Blue Rush

I was able to make it home in under a minute. My new speed does have its benefits. I get to the front door and press the doorbell. A sensor on the front of the door scans my face and the door unlocks. I quickly let myself in, as I am still in a hospital gown. I quickly head up to my room and put on a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. I toss the gown aside and sigh as I plop down on my bed. I stare at myself in the mirror. Do I really look that different? The answer wasn't a definite yes, but it wasn't a no either. My eyes were definitely still blue, just not glowing anymore. I groan.

"What's going on?" I mutter at my reflection. Life was so simple before compared to this. Something has definitely changed in this city beyond me.

I flop onto my back and stare at my hands. Archie had me injected with something because I wasn't taking the Rush pills. The injections were Rush or dipotyemene related for sure, because he said that it would have me "crawling back" for the pills I rejected. I have no idea what that could mean. Then he was with me for a while after I was taken to the hospital. Was he expecting something happen? And then the guy that broke into my room. He was like a monster. No… a mutant is more accurate. A dipotyemene infected mutant? That's new, or at least unheard of until now. I sit up.

"No chance I'll become one of those right?" I said, worriedly. I check myself out in the mirror.

My skin looks normal, and my eyes do as well outside of the new blue color. I start pacing around my room. If there was one mutant, will there be more? And how did he even get like that? Maybe an overdose side effect? I grab my head and let out a groan. I hate mysteries. Then I hear the beeping of the front door scanner. Mom's home.

I dive into bed and pull the covers up over my head. If she sees me, she'll notice my eyes for sure, and I wasn't about to rope her in with this mess. She'll just worry, and she doesn't need that on top of her job. Just as I settle down, she opens my room door.

"Evan?"

I stay facing away from her and put on my best fake-sleep voice. "Is that you mom?"

"Oh, thank goodness," my mom exhales. "After I saw that the room you were in staying in was ransacked, I got worried because you weren't there." She walks in and sits on my bed next to me.

I pull the sheets over my head. She can't see my eyes…

"Uhh… yeah. I was able to get out once he left my room."

"Okay that's good. Because strange things started happening after that patient ran wild."

"Oh really?" I say, hoping she doesn't bring up anything about me.

"Yeah. That monster turned to attack me, but there was a rush of wind, then he tripped and cracked his skull," she chuckles. "My guardian angel must be working overtime."

I exhale and smile to myself. "I guess so."

My mom touches my hair, and I tense up. "Are you feeling, okay?" she asks me. "You're acting kind of strange."

"Me? Strange? No… just tired is all," I stammer.

My mom nods. "We did have you on some painkillers. You had bruising all over."

"Yeah, so I think I just gotta sleep it off."

I feel my mom stand up. "Alright, I'll leave you to it then. And Evan?"

I swallow hard. "Yes mom?"

"Promise me you'll stay out of danger."

I pause. I have a feeling this a promise I won't be able to keep.

"I promise."

"Sleep well." She leaves and closes the door.

I let out a sigh of relief. I probably should try to sleep. I should go to school tomorrow and make Archie tell me what he did to me. I will get to the bottom of this.

I woke up late the next morning and immediately realize one thing. I was on some STRONG painkillers last night, because I'm in more pain than I've ever been in. I'm chalking it up to muscle strain from the speed I was moving at yesterday. I can barely walk right now.

I wobble over towards the kitchen, my mom still asleep. My phone and backpack were on the kitchen table. I grab them and turn my phone on to see that I have one unread message. A message from Archie… My breath catches as I open it. There's one sentence.

"Don't come to school today."

That's all he wrote? Strange. I pull up a chair to the table and sit down.

"What's going on…" I mutter. Suddenly, another notification appears on my phone. A new notification? I open it and it takes me to a live broadcast being shot from a drone. The drone is moving around a bunch and doesn't focus immediately. Gradually the drone steadies out, and when the footage is clear, I gasp. As the camera focuses, I realize that it's a horde of mutants streaming out of CFHS.

"Oh my gosh." I slowly stand up. It wasn't just one this time. There are at least 3 dozen mutants down there.

My mom comes running out of her room, pulling on her jacket with her scrubs underneath.

"Mom where are you going?" I ask.

"The hospital," she responds heading out the door. "More monsters are appearing in central Fulton, and they need extra hands at the hospital."

I start to ask another question but she's already outside. Then she turns around.

"Stay inside, Evan," she says, then she leaves.

I look back at the broadcast. The police just showed up and they're trying to subdue the mutants, with little success. All of them are essentially on a super-high it seems. They're way past overdosed so they're gonna be really hard to take down. I think back to the one at the hospital. No A-Gun shots were going to affect them.

"Dammit," I growl running back to my room. "I can't just sit here."

I rummage through my clothes. If I want to be any use, I can't let anyone see my face. There are news drones all over downtown right now and all it takes is one shot of me to be identified. And at that point my life might as well be over. I find a scarf and some ski goggles. It's gonna look dumb but it'll have to do. I put the goggle on then wrap the scarf around my head. I put on a blue hoodie and jeans to go with my scarf and goggles. I look in the mirror and groan. At least no one will know who am.

I get outside and stand in the driveway.

"Okay, let's go," I say. Then I realize, I don't know how my power works or activates. I slap my forehead. "Shit."

I try to remember what might have triggered it last night. It was when I saw the mutant going after my mom… I started panicking. So maybe heart rate triggers it? I start running in place. After a few minutes I start getting sweaty, but not faster.

I think again. Besides my heart rate, what else was significant? I was thinking about reaching my mom before the mutant did. Do I need to have a goal in mind to get going? Like a mental finish line?

I turn to face towards downtown Fulton. It's a straight shot to the school from my house. I look both ways then step into the street. I stare down the road, and focus. I think about the monsters, and all my classmates who are in a ton of danger. Only I can save them. I have to reach them fast…

I feel the cold start to fill my body.

"I'll reach," I whisper.

The cold intensifies.

"I'll save them!"

Then the cold ignites! I feel a surge of power in my body, my head begins to spin but I shake it off. I gotta go! I place my right foot behind me and take off down the freeway. I have a school to help save.