Walking back to her room, Helena thought about Phantasm’s invasion. He was searching my brain for something particular, everything else was icing on the cake. Everything he scanned had been inside that mask. It was created to distract me from understanding his true goals. At least, from what I understand of Telepathy if the victim is aware of an intruder they can fight back. However, I didn’t have an understanding until the mask was already in place. Is there something deeper with his incursion?

Helena sighed as she worked through the pieces. He seems to transmit his ability with radio waves, but that’s still only a theory. Obviously, he siphoned through my memories on the Estate or at least a small portion of them. The Hatters and Warbrings seem to be the most prominent, but Drake had also been touched on.

He wasn’t searching for a single memory, but multiple strings that could be put together into a whole as his final farewell indicated. I only have half the puzzle, but … my mother’s dress? What do I know about my mother that Phantasm’s interested in? I only know what WITCH wrote in my analysis sheet. No, Drake had said a few things about her in the past.

Helena scowled as she scoured her memories for Drake’s exact words. They were early memories, a few years ago. All she could remember was her brother’s confusion about her parent’s decision, but it was when she was sick and many of her memories were fractured from that time. Throwing it in the back of her mind, she focused on the rest of his apparition.

Everything’s a clue, everything. The environment … that could translate to everywhere I’ve ever been around the Estate … even the silverware … he actually must be brilliant to develop all of that in moments. Kara’s paintings maybe? He obviously has a connection with Kara, but it seems all the Primes do.

Helena halted as she noticed a strange indentation in a wall and several personnel clustered around it. They were taping the area off. Moving closer, she found a few wet bloody footprints imprinted on the center of a steel panel, showing distortions in the metal. The path led along the way to her room and more personnel were moving along the halls, cleaning it all up with great care.

“What happened?” Helena asked as she watched a man and woman apply hazmat suits.

“Belesis came flying through the halls like a vamp on steroids, what’s happened. She slammed against the wall and this is the result.” The man said with a grimace as he slipped into a hazmat suit.

Examining their yellow suits curiously, Helena asked. “Why the protection?”

“Are you kidding me?” A woman yelled as she finished putting on her suit, her voice came out slightly muffled. “She’s a General class Biokinetic! If that blood touches living tissue ... who knows what her cells could do without her controlling them. They could hold an extremely rare and deadly virus or mutate your genetic structure! It could even go viral if it evaporates, who knows … melt through this suit...”

A man next to her laughed. “Or it could hold the cure to a lethal disease. Short answer … it’s mysterious and potentially dangerous.”

Helena watched them scrape several samples into containers before washing it down with some kind of liquid. The steel warped further as the liquid ran down its length, covering the blood. Within a few minutes, they’d untapped the section and moved on down the hall to another indentation.

Belesis certainly is powerful … a General class? I haven’t heard the rankings yet, but I’m guessing that’s a higher rank than Booker. She’s a very intriguing woman, but if she’s of such ranking, why act as she does?

Booker’s at least of some higher rank in WITCH as the Cafeteria indicated and a General seems to be a big deal as well, possibly even bigger than a Captain. In WITCH, I guess it’s like a Noble associating with lower class … it’s not appropriate and others could find fault with it. Helena’s brow furrowed in concern, but she dropped the thought until she got further details.

Continuing on her way, she resumed her thought process. I don’t understand what Phantasm was trying to get out of me. He mentioned a list almost complete, but what kind of list is it? A list of House members? As a Prime, he should have access to any information WITCH has and with his ability, shouldn’t he be able to get into anyone’s mind? I imagine he can, but I don’t know its limits. Maybe it has certain conditions that must be met.

Wait … what if the entire elaborate scene had been the farce and I was the target? He could have gained information on Kara’s electromagnetic walking, but that’s almost a guarantee. What else did he get from my mind? He said something about a power drain. What did he mean? Did I have more of a drain on his Focus than he expected, since I’m an Electro Master? He also said he gave me a gift and fixed my trauma, so many unknowns!

I seem to be special in some way … at least how he made it sound, but he could be leading me on. I know he was after some early memories I have hidden somewhere in my brain, but that couldn’t have been his only goal. I don’t seem to be getting anywhere from what information I have … I’ll store it and wait for more details.

Entering the final hallway to her room, she prepared herself with a hefty breath. She recognized Kara’s static field well before getting this close. I don’t even need to passively sense her. She just pops out like a black dot on white paper. Opening the door, she walked through. She was shocked as Kara’s strong arms smothered her.

