Gerald looked at the group who returned to stand at attention.
"Relax. Don't be so… military. You don't need to stand like that. I am just a consultant. I don't have any rank in the military." He said as he waved them closer.
The group eased up and came forward.
"My name is Gerald Acers. And as you have heard I will be in charge of your training. This was all thrown on me rather suddenly. I have been given files on all of you. I know more about you than you would probably like. In a sense of fairness, I will give you all a chance to ask me some questions before we begin. Any takers?"
"Sir." A man stepped forward.
"Go ahead."
"Are you a wizard? How were you able to do that?"
"No, I am not a wizard, a mage, or anything like that. I know a bit of magic, but from my understanding, wizards train and pull mana into their body which they then manipulate to achieve their desired effect. In my case, I manipulated the mana around me."
Another stepped forward. "Then what are you?"
"Hmm, hard to say. I am unique. I was born a normal person, but through a series of events, I am no longer normal."
A woman stepped forward. "I heard that magic users have artifacts that can manipulate the mana around them like you described. Is your sweater a magical artifact?"
Before Gerald could answer, someone else spoke up. "Of course it is, why else would someone where a sweater that is so ugly."
"Hmpf, this was a gift from my girlfriend, watch your mouth. I am now taking a liking to Alpha's idea of fighting you all in the name of 'Training'."
The man that answered paled as he stepped back. A few others snickered while Gerald took another look at his sweater.
"If you must know, it is extremely comfortable. Don't hate on my sweater simply because you are jealous and stuck in those military fatigues."
"Yes sir."
"You caught us."
"We are envious of your comfortable sweater."
A few quick-witted soldiers spoke out.
"Hmm, I guess you are more sensible than I thought. We can put the combat training on hold for the moment."
"Sir." A recruit stepped out and Gerald nodded to her. "Is it possible for us to gain abilities like yours and the three colonels."
"Anything is possible, but most of these things happen by luck, unless you are born into it. I can't talk about what you will be doing and exposed to, because like I said, I am just a consultant, not a part of the military."
"Sir. What is it that you do then?"
"My profession? I am a fiction novelist."
"I knew your name sounded familiar. You wrote that zombie apocalypse series. I really enjoyed those books."
"Ah, a fan. Good on you. You are recruit Thomas rights? I am sure you will go far."
The others looked on enviously at the young man who made a good impression on their new instructor.
"Alright. Enough chit-chat. How about we start?"
To begin with, Gerald decided to set a base line. He took the ninety-nine recruits and tested their skills. They went to the shooting range, the pursuit course. He had them run through several drills that the soldiers were familiar with. All the while, he jotted down notes in a notebook that he managed to get one of the facility's staff to procure for him.
By the time they were done with the drills it was already getting late. Gerald decided to head back for the day.
He met Charlie as he walked out of the elevator. "Thank you for your help today." She said while walking him out. "Feel free to take any of the civilian cars back to your place. It will make it easier for you to travel here in the morning. The keys are in the glovebox."
Gerald nodded but didn't say much. He didn't want to get trapped in a conversation. He was ready to head home.
Forty minutes later he walked into his apartment to see Amy asleep on the sofa. Beside her, her laptops screen savor was on as a fish swam back forth across the boundaries of the screen.
He went over and grabbed a blanket for her. Just as he was about to put it on, she woke up.
"Oh, you're back." She said while groggily rubbing her eyes and sitting up.
"If you are tired, just continue to rest." He said while sitting down.
She then laid her head back down on his lap. "No, it's not like that. I didn't plan to fall asleep. It was just the book I was reading was too… boring."
"Ah, I see."
"Yeah, I won't be picking up that one. That is for sure. Did you have a good day?" She asked.
"It was alright. Kind of boring."
"Come on, how can going to train soldiers be boring. It should be anything but."
"Well there was a few moments of excitement. But after that is was dull and filled with note taking. I had to see what they are capable of before I could train them."
"Oh, taking notes is boring."
They chatted and had some dinner before heading to bed. The next morning Gerald didn't need to head to the military facility till the afternoon. The soldiers were still running drills, but it was nothing more than physical fitness test. He could review the tapes while they were on fast forward later. It would only be a waste of his time if he was there.
After breakfast, there was knock at the door. Gerald went and opened it. Dasher was on the other side.
"Mr. Acers." He said.
"You all have a knack for showing up right after I finish my meal. What do you want?"
"I wanted to come and personally apologize for the mess up. Is now convenient?"
Gerald looked over his shoulder. Amy was already set up on his couch as she was reading a new manuscript.
"Alright. Let's head to the coffee shop on the end of the block. Amy, I will be back in a bit."
"Okay, okay, have fun. Don't be mean if someone is trying to make amends. Negativity is like an acid. It will eat away at you."
"Okay, I will remember that."
Gerald then walked out into the hallway.
"Is that your girlfriend? Charlie mentioned that you now had a lady in your life."
"Mmm, that is her. You all are now tracking who I associate with?" Gerald asked while throwing a glance at Dasher.
"I have no idea what they are doing. I am now enjoying the retired life."
"How is that suiting you?"
Gerald asked as they took a seat in the shop.
"To be honest… I hate it. I am so bored. My daughter suggested golf, but have you ever tried it. It is tedious and monotonous. Absolutely the worst. No that's not true, it is a bit better than playing bridge, but not by much. At least with golf you are outside in the elements. Pah, I need to find something to fill my time. My daughter lives overseas, and I am just a bachelor with nothing to do."
