Chapter 48.

Witness III.

Damien Reyes.

Time/Area: August 3rd, 2013. NYC

It was now two in the morning.

Right now, I was in the movie room, looking through a variety of films on a shelf by the projector.

I knew I should probably catch up on sleep, but because of the various events the morning brought, sleeping was close to impossible.

As I was looking through various DVD’s, I realized that I didn’t even want to watch a movie in the first place,

“Ugh.” I breathed, slumping onto a black cushion in the dimly lit room.

I thought about calling Selina, but she was probably asleep.

Which kind of sucked, because I really wanted to hang out with her. We hadn’t had any real time alone after my parents died, and from the way things were going, it was hard to tell when any of us would catch another break.

—--

I sighed, looking down at my arm.

I lift my hand above the limb, dragging my nail across it with inhuman strength.

The blood disappeared with a flash of crimson, but instead of satisfaction, I felt…emptiness.

I stopped cutting myself, feeling my head swim with thoughts I knew all too well by now.

I was going to have to feed soon.

“Just great,” I thought, dropping my hands to my side. I wasn’t exactly at the ‘rip apart everyone in sight’ phase yet, which meant I still had a decent amount of ‘Excess’ left, but I wasn’t about to waste it all on my screwed up pastime.

I looked up at the roof of the movie room, thoughts of Sarah rushing into my brain before I could stop them.

And yes…I was trying to stop them.

Or…maybe I wasn’t.

I wanted to know everything about where she was, what she was doing…everything.

But at the same time, I couldn’t help but wonder if the answers to those questions were…something I couldn’t handle.

The worst part was that I didn’t even need a particular reason to start thinking about her: It was just a gut…sibling reaction.

Although sometimes, when I managed to convince myself that Sarah was okay, it became kind of soothing for me to think of her.

Like maybe we ate the same thing yesterday.

Or maybe she was wondering what I was doing.

Hopefully Doc was okay too; I imagined it would be soooo boring if Sarah was alone in Paris.

Was she even still in Paris?

Maybe she got out…

I thought about what happened to Jason’s uncle.

Yeah…hopefully she got out.

I was praying that she got out.

She had to have gotten out…

“Uhm..” Jason said, suddenly materializing in front of me, “You do know the TV actually has to be on, right?”

I laughed a little, Jason’s voice pulling me out of my thoughts as I looked up at him, “Erm…you woke up that quickly?”

Jason squinted at me, pulling out his phone, “It's like five, dude…you were in here for three hours.”

I blinked, shocked at how long I had been in my thoughts before leaning back into the plush couch, “Oh,” I said, “But I mean… that’s still pretty early, don’t you want to sle-

“Break into some dude’s apartment?” He interrupted, pulling me off the couch,

“Yeah, why not.”

I rolled my eyes as I stood up, “Okay okay..”

He was dressed in a green long sleeve, his green trench coat, black jeans, and green sneakers.

See, I thought favorite colors were cool and all, but I thought Jason and Selina just took it way too far sometimes.

“Get dressed already!” Jason ordered, motioning out the door, “Superspeed change!”

I squinted, approaching the exit, “I can’t do that…?”

Jason just waved me off,

“Sure sure,” He said, beating me to the door, “That reminds me- wear the shirt.”

“No.” I muttered, stepping out into the upstairs hallway.

“Meet me on the porch!” Jason yelled, his voice fading in the distance as the mansion went back to silence.

I groaned, trotting over to my room to get dressed.

Before I got there, something caught my eye on the opposite side of the hall.

Mrs.M’s door was slightly cracked open, and since she hadn’t left her room yet, it implied that Jason had probably gone in to talk to her.

I sighed.

That meant he probably hadn’t slept at all.

I continued walking.

—-----------------

Much to Jason’s disapproval, I chose to wear a simple black long sleeve with dark blue jeans and my brown jacket.

Jason closed the door as we hit the sidewalk, “You look terrible.” he said.

“Thanks,” I said, breaking into a jog for the bus stop, “But let’s hurry up.”

Jason followed, “Right, just don’t superspeed away like last time.”

The plan was to take the bus to Queens, get into the apartment, and look for anything suspicious.

To be honest, I didn’t really know what we’d find there, or if it would even be useful, but it was definitely a good way to fill the time.

And if I was being 100 percent honest, this kind of stuff was what people in cool movies always did, which made this exciting.

Well, they typically broke into like…prisons and stuff…not apartments, but whatever.

A text from Mrs.M told us she would be on the phone with Mr.Floyd all day, and she was wondering what time we’d be back.

Jason had responded ‘No later than ten AM’, so she replied with ‘So 11 Am, got it’.

I really hoped she was doing better, though I doubted it.

Mrs.M had lost her sister and her husband in less than a month- It must be devastating for her. I wondered when the funeral would be held- if that was still an option.

