Prologue 37 years ago.... BREAKING NEWS: A new element called Blackwind has been discovered. 33 years ago... BREAKING NEWS: After some study by scientists they've come to the conclusion that when used correctly it could become a great energy source for years to come. 30 years ago... BREAKING NEWS: The first Blackwind factory has been built and is providing electricity for the citizens of Denk. 15 years ago... BREAKING NEWS: A terrible accident at the Blackwind factory has caused some to spill into the water and into the air. The death count is among the thousands. So far, no survivors have been found. BREAKING NEWS: A group of infants has been discovered alive at the Denk Hospital. 9 years ago... BREAKING NEWS: The survivors of the Blackwind incident have been seen to show supernatural abilities such as speed and mind reading. Last week... BREAKING NEWS: A foundation called the Anti-Blackwind has lashed out at the Blackwind survivors saying they are monsters. Yesterday... BREAKING NEWS: A Blackwind survivor has been found dead. The boy, seventeen years old, was murdered.
Chapter One "Let's see," Zack said, "You have a Jack of Hearts and a 10 of Spades? That's not a very good hand so far." "You know I hate playing Texas Hold 'Em with you? I mean you can literally read my mind," Gandalf replied. "I still don't know why you play with him," Utho said, "You said it yourself that you hate it." "Well I lost a game of rock-paper-scissors to him so we're playing cards instead of Call of Duty," Gandalf replied. "I really hope you get the point of mind reading. He knows what you're going to put up. You'll never win a game of rock-paper-scissors," Utho said with a chuckle. Gandalf looked at Zack who was smiling. Gandalf burned the cards in his hands. "Hey that was my only deck!" Zack exclaimed. "You can get a new one. It's not like we have money problems," Gandalf responded. In fact they really didn't have a money shortage. All of the Blackwind survivors were adopted by a rich couple that didn't have any kids. When they heard about the accident they immediately jumped into action. Then Aillae walked up to them. "You're playing cards on a day like this? We're going to a funeral in a couple hours." "So? He's gone. We are all sad but it's like we're going to wear black for a year and have a vow of silence. I'd encourage Utho and Zack to play cards on my funeral day. Which will never happen because Zack reads minds," Gandalf told her. She pointed at them, "You guys are pathetic," Aillae said then walked off. "She's cold," Utho said. "I was looking at her mind. She's thinking about punching you in the head Gandalf. Ouch," Zack said with a smile. "Well let's get pizza. You want see if Kantos and Rika are ready for some action?" Utho asked. "Oooh...the pizza swiping trick works all the time," Gandalf said. Zack and Gandalf went over to get Rika and Kantos. Utho got the car ready. After a couple minutes they all went outside and got in the car. They drove to the Little Caesars and Rika and Kantos got out. Kantos turned invisible and Rika stepped inside with Kantos right behind her. Rika knew this plan well. Her ability is luck, and she wields it well. She went to the refrigerator with the pop inside she used her ability to control luck and made all the pops fall out. "Oh my gosh!" Rika exclaimed, "I am having a bad day today." The guys behind the counter went over and helped her pick them up while Kantos walked back to the Hot-and-Ready pizzas and snatched two. While they weren't looking he walked out and back to the car. Rika and the clerks picked up the rest of the pop bottles. "I was just trying to get a Coke. How much do they cost?" Rika asked. "Oh you can have one. On the house. I just hope you come back! We're terribly sorry about all this." "Thank you, both," Rika said with a wink and walked out. "Rika got in the car and they drove off. "Two for the price of zero," Gandalf said, "Just the way I like them." They drove home with the pizza and they got out. What they saw made Zack drop the pizza. The mansion was burning.
