For those who bothered to read FILE ONE. :)
C+C welcome!


Twister.

| Twister (also known as Darren Steffler ;)
| 	e-mail at twister@tendo-dojo.ranma.net
| 		Home Page at http://www.freenet.mb.ca/~fmw675/
| Big Heapum Fan of: Ranma 1/2, Bubblegum Crisis, Dirty Pair, Gundam, and
| 		     the rest of the known anime universe.

File Two - Puck.

     The man passed by the powerfully built guard who checked ID's
and... other abilities. He didn't see the point, but he supposed
that given the name of the new club it was almost a requirement.
They'd still let you in if you hadn't been affected at New Years,
but those who weren't did were either brave, curious, or stupid.
     The man wore shades, despite the low light level. His hair was
black and short, with a slight sheen to it. The face was lean, as
was his frame. His striped shirt and jeans weren't out of place
here. He glanced at the dance floor and shook his head, amused. Not
a few seconds were dancing in mid-air.
     Or is that Avatars? he thought, resigned at the new labels
that had arose after a third's takeover of the airwaves around a
month ago on April the 16th. Instead of firsts, seconds, thirds,
and the extremely rare fourths; he had dubbed them Slights,
Avatars, Demi-gods, and Gods.
     Then died from overextending his power.
     It was probably that fatal mistake that made the names stick,
but he doubted it.
     Eventually, he came to the bar and picked a stool to sit on.
The bartender saw walked opposite to him and smiled. She was a
nice-looking, brown haired young woman who happened to be a second,
sorry, Avatar, he thought.
     "Can I get you a drink?" she asked him cheerfully.
     "Sure," the man said with a smile. "Pardon me if I'm slow but
I'm just getting used to the name of this place." He shook his head
with a grin. "Puck's Palace?" he said with some disbelief.
     She laughed. "It is kinda silly, isn't it?"
     "Too bad the owner never asked Puck about it," he replied.
     "How would you know?" She frowned at me.
     The man smiled and threw off the illusion he had around
himself. The young bartender gaped at his true appearance; long
blonde hair, intense blue eyes, pointy ears, a handsome and
slightly beautiful face, and clothes belonging to a character from
a fantasy novel. Erik Clay, also known as Puck, grinned
mischievously at the wide-eyed woman's shock.
     "Oh, just a guess," he chuckled.

ERIK...

     I sighed mentally as I sipped the rum and Coke I had paid for.
Keeping low had been great but the opening of this place had been
too tempting to resist. 
     He'd been doing so because of Valerie Decelles' destruction of
a good section of city in Edmonton. The trail had been surprisingly
swift, as it had started a week after the incident, and the verdict
made the week after that. As I had thought, the court ruled not
guilty because of temporary insanity, but she had insisted on doing
community work and got it. The news vultures had swarmed her after
but she faced up to them well, better than I would've. I saw her
picture in the paper and saw that she still regretted her actions,
but not even the author of the corresponding article really blamed
her. After her story came out, most people didn't blame her much as
it wasn't her fault she had been changed so.
     Her problems brought me to remember the other, more recent one
which had prompted my coming to the club. I shook my head as I
remembered the conversation of a few days ago.

     "WHAT did you say??" I had said, dumbfounded, as Jason looked
at me with a slightly panicked expression on his face.
     "Cathy's pregnant," he repeated, nervously.
     "How..." I was surprised, as a third the red-haired Cathy was
far stronger than Jason and to manage this without getting injured
must've been a feat. "Never mind, I'm not sure I want to know," I
sighed, then looked at him wryly. "You didn't have to prove that a
third COULD get pregnant, you know. You're sure?"
     "Yes," he confirmed, sinking onto one of the basement chairs.
     "You do realize that no doctor would want to do an abortion as
she's a third and operating on one would be near impossible at best
right now."
     "Abortion?" Jason blinked. "God, no! Cathy was shocked but
decided to keep the baby, even without the difficulties of trying
for that. And... I really do love her, Erik."
     "You damn well better," I retorted with a growl. "You're
eighteen and she's sixteen for all her power. Christ," I swore,
running a hand through my hair. "I suppose her parents know?" Jason
nodded miserably.
     "As of last night," Jason replied. "So do mine."
     "When will the wedding be?" I asked with a sigh.
     Jason threw his hands up. "I don't know! I'm just so CONFUSED
over this, Erik! It's like I'm dreaming it all."
     "Well, you'd better wake up, buddy. From everything I hear,
raising a baby is not easy." I walked over and clapped a hand on
his shoulder. "I'll help if you need it, despite the stupidity of
the whole thing. The both of you have lousy timing, Jason."
     My friend looked up at me, some of the strain leaving him.
"Thanks, Erik. This is came as a shock to both of us."
     "Hey, you stuck with me when I changed, I'll help you with
this. It's what friends are for."

     It hadn't taken long for the newshounds to find out about
Cathy and Jason. Today we had been swarmed with people wielding
mikes, cameras, and video equipment. The shy Cathy hid behind a
somewhat pale Jason and when they wouldn't leave I got angry. It
was damned lucky figured out how to affect equipment with my
illusions or else I would've been found out. These reporters had to
go though.
     "LEAVE, for crying out loud!" I shouted at the mob. "If you
don't, we'll file harassment suits on you."
     "Come on, kid, this is our job," one I didn't recognize said,
and I didn't like the tone he used at all.
     "Cathy," I called out loudly so everyone could hear me, not
taking my eyes off the reporter and his camera man behind him, "you
told me about that rough encounter you and Puck had with those
other two thirds. Do you think your horns could break glass at a
distance?" I cocked my head at the suddenly nervous cameramen.
"High frequencies CAN break glass, can't they?"
     At my words, Cathy came around and stood by Jason, looking
rather angry as she had a right to be. The horned red-head must've
been practicing for her horns began to hum ominously and the pitch
was rising quickly. 
     "You wouldn't dare," the man said.
     "I think that people who stick their noses into private
matters without the invitation of those involved are on shaky
ground. And if you keep this up, perhaps Puck will come too and I
doubt he'd like what your doing even less than we do." I stared at
the frowning man and said flatly, "Leave. Request an interview,
sure, but don't do this crap. I... Whoa!" I said as I blinked at a
camera that had become mud and was now oozing down an astonished
cameraman's shoulder, the reporter's man. My doing, but they
couldn't know that. 
     The reporter had turned pale and fled.