Jason had cousins on his dad’s side, but from what Jason told me, they really weren’t affiliated with Mrs.M.

As we turned a corner, I looked around at the empty sidewalks.

Even though the whole ‘nobody goes out anymore’ thing brought a lot of depression, it almost made me notice things in the city I never cared to pay attention to.

Things like those newspaper vending machines on the edge of sidewalks.

Because no one was out to read the daily paper, a lot of the clippings printed by New York Daily were just flailing about the area, basically solidifying the apocalyptic feel of Manhattan.

The eerie dark morning didn’t help much either.

Well, the place wasn’t a complete ghost town, at least not now anyways.

I guess people still needed to eat.

When we reached the bus stop, it was almost five thirty and the relative amount of passerby hadn’t grown all too much.

No one was actually standing at the bus stop with us though, and everyone who was outside all looked to be in some state of panic that varied slightly from person to person.

Jason nudged me, “Dude..is that Selina?”

I looked where he was pointing, my eyes widening upon seeing her.

Selina was across the street, sitting on a bench with her head in her lap.

What was she doing?

“I’m going over there..” I muttered, not bothering to look both ways before jogging across the street.

No one was around anyway,

“S-Selina?” I whispered, coming to a stop at the bench.

She shot her head up, “Damien!?”

I sat next to her, smiling awkwardly, “Yea, hi… what’s wrong?”

Her eyes were bloodshot, “Oh nothing , I’m fine.”

She was dressed in her blue leather coat, blue jeans, and her gold bracelet.

I frowned, “I’m not that gullible…”

Selina shook her head, laughing a little, “Wow,” she muttered, “If only you knew the irony of that statement…”

I slowly nodded, unsure about what she was talking about as I looked back at Jason across the street.

He was pointing down the street, and then at his wrist.

The bus was almost here.

“Selina, I-”

“Go.” She pointed at Jason, “You two are taking the bus, right?”

I coughed, “But-”

She chuckled, watching as the bus came into view, “You’re going to miss it Damien...unless you can catch up to a bus now.”

My frown deepened; something was clearly wrong.

And typically, from what I knew from watching my mom and sister, whenever a girl said she was fine- the opposite was almost always true.

“C’mon!” I grinned, grabbing her hand, “Come with us…”

She yelped as I dragged her across the street,

“Damien, let go!” She complained, only half struggling, “I can’t just get on a bus with you. I-I’m not allowed to.”

I gave her an apologetic smile, “Sorry, but it’ll be fun,” I reasoned, “Plus, this can’t be about wanting to follow directions…you love disobeying your dad.”

She coughed, looking both ways as we reached the halfway point on the road, “I mean, yeah-”

“And you probably aren’t having the best time sitting out alone on a city bench at five in the morning either…”

“Yeah no, I wasn’t-”

“So either way…” I stopped, both of us now across the street as the doors to the bus opened with a hiss.

I turned to Selina, “It’d probably be better if you came with us.”

Jason raised his eyebrow as he walked towards the open bus,

“Selina’s coming?” He asked.

Selina pushed my hand off, glaring at me, “I am?”

My smile grew brighter, “She is!”

Jason huffed, “Well now I wish Melissa was here,” he breathed, leaning against the doors, “Even when I have a girlfriend, I always end up being the third wheel…”

The bus driver coughed from ahead of us,

“Uhh, you kids getting on or..?”

We all turned to her.

She was a scary looking lady with long, red hair and even redder lipstick, “Cause I’m going to leave-”

“N-no!” Jason interrupted, “The tw-three of us are going to uh..”

He looked at me.

I stuttered, delving into my memory, “U-uh,Queens Bridge Forward Housing?”

She waved towards the back, “Whatever...pick any seat...barely anyone else is here.”

We all shared a quick glance between each other before heading onto the bus.

Jason led me and Selina to the back of the vehicle, Selina sitting next to me while Jason sat across the aisle. The interior smelled of stale bagels and coffee, the possible perfect representation of the morning body of New York City.

Selina got comfortable by the window, “This could probably hold three, Jason..”

Jason laughed, plugging earbuds into his phone before slipping them on,

“I’d rather not watch you guys make out.”

We both went red as Jason turned to his window.

“S-so what are uh..you two going to do in Queens?” Selina asked me, ignoring J’s comment,

“Monster stuff?”

I nodded, “Yeah actually, we’re checking out the third witness.”

She tilted her head, “Really?” she said, “I mean, I knew something happened to that guy, but I didn’t think Melissa had found him alr-”

“Oh she did,” I explained, “She called us really early once she figured it out.”

“Ah,” Selina leaned against the window, “Melissa the detective...so where is this ‘Michael Lawson’?”