Chapter Two Rika saw some of the other Blackwinds standing outside the house. There was Bjorn, Hope, Alex, Aillae, and Dell. Hope looked up and saw them. He sped over to them. He was only about a hundred yards away so he covered the distance in about two seconds. He must be slow today. "Is Fish with you?" Hope asked. "No, I thought he was with you," Gandalf said. "Oh crap," Zack muttered, "I scanned the area for Fish's thoughts. He's still in the house." "Why is he in the house?" Rika exclaimed. "He's putting out the fire and looking for Mom and Dad," Zack said. "I'm going in there," Gandalf stated, "I'm not going to burned." Gandalf sprinted towards the house and the group merged with the others. "How did this happen?" Alex asked, "Did Gandalf burn something?" "He burned the cards but I saw the fire go out. It couldn't have been him. Remember how Jack died yesterday? What if it's the same person?" Utho asked. "Or group," Bjorn muttered, "The Anti-Blackwind might have done this." "That's insane! They wouldn't go that far. Would they?" Rika said. "They've been calling us monsters since the day we were born. Maybe they're tired of waiting for us to die. I think we seriously need to think about our protection," Hope said. Then Fish and Gandalf came out of the mansion, each holding one of their parents. They looked like they just have been through something terrible. Which they have. "Utho! Heal them!" Fish shouted. Fish and Gandalf put their parents down and Utho walked up to them. He hovered his hands over them. After a couple of seconds he started to tear up. "Utho? What's wrong," Gandalf asked. Utho paused for a moment then spoke, "I can't heal the dead." There was a moment of silence. "What are we going to do now?" Dell asked. Bjorn replied, "That is a very good question."
Chapter Three Three weeks later... "Shut up, Blackwind," the boy said. This was a normal day for the orphaned Blackwind survivors. Ever since they had come to Marian's Home for Orphan Children they had be outcasted, beaten, and talked down to. First off they were separated into boy and girls so in the boys section was Zack, Utho, Gandalf, Fish, Hope, Kantos, and Bjorn. In the girls were Dell, Alex, Aillae, and Rika. Only Gandalf and Bjorn were roommates. Every other Blackwind was paired with a normal. They found out quickly that the normal people were not friends. They did everything they could to ruin their lives. Even with their abilities they couldn't do anything to stop it. Using powers to fight back would prove to the world what the Anti-Blackwinds have been saying all along. They used their powers selfishly and should be put down. To the normal people, they weren't even human. The only one of them that the normals stayed away from was Rika. They quickly realized that bad things happened to those who hurt her. "What's the matter with you? We're human too. Why can't you just leave us alone?" Fish asked. "Because you're freaks. You deserve no kindness." Then something terribly wrong happened. The normal boy started coughing and wheezing. He started to turn different colors then he suddenly fell to the ground dead. Then another normal walked in the room. "You killed George?" he exclaimed, "You monsters! You'll pay for this!" She ran off screaming and Fish couldn't stop her. Fish knew they had to escape. The boy's death would put a price on their heads. He thought: Zack if you can hear this then tell everyone to get out, get out now. Meanwhile on the girl's side of the building... Rika and Alex heard a scream. "THE BLACKWINDS ARE MURDERERS!" Rika and Alex looked at each other, eyes wide. "What have they done?" Alex murmured. Rika and Alex gathered Aillae and Dell. They looked around. Some, but not everyone, dying the same way the first one did. And they all thought the Blackwinds did it. They heard sirens outside and the police spoke through the their megaphones. "Blackwinds! Come out!" Everyone in the orphanage were thinking the same thing. The moment the Blackwinds stepped outside they would be shot. The girls met up with the guys who were in the kitchen. "What should we do?" Utho asked. "I have an idea," Aillae said. She proceeded to explain the plan to them. Then, she pulled the fire alarm. She knew that if the fire alarm is pulled everyone would have to leave the building so the police wouldn't know who to shoot. She also had to explain to Gandalf that he wasn't supposed to actually set something on fire. Just to put the thought of a fire into everyone's head. That disappointed the little arsonist. Everyone ran out of the building and the Blackwinds hid inside a group of screaming normals. When they got outside they all decided to meet up at an abandoned warehouse. Hope ran there. Fish unlocked and started two cars with his ability and Utho, Fish, Rika, and Dell hopped in one car and Kantos, Aillae, Zack, Gandalf, Alex and Bjorn in the other. The cops saw them escaping and shot at them. Bjorn was hit in the leg and screamed. "Keep going! I'll have Utho heal it. Now let's get out of here!" With that, they sped away.
