A New Kind of ordinary

Chapter 6

[Hey guys. Its me. I had, had three glasses of champagne and we were kissing. We kissed long and passionately. We put down our glasses and she put her hands on my chest. She seemed to realize what was happening. She parted from me looking a bit ashamed,]
Hanna; Sorry.
Nathan; Don’t be.

[I brought her back to me and put my arms around her. My Amish pride was long since forgotten so I had no more reason to resist any more. The first thing we did was lock the door to the base and the door to my room. We were lip locked as we sat on the bed. She was guiding my hands to different places under her cloths. I was kind of awkward. I had never done anything like this. I had never even touched a girl let alone this. She was patient for which I was glad. She guided me with out words. She unbuttoned my shirt and cast it to the side. I slipped the dress over her head. I could taste her bitter lipstick in my mouth and the faint alcohol on her breath. It was hard to unhook her bra, but I managed. That was cast to the side also. This was also the first time I had seen those before. She put my hands on them and was instantly aroused. She unbuttoned my pants and took them off of me. We got under the covers and took off what remained. She kept my lips busy and she nibbled on my ears and made this irresistible vibrating humming sound in my ears. It was very interesting and very pleasurable. I stroked her body and kissed her neck and chest. She seemed to be doing some thing and I wasn’t sure what, but it heightened the intensity of it. She kissed my neck and chest and my ears, they seemed to be a switch to my sexual hormones. It was so strange, but it did. It turned me on a lot. I was sweating and breathing rapidly. It was like I couldn’t control any thing and I didn’t care. I liked it. Her hands were moving up and down my thigh. I reached the height of elation and it was almost excruciating. My muscles tensed and started to spasm. It was erotic and ecstatic. To her also, she was moaning and squealing with pleasure. We parted, I was breathing harshly and my heart was beating in my head and in my chest. I was covered in sweat and exhausted. She kissed me once more.]
Hanna; Amazing.
[I had never felt more pride in my life. I guess it was a guy thing. We soon fell asleep. ]
[I woke up to a glass of cold water being poured on our faces. Mystic was in my room and he was standing over us.]
Mystic; Rule four. No sleep overs.
[he was grinning and he left.]
Hanna; Ass hole.
[I looked over to her. It was amazing what a night of sex can do to ones appearance. Her hair was disheveled and her lipstick smeared. She got dressed and went to my bathroom. I got my self cleaned up as well and got dressed. We both exited my room at the same time. Hanna was walking funny. We both sat down in the rec-room. Mystic was just staring at us with this stupid smile on his face. He thought it was funny. He was different. He now had a goatee and his hair was down instead of in a pony tail.]
Hanna; Where you been?
Mystic; I went back home again, but apparently I didn’t have as much fun as you two.
[He snorted. I blushed.]
Hanna; Yeah, I’ve never had that much fun with you.

[Oo! Burn! He shut up and gave her an evil look. He was blushing, I knew why, she had hurt his pride.]
Hanna; Any more remarks smart ass?
[he kept to him self.]
Hanna; Good. I like the goatee.
Mystic; Thanks.
[She picked up the conversation like there was no problem. ]
Hanna; Why’d you come back so early?
Mystic; I had to get away from there. There’s this chick that won’t stop following me and its freaking me out. Every where I turn she was right there.
Nezuna; Ryo-kun!!!!
Mystic; Oh shit.
[He got up and backed away from the door.]
Mystic; How the hell did she get in here?
Hanna; Say what?
[She got up and went to the door, her eyes widened, A Japanese girl with long black hair and extremely pale eyes. They were almost white. I thought she was blind until she turned to me.]
Nezuna; Your not Ryo-kun.
[Mystic had disappeared.]
Hanna; Excuse me, but you can’t just come barging in here.
Nezuna; Who are you?
Hanna; I should be asking that question.
[She got really close to her face.]
Nezuna; Where is Ryosei?
Hanna; Who?
Nezuna; You liar! Where is he!!?
Hanna; Back up!!!!
[The girl cowered.]
Hanna; He isn’t here now for the last time who are you?
Nezuna; I am Nezuna Hayashi. You are?
Hanna; Hanako Benghal.
[Her eyes blazed.]
Nezuna; You are the wench with my mans heart!!! Where is he!!?
Hanna; What the hell are you talking about?! Just get out you shouldn’t be in here!!
Nezuna; Not until I see Ryosei!
Hanna; For gods sake. Mystic!! Get your ass over here before I drag it out!

[He reluctantly got out of his hiding spot.]
Nezuna; Ryosei!!! What were you doing back there silly?
Mystic; Gee I wonder.
[She ran over to him and squeezed the life out of him. Im sure I heard some bones crack.]
Nezuna; Oh I missed you.
Mystic; I can’t breath.
[She let him go.]
Mystic; Why are you here Nezuna?
Nezuna; I told you before you have some thing that’s mine and I want it back,
Mystic; What?! What do I have that could make you follow me to New York!!?
Nezuna; Don’t play stupid! You took my body and I want it back!
[This girl was crazy and that was in all of our minds.]
Mystic; Your body. What the hell are you talking about?
Nezuna; Haven’t you figured it out? Im not human!
Hanna; Yeah. What are you an alien?
Nezuna; No! Now shut up! I’m a sword! You took my body from the chest before my soul went back! I need my body! I didn’t have any way to get around so I borrowed this girls body.
Mystic; Let me get this straight. You live in my sword.
Nezuna; Yes.
Mystic; And you borrowed this girls body to get back to your old one.
[She nodded.]
Mystic; You are crazy. You are mad. You need help.
Nezuna; You don’t believe me?
Mystic; Of corse not.
Nezuna; Then I will prove it to you.
[She raised a hand and clinched it into a fist. It glowed and we heard a bang from the back and his sword came flying into the room. He caught it before it reached her.]
Mystic; No way.
Nezuna; Yes way, now put me back in my body.
Mystic; Look even if you are the spirit in my sword there is no way Im carrying some thing as annoying as you around for that long!
[Her big grey eyes welled up with tears.]
Mystic; Uh, uh. Don’t even start. Its not gonna work.
Nezuna; Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!

[The noise was so loud even I was starting to feel sorry for her.]
Mystic; God damn it!!!! Fine!! I’ll put you back in the friggen sword!!
Nezuna; Thank you!!!!
[How annoying.]
Mystic; Now how exactly do I do this?
Nezuna; The fast way would be to strike down the girls body.
Mystic; No way.
Nezuna; Or the soul transference charm.
Mystic; A charm. Ok how does it go?
Nezuna; I don’t know.
Mystic; That is really helpful you know that!
Nezuna; Would you stop screaming!? The charm is in the Book of Merlin.
Mystic; The Book of Merlin. I hate to break it to you honey, but you gonna be trapped in that body for a while cause, the book of Merlin is the most heavily guarded spell book in the world. And Im not killing the girl.
[Mystic sat down in a chair the girl’s face was turning red. Then like some one had stuck a bull horn in her hand.]
Nezuna; Ryosei Yuri Kormatsu!!!!!! You get my soul back in my body or I will follow you around for the rest of your life!!!!!!

[Mystic was up against the wall so far. Her threat was way below the belt. Ten minuets later we went to the computer room and ran a search on the book of Merlin. It was some where in Maine, it wasn’t far from here. I think Mystic must have promised Hanna something good cause soon we were in the car with them. The girl just wouldn’t shut up. The book was put on display under heavy guard at a museum. It cost us each thirty bucks to get in. When we got in we observed everything around us. All defense mechanisms, human guards and alarm systems. The book of Merlin was very old and Mystic was looking on it as a thing a of beauty. They also had several other spell books under guard, but they weren’t as guarded as the Merlin. We left once it closed and we made our plan. I would sneak in through the vents and disarm the alarms. They would break in after my signal and find a way to disarm the defense mechanism. Hanna would levitate every thing precisely and get the book. We would turn every thing back on before we left and that would be it. How ever no matter how well you plan these things they never work out like that. So I went in through the vents into the control room. There was a guard and he was sleeping. I crept behind him and used a tranquilizer to ensure that he stayed asleep. I disarmed the alarms and went through the door with the guards keys. I unlocked the front door and let the others in. Nezuna was staying out side. The arming system for the lasers was on the other side of the room. Hanna tried mirrors, but these were real ones as we soon found out. It melted right through. I saw Mystic look around. He jumped up to one of the vents and climbed in and came out on the other side. He turned off the lasers and we advanced to the book case. It had heat sensors so we had to do every thing very carefully. Hanna lifted the case and gave it to me. Then the book......]
Nezuna; HI!
[She jumped and the book fell back onto the pedestal. The alarms went and some of the lasers started shooting. Hanna grabbed the book and put back the glass and we ran dodging the lasers. Nezuna got hit in the arm with a laser as we ran out of the building. We jumped in the car and raced off.]
Mystic; Are you crazy Nezuna!? I told you to stay out side! You could have gotten your self killed!
[She was just holding her arm and crying silently. I saw the anger melt away from his face. He sighed and took her arm and started taking care of it.]
Nezuna; Im sorry.
Mystic; Its ok. The important thing is you weren’t seriously hurt and we got the book.
[I don’t think he had realized what he said. He hardly said nice things to his team mates let alone to some one like Nezuna. He finished wrapping her arm.]
Nezuna; Thank you.
Mystic; Don’t mention it.
[He was staring out the window and she was staring at him. If I didn’t know any better I’d say they had a thing for each other. But to voice that to any one would kill me. We made it back to the base with no cops. We went to the rec-room. Mystic was looking and handling the book like it was a priceless treasure.]
Nathan; So what’s so special about this book?
[He looked at me as if I had insulted God.]
Mystic; This book contains the most powerful spells, charms, curses and counter curses. Both of the dark and the good side. It was put under such guard because every time some owned it horrible things happened. Like when Atlantis disappeared into the ocean. Or when the mountain erupted in Pompeii. You name it.
Hanna; Whoa.
[He opened it and he flipped the pages. He seemed to get more concerned.]
Mystic; These are all extremely difficult spells.

