Ian said he wasn't sure. "I didn't want this to become something, but..." he paused for a moment and apologized, "You were right. I really shouldn't waste this gift."

Coop shivered and congratulated him. "Is there a reason you couldn't tell us about this in the nice, dry, and warm tent?"

Ian said he wanted to show them something. He left them there and flew out over the lake and hovered a half a mile above the water. Coop and Wally couldn't see it, but Ian closed his eyes and remained in deep thought as he hovered in the air whilst they were all soaked to the bone. Lightning flashed miles away, followed by the crack of thunder, but Ian remained where he was and focused. The storm drew closer and after a moment another bolt of lightning shot down from the heavens and hit Ian, though it did not harm him. He redirected the bolt, amplified it, and shot it at the worn trail the three boys took up to Spider Gap. Ian didn't wait for the thunder to sound before he rushed back to his friends.

He hardly made his return before Coop started his rant of excitement. Ian simply nodded, smiled, and listened in earnest as he exhausted his enthusiasm, "I mean, holy c.r.a.p! How on earth did you figure that out Ian?"

"Yeah," Wally stopped him, "How did you?"

Ian told him he practiced with a taser. "I would shock my left hand and discharge the energy out from my right hand."

"Does it hurt?"

He shook his head and told them it was painless.

"But you can still shoot lightning out on your own, right?" Coop asked him.

"Yes."

"That's not the point Coop," Wally told him. "Ian's learning how to use his powers, which is what both you and I have stressed from the beginning."

Ian scratched the back of his head and apologized again. "You guys were right and all want is to make up for lost time."

Coop told him it was fine and asked what else he could do.

Ian took a breath and told them that he could move slightly faster than lightning, which included running or flight based movements, he could disable electronic devices, create isolated bursts of thunder within a certain distance from where he was, and could even electrically charge his body which he could then use to his advantage if he was ever in a fight.

Coop and Wally were both impressed with his achievements. Wally asked him if he would seriously become a hero in London once he arrived there.

Ian told them that was the plan. "I'm not entirely sure where I'm going to get a costume, but that's not what I'm really concerned about right now."

"Then what are you worried about?"

Ian wiped off the corners of his lips and told them he wasn't sure about how he would juggle a job as well as being a hero.

Coop told him he'd figure it out. "Okay, can we please get back to our tent? It's freezing out here and I'm soaking wet." He glared at Ian and asked why he couldn't have shown them his newest powers on a sunny afternoon.

Chapter 20.

September 18th, 2029 5:48 PM.

London, England After hours of painstaking needlework, design, and craft, Audrey neared completion of her husband's costume. The project consumed all of her time outside of work (sleep and meals aside) but she enjoyed the process and loved the opportunity to dress her husband as she saw fit.

I really am lucky to have her. There's no way I'd be able to make this costume on my own, and I doubt there's a website I could go to and design something that's not only durable and cheap, but anonymous too. Besides, she's excited about all of this. I love her more and more when I see that.

His outfit was little more than cut out patterns that waited to be pieced together, though the one completed aspect was a black rubber domino mask they purchased from a costume maker through an online shop. Audrey equipped the mask with slightly tinted lenses that would not only help keep sunlight from his eyes but would also help conceal his ident.i.ty, should anyone get a good look at him. She found a strong bonding agent known as spirit gum which Jason could use to secure the mask on his face without the need to tie a string around the back of his head to hold the mask in place.

Jason sat with the mask in his hands while Audrey sewed the pants together. "How long do you think it will take to finish it?" he asked.

Audrey smiled and said she might be done within the week. "Mind you, it may be held together with staples and tape, but you'll have one," she smirked.

I love that smile. How long was it until I knew I loved her? She's amazing, an absolute Jason froze. Audrey studied his face and asked what was wrong but Jason only asked her to remain quiet for a moment while he concentrated. He heard a few men, four who were present and at least one who was only there via radio contact, in a panicked frenzy. They're not close...well, they are getting closer, but they're not...He waited a moment and heard sirens as well as a whirring engine and spinning blades. A helicopter? Jason waited and dissected their conversation. They're going down. I can hear the screams below, the people in buildings too, everyone, the sirens from police far off. Where are they? How far off? Could I reach them? Where are they?

"Audrey," he started toward their window, "I need to go."

Audrey's heart raced and she asked what was wrong. Jason quickly took the spirit gum adhesive, applied it to his face, fixed the mask correctly and ensured it was stable, and told his wife someone needed his help. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

In a moment the window was opened and Jason was far from their hotel and high above the city while he listened and surveyed the city. Where are you? I know I'm fast, but I can't tell how close they are to hitting a building or the ground for that matter. He tried to see any smoke or the aircraft itself but failed to locate anything. Where the h.e.l.l is it? How difficult is it to find a helicopter? Especially one that's out of control and on its way down.

