Blackstone

Meeting the Recruiters

I opened my eyes. I was back in my bedroom and I wasn't alone. Two shadowy figures stood around my bed. The taller one made a quick motion to the smaller one. They obviously weren't expecting me to be awake.

I wasn't waiting around for introductions. I shifted Out of
Time, pushed myself off the bed and launched a swift kick at the closest figure. There was a blur in Space/Time. The two intruders shifted Out of Time. I remembered what Mary said about them receiving the same training. All right so this wasn't going to be easy.

The smaller figure, it was dark in my room but I imagined she was a girl around my age, blocked my kick and lashed out with a vicious counter punch.

I blocked it and backpedaled, trying to get some distance in the small space. Suddenly, powerful lean arms grabbed me from behind, wrapping me up in a tight embrace.

I squirmed, slipped my right leg behind the tall figure's left leg, and slammed my fist into its crotch. I heard a nice satisfying Oooff. The figure released his hold and went down. I smiled. Whoever these people were at least they had the same anatomy.

I turned to face the girl. I wanted to finish this quickly and make my escape. I hoped that Uncle Paul was okay.

The girl slipped her hand behind her back. I heard a soft hum and she brought out a shining gleaming knife that looked like it was made of pure energy. She jabbed at me.

There's nothing more deadly than close quarter knife fighting. I've never been good at it. I dodged her first sweep, pivoted, and barely parried her second slash. Whoever this chick was, she was good.

The girl forced me back against the wall. She launched a straight thrust straight at my solar plexus. I grabbed her hand just in time. We wrestled in the darkness. I couldn't even see what she looked like. An inky black substance masked her from head to toe. It was like I was fighting a shadow, and I was losing.

Enough of this, it was time for the Dark Power. I reached down inside me and summoned The Wend. I felt it stir and rush to the surface – an ancient sea monster rising from the depths.

The tall figure sprang to its feet and touched something around its waist. There was a blur and I dropped Out of Time. "All right, Nicole. That's enough," it said in a male sounding voice.

The shadow girl made a quick motion with her wrist and the energy knife vanished. She stepped away from me.

I felt the Wend inside me, begging to be free. The temperature in the room dropped. With a tremendous effort, I held it back, called off the Power and The Wend sank back into the depths. I could feel its disappointment, but it had already fed tonight so it went easily.

Suddenly, the lights in my bedroom flicked on. I blinked and shielded my eyes against the glare. When I opened them, I saw my Uncle standing in the doorway. He was dressed all in black. What was going on?

My Uncle looked at the shadow figures. "Agent Ross. Agent Heidegger. Stand Down," he said with total authority.

The two shadow figures touched their waists. The inky black substance swirled away and I saw them for the first time.

They both looked to be about 18 years old. The girl reminded me of a bird of prey. She was thin, lean, and looked deadly serious. Her short red hair was closely cropped and there was no warmth in her brilliant green eyes that coldly examined me like a doctor looking at a corpse. I could tell underneath her composure there was an intense frustration. This girl was going to kill me if she hadn't been stopped.

The boy was tall, handsome, and clean cut. He looked like so many of the quarterbacks or wrestling team captains at the many different schools I had attended. His dark, curly hair reminded me of Michelangelo's David or a Greek God. His brown eyes were kind and attentive.