[He finally found the page with the soul transference charm. He went to his room and came back with a sort of long thin wooden stick.]
Mystic; It’s a wand.
[He shook his head. And read.]
Mystic; Ok you need to hold the sword Nezuna.
[He gave it to her. He raised his wand and pointed it at her. He read from the book.]
Mystic; Duelyth mar enar ubler en tect me sul eca in ution vere!
[he waved his wand and a bright light like a flash of lightening filled the room. Nezuna’s body glowed white and I saw something wispy come from her mouth and enter the sword. Then the light disappeared. Nezuna’s old body was on the floor. Her eyes no longer big and grey, but normal and brown. Mystic picked up the girl and put her on the couch. Then he picked up his sword, it was sort of luminescing.]
Nezuna; Your hands are cold.
[He dropped the sword with a clatter.]
Nezuna; Ow.
[Her voice was different. More mature. He picked her up again.]
Mystic; This is so weird.
Nezuna; Not really. If you liked me before I was in my body you’ll love me now. I am the great source of power in your sword. Strong enough to part water and demolish buildings as your father said.
Hanna; That’s so awesome.
Nezuna; Thank you.
Hanna; You seem different.
Nezuna; Yes well, being trapped in a teenagers body is a bit agitating. Im rather tired can you put me in my sheath?
Mystic; Sure.
[He brought her back to his room.]
Nathan; That was pretty cool. What about the girl, she’s supposed to be in Japan?
Hanna; Im not sure. We have to wait until she wakes up.
[Mystic came back and I was looking at his wand. He snatched it away.]
Mystic; That’s not a toy.
[He stuck it behind his ear like a pencil and opened up the book again. It was like it was some sort of novel he was waiting to finish. Most of it was gibberish I couldn’t understand. It fascinated him and Hanna was watching him with extreme care. The girl started to wake. She sat up and rubbed her head.]

Hanna; How are you feeling?
[She was startled. She spoke in Japanese. Hanna lapsed into it as well and I was completely lost. So I’ll hand this over to Hanna.]

[Hey. That girls just woke up and now Im trying to get some thing out of her. I’ll translate for you.]
Hanna; Its ok. Your in no danger. What’s your name?
Mayuko; Mayuko Atsushi. Who are you?
Hanna; My name is Hanako Benghal. Can you tell me where you remember you were before you blacked out?
Mayuko; I was in Mushiyori city.
Hanna; Ok, now don’t be alarmed, but your in New York, in America.
Mayuko; Oh my. How did I get here?
Mystic; We’re not sure.
[He had finally closed that book.]
Mayuko; You....you are Ryosei if I am not mistaken.
Mystic; No your not. How did you know my name?
Mayuko; I believe I saw you and her engaged in quite a sword fight in the woods. I asked a woman in the abandoned village and she told me your name.
Mystic; I see.
Mayuko; How can I get back to Japan? I have no money.
Hanna; We’ll take care of that. Don’t worry.
[Nathan was extremely confused so he just sat back and observed us. She was hungry so I cooked her some Ramen. It was the closest thing we had to Japanese food. Mystic tried to make small talk.]
Mystic; You like sword fighting?
Mayuko; Very much. My father is a sensei in Tokyo.
Mystic; No kidding. Hey Hanna. Her father is master Atsushi.
Hanna; No way.
Mayuko; You know him?
Hanna; He taught us both swordsmanship. We are his most decorated students.
Mayuko; So your Mental and Mystic? It is quite an honor. My father speaks very highly of you both. He says Im as almost as good as you, but I still have a bit of training.
[Mystic was taking quite an interest in her. Did I see some thing developing here?]

Mayuko; The last place I went was a sort of cellar place and it was full of swords and this empty chest. I felt some sort of presence there and I felt as if it left with me when I climbed out. Her name was Nezuna I think.
[We eventually did tell her the story and she believed it all. I was surprised. I also found it strange that I could trust her just like that. If worst came to worst I would just erase her memory.]
Mayuko; What is this place? It looks like some sort of base.
Mystic; It sort of is.
Hanna; We’re like the unofficial police force.
Mayuko; I see. You both are very distinct in aura. You have powers yes?
Mystic; Yeah. We do.
[It surprised us how much this girl knew of us and we had just met. We decided to give her a room for the night. She was still getting used to the place. I found her in the training room. She looked as if all her dreams had come true.]
Hanna; You like our training room?
Mayuko; I love it. I like swordsmanship, but martial arts is my thing. Im a fourth degree black belt.
Hanna; Awesome. You want to spar?
[We got into the ring. Her rank preceded her. We battled for over an hour and I ended up winning. She was a norm but I had a good feeling about her, She was very skillful and almost seemed like she wasn’t normal. She knew some English so I gave her some practice and told her to speak as such.]
Mayuko; You all Japanese?
Hanna; No. My father was an African.
Mayuko; What is this place called?
Hanna; This is the UWPA Its our job to help the people around here when the cops don’t.
Mayuko; I see. You all have special power?
Hanna; All of us.
Mayuko; You like psychic right?
Hanna; Right.
Mayuko; Ryosei magic and Nathan sneaky.
Hanna; That’s right. I’ll be right back.
[She was working on the bag. Mystic was waiting for me outside the door.]
Hanna; She’s an exceptional fighter. Nearly as good as you.
Mystic; Nearly as good as me? I doubt that.
Hanna; That was a little arrogant.
Mystic; She’s a norm.

Hanna; Derek was a norm before our mission together. Come on. You need to give her a chance.
Mystic; I don’t need to give her anything.
Hanna; You will, or it will be your ass. Just keep an open mind, it might be good to have a norm on the team.
[I walked away from him. He seemed ticked off at her for some reason. I went into the rec-room and found Nathan reading.]
Nathan; Hey. How’d it go?
Hanna; She’s excellent. Almost as good as Mystic, and I guarantee you he will try to fight her before the day is through.
Nathan; He doesn’t like her or some thing?
Hanna; He’s a little threatened by her.
Nathan; Why on earth would he be threatened by her, she’s a norm?
Hanna; That’s why, she’s very powerful for norm and I guess he doesn’t like it
Nathan; What’s her name?
[I forgot he couldn’t understand us when we were talking.]
Hanna; Her name is Mayuko, her father was our old sensei.
Nathan; Your what?
Hanna; It’s Japanese for master.
Nathan; So how are we going to get her back home?
Hanna; Im not sure. Its gonna take some money for that. I don’t even know how Nezuna got her here. Hell I don’t even know how Nezuna got in Mayuko and why she chose her.
[We gave her a room for the night Mystic still wasn’t happy. He really didn’t seem to like her. She was I guess my age. She might have been a bit older. The next day a few others started to arrive. First it was Nina and Brock.]
Nina; Hey guys! How was your vacation?
Hanna; It was..... interesting. You two?
Brock; It was pretty sweet. I haven’t had a Christmas like that in seven years.
[Mayuko came in. She stopped short and bowed in greeting.]
Nina; Who is this?
Mayuko; Watashi wa Mayuko.
Hanna; Her names Mayuko and forgive her she speaks in broken English.
Nina; Hi Im Nina.
[She held out her hand and Mayuko shook it.]
Mayuko; Please to meet you.
Nina; And this is Brock.

[She indicated to him behind her.]
Brock; Hi,
Mayuko; Hello.
Nina; So what are you here for?
Mayuko; I was brought here by odd force in sword.
[She looked at me one of her eye brows raised.]
Hanna; I’ll tell you later.
[They went and unpacked and then came back into the rec-room. Arturo arrived next.]
Nina; Felice navi da.
Arturo; Gracias.
[he seemed in a bad mood.]
Nathan; What’s up?
[He started shouting in Spanish and he stormed to his room.]
Nathan; What did he say?
Nina; He said he had a lousy Christmas and his sisters son of a bitch boy friend got her pregnant and was beating her when he got in. Then he kicked his ass and called the cops.
Nathan; Damn. I’d better go check on him.
[He got up and went to see him. It wasn’t very joyous in the base. But once every one was back we’d have a little Christmas of our own. We would open presents and have a better time. Maria came back next, she was extremely miserable. I went to go see her.]
Hanna; Maria? You ok?
[I went into her room. She was lying on her bed with her hands over her eyes.]
Maria; No, Im not.
Hanna; What’s wrong?
Maria; I saw my gynaecologist.
Hanna; Oh crap.
Maria; You bet oh crap. What am I going to do? What do I tell Derek?
Hanna; What does Derek have to do with this..... oh... god. You didn’t.
Maria; This is very screwed up. Of corse not the other twelve times, but this one, it had to be this one. The poor guy.
Hanna; Talk about, but what about you?
Maria; I’ll be fine, after the.... never mind.
[She turned away.]
Hanna; The what?

