Chapter 2
Dead? How could I have been dead?
I was going to ask her what she was talking about, but she didn't give me a chance as she pulled me to my feet. I surprised myself by only swaying slightly as she knelt back down to retrieve something from the floor. As she stood back up it briefly flashed in the light from the desk lamp. It was a sword. What the hell was she doing with a sword? I had no idea where she had come from or why she was here other than it must have been a similar mission to the one I was on.
I still hadn't been issued a weapon for any of my assignments, even though I had completed all the required weapons training before I had been unceremoniously jerked out of the Farm for my first assignment. But even if I had been given a weapon, it certainly wouldn't have been A SWORD.
"What's with the sword?" I whispered, as Amanda pulled me towards the room's exit.
She glanced at it for a second and then with barely a flick of her wrist it vanished into her all-black outfit. She was wearing a matte black catsuit similar to mine with only a small backpack interrupting the formfitting lines. There didn't seem to be anywhere a sword with a three foot blade could possibly hide.
"Sorry," Amanda whispered back. "When I felt 'the buzz', I thought it was him."
The buzz. The sword. I had no idea what she was talking about.
As we reached the gilded and ornately carved doorway leading out into the corridor, I saw two large lumps lying on the shadowy floor. It was the two guards who had shot at me. No, who had SHOT me. In the darkness I couldn't tell if they were unconscious or dead, but I could see the gleaming forms of their silencer-equipped guns lying beside the bodies.
I was feeling almost like my normal self, as little sense as that made after having been shot in the gut several times. Therefore I paused to reach down to retrieve one of the weapons.
"Leave it, darling. Guns are so bourgeois," said Amanda, her French accent thickening on the last word.
For a moment thoughts of her sword flashed back through my mind. Did Amanda think we were living back in the Middle Ages or something? Well, I knew better and continued my move towards the nearer gun.
Amanda gave my arm a sharp jerk.
"No, guns are not for our kind," she said and now her voice seemed as hard as the steel in her hidden sword. "You saw how bullets can't kill you."
At least this comment appeared to be true. I had definitely been shot, but the only remaining evidence was two holes through my outfit and a large smear of blood down my front.
I had been shot, but was unhurt. Amanda was carrying a sword as her personal weapon. And guns weren't for 'our kind'. What was going on? The only thing that popped into my head that matched all these criteria, as crazy as it sounded, was 'vampires'. Had I somehow been turned into a vampire? I didn't remember being bitten.
As we reached the end of the corridor and I saw two more guards lying on the floor, I was busy feeling at my neck. It was suddenly all wet and sticky from the blood that had already been on my fingers, but I didn't feel any bite marks.
"Are we . . . vampires?" I asked, as we stepped out into the well-lit alcove which housed two elevators and a doorway marked 'Stairs' in French.
Amanda looked sharply at me and then her gaze went to my blood covered neck. She started to laugh as she briskly led the way over to the stairs.
"Well, that's a first," she said, as she got her laughter under control and pushed through the door.
Then she must have read something in my expression, as she continued with a quirk of her lips and a glint in her eyes.
"You're not a vampire, honey. You're IMMORTAL."
End of Chapter 2
Author's Notes:
First, I would like to say thanks to all the people who reviewed the first chapter, it is appreciated.
Second, based on the comments, it is obvious a lot of people didn't recognize this as a cross-over with the 1990s TV show, 'Highlander'. And apparently, a lot of people haven't even seen that old show. So I will work a little more of the Highlander mythology into the story so everyone can follow what is going on than I had originally intended. I think a few paragraphs scattered over the next few chapters is all that is need for everyone to get the gist of the concept and it shouldn't slow the tempo of the story too much. And since Annie needs to learn these things, too, it should be easy to work in. The next few chapters will be centered around Annie learning about Immortals, but then she will be thrust back into her 'normal' C.I.A. life - only with a few new abilities, which will also cause her new problems, too.
(If you are interested to learn a little more about Highlander and have ten minutes to spare, Wiki has a decent summary – just go there and search for 'Highlander The Series'.)
Personally, I think adventure stories with a lot of action are my favorites. Unfortunately, very few people in the world of fanfiction seem to write this style, so I have ended up writing my own to feed my addiction. I think this story is going to fast-paced and fun. Hopefully, you will enjoy the ride.
Have a great day,
Duane
P.S. I want to give a special shout out to Takada Saiko. Her story (well, I think she is a girl!) 'Hindsight is 2020' is what convinced me there were interesting stories to tell in the 'Covert Affairs' universe. Thanks!
