G.H.O.S.T. Teams (Book 2) Shifters (7 page)

“Because I’m an elf?” he questioned.

“No. Because you dodge better than anyone I have ever seen. And trust me kid, I’ve seen some things in my life. Hand-to-hand clearly isn’t your thing, but you are more than capable if necessary. I believe you can handle yourself in a fight.”

“Seriously?” Danny yelled, “That’s it?”

“I got what I needed. Vector should be able to handle any surprise that this adventure throws at him.”

“Thanks,” Hunter said.

He was putting on his coat and clearly relaxed. Exactly where I wanted him. I smiled at Danny.

“I’ll prove it to you Danny.”

With that I spun around and hurled an oversized metal marble right at Hunter’s head. It was one of the few blunt weapons that I carry on my person. I was maybe ten feet away from him and he had no warning. Showing the speed that he displayed in our fight, reflexes flashed and he narrowly dodged the projectile. He had been crouched down picking up his coat, so he dropped to the ground, rolled forward, and came back up on his feet. His hands on his hips and a smile on his face, he looked over at us. The team, especially Danny, was murmuring in amazement.

“Are we done now?” he asked.

“Yeah, we’re done.”

I looked back at Freddy, who didn’t seem very happy at my sneak attack. But he didn’t look so mad that he couldn’t answer my question.

“So would our tags have helped with that attack at all?”

“It is highly unlikely they would affect something traveling at that speed in any way,” he said.

“Right. The tags really work best on things like firearms. Watch,” Hunter said.

Then he drew a pistol with lightning speed, pointed right at me, and fired. To say I dodged the bullet would be crazy. Even at my best I am not faster than a bullet. No normal person is. But, if you see the gun move into position, dodging bullets is a simple matter of not being in the path when the person pulls the trigger. I watched his hand move and the gun flash out. Even though Hunter was crazy quick, he wasn’t so fast that I couldn’t see him move. He had positioned himself in such a way that none of the team was behind me or in any danger from the shot. I had to bend to my left at a funny angle in order to avoid the bullet, but I felt the wind as it whipped under my arm and right by my chest. The loudest part of the whole ordeal was actually the bullet striking the wall behind me, as his silenced guns sounded like a Hollywood special effect. The expression on Hunter’s face looked a bit impressed and kind of shocked. I was about to make a smart-ass comment when he fired again. This time I had nowhere to go. Pain flashed through my whole body as the bullet found my chest.

I’d equate this instance of getting shot with someone throwing a softball as hard as they can and hitting me in the chest. It hurt…a lot. Obviously it felt a hell of a lot better than getting shot without the tags on. My chest was throbbing and it knocked the wind out of me. I glanced down in time to see the tiny mushroomed-bullet fall from my chest and bounce on the mats. I took a deep breath and ignored the discomfort that I was feeling as I looked up at Hunter. He had a sly smile on his face and he seemed very interested in how I was going to react. I was pretty sure that the expression on my face said, “I can’t believe you just shot me.” But, Freddy wasn’t taking any chances. He was obviously worried that things might escalate, so he jumped in.

“Mr. Chang,” Freddy started, before I turned my look on him and he tried a friendlier tone, “Bruce. Please remain calm. Mr. Rich...Hunter was just following procedure. Although I do not believe this was necessarily the proper venue.”

“There’s a proper place to get shot?”

“In this case, yes. You see as a matter of GHOST protocols, once each team member has received their tags, they are to participate in a demonstration of their use. This is done so that we all know what to expect should the unfortunate take place and we take fire in the field,” Freddy said.

“Makes sense I guess. Like cops getting pepper sprayed. But these are bullets. How can we know for sure that these tags are functional?”

“They have been created with great care. There is almost no chance of failure. Although, to be honest, this is also why they are tested once they arrive. But as I mentioned, proper protocol is to test the dog tags under much safer working conditions. I must say that I am a bit shocked at Hunter’s actions,” Freddy frowned.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” Hunter said.

His expression made it clear that he expected us to be laughing. Sadly, after we lost Timothy, I’m not sure the team was ready to laugh at any one of us taking a bullet. So, I figured it was best if Hunter and I continued the rest of our conversation in private. I glanced over at the team.

