Vanguard: The Complete Second Season: A Superhero Serial (Vanguard: The Collected Seasons Book 2) (36 page)

“You’re one of us, Anita. My loyal servant.”

“It’s not real.”
She grabbed the Khagan’s hand and squeezed, shattering the bones within. Paragon sprung to her feet and delivered a powerful punch right to the Khagan’s face and he simply vanished into nothing. She then turned to the Analyst, who smiled and clapped.

“Very good, Anita.”
The Analyst’s form melted away, shifting into J’Karra.
“You may have been able to see through the illusion, but you can’t fight me here. The mindscape is my domain.”

J’Karra threw a powerful blow that knocked Paragon amongst the dead bodies of her friends. The alien jumped in the air and came down on Paragon like a pile-driver.

“You’ve already proven susceptible to this Analyst, what makes you think you can stand up to someone like me? While you were growing up in Brooklyn reading books, my mind was being developed as a weapon.”

J’Karra grabbed Paragon by her neck and raised her up, coiling her fist for another strike.

“Your playground was a park across the street from your house. Mine was the mindscape. I know it better than I know myself. How do you expect to fight me here?”

Paragon felt weak. Like she’d just completed a marathon. But then she realized something—this was the mindscape. Here, it wasn’t physical strength that mattered. All of this was just a manifestation of their mental powers. And Anita Jordan wasn’t about to let her mind be dominated ever again.

Paragon caught J’Karra’s fist in her own, much to the alien’s surprise. She twisted and J’Karra screamed as she heard a crack. Paragon then took hold of the hand that was around her throat, pulling it loose and breaking it as well. She hovered there, her eyes now beginning to pulsate with psionic energy.

“You thought you could break me, J’Karra? Stronger people than you have tried. And failed. This time isn’t any different.”

Paragon delivered a series of blows, and J’Karra tried to fight back against them to no avail. She was battered around until finally, the mindscape melted around them and they were back in the real world. And just as J’Karra was ready to try and defend herself, she was jumped from behind. Something snapped around her neck and when she tried to use her powers again, an electric current ran through her body until she dropped to the ground, unconscious.

CHAPTER 11

Paragon flew over the water, relishing the feel of droplets of the ocean on her face and the smell of the sea air. She could see her destination off in the distance and she pulled up to avoid striking the massive ship that floated in the middle of the ocean. She landed on the surface of what appeared to be a massive aircraft carrier.
 

As she walked across the ship, she looked around at the agents who walked by her wearing uniforms marked with the Cerberus logo. A few gave her suspicious glances, but Paragon ignored them as she walked forward towards the man who waited for her. He gave her a friendly smile and approached, extending his hand.

“Paragon, it is good to see you.”

“Thank you for letting me come down here, Abram,” she said as she shook Zukov’s hand.
 

“Welcome to the Island,” he said, then gestured for her to follow as he turned towards the entrance. “Come, I will give you the tour.”

Paragon followed him to an elevator. “I’m a little surprised you decided to keep using this thing after what Callus did.”

“We need a place to keep renegade specials, and this seemed like the ideal location,” said Zukov. “Olympus remains in constant contact at all times and should anyone try to escape, they are surrounded by miles of ocean. We also stay mobile so we are never in a fixed location should any accomplices decide to strike.”

“And the prisoners?”

“Fitted with inhibitor collars and constantly monitored.”

The elevator stopped and they emerged into a long corridor. “This level is reserved for the most dangerous criminals. They are kept in solitary confinement and not permitted to interact with the other prisoners.”

Paragon looked around and saw all the cells were empty except for two. She gestured to one of them. “Who’s the other one down here?”

“Your old friend, Lucent,” said Zukov. “He was actually our first prisoner. Now he has company, though.”

Paragon stopped and reached a hand for Zukov. “Listen…I want to thank you for letting me do this. I know it probably wasn’t easy to get that kind of clearance.”

Zukov gave her a smile. “Nonsense. The President owes you a debt, it seems. He’s already pressuring the United Nations Security Council to allow for increased cooperation between Vanguard and Cerberus.”

