Chapter Eight

When Travis awoke, he was in a sparsely decorated room with two windows and a table. Someone had hooked him up to an IV bag full of a clear liquid. His head throbbed, his body aching in places he didn't know he could ache. The last thing he remembered was the fight with Giovanni. That pipsqueak probably has something to do with this.

He sat up only to discover he was handcuffed to the bed. "Giovanni, if you let me go, I promise you a death quick." When no one replied, he pulled at the cuffs but only succeeded in chafing his skin.

A pit of fear formed in his stomach. "This isn't funny anymore," he said, raising his voice, "Let me go right now, or--"

The pitcher of water by his bedside exploded, showering him with porcelain debris. The sound must have alerted Jenny because she came into the room, red-eyed and haggard. "Oh, you're up," she said, a nervous lilt to her voice, her medical bag clutched tight in hand.

"Mind telling me what happened?"

"Sure, sweetie. But can you stop shouting in my head like that and talk normally?"

He did a double-take"What are you talking about?"

She worried her lips. "This whole time, you've been communicating telepathically.

"Come again?"

She set her bag on the table and approached him, her hands trembling. "Travis, you have powers. No, I'm not punking you or whatever you kids say today. I watched you blow up helicopters and shoot fireballs at the police like you were a character out of those video games you love so much."

"This isn't happening. Any second now, I'll wake up."

Jenny rubbed his shoulder. "This is for real."

Mouth agape, eyes wide, he stared at her in shock, not knowing what to say. She let him take things in a bit before telling him how things would proceed. "Once we know you're not a threat to us, Dr. Hu and I--"

"Who?"

"Dr. Hu is Agent Anderson's friend. You remember him, right?"

He shook his head.

"What's the last thing you remember?"

"The fight."

Pursing her lips, she filled him in on what happened.

"That bastard!"

"Who, sweetie?"

Growling, Travis told her to leave, so he could think without anyone overhearing him. She nodded but checked his vitals first. Once he was alone, he tried talking normally, but it was harder than he expected. He checked his pockets and retrieved his phone, and opened the voice memo app. "This is not happening," he spoke into the microphone. Hitting play, he heard: "is pen ing." 

Gritting his teeth, he tried again until he managed to speak the whole sentence and then moved on to a longer one. And by the time he was able to say a full paragraph, Jenny had returned with a new pitcher of water and some sandwiches.

Eating with one hand proved difficult, so he asked Jenny to release him.

"Let's see how you do these next few days, okay?"

"Fine, but at least give me something to read."

Nodding, she took the plate and returned with a stack of books, most of which he'd either read already or wasn't interested in. Though, there was a book on meditation and Zen Buddhism that piqued his curiosity. He skimmed over the introduction and first chapter before digging into the chapter on breathing and finding your center. 

With nothing better to do, he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. He pictured a pinprick of light that grew with each breath, and when it was as big as the sun, he sent it into every corner of his body. A liquid warmth like being wrapped in an electric blanket enveloped him.  

Just when he was getting used to the sensation, Oblivion butted in.

"Having fun, are we, boy?"

Travis's eyes shot open, his face a mask of fear. But I defeated you!

 "Let us not speak of our first encounter."

What do you want?

"To talk and strike a bargain, perchance?"

About what?

"There are certain facts about your powers and past that people close to you are hiding."

And how do you know that?

Oblivion laughed. "I've been watching you for years."

Yeah. That's not helping your case at all.

"Ask your Jenny, your parents, your Grams."

Why should I believe you?

"Don't. Either way, I'll be in touch. Can't wait to see what you're capable of, especially after Project Hellfire. . . ."

Oblivion's voice faded away, leaving Travis with more questions than answers. If people were hiding things from him, they would spill it, or he'd make them.

Jenny entered the room with dinner, breaking his train of thought. "Time to chow down."

"Yeah . . . but first tell me about Project Hellfire."

Her eyes went wide. "How do you kno--"

"Don't try to change the subject."

She set down a tray of tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. "I'll get Agent Anderson and Dr. Hu. They know more about it than me."

While he waited for them, he dug into his meal, glad that he would finally get some answers. But why had Oblivion helped him? He was evil incarnate, so what was his angle?     

Travis would later learn that even the devil has his good days.

 

Author's note: Looks like Travis didn't defeat Oblivion like he thought, and what ulterior motives is he hiding from Travis?

Next time, Travis finally gets some answers and begins training to control his powers.

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