ADULT: Meeting Of Minds - Parts 7 & 8 of 22+
Dana Short (DanaShort@aol.com)
Fri, 16 Apr 2004 03:19:52 EDT
This story may be concidered PG-13 due to both the situation, and=20
the occasional use of profanity (Chapter 11) when someone was upset.
Please direct flames/comments to DanaShort@aol.com=20
Please note the story title in the subject line, or your message WILL=20
be lost to my SPAM filter.
Legal Disclaimer: See first post, or visit the URL below for full=20
disclaimer. I don't own the universe, or many of the folks in it,=20
I don't want 'em, & wouldn't know what to do with 'em if I had 'em.=20
Archive only according to rules mentioned in full disclaimer.=20
I hope you enjoy the story.=20
Fully formatted text of Chapters 1-7 now available at:=20
www.DanaShort.com\HL-MOM.htm
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Chapter Seven
Where Are We Really If We Are Nowhere At All
She was standing on a grassy field, with a faint hot breeze blowing=20
both her long, loose hair and the thin soft full length dress she=20
was wearing.
In her hand, was the Katana.
=E2=80=9CWhat the hell do you think you are doing, Girl?=E2=80=9D came an an=
gry=20
voice from behind her.
Whirling she saw Ed, his old sword laying casually over his right=20
shoulder.
=E2=80=9CWhat? Ed? Where are we? Where were you?=E2=80=9D she asked.
=E2=80=9CWhere, no where. Don=E2=80=99t ask me, I=E2=80=99m dead, remember?=
=E2=80=9D he replied.
=E2=80=9CBut, yesterday, you were, and then today, it was like...=E2=80=9D s=
he=20
tried to explain, for some reason suddenly having to fight off an=20
urge to burst into tears.
=E2=80=9CNow then, don=E2=80=99t get all frustrated. This isn=E2=80=99t any=
easier for me=20
you know. I always figured it was all over once I lost my head. =20
Sometimes I actually looked forward to it. Shows you what I knew.=E2=80=9D=20
He answered. =E2=80=9CBut for now, for what we are doing here, is teaching=20
you how to keep your own head on your shoulders.=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9CWhat do you mean?=E2=80=9D, she asked.
=E2=80=9CI mean, teaching you to USE that sword you are carrying,especially=20
when someone does something like THIS!=E2=80=9D he said, suddenly swinging=20
his own sword at Sue=E2=80=99s neck.
=E2=80=9CUnnh=E2=80=9D, she said, trying to take a step backwards and raise=20=
the=20
Katana to block his blade at the same time, and only ending up=20
tripping over her skirt and falling on her butt, the sword dropping=20
from her grasp to land on the grass.
=E2=80=9CWell, that move will work once, but I don=E2=80=99t think it will d=
o much=20
for protecting you from a second swing.=E2=80=9D Ed said, stifling a laugh.
=E2=80=9CHeh, I wasn=E2=80=99t prepared.=E2=80=9D She complained as he reach=
ed down to=20
offer her a hand up.
=E2=80=9CWell then, that=E2=80=99s your first lesson. Always be prepared.=
=E2=80=9D He said,=20
lifting her to her feet.
=E2=80=9CLike a boy scout?=E2=80=9D she asked, looking around in surprise.
The sunny, grass covered hillside was gone, replaced by a utilitarian=20
looking gym. Her dress was likewise gone, replaced by a soft,=20
comfortable Gi, like she had worn for the physical training regimens=20
at the Academy in France. She stood on a woven mat of some kind,=20
and looked up at Ed, who hadn=E2=80=99t changed at all.
=E2=80=9CLike a boy scout.=E2=80=9D He affirmed.
=E2=80=9CUh, ok.=E2=80=9D She answered.
=E2=80=9CRemember, the time to most expect to be attacked, is when you
least expect it.=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9CUm, that sounds kind of Zen. How does one most expect something
and least expect it at the same time?=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9CBy always being ready, grasshopper=E2=80=9D he said, imitating the
priest from the old Kung-Foo TV show.
=E2=80=9COk, I suppose that makes sense,=E2=80=9D she said, thinking back to=
how=20
she had felt the night before, when Ed was more or less in charge. =20
A constant state of caution, a running vigil, examining everything=20
to identify the possible threats, and a constant mental list of=20
possible counters to those threats. =20
=E2=80=9CNow, let=E2=80=99s get some basic lessons in. First off, you are h=
olding=20
it wrong. It=E2=80=99s a sword, not a club. Hold it in your hand like=20
this...=E2=80=9D
They went on for what literally seemed like years, practicing moves,=20
grips, even hand to hand throws, kicks, and punches.
