GALSYR

Birds Rule

     While looking closer at the final entry, the two words, "FOLLOW ME" triggered an unsettling feeling in his chest. Why would he make that request to Tarlia when he knew, since those reoccurring dreams of Arraya, he had been noticing himself becoming more distant in his feelings towards her?

     It was like he was not being directed by all of Arraya's words, as he was in the beginning. He was becoming his own individual. But that also meant that she didn't know how he felt, either...

     He got up to pace the room. He glanced at himself in the mirror on the wall.

     Who was he, really...?

     Staring hard at the image reflected, failing to get answers, his eyes squinted as a memory was triggered by the mirror, itself. A long time ago, he'd worked undercover with a group, dealing in illegal artifacts.

     He'd been shown a mirror with different geometric shapes encrusted around them and told they were 'dimensional barrier codes for locked artifacts'. So long as you had the correct codes, just by looking at your reflection, you could be transported to anywhere you wanted to go.

     He quickly rose from the bed. Making sure he hid the book away from prying eyes. He didn't trust anyone with this journal. Grabbing his hat and coat, he walked out the door.

     'MEDA, where's the nearest trade of artifacts in this area?  Take me there.'

     Upon entering Carlos's upmarket Antique store, Ronan, in one glance, observed the security systems, the five, roaming customers, like sheep, the two wolves behind the counter eyeing the flock, and the number of exits.

     From behind him, the bell above the door rang, signalling the arrival of yet another customer. This antique business was definitely thriving. Standing behind a tall cabinet, he glimpsed the new arrival.

     'MEDA, look what the cat dragged in. Now, what could Darion Winters possibly be doing here? Mighty convenient, though. Saves us the trouble of chasing him down.'

     As usual, he was dressed to the nines.

     Darion always rubbed him up the wrong way. Ever since their first introduction, just after he became an agent. When Darion had told him, 'he'd never amount to anything.' Hell, it was his first day. He'd been a rooky...Mistakes were expected.

     'Play nice. You don't want to cause a scene,'  MEDA reminded her hot-headed friend.

     'Now where's the fun in that? Don't worry, I'll be his best friend.' The imbecile.

     'They said to bring him in. But not in what condition.' Ronan didn't have time for this buffoon.

     'So long as he can talk, should be good enough.'

     'MEDA! I'm so proud. I must be rubbing off on you.'

     'I hope not. It's just to think he would close down the SSFC with one strike of his fangs. The snake.'

     'What are you talking about?'

     He thought he was illegitimately trafficking SSFC technology out of the fictional books and into the real world. One of the many crimes that kept the SSFC agents busy.

     'MEDA are you holding out on me?'

     'Oh... Oh nothing. Forget I said anything. Look, he's going out the back, if you want to catch him, now's your chance.'

     'Nice save. But don't think this is over. We'll talk later...'

     'Can't wait...' She groaned.

     Slipping out the back door, into a warehouse filled with boxes and crates of all sizes, Ronan silently followed Darion.

     He hid behind one of the larger crates, when Darion stopped to talk to a well-dressed, stout fellow; maybe Carlos?

     They both moved to inspect a small box, Darion reaching in to withdraw the contents.

     'MEDA, are you seeing this? That hand-mirror's got the same gold symbols as Arraya's journal. I've got a bad feeling about this.'

     "I'll be back in a couple of hours to pick up all the merchandise." Darion's raucous voice resounded through the storeroom before he turned, walking back through the shop.

     'He's about to leave. Let's see what our over-dressed peacock is up to.'

     As soon as Darion left the Antique shop, Ronan saw him withdraw something from his pocket, before vanishing.

     Ronan didn't need any special device to follow Darion.

     He had MEDA.

     No one was paying attention as first one man, then the other a short while later, disappeared.

     Except a lone pigeon, who stopped what he was doing, blinked twice, then continued pecking at the half-eaten hamburger, his little mind concluding... birds still rule.