Kara began to quickly examine her while spouting continual questions. “Are you alright, my little Vixy? Nothing’s broken or damaged? What did he want? Did he talk to you? What did you see?” Lifting her arms, spinning her around, and asking how many fingers she could see. Helena was completely compliant but kept silent until Kara sighed and stepped back.

Clearing her voice, Helena said. “I’m alright … from what I can tell. Belesis couldn’t find anything wrong with me physically. Yes, he did talk to me and I’ll explain what I saw.”

Helena went over everything she saw in as much detail as she could, but Kara couldn’t sit still through her account. She walked up the walls, laid across the bed, and bounced around the ceiling. After the explanation of the events, Kara hummed. “You know, I was going to shout at you and explain how stupid you are … but then I realized that I was the one at fault.”

Helena lifted an eyebrow as she supported her head with her left hand, her elbow resting against her left thigh. “I didn’t follow your instruction, so it can’t be pinned on you.”

“I didn’t give you an explanation to why you needed to keep that device with you,” Kara said while gesturing at the HCID. “For a more specific explanation, it’s customized with my personal design. I have my own contacts in Tech that were able to have it specially built for you.” Kara certainly is a mystery, even having contacts in a city that hates any and all espers.

“It’s shielded enough to not break upon entering an electromagnetic field, emits that specific magnetic wave that hampers Phantasm’s ability, charges from your natural field, and was upgraded with the most advanced Tech computing technology.” Almost as an afterthought, she emphatically added, “And it’s waterproof.” Hampers … not repel or reject.

“I understand,” Helena said. “What about his ability? It felt like he was trying to synchronize with my brain somehow. The pain was fairly intense.”

“I’m impressed you thought about synchronization because you’re right.” Kara grinned. “However, it’s still a bit more complicated. That pain you felt before blacking out was Phantasm forcibly altering your brainwave signature. In essence, he was cramming a square block through a circular opening. It can only be accomplished through extreme force and even more so with Electro Masters.”

“Then we do have a natural resistance toward his ability?” Helena asked.

“In a way,” Kara commented while standing horizontally against the yellow wall. “You could say that there is a backlash with our ability. That intense pain doesn’t normally happen to his victims. They simply fall under his mental influence, but with us … our field sends a recoil and makes the experience all the more painful to both of us … at least it gives him a taste of his own medicine.”

“It didn’t stop him from trying.” Helena frowned as she studied the painting across from her on reception.

“No, because his ability has another affix and that is what makes him worthy of being a Prime.” Helena kept quiet as she waited for Kara to continue. She was now dropping from the ceiling and falling, back first, onto the bed. The bed shook with her weight as she hit and she continued her explanation. “When he synchronizes with someone, he doesn’t only have access to their memories, but also their ability.”

Helena’s eyes widened. “Then he can have any ability?”

“Theoretically,” Kara said with a low tone, “however, he can only have that ability as long as the victim is unconscious. He also has to keep a constant feed, draining Focus rapidly.”

“Can it be fought against?”

“Yes, but normally it requires a few times being under his influence to figure out the method. It can’t really be taught without personally experiencing his control.”

“How far is his maximum distance?” Helena asked.

“Normally only forty or fifty meters, but he found a clever little loophole that allowed him to become the Purple Prime. He can use radio waves as an amplifier.” Helena saw a hint of regretful pass over Kara’s features, but it was gone as quickly as it had birthed. Her heart also reacted in a way to show slight angst.

Helena frowned as she studied Kara. “So, his ability is similar to ours?”

“Maybe, I’m not completely sure. Highly intellectual espers have the capacity to resist his synchronization completely. That’s why the other Primes are safe, but everyone has to watch their back with Phantasm running around and he can attack from anywhere.” Kara scooted to the side of the bed with Helena.

“You seem to know a lot about him and his ability?” Helena pressed.

Kara was silent for a moment as she considered something. “I used to be friends with him, about eight years ago. We theorized different techniques we could use with our abilities … it was fun at the time.” I see ... so that’s their relationship.

Lying across the bed, Helena was silent for a moment. “Does that mean … I’m not that intelligent if he was able to get into my mind?”

“No, you just had no idea what was going on. Being able to tell you were in a fabrication is actually fairly impressive. Next time, you should be able to redirect the frequency, interrupt it, counter it, or even throw him back completely.”

“Is there anything else we can do against him?”

“Well,” Kara said with a small grin, “We can track him!”

“Through radio wave transmissions across electrical equipment?” Helena asked.

