Tag Archives: Marcus

Arc 8. 2: Super Social, Book 08: Infection

Super Social: Part 1

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The Stapledon program ended in the third week of August. My first classes started in the second week of September, so I had two weeks to relax—really more like a week and a half. I spent most of it sleeping.

Okay, that wasn’t true. It felt like I slept a lot, but that’s mostly because I wasn’t having to get up at six or seven in the morning to be out on the field running or fighting. So anyway, it was a wonderful week and a half. I spent it hanging around with Daniel, Haley, Vaughn, and Jaclyn. Cassie even managed to sneak up from D.C. for a few days.

We had a couple of movie nights with as close to everybody as we could get and then came school. Continue reading Super Social: Part 1 →

Arc 7.7: Go Time

Go Time: Part 8

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Who was the second glow? Russian Victory Jr.? Victoryboy?

The way I remembered it, all Russian superheroes were state sponsored. The ones that weren’t state sponsored were officially criminals no matter what their motivation.

A third glow appeared behind the two I’d already noticed, reminding me of something. Russian Victory was part of a group of three soldiers in powered armor. My grandfather had mentioned it was connected to Russian folklore somehow.

For the life of me I couldn’t remember the name of the group though. Continue reading Go Time: Part 8 →

Arc 7.7: Go Time

Go Time: Part 6

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“Marcus and Sydney are waiting in the jet. They’ll be taking off soon. They’re going to shadow her from a distance—far enough away that they shouldn’t be visible, but close enough that they’re in range.”

Jaclyn leaned toward the screen, probably noticing now that the camera display program’s current tab was labeled “Blue,” but the second tab was labeled “Jet.”

I clicked on the button that showed all cameras, and the program divided the screen between Izzy’s view of the sky above South Dakota and the League jet’s much less interesting view of the airlock between the hangar and Lake Michigan.

Jaclyn pulled up a chair and sat next to me. “I didn’t know Marcus could fly the jet.”

Then she frowned. “They can’t hear us from here, right?” Continue reading Go Time: Part 6 →

Arc 6.6: The Battle of Grand Lake

The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 18

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She fired anyway, but the burrito missed, hitting the hill in an explosion of chunky salsa that coated the area around the blast.

A spattering hit the two stuck to the hill above her and they screamed, trying to wipe it off their clothes.

A ladle sized splash hit the one leaping toward her as it was still in the air. His eyes widened and his faced tensed, but Kayla barely noticed.

Beams of white light hit the creature, causing it to tumble in the air. When its hand hit her, she expected to die, but it barely hurt at all. She’d heard stories where the bad wounds, the truly terminal wounds were surprisingly easy to take, but when she looked down at her chest where the hand hit, she didn’t see any blood.

Continue reading The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 18 →

Arc 6.6: The Battle of Grand Lake

The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 17

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The burrito hit it in the middle of the chest, sticking there. The burrito dripped cheese, beans, and a glowing green sauce across the creature’s body.

The alien looked down, staring at the mess, sniffing once.

Then the burrito exploded, spreading the contents in all directions–except strangely enough, toward Kayla. Continue reading The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 17 →

Arc 6.6: The Battle of Grand Lake

The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 16

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She pushed the button.

All the voices disappeared into static along with the displays in the helmet and every light in the armor. As of that moment, she was alone in front of the exit to HQ, and not standing either.

She didn’t know what the suit did to help her stay balanced, but whatever it was, it had to be electrical because moments after the lights faded she fell over backwards.

Taking stock of the situation, she stared upward. Stars peeked through the leaves and branches, visible in the dusk.

Continue reading The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 16 →

Arc 6.6: The Battle of Grand Lake

The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 14

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Cannon’s voice was a little distorted as it came through the speakers. “Give me a second. I think I’m passing some rock.”

He paused. “Are you all still there?”

Almost everyone said, “Yes.”

“It shouldn’t be hard now that you’re here,” Cannon said.

Kayla guessed he meant C.
Continue reading The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 14 →

Arc 6.6: The Battle of Grand Lake

The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 13

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“No extra beans,” Kayla said. “Got it.”

She looked down at the gun. It had two grips. The trigger and guard were on the back one. the front grip had a line of buttons on the side. Above them, it said, “Extra,” followed by “Beans,” “Cheese,” “Chunky Salsa,” “Green Sauce,” “Red Sauce,” and “Shell.”

Thinking back to English composition class from last semester, she wondered what Chekov would do if he saw a burrito gun hanging on the wall in Act 1 of a play.

Probably kill himself, she imagined.

Continue reading The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 13 →

Arc 6.6: The Battle of Grand Lake

The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 9

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“Where?” Haley asked. She wasn’t whispering.

“Above the forest. Right in the middle. It’s kind of close to the forest entrance to HQ.”

Haley’s eyes dipped toward the instrument panel. “The AI sees it, and it thinks it’s going to move…”

On the screen, the League jet exited the water, covered in panes of darkness, aiming toward the forest. The white beam, painfully bright even on the screen, aimed off to the side of where HQ’s scanner had identified it as an anomaly.

Above the forest, a silvery shape flickered, resolving into the aliens rectangular landing craft with a long burn down the craft’s side, and a blackened hole three quarters from the back. Continue reading The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 9 →

Arc 6.6: The Battle of Grand Lake

The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 8

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Then the man appeared. Wearing a black helmet with a transparent faceplate, the alien commander had thick features, somewhere between handsome and Neanderthal. Kayla wouldn’t have looked twice at him on the street.

Then he opened his mouth. His teeth were like a wolf’s—all points, ready to rip and tear.

She thought about how much it would suck to be his dentist, choking down a giggle while reprimanding herself in her head. What was she, ten?

The newscaster’s voice said, “The alien ship hovering over New York City broadcast this message moments ago.”

In a scratchy voice with an unidentifiable accent, the commander said, “You will give us the alien devices. They are not yours, and will only cause you trouble. Give them to us, and we will tell no one. Keep them from us, and we will burn your cities to the ground.”

His nostrils flared and he sniffed in a movement that reminded Kayla of Travis and Haley.

Continue reading The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 8 →