Enhance: Chapter 36

“You rescued me from the Vanguard. I suppose a thanks is in order.” Pierce said as he looked at the pair of them. They were in an old abandoned gas station. One where they once a long time ago would have made drop offs to Darren. Feint was pacing one of the aisles making sure they were still safe.

Phase however was staring at Pierce his arms folded. “Save it. We just didn’t want them killing you off before we could chat.”

“And what could you possibly have to ask me? None of your questions will give you the answers you want.”

“Maybe not your answers. But I bet we can take some.”

Pierce was sitting on a bucket his arms tied in front of him, “You had us created. Why?”

“Why? Why wouldn’t we? We had the secret to creating life from nothing and the ability to augment it as we saw fit.”

“You just did it because you could?” Phase asked.

“More than that,” He said with a chuckle. “You see power is the only way to get control in this world. And with the way things are now, we will lose control. Of our lives. Our country. Even our world. I for one will not allow that to happen. And it seems that only under my control will things start to right themselves. With an army of super humans coupled with the secret of immortality.”

Phase stared at him and then laughed. “Holy shit you sounded so crazy just now.” He put his hands over his face. “You’re going to what? Take over the world?”

“Nothing so dramatic.” He said simply. “I’m going to first take this country. Once united I will unite the world. Left as we are we war, we kill, we destroy this world. There is too much good to be done for it to be ruined by the fools in charge.”

“Right. And what if people don’t just suddenly join your side?”

“This world is already bursting at the seams with people. Losing a few of them won’t hurt. Those with doubts will soon be turned to my side after a display at the strength in which I hold.”

“You and your gang aren’t enough. Not even close old man.”

“You say that because you assume to know the extent of my control. And the limits of my circle.”

Phase stopped as he looked at him and then narrowed his eyes. “What are you saying?”

“It means that I have more people on my side then you think. It means that Enhance is more than just a super drug. I will take my birthright and not your or any of you other failures will stop me.”

Phase watched him and the look in this man’s eyes weren’t coldly amused like he remembered. There was passion in his voice and Phase met that gaze. He knelt in front of him, grabbing his collar. He really could kill him right now. It would easy.

“How do you plan on living through this? You’re not getting younger you know.” Phase asked. “You and your brother. We’re going to stop them. Just you wait.”

Feint had joined them and she was looking annoyed. Annoyed by this man and his rantings while worried about their friends. Something wasn’t sitting right with her.

“Because these guys are going to figure out how to become immortal.” Feint said slowly. “And last I checked you were testing that on my leader.”

He chuckled. “I knew you had promise.”

“Why tell us all of this?” Feint asked and he pushed off the counter and looked past her.

“Because one way or another. You won’t be living past this point.”

Part of the roof collapsed above their heads and both thieves jumped away. The smoke was thick but Phase and Feint were able to find one another. They coughed on it and Phase grabbed her hand before jumping to the roof.

They glanced to the side and watched as part of a car came hurtling at them. Both leaped off the station as it crashed into the roof and brought it down. Feint landed on top of a dumpster while Phase was on his knee staring ahead.

He caught the shape leaving the now destroyed gas station. Pierce was standing by a hulking former suit. Luce was at his side, blank faced and holding a jacket out.  In his usual suit, tie, and hat he seemed comfortable. “Sir. I apologize for the delay.”

“Apology not needed.” Slipping the jacket on he turned toward the pair. “However the matter of these two needs to be handled. Permanently. No holding back.”

Luce gave a slight nod and motioned with his hand. A car pulled up, the back door getting pulled open.  Pierce got inside and Luce closed it behind him. The hulk threw half of a car at them and both just walked through it. Once it had past through them their eyes went wide.

Luce came flying through the smoke his fist slamming into Phase’s cheek and dropping him to the ground. Feint on the other hand was leaping over the fist of the goliath of a suit and stumbled backwards as the ground almost exploded behind her.

“I promise to make this as painless as possible.” Luce said as he walked toward Phase. He looked at him and then jumped backwards as Luce lunged. His fist slammed into the ground as Phase back flipped against the wall.

Luce leaped after him thrusting his fingers forward. Phase caught his wrist and then turned throwing him over his shoulder and into the ground. Luce shot his hands out and jumped to his feet. Righting himself he stepped forward and kicked the ground, sending a piece of trash at the thief.

He phased through it but was struck in the shoulder by Luce’s fingers. Losing all feeling in his arm for a moment he stumbled backwards and then glared at him. “You’ve never had the courtesy of seeing my abilities.”

“No not first hand.” He groaned rubbing his arm slowly. Luce shook his head as he stepped forward and then lunged with his hand. Stepping around the attack Phase shot his fist forward and punched Luce into the ground.