I shrugged, “He disappeared.”

She sat up, “Say what?”

Once I had explained everything I knew, Selina sighed,

“Why is everything so complicated?” She groaned.

I blinked, “Monsters probab-”

“Rhetorical question Dami..” She murmured, shaking her head with a small smirk.

I mentally rewarded myself upon hearing my nickname again, “So what was up with you?”

Selina leaned back into the scuffed up seat, “What do you mean?”

I leaned back with her, maintaining eye contact despite her obvious efforts, “I mean the whole ‘brooding on a bench’ thing.”

She rolled her eyes, “I wasn’t brooding.”

“Uh huh.” I snorted.

“I was just thinking.” she shot.

“Yeah?” I smiled, “About what?”

“I don’t know, life?” Selina got a little defensive, “Sure, I may have been a little sad; but that’s understandable given our…unique circumstances.”

I gave her another slow nod, “Right…” I half agreed, “But weren’t you the one trying to get me to talk about my feelings?” I paused, “With the apocalypse and all?”

Selina huffed, sitting up while her hair concealed the blue of her eyes.

It wasn’t tied back today, which I kind of liked.

“This isn’t about the apocalypse.” She said, “Not completely, anyways.”

I frowned, wondering how I could’ve messed up our relationship so quickly,

“Wh-what?” my heartbeat increased, “I-it isn’t? What did I-?”

Selina’s sad look instantly vanished, and her fist met my chest gently as she laughed,

“Dude, calm down,” she said, “Forget it. I’m just…being dramatic.”

I stared at her for a moment, finally able to share the smile she was giving me after I decided I couldn’t decipher what was behind it, “Right.”

She nudged me with her shoulder, “Guess I’ve been hanging around you two too much, huh?”

That made me laugh.

Me and Selina talked about stuff throughout the entire ride, just enjoying each other’s company as the bus made its way to Queens.

It was weird though, since every time we reached the subject of monsters she’d switch the topic. Not that I blamed her: I didn’t really want to talk about us either.

I updated her on the progress I was making with my powers, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit prideful. I mean, it wasn’t everyday that you got to brag to your girlfriend about having superpowers. I also managed to tell her about my superspeed without bringing up the fight I had with Jason. I figured that could stay between us.

By the time we reached our destination, Jason had been asleep for half of the ride.

I glanced at him, debating with myself on whether or not it was a good idea for him to come. He really should’ve been sleeping.

Let the boy make his own decisions.

“Well, look who decided to wake up today.”

Don’t give me that. If you want more of me, you need to feed. Also, in my superior opinion, Jason should get out of the house more anyways…same for you.

I shivered, not comfortable with the sudden surge of good advice from Terry.

“Hey..” Selina whispered, nudging my leg as she stood up, “What is he dreaming about?”

I shrugged, standing up with her as the screech of the bus brakes echoed throughout the vehicle, “I told you we could sometimes read each other’s thoughts, not find out what we dream.”

She huffed, “You’ve failed me yet again…I mean, that power is almost too random.”

I sighed, “My sincerest apologies, your majesty,” I said sarcastically, walking over to Jason’s side to wake him.

She laughed, stepping out into the aisle and stretching her arms out, “I’m sorry, I just figured your powers would…I don’t know…be more fruitful.”

“Hey, I killed a monster, you know.” I pointed out, glancing back at Selina as I shook Jason’s shoulder, “That has to count for something, right?”

Selina rolled her eyes as I shook J’s shoulder some more, “Eh,” I heard her say, “I’ll give you ten points.”

“Hey, wake up.” I said, trying not to shake him too hard.

He didn’t budge.

“HEY, YOU KIDS GONNA GIVE ME MY MONEY OR WHAT?!” The bus driver yelled from the front, “THIS IS YOUR STOP!”

We weren’t that bothered by her yelling- it wasn’t nearly as loud as our school bus driver.

Selina turned around, “Just a second!!”

She looked back at me, “Wanna hurry?”

I glared at her before going back to Jason,

I thought about shaking him harder, but then decided against it.

I blushed at Selina, “Erm, I can’t.”

She heaved a heavy sigh, “And why not?”

I scratched my head, pointing at my body, “I don’t know…I don’t want to like…break Jason.”

Selina groaned, walking over to us,

“Outta the way, loser.” She ordered, pushing me aside, “Go pay the kind lady…we’ll be right behind you.”

I frowned, heading down the aisle,

“You’re losing five points for this!” she called out.

I rolled my eyes.

I literally couldn’t shake him too hard. I didn’t want to test my control and accidently take Jason’s arm off in the process.

The bus driver glared at me as I handed her thirty dollars. I gave her the smile that you try and give adults to give them a better opinion on the next generation [or maybe that was just me],

“Y-you can keep the change-”

“Finally.” She breathed, “Now get out of my bus!”