Chapter Four The second car with Gandalf, Kantos, Zack, Aillae, Dell, and Bjorn were pretty much in the clear. The few cop cars that came after them had their wheels set on fire. Gandalf had done his work. Now all they had to do was make it to the warehouse. It took another ten minutes to get there but they finally made it and parked. Then Zack's face went pale. "What's the matter, bro? There's no one here," Gandalf said. "You're right about that. There's no one here because their taking Rika and Utho downtown. They captured the them." Ten minutes ago... "They're on our tail!" Utho shouted. Then Rika raised her hands. The cops tires popped. "Look! They all have a flat tire! What bad luck," Rika chuckled. "Hehehehe...good job. OH CRAP!" Alex screamed as she saw another car coming from the side. The cop car hit their car in the back and they spun out. The car fell into a ditch. "Get out! They'll be on us in seconds!" Utho exclaimed while crawling out of the car. Whatever bruises that Utho had were healed and he walked onto the pavement along with Fish and Alex. He heard the sirens blaring around him and he also knew that they were getting closer. Then he saw a tiny but noticeable red and blue flashing light. He saw a small clothing store and knew that the cops wouldn't look in there for a while and by that time they would be long gone. But he didn't know where Rika was. "Go in there! I'll follow you!" Utho told Alex and Fish. Utho scanned the area for Rika. After not seeing her he knew she must still be in the car. Utho walked down into the ditch. He saw her moaning in pain while cradling her right arm. The arm had tiny shards of glass from the shattered windows in it and it was bleeding. "Let me help you with that," he told her. She nodded and let Utho do his work. The glass fell out of her arm and the skin sowed it back together in a matter of seconds. Then he heard a voice behind him. "PUT YOUR HANDS UP, BLACKWIND!" yelled a cop. Utho knew he had saved Rika's life. But he may have just given up his own. Back at the warehouse... "That's terrible!" Dell shouted, "What are we going to do?" "Well whatever we do, do it fast," Bjorn grumbled. They all looked at Bjorn. "Because if Utho doesn't heal me soon, I'm going bye-bye."
Chapter Five The ride in the patrol car was a long one. The metal bars on the windows didn't improve their mood. They were just arrested for a multi homicide that they did not commit. They saw the cop turn on the police frequency. "Yeah, I got the Blackwinds. All by myself. These look like dangerous ones too," the cop spoke confidently through the radio. "Cheeky moron," Utho grumbled. "Shut up, Blackwind," the cop told him. "You know I have a name," Utho said. "I care because..." "I think you should care to know the names of your falsely accused detainees." "Falsely accused? How do YOU explain all the deaths in there?" "Investigate everything! The food in there is crap! They could have been poisoned. Just don't make us a scapegoat for everything," Utho said, "Take us downtown if you want but I'm just telling you that we didn't do it." "Whatever. Well we're here. Welcome to the Greybar Hotel. You'll be in a holding cell until the lawyers are finished pressing charges," the cop said, "Enjoy your stay." Two other guys came and opened the doors of the car and led them outside. There were more guys with pistols stationed outside so there was no running just yet. While they were being walked inside the Miami Police Department they felt everything around them. The stench of a hundred inmates was in the air. The policemen and their words of how it's about time they were locked up. They reached their destination and were dumped onto the floor of a cold, cement cell. "Hope you rot, Blackwinds." Meanwhile at the abandoned warehouse... Alex and Fish had just made it to the others. "Rika and Utho got nicked! We have to bust them out! They won't stand a chance!" Fish exclaimed. "We're already in the middle of our battle plan, Fish," Zack told him. "What is it?" he asked. "You're going to knock out the power so it will be hard to see for them but we have the human torch with us so we'll have light. After that Gandalf, Hope, and Kantos are going to take care of the guards and take the keys and I'm going to find where they're keeping Utho and Rika. Dell and Alex are going to be waiting with getaway cars. It's all thought out," Zack explained, "No need to worry." "Ok," Fish said reassured, "When's this going to happen?" "At 9:50. That's ten minutes before a shift change happens. So if nothing has been changed then we will be fighting half-asleep guards." Alex cut in, "What's Aillae doing?" "She's staying here with Bjorn. We can't fail. Three lives are at stake," Zack said, "Now, we wait." At Miami PD, hours later... Rika was awoken by the sounds of shouting guards. She looked around and saw that all the power was out and that everyone was somewhere else. She nudged Utho awake. "Utho! Wake up!" she whispered excitedly. "Huh? What's going on?" he murmured. "It's the others! They're here to save us!" "Great, tell me when important happens," Utho muttered almost completely asleep. Then he realized what she just said, "Wait, WHAT?"
