The Misfits

The elevator finally reached the bottom and Cass stepped out into the familiar white corridor. She thought she would have to guess where to go, but she saw kids in front of her.

One was young, the others ranged in age upwards to the teens. The young kid in front came to a sliding halt when he saw Cass and the others came out of the elevator.

Cass told Gemma to wait on the elevator with the guard, so he didn’t go anywhere. She moved forward and a wind picked up out of nowhere, blowing back against them.

The little boy moved his hands up, and Cass knew the pose. It was something she did out of habit, not out of necessity.

She copied him and lifted him up off the ground, breaking his concentration.

The wind stopped.

“Whee,” the boy said, floating.

The other kids behind the floating boy hesitated.

Cass said, “We’re friendly. I’m looking for Elias. We’re here to help rescue you all.”

The small boy floating in front pointed behind him.

Cass set the boy down and said, “Get on the elevator.”

Moving forward, the corridor went left, and Cass saw men running down it.

Cass flung out an invisible line, tripping all of them, then said to Wanda, “Keep them there please.”

She turned away as vines sprouted from the floor and ceiling, coiling around the men, incapacitating them.

Cass and Myra continued up the corridor to the next intersection where she saw a young girl kneeling next to two other teens who were on the ground, and another in front of her, who was attempting to get up.

They heard the young girl say, “Stay away from them.”

Just then, down at the end of the corridor, Cass saw Peg round the corner along with several guards.

Peg’s eyes widened at recognition as she saw Cassidy. She said something to the guards that Cass couldn’t hear, and they moved forward cautiously.

To Myra, Cass said, “Help the little girl. I’ll deal with the guards.”

They moved forward and Myra stopped at the girl on her knees. She looked up at Myra and tipped her head. “I’m Myra. We need to get out of here.”

“Halley, but I’m not leaving without Jocelyn and Elias,” Halley told Myra.

Myra looked around at the three people. “Who’s who?”

Halley pointed at Enya and said, “That’s Enya. She’s bad.”

Myra stepped forward to the rising Enya and punched her.

Even with her absorbing powers, she staggered back several feet, falling.

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Cass continued down the corridor at the approaching guards who had drawn guns. The one in the lead had his arm broken nearly off. He screamed and his gun went off, almost shooting the guard next to him.

That one rose quickly, slamming his head into the ceiling, knocking him out.

The two others looked at each other as Cass grinned.

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Enya sat up and looked at Myra contemptuously, wiping the blood from her mouth. She put her arms out and released the kinetic energy of Myra’s punch. Myra’s punch packed a lot of energy, and it threw Myra back several feet, as well as knocking Cassidy forward and knocking Halley over.

As Myra got back up, Elia said, “She absorbs hits and uses the energy.”

The guards had been pushed back some, but Cass wasn’t expecting it and she fell forward onto her hands and knees.

Not used to having a broken arm, she used it to stop herself in the fall, and the pain had her seeing stars.

Myra looked over as Cass cried out and ran forward. As she passed Enya, she reached down and drug her nails across the girl’s chest and arm, opening up deep gashes in her flesh.

Enya screeched, slapping her arm over the wounds, but could do little else as Myra didn’t inflict any real kinetic energy to her.

As Myra ran towards the two guards that were left, they raised their guns, aiming at both her and Cassidy.

With Myra’s increased strength, she sped up and slid like a baseball player, sliding into base feet first. The waxed floor let her slide a good distance, but the guard closest to her got off a shot before she reached them.

Myra slid between the two, raking both men across their thighs, splitting clothes as well as flesh. This let Cass croup long enough to stand.

Behind her, Enya was slamming the fist of her working arm against the ground, building up her own kinetic energy. She then crawled towards the semi-conscious Jocelyn and Elias.

Halley had done all she could and scrabbled backwards.

Enya made it to Joss, pulling herself over the girl. “Now you’re going to find out what it feels like to be dropped from three stories and land on the ground,” Enya told her as she weakly put a hand up to Enya’s chest as if to ward the girl off.

Enya wasn’t impressed with her resistance. “I expected more from you, chubs.”

“I… I wouldn’t want to disappoint you,” Joss said as her hand sunk into Enya’s chest.

Enya sucked in a breath, as a chill went down her spine. Looking down, Enya realized what was happening and released her pent-up energy just as Joss unphased her hand around and in Enya’s heart.

The blast blew Joss down, crushing bones, and back, pushing her away from Enya.

Enya fell over backwards, not moving.

Halley, who was moving back, got pushed farther back, and Elias, who was still laying there, was slid sideways several feet.

Cass got pushed forward again, but rolled onto her left side, protecting her broken arm.

The two guards who were barely standing, fell over, and their bodies shielded Myra from the blast. The men raised up just as Cass did, and really not feeling good now, she simply snapped both of their necks before slumping forward.

She tried making her way to Myra, who still hadn’t moved.

