[OLD] The Supers Experiment (#1)

Seventeen

Claire broke into a fit of coughing when the box she set down sent a cloud of dust into the air. Sighing, she looked up at the others.

"We shouldn't be cleaning the storage room, we should be out rescuing Ivy," Claire said. They'd spent all morning working on getting the room into shape, as part of their punishment for sneaking out. Dr. Newman had been surprisingly nice about it, but he still made it clear that he was upset.

Summer placed a storage bin on the floor nearby and stretched out her arms. "I know," she replied. "But Dr. Newman's doing all he can. He's getting together everything we know about Scorpion's headquarters. If we're going to rescue Ivy, at least we can be prepared."

"She's right," Spencer added as Terrence handed him a box. "Going in without a plan won't do Ivy any good."

"I know," Claire said. "I just feel so useless."

The door creaked open and Ace ran into the room. Spencer smiled and reached out to pet the dog. He had begged Dr. Newman to let him keep Ace. Dr. Newman reluctantly agreed, so long as Spencer promised to be responsible and take good care of him.

"I know it sucks," Spencer said, turning his attention back to Claire. "But right now there's nothing we can do."

It looked like he wanted to say more, but he was interrupted by a piercing alarm. A red light poured in from the hallway. Claire looked over at the others.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"It's the emergency alarm," Summer said. "We need to go to the deck."

Claire followed the others outside, where the other Supers had already begun to gather.

"What's going on?" Summer asked.

A kid Claire didn't recognize answered. "No one knows for sure. Apparently something showed up on the radar."

"Something? What do you mean something?"

They didn't have a chance to reply. Dr. Newman appeared and quickly got everyone's attention.

"Supers," he shouted. Everyone fell quiet. "Several objects appeared on the radar a few minutes ago, moving toward us. We may be under attack."

Claire could hear helicopters in the distance. Her heart skipped a beat.

"If it's Scorpion, we will likely be outnumbered. The Fortuna is equipped with weaponry, but I'm not sure—"

"How did they find us?" someone shouted.

"We don't know," Dr. Newman answered. "But—"

"They're here!"

The shadows of the jetchoppers moved across the deck. Supers shouted as the chopper doors slid open. Ladders dropped down and soldiers appeared, followed by Altered.

A thunderous boom shook the deck, and something flew at the helicopters.

"The cannons," Spencer whispered. One of the choppers took the hit and fell out of the air. Before it could hit the ocean, a massive tower of water rose up to meet it, pushing it onto the deck of the ship. The crowd around Claire moved away, pushing her back a few steps.

Claire's eyes darted to another chopper, where Ash stood in the doorway, controlling the water.

"Claire!"

Claire turned in time to see Hestia, the girl they'd fought at Cladis Point, appear. Hestia threw a fist at Claire. She tried to dodge the attack, but Hestia grazed her arm. Claire stumbled backwards and Hestia disappeared.