     The rest left then too, but Cathy and Jason still got a
million calls at home. I came to this club to take my mind off
things. I was getting stares from a lot of people but I was wrapped
up in my own thoughts. At least until someone sat by my seat and
tapped my shoulder, startling me.
     "Penny for your thoughts, Puck?"
     I looked and saw who had sat beside me. She was beautiful,
willowy thin with long chestnut hair, wearing a tight black outfit
that showed off her model-thin body. I raised an eyebrow for this
was one of Winnipeg's female thirds, Wendy Morgan. She was to air
as Valerie was to fire, but to a lesser degree. This woman could
leave you breathless, literally. She had been a thirty year old,
overweight secretary before the change and was one of the ones who
apparently loved the results. Last I heard, she was getting offers
from a local modelling firm.
     "I was thinking about that girl, Cathy, who got pregnant," I
replied honestly. She nodded knowingly as she sipped her own drink.
     "I heard, but in a way I'm glad," she said and went on at my
questioning look. "It means we're still human and can have kids if
we want."
     "Thirds can at least," I pointed out. "I'm not sure about
myself. Who knows what my body had to do to adapt to another power
increase? I wasn't disoriented on the first two but the third time
was unsettling." Morgan leaned forward, interested.
     "How so?" she asked.
     "Well, my senses were... off kilter, somehow. Keener. It took
some time to adjust. As for my powers... You can sense wind
currents and air, can't you?" She nodded. "And Valerie can do the
same with fire but she's much more sensitive. But I can feel the
energy of things around me; you, the chair, those people dancing on
and off the floor. Everything. I can't feel air the way you do, but
I can feel your power when you use it as I can my own." She looked
impressed.
     "That's quite the sense. So you know who is changed?"
     "Unless they can hide it, yes." I hesitated, but went on. "I
also feel some other things but I haven't a clue what they are.
It's like... they are there, yet not." I rubbed my chin as a sudden
thought occurred to me. "Perhaps they are dimensions. I've heard of
other people teleporting; maybe that's what they're using. I've
been too busy expanding what I already know to test those, and
doesn't this sound weird to you?" I asked her, breaking off my
voiced contemplation. She laughed.
     "It was interesting," she said with a crooked smile. "Would
you like to join our little group?" My curiously raised eyebrow
asked my question for me so she elaborated. "I came to meet the
other two female adult thirds tonight and this place seemed
appropriate. We spotted you when you showed yourself so I decided
to come over and invite you."
     I stood and gracefully bowed, my getup and looks made it an
appropriate gesture. "I would be honoured, Lady."
     She smiled and guided me over to one of the tables in another
part of the club. There we found Wendy Morgan's fellow thirds.
     One was Rebecca Ford, sixty-seven year old retiree. She used
to have grey hair which had now returned to it's vibrant black of
her youth. Listless after her husband died, the change had given
her a second youth. But not just her hair had turned black, so had
the rest of her. Black skin, black nails, black eyes, everything
was now a slightly different ebony hue, save her teeth which
gleamed white when she smiled at us. Naturally her power was over
darkness and shadow and could apparently make herself immaterial at
will. Just as naturally, her nickname had become Shadow.
     Yvette Ranchard was the other; a thirty-two year old French
immigrant working in Winnipeg as an interior decorator for the past
few years and had got caught in events of the current year.
Amazingly, her powers were opposite Mrs. Ford's for she could
control light in remarkable ways, from laser to light shows. Her
hair was divided into lines of the visible, and not so visible,
spectrum. The irises of her eyes swirled with color but otherwise
everything else on the attractive woman was the same as before.
     It was no surprise the women were all good looking, most
thirds, Demis, became so as a result of their changes.
     "Ah, it appears mademoiselle Morgan caught our wandering God,"
Yvette said with a french accent, but the 'God' part made me wince.
     "Looks like he doesn't appreciate that term, Yvette," Rebecca
chuckled as she noted my reaction with approval. "Good for him;
shouldn't let it go to our heads."
     "I am but a simple elf," I said suavely as Wendy and I sat
down. It and my bland expression got them laughing. "I just wish
that poor guy hadn't broadcast that message," I sighed in my normal
voice. 
     The ladies nodded.

DONALD STONE...

     "Blast that idiot for broadcasting that so-called bulletin all
over North America!" I fumed in the large meeting room for my new
department. I sat at the head of the table as Everett had given me
full authority in his name. There were eleven other people seated
in front of me, all still getting used to working together as they
had all been in different and sometimes opposing agencies. "It's
too bad he died; I'd have enjoyed locking him up."
     "That happened weeks ago, Stone," a brown-haired man said
beside him. "What happened?"
     "It's caused some new religious cult to spring up," I growled,
disgusted at the idiocy of such people. "They say that New Years
proclaimed the return of mankind's deities and that all should
worship them."
     "That's not new," an asian woman, Umeko Takahashi, commented.
The short information analyst had no pupils or irises in her pure
blue orbs but could still see just fine, and even better than those
WITH normal sight. "China's government encountered resistance when
they tried rounding up people with powers. Apparently, a golden
dragon appeared and lunched on a few tanks, helping some people
escape. Some Chinese have started to worship it. It's been dubbed
the Dragon Emperor and likely one of the fourth group to display
that much power." She cocked her head and grinned. "On a lighter
note, one was revealed in my ancestral homeland Japan... he looks
exactly like Bruce Lee." That got some groans. "We've gotten a few
other reports elsewhere," she went on, "but we can go into those
later."
     "The Canadian government has agreed to let us operate in
Winnipeg so we can find Puck and arrest him for them, or at least
find out who he is," the man beside Stone began. "They can't, or
won't, try it themselves as they're a little shy dealing with a
fourth after the incident in Edmonton."
     "I suppose I can understand that," I sighed, not expecting
much more than that. "If anything it will help our department get
used to each other, as well as get some experience in dealing with
a fourth."
     "Why Puck, anyhow?" a younger man I couldn't remember the name
offhand said.
     "I think he's the most dangerous to leave alone," I told
everyone, conviction in my voice. "We can determine the limits of
the others but Puck seems to have the ability to create 'spells'
and that flexibility makes him too dangerous to remain a free
agent." I tapped the folder that held all current info on the
vigilante. "And we better do it as soon as possible or else he'll
have too much time to prepare himself. Micheals," I focused my
attention on my new second-in-command, "I want you to go over all
the powers of every person in our new department and determine with
Umeko the best people to send to Winnipeg."
     Micheals nodded. "I've already sent one to Winnipeg to check
the situation there."
     "What's his power?"
     "Speed."

WINNIPEG.... MAY 18.

