by Greg Ballan
Brianna, who had been watching the battle with the other children, broke through the crowd and ran to her father's side. "Daddy!" she screamed as tears rolled down her face.
The young girl ran to Erik and he knelt down, allowing her to jump up and wrap her arms around him.
"Daddy, you're okay!" she whispered as she held him tightly.
"Did they hurt you, baby?" he whispered. "I'm so sorry I couldn't come for you sooner. I'm sorry I let them take you. I tried to stop them at the schoolyard," he said, holding her tight.
"It's okay, Daddy, you came for me, just like I knew you would." She held up his dog tags to show him. "I never doubted you for a minute."
Erik wrapped his arms around his daughter, feeling the warmth of her tears as they fell upon his shoulders, and easily lifted her off the ground. His smile was enormous as he held his little bundle of joy in his arms. "Like I told you before, nobody messes with daddy's little girl," he gently whispered into her ear.
Brianna's cascade of laughter served as a beacon of light to drive away the darkness that had settled upon the sleepy community.
Margaret, Shanda, and Alissa carefully approached the two, not wanting to interrupt the moment between father and daughter.
"Erik," Alissa asked, "are you okay?"
Erik lifted his head, looking in Alissa's direction. He nodded slightly and acknowledged the other two women. "I'm fine." He hugged his daughter tighter. "Everything is fine now."
Shanda walked up to him slowly at first, then she ran the last several steps, hurling herself in his open arm. "I thought I'd lost you forever," she cried.
"I'm all right, baby, it's over," Erik whispered as he inhaled the scent of her hair and perfume. "I'm sorry for what this must have put you through. There was no other way. I didn't have a choice," he added in an attempt to explain and apologize.
Shanda gently touched her finger to his lips. "No, no apologies. You did what had to be done, what the Espers needed you to do. I'm just thankful you're back to normal."
Erik smirked, and Shanda sensed immediately that all was not normal. But at this time right now, she didn't care. Erik was back, Brianna and the other children were safe, and the creatures from another time were destroyed.
"How?" Alissa asked. "How did you change back?"
"It wasn't intended to be permanent, I guess," Erik answered simply, not wanting to reveal everything to her or anyone just yet. He needed time to evaluate what had happened to his body, and to study the new gifts he had been given.
"Mr. Knight," a voice called.
Erik looked up to see Major Ross and Captain Anderson approaching him.
* * *
"Mr. Knight!" the major repeated loudly. "Well done, Mister, well done," the major complimented.
Erik turned and faced the major. He looked deep into the major's eyes with his fiery gaze. Ross could feel the Esper's powerful mind reading him, studying him. At that point, the major knew he was dealing with intelligence and a power beyond anything that he had coped with before. It was obvious that Knight was still more than human, the flesh simply a façade of the powerful being still residing within.
"Thank you," Erik replied simply and evasively.
"We have several questions," Ross added uncomfortably, comprehending Knight had some ability to read minds. He tried to shield his thoughts from the Esper as much as possible. "Would you consent to a debriefing in our command tent?"
"No, thank you," Erik declined. "I want to take my daughter home, curl up on my couch, and pretend this whole nightmare never happened—"
"Mr. Knight," Captain Anderson interrupted, "we just need some more details of what actually went on up there. All we have are the verbal accounts of four children. Any light you could shed upon this would be greatly appreciated by military intelligence. For example," the captain continued, using a more reasonable tone, "are there any more of these things running around up there, or anywhere? Do you know who controlled the helicopter that destroyed two of our choppers?"
"As far as I know, those were the last of their kind," Erik answered truthfully. "As for the rogue helicopter, I only have speculation, but no real proof of anything, yet. But when I do, you'll hear from me."
"We lost over fifty because of those things, Knight." Ross commented.
"I'm truly sorry, but that's not my fault. They almost killed me too, on more than one occasion, remember?"
