Heroes

Chapter 1:
Awakening

“Look, Joni, are you kiddin\' me? Something like that could never happen!” Kali exclaimed in disbelief. “I swear you are obsessed with that stupid book!”

“I am not!” exclaimed Joni as her long red hair tangled in her glasses. “I just think that something like the event in the book could happen to someone in real life. I mean magic exists doesn’t it?”

“Yes, but-”

“Then who is to say that a person could use magic in order to save the world? I mean-”

“Whatever, Jo,” Kali said with a quiet laugh. “You still grounded?”

“As much as I hate to say it, yeah,” she admittedtupitupid parents driving me nuts just because I stayed out a little past curfew.”

“I wouldn’t call seven in the morning a little past a one o’clock curfew,” quipped a male voice from behind the two girls.

“Cram it, Will,” Joni snapped as the two turned to look at the short black haired young man.
“Besides, you were the one who got me grounded in the first place!”

“Aww, I’m sorry. I just had to take you to see the sunrise over at Siren’s Point,” he replied. “Besides, you two, you have to admit that you can hear a song being sung while the sun rises.”

“Will, of course I admit it. I was the one who told you about the song, but I never meant for you to get Joni grounded by taking her there on a school night,” the blonde stated as she lightly swatted Will’s arm.

“Anyways you guys, I had better be getting home before my parents call the school’s security officer and have him drag me home,” Joni half-joked as she brushed another strand of her fiery hair out of her eyes. “Ciao!” she called as she climbed into her midnight blue 1974 Mustang.

“Later, Chica!” Kali called out before turning her attention back to her friend. “Will, you feel like going by Dreams tomorrow after school?”

“Not, really. I’ve got something I have to do tomorrow, and I don’t know how long it’ll take me to finish,” he replied.

“Damn. Oh well. I wanted someone to talk to in case Lex isn’t working tomorrow. I guess I’ll go today then before I go to work.”

“You work?” Will said incredulously. “Are you serious? I didn’t think you’d work to save your life.”

“Yeah, I have a job at that new boutique on Montgomery Street. I love the clothes there: black, silver, and white everything,” she sighed happily as she spun around. “The only bad thing I can think of is the woman who owns the place. She’s a snooty- I won’t finish that phrase. Anyways, I can deal thanks to a handy 20 percent discount.”

“You? Happy? About work? Now, I am scared,” he chided.

“Tch… whatever, Will. At least I am going to have some money to spend, while you are still bumming cash off of your parents,” she retorted. “And I have to be at work by five, so if I want to go by and get my stuff today, and still be on time for work, I had better be going.”

“Later,” he replied as he watched her climb into her small black 2000 Volkswagen Beetle and cranked the engine.

“Love ya, Will,” she called out as she drove away leaving a small cloud of dust in her wake.

After about fifteen minutes of driving through surprisingly light traffic, Kali stopped outside a
small eclectic shop with candles and incense burning behind the window.

“Hey, Kali,” said the cashier when he saw her walk in with a smile adorning her face.

“Hey, Babe,” she replied as she walked over to the counter holding a variety of incense. “Have you gotten in anymore sandalwood?”

“Nope. Sorry, Doll. My boss ordered some last week, but it still hasn’t come in yet. There is some rosewood if you want,” he offered as he walked up behind her and pointed to a container full of incense.

She laughed softly, “You don’t know much about different types of incense do you? Ah, well. Did you get anymore oils?”

“Not since you were in here yesterday,” he replied as he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her against his chest.

“Lex, I understand that you have no control over the shipping schedule, but you are killing me
here. When is anything coming in? I need supplies…” she said as she turned around in his arms.

“Sorry, but I can’t tell you because I honestly don’t know,” he replied. “Does I love you make you feel any better?”

“Much, but…” She sighed before she shrugged and kissed him softly. “I guess I’ll see you
tomorrow night then?”

“You know it,” he told her before lightly kissing her. “Happy anniversary, Doll.”

“Happy anniversary,” she said as she slowly withdrew herself from his arms. “I’ll call you tonight after work.”

“All right,” he said. “Later.”

Kali slowly walked out of the small shop and towards her car. She was unlocking her door when a large hand placed itself on her shoulder.

“Hello, Ms. Lourince.May I speak with you for a moment?”

“Isn’t that what you are doing now?” she replied as she turned to face a tall, handsome man, with dark green eyes and pale blonde hair sticking up in little sprouts all over his head. “And truthfully, pal, I don’t have the time to talk to anyone who I don’t know. Now if you will be so kind as to take your hand off of my shoulder, I need to go to work.”

“I understand that you are looking for a teacher of sorts. Someone to teach you how to be stronger in the ways of fighting, to be wiser in making your decisions, and to-“

“Wisdom can’t be taught. Anyways, I don’t need a teacher, and I don’t want to fight anymore,” she said before trying to turn, only to feel his grip on her shoulder tighten. “Look, pal, I thought I had made it clear. Thanks for the offer, but I’m not accepting, now get away from me!” She wrenched her shoulder free of his grasp and turned, only to have him grab her wrist. When she tried to free herself from his hold once more, she felt something poking into her side.