Luce’s surprise was masked by the kick he delivered to Phase’s knees. Shouting as he stumbled backwards he leaned against the wall and then grabbed the edge and jumped onto a ledge. Luce looked up and before jumping after him.

Luce was in mid leap when Feint kicked him back down. She was panting and wrapped her arm around Phase’s waist helping him up. “You okay?”

“Been better. This is going to be harder than I thought.”

They both looked up and jumped aside as the giant suit leaped at the wall. They climbed as the monster slammed into the wall again. Feint leaped toward the roof of a smaller building. The monster jumped after her and the roof shook underneath her feet.

Fighting to stay balanced she watched the former man charged at her. Putting both hands against the ground she jumped over it and then landed on it’s back. It swatted at her, trying to get her off, but she was stubborn. She laughed and threw a smoke bomb into its face.

It started roaring as it tried to disperse the smoke away from its face. Feint took this moment and started punching it in the head roughly to and cause some damage. It didn’t do much more than piss it off more.

The monster, with a roar of fury, jumped and rotated. Feint’s eyes widened, as she was suddenly upside down and descending from the sky. Together they slammed into the building and fell through the roof. The rubble and smoke that exploded outward filled the once small establishment.

Feint pulled herself through the debris, coughing on the smoke she fell onto her hands and knees. “Jesus Christ.” She coughed into her hand roughly before starting to run. She didn’t want to wait for the big guy to recover. Pulling off her broken headset she tossed it down. Reaching into her pouch she took a pair of IED’s and threw them into the rubble.

Going toward the side of the building she jumped and climbed. As she climbed she tapped her phone’s screen a few times. A few seconds later the building exploded below her with enough force to almost make her lose her grip.

 Phase and Luce were at the top exchanging blows. Though the majority of the effort was Phase avoiding the knight’s strikes. Each strike he dodged made him take another step backwards. Two failed thrust of his fingers and Phase retaliated with a swift kick into his stomach. Luce stumbled backwards letting out a sharp gasp before retaliating by grabbing his ankle. Turning on his heel he threw Phase across the rooftop and into a mess of pipes.

Going right through them Phase slid against the edge of the roof and groaned getting to his feet. Chest heaving as he got up he could feel his body working it’s magic. He knew he was healing whatever Luce was throwing at him.

Luce noticed this as well and glared. “You don’t know when to give up.”

“Never learned how.” Phase smirked. “You can’t say no to them, can you?”

Luce was silent staring at him but finally nodded, “No I cannot.”

“Have you ever been able to have a choice?” Phase asked.

 “Yes. Once long ago. But now I can only act on my King’s will.”

 “That settles it. It’s time you get control over your life.” Phase raised his hands up and smirked. “And when it does happen I could use someone like you on my side. Yumi isn’t really a great body guard.”

“You talk as if you can change what cannot be.”

“We can help you.” He told him and they stood a few feet apart from one another. “And because you’re just like us, I wouldn’t want to be forced to kill you.”

“You talk as if you could do that.”

“You doubt me?”

“The only thing I trust is the King’s judgment.”

“You’re not a puppet. You’re not an experiment. You’re a person. Just like us.”

Luce didn’t respond that time. He was slowing down, hesitating in his actions. Phase wanted that. If he could make him second guess himself then he could take advantage of that and maybe even find a way to win and live up to his words.

Luce stared at this thief and couldn’t understand why he was hesitating. Nothing had changed since their last fight. He hadn’t gotten stronger. He hadn’t learned anything new. They were the same two people and he could beat him just like before.

Luce shook his head and then jumped forward. Phase rolled to the side and and punched him in the chest. Leaning forward Phase jumped and then grabbed Luce around the neck, dragging him into the ground. Phase took a few steps back and Luce got to his feet slowly. He was getting careless. He knew it.

Luce went after him again and this time Phase met him. Catching his wrist in one hand and stopping his fingers with the other. They glared pushing against one another trying to get the upper hand. Luce stepped forward and then thrust his knee into his chest.

Phase had concentrated so hard to keep him in check that he didn’t phase through the attack. Luce twisted Phase’s hand and then thrust his arm forward grabbing him around the throat. Each finger digging into his neck, he lifted Phase off the ground.

Luce narrowed his eyes, keeping the thief suspended as his own chest was heaving. Phase reached up and clawed at his hand trying to get let loose. Suddenly and without warning Feint jumped onto the rooftop and slid across the ground.

She angled her leg and kicked him in the back of the knee. Phase grabbed Luce’s shoulders and phased through his grip. Flipping over him he forced him down into the ground. Feint popped up and kneed him in the chest. Phase came down and with a strong punch that hit him square in the face. Luce tensed for a moment before going still.

The two of them stood and Phase laughed softly. “Team work makes the dream work.” He mumbled.

