The computer screen flicked to black, a small sphere began bouncing from corner to corner in a hypnotic dance. Reese sighed deeply as he shook the mouse, breaking the computer's sleep mode, and revealing a blurry photo.
"Staring at that for another twenty minutes isn't going to change anything" A deep voice boomed from out of the shadows in the corner of the small room. "It was a monster then, it's a monster now. I don't see what we are waiting on."
Reese scowled back at the darkness, "You could at least knock first, Saul." turning back to the computer screen. "I know what it's suppose to be, but I still have to make sure it's not another fake before we take a plane to England, off some wild tip. Verification takes time."
Saul emerged from the shadows, a stone faced man graying at the temples, he was imposing to say the least. His cold deadened eyes stared blankly at the screen from over Reese's considerably smaller shoulders. "It's real and you know it. The source was reliable. That..." Saul sneered, and jabbed his thick finger into the computer screen, causing it to flicker in protest." ... is a shade."
Reese's eye narrowed on the picture, a lone man walking down a quiet city street in the dark. Any normal person would never give the poor quality photo a second glance, but Reese had long since abandoned the moniker of normal.
At 23 years old he was the youngest Elixir in recorded history, a member of a secret society that deals with the immortals. It's hard to describe the immortals. They have very little in common, save secrets... and obviously immortality. In spite of their clandestine nature just about everyone has heard of them. They populate practically every myth ever told, every fairy tale, and every ghost story. They are the monsters that haunt nightmares, and the angels that fill fantasies. It was the Elixer's job to keep track of them, negotiate with them, learn from them, and kill them if so needed.
"The shadow is pointing in the wrong direction." Saul continued, explaining the picture needlessly in condescension. "With the street light behind him that shadow should be pointing away from the light, but..."
Reese slammed his fist on the fold out table that made a makeshift desk for the computer, interrupting his companion. "I said, I know what it is suppose to be. Don't think I am stupid just because I'm young." It was a common problem. The older agents always disapproved of him being allowed into the order, regardless of who his father had been. " I am the tracker, it's my job to verify this, so I am damn well going to verify it. If you want to be useful go tell the others to get ready."
With a grunt Saul turned towards the door, slipping out as quietly as he had entered. Reese slumped back into his chair, his eyes still trained on the picture. It's not a fake, but no shade has ever been photographed before this year, and yet.... Reese reached into his shirt pocket pulling out three small picture and tossing them onto the table. Each one showed a similar scene a man, a woman, a dog, all walking alone at night with a shadow that shouldn't exist. ...four pictures in the last month. New York, Paris, Rome, and now... Looking up he stared again at the computer screen. ...London
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