Chapter 4 : Power Lines and Pressure Points
As they sped through the city, the hover car's sleek design slicing through the air with a soft hum, Kael gazed out the window at the blurred buildings and neon lights. Nima's hands moved swiftly over the controls, navigating through the crowded skies with ease. The cityscape gave way to industrial zones, and the substation came into view. Towering transmission lines stretched out from the substation like giant metal arms, humming with electricity.
Nima brought the hover car to a gentle stop near the substation's entrance. "We're here," she said, her eyes scanning the area.
Kael nodded, his gaze sweeping over the substation's perimeter. "Let's gear up and get to work."
The hover car's door slid open, and they stepped out into the pitch black night, ready to face whatever lay ahead.
The substation was quiet. Too quiet.
Located beneath an old industrial sector, it was buried between aging warehouses and half-functioning factories. Rust clung to the support beams, and the ground trembled now and then from the city's lower rail lines. It was the kind of place most citizens forgot existed.
Perfect for an ambush.
Kael stood near a support pillar, his back to the cold steel, senses sharpened. The faint hum of electricity buzzed through the walls, feeding into massive transformer boxes. Thick wires and cables webbed the ceiling and floor, all pulsing with energy.
He knew the power grid was a complex system, with power plants generating electricity, transmission lines carrying it across long distances, and substations like this one transforming voltage levels for efficient distribution.
The substation's sign read "Power Grid Substation - Voltage Transformation Facility." Kael nodded to Nima. "Let's get to work. We've got a killer to catch."
"Still nothing," Nima's voice came through his earpiece. She was watching from a high point nearby with a drone uplink.
"He'll come," Kael said quietly. "He has to."
They'd chosen this substation because it was the one point that connected all four known attack zones. If Wraith was using the power grid, this place was his central highway.
Kael stepped into the open area, where overhead lights flickered. Surveillance drones circled above, silent and hidden. The plan was simple: bait Wraith with a lone hero in a quiet zone. Force him to attack. Then trap him with a custom-designed nullifying cage—a flexible mesh net built to suppress powered abilities on contact.
But Kael had his doubts.
"I still think he's going to see through this," he said softly.
"Maybe," Nima answered. "But maybe he wants to be seen now. He's never left this many signs before."
Kael paced the open space. He wasn't wrong to be nervous—Wraith wasn't just some reckless villain. Every move he made was strategic. And this plan? It relied on the hope that his ego would get the better of him.
Kael hated that hope was part of the strategy.
Then the lights flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then steady.
He froze. "Did you see that?"
"Yeah. Grid just surged. Cameras are still online, but something just pulled energy."
Kael's heartbeat picked up. "He's here."
Silence stretched.
Then, the air shifted.
It started with a low hum, like distant thunder rumbling through a wire. Sparks danced from the ceiling, tiny zaps of light skipping across the metal floor.
Kael turned slowly. "I feel it….his movement."
From the shadows, a figure stepped out.
Wraith stood before Kael, his presence as sharp as lightning in a storm. He wore a long, black overcoat that hung loosely over his shoulders, the fabric flowing behind him like a living shadow. Beneath it, on his black shirt was a tactical harness wrapped around his chest—functional, angular, and striking against the dark layers. There was no unnecessary decoration, save for a simple black choker around his neck which added a touch of elegance, while his hands were clad in black gloves that seemed to absorb the light. Visible scars or markings on his forearm that looked a bit like lightning hinted at a complex backstory.
His mask was smooth and divided—half black, half white—with glowing purple slits where his eyes should have been. Sleek purple strokes extended outward from the slits like tendrils, giving him a permanently watchful, inhuman gaze. There was no mouth opening, just a cold, unreadable silence. The mask couldn't contain all of his dark hair, and wisps of it escaped, framing his face with an effortless elegance. The strands were slightly wavy and had a deep rich tone, almost purple. He exuded a sense of sophistication and mystery, with a subtle undercurrent of menace.
Kael's breath hitched, but he held his ground. "Wraith."
The figure didn't speak.
"You've made yourself clear," Kael said, his voice steady. "Four heroes are dead, and the system's falling apart. Is that what you wanted? To break everything and watch the rest of us fall with it? Do you enjoy scaring people—making them question everything they believe in? This isn't just chaos. These are real lives you're tearing apart. And now, it ends with me. I'm the one who's going to stop you."
Still nothing.
Then Wraith moved—so fast Kael barely tracked it. In one blink, he was ten feet closer.
Kael dropped into a defensive stance, his telekinesis building around him like invisible armor. "I'm not afraid of you."
The air crackled.
Then—BOOM.
A lightning bolt slammed into the ground beside him, bursting concrete and sending Kael flying.
He hit the wall hard but rolled back to his feet, ears ringing.
"Nima!" he shouted into the comm. "He's here! Go now!"
"Already moving!"
Kael launched forward, using his telekinesis to slam a broad metal door into Wraith like a wrecking ball. The impact sent the figure skidding, but he didn't fall. Instead, he surged forward with unnatural speed.
Kael ducked as a bolt of lightning whipped past his face, melting a metal beam behind him.
"Come on," Kael growled. "Show me what you're hiding."
They clashed—Kael flinging debris and force, Wraith slipping through it like water. He didn't speak. He didn't hesitate. Every move was precise, deadly.
"Who are you?!" Kael shouted. For a split second, Wraith stopped.
Kael stared into the mask. And just for a moment, something flickered behind those purple eyes—regret? Recognition?
From above, Nima launched the nullifying cage—a shimmering net designed to suppress powers—straight toward Wraith.
But in the blink of an eye, Wraith vanished, slipping away with blinding speed.
The net dropped—right onto Kael.
His powers collapsed instantly, telekinesis flickering out.
"Nima!" he gasped, struggling against the mesh. "I'm hit!"
"No—no no no!" she cried over comms. "That wasn't supposed to—"
The lights suddenly blew out.
Darkness swallowed the room as energy surged again. Kael gritted his teeth. Wraith was already gone—slipped into the electrical grid like smoke through cracks. Gone, just like the others.
All that remained in the middle of the darkened substation was a hero trapped in a cage meant for his enemy.
Silence returned.
Footsteps echoed as Nima entered, flashlight slicing through the dark.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine," he said, standing slowly as she freed him from the mesh. "He's more powerful than we thought. He dodged it like it was nothing."
"But you saw him," she said. "We both did."
Kael nodded. "And I felt it. He's not just attacking us. He's testing us."
"Then he's not finished."
Kael looked back at the melted beam, the cracked ground. "No. This was just his warning shot."