Sara put her hand to the top of head to keep her hat from blowing off after a gust of wind. When she did, she looked off to her right. "Oh my God!", she exclaimed. A little boy had broken free of his older sister's hand and was running away from her. He was running towards the street directly into the path of an oncoming city bus.

The other girls turned quickly. Jan realized at once that she was too far away. There was no chance she could make it. "Do something!", Jan and Alisha yelled.

"Cover me", Sara told Alisha. Alisha started say something, but knew she didn't have time. Alisha formed an image in her mind and quickly the image in her mind became the reality that everyone saw.

Sara's eyes narrowed as the little boy ran out past the cars. The bus was only a few yards away. The boy's head turned as he got into the street. He froze. Sara's power surrounded him and she was about to push the boy backward, but then he disappeared. Alisha's illusion had blocked her view too. There was no time to say anything. Sara gathered her power and put a solid wall of power in the bus' path. It slammed into Sara's invisible barrier with a chest thumping boom. The glass at the front of the bus shattered and the back end of the bus skidded out into the oncoming lane of traffic. The people in the bus were thrown forward, but there were no injuries. Alisha's illusion went away and the little boy looked to his left and less than one foot away was the smashed front of the city bus. The little body started to cry and he ran back to his mother and sister.

Sara held her head.

"You all right?", Jan asked.

"No! I didn't get a chance to even establish that wall. I had to push against a moving bus, and my head is throbbing."

"We better get going", Jan said after looking around. The people on the street were glad the little boy was fine, but they wondered what the bus had hit. The girls just walked away.

"Why did you block my view?", Sara asked Alisha after they had walked a block from the wrecked bus.

"I was going to tell you that I didn't have time to exclude you from the illusion! I can only do so much so fast!"

"You should practice more!"

Alisha face went red quickly. "I'm going to imagine you didn't say that."

"Well, I did. I mean that little boy could have died."

"He didn't!"

"I know that, but-"

"But nothing. Let it drop. Nobody's perfect. The little boy is fine and we're two blocks away now. Mission completed." Jan was getting tired of keeping Sara and Alisha from bickering. The rest of the day went by without anymore trouble. The truce made it until the end of the week.

Alisha had gone into the media room and started watching Judge Judy. She loved that show for some reason. Sara chatted on her cell phone as she came up the stairs to the second floor. The von Edder home was built almost upside down. The bedroom and other private rooms were on the lowest floor of the house just above the beach. The second floor of the house was where the family dining room, media room, and staff rooms were located. The top floor was where the main entrance to the house was located and it had only two walls not made of glass. Alisha didn't like to lounge up there. It was just too open.

Alisha glanced over at Sara who was just sitting down. Sara smiled and laughed as she talked to her boyfriend Chris Adams. Alisha rolled her eyes. Sara kept talking. She turned the sound up a little and shifted in her seat. She glanced over at Sara as she laughed loudly at something Alisha couldn't hear and really didn't want to hear. Alisha tried not to pay attention as Sara started to speak quietly into the phone. Alisha just shook her head and tried to watch the show. She had almost blocked out Sara and her annoying conversation when Sara starting singing into the phone. Alisha moaned internally. Sure Sara had a beautiful singing voice. Even in the morning without so much as clearing her throat Sara sang better than most of the people Alisha heard on the radio, but that was beside the point. She could have gone outside and sang as much as she wanted. Finally after a few more minutes, Sara blew a kiss over the phone and hung up.

"Thank God", Alisha muttered.

"What?", Sara asked still in a good mood from the phone call.

"I was trying to watch the show."

Sara looked up at the huge plasma screen for the first time. "I'm sorry. I was just talking to Chris. We're trying to see if he can work it out for me to visit him in Phoenix. He won't be home when I leave L.A., so I'm going to have to fly back home before I fly out west again to visit him." Sara was already thinking about seeing him again.

Alisha hurrumphed. "You two are so romantic it makes my head spin."

"You told me that romance was good. Besides I'm not old hat at this boyfriend thing. Usually I can read what a guy is thinking or feeling, but not with Chris. When we're together, he can phase shift and I can barely read his emotions."

"So his powers cancel yours out pretty much?"

Sara thought about it before she spoke. "Yeah I guess so. I can't hold onto him when he shifts and I can't read his mind. I can feel it, but really weakly." She paused and a big grin spread across her pretty face. "I think that makes it even better with him."

Alisha groaned and shook her head. "Too bad Chris can't read what you're thinking like I can."

Sara frowned. "What am I thinking exactly?"

Alisha sat up straighter and looked at Sara. "You're thinking how much easier it would be for Chris to meet you at your place, but there is no way you're going to let Chris see your family's spread in Mississippi. You want to spend time with him, but you're not ready for him to see Clover Bottom, and see that you're used to be waited on hand and foot by an army of help when he grew up having to take out the trash and trim the hedges around his nice 1500 square foot home. His entire house would fit in your mansion's foyer."

Sara stared. "How could you say that to me? Look at this place. Are you living like a pauper! If you called, five maids and a butler would fall over themselves to get to you!" Sara stood up from her seat. "You have NO right to talk to me like that! You of all people!"

Alisha stood up too and stepped closer to Sara. "I don't try to hide who I am. I've noticed the way you've been looking at me and at some of the guys I've run into while we've been out. You've been judging me the whole time you've been here. Every time I see a guy I've slept with, you get a little smirk on your face. You didn't think I would notice! Yeah, I've fucked quite a few people, but I didn't think you would rub it in my face!"

Sara inhaled in surprise and leaned away. "Are you drunk!?! How do I know who you've slept with or not. I won't lie. I can't help, but receive strong emotions even when I'm not trying. A couple of the guys were lusting so bad I felt sorry for them, but I would never try to judge you, or think it was funny."

"Really! You expect me to believe that. All the little jabs you've made about me the last three or four days add up. I'm not an idiot. And some half asssed apology is not going to cut it!"

Sara's look of surprise and innocence turned to anger. "If you felt guilty about us meeting the guys you screwed then you shouldn't have taken us to the places those guys hang out."

"Oh no! Don't put Jan in this. She hasn't treated me any different than she normally does. The only person acting different is you!"

"That's because Jan doesn't receive random thoughts about what you and some guy did in the back seat of his Mercedes!"

Alisha mouth dropped and her hand shot out from her side. The slap turned Sara's head to the side and brought a tear to her eye. Her face throbbed where Alisha's hand had struck. It turned red a moment later. Sara's jaw muscles flexed as anger flooded her. She turned back and her eyes met Alisha's. Sara's blue-grey eyes narrowed. She was seething with anger. Alisha felt Sara's power start to gather around her. It was something that had to be experienced to be explained. Sara's normally pretty face was so contorted in anger that it was hardly recognizable. Alisha didn't back down.