I looked back to Selina-

SMACK.

“Owww!” Jason cried, Selina now dragging him up to the front after slapping him.

I coughed as she hopped out of the bus, Jason in tow.

“HA! I like that one!” The bus driver cackled, pointing at Selina.

She pointed at me and Jason as I hit the sidewalk,

“You two on the other hand…Tch!”

The doors closed, the bus zooming away as smoke was puffed into our face.

Jason rubbed his cheek, glaring at Selina, “You had to slap me so hard?!”

She bent down to touch her toes,

“Oh, stop being a baby J, that was a love tap at best.”

I shook my head, smiling as I turned around.

In front of us was the Queens Bridge Forward Housing apartment complex.

“Welp, this looks familiar.” Selina laughed, walking between me and Jason before wrapping one of her arms around each of our shoulders.

I squinted at her, then back at the building in front of us, “You’ve been to Queens a lot?”

“No, dummy,” Selina walked in front of us both, “I mean the three of us,”

She laughed as me and Jason glanced at each other,

“The original triangle…the og’s…” she went on.

Jason laughed, “Oh, that reminds me,” he coughed, getting both our attention, “We need a team name.”

I shook my head, “Please stop.” I said, trying to look at the actual building.

“Yeah, shut it Jason,” Selina teased, “The Zombie Squadron works just fine.”

Jason suffered in silence.

We all looked up at the building

It was nothing like the picture that I had seen online…and uh…not in a good way.

It looked to be four stories tall, and had a blue, flickering, neon sign that read OPEN on its front [I didn’t know apartments had open signs].

The exterior walls were a variant of red that looked more like dusty orange, the doors were worn oak, and the welcome mat was beyond gross. It also didn’t help that the horror movie, semi-depressing, apocalyptic atmosphere of the city made the place look like a haunted house. The only thing wrong with that assumption was the scene-breaking burger store directly next to the building. But other than that, this place did not look appealing.

“Alright, enough staring.” Selina pushed past both of us, grabbing the rusty door handle before pulling backwards.

Jason walked to my side, both of us stifling a laugh as Selina pulled and pulled at the door. I began whistling as I looked around. Beyond the complex were taller structures, some neighborhood streets, and what looked to be a small restaurant chain set apart from the random burger store. Down there, a lot more people seemed to be active versus the streets of Manhattan, but not by much. I guess people just had more guts around the huge skyscraper labeled ‘Ember Defense’. Out of the Cole building, Synth, and Energis- Ember was most likely the tallest, imitating the eye of Sauron with how it glared down at Queens.

“C’mon you…stupid thing...open!”

I looked back at Selina as she pulled some more on the door, only pausing her rage for a more than disturbed old guy that was passing by our group.

We just smiled at him as he walked past us.

Selina went back to pulling,

“I said open dang it! UGH!”

She turned around to face us, taking a deep breath before giving us the bad news,

“It’s locked.”

“Yeah, we can see that..” Jason said, laughing loudly.

Selina crossed her arms, “Laugh it up, booger eyes, now we need another way in.”

I walked up to the door, gently moving Selina to the side before gripping the handle,

“Maybe not..” I muttered, looking around.

Selina’s eyes widened as Jason ran up to me,

“You’re not going to..” Jason’s voice went to a whisper, “I was just kidding about breaking in!”

Selina smiled brightly, glancing back from Jason to me, “Don’t listen to him,” she ordered, “Let’s do this!”

I smiled slightly, looking back at Jason,

“W-we’ll be in and out.” I explained, “We’ll find this Michael Lawson guy’s room and check it out. Plus, it’s weird that an apartment complex has a locked entrance anyways.”

Jason looked really uncomfortable, but nodded, “In and out…whatever.”

I went back to the door, hearing the lock shatter as I spun the knob.

I pushed the door open, waves of dust cascading across my face when I did.

“Voila..” I breathed, stepping into the dimly lit room while trying not to cough on the particles.

The lobby walls were a stained white, the floors cracked granite, and the desk up front was a hazy, yellowish color. A laptop sat on the desk, the word Employee written on its back. The air told a story of a broken septic system and the roof's rafters acted as a rainy cloud of more dust and grime. Barely any light sources were active here; just a small dim bulb suspended by its copper wire on the roof.

Selina and Jason followed after me,

“Nice,” Selina complimented me, lightly kicking the door closed as she and Jason entered the complex, “Three points.”

“Wow, this place is gross..” Jason muttered.

Our voices echoed throughout the room, increasing the present creepiness that was already freaking me out,

“So..which way does uh..the people living here enter?” Jason asked, walking around the dusty lobby, “If the door is locked and everything..”

Selina walked behind the empty front desk, sliding into the green rolling chair behind it before searching through cabinets.

