Caped (Book 1): The Burdens of Fate (5 page)

So now that the government has shown it wants
to do nothing but tie people down on cold steel tables and peer inside their
chest cavities, where does leave the average American?

Where does that leave... me?

Okay, if that wasn't enough of a hint for you
you're in trouble little lady. If I go into any more detail you risk looking
like I left you out in the rain, that or I barricade myself in my room another
night. That would sure make my parents happy as they try to
"reconnect" with their offspring.

Do my parents know? No. Would you even expect
them to? They care more about the noise I make and less about the reason I make
it. Jobs come first so they can pay for all the wonderful pleasures in life
they can afford, like our lovely family trip.

Huzzah! We're going to a place where Mother
Nature hates the people so much she literally tries to shake them off her back,
you think they'd get the message.

Anywho girly, our plane flies out Tuesday
morning, and so I'm going to try and act like a normal person for a good solid
day... Ha! Me, normal. Was there ever such a thing?

–
3/15
–

Laurie
Stahl
-
Journal Entry #1

Never did I imagine I could have anything worth
chronicling. During my seventy-three years walking this Earth very few unique
circumstances have presented themselves to me that I'd consider worth any
mention, and those that have were during a time of my life I had neither the
time nor patience to collect my thoughts.

Why then have I decided now, in what may be the
final months of my life, to put pen to paper and document my experiences?
Partially for myself and to document the degree to which my life has changed,
and avoid repeating costly mistakes; but primarily for my family, whom I love
dearly, as they will no doubt wonder and worry about my sudden change in
behavior. Once my time here has run its course my hope is that they come to
understand the reasons behind my actions and take comfort knowing that all was
well within me.

Three days ago when I met Edward Otep for the
first time the world was a drastically different place. I’d grown tired of the
monotony I’d trapped myself within, the crippling isolation that resulted from
the disintegration of my most comforting social circles, and irreversible
absence of the love of my life. I'd found what was to be my way out. And
moments after I impacted the pavement Edward Otep would impact my life in ways
that are stretching towards an increasingly uncertain future.
Edward
Otep
-

"Beware the Ides of March," they say,
and oh how true it is. Today the world awoke to a new undeniable reality, that
we are no longer equal. Sure it could be argued that at no time during the
whole of civilized human history have we ever truly been equal, there have
always been Pharaoh's and kings, great leaders, dictators, and even in the
societies beneath them we've been stratified socially and economically. But
through it all, on the physical level, we could always rely on a bloodied
dagger, a convenient fall, or a well-placed bullet through the skull to finish
any man. It is there that we are no longer equal, and it is from there that the
seeds of great fear and distrust have already begun to grow.

In such a violent world such evils will only be
magnified, we are right to worry and to be afraid.

It is for this reason I have made contact with
this select group of people. Without my intervention each one would have come
to prominence on their own. I have only, reluctantly, expedited the process in
hopes of bringing about a safer tomorrow.

Alvin
was a different beast altogether, there was
almost no way to avoid meeting with him face to face if he wanted. Not that I
had any hesitations, it's just that after our last encounter he left me feeling
a little protective of my privacy. Knowing you can't run nor hide from a
complete stranger isn't a thought that takes me to my happy place; and he'd
most likely taken a look at where I live, or found out shortly thereafter. So
in the end it was that simple reasoning that made the fact that he decided to
call all the more comforting.

I'm not sure if he was a particularly blunt
individual before his abilities kicked in but he definitely cut past the small
talk I tried to slide in. He was particularly interested in the list of goals I
wish to achieve, and given his accelerated brain functions, was asking
questions that even I hadn't fully thought through. Our conversation went on a
little over two hours, and unfortunately I was coerced to divulging more
information than I had originally intended. However, it was imperative that I
fully understand his position. Without him things are going to be extremely
difficult, and if working against us, undeniably impossible.

His closing statement left me with hope,
"I'll see you on the 18th." I moved to reply but the line was already
dead, that's when a small slip of paper fell into my lap. It was short and to
the point, "I'm still skeptical." And that's fine with me, I just
need for him to be there; I'm sure he'll have enough time to figure out the
logistics.

This may be my last entry before the events of
March 18th, there's still a butt load of work to be done in preparation for the
events that follow, and I've already spent too much time writing in this thing.
Perhaps it's just silly apprehension. Whatever it is, I no longer have time for
it.

Michael Serna
-

So I'm just going to come out and say it. Not
one person on this entire planet seems to know what on God's green earth is
going on with people; and lacking any hard scientific evidence to back up
current theories (only made worse by the White House's unwillingness to comment
on speculation), and the overly cautious words by President Yates, the tension
around the world, and more specifically, on American soil, is at an all-time
high.

To make a bad situation a hundred times worse,
in the premiere preemptive move of the century, the House and Senate have
called emergency meetings in hopes of drafting laws that will protect those
"unaffected." With the clear and sure to be ignored understanding
that no standing civil rights laws are to be violated. That's a bunch of
malarkey, so now you're calling me a threat? Them's fightin' words!

I'll be blunt, I don't trust them. Anytime
congress attempts to rush something through it ends up a big bloated mess and a
constitutional nightmare. Besides, why the rush?

Has Congress been given advanced notice of
information coming down the pipeline, and if so, why have they chosen to be so
secretive about it?