"You want to use your power against me!", Alisha yelled. " Because you think you're mad! How dare you!" Alisha felt a push from Sara's mind make her stumble backwards. Now Alisha was really angry. The three girls never used their powers against each other in anger. It was a rule between them that they hadn't broken... until now. "Don't fuck with me, Sara! I won't say it again!"

That just made Sara even more angry. How exactly could Alisha possibly hope to stop her? Sara could tear Alisha's house to pieces with nothing more than her thoughts. She could feel all the minds in the house and knew where they all were. Sara was going to have to show Alisha that there was power and then there was power. She pushed against Alisha again. This time slightly harder.

"You little bitch!", Alisha yelled and then her own dark brown eyes narrowed and she moved back away from Sara. Just then dozens and dozens of Alisha's appeared all over the room. They were in front of Sara and behind her. Some moved and some stood still. Some were standing on the furniture. Sara could hear them and smell then and see them. Most importantly they almost felt like real people to her mind. Only a probing from her power revealed that those Alisha's weren't the real Alisha. Sara turned around in a sea of clones. Suddenly they disappeared and the room was quiet again. Sara's was still as she felt hands around her throat.

Alisha leaned close to Sara's ear. "I told you don't fuck with me", Alisha hissed into Sara's ear and squeezed her hands around Sara's throat. "I could have done anything I wanted to you and there's not a damn thing you could have done to stop me."

Sara frowned and spun quickly bringing up her arm to get Alisha in a wrist lock, but Alisha slipped out and the two girls stood opposite each other still hot and angry. The sliding door to the terrace opened quickly and a smiling sweat covered Jan rushed in. "Guess who I saw on the beach!", she exclaimed as she wiped her face with a towel. The smile fell away as she saw her two friends standing across from each other. They stood there looking angry enough to kill. Jan felt all her positive emotions go away.

"What is wrong with you two? I can't even leave you alone for an hour." The last few days had been trying and now this. This was the worst vacation of her life. Only the first 2 days had been fun. The rest had been one argument after another. She watched as Sara and Alisha's anger slowly lessened, but she had had enough. She couldn't take this anymore. She rushed to the bed room and started packing. If everybody wanted to act like assholes then they could do it without her. She was going back to Maryland.

An hour later Jan reconsidered. She still had 2 days in California, but Sara and Alisha couldn't stand to be in the same room with each other. Even Alisha's parents had tried to calm things, but there was no hope. Sara and Alisha wouldn't even eat dinner at the same table. Jan went back to packing. That night she thanked Mr. And Mrs. von Edder for all they had done. She told them that she was going back to Maryland a day early. There was no way she could stay there. Alisha's father Karl understood. Early Sunday morning Jan was up and ready to call a taxi, but Karl drove her to the airport himself. They didn't talk much, but Jan could tell that while Karl von Edder was a business man and quite driven, he was a good person and he was easy to talk to. Jan just didn't have anything to say. He helped her get her luggage to the baggage check, and waved as he left. Jan smiled and waved back. It wasn't his fault that the vacation had soured.

Jan exchanged her ticket and got credit on a one way ticket direct from LAX to Baltimore. She would be in the air for the next several hours, but that was fine. That might give her a chance to settle down. It didn't. She was just getting worse. Somewhere over Oklahoma Jan called her mother. The rest of the Caufield family was in Orlando, Florida at Disney World and Universal Studios. They had decided to take Thomas down there for a vacation. Jan had been several times, but Thomas had never been. Jan didn't want to burden her mother with bad news, but she was feeling so down that she had to call somebody.

"Hello", Carol Caufield answered.

"Hey, Mom."

"Jan! How's your trip out in L.A.?" Carol seemed so happy. She started singing the theme song to The Beverly Hillbillies.

Jan had to smile despite her bad feelings. "Mom, Alisha lives in Malibu not Beverly Hills."

"Its the same thing to me, Jan. Swimming pools and movie stars!" Carol laughed, but Jan didn't. She knew something was the matter. "What's wrong, Jan?"

Jan started explaining all the bad things that had happened in the last week. The story spilled out. Jan tried to point out the high points, but mostly the trip had been low lights.

"Jan, its going to be all right. Close friends can be like family. Sometimes you're around each other a lot and you get on each other's nerves, but in the end you realize that you care so much for each other that it will all be forgiven."

"I don't know Mom. I've been friends with Sandra as long as I can remember. We've had an argument or two that last all of five minutes. They won't even talk to each other. And you know what, I don't want to talk to either of them. I tried and I tried to get them to calm down and be civil. I don't even care anymore. If they want to be like that to each other, then they can."

"Well, baby, we're going to be home late this evening. Try to cheer yourself up in the mean time. It'll be fine. Besides Thomas is so excited that when he gets home you'll be up all night listening to all the stuff he's done that you won't have time to think about your own problems."

Jan smiled. "I hope so Mom. You think you know people, but in the end there are few people that you can really trust."

"You can trust us, baby. Cheer yourself up. When you get home play a little music on the piano and we'll burst in the door before you know it."

Jan smiled again. "Ok, Mom. I'll do that."

Jan's plane landed at Baltimore-Washington airport almost on time. Jan's Nissan 350z had been in long term parking. She loaded the car full of luggage and drove home. She decided to stay off the interstate and drove home on the regular streets. She turned the radio down and drove alone with her own thoughts. The drive was too short. She turned into her drive way and pulled the car around the back of the Caufield house. She unloaded her luggage, but not even Jan could hold that many bags at once. She had to make two trips. After the second trip, Jan made herself a sandwich and pulled out some records. She started an LP and ate her sandwich. Jimmy Rushing's warbling gargle of a voice tried its best to cheer her up. Jimmy rarely failed, but Jan just wasn't ready to be cheered up yet. She let the record play through. At the end of the record she went back downstairs to her car. She hopped in and drove. She had a place in mind, but she was in no hurry to get there. She couldn't get the sight of Alisha and Sara standing there with such anger on their faces out of her mind. She was honest enough with herself to admit that the image had worried her. Sara and Alisha weren't normal teenagers. They both possessed great power that was dangerous. They couldn't afford to be like everybody else. They had to keep control, but they hadn't. Jan's thoughts would calm only for a fresh wave of malaise to hit. Then her cell phone rang. She looked at the number and didn't answer it. She didn't really want to talk to anyone, and certainly not Alisha.

Sara had left L.A. not long after Jan. Sara's flight had stopped over in Dallas. It was while in Dallas that Sara's anger had finally gone away. It was almost like she was a third person looking at her actions from a distance. She was so ashamed. She picked up her phone to call Jan, but didn't. She couldn't make herself push the button. Besides, Jan wasn't the person Sara needed to call. But she wasn't ready to make that call. Not yet.

The flight into Jackson had been smooth. The drive to Clover Bottom Farm was pleasant as well. It was a nice summer day in the Mississippi Delta. The sun was out and the humidity was low. A few hours later as the sun was setting Sara picked up her phone and called Alisha. To her surprise she answered. There was a long silence.