“You might want to rethink my offer, Ms. Lourince,” the man warned in a harsh whisper. “Otherwise, things could prove very hazardous for you and those you know.”

“You know what?” she said, spitting out the last word. “I don’t fear guys who threaten teenagers with plastic toy daggers. I’ve baby-sat kids who were more dangerous than that.” She then grabbed his wrist, yanking his hand from her wrist, and shoved it between her car door and the rest of the vehicle as she slammed the door shut. “Now leave me alone before I show you the real reason I stopped fighting.”

“We will meet again,” he said as he pulled his hand away, cradling it against his chest.

“Like hell we will, because frankly I don’t plan on seeing you again, ever,” she replied icily
before climbing into her car and starting up the engine. A moment later, she took off in a cloud of dust.

“She might just be the one after all,” the man said as he pulled the small piece of plastic out of his pocket and threw it to the ground. A small knowing smile crossed his face as he flexed his smashed hand, and walked towards the nearby stairwell leading to the subway system.

* * * * *

“Will, you would not have believed the weirdness factor of this guy I met today. He was giving off the freakiest vibe. The oddest thing was that he knew my name, and I swear I have never met the guy before in my life,” Kali said into her cell phone as she walked through Wal-Mart looking for some clothes for an upcoming trip to the beach.

“So, you have another apparent stalker?” he laughed.

“First of all, Lex is not a stalker; he is my boyfriend. And second of all, this isn’t funny!” she
snapped. “Gaw… You would not believe what this guy tried to pull. The freak tried to threaten me with a toy knife. Well, I guess it is kinda funny now that I think about-“

“Wait a minute, Kali. You’re saying this guy tried to threaten you with a knife? That is more
dangerous than you made it seem when you started talking about it,” Will told her. “I think you should have reported what happened to the police.”

“Will, I am fine. He had a plastic weapon, and he didn’t do anything to me otherwise. He didn’t drag me off somewhere. I mean if he had, I doubt I would be on the phone talking to you while looking for some shorts and a swimsuit right now,” she stated. “Besides, I made him realize that I wasn’t threatened by him. I may not believe in fighting, but I did take those classes as a kid. I can still protect myself if I have to.”

“Kali… Just promise me that you will be careful. Psychos and stalkers are seriously running rampant in today’s age,” Will pointed out, causing a soft giggle to erupt from the blonde’s throat.

“Gaw… Will, hun, you have seriously got to stop listening to your grandparents while they complain about our generation,” she laughed. “I seriously worry about you sometimes, man, with that overly mature way you act and all. It isn’t healthy.”

“I feel like I should be the one worrying about you. You’ve been acting really different ever since you were in that car accident last year. I’m sorry for seeming paranoid, but I can’t help but be scared.”

“Oh, crap…” he heard Kali mutter softly over the other end of the line. “Thank you so much for saying that. I need to let you go. I told Lex I would call him after work, and I guess that weird guy made me forget.”

“I cannot believe that you are still talking to a guy who was in the same car accident as you were. In fact I cannot believe that you are still talking to a guy who considered the accident an enlightening experience,” he stated.

“I cannot believe that you are mad at a guy who came out of that accident worse than I did,” she retorted.

“I cannot believe that you are still dating him,” Will snapped back.

“I cannot believe that you are so jealous,” she chided.

“I am not jealous. I just don’t like that Lex guy. He is an idiot, not to mention a sadist,” Will
stated causing Kali to burst out laughing loud enough to make everyone in the surrounding aisles to look at her as if wondering had she lost her mind.

After calming down enough to actually be considered semi-coherent, Kalina continued, “Will, dude, I love you, man, but you are so freaking paranoid. Lex isn’t sadistic. He just has an interest in pain and the psychological effects behind it.”

“You keep telling yourself that while he starts turning you black and blue,” Will said.

“You are a freak…” she said simply. “And truthfully, I am not in the mood to listen to you rant about your theories aimed towards my boyfriend.”

“Fine, but don’t say I didn’t warn you, Kali.”

“Look, if he does do anything, or even tries anything, I’ll come to you and let you beat the crap out of him, all right?”

“Whatever, Kali,” Will replied with a hint of defeat in his voice.

“I’ve gotta go, hun. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Later, Kali,” he replied tiredly before she heard a muted click over her phone.

“He does have a point, Ms. Lourince,” the blonde heard the man she had met earlier that day tell her.

“Ugh, you freak! Will you quit stalking me, and just where the hell you get off listening to my phone conversations with my friend?” she snapped.

“I wish to be your teacher as well as your advisor,” he replied.

“Look, pal,” she told him. “I don’t want anything to do with you, or whatever the hell it is that you are teaching. I have told you that I don’t need someone to teach me to fight
because I don’t fight anymore. You came a year too late.”

The man sighed as he placed a hand on her shoulder, which she wrenched away almost instantaneously. “Kalina, I do not wish to teach you to fight. I wish to teach you to protect
this world,” he told her.