“Well, I think the show is over folks. You all have paperwork to file and tags to get tested. I will catch up with you tomorrow. Me and Vector here are gonna have a little chat.”

“Very well, I will trust you two to remain civil towards each other,” Freddy said, “We will see you both in the morning. Thank you again for the souvenir Mr. Richardson.”

Hunter gave Freddy a look.

“I mean Hunter. My apologies,” Freddy corrected.

It was my turn to take a shot.

“Actually, I think he prefers Vector.”

“Only if I get to call you Black Dragon,” he smiled.

“Weren’t you going to anyway?”

“Absolutely,” he replied.

“Then here we are.”

We continued to stare and smile at each other, the rest of the team sort of frozen there with no idea how to react. I had to admit that the kid’s spunk perplexed me. Whether he was trying to impress me or get under my skin, I couldn’t be sure. Somewhere deep down I had this weird feeling that he was trying to figure me out, like this was his method of getting to know me. I had no idea why he cared, but it was clear from his initial reaction in Dutton’s office and the fact that he read my file, that he wanted to know more.

To my surprise, I wasn’t actually mad that he shot me. If anything, I was a bit upset that he placed other people in danger for his joke. Although, with the accuracy that he displayed in the range, maybe in his mind, there was no danger to anyone else. Vector had made a point of positioning himself so that there was nothing behind me but wall. I figured we would talk about it once the team left. To speed matters up I gave them a look. Danny was the first to react, heading for the door and calling back to us over his shoulder.

“BD. Vector. Take care. See you two tomorrow,” Danny hollered.

Once he went, everyone else took that as a cue to follow. Kara and Erika were next, giving a wave and saying goodbye. I nodded in return and watched them walk out the door. Freddy was the last to go.

“Gentlemen,” Freddy said, with a small bow.

He then turned and followed the rest of the team out. As he left, I glanced over at the other three officers who had been working out to see what they were doing. Apparently, there was something in the air that made them uncomfortable, as they gathered their gear and headed for the door. As I waited for them to shuffle out, Vector wandered over to a pommel horse in the corner. He sprang up into a handstand on the edge and hand-walked himself to the bars.
A few twists, turns, spins, and whatever you call it when people dance about on those things, and he dismounted with a neatly tucked flip. Again, his agility was staggering. Not that I was a slouch in that department, but I was afraid to join in for fear of things deteriorating into some deranged gymnastic dance off. I rubbed my chest a bit as I looked back up at him.

“I hate to admit it, but it almost made me laugh.”

“I had anticipated it being funnier,” he said.

“Maybe once we get to know you better?”

“You’re probably right. The comedy of shooting people might be a second day thing.”

“Exactly.”

There was a bit of snickering as we both let the tension in the room fizzle out. But before things turned completely relaxed, there was something I needed to be sure of. I allowed my tone to get a bit more serious before I spoke.

“There is one thing that I need to know.”

“What’s that?” he asked.

“Were you sure that no one else was in danger when you fired?”

“Of course. I calculated every possible ricochet angle.”

“And how did you do that?”

“Like my marksmanship, my brain is also slightly above average,” he smiled.

“So, you knew they were safe?”

“Absolutely. Plus, they were all wearing their tags.”

“Fair enough. Then I guess we’re good.”

“Glad to hear it,” he nodded.

“Besides, the tags needed to be tested anyway. This has to be way more fun than sitting in some stuffy lab. Now I know that they work and what it feels like when it happens.”

“Well, for reference, that should have been the equivalent of a Desert Eagle.”

“Really? Your bullet didn’t look very big.”

“I make ‘em special. Plus, it’s not the size, it’s the…” he tried.

“…Yeah, yeah. So, where did you get those guns?”

“I built ‘em.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah. Engineering is kind of my thing,” he said.

“Okay. I guess that makes you a great fit for the team tech guy.”

“That it does. I’m also a pretty good hacker.”

“I’d imagine you are. You would probably get along well with Visine.”

“The guy with the nanites?” he asked.

“Yup,” I shook my head before continuing, “Hell, if he was here, I bet he would have shot me too.”

