Dragon Clans Bk. 01 Pt. 11

There comes a moment in everyone's life where action or inaction fall into a focus so clear and precise that there is no gray space between them.

For some it is a once in a lifetime occurrence, an instant frozen in time that they look back on as years put distance and wisdom between themselves and the moment and still, there were only two options, no gray.

For others, the calling of their lives dictates that there be very little gray at all, that many times over the days, weeks, months and years of their lives they are faced with the binary, 0 or 1, yes or no, act...or do not.

The latter is true of Tera

............

Tera keyed the microphone on the headset again. "Recon this is roost, do you copy my message, foxes in the henhouse, over," Sitting there at the window, feeling the sweat slowly slide down the small of her back, the skin raising in goose flesh as it passed, she knew, as she always did, that something bad was happening. And as always, she was right.

..................

The thing good so often forgets about evil, is that evil has no conscience. There is never a moment when true evil hesitates.

Good will take a winding path to its goal; evil prefers a straight line.

...............

Nicolas stared out the window of the Hawker 800X as it flew through the silent starless night.

The plane was headed for Paris; from there Nicolas would then travel to the coast and be taken on into England by boat. The British had...little tolerance for Nicolas.

It had taken a few hours to get operators into position to take down Mr. Dane.

'The man is luckier than Midas,' Nicolas thought absently as the geography of central Europe passed beneath the jet as it moved through the thin air, taking Nicolas closer to his perceived destiny.

'Should never have sent the weak fools,' Nicolas thought to himself, mulling over the deaths of his acolytes.

'They had some talent but obviously I overestimated their abilities, ah well, better now than in a battle when I really needed them. It must be that old fool Ian, he has always been the strongest of the others, ah well, it's no matter, his mental protections of Mr. Dane will prove useless against a bullet."

The intercom buzzed, the pilot making the announcement that they would be landing in Paris in about 10 minutes.

"Good, a bit of cleaning up to do here and then Ian will understand what it means to get on my bad side," Nicolas said with a thin vicious smile on his lips, as the plane went into a steep turn heading towards Charles De Gaul.

...............

"Trouble," the word brought Tera from a deep sleep to fully awake in less time than it took the word to slip across her consciousness.

It was still dark out, perhaps just the briefest hint of the gray dawn beginning, but still.... night.

Tera had slept in her clothes; the long shift and constant need to be "on" had drained her.

Now sitting on the edge of the small bed lacing up her Haix Airpower boots she had never felt more energetic or felt more of need to be somewhere other than where she was.

"Nigel, it's Tera," she said into the phone, taking the stairs three at a time as she descended to the ground level of the four story building.

"Damn it, do you know what time it is," Nigel knew exactly what time it was, but it was his standard answer after midnight to allow the moment he would need to be fully...there.

"05:13 and something is wrong, check the team around the mark, I am on my way there now, eta 4 min, call me back," Tera snapped the phone shut and slid it into the pocket of her vest as she breached the side door of the small hotel the team was using as a base.

A light mist fell from the black sky as Tera turned the key and the engine of the Ducati 696 rumbled to life. Tera gunned the engine producing a squealing back tire and a front tire that was nowhere near the pavement.

After a controlled slide onto N. Hinksey Ln. she accelerated fast, the sound of the high revving Italian motor reverberating off the fronts of the darkened buildings; the sound following in her wake like a wave, heralding the brief passage of something...dangerous.

The ear bud crackled to life, "Tera, we can't raise anyone on the team," for the first time since she met him, Nigel sounded scared and this did nothing to assuage the feelings of foreboding that had consumed Tera since she was pulled from sleep only moments before.

"I am on my way, will be onsite in 2 min, send back up Nigel, lots of it, I think we may have lost the mark," Tera said as she closed the connection.

Lost the mark, it was rare that she said this phrase; losing was not something that Tera allowed. 'Hang on Michael,' she thought as she switched the ignition off and coasted into Roger Dudman Way.

...............