“So I guess that means we’ll be working together a lot more closely,” said Paragon.

“Indeed, but that discussion should be tabled until more information comes to light. Who knows how the Security Council will react.” Zukov paused before he changed the subject. “I have to ask…are you sure this is what you want to do?”

Paragon held a pause as well before nodding. “Yes, I’m sure. We ignored the warnings of the Red Fist and the Khagan for too long last year and it ended in tragedy. I can’t let that happen again.”

“I understand.”

They approached another cell one with opaque glass. Each cell had a small console by it and Zukov entered a command into the keypad. The glass turned from opaque to translucent and revealed the prisoner standing in the cell. Zukov looked at Paragon and said, “I shall give you a few minutes alone.”

Paragon stepped up to the glass, as did the prisoner on the other side. J’Karra glared at the woman who had defeated her with her fiery, yellow eyes, whereas Paragon’s disposition remained calm and collected.

“Are you ready to be straight with me for once?” asked Paragon.

“I have no idea what you mean.”

Paragon tapped her forehead. “In North Korea, you and I were connected on the mindscape. And then afterwards, I started seeing visions. I know about the Matriarch, I know she sent you to Earth. What I don’t know is
why
.”

J’Karra turned her back on Paragon and folded her arms, moving deeper into her cell. Paragon pounded on the glass. “Hey, I’m talking to you! What is your problem, anyway?”

The Kotharian warrior spun on her heel. “My problem is your people shot down a Kotharian research ship, butchered our dead, and then stripped it for parts! You exploited a tragedy! And now, I see with these abilities that you continue to exploit it!”

Paragon balked at the accusation. “Our powers? What does that have to do with anything?”

“Where do you think those abilities come from, Anita Jordan? Why do you think I register as one of your specials?” asked J’Karra. “It’s because the source of your abilities is Kotharian.”

“That’s why you came here,” said Paragon. “To investigate the specials. See how it is we came about in the first place.”

“There is more,” said J’Karra. “I knew I was taking a risk when I went into Area 51. So my last act before departing my ship was to transmit the logs I’d been keeping to the Kotharian Empire. Soon, they will know all about Roswell, the Collective, and you. They will know that you have abused our technology for your own purposes. And they will come.”

“Why are you doing this?” asked Paragon, her eyes growing wide. “I thought you were a good person…I sensed that you were a woman of honor.”

“I am,” said J’Karra. “That is why I went easy on you in Washington. But after seeing what your people have done to mine and our sacred traditions, I could stand by no longer. My loyalty is to the Kotharian Empire and the Matriarch. And soon, they will come for you, Anita Jordan. They will come for this planet.”

Paragon sighed. “So my vision…it was real, wasn’t it? There’s going to be an invasion?”

J’Karra gave a simple nod.
 

Paragon lunged for the glass, banging on the surface. “Do you have any idea what you’re doing? This could mean the destruction of my world, my people! You’re talking about the deaths of billions!”

J’Karra tried to keep her face like stone, but Paragon could see some cracks in her visage. “This isn’t what you want, is it? It can’t be.”

“It is not my decision to make,” said J’Karra. “I hate you for what you’ve done to my people and my traditions. But that does not mean I want to see you eradicated.”

“Then why? Why send those logs when you know what it will mean?”

“Because that is my duty.” J’Karra turned away and moved to the cot in the room. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”

Paragon gritted her teeth and pounded on the glass. “Sorry?
Sorry
? How
dare
you!”

An alert sounded and Zukov ran from a monitoring station at the end of the hall with two Cerberus guards flanking him. Zukov rushed to J’Karra’s cell, signaling for the guards to hold back.

“Stop it, are you crazy?” he asked.

Paragon stopped pounding, her hands flattening against the indestructible glass. She was breathing heavily and after a moment she took one deep breath and stepped away from the cell, turning to Zukov.

“Close the cell. If I look at her for one second longer, I’ll kill her myself.”

