Disclaimer: I have no ownership or rights over anything related to Jumper unless it is my original creation.

"You're not getting away, Jumper!" The Paladin exclaimed as he shot his shocker at me. I barely jumped in time, landing a few yards behind him. As he turned around I slammed my fist into his face after jumping towards him, sending him flying through the wall behind him.

"Says you," I muttered, and jumped home.

Okay, so you're probably wondering what the hell is going on. I can't offer much of an explanation, I have stuff to do, but let's put it this way: Jumpers=good guys, and Paladins=bad guys. What are Jumpers? Think of us as people who can just disappear and reappear anywhere in the world.

Cool, right? Would be paradise for us, only there are some lovely people after us called Paladins, who think that only God should have this power, and because of that thought, their aim is to kill us all. Yeah, there's more than one of us, but we'll get to them later. As for now, this is my story.

So what I call home isn't exactly, well, home. I don't have a home anymore. My dad was a great guy, a Jumper as well. He taught me how to use my powers. My mom? Well, she was pretty okay too, except for the fact that she never loved me or my dad. She was really a Paladin, and she killed my dad out of the blue when I was 13. She tried to get me, but I had gotten 8 years of Jumper training then, and I put up a good fight before I had to jump out of there.

But I wasn't exactly safe. You see, when Jumpers jump, they leave something called a "jump scar". Think of it as a rip in reality, making it look as though the air is distorted or something. If you're another Jumper, or a Paladin with the right technology, you can follow someone through their jump scar and chase them. That's exactly what my mom did, I'm sorry to say.

She had a more compact version of the machine, and she could follow me instantly, instead of having to wait for the machine to boot up.

That's how I got my scar on my side—thank one of those shockers (as I call them) slashing my side with an electric charge for that. I managed to escape, that much is obvious, or I wouldn't be here.

And now? I travel the world, never staying anywhere for more than a few months at most. I'm 15 now, and I've been taking on Paladins when I can. I've pretty much mastered my jumping, so much so that I could handle pretty much every Paladin out there, save for my mom and a few of the best.

Right now my whereabouts are in France. I don't love it here, but at least I'm safe. That's the worst of it. Because my mom is leading the hunt for me and…we'll get to the others later, if I ever run into her (and I've run into her quite a bit over the last couple of years) then I can't jump for an escape, 'cause she'll give me a chase that'll pretty much make me die of exhaustion. The only way I can get out of her (or any other of the smarter Paladin's) grasp is to knock them out or stun them or something that'll keep them occupied long enough so that when they actually are free to chase me, the jump scar is gone.

It's not as easy as it sounds, though. Some Paladins are easy to pound, but others…they're smart.

But let's move on to the others.

Yeah, there are more Jumpers around, like I said before. I have a few friends who can jump, but some…they're dead, and others are long gone. I only have two people I stay with that are Jumpers too.

First, there's April. She was a mild friend at school until she saw me jump, and confessed that she could too. Now she and I work together full-time, fleeing and fighting together. She's a big help, and pretty smart too.

Then there's Davis. He's more of an ally than a friend, seeing as how he's tried to kill me a few times. Stable isn't the best word to describe Davis, if you know what I mean. If you don't, let me put it this way: he's borderline psycho. That makes him a good ally for fighting, but you can't count on him to get you out of a jam. It's only thanks to April that we haven't torn each other to pieces by now, another thing I have to be grateful to her for.

Oh, my name? It's Robertsen Shadow, the weirdest name on the planet. Some people call me Rob. Others call me Robbie. April and Davis call me Shadow, which I don't mind though I dislike it a bit.

So that's pretty much summed up my situation right now, though I have much more to say. I really hope that soon things will start to look up. I really do.

"Shadow, are you okay? Why didn't you tell me that you were gonna take on a Paladin? How'd you do?" That was April, barraging me with questions.

"I'm okay, I didn't tell you because it was one Paladin and I could handle it, and I kicked his ass." I answered all three questions, grinning.

April walked up to me, and got so close I expected a kiss or hug (neither of which I would've minded), but instead I got a punch in the stomach.

"Next time, tell me if you're gonna take on a Paladin!" She said as I started to regain my composure. She could sure pack a punch, I had to admit.

I nodded, still lacking breath, and walked to my neighboring room. We had been staying in a hotel, with funds from my and her life savings. They were running out quickly, and we were getting nervous. Neither of us wanted to steal because we could, but if we had to…

"I'm bored." April stated simply.

"That's nice."

"Why don't' we go visit Davis?"

"Why should we visit that psycho?"

"Because he's a good ally, and he's cute."

"Am I supposed to care?" I didn't mean to sound rude, but that last comment had dampened my cheerful mood.

"No, but we still should go."

"Then go!" I snapped, "And make sure you say hi for me!"

Looking hurt, April jumped, and I, feeling guilty, followed her by her jump scar.

I had expected to land inside Davis's temporary home, wherever that may be (he always told April, but never me), but instead I ended up running off the top of the Empire State Building.

Instead of reacting as a normal person would by screaming at the top of my lungs, I calmly jumped to the top, where April was sitting, a hurt look still on her face.

"Look, April…I'm sorry. I just don't like it when you go all moony over Davis, but it's not my choice."

She looked at me for a moment, thoughtful, then hugged me. "It's okay," she relented, looking at me with a smile.

I nodded, my face slightly red, and jumped back to the hotel room.

It was there that my day went completely wrong.

