He looked up at me with fearful eyes. “I-I’m sorry, the gun… I didn’t mean to… it’s them… Not me!”
I slowly picked myself up and wobbled towards the man, already feeling the virus working within my body, then bent down and tugged the strings of his sweatshirt with my good arm; the hood instantly tightened around his head. “What the hell are you talking about?” He was spouting nonsense, and I was running out of time.
His eyes doubled. “Please, you have to believe me! it was them –”
My hand moved on its own and punched him square in the face, knocking him unconscious instantly. A violent shudder coursed through me after, meaning it wouldn’t be long before the virus' protocol activated. So, I pulled out the small box in my back pocket and tried to remove the key that was taped on the bottom, but it clinked to the ground with my hands shaking uncontrollably.
I had to hurry up; I was losing control. After a few more frustrating attempts, I managed to open it and carefully picked one of the syringes up. The top had a plastic cap, so I bit it off with my right arm still injured. Now came the moment of truth. I knew I was being silly but looked around anyway; the homeless man was in his box, and my new acquaintance was still out cold close by. The coast clear, I pulled down my pants and jammed the syringe into my backside. The drug started working right away.
My hands stopped shaking, and vision got clearer, letting me stand back up. I was still a bit dizzy but managed to drag myself to the purse-snatcher and gazed down at him; he didn’t know how lucky he was to get just a punch to the face. I reached down a moment later and scooped up Candace’s purse along with the gun. “Thank you very much.”
There was still a bullet lodged somewhere in my arm, so I had to get to a hospital fast and started towards Time Square but had to stop, getting dizzier. To stop from falling over, I wobbled to the right and leaned against the building wall for support, getting dirt on my shirt. Pain erupted in my arm from nowhere, causing me to clench my jaw to its breaking point; it was all I could do to stop from screaming.
Peering at the origin of the unbelievable pain showed the bullet in my upper arm was being pushed out by an unseen force. And a few more excruciating moments after, it hit the ground with a clang; my blood was still all over it. Taking off my shirt, I collected the gun and bloody bullet in it and threw it in a nearby trashcan. It wasn’t a very good hiding place, but if they did link it back to me, I’m sure Dean Dexter would take care of it.
I rotated my arm and found there was little pain. It was getting more difficult to be shocked, even though things like what just happened were supposed to only happen in video games or movies. I was turning into a damn… I don’t know what.
“Whoa…”
I jerked off the wall and saw the homeless man from earlier was staring straight at me from the building across. Had he witnessed everything? I didn’t know what to do. Would he tell anyone? I mean, they wouldn’t believe a crazy homeless man anyway, right?
“That was awesome!” He was smiling wide.
I stared at him dumbly.
“Are you a superhero?” His eyes were full of anticipation.
“Er, yes… they call me, uh, PeaceBringer.” What?
“I knew it! Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me.” He put his hand to his mouth, locked it, and threw away the key.
“Okay… thanks, but I should really get going now.” I didn’t want to be around when the cops showed up.
“Bye, PeaceBringer!”
I rounded the corner of the building. What I’d just done was far from peaceful.
Candace hurried over from the far end of the alley and reached me in no time. “Adin! I was looking everywhere for you, are you okay?” She was poking and prodding me all over like a doctor.
I gently pushed her hands down, smiling. “I’m fine, Mom.”
She slapped me on the arm where I’d just gotten shot, but I didn’t feel any pain. “Good, ‘cause I’m going to kill you.” She had her hands on her hips, frowning. “What were you thinking… Wait, what happened to your shirt?”
“It got messed up…”
The curly-haired girl squinted. “How?”
A groan emanated behind us; it seemed the thief was awake from his beauty sleep.
Candace leaned to the left to look past me. “Oh my god, is that the purse-snatcher?”
I raised her purse, grinning. “Technically, ex-purse-snatcher.”
She gingerly took her item back. “Did you… do that to him?”
I glanced back at him. “Yeah, I did.”
Sounds of sirens were approaching our location.
“Let’s get out of here.” I walked past her.
“Wait, we need to report this to the police.”
I paused and turned to Candace. “He was just some junkie, and I don’t feel like spending all day in a police station just to give a statement.”
She bit her lip, watching me. “Fine… let’s just go home. Today’s been a disaster.”
“Not yet, there’s somewhere I want to go.”
“What, where?”
I took her hand. “It’s going to close soon, come on.”
We walked in silence for a few minutes.
“Adin.”
“Huh?”
“Thank you for getting my purse back.”
I looked at her, smiling and saw she was still holding it close to her chest. “What are you talking about? I just really wanted my pretzel.”
Reaching our destination a short time later, I offered my hand up to her so she could take it and climb down from the platform she was on, and onto the gondola.
“Wow, this is not what I was expecting when you said you had somewhere you wanted to go.” She sat on the bench next to me, near the back.
“When in Rome do as the Romans do.”
She laughed. “Even the Romans don’t do this.”