"I'm afraid I'm going to have to insist on a debriefing, Mr. Knight. Too much has happened today, and we need answers," the major pressed, blocking Erik's path.
Erik looked directly into Ross's eyes, his light blue eyes burning with aqua fire. The major felt those eyes threatening to burn right through him with their inhuman intensity.
"Major, it's over, I'm not going anywhere. You already know how to find me. Let's not start another fight so soon after I finished with one. You're tired and I'm tired. You have a great many dead soldiers up in those woods." He gestured, pointing toward Hopedale Mountain, "And there are many hungry wild animals out wandering at night, searching for food. Your men deserve better than to be gnawed on by some carrion eaters looking for a midnight snack." Erik walked by the major.
"We'll get them out," Ross replied in a whisper as he watched Erik walk away. The major noted the look of content and satisfaction as young Brianna Knight looked over her father's powerful shoulder. "We're not through yet, Mr. Knight," Ross mumbled to himself, "not by a long shot."
"Where are we going, Daddy?" Brianna whispered.
"Home," Erik replied as he carried his daughter toward Madame's.
Ross watched Shanda, Alissa, and the Pendeltons pile into their cars and head toward the restaurant.
* * *
Jeff sat quietly at one of the booths, reviewing invoices and balancing ledgers from his business. His mind kept wandering back to the sight of his friend's broken body lying in the hospital bed on the verge of dying. He would occasionally look over into Erik's corner booth, remembering his young friend as he enjoyed his favorite meal, or dealt with clients. Jeff knew that was not how Erik would have wanted to end his life. He figured there was not much chance of finding young Brianna Knight or any of the other children abducted from the schoolyard. That, too, anguished his soul – four innocent children terrorized by those beasts.
The dark thoughts continued to depress him further and he pushed away his receipts and papers in disgust. He heard the chimes announce the arrival of somebody entering the diner.
"We're closed," he yelled moodily.
"Jeff?" Shanda made her way into the main area of the restaurant.
"Shanda?" Jeff replied. "Is it over, is he…" he paused, "is he dead?" he finished, struggling to force the distasteful words from his mouth.
"Uncle Jeff?" a little voice cried from the hallway.
Jeff's eyes widened, and he slowly stood from the table. "Brianna?" he said in disbelief. "Brianna Knight!" he whispered as he saw the girl walk into the dining area. Jeff ran to the child and scooped her up in his arms. "How is it possible?"
"Daddy came and got me, Uncle Jeff. You shoulda seen him. He was all silvery, like a big mirror, with glowing blue eyes," Brianna announced proudly.
"But I saw him, we saw him earlier," he stammered, looking at Shanda for help.
"It's true," Alissa walked into the diner with Margaret Pendelton.
"But how?" he asked.
"It's a long story," Shanda answered, looking over at Alissa who smiled briefly. The mysterious young girl seemed relieved the events finally played out to their proper conclusion and Erik would not be condemned to a life of isolation.
They all sat down and gave Jeff the quick version of the incredible events that occurred over the past two days. Jeff's jaw continually dropped bit by bit as the story continued, until his mouth hung open in disbelief.
"Where is he? Where is he now?" Jeff demanded.
"Right outside, waiting to talk to you," Shanda answered.
* * *
Jeff
stepped out into the dark parking lot, peering into the darkness, as if not knowing what to expect.
"Erik?" he called out into the darkness.
Up here, in the big tree over the dumpster, a voice rang out in his mind.
Jeff was startled as he heard Erik's voice trumpeting inside his head. He looked up and saw a pair of glowing blue eyes looming in the tree. Erik gracefully dropped from the tree to land silently two meters in front of the startled man. Jeff looked at his friend in awe.
"You get used to being up there," Erik remarked as he studied his friend.
"My God!" Jeff exclaimed. "You look like you just came out of a show room, not a single scratch or mark on you. Far different from when I last saw you."
"Yeah, they fixed me up as good as new – better than new, you could say," Erik agreed.