Upon opening the last drawer, she produced a small slip of paper and held it up,

“Listen up guys,” She ordered, “I think this might be important..”

We both stopped looking around, shifting our attention to Selina.

“This building’s lobby has been closed due to some undisclosed accidents,” She read, “A new lobby is just around this corner, and will serve as the permanent lobby while this building will be remodeled. All elevators are still operational but have been blocked off. The upper floors are still maintained and will operate as normally without use of these lower floors.. Thank you, and have a good day.”

I blinked, “Well that makes a lot more sense now.”

Jason motioned towards the door, “That sign is very misleading.”

Selina pushed herself out of the rolling chair,

“No, this is good..” She said, jogging over to another door on the left wall, “We could find the elevators in this lobby and use them to sneak up into actual rooms without needing a pass from some dumb clerk in the actual lobby.”

Jason shivered,

“Looking through an abandoned lobby for elevators?”

He made throw up noises, “Gross.”

She rolled her eyes, feeling the door as if it would reveal what was behind it, “Be quiet and grow a pair JJ.”

I laughed at Jason, causing Selina to throw the, now crumpled, slip of paper at my face,

“This door is locked too, Dami!” She hissed, “Get your super butt over here!”

I frowned, walking over to the rusted door.

This one was made of metal instead of wood and had a bar handle that stretched across its frame horizontally,

“Well?” Selina began tapping her foot, “Punch it already!”

“So impatient,” I muttered, placing both hands on the bar.

I gave a little push, but nothing happened.

“Are your powers broken?” Jason asked, still looking very uncomfortable.

“Just..give me a sec,”

I stepped back, “I’m gonna kick it.”

Selina walked away, “This should be fun.”

I bounced on my toes, mentally preparing myself for impact.

Having super strength isn’t what you might think. Even though I could hit stuff really hard, the idea of smashing through a metal door still seemed kind of crazy to me.

Shaking the rest of my nerves away, I blasted forward, launching the bottom of my sneaker straight into the bar handle.

BANG!

Jason yelped as I kicked the door off its hinges, watching as the metal rectangle slid down the now open hallway, even more dust materializing around the impact zone.

I blinked, bringing my extended foot back down as the echo of my actions began to ring through the dark corridor I had just exposed,

“Whoa..” I breathed, marveling at some nails that had fallen on the floor.

This was a pretty big step up from firewood.

I flashed a thumbs up at Selina, “Seven?”

“Five.” Selina punched my shoulder, walking through the empty door frame.

I frowned, following her into the hallway, “You’re too cruel.”

Jason gave me a high five, “I thought it was cool.”

I smiled, feeling like I was in an actual action movie, “Thank you, Jason.”

Once we entered the hallway however, my smile faded.

All the lights were broken and scratch marks littered the walls. They weren’t even little, cat scratches either; I was talking huge, unnatural scrapes in the wall.

“What happened here?” I whispered, “I-it looks like-

“Monsters..” Jason finished, feeling the torn drywall.

“Undisclosed accidents.” Selina recalled the note, “Maybe they left that paper for whoever is supposed to come remodel this place.”

The only light in this part of the lobby came from the dim, glowing elevator buttons at the end of the hall, so Jason and Selina had pulled out their phones to see while I relied on my powers.

Selina paused, “Hold up guys..”

We stopped in the middle of the hallway, Jason beginning to fidget,

“Hey, maybe we should turn back..” He suggested.

Selina shook her head, “Did you have something better to do at 7 am?”

He went silent.

I walked over to Selina, confused when she starting tapping buttons on her phone,

“Wachu doing?” I asked.

She kept her focus on the screen,

“Checking this apartment’s website.” She replied, “They have to have some explanation for all this…undisclosed or not.”

After a few seconds she smiled, “Apparently, this was the work of vandals, although multiple unreputable witnesses claim it was the work of monsters or demonish beings. The police say people are just getting crazy over the ‘Paris Fiasco’.”

She switched her phone back to a flashlight, “So yea, monsters.”

Once we reached the elevators at the end of the hall, we were greeted with golden colored ‘No Entry’ tape with knocked over orange cones surrounding the cart doors.

“Wow.” Jason coughed, noting the huge, jagged line that went down diagonally from the top corner of the doors to the bottom. Surrounding the deep gash in the metal were several burn marks.

“It makes you wonder,” Selina shook her head, raising the tape up higher to duck under while her other hand still grasped her phone, “How much other crap has the city hid?”

We followed her lead, ducking under the tape as Jason added on to her words,

“And it’s easier for the cops when they have an internationally famous private security firm helping to cover up any real cases.”

He was referring to ember.

I nodded in agreement, hitting the glowing arrow pointing upwards as a metallic chirp rang through the hallway.

