The following morning most of team West America crowded into one of the hotel rooms. Matt, Logan, Louie, and Skye were the only ones not packed into the cramp room. Most members were sitting on the beds, facing Lance as he reviewed the events of the previous night.
“Us veterans will be spending the next few days” Lance explained “If anyone is interested in helping with this please contact Eve or I”
Lance motioned to the young woman who nodded and then began to hand papers to each of the newbies.
“In the meantime we have decided the danger in the movie is focused on a specific group” Lance continued “So, if you wish you are free to explore the town. We will supply some money for each of you so you can properly enjoy yourselves”
At this point Eve had finished handing the papers to each newbie and handed the last one to Lance.
Raising the paper above his head Lance continued “On this paper are the names and photos of the main characters in this movie. If you see any of these people immediately leave the area and contact one of the veterans. There is a number for the motel at the bottom of the papers”
“Do not interact with any of them” Josh cautioned “Any one of them could be a killer”
“Are there any questions?” Lance asked
“How much money are we getting?” the Plumber, Troye asked
“Five hundred for each of you” Lance answered “Our money is not infinite so be careful how you spend it. We can’t give out many allowances like this”
Troye and the other newbies seemed happy with this response and no other questions were asked. Crystal stood at the door holding seven envelopes.
“We may contact you for assistance in the future” Lance said “A veteran should always be around the hotel so don’t hesitate to report anything”
Most of the newbies lined up immediately to get their allowance, only two didn’t join the line up. Bertha the oldest newbie remained sitting, clearly waiting for the others to clear out before trying to stand. Dale instead of getting his allowance, strided up to Lance directly. The young man had changed his outfit overnight, he still wore his white button up shirt and pants from the day before. However the young man had cut the sleeves off the shirt, one of which was now tied around his forehead like a headband. He had also drawn a upside down triangle on each of his cheeks with what looked to be lipstick.
“I want to help!” he declared
“Glad to hear it” Lance said “You seem to be adapting to your situation quickly”
“I want to grow stronger!” Dale announced “This is a chance I can’t pass up”
“Excellent, I love the enthusiasm” Lance beamed “You can actually join Eve and I on a research mission today”
“That’s perfect,” Dale cheered.
Josh stepped closer to Lance.
“Bertha” he whispered.
At this point all the other newbiers had left the room, Bertha was trying to rise from her position on the bed. She was trying to use the nightstand to push herself up but the elderly woman was shaking and making little progress. As she gave one last push to lift herself, her strength failed and she landed back on the bed. Josh rushed forward and offered an arm to the newbie. Lance watched his stepbrother help Bertha to her feet, tilting his head slightly in thought.
“Dale” Lance turned to the newbie “I actually have another mission for you. Could you take care of Bertha today? Work with her so she can rest comfortably the next few days”
Dale turned to look at the elderly woman who was holding onto Josh’s arm and walking slowly towards the door. His gaze turned soft and he gave a small smile.
“Yeah I can do that!” Dale said confidently
“Excellent” Lance said “Tomorow you can start working with Eve and I. I’ll find a way to repay you once we’re back in the lobby”
Dale gave a farewell to Lance and walked over to Bertha and Josh. Crystal was now holding the door open and offering her hand to help the elderly newbie. After she successfully crossed the doorway Dale stepped out behind her and informed her, he would be taking care of her for the day. Bertha was delighted to have the help for today.
“Just get me some tea, reading glasses, and a good book” Bertha laughed “I’ll be set for hours”
Bertha held her envelope in one hand and Crystal handed Dale his own.
“Matt should be around today” Crystal said “If you need anything get him”
“Take this” Josh held out another envelope to Dale “It’s a little extra. Make sure she gets whatever she needs”
“Thank you” Dale accepted the envelope graciously “I’ll spoil her”
Bertha hushed the young man and the duo began walking towards Bertha’s room.
“Was that your own allowance?” Crystal asked stepping back into the room, Josh followed and shut the door behind him.
If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.
“Most of it” Josh admitted “I don’t have much to buy here”
“That’s very generous of you” Crystal said
“Don’t be too generous” Lance chidded, pulling attention “we don’t want the other newbies to start expecting more allowances”
“Why did you have Dale take care of Bertha?” Josh questioned
“It should be a good test for him” Lance stated “How he handles a mission like this will show his worth as a team member. Hes already showing patience and compassion for agreeing to this”
“He’s weird though” Elijah spoke up from his seat in the corner of the room.
“He could be a reliable ally” Lance said “For now though lets get a move on, we have a long day ahead of us”
“The car is gassed and ready to go” Eve reported
“Excellent” Lance said “Elijah, Logan will contact you once he’s on his way back”
“No rush” Elijah said with a wave of his hand “I need to catch up on my sleep. Had me out half the night chasing killers”
“Or you could start scanning the area around the hotel” Crystal suggested
Elijah just gave a noncommittal shrug.
