The Rising Dawn, #8— "The Panther and the Pied Piper"

[Short stories. Images generated by hotpot.ai]

Glenn Calver had been a janitor fourteen years ago, and as one of the Gifted (called Outliers by their enemies), he had been eager to join the Sentinels, and he respected Gallant too much to join the Rising Dawn Society unless he gave the nod. Seemingly unbeknownst to Glenn, his enthusiasm as much as his talent made him a shoo-in. Gamer, a fellow Gifted, had been ready to wreak havoc with his invention unless he was finally paid for his unusual activities, and similarly, those such as Ratcatcher, Pointer, and Grego the Trainer would have strong reservations unless they received a paycheck.

But Calver had been willing to join at any price. In fact, his respect for Sir Gallant increased, as he and Wraith had counseled him to be more shrewd in negotiations.

And he had worked on that. Although Glenn’s mind didn’t work like the rest of the world, he won Most Improved Player in Little League, the best trophy of all.

Nightshift, he was called. They called him a night owl, and more than once he had been offered the quip that he could be healthy, wealthy, and wise if he changed his habits. But the sort of people who said that needed things like a professional coach to teach them how to double-click a mouse, or remedial courses on the evolution of the English language. Or at least, the American one.

Janitor of the night shift at a public school, not the same building as Miss Snow, and definitely not the same job. But being called Nightshift was, shall we say, a play on words.

If you were to be nice enough to Nightshift, he’d tell you he had ‘panther blood’, and admittedly, he used to brag more. But he got better at not doing that. Remember: Little League.

He had always felt more alive at night. Healthier, stronger, more energized, excited. And he had a desire for something, not to kill, maybe, but a yearning for adventure. In his misspent youth, sometimes yes, that meant smoking and partying, and more than two fights.

But as time went on, he learned if he let the wild energy take control, he would become stronger. Much stronger, stronger than he deserved to be. But like a panther, it made him cruel, and gave him an appetite for… well… action. He wanted something to fight.

And as the years went on, as he went on embracing the Wild Energy, his strength increased. It got to the point where if you stripped him of his armor, Nightshift would win in a fight against Sir Gallant himself! However, unlike Sir Gallant, his power only activated when it was sufficiently dark. Something about the cool, gentle, yet wild and mysterious darkness activated his power.

In addition to strength, he had heightened agility, instincts, and could push himself further and further. In addition to that, his skeleton began to change, being more feline in nature, which didn’t always help, but sometimes it did. He could jump like a crazy cat.

Ratcatcher offered him a cigarette. He accepted the offer, though Nightshift had the discipline to take one and be done. Not too common, a man who would only smoke when offered. He had used to be a smoker.

But remember: Little League.

“I hear you’ve got an amazing singing voice,” said Nightshift. Both he and Ratcatcher enjoyed nightfall, and so did Gamer, but he usually kept to himself. “My singing voice,” said Rat, taking a drag, exhaling, “has more to do with knowing the room, and staying out of the music industry.” “How so?” said Nightshift. “Actually, it’s almost entirely about staying out of the music industry.” Nightshift laughed appreciatively. “You’re gonna need to elaborate on that!” “Basically,” he said, exhaling again, “Your mind’s gotta dwell on when music needs to be heard. Not when you want it to be heard.”

It was silent for a bit, as smoking continued.

“You mighta just blew my mind,” said Glenn Calver, also called Nightshift.

Life was good. Trouble mighta been brewing, but Glenn never stopped feeling good at night. Rat made a great addition to their team, even though he didn’t quite bring in the money the others did. But Grego was starting to track down their enemies, which Glenn, unlike Michael Ruppert (Sir Gallant), knew just how dangerous the result could be. Michael knew, but not like Glenn did. But so long as they remained a team, they would win or lose as a team.

Remember: Little League.