Twinepathy (Part 36): Finch And Anvil

Hullo, everyone! For those of you who were interested in Finch… you’ll get a better look at him in this part! And… we get to meet one of my FAVORITEST characters. *rubs hands gleefully* I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on them… oh, and look out for a special post some time this week with big news… Speaking of news, if you’re new, check out Part One.

The Finch looks at us and gives us a polite nod. He looks disinterested, but I can see the truth in his eyes – pain. I feel a pang for him. Maddie lost just eight, nine, ten years… how old is she?… due to the amnesia, but he lost so much more, probably over twenty years. I’m sure it’s changed him, hurt him. And he might never get that back. Maddie might not get her years back, either, and then what of her relationship with Keller? They were clearly close before, and yet I’ve seen Keller’s pain, too. And what of The Finch’s siblings, parents, family… girlfriend? “Nice to meet you,” he says, his voice flat.

Jen motions to some chairs that I know weren’t here the last time. They must have been brought in just for this occasion. We all sit down, and I notice Keller watching Maddie, her expression pained. “Now all we need is Anvil,” Jen says.

Blaze noticeably perks up at that. “Really? I get to meet the mysterious, elusive, efficient Anvil?”

Jen gives him a withering glare. “Don’t start, Blaze.”

Blaze leans forward, interest sparking in his eyes. “But I haven’t even seen this guy, Data! I haven’t! He’s been here for how long?”

“Three years,” Jen says tiredly.

“Exactly!” Blaze waves a hand in the air. “And I haven’t seen him once. Neither have any of the other agents I’ve talked to.”

“Blaze.” Jen’s voice is tight with warning.

“I just don’t get why this guy’s so special and secret,” Blaze continues, ignoring Jen. “I mean, it’s not like his powers are that different from other manipulators…”

“Hello, Anvil. Have a seat,” Jen says politely, tossing Blaze something between a glare and a smirk.

We all turn. Behind us stands a tall guy, probably close to Jen’s age, his posture forced casual and his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket. I get the feeling he’s uncomfortable, but his face is a mask, not giving anything away. His eyes, though, have a spark of… danger. It makes me glad that Keller and Jen are here, in spite of Keller’s hostility and Jen’s secrets.

“I’ll stand,” he says, his voice quiet but strong.

This is probably the first time I’ve ever seen Blaze embarrassed, but he definitely is. Jen nods at Anvil. “All right.”

“That’s definitely him,” Keller speaks up, eyeing Anvil suspiciously.

“I assumed so,” Jen says with a small smile. “Ca… Anvil, why don’t you go ahead and report on that mini-assignment I gave you last week, so everyone here can know what happened?”

Anvil gives us all a suspicious once-over. “Trav dropped me off, and I headed over to the house. I noticed I was being followed. It was her,” he adds as an afterthought, nodding at Maddie. “She didn’t seem like much of a threat, so I stopped her and asked her to deliver the ‘package’. I watched her go up to the house and then slipped off to a safe observation point and saw her,” he motions toward me, “take it inside, so I figured the girl had dropped it there…”

“You?!” Blaze exclaims incredulously. “You’re the one who messed this up?”

Anvil‘s eye’s flash, but a warning look from Jen is enough to subdue both of them, at least temporarily. “No one messed anything up. In fact, this has turned out better than I could’ve hoped, except for Maddie.” Jen gives Maddie a sympathetic look and receives a shy look in return. She turns to Keller. “Does this satisfy you?”

Keller crosses her arms. “It explains how L… Maddie ended up where she is, but it still doesn’t convince me that you’re not responsible for her amnesia.”

Twinepathy (Part 32): A Bit Of Explanation

Hullo, everyone! Can you believe I forgot to post yesterday? Well… I did. 🙂 Here is the part that should have been posted yesterday! If you’re new, check out part one.

“About two weeks ago, I started noticing a lot more people suffering from amnesia than usual,” Keller begins. “As a telepath, that made me curious. I managed to sneak in and investigate a couple of patients – I have a couple friends at one of the hospitals. Anyway, after reading their records and getting into their heads, I was able to figure out a bit of what had happened, and some of the pattern that was occurring. I figured out that instead of their memories being erased or something else, their memories had been stolen.”