Jason only heard the roar of the city and couldn't pinpoint the vehicle in distress. He searched the skies and the cityscape as well to locate it while he focused to sift out the sound of the endangered party from the rest of the city. You've got to be close...and complete panic hasn't...Then Jason heard it, the panicked cries of the people below the falling chopper. It was near the City Hall of London and Jason wasted no time in rocketing toward the vehicle.

He couldn't tell what caused the distress within the aircraft when he arrived, but knew the pilot didn't have a hope of recovering from the fire in the engine coupled with the skyward bent propellers. Kill the fire first to remove any possibility of harm to the pa.s.sengers from the smoke. Jason raced forward and swept himself under the body of the machine and took hold of the landing skid on the left side of the craft. He took a second to concentrate and remove all heat from the engine, which killed the fire instantaneously.

Good. Now I need to land this thing. Jason pressed his back against the bottom of the vehicle and made an attempt at slowing it only to discover a vast difficulty in carrying the craft. Why isn't this working? I should be able to lift this without any problem. I've practiced with trailers and busses and there wasn't even a struggle, aside from handling them. But why can't I get any leverage over this? The helicopter and Jason both plummeted toward the earth as Jason struggled to lift the aircraft. I can, at the very least control the direction, but why can't I stop this? Jason glanced at the streets below and realized his time was nearly up. He fell with the vehicle and guided it as best he could to a clearing between City Hall and the River Thames and aimed to set it in a vacant lot.

I should be able to carry this thing; what's wrong? I've held much heavier loads before, so why is this different? Why is this so difficult? Jason and the helicopter neared the ground rapidly while Jason ran the impossibility through his head. I can move it, which means I am lifting it, more or less. But why is this so much heavier than before? I'm carrying it like I always...Then it hit him. There's nothing to lift off of. I'm utilizing too much lower body strength to stop it. And at the rate we're going I doubt I have the time to completely stop it. But I can slow it at the very least. Alright, change of plans.

Jason raced to the top of the aircraft and tore off the main and tail rotors and cast the material aside. Perfect, now there's nothing to fight against me other than inertia and gravity. He returned to the underside of the cabin and placed his hands there. Jason plunged his hands through the metal and secured a holding while he faced the direction of the helicopter's intended pathway. Now make a few adjustments, slow it down, turn it from the building and...Jason guided the vehicle from City Hall and into the parking lot. As he touched down he ran a few paces forward to avoid as much whiplash for the people in the cabin but ultimately came to a full stop. He set it down and opened the cabin doors to allow the pilot and pa.s.sengers out.

None of them are harmed, thank goodness. Jason took a moment to catch his breath before he decided to turn and make a quiet exit, but one of the men asked him, through labored breath, "Who are you?"

10:03 AM.

Both.e.l.l, Washington The trio of young men scuttled into Ian's home where his mother greeted them as they kicked their muddy boots off at the door. "How was your trip?" she asked.

"It was really good Mom," Ian reported, "Even though it rained."

"Oh, I wondered if it rained there as well. We had a terrible storm here on Sunday." She walked the boys into the living room where she had a program paused asked them to take a seat and watch the newscast about the newest hero while she brought them some lunch.

Coop and Wally took their seats on opposite sides of Ian while he played the program. A newswoman gave the report, "It may no longer be a surprise to anyone that we have masked heroes appearing every day, but London's newest is undisputedly London's finest. This video was taken by a young girl from her apartment home on a cell phone."

A shaky video played and showed an out of control helicopter on its way down near London's City Hall. After a moment a blur raced to the ailing craft and latched on to the underside. The engine fire and smoke died shortly thereafter and within a minute the out of control helicopter was safely on the ground with all of its pa.s.sengers beside it.

The wobbly cell phone video stopped and the newscaster returned, "That is the first time anyone's witnessed this man's heroics. Eyewitness accounts verify that this video is authentic. And as for the four individuals within the vessel, they only had their thanks to give to the man who identified himself as Ilion." The newscaster continued to talk about the interviews with the four men who were in the helicopter as well as the general a.s.sumptions behind the new hero's abilities, though Ian muted the recording at that point.

"Holy s.h.i.t, he can fly!" Coop exclaimed as their food was brought in.

"I know I didn't hear you boys swear," Ian's mother scolded them as she returned to the living room with a hot meal for each of the young men. Coop and Wally apologized in unison. She brought them potato soup and chicken salad sandwiches. They thanked her in unison as she quickly left the boys to retrieve a large black box, which she set in front of Ian. "Here, this is for you."

