What goes bump in the night

The corner of Leceel's forehead twitched ever so slightly, and he turned around.


"The commander seems to have returned. I will be in my quiet abode if anyone requires my talents."


He was gone within a few minutes, and didn't let any sign of weakness show until he was in the building. He had to support himself against the wall the rest of the way to his 'abode'. The presence of four others, two of them fairly outspoken, was agitating to that thing.


----------------------------


"Welcome back, commander."


A young woman was waiting outside the jet for Shepard, holding a pile of folders in the crook of her arm.


"I take it the meeting went smoothly?"


Her high heels clacked along the floor as she stepped in time with the commander


"Yes. He had to be spooked a little, but the new president has seen reason. Has anything unusual happened in my absence? Haiku is a good soldier, but I have doubts about her leadership capabilities."


"Nothing too unreasonable . . . the new recruit came in earlier, most of the team members are off training or exploring the island . . . oh, the healer did happen to find something akin to a mermaid but that's it."


Shepard stopped, the young woman stepping forward a few times before she realized the commander had halted


"Samuel found what?"


"A woman. She came from the sea, along with that massive sea creature that we've had to deal with a couple of times. We don't know much about her."


"I'm on my way to the shore now, file the rest of the reports on my desk and I'll look at them later."


"Yes sir."


The young woman gave a salute as Shepard briskly walked down the hallway. Never a rest for the director of the PDA . . .
 
Kerza was more than slightly startled by the sudden influx of people. Water rushed up to her, forming a cocoon around her. Her green eyes flickered as she stared at each and every one of them.


Neimi's eyebrows rose when she saw the water-covered woman. ".....what.....am I looking at, Samuel?"


-------


Haiku sat down, sweating a bit. Okay, that was her signature style practice. Now, for her secondary fighting style practice.
 
"Well, a-as far as I can tell, she's...a m-mermaid," Samuel replied. "Her n-name is Kerza." He glanced back to the woman in question. "Kerza this is N-Neimi. She's a friend."
 
"Mermaid?" Neimi looked Kerza up and down.


"....werecat?" Kerza did the same to Neimi. "...what kind of world have I entered?"
 
"Kerza is it?"


Shepard was now walking down the beach towards the little group, looking completely out of place in his black garb. His eyes travelled up and down Kerza through the bubble of water. Clearly not a mermaid, but something close to it. From what he could tell, the rest of the group had been relatively calm in his absence, with a few mishaps


"I would know your purpose here woman."


His voice wasn't cruel, but it wasn't inviting either. He merely held the stiff professionalism that seemed to hang around him like a fog
 
"....purpose." Kerza cocked her head to the side and studied the older man. "I don't really have a purpose.....I mean, I haven't been in the Bermuda Triangle waters by choice. I'm just kind of...here."
 
Samuel visibly hopped a few inches in surprise at the commander's arrival. "I-I found her here, on the beach. She w-was injured. I healed her wound, but as she says, she doesn't seem to have m-much memory of her past."
 
"So it's amnesia then. When do your memories start?"


Shepard crossed his arms and looked over at Samuel.


"You made the right decision. Though I am curious as to how you ended up drenched as well."
 
Samuel sheepishly scratched the back of his head with his right hand. "Ehehehe...well, sir, she has excellent control over water, and we ARE on the beach...I believe it's pretty obvious how I ended up so...hydrated." He wasn't going to complain. In fact, he was still grinning. Though she was puzzling, Kerza was friendly and was nice to him, so that was enough for Samuel to welcome her. Whether Shepard welcomed her, however...that's what really mattered.
 
"My memories start around two years ago." Kerza focused her attention of Shepard. "I woke up on a beach surrounded by people. They said that I had washed up on shore and they ended up taking me to the hospital. I started having to drink constantly and I was always dehydrated. I also felt like the ocean was calling to me, like it wanted me to return. So, I broke out of my hospital room and returned to the ocean. It was then that I noticed that my skin "breathes" water into it. I also figured out that I could communicate with ocean mammals. Since then, I've just kept swimming. A month ago, I actually discovered this island. And now, whenever I try to leave this island, disaster strikes or it's like I'm swimming in circles and get brought back here."
 
Roy eyed the director. He had the air of command experience about him and an obvious talent of cutting through bullshit. Maybe this organization wasn't totally worthless after all. He listened to the mermaid spout her story and stayed silent he didn't have much to add. He slowly drifted to the back of the pack keeping an eye on their surroundings.
 
"The Bermuda Triangle has a way of not letting things go. Several Ley Lines of the planet intersect here."


