Category Archives: Book 10: True

Loose Ends: Part 8

Emmy looked from me over to Tara, “Do either of you know what happened to Victor?”

Eyeing Tara, I hoped she took the hint. Or to put it another way, I hoped she chose to take the hint. She almost certainly got it and if she failed to notice, it could only be that she had a bigger problem on her mind.

For a moment, I thought I saw the hint of a smile as Tara responded, most likely guessing at my thoughts. “No one knows. He teleported away. If I had to bet, he’s with the Nine and he’s telling them how he can turn the True into an unstoppable army under their command if they’ll just give him the money.” Continue reading Loose Ends: Part 8

Loose Ends: Part 7

I looked down at the bag, “The ping pong paddles and balls were kind of an impulse thing. We’ve got tables, but not an official ping pong table. I was figuring we could use one in the dorm, maybe? I really wasn’t thinking very far ahead.”

Emmy smirked. “Well normally, I’d have to give you a little lecture about taking swag just to take it, but with everything that’s happened, go ahead and clean out the closet. I don’t have to care anymore.”

I thought about it. “I could use some more pens.” Continue reading Loose Ends: Part 7

Loose Ends: Part 6

Talking about it too widely could literally lead to the end of the world, so I felt like I had a decent excuse.

Still showing a hint of a smile, Lim stood up and tapped the globe on the table again. It stopped glowing. “If that’s it, I should let you go. I’m assuming that you got everything?”

I shrugged, “Everything I intended to take. Do you think anyone’s going to mind if I grab pens, t-shirts, or anything else from the swag closet?” Continue reading Loose Ends: Part 6

Loose Ends: Part 5

I raised an eyebrow. “How?”

Isaac leaned forward, glancing over at Tara and then at me. “I have contacts all over the superhero community and it shouldn’t surprise either of you that Nick’s not the only one I’ve got trying to infiltrate the Nine. One of them let me know that the Nine were after me about the time that Dr. Hansen tried to mind control you. Continue reading Loose Ends: Part 5

Loose Ends: Part 4

Tara wore the katana she’d carried the night before. I wondered what it did if anything. I hadn’t made it, after all.

It could be that it was just a sword that she’d chosen to use when she adopted her late father’s superhero identity—Ronin. Given that they were masterless warriors and he’d left the True, I could see why the name might have resonated with him and her too. Continue reading Loose Ends: Part 4

Loose Ends: Part 3

Then Daniel frowned. I can’t say that there aren’t potential problems, though. Memories associated with verbal commands using Dr. Hansen’s tie pin or other people’s voices last longer than normal memories and a decent telepath could use them as foundations for altering how someone thinks—which is why the Dominators are as effective as they are.

Have someone with voice powers put in a few basic commands, let a telepath set up a framework that connects the commands together, and maybe have a wizard set up a way to revert to that mental state if a telepath removes it and you’ve got something I can’t remove and maybe something I can’t detect. Continue reading Loose Ends: Part 3

Loose Ends: Part 2

Trying to keep him guessing, I interpreted the question as literally as possible. “It does not help me remember. What do you mean by faking ‘it’?”

Dr. Hansen began to move his left arm upward toward the gun, mostly likely to steady it so that he could shoot me. I had no time left to wait. I was just about to use the stealth suit (concealed as jeans, a long sleeved t-shirt, and a jacket) to lean forward and throw the desk at him, but I didn’t have to. Continue reading Loose Ends: Part 2

Loose Ends: Part 1

Haley and I stopped in front of Dr. Hansen’s door. “I’ll see you in a little bit.”

She squeezed my hand and stepped away to grab one of the chairs next to the wall in the engineering department. We weren’t the only ones there. The engineering department was a combination of a workroom, departmental assistant’s office, and common room. Ten or more professors’ had offices that surrounded the room.

The nice ones had windows. Dr. Hansen, as the department head, had a corner office. Continue reading Loose Ends: Part 1

Mere Anarchy: Part 35

That at least was good news. The bad guys appeared to be contained. Speaking of which, Russell Hardwick, Ryan, Zola, Art, and the two Protection Force guards were still stuck too.

Plus, Dr. Griffin was off to the side of the room.

So we were all good except for the four, twenty-foot tall, grey mechs and they were less of a worry than you’d think. With Izzy being stronger than a locomotive, it only took one blow to knock the head off of the first mech in. The head bounced off the shoulder of the mech behind it and rolled off into the night. Continue reading Mere Anarchy: Part 35

Mere Anarchy: Part 34

“It’s complicated, but the short version goes like this: we didn’t begin being creatures that spanned universes. We began as small reptilian creatures in a universe that may not exist any longer. We grew, changed, and after a time learned how to modify ourselves. We’d always had a small talent for existing out of phase, but we expanded it, allowing ourselves to move from one universe to another and connect to other versions of ourselves. Continue reading Mere Anarchy: Part 34