"Alisha, I'm so sorry. I really am. I've been acting like a butt for the last few days. I know it. I don't have an excuse. If you don't forgive me, I understand. I said some really really mean things to you. And I shouldn't have used my power against you. I should have never done that. Not even a little bit."

Silence again.

"I'm sorry too", Alisha finally uttered. It was clear that she had been crying. "I didn't mean any of that shit I said yesterday. I was totally out of line. I knew it when I said it, but I was so mad."

Sara chuckled weakly. "I know. I was too. Getting mad sucks. Your mind comes up with all sort of stuff, mean stuff. I can't believe that was me. And then when Jan came in, I felt like such a fool."

"Yeah me too!"

"So, are you still mad at me?"

Alisha sighed. "No, of course not. I'm glad you called."

Sara laughed and wiped her nose at the same time. "I'm just glad you answered. I thought you wouldn't at first."

Alisha laughed loudly. "What's the point of not answering the phone when you call? You can talk to me with or without a phone."

Sara shook her head. "No, I think I've used my power enough for now."

"Yeah I guess. We should call Jan. She was so upset when she left. Dad told me that she didn't smile once on the way to the airport. I'll call."

Jan was near the Chesapeake when her phone rang again. This time it was Sara. She didn't want to talk to either one of them. Jan turned the phone off. Jan's special phone never really turned off. The government could always get through on the secure line. There was one other feature that never turned off. The special phones had GPS which enabled the government to track them. The people at NSA very rarely did, but Jan was being tracked as she drove only it wasn't the government doing the tracking.

Jan finally stopped as she came to a place on the shore that she used to go to quite often. Jan parked her car not far from the road and walked barefoot down to the shore. The waves washed ashore gently as the last rays of the sun were casting the beautiful area in a surreal light. Jan sat down on the pebble and sand shore and let the waves wash over her toes. She just sat and stared out thinking. She let her mind wander. She still felt so down. She watched a freighter exiting the Baltimore shipping lane and watched as another ship was coming in. In years past Jan had sat on the same spot for hours watching the ships come and go while she sorted out problems in her life. She knew that an argument between her friends shouldn't make her feel so bad, but for some reason it did.

A large van sat on a hill a mile away. Inside the van sat a very large man. Mel Johnson had been released from prison in Colorado on time 17 months to day he had gone inside. He was still technically on paper, but his parole was unsupervised. That meant as long as he stayed off the police blotter, he would be fine. Mel had been recruited more than once while he was inside the joint. It wasn't all that hard for a man like Mel to find work. His skills were special, and he had only gotten better in prison. Once inside he had gotten a new batch of 'juice'. This stuff was pure and undiluted unlike before. Over the last year Mel's strength had grown. He was stronger now than he had been back when Jan Caufield had wrapped her long legs around his neck and nearly choked him to death. Those legs had sent him to prison, and for the last year and a half he had wanted payback. His new employer had promised him that payback. Mel rubbed his meaty hands together at the thought of what he was about to do.

Jan looked around. The sun had gone down, and she sat in an eerie near darkness. She loved the tranquility of it. The skeletons of buildings were off to her left towards the city and one last empty rotting hull was off to her right in the distance. She could just make out the bow of the beached hulk around a bend in the shoreline. Jan was about to leave, but she always felt peace here. This was the place where the Caufield family fortune had first been made. The rotting buildings and nearly gone dry-docks were all that was left of Caufield Shipbuilders Company. The Caufield's were building ocean going ships when steam power was just a fantasy and iron hulls were a joke. The company lasted all the way to the late 1960's when Jan's grandfather had sold it to a huge national ship builder. The huge corporation had promised to keep the old Caufield Shipyard open. Jan was sitting in the middle of that broken promise. 5000 people had lost their jobs when the shipyard closed. Jan's grandfather had spent millions fighting the closure and even tried to buy back the shipyard. He almost won, but he was murdered in 1973. That was the end of that fight. Jan thought about how that must have affected her father and her aunt and uncles. That was a real problem. Jan realized that she was feeling more than a little sorry for herself. Other people had real problems. Besides, her mother was probably right. This would work itself out.

Mel was out of the van and in position now. As sure of himself as he was, Mel had a team with him to do this deed. He was not going to underestimate this target. He had a squad of 4th generation scientifically enhanced soldiers with him. These guys were better than the Series 3's he was told. These guys actually had independent thoughts after a fashion, and their skin was only slightly yellow. They were stronger and better coordinated too. Mel had seen them in action once. Mel's boss thought that his Series 4's would be able to take Jan, but Mel knew better. He was going to have that pleasure himself. Sure the Series 4's would get a crack at her, but in the end it would be the two of them alone. He had envisioned it that way for a year and a half. He would let the 4's have their fun though. He prepared to give the signal.

Jan took a deep breath and took one last long look. It was getting late. The stars were out and the moon bathed the area in its own pale light. Jan looked up at the moon. She couldn't remember the last time it had been this bright. It was beautiful though. All the craters and big features were visible. She looked over at her watch. She had been sitting there for three hours. It was almost 10 pm. Her parents' flight was would be landing in less than an hour. It would only take her dad 20 minutes to drive from the airport with no traffic on the interstate. She wanted to be there when they got home Jan looked off in the distance and at the rising tide. She leaned forward to get up. As she leaned forward, machine gun bullets kicked up dirt inches behind her back. She fell forward and rolled over into a crouch. She looked around, but couldn't see anything. Jan looked back towards the road at her car. Her gun was in there. Instead of running directly for the car, Jan rose and ran down the shore. She didn't know who was shooting at her, but she guessed that she knew this area better than they did.

Jan flinched as she felt the heat from bullets buzzing past her face. She was almost there. Jan splashed as she entered the surf. She took a deep breath and jumped forward into the water. The Series 4's closed their semicircle and tried to track their target under water. They figured that water that close to the shore would be shallow. They figured wrong. Jan had dove into one of the old dry docks. She held her breath and swam along the bottom of the flooded 800 foot long dry dock. She felt along the bottom of the dock until she made it to the end of the dock. Jan slowly rose and broke the surface. She wiped the oily briny water from her eyes and looked back over her shoulder. She could see the men with rifles back where she had gone in. They had no idea where she was. Jan found the ladder built into the wall and climbed out.

Jan was a few yards from the road at the top of this hill after climbing up the old ladder. She looked towards her car and saw two dark shapes circling it waiting. She turned and looked back towards the shore and saw 5 more men with rifles down that way. It was about 2 miles to the nearest main road and another mile further to any sort of business with a phone. Jan knew that there was no way she could wait them out. They had come here for a purpose and they weren't going to leave without completing it. She wasn't sure if they had night vision goggles, but on a bright night like this they weren't really necessary. Jan put her belly to the ground and started crawling arm over arm like she had been taught at Fort Benning. She felt the twigs and rocks bumping against her chin as she dragged herself up the hill towards her car.