So she couldn't leave the water for good . . . but could manipulate it as well as talk to aquatic life. His gaze passed over the man keeping to the back of the group, seeing mostly a soldier. A very, very, experienced soldier.


"Neimi, Samuel, you may continue as you were. Be ready for an assignment within 24 hours."


He looked back at the woman in the bubble


"Kerza, I would like to speak with you in confidence. Roy as well, I'm assuming?"


His eyes darted towards the soldier from underneath his hat. His voice had barely changed over the course of the entire list of commands.
 
"....do I have to leave my bubble?" Kerza's eyes darted to the man at the back of the group. There were too many new faces and each new one made her want to dive back into the ocean.
 
"That's me, sir. In your office? The Lt.'s told me lots about you sir. I'm looking forward to working with you. We're moving out before tomorrow I'd like to know what against." His eyes darted back to his van. "I like being prepared."
 
Shepard turned his eyes to Kerza at her question.


"Not immediately. And to answer your question Roy, no it will not be my office. Now, follow me."


The last statement was not a question. At its conclusion, he turned around, his coat whipping with the sudden movement. Roy was an experienced soldier, and definitely someone that he could use with his current hodge-podge of recruits. And this 'Kerza' . . . while something of a wildcard, could definitely be useful. Underwater expeditions were difficult enough when dealing with those trained to do so, having someone like her would be invaluable WHEN such an operation was needed.


It would only be a few minutes, he was headed towards what was essentially a smaller version of the conference room from his initial recruitment.
 
Samuel watched the commander leave and groaned slightly. "A m-mission tomorrow? Oh dear...I hope it's a bit less eventful than the first one..." he muttered as he started back towards the main building. He stopped after a few yards to turn to Neimi. "Ah, I was going to get some lunch...if you wanted to..." he stopped; why would she want to eat with him? She was a friendly person but they barely knew each other. Samuel lowered his eyes to the ground. "...Er, nevermind, sorry..." he said as he turned and continued towards the main building, hands in his pockets and plotting a course for the dining hall. He mentally reprimanded himself; he was assuming too much familiarity. He was still surprised to have such civil treatment in general, and the friendly nature of some of these people was going to take some getting used to. "Just because they don't attack on sight doesn't mean you're good friends," Samuel muttered to himself, somewhat irritated.
 
Roy followed Shepard into the building keeping eyes alert for anything that could go astray. When they entered the conference room he spoke, "What was it you wanted to speak about sir?"
 
Vojta dropped off his field notebook and noticed that Adrian had fallen asleep training. "Kindjal must have trained himself to near exhaustion. Haiku must be a very competent opponent for him to have trained so hard." Vojta closed his eyes and melded with the shadows again. 'Adrian will need every advantage he can get.' He stayed in the shadows, traveled into Haiku's room and waited, silently observing even her sleep pattern to ensure he didn't miss anything. As morning began to break, he moved with the shadows as they retreated from the sun, and not a moment too soon, as Haiku arose with it. He continued his waiting as she began to train, making careful note of every movement and subtle motion, which gave her style a great deal of flexibility and fluidity. She sat for a spell, before changing into a completely different style altogether. 'More than one style? Very adaptive. Adrian would certainly not have known about this,' He mentally noted. He continued watching her cycle through the stances and styles, until he was confident that he could recreate them in his field guild for Adrian to use. He waited for a moment to slip under her bed whilst a shadow, before reforming and throwing his polished lead cross into the hall to distract her. As she went to pick up the necklace, he crept out of the room and made it look like he was coming from one of the other rooms. "Ah! My cross! Thank you for finding it! This is one of the few relics left of my family, and I would have been devastated had I lost it! It must have come off it's chain as I was leaving to head back to my room." Vojta said as he took the cross back and placed it on his neck. "I cannot thank you enough Haiku. I'm sorry to have interrupted your training though. Adrian is going to be tough to beat." Vojta said putting on a very rare smile. "Well, I should be getting gone." He jogged quickly back to his room and began redrawing the styles while telling Adrian about everything.
 