“I don’t want you to teach me anything. Now, if you please, leave me the fuck alone!” she spat as she struggled futilely to keep her temper in check. “Otherwise, if you don’t, one of us will go to jail for a very long time.”

“You are in danger, Kalina. You must grow stronger if you wish to remain alive,” he stated, his
voice turning into a harsh whisper as he drew nearer to her.

“Are yoreatreatening me again? Can you be that stupid?” she asked as she looked up into the eyes of the man who was making her day a living Hell.

“No. I am simply telling you a truth that should be obvious to you. Your friend is wise in his
warning you to watch out for the ‘psychos’ of the world.”

“Look, pal-“

“Ms. Lourince, my name is Dorian Blaine. Call me anything you like, but not pal. That word grates on my nerves more than anything else I can recall,” he told her

“Whatever, pal,” she replied. “I have two things to
tell you: leave me the hell alone, you psycho stalker, and if you listen in on my phone calls ever again, I will make you pay for it. You got me?”

“You think you can beat me in a fight?” he asked, an impish grin crossing his face. “You aren’t
strong enough to beat me.”

“Maybe not, but I sure as hell can do a lot of damage,” she stated. “The only catch is, I don’t fight anymore. I have come to find it barbaric as
well as pointless.”

“I am afraid that you don’t have a choice anymore. You have delivered a challenge,” Dorian said as their surroundings shimmered, shifting to the appearance of a large arena style
fighting area.

“What in the-“

“This is the only place in which I shall fight in a battle that is not spur of the moment or does
not threaten an innocent life,” he stated. “Now I have some rules for this fight that you should know before we begin.”

She looked at him, her eyes revealing that she was questioning the man’s sanity. “I told you that I am not going to fight you. I find it utterly barbaric.”

“Too late, Kalina Lourince. You have issued the challenge and now it must be carried out,” the blonde haired man stated. “Now the rules, and remember that you shall be held accountable if and when you lose this fight. When you lose, you will have to agree to my training you in the ways of fighting.”

She scoffed in disbelief. “There is no way in Hell that I am agreeing to that load of
bullshit.”

“Too late,” he retorted as he threw a small sword that resembled a katana to her. She deftly
caught it and spun it in a large circle. He smiled and remarked, “I thought you said you didn’t like fighting?”

“Shaolin monks are peaceful, but they know how to fight don’t they? Same reasoning here, but different reason as to why I don’t,” she replied.

“Then, prove to me how you compare to those monks, and show me that you are worthy of my leaving you alone,” Dorian said.

“Fine,” she said. “But when I win, I want you to stay away from me, permanently. Got it?”

He simply smirked and nodded before dashing at her, only to disappear in the blink of an eye. Before Kalina knew it, she was kicked to the ground with the wind knocked out of her.

“That was a cheap shot, pal,” she grumbled before
having to raise her weapon in front of her defensively as Dorian’s sword flew straight towards her head. “And that was pathetic.” She then swept her legs beneath his, only to have him flip over her and land on his feet a short distance away from her head. Rolling out of the way as his foot was about to smash into her skull, the blonde girl quickly pushed herself to her feet.

“Do you give in? he asked.

“Look, I told you I wasn’t going to lose this fight,” she said. “I want to be sure that I never see you ever again.”

“Then why is it that you have yet been able to lay a hand or foot on me?” he asked in response. “I will make you a deal, Kalina. If you strike me, then I will consider you the
victor, and you will be free to go, but if you bleed before I am hit, then you lose. Agreed?”

“Deal,” she replied before he disappeared again. A moment later, Kalina felt Dorian’s weapon pierce her shoulder.

“You lose, Ms. Lourince,” he stated as he pulled the weapon out and showed her the blood
covering the tip.

“That was cheating,” she said. “You cannot simply disappear at will during a fight. No one does that.”

“You should complain because I use an ability that takes years to perfect. You should have been able to sense me whenever I am near since you are so knowledgeable in the ways of
fighting, and it will be the same in future fights. I am not the only one with that ability.”

“I’m not going to be involved in future fights.”

“You agreed to the conditions of defeat. You are bound to uphold them,” Dorian stated.

“No way in Hell,” she spat as their surroundings reverted back to Wal-Mart in the exact same spot they were standing in earlier. Her shoulder was no longer wounded, and in her hand, she no longer held a sword, but a small bag.

“Then keep that bag with you at all times. The contents will one day save your life,” he advised. “You will no longer need it once your training is complete, but until that day
comes-“

“That day won’t come, so you can keep your damn bag, and you can shove your training where the sun doesn’t shine. I want nothing to do with this,” she snapped as she threw the
bag at him. Almost instantaneously, the bag reappeared in her hand.

“You cannot back out of your training. If you do, people will die, and their blood will be on your hands,” he said before he turned and walked away. “I’ll return to start your training soon.”

“Why me?” she muttered as he disappeared in the small crowd that had formed around a television set. Despite her objections, she didn’t try to get rid of the bag again.