Masks XXI: The Musty Museum Murder Mystery

by

Rodford Edmiston

Part One

Energia was flying. There was no set pattern to her movements, and the only limitations were her physical ability to take the gee loads and wind speed, plus the occasional beep her earbud gave to notify Energia that she was nearing a boundary of the safe volume. Propelled and supported by graviton manipulation, she could pull turns which would have shredded an aerobatic plane. She performed a freeform dance in three dimensions, barely constrained by gravity or even inertia.

Finally, energy store running low and nearing the limits of her physical endurance, Energia hovered, catching her breath. She was covered in sweat, and feeling more alive than she had in weeks. That the only witnesses to her performance were the clouds, the birds and the trees below didn't matter. However, it wouldn't do to be late for her first teaching session at The FX.

Too bad I can't go just a bit longer, was her wistful thought. Have to get back to the bakery and cleaned up.

She didn't cut loose like this often enough, at least lately. Just too busy. There was also the problem of finding a safe place to fly. Which reminded her; before heading to the lair she checked for conflicting traffic. Energia grimaced at a notice of a tour helicopter along her path back to the lair. She dove a bit, checked again, and started her return trip.

* * *

The weather grew cloudy and rainy as Energia flew into the city. However, even through the gathering haze she was still able to tell where repairs had been made or new construction built. Of course, there were also still-empty lots where buildings too damaged to be saved had been removed but nothing had yet been put up in their place. Fortunately, the destruction was mostly confined to relatively small areas. The war with the Shilmek had been short and violent and oddly constrained.

Energia DF'ed on several commercial radio stations to find her way. Before making the final turn towards her destination, she pulled out the stealth jumpsuit from her fanny pack and pulled it on. With the simulated metamaterial effect activated, Energia changed course to head directly towards the old bakery. Once above it she dropped to the roof, unseen. She remembered the first few times when she had made this descent. Then she had counted on a quick drop and the fact that people rarely looked up. The current method was much more secure - actually making her as stealthy as their two apergy flyers - but a bit of a pain.

Energia had planned to clean up in her room at the old bakery, then ride with Vic to the headquarters of The FX. However, as she exited the stairwell Gadgetive intercepted her.

"Vic called. Said she'd meet you at The FX's headquarters. Something about the weather putting her behind."

"Okay. Thanks."

So, a quick shower, a quick dry with radiant heat (carefully; if she tried to go too fast the water could get hot enough to scald her without more detailed attention than she wanted to expend at the moment) then into her second-best costume; one of only two she had which included a cape. Over that went the hooded stealth jumpsuit. The capeless "duty" costume she had worn while flying went into the laundry. Energia was very glad the days of having to soak costumes in special cleaning solution were past. Though she still had to remember to remove all the equipment, including the hidden items. Partly to protect those items from the wash and dry. Partly because she only had two complete sets of that equipment and couldn't afford - literally - to damage any of it. Each set actually cost more than one of the costumes.

Back outside, she shot straight up from the roof of the old bakery, and once above the bottoms of the low-hanging clouds flew off horizontally. Disorientation was not a problem for someone with her powers. As she neared the headquarters of The FX she stripped off the jumpsuit and radioed them of her approach. They were a public team, rather than a covert one like Tricorne, and actually coordinated with the local air traffic control. Eventually they planned to have an AI in their base to handle - among other tasks - the airborne traffic, working in cooperation with the nearest airport. Currently, though, they needed an actual person on watch. He confirmed her contact and cleared her for a rooftop landing. While Energia thought they were putting too much trust into local government keeping their word - including through changes of administration - she had to admit that this openness made access more convenient.

However, Energia's earbud suddenly picked up an emergency call. Police had a suspect cornered in a convenience store not far from the headquarters - well, not far for a flyer - but he was well barricaded and they were specifically requesting super help. She let The FX contact know she was diverting, and headed that way.

Energia arrived quickly, and called down to the officers crouched behind their cars to let them know she was there. They waved her around a corner, where an older man was standing beside a black and white, talking on his radio. This turned out to be the senior man on the scene. He was a stocky, middle-aged man, grey and a bit balding from what she could see of his hair under the edges of his cap. He was also very professional. They introduced themselves, both making sure to keep under cover.

