Maiduguri, capital of Borno state, was home to the headquarters of the largest terrorist group in West Africa and the fourth largest in the world. Boko Haram was a terrorist group that had plagued West Africa for years in the running. They belived that western education was a bad thing. Boko Haram in fact meant ‘Western Education is Bad’. Bombings, abductions, and indiscriminate killing were some of the crimes the group committed regularly. Multiple camps for displaced people were scattered in different parts of the northern part of the country due to their activities. Their latest operation came as a surprise due to their relative silence during the previous year. The presence of recently changed teens among their numbers did nothing to calm growing fears and while some concerns went to the implications of using teenagers in full scale operations and the trauma it could leave on their psyche, most were afraid of the increased risk that the presence of humans capable of extraordinary feats taking part in terrorism could bring. This coupled with the incident in North Korea led to increased mentions of taking drastic measures against warped humans with some influential groups strongly advocating it. “ETA in five, guys,” Aaron yelled over the drone of the helicopter blades. “You know that makes you sound like a nerd right? Like there’s absolutely no need to talk like that.” Sophie repeated for the umpteenth time this week, her voice sounding like she’d already grown tired of trying to talk him out of it. “Well too late Sophie, my nerd factor was high enough to win me an award by your standards two years ago so I don’t think this makes a difference.” He shot back. “Look,” I said, trying to stop their bickering. ”I can see it from here. That was actually fast, Aaron.” He had prepared a state of the art helicopter with engines he boosted by himself and it took us only fifteen minutes to get there. Wasn’t as great as my flying but Aaron said we had to work as a team and apparently that involved flying together. “Okay then. Double check your gear one last time and make sure everything is in order, especially your minds.” Aaron advised. The gear we designed was sleek, black and tight fitting in a way was fashionable and allowed for easy movement not ridiculously tight like comic book character costumes. We’d chosen jackets and trousers with a picture of the earth on the breast pockets. We’d thought it best to show from the beginning that we were for humanity as a whole and not just a group partial to one nation. The material Aaron used to build the suits was a variation of the material used in bulletproof vests modified to be stronger and more flexible. The were some other attachments that made them more durable, heat resistant and added extra protective features for Aaron and Sophie that were disguised as blue lines running up the sleeves of the jackets. There were also microchips that produced a powerful energy shield that activated by thought or on impact. After I checked and confirmed that I was properly suited up, I looked up to se Sophie checking her gear. She was acting confident and carefree but I could see that she was nervous by the fact that she spent a little extra time than normal straightening her already straight jacket, in the minute way her hands shook while she moved them, in her slightly erratic breathing and in the pounding of her heart. She noticed me looking at her and turned her head back to face me. “Mesmerized by my beauty, Sam?” she asked trying to feign more confidence than I knew she actually felt. “No, just nervous. Are you scared?” I asked her even though I already knew the answer. “Nope. All pumped up and confident here.” She replied with the same carefree attitude. “You know I can hear your heart, right?” I asked, amused. “It’s not a problem though. I’d probably be more worried if you weren’t anxious. It would mean you aren’t taking it seriously enough. Aaron’s probably right though, we should make sure we’re mentally prepared for this.” I finish before she can argue. “Of course I’m right. I always am.” Aaron said in a matter-of-fact voice that managed to be sincere and condensing at the same time. “Yes Aaron, we know you’re a genius. You’re right Sam. I’m nervous because I’m going to fight terrorists who kill and kidnap people for no reason and who probably have super powered teenagers working with them but it doesn’t matter because it’s not going to stop me from doing what I should.” She said, her eyes determined. “I know. When has it ever?” I asked with a smile.”Still on the topic of my knowledge, it would interest you to know that we have arrived.” I’d been to a lot of places round the world. When I started using my powers again two years ago, I made a list of places that id like to explore. While a lot of them were tourist attractions, some of them were dangerous places like the Bermuda triangle and yet the Sambisa forest was worse than that in a strange way. Patches of tall dry grass grew between interspaced trees, their yellow leaves reflecting the region’s dry climate. The land was ridden with hills and ridges spread among the plains. The forest at first glance, was an ideal wildlife park, teeming with a variety of creatures ranging from harmless to extremely dangerous. Further examination showed otherwise. A closer look showed the fallen trees, the scorch marks, bullet ridden trees, and areas of the forest that were unnaturally barren. All this, combined with the carefully hidden