The scuffed doors slowly slid open, creaking and groaning as we slipped into the elevator.

The inside was even worse than the outside.

Literal holes were in the roof and walls of the cart, and the console had various insects flying around it.

Selina turned to leave, “Oh heck no I’m-”

Jason pulled her inside, “Had something better to do at 7 Am?” He laughed.

I chuckled at his remark, nudging Selina as she folded her arms,

“Of all the things Melissa had to sit out on.” She muttered.

I smiled as the doors began to shut, “Original triangle.” I mocked her.

-

Once the doors closed, Jason checked his phone,

“Melissa said that it was room 345...so third floor.”

I pressed the 3, careful to avoid touching a spider.

I hated spiders.

The elevator began to play static filled music from its speaker, freaking us out even more as we began our ascent,

“I hate this place..” Selina groaned, stuffing both hands into her pocket.

Throughout the slow ride, there were a couple of times when I thought the elevator was stuck, but we eventually made it to the top without dying.

“Thir-zzt-Floor-Ztzz” An AI announced, the doors sliding open.

We stepped out, maneuvering around the wads of tape placed against the front of the cart before we entered the room hallway,

“Oh we made it!” Jason exclaimed, patting himself down.

This place was much more normal looking than the lower, blocked off floors, and it was a relief that no one up here seemed to notice our arrival.

Selina shivered once more, delighted to be in a normal looking apartment complex,

“Okay, let’s go.”

Although this was much nicer than the area beneath our feet, the hallway still wasn’t that clean looking. The long carpet that ran through the corridor had various stains on it, the walls looked like they had been drawn on, and a glass chandelier hung on the roof that seemed like it could fall if someone sneezed too hard.

We looked between doors, acting casual every time an adult passed us while we searched for 345,

“You two are up to no good, I know it!”

We all turned to find an old woman staring at Selina, “You shouldn’t be hanging around them young lady..”

I blinked at her cane, “Uhhh-”

“Hello!” Jason greeted, ignoring her comment, “Do you know a Mr.Michael Lawson by any chance?”

She froze, “Sure do..” she whispered, “Went around yelling about some monster.”

The old woman continued, “And now..he’s gone!”

Selina narrowed her eyes as the old woman walked away,

“Okayyyy.” She breathed, “ let’s continue?”

Once we found room 345, Jason pointed at a sign on the door.

It read, “By law, this room has been closed down for maintenance.”

Selina laughed, shoving me into the door,

“Wanna bet?” she joked at the message, motioning at the lock.

I rolled my eyes, “Hold on, let me check for people..”

Switching to Fear Sight, I looked through the door.

All I saw was black, so I shifted back to normal 20x20,

“All clear,” I declared, cracking the lock before opening the door.

“I wish I had superpowers,” Selina whispered, walking inside, “Freaking..light bulb eyeballs.”

Jason and I followed, all of us gasping upon viewing the torn up room.

I quickly closed the door, not wanting anyone to pass by and see…this,

“Oh..” Selina covered her mouth, staring at the various scratches and red stains on the wall.

“Can the police really cover all of this?” Jason asked, feeling a nearby couch as he walked further into the room.

Its cotton was strewn all over the floor.

I gulped, walking into the kitchen,

“I-I guess they could if they technically started an investigation..”

Selina shook her head, “But then they immediately closed it... We must’ve beat the cleaning crew or something.”

I nodded, checking some cabinets as I remembered what Melissa said about a Forensics team, “So let’s hurry before they get here..”

Upon opening one cabinet, I froze.

There was a piece of paper inside.

Normally, that wouldn’t be incredibly odd, but what was a bit peculiar was how the paper was folded and creased to stand up on its own; like it was being presented to me.

I took it out, sitting on the tile to read it.

It was in the messiest handwriting, but I interpreted it as,

“I HAVE YOU NOW. NO WEAR TO RUN. NO WEAR WhEre TO GO BUT THE ISLAND. SO MUCH. Food in cITY. LAST CHANCE TO JOIN US.

JOIN US AT ISLAND TO..GET READY FOR RAID. GET READY FOR FOOD, GET READY FOR FOOD. HELP ME TAKE CITY. CHOICE YOU DO NOT HOLD. I SAW HIM I SAW HIM WALKING. HE WILL BREAK THE WATER. HE WILL START THE FIRE. START THE...SURGE.

NO CHOICE.

DAMIEN.

I read it again.

Then again.

And then one more time.

Jason came into the kitchen, “Hey D-Damien?”

He slid down next to me, “What is it?”

I handed him the sheet, waiting for him to read it.

Once Jason finished, he coughed, “This wasn’t..written by..oh.”

I rubbed my temples, trying to figure out what the note meant.

It must’ve been written by a monster, and as crazy as that sounded, it was the only way for this to even make a little sense.

