Alias met Grace when they went to school together at Erudo College. Grace later became best friends with Alias’s wife, and the three had been close.
“Did you know Grace is Vega’s daughter?” he asked.
“Like the supervillain, Vega?” I asked, surprised.
“Yes, but I suggest you don’t say that in front of Grace. She was only five years old when her mom died, but around forty years ago, Grace became obsessed with her mom’s experiments.”
He shook his head again. “My wife was an elemental, containing both Earth and Water. Grace convinced her that her mother’s theories weren’t wrong. That her methods might’ve been, but the underlying belief that exposing people to radiation, or other powerful elements, would mean that more Supes would be created.”
“I don’t understand. Why does she want there to be more Supes?” I asked, frustrated.
“Simple. If everyone has powers, she believes you can limit prejudice.”
When I looked confused, he sighed. “I’m not saying she’s right, but Vega argued that because the number of Supes accounts for less than one percent of the population, at some point, the Nosupes will see us as a threat and try to destroy us.”
“That’s ridiculous. Supes are less of a threat to Nosupes than the other way around.”
Alias shrugged. “I suspect it has more to do with her wanting to clear her mom’s name than anything else. My powers don’t work on Grace like they do others, but as an empath, I can see enough to know that’s her underlying issue. She hates that her mom was, and still is, the most notorious supervillain of all time.”
“So, what does that have to do with you and me?” I asked, wanting him to get to the part where he and I were locked in a hotel room together.
He took a long deep breath and let it out slowly. “Grace’s skill, the ability to mind-meld with others, is special, intense, and doesn’t work on just anyone. Some Supes just can’t handle the intrusion. Elementals are particularly vulnerable.”
He looked sad and stared quietly toward the tiny window, before continuing, “My wife agreed to let Grace use her powers on her mind. Grace wanted her to expose a group of Nosupes, but she was still struggling with her skills. We were all so young. Beth, my wife, had never found her polarity, so she was… well, you could say she was vulnerable. Anyway, I wasn’t in on the conversation between them, so I had no idea what they had planned. Grace began the meld with Beth, and Beth’s mind couldn’t handle the intrusion. Had Grace pulled back, we could’ve removed Beth’s powers, allowed her to calm, then returned them to her, and she would’ve been fine.”
“Wait," I interrupted, "in order to cure the madness caused by Grace’s power, you have to remove the other person’s power?”
He nodded. “We learned that early on, when Grace accidentally exposed her meld to students in our class.”
“So, what happened with Beth? I’m guessing it didn’t end well.”
He looked at me, the sadness completely shadowing his face. “Grace continued to push further and further into Beth’s mind. Finally, it broke her. She went completely mad and lost all access to reality. She caused several earthquakes that night, and untold damage to buildings around Denver, where the lab was. By the time we removed Beth’s powers, it was too late. She never recovered.”
“Damn.”
He nodded, then continued, “I refused to be anywhere near Grace after that, until Dr. Aynesworth asked if I would allow Grace to return to the lab last fall. She had almost killed you when she used her powers against you. Dr. Aynesworth wanted me to evaluate Grace to see if she needed to have her powers removed permanently.”
“And you let her?” I asked, surprised.
“Beth had died the year before. I figured maybe it was the opportunity to allow Grace to make amends. Surely, she wouldn’t still be harboring the same desires to prove her mom’s ill-fated theories. When I heard what happened, it just sounded like Grace had gotten carried away, which, to be honest, was always her biggest flaw.”
“That’s not the case, though, is it?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No, Grace took on a new name or persona, and has begun calling herself ScapeGrace. It means villain. After evaluating her, my team and I were able to draw that information from her. So, we decided we had to remove her powers. Long story short, before we could, she mind-melded several of my team members, caused them to murder one another, then went rogue. That was in March. We’ve been searching for her since then.”
“I take it she found you first,” I said with a sigh.
“Yes, she found me, tried to convince me her side was the right side of history. When I refused to help, she must’ve drugged me.”
“She didn’t use her powers on you?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No, we can’t use our powers on each other. It’s how our polarity works. I’m a stronger empath with others when she’s around, and I give her a stronger grip on her mind control powers. That’s her theory about why Beth didn’t work out, I wasn’t there with her. Had I been there, she could’ve controlled the meld better. But she’s wrong. Some minds can’t be melded. My research has shown very distinct patterns in several Supes with elemental abilities. Their minds are already melded with the element they control. We believe when Grace melds with them, she interrupts that flow, causing the madness. It’s too dangerous.”
“She wants to control Kaden.”
He nodded slowly and looked concerned. “Kaden’s powers are beyond comprehension and beyond our control. If she interrupts his connection with the elements, Kaden could very well destroy the Earth, maybe even the entire solar system. We can’t let her connect with him in a mind-meld.”
“Shit!” I said, stomping my foot. “Why would she risk that?”
