A Hero in the Dark: 2nd Edition

Chapter 117: Vessels of Energy

It's been nearly an hour, and while the dashcam on my panel moves with the terrain, our speed is slow. "How old is this thing?" I ask, only for Daunphen to scoff.

"Old enough," she says, looking at Einar. "Way to go, smart guy!"

"Hey, at least it's working," Einar shoots back.

"Barely," I mutter.

I land the rundown Skimmer in a clearing surrounded by dozens of armed men. There's another one just like it parked on the edge of the cliff, except it's obviously newer than ours; hell, it could've even been refurbished. Everyone's staring at us as I hit the button to extend the ramp.

"Ready?" I ask, and as if in answer, Einar adjusts the cufflink on his wrist.

"You filming?" he asks Daunphen, who nods. "Good. Let's get this show on the road then."

Following Einar out of the ship, I tune into my ergokinesis, not quite activating my bond yet, but keeping Lorien at a mental arm's reach if I need it at a moment's notice. Einar raises his arms and begins: "Hello, everyone," he says rather diplomatically. "In case you hadn't guessed, I'm helping you all stay calm." There are nods all around; happy, smiling nods. "For those of you who don't know me, my name is Einar. For those that I've met before, I'm truly sorry if I made a bad first impression. I'm learning." I can tell by his voice that he's already straining to keep everyone sedated, and as I take note of his composure, he waves for me to come forward.

I stride up beside him as cool as a cucumber and gently tug on the mercenaries' weapons until they're out of their grasps. Now, unarmed and somewhat tranquillized, I take a deep breath in like I did in Mexico. Slowly, I pull on their energies and let it flow into me. It's soothing; refreshing.

"Let's play a game," Einar goes on. "If you are part of a vast criminal conspiracy to exploit and control Garde, please raise your hand." Sydal—the old, silver-haired man, I'm guessing—raises his hand enthusiastically, as does the blonde British lady, and all the guards and mercenaries follow suit. After only a few minutes, it's just me and the other Garde with our arms down. I recognize Nigel and Caleb Crane; last I heard, Nigel went to his father's funeral, and I think Caleb graduated early to Earth Garde. "All of these people," Einar continues, "have ties to an organization called the Foundation. If you've heard of them, you're probably under their sway." It's obvious he's speaking as much to the crowd as he is to Daunphen's camera. "The Foundation even have their hands in Earth Garde, the so-called Human Garde Academy, and virtually every powerful organization on this planet. They think they can control us. Exploit us. Even profit off us or kill us." He pauses for a breath, and this, I know, is nothing but bullshit I'm hearing now. The HGA was put in place to protect the Human Garde, while they develop and hone their Legacies. It's only a matter of time I prove him wrong. "I am living proof that they cannot," he resumes. "If you're watching this video and you're a Garde, if you're trapped at Earth Garde's mockery of a training centre, if you're a prisoner of the Foundation... I'll find you. I'll save you. I'll liberate you."

Daunphen gets right up into Einar's face, capturing every detail of what's surely his smug, bottom lip. "And if you're part of the Foundation or one of their lackeys, know that justice is coming," he snarls. I magnify the level of energy I'm taking from everyone fivefold until I hear the buzz of a helicopter. I open my eyes just in time to see some of the guards fall and Nine drop down from the flying vessel. But as much as Nine looked ready for a fight upon landing, his shoulders relax and slump down again. "The Loric gave us these powers and abandoned us! They forced us to fend for themselves!" Einar drones on. I glance at Nine, who's smiling like an idiot, then at John, who teleports beside him only to be pulled into the same wave of tranquility as the rest of them, and knowing that I shouldn't, I attach myself to his mind, even if only for a nanosecond.

Stop this, bae thinks with all the conviction in his thoughts. Stop this now, Em.

Oh, your wish is my command. I tug on their remaining energies. There are people up the mountain as well, and theirs too, I swallow. It's like drinking a crate full of Red Bulls all in one swig—more than a crate! A dozen! Two dozen! Fifty, maybe? I don't usually drink them under normal circumstances anyway; it's amazing! But it's a lot.

Above all heartbeats I breathe, I feel my own, beating faster every second. I hold 50% of all energy for myself to keep myself going and distribute the rest onto John, Nine, Nigel, and Caleb. I even tug on Einar's, and I let go of each aura, not when their body hits zero, but when it's close to hitting zero. I leave them with what must be only half a joule of energy in their system, enough to refill with a good night's sleep; I don't take any more than that.

By the time the mercenaries—including Bea and Sydal—are napping in the dirt, Einar sways and jostles my shoulder. "Ease up a little, would you?" he slurs, but when I turn to him, it's through a blurry blue field of vision. "What the—"

It's funny. I never took Einar as the scared type. Since I met him in Iceland, and here now again, he's always had this high confidence about him, in his stride, in his appearance... but now... I see him for who he really is: a Garde, sure, but a boy too.

He's just a boy scared of being used again.

He falls to his knees, and I catch him, pouring his energy from him to me and into the Earth below; deep, deep, deep below. Grass sprouts through the gravel, flowers bloom—a mix of petunias and zinnias—the Alps come alive as I drain Einar down to 0.5 J. "This... This is what you were after," he says sleepily, falling limp in my arms. He must be struggling to even keep his head up. "This whole time. You wanted... You wanted... revenge..."

I feel nothing for him. He's a murderer, a psychopath, a boy that had his adolescence ripped away from him, maybe even some guy that wants what's best for us, but I feel nothing for him. "Yes," I state, feeling like I've been doused in a dozen cups of a coffee. "That's exactly what I wanted: for you to know what it's like to lose."

"Am I... Am I dying?" he murmurs, sounding not of this world.

"No," I assure him. "As much happiness as that would bring me, I'm not like you, Einar. I'm only putting you to sleep. When you wake up, all rested and fully functioning, this will all be over, your recording will be deleted, and you'll be behind bars, locked up in some sort of facility that's hopefully secure, and mark my words, Einar," I spit, and for a second, his eyes snap open, if only for a bit. "If you ever try to escape, if you ever manipulate another poor, innocent soul... I will find you, and I will make the rest of your life a living hell."