June 5th

Took me 4 days to finish this. I just have been procrastinating and watching too much Grace and Frankie. I gotta get into a routine… Here it is!

5. The shadows crept along as the night grew old.

The shadows crept along as the night grew old. A young man, clad in black, stood under an awning in an alley. Mir rubbed his temples with one hand and adjusted his belt with the other. The chargestick poked him in his stomach and he winced as the movement scraped the metal rod against his skin. Even through the thick Power-resistant vest he wore, it still irritated him. Trislec gave him and other non-Powered individuals the ability to match their Powered coworkers by using gadgets, but Mir was still constantly looked down on for not being able to use any form of the Power, Light, Dark or Dusk. It wasn’t his fault. His only saving grace was that he was a werecat, a creature. All that meant, though, was that he had pointed ears and teeth, glowing green eyes, and a cat form he could change into at will. He still needed trislec to be good at his job. He just wished the chargestick didn’t dig into his stomach so much.

A sound to his right made him start. He drew his chargestick and pointed it down the alley, flicking a switch near the handle. The end glowed a soft yellow light, illuminating the alley, the brick walls of the surrounding buildings seemed to jump out at him as they flicked into sharp view. He blinked several times, adjusting to the brightness. A shadow moved across the alley and Mir tried to track it with his light.

“Who goes there?” he shouted. Nai’s breath I should have kept the light off. I can see well enough in the dark. Better than any human. But what if the shadow wasn’t human? His stomach grew icy and his heart began to pound.

Nothing answered his question. Mir thumbed the switch next to the light and felt the chargestick hum as the trislec engaged. Now, if he touched anyone with it, he could administer a powerful shock, most likely stunning whomever he touched. His index finger rested on a small lever on the underside of the chargestick. If he activated that lever, a burst of trislec would shoot out the end and, if his aim was true, hit his target. That could stun or kill depending on how close the target was. Mir tried never to kill his targets, however. The paperwork he had to do for bringing in a suspect alive was enormous. If the target died, it was worse.

“This is Captain Mir of the Nek City Guard, Division Two. State your name and purpose now. You are breaking curfew,” he said, proud that his voice did not waver.

Nothing answered.

Mir took a deep breath through his nose, hoping to catch a whiff of whoever was out there. Werecats, like werewolves, had exceptional olfactory senses. He smelled rain in the distance, several different restaurants worth of food, the warmth exuded by the tomos that carried people home, but nothing in the alley. Had he imagined the shadow darting across the alley?

He held the chargestick in two hands in front of him and started walking forward. His palms began to sweat and he willed them to stop. If the chargestick slipped and whoever out there had Power, Mir would be completely outmatched. He took another deep breath and then multiple small inhales, trying to smell the creature or thing or whatever was out there.

Suddenly, he felt a chill pass behind him. The air stirred and a voice whispered in his ear, “Hey no-po, why are you here all alone?”

Mir whirled, squeezing the trigger on his chargestick. A beam of yellow light shot out the tip and a tall young man caught it, his hand surrounded by a blue glow.

“I am Captain Mir of the Nek City Guard. Keep your hands where I can see them!” he said, his voice nearly quivering.

“Or what?” This time a voice came from his left, “You’ll shoot us with that toy?”

A woman emerged from the shadows, her hands glowing purple.

The young man laughed, “Little no-pos thinking they are all special with their little sticks, huh Tab?”

Tab laughed and held out a hand, “Throw it to me, Sai.”

Sai tossed the yellow ball of energy and Tab caught it with one purple hand, “What should we do with this one?”

Mir swallowed and bared his sharp pointed teeth, “This is your last warning. Hands up and down on your knees or I will engage!”

“I don’t think so. Besides, we’ll just catch your stupid trislec. No, Tab, I think we should teach this no-po kitty what it means to really have Power.” Sai walked forward, his hands held palms facing Mir. The blue light seemed to grow brighter and then without warning it shot from his hands and hit Mir straight in the chest. Every single hair on Mir’s body stood up, but the vest he wore absorbed and redistributed the blast.

“Stupid man,” Tab hissed, “Did you forget? No you fool, this is how you treat a no-po.”

She threw the yellow orb at Mir’s legs as he shot a second blast at the pair. Sai jumped in front of Tab, catching the trislec ball in two hands and sending it straight at Mir’s chargestick. The weapon fell from the werecat’s hands as he hit the ground with a thud. This can’t be happening. He thought as he saw a violet blue light surround him and he lost consciousness.

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