01-15-2011, 12:46 AM
It was bitter sweet. On one hand Shane had been given a job, to save four planets, earth and three others he had never heard of, but on the other hand he was going to receive a hefty pay check for completing the mission. It was insane; he would have to risk his life for planets he had never heard of until a week earlier, but then again he would be earning an amount of money beyond his wildest dreams.
Shane picked a folded sheet of paper from his bedside table, scanning through it once more. It was from COST (Class of Special Talents) an academy dedicated to turning young people with ‘gifts’ into saviours of earth.
All the time he had spent training for the twenty months would amount to this day. According to the letter he would be placed into a team with four others and sent to either planet Namek or Mercy, depending on which their leader recommended. The letter had failed to mention two things: who he’d be teamed with and the leader of the team composed. That helps, he thought sarcastically.
After finally filing the letter he had received a week earlier, the topless man went towards his wardrobe, gazing at each round dent in his upper body from his chest down to his abs. It was amazing that after so many years of researching, scientists still could not figure out the cause of the dents.
He reached into his brown, wooden wardrobe and grabbed a white, linen vest from a side section, quickly put it on and then pulled out a sleeveless, blue combat jacket which was rough around the edges, wearing it over his vest. If he lived long enough to see his pay check he planned on moving out of his parent’s house and into an apartment, and it would not hurt to have a wardrobe full of his combat attire.
He reached for his black, thirty gigabyte ipod and turned off the rap music, and then switched off his amplifier. There was one last thing he needed to do before he left his room and with that he reached into his top drawer and pulled out a silver chain with a cross on it. He closed his eyes and kissed it, but not for good luck because it would take more than luck to save the universe from an army of unknown invaders. “God, the creator of all things, if my power won’t be enough, give me the extra power I’ll need in order to save the universe so that I can receive my pay check… if that’s alright with you, and forgive me if I’m being selfish because I’m doing this for my own self interest, but being a saviour is not something I’m comfortable with. I didn’t ask to be a mutant. Thank you. Amen.”
Shane opened his eyes and tucked his cross away in the drawer. On his way out he met his mother leaving the living room with a tray full of plats, the top one full of bread crumbs. “Oh, you’re leaving?” asked the brunette (with a few grey streaks) haired woman with hair reaching down to her neck.
Shane reached into his pocket and brought out his mobile phone. It was ten minutes past ten. He needed to be at the academy by eleven AM and it took forty-five minutes to get there by a motor, so as usual time was antagonising him. Being early to appointments was not his strongpoint. He usually got there just on time or late.
“Yeah,” said the young man.
“Wait, let me just drop these dishes in the kitchen,” replied his mum Cary.
There was a deep heaving sound as his dad lifting himself of the living room couch and stood by the doorway. His father had a beer gut with thick arms and receding, black and grey hair, but once upon a time he had muscles almost as big as his sons; in fact muscles in places most men don’t even have them. He still had his good looks at least. Both of his parents were good looking.
“Look at you… my son,” smiled Jacob. “It only seems like yesterday I was carrying you on my shoulders-”
“Dad cut it out.”
His father Jacob removed himself from the doorway just as his mother came back into the corridor.
“I’ve got to admit Shane,” said Cary, “at first I wasn’t happy with the idea of my only child being sent away to train in order to protect earth, but after seeing how much you’ve grown…” Water began to fill her eyes as she gazed at her son. “My beautiful boy is a man now,” she sobbed, unable to hold the tears back any longer. She wrapped her arms around him and buried her head into his chest as she continued to cry.
Shane placed his right hand gently on Cary’s back. “Mum I’m coming back, I mean it.”
She looked up at him. She had to be tough, for him. The brunette haired woman wiped tears from her eyes. “They trained you properly, right?”
“Of course; I wouldn’t be going if they didn’t.” The statement was not entirely true. In actuality, he would not be going if COST were not going to pay him, but he obviously was not going to tell his parents that.
“Then I know you’ll be coming back to us,” she smiled.
“You have no idea how proud we are of you, son. Come here.” His dad took steps towards his son with his arms prepared to embrace him. The father and son hugged. They had not shared a moment like that since Shane had returned from his twenty month training programme at COST.
Jacob took a step back. “One last thing before you go; if you aren’t motivated enough listen to me.” He slapped his right hand on his son’s shoulder. “Your mum and I weren’t courageous enough to use our gifts to save planets, but I can speak for the both of us and say if we were ten years younger, we would. Instead we have to endure the stress from our nine to five jobs wondering how much better our lives would have been if we had utilized the gifts we were born with for the greater good. ”
Shane looked at his mother.
“It’s true,” she replied. “And we only had one special gift, but you have both of ours. A selfish part of me doesn’t want you to go off and fight for the universe but as your parents we can’t just sit back and watch you waste your gifts.”
Shane smiled. “I kinda understand.”
“Kinda’s good enough or me,” replied his dad.
