Chapter 9

The Captain read the reports with tight lips. He had counted at least30 bodies or what was left of them. Thank god Tahir had rescued half of those left but the body count was starting to mount. Washington wasn’t that pleased but after the horror stories of those he had rescued they weren’t that unhappy now.

Tahir wasn’t that pleased either, still perplexed at Natasha’s words he was wondering what in the hell was going on. Reaching out he found Natasha wondering if she could talk now. <Natasha> he started, <don’t react can you talk now?>

<Yes, but not for long, I wish to explain.> she sounded low almost a whisper if she had actually been speaking. <Twenty two years ago my family and I came to this country to get away from Russia.>

<I thought you were Russian> Tahir broke in.

<Yes, at that time my father took a job teaching at a university, as did my mother. I was just a little girl, my older sister and younger brother were left alone in our apartment. We went to school and were alone for 2 hours each day till our parents got home. Hold a minute.>

Waiting, Tahir went over the reports again there had to be some way he could beat this bastard. Sighing, Tahir saw that he had the upper hand but there were flaws to every plan and he had to find them.

<I am sorry for the history lesson; it is needed, 15 years later I accepted a position back in Russia. My father had been killed in an auto accident, mother was devastated as we all were. Mother begged me not to go but we needed the money, it was a substantial amount. The hours were long but I was considered to be brilliant, very far ahead of the doctors that were there. It was there that I developed a medicine that we called Rad Coats.> Stopping, Tahir was afraid that she had been discovered ‘talking’ to him.

<Don’t talk, so I take it that’s what you used on me and yourself. I am feeling the same growth of power in you that I feel in me.> he informed her.

<It’s ok now, I am alone. The Rad coats was a radical radiation absorption it not only blocked the harmful, but let the body take the good and use it.> here she was quiet a minute gathering her thoughts.

<I kept in contact with my family the whole time. When our projects were cancelled by the government I was allowed to come back to the US. I took a job with the doctor he was a pioneer in genetic research and was going where I had been, I really didn’t want credit for the work, I had seen horrible results from experiments that had been done.>

<Do you know how long the power will grow? Is there a limit? So far mine hasn’t stopped but I have noticed that there are a few limits I can’t go far beyond.> Tahir was anxious to find out all he could.

<In the previous experiments, we found that it depends on the potential of the individual, that is the more latent abilities they have the more they can grow. Have you found anything that you can’t do? Anything you have tried and it didn’t work?> she was anxious herself to know, Tahir she felt, was the most powerful -- what the hell should they call themselves?

Tahir thought for a while, an individual time <the only thing I can think of was trying to kill someone by crushing just their brain, but then I found that I didn’t have to after I learned to enter minds and destroy abilities there.>

Natasha’s mouth dropped open, she had heard and seen a lot of abilities all that Tahir displayed at one time or another but this was totally new to her. God! She wished she could work with Tahir directly.

<I wish I could work with you directly; continuing on the doctor had ideas and the money at the time to continue the research. What I didn’t know at the time was that he was even then working for the leader. It wasn’t long after that when the doctor developed his own medicine. You might say that put an end to my helping him as a doctor.>

<So tell me, why are you still so loyal to him then? It is obvious that he considers you beneath him.>

Sighing Natasha continued, <about 2 years ago my mother and sister became sick. The doctor had a radical new cure that could help them, but refused to use it unless I helped him. He therefore put them into stasis till he gave them the cure. I have searched everywhere but he has hidden it away, till I find it I have no choice but to be his lackey.>

Tahir wasn’t happy again, <I could get the location from him with no problem> thought Tahir.

<How?> thought Natasha, <He’d feel you miles away.>

<I don’t think so, did you forget I can watch and no one really see me?> again Natasha’s mouth hung open.

She had forgotten that he could do that also. <Alright> she thought, <if you can but that still doesn’t solve the problem of where they are. Romotine had them moved when he found out and I know you can’t get that close to him.>

<Yes, you are right there. He does seem somewhat more attuned to his own mind than most.> Tahir replied.

