Chapter 1

Jason walked into Efrin’ Pub with a wide grin on his face. He took a look around at the bar where he was a regular. The homey little bar in southern California was where he spent most of his days of un-employment. But those days were over.

He walked over to the bar-keep with a pep in his step. “Efrin, my good man, lemme get a…”

“Stop. We both know you can’t afford it Jason, and your sister informed me she wouldn’t pay your tab anymore.” The barkeep didn’t bother looking up at the man as he continued to wipe down a mug with a rag.

Jason reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of cash, then slammed it on the table. The bar-keep looked up, surprise written across his face. “This clean?”

“Of course, it’s clean. What kind a man you think I am?” Jason looked affronted, but when the bar-keep gave him a dead-panned stare Jason continued. “I got a new job. Signed up for the Guardians of America. Went through the tests and everything”

“You joined that shit?” Said a man to his right.

“Yeah? You got something against them?” Jason replied, agitation showing in his voice as he glared at the man.

The man held his hands up while shaking his head, “Whatever man, you want to believe in vampires and all that fairy tale bullshit, that’s up to you.” The man went back to his drink.

The bar-keep slammed a drink down in front of Jason. “Go ahead.”

Jason thanked the man then sat down to imbibe in his drink. He was still a little angry. Now that he was a part of the Guardians, he didn’t want people making fun of his people. He already considered them his people.

No that’s not right…

Jason realized his anger was too easily stirred. It wasn’t the first time he’d gotten into an argument with Larry, the man sitting across from him at the bar. Sometimes their arguments would get so intense that fists would fly. But it always took hours of arguing to reach this point, yet today, Jason was already at this point.

He was contemplating on whether or not he should apologize for his abrupt anger when the flat screen caught his attention. Jason looked at the large T.V. and saw it was turned to the news channel.

“The search continues for the man known as ‘Greywolf’. It has been seventy two hours since the last sighting where local residents in Santa Ana, California have spotted him lurking behind Lucky’s Pizza. The pizzeria is located on the corner of fifty-second and Broadway.

The Guardians of America warn citizens not to approach this dangerous criminal. Instead, they should call the emergency number showing down below and contact them immediately.”

Larry scoffed. “Ten years. Ten-fucking-years they’ve been searching for this ‘Greywolf’. They seriously expect us to believe they can’t find some little kid who’s been on the run for ten years?”

Jason slammed his drink onto the table but before he could speak the bar-keep cut him off. “Don’t start shit Larry.”

Larry shook his head in frustration. “I’m sorry, but it’s fucking unbelievable. I mean they say they have all their resources devoted to catching this ‘Gerywolf’, right? But it’s literally been ten years since the Black Watch incident, yet they expect us to believe Greywolf, who was barely a ten-year old at the time, managed to elude all authority for the past decade? You see why nobody trusts this sham of a government anymore? Just turn off the fucking T.V!”

The glass in Jason’s hand broke. Everyone in the bar turned to him with a look of surprise only to see Jason gritting his teeth. “Say something else. Say one more goddamed word! I dare you!”

“Hmph!” Larry scoffed as he swallowed the last of his drink before slamming it on the table. “Fuck you, and fuck…”

Before he could finish speaking, Jason flew across the room and grabbed Larry by the scruff of his neck and slammed him onto the bar table. “The fuck did I just say!”

The bar-keep ran over trying to separate the two but Jason pushed him out of the way. The bar-keep was sent flying ten feet away. Jason looked over at the bar-keep and wondered why the man would exaggerate, surely he couldn’t toss a man so far?

“I…can’t…breathe…” Larry gasped underneath his grasp, drawing Jason’s attention back unto him.

“I ever hear you bad mouth the GA, we’re going to have some problems.” He shoved Larry backward tossing him over the barstool, then walked out of the bar under the gazes of all the patrons.

Why am I so angry? Jason thought as he walked down the street. He thought back to the incident at the bar, and now that his anger was cooled, he began to feel guilty. Larry was an old, tin-foiled wearing drunkard who often bad-mouthed the government at every turn. Bad-mouthed anyone, really. But deep down, Jason considered the man an acquaintance, someone he could come to the bar to argue with.

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Why did I shove Efrin like that?... How did I shove him so far? He thought back to how Efrin flew across the bar room with a single shove from him. As he continued to ponder the events that happened that night, he felt an ember of anger routed deep down within his body begin to burn.

The ember’s fire continued to grow until his anger was at it’s boiling point. “Ah!” Jason shouted as he threw a punch at the wall beside him. “Why am I so angry? What the fuck?!”

The surface of the wall shattered with the impact of his fist, leaving behind an imprint of his hand. Jason looked at the wall, alarmed at his strength. And then it dawned on him, where this strength came from.

When he went to the testing center to join the Guardians, he was given several shots. Countless white-coated doctors ran various tests on him before telling him that he should come back within a week for final examinations. He was also given an envelope of cash on his way out.

