It was bright, far too bright to have come from the sun. No, this brightness came from the source of light itself. It was warm and safe and beckoned me into its loving embrace. I was no longer afraid. All I had to do was give in, give in to the light and there would be no worries, no more pain, and no more destruction. But something kept tugging me back. Don't trust the light; don't give in to the light. Why was his voice so distant? Why wasn't it annoying and obnoxious? He sounds scared. Impossible! He's never scared. The light kept enveloping the darkness. Come back to the dark. It's safe in the dark. Don't trust the light. Don't trust the light? I opened my eyes. It was too bright. It should have never gone this far. "This ends now!"

It was getting to be the end of August, the air was still hot and dry, but starting to cool as fall was just on the horizon. It was pretty late, a little past nine, when I was walking home from my buddies' house. Neither one of us lived in the safest of neighborhoods, but I wasn't afraid to be alone at night. I had a bit of a reputation in the neighborhood and most people tended to leave me alone. I stand at a height of 6'1" and weigh a solid two hundred pounds. Most of it was muscle and while I wasn't one to start a fight, I sure as hell could finish it. I checked my phone and saw how late it was getting, so I decided to cut through an alley. It was pretty dark, due to the lack of street lights, but I wasn't scared. I never understood why people were afraid of the dark. Maybe it had something to do with not knowing what was there, not knowing whether or not there was something there to scare you. Regardless I wasn't afraid, because there was nothing in this life for me to fear.

"STOP! LEAVE ME ALONE!" a woman screamed. I heard the crash of trash cans as she tried to run, but as she continued to scream, I knew she had been caught. The alley way was dimly lit but my vision had adjusted to the lack of light. "Please leave me alone! I don't have any money! Someone help me! Please!"

"Just hand over the purse bitch! I only want what's in the bag." His voice was gruff, like that of a smoker. Damn it a crack head.

"Hey buddy, I think the lady said leave her alone." I approached him cautiously, knowing that he was unstable in his desperate search for money. He turned to me and charged trying to take me down, but I swung my right fist into his gut knocking him down. He was light, probably hadn't eaten in months. I stepped towards the woman who stood clutching her purse. "Miss are you alright? He didn't hurt you did he?"

She nodded her head before her eyes went wide. "Look out!" BANG! The woman screamed and dropped her purse to the ground. I gasped and fell to my knees. I put my hand to my chest; I knew there was a lot of blood. I saw the crack head wave the gun in the woman's face before grabbing her purse and running off. "Help! Help! Someone help!" I looked up at her as I fell back on to the dirty ground. "Don't worry; you're going to be okay." I felt her hold my hand as my eyes began to close. I tried to whisper a thank you to her but I only gurgled up blood. Darkness clouded my vision.

And then…just like that…I was gone.

I was floating through the darkness. I had no sense of direction, but my soul knew exactly where it was going. It felt like forever, but at the same time it felt like an instant. Soon a thick fog surrounded me and I saw a tall, thin figure walking towards me. My soul had stopped moving and as the figured moved closer I showed no fear. When I was alive I was fearless, so why start being a scared bitch now?

"Hello, Cole, I've been expecting you." The figure's voice was dark and ominous. He sound like he had been through a lot in life and, that it was all taking its toll.

"Why have you been waiting for me?" I stood tall waiting for it to happen. The fog dispersed and standing before was Death himself. He wasn't doing the stereotypical cloak and scythe routine but I knew it was him. He was wearing a well-tailored black pin striped suit and his skull was a vibrant white. He towered over me, smiling with an unnaturally toothy grin. I took note of how sharp they appeared. All in all Death reminded me of Jack Skellington; scary to a child, but as an adult he seemed somewhat harmless.

"Well for starters you were supposed to be dead a while ago. I just kept adding sand to your hourglass because I knew you weren't ready, but this time I forgot. Oops." He grinned as I glared at him.

"So I'm dead because you forgot to do your fucking job?" I folded my arms across my chest. He scowled and rolled his nonexistent eyes.

"Humans! So unappreciative. Didn't I just say you were supposed to die a long time ago? Follow me." Death began walking. I hesitated at first, but the fog started to roll in again and I knew it was best to follow his orders. We walked in silence until a castle like building appeared in front of us. We walked inside and shivers instantly went down my spine. It was far too cold but I had a feeling that was just how Death liked it. We began to ascend a spiral staircase, going all the way to the tower at the top. The room over looked the desolate fog ridden area, but when I glanced down I saw Earth.

"Where the hell am I?" I looked over at Death as he sat behind a sturdy mahogany desk and gestured for me to take a seat in one of the chairs.

"You are in Limbo Cole. This is where all new souls go for processing. However, I have brought you into my office because I have a proposition for you." I sat down in one of the thick leather chairs, nodding my head slightly. "I need you to be one of my elemental guardians."

My face blanched. "…Come again? You need me to be a what?"

"An elemental guardian. Damn you are stupid, I could have sworn your file said you bordered along genius…" He trailed off.

"Fuck you! What the hell is an elemental guardian and why the hell do I have to be one?" I was starting to get sick of this. Why couldn't I just die like a normal person?

"Everything in this life requires balance. If that balance is ever disrupted, chaos will ensue and life will cease to exist. Life as you know it anyway. An elemental guardian helps keeps that balance. There are six elements: Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Light…and Darkness. That's where you come in. I have been watching you for a long time, and you were made to be the guardian of Darkness. Darkness is needed so that humans do not become too complacent." He leaned back in his leather chair. "If you agree to this, great power will be at your disposal. What do you say?"

"Why me?" I asked suspiciously.

"Because Batman is fucking busy, do you want the job or not?" he snapped.

"What happens if I say no?"

He grinned maliciously. "Your soul will wander for all eternity alone here in Limbo."

I took a deep breath. I didn't really like the sound of that, but a guardian? Did I want to become responsible for a force so powerful? My family and friends have always said I'm pretty protective of those I care about.

"Okay…I'll do it. I'll be a guardian."

"Excellent. Now meet your partner."

"Partner?" I questioned. Just then the door to his office flew open and a dark shadow approached me quickly. It had devil red eyes and an evil grin.

"Really Nigel? None of that is necessary," Death said shaking his head.

The being rolled his eyes and dropped the shadow cloak that was surrounding his body. Standing before me was a guy who did not look much older than me. His eyes no longer reminded me of a fire engine red but rather like those of a slow burning ember. He had inky black hair that stuck out vibrantly against his pale purple skin. He was tall and lean, but I could easily see the form of muscles when he moved.

"Damn it you never let me have any fun! I'm tired of being cooped up in this castle!" he hissed through razor sharp teeth. He turned his attention back to me, sizing me up. "I guess you'll do. My previous host wasn't as buff; maybe you can hold your own." He stuck his hand out. "I'm Nigel. It's so nice to finally have a host!"

"Cole…umm what do you mean by host?"

Nigel just laughed giving me a mischievous grin. "This might hurt a little," That's when I realized he was still holding my hand and he turned into a black shadow and entered into my arm. I felt like a lightning bolt had hit my body as the shadow spread. I could hear Death laughing as I fell to the floor.

"Welcome to your new life Cole," was all I heard before everything went black.

2: Ch 2

Chapter Two

I slowly opened my eyes to see that I was in a bright white room. I could hear the heart monitor tracking how fast my heart was beating and I could feel a tube going down my throat. Where am I? I glanced out the corner of my eye and saw my mother sitting in a chair next to my bed, tears staining her chocolate face. Right, I'm in a hospital. I was shot! So was all that…I must have been dreaming all of that. Of course there's no such thing as elemental guardians.

"COLE! YOU'RE AWAKE!" My mother had finally looked up to see me staring at her. "DOCTOR! DOCTOR! COME QUICK! MY SON IS AWAKE!" Before I know it I was surrounded by doctors and nurses. They were checking my vitals and they all seemed genuinely surprised. Once the commotion died down, the head doctor checked my reflexes one last time.

"Okay Cole, I'm going to have the nurse take that tube out of your mouth okay? It will hurt a little bit you should be able to talk." He said his voice somewhat shaky. The nurse slowly removed the tube and I happily filled my lungs with air.

"What happened?" I managed to whisper. My throat felt raw. My mother handed me a cup of water and I slipped it slowly.

The doctor smiled at me. "You stopped a mugging, and got shot in your chest. We weren't sure if you would live or die. The bullet was half a centimeter away from piercing your heart. You are very lucky to be here with us young man."

My mother shrieked and began crying once again. "Cole I'm so happy you're okay. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't made it." She wrapped her arms around me and I gently patted her back.

"I'm sorry Mom. You know I just have to help out everyone I know. Maybe this time I will have learned my lesson." I tried to joke but it just made my mother cry harder. I wouldn't change and she knew that.

I stayed in the hospital for a little over a week. The damage wasn't serious and no major organs had been harmed. My mother insisted on staying with me in my apartment so that she could look after me.

"Mom I am twenty-one years old, I think I can walk up the stairs by myself." I smiled as she helped me climb up the stairs to my bedroom.

"I know that sweetie, but you just had a serious injury. I don't want you to over exert yourself." She helped me sit down on the bed and I pulled her close for a hug. She smiled and hugged me tight back. "I love you too sweetie. Now you just relax and I will get started on dinner okay. Just holler if you need me." She kissed my head and went downstairs.

I exhaled slowly and lay down on my bed. I was on some pretty heavy pain medication that made me very tired. Just as I was about to close my eyes I heard the door to my bedroom slam shut. I slowly sat up to see a human like shadow leaning against it.

