Elites Chapter III: New Empire Rising

XXIV

Undisclosed Location
March 22nd
2:15am local time
Jayson lay motionless on the wall when he heard a familiar voice. He looked around, and saw nothing. But when he heard Rob's voice, he was relieved; there was still hope. Moments later, Barnes opened the door and said "You missed out on some serious stuff kid. A ton of bombings, we're one step closer to finding the last of your friends." "Maybe you should go to the rest of them. I always thought messing with kids was more your speed." Jay said. Barnes stepped closer to the immobilized Elite and said "I'm not gonna let you bait me kid...on second thought, what the hell." He raised his hand, and struck Jay across his face. "Big man huh...why don't you let me out of this wall and let me defend myself properly?" Barnes continued "Are you serious? You're gonna resort to hoping I'm just some dumb goon from a B movie?" Jay replied, with sass in his tone "Your face says give it a shot." Barnes quickly retaliated with a hard punch to the stomach. Jayson groaned, and spat up blood. "You're no hero kid. You're a self-righteous maniac. You don't even feel bad about the pain you cause your own teammates. But I guess I doesn't matter to some of them anymore." Jay replied, out of breath "What are you talking about?" Barnes paused "Oh you don't know yet? Three of your own team members are dead." Jayson's heart dropped, and he asked "Who." "Nicole and Natalie Gonzalez, and William Robert Hilton. They went down fighting though. Shame it wasn't enough." Jayson knew in an instant that Robert was still alive, but was astounded at the other news. "NO. YOU'RE LYING!" He yelled. Barnes continued "Their bodies are being recovered as we speak." Jayson heart was racing, and he started to panic.
Suddenly, guards brought Zach into the room in chains. He was beaten, and bits of his metallic endoskeleton were exposed around his entire body. "I'm sorry." He said, his voice faded and distorted. "I couldn't save anyone. I wasn't enough." Barnes finally said "When your team dismantled IATO, I really started to lose it. I could handle your frequent attacks. But what really pisses me off is that you took our prized soldier...perverting him to be something he isn't. Sapphire was never who this droid was meant to be, it was only a cover for the real thing: Onyx." He pulled a device out of his back pocket, and pointed it at Zach. "And now, I'll restore him to his former glory." Zach spoke "Jay look away! Just look away!" His voice became more distorted, as his eyes turned from ice blue to deep purple. After a moment, the chains came uncuffed as Zach rose back up. "You thought you had really gotten rid of me Bluestone?" Daggers popped out of Zach's wrists and landed in his hands, ready to exact his revenge. Barnes stretched his arm out in front of Zach, and said "Not now Onyx. We still need him." Suddenly, Onyx heard the sound of crumbling rocks. In an instant, he was struck in the jaw by a fist wearing deep blue. Onyx stumbled backwards as Jay continued to break free. With his left hand, he fired off bolts of lightning, while continuing to pull himself free. After a moment, he broke through the traps and bolted for the exit. Before he could make it to the threshold, he was grabbed around the neck by Onyx, and thrown onto the floor. Vision blurred and dazed, Jayson saw Barnes standing over him. "I always knew you were a fighter. But this...this is new, even for you." He said coldly. Two more soldiers walked into the room and grabbed Jay by the arms "I want him wiped at once. He's too dangerous to be kept like this."
Naimisha Forest, India
4:15am
Natalie felt warmth on her face in the darkness. She was on a cot, lying flat on her back. She tried to move, but was paralyzed from the neck down. To her right was her orange suit, which was stitched up, but still had traces of blood. She looked to her left, and saw an old man tending to the flames. He was wearing a red tunic and black robe. The back of his robes had a blue and silver insignia of a flying creature. The man stood up from the mantle, carrying a cup towards Nat. "I was starting to think you were gone." The man said. He poured the mixture in the cup down Natalie's throat. "Who are you?" She said, after swallowing the serum. The man replied "An old friend from a lost era." Nat was slowly starting to feel again. The pain quickly returned as well. She looked down and saw that where she was stabbed and bleeding, was without any trace of the injury. "No scar? No stitches?" She asked. The man said "Your body healed itself child, I just started the process." "Where did you learn to do that?" Nat asked cautiously. "It was something I picked up from my days as an acolyte, for Xiansheng Topaz." Natalie perked up instantly. "My friends are always talking about him as if he was some god. Who was he?" The acolyte responded "He was one of the first beings we know as superhuman. He came to Earth with a small band of rebels with one purpose: Protect the Earth, and its life at all costs. Once the war ended, he decided to travel the world and teach the next generation of superhumans to come. But once he died, there was nothing left to do. So now I live the humble life of a nomad, helping the next generation when they need it most. In a sense, it's my way of carrying on Topaz's legacy of showing the world something more than human." Natalie said "So you think he trained my friends to control their powers." The Acolyte replied "I know he did. And I also know that you have a connection to Topaz beyond that of simply knowing someone who was taught by him." Nat asked "What do you mean?" The Acolyte then asked "What do you know about your mother?" "Nothing beyond what my dad tells me, and my sister, Nicole, only has fragments of memories. But they both tell me that she was a kind, beautiful, and determined person. She's also where I get my middle name and codename: Amber. Natalie Amber Gonzalez."  The Acolyte's eyes widened in disbelief. "You're one of Amber's kids." Nat replied "Yeah, why should that matter?" The Acolyte said "I had the honor of training your sister many years ago. I was told by Topaz that you were not lucky enough to have the power gene passed down." Natalie suddenly said "You knew Nicole?" The  Acolyte said "Yes, she was rebellious, and a very independent young girl when I knew her, a lot like you are now." "And you knew my mother." "Yes, I see a lot of her in you. You both have much more in common than you could possibly know."
Natalie struggled to stand, and reached for her bloodstained suit on the wall. "While this has been really interesting, I have to go find my friends. They should be looking for me." The Acolyte replied "How far do you think you'll get? You'll probably make it a mile before you give out from exhaustion. You need to heal, and to learn about what you really are. Haven't you wondered where your gifts come from, or why they work the way they do?" Nat turned to the withered old man, who now stood up from the flames. "I know a place that can do just that. I can take you to it. It's a long journey, but you won't have to take it alone." Natalie replied "No, I can't let you take such a journey. It would be too dangerous." The Acolyte replied "Child, I've fought greater battles than you've ever seen. I'm 87 years old, not dead. I can handle one more journey." Natalie paused, and let out a long sigh. "When to we start?"