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It was a clear and starry night. Jonathan lay awake on his bed watching through the window as the clouds slowly passed by the silhouette of the full moon. He had been lying awake for several hours now, just thinking about his passed life. It all seemed so odd.
He had been raised by the Corps and it was the only family he had ever known, but still he felt resentment most of the people who surrounded him. In a way he felt love for them, but then again not. He wasnt really sure why, but he felt as if they where all strangers to him. Maybe it was because of his telekinetic powers. When he was a young boy the other children had feared and envied him for his abilities, but no one had dared call him friend. They all had seemed to believe that he was different, not like them and in a way it was true. But he had still been just a little boy who had craved for nothing more than a friend.
As time went on, the older members of his cadre started picking on him, calling him names until he couldnt bear it and would mentally lash out at them. As always he and not the other boys would be punished and scolded. It never helped to argue, it always just seemed to be his fault. So he began to learn to be more subtle and to blend in. By the time he graduated from major academy he had managed to get even with each and every person who had ever done him wrong. One of the boys had been caught with a stolen purse, which he had planted on him, another was accused of arson after a fire had broken out in one of the teachers offices and the principle was caught in a very awkward position with one of the female students. Yes, he had gotten even with each and every one of them Jonathan thought, quietly smiling to himself.
During his training in the minor academy, most people ignored him. That had been fine with him. He was too busy learning anyway and it saved him the trouble of being harassed by other students or the teachers. The only thing he didnt like about not being noticed was that when it came time for commendations or if somebody was throwing a party, he would also be ignored. To compensate this fact Jonathan began creating different personalities which he could don whenever he wanted to and go and do things he normally wouldnt be able to do, like going to parties he hadnt been invited to or playing pranks on some of the teachers without being caught. It had been as a result of one of these occasions that he had met Mr. Bester.
He had joined in on a prank against one of the senior teachers, Mr. Caldoon, who had a pet angora cat. The other two who where in on the prank where two years his senior and had believed that he had just moved to teeptown from Australia. The prank went perfectly fine and Mr. Caldoon had been fairly upset to find his beloved Miss Kitty shaved clean of all hair. Too bad for the other two that they had made the mistake of bragging about what they had done. Within one week both had been caught and punished by being the statue of the day for one whole month, only the third member of the party, a certain Thomas Willgood, was never found nor seen again.
Jonathan had just started to believe that he had managed on getting away with this prank and started felling safer again, when he stumbled across a man in the gym, of whom he believed that he was one of the teachers that belonged to major academy. For some reason this man irritated Jonathan. Maybe it was because he just somehow didnt fit into this part of the school complex. He was relatively small, didnt seem very athletic and he kept his left fist clenched tightly together. Something about this man made Jonathan feel compelled to talk to him. Hi! Jonathan said with a smile. Hello, do you train here often? the teacher asked. Well, ehr, yes sir. It never hurts to keep in shape. Jonathan answered while beginning to climb up a thick rope that was hanging from the ceiling. Yes. It definitely cant hurt to keep in shape, the man said. especially if you want to get out of trouble fast. Jonathan wasnt sure what this man was talking about but decided to agree. The teacher slowly stood up and started leaving the gym. On his way out he stopped and looked over his shoulder. Oh, by the way, the next time you plan on shaving Mr. Caldoons cat, you might think about doing it alone, thats a lot safer Mr. Willgood. With that he left the gym. Jonathan was so startled that he nearly lost his grip. This teacher knew his secret! But what surprised him most of all was the fact that he hadnt been punished, not even scolded. It took Jonathan almost two more years to find out who that teacher had been and when he did find out he was even more surprised that it had been Alfred Bester. Jonathan had heard of him of course, but he would never have believed that he would meet him in person, let alone in a situation like that. That had been the first time that Mr. Bester had earned Jonathans respect and many more times had followed.
