Prologue

There was a flash of light.

I thought I was dead.

For a few seconds my senses went numb, unable to smell, hear, or feel anything. The traumatizing moment made me forget where I was and what I was doing. The blinding light had overwhelmed my being.

Was this a dream?

Why could I not remember falling asleep?

My senses returned, screaming into focus.

I was falling.

An explosion shot me out of a building’s window. I began to fall towards the busy downtown streets of Los Angeles. I joined the flaming debris that rained upon the city below.

The mission was a complete failure. My team and I failed to protect our client. Someone managed to plant a bomb. We had never failed. This was supposed to be an easy mission like the ones before.

A few feet before hitting the ground my powers stopped me in mid-fall. The debris kept on and landed with force, crashing onto cars and smashing into the ground. Cars swerved to avoid the concrete rain. People screamed in panic and terror. Car alarms sounded off and added to the chaos.

It took a few moments for people to take notice of me. I floated in midair, my clothes still smoking from the explosion and beginning to stain with blood.

Curiosity settled the scene as people stopped to stare at me. Most of the screams subsided and everyone was entranced by my presence. I stared back, realizing this was the first time I had ever exposed my powers to a public audience. There was something unsettling about the situation.

I shook off the discomfort and looked towards the gaping hole on the side of the building. The explosion had taken out a few floors. Fires burned and thick black smoke filled the building. Occupants poured out of the first floor, coughing and covering their mouths from the smoke.

In the distance the sound of sirens could be heard. Emergency personnel would arrive soon.

I flew to the bomb site to search for my team mates. The place was unrecognizable. Concrete walls and metal beams lay exposed. Random office papers were scattered like confetti. Colors had been burned away, leaving the room dark and gray. The smell of burning was overpowering, smothering like a dark sauna. My eyes and nose immediately began to sting. The smoke was thick and I could taste burning in my mouth.

“I can’t believe this,” Pam said over my earpiece.

“I… I can’t see anyone,” I replied uneasily. My team mates were nowhere to be found. “What do I do now?”

“You have to get out of there,” Pam answered. I could hear her keystrokes over the headset. “You can’t be exposed. I’m sending another team.”

“Where do I go?”

“Anywhere but there-”

Thunderous cracks came roaring and interrupted our conversation. The building shook and before I could make sense of things, it began to crumble. The falling debris caught me by surprise, shoving me toward the ground. My powers focused on keeping debris at bay as I fell. The commotion proved to be too much and I landed hard on the pavement. The wind was knocked out of me and it became hard to breathe. Seconds crawled like hours just trying to gasp for air. The shock settled and the first breaths were taken with coughs.

I struggled to get up, tempted to surrender to the exhaustion and pain.

“That’s him, officer!” I heard a man yell.

The man cowered away when I lifted my head in his direction. He walked backwards a few steps before turning around and fleeing.

The officer put his hand out, warning me to stay down. “Don’t move!” he ordered. He retrieved his gun from his holster and aimed it at me. He got on his radio. “Code three, code three, I’ve got a male-.”

I tossed the officer yards away.

I panicked.

“That’s him!”

“He did it!”

“Someone call for help!”

The public shouted.

“That’s the same man that caused this!”

“It’s the same one we saw earlier!”

A rain of bullets came from all directions. They whizzed by and ricochet off the ground. I did not move or looked up, I stayed on the ground. My cheek remained planted on the warm asphalt of the street.

“Get up!” Pam said over my earpiece. “You have to get out of there!”

“I’m too tired,” I replied. “My powers are exhausted.”

“You MUST get up. Help won’t be there for a while! Get up!”

I crawled over the debris field, cutting my arms with bits of glass and concrete. I dragged myself behind a pile of rubble for cover.

I can’t believe I’m all alone. This has never happened.

I felt lost without guidance or instructions from a point-man.

The firing stopped. Minutes went by without a single shot. The patrols cars reflected from the surrounding buildings’ windows. I was being surrounded. More units and special armored vehicles arrived to the scene. The strobe lights of the units flashed, yet their sirens were silent.

