Trigger warning: mild crude language

„Who are you? And how can you see me? No one else can," Diego asked, his voice a pitch higher than usual. His aura changed back to panicked orange.

Aleks raised her hands placatingly. "My name is Aleks. Don't be scared. I'm not here to hurt you. I came to help." She kept her voice down not to alarm other passengers. Although, people talking to themselves or the walls was far from the strangest sights in London's tube.

"I'm not scared," he protested.

"Look, I'm Gifted, like you. That's why I can see you."

"Gifted?"

"That's what people like us are called. People with special... talents."

"Talents..." Diego scoffed. "I didn't want it."

Aleks smiled sadly. "None of us did. Look, I work for a government agency. They help people like us." She reached inside her coat, flashed him her Agency ID, and held it out patiently, waiting for his reaction.

"What do you want from me? I didn't ask for help." His aura was slowly blending from bright orange to more mellow yellow.

"I know you didn't. But I'm afraid you might be in danger. There are people out there who are hunting Gifted."

The swirling aura before her turned brighter again. "What do you mean, hunting?" Diego asked, but there was no surprise in his voice.

"You've been followed before today, did you not?"

"I..."

"That's why you bolted when you spotted my colleague."

The aura shifted, and Aleks imagined Diego shuffling in his spot. "I'm not sure," he admitted. "I think I've been followed. I've seen some weird, shady people lately. And I had this weird feeling that somebody's watching me, you know?"

"Yeah, unfortunately, I know. Listen─" A crackling in Aleks' ear caught her attention. "Excuse me for a second." She pressed at her earpiece.

"Aleks!" Yuliya's voice sounded faint. Even with her talent enabling her to connect to all surveillance equipment, she struggled to get a good connection in the depths of the London underground. "Listen to me. You have to get off that tube! There are two armed goons from Rioters heading in your direction. They are only three carriages away."

Aleks cursed.

"What's wrong?" Diego asked.

"The guys that were tailing you. You didn't imagine them. They are here, in the same tube."

The orange flared once again.

"I'll get you out of here, I promise. Give me your hand." Aleks raised her hand as the train slowed down, approaching the station.

After a second, she felt a big, warm hand clasping over hers. "Stay hidden and be ready to run as soon as the door opens."

"Two carriages away," Yuliya supplied.

"We're bolting on Green Park. Send back up."

"Be careful, Aleks. If the goons are here, one of the deviants may be here soon too."

"I'll keep my eyes peeled." The train left the tunnel, and the brakes screamed in protest. Aleks moved to the doors, dragging invisible Diego with her. It was an odd feeling holding on to something your eyes couldn't see clearly. It made her brain hurt. Fortunately, the young man did not need much pulling and followed her willingly. "Don't let go of my hand," she instructed as the train finally stopped and the exit opened wide.

Aleks jumped out and rushed to the escalators leading to the ground level but then stopped abruptly. A tall, rugged man in a leather coat stood next to the stairs. His dark hair was a tad too long and looked sloppy, as did a few days of stubble on his square jaw. He kept his hands in his pockets, and his pale blue eyes scanned the crowd flowing from the train.

"Shit. Wrong way." Aleks turned on her heels and dashed another way.

"What's happening?" Diego called behind her. "Where are we going? The exit is that way!"

"There is a deviant waiting for us there."

"Who?"

"Not the time! I'll explain later!"

They arrived at the end of the platform. The train started again and disappeared into the dark of the opposite side of the tunnel. The last stragglers were disappearing, riding escalators up, leaving the stop momentarily deserted. The man in the leather coat was slowly strolling in their direction.

"We're going into the tunnel. Jump down. Now!" Alex jumped off the platform dragging Diego with her and rushed to the dark tunnel.

"Are you crazy?! What about the trains?!"

"We have four minutes till the next train arrival," Aleks explained, running forward and using a small flashlight to show the way. "There is a side tunnel a hundred meters from the platform. It should be somewhere... Here!" A light beam revealed a sturdy metal door with faded letters Maintenance Door – Authorised Personel only. Aleks cursed when she spotted a padlock hanging off the rusted metal handle.

"Stop running, little bird!" a rough voice from the platform called. "You know you have nowhere to hide."

"Hold it." Aleks raised the flashlight and waited for the invisible hand to take it from her. Then she reached into another pocket of her coat and pulled out a small, sleek-looking gun.

"Is that... a gun?" Diego choked out.

Aleks racked the slide back to chamber a round and took off the safety. "Chill. It's a standard issue Walther PPK. Every agent is issued one." She aimed at the padlock and pulled the trigger. With sparks flying and a loud crack, the metal broke.

"Jesus!"

"No time for getting hysterical now," she said, putting the safety back and pocketing her gun. "Time to run." The door opened with a shrieking protest, and she raised her hand. Once she felt Diego's fingers, she dragged him into the narrow passageway. They run through the dimly lit tunnel while the overhead lights shimmer, throwing dancing shadows everywhere.