"Nice place you got here Cole. Much better than Death's drafty castle, although it is a bit bright in here. Have you thought about investing in some black out curtains?" I looked around to see who was talking but saw no one. "You are going to have to buy me a bed too, because I do not share. I need room to spread out." I must be going crazy. There's no one talking to me. Damn these pills. I picked up the bottle of medication that was on my night stand and tossed them across the room. "Ha, no buddy it's not the pills. You can't get rid of me that easily." I watched the shadow as it traveled around the room. My eyes went wide as I watched the shadow pick up my CD's. "Jay-Z, Eminem, Macklemore…I suppose this junk is fine. I'm going to have to bring my own music I guess."

"Hey my music is fine damn it! Wait what am I saying? I'm talking to a hallucination." I closed my eyes and an image of Nigel appeared in my mind.

"You haven't even taken your medication today. Just accept the fact that I'm real." He said with a cheeky grin.

I opened my eyes abruptly. The shadow had disappeared and I let out a sigh of relief. "I need to get it together. I can't tell what's worse, seeing a shadow pick up my stuff or hearing it talk to me?"

"I'd be a little more concerned about talking to myself and expecting a response, but that's just me personally." I rolled over on my bed and saw him sitting on my dresser. "Hi," he grinned showing off his razor sharp teeth. He had dropped the shadow cloak and I recognized him as Nigel from coma induced dream.

"Why can't you leave me alone? I don't much care for hallucinations." I glared at him hating the fact that my mind was playing tricks on me.

"I'm not a hallucination Cole. The sooner you accept that, the sooner we can get on with our lives." He narrowed his eyes at me and I sighed heavily.

"Well you're not real so I'm not going to listen to you any longer. Besides I really want to take a nap." I closed my eyes, but once again his stupid face graced my presence.

"I'm a part of you now Cole. I will always be around, so no matter what you do you can't get rid of me."

"Get out of my head! You are not a part of me; you are just medicine fucking with me."

Nigel growled and I could see his face growing dark, and my body started to feel cold. I opened my eyes to see black flame like shadows covering my body. "What the hell?!"

"Listen, you and I are one now. I can express my emotions physically through you, just like you can through me. So do you believe me now?" The shadows slowly receded and I started to feel normal again. Nigel exited my body and crossed his arms. "This is real Cole. You made a deal with Death. You are the guardian of Darkness."

"Okay let's say you're right. I'm this so called guardian. How can I prove it?" I asked skeptically.

"Easily. Open your palm like you are holding the world in your hand. Imagine it's a big black ball and put all your energy into it." I rolled my eyes but decided to play his little game. I did as he instructed me, concentrating as hard as I could. Out of nowhere a small black sphere appeared in my hand. My eyes went wide with awe. It got bigger and it looked like it was coursing with black electricity. "This is a basic power for you Cole. It's small but can be very powerful when it comes to fighting off enemies."

"So what do I do with it?" I pointed the sphere at Nigel but he moved out the way.

"Hey watch your aim!"

"Why, what's the worst that could happen?" Just then the sphere flew out of my hands and smashed into the wall, with a loud firecracker like bang. Nigel and I stared at where it hit on the wall leaving a smoldering mark at the spot of impact.

"That's what could happen you idiot!" Just then my door swung open and my mom stuck her head in. Thankfully the mark was on the wall next to the door and she couldn't see it.

"Cole, sweetie? Is everything okay in here? I heard a loud noise?" I looked over my shoulder and didn't see Nigel sitting on my dresser.

"Umm firecrackers Mom. Those damn kids next door are always throwing them." I said trying to sound frustrated.

"Oh, okay. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes. I'll bring it in here okay?" I nodded my head yes and she stared at me for a long moment before closing the door.

"Smooth moves Cole. Do you lie to your mother often?" I looked up to see Nigel hanging upside down on my ceiling.

"How are you doing that?"

"I'm a shadow; I can do whatever the hell I want. You can too once you develop your powers." He walked around a little longer before silently dropping down to the floor.

"So let me get this straight, I can walk on the ceiling and create…dark energy spheres, because I'm a…guardian?" I was still skeptical about this whole situation.

"You can do a whole lot more than that Cole. You're going to be strong too. I can tell. My previous host was just so…scared. He quit after a century. I mean he was still a baby!" Nigel exasperated.

"Right…well Nigel I think it's time you left. Go back into my head or wherever the hell you came from. You are just a really good hallucination. Hopefully after dinner you will be gone for good."

Nigel glared at me and his eyes began to take on that fire engine look again. "Fine, you want me gone? I'll leave then. I haven't been out of that castle in ten years anyway! I'm ready to go out and have some fun." With that he turned back into his shadow form, went through my window and shot out. I looked outside to see the shadow going down the side of the building disappearing into the evening's darkness. I slammed the window shut, thankful for him, whatever he was, to be out of my life. The rest of the night progressed normally enough, except that my mother checked up on me every other hour.

A week later I felt strong enough to go back to work, and my mother had finally stopped worrying about me. I hadn't seen hide or hair of that insufferable hallucination Nigel, and I was ready to get back to my normal life. I was putting on my uniform when my bedroom window raised by itself and a dark shadow slowly crawled into my room. Fuck not this shit again!

Nigel dropped his shadow cloak and stood in front of me on somewhat wobbly legs.

"Man are you drunk?" His black hair was a ragged mess and his neck was covered in hickeys. His eyes appeared more blood sot red than usual and he looked like he hadn't slept in a week.

"Hung over actually, you got any coffee. I prefer it black." He closed the blinds to my room and walked over to the darkest corner he could find.

"No, because you're not real, and I'm going to work." I was not going to spend all morning entreating hallucinations. I walked out to my truck, a 2001 dodge ram 1500that I built as a hot rod truck for when I used to go drag racing on the Vegas strip. As it roared to life I felt a slight chill run through my body. Ignoring it I headed over to my job at the mechanic shop I worked at. My co-workers were happy to see me and thankful that I was alive.

"Ugh this is where you work? It's so hot and bright in here. Can't we go someplace darker?" Is this seriously happening right now? "Yes Cole it is." I looked around to see if Nigel had made his presence known in the shop but so far it seemed that he was only in my head. Go away Nigel. I'm busy at work and I don't have time for these games. "But you don't have time for work. We have to get started training." Like hell I am! I am not doing a damn thing with you so just go away. Go spend a week partying again or something. I don't care just leave me the hell alone. "Fine, have it your way." I turned my attention back to the car I was working on, when all of a sudden the oil pan I was using levitated and flew right at me. I managed to duck just in time, but it ended up hitting my supervisor. He turned around and glared at me.

"What the hell Cole?!"

"Sorry Steven…it slipped out of my hands." I replied weakly. He just shook his head and went to go clean himself up. For the next hour various mishaps continued to happen. My tool box had mysteriously toppled over, twice, and more oil drip pans continued to be thrown at my coworkers. Tools would be thrown and several of the cars wouldn't start up when I went to take them on a test drive.

"Cole! Are you feeling okay? I know you recently got hurt but you are really off your game today? Maybe you should go home?" Steven told me after he pulled me aside. I nodded my head agreeing with him.

"Yeah, maybe that's just it. I need some more time to get better. I promise I will be back to normal by tomorrow." But I wasn't over the next month, several more mistakes continued to happen, even obvious ones that I could have easily prevented. What the hell is going on with me? I'm never this clumsy or forgetful. I'm usually pretty good at this job.

"I'm sorry Cole, but that gunshot wound has seriously messed with you. I can't have you working here like this anymore, you or someone else is going to get hurt, and I am not going to be responsible for that. I'm going to have to let you go. Call me back when you get everything straightened out okay?" He turned his back and walked away without even giving me time to explain. I sighed defeated. He was right; I was going to get someone hurt. Maybe that gunshot messed up my nervous system or something. I cleared out my area and brought my things to my truck. As I was driving back to my apartment Nigel appeared in my passenger seat.

"Yay you got fired! Now we can get started training." I slammed down hard on the breaks, almost causing the person behind me to rear end me.

"What the hell are you doing here?! You almost gave me a damn heart attack!" He just gave me a cheeky grin. "Wait…how did you know I got fired?" I started driving again.

"I'm basically your shadow Cole. Where you go I follow…if I want to anyway. But that's not what's important. Now that you got fired and we can begin training." I pulled into my apartment complex and glared at him.

"All that shit was you wasn't it?! You got me fired!"

"Guilty!" He smirked at me. "Oh come on, it's not like you need the job." I just glared at him.

"I have bills to pay Nigel! I have to eat! You really fucked this up for me!" I got out my truck and slammed the door shut. I was in no mood to go home now and started walking I don't know where, but aslon as I was away from this whatever he is.

"Does this mean you acknowledge me as real? Finally ready to accept that I'm not a figment of your imagination?" He asked as he walked beside me. I felt a dark energy flowing through my veins as I grabbed him by shirt collar.

Black shadows began to appear around my hands and I felt the sphere forming in my right hand. "Leave me the hell alone!" I pushed the pulsating black orb in his face and it exploded on impact. Damn that felt good. As the smoke cleared Nigel had the biggest grin on his face.

"Oh you have been practicing! I really should stop partying so much though. That almost left a scratch. You really need me to train you." I screamed out in frustration and continued to walk down the street. He was right. I had been practicing on using the black orb, and I had learned that the stronger my emotions, the more powerful it was.

"Yes okay I believe you are real, and I believe that I have these powers. But I am not training for a damn thing!" Nigel just nodded his head as I continued to walk.