Michael stood at the window looking out at the deep black of the canal, the light is what had convinced his mind to lease this place, the canal is what had called to his heart.

Michael turned from the window and grabbed his keys, stepping down the stairs in the dark and opening the door he was brought back to other mornings in the dark, walking out into her, having her envelope and welcome him into her opaque and forgiving arms.

The love affair with the water started early. Michael's parent had a small boat and their home was located on a canal that fed out onto the intercostal waterway.

From his earliest recollections the water had always been his friend.

Whether it was swimming in the pool behind the house, learning to dive off the seawall of the canal or feeling the salty spray sting his face when his father would open up the throttle on their Donzi Criterion, Michael always felt at home in the water.

"Just a few more minutes," Michael thought to himself, it was late August, junior high had started a few weeks before and the water in the canal was just too warm and comforting to leave.

The sky was beginning to show the strong pinks and reds of another hot Florida morning as he treaded water in the canal before starting his final lap.

It had become his habit over the summer to swim four or five long laps of the canal in the early dawn, his parents didn't know, as they both got up later than he.

These times in the dark water always seemed to help him feel centered...connected and he was not looking forward to being off the water when, in a few months, the temperature would end this ritual.

Finishing his fifth lap of the canal, which was about 500 feet from one end to the mouth, which opened onto the natural canal beyond, he was not paying attention to anything other than his strokes and the feel of the water when he ran into...something.

Startled but not scared Michael stopped and reached out a tentative hand. The object felt like wet leather but warm to the touch, and then it moved. It was a soft motion, seemingly not caused by his touch but more the natural movement of whatever he had encountered.

'Alligator,' Michael thought as the adrenaline started to pump full force into his system.

Looking around, the dock behind his house and the stairs down to the water were about 30ft away.

'Not fast enough,' he thought.

Then, in the growing pink light, he saw a reflection in the water; it was an eye that was looking at him with a curiosity that projected...intelligence.

The manatee moved slowly around Michael, its nose breaching the water now and then giving off a small spray as the 800lb animal breathed.

Michael breathed as well, manatee's are herbivores and not known for a propensity to drown small boys in canals.

Michael's hand played over the warm back of the creature as it moved in a slow circle but maintained a distance that would not break the connection. Closing his eyes Michael saw the animal with his fingertips. It was an odd sensation, sometimes smooth, a hard barnacle, the deep soft crater of a scar, probably from a propeller.

As the light increased the two stayed there, different creatures joined in an instant of communion.

And that is how Michael's mother found him, as she walked out of the house in her robe holding a warm cup of coffee, swimming in the canal with a manatee.

For Michael the moment was...evolutionary.

Finding and grasping the recognition that while not human, another animal could communicate feeling and emotion that could be recognized and appreciated by another.

The morning swims in the canal however, came to an end.

Michael's mother was furious, his father thought it amusing, which did not bode well for his sleeping arrangements in the near future. However there was a firm new rule in the household, no swimming in the canal.

It was a few weeks later as Michael turned onto his street and saw his grandfather's truck parked outside his house that the river once again became a refuge and a place of simple wonder.

"Michael, come out back," his father called as he closed the garage door and entered the kitchen. Looking out through the sliding glass doors at the rear of the house Michael could see his father and grandfather standing on the dock beyond the pool.

"Oh you should have seen her face, I didn't get laid for 2 weeks," Michael heard the whispered end to his fathers conversation with his grandfather.

"Your grandfather found something you may be interested in Michael," his father said as Michael moved between the two men to see what they were looking at.

There in the water was perhaps the most beautiful thing Michael had seen in his young life

If floated lightly on the water, close to the surface but appearing to hover just above it at the same time. One long oar was extended into the water, the other lay along the boats chine allowing for entry from the dock.

"It's called a single scull," his grandfather said, smiling at the look of wonder in his grandson's eyes.

"I told your grandfather about the...episode.... in the canal, he did a bit of searching and thought this might be a good middle ground between you and your mom," Michael's father said as he lightly put his hand on his shoulder.