It was like being back at the Academy with Adam and his fencing=20
lessons, but without taking any breaks. Neither herself or Ed=20
seemed to tire, and while it hurt when he landed blows on her,=20
there was no blood, and the pain faded rapidly.
Finally, Ed called a halt.
=E2=80=9CI think that=E2=80=99s about all I can do for you now,=E2=80=9D he=20=
said.
They were sitting again at a table, in the center of a vast,=20
possibly endless room, with a single doorway on the wall behind=20
them, slightly askew. Ed rose from the table, and headed towards=20
the door.
=E2=80=9CWait!=E2=80=9D Sue called, =E2=80=9CDon=E2=80=99t go! I =E2=80=93=20=
I need you!=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9CWhat=E2=80=99s that noise?=E2=80=9D Ed asked, looking around.
A melodic tone, like the background score to a movie had sprung up=20
from no where.
=E2=80=9COh.=E2=80=9D She realized. =E2=80=9CIt=E2=80=99s the phone. I bou=
ght a new phone.=E2=80=9D
The music grew, and the room faded to black.
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Chapter Eight
A Wake Up Call To Wake The Dead=20
Eadgils was lying on a bed.
On the nightstand at the side of the bed, there were two phones,=20
one a normal hotel phone, and the other a small gray cell phone. =20
The cell phone was ringing.
Reaching out, he picked it up, and placed it to his ear, taking a=20
moment to sweep the long hair out of the way.
=E2=80=9CHello?=E2=80=9D he asked.
=E2=80=9CUh, yes. Is this Sue Danning?=E2=80=9D an oddly accented male voic=
e=20
answered.
=E2=80=9CSpeaking,=E2=80=9D Eadgils replied, since he well knew that was who
he was, even if he seemed to think differently at the moment.
=E2=80=9CI hope you don=E2=80=99t mind my calling. I got your number from J=
oe. =20
You may not remember me, but my name is Adam. Adam Pierson. We=20
met in Paris last year, at the Academy?=E2=80=9D=20
A sudden image of Adam flashed through his mind, placing face to=20
voice, and raising a single word in Eadgils=E2=80=99s native tongue, one=20
unuttered in over two thousand years. =E2=80=9CDeath=E2=80=9D he hissed.
=E2=80=9CExcuse me?=E2=80=9D Adam said.
=E2=80=9CUh, sorry. What can I do for you, Adam?=E2=80=9D Eadgils said, try=
ing to=20
sound as normal as possible.
=E2=80=9CWell, I just wanted to see if everything was OK. I heard about
your problem, and just wanted to let you know that if you need=20
any help with anything, er, unusual, you might say, that I can=20
help you.=E2=80=9D
Suddenly a memory drifted to the surface of Eadgils=E2=80=99s mind...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
July 2002, Watcher Academy, Outside Paris, France...
Sue was standing in the Academy Cafeteria, tray in hand, looking for=20
a place to sit.
Suddenly a warm voice spoke up from behind her. =E2=80=9CSue, right?=E2=80=
=9D
Turning around, she saw Adam Pierson, a tray in his own hands. =20
=E2=80=9CYes,=E2=80=9D she said, smiling at him.
=E2=80=9CAdam Pierson. I=E2=80=99m one of the researchers around here. I w=
ork on=20
the Methos project.=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9CSue Danning. Watcher-In-Training.=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9CI know,=E2=80=9D he said. =E2=80=9CI knew your father. He was a g=
ood friend. I=20
miss him sometimes.=E2=80=9D
Sue re-examined the man in front of her. At first glance, she had=20
placed him as only a few years older than herself, perhaps mid=20
twenties. But upon a closer examination, there was something about=20
the eyes; they were not the eyes of a twenty year old. He still=20
didn=E2=80=99t look old enough to have known her father though, and she=20
certainly had never seen him before. She would have remembered=20
ever meeting someone as cute as him for sure. =E2=80=9CHow did you know my=20
father?=E2=80=9D she asked him.
=E2=80=9COh, let=E2=80=99s just say he helped me out once, and later I retur=
ned the=20
favor, although I doubt he ever even knew it. But that is a story=20
for a later time, a much later time. What say we go get a seat?=E2=80=9D=20
He replied, gesturing towards an open table at the back of the=20
room, =E2=80=9CWould you do me the honor of dining with me this evening,=20
milady?=E2=80=9D he asked?
She stifled a giggle, and nodded, following him to the table and=20
taking a seat.