     The figure floating above the meeting going on the dark street
looked on with interest. He'd caught on to this while flying and
the suspicious nature of the first meeting had caught his interest.
With an invisibility spell that even a Demi couldn't normally see
through, Erik found out a few interesting things, and when you can
fly people can't hear your footsteps.
     Let's see now...
     The guy who looked like an Anglish-Asian mix tasted the white
powder the other guy had given him in a sealed plastic bag
carefully, then nodded and re-sealed it. In return, the young man
quickly handed a wad of bills to the messenger, who placed it in an
internal pocket of his coat. Very neat.
     Not.
     After having done what he wanted to do, Erik followed the man
with the money. He slogged through slushy puddles as unpredictable
Winnipeg weather had produced a quick melt this year. He wondered
what the other man would say to his fellows when the cocaine, after
Erik's intervention, turned out to be powdered sugar. As for the
other slime...
     A huge sinkhole that hadn't been there before suddenly
appeared underneath the man's foot, not a difficult feat as the
roads did this somewhat naturally. The man shouted in surprised
shock as ice cold water drenched him as he fell up to his armpits
in the frigid liquid. He struggled out quite quickly, and chattered
his teeth when he did. His thick coat did nothing but freeze him
now so he quickly removed it and his shoes, cursing the city's work
crews. The money, he discovered as he checked on it, was soaked. So
he cursed again and placed it on a nearby pile of garbage while he
tried wringing out the water in his clothing, and dumped the water
from his shoes.
     Suddenly, a masked man burst out of the garbage pile,
surprising the shivering man, grabbed the dripping money, and ran
away like the devil was after him. Horrified, furious, and afraid
to lose the money, the messenger, in socks only, ran after the
thief, who had ducked around the corner ahead.
     He would find nobody around the corner when he reached it.
     Puck levitated the undisturbed wad into a plastic bag and flew
away, chuckling. He had no love or sympathy for people dealing in
drugs. Too many kids got hooked by drug dealers, and while he knew
this was only a drop in the bucket, he felt it a good deed for the
day.
     The drug dealer would think he was tricked and the messenger
could only say he was robbed. Nothing would point to the Puck.
     The money Erik could dry out easily, and if it was marked he
was sure he could find out. He didn't covet it, but it might come
in handy. Perhaps a small anonymous donation to a drug
rehabilitation clinic, using only a fraction of the amount he had
for the full amount would be too suspicious. He'd have to wait
anyway.

     Unfortunately, Erik missed an observer to his little prank. If
he had been expecting trouble he would have looked around and
discovered a person with the power level of an Avatar watching the
exchange, and subsequent 'theft.'
     That was slick, the Winnipeg dispatched agent whose code name
was Runner thought. He gotten a vague clue from a one of the thirds
in his newly created department on where to observe the Puck's
activities. He'd seen the exchange from behind the same corner Puck
had sent the illusion of the 'thief' around. Runner could move
faster than the human eye could see him for short periods of time
and had moved to the opposite corner so the messenger missed him
while Runner had seen the illusion vanish. The agent had seen
enough and left before the Puck could discover him.
     The next day he heard from the police department that the
power had actually been sugar and that the drug dealers called it
a double cross on the part of the messenger who had skipped town
with no money to appease his own bosses.
     In the apartment he was waiting in, he reported the event to
his immediate superior, Umeko.
     "He wasn't visible, but the illusion and method would fit his
profile. The buyer was convinced what he was buying was real so
Puck must've transformed it then stole the money from the
messenger. In essence, he screwed both parties and they don't
suspect him at all. And the guy he took the money from skipped town
so they won't have a clue." He chuckled. "Even if they knew about
it, AND knew who he was; what could they do anyway?"
     "That's the reason we're going after him," Umeko replied
seriously over the phone. "Besides, it's hard to prove it WAS him
at all. I only got a vague impression that he would be in that area
at that time, and that's the best luck I've had. There's something
about fourths that make them near impossible to focus on."
     "So you don't have any more leads?"
     "No. Just check out anything that might get you more
information."  
     "You mean like Puck's Palace?" Runner asked, and got
disbelieving silence in reply. "It's a new club that opened up, but
wasn't related to our man until he showed up there a few times in
the last week."
     "'Puck's Palace.' Why me?" Umeko groaned.
     "Perhaps the gods smiled on you."
     "That's. Not. Funny. Runner."
     He sighed. "It was just a joke. Can't you say Roger, Ume-
chan?"
     "Not on company time," she said frostily. *click!*
     "That could've gone better," agent Runner said ruefully,
looking at the humming receiver.

STONE...

     I looked up, surprised, to see Umeko at her seat on the other
side of the room slam down her phone. Hanging around the current
set of large rooms that was the core of our growing information
network kept me informed. From what I'd seen of Umeko she was an
unusually cheerful and alert person, seeing her even slightly angry
was a revelation. I walked over to my fellow third with raised
eyebrows.
     "Problem?" I asked, and she immediately composed herself with
remarkable haste.
     "No, sir. Agent Runner was just reporting in," she said calmly
and then proceeded to relay to me the report she had been given.
     I momentarily forgot her remarkable behaviour as I frowned
angrily over what I had just heard. "Blast it! Interfering with the
local drug trade will make things harder to move covertly now, even
if they don't know the real reason for the trouble." This Puck
character was starting trouble sooner than I had predicted, and I
was more determined than ever to bring him down before he became a
threat.
     Micheals had finished his report and Stone was pleased with
the amount of people his second-in-command thought could handle
this fourth if they banded together. Of the 9 thirds, 97 seconds
and 329 firsts they had rounded up so far from every agency and
government position, 5 thirds and 42 seconds would have a use in
the Winnipeg operation, including Stone. There was also the
possibility of recruiting two more thirds in Winnipeg who were in
the local police force now.
     Micheals had also gotten those selected started a quick, crash
course training exercise so that they could work as a team and
complement and protect each other, he and Stone had gone as often
as possible to help those who didn't have combat experience. It
helped that all were relatively inexperienced and were mostly on
even footing. Remembering the tough time quite a few of the seconds
had with him only made the third realize that Puck would be in an
equivalent position to Stone. Fortunately, Puck hadn't displayed
any martial or combat skills as yet so they had the advantage
there.
     It also comforted him that his cold and ice didn't bother some
seconds as their powers let them combat him with better results.
That meant his thirds had a very good chance. Especially two in
particular.
     Then he remembered Umeko's anger and looked at her levelly.
"That doesn't explain the look you had." She flushed and her
totally white eyes looked away, embarrassed.
     "Agent Runner had a relationship with me a while back, sir,"
she confessed and Stone nodded. "I still like him but he's the only
one who seems to be able to made me mad."
     "As long as it doesn't effect your work I don't care," Stone
said dismissively. "And call me Stone, not sir. Save that for
Everett." She nodded slowly, and then looked at me arch amusement.
     "You know that won't help your growing nickname."
     "Nickname?"
     "Stone Cold."
     I considered that information, then shrugged. "I've been
called worse, and it's fitting." She snorted before turning back to
her computer.
     "Just make sure no one adds 'Dead' to that 'fitting' title...
Stone."
     I gave her back a chilly smile before leaving for another
training run.  