When surfing the web for things to do in NY, I came across gondola rides, and it wasn’t something I’d usually go for but figured if I was going to be in a new place, I might as well try new things. A man with a top hat and a tall stick pushed us away from the platform and further out where there was nothing but water out in front and the sun setting in the distance.
“You have to admit it is kind of nice, though.” I watched the scenery.
She put her head on my shoulder. “It is. I didn’t know you could be so romantic, Adin.”
I laughed. “Whatever.”
We watched the sun in silence. Candace said the day had been a disaster, but I was grateful she dragged me out of bed.
“Remember the promise you made me as kids?”
The random question threw me off guard. “Promise?”
“Mhm.”
I racked my brain for the old memory. “When I said I’d protect you?” It was the only thing I could think of.
I felt her face form a smile from her position on my shoulder.
“I told you I would protect you after your dad died, but you told me you would become strong and protect me instead.”
I cracked a smile. “I remember, you looked at me like I was high.”
“Because I was shocked, but impressed, too.”
We went quiet again.
“You’re not a kid anymore, are you?”
I glanced at her curly-hair. “No, I’m not.” Candace had been like a protective, big sister growing up. As matter of fact, protective was an understatement. I just wanted her to know things were different now and the promise I made to her as a kid wasn’t an empty one. “Plus, I’m like an inch taller than you now.”
She took her head off my shoulder and pointed at it. “That’s only ‘cause you have a big head.”
I laughed out loud. “Thanks for forcing me out of bed today… I had a lot on my mind.”
“Nothing like an ominous fortunetelling and purse snatching to get your spirits up, huh?”
“No seriously, thanks, Candace.”
“Then… you’re welcome.” She put her he
ad on my shoulder again, and we watched the sun set before returning to Addison.
Chapter 21 – Training
A few days later, Team Umbra started our training. Everyone stood in a small, dimly lit room with walls padded by a material that kind of looked plastic. It was the outfitting area that held all our necessary gear and equipment. I shut my locker and examined the assault rifle in my hands, feeling its cold hardness. Beside me, Josh was at his locker, strapping on a black vest. The bullets in our guns were made of a special type of rubber but could kill if it hit the right place.
“You ready?’ He faced me.
“Let’s do it.” I’d had a little trouble adorning some of my gear, so he had been nice enough to stay behind while the others went on.
We stepped out into the spacious range located in the back part of Addison afterward. It was a large field filled with trees, rock and boulders and looked organic but wasn’t; overhead and around the perimeter were dome walls.
“Adin, you know about the Games, right?” Mina looked at me as Josh, and I reached the group.
I stopped studying the area and met her gaze. “Yeah.” I’d made it a point to make the Addison planner my bible.
In addition to using the range for training it was also used for The Gauntlet or ‘The Games’; a series of team exhibition matches that were held every few months, ranging from obstacle courses, close quarters combat, and more. The victor would gain points that racked up with each win, and at the end of the year, the highest scoring teams would get access to newer gear before everyone else. Not only did The Gauntlet test the skills of each Salamander, but you got bragging rights which I learned was a big deal around here.
“Good, we need to get you caught up.” She eyed me up and down. “It’s clear you need a lot of work.”
Ouch. “Hey, how do we do The Games here?” For all the different events we were supposed to do in the range, I didn’t even see the platform for close quarters combat.
“George, show him.” She gestured towards him.
“Why me…” He muttered as he went to a small box that was sticking about four feet from the ground on a pole; it had a black lid that he lifted up.
I squinted to get a better look and saw an impressive number of buttons in several rows inside.
“This here, boy scout…” He pressed a white button that immediately sucked the trees in the area into the ground. “Is the range's control box.”
My mouth fell open at the sorcery.
George laughed, then pushed another button. “Gotta love newbies.”
This time, dozens of target boards popped up in the shape of people. Most were several feet away, although a few outliers were way in the back, probably for sniping. The technology was truly impressive. I stole a glance at Noir who watched the demonstration with a bored expression. The team report said she excelled in sniping, so I was curious to see what she was capable of.
“Adin, you’re leaking.” Bianca pointed at me, smiling with amusement.
Hope who was next to her stared. “A human faucet.”
I snapped my mouth shut and wiped away the spit that had lined its way down. Now sufficiently embarrassed, I nodded at our team leader. “Okay, I’m ready.”
She nodded back satisfactorily. “Good, ‘cause you’re up first.”
I pulled my rifle closer. “Right now?”
She smiled with lowered eyelids. “Right now.”
Filling my diaphragm, I headed further into the field towards a chalky white line that stretched across the ground; it read stop in big, red letters just below.
“Aim for the target at your two o’clock.” Mina called out.
Everyone was watching me with intense curiosity; even Noir leaned in closer to get a clearer view. I swallowed, trying to get rid of the brick in my throat. You can do this. I hoped I could anyway. Inhaling into my nose, I raised the assault rifle to my shoulder and pointed it at the target in the distance, then squeezed the trigger, but it didn’t budge. “What the…?” I gave it another Herculean effort, but the trigger held fast. Is the stupid thing broken? I held it in front of my face to examine it.
“The safety is on, dumbass!” Vince hollered, snickering from behind.
