Trance. Part 11

He pointed toward a cl.u.s.ter of fire engines. "Captain Hooper. What are you?"

"The answer to your prayers," I quipped, and then looked down at Marco. "Onyx, do a flyover and get the lay of the land."

The raven nodded and took to the sky in a ruffle of feathers and air. I envied him the freedom to fly like that.

"You're Rangers, aren't you?" a female voice asked.

I turned and located the woman near an ambulance. She wore an EMT uniform badly in need of an iron. Silver glistened in her black hair, and unlike the younger men and women around her, she didn't seem at all surprised by our arrival at the scene.

"Yes, we are," I said.

"I knew you'd come back. Always knew someday."

Before I could ponder if she meant me specifically, or the Rangers as a group, Gage grabbed my arm and whisked me toward the makes.h.i.+ft command center. I tried to remember the woman's face, so I could seek her out later if need be, and followed the boys.

Captain Hooper was easy to find. He stood hunched over the trunk of a police car, studying several sets of building blueprints, flanked on both sides by firemen and uniformed cops. He looked up as we approached, his mouth flopping open, utter shock settling into his aged features. White hair peeked out from beneath his cap, but that didn't diminish the air of authority in his broad shoulders and square jaw.

He recovered quickly and suspicion replaced surprise. "What are you people doing here?"

"Lending a hand, if you think we're needed, sir." I pulled the civility out of my a.s.s, even though the "you people" put my defenses up. p.i.s.sing off a police captain wouldn't do much to ingratiate us with the populace.

Hooper's attention s.h.i.+fted over my shoulder to Tempest and Gage. "You all have powers that can be useful in this situation?"

"Of course. We aren't here to waste anyone's time. I'm Trance, this is Tempest and Cipher. And please, Captain, tell your people not to shoot at a crow flying about, he's with us."

"We're police, not game hunters."

"Just so we understand each other. Where are the workers trapped, Captain? We need to know their locations and if any of the explosives still haven't been detonated."

"One pack hasn't." A young man wearing an orange hard hat shouldered his way forward. The name embroidered on his s.h.i.+rt said Anderson. "The northeast corner of the building only collapsed partway. That's where my guys were placing the last pack when everything hit the fan."

"How many men are down there?" Gage asked.

"Five still. Two got out on their own. Said they could hear the others screaming for help as they left, but their escape route fell in. We can't get to them."

I glanced at blueprints that read like gibberish. "Show me."

Anderson and Hooper led us to the edge of the rubble; they'd had the foresight to set up their base near the trapped men. Eight stories of apartment building lay on top of them. Four stories of the northeast wall survived, a totem to the destruction. Anderson pointed to a spot of freshly disturbed bricks.

"That's where they got out," he said.

I squeezed Gage's elbow. Walking as close as he dared to the rubble, he squatted down, closed his eyes, and concentrated.

"What's he doing?" Hooper asked.

"Checking to see if the workers are still alive," I replied.

Onyx landed next to Tempest and transformed back into his human shape. It was like watching a video recording backward, as he undid what he'd done earlier. He didn't seem to mind being clad in just those black briefs. The man had the body of an underwear model, all tapered hips and chiseled abs-even if his mottled skin made him look like an advertis.e.m.e.nt for camouflage paint.

"See anything useful?" I asked.

"There may be a way in through the rubble, twenty feet to the center," Onyx said. "It is a rough walk. I ventured inside, and some of the support beams created a tunnel into the first level."

"Good, thanks."

Gage stood up and walked back, his mouth pinched. "I only heard four heartbeats. Could smell a lot of blood, and something else." He looked at Hooper. "Is all of the gas and electricity to this block shut off?"

"Yes," Hooper said.

"It wasn't on before," Anderson added. "My guys went in with flashlights and lanterns. Property hasn't had good electrical service for two years, since the owner went bankrupt. Why do you think we're tearing it down?"

