Chapter 2: Thunderstruck

Location: Somewhere in the Eastern United States

"Master! The Spirits have begun to fall back to Earth!" said Koichi

"Ah...can you get me a location of the closest one, Koichi?" he said

"Let's see...Ah. right here, Master." Koichi said, pointing to Florida. "According to this map, this area is called...Flow-Reeda. What an odd name."

"Strange or not, it's our next destination. We need to prepare to leave at once. I'd prefer to get to as many as possible without them coming into human contact...same goes for us. It might be best to avoid humans for the time being." the Master said

"Right. I'll prepare our gear right away." said Koichi as he scurried off to gather the necessary items.

"I know that some of them will probably come into contact with humans...but I hope that we can at least obtain this one without problem. If there's a hold up with this first one, we can basically be sure that they will all be found before we get there." The Master thought to himself
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Location: Tampa, Florida

After Dinner Drake decided to test out his newfound...ability, so he went to the park on the other side of his neighborhood, the one without a huge crater in the middle. It was relatively desolate at this hour, so he pretty much had free reign of the grounds.

"Well, let's get to it." Drake said, pulling out the crystal and examining it. "There's got to be some way to make this thing give me a little more juice. Maybe if I hold it when I use it." he thought aloud.

He held it firmly in his hand, and then with his other hand focused on doing what he did last time. Again, a small spark emitted from his palm.

"Hmm...well, it's a start. At least it's not limited to my fingertip." he said.

He tried again, and managed to keep the spark going for a few seconds. After about 20 minutes worth of attempts, he had progressed enough to maintain a spark long enough to light something, like a leaf or twig, on fire.

"Phew. I think I'm definitely making some progress here...after a week or so I might be able to even do something bigger." Drake said

"With the right training, it won't take anywhere near that long, my boy." said a strange voice from the darkness.

"Wha? Who's there?!" Drake Exclaimed, hiding the crystal in his pocket quickly.

"No need to fear." the voice said as a man stepped into the lighted area in front of Drake. "I am a friend, I'm not here to hurt you or harass you in any way."

"OK, then who are you then?" asked Drake apprehensively.

"Put simply, I'm the caretaker and guardian of the crystal you have in your pocket. Well, that, and others that represent other elements. The crystals were sent into space about a day ago, and they begun to fall back to Earth just today...I'm guessing you found this one in that area a few miles away...the one with the massive crater?" asked the man

"Uh...yeah" said Drake. "If you're the guardian, then how and why did they get sent into space? That is, if I am to believe what you're saying."

"Well, the crystals had been sealed in a temple in what you would call the North Pole of the Earth a long time ago. When the crystals were sealed, I was placed in a sleeping state and was to be awakened if and when someone found and released them once more. I was freed yesterday from a cave in...Colorado, i think you people call it." he said

"Alright...I'll believe that for now, i suppose. What is your name, friend?" asked Drake

The man chuckled.

"Well, I have many names, for i am known in many places. Or rather, I was known in many places. anyway, the name i had grown most fond of was Beschermer. It's Dutch for Caretaker, which I felt was fitting, and it adds a bit of mystique, eh?" he said.

"Yeah, I suppose." Drake said, face smiling. "My name's Drake. Drake Trager." he said quietly.

"Glad to meet you, Drake." said Beschermer

"Now, what did you mean by 'The right training?' are you going to be training me?" asked Drake

"Well, I had originally hoped to find the crystal before any humans found it. you see, once they come into contact with a person, they literally bond with that person...as evidenced by that mark inside your hand." he said, looking at Drake's hand. "Oh yes, i can see it. I can sense the crystals and their bearers, and I can always tell if someone is in possession of a crystal, for I can see the crystal's imprint on their owner."

"To answer your question, yes, now that I have found you, I plan to give you some training... however, I must check in on the other crystals before anything starts up. I've come into possession of one of these...cell phone devices you humans use. Quite handy, really... I think that would be the best way for us to keep in contact. keep each other informed of goings on, and I can give you basic instructions of things to improve your abilities while I'm away. If you would, program your, umm...number into mine, please." continued Beschermer.

"Right." said Drake, taking the phone and entering his phone number into it. "So, when will you be leaving?"

"Well, we need to be heading out pretty much right away... we need to get to as many as possible in as short a time as possible." he said

"We?" asked Drake

"Oh, that's right...I forgot to mention my assistant, Koichi. He's a nice lad...I think you might get along well." he said, pausing to think a second. "Thank you for accepting this all so readily. I know it's a lot to take in at once."

"Gladly...I've been hoping for something this exciting to happen to me for a long time now. It's just the thing I need to add something exciting to my life." said Drake

"Well, I'll leave you be now...I'll keep in touch. Any time that is best to call you?" Beschermer asked.

"Umm, perhaps text messaging would be best. Do you know how to do that?"

"Yes, actually...I had read up on the manual. genius concept...I'm very impressed at the technological advances since I was placed in my slumber."

"Alright then...feel free to send a text any time...and we can set up a call time from there."

"Right then...goodbye for now, Drake."

"See you around, Beschermer...good luck."
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End Ch. 2