Officers began to close-off the area, herding civilians away. Despite their efforts, people continued to gawk and take pictures with their cell phones. The curious crowds insisted on capturing the scene.

“No more blood needs to be shed today!” said an officer over a patrol car’s loudspeaker. His voice echoed off the buildings of downtown. “Tell us why you did this and what we need to do to put an end.” The officer stepped out of his car with the talking piece of his radio in hand.

Officers crouched behind their vehicle doors with guns drawn at me.

I got up slowly from behind the debris mound. I was in the middle of the street, frozen by fear. My face was sweaty and my body trembled in exhaustion. My heart raced inside my chest, sending a throbbing sensation down my finger tips. Even if I decided to run, there was no way of blending in with a crowd. The suit I wore was now torn and blood-stained.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I denied in a quivering voice. “I don’t know what’s going on.” The statement wasn’t at all convincing. I knew it was useless to lie, but there was a certain delusional comfort in the attempt.

“There’s a team headed your way. Hold out just a little longer.” It was Pam. “I’m sending the nearest Karma forces.” In spite of Pam’s assurance, her voice was noticeably strained.

“What about my team?” I asked.

“Forget about them,” Pam answered. “They’re presumed dead at this point.”

“Aren’t there any loyal to Veluz –any Karma forces or agents within blocks?” I barked back.

The headset went quiet.

“Pam?”

“None.” Pam was stern. “Start focusing. Get yourself out of there and rendezvous with the team outside the city limits. There’s too much going on there.”

SWAT teams arrived in full gear. Their rifles clattered on their heavy armor. Their boots drummed the ground as they ran. They replaced the patrol officers around me.

I had to try and keep my life a secret. My powers had never been used so publically. I still had a life outside of all this, a normal one. I couldn’t risk having my face associated with the event. I needed to get out somehow.

I searched the area trying to find an answer.

High above Los Angeles, dark clouds moved in. The shadows they cast revealed the peering eyes from within the buildings. People that failed to evacuate stood witness to the commotion.

It began to sink in that perhaps this was it. I would never be able to return to a normal life. My face would end up on every television for centuries to come. It would be streamed all over the internet. I would be captured by the government and experimented on for the rest of my life.

Winds picked up and random street litter blew by. The street echoed like thunder and two police helicopters approached. Their blades whipped up more debris and the blast of winds hit my face. The helicopters’ combined presence with ground units fueled my panic. They took tactical formation and couldn’t be Karma. But with desperation setting in, I wanted to make sure.

“Tell me that’s Karma,” my voice begged into my headset.

“I don’t think so,” I heard Pam begin making keystrokes. “Negative. The satellite relay confirms it’s just local police.”

The faces of the officers stared at me with a mixture of fear and curiosity. To them I was a deranged schizophrenic; appearing to mouth words to myself. They could not see the earpiece or hear Pam’s voice. I was an alien to the public, with powers beyond their understanding. They had never before witness someone like me.

“Then tell them to hurry!” I yelled to Pam. “The news media will get here soon, and my identity will be-” I stopped, noticing the ground peppered with rain.

Rumbling thunder resonated throughout the buildings and rain began to fall. It was the chance I was looking for. Water had a rejuvenating affect on my powers. My powers were my key out after all.

My ravenous body consumed the cold water upon contact. My arms opened in reception of my liquid savior.

“Don’t move!” warned an officer. He beckoned the SWAT teams to move forward. The officers prepared to apprehend me with cautious movement. They surrounded me and closed in.

My eyes involuntarily closed as I regained my strength. The sound of cocking guns surrounded me when my eye lids began to flutter. The officers’ footsteps stopped, halting their advance. My eyes opened suddenly and the policemen cowered back in fear.

“Look at his eyes,” I heard someone say.

With that statement I knew my eyes were glowing; a telltale sign when my powers were heightened.

As if by their own accord my arms began to rise. My vision blurred and my entire spectrum turned everything a pale blue. My head felt heavy and swayed as if suffering from ataxia. All exterior feeling, including the wounds and scars, went numb. The surge of power was pure inebriation.

