Ex-Communication - Ex-Heroes 03 by Peter Clines

Author:Peter Clines [Clines, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Action & Adventure, Horror, Fiction, Science Fiction, Comics & Graphic Novels, Superheroes
Publisher: Broadway Books
Published: 0101-01-01T08:00:00+00:00

ZZZAP FLOATED INSIDE the electric chair, annoyed as all hell, and shot little bolts of electricity out of his finger at one of the rivets.

It wasn’t really his finger. It was just an outline, a shape his subconscious formed to help him relate to the energy form. It was closer to a mathematical model than flesh and bone. And he wasn’t really shooting electricity. It just streamed off him as potentials shifted, like a giant Tesla coil. It was an easy trick to do with all the conductive material in the cage, and it only added up to half a pound or so of himself that he was burning off each day.

Truth be told, he wasn’t even aiming at the rivet. He didn’t have that kind of fine control. It was just excess power that struck there instead of somewhere else along the copper-wrapped rings. If he actually fired a blast of energy at the rivet, he’d annihilate the electric chair, most of his entertainment center, and the far wall of Four. Not to mention the east and west walls of Five across the street, Zukor past that, part of the old telecommunications building, the lobby of Roddenberry (which would piss off Stealth to no end), the Gower manufacturing mill, and a little office complex past that which had been single apartments for two years now.

So, really, he wasn’t doing anything. Except being annoyed as hell.

St. George and Stealth were angry at him. And he knew they had every right to be. Max had played him like an idiot. Whatever was lurking around their home right now was there because Zzzap had helped the sorcerer. Which he’d only done because he’d been too stupid to tell the others what was going on.

Now he was stuck wondering just what Max had brought back with him. And what it was going to do. And how many people were going to get hurt because of what he’d done.

Something shifted by the door. Somebody was lurking there he didn’t recognize. He turned to get a better look and the figure cleared its throat. “Excuse me? Mr. Zzzap?”

No need to be formal, he said. You can just call me Zzzap. Or even Barry, if you like.

The figure stared at him for a minute. It looked like a boy, maybe ten or so. Zzzap tried to pick out some more details, but it was always tough with strangers. There were only so many particulars he could pick out with a smear of electromagnetic and thermal energy over the visual spectrum. He was pretty sure the boy had blond hair cut spiky-short.

Seriously, he said, it’s okay. Come on in.

The boy took another step. “I’m sorry,” he said, “I can’t understand you. It sounds like you’re humming a lot.”

He nodded and focused on his words. Better?

The boy’s face lit up. “Yeah. I can hear you now.”

Fantastic. I’m Zzzap.

“Yeah, I know. I’m Todd,” he said. “Todd Davidson.” He paused after the name, as if hoping Zzzap would have something to say.

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