“Stolen?” Jen looks genuinely surprised. I haven’t seen her more than mildly surprised at anything. Go figure.

Keller nods. “Someone has been stealing people’s memories.”

“A serial memory stealer,” Blaze mumbles, grinning to himself.

“Do you know why?” Jen asks.

“No.” Keller looks at Maddie – or Lila, I guess. “I haven’t figured out who, either. I thought it was someone associated with IDIA, which is why I asked Lila to trail someone that I knew was a super, and was pretty sure was with IDIA.” She looks at the floor. “Obviously it didn’t turn out well. I couldn’t find her, and I couldn’t reach her mind.”

“Why would you send your little sister out into a dangerous situation like that?” I ask, maybe a little too harshly.

Keller looks at me, and I see the pain in her eyes. “If I could do it all over again, I wouldn’t have made her go. But it was simple, and I knew she could handle herself, and I didn’t think that anything would happen. I couldn’t follow him myself, since I’m too conspicuous.” She points at her red hair.

That makes more sense than I wish to admit, so I don’t say anything. “What about the incident in Brooklyn’s head?” Jen asks.

Keller looks over at Jen, contemplating her. “You’re a telepath, aren’t you? But something else, too, because I can’t get in your head.”

Jen tilts her head, still looking at Keller, intrigued. I feel like there’s an invisible battle of tension going on between them. Who’s smarter, more experienced, better? “I’ve known plenty of telepaths who can shield their minds,” Jen comments.

Keller’s eyes narrow. “Not like this, without any effort.”

“No one’s ever been able to get into my head,” Jen says, lifting an eyebrow slightly. “Not even my old trainer. And if she couldn’t do it, then no one can.”

Keller thinks on that for a second. “But I gather that you are some form of a telepath,” she says slowly. “So maybe you’ll understand what I say. Everyone seems to have a special mental ‘signature’ type thing, like a fingerprint or whatever. For me, I can feel it, not see it or anything. When I was in each of the amnesia victims’ heads, I could sense a common air, the person’s mental fingerprint—”

“Mindprint,” Jen supplies.

Keller gives her a surprised look. “Sure, that sounds good. Anyway, after I was able to find the common mindprint in all of their heads, I kind of…” She pauses, searching for words. “I was able to track it back to the source, in a way. It’s shielded, but the person has to reach past their shields to get into heads to steal memories. I stayed on guard, searching for the mindprint. It gave me something to do other than worry about Lila.” Keller looks down at her hands. “Anyway, I traced the mindprint to – Brooklyn, right? – to Brooklyn’s head, and was able to keep him from stealing her memories.”

Jen nods. “Thank you for that. We definitely have some more questions to go over, though.”

Blaze clears his throat. “I have an idea for her new code name.” He motions towards Maddie.

Jen rolls her eyes. “And?”

He grins. “She can be Maddie.”

Twinepathy (Part 26): A Creeping Suspicion

Hullo, everyone! Ready for another Monday? It feels like I just posted a part… oh, wait, I did! I posted Part 25 on Saturday, so if you missed that, you should go read it, and if you’re new, you should start at the beginning. Enjoy!

Ms. Fabel’s jaw drops. “What…” But she collects herself quicker than anybody I’ve ever seen and gets a firm grip on my arm, glaring at me with a menacing expression. “You’re from that IDIA thing, aren’t you? That Data person already knows everything, so why did she send you?”

My first thought is Denver. But we’re standing in a position that prevents him from seeing my arm. I glance back frantically, but he’s still digging through the car. He must have left his phone at home if he can’t find it. Denver, please… Do I scream? Do I send a panic message to Brooklyn?

Her voice softens a little. “I don’t want to hurt you. I just want to know why you people are invading my life… my privacy. And my friend’s, too. We haven’t done anything wrong. We don’t deserve this.”

I open my mouth, then close it. I sigh. “My sister was knocked unconscious by two people fighting in her brain. One of which was you. But I’m sure you remember that.” I look her in the eye.

Ms. Fabel looks surprised. “Me?” She looks at me and realizes I’m serious. “I’m not a telepath,” she says firmly, and I get the creeping suspicion that she’s telling the truth.

I frown. “But…”

She sighs. “It wasn’t me. I’m not sure what happened, but I wasn’t a part of it. That Data girl knows everything. Why don’t you ask her?”

