All American Rejects (Users #3) Read Online Free Page B
Author: Stacy, Jennifer Buck
Heath was referring to. "They have escaped."
"Escaped?" Heath hung his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What do you mean escaped? This is unacceptable. I need one of every User."
"Okay, we will get you a different Barber and Icer then," Alaric said, but Heath stared at him as if he were some kind of asshole.
"Ryker and Barber are one of a kind Users," Heath said, steadily raising his voice. "There are no other Barbers or Icers, you musclebound dolt. You will get them for me, and you will get them for me now."
With his crescendo, he slammed his clipboard to the ground and stomped his foot like a petulant toddler. The remainder of the All American team, still doing their best to avoid any interaction, jumped at his outburst.
"Finding them may be difficult," Alaric said, remaining calm. The fragility of their own status was ever at the forefront of all of his interactions with the good doctor.
"I want them now and I want them alive," Heath said in a threating tone.
Without so much as another word to Heath, Alaric turned his back on the man and headed for the door.
"Let's go," he said as he passed his companions on the way out. "We've got work to do."
*****
Alaric watched a wall full of monitors for any sign of Barber or Ryker. After leaving Heath and the government lab, the All Americans went straight to their base of operations, a secret facility built into the side of Mount Rainier. Upon arrival, Alaric sent out a series of drones to search the woods outside of Seattle for the two missing Users. Alaric watched the feed from the drones in real time on a massive arrangement of screens that stretched from floor to ceiling, but so far he had found nothing.
Alaric slumped back in his chair, kicked his feet up on the table, and watched in fixated silence.
"Any luck?" Stella asked as she came around the chair and put a hand on Alaric's shoulder.
"No sign of them...yet," Alaric answered.
"Do you think we will find them?" Stella asked.
"Oh, we will find them." Alaric confirmed. "We don't have a choice. We have to find them."
"About that," she said. "Do you really think this is a good thing to be doing? The right thing?" She walked over to face him, staring intently into his bright hazel eyes and blocking his view of the screens.
Alaric leaned to the side in his seat, trying to see around her, but she simply stepped in front of him again.
She was an eccentric dresser, wearing a tight pair of leather pants, a purple vest, and flowing silver colored blouse. Her hair hung over one side of her face, highlighting the fact that it was dyed bright purple.
"This is what we do. We stop the bad guys. It's what we've always done."
"This time it feels different. Doesn't this feel wrong to you?" Stella placed her hands on her hips. "I mean the way Heath said it was precisely right, we're hunting them down; like animals. Don't we have a similar duty to protect our own kind from becoming lab rats for the mad scientist's twisted experiment."
"Our kind, these are not our kind. They are breaking the law, and if they can't behave in civilized society, perhaps they don't deserve to have their powers. Did you consider the lives we may be saving?"
"But at what cost, Alaric? To provide the government with a possibly uncontrollable military force? Who knows what they may do with it. Who knows what the individuals that are crazy enough to volunteer, will do with it." Stella continued to plead, "It's not their natural power, so who will be held accountable for the outcome when this goes terribly wrong? How may will die then?"
"What would you have me do?" he asked frustrated. "Do you want to end up in one of those glass cylinders? Do you want your powers sucked from your body for the government to distribute and feed their super powered army?"
"We could always fight."
"Fight? The United States government? Are you kidding me?" he asked. "We may be superheroes, but we aren't Superman. We are not some invincible alien being,
"Escaped?" Heath hung his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What do you mean escaped? This is unacceptable. I need one of every User."
"Okay, we will get you a different Barber and Icer then," Alaric said, but Heath stared at him as if he were some kind of asshole.
"Ryker and Barber are one of a kind Users," Heath said, steadily raising his voice. "There are no other Barbers or Icers, you musclebound dolt. You will get them for me, and you will get them for me now."
With his crescendo, he slammed his clipboard to the ground and stomped his foot like a petulant toddler. The remainder of the All American team, still doing their best to avoid any interaction, jumped at his outburst.
"Finding them may be difficult," Alaric said, remaining calm. The fragility of their own status was ever at the forefront of all of his interactions with the good doctor.
"I want them now and I want them alive," Heath said in a threating tone.
Without so much as another word to Heath, Alaric turned his back on the man and headed for the door.
"Let's go," he said as he passed his companions on the way out. "We've got work to do."
*****
Alaric watched a wall full of monitors for any sign of Barber or Ryker. After leaving Heath and the government lab, the All Americans went straight to their base of operations, a secret facility built into the side of Mount Rainier. Upon arrival, Alaric sent out a series of drones to search the woods outside of Seattle for the two missing Users. Alaric watched the feed from the drones in real time on a massive arrangement of screens that stretched from floor to ceiling, but so far he had found nothing.
Alaric slumped back in his chair, kicked his feet up on the table, and watched in fixated silence.
"Any luck?" Stella asked as she came around the chair and put a hand on Alaric's shoulder.
"No sign of them...yet," Alaric answered.
"Do you think we will find them?" Stella asked.
"Oh, we will find them." Alaric confirmed. "We don't have a choice. We have to find them."
"About that," she said. "Do you really think this is a good thing to be doing? The right thing?" She walked over to face him, staring intently into his bright hazel eyes and blocking his view of the screens.
Alaric leaned to the side in his seat, trying to see around her, but she simply stepped in front of him again.
She was an eccentric dresser, wearing a tight pair of leather pants, a purple vest, and flowing silver colored blouse. Her hair hung over one side of her face, highlighting the fact that it was dyed bright purple.
"This is what we do. We stop the bad guys. It's what we've always done."
"This time it feels different. Doesn't this feel wrong to you?" Stella placed her hands on her hips. "I mean the way Heath said it was precisely right, we're hunting them down; like animals. Don't we have a similar duty to protect our own kind from becoming lab rats for the mad scientist's twisted experiment."
"Our kind, these are not our kind. They are breaking the law, and if they can't behave in civilized society, perhaps they don't deserve to have their powers. Did you consider the lives we may be saving?"
"But at what cost, Alaric? To provide the government with a possibly uncontrollable military force? Who knows what they may do with it. Who knows what the individuals that are crazy enough to volunteer, will do with it." Stella continued to plead, "It's not their natural power, so who will be held accountable for the outcome when this goes terribly wrong? How may will die then?"
"What would you have me do?" he asked frustrated. "Do you want to end up in one of those glass cylinders? Do you want your powers sucked from your body for the government to distribute and feed their super powered army?"
"We could always fight."
"Fight? The United States government? Are you kidding me?" he asked. "We may be superheroes, but we aren't Superman. We are not some invincible alien being,
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