Chapter 30

I opened the door as Cicely struggled in an attempted

to cut open a pair of scrubs for Eli as she sliced her hand with a scalpel. Eli

dropped the blanket as he reached out for Cicely's hand. His eyes glowed again

as did the cut on her hand as the tissue stitched itself back together.

There wasn't even a scar. Eli was able to psionically

cause cellular regeneration in others, but at an expense. As he forced his

energy into the repair of Cicely, it took a moment for him to replenish it.

I reached out with my mind to Eli. He immediately

linked with me.

"You have to take it easy at first, Eli," I projected.

"Baby steps."

"I know Doc. It just instinctually happened," he

responded.

"Welcome to the pantheon," I joked.

"So, we're gods among men?" he laughed as Cicely held

him up.

After a few moments, Eli had replenished his energy.

He walked over to me and patted my chest. He then looked me in the eyes as his

eyes glowed once again. The bullet fell from my chest as the wound healed with

no scar tissue. This time with Eli recovering his energy faster. It is

official, Eli is a healer not only by profession but in ability.

As I watched him use his ability, I unlocked how he

did it and was now able to duplicate it. I instructed Eli to get some rest as

Cicely helped him to his room. I asked Joshua if he was able to follow the

process with the healing ability. He believed that he had.

I called Fred to the medical bay. Unlike Eli or even

Naomi, my body has built up varying stores of energy to manipulate how I saw

necessary.

"Fred, how attached are you to your Mechahand?" I

asked. "No pun intended."

"Doctor, your attempts at levity are not appreciated,"

quipped Fred. "You are so very droll!"

I reached down and forcibly grabbed his forearm and

ripped his Mechahand off. My eyes glowed as I poured energy into his stump. At

first it looked as if an infant's hand had emerged from his stump. I poured

more and more energy into his forearm as the hand matured and regrew to that of

a healthy male adult hand. A few moments after I let go of his forearm, Fred's

hand began to mutate to be congruent with the rest of his body.

Fred stood there staring at and flexing his hand. Over

and over again he flexed his hand, stretching out his fingers. Peering at the

veins, tendons, bones and digits.

"Doc" he said as a tear ran down his cheek, "I had

given up hope."

He hugged me as he sobbed. He embraced me tightly.

"I am forever in your debt, Dr. Marvin Harris," he

said. "And Frederick Francis Finlay always settles his debts!"

"Fred, it was my orders that cost you your hand. I'm

just glad I was able to help," I said.

Unlike Eli, I felt no drain on my personal stores of

energy. Again, I inquired whether Joshua was able to "see" the process of

expelling energy to complete the process of tissue and bone regeneration.

"I see that the cells have every part of the body

encoded in them," said Joshua. "Even if an appendage is removed, it can be

recreated from the "blueprint" recorded in the cells."

"Right! However, I do not believe that premise extends

to brain matter and tissue," I instructed. "But the heart, lungs, the pancreas,

liver, kidneys, spleen and the spine should be fair game."

"Dad, may I ask for a favor? Will you help me with my

telekinesis training?" he asked. "Jamie is a natural and is far outpacing my

attempts to keep up."

"Sure, son," I said. "Just allow me to fill Em in on

the plan."

I broadcasted my intent to assist Joshua with his

telekinesis to Em, who decided to work with Naomi and T on her dispersal

ability of stored electricity without the use of Fred's belt.

Joshua and I made our way to the gym. I looked through

the athletic equipment and found a softball.

"You know, the entire time we've been father and son,

I don't think we've ever played catch," I said as I levitated the softball.

I gently "tossed" the ball over to Joshua, who "caught"

it with telekinesis. Back and forth we "tossed" and "caught" the ball.

"Good, it is evident that you understand the mechanics

of "tossing" and "catching" mass," I said. "You just have to adjust the amount

of "push" and "pull" in accordance with the increase in mass."

I had Joshua levitate a 10 lbs. weight plate and "toss"

it to me. We developed a rhythm which he picked up on quickly. After a few "tosses"

and "catches" I would quickly switch out the plate with first a 15 lbs., then a

20 lbs. and finally a 25 lbs. plate weight. Joshua handled the weight

difference with no discernable display of struggle.

"Okay, are you ready to get serious?" I asked as I

levitated a 50 lbs. plate.

"Hit me with your best shot," answered Joshua.

Back and forth went the 50 lbs. plate, again with no

signs of struggle from Joshua. I levitated a 100 lbs. plate and Joshua "pulled"

it from me and "tossed" it straight up as he "caught" it with ease.

"Now, see if you can lift different plates of varying

weight at the same time," I instructed.

Joshua manipulated all the plates we had been

utilizing, juggling them in the air. He had successfully superseded his limit.

"Okay son, put the plates down," I instructed. "You

were just juggling your entire body weight. You should now be able to "fly" by

concentrating on lifting yourself."

Joshua concentrated on lifting himself as he began to

levitate around the gym. Fast and slow, fast and slow as he developed better

control for his pitch and yaw.

"I'm doing it dad. I'm doing it," he shouted as he

zipped by me. He gracefully touched down right next to me.

He hugged me, and I him. His capacity to learn is

extraordinary.