Zukov approached the console and entered a command. The glass went from translucent to opaque, hiding J’Karra from view. He saw Paragon already walking down the corridor towards the elevator and ran to catch up to her.

“What was that all about?” he asked. “What did she say?”

“She said this is just the beginning,” said Paragon. “We have to prepare for war.”

EPILOGUE

The Future

Chronos flew on his glider, keeping pace with Talon, whose speed with her wings was almost unreal. Ink also flew close to them, riding on a giant phoenix that had been birthed from a tattoo across her back.

“Where are we going?” he asked.
 

“Home,” said the winged special. “Talon to Icarus, we’re bringing some company for dinner. Care to open the doors for us?”

Chronos stared out ahead but he could see nothing in the clouds above them. Still they continued to fly higher. He switched the views on his visor and now he could see there was some kind of cloaking technology in effect.

The cloak was disengaged and a massive, flying fortress was visible in the air. A giant V breaking out of an oval, much like the logo that both Ink and Talon wore on their uniforms, was emblazoned on the sides.
 

A compartment opened and Chronos followed Talon and Ink inside. As soon as they were aboard, the cloak was reactivated and the ship vanished from sight. Talon’s claws and her wings receded and she motioned for Chronos and Ink to follow her.

“Welcome,” she said, “to the Icarus.”

As they exited the airlock, they came to a balcony and Chronos looked up and down. There were several levels, all of which were filled with people. Many of them looked like they’d seen difficult times. Their clothes and skin were covered with dirt and filth and they huddled together.
 

“What is this?” asked Chronos.

“A refugee ship,” said Ink. “We try and save as many specials as we can before the Gunsmiths get to them.”

“There are so many…”

“And our numbers have been growing.” This was a new voice. Chronos turned from the balcony and saw two individuals standing in front of him. One was a woman with a bald head, green skin, and yellow eyes. The other towered over her, a kind of human/shark hybrid.
 

“Who’s this guy?” asked the shark-man.
 

“Calls himself Chronos, we saved him from some Gunsmiths on our patrol,” said Ink.

“Chronos?” asked the woman with a raised brow. She turned her head to Talon. “We have protocols for a reason here, young lady.”

“The guy was in trouble, what would you have me do?”

“Ease up on her,” said the shark hybrid, holding up his hand.
 

Talon rolled her eyes and huffed. “Say hello to Sharkskin and Shift.”

“Look, while I’d love to sit around and get to know you all better, there’s something very wrong here,” said Chronos.
 

“Yeah, no shit, son. It’s the end of the world,” said Sharkskin.

“I know, but it wasn’t supposed to happen this soon.”

“It’s been going on for twenty years,” said Shift.
 

“Right, but it’s supposed to happen decades from now! That’s why I went back in the first place, to prepare!” said Chronos.

“Went back?” asked Sharkskin. “The hell’s he talking about?”

“Let’s bring Chronos to him, he’ll know what to do,” said Shift.

“Bring me to who?” asked Chronos.

Sharkskin put his hand behind Chronos’ back and pushed him along gently. “C’mon, kid. We’re gonna go see the wizard.”

Talon and Ink followed Shift, Sharkskin, and Chronos. The five of them moved through the Icarus, taking an elevator down to a restricted level of the ship. When the doors opened, they were in a darkened room.
 

“Finally,” said a voice weathered by age, echoing in the darkness. “I knew some day we’d find a way to end this war.”

Chronos stepped forward and in the center of the room, a light turned on from the ceiling. A man sitting in a floating chair of some sort turned, his entire body encased in metal. Only his face was visible. He was bald, his skin wrinkled and aged. But he had a thin silver mustache and haunting eyes. And when he smiled, Chronos felt a chill.

“Welcome, Chronos,” said the old man. “You may call me the Analyst. And I believe you have much to tell us. About the past and the future. And about how you caused all this.”

To Be Continued in Season Three

CONTINUE THE ADVENTURE!

Thank you for reading
Vanguard: The Complete Second Season
! Be sure to follow the adventures of Vanguard in season three, beginning with
Vanguard #11: Vengeance
!

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