====
Jacob put his hand around his wife’s waste as they watched their son from the front door revving the engine of his red and black Suzuki motorcycle. Cary began to cry again as he saluted his parents before heading down the street. Jacob comforted his wife. Just great, he thought. Now he was going to spend some time having to tell his wife that ‘everything was going to be okay’ which to him was going to be a nightmare.
Shane picked a folded sheet of paper from his bedside table, scanning through it once more. It was from COST (Class of Special Talents) an academy dedicated to turning young people with ‘gifts’ into saviours of earth.
All the time he had spent training for the twenty months would amount to this day. According to the letter he would be placed into a team with four others and sent to either planet Namek or Mercy, depending on which their leader recommended. The letter had failed to mention two things: who he’d be teamed with and the leader of the team composed. That helps, he thought sarcastically.
After finally filing the letter he had received a week earlier, the topless man went towards his wardrobe, gazing at each round dent in his upper body from his chest down to his abs. It was amazing that after so many years of researching, scientists still could not figure out the cause of the dents.
He reached into his brown, wooden wardrobe and grabbed a white, linen vest from a side section, quickly put it on and then pulled out a sleeveless, blue combat jacket which was rough around the edges, wearing it over his vest. If he lived long enough to see his pay check he planned on moving out of his parent’s house and into an apartment, and it would not hurt to have a wardrobe full of his combat attire.
He reached for his black, thirty gigabyte ipod and turned off the rap music, and then switched off his amplifier. There was one last thing he needed to do before he left his room and with that he reached into his top drawer and pulled out a silver chain with a cross on it. He closed his eyes and kissed it, but not for good luck because it would take more than luck to save the universe from an army of unknown invaders. “God, the creator of all things, if my power won’t be enough, give me the extra power I’ll need in order to save the universe so that I can receive my pay check… if that’s alright with you, and forgive me if I’m being selfish because I’m doing this for my own self interest, but being a saviour is not something I’m comfortable with. I didn’t ask to be a mutant. Thank you. Amen.”
Shane opened his eyes and tucked his cross away in the drawer. On his way out he met his mother leaving the living room with a tray full of plats, the top one full of bread crumbs. “Oh, you’re leaving?” asked the brunette (with a few grey streaks) haired woman with hair reaching down to her neck.
Shane reached into his pocket and brought out his mobile phone. It was ten minutes past ten. He needed to be at the academy by eleven AM and it took forty-five minutes to get there by a motor, so as usual time was antagonising him. Being early to appointments was not his strongpoint. He usually got there just on time or late.
“Yeah,” said the young man.
“Wait, let me just drop these dishes in the kitchen,” replied his mum Cary.
There was a deep heaving sound as his dad lifting himself of the living room couch and stood by the doorway. His father had a beer gut with thick arms and receding, black and grey hair, but once upon a time he had muscles almost as big as his sons; in fact muscles in places most men don’t even have them. He still had his good looks at least. Both of his parents were good looking.
“Look at you… my son,” smiled Jacob. “It only seems like yesterday I was carrying you on my shoulders-”
“Dad cut it out.”
His father Jacob removed himself from the doorway just as his mother came back into the corridor.
“I’ve got to admit Shane,” said Cary, “at first I wasn’t happy with the idea of my only child being sent away to train in order to protect earth, but after seeing how much you’ve grown…” Water began to fill her eyes as she gazed at her son. “My beautiful boy is a man now,” she sobbed, unable to hold the tears back any longer. She wrapped her arms around him and buried her head into his chest as she continued to cry.
Shane placed his right hand gently on Cary’s back. “Mum I’m coming back, I mean it.”
She looked up at him. She had to be tough, for him. The brunette haired woman wiped tears from her eyes. “They trained you properly, right?”
“Of course; I wouldn’t be going if they didn’t.” The statement was not entirely true. In actuality, he would not be going if COST were not going to pay him, but he obviously was not going to tell his parents that.
“Then I know you’ll be coming back to us,” she smiled.
“You have no idea how proud we are of you, son. Come here.” His dad took steps towards his son with his arms prepared to embrace him. The father and son hugged. They had not shared a moment like that since Shane had returned from his twenty month training programme at COST.
Jacob took a step back. “One last thing before you go; if you aren’t motivated enough listen to me.” He slapped his right hand on his son’s shoulder. “Your mum and I weren’t courageous enough to use our gifts to save planets, but I can speak for the both of us and say if we were ten years younger, we would. Instead we have to endure the stress from our nine to five jobs wondering how much better our lives would have been if we had utilized the gifts we were born with for the greater good. ”
Shane looked at his mother.
“It’s true,” she replied. “And we only had one special gift, but you have both of ours. A selfish part of me doesn’t want you to go off and fight for the universe but as your parents we can’t just sit back and watch you waste your gifts.”
Shane smiled. “I kinda understand.”
“Kinda’s good enough or me,” replied his dad.
====
Jacob put his hand around his wife’s waste as they watched their son from the front door revving the engine of his red and black Suzuki motorcycle. Cary began to cry again as he saluted his parents before heading down the street. Jacob comforted his wife. Just great, he thought. Now he was going to spend some time having to tell his wife that ‘everything was going to be okay’ which to him was going to be a nightmare.