“Why can’t you tell me yourself?” I counter. The last thing I want to do is go to Jen and ask for information. That would ruin everything, and besides, I’d probably have to admit that I’d been investigating on my own. And I don’t want that to happen.

“I can’t,” she insists. “I’m sworn to secrecy, and it would be too dangerous. I’d never forgive myself if something happened…” She looks past me. “So is he really your brother?”

I turn and see Denver heading back towards us, no phone. I face her. “He is, and he also knows nothing about all of this. Please don’t say anything.” Denver’s within earshot now, and I can only pray she doesn’t say anything.

Denver holds up his empty hands. “No phone. Guess I must have left it at home in the rush to get out the door.” He gives me a pointed look. “I’m sorry we took up so much of your time.”

Ms. Fabel waves a hand in the air. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll let you know if I find any information. I hope you find the girl’s family.”

“Thank you,” I tell her, my eyes showing her there’s a double meaning to my words. I pull out a slip of paper and write my cell phone number down on it. “You can call me if you hear anything about it.”

“It was nice meeting you, Ms. Fabel,” Denver says, offering her his hand.

She shakes it. “Call me Genesis.” She tilts her head, listening. “It’s too quiet. I’d better go.”

I nod and Denver and I turn to leave. “Have a great day,” I call over my shoulder.

The door closes, and Denver and I head to the car. “That was unsuccessful,” he says, sighing.

I slide into the seat and look out the window. Maybe it was unsuccessful on the Maddie front – like I knew it would be – but it seems to be a little bit of progress on the Brooklyn front. Now I’ve just got to see who this Keller person is.

 

Twinepathy (Part 25): Stupid Me

Hullo, everyone! I’ve been wanting to post an extra part for a while now, but it always seems to slip my mind. Not today!!! Feel free to slap Albany in the comments below. You’re welcome. New? Check out Part One.

“Albany!” Denver scolds me, grabbing my arm. “I’m so sorry,” he apologizes to Ms. Fabel. “I’m not sure what’s gotten into her. We should go.”

I pull away from him. “No. Ms. Fabel, we really need to talk to you. About our friend,” I add hastily. I pause, making myself get emotional. “She’s about ten years old, and we’re trying to find her family.”

Ms. Fabel pauses, confused. I’m not sure what kind of friend she thought we were talking about, but she certainly didn’t think it was a little girl. But still she stands guardedly in the doorway. “What’s her name?” she asks.

“Maddie,” Denver says, relaxing a little now.

I jump in. “Actually, we don’t know her name. We’ve just been calling her Maddie. She has amnesia.”

Her eyes narrow again at the mention of amnesia. I forgot that Jen’s probably talked to her. Amnesia would be a touchy subject after that, a warning signal. “And what does that have to do with me?”

I weave an elaborate story about looking for people in nearby towns, and how she seemed like a likely person. “I have a list of other possible people,” I lie. “But you seemed like the most likely, and I couldn’t wait to ask you about her. I thought you might know her, or have lost her, maybe.”

Ms. Fabel shakes her head. “I’m sorry, I don’t.” But I can tell she’s just trying to get rid of us. “I’ll let you know if I hear anything, though.” She reaches for the door again.

“Wait.” I turn to Denver. “Do you have a picture on your phone that you could show her?”

He reaches for his pocket. “Oh, my phone’s in the car. Let me go get it.” He turns and hurries over to the car. I know for a fact he hasn’t taken a picture of Maddie, but this is my chance. He probably didn’t realize that. He’s so scatterbrained sometimes, just like Ezra. I immediately push her out of my brain.

I offer my hand to Ms. Fabel. “You are Genesis Fabel, correct? I’d feel really bad if you weren’t.”

She nods, setting the toddler down and reaching for my hand. “I am.”

The instant our hands connect, I dive into her brain. I’ve learned from Jen that some telepaths can guard their brains – at least, I assume that’s what Jen does – but getting into Ms. Fabel’s brain is as easy as getting into Denver’s head. The first thought that surfaces (I always refer to that as the “prominent thought,” because it’s what the person’s thinking the most about at that moment) is “I need to tell Keller.”

Ms. Fabel lets go of my hand too soon, so I’m left blinking and looking at her. “Who’s Keller?” I ask.

