Chapter 1: Welcome Home

"That flight was terrible. Why couldn't I just fly home and you take a plane?" Shon said to his sister, Jennifer, as they exited the front doors of the airport.

 

"We made it home, didn't we? Plus, we did get to ride first class. Stop complaining," she replied.

 

"Still, I could have made it here in half the time, maybe even less."

 

  Shon and Jennifer had just returned from their much needed vacation in Honolulu, Hawaii. They had relaxed on the calming beaches, ate at luxurious restaurants, and slept on cotton, silk sheets at a five star hotel with magnificant views of the Pacific Ocean. Their fun in the sun could only last for a few weeks, though. The duo had to return to their regular lives- saving the world from evil and protecting the family name.

 

  A car arrived a few moments later to pick them up and take them to their house. It felt so weird for them to be back in Atlanta. They hadn't been home since they left for Hawaii, and even before then they hadn't realized how long they had been away from home.  They rode down the dirt road to their private estate, what had felt like a long drive, and pulled up in front of their palatial mansion. The car pulled away as they slammed the doors shut and the two siblings stared at the gates in front of them.

 

"Good to be home, huh?" Jennifer asked.

 

"Yeah, I guess," Shon replied.

 

Jennifer put her hand to the identity scanner that opened the gates which overted slowly, with no squeak or crank. The estate was just like they had left it. And so was the rest of the exterior of the home. The water fountain was still on, the grass looked like it hadn't grown an inch, their mom's garden was still in bloom, and the driveway was neatly swept. Shon and Jennifer looked at each other in bewilderment. They didn't know what was going on, but they knew they were certainly going to find out. They walked up to the tall, enormous front doors of the house and Jennifer put the key into the lock. Shon stepped inside the front door first and an instant, something knocked him down to the floor. It was his two Border Collies, Dewey and Shorty. Jennifer's dog, Old Jack, came from the backyard a short time later.

 

"Okay, okay. I'm happy to see you too," Shon said pushing the excited pups off of him.

 

They walked into the kitchen, with the dogs following, to grab a soda. Shon looked around the kitchen in wonderment.

 

"Does something seem a little off to you?" Shon asked.

 

"What do you mean?" Jennifer replied taking a sip of her soda.

 

"I don't know. It just feels like something is different."

 

After finishing their drinks, they walked up stairs to unpack their bags. Shon opened the door to his bedroom and looked around. It was just like he had left it- the curtains were still open and so was the closet door. However, something was different- his bed was made up and his clothes had been picked up off the floor. He knew something was wrong.

 

"Jennifer!" Shon yelled out into the hallway.

 

Jennifer ran into his room. "What? What's-," she paused and looked around Shon's room.

 

"Do you see this? I told you something felt different about this place. My room's all- clean. It disgusts me."

 

"You're just overexaggerating. Maybe you cleaned up before we left- you just don't remember."

 

Suddenly, there was a noise outside.

 

"Did you hear that?" Jennifer asked.

 

"Yea, it came from outside."

 

They ran to the window and saw an all-black sports car sitting in the curved driveway.

 

They looked at each other and ran downstairs. The two got to the front door where a tall man was closing the door behind him. They couldn't believe their eyes.

 

"Wassup guys?" the man said.

 

"Sam?" Jennifer and Shon asked in dismay.

 

"The one and only," Sam said.

 

They ran up to him and gave him a big, bear hug. They hadn't seem him in years.

 

"Wow, I'm happy to see you, too," Sam said hugging them back.

 

"Sam where have you been? It's been ages," Jennifer asked trying to hold her tears back.

 

"Don't cry, J. I've been around. I had always been meaning to come check in on you two, but when I drop by, you're never home. I figured you guys were out saving the world."

 

"Yea, nonstop, actually," Shon replied.

 

"Well that's good. Keeping the family name alive. Wow, you guys have gotten so big. What are you guys like, level fives?"

 

"Yea, how'd you know?" Shon asked.

 

"Didn't. I just guessed. But Shon I was actually your age when I became a level five, so you're on the right path."

 

"So you were the one who was cleanin' up around here?" Jennifer asked.

 

"I've been trying to do my part, you know. I missed out on a lot of stuff in both your lives and I want to start helping out now. Shon, you and I are going to go down to the training room and work on some new fighting skills."

 

"Cool," Shon said excitedly.

 

"And Jennifer, we're gonna have a talk about something that's really important, but in the mean time, I could use your help with the training."

 

Why did he want to start helping out now? Was something wrong that he wasn't telling them? And what important talk did he want to have? All these questions ran through Jennifer's mind, but she didn't feel the need to ask Sam them now. She was just so happy to see him home.