The Anachronite
Phase Seven: The Chrono Walkers
"Alpha team is standing by. No signs of activity on the north wall."
"Bravo team has a positive ID on suspect in the southwest corner. Suspect is accompanied by two boys between five and eight. Standing by for orders, sir." "Split up and reinforce the back door, alpha team." A squawk of acknowledgment sounded over the comm-link as the Hunter team resituated itself around the building.
Morley waited.
"Alpha team is in position."
"On my mark," Morley stepped up to the front door.
"Three."
A raindrop landed on his shoulder.
"Two."
The doorbell chimed inside.
"One ..."
The front door splintered at its hinges and crashed inward just as a figure ran across the main room and disappeared into a darkened hall. Morley stepped through the wrecked door, took aim with a temporal dart, and fired. Around him, the crash of shattering windows filled the house as the Hunter squad poured inside.
Morley rushed in and confronted Nathan Vallo in the dim corridor. The man was cornered. He glared back with desperation on his face as a bead of sweat caught the light and dripped from his nose. A Hunter shouted in alarm behind them and Morley flattened against the wall, comprehending too late. He'd missed.
"Lock him down!" Morley bellowed, releasing his second dart tube. Nathan doubled back through time, appearing in two places at once. Morley turned from the first Nathan to confront the one behind him as a blur of color dashed toward him, overtaking the Hunter between them and hurling him into the wall. A cloud of plaster erupted into the hallway and Nathan collided with Morley. The dart tube flew from his hand and was lost in the shadows.
A sudden gunshot echoed through the house and a panicked report came over Morley's comm-link. "Man down! Man down! Take them all out!" A surge of dread came over Morley. There were to be no casualties. What was happening?
Nathan hesitated for a second, his body taking shape as he slowed down and Morley grabbed the collar of his shirt. Nathan jolted back. Morley tightened his grip and a shock went up his arm as Nathan attempted to escape. The house disintegrated into a blaze of speed.
Morley felt the energy drain from his body as Nathan dragged him through time. Morley ground his teeth and noticed with a start that the two of them were hardly moving at all. Nathan appeared nearly frozen, hovering slightly off the ground, moving a hand out to push Morley away. Morley yanked Nathan closer and a searing heat engulfed his arm at the effort. The house suddenly stopped moving.
Nathan's eyes drilled into Morley's with an intensity that could have melted steel. The Hunter squad stood around them, captured perfectly in various states of surprise.
"I didn't know you were one of us," Nathan spat, collapsing to the floor in exhaustion. "Though I suppose it makes sense. You two are family after all."
"I have no family," Morley whee-zed, barely able to stand.
"Neither do I," Nathan said, bitterly. "Good job."
Morley glared down at the man on the floor, pitying him. "Why have you been following me, Vallo?" he asked, reaching for his badge.
Nathan set his jaw, "How could I possibly follow an anachronite? Who do you think I am?" The question stopped Morley in his tracks. If Nathan wasn't an anachronite, he was back where he started. It didn't make sense.
The attack caught him off guard. In one instant Nathan weakly lay, sprawled, on the floor. The next, he was up in the air and rushing toward Morley with incredible speed.
Morley sidestepped instinctively, but was not fast enough. Nathan flew straight at him, and then abruptly seized in midair, collapsed to the floor, and vanished like a mist. The Hunters in the room were moving in reverse now. A body leapt from the floor. A muzzle flash.
In the midst of it all, a woman stood facing Morley with a dart tube in her hands. She lowered the weapon and walked closer, shimmering into and out of view. Her image danced around like a desert mirage as she approached with an outstretched hand.
Morley stood, paralyzed as she reached out to him and placed her hand on his cheek. For an instant, her eyes locked into focus and Morley stared into them for an eternal moment. A crashing force of recognition fell upon him as her touch sent an electric charge through his body. Fade to red. Fade to black.
For the eighth and final phase, visit: http://homepage.mac.com/soupy/phase8.html
Illustration by C.T. Zappe