I turned back to see the pure amusement on his mug. Now I know who’d been laughing at me during the aptitude test.
“Right, the safety, I knew that!” Kind of.
“Sure, you did!” He laughed even louder.
Lucky’s the girl who marries him. I spun forward, trying to locate the safety mechanism and found the small button near the top to push it, then aimed again. My gut tightened as my finger gently pulled the slender trigger of the rifle. The tension released from my stomach as the thunderous pops from the gun sounded. But I had been so preoccupied trying not to embarrass myself that I did the exact opposite and forgotten the fierce recoil of the weapon, so it bucked hard into my shoulder.
“Dammit!” I dropped it and reached for my shoulder throbbing with pain now.
Laughter shot out behind me once more. Of course, it was Vince, this time joined by his partner in crime, George. Asses. There were beauty pageants where the two finalists stood on stage and the loser smiled while the winner got crowned. I wonder if what I was currently feeling was similar, standing dumbly and holding my hurt shoulder but couldn’t even feel the pain anymore. Dean Dexter was wrong. I wasn’t cut off for this. This all was a huge mistake.
Noir pushed the assault rifle into my chest, making me watch her with an open mouth. She had walked up on me without my noticing – just like at the airport.
“Are you going to look like a slack-jawed dunce forever or are you going to reclaim your weapon?” She gave me an annoyed look.
Her tone catapulted me back into reality, my hands mechanically moving to the gun pushed against my chest.
She then grabbed my shoulders and forcefully turned me back towards the field; I winced at the pressure applied to my injured shoulder. “Position your weapon firmly against your shoulder.”
I did, then pointed it at the target.
“You’re too tense; it’s throwing off your aim. Relax.” She slapped my back to get the point across.
I rolled my shoulders and evened my breathing, absorbing her every word.
“Now, shoot.”
I filled my lungs with a quiet breath and shot. Again, the fierce pops off the assault rifle sounded off as the bullets jetted from the nozzle. Leaning forward, I shielded my eyes and searched for holes in the target board, my heart dancing in anticipation.
A huge smile spread across my face like wildfire, seeing a few were near the middle. “Look, I almost got near the bull’s-eye!” I excitedly jumped up and down, facing Noir.
A small smirk played on her lips as she turned and walked away.
“Hey, thanks.” I called out before she got too far.
She paused momentarily to look back at me. “Keep it. We’re just getting started.” This time her smirk didn’t seem as warm.
The rest of training as Noir warned was no field day. We did push-ups, jumping jacks, sit-ups, some hand-to-hand combat, and finished with wind sprints just to even it all out. Bumbling through my final run, I eventually reached the whole team who waited for me at the end of the grassy field.
“God, I think I actually started growing roots waiting for you to finish.” Vince frowned.
My chest heaved up and down, and my lungs greedily sucked in every last bit of air they could hold as I threw myself onto the ground to sit.
“Leave him alone, you oaf.” Bianca walked over to stand above me and upside-down in my vision. “Can't you see he’s not used to this.”
She wasn’t wrong, but her pity didn’t make me feel any better.
I sat up on my elbows and looked at her. “I knew you were fast, but geez.”
Bianca had finished at least a minute before everyone else. “Oh, Adin, you charmer.” She patted my back, sending me into a fit of coughing.
“Okay, guys, that’s it for t
oday.” Mina announced with a clap, snatching everyone’s attention.
The team started towards the outfit area, but Josh and Hope stayed behind to offer a hand. I wasn’t the most sensitive guy, but it meant a lot to have a little support because there was no way I was going to succeed without it.
Chapter 22 – Gauntlet
I jolted forward, holding the top of my head after something had hit it. “Who, what the?”
“Still got it.” My Algebra teacher held his fist in the air; he had a mullet that had somehow survived the eighties.
The entire class erupted in laughter at him, even Mina who sat in front of me covered her mouth.
“Only if I didn’t injure my knee back in eighty-four…” He peered up at the classroom ceiling with glassy eyes, then suddenly turned his attention back towards me. “Shall I take another shot?” He was holding a crumpled-up paper in his other hand.
My head swiftly shook left and right. “No, sir.”
“Then I advise you to get your beauty sleep elsewhere, Mr. Anderson.”
I stifled a yawn and nodded. The rest of the class droned on, but it still took everything to stay awake. About a month had passed, and Team Umbra's training sessions were only getting tougher, all my classes adding to the difficulty. When it was finished, I headed towards the range, and no matter how many times I suggested we head there together, Mina trudged on without me. So, I’d done the proper teammate thing and followed her, though conversation was another matter.
“I swear that class is used to kill us via sheer boredom.” I glanced at her, waiting for a response, but none came. “Like, who needs math, right?” I tried putting on a friendly smile, but she continued towards her path treating me no different than a buzzing fly. So, I changed my approach. After all, I wasn’t the team’s tactician for nothing. “How do you think my training is going?”
Finally, she acknowledged my existence that I myself was starting to doubt and spoke. “Fine.” Her lips barely parted.
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