The car drove in silence for over thirty minutes.
Gerald could tell that the two people in the backseat keep exchanging glances between themselves. His vision may be blocked but that didn't mean he didn't know exactly what was happening around him.
When his abductors could no longer endure the silence, the man spoke first.
"He doesn't react like a normal civilian would when they have been abducted. Are you sure that this guy is just an author?" He asked.
"Hmph, you were there when we did our surveillance. Why are you asking me?" The woman replied.
"I am just saying that its not right. Why isn't he screaming, or panicking?"
"What? Are you afraid?" She asked with a chuckle.
"Ha, don't be foolish. Hey B, what do you think?"
The driver replied. "I think the both of you should keep quiet. Remember your lessons."
"Pah, don't be such a worry wort, we have everything under control." The man in the backseat replied.
"I have been surrounded at gunpoint and by Russian special forces and even then I didn't fear for my life as much as I do right now. Just do the job the way we were trained. Follow the orders we have been given and stay focused."
"Ha, ha, don't be such a scaredy cat." The man laughed at the driver.
"Alpha, stop talking and do what you are supposed to. Bravo's instincts are the best among us. Don't give our target a chance to take action."
The car went quiet and then Gerald spoke for the first time. "That's a good choice."
Now it was Gerald's turn to chuckle as he could feel the tension building in the car.
Five minutes later the car came to a stop. Gerald was guided out. His shoes clapped on the tile floor. The echoes painted a vivid picture of the hallway he was walking down.
"Left." Said the man who went by the name Alpha.
The group of four turned left down the next corridor.
"Right."
"Right."
"W-."
Alpha was about to tell Gerald to wait when he noticed that the author had already stopped in front of the elevator.
All three noticed the abnormality. When the doors opened, Gerald walked out, with the bag still over his head and his hands zip-tied behind his back. Before Alpha could give the next direction, Gerald turned right and kept walking down the hallway.
He made the next four turns without instruction and his three captors were growing more and more tense by the moment.
Gerald stopped in front of a door that was then opened for him. He walked inside.
*Clip*
The zip-tie was cut, and the bag was pulled off his head.
*Bang*
The door was slammed behind him.
Gerald didn't bother to look around. He sat down at the table in front of him in the only chair provided. Across from him was a two way mirror. Gerald could only see his reflection.
He crossed his legs and relaxed while leaning back in his seat.
On the other side of the mirror, his three abductors stood at attention in front of their superior.
"General, the mission his be completed." Said the women.
"Good work Charlie." He said with his back towards them while he watched the man on the other side of the window.
"Alpha, tell me what you think about him." The general commanded.
"Fit, calm, experienced."
"Anything else?" The general asked.
"Smells nice, maybe an expensive shampoo." Alpha said with a shrug, not really sure what kind of answer the general wanted.
The general ignored the smartass reply and turned to Bravo. "What about you?"
"Dangerous, really dangerous."
"Anything else?"
"Umm, not the least bit afraid of us."
The general nodded and then looked back through the mirror to see Gerald playing with his phone.
Alpha panicked. "General, I swear we searched him. He didn't-."
"Don't mind it." The general said while waving his hand to stop Alpha from blathering on. He then turned to Charlie and raised an eyebrow.
"I feel as if he was in control the entire time. We were never the ones who abducted him." Said Charlie while thinking hard. "It became more obvious once we arrived. I believe he knows exactly where we are. Maybe he has been here before."
The general shook his head to signify that Gerald had never been here before.
"Then his perception must be inhumanly improbable. I would guess that he has been in high stress situations a number a time. Perhaps, more than all three of us combined."
"Very good. Anything else."
"He gives me the same feeling as one of those elders on the council that has been through it all, but it is much more pronounced. If I had to put it into words. I would say that he sees us as little puppies jumping around, and an he is like old man who isn't going to kick a little puppy when it chews on the edge of his pants."
"Ha, ha, ha, that is a great way to put it." Said the general with a laugh.
The general walked closer to the window while the others followed him.
"Did you all read his books like I instructed?" He asked.
"Yes sir." Charlie said.
Bravo nodded.
"Good, good, good."
"General… Can you tell us why you had him bring us here?"
"Well, about that… I want to ask him a favor."
Surprise flashed across Charlie's face. A glint was seen in Bravo's eyes, but he maintained his stoic expression.
"Hey!"
*Bang*
The three jumped when Gerald slammed his hand on the table, they quickly saw he was pointing.
"Those cakes aren't for you!" He hollered.
The three turned to see where he was pointing. They noticed Alpha was behind them, in Gerald's bag and was about to open a box of tea cakes.
"Knock it off." The general said. "Grab his things, we're are going in."
