A Question of Will Page 17

  “A man who pats the head of a dog that just mauled him is one who can learn to trust and be trusted. I dare say you are more capable of change than you realize.” Fil and the dog left the room, melting through the walls, and the Mechanic reappeared. He pulled out a potion and gave it to The Assassin.

  “What’s this?” the injured man asked.

  “It’s the medication Fil mentioned,” the man replied. “It will help you sleep and heal the wounds you got in your little duel.”

  The Assassin smirked, the action sending a shooting pain through him. “More like it will kill me,” he muttered.

  The Mechanic shrugged. “We’ve had every opportunity to kill you. I could do that right now.”

  The Assassin nodded, though it nearly killed him to acknowledge the fact. “I know.” He opened the bottle and drank the contents. He started to feel the effects of the sleeping potion almost immediately, and as his eyes started to flutter shut and the adrenaline of the fight wore off, he truly felt the pain.

  He was vaguely aware of the Mechanic carrying him to a bed that hadn’t been in the room moments ago. Perhaps the chair the man with the glasses had used could be changed into one? The Mechanic placed something on the bed next to the Assassin. “I have a feeling you’ll need this again. Use it with greater wisdom in the future.” He turned and left.

  The Assassin’s good arm moved to the object, his hand grazing the surface, and he felt the familiar texture of his sword just as sleep claimed him.

  XVI

  Energy

  Will had settled into a routine that had become his new normal, reflective of the incredible ability of human beings to adapt to new circumstances.

  A few weeks earlier, his life revolved around his wife and son, his philanthropic work, and his businesses, in that order. Today, he could no longer spend time on any of them, outside the happy memories he had to dig to find. More frequent were the flashbacks of the last minutes before his rescue. Michael Baker’s look of horror at seeing the two dead guards. The killer standing in his house, the blood dripping from the sword the man carried. The explosion and fire that destroyed his house. The maniacal frenzy of anger and rage in the faces of the three Hunters as they kicked and beat him, as Athos slit his cheeks to match the scar on the Hunter’s face, of Aramis’ look of righteous fury as the man tried to stab him to death along with his fellow Hunters.

  What truly told him that his life was different was waking up each day in that empty white room, where he’d roll to his side and not see Hope’s sleeping form beside him. There was no daily walk down the hall to see Josh and his faithful companion, Smokey, wondering and ever hopeful that that day would be the one the boy would finally speak. That day would never come now, and he’d go to his grave having never heard his son’s voice or laughter.

  But his new normal now dominated his thoughts, and he kept pushing the flashbacks deep into his mind for later, a brief moment when their recollection would serve as a form of penance and self-condemnation. At the moment, he was focused, at Adam’s direction, on making sure that he remained floating three feet off the ground, levitating himself with his own Energy. The marvel of human adaptability was that this seeming wizardry was as normal to him now as driving a car had been then.

  Progress had been steady. Adam worked with him for a few hours at a time, mostly teaching him how to sense and grow his Energy levels. Will, with nothing else to do, spent every waking moment before and after his sessions figuring things out for himself.

  He had also finally left the room he’d been living in, walking through the walls like the others did. Adam noted he was not a prisoner and never had been, and the other buildings in the community were built with a similar technology; he was free to attempt to enter any he liked. The buildings were, in essence, intelligent; if he wasn’t permitted in a building, he wouldn’t be able to get in.

  Will tried to think of the various skills he’d heard mentioned. He mastered empathy fairly quickly, able to read emotions with startling accuracy, and telepathy shortly after. His education included ethics around the use of his skills; deep empathic or telepathic work was considered rude to perform without permission. He recalled the feeling of invasion when Angel had demonstrated the skills several weeks earlier, and understood that logic quickly and easily. The empathic reading skills could, with practice, become a “push” technique — you could project Energy with a specific emotional charge and effect that change in your target. Angel’s calming influence on him was his most obvious example of this. He kept those skills in check, though he knew he’d use them if needed if he ever came up against the Elites of the Aliomenti — the man called the Leader, his council, the Hunters, and The Assassin. Those were the men and women whose drive to global Aliomenti elitism had led to the overzealous enforcement of Oaths, and apparently included authorization for the murders of those like Hope and Josh who simply were in the way. There’d be no restraint around those people.