Maria; After the last one.
Hanna; The last one?
Maria; It was a miscarriage alright!
Hanna; For Christ sake stop sleeping with all these guys! The year you go with out is the year I stop drinking!
Maria; Then prepare to stop drinking!
Hanna; Like this is going to stop you.
Maria; Yes it is. Im going to be abstinent at least until this baby is born.
Hanna; Alright, I believe you.
Maria; What do you think Derek’s going to do when I tell him?
Hanna; Have a swooning fit.
[I got up and went back to the rec-room, before that though.]
Maria; Not a word or I’ll fry you.
Hanna; I’ll keep that in mind.
[I sat down on the couch and a few minutes later Derek came in. He had a good Christmas, but he was about to be brought back to misery in a very unpleasant way. he unpacked and sat in the rec-room. We introduced every one to Mayuko. Maria came in and she asked to see Derek. He went out in the hall with her. There was silence then.]
Derek; Pregnant!!!
[There was a thump as I heard him pass out. I couldn’t help, but smile. Every one was stunned they looked at me.]
Nina; You knew about this?
[I nodded.]
Brock; And you didn’t tell us!
[I got up and went into the hall. He was still out cold, man the shock was just too much for him. Hoisted him to his feet and he started to wake up. Once he was awake again he had regained his Amish habits. He didn’t make eye contact with her and he stared at the floor. I left them alone. I passed by his room that night and I swear he said nearly fifty Hail Mary’s. The next morning, Raven and Rose came back. As did Bobby and finally the whole gang was here. The doc and Flex came in later that day. The underneath of the tree was piled with presents. Along with this was Flex and Doc’s gift our first pay checks. The newbs opened their envelopes and their jaws dropped. We got paid very well indeed. The average agent got paid twenty five grand every three months. Me and Mystic got paid thirty five however. Nathan was troubled by some thing. He closed the envelope his brow creased and his face kind of slack. I sat next to him.]

Hanna; What’s up?
Nathan; I have no use for this kind of money.
Hanna; What do you mean?
Nathan; In Nappanee we don’t even have a millionth of this money. No one does.
[Derek seemed to be having the same problem]
Hanna; Well you can do other things with it, than buying possessions.
Nathan; Like what?
Hanna; Charity?
Nathan; What oh.
[He almost thought I was talking about his sister, he liked the idea. He pocketed the envelope and every one was around the Christmas tree. The doc and Flex among us. ]
Doc; Welcome back to Christmas revised. Well, have at it.
[Every one ran at theirs except me, Mystic and the two Amish boys who never had presents on Christmas. After they got their presents we went in. Nathan and Derek were still confused. I grabbed their presents and gave them to them. They looked at each other and shrugged and opened the presents. I opened one from Maria, it was some perfume. Bobby some toffee made from a woman in Lafayette , Nina a sweater, Brock a porcelain figurine, Raven and Rose a pretty wind chime, Arturo a bottle of imported tequila, the doc and Flex got me a brand new gun. Mystic gave me his present and I gave him mine. I opened it and was stunned. It was a pink diamond anklet. This would have cost a fortune. I knew he would love mine as much as I loved his. He unwrapped it and he was utterly stunned. It was the Legerdemain Chronicles, an extremely rare magic book, with nearly ten thousand spells and enchantments. He immediately opened it and flipped through the pages. Bobby went around dangling a mistle toe over guys so the girls could kiss them. I kissed Nathan. When he did it to Mystic, Mayuko kissed him on the cheek and he jumped so bad he fell back out of his chair. She laughed as did every one else. When he was the last one left he got a kiss on the cheek from every girl. But by far the best was when Flex kissed the doc. After we all had our presents Flex uncovered the small piano in the corner.]
Flex; Hanna, would you grace us with your lovely voice?
Hanna; I don’t.....

[They all started begging me to play and sing. I got up and sat at the piano. They all got close to listen. I played Away in a Manger and sang beautifully. Then I did one that every one could sing like Deck the Halls. Then I did Joy to the World and finally for Arturo and Nina I sang Felice navi da. He grabbed Nina’s hand and they started doing a Latino dance. It was very amusing. They all got some egg nog and cookies as I went on playing and singing what ever popped into my head. I sang for my last song one of my favorites. It was in Japanese and Mystic and Mayuko listened with rapt attention. They loved it. It was twelve when people started going to bed. When only a few of us were left I started cleaning up the wrapping paper and ribbons. Me ,Mystic and Mayuko were the only ones left. The fire place was blazing pleasantly and the tree ornaments dazzled in the light. After I cleaned up I sat down. I had on the anklet Mystic gave me.]
Hanna; Thank you for the anklet. It must have cost a lot.
Mystic; Not nearly as much as your gift. Where did you get this?
Hanna; I have my sources.
[Mayuko was at the piano and she was playing softly.
Hanna; What about you? Pink diamonds are very rare.
Mystic; Where else, but our home land? Japan does have every thing.
Hanna; Good point.
[We sat in silence the music was soft in our ears and it was lulling me to sleep, in fact I fell asleep on the couch next to Mystic. I woke up and Mystic must have fallen asleep too, I was leaning against his chest. I looked up and Nathan was staring at me. It took me a while to realize what he must be thinking. Mystic was still asleep so I got up carefully, he was still looking at me that way. I point to the hall and we go there.]
Hanna; Look its not what you think.
Nathan; Then what is it?
Hanna; I just fell asleep on the couch.
Nathan; On his chest?
Hanna; I must have turned over in my sleep come on. You know I wouldn’t...
Nathan; No I really don’t.
Hanna; And what made you think that?
[I folded my arms across my chest.]
Nathan; I don’t know... uhhhhhhh the fact that you slept with him and lord knows what you did when you two were in Japan.
Hanna; So, you and I slept together?
[he closed his eyes as if he was regretting it.]
Nathan; Once. And who knows how many times you did with him.
Hanna; Your starting to sound like your father,
[he muttered.]

Nathan; Who ever said he was wrong?
[I slapped him across the face.]
Hanna; Nathaniel Christopher Johnson. You know good and well Im not that kind of person, I have mistaken love and done things I regret, but I don’t just sleep with any guy.
[I turn on my heel and march to my room. He had really crossed the line, he had taken some thing as innocent as falling asleep and turned it into some thing hellish. He was beginning to act like his father. I was pretty sure he was just jealous of the gifts me and Mystic exchanged, but he of all people should know that the gifts don’t matter, its what’s meant behind them. And although I knew Mystic’s intentions, mine weren’t like that, he should no better. It was boring in my room, I was croaking in two months I wasn’t going to spend it in my room. I got up and went to the training room. I worked out like I never had before. It was strange being forewarned about my death. It was like being told I had cancer or a disease and I had to live out my time wisely. I just remembered the date then. Tomorrow was Bobby’s birthday. I had to think of some place we could take him, but where.]

[Hola. Is me Speedy. I was awake when I heard Hanako and Nathan talking. Yelling’s more like it. And I heard that smack she gave him after he practically called her a slut. I usually side with Home’s but he was so wrong for that. But he help me out so I help him out. He was sitting in the rec-room alone and I went in. He’s cheek was a crimson red where she had slapped him. I went and sat next to him.]
Arturo; Hey Homes.
Nathan; Hey Speedy.
Arturo; I heard what happen. Hell Im surprised the whole base didn’t here dat.
Nathan; Great. I can’t believe she’d do this again.
Arturo; Yeah I know what you mean.
Nathan; She just had to go there again.
Arturo; Yes, how dare she fall asleep on the couch next to Mystic.
Nathan; You know that’s a load of bull.
Arturo; Yeah, why else would she be fully clothed asleep on the couch in a sitting position if she didn’t sleep with him.
[he was blushing.]
Arturo; And how dare she slap you on the face for accusing her wrongly and calling her a Jezebel.

Nathan; I didn’t....
Arturo; You might as well have.
Nathan; Your supposed to take my side.
Arturo; Uh, uh. Not when your wrong, you know you over reacted, but why?
[He didn’t answer me. ]
Arturo; Perhaps you were envious.
Nathan; Of what, that long haired wand waving ba....
Arturo; Don’t you say it. Dat just proves you are, sinking to the level of name calling behind his back.
Nathan; What are you my shrink?
Arturo; No, I feel like your baby sitter cause dat’s what you are acting like. A big baby. You are jealous because of the gift she got from him aren’t you? You wanted to do better tdan him.
[I took his silence as a sit.]
Arturo; Ok so what are you gonna do?
Nathan; I don’t know. I royally screwed up, but its almost like she likes him more than me.
Arturo; Den why did she choose you when she could of had him?
[I had made my point. I got up and went to the training room. He was on his own for the rest. Then I saw some thing that would make his day.]

[Hey its Mystic. It was the morning and I was headed to the training room. Hanna and Arturo were just coming out. I went in and low and behold one of my least favorite people were in it. Mayuko, I don’t know why, but she always got me ticked off. I went in reluctantly. I picked up a set of weights. She was working on the bag and I have to say she was pretty good, but I think Hanna was off when she said she was better than me. I had gotten my muscles warmed up and she stopped to take a water break. She was almost dressed like Maria. Her shirt was tight and very low cut, her breast clinging pleasantly to her shirt. I went back to my weights and she walked over to me. She spoke in Japanese since it was easier for her. ]
Mayuko; You want to have a match?
[I thought for a second, ya this would be a good time to test her and prove Hanna wrong.]
Mystic; Sure. Lets see what you got.