I jumped into my room, walked to the kitchen, got a drink of water, and turned around to see Davis standing there. "Uh…hi." That's all I could get out, I was so surprised.

"Hello, Shadow." He said in an unnervingly sneering tone of voice. "You need to come with me…now."

"Why?" I asked, feeling hesitant.

"Just do it, and you'll see." And with that, he jumped. I curiously was about to follow his jump scar when April jumped to the living room. I quickly explained the situation to her, with her listening intently.

After I finished, she said, "I'll go with you."

"No," I said, "This might be a trap."

"If it is, then I'm going to be trapped too. Better we work together than I stay here, worrying my head off. Now hurry up, the jump scar is closing!"

Before I could argue, April pushed me into the jump scar, and I half-willingly jumped.

At first, all I saw was blackness. "Hello?" I tentatively called out.

"Hello, Jumper!" A voice shouted, and I heard the familiar whoosh of a shocker.

I jumped just in time, reappearing right in front of April as she was about to jump into the jump scar.

"Come with me!" I shouted, grabbed her arm, and jumped.

We reappeared somewhere in Colorado, where we found out later on was Aurora.

"What the f—" April started, but I covered her mouth. It was completely silent here, seeing as how we were on the side of the street and it was the middle of the night. "Shhh!" I said nervously, and gestured for her to come with me. She nodded, and we started running. We had gotten down the street and around a corner before we felt what felt like a miniature explosion and heard a voice say, "There's no jump scars…they have to be close!"

I froze in an uncomfortable combination of rage and fear as I realized that the voice I heard belonged to none other than my dear old mom.

"I'll handle this," I said in a voice of deadly quietness, so much so that even April just nodded again and jumped somewhere.

I watched the street corner, waiting for a Paladin that was accompanying my mom to appear…and he finally did. The look on his face as he saw me shift-jump (what I call it when you jump a few feet, then more, and more and more to gain momentum) was priceless. So was the feeling I got when the punch to the stomach I gave him sent him flying through a couple of walls.

I pumped my fists in the air. Bad move, to say the least. As I turned to face my old lady, I got a face-full of jump-enhanced fist. This time it was me who was sent flying through a couple of walls. After I had landed and managed to stagger up, one thought came into my head: who?

I got my question answered as I saw Davis grinning at me. "You're quick, I'll give you that," He said, chuckling, "But you're not quick enough."

Now only one word came out of my mouth: "Why?"

This was met with a snort. "Why the hell do you think I would backstab a friend? They'll stop harassing me, stop trying to kill me. As long as I work for them, I'm safe from them, and that's worth more than anything you can give me."

"So, what now?" I asked him, still trying to stand without support.

"Now, I'm supposed to kill you, but because we're former allies, I'll be nice. I'll give you 30 seconds to run, to flee from me like a coward. At least you'll be safe, though. Oh, and as for April, don't worry. Your mom and I switched places so she wouldn't hesitate to kill; she's taking care of your little girlfriend now."

This brought forth fury unlike any I had ever experienced. I stood up straight without any effort, and leaped at Davis. He dodged my non-existent punch, for I had jumped behind him and had him in a chokehold.

Following instinct, Davis jumped several times around the block, but because I was touching him (I had a death grip on him) I jumped with him. Soon, Davis was lacking enough air so that he stopped trying to jump, and desperately clawed at my arms, but I wouldn't budge.

"No…stop…" he gasped out, starting to turn blue. My rage was still present, but it was starting to subside, and I got a grip on myself. What was I doing? Would I really kill another person, let alone a Jumper, merely to appease my own anger? I had to make a decision, now…

I released Davis. He fell to the ground, coughing and gasping for air. I gave him a kick in the stomach, and was rewarded with a groan from him. "Next time, I won't be so kind." I said, and started walking towards the jump scar where April had jumped from.

I appeared at the base of Mount Everest, shivering and looking around. April was nowhere to be found, and neither was my mom. I think now is a good time to say that her name is Lisa Herring…she kept her last name, and I kept my dad's last name.

Anyways, I looked around for a grand total of two seconds before I saw them; April and Lisa jumping around from one spot to the other. "April!" I shouted, and she looked around until she saw me. The distraction was enough for Lisa to deck April across the jaw, sending her flying off of the mountain. I jumped, caught April, and brought her back to the ground.

"I have to say, your mom has a nice right hook." April said, rubbing her jaw.

"Unfortunately, I know that already from experience." I said bitterly. "But let's get outta here."

April was the one who jumped us this time, but to where? Well, wherever it is, the fact that I'm safe and sound with her makes it alright.

A/N: What's up, my readers? Hopefully you liked it enough to read and review it. Seriously, review. Now. No, I'm just kidding. But know that this is the first of quite a few to come…(laughs evilly) and there will be cliffhangers galore! But…please review! I'm begging you! Ahem, now that I've regained my composure, some side notes…

1. The term "shift-jumping" was only original as far as I know, and if someone who has an affiliation to the Jumper books for movie has taken the term already, then I don't own it. And to explain it a bit more, if you've seen the movie Jumper (which you should have if you're reading this) then you'll know what I mean by the part when Griffin "shift-jumps" and sends his fist into Samuel L. Jackson, I mean, Roland's face, causing him to fly through a wall.

2. I am going to keep it in first-person point of view, though if I do shift it I will give a heads-up.

3. Lastly, I will be giving responses to reviews, so…review!

Happy Hunting (or Picking if you're a vegetarian),

ConstantWriter