Lyra Rayne: Ground Zero by Bryan Strickland

Author:Bryan Strickland [Strickland, Bryan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-10-09T22:00:00+00:00

Mia stayed until later than she probably should have, but Lyra was grateful for her presence. And her insight. Despite not knowing the full depth of what was troubling her, Mia had managed to cut through the dark clouds of uncertainty that had enveloped Lyra's heart with the simplicity of truth. She was punishing herself for what had happened, allowing herself to become lost in a haze of regret and self-doubt. She saw Mia to the door and gave her one last, big hug before saying goodnight.

Once the door was shut and locked, Lyra went back to her room and stood before the suit, which hung from the closet door. She could still feel the spatter of blood present as she ran her hand over the metallic surface. The memory of Carl's death flashed in her mind, forcing her a step back. She could never take it back; she could never undo that moment. And she would never forget it. But could she allow that memory, that one moment, that one failure to stop her from helping others? Could she really allow it to defeat her?

'...defeat is something that we all face. As martial artists we learn by rising above it.' Sensei Philips' words echoed.

She sighed. Rise above it. How am I supposed to do that? How can I rise above Carl's death? Or the deaths of all those I turned my back on over the last several days? How can I face that woman from the news earlier whose father had died in that car accident, or anyone who had lost someone?

'Control yourself. You can't control anything outside of that, Lyra.'

I thought if I didn't get involved, if I stayed out of it, I could keep from hurting anyone else.

'Holding back isn't controlling power, Lyra, it is ignoring it. By trying to keep from hurting them, you did exactly that.'

How can I rise above any of this? How do I answer for the loss of one life, and the wounding of that little girl, because of my actions versus the loss of all those others by my inaction?

'...you cannot torture yourself over the things you can't control. Not even you can save everyone, Lyra.'

Lyra sat staring into the suit and lost in thought for a long while. She then realized there was a buzzing noise coming from the living room. Her cell phone, she had left it on vibrate again. She jumped up from the bed and rushed to answer it. Picking it up, she was surprised to see it was a call from the Professor, especially with as late as it was. She answered. “Professor? Is everything okay?”

“Ms. Rayne.”

“James? What the hell are you doing calling my cell phone?”

“You were unresponsive when attempting to contact you via your comm unit.”

“Ugh. What do you want?”

“I am receiving a distress call through FAA channels. There is a commercial seven-seven-seven air liner carrying two hundred and forty-seven registered passengers, designation Alpha, Alpha, Tango, One-”

“Why are you telling me?” Lyra interrupted.

There was a slight pause on the other end.

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