[I put down the weights and we got in the ring. I could tell she was into martial arts by her stance. We bowed and she struck faster than a viper. She had my arm behind my back and my face on the ground in a second flat. I had no clue she was that good. I slipped out and pinned her down in my place. She got loose with a very clever move. She tripped me with her feet and turned out of the hold. We were both on our feet. She took a swing at me and she missed. I swung and she caught my fist and flipped me over. I hit the ground hard on my back and had the wind knocked ot of me. I coughed a few times and got quickly back to my feet. She dropped down low and swung her foot around to trip me and I jumped, but she did a 360 and tripped me any way. I jumped back and aimed a nice kick to her side. She tumbled a bit and then skidded back into position. She rushed me like she was going to body check me and at the last minute she ducked and hit my legs. I fell face first onto the floor and tasted some blood in my mouth. I turned over and got up and she pinned my hands and legs to the mat. Her body was real close and she had a grin on her face and her eyes played a game with my head. A bead of sweat trickled in between her breasts and I swallowed hard, the last time I was like this was the first time Hanna beat me in a match. I glanced side ways and Arturo was looking through the window and he left perhaps to tell some one. I tried to get up, but she wouldn’t allow it.]
Mystic; Would you get off?
Mayuko; Why don’t you like me?
Mystic; I...... Uhhh.
[Her eyes were seducing me to improper speech. She was so sexy, The reason I didn’t like her before was because she reminded me of that annoying sword. She wasn’t at all like that, she was more like Hanna than any thing.]
Mystic; Who said I didn’t like you?
Mayuko; I just assumed the way you were acting towards me. Or perhaps you treat all your friends like that.

[I was suddenly ashamed of the way I had treated her, She got off of me and went to get her water bottle. I got up, she had really done a number on me, I was very sore. I got up and got my self some water. I couldn’t help but peek at her while she dried off. I left the training room and sat in the rec-room. Arturo was smiling at my and I gave him a withering look. I would have said some thing but every one else was there. I merely sat down. Arturo must not have told any one since no one looked at me twice. Then Mayuko came in still in her clingy ,busty top. I saw Bobby looking at her and it made me hate him more. But why. She meant nothing to me, right? She sat near me. She was just teasing me...I guess. The doc and Flex had no objections to her staying, she had already shown them her skills when Hanna decided to have her do the test for fun. Ten seconds away from Hanna’s record. A norm had beaten me. I just couldn’t believe it until I fought her. And so it soon became, Mayuko was one of us, her code name Norma. Given because she was ordinary. The next day we all went out on the town to celebrate Bobby’s eighteenth birthday. We took him three places. First for a big dinner, then to a club and then Maria got him into place I had never heard of, but he came out his face hot and his eyes wide, so it must have been a flesh bar. After that we went back to the base. It was about two when we got back. He was extremely happy when Mayuko danced with him that night, it made me mad. A few weeks passed and we did nothing but train, Bio-tech was being quiet lately, a bit too quiet they were planning some thing. Mayuko seemed to have been training to be a spy more than any thing. She was as well as a great fighter a master of disguise. So at the beginning of February we went on a mission with her. It was me, Hanna, Nina, Nathan and her. In one of her disguises she managed to get a card key for one of the Bio-tech plants. We snuck in and she ditched the disguise. After two doors the card key was useless and we had to hack into the system. It was time consuming, but we got it open quickly enough. We found a filing room and Hanna picked the lock. The files were manly on the agents they had. But there was an entire drawer on Hanna. Her profile, her life story, her powers, and every plan they had to get their hands on her. But in the back was a folder marked Prisoner 406. She took it out and opened it. She dropped in on the floor. It was her brother in the picture. He was in mug shot form and he looked rather beaten up.]
Nathan; Whose that?
Hanna; That’s my brother.
[She picked it up again and read.]
Hanna; They captured him in November, We got to find him.
[Just then their red alert button went off.]
Voice; Red alert! Red alert! UWPA agents in the area! Man your battle stations!
Mystic; Crap we got to leave!
Hanna; But...
Mystic; We’ll come back for him, now we got to move or we’ll be cornered.

[We left the room and ran as fast as we could. The doors were closing on us and we had to beat them. People started shooting at us and we dodged the best we could. I felt the piercing sting of a bullet as it entered my arm right into my bone. I felt it shatter under my flesh. I still kept on running. We made it out and Mayuko stopped for a second with Hanna. There was an army pursuing us and they both threw grenades and ran. We jumped behind the fence and ducked for cover. There was a huge boom and many yells. My arm was gushing from the wound in my arm and it hung useless at my side.]
Hanna; Is every one alright?
Mystic; I got hit.
[She came around and took my right arm, it seized with pain.]
Hanna; Its shattered, lets get back to the base.
[We get back and I go to the infirmary. It was a lot worse than I thought. Flex was having trouble so she called in for Hanna. The doc was busy with some thing else. This was just agony. They had used some sort of glass bullet so when it hit my bone it not only shattered, but the bullet did also. Hanna was holding the wound open while Flex was taking out the shards. I was clinching my fist so hard my nails were digging into my palm. After they got all the pieces they put down the forceps and I sighed.]
Flex; Don’t get too comfortable, we still have to reline your bone and splint it.
[I moaned and fell back on the gurney. That was horrible. Since the bone was shattered they had to use long needled and drills to put it back in place. They wrapped it up and put it in a cast. Derek was only just getting used to his healing powers so he was only able to heal it partly, I was stuck in it for the rest of the month. I could hardly train at all and it really set me back. The doc was talking about letting Mayuko sub in my place. That made me feel repulsed, I wouldn’t let her replace me in any way. A few days passed and he asked her. I was listening in.]
Doc; Would you consider temporarily filling in for Mystic?
Mayuko; Oh. Uh thank you for the offer, but I would rather not.
Doc; Are you sure?
Mayuko; Yes, I just don’t think I would be suitable for the job.
Doc; Oh nonsense. You would be perfect.
Mayuko; That is nice of you, but I don’t think so.
Doc; Alright, but if you change your mind.
[They left each other. I was leaning against the door frame and she walked by me not noticing me.]
Mystic; So why didn’t you take the job?
[She started and turned.]
Mayuko; I didn’t see you there.
Mystic; So?
Mayuko; Its not my job. Its your job.

Mystic; Yeah, but Im out of commission remember? You could have easily replaced me.
Mayuko; I couldn’t replace you.
[She smiled at me and walked away. Did she mean that the way it sounded? I watched her as she walked away. Her long raven hair swaying as she walked. I shook my self mentally. I was falling for this girl and I didn’t want that to happen, not now. I sighed and went to the rec-room with the others. A week passed and we reach Valentines day. The girls played coy and the guys played dumb. That’s how it always was. I saw Hanna with some chocolate she had made. It was a Japanese tradition that when you gave a guy some chocolate you had made it meant you liked him and if he ate it all then that meant he like you back. She gave it to Nathan and he thanked her. He didn’t have a clue, but she kissed him and left. I went over and told him the meaning. He was surprised by this tradition, but I left him and he ate the chocolate. He in return gave her some flowers. Raven gave Rose a chocolate rose. Derek gave Maria some flowers also. Brock gave Nina a box of chocolates and Arturo and Bobby sat alone with there heads in hand. I just watched them , they were pathetic. I sat back with my arm in a sling. Mayuko came in and she made a slow bee line to me. She sat next to me and slipped some thing onto my lap with out looking at me. She seemed embarrassed. I looked down and it was a bar of chocolate. Oh crap, what was I supposed to do. She looked as embarrassed as I felt, but you know what I did. I opened it and ate every bite. When she realized it was gone she looked up at me and smiled her face still rosy. I smiled back at her. Hanna ruined it by putting her arms around our shoulders.]
Hanna; I there’s some fresh love in the atmosphere. Could it be you two?
[I really felt my face go red. I still had feelings for Hanna, but she was beyond my reach. I guess I was just having trouble letting go, so I said.]
Mystic; Maybe,
[Mayuko looked so pleased. Hanna smiled at me and she left to sit with Nathan. Maybe I could get used to this. The rest of the month passed by a lot easier now that I had a girl. My arm came out of the cast and I was better than ever. Nathan was getting very depressed and always seemed to be in dark mood. I didn’t know why, he had nothing to be sad about, so I thought.]


