CHAPTER 27 – T-minus (13)

"HARSH!" I hear Rusk screaming, and open my eyes to find the Exterior-Beings clawing towards me, but unable to. "I need you to grab it!"

I realise of the force-field of Rusk, covering me. But grab what?

I see that there were three Exterior-Beings here, and the rest were going towards Rusk, who was focusing hard here, and shielding me.

To answer my previous question, I feel a bulge at my chest, coming from the force-field itself.

Had the Exterior-Beings broken it?

But unable to look, I only feel my hands around, and grab a handle of sorts. Right as I do, Rusk removes his focus from me, and shields himself and the people.

But this… this force-field… had Rusk taken steroids again?

I feel some energy flow in between my palms and get an incomplete answer. This wasn't a force-field, it was a shield… of sorts. A shield which felt like it'd dissipate if I let it go. But then again, the energy on my palm… was just so addicting to just merely let go.

Even with such a shield, I was only a… human. The three Exterior-Beings kept trying to break through and I could feel the pressure now. I had to endure the force now by myself.

I look towards Rusk, with hopeful eyes. Yet he doesn't look back.

The real hero had chosen the bigger crowd than me and this person in my grasp.

At least he had resorted to give us a hopeful choice.

But I'm no hero… why did he give me a choice? I was merely a waste…

I had broken their hopes by being some kind of a stalker to them.

"I forgive you," Rusk had told me last night, when we were the only two around. "I know you never asked for forgiveness about all the… things we found about you. But... I just think I need to let you know."

"Let me know?"

"That I still see you with that same glistening male lead style," he had laughed. "Out of everything you could have done with such information you-"

Yet they trusted me-

"I don't trust you," Witch had told me.

"Mr. LB, take care," the-kid-who-had-hated-and-feared-me-the-same-morning had said.

And Psyand's mother wordlessly had continued her normal behaviour towards me.

Everyone had different reactions on me. And they didn't exactly hate me but…

'I can't protect anyone,' I had told myself, when struck to the corner at this very same place, the first time when we saw the glass-dome. 'Even these heroes bleed.'

These were my own thoughts. My own conclusion of me. It was the same back then, when I couldn't save the person from the accident. My sister.

But that same day, Rusk had told me something…

"You know… I'm scared too."

"Then…" and I couldn't even make my question up to such a fierce person, who was holding those Exterior-Beings while also protecting me and himself, and telling me he was afraid.

"That is why I can't stop. Or it really will get me."

I couldn't understand those words back then. And continued staying there, as he let me, and protected me.

Even Wrap had told just about the same, when we had gone out that Sunday. And even on the other day he had expressed his concerns and fear in an indirect way.

Was giving me the shield… part of Rusk's plan? To make me understand his and Wrap's words?

I look forward at the present situation. It was not one, but three beings… and even when it was the shield… I could still not hold back.

…I'm merely a human.

I get anxious that there are cracks on this invisible shield, without my knowledge. I couldn't just stay here, waiting for Rusk to help me, or Psyand, or Scelestha, or Witch, who may have indeed woken up by now.

"Perhaps your powers are super strength," Psyand had said something similar someday, what was the occasion again? Unimportant but… I had gotten such a question from each of them. Perhaps… could it be possible that I somehow did?

With that question and the unknown-aura resonating on my palm, I use my… strength, glistening with hope.

Was such a thing possible? To suddenly discover strength?

I lift the shield from the ground, while pushing the Exterior-Beings who had resorted to use their whole body on the shield, to break it. And so they fall to the ground.

I roar with my chest, while lifting what felt like the whole ground, with all of my strength. And with the same pace, I push forward and feel my muscles having the workout of their life.

Not able to hold it anymore, I smash the lifted shield towards the ground, the very spot the three Exterior-Beings had fallen at. At that spot they stay frozen, and now look at me, with what feels like… fear.

As I hear sounds of flesh squelching… I also feel my whole arms about to break.

I open my hard-shut eyes to find… nothing. No trace.

In a distance, the other Exterior-Beings were fighting Rusk's shield.

But where were the three which were ahead of me? Whom I had hurt?

I look forward again, at Rusk, focusing on his force-field with all his might. Protecting the people… from nothing. There was nothing. Yet everyone looked scared about… nothing.