Jan was already picturing in her head what she was going to do once she got to the two guys standing around her car. It had been a long time since she had actually killed anyone. The last time Jan had been forced to kill someone was in December. Most of the time when Jan did some killing, the deaths came in bunches. This time looked like it was going to be no different. Jan prepared herself. She felt her heart pump harder in her chest and she felt the strength flow to all her limbs as she let loose the rage she kept stored deep down. Jan hadn't fully let that rage loose since that day in December, and after so long a time it was a rush to feel the power flowing through her. She had to make her self crawl slowly. Part of her just wanted to rush the two guys and rip their heads off, but no she had to have patience.

A few feet more and Jan was thankful that she had waited. The two men holding rifles weren't normal. She had seen the look before on the Series 3's she had fought nearly a year ago. Jan rarely forgot anything and she could never forget the Series 3's. These two didn't quite look the same though. Their skin was less yellow and they moved a little more naturally, and most importantly they spoke to one another using simple sentences. The 3's could barely make a sound let alone utter a word. She realized that these guys must be an updated model. At that moment, Jan wished that Sara and Alisha were with her in the grass lying on their bellies too. Jan realized that that she drew strength from them and they from her. They made a hell of a team. She let that thought go, because they weren't there with her. She was all alone. Jan reminded herself that she was a bad ass before she ever met Alisha or Sara. If was time for some solo action.

Jan waited in the grass for the man to turn his back. Jan's hands were balled into big tight fists. The anticipation and tension made her grind her teeth. He was moving so slowly. Jan's muscles were itching waiting to be used. Jan's body was coiled power as she lay prone waiting. Finally his back turned. Jan sprung to her feet and reached her long arms over the shorter man's shoulders and grabbed his rifle with both hands. She jerked the rifle down and away from her body before snatching it back and up. Her shoulders and back flexed as the rifle slammed into the 4's throat. His hands went up to push on the rifle to relieve some of the pressure. He was strong. The 4's were stronger than the Series 3's, but they weren't as strong as Jan. The barrel of the rifle bent under the strain. The other 4 saw what was going on and turned his rifle to fire, but he was too close. Jan's biceps peaked as she pulled back even harder on the rifle. She used it as a lever to swing her legs into the air. Her long hard left leg kicked the muzzle of the rifle making it shoot skyward. Jan didn't give the 4 time to correct his aim. As soon as she landed, Jan put her right foot on the right foot of the man she was choking. She turned her hips and pulled the rifle up and over her shoulder. She pulled it so hard and fast that the rifle bent and cracked. The wooden stock of the rifle shattered into a thousand splinters; the neck of the 4 she was holding faired even worse. His chin tried to rise with the rifle, but it could only rise so far. His enhanced bones broke and the rifle continued upward until it hit an even harder bone. The teeth in his upper jaw shattered too as the rifle continued to rise up and over. Once the rifle hit the upper jaw bone, his head started to rise. He body wanted to leave the ground, but Jan's powerful leg held him down. Something had to give. It was his neck. It stretched up until it broke. The bones and cartilage were ripped and broken. The back of the dead 4's head touched the middle of his back as his body fell to the ground oozing blood. Jan didn't drop the ruined rifle though. She swung it in an arc as hard as her super powered muscles could manage. It whistled through the air. There as a crack as the end of the rifle broke the sound barrier just before it smashed into the side of the other 4's head. The enhanced soldier flew into the air and spun several times before landing against the back of Jan's Nissan. Jan dropped the half of the rifle she was still holding and ran over to him. His eyes focused on her and even though blood poured from his mouth, nose, and eyes, he brought up his rifle and fired. He was too slow to correct for Jan's movements. He missed. Jan snatched the rifle from his hands. His butt was on the ground and his back was against the back of her car. That wouldn't do. Jan kicked him in the side of the head hard. Blood sprayed out and his head hit the ground. He tried to turn over to fight on, but Jan raised her leg into the air and brought her right foot down on the middle of his back. Air rushed from his lungs as she slammed his chest and stomach to the packed gravel of the road. Jan brought the rifle to her shoulder and took aim at the back of his head. She pulled the trigger. The 4's bones were almost hard enough to withstand a rifle shot, but only almost. The bullets made a mess of the 4's head. His brains were all over the place as she finished firing.

Jan dropped the rifle and ran around the driver side of her car and reached in. She grabbed her phone, her gun, and her shoes. Running on gravel was distracting. She slid her feet into her cross trainers and took off into the darkness as two more 4's approached from further up the road. Jan knew she couldn't go back towards the shore. She saw five more coming at her from that direction. She racked the slide of her Custom Springfield .45 as she continued to run. The moonlight didn't do her any favors. Everybody could see her. They fired at her. A bullet grazed her left arm and she felt one take a little chunk from her ear as she continued to run. There was no use in shooting back. A pistol round, no matter how heavy, wouldn't slow them down from this range. Jan had to get them in a bottle neck somehow. She looked down the hill at the shore and saw where she was going to go. Jan turned to her left and ran as fast as her super strong legs could carry her.

The old rusted hull of a never finished Liberty ship sat mostly upright in the rocky sand. The silt of countless tides had buried the very bottom of the ship. The massive hull was completely hollow inside. Only the ribs held the ship's shape. Only 2/3 of the top deck was in place and there were no interior decks at all. There was only one way inside the hull from the shore. An opening about the size of a double door had been cut near the stern on the port side. Jan ran for it. Bullets still came her way. She just hoped one wouldn't hit her in the back as she ran. There was no way she could defeat all these 4's with a bullet in her back. She ran even faster. She nearly stumbled as she got down to the shore again, but instead she just jumped. She heard the bullets pinging off the steel skin of the never finished ship as she went inside. It was the best sound she had heard in a long time. She crouched next to the door and waited. It didn't take long. A 4 came through the door rifle in hand and in a tactical stance. He looked the wrong way first.

Jan stood up and put her pistol against his temple before pulling the trigger. The .45's bark shook rust loose as the copper jacketed slug slammed into the side of the 4's head. Normally blood would have sprayed from the other side from an exit wound, but there was no exit wound. The bullet couldn't penetrate his hard skull twice, but once was enough. His body fell straight down halfway blocking the door. The next one jumped into the space over his dead comrade's body. This one looked directly at Jan and pulled the trigger. Jan rolled away from the doorway. She spun to a kneeling position and brought her weapon up. She fired three shots at the 4's torso. They were next to useless. He didn't even slow as he deliberately turned his rifle to her direction. Jan panicked for a split second before thinking back to what Mrs. von Edder had said the week before. Jan raised her pistol and took careful aim. It was a race to see who would fire first. She looked down the sights at a very small target and pulled the trigger once. Her bullet hit the 4 at the base of the eye and ricocheted into his left eye and into his brain. Jan smiled as he dropped. It was Jan Caufield 4, science 0.