     I met with Everett the next morning and told him of my plans
to begin in Winnipeg within the next week. He nodded and leaned
forwards, pressing his fingers together.
     "You won't have much time for this, Stone," he informed me,
and went on to explain why. "In the meetings I've had with the
other agencies, there have been a few proposals on what roles we
should play and how our fledgling agency should grow. One is for
the pursuit and containment of criminals with powers. I've stressed
the need for as little bureaucracy as possible for that as even a
small delay could be fatal." I nodded approvingly. "The second is
terrorism, some groups may already have people with exploitable
capabilities and are planning to use them; that is why you may have
little time."
     "I hadn't thought of that," I said, frowning at the notion.
     "You've been busy. Another problem is the already existing
crime network, a few have gained useful talents but I've heard at
least one third operating in the mafia."     
     I scowled at that; yet more problems.
     "As a result, our department is going to have both free reign
and a tight leash, though the leash is rather thin at the moment."
He leaned back in his chair. "We can't learn how to fight the new
opportunities of corruption these powers will bring unless we try
our wings freely. Granted some agencies tried to pull strings so
they would have an advantage but the president put his foot down on
that and I agree with him; we CAN'T play favourites. I've contacted
other governments via the United Nations and the making of an
international organization like the one we have begun here is being
hashed around.
     "The benefits of that are obvious; more agents with power
under one group means greater flexibility for disasters and less
hassle. We will of necessity be flexible for the diversity of
powers will make us so, anything from fixing damage from natural to
human disasters or even preventing them from even occurring will be
our goal. We will be both covert and very public."
     I took a moment to digest all this, then said, "That's quite
a job for a new department, almost impossible."
     "But one only we can handle," Everett pointed out. "Our people
can do much more than ordinary agents, and with skill and training
we WILL be ready." He tapped a finger on his desk absently. "If
there are any people NASA could use that you will not be taking
with you, send them to Cape Kennedy. Some civilians with powers are
gathering there at NASA's request."
     "Why?"
     "So that our group will become familiar with the people not
willing to become a part of a government agency, and besides," he
said with a grin, "like a lot of people I wouldn't mind seeing
americans on the moon." I raised my eyebrows in surprise; Everett
didn't behave like the dreamer type. Perhaps the changes that
occurred to people made him think about childhood memories.
"They've already made some progress in improving structural
materials and engineering designs. If our department helps we would
have a positive foothold there too." At last, he finished with, "So
now you know the plans I have. You have two, maybe three weeks at
best for your operation before I have to pull you back to work on
expanding everything here."
     I hid my scowl; I had hoped for more time than that. But then,
superiors never do give you the time you need when you have an
important project. Instead, I merely nodded and left the room,
leaving Everett to handle the petty bureaucrats while I refined our
new environment as much as I could before flying the needed
personnel to the target's area of operation.
     Soon, Puck, I thought grimly, very soon.

WINNIPEG.... MAY 21

     From his room, Erik heard the door close harder than usual and
his mother's surprised greeting. Then his father raised his voice.
     "Erik! Come down to the kitchen," he said, and it was an
order, not his usual polite request.
     Uh oh, Erik thought with a sinking feeling as he left his
room, I think I DID go a little too far this time. When he entered
the kitchen his dad pointed to the remaining chair as his mother
watched silently, wondering what her husband was so angry about.
     "Just WHAT did you think you were doing?" Donald Clay demanded
of his sheepish-looking son. "Do you KNOW how stupid it was?!"
     "What did he do, Don?" Amanda Clay asked him as Erik ducked
his head.
     "I just found out that last night in one of the downtown
police stations SOMEONE," he focused a steely eye on Erik,
"happened to dump a garbage bag full of cocaine sacks in one of the
offices." Amanda inhaled sharply and turned her head to glare at
her son in mixed anger and fear, Erik bowed his head more. "Just
WHERE did you get all that from, Erik?" he said in a dangerously
low tone.
     "Ah... Hahaha... I... er... sort of collected it from around
town," Erik replied weakly.
     "'Collected'?" his father rumbled ominously. Erik sighed and
gave up trying to stall.
     "I overheard that some new shipments had arrived in Winnipeg.
I had already devised a spell to locate similar objects, like to
like, so I used it. I disguised myself as a kid and a pusher gladly
gave me what I needed to screw himself up." Amanda or his father
couldn't disapprove of the slight anger that crept into Erik's
voice when he told them that. "It wasn't just cocaine I got but it
was mostly that I collected. Invisible, I flew around town, now
knowing where the major stashes were and used some minor flim-flam
tricks to switch packets."
     "With sugar again?" his father sighed, rubbing his forehead
tiredly.
     "Not... quite." Erik paused. "Marshmallows."
     "Marshmallows?!" Amanda declared incredulously. "Erik, what on
earth for?!"
     "White powder, white puffs of sugar; they're two types of
sweets, what's the diff?" he replied blandly, lips twitching
despite his current situation.
     Quite a bit apparently, as his father lectured him for the
next half hour.
     "...and to make things worse," he concluded, "the gangs and
drug dealers are going to have some big suspicions that it was you.
Hell, the police already do! For God's sake, Erik, do you realize
how much cocaine you took??"
     "Several million dollars worth I imagine, but I doubt they'll
be laying a lawsuit on me," Erik replied.
     "If it were possible, they'd be laying you under the ground,"
his father replied grimly.

MAY 22...

     "You really need to get your head examined," Jason said
disgustedly as they ate lunch in school with Cathy and Rob, who was
looking around nervously. The newspapers had shown the story of the
cocaine and marshmallows this morning and it didn't take long for
them to realize who had done it.
     Cathy looked at Erik worriedly but it couldn't hide the glow
she had about her that all pregnant women who want their baby seem
to have. They'd tried ultrasound on her to see if it was a boy or
girl but the soundwaves just couldn't penetrate Cathy because of
the sound-oriented direction of her powers. Eventually, they had
decided it could wait until she gave birth and find out the hard
way. Erik ignored Jason and focused on Cathy's aura. Surprisingly,
he found what he wanted.
     "Boy," Erik announced.
     "What?" Jason said confusedly, not understanding at first
because he had been thinking about what his friend had done.
     "Boy," the blonde-haired teenager repeated, nodding casually
at a wide-eyed Cathy, whose hand had flown to rest on her abdomen.
"That's what I sense from her aura."
     Cathy gave Jason such a happy smile that it tore away all of
his frustration at Erik's dangerous prank and the couple held hands
tenderly as they looked in each other's eyes. Erik felt a momentary
pang at the sight of their obvious love but irritably shook off the
feeling.
     He just wished everyone would understand it wasn't in his
nature to stand by and do nothing, especially where he lived! The
corruption had it coming to his way of thinking. Oh, he knew he
wasn't some saintly super-hero person but those who hooked kids on
drugs really ticked him off.
     It had also been disturbingly easy, even for himself.
Everything he needed to do had seemed so clear to Erik, like his
mind becoming more efficient. His brain had to have adapted to his
final boost, his normally excellent memory was perfect and problems
on his tests simpler to solve.
     And people had no idea how much more power he was getting from
the supposed ninety-day period after March the 16th. It was
proportional to the other increments, just longer. The first three
periods increased a person's powers randomly, from a half of what
they had at their boost, to three times that amount. This stretch
was coming close to an end as it was May 28, but Erik was about
twice as powerful now as he was when the third boost hit and even
then he had been formidable. He was actually scared to try anything
major so he had been using as little as possible. 
     It wasn't a wise thing to not attempt something at all
however, thus he wasn't wearing an illusion at school anymore;
transformation spells were coming easier to him. He actually looked
like his old self again, but if he didn't reenforce the admittedly
weak spell with another every so often it would fall apart and he
would revert back: his powers didn't like him looking other than
his elven self. Perhaps with more normal people the spell would be
permanent but he didn't want to experiment on other people. Things
were calm around Winnipeg so he didn't have anything to test his
powers on.
     Why did he feel so apprehensive though?