"Onyx found a way in," I said to Gage. "I need you with us for orientation. Tempest, can you stay out here and be my eyes and ears?"

Tempest frowned. He seemed poised to argue, but didn't. As much as I wanted to keep us together, his powers wouldn't be very useful in an enclosed s.p.a.ce.

"I'll see about keeping a good airflow down to the workers," he said.

"Thanks."

Onyx transformed again, this time into the small black cat he'd been when we first met. With admonitions from Hooper and Anderson to be careful and "don't make it worse," Gage and I followed Onyx into the destruction.

He cut a swift trail over peaks and valleys of brick, plaster, metal beams, and wood planks. I noticed the smell that bothered Gage earlier; probably residue from the sequential explosions. The cacophony of the rescue teams melted into the background as we picked our way across, my mind focused entirely on the task at hand.

Minutes later, cat-Onyx disappeared around a twisted metal staircase. I turned the same corner and found an opening the size of a doggy door.

"This is your hole?" I asked, not sure if Onyx was in range of my voice.

I peered inside and saw nothing. The cat appeared; I jumped. He blinked twice, as if asking "what are you waiting for?" then ducked back inside.

"It sounds like it opens up a bit," Gage said.

Trusting him on that, I inhaled deeply, sat down, and slid into darkness.

Fifteen.

Demolition II My feet hit something solid. I stood up just inside the darkness. Light poured down from the hole above, and I stepped forward to allow Gage room. My eyes adjusted slowly to my surroundings. We were in a stairwell, still mostly intact. I recognized a 4 painted on the wall nearby. We had a bit of traveling to do.

Gage slid down and landed gracefully. Onyx appeared further down the makes.h.i.+ft corridor, his feline eyes glinting in the dim light. He blinked once, turned, and disappeared. I followed a few steps, paused, then groaned.

"What?" Gage asked.

"Flashlight."

"s.h.i.+t."

No time to go back and fetch one. I raised my left hand, palm up, and concentrated. The heat formed into a tight orb the size of a walnut. I focused on the heat, rather than the size, and as the temperature increased, the light grew brighter. It glowed like a 40-watt bulb, and I held the temp steady.

"You okay, Trance?"

"No problem."

With our makes.h.i.+ft light source, I followed Onyx's trail. The stairwell remained mostly intact, its metal staircase bent and broken in a few places, but pa.s.sable. We skirted stone and brick and plaster debris as we descended. Onyx stayed just within the glow of my orb, rarely venturing too far forward. Several times the air grew thin and I caught the distinct odor of gas, then it was dispersed by a gentle breeze. I smiled, thinking of Tempest on the outside, helping us as best he could.

"Cipher," I said, as we neared the bottom of the stairwell, "can you hear them?"

"Still four heartbeats."

Our voices reverberated in the enclosed s.p.a.ce. Something s.h.i.+fted above us, showering our path with dust and bits of stone. I froze, felt Gage's hand on my shoulder, but that did nothing to calm my pounding heart. Several awful seconds pa.s.sed before the wreckage settled.

"We should move faster," I whispered.

At the bottom of the stairwell, the emergency door lay twisted half open. As entrances went, it was narrow and hard to maneuver. Onyx leapt through with ease. I bent and inserted one leg. Unable to manage without both hands, our light source disappeared, blanketing the narrow s.p.a.ce in utter blackness.

I crawled through the hole and stepped back. An indignant cat screech shattered the silence.

"Sorry," I said.

Onyx hissed.

"A little help here," Gage said.

I re-created the light orb with less thought than the first time, and it glowed brighter. I smiled, pleased with my work. Not too bad, and no side effects so far. Gage slid into the room. We stood in a crushed hallway that seemed to extend forward a good forty feet. Three support beams had fallen across the path, and we ducked below them. The walls of the corridor remained mostly intact. The ceiling was a mess of exposed cables and beams, broken sheetrock and twisted metal fixtures. Some sections hung within two feet of the floor, forcing Gage and me to crawl. Each time, I had to drop the orb, and each rekindle proved faster and brighter.

