The only thing that matters now is whether I can get back to the ship.
Malcolm took a deep breath. The only thing he knew for certain about Savior’s powers was that he’d only been able to use one at a time. He had five in totaclass="underline" flight, invulnerability, super strength, energy blasts, and offensive illusions. Malcolm lingered as he considered each of them, trying to find the mental switch to trigger each one, and failing.
“I need to fly!” he muttered. “God damn it! I need to get back to the ship!”
He tensed his muscles and squeezed his eyes shut, concentrating harder than he ever had before in his life. For an instant, he felt it. Not the full arsenal of Savior’s powers, but the potential for flight. He was aware of it for long enough to know that it would work. Savior’s flight utilized a different mechanism than his own wind manipulation. He could use it to leave Europa, and with his space suit, it wouldn’t matter that Malcolm could only use a single power at a time.
Focus. Don’t think about Tapestry. Don’t think about Rose, back on Earth. Focus.
It was a process of concentration, like trying to do advanced math in his head, except more abstract, and more of a full body process. Drops of sweat beaded on Malcolm’s forehead. His fingers cramped up, followed by the muscles in his jaw.
In that moment, Malcolm understood Savior better than he ever had before. Savior’s distracted nature and odd sense of humor had both been a result of the intense focus he needed to maintain in order to use his powers as freely as he had.
Malcolm was grunting with the exertion of it. His vision wavered, and he accidentally bit the tip of his tongue. The diaper that he’d been forced to wear underneath his spacesuit, blessedly, remained unsoiled. Malcolm was reeling from the exertion, on the verge of giving up, when he finally lifted into the air.
He gasped as he rose up a few feet above the surface of Europa and the floodgates opened. Much like pushing a snowball down a hill, the act of concentrating became easier once he’d gotten over that first hurdle. It still wasn’t easy, by any means, but Malcolm had enough momentum to push himself upward, escaping Europa’s light gravity and hurtling upward after his ship.
He wished he could feel the wind through his hair, but of course, the moon had no wind, and Malcolm was in a spacesuit. He focused his thoughts on what he needed to do, noting that the euphoric pull of overusing his powers was still as present as ever.
The lights of the spaceship were visible in the sky even on the dayside of Europa. Malcolm flew toward the vessel as fast as he could, determined to recapture it. He was tense, fearing that Multi might have already harmed Tapestry, but forced himself to maintain focused on the task at hand.
Flying through space, outside of Europa’s gravity, felt much the same as flying anywhere else. Malcolm was relieved by that, but it also made Savior’s death that much more tragic. It was clear to Malcolm why he couldn’t use more than one of his powers at once, given how much concentration they took to activate. But if he’d been able to, he would have made it back to Earth without trouble.
The ship grew larger in the distance. Malcolm flew faster, not willing to allow Tapestry to be in danger for even a second longer than necessary. He slowed his pace in time to draw even with the orbiting craft, and then on a hunch, made his way around to the viewing port in the cockpit.
The lighting inside the ship, combined with the darkness of space outside, made it easy for him to see through the thick, radiation shielded glass. Multi held Tapestry at gunpoint just beyond the hallway that led to the central chamber. There were at least three Multis on the ship, but another detail jumped out at Malcolm and almost made him grin with excitement.
The portal they’d used to come through to the ship was still open. Malcolm decided in an instant what he needed to do, and committed himself to doing it immediately rather than exploring alternatives.
He took a deep breath and summoned his power. Yes, he could feel Savior’s other powers, the ones that he used less often than his flight. Malcolm’s teeth began grinding together as he tried to form an energy blast.
A sudden cramp took hold in his stomach, as though a few of his internal organs were trying to make a jail break. Malcolm kept his mouth closed, fearing the horrors of what could happen if he left it open in the confinement of his spacesuit. He stretched his hand out and kept forming the blast.
His head was pounding now, his vision flickering and threatening to fade to black in time with the pulsing pain. The blast formed over his palm outside the suit, a quivering, bright blue ball of energy. As soon as it reached a viable size, the body load ceased abruptly, making him gasp at the contrast. Several of the Multis perked their heads up within the ship.
So… They’re listening to my audio feed.
“Quick poll,” Malcolm said into the silence of his helmet. “Raise your hand if you believe in karma.”
He slammed the energy blast into the ship’s viewport. It shattered into thousands of tiny, jagged pieces, all of which flew by him like bits of shrapnel as the inside of the ship depressurized. Several cut large gashes into his spacesuit. Malcolm ignored it, knowing he wouldn’t need the suit for much longer.
Tapestry and the Multis had been knocked off their feet by the sudden shift of air. Malcolm didn’t stop to fight any of them. He couldn’t have, even if he’d wanted to. The effort of switching from building the energy blast back to flight mode felt like trying to switch between dancing and juggling while sick with the flu.
He had just enough focus to scoop a surprised looking Tapestry up over his shoulder and hurl himself through the green portal while the Multis were still floundering in confusion.
CHAPTER 29
They landed in a familiar hospital room on the other side of the portal. Malcolm’s legs buckled beneath him as soon as they hit the ground, his body reacting to the reintroduction with Earth’s gravity. Tapestry fell beside him, alternating between coughing and taking heaving, gasping breaths.
There were two more Multis in the room, and one of them had already pulled out a pistol. Malcolm flung himself down, shielding Tapestry with his body. Gunshots ripped through the hospital room. He glanced over his shoulder to see that though the bullets had missed him, they’d struck Jade Portal, who was still confined to her hospital bed.
The sound of her flat lining filled the room. Malcolm glared at the Multi with the gun, raising a hand and flinging the man back with a burst of wind manipulation. His pistol went spinning across the floor. Several nurses rushed into the room, hesitating at the strange sight of Malcolm in his bulky, futuristic space suit. He helped Tapestry to her feet and pulled her out into the hallway.
The Multi who had opened fire was reaching to pick up his gun. Malcolm summoned the wind again, this time throwing him violently to the ground and knocking him unconscious. He heard footsteps and turned to see the second Multi slowly approaching them, hands outstretched.
He still looked similar enough to the boss Malcolm remembered that it caught him off guard. Multi was fully bald now, his misshapen head easily visible, but he was still recognizable. It was something about his eyes, which seemed to constantly analyze and assess, rather than just look.
“It’s you,” said the Multi.
“Yes, it’s me,” said Malcolm. He pulled off his helmet and slowly stood up. He grimaced to himself has he stood, still readjusting to the gravitational pull on his body. Multi’s eyes went wide when he saw his face, and only then did Malcolm remember something he’d nearly forgotten.
Right. I’m a demon now. I’ll be getting a lot of that.