  His latest skill under development was telekinesis. This was the ability to project and control his Energy outside his body, most often used to move objects that could not be reached with the hands. He found that Energy seemed immune to weight, and that it was more difficult to lift something with a large surface area than a large weight. During his self-study he’d applied the approach to his own body, and managed a crude form of flying that took so much mental control that it exhausted him. When he mentioned this to Adam, the man noted that there were better ways to fly; they’d practice those at a later date. For now, Will simply accepted the fact that he could prevent himself from falling to his death, but he wouldn’t be emulating an airplane any time soon.

  Adam told him that many of the Aliomenti perfected a special skill, typically tied to their personality. Angel had very strong empathy skills, which Will had already deduced. Each of the Hunters for the Aliomenti had a skill which, when combined, made them incredibly effective at capturing someone. Porthos had extreme sensitivity to Energy, able to locate even tiny bursts from great distances. He could reportedly even sense who had generated the Energy he detected. His Tracking skills enabled the Hunters to find their targets rapidly. Aramis, though not strong in terms of Energy, had developed an incredible Dampering ability. The man could essentially wrap insulation around a person’s Energy and stifle it, in some cases eliminating their access to it entirely. Athos combined telepathic and empathic skills to be a human truth detector, so powerful that even when those queried didn’t know the truth, Athos did.

  Will tried his hand at each of the abilities, and found that he could “hear” Energy if he focused. Each member of the Alliance produced a different tone, and Will made mental notes matching tones to people. He used the technique to track Adam once in an effort to practice the skill. It took an incredible effort, though, and he filed the capability away to revisit. Likewise, he was able to damper Adam’s Energy a bit, but it was a skill that didn’t come to him easily. He wasn’t sure how to test Athos’ skill, however, and let it go.

  He made himself walk around the camp each day, taking breaks from his self-imposed, rigorous Energy training. The camp was comprised of small buildings, all of a similar size, shape, and color to the one he had been using. He didn’t see many people, which was at times reassuring — the Alliance probably preferred to keep their numbers spread out — and at other times concerning. Were they just widely dispersed, or were the numbers of the Alliance simply that small? Nobody would give him answers.

  He enjoyed sitting at the outskirts of the camp, his back against one of the massive trees circling his new home, trees reminiscent of the community at De Gray Estates. The weather was tropical and pleasant: bright sunshine, fresh air, and a sense of serenity his high-paced lifestyle had never afforded him. If only he could have brought Hope and Josh here...

  Will had asked where in the world they were, and was told that it wasn’t important for him to know. He was treated well, was given nourishing and delicious food, had been healed of wounds that shou
ld have killed him, and was able to do things he never thought possible. Yet he often felt like a prisoner, one not trusted to keep the secrets of the Alliance, doing his penance to earn the right to wear the golden tattoo on his palm.

  He stood and made his way into the forest. He had a few secrets of his own.

  Will had found the tree during his first solo journey outside the building nearly a week ago. Walking among the majestic trees in the forest and feeling a tremendous sense of peace, he’d seen the small tree nestled among the giants. The leaves were a paler green than those of its neighbors. Will sat down and watched the tree, entranced at the sight. And then he’d seen it, a slight twitch in the tree, and one of the limbs moved, ever so slightly, so that it caught one of the few rays of sun that managed to sneak through the canopy above. The tree was fighting for every nutrient it needed to survive, including sunlight.

  Will was inspired, for it couldn’t be easy for a tree to move, and he wanted to help. This tree was every young entrepreneur he’d ever helped, trying to make it in a difficult world, fighting for every bit that they could get to press on towards their goals, seeking to make themselves better, not to drag others down. Will had no money to give in this case, and money would do the tree no good. But he had Energy now, and he wondered if that would help the tree.