Feint elbowed him as they both laughed. She looked down and then crouched though and frowned. “So what do we do about him?”

Phase rubbed his jaw slowly. Overall the pain was subsiding and now he just ached. He wondered if he had lost any of his hair to this thing. Running his fingers through it slowly he turned to Feint. “How do I look?”

She looked at him and ran her fingers through his hair. “Like an old fart trying to relieve his glory days.”

He scowled and turned away going towards Luce. Reaching out he touched his throat, testing his pulse but it was strong. He then checked his breath and it was smooth. He was really just knocked out. He stood up again and then sighed. “I want to take him with us.”

“What? This is not like with Roxie. This is a guy who’s tried to kill all of us. More than once.”

“I know. But I have a theory. Kinda.” He waved his hands quickly as he looked at her. “Regardless. We need to get back.”

“We didn’t get much from Pierce though.”

Phase smirked and held his hand out. “Actually. We might have gotten quite a lot from him.”

“Is that his phone?”

“Yep. Pick pocketing at its best.”

“You got your headset?” Feint asked.

Raising his hand to his head he frowned. “Must have come off in the fight. You have your phone?”

“Yeah.” Feint pulled out the device and then had a surprised look on her face. “Wow, lots of messages.” She opened one and her eyes widened instantly. “Shade got shot.”

“What? Is he alright?” Phase asked turning to her and going over to the message that was awaiting them. There were several and Feint was going from the oldest to the newest.

“They took him to a hospital but Echo’s with him. Once things are done she’s going to wipe their minds. But yeah. They’re pretty sure he’s going to be okay but he’s out for a while. Echo too.”

Phase nodded and stared at the phone he stole from Pierce. Taking out his own phone he dialed Darren. They picked up on the first ring. “Where are you guys?” they asked immediately.

The urgency in their voice was somewhat unnerving. “We’re fine. At the place where we were gonna drop off Pierce. He got away but we managed to take Pierce’s phone.”

“You got Pierce’s phone? How. Never mind. Asking a thief how he stole something is stupid. You heard about Shade right?”

Phase looked at Feint who had the phone to her ear. “Yeah. Fei’s calling Yumi right now.”

“This wasn’t exactly how we wanted it to happen.”

“No. No it wasn’t. What can you do with Pierce’s phone?”

“What do you want to do with his phone?”

“Can you use it to find the facility? And get us in without too many problems?”

“Bring the phone to me and I’ll see what I can do.”

“Right. Also can you contact Rogue? Tell him to meet us at home. I have someone I need him to look after for a little bit.”

Feint looked at him when he said that but he merely shrugged. Shaking her head she went back to her call and Phase ended his. Going toward Luce he picked him up slowly and put him over his shoulder.

He looked at Feint he was stretching her arms and cracking her neck for the moment. “You’re serious.”

“Yeah.”

“Fine. Let’s go.” The pair of them were gone over the edge leaving the smoking building behind them. The run home was a bit slower than normal though because of their unconscious passenger.

By the time they were home they were cold and it was dark outside. Luce had yet to awaken, at least as far as they could tell. If he had he didn’t show it. Dropping him onto the couch Phase looked around. No one was immediately visible but he could hear some arguing from a distant room.

Roxie came in at the sound of their visit. Phase rubbed her head in greeting and smiled. “Hey girl.” She barked lightly and wagged her tail before whimpering slightly. Feint rubbed her behind the ears at the sound and then frowned.

Glancing at Phase, Feint walked past him and into the tinker room. Sitting at their chair they leaned back and groaned. “We have to wait for them to get back Yumi. I know you’re anxious but for fucks sake stop pestering me.”

“Trust me if I could I would Wiz Kid. But if you’d rather I freak out and set something on fire just say the word. I’ll start with whatever the fuck this is.”

Picking up a box of chips, cards and pieces of tech they snatched that from her hands. ”Don’t you fucking dare. Find a corner and sit still.”

Rogue grabbed her wrist and looked at her. Yumi glared at him and yanked her arm back. She growled and turned around about to leave when she walked into Feint. She scowled before seeing her face and immediately hugged her.

Feint was getting more and more used to this display of affection from her friend and hugged her back sighing softly. “He’s going to be okay Yu.”

“He doesn’t look like it. He looks like he got shot. And so much blood.” She shivered but Feint just held her and did her best to calm down. “I know we have Enhance and shit but I don’t want to lose him Feint.”

Roxie walked past them and looked up at Yumi. Yumi looked down at the dog before bending down to pick her up. Rubbing her fur slowly Yumi’s face remained in a frown before looking at Feint.

Phase walked into Darren’s room and Darren said, “I know she’s a pain in the ass normally but still. Shade will be alright. I’ve checked. Sent his results to a few doctors I know. They all say the same thing. Out of commission but he’ll recover.”