The general left the room, followed by Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie. A moment later they entered the room with Gerald.
Charlie opened the door. Bravo brought in a chair for the general and placed it across the table from Gerald. And Alpha brought in the bag and placed it in front of their kidnap victim.
The general sat down while the other three stood behind him. They watched as the author they abducted didn't even bat an eye towards them and played with his things.
Gerald reached for his bag of goodies and started to rummage around while paying no attention to the four in front of him.
The general opened his mouth. "I-."
"General Dasher, long time no see." Gerald said. He then pulled out two packages of tea cakes. He placed the caramel cakes in front of the general. "I brought your favorite."
"How nice of you." The general said while opening the packaging. "So what do you think?" The general said while motioning to his people.
Gerald shrugged. "Eh, above average. But just that."
"Hey, we are the best that military has produced. No other can compare to what the three of us can do." Said Alpha proudly.
"Meh." Gerald replied while eating his own cake.
General Dasher snickered. "Mr. Acers, I invited you here to ask you for a favor."
"Hmpf, the kind of favor you are looking for isn't cheap." He said while casting a glance over the three subordinates. "What can you do for me?"
"I am retiring at the end of the week. My time has come." General Dasher said.
This caught Gerald's attention.
The General continued.
"Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie will be taking over my position. I am worried that they aren't ready yet. Can you…"
"How can this guy help us? General we are already the best of the best." Alpha said.
"You can count on us." Charlie said.
"Do you feel the same?" The general asked Bravo.
The stoic man didn't answer. Dasher turned back towards Gerald.
"Yes, you three have been prepared for any civilian or military threat. But there are far more terrifying things out there. The able normal threats our unit deals with barely scrape the surface." The general took another bite of his cake. "What if I told you that everyone of this man's books were true stories?"
Audible gasps could be heard. They knew that the General wasn't a man to make jokes.
"That's…. hard to believe." Alpha said with a pondering expression.
"All of it is real? I mean all of it?" Charlie asked.
Bravo grunted. "It's not that surprising. We have seen things before. Things that shouldn't exist."
The other two turned to look at him. Bravo shrugged.
Charlie turned back to Gerald. "So you defend the world from those other threats."
Gerald frowned. "That's none of my business."
"No, no, our friend here removes anomalies from parrel worlds. I have tried to get him to work for us before but…"
"I would rather be a writer." Gerald said. "It's better to keep work and home life separate. I have enough to deal with that I carry no interest in doing your job for you."
"Since I am about to retire, I was hoping that you could help give them experience. Come on, it is in your best interest. We both know that I am the reason you are left alone when you have your… 'outbursts'."
"What outburst?" Gerald said while fiddling with another cake.
"Hmpf, you killed eight people in a bank two months ago but after the police took your statement you were never bothered again."
"Pshh, those D-bags took me and the others as hostages and started killing people un-provoked. What was I supposed to do? Just wait to die?"
"No one is criticizing your actions. It is natural to defend yourself, but when a man kills eight ex-military assailants armed in body armor and fully automatic weapons with a pen and a brass nameplate, it is normal for other departments to come looking for you. I have ensured that you remained out of the papers and left alone. More than doing a favor for me, I am giving you a chance to make a connection with my replacements."
Alpha stepped forward to open his mouth, but General Dasher raised his hand to stop him. The four looked at Gerald with interest as he munched on his cake while thinking.
"Eh, fine, fine. I was contacted about an easy one a few days ago. Now stop staring at me while I am eating. It's weird."
"Ha, ha, good, good, good."
"When do we leave?" General Dasher asked.
"Okay, let's head back to my place." Gerald said while wiping his face and standing up.
He took his keys out of his pocket and walked towards the door leading out of the room. He stuck his key into the handle and turned it. Opening the door, on the other side was his apartment and not the empty hallway that Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie were expecting.
He stepped through, followed by the general. Noticing that the others didn't follow, Gerald turned back.
"Come on, let's go. Alphie, don't forget my bag." He said before turning back.
Charlie rushed through the door while Bravo couldn't fight back a soft smirk. Alpha grabbed the bag and followed through the door. He closed it behind him before immediately opening it again.
An old woman was pushing a cart through the hallway that was filled with groceries. "Hello young man. Are you one of Gerald's friends? Such a nice young man."
Alpha gave a polite smile before shutting the front door and locking it.
"Come, take a seat." Dasher said to Alpha while entering a room off the hallway.
Alpha went and joined the two others on the couch while Dasher sat in an armchair. The four were sitting across from Gerald who was seated behind his desk.
"So, what sort of mission do you have for us?" Dasher asked.
The other three leaned forward excitedly.