During his time in the major academy Jonathan visited several special classes; some of them where held by Mr. Bester, most had been recommended to him by Mr. Bester. During this time the two of them had had many private talks about a lot of different topics and Mr. Bester had become the closest thing to a father that Jonathan had ever known. Not that Jonathan had ever missed having a father after all the corps is mother, the corps is father, but still it felt good to have someone he could go to for advice and so Jonathan had done everything possible to gain Mr. Besters respect. And so when graduation day came around Jonathan was of course very proud that it was Mr. Bester who told him that he would be doing his internship on Mars working undercover together with a Psi Cop trying to hunt down rogue telepaths.
It had been one week before his graduation from major academy. All other students had already been told where they would be spending their internships and Jonathan had started begin worrying if he had been forgotten again. Then one afternoon Mr. Bester asked Jonathan to drop by his office for a talk. Jonathan had been very curious while he entered the office, he had been there a thousand times, but this time something was different. Mr. Bester was sitting in a large leather armchair behind his desk and had been looking out of the large window to his right. Without looking at him Mr. Bester had waved Jonathan in and begun to talk to him telepathically Hello Mr. Heart, nice day today isnt it? Jonathan had known Mr. Bester well enough to know that this was going to be a serious talk. It always was when he started a discussion by talking about the weather. Yes, Mr. Bester, a very nice day if you like rain. Mr. Bester smiled. Honest as always. He turned towards Jonathan. I have a very special job for you. I have made sure that your internship takes place on Mars as a Psi Cop. But not as a common Psi Cop. Youre going undercover! I want you to use what youve learned during your time here and become one of the best undercover agents we have ever had, so Ive made sure youll be working with one of the best we have. Mr. Jameson, your tutor will be arriving tomorrow to meet and brief you. But before that happens I would like to ask a favour of you. Jonathan had been surprised; Mr. Bester had never asked him for a favour. Sure Mr. Bester, whatever you want. Bester smiled again. It would be in both of our interest that you do not tell Mr. Jameson about what has just been said here. He and I are well lets say, not the best of friends. I would hate to have you suffer for something you didnt do. Jonathan had begun wondering. He had known that Mr. Bester had many enemies within the Corps. Was Mr. Jameson one of them? And if so, what was Mr. Bester hoping to achieve by sending him to learn from Mr. Jameson? Jonathans thoughts seemed to have been showing on his face, because Mr. Bester said; Dont worry Jonathan, Mr. Jameson is one of our best and youll learn a lot from him. Just make sure you stay alive. This time the game of `Cops and Blips´ is for real and not all players may survive. Good luck! On his way out Jonathan had felt very proud. Mr. Bester believed that he was capable of handling such a difficult situation. He would not let him down!
On the morning of the next day Jonathan had been ordered to appear in one of the empty classrooms at noon time. He was met there by a tall bearded man in a black Psi Cop uniform. Good day Mr. Heart. I am Theodore Jameson, your tutor. Im here to tell you what will be expected of you in the coming years. You are to come with me to Mars. There you will be briefed about your exact scope of duties on Mars. I have brought you a data crystal with background information on your coverstory. I expect that you read them thoroughly. Learn this information by heart. Your life will depend on it! Jameson had said while looking at him very seriously. I have no idea what you did to deserve this kind of punishment, but Im sure that that damn Mr. Bester had a hand in this. That smuck has hated me ever since we both graduated. I guess he hopes youll get yourself killed so that I get in trouble with internal affairs. But I wont do him THAT favour! So YOU better listen very closely to what I say and learn fast. Im not planning on letting you die and I definitely wont let a mistake of yours kill ME! With that Mr. Jameson had handed him the data crystal. Ill be picking you up on the day after your graduation, so be prepared! With those last words Mr. Jameson had left the room. The graduation day came and passed and on the day after Mr. Jameson had shown up at 10 AM to pick Jonathan up. Ready? He had asked. Well then, lets go. Within the hour both of them had been on a shuttle towards Mars.