"Son, even though you and Jamie now possess the

ability to keep yourselves aloft in the heavens, you still have to maintain

secrecy," I said. "Are you able to extend your light refracting field? If so,

you should be able to keep yourself and Jamie hidden if you do decide to test

your abilities outside of the ARC."

Joshua assured me that he would take every precaution

if and when he and Jamie decided to go out for a "flight."

The council extended offers of the injections to Ricky

and Robert, to Von, Tim and Rodriguez. Eli also wanted to provide the

injections to Cicely, Regina, Ingrid, Tanya and Aisha. I decided to extend an

offer to Rodriguez for his wife and his children when they were of age. And if

wonders never ceased, Andre talked Diane into taking the injection.

The abilities obtained were nominal: Tim and Von

became akin to Fred in their inventive prowess; the twins pretty much went the

route of Gerald and his huntsman outlook; Regina and Aisha both developed

telekinesis; Cicely and Tanya developed tissue manipulation like Eli, but to a

lesser degree; Ingrid's mass and intellect increased like T2's, also to a

lesser degree; Diane and Mirna developed mass manipulation akin to Leon's;

while Rodriguez was able to refract light like Andre.

Once the checkups and ability catalogues were

completed, a communion of the Great Mind came to the general consensus that the

remaining 17 doses at the disposal to the council would be filtered into the

drinking water from the well of the ARC. As water from that well supplemented

the water supplies at the Plant and the Armory, there is a possibility of a

slowed, delayed benevolent mutation.

Over the next few weeks, illnesses were down. No colds

or flu, no hypertension and even reports of corrected vision and the repair of

arthritic pain. Our coalition was evolving, not only physically but as a

community as well.

Through discussions with Em, T, Joshua, Jamie and

Naomi, we've agreed that our focus should pivot from that of survival to one of

protection. The protection of those who don't share our gifts. When not

protecting our charges, we will endeavor to perfect and manipulate our gifts

and abilities.

In addition to an overall abundance of good health,

our communities were enjoying better than average strength but not yet

wholesale immunity to the bites of DCs or the eradication of the DC Virus, as

it has now been coined.

I can't speak for most, but there is an air of

excitement due to the expected arrival of the baby. The raiders have been

gathering all types of nursery items and maternity clothing for Em.

Em is in her third trimester and yet she still insists

on the training in the duplication of the abilities of others. She is

relentless in her ability to adapt to the changing landscape of gifts and their

nuanced uses. Our shared psychic link has increased her adeptness in learning

as I learn and vice versa. As a new ability is discovered or copied by either

of us, the other learns it instantaneously.

"Babe it is almost time for the arrival of the baby,"

I said. "Should you really be engaging in such a training regimen?"

"Besides you, who knows my body better than me lover,"

she said as she kissed me.

"I just want you to take it easy," I said.

"What for?" she responded. "I'm damn near

indestructible and I have you to protect me."

"Why tempt fate? And you are not the only one to worry

about," I said as I rubbed her belly.

Just then, a strange sensation overcame me as if I

were missing something. But it only lasted for the most fleeting of moments. Em

grimaced in pain.

"I think the baby is kicking," she said. "Must

recognize its daddy."

As I removed my hand from Em's belly, I again noticed

that something just wasn't right.

"DOC!" came a blaring projection from Eli. "Come to

the lab, NOW!"

I rush to the lab to discover it in disarray.

Everything had been tossed as if someone had been searching for something.

"They're gone, Doc!" screamed Eli. "Someone stole the

remaining dosages of the serum that I had hidden!"

Things were smashed and strewn all over the lab. Eli

and Cicely were attempting to determine what if anything else was missing.

"And Doc, my notes on everyone's abilities are missing

as well," said Eli.

"Doc! Doc! We've been robbed!" projected Fred and Von.

"We're in the workshop!"

"Go ahead Doc," said Eli. "Cicely and I will clean up

this mess."

I hastily made my way to the workshop and just like

the lab, everything was tossed.

"Doc! We had been working with ions in that they

somehow block our telepathy and to an extent, block some of our abilities,"

said Fred.

"All of our ionic strips that we developed are missing

as well as the data paths we had on practical applications," said Von. "Try as

we might, we have been unable to sense who, if any of the residents of the ARC

would steal from us."

"There is a distinct possibility that whomever did it,

is utilizing our own technology to hide it from us," added Fred.

"We need to call an emergency meeting to gather the

Great Mind," I said.

I broadcasted to each enhanced to meet in the meeting

hall. I quickly made my way to the hall and met T, Naomi, Joshua, Jamie and Em

there.

"As T would say, 'We're in the shit now,'" I said. "We've

been burgled. Someone has stolen very specific items from us."

"Marv, as I passed you and Em's room, it was totally disheveled," said Di. "What's

going on?"

"It seems that someone is after the remaining doses of

the formula," I said. "To ensure that it is neither of the enhanced, we will

enter the Great Mind to remove suspicion."

"Marv, we might have to wait on that course of action,"

said Em.

"What could possibly be more important than the

security and sanctity of the ARC?" I queried.

"Oh, I don't know. JUST THE BIRTH OF YOUR CHILD! MY

WATER JUST BROKE!" yelled Em.