My Vox beeped. I pulled it from my belt holster. "Tempest, this is Trance, we're here."

"Pretty close. We've backtracked at least thirty feet to your position, near the northeast corner of the building."

"We'll do our best. Out."

I put the Vox away. I didn't need to be told to hurry; I felt the building settling.

The end of the corridor presented us with another challenge: water. Part of the floor had given away and filled in with tepid water, likely from busted pipes that hadn't properly drained. The nauseating odors of mildew and slime tingled my nostrils. Gage looked positively green, even under lavender light. Past four feet of water, a half-broken door hung askew. More water disappeared into the room beyond, and I heard a distant trickle as it ran out of sight.

Onyx sniffed the edge of the pool, stepped back, then transformed from the cat into the raven. He took off over the water and ducked into the room.

"They're in there," Gage said. "I can hear them."

"h.e.l.lo?" The stranger's voice echoed from beyond and vibrated the unstable walls. Dust floated down, and deep within the structure, something groaned. The man shouted again, louder this time, and metal screamed.

I spun around, raising my hand to s.h.i.+ne light back down our path. Ten feet behind us, the ceiling collapsed, cutting off our escape route and sending a cloud of dirt and debris into the air. The walls beside us cracked and fractured.

"Go," Gage said, shoving me forward.

I stumbled into the calf-deep water and slogged toward the broken door. About halfway there, I tripped over something beneath the water and lost the light. Gage grabbed my arm before I fell. We surged forward blindly, enveloped by darkness and the horrific squeal of collapsing metal and brick. Dust filled the air. I sneezed, splas.h.i.+ng through the water until I hit something solid. I stopped, coughed, and waited. Gage still gripped my arm.

The noise stopped. My Vox beeped, but I ignored it in favor of creating a little light. The lavender glow illuminated the interior of an apartment kitchen. Its floor was awash in filthy water; half of the ceiling lay in the center. Raven-Onyx was perched on the middle of the debris pile.

Four men of varying ages sat huddled in the far corner. Wet and wide-eyed, the quartet stared at us. Two wore hard hats and a third was holding his left arm tight to his chest. All of them were bleeding from gashes on their faces, necks and hands. A fifth man lay facedown in the water opposite the survivors.

My Vox beeped again.

Gage plucked it from my holster. "It's Cipher," he said. "Go ahead, Tempest."

Tempest replied, the concern in his voice unmistakable.

"Pete's dead," one of the men offered. He was the oldest of the four and looked like the man in charge. "George there's got a broken shoulder, but we're mostly okay."

The older man snorted. "Sounds like you kids got yourself trapped down here with us."

"We've got a few tricks left," I said. "What's your name, sir?"

"Ben Hodges. Who are you, Missy?"

"Trance, Ranger Corps." I felt a bit of pride at the statement. "My a.s.sociates, Cipher and Onyx."

Ben eyed the raven. "Trained bird?"

"Shapes.h.i.+fter."

"And what do you do, make light?"

"Among other things. Can you four walk?"

"If we need to, yes."

I increased the light a bit more and stepped away from the wall. A second door was sealed shut by debris. The door we'd come in provided no way back out. Short of tunneling like moles, I saw no reliable escape route.

"Cipher?" I said. "How far are we from the street?"

Gage closed his eyes. An eerie silence befell the room, broken occasionally by the hiss of lapping water. Ben, George, and the other two workers remained oddly quiet-probably terrified of having three Rangers within spitting distance when Rangers hadn't existed for fifteen years.

"Is there another room past this wall?" Gage asked, pointing blindly.

"Yeah," Ben said. "Living room, bedroom, then the exterior wall."

He opened his eyes. "So about twenty feet between us and the outdoors?"

"Twenty feet of rubble."

I sloshed back to Gage's side. In the strange light, his eyes glittered, and I recognized the look.