“I like the guy already.”

We both laughed a bit and then Vector glanced down at my hand rubbing my chest. I hadn’t realized I was still doing it. 

“How’s the chest?”

“I’ve had worse. It will be fine tomorrow. As I’m sure you read in my file, I heal pretty fast.”

“I know,” he nodded, “We have that in common.”

“Really? Is that an elf thing?”

“Yup. Part of the pointy ear package.”

“Interesting. I’ll admit I don’t know very much about elves. I’ve only met two, and they weren’t a talkative bunch.”

“The dark elves rarely are,” he said.

“You weren’t kidding when you said you read my file. I’m flattered, but what’s the deal?”

“You’re just a unique addition to the GHOSTs. Most agents spend years working towards this life. You just sort of stumbled into it.”

“That I did. Although staked my way into it might be more appropriate.”

“Ah yes, the vampire. An impressive feat. Especially for someone unacquainted with the supernatural,” he said.

“Eh, you hear things.”

“I suppose. Although, after seeing the way you dodged my shot, I understand why they pushed to get you on the team.”

“Not that impressive, you got me with the second.”

“But I should have hit you with the first. It’s no easy feat to make me miss,” he stated.

“I guess I just got lucky.”

“I doubt that.”

“Either way. I’m sure you won’t be the last person to take a shot at me.”

“You do seem like the type of guy people want to shoot,” he smiled.

“You have no idea.”

I delivered the line straight face and he couldn’t help but laugh. After a bit I joined in. There was something weird about this kid and I couldn’t place my finger on it. Almost as if he was familiar, although for the life of me I couldn’t remember meeting him before. My curiosity was piqued, and since he knew so much about me, I figured it was only fair he returned the favor. It was time to ask a few questions.

“So, since you are already so well acquainted with me, how about you share a little? Let’s start simple. Why don’t you start by telling me about elves? I assume they are not all the same.”

Vector nodded in agreement and glanced around searching for a place to sit. He looked at the pommel horse and shrugged, leaping from a standstill to land upon it. Crouching down and balancing on his toes, he took a pose that reminded me a lot of Spiderman. Then, he turned to face me and started speaking.

“That is correct. Although, for simplicity’s sake, you can pretty much break elves down into two categories, surface and subterranean. The dark elves, or Dökkálfar as grandma calls them, spend the majority of their lives underground. They are adapted to this lifestyle, with eyes that pierce the dark and their gift for manipulating shadows. I believe you got to see this first hand,” he said.

“You mean when they filled the barn with darkness? Yeah, I was given a very nice demonstration of that particular ability. Not a big fan.”

“Most aren’t. The world below the surface is cruel and dangerous. They must be strong and cunning to survive. They often venture to the surface to raid villages or capture slaves. With very few exceptions, they are beings of pure evil.”

“And they occasionally do work for hire?”

“While rare, it is not unheard of. Elven society, especially below the surface, is matriarchal. So, it is not uncommon for young male warriors to rebel against their subservient status and flee to the surface. Their skills make them appealing mercenaries for anyone who can afford their price. Thus explaining the two warriors you faced in the Veil,” he nodded.

“They were impressive warriors. Happy to hear that they won’t be a common occurrence.”

“I gotta be honest. Until I saw you move today, I wondered at the validity of that report. Dark elves are fearsome warriors.”

“You know me, Mr. Lucky.”

I smiled and gave Vector
a thumbs up. He wasn’t buying it.

“So, enough about our deep cousins. You wanted to know about me. We call my kind the Ljósálfar, which basically means elves of the light. While we have exceptional vision, we cannot see in the dark. The manipulation of shadows is also not our gift. But surface elves posses
s a much deeper connection to the magic of the universe. Some of us can even see how it flows in the world around us.”

“You’re talking about manna? Kara explain a bunch of that to me.”

“Yes and no. I think of it more like the matrix of life. There is a weave or connection between all living things. Some of us are gifted with the ability to see that.”

“So, basically you’re a Jedi?”

“Sure,” he laughed, “If that makes it easier. I can see connections in the world around me that others might not notice,” he smiled.

“If that what you meant when you said you calculated all the ricochet angles?”