[I did and you all know why. Her time was running out and that’s when Biotech made their move. They sent a disk to us and Doc and Flex took us into the meeting room to watch it. They put it in and played it. It was the big guy who ran Biotech his name was Cyclo. According to Hanna they had fought and she had taken his hand in the battle. And so it was, he was missing a hand and it was replaced with a hook. ]
Cyclo; I am making this challenge specifically to Agent Mental. I will give you the chance and all of your little friends to come into my base for a battle. My agents against yours. No rules and no mercy. You will accept my challenge for I have little piece of insurance.
[They lowered a black man tide up on a hook. He was struggling, but he was recognizable as Hanna’s brother. She stood up and started at the screen her breathing fast. ]
Cyclo; Im sure this will be enough to get you here. Until later.
[The disk ends and she sits down hard in her chair.]
Hanna; That dirty bastard.
Doc; Who was the young man in the video?
Hanna; That was my brother, my half brother.
Flex; Oh dear.
Arturo; So what do we do?
Hanna; We go that’s what’s.
Doc; We can’t be hasty. What if its a trap?
Hanna; I don’t care! My brothers life is on the line!
Doc; Listen to me its too risky! We would be like flies in their web! You aren’t going and that is final!
Hanna; F@#&$ you doc! Im going and I dare you to try and stop me!
[She went for the door and all of us ran to try and stop her. We couldn’t hold her back so Derek pushed us aside and pinned her arms against her side and picked her up off of the ground. She was kicking him in the legs, but he wouldn’t let her go.]
Hanna; Don’t make me hurt you!
[he was starting to loose his nerve, hell any one would. ]
Hanna; Put me down or I will hurt you!
Doc; Don’t let her go!
[He came around the table and Flex ran to a drawer and pulled out one of those tranquilizer pins. Hanna stopped moving and her eyes glowed.]
Hanna; Im warning you. Let go before you get hurt.
[The power coming off of her was great and he let her go. She went for the door, but I grabbed her this time.]
Hanna; Let me go.

Nathan; No. Your not going to your death.
Hanna; If I can save my brother its worth it.
Nathan; Don’t go.
[She threw me off of her and she swung her head around at Flex and dismantled the syringe with her mind. The doc locked down the room and she was shaking with fury.]
Doc; You aren’t going any where! Calm down.
Hanna; I am going and you won’t stop me nor will your feeble attempts to keep me here.
[She raised her hand at the barred door and the metal creaked and bent and twisted. She screamed with strain and the door flew back and hit the wall on the other side of the wall. Her power went down and we all jumped her. She put up a barrier to block us, but Mystic broke through it and grabbed her. There was a great struggle, but Flex had another pen and got her in the neck before she threw us all off. She didn’t stand very long though. She soon collapsed to her knees and she gave us all a look of utter turmoil. She fell face forward on the ground unconscious. I carried her to a cell in the stockade and laid her on a bed. It was a very strong door that held her in. It was sure to keep her here. When she woke up she was ramming the door with all her might and it made the base shake. We ran to the stockade and there were nice big dent in the door. It wasn’t giving, so we didn’t worry. There was no way to talk to her, but she never gave up. Until it was night fall, she fell silent. I went to bed very worried. I just hoped we prevented her vision from coming true. But then as I lay down in bed there was a huge bang that shook the frame from my wall. We all ran from our room to her cell. There was a big dent in the door now and she ran screaming into the door and it flew off the hinges. ]

[I had never seen her this mad. Her eyes blazed with a fire only comparable to the flames of hell. Her chest was heaving and her psychic power surged through the room. Every one was watching her. She walked to the training room. No one dared to touch her. She loaded her self up with guns, then she went to her room and came out with her yumi and quiver, and her sword. Nathan tried to stop her, but a barrier separated them. She blasted through the front door and left running faster than a car. We all split into action, we dressed and grabbed all the weapons we could. The Doc and Flex finally showed up.]
Doc; Where are you going!?
Mystic; Hanna, broke out we’re going after her.

Flex; Oh my...
[We all jumped into the cars and raced after her. Speedy was running at our side as we gained on Hanna. We were driving by her side. I looked at the speedometer and we were going seventy. She looked at us.]
Hanna; Are you here to get me or to help me?
Mystic; Get you!
Hanna; Then you’ll have to catch me!
[She left the ground and took to the air. She was zooming across the sky as fast as her powers would carry her. We reached the base and she had already run in. We jumped out and went after her our weapons at ready. Hanna was waiting for us. I walked up to her.]
Mystic; Do you have a death wish?
Hanna; If you had a brother wouldn’t you save him?
[That was a good point.]
Mystic; That’s not fair.
Hanna; I know. So you going to help me or will I have to do this alone?
Mystic; Your never alone.
[We went with her. Every door was open, but we sent Nina ahead to check to see if the coast is clear. We finally reach one that was full to the brim with renderers. I slipped my sword from its sheath.]
Nezuna; A lot of them aren’t there?
Mystic; Yeah can you tell where their weak?
Nezuna; Uh.... the left back side. If you can get some one from behind you might be able to break them up.
Mystic; Alright.
[Every one was staring at me. I had told them the story, but I don’t think any of them thought it was true.]
Mystic; Well you heard her. Go.

[Nathan crept up on the ceiling and went stealthily to the back. He dropped very quietly behind them and he was packing an Uzi. He opened fire dropping at least twelve agents out of the fifty that were in there. They turned and exposed their backs. We rushed them and were taking them down like no one business. Maria was frying, Raven was slicing, Rose was cutting into them with her petals and Brock was freezing them with a mere gust from his mouth. Pretty soon they were all down and we advanced to the next room. The next two were empty, but traps galore. Arturo ran real fast down the next hall after Derek nearly got gutted by a blade jutting from the wall. He set them all off after he passed them up so we knew what to avoid. The next room had two hundred this time and we were noticed before we were able to devise a plan. So we ran into battle. Every one was using every thing they had, I was slashing and blasting every second of battle. Hanna was taking out twenty at a time with each blast she made. With two blades in his hand Arturo was a silent swift killer until he was plugged in the leg with a bullet. By the time we had killed them all, Raven was cut over his back, Arturo’s leg was bleeding, and Bobby was shot in the shoulder. We took care of them the best we could and pressed on. We are royally screwed when we come to a room with over a thousand of them.]
Mystic; Now what genius?
Hanna; Working on it. .... Ok. Rose that vine constrictor you have...
[Rose planted the silent killers and they all grew quickly on the walls and ceiling. They jumped from the walls and threw them selves on them like a thick net of vines. She killed off the roots and they die. ]
Hanna; Now!
[I cast a fire spell.]
Mystic; Ignitus Flamria!
[The vines catch fire and spread rapidly through the whole room. We wait as the screams reach our ears soon cease. The fires of my spell are hot enough to cremate. Soon there is nothing but ash. We walk across the land of burned flesh and bone to the next room. There is an army of renderers standing around their masters throne. Her brother hangs in the back bound and gagged.]
Hanna; Kelin!
[He tries to shout at her, but the gag muffles his voice.]
Cyclo; Welcome to the beginning of the end of your life. Attack!
[The renderer’s rush us and we go after them. My swordsmen ship is excellent. We are all kicking ass. Mayuko was advancing almost as fast as Hanna. But then they started to over come us. Still five hundred left. I saw Maria get shot in the shoulder and Bobby got a butt plate to the face. A renderer jumped up and shot at Nathan and Hanna took the bullet and blasted him down. I wasn’t sure where it hit her, but she was bleeding badly, but still fighting as if nothing happened. Finally having enough.]
Hanna; Get back!
[We all fell back and she made a barrier. She was charging up her body surging with power. Her hair and cloths floated up in the air like the laws of gravity didn’t apply. A blinding flash and a deep rumble and I shield my eyes. When I reopened them every renderer was dead on the floor and she was panting.]


[She was bleeding badly from the bullet she took for me. She had her eyes on Cyclo as did he on her. ]
Hanna; Get my brother I’ll deal with Cyclo.
[We went over to her bother and lowered him down and cut him free. She drew her sword and so did he. They were soon locked in a battle. There swords clanged together every five seconds. He slashed at her shoulder and missed and she stabbed him in the arm though meant for the chest. She removes her sword and he backs away and ran at her. They lock together and she throws him back and quickly slashes his chest. He is thrown to the ground. He picks up his head and takes out a control.]
Cyclo; If I die, you go down with me.
[he pressed the button.]
Voice; Self destruct in five minutes.
Hanna; Get out of here, I’ll be with you once I finish off Cyclo.
[They take her brother and start running. I wait and Cyclo gets up and rushes back into battle. Their swords make sparks as they connect again. She slashes at him, but misses and his bade sinks into her shoulder. She staggers back.]
Voice; Three minutes to self destruct.
Hanna; Get out of here!
Nathan; Not with out you!
Hanna; Im already dead you don’t need to die too!
Nathan; I don’t care I won’t leave you!
[She throws him back once more and she grabs my arm.]
Hanna; I have lived and done more than a seventy year old woman. I have loved and lost and loved again. I have loved you and I have no regrets.
[Se let me go and I could feel her power pushing me out the door.]
Hanna; Go. I’ll always be with you.
[I was pushed from the door and she closed it, but I was still being pushed to the exit. I was being dragged faster and faster. I was thrown from the building and the door closed. Mystic grabbed me and we ran, but he had to drag me also. He stopped when we were at a safe distance.]
Mystic; Where’s Hanna!?
Nathan; She’s still inside.
[..............]
Hanna; I have no regrets.