He was a charming companion. He had a dry, quick sense of humor,=20
and told great stories. Once, she tried to bring up the subject of=20
her father, but he diverted her with a tale about the famous Duncan=20
MacLeod, Joe Dawson, and Amanda Darieux, who Sue had once spent an=20
afternoon with her father following around. She told the story of=20
that day to Adam in return, and he laughed and accurately described=20
back to her the exact expression on Amanda=E2=80=99s face as she walked
away from the body of the Twitchy Man. Apparently he knew Amanda=20
as well as he did both Joe and Mr. Duncan MacLeod.
=20
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Suddenly, Eadgils asked, =E2=80=9CAdam, you never did tell me how you knew=20
my father. You just said that you would tell me later. Well, it=E2=80=99s=20
later now. Will you tell me, please?=E2=80=9D
There was a long silence on the other end of the phone. Then Adam=20
said. =E2=80=9CI will. But it is not a story I can tell you over the=20
phone. To do it justice, I need to tell it to you in person. I=20
know you are heading back to Los Angeles. Tell you what, why don=E2=80=99t=20
we meet there somewhere in about a week, I=E2=80=99ll take you out to=20
dinner, and tell you the story. It will be like the Academy all=20
over again. Ok?=E2=80=9D
With more than a little bit of reservation, Eadgils agreed. While=20
not thrilled about actually setting up a meeting with Death, he had=20
to get some answers. Someone had acted to have him killed, and if=20
it had been Death, then he meant to have vengeance, at long last. =20
If it had not, then the guilty party was still out there, somewhere. =20
Like Joe said, the Watchers can never find them all, but now that=20
he was looking, perhaps Eadgils could. After all, it was sort of=20
personal.
Hanging up the phone, Eadgils stretched, noting again the amazing=20
flexibility of Sue=E2=80=99s body as compared to his old one. He opened
his eyes, and looked around the hotel room. =20
Early morning sunlight was filtering through the drawn shades. =20
Looking down at the floor, Eadgils frowned, and looked around the=20
room until he spotted the coat draped awkwardly over the back of=20
the chair, the lump made by the sword concealed within it glaringly=20
obvious, at least to his eyes.
The carrier for the Bowie knife was sitting in the seat of the chair,=20
while the stiletto was sitting on the table next to his laptop.
Stripping off his clothes, he padded naked into the small bathroom,=20
and proceeded to take a shower, taking care however not to get his=20
hair wet this time by wrapping it up in a towel before ever turning=20
on the water, and then keeping his head well out of the way of the=20
spray.
After washing off, he got out, used the last towel to dry off, and=20
put on the clothes Sue had set aside the night before, being sure to=20
snuggly secure the Bowie knife to his back before adding the loose=20
fitting shirt, and strapping on the stiletto as he put on the socks=20
and shoes. He brushed out his hair, but declined to try messing=20
with makeup.
Then, following a subtle nudge, possibly just an echo of her=20
intentions from the night before, he bundled up the two pairs of=20
Jeans, both the sleep-shirt and the top worn yesterday, the jacket=20
from his back house, and all the dirty socks and underwear, and=20
carried it down to the laundry room on the ground floor next to the=20
car.
Selecting a machine, he dumped in the clothes, bought a box of soap,=20
and tossed it in with them, feeding the machine quarters until it=20
started to churn.
Heading back upstairs, he sat down in front of the laptop and=20
powered it up.
As the first screen came up, he absentmindedly typed in FORNLEF,=20
and waited for the operating system to boot. He entered the=20
password GOTTAB2BFREE, and selected the modem program. Picking=20
the phone cord up off the table where it had been discarded next=20
to the power supply, and connected it to the data port on the=20
room=E2=80=99s phone. He also then plugged the laptop into the wall, so as=20
to save the batteries, and logged onto the internet.
First off, he sent some instructions to the lawyers who managed the=20
trust which technically owned his house, telling them he had heard=20
what happened to the previous occupant, but that they were not to=20
put it back on the market until they had heard from him. As usual,=20
if they did not hear from him for over a year, they were to execute=20
the liquidation clause.
Next off, he checked on his various holdings. Most of it would be=20
salvageable; his having learned long ago that diversification, both=20
in interests and in apparent ownership was always in his best=20
interests. It is far better to be a big fish in a small pond if=20
all the fishermen think you are either just a regular little fish,=20
or at best a medium one. It makes you far less likely to be a=20
target, from either some organization, government, or even other=20
Immortals.
He sent out some messages to various people he had worked with in=20
the past to set up new identities. Hopefully he could get a hold=20
of Aristotle in Toronto. When it came to fully documented false=20
identities, the man was an artist. Assuming Aristotle was a man at=20
all. Eadgils had known of Aristotle for over sixty years, and the=20
quality of the identities =E2=80=98he=E2=80=99 set up only got better as tim=
e and=20
technology marched on.
