Steven and Heather Smith, which should have stuck out as bad as Doe, were alone on the Fourth floor of the hospital. That made it easy; all I have to do is get them to the roof.
I put the computer back the way I found it and left the nurse’s station for the stairs. I checked the door on the stairwell for an alarm. There wasn’t one so I headed up.
I stopped before exiting on the fourth floor and took a deep breath.
“Act like you own the place.” I told myself, trying to calm down.
I opened the door to see a long hallway with doors down each side. The last door at the end of the hallway was guarded by two police officers.
I had found Ryder and Vanish.
Chapter 33: Shock
I walked straight down the hallway to the guarded door. The police officer on the right moved into my path and held up his hand, “You are not supposed to be up here.” He said when I was close enough.
“The doctor went home for an emergency; they brought me in to take over for the night.” I said as convincingly as I could, but I could already tell they weren’t going to buy my act.
“Do you have your ID badge?” he asked crossing his arms over his chest.
I rummaged in my pocket and felt the nurse’s badge. I didn’t use it because it would only destroy my ruse.
“I must have left it down stairs.” I said flashing my friendliest smile.
“Well when you go and get it I will let you in.” he said turning his hip to flash his gun.
“It’s down on the first floor I just need to take a few notes, and make sure they are sleeping well.” I said making a big show of everything.
“And once you get your badge you can do just that. I’m tired of you nosy reporters trying to get in here.” He said playfully punching the other officer in the shoulder.
“I do have to say, she is the best looking imposter of the day.” The other officer said grinning ear to ear.
The two men stopped joking in instantly and both pulled their guns. I threw up my hands and dropped to the ground. A rain of bullet fire peppered the two men in front of me. I covered my head.
When the bullets stopped, I opened my eyes to see the two police officers both dead. The wall behind them was Swiss cheese and covered in blood.
I took a deep breath and shot to my feet spinning to look at the murderers. I didn’t think, I held out my arms and blasted a flame down the hall taking out no less than a dozen Saber soldiers that lined both sides of the hallway. Behind them at the other end of the hallway, leading the group, was someone that I thought I would never see again.
Jolt.
My flames whirled around him and dissipated. He stood unshaken with a nasty grin on his face. There was something different about him. Bolts of energy randomly arched from his body to the walls surrounding him. His eyes were glowing blue, and when he opened his mouth to speak his teeth were the same color as his eyes; bolts of energy arching from his lower jaw to his upper.
“Fancy running into you here.” He said taking a step forward and examining his soldiers.
“You should be dead.” I said trying not to panic.
“Funny thing, there is a chunk missing. I don’t remember much after our last encounter but I really don’t care. I have a mission.” He said walking a few steps closer, checking another of his soldiers.
“I don’t want to fight.” I said taking a steady step backward towards the door.
He looked up at me and smiled, “It seems that you have done a good job of taking these guys out.” He paused. “Version three Sabers, so disappointing. They really need to get these things worked out. You’d think heat resistance would be at the top of the list.” He added. “You said that I should be dead. I do remember a blast from, what is it you call him?”
“Arch.” I growled.
“Yes, Arch.” He said pointing at me absent mindedly, “I woke up later in a lab. I don’t know what they were sticking me with but I don’t care. I feel so powerful.” As he said the last word he opened his hands and shot a few bolts of lightning from his palms.
“Well isn’t that good for you.” I was backed into the wall.
“It’s a shame that you don’t want to fight. I’ll just have to kill you and the two you are guarding in there.” He nodded towards the door.
He stopped talking and threw himself at me. Bolts of lightning streaked behind him. I was just barely able to move out of the path of his fist. He put a huge hole in the wall.
I got up off the ground and tackled him with all my weight but it did nothing but put him off balance. He balled his fist and punched me in the stomach sending me flying into the ceiling. I succumbed to gravity, and slammed face first into the ground.
He spit blood onto the ground and wiped his mouth.
“Not bad.” He said.
I pulled myself up off the ground, my ribs were killing me. I balled my fist and ignited it into yellow flames. I punched him in the face and fired a ball of flame into his head. This time when I attacked I knocked him onto the ground.
He stood shaking the pain from his face. His skin charred from the flames. He was angry; my attack had touched a nerve. I took a few steps back, but he didn’t use a physical attack. He slammed his hands together and spread them causing a ball of energy to charge in between them.
I had nowhere to go. When he threw the ball, it collided with my chest and slammed me into the wall. Holding me there for what felt like forever, I could feel the energy from the attack coursing through my body.
Again I fell to the ground.
“You are so weak!” he yelled as I screamed in agony.
I took a few deep breaths and pushed past the pain. I pushed myself up on my fists and then I stood. My muscles were tensing with the residual energy.
“Is that the best you can do?” I was barely able to get the words out of my mouth.
He slammed his hands together again but I took the opportunity. I threw a quick ball of plasma at him. Timing everything perfectly, I ran as fast as I could right behind the ball of pulsating flame. When the attack hit him, I tackled him with all of my momentum.
We crashed through outer wall and fell the four stories onto a parked car below. Jolt took the bulk of the impact.
I rolled myself off of him and fell two feet down onto the ground.
He wasn’t moving but he was breathing.
I slowly pushed myself up; I quickly realized that my left arm was broken so I kept my weight on my other arm. I walked over to the building and into the ER door this time with my arm hurt for real. I placed my hand on the door and melted the lock with a little heat.
No one tried to stop me. The receptionist stood but quickly sat right back down in her chair.
I got into the elevator. The nurse that I’d stolen the ID badge from was standing next to me. I reached into my pocket and gingerly pulled her badge out and handed it to her.
“Sorry.”
She took it and nodded. Then she took a small step away from me.
Back on the top floor, I looked down through the fresh hole in the wall at the still unconscious body of Jolt. He had not moved.
I found an abandoned stretcher and pulled to Vanish and Ryder’s room.
Ryder was unconscious but his machines were active. Vanish was strapped to a table with a gag in her mouth. I took out the gag.
“Are you alright?” I asked undoing the bindings. I worked slowly, holding my injured arm to my body.
“I wouldn’t tell them who we are and I was making a scene.” She rubbed her wrists.
“I’ve got a ride waiting on the roof; help me get him onto the stretcher.” I pulled the stretcher over next to Ryder’s bed.