  He stood and walked to the tree, moving to avoid interrupting that cherished bit of sunlight. Touching a branch of the tree, he put Energy forth into the limb, hoping that it would help the tree find and process the nutrients it needed to grow. Instead, the tree seemed to straighten under his touch, growing taller. The color of the leaves deepened, and more buds began to sprout. It was exhilarating for Will to see the tree succeed. He put both hands to the trunk, as a means of more rapidly passing the Energy into the tree, wondering if it might further enhance the tree’s growth.

  The tree’s rate of growth did accelerate, but what Will didn’t expect was the feedback effect he got. Will felt Energy coming back to him, somehow purer and richer and in greater quantity than what had been in his body previously. In some strange form of symbiosis, Will was getting stronger as he helped the tree grow stronger.

  His encounter with the tree was like a timeless meditation, and it was only with great reluctance that he allowed the connection to end. He passed Adam on his was back into the camp, who shot him a strange look but said nothing. Will glanced down and was surprised to see that his white bodysuit seemed more pink than white. That must have been what caused Adam’s reaction. Will wondered how the clothing had managed to change color; he didn’t remember it being so pink when he’d donned it earlier that day. He pushed the thought aside, focusing on visiting the tree again each day as time permitted.

  When he visited the tree this day he was amazed. His visits had occurred for just over a week, and during that time the tree had shown remarkable growth. Today, his tree — his tree — had reached a height sufficient to push its tallest branches up above the canopy into the direct sunlight. It was a moment of extreme pride for Will, as if his own child had achieved some remarkable accomplishment. His face fell at the thought of Josh. His own son never had the chance to reach for the sunlight. Will added yet more pressure to himself to learn and get stronger; no other children’s lives should be cut short for lack of defense against the evil elements of the Aliomenti.

  The feedback effect had grown each day, as both man and tree had strengthened and increased the amount of Energy they could share and provide to each other. Will had seen the obvious effects in his work with Adam; he didn’t need telepathy or empathy to know that he was progressing at a rate that astounded and even frightened his trainer.

  Will put his hands to the tree trunk. The tree was now strong and sturdy, and though he once could wrap his hands around the trunk, he now struggled to wrap both arms around the same section. The Energy flow today was incredible; Will wondered if the tree’s ability to directly tap the sunlight overhead had something to do with it. He found his senses strangely magnified, his awareness of his surroundings intensified. And he sensed something else when he closed his eyes.

  He could see Adam and Fil talking, both men animated in their gestures, and with looks of concern crossing their faces. He became gradually aware that he could hear them, faintly at first, but as he focused their voices became clear.

  Fil: “...Shielding, his Energy levels are getting far too strong to be missed.”

  Adam: “I know, the growth is beyond explanation. He’s already hinted at red. In less than four weeks. He’s going to be teleporting soon, whether he intends to or not. I need to make him aware of it before he finds himself three miles away with no idea how he got there, or worse, drops unannounced into an Aliomenti community.”

  Fil: “No. Shielding first. We cannot allow him to be a danger to this community, Adam. Our numbers are low enough as it is without inviting an attack. His Energy level is going to attract Porthos’ attention soon.”

  Adam: “I’ll work on both in the next session. We meet up again tomorrow.”

  Fil: “If you wait that long, you’ll likely be meeting the Hunters, not Stark. You need to find him now. He should be rather easy to locate.”

  Will pulled his hands from the tree, and the eavesdropping session ended. He made them worried, fearful that his rapid Energy growth would attract the Hunters to their camp. At the moment, he was more concerned about anyone finding him near this tree. He sprinted through the forest toward camp, focusing on tracking Adam as he ran. As he edged past the tree line into the clearing, he slowed to a walk, normalized his breathing, and sat down at the edge of the forest, his back against a tree as usual. He knew Adam was looking for him, and would follow his Energy trail. It was best to stop him here, before he moved deeper into the forest.