camps, armored cars and armed men lying around the forests had the effect of removing any illusions of where we were. We weren’t at some wildlife park badly in need of rainfall, we were at the main base of one of the deadliest terrorist groups in the world. We were in one of the most dangerous places in Africa and we were planning to bring down its most dangerous terrorists. “It’s time, Sam.” Aaron called from the front. He was getting ready to land the helicopter before we were noticed. “Give me a second. I need to check if there’s anyone hiding close to the landing spot. It’s a bit difficult to hear a heartbeat from here with the sound of those blades.” I replied, straining my ears to pick up signs of human life. “That’s not going to do much help. It would be very unlikely that they haven’t already heard us by now and they know that no ordinary person is going to fly near this place. They’re probably already getting prepared for an attack.” Aaron remarked, his words in the familiar matter-of-fact tone he loved using sometimes. “Oh crap, I didn’t think of that.” I said, feeling a little worried. “I know. That’s why I’m the smart one.” He said. “Stop that. Aaron.” Sophie said a bit sternly. “What, it’s the truth. And I was just joking.” “Your tone was wrong, like you were looking down on him. Sam might not be as smart as you but he’s not stupid. He just made a mistake.” “Uhhh. Okay then. Sorry, I guess.” Aaron said, looking surprised. I didn’t blame him. Sophie could be confusing sometimes. Not to me though. “Stop it Sophie, you’ve got him all confused now.” I said, not able to stop the hint of a smile forming on my lips. She burst into laughter. “C’mon, he was doing his ultimate nerd thing again. He deserved it.” I stared at her. “Okay well, it also had the benefit of being funny but you have to admit the look of confusion on his face was priceless.” She said, trying to contain her laughter. It was priceless, I admitted to myself. “Well, in my defense, you just had an outburst a short while ago so I wasn’t sure.” Aaron argued, trying to save what little pride he thought he still had unaware that she’d already robbed him of it in their first week of friendship. “You know I can’t stay down for more than a few minutes. I’m not like that.” She said in mock hurt. It was a lie, or at least not completely true. It was a coping mechanism that she used so often that it seemed like that’s how she really was inside and I’m sure that Aaron, for all his cluelessness, knew that. “Alright, enough of that, are we still sticking to the plan, Aaron?” I asked, ever the voice of reason. “There’s no need not to, actually. If you check, you’ll notice that the plan doesn’t really depend on stealth. Get ready, I’m opening the door.” Aaron said. He touched something and then I felt the wind on my face. I was outside in a flash. I looked at the helicopter that just landed and realized that Aaron was right, they’d already noticed us and were probably getting ready if the frantic movements of the men spying on the helicopter below was any indication. I could hear them but they weren’t speaking English. The translator Aaron gave me didn’t work from this distance. I flew down so I was directly above the trees. Less chance of being seen. Aaron had said I shouldn’t let myself be seen, a difficult prospect with the limited shade of trees in this forest. I listened to see if there was anyone apart from the men below me around. I couldn’t hear anyone, just animal sounds and the wind. I could hear Sophie though, she was preparing to start going to the camp with the map Aaron created using satellite imaging. I made a mental note to keep an eye on her. I could hear Aaron humming a tune softly from the helicopter a few kilometers away on the ground. He was doing it purposely, so the men would think he was an idiot. I pushed the sounds to the back of my mind and flew farther into the forest, focusing my senses to spot anything unusual. I flew for a short while before I heard something. Someone, to be precise, and he was speaking English. I flew a bit closer to hear him better but couldn’t go too close for fear of discovery. Normal people didn’t usually look up but these were not normal people. They were probably used to aerial attacks. The person, a young man in his twenties wearing a bulletproof vest over military style clothes was talking to a boy of about sixteen or seventeen judging by his looks. The boy was dressed in khaki shorts and a T-shirt with slippers and surprisingly handsome with a pointed nose and the full hair. He looked Fulani. Strange, I thought to myself, the other man is dressed like he’s prepared for an attack of some sort but this one is dressed casually. It hit me a few seconds later. He was warped! He must have been confident in his inability to be hurt. He was going to receive one heck of a surprise. I tried to get what they were saying. “…the Shekau is at the base, Musa. There’s no way one helicopter can do anything. The security is too much for that.” The casually one said. “I know but it is strange. The military will not come with only one helicopter, the big men in Abuja don’t come here at all. Who could it be then? What if its people like you or a foreign government?” The one named Musa asked. “Hmm. A foreign government will not let us know they’re here. It is unlikely that it is people like me. They said it only happened to teenagers and which teenager will be bold enough to fight us. Even if they are, where will