"Well if I can't convince you, I know someone who will. DEATH!" People who were walking by us turned to see Nigel's little outburst. Seeing as he looked like a person deep in the Goth subculture, they shrugged it off. Just as we passed a bus stop, the city bus pulled up right alongside us and Death himself stepped off, approaching me.

"Cole, Nigel, it's so good to see you getting along." My jaw dropped. People walked around us like there was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Umm…Death…can they see you? I mean I know everyone can see Nigel in his human form…" I asked. I swear if he says no, I'm walking straight to the nut house!

"No Cole they can't see me. I only appear in the form you see me as when a person dies. Today however I am projecting the image of a teenage girl."

Nigel snickered. "Really a teenage girl? That's what you wanted to be today?"

"Well excuse me if I want to feel pretty once in my life!" Death snapped. They're crazy! These people are crazy. "Cole, Nigel tells me that you are still having trouble adjusting to your new life. Let's talk." I felt a strong pull and I knew I was being forced to follow him. We walked in to a nearby coffee shop. Nigel squealed with delight and went straight to the counter, returning shortly with the biggest cup of black coffee they had.

"How do you pay for things?" I stared at him as he began to gulp down the beverage.

"You know I'm not too sure. Whenever I reach into my pocket the money I need is always there. You can do it too. All the guardians can."

"We don't have time for the little tricks you can do. Cole, I need you to begin training immediately. There is a reason why I picked you and why I need you." Death said capturing my attention. "All guardians have a polar opposite. For the most part they all are friends and fufill their duties as guardians perfectly. But your opposite…Light…well he's gone rouge." Death sighed.

"I told you not to pick him. I never liked the look of him. I mean-"

"Shut it Nigel! I am in no mood." Death said cutting Nigel off. "Cole, he needs to be stopped. I would have the other guardians do it, but only polar opposites can defeat their polar opposites. He's very strong, and has had centuries to perfect his technique. You are strong naturally, but with the proper training you should be able to pose a threat to him."

"We're doomed aren't we?" Nigel asked looking at me.

"Look Death, I'm not going to join some little war you have going on. Thanks for the powers, but I have better things to do than stop this Light guy. Now if you can take Nigel's annoying ass with you I will be truly happy." I stood up and exited the coffee shop.

"You're not really going to just let him go are you? We need him!" Nigel turned to Death looking desperate.

"Give him time. He will come around. I have a feeling that he's about to get the push he needs to begin his training." Death said a slight smirk on his face.

I was walking back to my apartment when I managed to get behind a slow moving man in a vibrant white suit. Whenever I tried to step around him, he would block my path.

"Look man can you get out the way? I'm trying to get somewhere." I was getting pretty annoyed.

"Oh I'm sorry; I didn't know I was in your way." He turned around and he gave me a charismatic smile, showing off his pearly whites. He couldn't have been much older than me, and appeared to about my same height and stature. His eyes were dark blue but exuded a warmness about them that calmed me immediately. His hair was platinum blonde and slicked back. He seemed so trustworthy and yet he gave off this aurora that made me doubt his charm.

"Yeah whatever," I walked past him.

"Again terribly sorry Cole. I will try to be more aware, next time." I stopped dead in my tracks, and slowly turned around. He was still smiling, that innocent charming smile.

"How did you know my name?" I approached him cautiously.

"Oh I know many things about you Cole. How is Nigel doing, I haven't see the old boy in almost a decade." His British accent was becoming clearer. How did he know Nigel? Even if he was annoying I suddenly felt protective of him, and I no longer trusted this man.

"Who the hell are you?" I glared at him. It seemed as if we were the only two people on the sidewalk, off in our own little world.

"My name is Blake. So you're the new guardian of Darkness. Strange I would have thought Death would have picked someone a little more…qualified for the job. You clearly lack any of the skills needed to control your powers." He smirked. I felt my blood begin to boil and the dark shadows began to radiate from my hands. "Careful Cole, you wouldn't want the humans to see you use your powers now would you?" He turned and moved quickly down a dark alley, his suit making him easily visible.

"Hey get back here!" I ran after him trying to keep up but he was surprisingly fast. It felt like I was chasing him forever before we finally ended up on the outskirts of the city. I felt like my lungs were about to explode, I was so out of breath.

"Oh Cole I'm surprised you were able to keep up, seeing as you haven't begun your training yet." He said arrogantly. "Here's a little tip, once you learn your shadow form, you will be able to attach yourself to a person's body and follow them anywhere they go. I'm sure Nigel will teach you, he's a pro at it."

"Quit playing these games you smug bastard! Who the hell are you?" I stood up finally.

"I'm a guardian just like you Cole. More powerful, stronger, and faster of course, but a guardian nonetheless." He circled me, trying to intimidate me but I was having none of it. I felt the dark shadows erupt from my body and a surge of power coursed through me. "Oh I'm so scared." He said sarcastically. I growled and tried to punch him but he dodged it quickly. Again and again I tried to hit him, but he always eluded contact. "What makes you think you are a threat to me? You are nothing! You have only had your powers for a month! You are still a child compared to me!" He started punching me rapidly, knocking me upside the head and in my gut. I could barely see his fists as he seemed to move at the speed of light. With one final punch he sent me flying back. I coughed up a bit of blood and looked up at him as he towered over me. His eyes began to twitch slightly and his once charming smile now appeared a bit deranged. "I could kill you now if I wanted to. Be rid of you completely and save myself a lot of trouble in the future." A sword manifested itself in his hands. It glowed bright white and looked like it could do some serious damage. He poised it over my body, preparing to thrust it into my chest when a purple ball of energy careened into his body. It exploded on impact and sent him flying back. I looked over to see Nigel, a dark look on his face. His hands were glowing purple as he continued to shoot out the orbs in the direction that Blake had been.

"You alright Cole? He didn't rough you up too much did he?" I stood up dusting myself off.

"How did you know I was here?"

"I told you we are one. Whatever pain you feel I feel. I sensed that you were in danger and came right to you. What were you thinking trying to take him on alone? You could have gotten yourself killed!"

"Who the hell is he? He says he's a guardian too, but of what?"

Nigel shook his head. "Damn you sure are thick! I'm going to have start helping Death pick out you people! That's the guardian of Light. Your polar opposite and right now enemy number one." I looked over to see Blake walking towards us, not a hair out of place and his suit still impeccable. "Damn it," Nigel muttered.

"Nigel old boy, it's so nice to see you. Caught me by surprise you did. You know how I hate surprises Nigel. Next time you want to play, please be a sport and give me a chance to get warmed up." He said with a cocky grin.

"What beating up on the new guy isn't enough practice for you?"

"Who said that was practice? I'm just eliminating a minor nuisance." Blake eyes narrowed and his sword once again appeared in his hands. I felt a sudden surge of energy enter me, and I knew it was Nigel.

"Let me handle this!" How are you going to handle this if you are inside of me? "Like this," My arms began to move involuntarily and I began to shoot out spheres of dark energy from my hands. They were powerful and made direct contact with its intended target. Blake stood there, that stupid grin still on his face.

"Oh that was fun, but now I do think it's my turn," His body became a blur as he ran at me punching me full on with his free hand. Before my body hit the ground I was hit repeatedly by white spheres of energy. Nigel! Nigel What the hell do we do? Nigel? I couldn't hear him but I still felt his presence. Damn it that son of a bitch must have knocked him out. "It's a shame we have to end our game so quickly Cole. If you had had any practice you would have made a worthy adversary. Any last words?" He poised the sword again. This is how I die? A sword through the chest? You have got to be kidding me!

Just as he was about to strike I felt my body being swooped up into the sky. I could hear Blake growl but he made no attempt to follow me. However his face said it all. This was just round one and we would be meeting again soon.

I looked up to see that I was in the arms of a person whose entire body was completely on fire. At that point I felt it was appropriate to take Nigel's lead, and pass out.

3: Ch 3

I awoke when I landed roughly on the ground. My vision was slightly blurred but I could make out the feminine figure approaching me.

"Please tell me you're not dead." Her accent was very thick. As the flames receded from her body, I was at a loss of words. Her skin was nice and tan, perfectly sun kissed. She had on a low cut red crop top that highlighted her cute belly button ring, while her shorts showed off her long toned legs. "Hey chico, my eyes are up here!" I looked up into her eyes and was caught off guard by how bright they were. The hazel color looked almost gold as they were accented by her dark wavy hair that had red tips.

"Who are you?" I asked as I dusted myself off.

"MARIA!" I felt Nigel detach himself from my body and he ran full on into the girl tackling her to the ground. "Oh Maria it's so good to see you again. It's been so long!" Maria laughed and hugged him back.

"Nigel! I missed you too. How have you been?" The two got up completely ignoring me.

"Better now that I'm out of that damn castle. Although Cole likes to keep me in the sun all the time, you got a space for me to camp out?"

"Aww you poor baby. Yes I do. You can go into your old room; I made sure it stayed just the way you left it." She kissed his cheek and Nigel ran off. "Well are you going to stand around all day? We got things to do chico." She glared at me.

I sighed hard. "I don't have a choice, here do I? Where are we going?"

She rolled her eyes and started walking in the direction that Nigel had run off to. I couldn't help but stare at her nice round ample behind, which was hugged perfectly in her tight black jean shorts. Mmm damn! She looks so good! I wonder if I can get a piece of that juicy apple she got. I started grinning thinking of all the naughty things that I wanted to do to her, when I felt a blast of hot air hit me with such a force that I stumbled back.