Sitting back he told Natasha he’d contact her in an hour to let her know. Concentrating he gently reached to the doctor, finding him asleep was a bonus. As he searched making sure to not wake him he made several startling discoveries, first was the medicine, the second was the fact that it had been the doctor who had infected Natasha’s mother and sister. The third fact was that he HAD cured them as they would have died in stasis. Searching further he found that the doctor was the only one that could awaken the abilities of others with the drug and radiation.

The only thing he couldn’t find was where they had been taken. Thinking harder he remembered the doctor mentioning the sight. Keeping the doctor asleep he went to where the women were kept, as he slowly started to roll back time, he found that it was an exhausting task. He was almost back two years when he saw them being moved. Slowing down and going forward took almost all of his energy, he wasn’t sure he’d make it before he passed out.

May and Kim were walking by about that time and saw Tahir’s distress, reaching out May told Kim, “we have to help, he is depleting himself. Give him what energy you can he is in very deep concentration.”

Tahir was afraid he wasn’t going to make it, he was so close, suddenly he felt a surge of energy shoot through him, AH! May and Kim had found him. Following the two women he saw the leader order his men to be careful. They were taken to an underground bunker miles outside of the city. Slowly Tahir began to move forward faster, a year then 6 more months, then he was up till today. The women were still there, they were obviously important to the leader as they were very well guarded. Damn it! From what he had gotten from the doctor he would have to be there in person to release them. The thing that sucked was that if they weren’t released in a precise manner they’d die.

Contacting on Natasha he let her know, <Natasha can you talk?>

<Yes Tahir, I am still alone.> she replied

<I have found them and they are alive, still in stasis but alive. I can save them but ... I’m going to need help, also I found out that they were cured years ago it appears the doctor had to cure them or they would have died.>

Natasha started to growl at this <That little fake! How did they get sick, don’t tell me HE infected them also?>

<Yes, it would appear so> Tahir could feel her anger and held her still so she wouldn’t explode.

<Release me, so I can kill him slowly and painfully> she growled at Tahir.

<No, if he dies before they are gone, the leader would know, they were very important to him.> Sighing Natasha calmed while Tahir told her the plan.

The thirty men inside and outside the bunker were bored but tried to take their duty seriously. In the control room the three men there were playing cards, Tahir and Natasha appeared behind them just as they went to sleep. Motioning to her, Tahir reached out to the five in the hall as they crumbled. Next he started down the hall deeper. Upon reaching the chamber each man crumbled at almost the same time. Reaching the stasis tubes Tahir removed 4 vials from his coat. After the first two injections he knew it’d be an hour before they could be moved. Damn it! Everything the doctor had done was always in a hurry except this. Now the bastard did something right.

<Ok Natasha, we have an hour to wait till I can open the tubes and remove them. Any movement from outside yet?> Tahir asked.

Natasha looked at all the monitors <No, not yet but from what I saw with you, they are supposed to do an exchange in 30 minutes. Can you manage that?>

<Yes, I looked through all their minds it shouldn’t be a problem.> Watching the two women he began to search for the right men. With only 5 minutes to go Tahir had programmed each man and had them at the door ready to go. After the exchange, the ten that came in went to bed (per orders from Tahir.)

<How long do we have now Natasha?> he asked. Looking at the monitors again she replied,

<We are good for another two hours. Will that be enough time?> Natasha said.

Sighing Tahir shook his head, <That will barely be enough. After I remove them I have to inject them again, this one will take an hour and a half to restore normal functions.> Natasha shook her head finally she’d be free, for now.

The time was fast approaching, after the second injection; Tahir had monitored the women, watching as their vital signs increased. With 5 minutes to go each started to stir.

Letting Natasha know, she was there when they opened their eyes. At the appointed time Tahir sent them to a predetermined place then he went after the doctor. Still unable to awaken the doctor was fighting the sleep with everything he had, he had almost overcome Tahir’s sleep command when he felt himself move. At the west coast branch the doctor awoke 2 hours later in a sound proof cell his head very fuzzy.