Trainee Superhero (Book Two) Read Free Page B

Lies and Bad Day are
playing a two-player game of space invaders. Both seem reasonably
relaxed yet alert. Pet Shark is building some kind of
three-dimensional holo-puzzle, assembling the pieces in the air
above a console. I can’t quite make out what he’s building, but
there is a lot of red to it. I don’t feel like I can focus on
anything more strenuous than a comic book right now, so I select
one off the rack and walk over to a comfortable leather chair.
    “Not that one,” says Bad Day as I’m
about to sit down.
    “Why not?” I ask, moving away from it.
    “The last three people to sit in that chair
died on the next mission. Sit somewhere else.”
    “Okay,” I say.
    “That’s nonsense,” calls out Pet
Shark , “lots of people die regardless of whether they sat in
the chair or not. Don’t be a chicken.”
    I move to a different chair. We spend the
next hour in silence, each of us preoccupied with our own thoughts. Pet Shark finishes his puzzle. It’s a human heart being
split in two by a knife. Unpleasant. Time goes past slowly, and
it’s almost a relief when an alarm finally rings. Never Lies stops playing and walks over to a computer screen. Technicians walk
in, check our suits and then leave.
    “Listen up,” says Never Lies , “we have
something coming in from team Gold Storm in South America.
They say they brought down an unusual saucer but don't have the
manpower to investigate the crash site and request our help. They
have not provided any further information or briefings, but we have
satellite coverage coming up now.”
    “Why don't they have the manpower?” asks Pet Shark suspiciously.
    “I don't know. Look, there it is.”
    The satellite is a little grainy from
interference, but we can make out a small saucer lying between huge
trees.
    “I’ve never seen one like that,” says Slow
Learner .
    “Neither has anyone else. Worth having a look
at,” says Never Lies .
    She brings up a map of the area with two red
dots near the saucer and a semi-circle of blue dots a few miles
further out.
    “Red dots are the meeting points. The one
nearest the saucer is our prime, to the north is secondary. Blue
dots are evacuation points. The weather is going to be rough, so
get on the ground quickly. Lots of trees, so be ready for close
combat. Set?”
    “Set,” we all say in unison.
    “Then let’s go.”
    I pass out when the capsule is shot out of
the cannons, but I’ve heard that most superheroes do. I wake up in
time to experience the roller coaster ride back to Earth before I
eject out of the capsule right into a raging storm. I fall clumsily
through the air until my parachute opens with a jerk and starts
dragging me backwards. I cut the lines and drop, slowing my fall
with my new powers of flight. It’s not easy; the storm drags and
pushes at my body as if it is trying to pull me apart.
    The gusts of wind and pounding rain come from
all angles without pattern, making it impossible for me to fly in a
straight line. This is no ordinary storm.
    I see a blue flare on the ground and land
beside it. Never Lies is already there. She walks over to
me, opens her visor and beckons me closer.
    “Don't have the manpower my ass,” she screams
into the wind, “they were just too scared to fight in all
this!”
    Maybe they were onto something. Water is
leaking into my suit, and flying in this wind is draining my power
quickly. We might be the first superhero team to stage a completely
pedestrian attack. The rest of the team join us, except for Slow
Learner . We form a circle, weapons pointed at the shadows. The
trees sway dangerously in the wind. We hold our position for a few
minutes, but there is no sign of Slow Learner so Never
Lies moves us on.
    We move through the forest in short hops,
blasting through the storm. It’s hard work, and I use up far too
much power just moving. There is no sign of alien activity, but
they could be right next to us and we wouldn’t see them in the rain
and trees. Branches