Previously on Blessed Inversion Inhibitors…
With the rise of Inversion related crimes, the United Nations forms an Inversion exclusive branch of NATO to combat them. After their first mission in the UK ends with the death of their trainer, Steven Kessler, the Inhibitors are a public success but personal failures…
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Jun Naegi/Reflex -Inhibitors Second-in-Command. Precog |
Fabiana Pereira/Mentalist -Inhibitors Psychic. |
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Rory Tymchyshyn/Construct -Inhibitors Leader. Energy Constructs |
Kathy Preston/Granite -Inhibitors Member. Geokinesis |
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Raina Dahmani/Degree -Inhibitors Recon. Thermokinesis & Flight |
Stephanie Balboa/Mach -Inhibitors Recon. Super Speed |
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Karen DeGroat/Chaos -Inhibitors Powerhouse. Umbra & Photokinesis |
The flight back to The Cell was quiet. Some didn’t know what to say, others didn’t want to, but everyone was thinking the same thing. How did it happen? They didn’t all like Kessler or how he made himself out to be invincible to them. But nobody was ready to see him taken away from them so suddenly. How did they let the Inversion get so close without anyone realizing it?
“What do we tell Sasha?” Kathy asks what everyone was thinking.
“We tell the truth.” Rory responds. He needed to be a leader now more than ever.
“The truth huh?” Jun thinks to herself. Her eyes glancing at Fabiana briefly. Too much of her story didn’t add up. She was crying when she called but now that everyone was here she sat quietly like nothing happened. What happened to his body? She understood how powerful a psychic could be but she never once showed she was on that level. She’d get to the bottom of this but would need help. When the VTOL lands and everyone’s departing she whispers to Rory. “Come to the generator room alone in 5 minutes.”
“Huh?” Rory said confused but had no time to respond.
“Did Jun say something?” Raina asks noticing his expression.
“Oh, um…I’m not sure. The translator might not be working properly.” he lies in the heat of the moment.
Jun waited in the generator room anxiously for Rory to arrive. In seven minutes he finally does. “You’re late.”
“Sorry I still had to meet with Ms. Boone. She was wondering where you were.”
“What did you say?”
“I said you were resting after everything that happened. Anyway, what’s this all about?”
“Do you trust me as your second-in-command?” she asks.
“Well yeah.” he responds.
“Good, then I think Steven was murdered.”
Rory shakes his head. “We already knew that Jun.”
“No, what we were told was a killing in self-defense. I’m saying he was intentionally killed.” Jun waits for a response she doesn’t get. “Look at what we know. Fabiana says Rage got in range and took over Kessler so she had to kill him in self-defense. Except as far as we can tell Rage affects people indiscriminately. If she really snuck up on the VTOL why not take over both? How would she know to even do that?”
“You…have a point…”
“Kessler was also an Inversion like us. Nobody knew what he could do but for months he managed to beat all of us without needing them. Even if he was caught by Rage why wouldn’t he use them? There wasn’t a body either and nobody heard them until afterward.”
“Okay, maybe you’re right. Who do you think did it then?”
“You know who I think did it.”
“I want to hear you say it.”
“I think Fabiana murdered him. We all know how much they didn’t get along and she’s always on about mind controlling people. She could’ve taken control of Rage to help set this all up.”
“But why?” Rory asks. Her theory made sense but there wasn’t a solid motive.
“That’s the one thing I haven’t figured out yet. Even for her, that’s going a bit far and I have no physical proof.”
“I think you’re too stressed.”
“You should at least try to trust me as your second-in-command. Something is off about this.” she defends herself to not seem crazy.
“I know Jun but you said it yourself. Without actual proof, this is just conjecture.”
“And if I find proof?”
“Then we’ll do what we have to. Till then I’m keeping this just between us.”
“Thank you.” As Rory leaves the room she begins thinking of ways to prove Fabiana was responsible. Then a realization came to her. Even if Fabiana had mind controlled Rage and the pilot, the VTOL itself would still have a recording. It was up to her to find it. The moment she exits her room she finds Fabiana waiting for her.
“I was wondering where you went at the debriefing. Feeling better?” she asks.
“A little, I just needed time to myself.” Jun tries to walk away and avoid suspicions.
“I’ll join you. We shouldn’t deal with these types of things alone.” Fabiana says to Jun’s dismay.
“Thank you.”
“So…” Fabiana starts after minutes of silence. “I think this is the first time we ever did something like this. You’re usually just off on your own somewhere.”
“Really? I never noticed.”
“I always figured you thought you were too good for us…or you thought one of us was a murderer.” her words of suspicion illicit no response from Jun. “Do you trust me Jun?”
“Of course.” she lies. “We’re a team right?”
“You’re right.” Fabiana smiles. “Kessler and I…we never saw eye to eye. But I swear I didn’t want to do that but if I didn’t he’d have killed who knows how many people. First of all me.”