As I look around, confused of what everyone was scared of, what I was scared of a moment ago… squelch. My back… I feel dizzy and pain strikes from a certain spot on my back.

"What a spotlight stealer," the… lady… was going on about something unknown.

I release the shield, and put my hand on the spot where pain was felt from. And I look back, taking a few steps away from the lady.

"You need to-" she says and slashes the knife in her hand, towards my chest, making a cut, "-stop-" another slash, "-stealing-" I dodge this one, "-SPOTLIGHT-" before I could try to evade, my body falls to the ground, and I see the girl hold her knife properly. "Fucking piece of trash."

***

The love-birds were struck together from the get-go of arriving to this building. While I was struck with-

"-Thunder," Thunder says. "That's how I got myself the name."

Edward, who was also on the team, was struck with the police. Glad that's not me.

"Huh," I say. "Let me get this straight… you don't actually make these ILLUSIONS as holographic either."

"Nope. Zero matter manipulation involved."

"Right… and what can this be called? Mind manipulation?"

But I was cool with it. His powers and story were indeed… entertaining. And relatable. Forcerer's story was… in the dark.

"Pretty much. You see; when we perceive fear, we don't think of anything else. It is a set of what ifs which take play. So it can harm you, you can feel it as real as long as you… perceive it."

Well, a bit dark too but…

"Shit, that's deep," I say.

He at least talked a lot. Unlike Forcerer. The secret-keeper.

"I heard you tried to jump Forcerer," Scelestha had said, and I had realised the 'Not a good secret keeper in front of girls' part.

"So what is the story behind your name?" Thunder asks.

"Uh… just sounded fun actually. It is ironic cause I can make wings… but no feathers," I say.

"Interesting," Thunder laughs.

We reach the terrace, while talking this way, and while I look at every nook and corner of the terrace-

"Uh…" Thunder says, looking somewhere else. "So you can fly right?"

I look towards where he looks and find Rusk defending against… nothing, and people screaming.

"What the hell is happening?" I ask, but I knew already, as it was the exact thing we were talking about.

At the very edge, I spot… Lost-Bird. He gets stabbed by someone.

"It is an illusion, just… just don't fear it!" Thunder says, tapping my shoulder as a signal to go. "She can't make illusions when she doesn't know you are there."

I'd usually take a while but… I run towards and off the terrace, while bringing out my wings from behind me. This way, I knock the person trying to kill the fallen Lost-Bird, even as she slashes towards me.

"Shit," I say, looking at all the bleeding on Lost-Bird. "I-it only is an illusion. Really."

"Is it?" the lady asks, and I pay attention to her. "Pretty sure this knife is real," she shows her knife.

I use the thorn on my wings to cut myself, and pour some of my blood into Lost-Bird's mouth.

"It won't taste good; but don't puke," I say. "Just kidding, I really never tasted it, I wouldn't know."

I hear footsteps and evade the slash which comes towards me, while lifting Lost-Bird up, and putting him away.

Gosh, he was heavy, with all due respect. And I feel dizzy.

"Let's both fight and not bring him into this," I say.

"You are the one who came into this!" she says, and rushes forward, so, so do I.

Speculation 1… illusion of the fear. It could show what isn't here, but can't exactly make what is still here, to disappear.

I fight this girl, knowing she is real.

She can't possibly hide her true form. Maybe she could make clones, but can't get herself invisible.

Unless… would it work if I was afraid of such a thing?

I hold her hand, and break her knuckles, while making her lose the grip from the knife.

But, fear could only possibly make you fear even real things, than keep reality from your eyes. But then again, different powers have different rules. Thunder didn't know completely about hers.

Thunder had told me that there were many variations of powered-individuals which Saturn Organisation had made. While only me and Witch could be the exceptions, even when we had rip-offs of us… this lady right here was like Thunder.

"There was a guy alongside me, back then. But we never talked. Couldn't actually. But we were in the same… project. But by the time I escaped there, there was this girl…"

The falling knife is caught by the girl's other hand, and as it rushes to stab me, it shivers and stops in its track. I look back at Lost-Bird and he has his focus on that very stopped knife. The girl's shivering hand moves and alongside the hilt, her fist strikes her own gut, and she stumbles.

I myself shiver with a 'what the fuck' expression of how Lost-Bird did it, but I couldn't miss the opening. So I turn behind and kick my leg up, into a wall, and fall down.