[She ran at Cyclo and lunged burying her sword in his heart. The explosion shook the earth they stood on.]
Mystic; No!!!
[A huge flash , a quake in the earth and the remains of the base are fire, debris and smoke. Mystic sunk to his knees, tears streaming down his cheeks and his mouth open in unbearable grief .he was on his hands and knees. He beat the ground with his fist. My grief is beyond words, beyond tears, beyond endurance. I stood there and empty shell feeling nothing, because every thing with meaning was drained from my body. Every one can’t hold back the tears and they consol each other even though they require it them selves. I feel Arturo’s hand on my shoulder and it all comes flooding in. I weep uncontrollably into his shoulder. Mystic an empty man on the ground being held by Mayuko. Its over, she’s gone and she won’t be coming back. I step away from Arturo and look over at Hanna’s brother. He seems devoid of all emotions good or bad. He doesn’t seem grieved at all. Mystic was suddenly furious. He walked up to him.]
Mystic; Well? Why don’t you grieve for your sister? She is dead! Do you even care?
Kelin; Why should I? She is no sister of mine! She is the little bitch that caused the death of my father and I will never forgive her!
Mystic; She died saving you, you heartless bastard!
[He punched him hard across the face and he hit the ground. Derek had to hold him back from beating the crap out of him. Kelin spits blood on the ground and gets up. I abhor him, I utterly loathe him with all of my being. The fire goes down and we search the ashes for any thing. We do not find her body, we do how ever find her sword buried in the bosom of Cyclo. Mystic takes it in his hand. It must be burning, but I doubt he feels any thing any more. That is all we find and we go back to the base. Nearly all of them are in the infirmary and a memorial has been put in her room with her sword in front of her picture. I spend most of my time there praying and crying. Mystic never came out of his room and all the others were trying to recover from physical wounds as well emotional ones. I was only shot once, but I wished it had been in my head instead of my leg. It was horrible not having her around, it was like I was the undead walking around like a zombie. Mystic only came from his room to eat and then he went back in. He didn’t work out he didn’t do any thing. It was about all I could bare. Two weeks passed and my pain was still present, but sort of covered up. The others were healing rapidly with Derek at their aid and I finally see Mystic leave the base.]


[I had never been so horribly grief-stricken in my life. I wished I would just die in my sleep and slip into a state of complete peace. I hadn’t been out of my room in two weeks. I decided to walk to at least get some sun. I walk down the streets of New York and walk into times square. I see many of those freaks trying to make money on fake things. I pass by a series of fortune tellers and they remind me of her and make my heart ache. One of them signals me out.]
Teller; You there! Yes you. Get your soul search for a mere dollar.
Mystic; Yeah right.
Teller; What could it hurt? You’ve already lost every thing, what’s a dollar?
[How did she.... I walk towards her and sit in front of her. She takes my hand and looks into my eyes. I can’t see her face for the hood she wears.]
Teller; You have lost some one dear very recently. It was a great tragedy with many deaths and wounded friends. Your mind and heart are empty, but your soul is still filled with sorrow.
[How does she know all this?]
Teller; You are not that of norm. I see a strange magic with in you, so I will tell you your fortune. Despair not for you will soon be reunited with one you love.
Mystic; How long?
Teller; Sooner than you think.
Mystic; Gee that sounds nice.
[I throw down my dollar and start to walk away.]
Teller; You know that’s not what I mean.
[I turn and she lowers her hood. She is a middle aged woman with stunning blue eyes. Like chipped ice.]
Teller; The stars speak to me. My friend will be waiting for you at your friends favorite place.
Mystic; What kind of fortune teller are you?
Teller; Im not a fortune teller. Im a seer, I search souls like some one else you know.

[God this is creeping me out. I looked back and then back at her and she’s gone, even her stand is gone. A shiver runs down my spine and I keep on walking. Could she be right? Could Hanna still be alive? there was no way. If she was alive she would have come back to us. But maybe she was too hurt to come back. What if she was really hurt? What if she was seeking help at this very moment? She is alive, I can feel it. I start walking to Ersatz Heights . Her favorite place. You might think I am in denial, but I can feel these’s things. She was alive I just knew it. I made it there and there wasn’t a soul. Was that old woman just leading me on? And I was fool enough to believe her. I sigh with grief and lean on the rail. I look upon the city. I always remember her saying how she like the real stars so much better,]
Seer; Tis be you Im lookin for?
[I jump as another cloaked woman appears right behind me. I turn and she has eyes like the other lady except they are green. Her hair is a deep red and her accent is Irish.]
Seer; Well boyo speak up?
Mystic; I think so.
Seer; Ah you think so? Well that’s good enough for me. Ye be lookin for some thing, no? Yes? Come on boyo. I need an answer?
Mystic; Yes! Alright yes!
Seer; Much better. Lets see if I can find her.
[She takes my chin in her hand and looks into my eyes from every angle. She releases me and take out what I guess is a compass. But when she takes it out it spends uncontrollably.]
Seer; Blasted thing!
[She bangs it on her palm and it stopped. She clicked a button on the side and it opened up. It had a small amount of green powder in it. She poured it in her palm and threw it off of the heights. It became as thick as smoke and formed the shape of a dragon and then blew away in the wind.]
Seer; Ah so it’s the dragon is it? Hmm.
Mystic; Excuse me, but what the hell is this!?
Seer; Keep your shirt on boyo! Its me compass it says ye must go to the place of disaster. Do ye know where that be?
Mystic; Yeah. Thanks.

[I start running the next thing I know, why am I running? Why do I believe any thing these women say? It’s a gut instinct, she’s alive, she’s just got to be. Once I reach the site of the explosion I stop to catch my breath. All I see is dirt and rubble, no Hanna and no other cloaked women. Im not giving up. I search the rubble very thoroughly. It is getting late once I finish and its very cold, my back hurts and Im lower than ever. It felt like I had lost her all over again. I sat down and huddled together. It was beginning to snow. I sat down on a piece of concrete next to the trees and sighed. I was lost in thought and brought back by a gentle humming noise. It was faint and far away. I wandered through the trees searching for the source. It was getting louder and sweeter with every step I took. I reach a big oak and it was coming from behind it. I walk around and Hanna is standing humming against the tree. She is a right mess, her face covered in blood and burns and she was covered in a cloak.]
Mystic; Hanna?
Hanna; Hey. Long time no see.
Mystic; Where the hell have you been!? We all thought you were dead?
[She didn’t reply.]
Mystic; Lets go back to the base.
Hanna; Wait I need you to get some thing for me first.
Mystic; What?
[She limped in front of me and led me back to the rubble. She pointed out her yumi on the ground it was still whole and in tact.]
Hanna; Your father did fine work.
[I picked it up and slung it over my shoulder. And she limped leading the way.]
Mystic; Are you alright? Do you want me to carry you?
Hanna; Its not necessary.
[We walk back to the base. Im really pissed that she just let us think she was dead, but I was also very happy that she was alive. We make it back to the base and I open the door and we both walk in. The first person we see is Arturo.]
Arturo; Hey man where were you?
Mystic; Getting Hanna.
Arturo; Huh?
[I pointed to her wondering how he could miss her.]
Arturo; What are you pointing at?
Mystic; Hanna. She’s right here.
[he backed away a bit.]
Arturo; Maybe you should go see Flex or some thing, man. Your starting to creep me out.
Mystic; What?
Hanna; He can’t see me.
[I turn to her.]
Mystic; What do you mean he can’t see you? Your right there.
Hanna; In a sense, Only you can see me.
[She walked over to Arturo and waved her hand in front of his face. He didn’t even blink, he was just staring at me with a “your crazy” expression.]
Arturo; Ok now your talking to your self. I know you miss her man, but dat’s a little over the top don’t you tink. You really should see Flex.
[He shook his head and walked away.]
Mystic; I must be out of my mind. Im seeing things.

Hanna; Nope. Im right here like you said.
Mystic; Then how come he can’t see you?
Hanna; I’ve been dead for two weeks Mystic. Im gone my body is no longer here, but my soul lingers. And only the ones who love me can see me.
Mystic; Only the.... wait... Nathan!
[I try to grab her and she is lighter than air and I drag her to her room. I open the door and sure enough there is Nathan kneeling in front of the memorial we made.]
Hanna; Aw! You know how much I hate that picture.
[Nathan stood up and looked over his shoulder his eyes wide.]
Nathan; Oh my god! Han....
[I cover his mouth and close the door. ]
Mystic; Be quiet.
Nathan; I don’t believe it. Your alive.
Mystic; She’s not.
Nathan; But...
Hanna; He’s right. I’ve been dead for two weeks. You two are the only ones who can see me.
Nathan; Oh man. Are you a ghost? An angel? What?
Hanna; Neither. I am a bodyless soul hovering between this world and the next.
Nathan; But why did you come back?
Hanna; I was sent to purgatory and people there are allowed to move between the worlds. There are a lot of complicated rules for this. You two can also see me because of some psychic awareness you have and you love me. Only a mix between the two can you see me. That’s why people who see the dead are so rare.
[It was so surreal, here she was no more than a soul and I could touch and talk to her.]
Nathan; But then why... what. Im confused.
[He sat on the bed. She limped up to him and touched his face. It went straight through. He shivered.]
Hanna; What did you feel?
Nathan; Cold, very cold.
Hanna; I came back for unfinished business.
Mystic; Like what?
Hanna; Im not sure. He just said I’d know.
Nathan; He?
Hanna; You know, the big guy, the great I am, Alpha and Omega.