"Aah! Damn what the hell was that?" I noticed a different female standing in front of me with bright red hair that went down to her lower back. Her skin had that same sun kissed glow as Maria's but she had fiery red eyes.

"Ha! I caught your ass!" She placed her hands on her hips and glared at me, her round eyes glowing red, like she was about to ignite in flames.

"What the hell did I do?!" I growled.

"I caught you staring at Maria like the horny dog you are." Shit! Am I that obvious?

I looked over at Maria to see her shaking her head. "Come on Fina, he's not worth our time." Maria said a mischievous look in her eyes. Fina winked at me before she turned in to flames and went into Maria's body. Maria walked up to me with a little smirk. "You can't handle me homie. I'd burn you alive."

"If you say so chica." I said grinning. She just rolled her eyes and turned around. As we continued walking I noticed that we were approaching a large older two story house in the middle of a field.

"HEY SLOW ASS! HURRY UP AND GET IN HERE!" Nigel's irritating voice drew my attention away from the house. He was leaning against the railing and looking rather impatient. "I'm coming, I'm coming," I ran up the porch steps and walked into the living room to see Death sitting on the couch casually reading a newspaper.

"Damn another drunk driver killed someone. A young life snuffed out too soon. When will these humans learn?" He looked up as he noticed Nigel and me standing in the doorway. "Oh hey Nigel, Cole you're both alive? Blake didn't kill you? That's good."

"You knew he could have killed us! Why did you just let us go head on like that?" Nigel glared at him. "HE KICKED ARE ASSES!"

"Hopefully now you both will focus on your training. Especially you Nigel. Cole is still new to all this, but I know you know better." Death turned his attention back to his paper.

"Ugh how did I get put in this mess?" I asked to no one in particular as I sat down in an armchair.

"Next time don't die." Death said all seriousness in his tone. Silence filled the room for a moment until I heard a male voice yell from another room.

"DAMN IT! WHY IS THERE NEVER ANYTHING TO EAT IN THIS DAMN HOUSE?!" A tall man with several tribal tattoos walked into the living room. He appeared to be Hawaiian and was rather large and built. He plopped down on the love seat across from me and glared at Maria who was sitting next to Death on the couch. "All these damn women in this house…eating up all the food, but never cooking anything."

"Oh hell no! It's your hungry ass eating up all the damn food. And I was going to make enchiladas for dinner but now you are not getting a damn thing!" They glared at each other until Death broke the tension.

"Well it seems that you all are getting along." His was voice dripping with sarcasm. "Where are the other two?"

"Emily is in her room sleeping." The guy said. A moment later the house began to shake, as a small earthquake rocked its foundation. "And Keiko is in the backyard doing her training."

"Maria could you please bring Keiko in here and Nigel please go wake up Emily. We all need to be introduced properly to our newest addition." Nigel grinned and become a shadow, quickly shooting up through the ceiling. The big Hawaiian walked over to me, folded his arms across his chest and looked me up and down.

"So you the new dark guardian huh? You think you got what it takes my man?" His body began to glow blue as he sized me up.

"Yeah, I got what it takes. Want me to show you?" I glared at him as my own dark powers started to radiate from my body. We stared each other down until he suddenly burst out laughing and pulled me into a bear hug. Too tight! Can't breathe!

"HA! I can see you have heart my friend! You are exactly what we needed." He let me go and I was able to fill my lungs with air again. "My name is Halulu but everyone just calls me Lu and this is my partner Aqua." A current of water came out his chest and manifested itself next to him. He had pale blue skin, and royal blue hair slick that looked like it was constantly dripping wet.

"Hey what's up? About time we get a new dark." He gave me a sheepish smile.

Suddenly a loud shriek ripped through the house. "AAAHHH!"

"Well it seem like Nigel got her up." Lu muttered. I saw Nigel's shadow form comes through the ceiling, quickly followed by a thick mist that came rushing out the air vents. It surrounded his shadow completely before taking on a more feminine shape. A hand reached out and pinned him to the wall.

"You know I hate it when you mess with my dreams Nigel!" Nigel began laughing hard as he turned back into his human form. Lu cleared his throat and the girl looked over in our direction. "Oh I didn't know we had guests." Her body became solid and she gave us all a warm smile. She had long dirty blonde hair with little flowers in them reminding me of a stereotypical hippie. "I'm Emily. You must be Nigel's new host." She came up to me and wrapped her arms around my waist. "So nice to finally meet you."

"Yeah, nice to meet you too." I was a little uncomfortable with how affectionate she was.

"Oooh he's cute!" I felt a small body run into me and hug me around the waist replacing Emily's arms. "Ooh and muscular too. Lu I think you have some competition." I looked down to see a young petite Asian woman smiling up at me. She had on a tight little green dress that hugged her body nicely.

"No way Keiko, he's got chicken skin just from you hugging him. He's not a real threat to me." Lu said smugly.

I pushed the girl off me and went chest to chest with Lu. "You want to run that by me again. I could take you any day of the week." I glared at him when Emily took my hand gently.

"Please let's not have a pissing contest. This is supposed to be a joyous occasion. We are all friends here, no need to push each other around."

"Emily is right. We are here to meet Cole, and get him started on training. Any animosity we have should be left at the door." Death stood up and everyone nodded their heads. "Cole you have already met Lu and Maria, so the rest of you get started."

Keiko stepped towards me and batted her eyes flirtatiously. "My name is Keiko and I am the Earth guardian. And I would like you to meet Hugo." Her body began to shake slightly then a dark green light shot out of her body. It manifested itself into the biggest man I had ever seen in my life. He reminded me of Andre the Giant with his height and his body builder physique. He nodded his head at me curtly. "Ignore his rudeness. Hugo is really sweet once you get to know him." I just nodded my head and tried to keep my jaw from hitting the floor.

"And you know I'm Emily, so let me introduce you to Brisa," I suddenly heard a loud whir and the room became really windy and a small twister formed in front of me.

"WHO THE HELL IS THIS GUY!?" I was caught off guard.

Emily sighed. "Sorry, she doesn't play well with others."

"HEY I'M NOT A DOG!" Brisa yelled angrily. She folded her arms and scowled at me. "So who are you? Because if you are no one important you need to get stepping buddy."

"I'm Cole, the new guardian." Damn now I'm saying I'm a guardian. I can't believe this is happening to me.

"Humph, well you're a serious upgrade from the last dark guardian. He was so mopey and depressing." She said nonchalantly.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked curiously. Everyone keeps talking about this guy. Am I really that different from him?

"Ooh, nothing," They all adverted their eyes and Maria just rolled her eyes.

"Blake killed him! His name was Adam and Blake killed him okay. Nigel and Adam didn't work well together and he never wanted to be a guardian. Adam joined in 1908 and Blake killed him seventy years later. He was still young, and didn't take this job seriously." Her voice was tight and I could tell it pained her to talk about it.

"That's why we need you Cole." Death said solemnly. "Right now the world needs you. You and Blake are the two strongest out of the 6 elements. All of the other elements can only stall Blake, but you are the one who has the power to defeat him for good."

I sighed heavily shaking my head. "I'm sorry you guys. I have to think about this. You're telling me I'm the one that has to save the world…that's some serious shit. I don't know how I feel about all this. I'm going to have to go home and think about it." They all looked at me with disappointment. I walked out and Nigel followed me. We walked through the field heading towards a dense forest. I didn't know where we were, but I just had to get away from those people.

"So what you thinking about Cole?" He was quiet for once which I appreciated.

"My old life…before all this happened. My life wasn't perfect, but I was happy. A decent job, friends, I was even talking to this girl that bartended at a bar my friends and I hung out at. This new life Nigel…so much is expected of me now. I feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders. I know that if I take on my role as an elemental guardian, I will be turning my back on my old life, and I don't know if I want to do that."

Nigel just patted my back. "Well then, we better get you home. You know…so you can have some time to think. Let's fly, it's much faster than walking back to Vegas."

"Fly?" I asked skeptically. "I can't fly."

Nigel hit his head and smirked. "Of course you can, I just have to teach you." He darted into my body and it no longer felt weird. I was actually becoming used to the power boot I felt when we became one. I felt myself begin to slowly rise off the ground and my body became transparent.

"Nigel…what's happening?" As my body rose higher in the air I could see bright lights off in the distance. "Where are we anyway?"

"Colorado. Those lights over there, that's Denver. Now, eventually you will be able to do this without me, but for now, think of me as your training wheels. Focus on a person or place you want to go to, and your powers will take care of the rest." I focused on my apartment, trying to make it a clear image. My body shot forward at an alarming rate. We soon passed over several snowcapped mountains, and I figured we were over Utah. Finally I could see the bright lights of the Vegas strip. Flying was truly an exhilarating experience, and I couldn't wait to do it again.

"So boss what's the plan?" Nigel was sitting on my ceiling looking down at me. "I'm stuck with you until you die…again, so whatever you decide to do, I'm all for it."

I looked up at him before closing my eyes. I knew that it would be the right thing to do to stick out, but I really wanted to go back to the time before this happened. Well I guess if Death hadn't picked me I would just be dead. At least as a guardian I get a second chance. "You didn't get along with your previous host?"

I heard Nigel groan and I opened my eyes. "He was a nice enough guy…he was so damn depressing though. Made me wish I wasn't immortal so I could off myself. Then he never wanted to train, just ignored his responsibilities. I don't want to blame him…but he just let Blake get away with so much shit. That's probably why he went rouge and killed him." He lay back on the ceiling making me wonder how comfortable it was. "Look I don't like to talk about him too much. Even though we weren't a perfect match, I still bonded with him, and after seventy years…knowing that he's gone…"

"I understand man, I won't push it." I didn't mean to send him down memory lane, but it gave me a bit of perspective on his previous relationship.

