The Talented by Steve Delaney Page A

as if she was planning to say more when I felt a sense of pressure from all around me and time began to slow. Something very, very bad was about to happen. My mind expanded over the whole estate and settled on the short flagstone wall. There were five people on the other side of the wall and they were preparing to act. Their minds were detectable, but clouded with random images. Hmm. That’s a new one. Then one of them rose up for a moment, aimed and fired before ducking down again. Frantically, I pushed my metabolism to dangerous levels, forcing my perceptions to slow, increasing my reflexes and reaction time. The projectile that was speeding directly toward us was much larger than a bullet, and a bit slower. It seemed self-propelled, like a miniature missile. Worried that the missile would just explode if direct force were used to stop it, I took control of it and diverted it into a curve. Kate appeared to be frozen in time as the tiny missile cruised past her ear toward the house behind us. My legs felt leaden as I raced towards Kate. Three of the attackers stood and fired more of the bizarre projectiles. They were so much faster than me, and I strained to get to Kate first. In the slow motion world of my senses, I saw Kate begin to turn as I tackled her at a full sprint. Her muscular legs flew up comically as missiles passed us from above and below. One by one, the explosives struck the front of the house, followed immediately by flashes of brilliant light and an intense wave of heat. I landed with Kate crumpled under me as the concussive force of the blasts crashed over us. The world seemed to rush back to a normal speed as my concentration was shattered by the explosions. Stinging shrapnel peppered my back, cutting and burning through my favorite blazer.
    The next few moments were fuzzy as soldiers clad in camouflage gray and black pulled me off Kate, one on each arm. A third soldier pointed an assault rifle at Kate’s unconscious form. They all wore funny helmets that covered their ears. The random mental images were being projected from the helmets. Unable to concentrate or move my arms, I watched helplessly and heard someone screaming “No!” before I realized that the screams came from me. Then a silent command covered the area like a poisonous gas.
    stop breathing
    The three soldiers instantly clutched their throats, dropping their weapons in their desperation. Their faces turned pink, then purple, on their way to blue. Stuart ran to Kate without giving the dying men a second thought.
    “You…you,” I stammered, “You penetrated through those helmets somehow and are killing those men.”
    Stuart ignored me and held Kate’s unconscious form concentrating intensely. I turned my focus to the men and felt their lives slipping away. Their minds, souls, psyches, whatever you call it, still flickered weakly. Without thinking of the consequences I grabbed onto those three minds and gave them one, simple command.
    breathe
    All at once the men gasped for air, coughing and sputtering. They were disoriented for a moment, looking at each other, then at me.  Before they gained their bearings I issued several more silent commands to them. The sound of a woman screaming turned my attention towards the house, which was already burning intensely. The heat was becoming uncomfortable, even from here. Checking that Kate was safely with Stuart, I ran into the flaming house.
    Summoning the last of my will, I reflected the heat around me away as much as I could. Too bad I had nothing left to help with the smoke, which stung my eyes and lungs. My senses reached out through the flames to find the source of the screams. Before I knew what I was doing I approached the door to the basement. At least that’s what I thought it was, but I was not sure because a huge pile of flaming rubble blocked the door completely. More screams issued from below, both male and female. The twins.
    Exhausted, but terrified, I used my fear to give me