"It's beautiful," Michael said as he moved down to the dock. His hand slipping over the smooth curved wood, feeling the boat more than seeing it.

"It will be fast, once you get the hang of it, your dad and I talked to your mom, she said as long as you're careful and TELL someone when you go out, you can use it as you will."

The smile on Michael's face took weeks to wear off.

Michael and Talon, the name he chose for the small craft and lovingly inscribed on her stern, became daily companions.

Early mornings were his favorite, an hour of rowing down the quiet canals, or a hard fast push out into the intercoastal. Every morning that he could, rain, shine, cold, heat, Michael and Talon could almost always be found on the river, discovering her mysteries and reveling in the connection with her.

...............

It was seeing the three-man scull the day before that had sealed the deal.

Michael was looking forward to getting back on the water. He had rowed through college, always making time between the deadlines, headaches and his one other passion to find some peaceful moments on the water.

With graduation and starting his professional life the trips to the river had become more and more infrequent and then finally stopped. This would be a perfect opportunity to pick it back up again and hopefully find the peace and balance that being alone on the water had always provided him.

The water was a different creature here than what she was back in Florida all those years ago.

At home the river could turn on you quickly, go from calm and serene to a beast that was trying to kill you in an instant.

Here she was more staid; still to be respected, but not as quickly changeable as her red headed sister back home. Yes the water here was different but a similar creature to that which seduced him all those years ago and her call today pulled him with just as much energy.

Stepping out the door Michael slipped his keys in his pocket and set off for an early morning run, making a mental note to ask Valerie if she knew of some place close by that he might be able to rent a scull.

............

Tera moved into the apartment taking a low stance the P226 held out in front of her in the classic assault posture.

Over turned chairs, a body by the window, the point of laser light coming from the small site attached to the underside of the Sig's barrel played over every corner.

She checked the rest of the small apartment quickly, ensuring she was alone, and then moved over to the body.

By the growing light coming through the window she saw the small angry hole in the back of his head, smelled the blood that pooled on the windowsill, felt the sulfur from a recently discharged weapon sting her nose.

Removing the headset from Carl's still form she keyed the microphone, hoping that the rest of the team was still in place...static was her only response.

"Carl's dead, single tap to the back of the head, close range," Tera said after Nigel picked up.

"Still no response from the rest of the team, I have back up incoming but it is about 10min out, anything on the mark?" Nigel asked.

Moving quickly away from the apartment building, scanning her line of sight and whispering "No, did a quick thermal on his place, nothing, maybe they grabbed him, either way I'm heading over his way, keep me posted on back up," she huffed as she broke the connection and went into a low sprint across the bridge over the canal just south of the apartment building.

Michael turned onto the bridge at almost the same time that Tera did only he was jogging the opposite direction.

As the distance between them closed Michael noticed the woman sprinting towards him and he was immediately on guard, considering the incidents during the last few days he was more cautious than ever.

Tera saw him before he saw her, she straightened her back from the half crouch she had assumed and picked up speed.

"Man she is flying," Michael thought as he turned his head to look over his shoulder before moving into the street so she could pass. Having a bit more room between them seemed appropriate.

The glance over his shoulder revealed to him what Tera saw at the same moment.

Two men moved from the shadow of the buildings just off the bridge and raised weapons, Michael could not tell if they were aiming at him or at the woman who, upon looking back, had broken into a full run coming straight at him about waist height.

He reached out to her unconsciously, understanding in an instant her intent, as well as picking up the intent of the men behind him, she wanted only to protect him, they wanted only to see him dead

Reading her intentions again he didn't think her becoming a shield over his prone body in the middle of the bridge would be conducive to his or her longevity.

He gauged the time and distance, saw the muzzle flash from the roof of the building in front of him and acted without a second thought for himself.

