Super Villain Grandpa (Cape High Series Book 15) (12 page)

"Are you the reason everyone's going crazy?" Austin demands.

"I am!" Massteria says, his eyes gleaming with pride. "Turns out all those years cooped up inside my own head were good for my abilities. I can come up with all SORTS of terrors that would have never occurred to me before. Every single one of these poor, pathetic norms is under my influence, or being ran over by someone that is. And do you know what else?" Massteria asks, looking almost drunk with power. "This world is filled with people terrified of their own shadows! It's so beautiful!'

"You're sick and depraved, Massteria," Austin says.

"Am I? Who's the one living out their greatest fear right now?" Massteria asks him. "Or do you really think I'm here?"

Austin blinks. There's no one in front of him, not even his granddaughter.

CHAPTER SIX

“What’s that?” Skye asks, jerking from where she’s standing in the middle of the mall. She’s got a pink plastic water gun in her hand and is in the middle of robbing the joint with her new partners.

“You said your money or your wives,” Ariel says, floating over their heads and looking a bit misty. “But I think it caused a lot of the guys in the audience to have a problem.”

“They’re still trying to decide which to give us,” Doris says dryly, holding her own water gun which looks even sillier than Skye’s, since she’s in her monster form.

“I said wives?” Skye says, blinking. “What was I thinking? I meant GIVE US YOUR MONEY OR YOUR CANDY!” she bellows at the crowd, waving the plastic gun over her head. The strange sensation that a stranger is in her territory disappears completely as she goes back to work. Voltdrain is due to show up at any moment, after all! She needs to get her fun in now!

***

"What is going on?" Angela demands as Century races out of the Hall building. While the others had gone with Rocco through the shadows, she’s come with Century, intent on getting there when he does. This is the worst time to be caught in one of his time stops, and she’s not going to risk it.

"I don't know," Century says, his eyes narrowed as he speeds up. He's going so fast that she has trouble keeping up with him. "Nico! What's going on?" he demands, touching his earbud.

"It seems like a psychic assault on the norms," Nico says. "I'm searching the recordings for any sign of a possible attacker. I think it's Massteria."

"Will it affect you?" Century demands.

"No, it shouldn't," Nico says. "I'm my mother's son, Century, I'm impervious to most things like that, at least once I realize what it is."

"Good," Century says, only to realize, "will it affect Bombastic?"

"It could," Nico says reluctantly. "We're going to need some backup if it does."

"I'm on my way," Century says grimly.

***

I'm surrounded by strangers. I look around, trying to find a way out, but no matter which way I turn, there are more of them. I try to sludge through the mess, but it's like trying to swim through molasses, it doesn't work. I'm being dragged along with the crowd.

I have no idea what's going on. I just know that my heart is beating hard against my chest and I'm certain that I'm going to die. Why? I mean, this can't kill me--I've taken classes for--

I see a little girl stumble to the right of me and I race for her, covering her body with mine before she gets stomped to death. People are stepping on me, kicking me as they trip, but I grit my teeth and bear it, looking into terrified brown eyes.

"It's okay," I tell her. "I won't let them hurt you."

"I'm scared," she says, starting to cry. It isn't a sweet little whimper--it's a top of her lungs wailing that makes my ears hurt. I wrap my arms around her, shoving myself to my feet and other norms off of me. I have to get both of us out of this crowd, I think, looking around wildly. There's a building a few feet away, but too many people between me and it to make it.

I have no choice, I think, bending at the knees and jumping as high as I can with the little girl in one arm. My fingers brush against the shingles of the roof, but I know I'm not going to make it--

A hand catches mine, hauling me onto the building. I look up at Jack, wondering when he had gotten there.

"Good job," he says, patting my head, "but not good enough," he adds, and shoves me off the building.

I scream.

***

"Nico, we've got a problem," Max says over his earbud, looking at the group surrounding him. It had been easy enough to block the attack on himself, since it was a large scale attack rather than aimed, but he’s worried about Trent. The other teen has gone perfectly still, his hands clenched at his sides. He moves closer, trying to read his mind--

'Ye, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death--'

Max doesn't recognize the words, but it seems that it's keeping Trent from freaking out. That's all he really needs. He reaches up, pressing a hand to Trent's forehead and tapping into his mind. A wall that's already building itself develops fully in Trent's mind.

