Among Us - Contact

Adam sat there and took in the absurdity of the whole thing with two major questions cramming to the for-front of his mind. Special agent Hernandez had been quiet throughout the report by the police officers and Adam was starting to wonder why he was even there. Taking advantage of a momentary lull, Adam turned to the agent.

"Why is the FBI here?" Adam queried the grey-haired man.

"Mr. Cooper, the FBI has been called in because of the nature of the attack that happened at your home, as has Homeland Security. It has all the markings of a terrorist attack and we're trying to see if we can connect the dots."

Adam stared at the older man, trying to understand what connect the dots means to his family. "I must be missing something Special agent Hernandez, what does a break-in, in my home have to do with the FBI? Were my parents killed by another country? Were they involved in something I'm unaware of?" His voice was strangely calm considering the context conversation.

"Mr. Cooper..." The agent started.

"Please call me Adam, Mr. Cooper was... or is my dad." He spoke quietly.

"Ok, Adam. We obviously have a lot of questions with no answers right now and I know this is understandably frustrating for you. We are currently approaching this situation in two-fold. What I'm about to share with you is off the record, but I think you should know that we don't believe your parents have been killed."

The statement resonated with him, almost like deep down he knew that was true.

"With the preliminary evidence we believe they were taken, for what reason remains a mystery currently, but with no bodies, or obvious motive, we're relatively cautious on our hunch." He let the first part sink in. The young man was taking this way better than he thought, but shock can manifest itself in many ways. "Our involvement is also necessary because the explosion site is... unique."

The word unique sparked the eyes of Adam, he past looks from the agent to the officers and back. "I don't understand what you mean by unique?" He pressed the agent.

Agent Hernandez looked to one of the officers and back to the young man. "The blast sight doesn't represent the typical destruction a dirty or smart bomb would do. It was precise... almost too precise." The agent offered.

Adam got a sharp pain in his head and winced until it passed. Collecting his thoughts he requested further clarification from the agent, but it was one of the officers who spoke up.

"We don't believe it was man made." He paused assessing the teenagers response. "We don't believe it was a device that was built here... on earth."

Chapter III

Following his release from the hospital, Adam moved in with Katie and found himself inundated by family. His Nonna and Nonno were there, of course, and auntie's Veronica and Jade hadn't left since he got there. In one way it was comforting to be surrounded by so many people he loved, but it was also a stark reminder of who was missing. His friends were a little scarcer, as their ability to comprehend and help a friend deal with such a tragedy was beyond their skills at this age.

Multiple meetings with the FBI and agent Hernandez occurred over the next few weeks, but little progress had been made regarding his parents. Weeks turned into months and months into years. Some days were almost unbearable for the soon to be 20-year-old Adam, who slowly withdrew into himself despite the constant encouragement from his unique family. He had received counselling for his re-occurring nightmares and the grief of reliving that night was gradually depreciating.

The month of August 2046 would be the first of many things, not just for Adam, but also for the inhabitants of earth. On August 10^th the world knew for the first time, conclusively, that they were not alone in the universe. Levels of governments around the world already knew this, but the regulars Joe's and Jane's of planet earth were blissfully ignorant. It wasn't about sightings, landmarks, or conspiracy theories. No... there had been actual communication initiated from another life form and the world was at a crossroads. Some were excited about the impending development and felt optimistic about interplanetary relations, while others were terrified of an eventual invasion that would wipe out humanity. Then there were those in between who felt a quiet combination of intrigue and caution.

It was shortly after the alien communication when Adam began a new series of nightmares... well dreams would be a better description. There was no violence or fear, but it was the emotions he derived from them. The blindingly white room that he found himself in had no structures, no instruments, no people... no nothing. Yet he felt like he was being...tested? His inability to describe his range of emotions is why he found the dreams so troubling.

It was the end of August that year, that would be the turning point in the young man's life. Not unlike his dreams, he was experiencing an inexplicable urge that came from no where, it had no rhyme or reason to ever become such a strong emotional push. After several sleepless months, Adam had concluded that, whatever his dreams were about had to be tied to his compulsion to leave and finally after much internal debate he knew he had to listen to what his mind was telling him.

