angela’s wings. Warm to the touch and unexpectedly solid, looking like blue, billiard-ball sized stars. They were solid, and yet they could change shape somehow, allowing them to retrieve my Star Stone. I just wasn’t sure if I could make them change shape again, intentionally.

Zack must’ve been dazed after getting hit by Betelgeuse because he didn’t move for a while. Eventually, he circled around me watching for an opening. Betelgeuse, Bellatrix, and Saiph orbited around me like electrons to an atom.

Zack charged me again and I sent all of the Star Balls at him all at once. Each ball smacked into him hard. In the face, in the gut, in the back. He tried to fly away from the flurry of attacking energy balls, but they followed him, Rigel sticking close to him to indicate his location.

After a few more seconds of that, Zack fell to the ground, completely visible, bruises all over his face. I sent Bellatrix to get his Star Stone out of his pocket and bring it to me. It dropped the meteorite in my hand, and I opened my eyes.

Zack looked up at me, hurt and astonished. I glanced at Angela and Dad, they matched Zack’s expression. “Whoa…,” was all Dad could say.

Maybe only a minute had passed from the moment the light balls appeared. A long, painful minute. But they definitely made all the difference. I finally found my special power, like Angela’s wings and Ray’s fire, and I was loving it!

Zack stared up at me with wide eyes as I gripped his translucent, crystal-like Star Stone in my hand. He struggled to get up, boiling anger behind his eyes, but six light balls kept him pinned down. He watched helplessly as I threw his stone into the air, sending it soaring out of sight, far out of the city. “Nooooo!” He screamed.

A moment later, Zack’s eyes stopped glowing. He sighed in resignation, stopped trying to get up, and plopped on his back on the scarred street, looking frustrated and defeated. I removed all the light balls except one from him. One was enough to keep him down now.

I walked up to him and glared down at him. The helicopters’ spotlights caused him to squint up at me. “It’s over, Zack.”

He scowled up at me. “For now,” he spat. “I’ll get my stone back.”

“I’ll make sure you don’t. You think I was irresponsible with my powers? Look at what you’ve accomplished!” I pointed at the crushed cars, scarred road, and injured people.

He glanced around briefly and returned his glare back at me. He didn’t say anything, but I could see in his eyes that he wasn’t sorry. He just hated me. There was something else I could see in his eyes, the truth behind his motives: jealousy. I knew he had always been jealous of me, but watching me get superpowers must’ve been what tipped him over the edge. And now, being beaten by me only angered him more.

I shook my head, disappointed that he wouldn’t see reason, and walked away from him, leaving him pinned by Rigel. Dad and Angela were both gawking at me. “Wow,” Dad said. “That was… wow… son, you’re amazing! And your eyes are blue!”

I smiled, though it hurt to do so. All of my bruises and scrapes were reminding me that they were still there. My ribs still hurt too.

“So, what’s the emotion?” Angela said looking at the light balls orbiting me.

I thought about it. “I think it’s hope.” I paused. “A belief that things will turn out well, even though I have no idea how.”

She nodded. “I like it. And those little-light-ball-thingies… totally awesome! You really look like Orion!”

My emotions shifted, and the light balls disappeared. I leaned toward Angela and we caught each other in an embrace, both of us ready to collapse from exhaustion. “It’s over,” I said.

She heaved a sigh, resting her head on my chest. “It’s over.”

We could hear people around us. Some were still stuck in their cars. Police sirens sounded in the distance. “Well,” I said. “Maybe it’s not quite over yet. Looks like we’ve got some cleaning up and explaining to do.”

“Yep,” Angela said wearily. “And Ray?”

We all looked toward the edge of the intersection. Ray was gone.