Trent looks up. "Thanks," he says. “Emily?” he asks, looking for his girlfriend.

“I’m looking for them, but I don’t have much experience, and I’m still fighting off the attack,” Emily says, touching her temples even though it doesn’t help. It’s probably for the look of it—she is from the Star Spangled school of posing, after all.

“Don’t worry about that right now. We need to clean this mess up,” Max says as he turns to Aubrey, only to curse as he sees the healer floating. There's a bright glow surrounding her that's about to go off if he doesn't wake her from her terror.

He takes to the air, trying to push through her natural defenses without hurting her. It's like shoving through pure honey, he thinks as he grits his teeth and pushes harder. The power pulses and then shoots out in all directions. That brief moment allows him to reach her--

"Don't stop her!" Emily says as his fingers touch Aubrey's forehead.

"What?" Max asks.

"I think she’s helping people break free," she explains. “It’s sort of that instinctive thing she does—”

"But she's stuck," Max says, pressing a hand to Aubrey's forehead and breaking her free of the terror that's gripping her. "I would let millions of norms suffer a bit of a fright before I let one of our own," he says coldly.

"That's not very considerate," Aubrey says, landing. Her eyes stop glowing.

"Sure it is--especially when I think the two of us working together can do it without freaking out," he says. "Take my hand--"

"Wait," Trent says. "Keliah, Carla and Bombastic are in there. We HAVE to get them first before they hurt someone."

"Point," Max says. "I'll go after Bombastic, you go after Carla, you're the only one that has a chance of keeping up with her. Emily, you take Keliah. Meet back here. Aubrey, try and free as many as you can while we're gone."

The group nods and heads out, leaving Aubrey standing on the roof with her hands out to the crowds, her eyes closing and her jaw tightening as she tries her best.

***

I feel arms wrap around me--and more arms, until I'm almost suffocating from being hugged. Vaguely, as if from a distance, I hear a voice in my mind. "I'm not as strong a telepath as Max is, but maybe--Keliah, can you hear me?"

I jerk, another rush of fear running through me. Emily--she hates me--

"I don't hate you," she says. "You just hit a sore point with me--several sore points. Come on, Keliah, we need a wall. Picture a wall," she orders me.

I can still see Jack shoving me off the wall, feel the feet trampling me into the ground--

"A wall, Keliah. Picture the bricks--one brick, two bricks, red brick, blue brick--" she says. "You can do it, blondie. Just build a little wall--good. That's a good wall."

It looks like it's made of Lego's, I think as my imaginary wall starts to grow. I add a few painted bricks, since it's my wall, and there should be a little sniper hole--

"No holes," she says.

"Every castle needs... a sniper hole," I protest softly.

"No holes. Not until you're older," she tells me with a hint of amusement. "We need to shut this thing out completely. Also, Jack isn't even here, so that was completely in your head."

"He's not?" I ask, feeling a hint of hope.

"No. And he isn't the type to shove you off a building until you're closer to flying. Well, mostly. He'd probably toss some people off before that. But not cute little girls," she says.

"I don't--I don't like him more than I like Aubrey," I admit, not really paying attention to what I'm saying. My mind is almost fully focused on the wall I'm building. "Aubrey's too nice to steal her boyfriend."

She lets out a little, surprised laugh. "She is, isn't she?" she says. "She's here. She was worried about you."

"She's here?" I ask, jerking to the present as my mental wall is completed. I find myself being hugged by all three versions of Emily, and face to face with one of them. She grins at me. "Nice to have you back," she says. "It almost got me, too."

"What was it?" I ask, trying to squirm free of their hold.

"Fear," Emily says. "It was fear."

My eyes widen. "I need to get to Grandpa," I say, jerking free completely and looking around. "Why can't I FLY ALREADY!" I complain angrily.

"Max is going after him," she says. "Nico's looking for the source, and Century is on his way. We need to get you somewhere safe, Keliah. I know you need to get to your grandpa, but you're not on a level--"

"I don't CARE," I tell her. "He's MY grandpa! I'm not going to leave him alone--he's been alone for far too long! And he gets moody! Someone has to pull him out of it! I need someone to pull ME out of it, and so does he!"