"Did you manage to finish it?" Wally asked.

"Yes, it was much easier with him out all weekend."

"What are you all talking about?" asked Ian.

"Just open it," Coop told him.

Ian set his soup aside and opened the box. Inside on the top was a jet black mask. Next was a jacket, then pants, gloves, and a pair of boots. He looked up at his mother and whispered, "You knew?"

She smiled and said the boys told her as soon as they knew. "I don't care that you never brought it up Ian, I'm just happy I was able to make this for you."

"Then," Ian stopped briefly to look at his friend and ask them, "You sold your concert tickets to fund this?"

Wally nodded and told him it covered nearly the entire bill. "Your mom paid for the rest and agreed to make it as well. I happened to draw up a couple dozen designs, though they all sucked, and luckily your mom works in the world of fashion and managed to make something that doesn't look like a shiI mean, cruddy get up."

"Alright," Coop broke in, "Get upstairs and put it on!"

Ian agreed and took it up stairs just before Coop stole his bowl of soup. Once behind the closed door in his bedroom, Ian stripped down and started equipping the new outfit. He first tried on the pants, which he a.s.sumed were leather, but were actually made of a rubber-like material he found surprisingly flexible. The thighs and knees had steel plates beneath the material, which he a.s.sumed his friends thought up to help him if he got into a hand to hand fight. The design of the pants reminded him of the high school football uniform he wore, though his costume lacked both hip and rear pads. However, there was s.p.a.ce for a removable cup in the crotch.

The second piece of the getup he put on was the boots. The st.u.r.dy boots nearly came up to his knees but added extra protection to his shins and calves. Ian couldn't tell who made the footwear, as there wasn't any logo or markings to distinguish the designer. He secured the boots by utilizing a zipper on the side of each boot and laces at each of the feet (to ensure a tight fit). A set of flaps covered both the zipper and laces and remained set in place through the use of snap b.u.t.tons. Once he finished fastening the boots, he took a brief walk around his room to get a feel for them. He knew he needed to break them in, but he felt they were perfect. Near the heel on the outer sides of each jet black boot was a small golden letter 'V,' which he a.s.sumed stood for Voltage.

The body of the uniform was made up of the same rubber-like material the pants were made of. The item seemed to Ian somewhat foreign, but he quickly understood how to equip the jerkin. The garment utilized a series of leather straps to tighten and fit to Ian's build and form. There were a small number of built in plates that offered Ian a small amount of added protection but did not sacrifice his mobility. He could breathe quite freely, despite the fit, and was able to retain a full range of motion in his arms. Across the chest of the jerkin was another albeit larger 'V.'

Ian selected the black gauntlets he found next in the box and discovered they fit like a dream. They slid on effortlessly and remained light. He tucked the ends of his sleeves into the gauntlets and fastened them through the use of a set of straps on the long gloves. Once secured, Ian checked his dexterity and realized it would take some time to gain complete control of simple objects (such as writing utensils) with the gloves. He also tested his ability to use his lightning based powers and was relieved to find the skills unhindered by the gauntlets.

Ian tucked the bottom of his jerkin into his pants and fastened a belt he found in the box his mother gave him around his waist. He was rather relieved to find the belt was unremarkable, and grateful that there wasn't a gaudy 'V' belt buckle to add to his already somewhat outlandish getup.

The final piece to the costume was the mask. He pressed the item to his face and found it rather malleable. Ian's mother left a set of two bottles of chemicals and a note that explained how to use the two compounds to get the mask to remain in place and fixed to his face, and how to safely remove it without damaging the mask (or his face). He followed the instructions and fixed the mask to his face. It covered his eyes, eyebrows, and the bridge of his nose and had built-in, tinted lenses to further hide his eyes and to protect his vision from sunlight.

Ian left his bedroom and stopped only briefly in the bathroom to use the mirror to inspect his completed outfit. The costume was, for the most part, completely black with a series of thin golden lines that raced and crisscrossed from his feet to his neck. He smiled and couldn't believe his mother constructed something so marvelous for him in such a short period of time.

He ran downstairs and showed his mother and friends the final form of his costume. "What do you think?" he asked.

"Great, but you forgot the cape," Coop said as he pointed to the floor, where the cape lay.

Ian picked it up and noted that Coop took the liberty to not only finish his soup, but his sandwich too. He threw the cape around him and fastened it to his shoulders. The cape was all black with two small gold 'V's' in the corners.

Wally grinned and told Ian he looked better than any other super hero he'd ever seen. "It sure beats the h.e.l.l-er...it beats the heck out of the Human t.i.tan and Captain Density's outfits."