The next one in caught her by surprise. Her reflexes were quick though. She didn't aim before she fired. The bullet hit the 4 just to the right of his nose. He staggered but didn't fall. Jan ran up close and took the muzzle of the rifle in her left hand pushed it over. The 4 pulled the trigger, but the bullets hit the soft ground behind his target. Jan raised her pistol and pressed it directly to the 4's left eye and pulled the trigger. This time blood and gore sprayed from the back of his head all over the 4 coming in behind him. Jan dropped her pistol as it had locked open. She snatched the rifle from the dead 4's hands. She held the dead body up with her right hand as the other 4 started firing. The rifle bullets hit the body of the dead 4 with wet slaps. Jan turned the rifle around with one hand and once she had its pistol grip in her hand she pulled the trigger. Her first shots missed to his right. He slid back out the door away from her shots. Jan let the dead body fall and she took a real grip in the rifle and fired a few shots to keep the door clear. While keeping an eye on the door, Jan pulled two more rifles close to her. The 4's fired and fired. Jan's ears rang from the noise of machine gun fire, but their shots did no good. She could see the old steel of the hull denting from their shots, but even after 60 years of decay it held. Jan felt a wave of pride. That steel had been forged right here on this sight by her family. Her great-grandfather hadn't known it at the time, but that steel he had oversaw the making of was saving her life. One by one the 4's stopped shooting. Jan didn't know it, but they hadn't really brought many extra magazines. They were out of bullets. The only person still armed was Jan. The 4's were not capable of fear however. One of them rushed in through the door. Jan was waiting and emptied the of a mag into his chest and head. What was left of his body fell against the bulkhead. Jan dropped that rifle and grabbed another... empty. She threw it to the side and took up the last one near her. She put it her shoulder and waited. Another 4 ran through the door. Jan pressed and held the trigger. The gun fired twice and then was silent. The 4 had stumbled from the two impacts, but quickly realized that there were no more bullets coming his way. He looked to his left and motioned for the others to enter. Jan dropped the rifle and took some steps back.

"Come on in and get some!", she yelled as the last 3 scientifically enhanced soldiers came in. Jan smiled as the spread out and slowly approached her. Her deep blue eyes narrowed as they came closer. Jan never waited for an attacker to strike. She was always the huntress and never the hunted. She looked at each of the men sizing them up. The one she had shot was in the middle, but he moved normally. Blood ran in twin streams soaking his shirt, but they might as well have been flea bites. He was focused on one thing. Jan backed away on the mushy silt as they came closer. She could see the wildness of their eyes. She felt the fear of defeat and even death creep into her mind. She knew that one on one these cyborgs couldn't take her, but one on three was a little different. She needed an opening. She needed a weakness. She needed an advantage. She saw one. The 4 to her right lost balance for a moment as his trailing foot slipped into a hole in the silty ground. He looked down to see what had caught him. Jan was on him before he even looked back up. She jumped forward and loaded up her left leg. Her hips rotated as she kicked with everything she had. Her shin impacted the side of the 4's head with a loud smack. He fell forward. The other two closed in. Jan reached down and lifted the dazed 4 and threw him at the other two. One ducked and threw a rising uppercut. It hit Jan at the base of jaw and knocked her against the rusty bulkhead. Her head swam from the impact. Her vision didn't clear in time for her to see the next fist coming for her head. She felt it as the punch slammed her head back against the hull. She went down to a knee still dazed. Blood dripped from Jan's mouth as she fell. She put out a hand to steady herself. The 4 with the two bullet wounds kicked with his super strong muscles. He struck Jan in the middle of her face. She moaned as she felt a blow harder than any she could remember. Blood poured from her nose and both of her busted lips. Her teeth were crimson as she rolled on her back in absolute pain. The kick had thrown her so far that it took the 4's a moment to get back in position to attack. They were not going to let up. When they had started this attack, there had been 9 in their team. They were the last three left. This one girl had killed 6 super soldiers all by herself, but they had her now. This was about to be over.

A voice in Jan's head demanded that she focus. Pain meant nothing. She opened her eyes in time to see three pairs of feet getting closer. Jan waited until they got closer. In one motion, Jan spun to her back and kicked out her right leg. She swept it forward. All three soldiers fell. Jan jumped to her feet. Her face was bleeding so bad that the droplets made a small puddle at her feet. The 4 nearest her struggled to get up in the silt. Jan raised her leg and slammed it down on the middle of his chest. She reached out and took his arm by the wrist. Jan held it tightly, scunched her face in concentration and twisted. She felt the tendons give and the ligaments tear as she tore his shoulder from its socket. The 4 didn't feel pain, but his right arm was useless. Jan fell to her knees and crouched over the wounded soldier. She wrapped her long fingers around his throat and squeezed with her finger tips. Jan's forearms came to life as the super thick skin of the 4 resisted, but it wasn't strong enough. Jan felt hot blood on her fingers. With a might pull, Jan jerked her hand back. The 4's throat dangled from Jan's hand. Blood ran down her forearm as the 4 died after one last blood gurgling exhale. Jan dropped the flesh from her hand and stood up slowly. The other two super soldiers didn't attack right away. Jan was sure that they weren't afraid. They didn't have the capacity for fear. They just didn't know how to attack to gain an advantage. Jan wasn't going to wait for them to figure it out.

She lunged at the one nearest her. He backed away, so Jan swung with her left arm and hit the other one in the base of the jaw. He staggered backwards. She threw powerful punch after punch. The 4 staggered backwards, but didn't fall. She was determined to finish this one. She was too determined. The other 4, the one with the bullet wounds, came next to her and brought back his right arm. He punched her in the ribs so hard that he broke all the super strong bones in his right hand. Blood sprayed from Jan's mouth as she flew to her left and landed on the ground. Jan clutched her sides and writhed on the ground. Her insides burned. She had felt something give. The pain felt like knives every time she tried to inhale. She coughed and choked on her own blood as it filled her mouth. That brought her back to her senses. She spit it out and rolled over. A stream of blood flowed from her mouth to the silt. She turned to her right and saw the two soldiers getting closer. They moved slower and were still not certain how to attack. The one on the left could only see from one eye after Jan's onslaught and the one on her right only had one good hand and was still loosing blood from the bullet wounds in his chest.

