Shadows (Ultrahumans Book 2) Read online

  That put a name to the attractive face. ‘Oh, so you must be–’

  ‘Alice Last.’ Doctor Ultimate’s wife stepped forward, offering a hand. ‘The Union calls me Patience. They say my power is putting up with Hugh.’

  Cygnus giggled and shook Alice’s hand. ‘I’m going to assume that he’s infatuated with my powers, not me.’

  ‘Oh, I’m not feeling jealous, if that’s what you mean. If I was worried about him chasing scantily clad younger women I’d spend my life in a constant state of worry. No, Hugh loves me and physics. Not necessarily in that order.’ Alice gave a smile and turned back to the door. ‘Come on, he’ll have forgotten you’re coming, but he’s been looking forward to it for weeks.’

  Following her out into a broad, gleaming corridor, Cygnus asked, ‘He’s really that absent-minded?’

  ‘Hugh’s mind can be doing up to six things at once, unless he’s really fixated on a problem. Then he can be working on it from twenty angles at the same time. That kind of thing tends to mean his local focus goes.’

  The Union headquarters facility was big. Penny knew that from documentaries she had watched on the Discovery and Ultra! channels. That was without the adjacent United Nations building which had been constructed after the one in New York had sunk. It was felt that putting the biggest target on the planet beside the largest concentration of high-powered Ultras on the planet was a good idea, even if the UN was little more than a talking shop, ignored by the major powers.

  Here in Unity Base there were training facilities, laboratories, workshops, communications facilities, and a huge operations room. If a truly world-shattering event happened, it was hoped that this would be where all the world’s Ultrahumans would be coordinated from.

  The next part of Cygnus’ journey had not been on any of the documentaries, however. Alice stopped at an unassuming elevator door and placed her hand on a plate beside it. There was the flicker of a scanning beam and the doors opened.

  ‘I thought there was only one level to this place,’ Cygnus said.

  ‘To Unity Base, there is,’ Alice replied, ‘but we’re going to Hugh’s labs. If you’ll pardon the phrase, given my name, we’re going down the rabbit hole.’

  A second palm scanner closed the doors and set them moving, down. A long way down, as far as Cygnus could tell. They dropped for about thirty seconds before the car slid smoothly to a stop and the doors opened, and they walked out onto a gantry above a machine room. Cygnus looked to her right and gasped at the huge, three-level toroid system which filled much of that side.

  ‘Isn’t that…?’

  ‘The largest fusion reactor Hugh has ever built,’ Alice interjected. ‘That thing would run two major cities and it just about copes with the power demands from this place. The portal generators suck up power like sponges.’

  Crossing the gantry took them to another door with a palm scanner, which let them through into a split-level, circular area. Above them was a walkway with doors around it. At the level they were on, half the floor was taken up with what appeared to be computers of some sort, though they did not look like the computers Penny had used at work. The other half was open, a hole through which Cygnus could see the floor below, which was full of benches, open areas with half-finished machines in them, and other signs of an absent-minded genius.

  ‘He’s down there,’ Alice said. ‘If you’ll excuse me, I have my own work to take care of. I’ll be down later to remind him he needs to eat and let you go home.’

  ‘Uh… right,’ Cygnus said, lifting into the air and gliding over the rail. ‘Thanks for showing me down.’

  ‘My pleasure, dear,’ Alice replied as she headed for a staircase to the upper level.

  Doctor Hugh Charles Last, known to much of the world as Doctor Ultimate, was a short, nondescript man with brown hair and hazel eyes, dressed in a lab coat which had seen far better days over an MIT T-shirt and jeans. Aside from the fact that he was tinkering with a gadget which Cygnus had no clue about the function of, he showed no signs of being a certified genius until you got the chance to look into those eyes of his. As he looked up blankly at her, his eyes were hidden behind a pair of magnifying goggles, making him appear more like a mad scientist.

  His face shifted as the part of his mind which had been expecting her took control. He grinned broadly, swept the goggles off his face, and got off his stool, stepping forward as though he had just been presented with an award of some sort.

  ‘Cygnus! Excellent. I’ve been expecting… and the tests of course… mind on a thousand things… Are you ready?’