STONE...

MAY 24...TWO DAYS LATER...

     "Y'know," one of my agents said, scratching his head at the
huge pile of illegal drugs on the table, "this guy must have
bloodhounds beat to find all this in a relatively smaller city like
this one."
     The brown-haired, lean man who'd shown himself to be Umeko's
Runner nodded his agreement, adding, "And if he couldn't take it,
he could just turn it into something useless, like he's done once
already."
     "Anything?" I said, ignoring the comments and speaking to the
few seconds I had brought who had search capabilities and were
going over the pile.
     A man with constantly swirling hair in his second form sighed
and stood. "He's too damn strong, sir. It's like staring at the sun
with your bare eyes."
     The woman beside him nodded, she wore a low-cut, black gown
and held a crystal ball with swirling colors. "Not only that, he's
generating some kind of interference that must be instinctive or a
side-effect because all the other fourths do the same. Any subtle
probe I try, or even non-subtle, just falls apart and distance
doesn't seem to matter."
     The man nodded. "I figure a third MIGHT have a better chance,
definitely if they're a fourth. Seconds are useless for him."
     I grit my teeth; Umeko was a third and had tried and failed
herself. It was the physical presence of the bags the Puck had
brought that I had hoped would help, but apparently they didn't.
There were no fingerprints, or anything else either, that hadn't
been identified as a drug dealer's.
     My ruminations were interrupted when one of the local seconds
in the police force ran into the room and he seemed desperate as he
panted out his news. "Some people have taken a bank hostage! Two
have revealed themselves as thirds and at least two more are
seconds." He paused to catch his breath. "And they're asking for
the Puck to show himself!"
     "Damn!" I swore. "Now what else is going on?!"