Stupid me.

Twinepathy (Part 21): WHAT?!?!

Hullo, everyone! Another part for you on this wonderful Monday, and I remembered! Last time we found out that Ezra’s an IDIA agent… So let’s see what’s going on. If you missed the Random Twinepathy Wednesday, check it out, and read Part One if you’re new!

The first word out of my mouth is akin to a screechy, indistinguishable “WHAT?!?!”

Ezra looks at me with huge eyes, and both Jen and Blaze look confused and mildly surprised. Brooklyn rolls over enough to get a good look at Ezra, and her eyes get as big as the older girl’s, but she manages a squeak.

“But – what are you – you guys are…” Ezra’s so shocked that she can’t even get out a coherent sentence.

“You’re… a superhero?” I half-screech.

“You know each other,” Jen observes calmly.

“Yes, of course we know her! She’s dating our brother!” I exclaim.

Calm. If anyone should be freaking out right now, it should be Brooklyn, and here she is, telling me to be calm. And Ezra’s so confused that she’s speechless.

Jen moves over next to Ezra. “We can talk about this later. Right now, Ezra, we need you to hack into the CIA database.”

Ezra goes over to the computer self-consciously. She knows she has an audience. Jen moves next to her and gives her specific instructions on how far in and where in the database she wants her to go. Ezra starts hacking away, hesitantly at first, but she speeds up as she get in the zone.

“There,” she says, leaning back five minutes later. Jen smiles and nods towards a chair for Ezra as she sits down at the computer.

I move over to stand behind Jen as she clicks through pictures. “The CIA has a lot of records on a lot of major and minor criminals, and some ‘people of interest’ who haven’t actually committed any crimes. Some of those end up being enhanced.”

“So you’re hoping one of the people from her brain will be on their database?” I ask.

Jen nods. “Exactly.” She continues flipping through the pictures, and I notice that most of the pictures are of young-ish women. She pauses on a picture of a girl with dark blond hair. “That’s her,” Jen says immediately. She clicks on the picture, which brings up the information. Name: Genesis Fabel; Age: 20; Location… I quickly file away the information in my head as Jen minimizes the window and stands up.

“Well, I guess you’re wanting to chat now,” she says, pulling her chair around her desk so that we’re in a sort of circle. A very misshapen circle. “Yes, Ezra is enhanced, and Ezra, yes, the twins are enhanced as well. Does that cover everything?”

I glare at her – surprising myself; I didn’t think that I was that brave – and turn to Ezra. “So… what do you do?”

Ezra looks at Jen like she’s asking for permission. She receives a nod from Jen and turns back to me. “I can manipulate electricity.”

“Along with being a wonderful hacker,” Jen adds. “She comes in handy when we need our computers fixed, since I can’t do it.” She looks down at her hands.

“What about you two?” Ezra asks. She looks towards Brooklyn and spots Maddie. “And her! She was at your house last night!”

I look over at Maddie. “Erm. Yes, she was. Brooklyn and I are… telepaths. Sort of. In a very limited way.”

Ezra’s eyes widen a little. “Telepaths? That… I think that explains a lot.” She turns to Jen. “But what’s going on? Why are they here? If I’m allowed to know.” Is it just me, or is there a bit of protectiveness in her voice? I must be imagining it.

Jen leans forward. “It seems we’ve run into a bit of a mystery, and they’ve been dragged into it.” She looks at me. “But you and Brooklyn’s part in this is over now. Blaze will take you two and Maddie home. Your school’s probably closed or swarming with police now.”

“Wait,” I say, frowning. “We’re… done? You’re just going to make us go home?”

Jen nods. “Until we need you again. There’s not much else you can do.”

I open my mouth to protest, but then close it and nod. If I comply, Jen’ll be less suspicious and won’t worry about me going off on my own. Because I will. I’m not letting this drop. Not until I know who did this.

Next Part –>

Twinepathy (Part 20): Hacking Skills

Hullo, everyone! Happy Monday, the first one of 2016! A very happy, wonderful post today, so I’ll let you get to it! 😉 Enjoy, friends, and if you’re new, check out the first part here.

Two people? Fighting? In my sister’s head? Jen leans forward, looking very interested, and places her hand on Brooklyn’s arm. I get the weird feeling that she’s looking at something, but not something visible. If that makes any sense at all.

