Evo

Chapter Four: First Blood

The house was burning.

Mika could smell smoke.

He could hear people outside shouting to each other.

Mara fired through the broken doorway.

"Stay down!"

Mika crouched behind the kitchen wall.

Daniel was beside him, loading another magazine.

"How many?" Mika asked.

"Twenty, maybe more."

"Maybe?"

Daniel looked at him.

"I'm trying to stay positive."

Another explosion shook the house.

Dust dropped from the ceiling.

Mika looked toward Cain.

He was still standing outside.

He wasn't hiding.

He didn't need to.

The men around him were moving into the house.

Mara grabbed Mika's arm.

"We're going through the back."

"What about him?"

"Forget Cain."

"He won't forget me."

"I know."

She pulled him toward the kitchen.

They ran through the back door.

The moment Mika stepped outside, three men appeared between the trees.

One raised a gun.

Mika froze.

The gun fired.

He heard the shot before he saw the bullet.

Something inside him moved.

The bullet stopped.

It hung in front of his face.

Mika stared at it.

The man holding the gun stared too.

"What the—"

Mika lifted his hand.

The bullet turned around.

It flew back.

The man dropped.

Mika stood there, shocked.

He had not meant to do it.

Daniel grabbed him.

"Move!"

They ran.

More shots followed.

Mika ducked behind a tree.

Mara fired back.

One attacker fell.

Another came from the side.

Daniel tackled him.

They hit the ground.

Mika looked around.

There were too many.

His heart began pounding.

The strange pressure returned.

He could feel everything again.

The trees.

The soil.

The metal inside the guns.

The people running through the forest.

Even Cain.

He could feel Cain like a hot piece of metal buried somewhere in the distance.

Mika closed his eyes.

He reached toward that feeling.

Cain suddenly stopped.

His smile disappeared.

"What?"

Mika opened his eyes.

Cain was standing between the trees.

They were maybe thirty meters apart.

Cain raised his hand.

Mika raised his.

The air between them shook.

Leaves flew from the ground.

Mara looked at Mika.

"Don't."

"I can stop him."

"You don't know what you're doing."

"He killed people."

Cain laughed.

"That's what you think?"

Mika's face tightened.

Cain stepped closer.

"Your father said the same thing."

Mika felt anger rise inside him.

The trees around Cain bent.

The ground cracked.

Cain's smile disappeared.

Mika pushed harder.

Cain dropped to one knee.

Blood came from his nose.

Mara stared.

"Mika, stop!"

He couldn't.

The power was moving through him too fast.

His hands burned.

His ears rang.

Cain screamed.

Then something hit Mika.

He flew backward.

A man in a red jacket stood behind him.

Mika slammed into a tree.

He fell.

The man walked toward him.

"You're not ready."

Mika tried to stand.

The man kicked him back down.

Mara fired.

The stranger moved faster than the bullet.

He appeared beside her.

He slapped the gun away.

Daniel attacked.

The stranger grabbed Daniel by the throat and lifted him off the ground.

"Put him down!"

Mika stood.

The stranger looked at him.

"Or what?"

Mika's eyes began glowing.

The stranger smiled.

"There."

He threw Daniel aside.

Mika attacked.

The stranger raised his hand.

Mika stopped.

His body wouldn't move.

He could breathe.

He could see.

But he couldn't control his muscles.

"What are you doing?"

The stranger walked closer.

"Teaching you something."

Mika struggled.

"Let me go."

"You think power is about having more."

The stranger placed two fingers against Mika's chest.

"It's not."

Mika's body suddenly went cold.

"Power is about control."

The stranger pushed.

Mika flew across the forest.

He hit the ground hard.

Everything went black.

When he opened his eyes, he was lying beside the burning house.

Mara was kneeling over him.

"Mika."

He coughed.

"Where's Daniel?"

"Alive."

"Cain?"

"Gone."

"The other guy?"

Mara looked toward the forest.

"Gone too."

Mika tried to sit.

Pain ran through his ribs.

"Who was he?"

"I don't know."

Mara was lying.

Mika could tell.

"You know."

She looked away.

"His name is Raze."

"What can he do?"

"Control kinetic energy."

Mika stared at her.