     I contacted Carla and she said she'd meet me at the scene as
soon as possible. Most of us were scattered around the city
intentionally so as to have a better chance of being on the scene
if the Puck did show. Unfortunately, the second drug incident must
have prompted this quick response because I had received
information that all involved in this had ties to drug-related
crimes.
     We didn't have much info on the thirds; not everyone had
revealed themselves to the public when the changes had happened
after all. But they had already driven back Chain and Oscar, the
thirds who had joined the police force. Chain was in shock and had
to be taken to the hospital because one of his arms had apparently
been disintegrated.
     When I arrived at the scene I saw the two thirds brazenly
standing outside the bank. The police were well away from the pair
and to be honest I didn't blame them.
     The one who had destroyed Chain's arm was vibrating so much
that his features were indistinct. All I could tell from him was
that he wore blue jeans and nothing else under shoulder length
blonde hair.
     The other had features belonging to a funhouse mirror. His
face was twisted, horrible to look on as he leered at those in
front of him. The rest of his body wasn't much better and his
clothing ill-fitted him. Some kind of aura flickered around him
that wrenched at my eyes.
     For these two to defeat two other thirds proved a private
point of mine: all thirds were not equal. One's power may defeat
one third easily while impossible or very difficult on another.
Survival skill had a lot to do with it too and I suspected these
criminals were experienced at surviving with little power but now
had a lot which made them deadly.
     I spied an ashen Oscar and stepped up to him. He looked up,
saw that I was a third, and almost slumped with relief.
     "My name's Donald Stone, DOC. What happened?" I asked the
shaken man. Oscar blinked.
     "DOC?"
     "Department of Changed. A new organization in the United
States forming to deal with changed problems," I explained. "What
happened with Chain?"
     "We-we had just stepped out to talk to them," he stammered,
"when the blurry one just attacked Chain for no reason! He moved so
quickly we couldn't react in time and he grabbed one of Jonny's
arms. The next thing I knew, Jonny's arm just seemed to explode and
he screamed as he collapsed to the ground. I immediately
disoriented the bastard but the other one wasn't effected and
sent... something at me that turned my stomach even though my field
defected it. He warned me to back off or he'd do the same to the
regular police so I did and dragged Jonny back behind the line."
His head drooped, remembering his friend's loss.
     I mentally sighed. Scum against more normal people didn't have
as many morals to hinder them, and from the sound of things their
powers sounded ill-equipped to have handed this in the first place.
I wasn't sure mine were either, the vibrating bastard might avoid
my cold or go right through my ice and the odd one was an unknown.
Carla should have an easier time with these two, I thought.
     "Looking for me?" a voice called out, grabbing my attention
immediately as I looked for the source.
     And swore, seeing the figure floating two feet above the
ground.
     It was Puck!
     I was my first time seeing him live and I wondered at the
childhood impression that had caused a man to be changed into the
image of one of man's myths, the elf. The costume he wore would
have looked flashy on anyone else but suited his inhumanly handsome
features, which appeared to show his anger at the two miscreants.
I also noticed a faintly noticeable tenseness, an indication he was
ready to react. Not odd considering he'd fought empowered people
before.
     The one with the twisted face laughed, horrible with that
face. "You shouldn't have messed with the dope, faggot!" he shouted
and the blurred man moved for the elf.
     Who calmly opened a hand and a greenish blob shot out towards
the surprised third as it hit him on the chest. It splattered as it
hit his vibrating chest but surrounded him as it grew in size. I
took note of it with an interested gaze as it became massive enough
to absorb the vibrations the man was generating and finally encased
him chin to feet, quivering madly as he struggled to get out.
     "And what 'dope' may that be?" the Puck calmly asked the first
man as his companion struggled madly in the green ooze. The elf
threw another green blob at the man to reenforce the quaking blob
as he awaited a response. However, the twisted man was still
grinning.
     "Shouldn't play dumb with me, elfy-boy," he giggled. "We know
you're the one who stole the local boys' property and dumped it on
the cops." Then he raised an uneven arm to hurl... two somethings
nauseating to look at at the Puck and at his imprisoned friend. 
     It played havoc with the shield I knew the elf had surrounded
himself with. The look of shock was nice to see as it collapsed on
him and the remaining portion of the bolt slammed him enough to
jolt his concentration and send him crashing to the ground. In the
meantime, the lime stuff around the other third splattered like hot
batter and the vibrating man leapt gleefully at the kneeling
figure.
     Only to backpedal frantically away when a swipe of a suddenly
materialized created longsword of light in the angry elf's hands
nearly cut him in two. Obviously the sonofabitch didn't think he
could vibrate his way through energy and stood a cautious distance
away from the elf who was as quick as himself.
     Someone stepped beside me and I saw the dark brown face of
Carla when I turned.
     "I miss the first half?" she said with a small smile as she
took in the scene. Largely unchanged save for a slimmer body and
now-golden, straight hair, Carla was an easygoing person who had
been a minor criminal behaviour analyst in the FBI until DOC was
formed and recruited. She didn't mind the greater responsibilities
I had given her as a third in our department and was fortunately
capable of doing them. Her determination to training and mastering
her powers was also impressive.
     "The Puck had imprisoned the blurry one when the other with
the twisted face somehow blasted through his shield and released
the blurry one."
     Carla made a face when she saw them clearly. "Lord almighty,
that's one funhouse mirrorface goon all right." She had a point
there. 
     "One destroys with vibrations, the other disrupts things
somehow so be careful if..." I stopped as the paused confrontation
started up anew.
     "In case you've forgotten," the blurred one finally said in a
buzzing tone, "we've got hostages so lose the sword and shield or
we start knocking them off."
     Puck narrowed his eyes but was obviously at a loss this time.
The sword vanished and likely his shield too.
     The next thing I know, I heard two whooshing sounds that
sounded too damn familiar for my liking and the area where Puck
stood became a fireball. I instinctively dived to the ground but it
was unnecessary as Carla quickly used her power to create a force
field of her own, protecting us and the police from the explosion.
     "What was THAT??" she gasped as black smoke replaced flames.
     "Portable surface-to-surface missiles," I replied angrily as
I stood up. "Small but powerful and easily aimed." Carla stared at
me, her normally dark face pale.
     "Dear Lord!" she whispered as she turned back to the
devastation. The two thirds who had been fighting Puck had been
thrown back a ways but were unhurt and grinning as they looked at
the smoking area where Puck had been.
     They stopped laughing when the smoke cleared.
     Eyes closed on a soot-blackened face, the Puck silently stood.
Clothes burnt terribly, and in some cases still burning, the elf
was in the middle of a small crater. His hair was in wild disarray
and partially burnt off. I was amazed that he had survived that
until I recalled a report that he had encountered something greater
in destructive firepower in Valerie Decelles, and survived with
only minor burns. 
     "If you wanted to piss me off..." Puck said neutrally in a
quiet voice.
     His clothes reformed around him as his transformation power
remade his outfit. The soot drifted away and his hair regrew to its
former length. Then his eyes snapped open and I from what I could
see of them they were glowing slightly, making the two who had set
him up step back nervously. Puck's next words were a roar of
rolling thunder.
     "CONGRATULATIONS!"
     The two bank robbers felt first hand the power Puck wielded as
two huge spheres of intense blue-green light suddenly flashed
towards them before they could move. It must've been some kind of
binding spell because when those spheres hit both men were suddenly
entrapped in neon-colored energy bonds that instantly immobilized
them, even the one with the twisted face. 
     "TRY AVOIDING LIGHTNING NOW!!" Puck yelled furiously. They
never had a chance to struggle as he unleashed to each two
massively powerful energy bolts whose thundercracks doubly echoed
the explosion that had failed to kill the elf moments before and
near-blinded me with the light. His warning, and the Winnipeg
police's experience with these bolts, had made everyone turn so as
to not get blinded. When the spots in my eyes quickly faded I saw
the two victims of Puck's anger lying flat on their backs, looking
slightly charred where they had been thrown. Alive, but
unconscious. Whatever protections they had had, it hadn't been
enough. Still obviously furious, Puck whirled to face the bank,
hands glowing brightly.
     "I'd ADVISE surrendering NOW!!" he shouted to those inside.
"Before I decide NOT to tone down my lightning!" 
     "That was toned DOWN?" Carla muttered incredulously.
     "Probably," I quietly replied. "Miss Decelles of Edmonton
destroyed a few blocks in one blast and she is his power level."
     "And you want to bring this guy in??"
     "Yes," I said. The female third gulped.
     "Ohhhhh damn. Can I transfer?" she said hopefully.
     "No," I said flatly. 
     "I didn't think so," Carla sighed.
     "These idiots didn't know what they were dealing with," I
replied confidently as I watched those inside timidly walking out
of the bank under the elf's baleful gaze. I didn't blame them; they
had seen Puck survive a missile attack and just get angrier before
knocking out their two most powerful people in the space of a few
seconds. That probably struck a chord of fear in their grubby
little minds.
     I decided it was time to stop being a spectator and, after
motioning to Carla and three others of my personnel to follow me,
started moving towards Puck through the mass of police personnel.
We were slightly delayed by the locals but fortunately Puck was
trying to calm himself down while cautiously watching the police
round up the bank robbers. The still-bound thirds were left alone
for now, I'd likely request them to be transferred to our temporary
headquarters here then back to the states where they would be
surrounded by people with powers.
     Puck seemed to sense our approach and whirled to meet us,
ready for an attack but immediately relaxed, when he saw our manner
of dress, I guessed. Carla and the others stayed behind me as I
flipped up my newly-made identification so the elf could see it.
     "Donald Stone, Department of Changed," I said, "and my
associates. I'd like you to come with us, please."
     Puck blinked at my ID, then looked us over before curiously
replying with, "What do two United States thirds and three seconds
want with me?" 
     I was a little taken aback that he'd identified both Carla and
I as third-level changed so confidently. Me, I could understand,
but Carla's hair was her only obvious third-level characteristic
and it could have been dyed. When he ID'd the others as seconds I
was positive he COULD tell other peoples' power levels, which
scrapped a few of my alternate plans.
     "I'd like to say why in private," I told him, waving my arm in
a direction where I wanted to go. Puck didn't budge.
     "I'D rather you say it here, please," he stated firmly, "not
that I plan on going anywhere unless you give me a very good reason
to." I frowned at his refusal; this confirmed my suspicions that I
wouldn't like this arrogant person.
     "Look, PUCK," I replied evenly, "you are a known vigilante and
we have the full backing of your government. You are hardly in a
position to refuse my request. If you do not come with us, then I
have the authority to bring you in by force if necessary, and I
wouldn't bet that we can't!" I finished with a louder voice than I
had planned, something about this guy just didn't rub well with me
and his response didn't help matters. After wearing a neutral
expression during my little speech, Puck spoke up and I discovered
the dislike was mutual.
     "And you, Mr. Stone," he began offhandedly, "are a known
jackass with the full backing of a horse's rear end. I am certainly
in a position to refuse your request, I will NOT come with you, and
you probably couldn't force your face into a smile." Puck grinned
insolently as he crossed his arms over his chest. "And I bet you
can't either."
     "Containment!" I barked furiously as I moved to the side,
letting the others full freedom to attack Puck. We'd rehearsed this
many times so it went off perfectly. My freezing cold ice suddenly
held Puck to the ground as it encased his legs. A steely web from
one of my seconds covered the startled elf's arms while another,
Runner, punched him a hundred times in the jaw, stunning the elf
before Carla stepped forward and encased him with a tight force
field that visually shimmered, showing how strong it was. I grinned
fiercely as the Puck appeared to be dazed.
     "You think this'll hold him?" Carla asked me while keeping an
eye on our prisoner, like or unlike Puck she had to concentrate on
keeping her fields in place. I nodded.
     "Until the rest of the team get here, then he won't get away,"
I said and brought out my cellular from my pocket.
     ZOT! KA-BOOM!
     Everyone except Carla jumped when my portable phone exploded
in my hand because of a small flash of lightning. I quickly turned
to Puck who was grinning instead of looking dazed and was about to
freeze him again when my three seconds were hit by that same green
ooze that had held the third before, trapping them to their
startled shouting. How could he have....? Then horror struck me as
awful realization hit me. DAMN!!
     "Carla! Release your field!" I yelled, looking around myself
warily. She looked at me briefly in confusion.
     "What?! But..."
     "THAT'S NOT HIM!!" I shouted. His deception revealed made the
double irrelevant and Carla jumped when the illusionary image of
Puck vanished.
     "You win the grand prize!!" Puck's voice cried out from
nowhere.
     I jumped away from my current location but I was too late as
three of those damned green balls came out of nowhere and hit me
squarely in the chest. My cold slowed the ooze down but I soon
found myself landing facedown on the ground and encased in a thick
layer of the gelatinous stuff, swearing as I struggled to get out.
     Carla almost had a heart attack when he reappeared right
beside her. She almost used her power again but hesitated,
uncertain if it was another illusion. Puck grinned, knowing her
plight. 
     "Tell Mr. Stonehead to go back home and get his jollies
there," he told her, jutting a thumb in my direction. "I've got
better things to do than tripping over Donnie the Winter Wonderboy
all the time. Chow." And he vanished again, this time for good,
leaving the others trapped and me glaring with a burning gaze at
where I had last seen the bastard before he left, thinking the
encounter over.
     I swore furiously.
     The HELL this was over! 
     