Chapter Six The infiltration team got dropped off at the side of the Miami PD. Fish saw an iron box on the wall that had a "High Voltage" sign. Fish opened the box and put his hand on the inside. It was filled with wires and doohickeys that Fish didn't know how to work. All he knew was he could control it with his mind. He imagined the power going out and five seconds later all lights went off inside the PD. Gandalf, Zack, Kantos, and Hope walked inside. Gandalf made a ball of fire that hovered over his and Zack's head to give them light. The cops were disoriented and half-blind. "Hey! You! Get outta here!" one cop shouted. Hope, running twenty miles per hour, slammed into the cop and he went flying into the wall. Kantos lurked over there and picked up the man's keys. "Kantos!" Zack exclaimed, "They're being held in the holding cells on the east side of the building." Zack heard Kantos think a "thanks" and then proceeded to help Gandalf and Hope with the cops. Then Zack heard someone whispering through a phone. "The Blackwinds are here. Get the FBI, SWAT, or the freaking CIA just get someone here NOW!" Zack walked up to the quivering security guard. "Don't you understand? We're the good guys," Zack said innocently. Zack heard the man thinking about attack and found he was about to get punched. Zack ducked under it. Zack kicked the man in the face and he went out cold. Then Zack heard someone's thought: I have a shot, should I take it? Zack didn't know who it was or where it came from. The shadows from the fireball danced across the walls, looking like an unseen assassin getting closer. Kantos finally made it to the cells. He saw Utho and Rika leaning against the bars. "Open the door!" Utho whispered. Kantos fumbled with the keys but finally got the right one to open the doors. Kantos led them out into the main building. He heard the sounds of shoes on the floor and Kantos went invisible. "I can hear you, Kantos," Zack said and then Kantos became visible again, "Something big is going on guys. I think the cops are calling in backup or whatever. We need to get everyone here." They spent the next ten minutes gathering up everyone else in there. And just in time. They heard shouts and saw men in armor come in. The cops called in the cavalry. And these guys had big guns.
Chapter Seven "What are we going to do?" Rika asked, "We're trapped in here and men with armor are coming!" "I DON'T KNOW!" Zack exclaimed, "This wasn't supposed to happen!" "THIS IS SERGEANT HILLER OF THE MIAMI POLICE! COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP!" They were hiding in an office and the men were coming near. The only thing stopping them was the thought that they might die like the people at the orphanage. Gandalf got up and started to walk towards the door. "What are you doing?" Hope asked. "Going to show them how Blackwinds do things." Gandalf stepped outside the office and through a fireball. The police replied with two shots in the leg. Gandalf hit the floor bleeding and crawled back through the door. "You shoot like a GIRL!" Gandalf shouted. Fish chuckled, "I bet he's feeling the burn now, Gandalf." "I'm sorry if I'm not witty right after I get SHOT. Now, Utho, heal me." "Can do," Utho told him while shuffling over to the wounded boy. This went on for somewhere around two hours. Gandalf and Hope went out, hit them, got shot sometimes, and got healed. All the while the police gradually moved forward. Eventually they were going to get in. Then, there would be consequences. Zack looked at the back of the office. The wall seemed to be vibrating somehow. He hoped that it wasn't anything bad. Well, anything that would make life worse than it was now. Zack also read the mind of Sergeant Hiller. They were going to move in. They only had ten minutes. Gandalf and Hope struck a once more. By now, everyone had noticed the vibrating wall. "Nice knowing you guys," Utho told them. "Yup. You too," Fish replied. There was one minute before the police moved in and they would be brought to justice. Or whatever they called bringing innocent mutant kids to jail for no reason. Then a hole in the wall appeared where it was vibrating. A teen, maybe seventeen or so, stepped inside. "Hi. My name's Bastion. I'm here to save you."
Chapter Eight "Um...ok," Utho said. "Well, come on! They'll be here any minute!" Bastion exclaimed. The Blackwinds followed Bastion out of the hole he made in the wall. Dell and Alex were waiting outside in the getaway cars. They got in and they drove off. The police must have heard something so they charged in to find them getting away. The men shot at them but Dell stopped the bullets. Yeah, she telekinetic. They sped towards the warehouse. They just hoped Bjorn was still alive. They saw Aillae standing over Bjorn who was laid out on a makeshift bed. "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" Aillae shouted. "We got pinned down. Sorry 'bout that but Utho can heal him now," Gandalf explained. Then Bjorn cut in, "Oooooh....look at the flying monkies." There was a moment of silence. "As you can see he's hallucinating," Aillae stated. Bjorn raised his arms as if he was holding a gun and shouted, "DIE, FLYING MONKIES! DIE!" "Yeah. I would watch this more but seeing as he's dying I'll go fix him up," Utho told them. Utho walked over to Bjorn who had a smile of victory on his face. Utho kneeled next him and hovered his hands over Bjorn. The bullet popped out and his skin was sown back together. Bjorn instantly fell asleep. "Well anyway. Aillae meet Bastion. He saved our lives," Zack explained. "You do me too much honor, Zack. Us Blackwinds have to stick together." Everyone's eyes widened at him. They all were thinking the same thing: I thought we were the only Blackwinds.