they get helicopter from.” Casual replied then looked up and sniffed the air. ”What is it?” Musa asked. “Ibrahim is working,” he answered then looked up. “it looks like you were right, Musa. There’s someone in the air.” He said then looked at me directly. Oh crap, I thought. I took a deep breath and held his stare. “What are you…” I didn’t let him finish. I moved much faster than he could blink and hit him, taking care so I wouldn’t hurt him too much. He fell unconscious immediately. Oops, too much force. Musa looked at me eyes wide then pointed his gun at me. It was in my hand before he could pull the trigger. His eyes grew wide as I took the gun in my hands and squeezed, crushing it to pieces. “You’re unarmed and outmatched. You’re going to tell me a few things.” I said. He grinned, a full cocky grin, and then he laughed; a deep, rumbling laugh before quickly becoming serious. “You’re a fool.” He said, then dropped dead on the floor. Darn it! I thought. I looked at the boy on the floor. I could track him later. “Aaron,” I said, tapping the communication device in my ear. “I’m going.” “Alright, Sophie’s almost there." I flew quickly to the location of the base, my confusion growing when I didn’t see any sign of it. Sophie was a few hundred metres away on the ground. “Can you see anything Sam?” she asked. “No. I’m as confused as you. Aaron?” I asked. “I don’t know. I don’t see how it’s feasible to move the base except if they’ve got teleportation and an insane amount of energy. Except… wait a minute. What if the base isn’t there?” Aaron asked. “You mean if it’s an illusion?” “Yes Sophie. That’s the most reasonable explanation. Try looking at it properly, Sam” he suggests. I comply and notice a simmer in the air. I also smell something different, something that smells like guns. ”You’re right. There’s a sight shimmering in the air. There’s something else though. It smells a bit familiar. Kind of like gunshots” I replied. “Gunpowder,” Sophie remarked “I smelt it too shortly after we entered the forest but id just assumed it was there from constant use of guns.” “I’m scanning the air around you guys. Okay its seems like it’s really gunpowder but there’s something… hmmm,” Aaron said then paused for a short while before talking again. “GET OUT OF THERE NOW!!!” he yelled, his voice frantic. It was too late though. As he said it, I felt the vibrations in the air and knew it was too late. The explosion was loud. Too loud and bright for something on such a small scale. it happened instantly and by the time I could process what happened, Sophie was flying through the air. No! I screamed in my head, ugly memories coming to the front of my mind. This couldn’t be happening, I kept telling myself. I barely heard Aaron saying something about nuclear energy before my brain suddenly started working again. My first action when I could finally think coherently was to check Sophie. I quickly located her and landed next to her. Her heart was beating fine and she was breathing steadily if erratically. I tried to check her with x-ray vision but was blocked by the energy shield. The energy shield! I thought. I’d totally forgotten about it. She has the energy shield. She’s not hurt. The rational part of me believed that and knew Aaron’s work was always really good but it still didn’t stop the dread I felt in my heart. Not seeing any other way to check if she was okay, I decided to call her. “Sophie,” I said, shaking her awake. “Hmm,” she answered, and sat up all of a sudden. “What happened, Sam? Aaron said something about nuclear fusion and then there was an explosion. I think I’m okay though. The energy field protected me. I’m not even sure there was any danger. Are you alright? “She asked. I swept her into a gentle hug before answering. “I’m not hurt,” was the reply I gave her. “You know I’m not talking about that. I know you’re very angry but please don’t do something you’ll regret later.” She pleaded. I understood her. I also didn’t know if I’d be able to stop myself. I left Sophie after confirming that she was fine and that the energy shield had enough power left to protect her from anything they could throw at her. I wanted nothing more than to take her and fly her home but I knew she wouldn’t agree to that. Neither would Aaron ad I didn’t think forcing them would bring good results. I did tell her to stay away from the base and back to the helicopter but I knew she wouldn’t do that. She was too stubborn for her on good. When I was back at the front of the base, I looked at the empty forest in front of me and concentrated on seeing through the illusion. I was half tempted to just burn the whole place down but thought against it when I remembered the hostages. After some seconds, the light shimmered again and this time, I focused on that shimmering before the illusion started to unravel. When I could finally see the base, I was greeted with a convoy of armored vehicles about two kilometers long with guns pointed in my direction, lots of guns. In front of the convoy was a boy my age dressed in full military uniform. He looked at me in the air with a knowing look. It took me some seconds to realize that he was acknowledging me because was warped and he assumed I was too. The look soon changed to something else though, a hard look. He was ready to kill me but he knew it would lead to a fight. A challenge, I thought. He smiled, like he had read my thoughts. I steeled myself for what I knew was coming. And then the world turned red.