Chapter 19: Under the Surface
The sterile, cold lights of the Academy’s containment wing flickered as Jake and Levi were wheeled through its corridors. The hallways, lined with reinforced steel, hummed with the low thrum of machinery. Cameras tracked every move, and armed guards stood silently at every corner, their faces hidden behind tactical helmets, eyes unreadable behind dark visors. It was clear—this facility was meant to hold beings far beyond human.
Levi’s body hung limp on the gurney, his pale, dirt-streaked face still, though the faint flicker of red in his eyes remained, a dull glow that pulsed every few seconds. His hair, shock-white now, splayed out against the cold surface, caked with blood and ash. His breathing was shallow, labored. He seemed utterly broken.
Next to him, Jake lay unconscious, his body twitching occasionally from the residual electrical shocks that still coursed through his system. His face was bruised, his shoulder heavily bandaged from the impact of the earlier projectile. He had been strong once, full of confidence and reckless energy, but now he lay still, his strength sapped.
In the observation room above, Dr. Marcus Vance watched silently as the two survivors were transferred into their holding cells. He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his eyes narrowed as he analyzed every detail of the scene below. The weight of the world’s eyes was heavy on him now, and he knew that every move the Academy made from here on out would be scrutinized. They had crossed a line. Now they had to manage the fallout.
Behind him, Agent Talia Reed stood, arms folded, her posture stiff. The tension in the room was palpable.
“They’re stabilizing,” Reed muttered, her eyes on Levi. “But barely.”
Vance didn’t respond right away. His eyes were locked on Levi, the empath whose powers were still not fully understood. What was it that had allowed him to survive the explosion? How had he withstood the tidal wave of raw emotion that had killed the Academy’s own empath, Kieran?
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“Do we know yet how he survived?” Vance finally asked, his voice cold, clinical.
Reed shook her head. “No. Not yet. His powers are… complicated. We’re still running diagnostics, but we’ve never seen anything like this before. Whatever it is that allowed him to survive, it’s beyond the normal scope of empathy.”
Vance’s jaw tightened. “Keep him contained. Double the restraints. I don’t want him slipping out or triggering any emotional shifts in the facility.”
Reed gave a small nod. “Already done.”
The silence between them stretched as Vance continued to watch Levi’s still body. He had survived something unimaginable—things that should have killed him a hundred times over. That made him valuable. But it also made him dangerous.
“And the other one?” Reed asked, glancing at Jake. “What’s the plan with him?”
Vance turned away from the window, his face set in a hard line. “Jake’s powers are unstable, but predictable. We’ll suppress his abilities with an energy collar and biofeedback inhibitors, study his energy control. He’s a risk, but he can be managed. The empath, on the other hand…”
He let the thought trail off. The implications were clear. Levi’s ability to manipulate and feel emotions on such a massive scale made him far more dangerous in ways different than Jake. And far more valuable.
“Keep me updated on any developments,” Vance said, his voice firm. “We can’t afford any more surprises.”
Reed gave a curt nod before leaving the observation room, her footsteps echoing down the hallway as she went to oversee the containment process.
Outside the Academy: Growing Tensions
While the Academy moved quickly to secure its new captives, the world beyond its walls was spiraling into chaos. News outlets ran the footage from Galewood on repeat, dissecting every second of the scenes of destruction and the academy’s brutal takedown of Jake and Levi. Across social media, hashtags like #GalewoodMassacre and #AcademyExposed trended worldwide.
Protests erupted outside the Academy’s public headquarters in several major cities, crowds of people demanding answers, holding signs that read “No More Secrets!” and “Who Protects Us from You?” The footage of the soldiers beating down two barely conscious survivors had sparked outrage, and the Academy was facing an unprecedented public relations disaster.
In one such protest outside the Academy’s New York branch, the atmosphere was tense. Hundreds of people had gathered, chanting and waving signs as the police set up barriers around the facility. The air was thick with anger and uncertainty, and for the first time in years, people were openly questioning the Academy’s role in society.
“These are kids they’re brutalizing!” one protester shouted, waving a sign that read “Metahuman Lives Matter!” “They treat them like they’re animals, but we saw it! We all saw it! How long has this been going on?!”
Beside her, a man with a megaphone added to the chorus of dissent. “We trusted the Academy to keep us safe, but they’re the ones using excessive force against metahumans! We deserve answers!”
The chants grew louder, the crowd pressing closer to the barricades. The police held their line, but tensions were rising quickly.
The Academy had always tried to operate in secrecy, keeping its most controversial actions out of the public eye. But now, with the footage from Galewood circulating, some of that secrecy had been shattered.