"What's the situation?"

"Suspect is a small time crook who decided to rob a convenience store at gunpoint. He got distracted trying to open the cash register and the clerk and all three customers got out. We have officers at all ground exits. He's in there alone and not communicating except to occasionally yell insults."

"At least it's not a hostage situation," said Energia, carefully peering around the corner to look the scene over. "You sure you don't want to wait this guy out?"

"Yeah. This is a busy area, and some of the stores have connected attics. Too much chance of a bystander getting hurt, or the guy getting away if he figures out how. With you here, bulletproof and all, you can go in and maybe just scare him out."

"Who's bulletproof?" said Energia, in a stage mutter. "Never mind. My plasma wall does stop bullets. I can also use my magnetic powers to jam his gun, so he can't shoot."

"I'll let the rest of the officers know. Then you can go in. Just try to keep it proportional."

With the other officers on scene informed, Energia stepped away from the car to spare its paint and the officer's clothes and skin, and put up her plasma wall. However, as soon as she flew around the corner the suspect came running out of the building, hands in the air.

"Don't shoot! I give up! Just don't let her get me!"

Officers quickly moved in from each side and tackled the guy. They got the gun away from him, cuffed him and read the charges as they hustled the scruffy young man into a police car.

"Well, that was easier than usual," said Energia, obviously startled, as she landed and let her plasma wall ground out.

"Just don't let her get me!" said the young man, sounding panicked, as they closed the rear door of the car.

"What the hey..." said Energia, as the frightened thief was taken away.

"Looks like you - we all - benefitted from that group of rogue heroes who are going around, killing criminals," said the older officer she had been speaking to.

"Say what?" was Energia's startled response.

"You hadn't heard about that? Yeah. They call themselves the New Breed. Crime is down, and not just super crime. Except that the people in this group are all wanted for various assaults and some significant property damage, and are suspected in several mysterious deaths."

"I had not heard of that," said Energia, frowning. "Been at college in another state. Thanks for the info. I'll talk to my teammates about this. Anyway, right now I have to leave for an appointment. If you need to talk to me about anything, I'll be at the headquarters of The FX."

"The which, now?" said the Sergeant.

"New - and licensed - hero team. They're in the old Fox building on McManus Avenue."

He nodded, actually seeming to know the location, if not its new use.

She lifted off again and flew towards the headquarters of The FX, fast enough to leave her cape snapping in the slipstream. She wondered as she hurried to her lecture if the activities of this rogue group would be the excuse politicians used to start a new anti-super movement. However, as she approached the team's headquarters - again calling for clearance - she put her mind back on her next scheduled task. As well as the general situation with The FX.

They were charging what Energia thought was a large fee for each lecture, which was split evenly between the person teaching and The FX. In a sense, for Tricorne, Vic and the few others they had arranged as lecturers this was a Summer job. Some people interested in the lectures had grumbled at the size of the fees but most of the classes were full or nearly so despite that.

Most of those attending the lectures were supers. Some wanted to be masks, some already were, some just wanted to know how to better apply their powers, or about the legal restrictions on using them. A few were normals who simply wanted to learn more about supers. All had been vetted by The FX. Nearly all of the attendees whom Energia had met before the classes started wore plain clothes.

Since this was the first time any of them - lecturers or attendees - had done this there was going to be a steep learning curve. Energia just hoped that both students and teachers would hang in there while they all learned.

* * *

Energia entered the headquarters of The FX tight for time. Fortunately, she knew where she was going, thanks to the new team showing the members of Tricorne and Vic around the place a few days before. She landed on the roof, cleared security and hurried down the stairs, flying instead of using the steps.

She waved and called out brief greetings to team members and staff for The FX she saw as she flew by, and even the contractors who were working on the place. The building was still in the finishing stages of an extreme renovation. It smelled strongly of fresh paint and sawdust, as well as things less readily identifiable. One side hallway Energia passed didn't even have the lights on yet. She finally landed when she reached the door to the assigned room. She paused, took a moment to straightened her outfit and calm her breathing, then walked in.