Not even that, but this had to be the monster. The one Terry and I discussed as only a slight possibility, and the one who was now confirmed to be on Liberty Island.

So many things I had dreaded were coming into view as well as so many things I hadn’t even begun to expect.

For starters, the word ‘raid’ implied that there was indeed more than one monster on Liberty Island.

This meant that I was right about a monster following me…and that the E.R.L in my spine really did act as some kind of detector.

But what did it mean by someone breaking the water and causing a surge?

So many thoughts were flooding my brain, but it was like I had no time to process them before another one entered my mind.

In addition to the calamity in my brain, slowly rising waves of panic were washing over my senses as well. My vision tightened as my stress rose, my eyes unintentionally flickering with red light as adrenaline coursed through my veins.

“H-hey, calm down, dude.” Jason nudged me, “T-this is just one sheet of paper-”

“With my name on it.” I hissed, snapping back into reality as I looked up at Jason,

“This was what I was talking about with Liberty!” I tried to keep quiet, trying to calm myself down. I remembered every strange feeling, the subtle whispers of something that wasn’t Terry yet so similar. I wasn’t just imagining things…I really had heard something.

My head ached as conversations that I didn’t remember having slowly bled into my consciousness.

That…thing…had to have been here. It left this for me.

Terry had chosen now to go quiet, or maybe my crazy brain activity was doing something to his ability to talk in my mind.

“Hey guys I found some- guys?” Selina slid into the kitchen, eyeing us on the floor.

Without thinking, I ripped the part that said ‘Damien’ off of the page, stuffing it into my pocket as I stood.

“This is no time to chill people,” She groaned, “I found a sheet of paper.”

I showed her ours, “Yea, us too..”

Selina snatched it from my hand, reading the page quickly before handing it back to me,

“Come here.”

I glanced at Jason, both of us following Selina back into the living room.

She produced a piece of blank white paper from one of the couch cushions,

“Look.” She ordered, holding it up,

It read,

“DID YOU REALLY THINK THAT YOU WERE THE ONLY FEAR? I AM STRONGER THAN YOU, FASTER THAN YOU, BETTER THAN YOU. I HAVE BEEN..BOOSTED TWICE. JOIN US. IS THE ONLY WAY TO PRESERVE YOURSELF.”

I struggled to keep my emotions in check.

It was supercharged…like us.

But twice.

This couldn’t be happening.

The confidence I had in me and Terry’s ability began to waver at the sight of the note, now unable to form any kind of trick within my brain telling me that this wasn’t real. That this could’ve been some…prank.

It was obviously not, but I didn’t want to believe any of it.

“Just..we’ll figure it out, okay?” Jason thought, nudging my ribs.

I slowly nodded, going back to Selina, “S-so what do you think?”

Selina was clutching the side of her head for some reason, looking between me and Jason with something that looked like disbelief.

“Selina?” I tried again, “Are y-you okay-?”

Selina dropped the paper, “I think this Michael guy was a complete Nut Job!” she laughed, waving the paper around, “Ridiculous.”

Jason coughed, “But a monster was definitely here..”

Selina and I nodded,

“But I don’t see…a body.” Selina pointed out.

She was right- nothing even smelled too bad around here.

At least not…’dead guy’…kind of bad.

“D-do you think it took the guy?” Jason asked.

Selina ran a hand through her blonde hair,

“I don’t know..but who did this guy even write these letters for?”

I looked down, mentally telling Jason to keep silent. I didn’t know why I was still keeping this a secret, but I needed time to process the..new info that was just presented,

“Like you said,” I looked back up, “He was a nut job.”

Jason sighed, “Well, let’s head out...the police will probably already be suspicious of a broken lock.”

I nodded, taking Selina’s paper and piling it with mine, “I’ll hold on to these.”

Selina squinted at me, “Why?”

I coughed, “Uh..Mrs.M is more..forgiving when it comes to finding stuff in our room. Your dad…”

“Not so much,” Selina smiled, buying my lie, “Look at you Dami, being all sneaky!”

Jason started towards the door, “Let’s go..” He groaned, “You two are getting gross.”

We quietly entered the hallway, making sure no one was around before closing the door-

“Oh-M-G!!!”

All three of us spun around to see Melissa, standing in front of us with her jaw hanging open.

She was dressed in all black and had her hair tied back into a bun,

“You three...suck!” She hissed, pointing at the door we had just exited from,

“I am not the girl in the chair!” Melissa shrieked, “I knew you were going to break in, but without me!!??”

Jason rapidly shook his head, “N-no It was originally just going to be me and Damien bu-”

“But Damien grew some brains and actually invited his girlfriend?!” Melissa finished.

She stepped up to Jason, despite being an inch shorter, “Unlike youu-!”