Nathan; You talked to god.
[He was in complete awe. Well the way he was raised Im not surprised. The closest he ever got to god was a prayer. He was looking at her like she was an angel. And hell maybe she just might be. We were the only ones who could see her, but she chose to follow me. I went back to the rec-room.]
Arturo; Hey man. You feeling better.
Mystic; Yeah Im fine.
Arturo; Good, you were starting to scare me man.
[Hanna walked right through him and he shivered.]
Arturo; Is cold in here.
[I went and sat down in a chair and she sat in the one next to me.]
Hanna; I forgot to mention. In order to keep me in this world I must be tide down to an object. In this case my yumi.
[I still had it on my shoulder. No wonder she was following me.]
Mystic; Oh. I get it.
[I spoke low so no one would think I was talking to my self. Mayuko saw me and walked towards me, but she froze when she got close. She looked in the chair next to me. She eyed it and then walked and swept her hand over Hanna and shivered.]
Mystic; What are you doing?
Mayuko; I think.... Hanna’s in that chair.
Mystic; Can you see her?
Mayuko; No, but I can feel her.
Hanna; Awesome this girls got some psychic in her.
Mystic; Well you’d be right. I went back to the site and she’s been following me ever sense.
[Hanna chuckled.]
Mayuko; Are you serious?
Mystic; Yep.
Mayuko; Wow. How do I know where she is?
Mystic; Uh...
[She got up and walked over to her.]
Hanna; She can’t hear me or see me, but she can feel me. I wonder.
[She grabbed Mayuko’s hand and shook it. Mayuko was looking at her hand with terrified eyes and she snatched it away.]
Mayuko; She really is here. Oh god.....
[She was fixing to have a fit or some thing. I stood up and took her hand.]

Mystic; Mayu its ok. Just sit down ok. Calm down.
[She took a deep breath and sat down.]
Mayuko; Its just so weird to have some one around you that you can’t see, but you can feel *gulp* and touch.
Mystic; I know, but she’s not going to do any thing to you, this is Hanna remember.
[That calmed her down. Hanna was watching me with a pitiful look on her face.]
Mayuko; How come you can see her?
Mystic; Uh.... that’s not important really.
Mayuko; Are you the only one who can see her?
Mystic; No Nathan can see her too.
[Maybe I shouldn’t have answered that question. Hanna was still giving me this disapproving look. Later I went to my room and she had to follow me.]
Hanna; Your not supposed to see me.
[I look at her.]
Mystic; Why not?
Hanna; Do you love Mayuko?
Mystic; Please don’t,....
[I turn and occupy my self with some thing.]
Hanna; Answer me.
Mystic; Yes, ok yes.
Hanna; Then you need to let go.
Mystic; I can’t.
Hanna; Why not?
Mystic; I just can’t ok!?
Hanna; Im no longer living! You can see me, but you can’t feel me! I have no body and I can’t be a part of your lives any more!
Mystic; Then why are you here?
Hanna; Im here to do what needs to be done!
Mystic; And what is that?
Hanna; To make sure you can’t see me any more.
[That’s what she was here for. To get me to stop loving her. To make me let go.]
Mystic; That’s what you’re here for.
Hanna; Yes.
Mystic; Well Im sorry, but its not that simple.
Hanna; Yes it is. Your just making it complicated.

Mystic; Love is not that simple.
Hanna; You had it with Mayuko. It was simple when you did that, or did you lie to me?
Mystic; Of corse not.....
Hanna; Why can’t you stop?
Mystic; Because I can’t! You were there for every thing! You’re the one who saved my life after they took me out of the lab! I took care of you and you took care of me that’s how its always been! I loved you even when you turned me down, and stabbed me in the back. I loved you that much, why couldn’t you just love me!?
Hanna; Who said I didn’t ever love you!?
Mystic; What?
Hanna; Seeing the future is a curse for me. I have to be racked with decisions I never wanted to have to make. Every time some thing bad happened to me it was a result of one of my visions. To stop bad things from happing to the ones I loved. The reason I left when we had that argument was because, you would have left if I didn’t. And then you would have been the one in that tank and you would have stayed there. I wasn’t going to let that happen to you. If I hadn’t stopped loving you ,you would have been trapped in that building with me and you would have died as well. Don’t you get it? I stopped loving you because it would hurt other people.
Mystic; Well who’s it going to hurt if I don’t?
Hanna; Mayuko....you.... and me.
[She was tearing my heart to pieces. I could pretend it wasn’t but it could never really be. I got up and went to Nathan and gave him the yumi. She would stay with him and I would ignore her. I could never stop loving her even if she killed me I would love her in death even if she said she hated me, I would still love her. And that was some thing I just couldn’t help.]

[He came to me and gave me the bow. Along with Hanna’s soul, she was in my possession now. She followed me where ever I went as long as I had the bow. And it never bothered me. It was like she had come back, but I could never touch her. I couldn’t hold her, I couldn’t kiss her, but she was there and that mattered a great deal.]
Nathan; What’s it like being dead?

Hanna; Well some times its cool to be able to walk through things, but it’s a great deal of pain. In order to really touch some thing I have to use a great deal of spirit energy. But pain is a big thing. As long as I stay in purgatory I am still afflicted by the wounds on my body.
Nathan; I thought your body was destroyed.
Hanna; No its not. I was able to crawl from the rubble to the forest and I died there. My body is still perfectly preserved in the snow. Well close enough.
Nathan; Is that why you still have burns and blood on your face?
Hanna; Yes.
Nathan; Is it possible to return you to your body?
Hanna; Yes, but not with out great sacrifice.
Nathan; How great?
Hanna; Don’t even think about it. It takes a human sacrifice to bring some one back and a great deal of magic.
[I sighed. I would do any thing to really be with her, but the chances of us being together again were slim. If I did either of the things I needed to be with her she would never forgive me. She asked me to take her to Ersatz Heights. So we left when it started getting dark. It was snowing when we got there, the snow went straight through her and landed on the ground. I leaned on the rail and looked down at the fake stars.]
Hanna; You do know I have to leave when Im finished here?
[I looked at her, I was a little panicked.]
Nathan; No.
Hanna; Yes. I was only sent here for a while and I will have to leave soon.
Nathan; But I don’t want you to leave. I don’t want to lose you again.
Hanna; I will never really leave you. You...
Nathan; That’s a bunch of bull ok! When you died you weren’t there! I couldn’t see you sense you or any thing! You weren’t there.....
[I cursed my self for crying. I looked away and hid my tears. Then I felt her. She was warm and she put her arms around me, she felt solid and secure, her face against my hair.]
Hanna; You have to believe. With out faith you won’t be able to feel my presence. Even if I make it to heaven it won’t be complete with out you. I need you to be strong, I have more business here, but you need to let go. You and Mystic, you both need to understand. I love you and I will never really leave you.
[I turned to her. I touched her face and she was solid, this was my last chance. I took her into my arms and kissed her. It was the one thing I wanted to do since she had died have that one last chance to kiss her again to let her know I loved her and would miss her so. She wasn’t solid any more and her out line dimmed. I thought she was about to go.]

Nathan; You aren’t leaving?
Hanna; No. I just used up a lot of energy. Lets go back.
[We leave the heights and head back for the base. We go into the rec-room and he doesn’t even look at Hanna. She goes up to him and he walks straight through her and sits in a chair. Can he still see her? She seems puzzled and glides over to him again.]
Hanna; Mystic.
[He doesn’t answer. He picks up his spell book and starts reading some of the spells.]
Hanna; I know what your trying to pull and it isn’t going to work.
[He still didn’t look at her, it was like he didn’t hear her at all. ]
Hanna; I really don’t like this game, so stop!
[he still didn’t look at her. I saw his reaction in his eyes though. They weren’t scanning the pages like before. He was just staring at the page. His finger in the crease of the pages. She grabs either end of the book and slams it closed on his fingers. He winces and pulls his book away from her, he finally looks at her. She shakes her head at him.]
Hanna; What is the matter with you? Ignoring me isn’t going to make me go away.
[He still didn’t answer her. He just opened his book again and she took it and threw it across the room. Every one stopped and looked at this. They just watched a book float in mid air and being tossed by and invisible person. He still wasn’t looking at her. She was getting really, really pissed. She grabbed the bow from me and grabbed the front of his shirt and dragged him out into the hall way. He struggled, but it was no use. Every one was watching and Nina fell down on the floor.]
Arturo; I guess he wasn’t crazy. It really was Hanna.

[I was one pissed of phantom and I wasn’t going to take this from him. I took him into the hall way and pinned him against the wall. He wouldn’t look at me.]
Hanna; Look at me.
[Nothing.]
Hanna; Look at me!

[He wasn’t going to look. He was breathing hard and his eyes were bright, but he kept his head turned to the side. I could feel several sharp pains in my lucid body. I let go of him and the bow fell through my hand. I couldn’t hold any thing any more. My spirit was too weak. ]
Hanna; You know what I feel?
[He still didn’t look at me.]
Hanna; I feel weak. I feel pain, every wound on my real body is afflicting on my soul. I can feel every cut, bruise and burn, but can do nothing to ease the pain. Nothing to stem the flow of the blood shed. I won’t be able to find peace until you two do.
[His head was hung and he was quivering. I knew my words were hurting him, but I was telling the truth. The god awful truth.]
Hanna; You two are holding me here, it isn’t my choice. If you don’t let me go I’ll never be able to leave and I will feel this pain for ever.
Mystic; Stop.
[He was crying.]
Hanna; If you hold me here I am condemned.
Mystic; Please stop.
[he was sobbing now.]
Hanna; I will spend the rest of eternity in hell.
[He sunk down to the floor. His hair hid his face but, he was crying so hard. I felt more guilty than I had in my life or death, but he has to known if he really does love me then he needs to let go. But I will have to endure a bit longer for him to do that. I used the last once of my sprit energy and put my arms around him. He was surprised that I could touch him, but I could also feel the relief in his soul that I wasn’t hating him for keeping me here. I held him for as long as I could and the I went through him. My body was very dim and I was very tired. I settled back and laid down. I had to gain back energy so I went into a trance.]