ERIK... MAY 27...

     Erik was sitting alone at a table in Puck's Palace; his dark
expression told everyone he was not in a good mood. Not that the
reason was a surprise as the television and papers had reported his
little 'dispute' with Stone, the arrogant twit. There was such a
thing as love at first sight, Erik knew, but so was there hate at
first sight and he had felt it intensely with the government man.
     In fact, he had discovered to no surprise, the whole purpose
of Stone's presence was to bring the Puck in. The Canadian
parliament had even given the man permission to do so. Erik
grimaced.
     If the bastard tries to find out who I really am I'm going to
HAVE to stop him, he thought angrily. I don't want my friends and
family endangered because of that stupid stunt I did. Erik sighed
mentally, wishing he hadn't done it now. 
     Two bodies walked over and pulled out two seats to sit on. One
was the shadowy form of Rebecca, the other the hooker Gail, who was
dressing better these days as her ability to become a desire-
inflaming nymph had made her raise her prices, as well as being
more selective. Puck sighed as they sat down. "I'm not much company
tonight, ladies."
     "We know, kid," Rebecca told me. "I just thought you'd like to
know that Stone character and his crew has been talking to most of
the more powerful people around town, especially the thirds. I told
his flunkies to shove it when they asked me." She snorted. "Can you
believe they tried to pressure me? That's why I'm telling you this;
I don't like their methods."
     "They're American government agents, what do you expect?" Erik
had to chuckle, but this new info was worrisome; how many people
did Stone have now? It didn't help that most people didn't
comprehend the amount of power Puck had now, most thought he was
just a little more powerful third, and that was dead wrong. There
would be a few yahoos eager to try out their stuff in a
'legitimate' cause to take me down, and Erik would hindered by the
fact that he didn't want to kill anyone doing so. 
     "Yvette joined them for this bit," Rebecca said to his dismay,
but hastened to reassure the worried elf, "She doesn't like this
either and is going to find out what she can. Don't worry," she
said tartly at Erik's alarmed look, "she can handle herself quite
well. But I'm afraid she had to reveal your little aversion to
hurting women to gain their trust," she added.
     Erik sighed and shook his head; it had been one of the topics
they had chatted over when the fight with Valerie entered the
conversation. Call me archaic, he thought, but I just normally
didn't like to strike out at a girl, my bout of insanity being the
only odd case out. "They probably would have found that out on
their own eventually. Not that I'm above embarrassing the other
sex," he murmured. Gail smiled temptingly, he'd had a few more
encounters with her, free, and she enjoyed those times a lot. She
said she got tingles whenever the two did, probably a result of his
greater power strumming her own power.
     "Y'know, let's talk about something else," Gail purred,
rubbing one of his hands with her own, which made Rebecca roll her
eyes, "Why don't you go into business for yourself? If my power
helps me in mine, why can't yours?"
     Erik blinked at her, then looked over at Rebecca, whose
eyebrows were raised in surprise. 
     "I hadn't considered that," he admitted. "A few others have
started doing that but I never thought of it for myself, mostly
because I don't reveal my real name."
     "You could get an agent," Rebecca offered.
     "Agent?" Erik truly thought about it. "That's a good idea. But
who...?" Suddenly, the Puck grinned as it hit him and he snapped
his fingers. "I know! Cathy! She's pregnant and she and her
boyfriend could use all the money they can get. And if they don't
feel fully up to it, then maybe some of their friends could help."
The two women nodded in encouragement, not knowing that I was one
of Cathy's friends. Even if it was unintentional, Erik thought to
himself, Cathy and Jason had just given me an excuse to connect
Puck to them without compromising my real identity.
     However, Erik's mood soured when he happened to glance into
one of the club's mirrors and recognized one of the three male
agents Stone had had with him when they had fought. It was the
quick one who had punched his illusion over a hundred times and he
didn't realize he had been spotted.
     Erik pushed his chair back and rose, smiling at the two women
gratefully. "Thanks for the morale boost, Rebecca, Gail, but as
much as I'd like to stay I have to go," he said.
     Then Puck whirled and smiled wolfishly at the agent, who
realized he had been made just before the elf vanished. 
     People suddenly stopped dead and stared at Runner, making the
puzzled agent wonder what was up. When they started laughing at him
he turned to a nearby mirror to see what the Puck had done and his
eyes bugged out at what he saw. 
     Runner didn't see his own face, instead he saw a halfway
cartoonish, halfway real image of a big purple bird with a really
long neck. A split second was all it took to realize what illusion
the Puck had placed on him. He suppressed a moan at the hopefully
unintentional pun on his code name and decided to get out of the
club as quick as possible. 
     The bartender unsuccessfully stifled her giggles on seeing the
big, but skinny, bird lifting his glass with a wing and downing it
with his orange beak. Then he slid off the seat and, after slapping
his feet together two times, left with a "Beep beep!" before
zooming away.
     Gail convulsed with laughter while the dark Rebecca amusedly
shook her head, wondering at her new friend's sense of humour.