With a nod, he reached into his pocket and put the phone onto the desk. “Worth it?”

Picking up the device Darren laughed softly and then plugged it into their own phone. Pierce’s was unlocked and on the desk in seconds before Darren then plugged the device into their computer.

A window popped up and file upon file upon file was listed in front of them. Darren did the typing while Phase merely scanned it all not really knowing what he was looking for. “A lot of this stuff is going to mean nothing to you right now.” Darren told him as another window came up. It was a map with a pinging red dot. “But that will be.”

Phase stared at it and frowned. Feint and Yumi entered the room looking at the screen as well and Feint’s eyes widened slightly. “That’s the place. The place where we were created and trained.”

“Bingo,” Darren pointed at him.

“So we go while the going’s good and momentum’s on our side. Crush this whole operation in it’s tracks.” Phase turned around and then glanced at Rogue. “Can you keep a watch on things here? Feint and Yumi are going with me. Shade and Echo are out so we’ve got not no one on duty here besides you.”

“Go. I’ll make sure you have a home to come back to. Just get the answers you want.”

Phase nodded and then turned toward Yumi and Feint. “Sorry I didn’t ask you. I just figured you were on board.”

“Of course we are.”

“You’re our leader. Besides we started this together. We end this together.”

Phase smiled at each of them and reached out, wrapping his arm around both of their shoulders. Each of them put their heads against his and smiled. He took a slow breath and then let it out.

Breaking the huddle Phase turned and then looked at Darren. “You got a way for us to get there?”

“I’m assuming one of you guys can drive.” They said they he typed away. The site they were at was for a rental service but then he stopped for a second. “Actually, you think you guys can take one more for the trip?”

“Who’d you have in mind?”

“Ace.”

Phase raised his eyebrow. “He helped us rescue you last time leader. You know when the two of us both got caught.”

“Right. Never met him though.”

Darren nodded. “He’s a good guy. And wants his shot at them.”

“Then call him.”

“He’s already on his way.”

He laughed softly and then went to the shelf against the wall that had his pouch on it. He opened it up, going through the contents. He had three smoke bombs, five IED’s, two IHDs and a few linking devices. They got to work refilling their tools with as much as they could.

Phase’s eyes widened slightly as he reached out toward a new mask. Identical to his old one in every way and yet it felt different. Placing it against his face he booted up the system and watched as it started up. It instantly highlighted and let him know who was nearby. Darren, Rogue, Yumi, Feint and unknown. He turned toward unknown and focused on Luce.

“You’ve done some upgrades Darren.”

“You needed a new mask. I wanted to try a new OS.”

“When do we get the upgrade Wiz Kid?”

“You two? I’m uploading it now. Everyone else when things finally settle down.”

Yumi stood beside him as she took her pouch and went over everything inside of it. “We’re going to end this. Tonight, or morning. Whatever it is.”

Phase put a hand on her shoulder and she tensed for a moment before turning her head to look at him. She bit her lip and nodded. Phase squeezed her shoulder before glancing at Feint who’d already got her things secured. “You ready?”

“Always.” Phase had his mask in hands and handed her, her own. She took it and slipped it onto her face.

“Let’s give em hell.” She told him.

“That’s what I like to hear.” Yumi laughed through the filter in her mask and then the three of them turned toward the buzzing that suddenly came from the computer.

Darren answered the call and instantly hit the volume. “Hey Darren! Tell em to hurry up! I’m ready to go!” As in response they heard a beeping on their masks.

“That him?” Phase asked.

“Oh yeah. Good luck guys. I’ll do what I can from here.”

“Like always Wiz Kid. Be our eyes and ears.”

“We’ll be back before you know it.”

The trio walked out of their room and then ran toward the balcony. Opening the doors and letting in the cold air they each stepped out before leaping into the night. It was a few quick and straightforward jump to get them to the ground. They moved like water and stayed around one another.

Ace was watching them move and when they finally landed he whistled. “Nice performance. Maybe I’ll hire you guys next time I need something stolen.”

“You’re Ace right?”

“And you’re Phase.”

“I think I owe you a thank you.”

Ace laughed. “You can pay me back by letting me at least punch out Pierce’s brother. And maybe let me get one on one time with a Knight.”

Phase shrugged and then looked past him at the Jeep that was there. “That our ride?”

Ace nodded and knocked on the hood of the truck. “Yep. Been with me through thick and thin. We should be good to make it there in one piece.”

“Did Darren send you the coordinates?” Feint asked as she looked at him. “Yeah. Way out there. So it should be dawn when we get there. Probably.” He opened the door getting into the driver seat.  Phase got in beside him and Feint and Yumi got in the back seat. Ace stared at the street and then put it into gear and they accelerated with a jerk. They were on their way.