Aleks touched her earpiece. "Where is that backup, Yuliya?! The deviant is here, chasing us! I'm in the Green Park maintenance tunnel heading eastward toward the nearest bomb shelter."

"Assault team is en route, just entered Green Park Station. Toni is─" There was a thud of the metal door behind them, and Aleks cried out as the electrical jolt hit her ear. She threw away her crackling and smoking earpiece. "Shit."

"What's wrong? Not that brave without buddies to save you, little bird?" the voice behind them called.

"Run faster!" Aleks shouted, sprinting ahead and dragging Diego with her. Next second, a lightning bolt struck the lamp overhead, sending sparks everywhere, while their pursuer laughed with glee. "Faster!"

After a few minutes of a mad dash, the narrow passageway finally ended up in a vast cavernous space. The giant tunnel was around twelve hundred feet long and could shelter thousands of people if need be. But as there was no need for such protection, it was closed and deserted.   Shelters like this were built during WWII and later in the Cold War in case of bombardments, and London's underground was full of them, though the public knew only about a few of them.*

"Come on! We need to move," Aleks said, feeling Diego slowing down behind her. "We can't fight him here. We don't stand a chance." But her heart dropped when they reached the shelter's other side. The metal door leading to another tunnel was not closed with a padlock. The door's metal was melted and wrapped as if someone had soldered them. Or treated with a high-voltage lightning bolt.

Their only escape way was sealed off.

"What's the matter, little bird?" the deviant asked, entering the shelter from the opposite side. "Nowhere to run now, eh?"

Aleks let go of Diego's hand and pulled out a gun, racking the slide back. "Go away, Diego," she whispered.

"What?"

"Get away from me. He can't see you. I'll distract him, so wait for an opening and run for it. Got it?"

"But what about you?"

"Don't worry about me. The backup will be here soon," Aleks lied.

When the bright orange aura started to move toward the wall on her right, Aleks pushed down the safety and shot at the deviant strolling towards her three times. Before the bullets hit him, the air in front of the man lit up with electric bolts, and the shots dropped to the floor.

"Well, shit," Aleks mumbled.

"Your toy gun has no use here," the deviant said, and not breaking his stroll, he raised his hand. A bolt of lightning crackled at his fingers and shot at Aleks.

She jumped back, dropping her gun, as she correctly guessed his target was the weapon, not her.

"GSO will be here any minute," she bluffed. "You'd better start running now."

The deviant stopped and cocked his head. "I hate to disappoint you, little bird, but you have your people, and I have mine. They will make sure your backup will not be coming anytime soon. Now, where is the invisible guy?" He looked around.

Aleks could sense a bright orange glow moving steadily along the wall towards the exit, but he was nowhere near it yet. She kept her eyes on the deviant, careful not to give away Diego's position. "He's not here."

The deviant pursed his narrow lips. "It's not nice to lie." His hand struck forward, and Aleks dodged, but not fast enough. The lightning bolt caught her in the shoulder, and she screamed in pain when the electricity ran down her arm making her muscles spasm. She fell to her knees, gritting her teeth.

"Heard that, invisible boy?" The deviant turned around and opened his arms wide. "That was just a tickle. I can make your little friend here scream so loud they will hear her on the other side of London. And it will be your fault."

Taking advantage of his distraction, Aleks pulled a knife from her boot and threw it at the deviant. Unfortunately, her hand was still trembling after the hit, and the blade barely grazed the man's arm. He whirled around, turning back to her with a scowl. His aura turned from focused navy to fiery red of anger.

"You'll regret it." The next bolt was stronger than before, leaving Aleks screaming and writhing on the floor as all her muscles cramped uncontrollably. "Last chance, boy! Come with me willingly, or the next bolt will fry her brain!"

"Stop! I surrender!" Diego appeared out of thin air, still halfway to the exit. His face was pale, and his hands trembled.

"You idiot," Aleks wheezed, trying to get up, but her shaking body barely rose to her elbows.

"See, I knew you were smart. I only need you. Little bird here is useless to us, just as her talent."

Fury flared inside Aleks, mainly because the deviant was right. She had heard those words ever since she discovered her gift.

It's useless.

Shame you didn't get any talent that could be more useful.

Is that really a supernatural gift?

That's your gift? Are you sure you can't do something cooler?

"You arrogant prick!" she growled, managing to get to her knees.

The deviant smirked. "Oh, did I strike a nerve? I can only imagine how hard it is for you. Having such a powerful brother and yet being so hopelessly average."

"Shut up!"

"You know, maybe you could be of some use to us. I could say a good word about to the boss." He strolled to her lazily, crouched down and grabbed her chin. "But you will have to ask me very nicely."

"Hey! Hands off my sister, you creep!" called a voice from the doors, and bright flames illuminated the shelter.

*Shelters hidden in London underground systems are a real thing, though the location of this particular one is made up by me for plot purposes ;)

But the fact is that in London and other big cities in England, you can find shelters located underground. Some of them are known to the public, but the speculation is there are many well-hidden shelters whose locations are known only to government officials.