"Look I've been waiting a long time for a new host. Death was very picky and then he found you. You had a lot of near death experiences where you should have died because Death needed you. But he kept putting it off until you were older. You know let you live a little bit. Now you have this second chance Cole. You are basically immortal like me. Don't waste this life doing mundane human activities."

He had a point. I had died, but now here I was again, with a new life that had a purpose. Did I really want to waste it? "Am I really immortal?"

Nigel snorted. "For the most part. Only your polar opposite can kill you, and only then if my spirit isn't bonded with yours. You won't age either. You know how young Blake looks? Yeah he's over six hundred years old."

I let out a low whistle. "Damn…" I sighed hard and I knew what I had to do. "You better get some sleep Nigel. I'm waking your ass up early."

Nigel hissed angrily. "What the hell for? You know I don't like the daylight!"

"I got some errands to run, and then we are going on a bit of a road trip." I closed my eyes as I heard Nigel begin to laugh.

"I know there was a reason I liked you. You're alright in my book Cole." I could hear him starting to bounce off the walls.

"Nigel, please shut the fuck up and go to sleep." I said as I covered my head with my pillow.

4: Ch 4

Chapter Four

"Changed your mind huh Papi?" Maria gazed up at me, a smug look on your face. I stuck my tongue out at her and pushed my way inside. Nigel gave her a hug and followed me in. "Cole your room isn't ready yet, so you will be in Nigel's room for the next few days." Nigel and I both groaned in unison. From what I knew of Nigel I could only expect something dark and disturbing. I followed Nigel up the stairs to his bedroom, and my suspicions were confirmed. Everything was black and purple, and it was surprisingly cold. He had a rather large canopy bed that had the curtains drawn.

"Okay I get it, the light is bad; do you really need it to be this dark though?" I put my duffel bag on the floor. My room was a little dark, but it never felt this gloomy. The lease on my apartment was going to be up next month, so I gave my landlord the rest of the money in advance before I let Nigel take me back to the other guardians. When I told my mother that I would be leaving town for a while she was not happy. Especially when I told her I didn't know when I would be coming back but that I would try to visit her as often as I could. I was still her baby but she trusted me and took my word at face value.

"If you don't like it you can sleep in Adam's old room. It reminds me of Death's master bedroom." Nigel crossed his arms and glared at me. I shuddered at the thought of what Death's bedroom would look like. "Besides, I put up with your bright ass room for almost two months, so I think you can suffer through two nights in mine."

I rolled my eyes and went downstairs. I was in no mood for Nigel's attitude. Fina was sitting on the couch with Aqua. She was laughing and I glanced at the TV to see that she was watching some trashy TV drama. I shook my head wondering how anyone could get sucked into that crap. Aqua ignored her, as he was completely immersed in his fishing magazine. Not wanting to engage in either one of them I walked into the kitchen. Emily sat at the dining room table, drinking a cup of tea.

"Well hello Cole, I'm so happy to hear that you have returned to us. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, I guess." I rubbed the back of my neck. "But now that I'm here, what am I supposed to be doing?"

Emily sipped her tea and placed it gently on the table. "Training of course," she gave me a knowing look. "You have to catch up to the rest of us and develop your powers."

"Well, who's going to train me?" Emily laughed and gave me a sweet smile.

"All of us silly. We all have different powers, and you need to be trained in how to defend yourself from all of them. That way, when it is time to battle Blake, you will stand a fighting chance." I nodded my head as I began to understand her.

"So who will be training me first?"

"That will be me and training starts right now." Please tell me he's joking? Since I was so in tune with his movements now, I knew exactly where Nigel was. I looked up to the ceiling to see Nigel sitting on it upside down.

"You're going train me?" I folded my arms across my chest and gave him a skeptical look. I grinned at the offended look on his face.

"What's with that look Cole?" he glared at me.

"Well if I remember correctly you're still a little rusty," I smirked.

Nigel dropped down on to the table, landing silently in a squatting position. "If I remember correctly I saved your dumbass from getting chopped up by Blake." He scowled.

"Motherfucker he knocked your ass out like ten seconds into the fight." The tension between us was strong, but Nigel finally shook his head.

"Look do you want a better understanding of your powers, our powers? I'm the only one who can train you. So are you ready or not?" I sighed hard but gave him a small smile.

"Yeah, let's get started." Nigel jumped off the table and I followed him to the backyard. I let out a low whistle as I gazed out at the many acres of land. We walked a good distance out before Nigel turned to me, a serious look on his face.

"When it comes to training, you need to learn to tap into your power source. It's deep inside you, and once you harness it, you will have full control over your powers. I will show you." Nigel began to radiate darkness, and I could see the dark aura around him. I stepped back as I the dark force around him growing bigger and darker, until a gust of wind blasted out of him and he let out a deep, almost primal growl. "OOH HELL YEAH!" His eyes began to turn a deep shade of royal purple. "I forgot how good it felt to be fully charged. I'm giving you five seconds Cole." He grinned, his teeth looking sharper than ever. "Five…"

"What the hell Nigel?!" I looked at him like he was crazy.

"Four…" I slowly stepped away from him as I saw dark shadows beginning to engulf his hands. Shit he's for real.

"Nigel what do I do?" I knew how to create dark energy balls but that was it.

"Three…" I shut my eyes and tried to focus on the power inside me. "Two…" I began to feel something. It felt like a pulse, a heartbeat different from my own and it began to slowly surge through my body. "One…" Fuck! Nigel punched me straight in my gut and it sent me flying at least twenty feet back. As I landed on the ground I realized that it didn't hurt as much as I thought it would. Granted I knew I would be bruised badly, but that hit should have knocked me out cold. I slowly sat up to see Nigel making his way towards me, a murderous glint in his eyes. "Come on Cole, hurry up and get ready! How are you supposed to defend yourself if you're so weak?!" He tried to punch me but I rolled out of the way at the last second. I looked back to see that his fist had left a small crater in the ground. I growled and managed to make a dark sphere in my hand and shot it at him. I had been practicing on forming the spheres and I managed to teach myself how to shoot them out of my hands like a cannon. However, instead of dodging my attack Nigel was able to take hold of it in his own hands. What the hell? Why isn't it exploding?

Nigel chuckled. "Smooth moves Cole, but you're going to need a new trick." I looked at his hands to see that the dark sphere was starting to grow, going from the size of a softball to a large beach ball. How the fuck is he doing that? My eyes never left his hands as I tried to focus on the dark energy that was now coursing through my body. "COME ON COLE! I KNOW YOU CAN THROW LET'S SEE IF YOU CAN CATCH!" His voice was taking on a more sadistic tone. I growled and concentrated on the small amount of dark power that I could control in my hands.

"GIVE ME ALL YOU GOT NIGEL!" I am not going to let Nigel kick my ass. He just grinned and blasted it towards me with such a force that when I tried to grab it, it only pushed me back. Finally my shoes gathered some traction and it took all my power to stop the dense ball of dark energy. "I'm not going let you beat me Nigel!"

"Oh really Cole?" His laugh was deep and sinister. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him putting his right hand up forming another sphere in his palm. My eyes went wide when I realized it was becoming the same size as the one I was trying to hold back. "Cole you need to be more aware of your surroundings. You know, sense when another being is present.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Hello," That voice sent chills down my spine. I turned to my left and I couldn't believe my eyes.

"Cole, meet my doppelganger." Shit! There are two of them now! The doppelganger was the spitting image of Nigel, razor sharp teeth and all. He held up a large dark sphere as well. How the fuck did he do that so fast?! Nigel laughed at my terrified expression. "Handsome fucker isn't he Cole? Ready, FIRE!" Both of them shot their spheres at me and all three exploded on impact. It hurt, a lot. Being that it was short range attack, it I felt like I was dying. When the smoke cleared I was on my knees, trying with all my power not to past out. I struggled to lift my head and with blurry eyes saw Nigel walking back to the house. The doppelganger turned to dark energy and went back into his body. "You're done Cole. You're still too weak. We will train more tomorrow." Something inside me snapped.

"GET BACK HERE YOU BASTARD! I'M NOT DONE!" I yelled at the top my lungs. I resisted the urge to collapse, and forced myself to stand up. At that moment I could feel my power pushing past its limit. I was getting stronger. As the dark energy flowed through my body, I knew I had finally tapped into my power source. I felt a massive gust of wind surround me as the dark force exuded from my body. My rage at being dismissed by a bastard such as Nigel had awakened an almost primal strength with in me. I look down at my hands and saw long sharp dark claws in their place. They were made of dark energy and reminded me of the claws of a giant beast. I looked up at Nigel whose shocked face was quickly replaced by an intrigued grin.

"Looks like things just got interesting. I must admit though, I'm surprised that you were able to make a weapon so soon. It took Adam six months to do that."

A deep animal growl left my mouth. "I don't know how I got these claws, but I do know that I am going to rip you to shreds for all that shit you just did a minute ago."

Nigel stuck his tongue out and flipped me off. "Show me what you got,"

"Oh I will," I took off fast, my body becoming a blur. Nigel fired a sphere at me and I charged straight at it, slashing it with my claws. The sphere exploded but I felt none of the force. I went to slice Nigel's chest but he dodged it. I quickly tried to hit him with my left claw, but he blocked it with his right arm. It felt like I was hitting a brick wall. Nigel's doppelganger manifested itself behind me and he try to punch me in the back but in the last second I grabbed Nigel's leg and swung him into his copy, sending them both flying. I dashed towards them and before they hit the ground I shot out several large sized spheres setting of a large explosion . I stood still ready to attack again. When the smoke cleared I saw Nigel standing tall. He was covered in bruises and had a cut on his forehead, but I was unable to remove his trademark grin.