“Yes, and he’s frightened about that. He hides behind his little radio games and doesn’t like someone being able to track him.”

“What about the Tracking Unit?”

Kara’s laugh tinkled around the air. “Once you reach Prime level, the Tracking Unit becomes irrelevant. Who would they send to catch us? No, once you reach a Prime’s level, the Alpha comes into play.” What Booker mentioned...

“Who and what is the Alpha?”

“We’ve seen him of course, but he always stays by the President’s side. He’s the counter against the Primes, the power behind the President’s word. Basically, he’s the reason WITCH doesn’t crumble under all the different Factions.”

“Then even you are held in check?” Helena said with a pit entering her stomach. How am I supposed to escape WITCH with this Alpha’s shadow hanging in the background?

Kara giggled, but Helena sensed an edge of nervousness in her voice. “Honestly, none of the Primes know if we’d be a match for the Alpha. You could call it a fear factor, the same influence that causes the volatile stalemate between Primes. No one wants to risk a losing battle and I do have a lot of pull in WITCH, just because I’m strong.” Kara said with a wink.

“Anyways, back to the point at hand. I was worried about your torture and lingering effects, but it seems Phantasm had to break past that trauma to achieve his goal, which is actually wonderful. You asked me what kind of gift he could be speaking of and that is an interesting little issue with Phantasm’s ability. You see … with our natural defense, the similarities in ability, and that recoil, there is a side effect that he has no control over.”

Helena listened closely. “When Phantasm creates a link with an Electro Master, the Electro Master drains his Focus, but not in the traditional method. Basically, we attract the energy he’s trying to feed us and that’s the main issue behind the pain … or so I presume. It’s like an energy transference and breakdown. Phantasm’s Focus has already been shaped, but as it reaches us a portion of it is broken down again.”

“So, I’m stronger now?” Helena asked while staring at her hands with pursed lips.

“A little, you can only drain a tad more than your maximum rest potential or in other words, your maximum Capacity. So for you, I’d say you could go another few hours at running!” She said with a wicked grin.

Excitement exploded on Kara’s face. “I know! Why don’t you test your limits against me?”

“Pardon?” Helena asked with raised eyebrows.

“A little Electro Master one o'one, it will always be the same for us Electro Masters. One of the most powerful attacks we can do in terms of raw power is a lightning bolt. However, with finesse, you can accomplish less draining, but even more powerful attacks.” She added as an afterthought.

Helena frowned but nodded. “So, you want me to attack you with a bolt of electricity.”

Kara nodded and she hopped off the bed, moving in front of Helena with spread arms. “Give me your best shot, little Vixy!”

Sitting up, Helena held out her left hand, while still frowning and applied the calculation for a simple bolt of electricity. As she unleashed the tap on her Focus her stomach did somersaults. A chilling fearful quiver ran up her spine as warning signals flew off in her mind. Whatever’s coming, I can’t control it. It felt like a torrent of electricity was running down her entire body and Kara’s smile vanished, replaced with distress as her left-hand shot toward Helena’s.

A mass of energy expelled from Helena, shooting off in all directions. It was more like lightning than a simple bolt of electricity. The arcs of lightning swirled around the room as Helena felt an alien force rapidly take control over the flood and maneuver it. The sound was deafening. The large force of electricity arced around the room, causing the floor to vibrate and hot air to be expelled around in a torrent. The smell of atmosphere potent as it left small dispersions of plasma in the resistant air.

All of the strings suddenly shot toward Kara and seemed to be absorbed into her body. She wore a troubled expression as she cradled Helena’s hand, examining it thoroughly. Helena felt her body quivering and her muscles locked. All she could sense was the moment she’d lost control, the terror of that instance. I’ve never lost control, never. There was too much energy.

“Helena … Helena!” Her muscles convulsed and she jerkily looked up at Kara. She now looked angry and confused as she talked into the HCID at her wrist, but Helena couldn’t hear her words. Everything seemed dulled compared to the previous moment, she kept reliving in her mind.

Faintly she recognized a quake strike the room as everything shook and moments later Belesis was rushing in, her hands and feet trailing blood. Helena looked down and felt the air in her lungs convulsing. Her eyes transfixed and her body felt numb, but the pain started erupting from her hand or where it once had been. Her left hand’s fingers to wrist was now a steaming blackened lump and she started recognizing the smell of burning flesh as the smoke rose to her nostrils, mixing with the ozone scent.

Belesis’ hand touched the blackened crust of her hand and her forehead, her vision instantly washed out.