The Urban Supernatural Guy

Chapter 6: Monster in the Mirror

The thing that had been pretending to be Elena Sterling stood eight feet tall now, its pale skin stretched tight over bones that bent in ways human bones shouldn't. Its face was a nightmare of too many teeth and eyes that reflected light like black mirrors.

"You know," it said conversationally, "I was really hoping we could do this the easy way. Your sister was supposed to deliver you to us gift-wrapped and compliant."

Marcus backed toward the rooftop's edge, his supernatural senses screaming warnings. Whatever this creature was, it radiated power that made his enhanced abilities feel like a candle next to a blowtorch.

"What are you?"

"Disappointed, mostly." The creature's voice came from too many throats at once. "We spent considerable resources crafting that Elena persona. Do you know how difficult it is to perfectly replicate human emotional responses? The micro-expressions, the body language, the way she used to touch her hair when she was nervous?"

The detail made Marcus's skin crawl. "How long have you been wearing her face?"

"Since three days after you left the city five years ago. Poor Elena tried to contact you, tried to explain that she'd been forced to betray you. We couldn't have that level of inconvenient truth floating around."

Marcus felt his power building, but it was different now. Cleaner somehow, without the dark edge that had been there since his transformation. Amanda's silver claws had burned away more than just conditioning—they'd purified abilities he hadn't even realized were corrupted.

"Where is she? The real Elena?"

"Indisposed." The creature started moving toward him with that inhuman grace. "But don't worry—you'll be joining her soon. Victor has such interesting plans for you both."

Marcus let it get close, then unleashed every ounce of power he possessed. Pure energy erupted from his hands, striking the creature center mass. It screamed and staggered backward, its false flesh smoking where the energy had hit.

"That's new," it hissed. "What did that little bitch do to you?"

Instead of answering, Marcus vaulted over the rooftop's safety railing and dropped to the fire escape below. His enhanced reflexes and strength let him take the fall without injury, but he could hear the creature pursuing him with inhuman speed.

He reached the alley just as Sophia Chen came around the corner, moving fast and carrying a duffel bag that clinked with the sound of weapons.

"Marcus! Thank God you're—" She stopped when she saw his expression. "What happened?"

"Elena's dead. Has been for months. That thing upstairs was wearing her face."

Sophia's expression hardened. "Shapeshifter. They're rare, but not impossible. How did you figure it out?"

"Amanda told me. Right before she jumped off the roof."

"Is she—"

"I don't know." Marcus looked up at the building above them. "But she said the real Elena is in Victor's basement."

A inhuman roar echoed from the rooftop, followed by the sound of concrete cracking.

"We need to move," Sophia said, shouldering the duffel bag. "I've got a car around the corner and enough firepower to level a city block."

They ran through the narrow alley, emerging onto a side street where a black SUV waited with its engine running. Marcus recognized the driver—a woman in her thirties with short dark hair and the kind of scars that spoke of military service.

"That's Detective Sarah Morgan," Sophia said as they climbed into the back. "She's been investigating supernatural activity in the city for two years."

"Great. Another person who knows more about my situation than I do."

Sarah looked at him in the rearview mirror. "Your situation is that you're Patient Zero in a war most humans don't even know is happening. The question is whether you're going to help us win it."

They drove through the city streets, taking a circuitous route that suggested Sarah knew how to avoid surveillance. Marcus watched the buildings pass by, noting how many people walked the sidewalks without any idea that monsters lived among them, wearing human faces and pulling strings from the shadows.

"Tell me about the others," he said. "Elena mentioned a resistance."

"Seventeen people that we know of," Sophia said. "All of them touched by supernatural forces, all of them maintaining enough humanity to fight back. Some were partial transformations that didn't take completely, others were experiment subjects who escaped before the process finished."

"And Victor Ashford is their leader?"

"One of them. The Midnight Syndicate has cells in every major city, but this is their primary base of operations. If we can take them down here, we cripple their entire network."

Sarah took a sharp turn into an underground parking garage. "We're here."

Marcus looked around at the concrete walls and fluorescent lighting. "Where exactly is here?"

"Safe house number three," Sophia said, getting out of the SUV. "Complete with armory, medical facilities, and enough supernatural protection wards to keep us hidden for weeks."

They took an elevator down two more levels, emerging into what looked like a military command center. Computers lined the walls, displaying maps, surveillance footage, and documents marked with classifications Marcus didn't recognize.

"Welcome to the real resistance," Sarah said.

But as Marcus looked around at the high-tech setup, something nagged at him. The equipment was too expensive, too advanced for a small group of supernatural refugees. The kind of gear he was seeing required government-level funding and military connections.

"Who's really backing this operation?" he asked.

Sophia and Sarah exchanged a look.

"That's classified," Sarah said.

"Bullshit. I just watched my sister jump off a building to save my life, and found out I've been talking to a monster wearing my dead ex-fiancée's face. I think I deserve some honesty."

Another voice came from the shadows at the far end of the command center. Deep, familiar, with an accent that made Marcus's blood freeze.

"Hello, my student. It's time you learned the truth about your training."

Master Chen stepped into the light, but he looked different now. Younger, more vital, with eyes that held depths Marcus had never noticed before.

"You see, Marcus, the Midnight Syndicate wasn't your enemy during those five years in the mystical realm. They were your teachers. And everything you've done since returning to this city has been exactly what we hoped for."