Adrian was sweating bullets when Vojta arrived in his room. He had been training for hours, and took his partner's arrival for a good opportunity to rest a little. He stood with his hand slowly stroking his chin, brow slightly furrowed as he listened intently to the information that Vojta had gathered. He nodded sagely when Vojta was finally finished relaying his knowledge. "Two styles?" he mused somewhat to himself. "Good to know. Wouldn't want to be caught by surprise. From her seeing my training on the beach and our mission in France, she's had plenty of opportunity to analyze my own combat stylings. I would argue that we are now on equal footing. However..." he was still grinning, of course, but he tilted his head down slightly as he went on to scold Vojta. "...I would have preferred you ask my permission to do this spying, Privrak. We may be ex-KGB but I wanted to face her not as enemies but as rivals. You're making me feel slightly guilty, knowing information she does not know that I know." He chuckled and gave Vojta a pat on the shoulder. "Even so, I appreciate your work. I can always count on you, comrade!" He strode back to his training area before he checked the time: it was about one-thirty in the afternoon. His stomach gurgled. "Hehe. I lost track of time it seems...I need some lunch! You should join me, Vojta. Maybe we'll see some of our comrades in the dining hall. I'm going to wash up and head down in ten." With that he grabbed a clean change of clothing and stepped into the shower. He was out in seven minutes and was heading to the dining hall in another two.
 
Kerza followed Shepard and Roy into the office cautiously, not letting her bubble down for a second. She had molded the water a bit more so that it wasn't just a bubble; the water wrapped itself around her body's shape and maintained that shape. It was still hard to feel comfortable with these surface dwellers, however.


----


Haiku's eyes narrowed as she watched Vojta disappear. She had a bad feeling and that bad feeling made her want to train more. Had he been spying on her? Had he seen her styles? He was a friend of Adrian's, wasn't he? Was he going to tell him how she fought? A dark look covered her face as she wracked her brain for a way to solve this new predicament.


----


Neimi bounded up next to Samuel. "Of course I'll take lunch with you!" Her cat eyes glared after the mermaid-esque creature; was this woman to be trusted around her new friend? "I, for one, am starving and you probably are too. So, let's go." She hooked one of her arms through his and started forcibly pulling him towards the main building.
 
Samuel nearly jumped out of his skin when Neimi appeared, but was smiling in spite of himself as he was dragged to the dining hall. They arrived as Adrian was walking in, who looked behind him to see the approaching pair.


"Well well!" Adrian said with a chuckle, "Fancy meeting you two here!" He eyed their linked arms. "Hoho! I never knew you were such a ladies' man, Samuel!" He said with a booming laugh.


Samuel turned the color of a tomato. "I...wha...huh...eh?" He fumbled with his speech.


Adrian clapped his hand to the young man's shoulder. "Haha! Sorry, I was just...what is the saying...childing with you? No, kidding! That's it. I was kidding with you. Shall we find a table?"


Samuel nodded, following Adrian through the dining hall. It had the atmosphere of a high-class restaurant. If he didn't know better, Samuel would have thought he was still in France, but instead of going through the hospital of Hell he was going out for dinner.
 
Almost deathly silent in the 'restaurant' (though perfectly noticeable by a cat's nose) Muerte was having his own lunch. Despite the wealth of flavorful and exotic options, he seemed to have only a bowl of of plain rice and a glass of water for sustenance. He made no motion that he even noticed the three others, though in his mind he registered their presence.


-----------------------------


Shepard set his cane to the side and sat down. Something merciful after the day thus far.


"Kerza, sit wherever is comfortable, I would like to speak to you in a minute. Roy."


He turned and pointedly looked at the man


"I already know you're a soldier, and one with preternatural circumstances at that, but I ask this question of everyone. Just as I asked the recruits you met earlier. You understand what our job here is, and that there is a very real chance you could lose your life. Even if you live, you won't be the same after being a part of this organization. Knowing that, are you still willing to be a part of the PDA?"
 
Kerza leaned up against a wall in silence. Sitting would disperse the water a bit and she didn't want that.
 
The trio found a circular table near the middle of the large room, and a waiter came over for their order. Adrian got a porterhouse steak and a side salad, while Samuel, who was completely amazed by the entire experience, opted for a simple club sandwich. Both stuck with water to drink. When the waiter left, Adrian seemed to be scanning the room looking for someone.


"Er," Samuel started, "Are you looking for anyone, Adrian?"


"Ah yes," Adrian replied. "I told my partner Vojta that he should join us for lunch but I don't see him anywhere. Not a very social man, that one, so I'm not hugely surprised," he said with a chuckle. "Though he's scarily good at going undetected. He could very well be here and I wouldn't know." Adrian, of course, had no idea that his partner could meld with the shadows. He'd only recently learned that Vojta was of vampire lineage, after all.
 
"Oh, I figured that you'd be looking for Haiku." Neimi's eyes glinted mischievously. "I mean, you two seem to talk a lot and you're having this whole "duel" thing soon. What's the prize? Taking her out on a date or something?"
 
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