“Are Crystal and I joining the talk with Skye?” Josh asked
“No we’ll drop you off at Sidney’s house first” Lance explained “With Matt we’ll head to where Skye is. You’ll have the chance to have your own talk with her”
Without another word Lance strode out of the room, the others following behind him, leaving Elijah alone in his room.
Skye stared at the cloudy sky, examining each cloud trying to find some shape or resemblance. Unfortunately all the clouds appeared as large fluffy mounds, even with some imagination there wasn’t much that could be made out. The teen laid in a clearing surrounded by trees, a meadow they had found a way out of the town.To her left the voices of Logan and Louie could just be heard, the duo were having a cheerful conversation about guns. Skye half listened to the conversation but wouldn't join. She never held much love for firearms, she was skilled with them from years of training but they were never her weapon of choice. A shadow fell over Skye, pulling her from her thoughts. Lance stood over the teen, Eve and Matt standing behind him.
“Glad you could make it” Skye said sarcastically, it was thirty minutes pass the time they were supposed to meet.
“Introducing Josh and Crystal took longer than expected” Lance explained “Sidney was upset since her boyfriend hasn’t been returning her calls. We had to promise to go by his house just to leave”
“Are you going to tell her he’s buried behind her house?” Skye asked
Louie and Logan made their way over to the group.
“No,” Lance said dismissively “For now we can just say he’s gone missing. Sidney might try to reach out to her friends to find Billy, if she ends up talking to a killer we don’t want them knowing Billy is already dead”
“I had an idea about that” Louie offered “What if we just go and kidnap all of the main characters? They’ll fight back and we can figure out who’s just a normal human”
“I’m also leaning towards that idea” Lance admitted “That’s why I want to get all their home locations. Hopefully we can rule out some of them based on behavior, and then targeting one at a time”
“Why not make that our top priority then?” Louie asked
“We need to take some time to research the mask” Lance said “Not too mention once the killers are dead we will leave this movie instantky. If we rush and end up killing them we will be out of time here”
“WE’re not going to linger too long though, Right?” Logan asked in a meaningful tone.
“Like our leader says” Lance said with a smile “We won’t stay here too long but we will need to get a lot done with our short time”
“Where should we start?” Skye asked, rising from her place on the ground
“With you giving us a full rundown of your capabilities” Lance said, Eve behind him pulled out a notebook and pen. Everyone turned to Skye including Louie. The newbie had been filled in during the drive about Skye’s true identity.
“Well let’s cover my dad’s side first” Skye began “As you know I am trained to pilot any vehicle, even mechas. He also trained me in martial arts and firearms. His main strength was his mechas but it wasnt his only power”
Sky gave a nonchalant wave of her hand. Suddenly Eve let out a cry of surprise as the notebook she had been writing in lept from her hands. The book hovered above the young woman still open as she had held it.
“Telekinesis?” Lance asked in wonder
“My dad unlocked this special ability as his constraint unlocked” Skye explained “It’s probably stronger than most of his mecha”
“It’s genetic?” Lance questioned
“Well we think my mom had some part of it” Skye admitted “she also possessed telekinesis but not nearly as powerful as my father”
“Tell us about your mother” Lance requested
“My mother is Jennifer Holloway” Skye began “She was born into a coven of witches in Romania and was considered a prodigy”
“Hold up” Louie interrupted “Witches are real? In our world?”
Skye let out a laugh “Of course, many people cloned into team Devil hold powers upon their arrival. My mother was one of them”
“Does this make you a witch?” Logan asked
“Technically yes” Skye said sheepishly “Unfortunately my mother forbid me from learning magic. She feared I would grow too powerful because of my enhanced genetics and declared I was never to learn magic”
“Your father was fine with that?” Lance questioned
“My father is a proud man, he’s confident I didn’t need full access to my magic” Skye answered
“So you don’t know any spells?” Logan said
“I know a few simple tricks,” Sky explained “Like starting a small fire or hiding my presence in the shadows. I don’t know any real powerful spells though”
“Do you have any other abilities we should know about?” Lance asked
“Well” a mischievous grin crossed Skye’s face “You have the basics of what I can do. To get a better understanding I think a demonstration is required”
“You’re excited for this aren’t you” Logan noted
“The only person I get to go all out on is my father” Skye shrugged “I can’t lie, I’m looking forward to fighting someone closer to my level”
The tension in the air began to grow, a faint glow appeared across Logan’s hands. Skye tensed and stepped into a defensive position
“Before you too start” Lance interrupted waving the other team members away from the battle field “Skye honestly tell me, In an all out fight do you think you can take Logan”
Skye didn’t answer right away, instead she looked into Logan’s eyes for a brief moment.
“I’d say I have a 80% chance of winning” Skye answered finally
“Pretty confident aren’t you” Logan teased
“You have more brute strength than I do” Skye admitted “And you have a more advanced Genetic constraint than I. However that’s all you have, brute strength”
“And what do you have that’s so much better? Logan questioned
“A more advanced technique from veterans of this realm” Skye said proudly “Let me show you the power of Self Created Abilities!”