As rough as the process was to come to his decision, trying to explain it to those in his life who had spent the last few years, protecting, and supporting him, was going to be tougher. In particular... his mom, Katie.

"Adam, I'm trying to understand, but I feel so unprepared for this. Are you sure this is what you want to do?" A teary-eyed Katie asked.

"I wish I knew how to explain it better... I feel like it's something I must do." He could see the pain on her face, and it was killing him. "I need you to trust me mom." He looked down at the middle-aged pixie's face. She threw herself into his larger frame and hugged him with her patented 'Boa Constrictor' grip, and he hugged her back loosing the battle to keep himself from crying.

They stood there hugging for quite some time, she was afraid to let him go, and he was nervous about his leaving. "You hug like your mom and grandpa.' Her throaty voice broke the silence. "You come from a line of the worlds best huggers." She smiled pulling away. "So, when are you going to leave honey?"

"Well, I need some time to put some stuff in order, so I was thinking Monday morning." He could see the apprehension in her smile.

"Well at least I can call the gang, you know you can't leave without saying good-bye to everyone right?" She smiled at his nod. "Then we are going to have a party this Saturday to give you the proper send off!" She was trying so hard to be strong.

"Mom... I know it's a cliché, but It's not good-bye. I'm coming back." He looked at her red eyes. "I promise! You, auntie Vern... the whole gang, are my family and you mean everything to me!"

Katie reached up and put her hand on the cheek of the young man she gave birth to, her best friends child, and smiled. "Can I ask you one last question honey?"

"Of course!"

"Why Canada?"

Her puzzled face made him chuckle. "I really don't know."

Chapter IV

Upon leaving the Psychiatrist's office, Adam exited the concrete building, into the humidity of early summer, and made his way to the subway. Rush hour had kicked in and downtown Toronto was once again the backdrop of rats in a maze, people scurrying around trying to find their way home. Feeling a little uneasy from his appointment he decided to step into the Elephant and Castle for a coffee. The thought of being stuck in a crowded subway car had no appeal to him right now. He found a spot easily at the bar and sat down waiting for the server to look his way. Once he made eye contact with her, he did a hand tilt to his mouth and mouthed the word coffee, and she smiled in recognition of his gesture. While he waited, his attention was drawn to one of the big TV's that had a red line that read, special news bulletin. He focused on the TV to try and hear what the reporter was saying...

Thank you, Peter. I'm standing in the main terminal of Union Station, where there appears to have been another kidnapping, this time right in the middle of rush hour. This is the third incident alone this month and while details are sketchy at this time, we have been informed that the person who was abducted was yet another young female. Commuters reported that a white male in a suit confronted the victim and after, what was believed to be a regular conversation, the victim was tossed onto the assailants shoulder and ran to the street level where a vehicle of some sort was waiting. We have reports that the alleged victim made no attempt to stop or deter her captors. With similar events taking place shortly after the alien communication some people are dubbing these crimes, invasion of the body snatchers. Officials say......

Adam turned away from the TV just as the pretty server brought him his coffee.

"This shit is getting weird huh?" The pretty girl suggested.

Caught off guard by her question, Adam cleared his throat. "Uhm... yeah. During rush hour too."

"You think it has anything to do with these aliens that contacted us?"

Adam shrugged his shoulders. "I have no idea, but the timelines seem to line up."

"My name's Sarah." The perky redhead put out her hand out.

"Adam..." He greeted her and shook her hand.

"I've seen you in here a few times, always by yourself. No partner?"

Partner was the politically correct way to address if someone was attached. It took out the whole gender biases, leaving the individual with the choice, if they wish to divulge anything personal about their preferences.

"Uh no. No partner to speak of." He answered awkwardly. Adam had grown up with lots of friends and some who were interested in something more, but he was too uncomfortable with parts of himself and found it easier to just be a good friend.