"It's awesome!" Coop remarked.

Ian's mother only smiled and told Ian how handsome he looked.

Ian thanked his mom, gave her a great hug, and promised her he would treasure it. He added, "I'm not going to let this rot in my closet. I promise."

"Good, 'cause I wanna see that on the news every night once you get your sorry a" he saw Miss Price's glare and changed his word choice, "b.u.t.t, out of here."

"You will, I promise."

11:34 AM.

Both.e.l.l, Washington Rachel still hadn't seen or heard from Vladimir. None of her friends who shared cla.s.ses with him had seen him either. A part of her hoped he was only ill and hadn't been well enough to attend school, but the length of his absence troubled her. She kept the pa.s.ses to the upcoming Van Gogh exhibit in her bag and eagerly wanted to beg his forgiveness and invite him to accompany her to the event. Rachel desperately wanted their friendship, rather, their courtship to resume and she felt dejected waiting for him to come back to her.

Miss Keller stood at the front of the room and called out attendance. She reached Vladimir's name and hardly marked him late before the door swung open and he walked in with a wrapped canvas in his hands.

"Mister Dalca," Keller said as she noted his tardiness, "Would you mind enlightening us as to where you have been for the past week?"

Vladimir walked past her without so much as a word, took his place at the table Rachel occupied on her own in his usual seat, set his canvas down, and after lacing his fingers together set a disillusioned glare upon Miss Keller. He refused to submit himself to acknowledge her query and remained silent, without embarra.s.sment or shame, with his cool gray eyes locked with hers. Rachel thought the moment lasted eternally, though Keller merely cleared her throat and resumed roll call. Rachel glanced at Vladimir who remained stationary and noticed a sort of loathing in his eyes she'd never seen before. It even seemed to have been noted by their instructor, as Rachel believed she heard slight trepidation in their teacher's voice.

Vladimir released his trance and closed his eyes for a moment before he asked Rachel how her day had been. She took a breath as she told him it was fine in a quiet voice. He untied the faded green wrapping and revealed what Rachel believed was one of the most breathtaking landscape paintings she'd ever seen. It wasn't Seattle, as he said he originally planned to paint, but what Rachel guessed was Romania, though she remained uncertain. Vladimir used a good deal of earth tones, so much so that Rachel saw a complete lack of blues, greens, and purples. The land seemed desolate, as if it were a late autumn, slightly before a winter snow would blanket the land and transform it into something cold and barren. There were still leaves in the trees, though few, and the land seemed somewhat unnatural. Rachel a.s.sumed Vladimir's influence removed whatever life he could have presented in the work.

"Your drawing is wonderful," Vladimir whispered to her as he folded the paper wrapping he had used to cover his painting and set it aside on the end of the table.

Rachel's drawing was of a view they had of Lake Washington on their bus ride to Seattle a week earlier. Most of what could have been detailed was blurred, which was her intent from the start, as it gave the illusion of motion in her work.

Vladimir took a breath, as to comment on her work further, but Rachel stopped him and told him she won the pa.s.ses to the select preview of the Van Gogh exhibit.

He seemed surprised and asked when she found out.

"It was a few days ago," she told him. "And I wanted to ask you to join me." Vladimir tried to decline the offer, but she wouldn't let him. "Please, just go with me as a friend, alright?"

Vladimir felt that he should still refuse, as the incident was fresh in his mind. He didn't want to over step his bounds, but he accepted nevertheless.

4:50 PM.

Baltimore, Maryland Bryce Maguire walked through the station with a few doc.u.ments in hand. He studied them once more as he approached Chief Johnson's office. With a breath, he knocked and waited for the call to enter. Johnson glanced up and asked what he wanted. Bryce cleared his throat and started by telling him Sara Knowles was dead.

"Who?"

"Our sixteenth victim," reported the officer. He placed a part of the papers he'd brought with him before the Chief.

Johnson examined them briefly and told him to take a seat. "So who was she exactly?"

"She was somewhat of a local celebrity," Bryce told him, "That is, at least in the world of fashion. But this is interesting, since we now know that Cladis doesn't seem to care about social status."

"Yes, but we could have a.s.sumed that from when he killed the mayor's daughter, remember?"

Bryce's face reddened slightly before he moved their conversation forward. "Detective Felton and I, well, I rather overheard Detective Felton speaking with the victim's close friends who confirmed that Miss Knowles did in fact gain her own power shortly before her demise."

"And is there any reason why I'm talking to you right now instead of him?"

"He, uh, well he asked me to relay it to you while he's out with Sergeant Murdock on another case," Bryce informed him.