“Could it be from the shots they gave me?” Jason knew the Guardians were a special branch of the military. They were in charge of dealing with the real enemies that hid in the dark: werewolves, demons, and vampires.

“Maybe… maybe this is how they combat them?” Jason thought as he absent-mindedly rubbed at his arm.

The bang of a trash can caught disrupted him from his thoughts. Jason turned towards the dark alley in front of him. Normally he wouldn’t enter dark alleys, it’s usually how people ended up dead in the movies, but after knowing about his super-human strength, he felt a little confident.

He walked into the alley with his ears turned to the side, trying to catch the slightest sound. He found that even though the little light provided by the streetlights didn’t reach into the alley, he had no problem seeing.

Near the end of the alley, there was a large green dumpster. Jason walked over to it and lifted the lid. The first thing he saw was the top of someone’s head. The person was in the fetal position, hugging their knees to their chest, but remaining absolutely still.

“I can see you.” Jason said. The person flinched, then turned their head upwards.

What met Jason’s eyes was the face of a little girl. Her eyes were red as if she’d been crying for a long time. Her dirty blonde hair was filled with filth, and matted onto her face. Blood ran down the side of her head.

“Are you alright.” Jason said in a soft tone, immediately feeling sorry for the little girl.

“Please don’t tell on me.” The girl replied.

Her innocent little voice sounded so scared it tugged on Jason’s heart-strings. “Who did this to you? It’s okay, you’re safe now.”

Jason tried to comfort the girl but no matter what he did, she refused to leave the trash can. When he could no longer convince her to leave he sighed and closed the lid. He leaned against the alley wall and began to  call child services.

The ball of anger in his heart was a raging volcano now. Jason swore if he ever found the monsters that hurt the little girl he’d end their lives. He’d gladly risk jail. His convictions is part of what led him to the Guardians of America in the first place.

Seeing all those monsters preying on mankind angered him. When Jason was eleven, the Black Watch incident had claimed the lives of both his parents. Leaving him and his sister an orphan. The girl in the trash can re-opened old wounds he thought had healed long ago.

I’ll adopt her. Tina might be a little angry when I show up with a child, but she’d understand why. Plus, with the money I make from the Guardians, I’ll be able to take care of both of them.

As he began to dial the number, the little girl popped out of the trash can hurriedly. “You promised you wouldn’t tell!” She cried as she jumped over the trash can and began to run further into the alley.

“No, wait! I’m helping you!” Jason shouted as he ran after her.

The girl turned right, disappearing into a turn in the alley-way. Jason was just a second behind her, but as he turned into the bend in the alley he saw the girl had paused in her footsteps. He smelled urine in the air, and saw the yellow-liquid flow down the girl’s tattered, dirt-stained jeans.

His anger exploded. The only reason the girl would be so afraid she’d pee herself was if her abuser was right before her. Jason looked further into the alley, ready to kill the pieces of shit when he saw a group of uniformed soldiers walking closer.

These uniformed soldiers wore black combat boots, black and grey camouflage suit, and a vest with the Guardians of America stitched into it. There were four of them, two of them were women.

As they drew closer, Jason felt relief flooding through him. He bent over at the waist and whispered into the girl’s ear. “I know they look a little scary, but these are the good guys.”

“Step aside citizen!” The man in front barked.

Jason frowned. Do they have to sound like robots?

“You guy’s mind toning it down a bit? The girl’s just been through some traumatic events.”

The girl took off running in the other direction. Jason turned to her to try and grab her, but missed. The little girl was faster than he thought. Before he could chase after her, the group of Guardians ran past him.

“Hey… what the…?” Jason ran after them as they caught up with the little girl. They shot something at the girl that made her fall. The girl’s body rolled over several times before coming to a stop. She lied there motionless as the Guardians approached.

“We got the escapee. That should be all of them. Over.” The Guardian spoke into a radio.

“All right, bring her on back to the rendezvous. These bloodsuckers will be sent to the furnace. Over.” A voice replied.

Jason felt his stomach drop. Bloodsucker was the term used for vampire. He should be disgusted, he should feel hatred towards the little girl for what she was. But after hearing these Guardians talk about her so callously made him feel cold. He collapsed against the alley wall.

One of the Guardians saw him and walked over. She looked at him through glasses that flashed with light’s and words. “This say’s you’re a trainee? A new Guardian in the making?” The woman nodded. “Don’t let her innocent demeanor fool you. They’re monsters. You’ll realize that when your service begins.”

The woman walked away as the rest of her group exited the alley. The leader carried the little girl over his back, her dirt-stained locks flowing side to side.

As Jason watched them go, he began to feel a tinge of doubt for the first time. The war between mankind and the monsters were so clear-cut before, but now he wondered where mankind stood on that line between good and evil.