Jan felt horrible, but she actually chuckled as they came close. She could feel her body healing as she was there on all fours. She could feel the strength returning to her arms and legs. She stood up and faced them. They came closer, but they were injured. The one Jan had beaten in the face moved even slower. Jan was injured too, but she got stronger every second they waited to attack. Jan didn't wait for them. She launched herself at the 4 with the bullet wounds. She kneed him in the chest as she jumped. He stumbled over backwards from the force of the blow and from Jan jumping at his chest. They both fell to the ground with Jan on top. She laced her fingers together and rose her long arms over her head. Her muscles shined in the moonlight in the instant she held still before bringing down her arms. Air whooshed from the 4's lungs has Jan's hands hit the center of his chest. She brought her arm back and landed a punch to the side of his head nearly as hard as he had hit her in the ribs, except her bones didn't shatter. His skull fractured. Jan cocked her arm back and punched again. This time harder. The bones broke more. The 4 still tried to fight, but it was no use. Jan felt the unchecked rage flowing through her. There was nothing that could stop her. She cocked her arm back a third time. This punch was harder still. Her arm flew through the air at blinding speed. The sound of impact was a sickening squish as Jan's fist broke through the last resistance of his skull. She punched again and again until the face didn't look real. It looked like a discarded Halloween mask. The other 4 came closer to attack. Jan rolled away and back to her feet. She was ready to end this. The face of this soldier was so swollen that he could barely track her, but still it was ready to attack. It didn't.

"Enough!", a loud voice boomed.

The 4 backed away from Jan, and she turned her head back towards the door. She frowned as she turned. She thought she recognized that voice. Her stomach twisted into knots. Her mood changed as if a dark cover had been pulled over her. Mel had to stoop to enter the door. Jan's mind didn't want to believe it. Her hands shook and she couldn't move as Mel turned to face her. His large face smiled. His dark eyes bored holes through her soul as he just looked at her. Jan turned to face him, but it had taken all of her concentration just to do so. Jan tried to match his gaze, but she couldn't. She couldn't even make herself look him in the eye. He looked away however.

"You had your chance", Mel told the last remaining 4. "Get the hell out", he ordered it. The super soldier backed away from Jan without ever taking its one good eye off of her. It never looked away until it stepped past Mel and out the door. Now they were all alone.

Jan suddenly felt weak. Every injury hurt, and every drop of blood that fell seemed to take some of her strength with it. Jan couldn't feel the rage that fueled her explosive power. There was no room for the rage. It had all been replaced with fear. A fear that cut to Jan's very core gripped her. It only got worse as Mel started towards her. Mel was a mountain of a man standing seven feet tall and weighing more than 400 pounds, but there was precious little fat in that 400 pounds. Mel's muscles weren't ripped, they were just massive. One of his arms looked like it weighed more than Jan's entire body, and Jan knew that those muscles were even stronger than they looked. When they had first met 18 months ago, Jan had been slightly stronger than Mel. She knew that was no longer the case. Somehow she knew that Mel was stronger now. Jan was 19 years old and in her lifetime very few things had ever made her afraid. Jan had been afraid of fire since she was a little girl, and a man named Meshrob who could control the stuff had made her afraid for a while, but he had relied on his power too much. He died for it. She loved and respected her parents, but she didn't fear them. She had a healthy respect for her friends Alisha and Sara, and for a woman named Lisa. All of them were extremely powerful, but they had kind hearts. There was no fear there either. There was only one person who Jan had ever encountered who had the power, the skill, and the will to really defeat her and he was getting closer.

"I've been waiting for this", Mel rumbled in his deep voice. His smile was like daggers as he got closer.

Jan felt the adrenaline start to flow. Her hands shook even more and her legs too as he came closer. She had never been more terrified in all her life, but then something snapped. She realized that either she was going to kill Mel or she was going to die. She had always known that if she ever faced Mel again that it was going to be winner take all. Jan's hands stopped shaking, and her legs because steady. Her eyes focused and her fear mutated into the madness brought on by the instinct for survival.

Mel had walked through the gore that Jan had caused and felt respect. This girl had gotten better. She was really and truly the most dangerous woman he had ever met. He looked at her looking at him. Her long perfectly proportioned body made his loins stir as he got closer. Covered in dirt, blood, and gore made her look all the more powerful. This young woman was the ultimate weapon. She had beauty to draw in her prey and the power to defeat them. His bosses, both of them, were in awe of her abilities. Mel refocused his mind. He had a job to do. He looked at Jan. Her body had taken a lot of punishment. It shouldn't be too hard for him to complete his mission and get a little payback too. He stepped forward and threw a earthshaking punch. She wasn't even moving. Mel smiled internally. This was going to be fun.

Jan saw Mel's mighty pectoral tighten and flex. She knew the punch was coming, and she knew that he was faster than a man that size ought to be. She wanted to get this over quickly. She waited until the last moment and leaned back just out of range. She leaned back forward and jumped into the air. Mel's arm hung in the air from his follow through. Jan curled her body and then wrapped her legs around his upper arm at the same time she took his thick wrist in both her hands. She torque her body and used her hips as a fulcrum pressing up while using her feet put pressure on his arm the other way. Jan's muscles jumped to attention and flexed hard. Mel screamed from the pressure and went to a knee. His own might arm bulged to resist the pressure before she tore his arm to pieces. His muscles shook as he attempted to fight off her flying arm bar. He closed his eyes from the pain and in concentration as he tried to bend his arm. The muscles in his arm flexed super hard, but he gained no advantage. She was too strong.

Jan's eyes were wide open as she saw the pain overtaking Mel. His muscles were keeping her from tearing the joints in his arm, but he was losing. It was time for Jan to make her move. Jan's upper arms erupted with muscle as she twisted Mel's wrist despite his own strength trying to stop her. He dropped lower and her brown hair brushed against the silt. He was getting weaker. Jan straightened her legs. Her long legs expanded like steel hard balloons as she put even more pressure on Mel's shoulder. A scream choked in the big man's throat. She turned her hips. Mel and his 400 pounds rolled over with her. He fell to the ground. Jan twisted one more time. She was actually facing the ground now. Mel kicked and bucked, but she could feel his strength ebbing. He was massively powerful, but the muscle in his one arm couldn't hold her off for too long. Jan knew that as long as no one came in through that door to help him, that she was going to rip his arm off his body and beat him to death with it.

Mel could hardly think. The pain was more than he had ever felt. He had forgotten her strength and power. Mel's imagination had left out the details of their last fight. This girl was more than the sum of her parts no matter how impressive those parts were. He had to come up with an idea and quickly. Mel felt his ligaments and tendons stretching. He didn't have much time. He pulled his thick legs back in and he bridged his massive body. Jan felt Mel's hips leave the ground. It didn't matter. She still had the advantage, or she thought she did. Mel felt the balance on his feet. He took a deep breath and his massive body flexed with power as he started to crunch his abs. Mel's shoulders rose off the ground slowly. Jan felt her body leaving the ground as Mel pulled himself and her up. Finally he was upright, but she still held his arm. She felt her body move. Mel roared, and before she could let go, Mel swung his arm in a mighty arc. Jan's body moved through the air like a club. He aimed for the steel bulkhead. Jan closed her eyes as her back impacted the steel. The impact was violent. The entire ship moved as Mel swung her again. He turned almost all the way around on the third swing. This time the center of her spine hit one of the steel ribs of the hull. Jan cried out and fell to the silt after the third blow. Mel backed away and grabbed his wounded right arm. Blood was just now starting to flow back into it. She had nearly torn it off. Mel hadn't been angry before. He rarely got angry, but he was beyond anger now. He was going to show this little girl!