Chapter Nine They talked about what happened and what they should do in the future. After that, Bjorn finally woke up. He was weak but he could still speak. "Hey...we got a new guy?" he murmured. "Yes we do, Bjorn. His name is Bastion. Bjorn what do you remember?" Rika asked. "I remember fleeing Marian's and then getting shot. I remember the pain of a bullet and then being driven to this piece of trash warehouse. Then I don't remember anything," Bjorn explained. Hope cut in, "Do you remember the flying monkeys?" he asked. "What?" Bjorn asked startled. "Awwww....I guess not," Hope grumbled. "I'm hungry," Gandalf whined. Alex went into her backpack that she carried around and pulled out what looked like a burger. Alex's ability was to be able to make something look different if they were around the same size. Like she could make a simple piece of paper look like a hundred dollar bill. That ability has been used on multiple occasions. "What is that?" Gandalf asked. "It's a burger," Alex told him while smiling. "Right." The burger changed back into a large piece of granola. "That's disgusting," Utho said. "Make it look like a burger again. If it doesn't taste good at least it will look good," Gandalf mumbled with a scowl of displeasure on his face. "Ok then," Alex said in a chipper tone. Then granola turned back into a burger and Gandalf ate it sadly. "Now who wants a Hershey's bar?" Alex told them happily. They all said one word in unison, "Pass." "Anyway. I know a place where you will be safe and welcomed," Bastion said. "Where on Earth would we be welcome?" Aillae asked. "It's a colony of Blackwinds," Bastion answered. "A colony? How have we not heard of this?" Dell asked. "We keep off the radar. And I think you'll like where it is," Bastion told them with a smile. Zack started to smile, "You're kidding right Bastion? That's where it is?" "You read my mind? That's cool. And yes, that is where it is." Utho cut in, "Well where is it?" Zack finished, "The Blackwind colony is Las Vegas."
Chapter Ten "Vegas?" Aillae stated surprised, "Who would ever want to go to Vegas?" All of them stared at her. "There's nothing to do there besides gamble and drink." They stared a little more then Zack cut in, "That's kinda the point." "Whatever. Let's just get there." They bought tickets onto the next train to Las Vegas. They paid in cash. Or what looked like cash. They hopped aboard and got their seats in the back of the train. They opened today's newspaper. The Blackwinds were not surprised to see their faces plastered all over the front page. There was a newspaper article about them. How they grew up in luxury and ease. Then how there was this terrible "accident" and then they were moved to a nice orphanage with friends. Then the dark tale of how they turned bad and killed the innocent kids who had treated them so well despite their differences. The tale made another bad turn as the writer spoke of the psychologically damaged children who broke into a police department and busted out their partners in crime. Now, the terrorists are on the run and the writer begs people to turn in Blackwinds. "That is a load of crap," Hope stammered, "We're being set up!" "Hey they have our pictures in the paper. Mine is from a year ago. I hate it," Zack exclaimed, "I look like Justin Bieber." Utho laughed, "Well mine is worse. I look like a freakin' terrorist." "Well we kinda are, Utho," Aillae stated, "Besides why does that matter? There's a much worse part about this." "Your hair in that picture?" Bjorn asked innocently. "No. The words: SHOOT ON SIGHT. They're at the bottom of all the pictures," Aillae told them. "That's kinda bad too I suppose," Bjorn finished. "Well anyway, we should sleep. We have a big day tomorrow," Bastion said. They all agreed and they fell asleep to the beat of the train speeding across the track. Then Aillae had a vision. She dreamt the past. Most of her dreams were useless but every once in a while it was important. This was one of those times. Aillae recognized the place as the orphanage back in Miami. She saw a person on top of the building chanting something. And at the same the man was chanting, the people keeled over and died. She had found her murderer.