Humanity's Protectors: An Influence Series Origin Novella by David R. Bernstein

Author:David R. Bernstein [Bernstein, David R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-01-31T06:00:00+00:00

6

NEW BIRTH

SEEING ISN’T BELIEVING. Why would Sam fake his death? Better question—how? He’s one of the Protector’s top Influencers. He seems nice. Not ruthless like some of the others, but he’s still one of them.

“What… why?” Confusion washes over me.

“I’m not… I mean, I wasn’t… a fan of Merrick,” He looks back at the end of the alley towards the apartment complex parking lot. “I needed to get out and they don’t let us go. As you know.”

“What do you mean? You’ve been trying to leave?”

Shouts from the parking lot interrupt our conversation. The Corporate Police are coming back to the current reality. We can hear them questioning each other. It won’t be long before they come looking for me.

“We need to move,” Sam grabs my wrist and pulls me further down the alley.

So many unanswered questions circle my mind, but he’s right. I match his pace as he releases his grip on me. Darting from darkened corridor to corridor, we try to create enough distance to gather ourselves. Sirens echo from all around us. I can’t tell where they’re coming from, but there are more of them. It seems like they’re everywhere.

Burning around a bend, we nearly slam into an armored police van barricading the street. Guns point at us from all angles. Shouts for us to freeze bark from every corner. They have no reason to take us in. They will kill us now. We need to act.

Sam looks to me and mouths the words. “Take cover now.”

I notice he has something in his hand. He rolls it under the van. My heart sinks as I scuttle back to the alley we came from. The officers are too busy looking at what he threw.

“Grenade!” one of the officers shout.

A bright burst rips from under the van, thrusting it up into the air. The heat from the blast forces me to squint. A loud crash rattles the ground where the van crumples down. Sam and I make it to the alley before the flames spread out from the explosion. Peeking out from the edge of the building I find no one left standing. The officer’s singed uniforms smoke on their motionless forms.

“They’re all dead,” Sam exhales. “Their consciousness is gone.”

“Are you sure?” I beg.

“Yes, but I feel more coming. They’re close. We need to move.”

I still stop to think about what he says before I remember that his push ability allows him to sense people’s awareness. My ability is different, I influence reality, he just feels it.

“I’m leaving San Diego,” I say. “I’m not sticking around here anymore.”

“Fine, but we need to get some space from them.”

Following his human radar, we navigate the dimly lit downtown, avoiding everyone. The sirens soften in the distance. The smoke thins the further north we get. My legs burn now. I can’t run much longer. It feels like we’ve been going for an hour.

“Stop… I need to rest,” I slam up against an old bus sign post.

Sam stops just ahead of me and nods.

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