“There’s nothing wrong with self-defense. He must’ve been tough to force you to go all out.”
“Heh, yeah. He was our teacher for a reason.”
“Yet you couldn’t mind control him instead.” Jun digs into Fabiana’s cover.
“Don’t you think I tried it? He knew how to block that. I had no choice but to use force.”
Jun remained skeptical of how much she said was the truth and how much was fiction. She just knew she didn’t want to be around her any longer. “Maybe, just stay away from me for a while.”
“Oh…okay…” Fabiana accepts disheartened.
Without Fabiana hovering over her, Jun begins to relax. “Next stop, hanger bay.” she thinks to herself. She didn’t know if she could trust the pilot, Miles, yet but if the ship logs were still safe then she’d have irrefutable proof.
“JUN!” Fabiana calls out from down the hall while running at full speed.
“This isn’t staying away Fabiana.” she answers flatly.
“Just shut up and come on.” Grabbing Jun by the hand, Fabiana drags her to the recreation room. Every inch of the inside covered in a strange webbing. “The hell is that?”
“What are you playing at?”
“Playing at?!” she exclaims insulted. “Do you think I’d do this? Do have any idea how much of my stuff was in there? I’ll have to rebuy everything now!”
“Well, then do you know every ability the staff has?”
“Of course, because I’m a supercomputer.” she snarks. “Just track them. You can do that right?”
“That’s Katerina. Besides, there are too many Inversions here.”
“Whoever fucked up my stuff is gonna pay!”
“Are possessions all you care about?”
“No…but they had sentimental value.”
Without warning, webbing flies into the hall and wraps around Fabiana before it tries to pull her in. Were it not for Jun grabbing onto her she’d be dragged into the mass of webbing. A faintly glowing muscular figure steps forward and becomes visible. Their entire body was a smooth brown hue with a massive gray V going from the forehead, extending over the eyes, and extending down to the feet. Two black spheres made its eyes and above each was two sets of smaller eyes. The impression of large spider fangs sat on both sides of where their human mouth would be. The webbing that trapped Fabiana extending from the center of its right palm.
“The fuck is that?!” Fabiana calls out trying to fight against his pull with all her might.
“No idea.” Letting go of Fabiana, Jun dives towards the figure for a grab. She doubted she could do anything to cut the webs but she could make them stop using it. The figure silently, and easily, dodges her grab. Jumping off Jun’s back, towards Fabiana, pulling her into his arms, and dashing down the hall. “Hey! Get back here!”
“Okay ugly, I’ve had enough of this!” At such a close range there’d be nothing the creature could do to prevent her mental assault.
“Keh.” The intruder drops Fabiana before he can be hit. He fires another stream of webbing but an energy wall comes up between them. Rory had stumbled upon the fight while heading to the training room with Karen.
“Inhibitors, we got an intruder!” Rory calls out across his headset.
“Nowhere to go now.” Jun says entering her combat stance alongside Stephanie who arrived via super speed. The figure remained almost exclusively focused on Fabiana.
“Tell me who you are or I start skinning you!” Karen threatens consumed in darkness. She took the news of Kessler’s death the hardest. Despite her intimidating appearance, she receives no response.
“W-what do we do?” Stephanie asks scared by the intruder’s appearance.
“We-” Before he can even make a plan, the intruder digs into the ground in seconds and disappears. “Shit.”
“I’ll get him back!” Karen shouts diving into the hole after him.
“Wait! Damnit, Jun you’re with me. Steph, get Fabiana to the infirmary. Move out Inhibitors.” Diving into the hole, Rory creates an energy construct around his hand as a makeshift light source. In the distance, he can make out Karen still on the move, courtesy of her third and lesser used power of illumination. “Karen!” He calls out but gets no response.
Firmly in the grasp of her tunnel vision, Karen continues her pursuit. “NO MORE RUNNING!” she cries out firing a beam of darkness down the hole. There was nowhere for him to run, or so she thought. Before the beam can reach him, the intruder digs upward. “You coward!” Blinded by rage she fires her beam upward, piercing all the way to the surface and into the sky above.
“Karen!” Rory calls out once more to the young Inhibitor.
“I’m so sorry.” her eyes begin to water. “I couldn’t catch him.” The light side begins regaining control of her personality.
“He’s not gone yet.” Rory asserts. He creates a construct elevator to raise them up to where the intruder exited. But when they arrive at the hanger bay, the VTOL they took on their last mission was now missing. “Jun.”
“Yeah?”
“I think you were onto something earlier.”
With the VTOL gone the only chance of getting proof of Fabiana’s guilt was gone with it. They were now back to square one…
Next Issue
Blessed Inversion Inhibitors Chapter 4- The Second Director
Recommended Reading
Blessed Inversion SWAT Chapter 1- Welcome Home
First Issue
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