Jen pulls away and heads over to her desk. She begins typing away on her computer. “What are you doing?” I ask.

“I just looked at Brooklyn’s memories of what happened. Apparently two telepaths were fighting in her brain. That’s what made Brooklyn scream, and why she’s in so much pain. She was, essentially, their mental battlefield. One of them had almost a physical presence in Brooklyn’s brain and left enough of an image, however vague, that I could probably recognize—” She growls, glaring at her computer. “If only I could hack into the CIA database. Where’s Com when I need him?”

“Too bad Denver’s not here,” I half-joke. I’m so relieved that Brooklyn doesn’t have amnesia, but I feel a growing anger at whoever did this to her.

Jen sighs. “Blaze, can you get Volt? We need her hacking skills.” Blaze gives her a short nod and then disappears.

“How are you feeling?” I ask Brooklyn.

She gives me a half-hearted smile. “You remember when you dared me to climb the neighbor’s tree and I fell and had to get half a dozen stitches?” I nod, grimacing. I cried after that for ages because it was my fault, even though Brooklyn didn’t blame me. “It’s about ten times worse than that,” she finishes. I wince.

Jen comes over to us. “What about your telepathic connection?” she asks.

I completely forgot about that! I feel for it in my head and slump in relief when I realize that our connection is back.

“That’s right,” Brooklyn says, remembering. “When I felt someone in my head, I broke off the connection as best I could. I remembered how Jen got to me through you, and I didn’t want us both to end up with amnesia.”

Jen nods. “Good thinking. It’s a good thing the connection wasn’t lost forever.”

Brooklyn’s face pales at the thought. We keep the connection a secret and try to use it as little as possible, but it’s still our special connection. It would be terrible for us to lose it. “I think your connection must be pretty strong if it can withstand being disconnected like you did,” Jen says. She heads back over to her desk.

Suddenly, Blaze appears, alone. “She’s in the middle of something really important. What do I tell her?”

Jen groans. “Tell her she gets to hack into the CIA’s system. She won’t be able to pass that up.”

Blaze grins. “Of course.” He disappears, and Jen glares at the computer again.

Maddie scoots over next to Brooklyn, who smiles as soon as she spots the little girl. “Do you need anything?” Maddie asks, her voice soft.

Brooklyn shakes her head. “Were you having fun with J – Data?”

Maddie nods. “She already taught me a lot. And she’s going to get someone named Push to help me work on my powers.”

Push. Appropriate, I guess, if the person has telekinesis-whatever like Maddie does. I really need to check and see if that’s actually what it’s called.

“What’s taking so long?” Jen growls impatiently. “This is import… Ah, there you are! Finally!”

I turn around, curious about the person who earned the code name Volt. My jaw drops. Same height, same awkward expression, same purple hair…

Volt is none other than Denver’s genius girlfriend, Ezra.

Next Part –>

Twinepathy (Part 19): Two People In My Head

Hullo, everyone! I know, it’s a Wednesday, and usually if I post an extra part, I do it on Friday or Saturday. But while I wanted to do an extra post this week, I wouldn’t be able to post again until Monday… unless I did it today. So I present you with an extra part, my friends! New? Check out Part One.

The darkness slowly clears, leaving pain as I press my hands to my eyes. “Sorry about that,” Blaze’s voice says from next to me. “I didn’t have time to adjust the light waves so they wouldn’t hit your eyes.”

I blink as my vision returns, leaving me with just a massive headache. I’m shocked to see that we’re in the middle of IDIA headquarters. Blaze is next to me and Brooklyn’s on the ground next to us. “Data!” Blaze yells, kneeling down and scooping Brooklyn up. He carries her towards Jen’s office, and I follow in a daze.

Jen comes out as we approach, her eyes taking in the situation. Immediately she grows serious and ducks back in, motioning for us to follow. I vaguely see Maddie peeking out, her eyes widening when she sees Brooklyn. Blaze lays her down on a couch that Jen pulls out of who knows where. Or maybe it was there before and I just didn’t notice it. I kneel down next to the couch.

“What happened, Jazz?” Jen asks gently.

It takes me a second to realize she’s talking to me. Code names are going to be very hard to get used to. I shrug helplessly. “I-I don’t know. I felt our connection snap, and then she screamed. When I got to her, she was already unconscious.”