  ‘You didn’t really explain what you wanted to do, Doctor,’ Cygnus reminded him. Her short conversations with him previously had taught her that he tended to get ahead of himself when talking to people whose minds ran at normal speed.

  ‘I didn’t? I’m sure I… Oh, perhaps not. Sorry. Let me just collect… Right! The data collected from Kopf’s work.’ He frowned. ‘I’m sorry you had to go through that. The man should never have been… Well, Operation Paperclip you know?’

  Penny knew. Penny had watched a documentary about the repatriation of Nazi scientists after the war. It had not mentioned anyone named Kopf, however.

  ‘You knew him?’ she asked.

  He nodded. ‘Classified, of course. He ran some rather unpleasant experiments during the last couple of years of the war. Claimed to be able to manufacture super-soldiers. The US government snapped him up, and then they failed to keep him secure.’ He waved a hand. ‘Beside the point. The data he collected was obtained in a manner I find deplorable, but… We need to confirm his findings, you see?’

  ‘Uh, no. What findings?’

  ‘Ah! Didn’t explain that either, did I? He suggests that the source of your power is internal rather than external as for every other Ultra we have ever examined. My analysis suggests some other findings which… Perhaps we should get to that if my scans give the same results. So, if you’d just pop your togs off and get into the chamber…’ He pointed at a large, thick, metal door set into one of the walls.

  ‘My “togs?”’

  He grinned. ‘Too much time in England. That delightful suit of yours. And the boots. This is the most accurate cosmic energy scanner on the planet. Everything has a cosmic energy signature and we want just yours.’ He beamed at her. ‘Trust me, I’m a doctor.’

  Feeling vaguely uncomfortable, even if her suit did not exactly hide her body anyway, Cygnus walked over to the door and started pulling her boots off. A few seconds later she was watching the massive hatch sealing itself, leaving no visible seam, while she stood naked in the middle of a cylindrical room about six yards across. She had not had much luck with cylindrical rooms in the past, but at least there was no observation window in this one.

  ‘You might want to close your eyes,’ Ultimate’s voice said over hidden speakers. ‘Keep your arms away from your sides and stand perfectly still. My apologies, but this may take a while.’

  As the light level in the room began to climb, Cygnus did as he suggested and wondered how long ‘a while’ would be.

  ~~~

  She was not entirely sure how long it was before the lights went out and the door opened, but she thought it was about half an hour. Stepping out through the door, she saw no immediate sign of Ultimate. Had he forgotten she was in there and wandered off?

  Apparently the answer was yes since when he emerged from behind a bench and saw her standing there, he frowned and pressed a button on a device beside him. ‘Alice? Why is there a naked woman in my laboratory?’

  ‘That would be Cygnus, dear,’ Alice’s voice replied a second later. ‘You’ve had her in the scanner.’

  ‘Ah ha!’ he exclaimed, bolting across the room. ‘Let’s see what the results are. You can put your clothes back on.’

  When she joined him a minute later, he was examining a false-colour holographic projection of a figure which, Cygnus guessed, was her seen through the eyes of the scanner. There did seem to be something concent
rated in her chest, but what it meant was beyond her.

  ‘He was right,’ Ultimate said. ‘This signature is unusual, unique, quite unlike anything I’ve ever seen… Ever, of course, but she’d never… Captain Freedom, but that was quite… No’ – he turned to peer at her – ‘you are an anomaly, young lady. You may not be an Ultrahuman in the conventional sense at all.’

  ‘But…’ Cygnus frowned, collecting together what Penny knew about Ultras and trying to express her thoughts in a way she thought would not sound too stupid. ‘I fit the pattern. I was hit by something, a meteorite I thought. My body adapted to that… Well, sort of. I mean, tough skin, strength. It makes sense…’

  ‘Hmm, yes. Have you ever exhibited any abilities which you felt were anomalous?’

  ‘I… don’t understand the question.’

  ‘You found yourself with these powers, but have you ever suddenly been able to do anything else? Perhaps only briefly? Some situation demanded an ability you don’t have, and suddenly you did?’

  ‘Oh. Well… When Pulya attacked Svetilo I fired some sort of concussion blast at him. And I could see Ghostfire when he was invisible when I needed to…’

  ‘I’d say that was an affirmative. You see, the signature of most Ultras is quite stable, fixed. They have a set of powers and those are reflected in the energy they direct. You have a signature closer to some of the more powerful magicians. You’re aware of the concept of Ultrahuman powers stemming from the mind?’

  Cygnus nodded. ‘Ultras tend to exhibit powers related to a theme they have created for themselves.’

  ‘Quite. The most common power exhibited by “mutants,” the male ones anyway, is invisibility. It’s a little known fact since many exhibit it for a few months before it fades away as they mature.’

  ‘Invisibility?’ Her eyebrows went up.

  He nodded. ‘They use it to sneak into girls’ changing rooms. The gene causing the power manifestation is more common than most people think, but in many the implications of being an Ultra lead to a loss of power within a short time. It is a mental process and if the mind refuses to accept it…’ He shook his head. ‘Beside the point. The point is that your mind has fixed on this set of powers, but it is extremely likely that you can manifest others. Possibly any others. Whatever you might need in any given situation.’

  ‘Oh,’ Cygnus said, frowning.

  ‘That, of course, is if you can figure out how to do it. Stress and need are likely to cause shifts, just as they cause manifestation in individuals subjected to extreme circumstances. But you should be able to control it, if you try hard enough.’

  ‘Oh,’ she repeated.

  ‘Imagination is the key, I think. That’s what the magicians tell me. Honestly, magic still eludes my explanation. Something of an irritation. However, your mind is capable of doing this, dear lady. You just have to unlock it.’