"I see why Death picked you. You fight with such…ferocity. Now it's time you show me what you really got," He dashed towards me and I balled my right claw into a fist. Our fists connected and it sent out a shock wave from are equally matched strength. Nigel swung his left leg at my head but I caught it in my hand. "Oh no, not this time," Nigel flipped, giving me a roundhouse kick straight to the head. It caught me off guard for a second and Nigel took the opportunity to punch me square in the face, sending me flying. I dug my claws into the ground to stop my momentum, only to see Nigel in my face. He was about to smash a dark sphere in my face but I countered it by smashing my fist into it. The explosion blasted us both back away from each other. We both landed on are feet and we grinned at each other. One of us had to be stronger, so now it was time to find out whom.

Hours passed and the sun was starting to set before we called it quits. Both of us were breathing heavily as we lay sprawled out on the grass. Nigel was covered in various cuts from my claws and I knew my body looked like it had been used as a punching bag. A slow sarcastic clap caught our attention and we sat up to see Maria walking towards us.

"I'm not going to lie Cole, I'm impressed. You managed to give Nigel a run for his money. Not bad Papi." She said with a smirk.

I tried not to look to prideful. "Thanks. How long were you watching us?"

"The last ten minutes. I must say I liked watching Nigel and his copy blast the shit out of you." She giggled.

I rolled my eyes but laughed along with her. Nigel and I stood, dusting ourselves off. My claws had disappeared and I could see my hands once again.

"Hey Cole,"

"Yeah?" I looked over at Nigel.

"How did you make those bad ass claws?" I could see the envy in his eyes and this caught me by surprise as I figured that he could do it too.

"Well," I scratched the back my head. "After you said you were done training me I just kind of lost it. I mean I got really pissed off. No one gives up on me that easy and I wasn't about to let you be the first. When you told me that I was too weak to hold my own against you…I just wanted to rip you to shreds." I grinned.

Nigel looked thoughtful before nodding his head. "I like that. Never seen that weapon before either, Adam liked to rely on chains. But I will try not to piss you off…as much, anymore."

I chuckled. "Well tell me how you make those doppelgangers. That's cool as shit!"

"You can do it. Just picture another you next to you and he will manifest, ready to follow your orders. It seems like only our element can do this, so it's a good trick to learn."

"Sweet, that's what's up."

"Will you two hurry up? I only came out here to tell you that dinner was ready, not listen to you gossip about your powers." Maria barked. We quickly followed her back to the house and the smell of delicious food caused our stomachs to growl.

"Hell yes food! I'm starving!" Nigel went over to the pot that was on the stove when Maria slapped his hand roughly. "Ow! What the hell Maria?"

She glared at him and pushed him away from the food. "I know you are not about to put your dirty hands in this food. I worked hard on it and you are not going to ruin it. Go wash up you dirty bums!"

Nigel and I shrugged, went upstairs and took turns showering. As the hot water hit my battered body I couldn't help but feel like this was right. I felt like everything about this situation was right; I felt like I was home.

5: Ch 5

Ch. 5

I was lying down in my new room, thankful that I no longer had to share the same sleeping space as my sharp toothy friend, Nigel. He didn't bother me too much; just the fact that he didn't keep normal sleeping hours was enough to drive me crazy. A couple of weeks have passed since I began training with Nigel and my skills have improved tremendously. I can move faster, almost like a blur, and my strength and stamina had multiplied twenty fold. I had also become quite creative with my dark powers. After hearing about my shadow claws, the other guardians determined that was my signature weapon, and that I should get control of it soon as it will aid me in defeating Blake. I have also learned how to make my own doppelgangers, make a shield of dark energy, and create dark spheres larger than I could ever imagine. However, the larger my spheres get, the harder it is for me to keep the dark energy concentrated. On one failed attempt my sphere could no longer be contained and exploded in the skies above our training grounds. The force of the explosion was so immense that the local police force was sent out to investigate. Thankfully the house is hidden from mortal humans; otherwise we would have had some serious explaining to do.

As I lay contently on my bed, I heard a loud banging on my bedroom door. Damn, can't a guy get five minutes to himself?

"COLE! GET YOUR LAZY ASS UP! WE ARE ABOUT TO GO!" I jumped when I heard Lu's deep booming voice. I got off the bed and opened the door to be greeted by Lu's big grinning Hawaiian face.

"The hell do you want Lu?" I noticed Aqua leaning against the wall behind him. "Hello Aqua, thank you for not disturbing me like your partner." I glared at Lu while Aqua nodded his head curtly. Lu just rolled his eyes, scoffing at the fact that I was ignoring him.

"We are going to this spot that I like to train at and you are holding us up."

"Umm, excuse me, I never said I was going anywhere today," I folded my arms across my chest. What the hell is he up to?

"Well you are now, besides all of us are going, even Maria." I felt my face getting hot. Why is he mentioning Maria?

"Well if it's for a training session I guess I'm up for it." I sighed giving in. As we walked downstairs I saw the girls chatting in a small circle, surrounded by luggage. "Umm, Lu, where exactly are we going?"

"Hawaii!" Keiko and Emily squealed in unison. Maria just shook her head, smirking at the overzealous women. Lu just shook his head, a why me? look across his face.

"I thought we all were going, where is everyone else?" And by that I mean where is that sneaky snake Nigel?

"Nigel, Fina, Brisa and Hugo are outside putting our luggage in Nigel's body. Now come on let's go." Keiko said excitedly.

"Whoa now hold up! What's with all the luggage? We are coming back tonight! You don't need to pack for anything." Lu said.

Keiko just rolled her eyes. "Uh Lu we are going to Hawaii! We have to be prepared for anything, particularly any cute guys. Hello I didn't dress up not to be seen." With that she whipped off her sarong wrap to reveal her pink and green bikini. I glanced over at Maria to see what kind of bikini she was wearing, but she was covered up in a red tank top and blue shorts.

Lu just shook his head disapprovingly as we followed the girls outside.

"Hey, Lu, quick question, how the hell are we going to get to Hawaii and back in a single day? I mean it takes six hours just to get there from Los Angeles! We're damn near Denver!" I looked up at him skeptically. This whole trip is getting crazier by the second.

"We fly duh. Well except Keiko, she rides on these big boulders that she levitates using the earth's gravitational pull."

"Huh that's pretty cool," I glanced over at Nigel, whose shadow was swallowing up our entire luggage. "Where does all the luggage go?"

"You don't want to know and you don't want to find out." Lu shuddered before walking over to him.

"Nigel trapped him in his shadow once." Maria said as she walked up alongside me. "It took him to this dark creepy cartoon world. Lu swears it's the scariest place on earth." She said with a slight chuckle.

"IT IS! I STILL HAVE NIGHTMARES!" Lu called over his shoulder while everyone laughed at his outburst. Lu just ignored him and shed his shirt revealing a muscular lean body that had to come from years of being in the water. "Come on Aqua let's leave these pansy asses." Aqua smirked as I watched him enter Lu's body. Seconds later his whole body turned to water and his lower half turned into a water jet and he took off spraying all of us with water.

"OH HELL NOW! MARIA YOU'RE NOT GOING TO LET HIM GET AWAY WITH THAT ARE YOU?! LET'S GET HIS SOGGY ASS!" Steam was coming off of Fina's as she entered Maria's body. Maria ignited in flames and she took off in the air leaving a trail of flames behind her. Hugo and Brisa entered their host's bodies as well and Emily's figure became like a small tornado as she followed right behind Maria. Keiko yelled loudly as she punched the ground, uprooting a massive slab of earth. She winked at me as she hopped on it. I was surprised at how fast she was able to move the rock quickly catching up with the others.

"Alright Nigel, let's see if we can play this little game," I felt the dark energy surge through my body as I turned into my shadow form. My eyes were now a royal purple as I tried to see where they had all flown off too. Despite being dead last, I managed to catch up to them as we crossed over four corners. Ahead I could see Lu trying to stay in the lead with Keiko and Maria hot on his watery tail.

I heard Lu's cocky laugh before he shot out a current of water at Maria but she blocked it with a blast of fire creating a thick cloud of steam. As I passed through the steam I watched as Keiko blocked the water heading towards her with a boulder she lift up with her powers off the ground and counters with that same boulder launching it at Lu.

"Cole, what are you thinking?" Nigel asked as a mischievous grin spread across my face. Nigel was usually up for sneak attacks, so I was sure he was going to love what I was planning.

"Don't worry my friend; we're just going to hitch a ride to the front." Keiko had been throwing boulders at Lu blindly, hoping to make contact. The second a boulder got close to me I jumped on it and sailed ahead of her and Maria. I stuck my tongue out at both of them as Nigel laughed at their confused faces.

"Sneaky bastard," I head Maria mutter.

Then I felt what I had been waiting for, Lu had sent out another current of water to shatter the boulder and I leap off right before it shatters and fly towards the front.

"HOW THE FUCK?!" Lu growled.

"Surprise," I grinned and blasted a dark sphere at him.

Lu just laughed. "Not today my friend," Then he did something I never seen him do before, his arms start turning into solid ice. They looked extremely cold. He shot a powerful torrent of liquid that looked like liquid nitrogen at my sphere freezing it solid.