Jen places a gentle hand on my arm, and I look at her, confused. A few seconds later she removes her hand, nodding in satisfaction.

“Do you…” My voice cracks. “Do you think she got amnesia, too?”

Jen frowns. “Maybe. This is different, though. So far, everyone’s just passed out, without any warning. Nobody’s screamed or anything. And you said you felt your connection snap…” She trails off, lost in thought. Then she snaps back. “Blaze, go grab some smelling salts or a wet towel.”

Blaze immediately disappears, and Maddie comes over to me, a solemn look on her face. “Will Brooklyn be okay?”

I take her hand and squeeze it. “I hope so, Maddie.”

“Squirt,” Jen says with a huff of annoyance.

“Squirt?” I look over at her, remembering the note from Blaze. “Who’s that?”

“Maddie,” Jen explains. “That’s the code name Blaze came up with for her.” She rolls her eyes. “We’ll work on it.”

Blaze reappears with two wet towels and some smelling salts. He hands them to Jen and then hands me a small bottle of ibuprofen. “I thought that might help your headache,” he says apologetically.

“Why did you do that light thing, anyway?” I ask grumpily, shifting closer to Brooklyn.

“It’ll help people forget about us, and confuse them,” Blaze explains. “And it also disguised our exit.”

Jen waves the smelling salts under Brooklyn’s nose. A few seconds later, her eyes open and focus on my face.

“Albany?” she croaks.

I squeeze her hand and laugh in relief. “You remember! No amnesia, oh, thank goodness.”

She tries to sit up, but falls back, exhausted. “What… happened?”

“We’re not sure,” I tell her. “You passed out at school. Do you remember?”

She closes her eyes, concentrating. Blaze appears next to me and offers Brooklyn a glass of water. Her eyes open and she accepts it. “I…” She stops and gulps down a little water. She turns to me, brow wrinkled in pain and concentration. “There were… two people. In my head… fighting.”

What? Who could be in her head? What’s going on, anyway? At least she doesn’t have amnesia…

Next Part –>

Twinepathy (Part 18): Through A Crowd

Hullo, everyone! Did you know it was Monday? I didn’t know it was Monday. Thank goodness for my sister posting her Music Monday post! Otherwise, I would have left you guys hanging miserably after that last part until I realized I missed it… But never fear, the part is here! If you’re new, check out part one here.

“BROOKLYN!!!”

My scream echoes down the hallway as my sister’s scream fades. I take off down the hallway, panic overtaking my thoughts. It’s hard to know which directions her scream came from. But I know I went in the right direction when I see a huge crowd of people.

“MOVE!” I scream again. Heads lift and the crowd parts, because I’m running and not stopping, and no one wants to get hurt. A senior guy, I think he’s a football player, grabs me and forces me to a stop, but I struggle. “Let go!” I use a martial arts move – one I’ve never used on a real person before – on him, and he drops me instantly. Nothing’s keeping me from my sister. I slide to a stop next to Brooklyn’s unconscious form, sprawled on the cold hard ground of the high school hallway.

“Brooklyn, Brookie, it’s me,” I murmur, stroking her hair. Her frozen expression is terrified and furious at the same time. What happened? I grab for her hand, but there’s something in it. Teachers are trying to disperse the crowd and get through. I peel her clenched fingers away from the object. It’s the mini volleyball. It looks like she already pressed the button, but I frantically press it several times before slipping it in my pocket.

A teacher finally makes it through. “Move back!” he orders the other students in a deep voice, working crowd control. I’m dazed, but I’m pretty sure he’s the gym teacher’s assistant. “Does anyone know what happened?”

There’s a clamor of voices, all trying to explain at the same time. I spot someone sauntering casually out of a nearby hallway, but he freezes as he takes in the scene. Then Blaze is shoving his way through the crowd and kneeling next to me.

“What happened?” he says, his face worried as he looks down at Brooklyn.

“I. Don’t. Know.” I say through clenched teeth. Not angry – well, kind of angry – but mostly trying not to cry and to hold in my fear. The school nurse, a pretty, young lady, kneels next to Brooklyn. She feels her pulse, then calls for a wet paper towel.

Blaze grabs my arm. “We need to get her to Data,” he says, quiet and firm.