The next few years had been very interesting for Jonathan. After their briefing Jonathan and Mr. Jameson had gone directly to their task. They worked as businessmen importing and exporting goods on Mars, all the time trying to contact the Underground Railroad by carefully propagating the fact that they would ship anything. During this time they smuggled different goods, helped several fugitive mundanes off planet and managed to build a working relationship with the Mars resistance. Things started turning sour once they had managed contacting the Underground Railroad. The trouble had started harmlessly when a member of the resistance who should have contacted them was captured by security personnel. Mr. Jameson had decided to contact his superiors to make sure that the two of them would not be molested by security officials. This turned out to be a deadly mistake. Mars resistance found out what was going on through one of their spies and decided to take care of the problem once and for all. Jonathan remembered that day very vividly
Jonathan and Mr. Jameson had just returned from a business trip to Earth and were on their way back to their office. They were having a very heated discussion about how much Jonathan should be allowed to do on his own without the explicit leadership of Mr. Jameson. Jonathan thought he should be permitted to do more on his own and Mr. Jameson believed that Jonathan wasnt ready for this kind of responsibility. Mr. Jameson was just unlocking the office door while he was talking to Jonathan That is not yours to decide! I am you tutor and I will decide when you are ready. You still dont trust me! Weve been working together for three years now. Ive proven myself! Jonathan said loudly. Shh! Not so loud. Do you want everybody to know what were doing? Mr. Jameson said while holding the door slightly ajar. Yeh, Im too stupid to keep a secret. You know what? Im sick of you! Im leaving! With that Jonathan turned around and marched away. Hey! Wait a minute. You cant just leave! Mr. Jameson let go of the doorknob without closing the door and walked after Jonathan. While Mr. Jameson tried to catch up with Jonathan the office door slowly started swinging open, unnoticed by both of them. Hey, Jonathan! Would you please sto in that moment the door struck a hidden sensor and the entire office exploded, knocking both of them flat on the street. It took Jonathan a moment before he realized what had happened and started getting to his feet again. Mr. Jameson was just a few feet behind him. He had already gotten up and was holding his left shoulder. Jonathan could see something that looked like a blood piece of metal protruding from in-between his fingers. Suddenly two men wearing long brown trench coats jumped out of an alleyway. Each of them pulled out a large rifle and started shooting at them. Jonathan pulled out the PPG that he always had hidden under his jacket and started returning the fire while he ran for cover. Mr. Jameson had also drawn his gun and was shooting at their assailants, but he seemed to be having a hard time concentrating due to his injured shoulder. Jonathan tried to cover him and was even able to eliminate one of the attackers, but the second assailant managed to hit Mr. Jameson squarely in the chest before Jonathan was able to eliminate him as well. Mr. Jameson was knocked backwards against a wall from the force of the bullet entering his body and slowly started to slide down the wall, leaving a bloody line where his back had touched it. Jonathan was in a state of shock. He had never seen anyone die before, especially not someone whom he trusted. He was so mad that he stood up out of his cover without thinking of the danger and slowly started walking towards the second attacker. This must have surprised the man because it took several moments before he tried to react by pulling up his rifle and aiming at Jonathan as he reached the middle of the road. Jonathan didnt really care about the threat, with a mere thought he pulled the rifle out of the attackers hands and let it drop to the ground several feet away. Then he aimed at the assailant kneecap while the man slowly stood up with his hands raised and stammering something about not meaning it personal. Jonathan fired his PPG and squarely hit the man where he had meant to. The mans knee buckled and he fell to one side as his leg couldnt hold his weight anymore. Jonathan walked up to the man who was now laying on his back and pleading for mercy, but Jonathan had none. Slowly, deliberately, Jonathan aimed his PPG between the mans eyes and then projected what he saw into the others mind while he pulled the trigger. After Jonathan had made sure that both attackers where dead he checked on Mr. Jameson. He too had been killed, so Jonathan removed all money, IDs and other personal belongings from the body as he had been taught. This made it more difficult for the authorities to identify the body and would give him the time he needed to cover his tracks. He also quickly checked the bodies of their attackers, trying to find out who they where or who had sent them. They where clean; no IDs, no personal belongings, whoever they had been, theyd been professionals. Jonathan knew he had to get out of there fast. It would only be a matter of moments now before the authorities would arrive. No one could have missed the explosion and he wasnt interested in explaining three dead men to the authorities. Jonathan just managed to disappear down the same alley his attackers had come from as the first security personnel arrived.
