Mutation (7 page)

I was getting creamed.  They had clearly brought their A-game, and had had me on the ropes from the start.  Moreover, I hadn’t been able to lay a finger on any of them.  I’d been trained in how to fight multiple adversaries at once, but I’d never encountered anything like this before.  They were outmaneuvering me at every turn.  It was as if they were psychic…

As soon as the thought occurred to me, I knew that to be precisely what it was.  The way Estrella knew exactly when to teleport her team, their ability to follow me when
I
teleported, the precise timing of their phasing…they had a precognitive on their side.  (It also explained their peculiar emotional state, why it seemed like they were listening to someone.  Apparently they were.)

Precogs and clairvoyants often make for extremely difficult opponents.  There are few greater advantages than knowing exactly what your adversary will do.  Still, my grandfather had taught me a few tricks for getting the better of them.  However, it helped to know something about the precise nature of their powers.

Precognitive abilities could vary wildly.  Some could see a specific future; others could only see probabilities.  One might have control of their power to see what will happen; another might not and simply live with visions coming to them at random times.  Regardless, precogs typically came in one of two flavors:  their ability to see the future was usually either long-and-narrow, or short-and-broad.

With respect to the former, precogs in that category could see far into the future, but only with respect to limited subjects - e.g., they could see what the future held regarding a particular person, event, and so on, but not for anyone or anything else.  For example, a precog might be able to tell you if your favorite sports team will make it to the championship game that’s scheduled six months from now, but they can’t tell you how any other sports franchise will fare.  Basically, they had tunnel vision to a certain extent

In the short-and-broad category, precogs could see what would occur with respect to just about any person, event, location, etc., but only within a very limited time frame.  They might be able to see ten minutes into the future, or maybe just ten seconds.

Outside the Mustang, Estrella and her team stalked through the garage in silence.  Having switched my vision over to infrared, I saw them as crimson and scarlet forms, methodically hunting for prey they knew to be hiding somewhere nearby.  They were obviously looking for me, but it seemed that their precog was having trouble pinning me down at the moment. 
Score one for invisibility!

Having bought myself a little time, the obvious question now was, what were the particular facets of this precog’s ability?  I needed to find out, and that meant finding the precog in question.  They could be anywhere, but odds were they were close; proximity to the action seemed to increase a precog’s odds of accurately predicting what would occur.  I reached out with my empathic ability, casting a wide net, uncertain of what I was looking for.

I ignored the adrenaline-laced sensations from Estrella and her cohorts.  Likewise with the mall patrons, many of whom were feeling fright and panic - and in some cases hysteria.  I went further, still looking for…I’m not sure what, just something out of the ordinary.

I’d never tried to read this far out before, and I was getting ready to withdraw when I felt it.  It was an odd sensation - something akin to fervent excitement, but more like the emotional equivalent of a hyperactive child trying to get a parent’s attention:  “Look at me!  Look at me!  Look at me!  Look at me!”

It originated from the other side of the mall - a surface parking lot near the back that saw limited use since the parking garage had been built.  Telepathically, I peeked inside the mind of the person who was sending the emotional broadcast.

said a mental voice that I pegged as belonging to a child - a girl.

I was a little confused.  I had tried to tiptoe into her mind, but had obviously been heard.

never
figure it out - and I can see the future!>

she stated indignantly. 

you
to help
me
.  I’m Rudi, by the way.> At that moment, I got an image of her as well - a young girl with an olive complexion, green eyes, and curly brown hair.

This was interesting; I hadn’t expected the precog to be on my side. 

I felt a kind of mental nudging and peeked out of the Mustang’s window.  A group of about a half-dozen mall cops had shown up and had their weapons drawn on Estrella’s team.  The security guards were clearly outmatched, but kudos to them for trying to do their job.  It also occurred to me that, with my pursuers preoccupied, this would be a good time to put some distance between me and them, and I shared that with Rudi.

she said. 

I certainly had to acknowledge that teleporting hadn’t been a big help to me thus far.  That being the case, I hesitated only a moment before acquiescing.

I noted, indicating the security guards. 

I cut her off. 

I heard her laugh, mentally, at the nickname I’d given him.  At the same time, I heard a hollow sound - like a weird echo - in the background of her thoughts. 

She giggled.

I frowned, not liking what I’d learned at all.  Collectively, Estrella’s team mimicked a bunch of my own powers, meaning they were probably assembled specifically to deal with me.  Moreover, they had a precog on their side, Rudi, who – based on her last response – had obviously foreseen my conversation with Gray.  That brought up the subject of her abilities.

I said. 

Not far away, an obviously nervous mall cop – probably the head of security – was engaged in a heated war of words with Estrella.  I continued my conversation with Rudi while keeping an eye on them. 

She was silent for a few seconds. 

There was the weird echo in her head again, and then she resumed talking. 

Interesting.  While I thought about it, the odd echo in her mind sounded again.  This time, I listened closely - and almost jumped out my skin.

I shouted.  talking
!  You’re still helping them find me?>

There was a matter-of-fact tone to her voice, as if she’d be doing anything else.

Mentally she rolled her eyes.

them
when you claim you want to help
me
?>

I said, with barely any hesitation. 

As I watched, Estrella and her team had apparently grown weary of talking.  They went into motion, fully engaging the security guards. 

Understandably, I was confused. 

The mall security guards were down.  I needed to come up with something fast.  The echo sounded in Rudi’s mind.  To be so young, she was obviously immensely talented to not only be able to see the future, but to also carry on a mental conversation that was different that the verbal one she was having.  An idea sprang into my head.

Rudi sounded desperate. 

Of course - the IR goggles they were wearing.  They knew I was still there but couldn’t see me, so they were going to try to locate me by body heat.  I almost laughed out loud (obviously they didn’t know
everything
about me), then lowered my core body temperature before turning back to the thought I’d just had.

I stated. 

That was all I needed to know.  I waited a few seconds, then became visible, teleported, and started counting.

One thousand one…

I popped into existence near the busted water pipe – just far enough away to avoid getting wet.  Telekinetically, I ripped about a three-foot section of it loose and grabbed it.  The weight felt good in my hand.

One thousand two
…

Rudi could only see about seven seconds into the future.  Since I was visible now, she could undoubtedly see me and was telling Estrella’s team (whom I could see spread out across this level of the garage) where to find me.  My goal now was to overload her with information – move so fast that she couldn’t convey it quickly enough.

One thousand three
…

I teleported, popping up behind Estrella.  I swung with the pipe at the back of her head.

One thousand four
…

The pipe passed harmlessly through her; she’d been phased.  I teleported–

One thousand five
…

–and popped up by Blitz.  I shifted into super speed, swinging the pipe so fast that it made a humming noise in the air.  But Blitz was already zipping away, and was safely out of harm’s way by the time the pipe passed through where he had been.