The nurse looks over at me. “You’re family, correct?” She then gets a look on her face that says she just asked a dumb question. “Can you call her parents? We’ll only call 911 if she doesn’t regain consciousness soon.”

I glance over at Blaze, then reach towards my phone. His eyes get big, but for some reason I think he’s faking it, as he reaches for my arm. “Wait! Stop!” My hand touches my phone, and a burst of white, blinding light fills the entire hallway, with everyone’s screams echoing, then fading to darkness.

What an ending… at least it’s nowhere near as bad as the last one, right? Right? 😉 What think you?

Next Part –>

Twinepathy (Part 17): Brooklyn!

Hullo, everyone! Merry Christmas! A day early, I know, but I’m not sure if I’ll have time to post tomorrow… and let’s be honest, I couldn’t wait. I have nothing else to say except… I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Except I’m not! 😉 Oh, and if you’re new, check out the first part here.

My first two classes aren’t good, but not as bad as I had thought. Brooklyn’s in one of those classes, so she was able to use her emotion manipulation to make the teacher go easier on both of us. I think that’s the first time she’s ever used it to our advantage in school. She always insists that using our gifts is like cheating. That’s why I’m not a straight-A student. If I could use my powers, I could easily read the answers straight out of a genius kid’s head, or even out of the teacher’s.

But Brooklyn’s not in my second class. That leaves me to fend for myself with one of my not-favorite teachers. Oh joy. I make it through – barely – with extra homework and a lower grade. I open my locker, feeling like this is going to be a looooong day.

To my surprise, my books and homework are right there.

I stare. How… I look around for Brooklyn, but while her locker’s right next to mine, she hasn’t come over yet. She’s probably talking to one of her friends, and since she doesn’t think her homework’s here, she might not even come over. Then I notice a note stuck to the side of my locker.

Squirt realized you might need this stuff, so Data sent me to retrieve it and put it in your locker. Yeah, she gave me the combination. Ha. Enjoy. –Blaze

I slump against my locker in relief. One less thing to worry about. If Blaze were here, I would hug him. Or Data. But who’s Squirt? What does that person do, squirt water out of their eyes like an iguana? I’m not sure I even want to know.

I get out my homework for my next class and slam my locker door shut, scanning the hallway for Brooklyn. I should find her and tell her that her homework and books are here. Surely she wouldn’t mind me breaking into a conversation with her and the popular kids. Or would she rather I broke her rule about “absolutely no telepathy at school”? I’ll see if I can find her first.

I bump through the crowd, looking around for Brooklyn. A couple people give me frigid glares as I make my way past them. I haven’t been very popular since I made it on the cheerleading squad on accident. People don’t appreciate my sarcasm or disregard for their favorite topics: boys, makeup, the newest cute TV star…

I could probably find people like me if I wanted, but… I don’t really want to. I prefer to be a loner.

I run into someone. “Where are you going in such a hurry?” Kelsey asks. She’s in my history class, and she’s on the cheerleading squad. She’s usually pretty nice to me, especially since Brooklyn and I helped her ace the last history exam.

“I’m trying to find Brooklyn. Have you seen here?” She sometimes hangs out in my sister’s crowd, when she feels like it.

Kelsey shakes her head. “Nope, I haven’t seen her today. Sorry.”

“That’s fine,” I reply. The bell rings, and I look around frantically. I’m nowhere near my next class, so I take off in the right direction as fast as I can. It’s hard for me to think and dodge people at the same time, but I manage to form a telepathic message for Brooklyn in my head.

Then something pops.

I’m not sure exactly what I do – if I stop in the middle of the hallway or if I keep running blindly. But something in my brain just… disappears. Gone. Something’s missing. I grope around frantically, and—

It’s my connection with Brooklyn. I whirl in a circle, looking frantically for her. “Brooklyn!” I yell, ignored by most, glared at by others.

A scream, familiar, echoes down the hall, and everyone stops.

Brooklyn.

Next Part –>

Twinepathy (Part 9): Lava Java Coffee Shop

Hullo, everyone! Excited for the next part? It’s a nice long one, too! Today we get some answers, and we get to know Blaze and Data better. Yay! Like the new banner? If you missed the cover reveal, you can check it out here, and if you’re new, you can find the first part here. Enjoy!