“Excuse me!”

The four of us spun around again.

Two people dressed in lab coats were walking towards us. One was a man and one was a woman, and both had that adult stride that meant business.

The man spoke first, “NYPD!” he yelled.

The woman spoke next, not stopping her walk, “You didn’t enter that room, did you!?”

The man caught our nervous expressions, “Stay where you are!”

We all froze,

“Should we run for it?” Jason thought, motioning towards the blocked off elevator behind us.

I shook my head, “Run from the police? Are you crazy?”

He glared, “They don’t know who we are yet, and they’re just the clean up people! Let’s go!”

They were almost halfway here now,

“What’s your names, kids !!?” The man called out, walking faster.

Oh whatever- screw this.

“Ugh, whatever!” I yelled, turning for the closed off elevator we had originally come in through, “Let’s go!”

Melissa shrieked as she bolted for the cart, Selina and Jason charging after her while I trailed behind.

“What the HECK are we DOING they’re the POLICE !!?” Melissa yelled at the top of her lungs as we ran, her words not quite matching the pace she was bolting at.

“H-hey kids, wait!” We heard the two shout, both of them now beginning to run.

There was no way we’d all make it to the lobby in time...

I stopped my dash, eyeing the huge chandelier on the roof behind us,

“Dude, they’re gonna catch you!” Jason yelled, already sliding under the ‘no entry’ tape with Melissa and Selina.

I groaned, mentally delivering a bit of power into the muscles of my arm.

The skin underneath my shirt and jacket began to glow dimly, “Just hold the door, okay!?” I barked.

Without waiting for a response, I slammed my glowing fist into the nearest wall, causing the entire hallway to rattle and shake as a loud BOOM rippled through the upper floor of the complex. The weak chain holding the large glass chandelier snapped right in half, both NYPD officials yelping as it came crashing to the floor in front of them.

CRASH!

Shards of glass rebounded in every direction, some shattering against my face as the shrieks of many startled residents echoed from behind closed doors.

Just as the officers began to recuperate, the effects of my two second plan kicked in, waves of doors opening to reveal all sorts of angry new yorkers,

“What was that?!”

“I’m tryna sleep in here!”

“I knew you kids were up to no good!”

“NYPD! Everyone…head back to your rooms!”

I didn’t wait to listen to anything else.

Instead, I turned for the elevator behind me and took off, the cursing of the officers not far behind as they tried to pursue me amidst the crowd,

“HURRY UP DAMIEN THIS THING IS CLOSING UP!” Melissa shrieked.

“YOU KIDS NEED TO STOP!” I heard the female cop behind me.

I looked ahead, noting the thirty foot gap between me and my wide eyed friends across the hall.

Ugh..these guys don’t know when to quit.

I could’ve been in that elevator if I wanted to, but I didn’t want to straight up give away my abilities. The commotion from the chandelier crashing helped disguise the reason for it falling, but something like this…

“Eh…whatever.” I thought, deciding to screw all efforts to hide my powers. Better than being arrested!

I sighed, figuring that thirty feet wasn’t too far above the world record for long jumps before lightly kicking off with my leading foot.

I heard the cops gasp as I practically flew straight into the elevator cart, my body slamming into the metal of the transport two seconds before the doors closed.

“What the he-!!!”

Shick!

The doors shut.

“Wh-ZT ZT- Floor?”

The light protruding from my arm finally faded along with my adrenaline as my friends began to surround me.

“That was freaking awesome!” Jason laughed, pressing the L button for Lobby.

Melissa was practically foaming from her mouth, “I’m glad I didn’t miss that!”

Selina was cracking up, “Did you see that woman’s face?!”

“You basically flew!!!” she added.

“Nah, he teleported!!” Melissa screamed.

I smiled, laughing with them as I pried my body out of the human sized dent I had made in the back wall of the elevator, “Th-thanks guys.”

As they continued to recount the events of what just happened, I found myself zoning out, unable to stop thinking about the notes we found while the elevator approached ground level.

If not just for myself, the words on those sheets of paper implied more than just my downfall.

Whatever moment we were all waiting for…whatever bomb we were all watching tik away…or whatever tension the city was going through…It was all about to unwind.

All of it.

I was sure of it.

I hadn’t found those notes by accident…it wanted me to find them today.

We were playing by its’ game.

Its’ rules.

It had been watching me this…whole time.

Waiting for me…

And now it looked like that wait was going to end.

I didn’t truly know exactly what would happen next, but all I knew was that I had to be ready.

I needed to be ready.

I looked around at everyone in the cart, the words still echoing in my mind.

I had to keep…everyone safe.

Raid.

Break the water.

Start the Fire.

Start the Surge.

Stronger than you.

Faster than you.

Better than you.

Last chance.

Damien.