"Then why did you retire. You seemed happier back in the Unit."
"It wasn't my choice. I hit the age limit and my choices were to retire or to take a lateral promotion that would result in a desk job in some boring department. So, retirement it was."
"You could always consider consulting for some business or something. Aren't those private security firms looking for people like you?"
"Yeah, but those are risky. By the time you find out you are in one of the dirty ones, it's too late and your already in too deep. But enough about me. I want to try and make amends. Here. This is for you. Consider it my apology."
Dasher set a small case on the table between there cups.
"What is it?"
"Why don't you open it up and take a look?"
Gerald cracked open the wooden case to reveal a set of eyeglasses. The design was nothing he had seen before and they fit his style. Intrigued he picked them up and put them on. Suddenly, symbols began to scroll before his eyes. He recognized them. It was an alien language. It was the language of the Farsay race that tried to invade twenty years ago.
He realized it was an introduction. The glasses housed an artificial intelligence that was supposed to act like a personal assistant. It could link with phones, computers, spaceships and so on. It was capable of connecting to pretty much any technology. When it was manufactured it was intended to be a personal assistant, but since the technology of Farsay was more advanced than Earth's, it determined that most computers were unregistered, meaning that the glasses could access them since the Farsay equipment didn't detect any Farsay registration data.
Once they were brought to earth, in essence, they became glasses that were capable of hacking into any computer devices.
The glasses truly surprised Gerald.
"Apology accepted."
"Ha, ha, I guess you can read it?"
Gerald nodded.
"Good, good, I have been studying the language for twenty years and even now I need my notes in hand to translate. In the end, the glasses aren't very practical for me, especially now that I am retired. But I had the lenses taken out and put into a frame I think you will like. They will be of more use in your hands. I removed my registration from them, so they are all yours. I have tested it out before. Once you register, they will only react when you wear them. To the rest of the world, they are ordinary specs."
Gerald toke the glasses off his face and returned them to the case before returning the pair he left his home with back to his face.
"Thank you. I like them very much."
"Ha, ha, great. That is a weight off my chest. So, have you been on any exciting missions lately? Come on, give me some details. I can't ask Alpha and the others without getting them in trouble if they answer. But you and your work aren't bound by any oversight comity."
"I am afraid I will have to disappoint you. I haven't been on any mission since we returned."
"Ah, bummer. Oh well."
The two continued to chat for several minutes before Gerald suddenly stared off for a moment before returning to the conversation.
"Hey, I know that look. You just got another mission. Right?" Dasher asked.
Gerald didn't say anything, he just took another sip of his tea.
"Come on, let me go with you. Please, I am so bored these days. Just do me this favor?"
Gerald frowned. "I am still dealing with the aftermath of the last favor I did for you. These may have made us even, but I am used to working alone."
"I understand." Dasher said. But then a smile flashed across his face. "But just so you know, I do have more Farsay tech. Spoils from battle. I could be convinced to trade you something else for an opportunity."
Gerald rubbed his chin. He had only been on one mission where the Farsay had succeeded their invasion and during that mission he was rather impressed with their technology. There were a few things he would like to get his hands on.
"It depends on what you have?"
"He, he, come back to my place and check it out."
After a call to Amy, Gerlad got in Dasher's car and rode to the man's house on the outskirts of the city.
Dasher led him into the basement. In the back of the space, there was a wall that was protected by military grade steel and was equipped with a biometric lock.
After Dasher opened the door, he stepped aside to let Gerald in the five by five room.
Gerald scanned the contents of the shelves and looked around. He didn't care about the alien guns. He ignored those even though they were the most eye-catching. They had been polished till the shined brightly.
He noticed a mobile flight pack on another wall. It was something like a jet pack, but it really wasn't practical. Was he going to fly around the city with it while releasing a six-foot stream of flames to propel him? No, it was cool, but he would never use it.
There were a few broken pieces on the shelves that were intriguing, but they were broken in the end. Gerald noticed a box of scraps pushed to the side. He bent down and took a look. After he shifted the contents around a few times he spotted something that interested him.
He pulled out a tiny bauble and held it in the palm of his hand. The object was an egg-shaped item the size of a marble. It had a delicate pattern etched into its surface.
"Alright, you got a deal." Gerald said while still looking at the item.
"That is what you want?"
"Yes. I want this."
"What is it? Don't look at me like that, I am not going to go back on my word. If that is what you want, then it is yours. I am just curious."
"It is a life saving device. Once activated, it will merge with its host. If it detects life threatening danger it will activate a shielding mechanism. At the same time it can also heal injuries."
"That's a life bubble? Those things always made it tricky to deal with the Farsay. I never imagined that I actually had one in my junk box."
"He, he, no take backs." Gerald said.
"Pssh, what use is it to me now. I am no longer on active duty. Okay, I held up my end of the mission, its time to hold up yours."
"Okay, okay. But you better not get the idea of running to me every time you get bored. You need to find a hobby or something else to keep you busy. My grandpa likes watching those cop drama shows. Isn't there that series about the navy investigators that has been on for like twenty seasons? Maybe you should try daytime T.V."
Dasher glared at Gerald but didn't say anything.