The main business taken care of, he shut off the computer, and=20
packed it away in its case.
He then carried the laptop down to the car, and put it in the trunk,=20
next to the duffel bag.
Stopping back in the Laundry Room, he moved his clothes from the=20
washer to the dryer, and again fed the machine until it started to=20
run.
He then walked around to the front office.
The same girl who had checked him in the day before was still there,=20
sitting at the desk. Since it was daytime, the actual office was=20
open, not just the plexy-glassed annex, so he went on in.
=E2=80=9CCan I help you?=E2=80=9D the girl asked.
=E2=80=9CSue Danning, room 2152. I would like to settle my bill and just=20
about check out, please.=E2=80=9D He said.
=E2=80=9CJust about?=E2=80=9D the girl enquired, cocking her head, somewhat
like a collie dog which heard an odd sound.
=E2=80=9CWell, I have everything ready to go, but I have some clothes in
the dryer in the laundry. Can=E2=80=99t leave =E2=80=98till they finish. B=
ut
otherwise I am out of the room. I just thought I should stop up=20
front, because I believe I made a long distance call yesterday,=20
and I wanted to pay for it before I left.=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9CAh. Yes. Room, 2152. Two days, prepaid cash. You do have a=20
balance of $12.71, for the toll call. How would you like to pay
it?=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9CCash.=E2=80=9D He said, passing over one of the fifties.
=E2=80=9CI=E2=80=99m sorry. I can=E2=80=99t take any bills larger then a tw=
enty.=E2=80=9D=20
=E2=80=9CUm, then I have a problem. I have six fifties, and a five.=20
Somehow I don=E2=80=99t think a five will be enough.=E2=80=9D Eadgils said,=20=
looking
into Sue=E2=80=99s wallet.
=E2=80=9CHm..=E2=80=9D the girl said. =E2=80=9CI remember when you checked=20=
in. I liked you. =20
I still do. I=E2=80=99ll make the change my self. Just don=E2=80=99t tell=20=
my boss.=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9CThat=E2=80=99s right. He=E2=80=99s a jerk. I=E2=80=99d forgotten.=
=E2=80=9D Eadgils replied with=20
a grin.
=E2=80=9CMore of an Asshole, actually. I can say that because today is his=20
day off. Me, I get to work a double shift without overtime because=20
one shift is last week, and the other shift is this week. Him, he=20
gets to take the weekend off. Asshole.=E2=80=9D She said, fishing out two=20
twenties and a ten from her own wallet, and exchanging them for the=20
fifty, before handing Eadgils back one of the twenties, the ten, a=20
five, two ones, a quarter and a nickel.
=E2=80=9CHere, keep the change,=E2=80=9D Eadgils said with a smile to the gi=
rl,=20
=E2=80=9CBuy some coffee or something.=E2=80=9D, and handing back the seven=20=
dollars=20
and thirty cents.
=E2=80=9CThank you!=E2=80=9D the girl said. =E2=80=9CWhenever you are done,=
just leave the=20
keycard on the table and lock the door behind you. As long as you=20
are out of there before the maid gets there to clean, no one will=20
know. After all, the Asshole is away today, so we can play!=E2=80=9D she=20
sang with a pretty smile.
Leaving the office, Eadgils swung back by the laundry, verifying=20
the clothes were still drying, before heading back up to the room.
The next several minutes were spent working on the Katana in the=20
long coat. While Sue had gotten the right idea, Eadgils had=20
literally thousands of years of experience with carrying swords,=20
and for the past several hundred of them with carrying them more=20
or less concealed.
Removing the badly added =E2=80=9Cpocket=E2=80=9D Sue had sewn into the insi=
de of=20
the coat the night before, Eadgils started over again from scratch.
He measured the position of the sword on the coat by the simple=20
expedient of laying the coat on the bed, the sword on the coat, and=20
himself on top of it all, moving the sword around until it was in=20
the right place.
Next, he got up, and stitched a double pocket of dark cloth onto=20
the back of the whole coat, double stitching a pouch to hold the=20
Katana and its scabbard, and adding a flap over the top. Some=20
Velcro would be needed to hold everything in place neatly, but=20
for a job on the go, it wasn=E2=80=99t bad if he did say so himself.
He went down to the laundry, and found his clothes were dry, so he=20
bundled them back up stairs, packed them back into the large=20
suitcase Sue had purchased the day before, collected the phone,=20
Sue=E2=80=99s purse, and the now Katana laden coat, and burdened with the=20
now full suitcase headed back down to the car, closing the door to=20
the room and leaving the key on the table as the gal out front had=20
told him to do.
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=20
To be continued in Chapter Nine - "On The Road Again" Comming Monday,=20
4-19