“Keith, do it!” Pam yelled. “You need to get out of there!”

Time appeared to slow down. Sounds became muffled and the movement of the helicopter blades shot into focus. Policemen were plucked from their crouching positions and hurled back. Bodies were smashed through windows half a mile away on high-rise buildings. The tires of cars screeched in agony as they were thrust back before being uprooted into the air.

It was a surreal scene when the cars joined the helicopters in the air. They crashed in a swirling mass of twisted metal. Signs, merchant stands and other street items joined their presence in the slow-moving ballet. Fierce winds picked up and came in all directions. The area was a snow globe of destruction and chaos.

The office-building onlookers now ran for their lives as debris was thrown into their buildings. In an overwhelming display of might, all the windows in the vicinity shattered violently.

Unfamiliar rage had taken hold of me.

Slowly, sounds sharpened and were no longer muffled. Time caught up and motion was normal. I was regaining control, but was reaching exhaustion once again.

“What are you doing!?” Pam asked.

“I… don’t know…” I struggled to say. Exhaustion set in.

The area was released from my powers and objects came crashing down. Cars flipped and tumbled as they hit the ground. Trees and debris stopped their violent movements. The winds calmed and their howling stopped.

“What did you do?” Pam asked.

“I’m not sure,” I admitted. I had never lost control like that.

There was no one around. Not even a body in sight. Cars lay burning and wedged into buildings. Water hydrants were shooting out like geysers and flooding the area. Office desks and equipment lay out of place on the streets. The scene was left in disarray as if a bomb had gone off.

This was my chance to run, but I could barely move. I fell to the ground. It became hard to breathe as I lay in fear and agony. Cold begin to settle in. My eyes scavenged the scene, fighting to keep from blacking out. I lay on my back and faced the dark cloudy skies. Raindrops blurred my vision even more but I was too exhausted to care.

A helicopter approached. I could hear it and feel the winds from its blades, but I couldn’t turn to see it. My vision blurred, looming closer to blacking out. Dark figures appeared over me. They were like shadows.

“Keith,” Pam called out to me. Her voice was faint. “You’ve got to… you have to…”

“We got ‘em,” said one of the dark-figures.

I surrendered to the darkness.



“No. I don’t care,” said a muffled voice. “This proves our point. He shouldn’t be out there risking his identity and he should be training.”

“He took care of things, didn’t he?” It was another muffled voice.

There were two people but I couldn’t recognize their voices.

“He took care of things alright,” the first voice responded sarcastically. “he nearly leveled a major city.”

“That’s never happened before-.”

“Precisely. And I don’t want it happening again. He needs to be taken in-.”

“We can’t separate him from his family. He’s got a whole life.”

“He’s an investment, a weapon. We pay him to do this and he should be listening to our every advice.”

“He’s a kid… still in high school.”

“Let me take him home,” offered a third voice. “No matter what you want, you won’t be able to make him do anything without convincing him.” The voice was firm and confident. “He needs to make the decision on his own.”



Chapter - 1 (partial)



I wiped the sweat off the earpiece of the phone and switched ears.

“You’ve been having these nightmares for quite some time now,” Pam commented.

“About a month,” I clarified.

“Right. Ever since the failed mission.”

I sat in bed in the darkness of my room. Pre-dawn darkness was overwhelmingly silent. There wasn’t scuffling inside the house or street noises from outside.

Pam and I had been talking for an hour about my nightmares.

“And it’s the same dream each time?” Pam wanted to make sure.

“Yes.” I avoided telling her that in my dreams rescue never came. In my dreams I was killed by the military.

“Well, if that’s it...” Pam stopped the recording. “then that ends this session.”

“I’m sorry to have to call you at such odd hours,” I apologized.

“No apologies needed. It’s not too early here in England,” Pam said. “Besides, you’re supposed to call whenever you have these nightmares. We document and record everything. No matter how mundane or arbitrary things may seem, it’s best you report anything having to do with your powers.”