  ~~~

  ‘He got your clothes off then?’ Alice said, a grin on her lips, as she escorted Cygnus back to the portal chambers.

  ‘Uh, yes, he did.’

  ‘Did he use the “trust me, I’m a doctor” line?’

  ‘He did, actually.’

  Alice gave a chuckle. ‘He loves that. I think he got his first doctorate just so he could say it with conviction.’

  ‘You’ve known him a long time?’ Cygnus asked, giggling.

  ‘This year will be our twentieth wedding anniversary. I met him when I went to university. He was doing his sixth PhD and I was a freshman. I correct myself. He was doing his sixth and seventh, at the same time.’

  ‘He’s amazing.’

  ‘He is,’ Alice replied, turning into one of the portal rooms, ‘but he would never manage to find his socks without me there to keep him organised. Have a pleasant journey.’

  As the warp field enclosed around her, Cygnus decided that that was unlikely.

  New Millennium City, MD, 14th March.

  ‘You think he was right?’ Twilight asked. ‘About you being able to do more with your power than you do?’

  ‘Don’t know,’ Cygnus replied, her eyes on the apartment building opposite. ‘He said my “power signature” or whatever was more like a magician…’

  ‘I don’t believe in magic,’ Twilight said quickly.

  Cygnus frowned. ‘It’s pretty well documented that some people can do things that… Well, they can do stuff that can’t be explained.’

  ‘Right now. That’s my point. Magic is just something we can’t explain yet. In the fifties no one could explain any Ultrahuman powers, and now they can. I don’t believe there’s anything supernatural about what they call magic.’

  ‘Oh… Well, I guess that’s not unreasonable. Anyway, Hugh said my power worked like some of the more powerful magicians. If I could work out how to use it.’

  Twilight glanced at her, her lips curling. ‘It’s Hugh now, is it? Does his wife know?’

  ‘Uh-huh. Come on, I was naked as a jaybird in front of the guy and all he could say was “Alice, why’s there a naked girl in my lab?”’

  Twilight giggled. ‘Well, he is getting on a bit. Maybe his libido’s suffering.’

  ‘He’s only forty-five! I hope I’m not that far gone at that age. Besides, Alice didn’t seem that frustrated.’

  ‘Well, that’s good at least. So do you think you can do it? Kind of… magic-up some other powers?’

  ‘When I think about it, I’ve done it before. As far back as the fire.’