Energia found Vic already in the meeting room which had been set aside for this first lecture. The room held a small, portable stage currently equipped with a small podium and a couple of chairs, one of which was already occupied by the martial artist. The pair greeted each other briefly as Energia stepped onto the stage, then Vic motioned for her to start the class.

"Good morning," said Energia, feeling a bit awkward. She wasn't a professional teacher, like Blue Impact, though she did have some experience. "I'm Energia. Sorry for almost being late; there was a police call for super help. So. This is an open question session, in part to give us an idea of what you folks hope to learn, and in part so you get a good idea of what we have planned. Now, what's the first question?"

Several people raised their hands. Energia picked a man in his early twenties.

"Well, uhm, I'm curious about how your school disciplines students," said the young man, appearing a bit embarrassed at going first.

"You mean the Pine Island Academy?" said Energia, confused by the question. "Well, I graduated from there years ago but I still go back occasionally. Did you have something specific to ask about?"

"I mean, it seems like a paradise. There's almost no word of sexual assault or other violence, everybody toes the line, no bullying or discipline problems. How do they manage that?"

"Oh, there's definitely bullying and discipline problems," said Energia, wryly. "There's even been sexual harassment. Thing is, it's still pretty small for a high school and every student is empowered in some way. So are most of the teachers and other staff. It's hard to get away with lying about something when there are four telepaths on the staff."

"Yeah, but what about the bad kids waiting until they're off the island - maybe even after they graduate - and then taking revenge when the teachers aren't there to protect someone? I know they expelled some students. What was different about them and those they let stay?"

"Most of the kids who had attitude problems at Pine Island Academy got over it," said Energia, with a shrug. "We were all taught to get over it, and not obsess over what someone may have done to us in the past, unless they kept on doing it. Having classes with people - students and teachers - who can punch through armor steel or melt it with a dirty look tends to give one a sense of proportion. It was the few who couldn't get over it - or over themselves - who wound up expelled. Most of those were trouble from the start, and really needed psychiatric help or just firm discipline well before being sent to Pine Island, instead of being sent there to cause problems. In a few unfortunate cases they never got help at all, because they rejected all the attempts to help them. On the other hand, there were some who were no trouble at all until they suddenly lost it and went full mad-on at everyone. They usually were recoverable. Just needed to learn how to blow off steam in a safe way, instead of bottling it up. Of course, what everyone remembers is the ones who refused to let themselves be helped, and just kept doing wrong. The exceptions stand out. Nearly all of those were juvenile criminals sent to the Island in the hopes we could turn them around. The few we couldn't help went back into the prison system to complete their sentences. Helping with all this is that Pine Island has an excellent medical staff, which includes mental health experts."

"As for Ramsey Technical College, where Energia and I go now," said Vic, at a cue from Energia, "by the time students get to college age the real bad apples have mostly been weeded out. This is helped by the fact that not only have college age students generally learned good behavior, but their brains are getting close to full maturity, and they're less prone to acting out. Though, again, there are definitely the occasional bad apples."

Vic grimaced, and Energia remembered some of the problems she had experienced with other Ramsey students.

"Trust me on this. They either learn to behave like adults - which they legally are by college age - or they get expelled and maybe in trouble with the law. Usually."

She shrugged.

"Well, that's my experience. Your mileage may vary, with different institutions of learning at different times. There's always people who get away with bad behavior, for various reasons. Even at Pine Island, from what Energia has told me."

The "brains" comment evoked several confused questions, which Vic and Energia explained, then had to confirm. Most of those there, it turned out, were unaware that human brains didn't fully mature until the early to middle twenties. Even after the questions ceased, some appeared to still not believe this.

"So," said Energia, with a forced smile. "Next question?"

"What's the Guardsman really like?"

Energia sighed, smile slipping a bit.

Fortunately, most of the rest of the questions in that hour were more in line with what the two experienced supers were expecting to answer. The two of them outlined what the planned classes would cover and took suggestions about what the students would like to see covered.

"Sorry for cutting it so close," said Energia, to Vic, as the students filed out. She explained about the police call. As well as the news of the rogue supers.

"Huh," said Vic, startled. "I hadn't heard about that, either. Wonder if Blue Impact has."

"Well, you need to get ready for that Basic Self Defense class in the team gym and I have the Costume class in here in under an hour. I'll see you later."