"Meaning?"

"He can control movement."

Mika remembered being unable to move.

"He's an Evo."

"Yes."

"Is he with Cain?"

"No."

"Then why did he attack me?"

Mara didn't answer.

Mika pushed himself up.

"Why?"

"Because he wanted to see what you could do."

"Why?"

Mara looked at him.

"Because people have been waiting for you to wake up."

Mika felt a chill.

"How long?"

"Years."

He stared at her.

"Why?"

"Your father disappeared twelve years ago."

Mara looked toward the burning house.

"Before he disappeared, he left something behind."

"What?"

"You."

Mika shook his head.

"That doesn't make sense."

"It will."

She stood.

"We need to leave."

Mika looked around.

The safe house was destroyed.

Smoke filled the sky.

"We're going where?"

"Somewhere Cain can't follow."

"You said that before."

"And Cain found us."

Mara looked at him.

"That's why we're going somewhere even we don't use."

Daniel walked toward them, holding his side.

"You two done talking?"

Mara nodded.

"Almost."

Daniel looked at Mika.

"You okay?"

"No."

"Good."

Mika frowned.

Daniel gave him a tired smile.

"Means you're still human."

They walked toward the road.

Mika looked back at the burning house.

Something moved in the trees.

He stopped.

"Mara."

She turned.

"What?"

Mika stared into the darkness.

"I can feel someone."

Daniel raised his gun.

"Where?"

Mika pointed.

"Over there."

A figure stepped from behind the trees.

The young man from the safe house.

The one who had called Mika the First Evo.

He was covered in blood.

Mara aimed her weapon.

"Don't."

The stranger raised his hands.

"I'm not with Cain."

"Then who are you?"

"My name is Noah."

Mika stepped closer.

"You said I'm the First Evo."

Noah nodded.

"I shouldn't have told you."

"Why?"

"Because now they know you know."

Mika looked toward the burning house.

"Who are they?"

Noah's face became serious.

"Everyone."

Mika waited.

Noah continued.

"Humans. Evos. Governments. Criminals."

He looked at Mika.

"They've all been looking for the same thing."

"What?"

Noah reached into his pocket.

He pulled out a small metal device.

It looked like a broken piece of a machine.

"Your father's research."

Mika stared at it.

"What research?"

Noah looked at the device.

"The reason Evos exist."

Mika took a step closer.

Noah handed it to him.

The moment Mika touched it, the device lit up.

A blue image appeared in the air.

A man stood inside the projection.

Mika stopped breathing.

His father.

Adrian Vale.

Older than he remembered.

Tired.

Afraid.

His father looked directly at him.

"If you're watching this, then I failed to keep you hidden."

Mika's hands started shaking.

Adrian continued.

"There's something you need to know."

The recording flickered.

"Your mother will tell you that I died."

Mika looked at Mara.

She said nothing.

"I didn't."

The recording went dark for a second.

Then his father's face appeared again.

"I ran because they wanted you."

Mika whispered,

"Who?"

Adrian looked toward the camera.

"The first Evos weren't born."

The recording ended.

Mika stared at the empty air.

Nobody spoke.

Then the device beeped.

A final message appeared.

PROJECT EVO: SUBJECT ZERO

Mika looked at the words.

His stomach turned.

"Subject Zero?"

Noah nodded.

"That's what they called you."

Mika looked at Mara.

"You knew."

Mara lowered her eyes.

"Yes."

Mika stepped away from her.

"How long?"

"Since the day you were born."

Mika felt something break inside him.

His mother had lied.

Mara had lied.

His father had disappeared.

And everyone around him seemed to know what he was except him.

He looked at the dark road ahead.

"Take me to my mother."

Mara nodded.

"We will."

Mika looked down at his hands.

They were shaking.

Not from fear this time.

From anger.

Somewhere in the distance, a siren began to wail.

Then another.

Then another.

Mara looked toward the road.

"They're coming."

Mika looked up.

"Who?"

She checked her weapon.

"The government."

Daniel looked toward the forest.

"And the Evos."

Noah stepped back.

Mika stared at both groups approaching from opposite sides.

For the first time, he understood the truth.

There was nowhere left to run.

So he stopped running.

"Let them come."