[I felt so low and dirty for treating her as I did. And I learned the horrible truth of why she was here and how she felt. It was the last pull at my heart that broke the thread. I fell apart at the seems and cried like a baby. I sincerely thought she hated me, but then she held me. She used what ever strength she had left and held me close to her once more. She settled back on the floor and went into a trance. I looked at her and she was translucent. I could see right through her, was she running out of energy or some thing. Her after life was very complicated. I composed my self and dried my eyes. I picked up the bow and she seemed to be magnetically pulled by it. I walked into my room and pulled her body till it hovered over my bed. I would have put her in her room, but it was a total mess. I put the bow on the bed and left her to rest. I went back into the rec-room and every one looked at me. I guess it would have been strange for them to see me, being dragged out by an unknown force. I went and sat by Nathan.]
Nathan; Where’s Hanna?
Mystic. She’s in my room. She went into a trance so I decided not to drag her around.
Nathan; Man she was yelling.
[I blushed a bit. At least he was the only one who heard it. Every one was still staring.]
Mystic; What are you looking at?
[They turned away again.]
Nathan; What are we going to do?
Mystic; I don’t know.
[We sighed in unison. It was so hard, I knew I needed to let her go, but I didn’t know how. There was some thing I was missing. I didn’t feel like I was holding her back. Like she could go any time she wanted. But there was some thing else, what was keeping her here. It came to me.]
[Hanna; My soul was transferred into the bow when I came back.]
[That was it. The bow, her yumi. Her soul was in it so we had to break that to let her soul free.]
Mystic; It’s the yumi. Her soul is in that.
Nathan; So all we have to do is break it.
Mystic; Its not that simple. That bow is made of the strongest material in the world. Not even a chain saw could break that.
Nathan; Oh man.
[I let her rest for a long time and went back to my room. She was still very dim and she was awake.]
Hanna; Can you take me to my brother?
Mystic; He wouldn’t be able to see you. He doesn’t care.
Hanna; He does. I know he does, but he won’t admit it.
Mystic; Why do you want to see him? He said he was glad you were dead.
Hanna; I heard him, but he’s my brother. And I won’t move on till I settled this. Please.
[She was so dim and looked very tired. I picked up the yumi and dressed warm and went out. He was at an inn in town. I went to his room with the yumi slung over my shoulder and Hanna floating behind me. I knocked and he opened the door and fraction of an inch.]
Kelin; What do you want?

Mystic; I want to talk to you.
Kelin; Well I don’t.
[he closed the door. And I heard foot steps.]
Hanna; Kelin!
[They stopped and ran back to the door and it swung open. He was looking at Hanna with wide eyes and his mouth a gape.]
Kelin; Hanako. No it can’t be. Your dead!
Hanna; I am. Im merely and unsettled spirit and I wish to speak with my brother.
[Mystic handed me off to my brother and he brought me in. Mystic waited out side.]
Kelin; What are you here for?
Hanna; I need to talk to you before I can move on. I know you love me, but you are very mad.
Kelin; Love? I have absolutely no love for you.
Hanna; That’s a lie. If you didn’t you wouldn’t be able to see me. Only loved ones can see spirits.
Kelin; I do not.
Hanna; Fine. Then why do you hate me so much?
Kelin; You’re the reason our parents are dead! Quite frankly Im glad you are too.
Hanna; They didn’t just come for me. They did that to several families. Don’t you remember Ryosei?
Kelin; What does he have to do with it?
Hanna; He’s the guy sitting out side your door right now.
[I saw him glance back.]
Hanna; They killed his parents too.
Kelin; Well at least he wasn’t so desperate as to try and get his brother captured so he could get away!
Hanna; What are you talking about?
Kelin; Don’t you remember? We were running and you grabbed my ankle and I fell and you ran ahead. It didn’t turn out like you wanted it though. Half a wall fell on me and they captured you while I was hidden.
Hanna; That happened just as I wanted it too.
Kelin; What?
Hanna; I made that wall fall. And I pulled you down so they wouldn’t take you. And as I recall our parents were trying to protect both of us. This isn’t my fault! I wouldn’t have cared in a million years if you still hated me, as long as you were safe! So long as you didn’t have to go through the same shit as me in that lab!

[Tears were running down my cheeks and he was looking at me stunned.]
Kelin; What happened to you there?
[Nothing matters much when your dead so I told him. He was very horrified, and he just stared at the floor.]
Hanna; You know I never did stop playing the blues.
[I died with my harmonica in my pocket. I took it out and played. His hands turned to fists and I saw tears make dark spots on his jeans. I made my self solid and he held me close and tight. He wept on my shoulder.]
Kelin; Im sorry. Im so sorry. My sister.
Hanna; My brother. All I’ve ever wanted for the longest time was a family. I finally have you.
[I couldn’t hold my form any longer and I became intangible. I felt so very drained.]
Hanna; Im sorry. Im losing too much energy.
[I needed to go back into my trance and was beginning to black out. I fell to the side and collapsed.]

[Kelin came running to me saying that Hanna passed out. I went in and she was in a trance. I assured him that she was just resting, but she was dimmer than ever. I grabbed the yumi and dragged her behind me and said bye to Kelin. I brought her back to the base and put her in my bed once more. She was in this trance for nearly a day and a half. Once she woke up she was bright once more and yet dark at the same time. ]
Mystic; Why do you look like that?
Hanna; Like you care.
[Were did that come from?]
Mystic; Huh?
Hanna; Sorry, I’ve just been here too long.
Mystic; What do you mean?
Hanna; You obviously don’t care what happens to me at this point. Why should I tell you?
Mystic; Look. What is going on? Where is all this coming from?
Hanna; If I stay here for too long I won’t be my self any longer! I can’t go until you two let me!
Mystic; What do you mean you won’t be yourself?

Hanna; Stuck in limbo put a horrible stress on my soul, in limbo it is a mixture of negative and positive energy. As my soul stretches further on this plane field it will absorb the negative energy and my soul will become warped and dark. Not long from now I will be come wraith. A dark shadow that will for ever walk this earth with no peace or form. I will end up haunting you two if you don’t let me go.
Mystic; I don’t know how!
Hanna; You do, your just afraid to do it.
Mystic; It is impossible to do!
Hanna; Not together it isn’t. There are some forces stronger that steel. Some thing that can’t be seen.
Mystic; I...
Hanna; Listen. Not much time is left before I either go or stay forever. Right now what happens to me is not my concern. It is what will happen to you two. I will haunt you until you die if I become a wraith and it won’t just be following you around like this. It will be plaguing your nightmares , stalking you in the dark. I will be some thing like the thing that goes bump in the night.
[This sounded like some thing from a horror movie. We had to find a way. I grabbed the yumi and went and found Nathan.]
Mystic; Nathan!
[He was walking down the hall and he turned and met me.]
Nathan; What’s up?
Mystic; We got to find a way to break this thing and fast?
Nathan; Why such haste?
[There was that Amish language.]
Hanna; I’ll tell you later. Come on.
[A force greater than steel. We went up the Ersatz Heights. I took the yumi from my shoulder. With me I had my sword on my back if it came to that. I stuck the yumi on the other side of the railing and held on to one end while Nathan grabbed the other. We pulled hard and it began to bend, but it was too strong. We let it back and then pulled again with all our might, nothing. We tried just about every thing. Saws, blow torches, even the force of a car pulling either ends. It was no use. Me and Nathan sat down exhausted by the effort.]
Nathan; What do we have to do to break this thing?
Mystic; I don’t know.
Hanna; Some forces are greater than steel and can not be seen or touched. You have to want it.

[I did though. Didn’t I? I thought about it and in actuality I didn’t. I didn’t want to let her go, I wanted her to stay with me always, but not if she would be changed for ever, doomed to walk the earth in such pain in misery. That’s when I felt it. I wanted to set her free, I wanted to take away her pain as she had done so many times for me. I stood up and drew my sword. Nathan picked up the yumi. We nodded to each other and he threw it up in the air. Every thing flashed in my head. The old village, the lab, the institution, the clubs, this place, our fight, her capture, her near death, her stabbing me in the back, and her death. She was here my entire life and had hardly left me ever, I knew she wouldn’t now. I slashed with all my might into the yumi and my sword bit into the steel. And it snapped in half.]

[As the yumi lay in the air I couldn’t get over how much I would miss her. I wanted her to be free though, I loved her too much to let her suffer. Mystic cut it in half and the pieces fell to the ground. We looked up at Hanna, she took a deep breath and the wind swept up the heights. Her cloak blew back in the breeze and disappeared. All her wounds healed and she was adorned in a white dress, her body glowed with a golden light.]
Hanna; Thank you. I love you both and I will always be with you.
[She was consumed in a ball of light and she shot up into the sky disappearing into the stars. She was at last at peace and she would never leave us.
I am Nathaniel C. Johnson and I told you my story about the mortal angel. She was in and out of my life in a mere year. And guess what? That’s not the end of my story.]



This story is dedicated to my cousin and my best friend, these two taught me to be tough and kind to all I meet no matter how strange or different. With out them I would never have tried writing. God bless them both, for they are the mortal angels.
......To find out more read “Immortal Angels”

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RosettaMoon: Finally! It's done...read the sequeal. I beg you. I promise...it's better. Read more in 'Immortal Angels'