The Cloak Guard

Versus Swarm, Part 3

Travis didn't know what he'd really expected when they arrived. He hadn't even stopped to check, wanting to get the others all there as quickly as possible. He was glad to see that Gabriela was fine and was tempted to just rush her out of there but he knew that wouldn't be enough at this point. Swarm had to go down.

And if he didn't feel that way before, he definitely felt it when he saw Luke's body.

"Luke!" he screamed and was instantly by the boy's side. He gaped at the bloody mess, fear and horror overtaking him. He quickly placed his finger's against Luke's throat and listened. And he felt his own heart stop when he heard nothing. He pressed harder, praying with everything he had to anyone that was listening. Come on Luke, he thought. Don't die. Just hang on.

...bump...bump...bump...

He nearly collapsed in relief, hearing the beat. "He's got a pulse!" he cried out. But he knew that wasn't an assurance. He didn't even think, just acted. He carefully lifted Luke up and then was running. It was only when he was miles away that he realized he didn't know where the hospital was, cursing himself for forgetting something so crucial.

"Here," he said, coming to a stop but still in speed mode. He let go of Luke and was relieved to see that as soon as he left his grip, gravity slowed down for him and he started falling in slow motion. Travis then pulled out his phone but cursed again. Electronics didn't work in speed mode so he was still stuck.

"Well, at least I got it out," he muttered. Still holding onto his phone, he cradled Luke's body again, gravity instantly reasserting itself and then lifted up his phone, typing in 'hospital' on Google Maps. He was already running when the nearest one appeared.

He knew he couldn't stop. He couldn't waste seconds with a monster like Swarm on the loose. Besides, if he suddenly appeared in the middle of the emergency room, too many questions would be raised. And this whole thing would be suspicious enough as it was.

As he arrived, he saw an empty gurney in one of the ambulances and a paramedic about to walk past it. Perfect.

He ran inside, placed Luke on the gurney, and then left. He hid behind the ambulance for a second, just to make sure.

"Whoa! What the hell? Hey, I need some help! We've got an injured kid here!"

Travis smiled in relief. Hopefully that would be enough, but he wasn't sure. Luke had been in really bad shape. If he didn't make it...

Rage filled his entire being. Whenever he'd read about characters going through the same thing or had seen it on TV or in movies, he'd wondered how that would feel. To just have so much anger in you that you would be willing to hurt someone else with it.

Now he knew. He wanted to pummel Swarm into the ground for what he'd done to Luke. Travis cracked his knuckles together and took off, his sonic boom echoing like the crack of thunder. He raced through the streets, heading right back to the office building. He was honestly surprised that the police or someone hadn't heard the battle but he didn't think on it long, shooting right through the doors and to his target.

"Swarm!" he yelled at super speed, bolting fight for the man. He drew back his fist and punched just as he reached him. But right before he could hit the man, his fist was stopped. He stared in surprise as the microbots surrounding Swarm's face wrapped around his hand, trapping it.

"Nice try," the villain said before launching a microbot spear right for Travis's chest. It was only thanks to his super speed that he was able to doge it. He tried to run off but his hand was still trapped. He could feel the microbots squeezing it tighter, threatening to break his bones.