The Underbelly (First Draft)

Besieged

My heart was thudding in my chest and it was getting harder to breath but despite the chaos in my body I could feel my mind begin to become sharper, more deadly. I ran with the twenty or so of us that were over eighteen over the rooftops and we glided effortlessly over the gaps between the buildings. Only Chaz was able to follow us on the rooftops, due to his heritage, but the rest of the trainers followed us below with motorcycles.

This part of the city was almost completely deserted, all of the civilians have already evacuated and only military personnel were around here and they knew better than to come between the trainers in red and their charges.

I could feel vibrations running up from all around me and it gave me the chills for some unfathomable reason. I pushed aside the feeling of dread and tried instead to focus on the group following me. I began to strategize in my head, illusionists and other non-contact psychics would be used as long range weapons, confusing the enemy from afar, and people like me will have to get direct physical contact to be of any use. That will be dangerous...

The best healers will need to be in the wings, ready to sweep in like angels to heal soldiers. However they will need to be able to defend themselves too and not be squeamish...

I could see a giant spotlight blazing down by the market place and I knew that father was waiting down for us there. I stopped and everyone stopped, casting me confused looks. I regarded everyone, taking them in, the family that I never knew that I had. I took a deep breath, "ok everyone, touch a piece of me." I outstretched my arms and everyone quickly grabbed a hold of me and then I began to transmit thoughts, all my plans, all of my words of encouragement. When I finished, everyone nodded and began to glide to their positions.

I nodded to Chaz as he went with the group that were part of long range team. He looked at me with a little hint of fear in his eyes but he said nothing. I smiled in encouragement before heading to the giant blazing torch.

There were only three others who came with me, Emily, Tommy and Aaron. Emily had a similar gift to me, a brush of her fingers and she could make you feel whatever she wanted, Tommy was again something similar but one major difference, he could numb your senses at a touch. Aaron was a bit of an anomaly, he was a pyrokinetic. He could ignite anything with a touch.

When we dropped from the rooftops, we were joined by our other trainers in red. Together we approached my father who was barking orders like a general, I suppose that he was in the army. He saw me and beckoned me over but scowled when he saw who was with me, "where is everyone else?" His voice was a growl but I have long lost the fear I used to feel in his presence when I was a little girl, "they are all long range attackers and can do far more damage from afar and remain safer like that." He scowled for a moment but I was saved another lecture when Simon the elder man interrupted, "Alastair, they are attempting to bomb their way in, do you have any orders?" Well that would explain the tremors I was feeling as I ran across the rooftops.

My father snorted, "nothing short of a nuclear bomb is going to get through those blast doors. We can comfortably ride this out and have everyone evacuated to the various Underbellies." I frowned myself, "how exactly is that being done? Would the Surface troops just not come in that way?" My father was shaking his head before I was finished, "not all, they are all escaping in the thousands of escape pods into the sewers and can get to the other Underbellies."

Something hit my head, and it stung. I frowned and looked at the small rock that was now at my feet, it looked strange, almost jagged... I felt something pulling at me. My insides froze and I drew my gaze up and I saw them.

They were descending like spiders on silk. And also like spiders they were pouncing on their prey. "UP!" The word screamed from my throat and suddenly there were bullets following my scream. Many of the men went limb but there were so many of them, we were going to be swarmed. My father went stock still and suddenly the descending men began to scream and thrash and I knew that my father was making them feel primal fear.