  Twilight frowned. ‘Down in the basement? It was like you knew what had happened when Thermite was setting the fire.’

  ‘A magician or a psychic would call it psychometry. I could tell where Ghostfire was when I fought him. I think they were both forms of heightened senses. The heat in that place was getting to me, and then it wasn’t. I’ve suddenly been able to fire concussion bolts. Sometimes when I need something, it’s there, but always small things.’

  ‘Like you’ve got spare power you can do a few little things with. It’s worth working on. Flexibility is key.’

  ‘Uh-huh. You going to practise your flexibility tonight, or can I persuade you to come back to the Den?’

  ‘I’m going to drop in on Jacob tomorrow. He’s on a late shift tonight.’

  ‘He’s going to figure out how you do that eventually. Your teleporting.’

  ‘Cross that bridge when he does. It isn’t Ultras he hates; it’s Ultras taking the limelight. He’s even warming to you.’

  ‘That’ll be the day. You know, I don’t think they’re doing anything over there at the moment.’ Her eyes scanned across the windows of the apartments the Tonaldo family occupied. ‘I can’t help but think they’re up to something.’

  Twilight grunted a half-laugh of a reply. ‘You can tell David Tonaldo is up to something when his heart is beating.’

  Atlanta, GA.

  The suit was Armani, and custom fitted. The slim black tie with the diamond motif was not, neither were the diamond-shaped cufflinks in his shirt. When he walked into the room, he clashed with it. The upholstery was red, the paint was red, and the woman lying on the bed was wearing a red dress.

  ‘We got word back from New Millennium,’ the man said. ‘Total bust. The three knaves were caught by a couple of the local Ultras. Now the Tonaldo family are trying to read our hand.’

  The woman uncurled from where she had been lying, playing patience, sliding long legs over the edge of the bed and getting to her feet. ‘Now, Rex, honey, you know we can’t have that. I want you to deal with it personally.’ She glided across the thick, red carpet toward him, her hips swaying. ‘Find out all there is to know about the Tonaldos, and the two heroes. Report back to me when you’re done.’

  He nodded. ‘You got it.’

  She smiled, her hand rising to run a finger along the line of his lantern jaw. ‘And see about replacing the knaves. I think we’re going to need a full suit real soon now.’

  New Millennium City, MD.

  When Cygnus, then Penny in a new shape, had fir
st come to the Huntress’ Den, she had been unsure both of herself and whether she was actually going to enjoy the place. June had dragged her out, saying that she could not use the excuse that she ‘didn’t fit in with all the hot people’ since she was hotter than any of them. It had been an eye-opener sure enough; people who would never have looked at Penny acted like Cygnus was a goddess, and now that she had something of a reputation in the city, that was even more the case.

  Somewhere down in Penny’s psyche, that rankled. She had, as she would be the first to admit, always been something of a doormat. People walked over her with gay aplomb and she said nary a word about it. Deep down, however, there was part of her that wished she had gained the strength when she was her normal self, so that she could bounce some of the shallow dicks off a wall when they ignored her.

  Of course, she reminded herself, letting June dress me up as a stripper doesn’t help my case.

  Shaking her head, she turned her attention to the dance floor, watching the movements of the dancers more than anything else. Bobby had brought her here on a couple of occasions to watch the dancing. There was, according to him, much to be learned from watching good dancers when one wished to become a proficient martial artist. And he was right when there was someone good to watch. Tonight she had a choice of Red and June, or no one, and watching the two of them together just made Cygnus wish she was into women.

  ‘You know,’ Andrea said as she reappeared from the back of the club where the restrooms were, ‘it is allowed for female friends to dance together, especially when attempting to fend off male attention.’

  ‘You want to get between those two? It’s like watching live sex.’

  ‘No…’ Andrea mused, watching the couple slide around each other. ‘No. Did that, watched it I mean, and this has more clothes and eroticism.’

  ‘That’s supposed to encourage me?’ Cygnus turned and frowned at her partner. ‘When did you spend time watching live sex?’

  Andrea giggled. ‘You’ve never done it in front of a mirror? No, actually, the Tonaldos used to have an underground club in Fairhaven. Before your time.’