On a side note, stemming directly from
yesterday’s spike in reported cases of robbery, theft, and assault, the public
has taken to the streets in mainly peaceful protests against those effected,
and while we've arrived at no mass consensus as to exactly what is to be done
with this subgroup of the population, the fear that they, and I, have for our
general well-being is evident.

And although congress is scrambling about like
frantic children to create a popular bill, it appears the masses may actually
come to a conclusion first.

Early yesterday morning the website
AbilityRegistry.com went live, the creator, ordinary citizen Paul Fletcher said
that he created the site so that the average American could feel comfortable
knowing what type of abilities are out there. The servers for the site are
housed in Bahnhof's nuclear bomb-proof data center, in Sweden, located
deep inside the bowels of a mountain for maximum security, insuring the
personal data of those who access the site will not be leaked. But let’s be
honest, where there’s a will there’s a way.

 
Since
the launching of the site a total of twelve people have posted their abilities
which lead to the site founder releasing a public statement thanking them for
their contribution. While it's too early to tell if the site will ease or fuel
the fear of the ordinary American, if it grows in popularity, it may give
congress a reason to pass laws requiring similar measures to be taken. Here's
to hoping that doesn't come to pass, which given how backwards our government
seems to be acting, means that's exactly what it'll come to.

The only silver lining is how blatantly obvious
the news media is being at trying to put a positive spin on the developing
situation, yet most conversations just quickly devolved into outlandish claims
and unfounded paranoia, all this while the fact remains that the only solid
evidence most people have of our existence outside of hearsay and
finger-pointing are the Tokyo sighting, the bus incident in India, the sighting
in Washington, and the occasional prison escapes now "officially"
being reported on a global scale.

Those twelve comments on a website don't count,
for all I know they could be stupid sixteen year old brat getting his jollies
off. And yes, I did just write "getting his jollies off." I'm still
trying to come to terms with that myself, don't judge me.

What's got me worried is I have no idea where
this could be leading. There’re too many possibilities on the table and I'm not
sure the government is doing everything possible to keep me safe.

Matthew Krieg -

As a father of two children, just how am I
supposed to keep them safe? I went out and bought a gun shortly after my son
was born. It's in a spot only I know and the wife refuses to acknowledge the
thing. But now we're hearing in rumors and whispers, as well as seeing it on
the expressions of these talking heads paid handsomely to lie and keep us calm,
that even a gun isn't the great equalizer. We've all become the nameless and
disposable citizens in some topsy-turvy fantasy universe. What can I do?

I know it's wrong to wish death on anyone but
that's the only thing that'll make me feel safe again, to hope it's some type
of disease or cancer that kills them off one by one because no amount of laws
or lawyers, army or navy, will make me feel safe.

Benjamin Kelly -

Am I the only one who thinks it's amazing to
have people flying around? It'll sure add some spice to the monotonous
twenty-four hour news cycle; war, crime, politics, pointless celebrity news...
oh look a hurricane, let's go over to Jim to see rain blow sideways! Thank God
those days are over!

Let's see some flying men, and I sure as hell
can't wait for the strongman competitions, or the Olympics. Sure, drug testing
will be a bitch but it's a fine price for some quality entertainment! My only
regret is that I didn't come out on the lucky end.

–
3/16
–

Michael
Serna
-

If man were meant to fly he'd have been born
with wings, right? Well, I don't have wings but I'll be damned if I didn't just
piss on gravity. Starry skies are stunningly beautiful, especially when rubbing
shoulders with the clouds.

I had to slip out in the middle of the night,
and I'm sure Iris will have questions if she hasn't already begun to expect. I'd
already tried to float a little, an effortless feat, and then when I was
finally alone I found it just as easy to dance along the tree tops. Some may
call me cautious, and I'm sure it's true in certain situations, but I bolted
off as fast as I could push myself! The feeling was an indescribable rush!

I wish someone could have been there with me to
feel the wind slipping through my fingers and blowing through my hair. The
sound, oh what a great sound. The sound of the city from afar, the near-silent
hum of lights and life. The biting cold and the strong winds that continue
unimpeded though the open expanse of sky. The majesty of the stars above
putting to shame the sprinkled lights of the city below, soon replaced by the
suburbs and sparse streets lights, until I hit upon the darkness of the ocean,
vast and deep. I paused in awe, amazed that even from such height, among the
clouds and the planes, it still managed to make me feel so small.

So yeah, I could move myself. And I knew I
could move other objects too, but I needed to test to what degree.

Behold: The Atlantic.
The name itself commands attention. I flew until it encompassed my entire field
of vision. A crescent moon hanging above, softly reflecting off its surface as
I looked down through the sparse cloud cover.

Even at such heights the salty air still
managed to fill my lungs with every breath, never letting me forget. It was the
only place I could practice without prying eyes. Toying with increasingly
complex telekinetic barriers and constructs, freely twisting and shaping
gargantuan towers of water, the size of entire buildings, to my will. Moving
them along in the quiet darkness like living shadows above the water. Perhaps
not like a pro, but far better than I'd expected.

And once my curiosity had been satisfied, I
relaxed, hovering inches above the water, playfully testing the limits of my
abilities, and letting my mind drift along with the calm lapping of the waves
and until I caught the first hints of dawn.

I returned home to an empty house, with my cell
phone and a letter occupying the space on the bed reserved for Iris. My phone
had a text from Iris that read, "We need to talk, tomorrow," and a
note from an Edward Otep, "3/18 - Be A Hero. Don't just watch."