The Lava Java coffee shop is always busy, even when it seems like no one should be there. Today is no exception. Data leads us to a corner booth that’s mostly secluded. We all slide in, but she heads over to the counter and orders. Minutes later, our coffee comes out, fresh. She hands Brooklyn and me our favorites, and she gives Maddie an ice water. How in the world does she know that Brooklyn only drinks fat-free lattes, and I love peppermint hot chocolate? She hands Blaze something that just looks like a ton of caffeine and sugar, and she sits down next to him, in a spot where she can see everything that’s going on in the coffee shop.

“We definitely owe you an explanation,” Data begins, stirring her iced mocha. “You see, I’m the head of a top-secret superhero organization. The details are complicated, but we’ll get to that later. My power is complicated, too, but to put it simply, I’m a mind reader that works through physical contact.”

Blaze chokes on his drink and looks at us. “Trust me, it’s way more complicated than that, and way bigger.”

Data gives him a look, and he backs off. “I brushed against you, Albany, two days ago, when I was on a jog. Because of your connection to your sister, I was able to read both of you. I couldn’t turn around and talk to you then, but—”

“Are you saying you know everything about us?” I interrupt, abandoning my peppermint goodness.

She nods. “Pretty much.” Brooklyn and I exchange glances. “Everything from before I touched you, that is, not since,” she amends, glancing at Maddie. “Anyway, part of my job is to catalogue superheroes and give them a way to contact us in case of emergency. That’s what the volleyball with the button was for. I knew about Brooklyn’s little volleyball and decided this would be a good hidden contact device. I sent someone to give it to you.” She takes a sip of her iced mocha.

“Who?” Blaze asks. “Who made this royal mess?”

Data gives him a fierce glare. “That is confidential information.”

“Why?” Blaze taps his fingers on the table. “Because you know that I’ll harp on them when I get back?”

“No. You don’t even know this person,” Data says, giving him an angry look before turning back to us. “Obviously, something went wrong, and they simply left it on your porch with no explanation.”

I frown. “So you’re trying to recruit us to work for your top-secret superhero thingy?”

She smiles. “Pretty much.”

“Then we’ll need more details,” Brooklyn hints. Good for her, actually speaking up.

“And since you know our real names, I think it’s only fair that you tell us your real name,” I put in.

Data focuses on me, and I squirm. Usually I can handle a stare, but her stare… she already knows so much about me. I feel like that earthworm in biology class. A simple, easy dissection. “My name’s Jenna,” she says, leaning back. “Everyone calls me Jen now.”

That seems to fit her, somehow. But was that a touch of sadness in her voice when she said “now”?

She sips her coffee. “The organization is called IDIA, the International Defense and Intelligence Agency. To outside observers, we seem to be just like the CIA or the FBI, but on the inside, we’re a superhero recruiting and freelancing operation.”

“Freelancing?” I ask.

Jen nods. “When someone – say the FBI – has a case or a situation they can’t handle, they’ll send someone to me. I look at the situation objectively, unlike them, and then decide what kind of powers or abilities would be most useful in the situation. Then I put everyone in contact with whoever – using our superheroes’ code names, like Data or Blaze, to protect their true identity. It’s very efficient and safe. We also provide support, counseling, and protection, even for people who aren’t on working status.” She pauses. “I also help put together superhero groups on occasion, too, but that doesn’t happen very often.”

I exchange glances with Brooklyn. The two of us have been on our own for a long time, not trusting anyone with our secret. For us, it’s been easy to keep it under wraps and pretend it’s normal. Some others might not have it so easy. And this… this could help us.

“What do you mean by people who aren’t on working status?” Brooklyn asks cautiously.

Jen leans forward. “We allow members to choose whether they want to go on missions. Some empowered people want to live quiet, normal lives, without the chaos of missions or world-saving fiascos. So they go in ‘dormant’ status – they have code names and contact devices, in case of trouble, but they don’t go on missions. We could always start you two off on that level if you’d like?”

Again, Brooklyn and I exchange glances. Yes, I say.

Brooklyn pauses, her brain whirring. “Yes,” she says quietly. “We’ll do it.”

Whoa, what are the twins getting themselves into??? What do you think of Jen? Enjoying this? Comment below!

Next part –>