     There were stares and one startled oath when Runner reported
in. The gawky bird stomped over to a surprised, but slowly grinning
Carla, pointed a purple wingtip at her, and forcefully said, "It's
me, Runner. DON'T say a WORD, Carla. Just... don't." Muffled
chuckles and giggles followed behind him as he walked into Stone's
temporary office and slammed the door shut.
     Carla shook her head with a smile as outright laughter finally
broke out.
     "This world's getting stranger every day," she chuckled.

STONE... MAY 31...

     I frowned at the papers in front of me without seeing them. I
had just finished a lengthy discussion with Everett and didn't like
what he had told me. 
     My time was shorter than I had thought. My superior had told
me I had to return, with or without Puck, on the fourth of June.
Everett had started getting pressure to return all the agents I had
brought with me back and start them onto separate duties related to
their powers.
     I grimaced. My hopes to find Puck's real identity had been
slim as too much probing would likely attract unwanted attention.
His power of illusion and reasonably high amount of cunning made it
even harder.
     Therefore, I had to take the bastard down by force before my
time was up.
     Local recruitment had been fruitful; there were more seconds
and thirds for the percentage of people north of the devastated
town of Hardpoint than anywhere else in the world. In addition to
the 5 thirds and 42 seconds that were DOC personnel, 3 thirds and
30 seconds had been recruited to capture Puck. Oscar was one of
those thirds, his buddy Chain was recovering in the hospital but
his arm wasn't coming back miraculously even if his body had healed
over the wound swiftly. I told him I'd send a messenger to the
fourth, Betty Johnson, for help regenerating the arm for if she
couldn't, no one probably could.
     The other two thirds and the seconds I was less sure about.
Yvette Ranchard had met with Puck several times in that club named
after him, but she seemed willing to cooperate and had even offered
advice on taking advantage of Puck's so-called gallantry. I had to
admit it felt in character for my adversary, and even if I was
unsure Ranchard's light powers would come in handy.
     The third Demi-God, THIRD I rebuked myself mentally, was
Edmond Yellow, a twenty-one year old university student who had
jumped at the chance to participate. He loved his powers and styled
himself a master of telekinesis. The thin, brown-haired, young man
with constantly shifting, wavy hair was eager to prove how useful
his powers would be. That eagerness was like an annoying itch but
I could tolerate it for the boy WAS good with his power.
     The seconds were of the younger generation in Winnipeg. Some
were thrill-seekers, others wanted to bring down the more famous
Puck and become famous themselves. They weren't worried as the Puck
had always seemed to avoid the use of lethal force. I reserved
judgement on that but it felt right.
     Even now, groups were hurriedly training together for the
second of June. I loathed a rushed job but I had no choice, if I
ever tried again the Puck would be too experienced to handle. I
wasn't concerned about what to do with him after we caught him, the
mere FACT that a fourth COULD be captured would be the most
important success of the mission. Maybe others could convince him
to join the agency, or maybe something else, I didn't care.
     All I wanted to do now was to take the son of a bitch down.
     And down HARD.

ERIK... JUNE 1...

     "You sure about all this, Erik?" Rob said nervously to his
blonde friend. Jason and Cathy were with them as well but they
looked more confident than their skittish friend. "I know she's
mellowed but..."
     "Well, who better to do deals face-to-face?" Erik replied.
"Look. We'll be starting sometime after university begins. You can
handle whatever computer stuff we need done, Jason the advertising
work, Cathy can work in the office and handle phone calls with that
truly pleasant voice of hers since she'll be less than mobile
soon," I added, making the red-head blush. "Myself, well, that's
obvious. We can all double for everybody else so as not to skip
university classes. But I REALLY," I stressed, "don't want to get
gipped. From what I've heard business can be vicious sometimes so
I want to be sure we know clients are telling the truth. And so..."
     Erik stopped when he spotted the new arrival to the cafeteria
and waved her to come join the quartet. The raven-haired girl came
over, curious. "What's up, Erik?" she said.
     "Ah, Jennifer," Erik said with a charming smile, "I'm so glad
you asked me that question. Have a seat and let's talk."

     "All right, I'll do it," Jennifer agreed after they had
explained and she thought about it, "but I have one request." Erik
raised his eyebrows.
     "And that is...?"
     "Ask the Puck if he can discover how to extend the length I
can stay in my second form," she said, looking at Erik directly.
Needless to say, he was surprised.
     "Why??" Rob blurted, voicing aloud everyone's bafflement.
     Jennifer leaned forward, eyes nervously looking from side-to-
side. "Did you hear scientists believe people don't age when they
are in their second body? It's like your body returns to the exact
same state it was in when you change back, even after ten hours. So
if you can lengthen that time..."
     "...you live longer," Erik finished, comprehension dawning. He
considered her hopeful face and sighed. "Sounds risky, but I can
ask him. Don't expect miricles though," he warned. Jennifer stood
up, smiling saucily at him.
     "It's that a God's specialty?" she said, and walked away,
ignoring Erik's sour look and the other three's mirthful
expressions.
     
     Later that day, Erik went to Puck's Palace to make sure
everything was all right and found a surprise waiting for him.
Instead of just scoping him out, another of Stone's agents walked
right up to him and said, "Tomorrow at 6p.m. There are several
empty fields 6 miles north of the city limits. Stone will be
waiting for you there." 
     He left the club after giving me slightly more detailed
information. It didn't ease Erik's mind. I shouldn't go, he
thought, but what would that idiot Stone do if I didn't? Frowning
angrily, he left as well, no longer in the mood to stay.
     Why did this asshole have to pick me to be his chew toy? I
growled to myself as he flew away, invisible. And if I get HIM off
my case, will there just be another? What should I do? Erik debated
with himself this dilimma all the way home.
     He didn't come up with an answer.

STONE... MAY 2...