Jan stood up slowly shaking her head to clear the fog. She looked over and saw Mel getting closer. She moved to her left, circling. He cut off the distance and close the angle like an expert boxer. Jan tried to move back to the right. Mel raised his left leg to kick. Jan saw it coming and brought arms over to block. Mel saw an opening. He slammed his leg back to the ground, and brought his right arm back. His huge fist came forward with more power than a steam hammer. It his Jan in the side the face. The punch was so loud the birds on the top deck of the empty ship flew into the air in a panic. Jan's head whipped around and her mind was spinning. She couldn't tell up from down or left from right. Never had she been hit with such a blow. She staggered against the bulkhead. Mel raised his left arm and brought his arm back. He roared as he threw another punch. This punch was harder than the first. It was the hardest punch Mel had ever thrown. The impact sounded like an explosion. Jan's body flew through the air. She landed in the silt face first. Blood ran from her mouth, and her nose, and her ears. She ran her tongue across the loose teeth on the right side of her face where she had been hit. Mel's power was ungodly. But it more than just his power. Jan had fought strong men before, but they had been unskilled. Mel was skilled. Jan was started to believe that he might be too skilled. She felt the fear creep back.

Mel watched Jan get back to her feet. He was impressed. Those punches would have exploded the trunks to oak trees, but this girl had a lot of fight in her. She wobbled and tried to steady herself, but Mel's eyes squinted as he loaded up his power leg and kicked Jan in the center of her stomach.

All the air left Jan's lungs. Her abdominal muscles were always hard. They were some of the best around and hard enough to stop nails, but Mel's kick was just too strong. It felt like the ball of his foot rearranged her insides. Jan wretched and doubled over. The taste of her own bile had the effect of refocusing her. Jan was in pain and her body was injured. Those blows by Mel made the blows from the 4's seem like love taps. The last time Jan had felt a tooth loose in her mouth was the last time one of her baby teeth had fallen out. She had always known that Mel could hurt her. Her could injure her with his bare hands. She was going to make sure he didn't get another chance.

She played like she was more hurt as Mel got closer. It was risky, but worth it. Mel reached his ebony hand down and grabbed the back of Jan's bloody shirt. He snatched her off the ground and pulled his left hand back to smash his huge fist into the center of her beautiful face. He wouldn't get the chance.

Jan's own punch hit him between the eyes first. He staggered back and dropped her. Jan's shoes had barely hit the ground when she jumped up and wrapped her long legs around him. Jan's quads bulged out obscenely as she squeezed. Her super powered legs actually made Mel's waist smaller. He coughed and groaned. Jan squeezed again and Mel went to the ground. He was on his back. Jan slid up his body so that she was sitting on his chest with her knees on his elbows. She leaned back and dropped the point of her elbow onto Mel's nose. It broke. She raised it again and again dropping crushing elbows as fast as she could. Mel turned his head, but the elbows kept falling. Jan felt his thick pecs flex under her butt as he tried to get her off his elbows. Jan's eyes narrowed and she focused on her legs. Her inductors flexed like steel cables as she squeezed her legs together. Mel tried to fight on, but the power in those legs was too much even for him. His arms fell limp. Jan sent blow after blow to Mel's head. He turned away again. This time Jan moved cat quick behind him. She wrapped her arm around his neck and her legs around his shoulders. She leaned back and drew her shoulder blades together. She was going to kill him.

Mel's eyes rolled back in his head. This was no game! This girl was fighting for her very life. In Mel's mind this fight had already happened so many times, but this was real life. Jan Caufield was real, and she meant to beat him and kill him. That realization rocked Mel. It had never been that for him. Mel Johnson knew then as his brain began loose consciousness that only one of these two warriors was going to walk out of this empty ship. This was a fight to the death. For the first time in his life, Mel was in a fight for his life with a person more than strong enough to take it. He only had a few moments left. He knew that he had better use them wisely.

Mel marshaled all his remaining strength and grabbed Jan's ankle with his right hand. She grimaced when his thick fingers begin to dig into her flesh. It felt as if his fingers were grinding her bone into powder. He reached across his body and grabbed the toe of her shoe with his left hand. His vision blurred in and out as he twisted his hands in opposite directions. Jan's foot twisted inside her shoe.

"Ahh!!", she yelled and tried to squeeze Mel tighter, but she was already squeezing with everything she had. Mel twisted again as a trickle of precious air made it to his oxygen starved lungs. Jan yelled again and her grip lessened. With one more twist, Jan couldn't take it anymore. Her grip faltered. Mel threw off her arms and rolled away. Jan rubbed her foot and sighed. She had lost another chance. She knew very well that might have been her last chance.

Mel slowly stood up to his full height. He was well beyond trying to intimidate Jan. He respected her. He felt strength returning to his body as he and Jan circled each other. He looked in her eyes, and he knew that he was going to need every ounce of his strength and every skill he had ever learned if he wanted to leave this place alive. Jan saw an opening. His right shoulder hung just a little lower than his left. His right arm was still weak. Jan attacked.

Mel had expected her to attack his right side. Jan threw a punch that he casually pushed aside. He threw a left hook that Jan blocked with her right arm. Jan pulled her left arm back to throw another punch, but Mel caught her wrist. Jan caught his left wrist in her right hand. He pushed down on her. He had the leverage and the mass. The last time they had fought she had been stronger. It would go his way this time.

Jan's muscles swelled and burst with power as she fought to keep from crushing her. Sweat poured down her shapely shoulders and down her chest and stomach. Her cloths could barely contain her muscular explosion. Mel's face was a mask of concentration. Everything he had and everything he was he put into crushing Jan. His own body flexed and strained, but Jan's muscle expansion was unreal. Her triceps and shoulders pulsed and throbbed with power, but Mel wasn't finished. He took a deep breath and redoubled his efforts.

Mel's power nearly took Jan's breath away. He pressed down with strength like she had never felt. She felt herself going down. Her knees bent and her elbows bent from his power. A maniacal grin spread on Mel's face as he taste victory. As the pain and pressure threatened to overwhelm her, Jan reached to the very bottom of herself. She knew that if there was ever a time for her to use it all, it was now. Once again, Jan's body responded. Her already hard muscles that throbbed with steel rending power, flexed even harder. Jan's triceps were sharper than razor blades and she was more shredded than ever before. Jan growled and her muscles exploded under her skin. Veins spread under her skin like a dam had burst. They throbbed feeding Jan's muscles. Her capri pants burst from the expanding muscle and her shirt tore at the neck from her powerful muscle expansion. Jan's growl grew louder and she stood back up straight. Mel couldn't believe it. He took a deep breath to find even more power. He pushed down, but it was a mistake.

