Chapter Twenty-Six

Mesogog fell back into his chair as he gave his brain a rest. Invading the girl's dreams was harder than he had expected and he had been drained more than anticipated. But, he wouldn't let that bother him. There was something else plaguing his mind.

"How did it go sir?" Elsa asked. Her master only growled evilly at her. "I'm guessing not very well."

"It was going according to plan, but them, something interfered. Something that I couldn't break through. There is something that is protecting her and I need to find out what."

"And how are you going to do that? With her powers increasing. You'll be no match for her." She had said it without thinking. She was sure that she would be pubished for it.

The evil creature looked as though he was about to hit her, but then, realized that it was true. "You are right. Perhaps we should let Mercer have a talk with her. Possibly that fool will make himself useful, for once."

Conner swept the floors of the Red Dragon Karate Studio, trying to catch a glimpse of Jason while teaching a few young children. He smiled to himself as he watched. It was good to see how much he was respected by them. Jason was a good teacher too. The class was interested in learning what he knew and it seemed as though they were having fun.

"Having fun, Conner?" A familiar voice asked.

He turned to see Melissa standing there, notebook in hand and slightly drenched. "Hey, Mel, what are you doing here?"

"I was working in the park when it started to rain, so I decided to take shelter. Plus, it's been a while sine I last saw Jason teach. Makes me wonder if she's still got it." She then realized that Conner was trying not to laugh as he looked at something behind her. "What?" She asked as she turned. She couldn't help but laugh at what she saw.

"Are you saying I'm too old?" Jason asked while standing right behind her. "Is that what you're saying?"

"No, Jase. I didn't mean it, like that. I only meant that it's been a while since you taught. That's all I meant." She tried to explain.

"Yeah, sure." He hugged her to show that he wasn't really mad.

"I think I'll just get back to work." Conner said, dragging his broom behind him.

"So, how's he doing?"

"Very well. He's a good worker."

"Unless he has to run off to save the world." She finished for him.

"Well, yeah." He said, leading her over to a bench on the side of the mat. "But, he comes back and finishes where he left off." She only smiled at him as he placed a gentle hand on hers. "So, how are you doing? I'm surprised Tommy let you out of the lab."

"Me too, but I'm doing okay. Nothing strange has happened to me, today… yet. And I use that term loosely."

"So, you really think you have it all in control?" He asked.

"Like I told you, before. It's like I know that I can. I just can't explain how I know… It's complicated."

"And confusing." He agreed as he heard the front doors open to see a very well-dressed man in a suit enter the studio. "Who's that?"

"I'm not sure." Melissa answered as she looked in the same direction.

"That's Anton Mercer. Trent's dad." Conner explained as he rushed over to them to inform them.

"So, what does he want?" Jason asked as he saw the man walking toward them. Jason had been informed of who and where Trent was at this time. Tommy had shown videos of the teen's fighting ability. He thought the kid was pretty gifted.

"Jason Lee?" Anton asked.

"Yes?" Jason asked, standing up from the bench to speak to the man.

"Anton Mercer. I hear you just opened." The older man looked around the room as if to study it.

"Yeah. Last week, I did… Can I ask what this visit is about?"

"I was just interested in taking a look at your facility. It's very nice. I suggest you keep up the good work." He then turned his attention to Melissa. "And who is this vision of beauty?" He gently took her hand and placed a light kiss on it.

"Melissa Baker, New York Times, Mr. Mercer. It's a pleasure to meet you." She shuddered slightly and let out a soft gasp when his lips touched her skin. There was something about him that was familiar.

"Mel, you okay?" Jason asked when he noticed this.

She nodded as Anton gave her puzzled look, but then continued with what he was going to say. "Charmed, Ms. Baker… McKnight, it's good to see that you've joined the working world. Keep it up."

"Sure." Conner said, waiting for him to leave.

Anton nodded to the three of them before making his exit. "Good-bye, for now."

When Melissa was satisfied that he was gone, she shuddered once again. "Okay, that was weird."

"What happened?" Jason asked.

"I dunno. But, I felt like I should know him. There's just something about him that seems familiar. It's creepy." She hugged herself tightly as she thought to herself. What was it about him that seemed so familiar?

Tommy let out a long sigh as he stared at the telephone. He wanted to make a call, but he wasn't sure if he had the capacity to do it. It would be very hard for him to do, since he hadn't spoken to this person in years. He didn't know why he had gotten a sudden urge to contact them; he just felt it was necessary.

He rubbed his face with his hands and rested his chin on them as he folded them under him and continued to stare. He just couldn't bring himself to do it. But, why? He began to think of what he could say to them, yet he couldn't even explain it to himself.

He was too deep in thought to notice Melissa walking into the living room. "Hey." She said, as she looked through the pages of her notebook. She gave him a puzzled look when he didn't say anything. "Tommy?" She asked. He continued to stare at the telephone. She bent down to his level to speak to him. "You know, it'll never ring if you keep staring at it."

That seemed to have done it. Tommy shook out of his daze and looked at her. "Huh?"

Melissa laughed as she looked at him. "Are you okay? You look kind of… I dunno, weird."

He nodded. "I'm fine. There's nothing wrong."

"Okay, I know what that means." She took a seat next to him on the couch. She figured that this was going to take a while, since he didn't want to directly come out and say it. "What's up?"

"What are you talking about?" He asked. He was pretending not to know what she was talking about.

She knew what this was about. "You still miss her, huh?" He gave her a confused look. "Don't play dumb with me. I know you and I know what you're feeling… Don't forget that."

He let out a long, frustrated sigh and nodded. "Yeah, I do miss her… I see the way you and Jase act and I just miss what we had. I mean, it was because of him that you were able to be awoken the other night. I felt so helpless as I saw how much of a connection the two of you have. I miss having that."

Her lips curled slightly at the ends as she smirked at him. She would admit that she missed seeing him truly happy. "Then, why don't you call her?"

"And say what? 'I know it's been years, but would you like to go back out with me?' I don't think she'd buy that." He was right. No one would fall for a line like that and she knew it.

She placed a caring hand on his shoulder and gently squeezed. "Look, she probably misses you just as much, so call her. Just don't use a stupid line like that."

That made him laugh. "Thanks. I needed that."

"I know." She said, jokingly. She paused as she contemplated on telling him what had happened at Jason's gym earlier. But, she figured that he had a right to know and he was the one who knew more about Anton Mercer than anyone. "I met your old partner, today."

He gave her a puzzled look as if he didn't know who she was talking about. "Who?"

"Anton Mercer… quite the sleazebag, I must say." She truly meant what she was saying. The first moment she saw that man, she knew that there was something about him that she didn't like. Plus, there was the fact that he felt familiar to her. She could have sworn that she had met him before. And she was going to find out why that was.

Okay, yeah, i know. It's been a while since I last updated. But, with work and school and friends, it's hard to keep up with stuff. Plus, I've been trying to finish this chapter for a week and a half and nothing had come to me until last night.

So, here is the next chapter. Please read and review. Please, ask questions, send suggestions, tell me how much you hate my hair. I don't care what you write really. I'll just be happy that you read it.

Thanks for reading, i'll try to get the next chapter up soon.