Genesis (old draft)

Chapter 13: Leveling Up

   Spencer awoke to the smell of sizzling bacon filling the air. "That smells good!"

"Thanks. How do you like your eggs?"

"I don't care much."

"Alright. While you're eating, would you like me to tell you my story?"

"Go right ahead."

“When I was nine, my mom and I lived in Cambria, California. It was a small city, only a few thousand people. Then I experienced a series of unfortunate events, specifically a hurricane, earthquake, and flood, all occurring within a few days of each other. Having lost our home and barely surviving (we ran into some trouble, which is a story for another time), my mom basically became obsessed with survivalist stuff. She made extra sure I always had certain important emergency items, taught and coached me with things like hunting and fishing, building shelter, defense, and got me really fit so I could run well and be nimbler. Eventually I went to college and I saw this guy getting beat up, so I helped him. That guy happened to be Marcy, and he was so impressed by what I did, as well as how I did it, that he offered for me to assist him and his group in return for having whatever I wanted in life. Luckily for him I'm a simple-ish girl, and I only asked he give my mom the safest imaginable house, which he obliged by getting her a home in Sardinia.”

“Sardinia?”

“That island west of Italy.”

“Ah.”

“So my mom moved there, and I started working for Marcy. He started by testing my potential further, putting me under Bai's instruction. She was impressed enough that I got sent on a small mission within a few months (trust me, she's rarely impressed). However, I botched the mission, got a bit too cocky. Marcy then taught me how to operate spy equipment, and sent me here. Bai wasn't really pleased. She said I wasn't ready for such a big job, but Marcy told her that this job required only minimal physical exercise and that it would basically be a desk jockey thing the entire time. So I sit here, watching, listening, reporting to him, and getting my workouts in mostly really early and really late.”

“Interesting. Sorry things went so poorly for you. What exactly happened during your first mission?”

“I have a daily limit on storytelling, and I've reached it.” She laughed a bit. “Now then, what's your story?”

“Well, in short, I'm a former Canadian hunter who found a spear guarded by a bear, and then I got forcibly transported to eastern France to a bunch of guys that say I'm supposed to stop these Deilluminati guys.”

“You're Canadian? Cool. My uncle lives in Quebec. He has a seafood restaurant. You know, I've been thinking. You say you can't use the spear very well unless you're under stress, right?”

“Yes.”

“Well, maybe you should do the opposite, and calm down. Stress is generally a bad way to exercise power, but calmer methods are both safer and easier. I find it better to do my daily exercise routine after I've meditated. Want me to help you?”

“Sure. It makes a lot of sense.”

“Good! Now, get your legs in the fetal position, sit up, put your hands on your knees, and breathe deeply and slowly. Relax yourself. Do that for about five minutes.”

“Okay.” So Spencer sat on the floor in near lotus position for a while. In fact, he'd gotten so involved in his meditative state, that he'd lost track of time, and stayed there eyes closed for fifteen minutes. When he stopped, he felt refreshed.

“How do you feel?”

“Better than a nap would've done for me.”

“Splendid! You know not everybody is that good at relaxing. A lot of my American friends were usually too stressed and quit out of boredom, or they would fall asleep.”

“Haha. Yeah, I can understand that.”

“Hey, is it just me, or does your hand look a little green?” She pointed to his left hand, which had indeed turned a shade of green. “Looks like your meditation really paid off. There are some plants here that act as relaxants. I want to get some for you, see if we can't make more progress.”

“Cool! Alright. I'm already glad I can do this.”

So Skylar left for the moment to grab the plants, while Spencer sat there grinning from ear to ear. He'd waited for quite a while, actually. He began to wonder why she'd been taking so long. “Hmm, well I don't want to look too impatient. I'll wait another five-ish minutes, then go out looking for her.” So he did his waiting, and still she hadn't returned. He decided to go out in search for her. Climbing up through the tunnel that he first came through, he lifted the hatch door and met up with the jungle once again. He quickly snuck around, sweeping the area with his eyes. At this point he really began to worry. He suddenly noticed a blue object in the distance and ran towards it. Eventually he recognized it as Marcy's ship, and rushed even faster. He finally reached it, only to discover Marcy was nowhere to be found. He checked inside and out, yet he saw no sign of him. Suddenly, Runt came run-hopping towards him frantically. He came up to him and said one word, “Come”. Spencer followed him through the jungle, up to the complex. He looked at Runt in confusion and asked, “Wait! Why?”. Runt stared at him with a look of conviction that got him focused. Spencer followed Runt deep into the complex, sneaking around and searching for something. Soon, Runt found what he was looking for and motioned Spencer over to a door. He looked inside the circular window at the top of the door and saw Marcy tied up in a chair. He was then abruptly seized by a guard from behind, as well as Runt. He was tied up in a chair and placed into the opposite end of Marcy's room. Marcy looked up and smiled.

“Thank goodness you're okay.”

“I'm sorry you got captured.”

“Not your fault in any way, though I appreciate your concern.”

“I met Skylar.”

“Seems fairly obvious, seeing as I don't really see you surviving in the jungle here alone, plus the fact that she's... rather thorough in terms of keeping track on what goes on here.”

“She helped me find something helpful.”

“Oh? What's that?”

“Peace. Calm. I need to relax.” Spencer started breathing slowly and deeply, while Marcy looked at him first with mild confusion, then with gleeful understanding. He sat in the chair breathing for several minutes, before his arms suddenly began to thicken and harden slightly. He kept going like this and eventually got to the point where his ropes began snapping. Spencer groaned in mild pain as the ropes rugged against his enlarging limbs. Soon they all snapped, and he was free. Using his calm yet “pumped” state, he imagined a sharp claw on his finger, which took about a minute to fully form. He then promptly sliced Marcy's ropes off. He stood up just as the door opened, revealing Favio with Skylar in a neck grip, a knife at her throat. “Give me the spear.” They held their hands out, empty.

“We don't have it.”

“Don't lie. I know you can't turn without it.”

“Actually, now I can.” Spencer shouted a battle cry and fired the claw on his finger straight at Favio. It sank right into his throat.

Skylar ran to Spencer as his adrenaline wore off and he turned back to normal, as well as being very exhausted. Favio lay bleeding on the ground, holding his neck and bleeding out. He uttered some unintelligible sound, which prompted Marcy to walk over to him. He bent down, putting his ear close to his mouth, as he vaguely whispered, “He.. is.. co.. ming... for.. you... watch..out” before relaxing, lifeless on the floor.