“Yes,” I acknowledged. “I don’t like waking up from these nightmares to find my room in disarray.”

“Your powers have never behaved like this before. They’ve never activated while you were asleep or unconscious.”

“What’s causing this?”

“Not sure.”

I went around the room picking up stuff off the floor. I placed books, pictures, and other desk items back in their places.

“How are your wounds and bruises?” Pam redirected. “How’s the broken leg?”

“They’re all fine,” I answered. “It still hurts sometimes to laugh and I hobble.”

“You’re not using your crutches are you?”

I didn’t answer.

“We’ll take a look at that when you get here tomorrow,” Pam assured. “Get some rest.”

I turned to my clock. It was five in the morning on a school day.

“I may as well take a shower,” I replied. “No use in going back to bed.”

“I’ll see you soon,” Pam said before hanging up.

The use of my powers left me feeling drained; water eased the pain and exhaustion. This accounted for my long showers.

I winced with each step down the stairs. A sharp pain kept shooting up my left leg. I tried to ignore it by taking in the sweet savory aroma of breakfast. The smell of sausage and coffee instantly made the house feel cozy. It was one of those scents that filled a house with warmth.

“Morning, Mom,” I said as I walked into the kitchen.

Despite the early hours my mom was fully dressed for work. Even with her apron on you could tell she meant business. Not a single brown hair was out of place –it never was since she never let a grey hair grow in. She was a serious business woman with her fine and neatly pressed attire.

Mom whisked batter in a bowl and without looking up greeted, “Morning, hon.”

I kissed her on the cheek and went to the refrigerator. I took out a pitcher of cool water; I was incredibly thirsty.

“Did you wake up your brother and sister?” Mom asked.

I shook my head and began to pour myself a glass of water. I chugged down a few glasses and realized I was looking suspicious. As I drank vigorously my mom kept staring and shaking her head.

“You had another one of those dreams, didn’t you?” Mom’s tone was disapproving.

I knew my mom wasn’t fond of my abilities so I hesitated saying anything. I poured myself another glass and eventually nodded before drinking again.

Mom let out a sigh and said, “I guess you’ll be asking me for a bigger plate this morning.” She grabbed another plate. “Sausage and eggs, or pancakes?”

I sat at the table, “Both.”

“Which reminds me,” my mom turned around to face me. “you have another appointment with Ms. Reed-”

“Can I come?” my brother asked as he walked in. Eric always had a smirk on his face like he was planning something. There was a lot going on in his head, even for a jock like him. This was one jock that didn’t fit your stereotype. If his good looks, blonde hair and green eyes didn’t get you, his suave and intellect would. Eric had a way of pushing peoples’ buttons to test their limits. But because of his charms, he always seemed to get away with everything. I hated that.

Mom pointed her spatula at him as if to stop him from arguing, “No, Eric.” She turned to me. “Keith, I want you home early.” Mom had a defensive tone and posture. I knew where it was going; she was going into overdrive with banter. “We have to catch a flight at five and….” She went back to her cooking and began to prepare plates. “Your father will be here to watch your sister because Eric will be studying for his college midterms at the library while we’re gone –I don’t know why he can’t make time, but either way… We’ll need to be on time for the flight, I don’t want any delays. I already don’t like these exams as it is but it gives me comfort knowing I’m there.” She looked at us over her shoulder. “You guys better come and get these plates because they’re getting cold. You guys are old enough pick up your own plates at the very least.”

I picked up my two plates and sat back at the table.

Eric stared at my plates and smiled, immediately suspecting what had transpired. “Had another one of your dreams, huh?”

“Yeup.”

Eric leaned towards me with a grin on his face and referred to Mom, “What’d she say-?”

Mom startled us when she put the orange juice on our table, “She didn’t say anything,” she answered, having overheard Eric. Mom turned back to me, “Also, remember to ask Ms. Reed if she knows any way of stopping the…dreams, the…” Mom struggled to find the words. “Stop the… ‘abnormal-ness’ stuff.”

“They’re just nightmares.”