Jonathans thought where racing. Who could have sent those attackers? Had they been sent by the Underground Railroad? No, not very likely. The Railroad hadnt been that aggressive in the last couple of years. It was more likely the work of the Mars resistance. What should he do? Had his cover been blown? Probably so. Or was somebody unhappy about some delivered wares? Jonathan knew he had to reach Psi Corps Dome, but that was a long way and he was on his own. He had been taught that in situations like these he should try to locate either the next Psi Cop or a Com Unit to contact his superiors. But before he managed to do that whoever was behind the attack managed in locating him first. He had just turned onto a crowded street and managed to locate two Psi Cops at the end of the street when he also noticed five men pointing at him and moving in his direction. He did a quick scan and knew without a doubt that if he didnt start running right away he wouldnt live long. The last thing he did before running down an alley to his right was to send the Psi Cops at the end of the street a telepathic message. Help me!
Jonathan couldnt say how long he had been running down these back alleys, but at some point he found himself in dead end with no where else to go but a small storage building to his left. The men who where chasing him where getting closer and he wouldnt make it back in time, so he decided to enter the building and lock the door, hoping that his chasers would think he had taken a different route. Luck wasnt on his side. Even though he did managed to lock the door the men who where chasing him had seen where he was hiding and followed. Jonathan could hear how they tried to break open the door by kicking it or throwing their entire weight against it, but luckily it wouldnt budge. Then one of them said something Jonathan couldnt understand and it was quiet for several minutes. It was clear that they hadnt gone away, because he could feel their presence on the other side of the door. Suddenly with al bright flash of light and a loud BANG the door sprung open. They had used a small explosive charge to blow away the locking mechanism of the door. Instinctively Jonathan used his telekinetic abilities and immediately closed the door again. The attackers seemed pretty surprised that the door they had just opened seemed to be locked shut again, only this time there was a hole where the lock should have been. After several more attempts to reopen the door by kicking it Jonathan heard one of the attackers say Were running out of time! Just blow the entire door away. Ducking behind a large crate, Jonathan knew he was about to die and as the door was blown to bits his only thought was that he just hoped it would be over with quickly. Just then he heard the sound of PPG fire and what sounded like small explosions from beyond the door and he began wondering why he didnt see any of the gunfire come through the smoke. Then all of a sudden it was quiet again and through the smoke filled silhouette of the doorframe he could see the shadow of a man with a PPG in his right hand and his left hand closed to a fist by his side.
Jonathan exhaled in relief and slowly stood up. Mr. Bester, am I glad to see you! Oh, Im sure you are my boy. Even though I suspect you would be glad to see any member of Psi Corps walking through this doorway instead of them. Mr. Bester said pointing his PPG in the direction of the five dead bodies that lay in the alley. True, but given the choice I would have always preferred it this way. Jonathan answered. Oh, but you did have a choice. After all I was one of the two Psi Cops you sent your distress signal to. Jonathan looked surprised Wow! If I had known that, I might not have run. Jonathan said with a crooked smile. By the way who was the second Psi Cop and where is she? Nosy as ever, ey Mr. Heart. Let us just say she is a specialist like your self. I guess she left us because she couldnt bear to see the sloppy work these fellows have done with their explosives. Mr. Bester said looking quite amused. Come on; lets leave here before any unnecessary questions are asked by the authorities. With those last words Mr. Bester lead him away. The two of them went directly to Psi Corps Dome where he was given an apartment so he could rest and get cleaned up before his internship was officially declared over.
In the years that followed Jonathan had been sent on many missions for the Psi Corps, but he never forgot who had saved him on that day and what he owed him. And now he lay here waiting for the morning to come. Tomorrow he would be receiving a new mission. It was probably the hardest one up until to now. It would be his job to spy on a dubious bloodhound unit named the Black Devils. It seemed as if they had been hiding something or else Mr. Bester wouldnt have asked him to infiltrate them. Everything was set. They where supposed to receive a new member tomorrow. A member who had had a most unfortunate accident, which of course they didnt know about, and he was going to take that persons place. By this time tomorrow Jonathan Heart would be called Tirreg Ekied
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