"So I've been told," Jeff replied. "What happened to you, what did they do?"
"It's complicated, and I still haven't worked my way through it completely," Erik began. "I'm the byproduct of a genetic virus, a combination of human genetics and a breed of advanced beings known as Espers. When the Espers came to our planet, they were not alone. Another species called the Seelak accompanied them. They combined their technology to create a titanic vessel capable of carrying the remnants of their people to Earth. Their races had been at war for centuries, the conflict had made their world uninhabitable. They realized that both their races would die if they didn't cooperate and save themselves. They ended their war and put all their efforts into building a huge spacecraft that they called a Worldship, a ship capable of carrying them all to a new world.
"When they first arrived on our planet, they lived in peace, working together, but disagreement broke out between the species, and the Seelak eventually moved themselves to a new encampment away from the Espers. Both species did what they could to avoid Mankind, until it was realized that their species and the human species could not coexist. Native diseases began to plague both Esper and Seelak, while the bacteria that they brought with them proved deadly to the native life on Earth.
"The Seelak wanted to destroy all humankind, while the Esper preferred to isolate themselves and let this world evolve naturally. The Espers and the Seelak disagreement escalated into another war. This war proved to be the end of both species. The Seelak created creatures to feed off of Esper emotion, use them like food, but the Esper had created huge powerful warriors to aid them in their fighting, I'd call it a warrior caste for lack of a better term." Erik paused for a moment to let Jeff absorb what he had said.
"I'm following you so far, but how does all this involve you and whatever those things were?" Jeff asked.
"I'm just getting to that," Erik answered. "During the final battle, the Espers were victorious. Several pair of the Seelak creatures had been killed, only one pair remained, and that pair was locked inside their huge spacecraft. The Espers decided to lock the Seelak survivors into the Worldship with their creations, to serve as an alternate food source. From what I understand, Seelak emotions are not nearly as intense as Espers. Since these monsters were designed to feed off of strong Esper emotional energy, the creatures would be constantly starved, while the Seelak would be tortured for food for the remainder of their lives, trapped inside that large ship with their monstrous creations."
"That's horrid," Jeff remarked with a shudder.
"I agree, but their crimes were just as horrid and the Espers felt the punishment was fitting for their crimes. But what they didn't realize, until after they had completely buried their ship, was that the creatures would not die, they would enter a period of hibernation, and would eventually be released, which we both know happened," Erik said lightly. "The Espers created a series of genetic viruses to embed themselves into certain humans that had particular genetic traits. My body was host to the genetic coding of their greatest soldier, a being named Jakor. He was the mightiest Esper warrior ever created. His genetic codes have combined themselves with mine to allow me to combat those mutations when they escaped their confinement.
"Very few people have the genetic virus within them, in those very few, the virus will remain dormant. Shanda has Esper genetics, as does Alissa, as far as I know, nobody else in our area does. The three of us were all drawn to this area for a reason, the Espers knew this day would come, and made sure humankind would have someone to fight for them," Erik finished his limited explanation and awaited his friend's response.
"I don't know what to say," Jeff whispered. "That's the most incredible thing I've ever heard." Jeff looked directly at Erik. "And what about you, how does this affect you now? Are you still different? I mean, you look like the same man I've known for so many years."
Erik took two steps and turned. "I've been altered, incredibly. This shell of skin is just a disguise for what I really am, a large metal-skinned interspecies experiment. I have the knowledge of an alien being locked inside my head. I'm sharing my mental real estate with a being called Jakor. It's almost as if I've known him … it for years. His personality exists deep within me. He can speak to me at times. I can feel and experience things no human can, see things and sense things no one else can.