Jan felt the wave of power coming from Mel, and smiled. He had made a mistake. Jan turned her shoulder as Mel pressed down. He realized too late that she was using his own move against him. Jan let his momentum take him over her shoulder. Jan added her own power and he landed on his back with a boom. Jan cartwheeled and landed on him. Their chests touched, but Jan was on top. She put her left elbow on Mel's throat, and she pulled her right arm back. Her muscles were bigger and harder than ever before. She tightened her fist and brought her arm down in a looping hook. Mel yelled in pain as her fist slammed into his ribs. His scream hadn't stopped when Jan's biceps swelled again before she brought her punch down faster and harder. Jan felt his ribs break. Mel's body spasmed. She hit him again. Blood sprayed from his mouth landing on Jan's back. She hit him again, then she shifted to her right. She leaned and put her right elbow to Mel's throat. She brought her left arm up. She held her arm up and felt the strength coursing through her body. She let it fly. Mel whimpered as her fist broke another rib. She punched again. The pain was more than Mel had ever felt. Blood gathered at the corners of his swollen busted lips and ran to the silt below, but he was not done.

Jan readied to deliver another blow. She was wearing him down. She was killing him one blow at a time. She leaned close to him as her punch fell again. Mel almost lost control of his bladder as her fist slammed into his ruined ribs. He had never been so beat in his entire life. Mel felt fear of death chill him like a winter breeze. He was staring death in the face. Everyone realized that one day would be their last, but Mel was coming to understand that today was his day. This young woman was killing him one punch at a time. It was only a matter of time before his insides were turned into soup. His will started to die too. The fight was leaving him. He was beaten. Another blow landed adding fresh new pain to his mind and body, but it would be over soon. It would soon pass. Mel thought back to his childhood and he thought about his life. Mel's eyes opened. He wanted to LIVE! It was now or never for him. He had the strength for one last thing. Either it worked or he would die on this beach. He reached out and took Jan's head in his two massive hands and twisted her head to the left.

Jan stopped punching. Out of instinct Jan pulled back and used all her strength to turn her body against Mel's twist. He had hoped for that reaction. Mel torque his entire body to the left and released all that torque to right. Mel had never strained to do anything more in his life. He had lifted tons of weight, but nothing he had ever lifted had used more of his strength than this one motion. Jan's own massive strength added to his. All that power and strength was released into a single point. All the super human power focused on the third vertebrae in Jan's neck. Her bones had been tested before, but even Jan's body could not withstand the power from two super humans. The crack of Jan's neck breaking boomed in the empty hull. It echoed and reverberated inside the space for several seconds.

Mel rolled over to his back. His massive chest rose and fell as he struggled to even turn his head. He finally did and saw Jan Caufield lying next to him. She was motionless.

The pain was like a bright light that shined in her eyes no matter how hard she shut them. Jan could feel the pain, but she couldn't feel anything else. She tried to move. She tried and tried, but she couldn't breath. Jan knew that her neck was broken. Her body wanted to heal. It wanted desperately to heal, but it couldn't. The two ends of her spinal cord weren't touching. Unless they touched, Jan's spinal cord couldn't heal. Her bones wanted to knit, but they couldn't either. A single tear ran from Jan's blood red eye as she lay there helpless. She turned her eyes in her head and saw the shape of Mel standing over her. He was going to finish it. Jan didn't want to die. She had so much she wanted to do. She wanted to have a chance to grow and to love and watch her knew little brother Thomas grow. She wanted to see her mother and father again. She wanted to see her friends again. She wanted to see Avi again. Jan's eyes were turned as far as they would go. She saw Mel turn away from her.

Several men ran into the empty hull. They ran towards Mel and stopped as they came close. They frowned as they looked at Mel. He was their champion. In the month that Mel had worked with them, he had proven than he was the strongest and the baddest, but he stood there nearly broken. His nose was broken flat against his face and his cheeks were split deep. Gashes in his forehead and chin leaked blood. His eyes were both nearly swollen shut. His hands shook in the aftermath of the fight, and his legs were unsteady. He stumbled more than once as the men came closer.

"Ahaa! You little bitch! How do you like it!", one of the men yelled. He brought his leg back to kick Jan in the ribs. He didn't. Anger roared back to life inside Mel and he swung his arm out towards the man. Mel's arm hit the man in the chest. He flew back towards the bulkhead. The man died when he hit.

"Anybody else have something to say?", Mel rumbled.

Jan wanted to cry out as she felt Mel put his hands under her body and lift her. Her neck hung at an unnatural angle. She felt his fingers go behind her head to support it as if she were a newborn. He carried her out of the door. She closed her eyes. She didn't want to see the end coming. Jan could feel that he had laid her down, but she couldn't tell onto what. There were other people near her. She could hear them. Tears streamed down her dirty cheeks as she faced the end. Jan pressed her eyes shut and prayed. She felt relief as she thought back to second grade when Sister Joan had taught the class the Act of Contrition. Jan prayed the words in her mind. Another wave of pain rushed into her mind, but she continued to pray.

She felt Mel's hands on the sides of her face. He was going to finish her. This was the end. She tried to move. She wanted her body to move, but for the first time in her life, her body failed. She was halfway through her prayer when Mel's huge muscles flexed again. He turned her head with a mighty twist. Jan's eyes opened as one last lightning bolt of unchecked pain exploded in her her head. Her mouth was open in a silent yell, and she only saw shapes as her azure eyes threatened to pop from her skull. Her vision faded. Darker... darker... Then there was nothing.

"Sara! Wake up! Something bad has happened", he nearly yelled.

Sara opened her eyes quickly. It took a couple seconds for her mind to catch up. "What are you talking about?", Sara asked her little brother. Looking at his face made her feel worried. She sat up in her bed as he came closer.

Charles tried to get control of his emotions and then it came clear. "Jan! Something has happened to her. I know it."

Sara frowned and then closed her eyes. She let her power expand and her mind travel. She could feel countless minds as she searched, but none of them were the one she was looking for. She pressed more. Sara's body shook and sweat appeared on her forehead as she stretched her power to its limits. Finally she exhaled and looked up with panic on her face.

"I can't find her. I searched all the way to both coast. I felt Alisha and her family. I felt Jan's family, but I couldn't feel Jan." Sara started to get frantic.

Charles took his sister by the shoulder. "Sara, when was the last time you couldn't feel somebody you were looking for?"

Sara's eyes met her brother's serious gaze. A sob escaped her lips and a tear rolled down her cheek. "Charles, you remember", Sara began. "The last time I couldn't find somebody, was the night Mom was killed. "

This is a chapter in the ongoing story "Power and Fury"!  Check out the earlier chapters here.  The chapters in BOLD ITALICS are the beginnings of a story arc (good places to start).  The chapters with asterisks (*) are stand alone chapters (what I like to call good reads without the commitment).  Enjoy!

Chapter 1 -- Chapter 2 -- Chapter 3 -- Chapter 4 -- Chapter 5 -- Chapter 6 -- Chapter 7 -- Chapter  8 -- *Chapter 9*