Invictus

Chapter 29: Teamwork

"I just need a second to think —" Trenton started to pace the room.

"Second to think? Man, you the reason why we in this mess. Why didn't you think about us passing this city by or at least warning Kya about the dude at the gas station," I roared, cutting Trenton off.

Trenton stopped and gave me an angered look. "This isn't like the movies, Z. I don't see the most favorable future and then get to choose the one with a happy ending. Sometimes I only see shades of gray. A slightly better than bad scenario," Trenton slammed his foot against the ground, then gave me a childish and scornful glare. "Also, I see thousands of futures, thousands of possibilities. It takes time to sift through them. Sometimes I miss things. You try being me sometime, see how well you do."

Trenton's voice was drowned out by the ocean of sound that was rising like a tide outside. I heard the sound of boots and weapons being readied and saw quick moving shadows beneath the crack of the door.

"They're here." Santiago said nervously. He must have been picking up on their two way radios. Santiago crouched low on the floor, unplugged Adam's lamp, and then placed his fingers atop the power outlet while turning to face the door.

We then all looked up towards the ceiling as we heard the heavy thudding of propellers cutting through the air above us. Then a megaphone blared, "This is the police, put down your weapons and exit the house with your hands behind your head." The helicopter megaphoned the same warning another two times. When we didn't respond to their demands, a loud crash slammed against the door.

Trenton flung himself into a corner in the fetal position as another clap of thunder railed against the metal of Adam's front door. Adam at this point had disappeared off into the only back room in the house.

A lot of use he was.

After another massive thud the door swung open, followed by streams of blinding light from a stun grenade. I heard a pop and my ears began to ring setting me off balance. It was in this disorientation that I felt, and vaguely saw, two pairs of hands push me off my feet and onto my back. Then two men in all black tactical gear grunted and groaned as they struggled to pin my arms down to restrain me.

Nice job, idiot. Stood right in front of the door and you got flash banged. Way to make yourself an easy target.

But the tussling between myself and the officers was quickly stopped. The pain that had given us all pause was a familiar one, I specifically remember an exposed lamp wire in Tia's apartment giving me a similar shock a few years back. This shock was different though, I could tell by the intensity. Lethal amounts of electricity began to course through my body and the bodies of the men who were trying to subdue me. We squirmed uncontrollably as our muscles spasmed, all of us unable to scream due to the shock having paralyzed our vocal chords. I felt smoke rising from my skin and my vision going black as the electricity burned away at my retinas. It was like 20,000 tiny knives were trying to shoot their way out of every part of me, pressing at my organs, muscles, and skin from the inside. Then, just like that, it was over.

Thankfully, the blindness that followed the jolt was only temporary. I brought my hands to my eyes and felt the burnt skin around them healing, the shapes of moving shadows beginning to take form as my sight returned. I saw the two officers lying motionless at my feet, black patches of burnt skin clinging to them like asphalt, the smoke drifting up from their corpses.

"You alright Moreno?" Santiago asked me.

I rolled my body over on the ground, the pain still numbing my muscles, to see flecks of electrical blue ribbons dancing up and down Santiago's arm. It was the arm that was sitting atop the outlet hanging off the cinder block wall. The high voltage current from it was setting his body aglow. Then it occurred to me, Santiago had just electrocuted me to kill the cops nearby.