"When I was up on that mountain, it was almost as if I were a part of this planet. I could feel the magnetic pull of the poles. I could smell the scent of Brianna on the soil, feel her feelings." He paused, sitting on the steps looking up at the evening stars. "Then there's the physical strength. As I am, right now, I'm easily ten times stronger than I was before, and I was already lifting seven hundred pounds of free weight at the gym before all of this happened, thanks to the mutation from the virus. It seems that its abilities were more predominant in the perfect genetic match, me. It was hard enough keeping that feat secret. Imagine if I start lifting cars or trucks for exercise?"
Erik could see traces of doubt in his friend's eyes. He quietly stood and walked to a nearby car. He casually lifted the front end of the car four feet off the ground with one arm, and then carefully lowered the vehicle's front end to the pavement. He heard Jeff gasp in astonishment. He walked back to the steps and sat down. "If I make the change, become the hybrid creature that fought the Seelak, the physical strength is beyond anything I've ever imagined. There are abilities, senses, and power in the hybrid still remaining to be explored." Erik put his face in his hands and groaned.
"All of this scares me. I never asked for this, this isn't what I wanted for myself: To be a freak." He looked over at his trusted friend "I wonder, Jeff, am I still human, do I have the right to love that woman in there, knowing what I am, and what I'm capable of becoming?" he asked his friend. "Will she still be able to love me?"
Jeff approached his friend, placing an arm upon his shoulder, and stared up at the stars, following Erik's gaze. "Two interesting words," he began, "changed and different. Have you changed? Yes, you're stronger than you were before. You have senses and abilities others don't, and you can become a being with metal armor for skin. But from what I understood from Shanda and Alissa, and from what you've just told me, you all have unique abilities. You were all chosen for a reason. You told me that you've had a sixth sense, a unique ability since you were a child, that it set you apart. Shanda too has those gifts. It seems Alissa has those gifts as well. You were given those abilities for a purpose: To stop a dreadful thing from occurring and you did. But dreadful things occur every day. Why not use those gifts and stop more dreadful things from occurring?" Jeff asked, letting the question hang in the evening air unanswered.
Before Erik could reply, Jeff continued. "So, we both agree that you've changed, but are you different? You seem like the man I've known. You act like him. Your friends seem to think you're the same. Inside, where your heart is, you are Erik Knight. Maybe you have a piece of this Jakor person in there, maybe he's there to guide you, help you cope with your new gifts. If these Espers were as advanced and as wise as the ladies claim, I don't believe that they would enhance an unsuspecting being without giving him some sort of user's manual or instructions. Thi
s extra set of memories and intellect is probably your instruction guide to help you cope and understand your abilities, and to use them wisely, which so far you've done."
Jeff sat next to Erik on the steps. "Changed, yes, but not different. You're still the same man, only better. As far as Shanda goes, she knows what she's getting and accepts it, or she wouldn't be here now."
"One more thing," Erik added.
"There's always one more thing with you, isn't there?" Jeff added in mock annoyance.
"The military knows about me. There is more than a healthy curiosity about what I did today and how I did it. They'll be here, probably tomorrow, for a grilling. I don't know how far they'll go, or what they'll do to get what they want. But I don't see it ending with just one meeting. And I don't think they're going to go away."
"What are you getting at?" Jeff asked intently.
"I got a quick read on the major who spearheaded the operation today," Erik began. "His interest was more on the line of 'Can we use this thing as a weapon? Can we make more of him?' than it was any relief that the situation here was over. I don't know how far they'll go or who they'll put at risk," Erik added, knowing that Jeff understood what he meant.
"I'm willing to take that chance. Besides, I don't think anyone in their right mind is going to pick a fight with you," he answered flatly, swatting at a persistent mosquito. "Look, I don't have metal skin, and unless you plan on changing now, I suggest we no longer provide food for the bugs and go inside. You have two pretty ladies waiting for you inside," Jeff stood up, heading for the door.
"Jeff," Erik said quickly as he stood. The older man turned. "Thanks."
Jeff nodded. "Welcome back, Erik. Let's go enjoy our company."
Both men went inside and did just that, talking and celebrating until very early the following morning.
* * *
