Little Fish – Chapter 3

Unfortunately, the dangerous wind forgot to inform them that trouble was coming their way. After checking the village on camera, then in person, both Wei Zangchen and Gun Wen had breathed a sigh of relief.

The children were outside playing when a car came rolling up the institution’s overgrown dirt road. Scared by the sight of encroaching strangers, they ran in to inform Wei Zangchen someone had arrived. He knew and sliced off a portion of his power to shield the institution. He’d already heard the crunch of the tires on the gravel and the whine as the engine revved too high between gears, wheeling himself toward the main doors and aiding the children in finding him so fast. The last time he’d seen a functional car was well over a year ago. The last time he’d talked to an outsider had been even longer. Quickly sending the children to gather up the others, he ordered them to then find Gun Wen and remain hidden until he came to find them.

With the help of his powers, the esper then stood on shaky legs. He truly hoped that the person was merely a lost tourist, but he could feel a consciousness reaching out, trying to greet his. In his heart, he had to prepare himself. A military esper could absolutely not go missing, but that all depended on who knew they were there and what they were doing there. The stranger’s conscious cloud didn’t feel high, yet that could simply be from them willfully hiding their true strength.

By the time Wei Zangchen made it to the doors of the institution, the man had exited the car and begun to poke around. Straightening down his clothes, the esper opened the glass door, stepping outside into the overcast day. Caught trying to look through a window, the man ducked his head.

“I wasn’t sure I would find anyone here. Please forgive my rudeness.”

This wasn’t good. The stranger was dressed in a sharp black suit of high quality. His eyebrows were drawn in wariness. On his left shoulder was a handheld radio, a sidearm on his right hip with the strap already popped. More than likely, he’d detected the mania below ground as he’d approached.

“Are you lost? I’m Professor Jing Yue.”

Brushing his hands off, the stranger approached, Wei Zangchen curling the toes of his left foot to keep his balance. His heart rate rose from the dread. The man in front of him was well-proportioned, slim without being unsightly so. Handsome without boasting. A typical carbon-copy esper.

“I’m with Bureau Gate Division Five. We’ve had a gate open in the area and are conducting a search for survivors. Specifically, a hiking group of six college individuals. Are you an esper?”

Wei Zangchen noticed how the man refused to name himself. He hadn’t felt the fluctuations of a gate opening. Nor did he know what had happened to the other four hikers if the previous two belonged to the group. He cleared his throat in an attempt to appear in a position of authority.

“Do you have identification on you? This is a sealed military site. I’m afraid I cannot talk freely until your identity has been verified. I’m sorry, but I’m sure you understand, being in the military.”

“Naturally.”

Pulling a lanyard from his pocket, the man passed it over. The item was genuine. The man’s status, rank, and division were printed on the top of the badge, followed by his photo, individual esper number, then his name. Cai Dan. Holding the lanyard brought back too many memories, Wei Zangchen swallowing them down before they could affect his mental state. Passing the lanyard back, he took a step back and smiled falsely.

“Thank you. Now we’ve confirmed your identity, I can be honest. This institution is now defunct. My role here is as caretaker, to ensure no one defaces the property. I’ve been in my role for the last three years since the project ended and the equipment was removed. I’m sorry, your missing hikers haven’t passed this way. I last visited the village roughly a week ago and found no signs that they’d camped there either.”

Cai Dan frowned.

“I’m sorry, Professor. I feel that what you just told me is a lie. Why is an esper based here if the facility is no longer operational? I must insist on entering… Something doesn’t feel right about this site.”

Espers truly were a pain in the arse to deal with. Wei Zangchen opened his palms as if he had nothing to hide while adjusting his mindset and probing Cai Dan’s mind a little deeper with his tendrils.

“I was caught in a gate explosion. I’m only a level C esper with limited wind control. Ashamed of my cowardice, my supervisor exiled me to this facility for running rather than helping contain the damage. The bottom two floors have already caved in. I live here with the few remaining villagers on the ground floor. It’s a humble, simple existence as I await my new orders.”

“Professor, I’ll need to confirm their identities. Step aside and allow me access immediately.”

That couldn’t happen. Cai Dan seemed rather stiff-backed. There were clear signs of life, but he could have pretended to believe what Wei Zangchen was saying. Mental manipulation on strong espers was not his talent when the esper was stronger than him. If he had to grade himself now, he’d give himself an exceptionally generous “B,” though that was thanks to his previous pride.

Attempting persuasion to leave, he pushed his tendrils deeper, sweat forming as he kept the pressure even, not wanting to brain-damage the man. The same politeness was not returned. Savagely, the connection was torn as he was caught. Cai Dan’s face flushed, his hand going for his gun, and his anger palpable.

“Raise your hands where I can see them!”

Wei Zangchen raised his hands as he was told, with the gun being pulled successfully. It was already obvious that his hands were empty of any man-made weapons, and now that he’d been caught, he could only stall a little longer with faked cooperation.

“Oops?”

Aiming the gun at his face, Cai Dan then used his left hand to go for his radio.

“Who are you?! What are you doing here?! No professor matches your appearance!”

Wei Zangchen truly was a man who loathed showing his scars. The mental tendrils that had been damaged had rushed back into his brain. He needed to de-escalate the situation until they could recover enough to incapacitate Cai Dan.

“I told you. I was an esper. A long time ago, I was sent here for treatment after I abandoned my mission, then transitioned into my posting here. I’m going to show you proof, all I need is for you to remain still for the next ten seconds. The proof is on my leg, alright? I’m going to raise my left pant leg. That’s all I’m going to do.”

“Don’t move!”

Ignoring Cai Dan, he lowered his left hand, took his left pant leg in a pinch, and pulled it up to expose his ankle.

“That’s the remains of a Ludwig prototype exoskeleton. It’s welded completely to my body. See the metal?”

Cai Dan’s eyes flicked down for a moment.

“Ludwig types were banned! They never made it to the commercial market! Who are you really?!”

Wei Zangchen blinked, then blinked half a dozen times more. Ludwig had definitely made it to market. How could someone in the military not know that?! He was literally standing there with the evidence fused to his body!

“The Ludwigs were rolled out five years ago.”

“No such exoskeletons have been used in the past three years!”

Ah. Oh. The stock price must have crumbled overnight, never mind the board of directors…

Wei Zangchen pulled his pant leg higher.

“This is why they were banned. I’m a failed test subject living a quiet life with the last of the villagers. I cannot allow you entry. No one inside means any harm; they’re all simple people abandoned economically. I admit perhaps I should not have allowed them within the premises, but you’ve seen the village. Our job as espers is to protect people.”