I watched in utter shock as it fell to earth. My weapon of choice! How dare he!

"Cole! Watch out!" I looked up and before I could react, an ice cold current or water hit me in the abdomen, freezing from my chest to my toes.

"DAMN IT!" I started falling down towards the earth, losing altitude at an alarming rate. I could hear Lu laughing his ass off. I growled wishing I could just grab ahold of him and pull him down with me. I guess my powers listened to me, because something surprised me. My arms rose up towards Lu, shooting out two dark shadowy arms at him, like a shadow casting out during a sunset. They were an extension of me and I could control them any way I needed to. My extended arms took hold of him. He fought to get out of my strong grip but I retracted the arms and pulled him towards me.

"Hmm, I'm impressed Cole." I could feel Nigel grinning, Lu was glaring at me. I was grinning. My right arm returned back to normal, while my left shadow arm still held him tightly. I started to generate a large dark sphere in my right hand.

"Let's see you freeze this one." Lu just smiled and it caught me off guard.

"Let me show you," His entire body froze over and it started to freeze my left arm. I panicked and blasted the sphere early hitting both of us at a close range. The smoke engulfed us both as we fell towards the Earth from the shock of the blast. Fuck that one hurt a bit! Suddenly I heard Lu's gruff voice yell, and as the smoke cleared I saw that we were both about to hit a busy intersection. At the last second we both pulled up hard, our powers of flight kicking in once again, only seconds away from being bloody street art. Lu and I managed to swerve between cars, city buses, and pedestrians, causing a mild amount of chaos. We finally got to the top of a skyscraper and sat on the edge, trying to catch our breaths.

"Wow that was crazy!" I let out a sigh of relief, knowing I had survived the fall. Lu just chuckled as if it were nothing. I rolled my eyes at him but then I felt my jaw dropped as I looked behind him to see the Hollywood sign. "Damn! We're in Los Angeles already? It's only been like twenty minutes since we left Colorado."

Lu just smirked. "We're fast aren't we? Come on let's go, we're falling behind," He pointed to the sky and I could see Maria leaving a fire trail with a big rock flying close behind her. "Hey do you see Emily?"

I stood up and began levitating slowly towards the sky. "No, I haven't seen her since Colorado."

"Damn, she's up to something," His face suddenly got very stern.

"What makes you say that?"

"Because she's done some shit like this before. The last time we all raced somewhere; we got chased by this big ass tornado over the Atlantic Ocean, while in a hurricane!" He gave me a suspicious look.

"Emily? Her no way, Brisa maybe, but not Emily. She wouldn't do something like that,"

Lu got right in my face a wild look in his eyes. "Oh hell no! You think Brisa is bad? Emily is bat-shit crazy! She changes when she's fighting, like she's bipolar or something. That hippy crap she does? Yeah she died as a hippy but she mostly does it now to keep her moods under control. She's a competitive ass bitch! Trust me; you will see what I'm talking about when you train with her." I gulped, imagining how crazy she could be. "Come on Cole, let's go."

I nodded my head and we both began flying like bullets towards Hawaii once again.

When Lu and I had finally caught up to Maria and Keiko, we could not believe what we saw. Maria was on Keiko's Earth platform blasting fire, while Keiko's body was made out of solid rock.

"Come on Maria, I felt burns from a candle worse than this." Keiko yelled. I could hear Maria snarl as her body began to glow white hot and the earth beneath her began to melt into lava.

"I'LL SHOW YOU HOW HOT I CAN BURN!" Maria charged at Keiko. Keiko grounded herself and swung her arm back. Their fists collided with each other and created a small explosion from all the energy. The smoke dispersed quickly due to the high speed they were going, and I could see that Keiko had Maria pinned to the ground.

I turned to Lu with a grin on my face. "Damn! I thought Maria could take her."

Lu just shook his head. "Maria knows better than to go against Keiko with brute force. You can't beat her that way. Keiko is the boss in the strength department; makes the rest of us look weak by comparison. Hell she can make earthquakes just by smacking her hands on the ground. Imagine when she throws a fist."

"DAMN! That's badass," I looked over to see Maria trying break out of Keiko grip. She hit her with a flamethrower out her hand, but Keiko just endured it. When Maria faltered her blow for just a second Keiko punched her so hard that the platform crumbled beneath her and fell apart. As they descended towards the sea I noticed that Maria's body was limp. Keiko saw to and raised a platform of earth out of the sea so that Maria could land on it instead of crashing into the water.

"Lu I'm going to go check on Maria."

Lu nodded. "I'll meet you in Hawaii," Keiko had made another platform for her and Lu was speeding off after her. Maria had hit the slab of rock hard, but when I got to her she looked no worse for wear.

The impact awakened her and she let out a low groan. "Ugh, that bitch!"

"Well at least you're okay," I helped her up and she dusted herself off.

"What are you doing here? You here to laugh at me?" She put her hands on her hips and glared at me.

"What? No, I'm just not about to leave you behind." I gave her a confused look. "Why you always giving me an attitude for huh?" I folded my arms and she rolled her eyes.

"Come on let's go catch up to the others." She reignited her body and shot off after Lu and Keiko. After about ten minutes we could start to see the Islands. Lu and Keiko were going so fast that we could hear the crash their crash landing, and the ensuing fight.

"I WON!" The both said in unison.

"NO YOU DIDN'T!" Again in unison.

"YES I DID!" Damn I thought this was just a friendly competition.

"Who do you think won Cole?" Maria asked as we landed next to them.

"I don't know it looked like a tie to me," I smirked.

"Fuck the both of you!" Keiko barked while Maria and I laughed.

They both glared at each other for a moment longer before Lu sighed and shrugged. "Hey you win some you lose some then theirs those ties."

All four of us transformed back to our human forms and started to follow Lu in into the brush of jungle.

"So Lu, what part of Hawaii are we in?" I asked.

"We're on the Island of Kauai, right near Kappa beach. We're going to be staying at my family's old house."

"Are we going see your family?"

He shook his head sadly. "They died a long time ago Cole, during the early twentieth century."

"Oh," Damn I forgot that we live forever.

"Well here we are," We pushed through the some more bushes and came upon a nice beach house that sat atop a hill that overlooked the sea.

"Whoa nice place," I let out a low whistle.

"WHAT TOOK YOU ALL SO LONG?!" We all jumped when we heard Brisa, loud voice. She was standing on top of the hill next to Emily, who was casually drinking out of a coconut. Once shook off our surprise we darted up the hill to confront her.

"How the hell did you get here before us?" Keiko gasped.

Emily giggled. "Well I flew above all your heads, a lot higher than you four can. I rode cloud nine all the way to first. With my speed, you all were just fighting for second." She had this smug grin plastered across her face that showed how cocky and competitive she was, but it quickly disappeared and she looked like an innocent hippy once again. She sipped her drink.

Huh maybe Lu is right. Emily has got to be bipolar!

"No shit Cole!"

"I can't stand you sometimes!" Lu scowled.

"You love us," Brisa grinned. "Now host, show us inside. We're starving! Please tell me you got some food up in this bitch!" Lu walked up to the door and unlocked it with a key he had around his neck. Inside it was a little dusty, but not too messy.

Before I could step too far inside Maria grabbed me and pushed me up against the wall.

"I like it rough too girl but don't you think we should wait until we are alone first." I gave her a cheeky grin.

Maria rolled her eyes. "Nigel get your ass out here! I want my bags!" She released me.

"If you wanted him you only had to ask. You didn't have to shove me around like that, damn." I glared at her.

She shoved me back against the wall. "Or what Cole? What you gonna do to me?" She grinned.

"Don't test me baby. You're not only one with powers here." I grinned back. She let me go and I swear I saw her blushing through her almond color skin. I felt my other half exit my body and manifest in front of us.

"Damn it feels good to be out of there!" He stretched. Maria tapped her foot impatiently. "Okay woman, I'm going, I'm going." He looked down at his shadow on the ground and dived head first, disappearing into it. How did he do that?! Several pieces of luggage were tossed out of Nigel's shadow and Maria caught hers in midair.

"Thank you sweetie," She winked at him as he climbed out of his shadow.

"Where the hell did you go?" I ask awestruck.

"Oh yeah, um, my shadow is basically a dark abyss." He rubbed the back of his neck and laughed. "I just use it to store shit in there."

"Really, like what?"

"YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW!" I heard everyone yell at me. Nigel nodded his head in agreement.

"Okay then…" I trailed off. Everyone grabbed their bags and headed off to their respective bedrooms. I was about to head out when I felt Lu's giant paw of a hand slap down on my shoulder.

"HEY COLE AND I ARE GOING OFF TO TRAIN!"

"OKAY SEE YOU ON THE BEACH!"

Lu led Nigel and I to a different area of the island that was particularly cliffy. I looked down and saw the waves crashing against the island.

"Wow that's one hell of a view. Nigel get over here and come see all this beautiful water." I had been to the beach only once before when I was younger and visiting some relative in Los Angeles. However that was nothing in comparison to this. I wouldn't mind living here, a nice beach house sounds really good.

"OH HELL NO!" I'm shocked by his response.

"Why? What's wrong with you?" Nigel looked frightened.

"I-I-I can't swim okay? And drowning is not how I imagined dying." Lu glared at him. "No offense Lu." I'm guessing that's how he died.

"What are you talking about? You're immortal you dummy."

"Don't worry Nigel is getting his ass in the water. He snuck out of it when Adam was here but not this time. This training session will teach Nigel how to swim and make you learn to think fast." He put his arm around me.