'A quick tackle and shield, there are only two of them, I can get him down and take them out,' Tera thought as she straightened for the jump to take the mark down to the ground, her body becoming his armor...armor,' she fleetingly thought, and pictured her body armor in a heap on the other side of the bed.

'To late now,' she thought as she jumped, close enough now to see fear mixed with a steely determination in the eyes of the mark as he moved out of position, grabbing her around the waist and lunging over the railing of the bridge.

She replayed the last few seconds over in her mind as she fell towards the water wrapped in Michael's arms.

Shot, I've been shot, middle torso from the side, would have hit me in the spine if he hadn't...sniper on the roof behind me, damn it stupid mistake, he saw him, no, he saw the muzzle flash and did the only thing he could to try and.... two holes entry and exit, high velocity round probably.... must have missed bone or it would have stayed inside, entry and exit...oh god....

Michael felt the bullet cut through the flesh just under his left arm, the heat was amazing, he felt the blood start to flow down his side inside the shirt, he knew instinctively that he had been very very lucky, but also as the image and trajectory played through his head he knew that for him to be grazed there, it had to travel through the woman in his arms.

Michael pulled her closer to him, willing her not to die.

'He has been hit, in that instant when he dodged he did it to get the best angle he could for grabbing me and getting us off the bridge, is the bullet in him, how badly is he hurt, stupid fool he should have saved himself,' Tera thought.

The bullet entered Tera between the second and third rib on her right side, Michael's grab and turn had indeed spared her spine.

The bullet moved through Tera's body smoothly, missing both ribs, her lungs contracted, the bullet nicked but didn't pierce the right lung, the heartbeat was timed with the air filling her lungs, the bullet passed her heart mid beat, no touch, the left lung was punctured as the bullet passed through it and her rib. Had it not hit the rib it would have exited her and entered Michael's body mid torso penetrating his heart.

As it was the bullet was deflected by her rib, exiting Tera at an angle, only grazing Michael.

'He can't die,' Tera thought

'She won't die,' Michael willed

The cold water of the oxford canal swallowed them, each hanging onto the other.... hoping simply...for life

............

Valerie cried out at the sharp pain that flared under her arm "Michael!" she cried jumping from the bed and running towards the door.

Ian sat up looking around, the haze of sleep falling away quickly, grabbing the phone off the bedside table he dialed Nigel's number.

"Status," the tone of Ian's voice told Nigel volumes.

"Something happened, I am in route as we speak, I think we lost the team covering Michael, one of my operatives is onsite and assessing the situation, I'll call you back as soon as I know more, we are 4 minutes out," Nigel closed the connection, understanding that Ian would not be pleased that once again Michael was put in harms way.

"What is it," Millie asked, wrapping her arm around Ian's warm shoulder. "Michael is in danger..." Ian's response was cut short as Valeria burst into the room

"Michael's been shot," Valerie screamed just before she passed out and fell to the floor.

...............

The cold water shocked Michael and Tera when they hit it, sinking down into the depths; Michael struggled to orient himself towards the surface while maintaining his grip on the woman.

Tera felt Michael's grip tighten around her, she was slipping into unconsciousness until the cold water shocked her back to reality. She felt him swivel his body searching for the surface.

On instinct she let a few bubbles escape her nose and watched their direction, Michael was kicking them towards the surface.

The taste of blood was thick in her mouth, she new she would loose consciousness soon, 'let go,' she thought, 'save yourself Michael, let go of me.'

In the dark recess of her mind, in that spot she guarded and seldom visited...Michael not letting her go was the only desire that existed.

Michael felt the weight in his arms change, she has lost consciousness he thought, 'damn,', just at that moment they broke the waters surface.

Suppressing a cough Michael pulled the woman's head up and laid it on his shoulder, looking around as he treaded water he was thankful for the brackish water, it had hid them in the growing morning light as the medium current pulled them down stream hopefully away from their assailants.

Michael checked his charge, she was breathing, 'good,' he thought as he made his way to the tree-lined bank of the canal just beyond the Hythe Bridge.