Halley got up and ran towards Jocelyn, putting her hands on her friend.

Elias finally sat up, crawling over to join them. By the time he got there, Halley was sobbing. Elias could see the bones broken in Joss, mostly because she was flatter, but that might have been survivable. What wasn’t, was that her hand was missing from the wrist down, where she put it into Enya and unphased.

Apparently between that and Enya’s blast, it severed Joss’s hand, leaving it inside the other girl’s chest.

“She’s dead,” Halley sobbed. “I can’t do anything for her.”

Elias pulled Halley into his arms, crying himself.

Cassidy heard a noise and looked up to see Peg standing over Myra, pointing a handgun at her head. “Well, well A new subject for us,” she said. “And our missing telekinetic subject.”

Cass raised up some and Peg said, “Un-uh. I’m guessing that if I pull this trigger, you won’t be fast enough to stop it, or strong enough to redirect it. Are you willing to risk her life to try?”

Cass sagged back down. Out of the corner of her eye, Cass saw a tiny girl no more than five, with curly blond hair, creep out of a side corridor and sneak up behind Peg.

Cassidy wasn’t sure what was going to happen, so she put a sphere of force around the gun, leaving Peg’s arm out of it so she wouldn’t know.

“How evil are you people?” Cass asked to keep her occupied so the girl could do whatever she was going to do.

“Evil? We’re trying to save the world,” Peg said.

“And who’s going to save it from you?” she asked.

“You know what, I don’t care that you don’t get it. All you need to do is be a good little subject and do as I say.”

Cass waited until the girl was right next to Peg and said, “No. I don’t think so. I think you’re about to lose,” she said, smiling at the little girl behind Peg, who smiled back.

Allyson grabbed Peg’s arm and said, “Tag, you’re dead.”

Peg started to disintegrate, pulling the trigger as she did. The bullet left the barrel and stopped after an inch.

Peg disappeared, leaving the gun and bullet inside of Cassidy’s bubble.

Cass looked down at Myra and saw a pool of blood under her. “Myra!” Cass cried, lifting the girl up.

Cass saw the bullet hole in Myra’s right shoulder, just below her clavicle.

Myra opened her eyes and said, “Sorry. I got hurt.”

Cass looked up at the little girl standing there watching them.

The little girl shrugged, then yelled, “Halley! Come here, now!”

Cass looked behind her at a girl a little older than the one in front of her, holding on to a boy maybe a couple of years younger than herself.

The girl helped the boy up, and they both staggered over to them. To the younger girl, the one she called Halley, said, “J–Joss is d–dead.”

“This lizard girl isn’t. Yet. So, help her,” Ally said sternly.

Halley sat down, putting a hand on Myra.

“The bullet wound itself isn’t too bad, but it nicked the artery. If I don’t heal her, she’ll bleed out. But if I do, I don’t know what will happen to me,” Halley said, looking at Elias.

“What about her?” he said, pointing over his shoulder at Enya’s body.

Halley shrugged. “I’ve never tried on a dead body, but it should work. Get her.”

Cass said, “Allow me,” and raised a hand, pulling Enya’s limp body over next to Halley.

The girl put one hand on Myra, and the other on Enya, and Cass watched as the hole in Myra’s shoulder closed up, healing but not completely, leaving a small, puckered wound, like it had healed naturally.

Myra opened her eyes again and said, “I’m better.”

Cass laughed and let out a sob at the same time. “Yes, you are.”

To Halley, she said, “Thank you. I can’t tell you how much. I’m Cassidy. Where’s Elias?”

“Right here,” he said. “I’m Elias.”

“Are there more kids here, or just the ones we passed coming in?”

“Those are it. That’s all of us.”

“Then we need to get out of here, now,” Cass said, standing up, helping Myra up as she went.

Elias said, “Come here little monkey,” and Allyson went to him so he could pick her up.

“Allyson, we need to go. You’ll be okay.”

“I know,” the girl said.

The five of them walked back down the corridor and Elias stopped at Jocelyn. “I can’t leave her here.”

“I’ve got her,” Cass said, gently lifting the body, floating it in front of them.

They turned the corner and Wanda was still in that intersection, holding the men there, while the other kids waited on the elevator.

As Cass got to Wanda, she said, “Get rid of them.”

“You sure?”

“Yep.”

Wanda nodded and the men being held started screaming, but it lasted only a second before they were cut off.

Cass set Jocelyn on the elevator and watched as everyone got on.

“Go up and get everyone in the van. I’ll wait five minutes for you to get up, and out, and as far as you can get. So don’t waste time.”

Myra said, “And where will you be?”

“Right here. I’m going to make sure no one else is taken by this Facility. I’ll be right behind you. Now go.”

Myra wanted to argue, but Gemma made the sole guard raise the elevator.

Cass waited five minutes, then forcefully pulled the elevator down to her level. It took a little effort, as it wasn’t meant to do that.