"Wait, what do you mean think fast?" A chill went down my spine and I felt myself getting colder by the second. Ice began to cover my arms and legs. Shit! This mother fucker is trying to freeze me! I tried to break free from the ice but Lu just laughed.

"I hate to do this to you Cole but you have to be prepared for every situation." He lifted me off of the ground and tossed me into the waiting ocean. As I fell I saw Nigel following after me into the water. I was sinking fast, holding my breath so I wouldn't drown. In the distance I could see Nigel flailing around in his attempt to swim towards me, when he suddenly shot a dark sphere at me, breaking the ice's hold on me. I swam towards the surface and Nigel clung to me like a frightened child.

"Thanks Nigel. Now let me go before you drown us both. Just lie on your back and you will float okay?"

"No way! I'm going back inside you! You're not about to get me killed."

I shook my head. "No you are getting over this fear, now do as I said."

Nigel hesitated but reluctantly released me and floated on his back. The waves pushed us towards some rocks jutting out of the water near the cliff and we latched on.

"DAMN IT LU! I'M GOING TO TEAR YOU APART." I yelled. Nigel was staring at something out in the distance.

"Uh, Cole…problem."

"What Nigel?" I looked at his face and it looked paler, if that was even possible. He pointed at something that was headed straight towards us at an alarming rate. "Is that a shark fin?" I squinted hoping I was not about to deal with one of them. "Come on, I got an idea. It's crazy, but if we do it right we won't be shark bait. Merge with me now!" Nigel merged into my body and I felt the power boost I needed. I scaled the slippery rock and stood on it using the same method Nigel uses to stand on the ceiling. I learned that since my shadow was attached to me, I just had to focus on attaching it to whatever surface I was on, this allowing me to walk on walls and the ceiling without falling.

"Cole what are you going to do?" I manifested my dark claws over my hands and got ready for the creature approaching us. "NO! NO! NO! YOU ARE NOT GOING TO ATTACK THAT THING HEAD ON! ARE YOU NUTS?!"

I grin. "I told you it was crazy." I got into my position ready to rip it to shreds. My jaw dropped as I watched a twenty-one foot transparent blue shark jump out of the water. Inside I could see Lu's shadowy silhouette. I heard Nigel gulp as the shark's jaws opened, revealing several rows of teeth made out of ice. Each individual tooth reminded me of a dagger.

"I do not want that thing to bite me!"

"NOW!" I jumped over the shark, grabbed it by the dorsal fin, and held on for dear life as we dived back into the water.

"Fuck this thing is fast!"

I tried to hold on to it by sinking my claws into its back. The shark began to buck with pain, as it tried to knock me off.

Hmm Lu is this shark, so he must be able to feel pain…Nigel you thinking what I'm thinking?

"Aw hell yeah! Slice and dice baby!"

I began slashing into the sharks back over and over, chipping off pieces of ice. Lu took us down deeper, the surface now seemed so far away. The water pressure was starting to get to me, when Lu suddenly reversed his direction and we began heading to the surface. We broke the water and went into the air with a loud boom.

Damn, this is like something out of Shark Week! As we fell back towards the sea I realized what he was doing. Shit! He's going to back flop me! I knew he was trying to knock me off, and if he was successful, I knew I wouldn't have a snowballs chance of catching him again. Unfortunately I realized this at the last second and he accomplished his goal. As I sunk down in the water my back felt like it was on fire. The shark swam away from me, quickly disappearing in the water. I swam to the surface and coughed up some of the water I had swallowed. I looked around but couldn't see Lu. Where the hell did he go?!

"Shit! Cole! You better do something! I can feel him coming!" Nigel was panicking.

"Will you relax, I got this-" I was cut off when I felt like I was hit by a semi-truck. I was hurdled across the ocean and when I hit the water I felt my body being dragged under. I realized now that those razor sharp teeth were now wedged into my torso, legs, and left arm. Water filled my lungs as I yelled out in pain from the bone crushing pressure. DAMN IT! WHAT THE HELL DO I DO?! With my right claw I managed to produce a dark sphere and smash it in to the shark's snout. It exploded on impact and I felt the teeth release me from its death grip. I swam the best I could to the surface before Lu could have a chance to catch me again.

Fuck man! I only have one good limb now! How the hell am I going to…wait a minute…I think I got it! I quickly switched to my shadow form and shot up out of the air, with Lu following close behind, trying to take a bite out my ass. It took all my power to evade him and land on the cliff's edge. My heart was racing as I watched the shark fall back into the sea. Damn that was too close! I'm breathing hard in pain, and holding my chest. Before my eyes I watch as my wounds are healed by my dark powers. I could feel Nigel starting to relax, happy to be away from the water and Lu.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?"

"This fight isn't over Nigel. We haven't won yet." I slowly walked down the cliff side before I tentatively placed a foot on the water. I slipped a couple of times, but I was finally able to attach my shadow to the surface of the water. The waves rocked my body trying to knock me off balance but I managed to keep my center. I could all but see Nigel's jaw drop.

"How the hell did you do that?! Do you know how long it took me to learn how to do that?! How did you learn so fast?!"

"I'll tell you later buddy, get ready," Lu soared out of the water again trying to bite me but I was ready for him. I timed my counter in one swift move and slashed through Lu's shark. Before he could hit the water I began firing small dark spheres at Lu. Within thirty seconds I had hit him with at least fifty spheres. The shark's body jerked before melting away and left Lu in floating the surf, groaning in pain.

I smirked knowing I had won this battle. "It's safe to come out Nigel, we won." Nigel exited my body and stared down at Lu before jumping up.

"Hell yeah! You are the man Cole! You are catching on to this stuff pretty fast!" Nigel shouted.

Lu got up out of the water and walked over to us. "Huh, I didn't see that coming." He grinned "Not bad for a rookie. How'd you learn to walk on water? I thought I was the only one who could do that."

"Well when you're trying to EAT ME, I do what I have to do. It's the same trick Nigel and I use to walk on walls and ceiling. It's a bit harder on water since the surface is unstable, but it's not impossible. Nigel you can do it to its not hard." I looked up at Nigel who was floating in the air arms folded.

"I'm fine up here thank you." Lu and I laughed.

"Ok gentlemen let's keep training were not done yet." Nigel and I nodded and we merged back together. As I turned into my shadow form I made my claws appear. Lu grinned and turned into his water form. Two knives manifested themselves in his hands. The handles were made out of water and the blades were six inches of sharp ice. We both shared a grin. "You ready Cole?"

"Oh, I'm so ready! I finally get to fight for my life instead of swimming for it."

We became a blur and fought at speeds faster than the human eye could follow. Hours of training passed before we decided to call it a day. Nigel and Aqua exited our bodies and we walked back to the beach house.

"The girls are at the beach right?" I asked. I could hear giggling off in the distance. I wonder what Maria is doing right now?

"Yeah, they're over there. We're going to meet them soon I just need to grab my surf board from the back." Lu said as he ran up to the house. Aqua, Nigel, and I sat on the houses front porch as we waited for Lu to return.

"Hey Nigel, have you noticed what I have noticed? You know about Maria and Cole?" Aqua asked casually.

"Yup I can see it all over both their faces, acting like horny teenagers." They both turned their heads and gave me a sly cheeky grin.

"Fuck both of ya'll! I can't stand her hot headed ass." I growled.

"Oh yeah, then why you always trying to start shit with her huh?" Aqua asked. "I bet if you weren't so damn black we could see you blushing." Aqua and Nigel fell over themselves in a fit of laughter while I flipped them off.

"Hey Cole I was wondering when you all were going to get back. Do you want to come play some volleyball? Keiko and Emily cheat and Brisa is busy soaking up the sun with Hugo. I need someone with hands on my team." I tried to focus on what she was saying but I couldn't help but enjoy her sun kissed almond skin. Her white bikini was modest, but seeing as she was the sexiest woman I had ever laid eyes on, I could help but envision her slowly removing it for me in an exotic dance. "Cole?"

"Huh? Yeah, umm, volleyball, sure." I shed my black wife beater shirt to reveal my nicely toned chocolate body. I wasn't as stacked as Lu and nowhere near the size of Hugo but with all the training I was becoming pretty built. I watched her tight firm ass and just wished I could pound it to no end. Our game was intense. She was right Emily and Keiko did some dirty tricks but we managed to beat them. Although they had force on their team we managed to beat them with some speed. As Keiko and Emily stalked away defeated, Maria took off by herself walking along the shore. I followed her and we soon were walking in a peaceful stride.

"That was pretty good back there Cole. I didn't think you could be that fast."

"Not as fast as you, I'm curious as to how fast you will be when we train. Lord knows Lu damn near kicked my ass today."

"So I've heard." She gave me a sly look. "What makes you think I'm going to train you?"

"Well I thought that everyone had to train me so I could prepare for Blake," I gave her a confused look.

"Nope I'm not training you. You won't be able to keep up with me. I will wipe the floor with you, just ask Nigel." She said cockily.

I grinned. "No way! I can go toe to toe with you. Like I said Lu damn near kicked my ass. I still beat him."

"Lu just taught you to think on your feet. I'm teaching you speed. The only one faster than me is Blake."

"Well in my shadow form I'm pretty fast."

"Wanna bet?"

"What are you thinking chica?"

"Race you home? Loser gives the other a massage?" I felt myself begin to harden. I wanted to win.

"Alright you're on."

"Good Ready, set, go!" She sped off in a blaze of fire.

"Oh, you bitch!" I laughed as I raced off after her.