His answer seemed to make Sarah perk up even more. "No kidding... you know I've never seen someone whose has such a dark complexion and dark hair, with bright blue eyes like yours. Did you get them surgically altered?" She pressed lightly.

Eye color surgery was still fairly new and only the real rich could afford it. "Uh... no. I was born like this, so uhm... all natural, I guess."

"Wow! I think it really suits you, Adam. Kind of unique and mysterious..." Her compliment made the young man blush. "Say... Adam, I'm finished in a couple of hours.... would you want to catch a holo movie or a virtual concert or something?"

Adam stared for a moment at the pretty girl. He's had more than few girls (and guys) ask him out before, but he always politely declined. For some reason, Sarah's invite was difficult to shut down immediately and he actually considered to take her up on the offer, but then his brain quickly reminded him that in his current state he wasn't a good choice for anybody right now.

"Uhm... I'd like to Sarah, but I have to be somewhere tonight and an early morning... you know... work." He could feel his own disappointment in his decision.

Sarah stood back and smiled, trying not to look like she was stung by his rejection... something she wasn't used to "Oh, that's ok Adam... another time then?" She wasn't ready to throw in the towel yet, there was something about this guy. Adam politely smiled and nodded his head. "So, what's work for you?" She chirped happily.

Her question caught him off guard, since he's technically on a hiatus. "Virtual stuff. I design holonet platforms for various businesses."

"Really? I had you pegged as one of those master Kra's warrior guys." She looked at him with her big green eyes. Master Kra's warriors was a global series that combined the skill of the cage (mixed martial arts) and the theatrics of the old WWF wrestling of the early 2000's. While still sold primarily as entertainment, the fighters were the real deal.

Lost in her eyes, it took Adam a second to respond. "Uhh... no, not this guy."

"You sure? You give off a strong vibe... like the type of guy you don't want to mess with." She persisted with her flattery.

Adam began to chuckle at her excitement. "Only if you count keyboarding as a warrior." He saw her expression change. "I spend my days trying to configure user systems on a computer... actually, I can't even say a keyboard warrior since my interface system is set in a pair of specially designed gloves.... maybe that makes me... a finger warrior?"

Sarah's left eyebrow went up, curious as to his choice of words. She could see him begin to blush when he realized the implications of his accidental description. She smiled sweetly as she decided this guy was super cute! "Hmmm... I've never been out with a finger warrior before Adam." She teased him even more.

Realizing he was in a losing battle to save any credibility, he rose from his stool and put his credit chip down onto the bar. Cash was still a viable currency, but he was beginning to enjoy the luxury of the tech.

Sarah picked the credit chip up and handed it back to him. "This ones on me Adam... the finger warrior." She giggled again.

With a blush filled smile and a nod, Adam put the credit chip back in his pocket and made his way to the door. He stole a look back at Sarah, who waved one last time before he left. "Jesus Adam! Can you be a bigger dork?!" He chastised himself as he headed to his subway stop.

Back in the pub, Sarah was still reeling from the encounter she had with Adam. He was sweet and mysterious, in an innocent way. Part of her thought he was still a virgin, which made her snicker to herself. A young guy as hot as that? Fat chance she thought.

Chapter V

Adam settled in for his 40-minute subway ride and took out his old phone to pass the time. Phone watches and ear buds were the new norm, but he still preferred the larger visual surface. He had a lot of virtual messages, and he went through the list to see who started at the top of the cue. 3 from mom, 1 from auntie Vern, 2 from Nonna and Nonno Piteranni, and 1 from... special agent Hernandez? "Why in the world would he be messaging me?" He whispered to no one.

His first call was to his grandparents. As usual they were checking up on him. They were still upset he moved up north with no real reason other than a hunch that came from a dream, but true to form they always tried to be supportive. He then spoke at length with Katie and assured her he was doing well. Aunt Veronica was a little less intense than his first two calls, but she was always a little more laid back. She was an absolute knock out even at her age now and he couldn't understand why she never married or met someone, but she seemed to be fulfilled with her relationship with his parents.