Cass turned and walked down to the corridor where Peg died and pulled pipes from the walls farther down. Water and gas spewed from the pipes.

Walking back to the last corridor where Wanda had men trapped, she pulled pipes from those walls, and then from further down where she had just walked.

Cass walked into the elevator shaft and pulled the lights off the ceiling down the corridor, sending a shower of sparks down. She lifted herself up the shaft as the first explosion happened.

Cass didn’t stop at the top, punching a hole in the roof going up further as a fireball bloomed out of the shaft, following her through the roof.

There was a muted explosion and a sizable chunk of land collapsed, creating a huge sinkhole.

Cass looked around and saw the two vans a quarter mile away and she set herself down outside the sinkhole and walked to her friends.

Myra was standing outside waiting for her and when she came up, Myra grabbed her in a huge hug.

“C-c-can’t b-breathe,” Cass sputtered, and Myra eased up.

“You’re okay,” Myra said, a tear running down her cheek.

“I’ve been better, but yeah.”

The rest of the kids piled out of both vans and began hugging each other, and everyone was introduced to each other. Before they began their trip back, Cass removed the dead guard from the Facility van and tossed it into the sinkhole, and they set the other guard free.

Cass warned him that if she found other Facilities, they would suffer the same fate as the prior two, and it would be in his best interest to find a new employer.

With this Facility and its employees gone, it was time to go.

The two younger girls, Halley and Ally wouldn’t leave Elias’s side, and he in turn didn’t want to leave Jocelyn’s, so they rode in the Facilities van’s rear along with Wanda and Bree.

Gemma drove and Mitch sat in the passenger seat.

Cass knew she had plenty of time to talk to him later, as they all had to talk about what to tell everyone. Some kids had family to go back to, while others didn’t, but those with family would have to answer for where they had been.

There would be many questions to answer when they did show up, by both family and the authorities. Questions that would be simpler to answer if they could answer them honestly, but that would only put them in danger again at best, and no one believing them at worst.

Jaden’s van was full as well, stuffing ten people in it. Jaden drove and Myra sat in the passenger seat. Robbie sat on the floor behind Myra, with Cassidy on his lap.

Cass was exhausted, welcoming Robbie’s arms around her as she leaned back into him. She wanted to talk to him about all that happened, but he shushed her and said, “Later.”

Warm and secure, with the hum and thumps of the road, she fell asleep.

In the Facility van, Elias sat between Allyson and Halley, and both girls being tired and spent from what all had happened, fell asleep.

The floor was carpeted to help make it more soundproof, so Wanda helped lay Allyson and Halley down, so they could sleep there.

Elias was still distraught, so Wanda sat next to him. Bree would have, but she was sitting on the floor next to her friend Jocelyn, rubbing her covered head.

Wanda didn’t know Elias, but she put an arm around him, and he turned to look into her green eyes. He could see the compassion in them, and tried to smile, but ended up sobbing.

Wanda pulled him into her, letting him cry, the sound muffled by her chest. She put her arms around him to try to provide some comfort to him. It didn’t take him long to cry himself to sleep as well.

Wanda simply held him as he slept, gently stroking his head. Part way home, they stopped for fuel and a general pit stop.

With eighteen kids ranging from five to seventeen, a simple statement of I’ve got to use the bathroom or I’m thirsty grew fast.

Jaden picked a place with an outside located restroom, since a bunch of kids in hospital scrubs, some of them bloody, might draw too much unwanted attention if they had to go inside somewhere.

Jaden and Gemma went in to pay for fuel and a bunch of snacks and drinks.

The kids in Jaden’s van were all rosed to use the bathroom, as was everyone in the Facility van.

Wanda carried Ally and Elias carried Halley to the restroom, and Wanda stayed with them both since they were both still half asleep, then they carried them back.

The kids from Jaden’s van packed up, and Cass sat on Robbie again, only this time, turning sideways, to be able to curl up into him better before going back to sleep.

After putting the two younger girls down, they went right back to sleep.

Elias told Bree he would trade places, but she said no. He felt himself getting happier and looked at Bree.

He sat down next to the girl and said, “Don’t.”

“But I don’t want to see you so sad. I’d do it to myself, but I can’t,” Bree said, as a tear escaped, moving down her cheek.

He kissed her cheek and pulled her into him. “I appreciate it, I do, but it’s okay to mourn for her. For all of us. She knew we loved her, and she gave her life to save us from Enya. She did it willingly because she loved us. So let your emotions out. I did. At least for now. We’ll never forget her, and we’ll love her forever.”

Bree began to cry in earnest and Elias held her tight, telling her to cry for her friend.

“Today we mourn, tomorrow we celebrate he life.”

Wanda watched all of this, knowing Elias was a good person. He cared about these kids, enough to risk his life for them.

Soon, Bree fell asleep, and Elias held her just as Wanda held him.

Elias looked at Wanda and smiled. She smiled back.