Chapter Fifteen – Holding It Together
30th Apr 9:11 PM
New York shone with light, standing out a mile even from my current altitude. I began my descent, circling in from the far side of my island and dropping almost straight down at subsonic speed. My building came into view; a quick sonar pulse detected the Argos already on the roof. I slowed rapidly as I drew closer, touching down softly on the roof. An armoured figure sat on the corner of the building with her legs hanging over the edge. I walked over to her, my legs slightly shaky from the long flight.
‘Have I ever told you why Balian left the Argonauts?’ Serena’s voice asked in my head, barely moving her head as I sat next to her.
‘No,’ I replied, ‘I just assumed he was a massive dick and got thrown out.’
‘You’re not far off actually,’ she nodded with a small smile, ‘A few months before you came along we were on assignment in some small middle-eastern country, I can’t even remember the name. We were meant to find a cache of stolen Archaean tech, and with my abilities it didn’t take long. The men that had it weren’t just going to give it up, so a fight broke out. We won, but there were civilians around that saw everything. Without consulting Cassius he just walked off into the town and started draining them dry.’
‘How many?’ I asked softly, sensing the emotion in her mind rising steadily.
‘Sixteen,’ she replied, ‘I felt his mind when he did it; he enjoyed it. Cassius gave him the worst beating I’ve ever seen and kicked him off the team as soon as we got back to Valhalla.’
‘I’m sorry.’
‘I’m sorry too. I was harsh before, but I just didn’t want that to happen to you. I know you’re good David, but you have dark moments too.’ she continued, ‘I’ve felt your mind when you get immersed in the power, and it scares me a little. I can’t bear the thought of what would happen if you were to lose yourself completely.’
‘That won’t happen Serena.’
‘Can you honestly promise that?’ she asked, ‘What if someone you care about dies or gets hurt and you just lose control? Even I don’t know what you’re truly capable of, and I don’t want the whole world to find out the hard way.’
I squeezed her hand tightly, ‘I won’t let ever do that. I know I was going to in Albany, but something stopped me. It made me remember what I wanted to be, and what you would want me to be. I’ll never let the world shape me into a monster.’
She leaned over, laying her head on my shoulder.
‘Are we ok?’ I asked after a while.
She nodded, distracted as silence penetrated the still air. ‘I hope so, I really need something to be ok right now.’
‘There’s something wrong,’ I turned to her, ‘What happened on the mission?’
She reached over and placed her palm on my forehead; instantly a rush of information surged into my brain, flashes of the mission embedded themselves in front of my eyes as I took on Serena’s memories.
‘The Stygians are mastering Absinthe’s ability quickly, but that’s not what upsets you.’
‘No,’ she replied, ‘Nathaniel held them off when we were escaping, he killed scores of them.’
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Argonaut - The Apprentice (Part II)
Science FictionDavid has returned. Three years have passed since the events of Megiddo, and the Kinetic now lives apart from his team back in Valhalla. Of course, his story isn't over yet. That would be too simple. The secret of the Archaeans has been revealed to...