As he finally approached his stop, he relegated his call to the special agent until he got home and stuffed his phone in his pocket. When he got to ground level, the sun had gone down and the city lights were on, casting their shadows throughout his route. At one time this was considered a suburb of the big Canadian city but like most large centers, it got larger over the years, and this area was filled with office buildings, condos, restaurants, and alleys, like the original downtown core. The last few blocks to his building weren't exactly in the best part of his area, but it was usually only at night you could feel a little creeped out. When he got to the door of his building, he could hear a faint scream from his right. He waited for a second, tried to listen harder and was rewarded with another faint shrill. Typically, he wouldn't involve himself in someone else's stuff, but he turned to the sounds and began a slight jog to see what its source was.

A half block later he paused trying to catch the sound again. He waited but he couldn't hear anything other than the sounds of traffic. On the verge of heading back home he caught the faint noise of what sounded like a slap. He had no idea how he could decipher the sound, but it put his legs back in motion and soon found himself behind an old office building. The lighting was sparce in this section of the lot and the back lane that ran behind the block was even darker. Movement behind the big orange garbage bin caught his eye and he made a wide arc around to get a better view of what was going on. He could see two figures, one of which was on their knees and if he wasn't sure what was happening, the loud slap and high-pitched screech made it clear.

"HEY!" Without thinking about the dangers that could be present, he tried to scare away the violent one of the two.

"GO FUCK YOURSELF DICKHEAD! I'M BUSY HERE!"

The deep voice showed no signs of fear, and it caused the hair on Adam's neck to rise. He wasn't a fighter or a hero, but having come this far he couldn't ignore what he'd seen.

"I think you made your point! Why don't you just move on?" Any hope that would be enough was crushed when the hulking figure pushed their victim to the ground.

"Stay there, bitch... I gotta teach this asshole to mind his own business!" The man walked towards Adam.

Maybe his distraction would at least give the other person a chance to run away, but much to his disappointment, they didn't move like they were instructed. "Relax dude! I think they'd had enough man." Adam was walking backwards trying to reason with the man, but it was having no effect.

"I decide when it's enough shit for brains! Since you can't seem to keep your nose outta peoples shit, I'm gonna teach ya a lesson!"

Before Adam could react, the man rushed up to him, grabbed him by both shoulders and shoved his back into the wall of the building pinning him with his big meat claws. His attempt to diffuse the man was lost quickly after he took a hard knee into his stomach, causing him to buckle forward. The large man wasn't done... he drove his bent forearm under his chin, snapping his head back. Before the pain of that registered, he took two hard punches into his stomach dropping him to his hands and knees. Trying to catch his breath he looked up at the man's scarred face, trying to find someway to diffuse the mans anger, however his intentions were met with a solid punch to the side of his head, dropping him to the tarmac of the parking lot.

With an amused chuckle the offender left the crumpled man to re-evaluate his decision to interfere, in his own pool of blood. The burly man turned and made his way back to the bitch he was discipling before hero boy showed up.

"Alright you stupid slut, now that he's delt with, what are we going to do about your lazy ass?"

The frightened girl cowered into the side of the large garbage bin wondering if this was it. Working the streets was a risky way of life... a life that was always shorter than you would have thought. She could hear his deep breathing the closer he got and with her last bit of courage she looked up to his emotionless eyes and awaited her judgement... and waited... and waited. The look in his eyes changed, from stone cold fury to surprise and...FEAR.

Not only had the stranger risen from the beating he just received at the hands of Butch, but he silently had made his way behind the towering bully and grabbed him by the back of the neck, forcing the larger man to his knees.

"OW FUCK! Easy man! Look no hard feelings! I'm jus doin what I was told!"

The girl knew Butch was capable of many things, but she had never seen him whine or beg before. The smaller stranger was quiet and stood over Butch like he was trying to decide if what the big guy was saying, was true. The stranger was eerily quiet, he never said a word, you could barely hear him breathing. She stared intently at her unexpected saviour and tried to focus on his face... did she know him? What gang was he from?