“Caused by something? Perhaps a mission?”

Mom was putting me in an awkward position. I was forbidden from talking about missions.

“Good morning, everyone,” Radek came in with a tie and coat in his hand. His entranced derailed Mom’s questioning.

Mom playfully winked and greeted, “Morning, dear.”

Eric poured himself some orange juice as he greeted, “Morning, Dad.”

Mom went back to the stove and prepared a plate. “Sausage and eggs, Radek?” She asked.

Radek sat down, “Yes, ma’am.”

Mom stopped in her tracks and looked at Radek. “I am not a ‘Ma’am’. The least you can do is to call me ‘Mary’ or ‘Mrs. Groenewald’.”

“Yes, Ma’am-.”

Mom picked up her spatula, her favorite weapon of the morning. “Don’t make me beat you with this,” she teased.

Radek blushed and smiled, “Sorry. Old habits die hard.”

I whispered to him, “Morning, Radek.”

He smiled and whispered back, “Morning, John.”

John was my real name. The identity I had left behind.

“Damn it, Radek,” Mom overheard. “You’re supposed to be helping me, not making my job harder by playing along with the kids.”

Everyone at the table exchanged a smile, clearly joking and having fun. We weren’t supposed to be using our old names.

Mom served Radek’ plate, “Now, I know it isn’t easy living under a different name and being someone you’re not. I know we’re not really married, Radek, there’s nothing romantic. We’re here for the sake of appearances.” She looked at all of us. “Do you think it’s easy for me to know that I’m no longer ‘Stephanie’, or Keith is no longer ‘John’, Sam is now ‘Eric’…?”

Everyone was quiet.

“It’s been over two years now. We have to get used to these names. We all have to naturally respond to our new given identities. We have to try to live a new and normal life.”

It was odd and somewhat hypocritical for Mom to make such a statement. After all, Radek’s new identity was Mark Groenewald and none of us addressed him by it. Kyros David Radek was his real name. Radek disliked going by his first name, which was why he went by his last name. Despite picking up new identities, we continued to call him Radek.

“Hi, Mom,” Katie ran downstairs.

“Hi, Julie, how-,” Mom stopped herself and shook her head in embarrassment, realizing she had just used the wrong name. “Hi, Katie,” She corrected herself.

“Wow, Mom. You haven’t called me that in a long time.”

Mom smirked.

Katie gave a brief victory dance, as was her perky attitude. “How many points is that, guys?” She turned to us.

Mom’s jaw dropped open, “You guys have been betting how many times I mess up your names?”

We all laughed.

“It’s just a joke, Mom,” Eric said. “No harm in trying to have fun with our situation.”

Mom couldn’t help but to smile and add, “Wise-guys.”

Ever since we had gone into hiding from the government, Mom insisted we all live a normal life. She disliked the fact that I had powers and that I used them occasionally to move a couch or something similar. She always mocks those moments by saying, “That isn’t normal.” That phrase quickly established a rule at the house; no powers allowed.

Everyone else at home didn’t mind me using my powers. Eric in particular didn’t mind. Actually, he encouraged it. He occasionally called me “lab rat”, unless Mom was around. She didn’t like that word. But I personally didn’t mind the name.

Although I wasn’t a lab rat, or an experiment, at times I sure felt like one. Adding to the feeling were the frequent doctor visits to London that Veluz required us go to. There, I would be examined to study the progression of my powers. Specifically we wanted to know how the powers affected my body and those around me. To a degree, the exams were more there to set Veluz at ease than for my benefit. They wanted to know I was still within control.

Mom despised the exams because a mission would ensue afterwards. As much as Mom hated the notion, we all owed it to Veluz for helping us start a new life. After my escape from the top-secret military base known as Area Fifty-one, we had nowhere else to go. Veluz provided security and new identities in exchange for my services.