  He closed his eyes, tracking Adam’s Energy sound. It seemed to move in a straight path, and then suddenly shifted. Will opened his eyes, frowning and turned in the direction of the sound. It was almost as if Adam had...

  He stood up and walked back towards his tree. The men had talked about teleportation. Will knew what that was, vanishing in one location and appearing in another, instantly. Angel had demonstrated the ability to him in his first days here, and Adam had made allusions to the skill, saying it took enormous amounts of Energy to be able to move even a few yards. If Will’s judgment was correct, Adam had just teleported several hundred yards, which meant that the man was exceptionally powerful, more than Will had originally thought. It wasn’t the skill that concerned Will, however. It was the destination.

  As he expected, Adam was there in the clearing, staring at the tree. His tree. The man’s face was a mask, as if he were deep in thought. Will couldn’t imagine what he was doing, but he wanted to get Adam away from here.

  “There you are!” Will’s words startled Adam, who spun, his face bearing a look of genuine surprise. “I had a question for you, but couldn’t find you.”

  “It appears that’s no longer the case,” Adam replied, a thin smile on his face. “Practicing your tracking skills on me? I thought you’d given up on developing that particular skill.”

  “It appears that’s no longer the case,” Will said, smiling, expecting a like response from Adam. Instead, the man turned back toward the tree.

  Will frowned. “Something bothering you, Adam?”

  Adam sighed. “There’s something very strange about this tree. It seems to have an Energy vibration very much like yours; I tracked you here because of the strength of the Energy in this area. Yet I found the Energy I tracked in the tree and its surroundings. No sign of you.” He turned to face Will. “Most unusual.”

  “Trees can have Energy too?” Will asked, surprised.

  “In theory, anything alive can have some, though most have rather minute traces. Humans in general have the most, but even there, the vast majority have what little Energy they possess suppressed. This tree has Energy levels I’d expect more from a reasonably adept human trained in the Aliomenti sciences, perhaps even a pink
. I’ve not sensed such readings in a non-human organism before.”

  “A pink?” Will asked. “What does that mean?”

  “Ah, yes, we haven’t discussed that yet,” Adam said, chuckling. “Our clothing in this camp changes color based upon our Energy levels. The colors roughly correspond to the wavelength of the visible light spectrum; the longer the wavelength, the greater the Energy. Each color progression represents an order of magnitude increase in accumulated Energy levels. White, pink, and red are the first few levels. Most people peak in the yellow range, though many don’t get that far.”

  Will glanced down at his clothing. It was definitely pink, and the color seemed to have deepened even in the past few moments, more a pale red color. “What does my coloring mean?”

  “It means you’ve accomplished a great deal, and if you keep progressing at this pace you’ll hit orange and be able to practice teleportation.”

  Will thought about Fil’s jet-black clothing. “What does Fil’s color mean?”

  Adam considered. “Fil’s a very special case. A very advanced case.”

  A mental case, Will thought. “Listen, I wanted to talk more about teleportation, maybe practice it...”

  “Not yet, Will. We need to work on another skill. Your Energy development is moving at a very rapid pace, and as your Energy levels increase you’ll be more easily detected by someone like the Hunter Porthos. We’ve developed a skill called Shielding, which is something unknown outside the Alliance. It basically lets you hide your Energy and make it difficult or impossible to detect.”

  Then what I saw was real, Will thought, though he’d never thought to question it. I’m becoming a risk. “I don’t want to put anyone at risk. I can’t put anybody at risk. When can we start?”

  “Let’s start now.”

  Adam taught him that those with large stores of Energy naturally leaked a small portion of that Energy out into their surroundings, even when not doing Energy work. It was equivalent to the leaking of heat from the body, or electricity from wires. Unfortunately, if the individual was powerful enough, even minor leaks amounted to large amounts of Energy, and could be sensed by others. This was not something that the majority of Aliomenti concerned themselves with, for they were not Hunted; for the Alliance, the skill was essential to survival. All of them had learned to Shield to avoid detection from a distance.