Michael and Selene had been in each other's lives for 150 years by the year of 2152, and they were leaders of the Stealth Shooters, already.
But how were the Stealth Shooters formed? Who were they?
Michael and Selene had just gotten away from William's prison. They hadn't known where to turn to next, but eventually they found that going to the American Coven seemed most plausible. When they, however, pleaded for their aid and leniency, the Coven turned their back on them. In fact, they declared that in spite of the recent events, they were not done concerning the war with the Lycans. They said that the war was only just beginning.
So, Michael and Selene went to the Lycans, or at least, where the majority of them were, to ask them if they would support the idea of an alliance. When the vote came in, most of them supported the idea, and most of the others were quickly swayed to the opposing side.
Luckily, all of these Lycans were willing to fight. So Michael and Selene decided to call their group – since there were Lycans that did not want an alliance – the Stealth Shooters. This group consists mostly of Lycans, Michael and Selene, and a few rogue Death Dealers who did support the cause.
In the beginning of the year 2152, the time was a dark period, much like it is now, 50 years later. There seemed to be no end in sight; no light at the end of the tunnel, no hope, and the possibility of an ending soon seemed to slowly dissipate.
When there are good times ahead, that usually means having to go through bad times, times where it seems impossible for anything good to come of it. But eventually, the good times do roll around.
Those good times are the light at the end of the tunnel. Unfortunately, that time the light wasn't the actual light… it was only a train that seemed to speed by too quick altogether.
2152
Selene and Michael were good leaders. Not the best, – after all, no one could be, in their situation – but as good as they could be in their situation.
They had one advisor that they trusted dearly. He had assumed leadership in that brief time between the slaying of Viktor and Lucian to the arrival of Selene and Michael. His name was Derek, and his primary job was to be the tie-breaker if Selene and Michael did not agree on something, which was not often. In fact, Selene and Michael agreed on most things, so Derek's initial purpose was not exercised often.
Derek's other job was to learn about rumors and decide if they were fact from fiction. If the rumors that were proved correct, he would pass them on to Selene and Michael.
The beginning of 2152 was a bad period for the Stealth Shooters. The Death Dealers were developing weapons that were far more advanced than that of the Stealth Shooters. The Dealers began using what they called Laser Tasers, which resembled the old guns of a century and half before, but they shot lasers instead. The Shooters, in spite of their name, were still using the Laser Swords, which looked like the lightsabers of the "Star Wars" movies.
The Dealers' weapons, in spite of their need to be re-loaded (much like the guns), could fire from a distance, unlike the Laser Swords, which required the wielders to fight their opponents up close.
This caused a sharp decline in the Shooters' population, and stopped any decline in the Dealers' population.
The members of the Shooters were trying to make Laser Tasers as well, but were also trying to develop some new kind of weapon that would help turn this war around.
"Things aren't looking too good," Selene retorted. She was still dressed in her leathers, as she had been over a century ago. In fact, her figure had barely changed at all.
"I know," Michael agreed. He was dressed in a black leather suit and black jeans. His hair was cut to a short length, not longer than an inch long and just past his ears. He was still clean-shaven.
"Update on the weapons," Selene demanded of Marc, the Shooters' main go-to guy for weapons. He was in charge of the development of new weapons, and had called a meeting with Selene, Michael, and Derek.
"Derek isn't here, yet," Marc said.
Derek was usually late to meetings, since he was always getting updates at the last minute.
Suddenly, Derek ran into the meeting room. The room, which was little more than a hole in a wall, was bleak and deprived of color. The concrete walls were bare, and the only color that wasn't gray in the room other than the immortals in it was the deep brown wooden desk.
Derek, who also had extremely short hair, wore a brown, beat-up coat with black slacks. He wore slim, sleek spectacles, and wore a tiny mechanism in his ear that resembled a futuristic hearing-aid. He was visually exhausted, and seemed relieved to get away from wherever he had just come from. His face, however, showed a slight hint of apprehension.
"Sorry I'm late," Derek apologized, then added, "again."
"Where were you," Selene asked.
"Getting the latest update."
"And?"
"It's not good. We've lost 10 men in one night."
"Shit."
Marc cleared his throat.
Michael directed his attention to Marc. "So, why'd you call the meeting, Marc?"
Marc cleared his throat again, but more dramatically, as if he was presenting the cure to the deadliest disease on Earth. "Well, you are all aware we've been getting our asses kicked big-time by the Dealers." He paused, and Selene gave him an expectant look. He went on, "What with their shiny new 'Laser Tasers,' while we're still stuck with the clumsy Star Wars-rip-offs. So…"
Marc trailed off, walking to the back of the room, which was only a few steps away. He placed his hand over a large cloth, which was covering what seemed to be a large box.
"…I made a mass production of these!"
Marc pulled the cloth of stealthily, revealing a large box of what seemed to be about a few hundred thick plates. They were a glossy black, with a sheen that made them look beautiful.
"Behold – the Fate Plate!"
"What does it do?" Selene's curiosity peaked.
"Oh, that's the best part," Marc said, as excited now as a child on Christmas morning.
Marc picked one up and presented it so that everyone could see it. It did look like a large, shiny, black plate. It had two buttons on it, one a white and the other a black color.
Marc gently tapped the white button. A soft whirring sounded for a couple of seconds and soon a handle stuck out of the rim of the plate. Marc grabbed the plate by the handle, and pushed a button, which was one of two on the interior of the handle. Another whirring noise sounded, much more quick and high-pitched. A thick blade stuck out from the interiors of the plate, the color of a slate gray.
Marc pushed the second button on the handle, and a blue laser shone on the blade.
The whole process had taken at most ten seconds, and the weapon had gone from a simple thick, black plate to a dangerous saw-like laser-bladed device.
Selene let out a gasp of amazement.
"Wow," Michael whispered softly.
Derek stared at it in amazement.
Smiling complacently, Marc went into more detail about the weapon. "It's a blade, but it's a laser. No re-loading is required, and watch this!"
Marc hurled the device at the a nearby chair. The laser-blade cut through the chair like butter, and continued to soar through the air, hurtling into the wall. It impacted the wall with a soft "thud", and stopped traveling just as it went through the wall a little.
"You aren't limited to close combat," Selene remarked, astonished.
Marc declared confidently, "This has gotta be the light at the end of the tunnel! There's just no way that those bloody Dealers are gonna come up with somethin' that's gonna trump this!"
Marc was correct. The Dealers were not going to be able to create a weapon that was better than the Fate Plate. But he was also wrong – this was not the light at the end of the tunnel.