"You don't understand, Keliah," she says, her voice far too calm and reasonable. "Fear makes capes way more dangerous than anger does. Do you really think he'll listen to you?" she asks.

"I have to try," I say.

"Then that's what we're going to do," she says as the other two disappear. "Hold on tight," she tells me, hugging me again. I blink and we're standing on a building near the middle of the park. I look around wildly, only to stop at the sight of Max and Grandpa facing off in mid-air. It's tense and I almost scream as Grandpa changes completely, his skin black with orange cracks. He rushes forward, slamming into Max with an outraged bellow.

"MASSTERIA!" The scream echoes in my mind as the two slam into the ground. "GIVE ME BACK MY GRANDDAUGHTER!"

"GRANDPA!" I bellow, jumping off of the roof and racing to them. I grab his shoulders, ignoring how it burns my hands. "GRANDPA I'M RIGHT HERE!" I bellow. "That's not Massteria--that's Max!"

I tug, my palms burning and blistering, but he doesn't budge until Max presses a hand to his face.

He turns back, naked save for a tiny strip of material, and shocked. I fall back, starting to cry with relief and pain. My hands, I think, looking at them--they're already starting to heal, thankfully.

"Keliah?" Grandpa says, turning to me. "Sweetheart--your hands," he says, looking stunned as he sees what I'm looking at. I shove them behind my back, only to cover my eyes with them a second later.

"I told you not to burn your pants off, Grandpa," I say, laughing a bit weakly.

"Oh," he says, letting out a curse and covering himself. "I'll be right back," he says, rushing away.

"How are your hands?" Max asks, making me look over. "You grabbed him."

"They're tender, but healing," I admit, looking at them. "I'd do it again," I say, stubbornly.

"I know you would," he says, standing and ruffling my hair. "Good job. Now get your grandpa and get out of here."

I nod, hesitating. "What about Carla?" I ask.

"Trent's on it," Emily says. "If any of our team can catch her, it's him."

"Or me," Max says. "So I'll just be going, now." He takes to the air, and I automatically glance at the screens above our heads.

"He's totally ruining what's left of his villain rep, now, isn't he?" I comment.

"Absolutely," Emily agrees. "Sucks to be him!"

***

"We've got incoming," Massteria says, looking up from his work, "from both sides. Technico is searching for us and Century's on his way--"

"I can take them," Deathblow says arrogantly.

"You can take them on your own," Massteria says, dropping his hands. "I'm out of here. Century has that time stopping thing."

"So you're just going to leave Boombastic?" Deathblow demands as the smaller man jumps off the building and starts to run. Reluctantly he chases after him, intent on getting an answer.

"I've taken care of him--for now," Massteria says. "He's about to get a message from one of my little plants."

"Plants? I thought you were a psychic type--"

"Don't be a moron," Massteria says. "I planted a THOUGHT in one of the more susceptible norms. He should be finding him about now."

They race away, AWAY from the direction that Century is coming from.

***

Austin pulls out a pair of sweatpants from the empty store, looking at them for a moment before shrugging and tugging them on. They’re too short, and rip slightly where the ankle elastic goes around his calves, but it’s better than being naked.

“Boombastic?” someone says from behind him. He turns, staring blankly at a little boy.

“Where are your parents, kid?” he asks.

“I have a message for you,” the boy says. “Massteria says that you’ve got a pretty granddaughter.” He goes still, and suddenly his eyes fill with tears. “Where am I? Where’s my mommy? WHERE’S MY MOMMY?” he wails.

Austin barely notices the boy freaking out. The message is repeating in his mind, over and over again. Massteria says he’s got a pretty granddaughter…

His mind goes back to the Cape Cells escape, reliving it so clearly that it feels like he’s there all over again.

It’s the usual day for Austin. For the next hour or so he’ll sit there, staring at the television until his brain almost fries, then he’ll get up and workout for a few hours. That’s a bit more of a challenge in the uniform, but not enough to keep his mind busy. Dinner will show up at seven on the dot, after which he’ll read one of the dozen books that he’d been given—probably the Bible. He’s already gone through the history books and practically memorized all the mechanic text books. There’s a pile of designs on his desk, which he’ll hand over to the robots when he’s certain the math is right. Then he’ll write another letter—