“Holy shit.” Adam moaned as he wrenched open his eyes. He woke in a brightly lit room, and shaded his eyes with his hand as they adjusted to the light.
“Am I… dead?” Adam asked tentatively.
“No, Mr. Carver, you’re not dead. You’re in hospital.” A woman’s voice with a heavy English accent informed him.
Adam surveyed his surroundings: The room was small, cold, reeked of detergent, and was very brightly lit. Adam was in a hospital patient bed, with an intravenous fluid drip running into his arm. The constant beeping of the heart monitor connected to his left index finger quietly affirmed Adam’s pulse. Adam looked out the window to his left; night had already fallen. Jesus. How long have I been out for? Adam thought, gazing toward the stars. In the corner next to the window, in an uncomfortable looking chair, sat a middle aged woman with grey hair in a dark suit.
“My name is Marie May, Director of the black ops unit, SENTINAL Corps,” She explained, rising from her chair, “and you Mr. Carver, you are what we of Etheric academia refer to as an ‘Electrokenetic’.”
For a moment there was complete silence except for the soft beeping of the heart monitor.
“Who the fuck are you, and what the hell does that even mean?” He asked, clearly confused by the solemn woman telling him he was superman.
The Director glared at him with stony eyes and said, “That, Mr. Carver is no way to speak to a lady.” Adam felt as though she were tunneling directly through his soul as she spoke. “Your body is more in tune with the tidal movements and currents of the Ether, the life blood of the world that flows like an ocean around us all. Everything living thing on this planet exudes Ether, people, animals, the trees, everything. It would seem that you are capable of manipulating that energy into electricity; ergo, you are classified as electrokenitic. You will join the rest of the Sentinels and act as a peacekeeping force for the sake of humanity.”
“Wait, wait, wait. So what happened last night was real?”
“One hundred percent of the event occurred, Mr. Carver, yes.” She said, frustrated with Adam’s lack of understanding and confusion.
Adam sat for a moment, bewildered. It seemed real enough to him. He pulled down his gown and looked at his chest; sure enough, a white and pink scar sat firmly in the middle of his sternum exactly where the knife had pierced his body. He was shocked, confused, amazed, and excited all at once. He tried to compose himself and understand what he was being told.
“So,” He said slowly, “there are others like me, who are gifted, as you say?”
“Yes. Currently there are five others that compose SENTINAL.”
Adam straightened in his bed, “Why do you say currently?”
“Mr. Carver,” Said the Director in a hard, but sullen tone approaching his bedside, “were you ever told bedtime stories about the monsters that live under your bed? Do you fear what lurks in the shadows and haunts the night? Do you have nightmares of dark creatures and demonic beings? Because, Mr. Carver, those creatures tell their horror stories about us.” May leaned in closer to Adam and a fire burned in her grey eyes as she barked the words, “When the monsters go ‘bump’ in the night, Mr. Carver, we are the ones who ‘bump’ back, and God help us if we don’t, because they will rise up from the burning deep and swallow everything you know.”
Adam was petrified. The only thing he could do was sit and nod in fear. Her voice cut to his very core, and he was too afraid to object. “Although you have shown potential for great power, if you even think about declining my offer, I, personally will reinsert the knife Claire removed from your chest and have her leave you back in the parking lot when she found you.” She said, plainly.
Adam nearly pissed himself. “Okay, then,” Adam said, “I suppose I’d like to live.” He extended his hand nervously, “Sign me up, Director.”
