FADED SHADOW

NUCLEUS PART. 5

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“What happened to your powers... ”, Rose began. “It been long I have seen you used them. I mean the last time we saw each other you were kicking asses by hurling people through space, making time someones enemy by making them relive their horrible past repeatedly. You were doing crazy stuffs... what happened? ”

“They are gone... ”, Debbie responded.

“Gone... did you loose them or something? how did you even loose them? doesn't make any sense... ”

“It happened after you left... for some reason I stopped freezing time, warping space ... I stopped doing a lotta things.”

“... and you don't know why. ”

“I don't want to know .. and besides I am okay with not having my powers. ”, Debbie sighed. Her ability to manipulate space time had disperse with no logical reasoning.

“You didn't bother contacting AOUCE??? ”

“You and I know... this mess started with them... at least I am free of it. ”

“You never loved your powers...”

“Yeah... and I am glad they are gone. You don't know what it like to be able to have an eye that can literally see the future, your past, presence... and the other that can see beyond measures of understanding, an eye that has it focus on every angle of you surroundings. I can barely get ambushed you know else I turn this shits of but I don't know how to... and now ... they are gone... and I am hella happy about it. ”

Rose faced turned pale. “But ... but ... you can still get hurt. ”

“Do I look I care... ”, Debbie retorted folding her hands. “I am just happy the way I am. You still have your powers, be glad about it. ”

“What’s there to be glad about... ”

“You can still help while you can. AOUCE did you well, you weren't treated the way we were treated. And by we, I mean I and Monday. We were treated in ways you could never imagine. We were literally just students Rose, just ... students untill the professor began using us as underdogs for what he call Project HR... I don't know what it is or what it was but we were doing dirty jobs for him. ”

“Dirty... helping the world isn't dirty Debbie... ”

“You don't understand do you. We were this close to causing a world war 3. It started years ago when the professor introduced us to his project, he defined it as an act of saving the world from it internal danger. I didn't know what we were saving the the world from until we got deeper into this project. Monday wasn't even part of it yet. It was just plain old me... I regretted when Monday joined, the professor found him and brought him in , did everything to make him like his father and even had to pay him for whatever task he completed. ”

“Wait... wait... ”, Rose stopped her. “You guys get paid?! ”

“Just Monday, he was different from me... his father served the earth as a protector. So The Professor did everything to make him feel comfortable. He got too comfortable he didn't give a damn about whatever he was doing. He was just like; 𝐼 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑑𝑜 𝑤ℎ𝑎𝑡𝑠 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑑𝑜𝑛𝑒. Monday did everything and I just stood by and watch, why... I have done way worse than him, I am just mad at myself for letting him live such a dreadful life...it still one of the reasons he hates me , aside how I treated him in school, be doesn't really like the fact I allowed him to go through such a path.”

“It not like you guys murdered innocent lives or something...”

Debbie chuckled. “ ... Maybe not on earth. But we did in other planets. ”

“You mean...you guys have been in outer space!.”

“He really didn't tell you a thing...well that's good for you... he doesn't wants you to feel--”

“Left out... yeah, I do feel left out. You both got to do the cool stuff. I got to learn with teenagers on how to control their powers, trained under some superheroes , no, professor said not to call them superheroes, he made changes to the lore , calling them Protectors, Guardians, defenders, saviours...the theme superhero is not to be used.”

“Well I am glad he told you about that. It not new. ”,. Debbie corrected with a smile...

Rose frowned. “You know what?”

“What?”

“Lets play game.” Rose adjusted herself and added. “You’re in?”

“Well I have nothing doing so what the name of your game Couz”,

“Tell me something that I don't know.”

Debbie chuckled for a minute and gave a rose one good look. “Tell you something that you don't know... and what might that be.”

“The professor has put you through a lot more than me ... probably more than the new team he had managed to establish.”

“What new team?”

“The ones running around Australia? haven't you heard of them. They are like ten in numbers or maybe eight. I am not sure, the last time I saw them they were ten.”

"Oh ...the acolytes.",

Rose frowned. "You know them.", it like there was nothing Debbie didn't know about the organization. "Is there something I don't know???"

Debbie rolled her eyeballs on hearing her cousins statement.

"No! to be frank---"

"You are new to the field, I have been there for years... "

"But you left!." Rose retorted.

"Just because I left doesn't mean I don't follow on whatever happens down there."

"But you nearly didn't even know it was the acolytes I was talking about.", Rose paused, looking frustrated while Debbie folded her hands, crossed her legs and chuckled. "Hey! it not funny!."

"Sorry ...and besides, come of it,

"No ... Nevermind."

Rose walked out of the room. Leaving Debbie to do as she please.

Debbie didn't even budge when Rose left, she had this smile on her face throughout the conversation, halfway through when it came to the "Know it all." part.

But now, the smile just... vanished.

She got up and took few steps across the room. Her eyes flickered a white glow.

She groaned in pain as it happened. She nearly trip and could have fallen but she stopped herself at the last minute before it happened.

She regained balance and tried to sit down but even as she did, she could still feel an agonizing pain trying to subdue her.

"It weird you are fighting it.", A voice invaded her privacy. "It been years Lu--"

"Don't!.", Debbie grunted appearing to be familiar with the unknown voice that invaded her privacy. "Don't call me that."

Out of the shadows of the dark room, a masculine figure pours out his existence, red and black swirls of dust potrays their existence around him.

Dressed in an overall black outfit with a fitting thick red leather jacket. His heart shaped faced owned bright crimson eyeballs that looked chaotic in nature. His lips wore a smile as he made to approach her. "Sorry for intruding. I couldn't help notice the pain you were in."

"Are you spying on me now?!", Debbie looked up to him in shock.

The figure chuckled.

"Oh God."

"Relax...I wasn't. I might have--"

She rushed up on her feet and sort to grasp him but he claim closer to her instead. Colliding with her with a kiss that halts her in her steps to deform him with her fist.

She didn't know when she was caught in the moment but her sense were quick enough to bring her back down to earth and pushed him away before it got any weirder.

"Something tells me you missed me.", the figure exhaled his breath.

"I don't." Debbie declined. "I never did, stop dreaming already!."

"Yes you do and calm down, you aren't well."

"Just go back to the hell hole you came from. I. . . don't. . . miss . . . you. Now leave."

" Your powers are waking up again.", He said as she turned away from him. "My seal is breaking which can only mean your powers are much more stronger than they were before. There's no stopping it now."

Debbie faced him with a glum look. "I won't still let it consume me-- ulk!.", She gasped abruptly, like having an heart attack with another agonizing blow to her soul.

The figure caught her before she fell and rested her on the couch.

" I told you, it breaking...once it breaks..."

" I won't. . . let it break.", Debbie forced out.

" You are a stubborn one aren't you!."

She managed to smile whilst still feeling uncomfortable at the same time.

"You have to let go Debbie , I am here, I won't let it consume you. I won't let any of that happen..", he said with much assurance.

Soon, Debbie's body stopped shivering and her eyes closed up. Almost like she had stop breathing.

The figure's crimson eyes shinned brighter than the chaos within them and disappeared with her.

Just then, Rose comes trailing into the empty room. "Debbie, you have got to come , I think we might have gotten a lead on our. . . nuclear man.", She stopped realizing Debbie wasn't even the room anymore "Debbie?"

She checked the windows and they were perfectly close.

"Where the hell is she?.", she looked around the room and closed her eyes a bit before unraveling them. "I can't feel her anywhere. Not her thoughts, emotions, nothing in particular to her!." Her heart thumped as she thought of it. "Debbie...", she said as she advances to the center of the room. "...where are you."

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