Area Fifty-one is where it all started. It’s where I gained my special abilities and powers. I wasn’t assigned to the base or anything like that. I found the base by accident. After my parents divorced my mom and the rest of us were on the way to Las Vegas to start a new life. On the way we stopped at a hotel and I went for a midnight walk. I eventually got lost, found the base and was forced to stay. I was forced to leave my family and whole life behind. With time I eventually made friends and had almost forgotten about my outside life, along with the desire to escape. It wasn’t until after I received a necklace from my friend A.J., that I gain my powers. The necklace had an emblem in the shape of an eye. Unbeknownst at the time, the iris was made of a creature that wasn’t of Earth. One day the iris was gone, the next night my chest was glowing with an eerie blue light. The iris -the Aquabáh, as I called it- was inside me.

When A.J. was killed in pursuit of the Aquabáh, I realized it was time to leave. It was clear those in pursue of the Aquabáh would stop at nothing. I risked turning into an experiment if I exposed myself. My powers and abilities were a secret I didn’t even share with my close friends until shortly after A.J.’s death. Radek, Joseph, Casey, Stevens, and Mike were the friends I told and we plotted to escape together. Joseph, Radek’s best friend, unfortunately did not make it and died saving the rest of us.

Once out of Area Fifty-one, Mike’s friends, Veluz, helped us rebuild our lives by giving us completely new identities. This gave us the freedom to start all over, and many set off on their own direction. I was surprised when Radek stayed behind with me and my family. Although we had formed a deep friendship at Area Fifty-one, I had expected him to take the opportunity to start a new life. My respect for Radek was deep and although he was like the father I never had, I never called him “Dad” much less “Mark Groenewald.” Not a new name or new role would fit Radek perfectly. Not because Radek wasn’t up to par, but because he was so much more. He was many times my best friend, mentor, and voice of reason.



I took out my car keys from my pocket and grabbed my backpack before heading downstairs. I was ready for school.

“I’ll see everyone later!” I yelled.

“Wait,” Mom came out of the kitchen. “Don’t forget to be home early for your appointment. Your father will pick up Katie from choir after school, so I’m not wasting any time.”

“Actually…” Radek came in and put his trench coat on, ready to leave as well. “Veluz have me working on something today. I won’t be able to take care of Katie.”

“What does Veluz-?” Mom stopped herself, knowing that she couldn’t ask Radek anything related to his work.

“Look…” Radek straighten his tie. “I’m really sorry. Why can’t you take Katie with you on the trip? Or find someone to take care of her?”

Mom shook her head, “One, I refuse to expose, and lose another one of my children to something like this, it’s not normal. And two, I’ll be helping with the McMillan’s case my firm’s been working on this week. I can’t.”

Eric stopped halfway down the stairs having listened to the escalating discussion. Even though he hated confrontations, he stood by as if waiting for an order from Mom. Perhaps he anticipated being coerced into taking Katie with him, forcing him to cancel his plans.

We all stared at each other not knowing what to do about Katie. A twelve year old girl was still much too young to be left alone.

Radek was particularly stressed by the situation as he rubbed the bottom of his black goatee with his thumb and forefinger. Radek wore his heart on his sleeves, whether he knew it or not. Perhaps it was just my keen observation, or the fact that I knew him longer than anyone else, but I could read him well. There was something about his soulful brown eyes that gave everything away.

“Go on, git,” Mom finally said. She threw her arms in the air, as if giving up. “You’re all going to be late. Katie will stay at a friend’s house. Don’t worry about it.”

It was no surprise plans had changed. Radek was always busy with Veluz affairs, so much that we’d go weeks without seeing him. For some reason Mom was always surprised when plans fell through with Radek. Mom in particular always created these awkward moments of frustration and distress. She seemed to really want to believe things were normal.

My mom looked at me with a say-something look, wanting me to persuade Radek in some way. I pretended to not understand her stare and smiled back as if to say goodbye. I didn’t want to get in the middle of any squabble, particularly if this involved Veluz. Veluz affairs were much bigger than life’s every-day challenges.

I was out the door when Mom yelled, “Are you safe to drive to school-?”

“I drive with my right leg not with my left, Mom.” I got into my car before she said anything else and drove to school.