The Academy Defenders Read online

  His mom smiled. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Besides, I think it will be easier if I show you.”

  His mom pointed to a spot on a bookshelf where a small pistol lay holstered. “That’s my pistol from the Secret Service. Load it.” Lincoln did so. By the time he had finished, his mom was standing in front of the desk twenty feet away, her back turned to him. She turned to face him, and Lincoln gasped. Her eyes had changed. Instead of their normal blue color, they were now grey, so bright they almost glowed.

  “Shoot me,” she told him, pointing to her chest.

  “No way!”

  “Do you trust me?”

  “Of course,” Lincoln answered.

  “Then do it.” Lincoln looked at her uncertainly. “Go on. Everything will be fine,” she encouraged.

  Lincoln aimed, gave her another uncertain look, and after she gave him a confident nod, pulled the trigger. With a loud bang, the bullet burst from the gun barrel and headed straight for his mom’s chest. Lincoln opened his mouth to yell, but before he could, the bullet stopped a foot away from his mom, where it remained hovering in the air. His mom grabbed the bullet out of the air and laid it on the desk.

  “And that,” she said, “is why your dad and I were hired by the Secret Service.”

  The gun fell from Lincoln’s hand and clattered against the floor. He stared at his mom in shock. Her eyes turned back to their normal blue color.

  “Lincoln,” his mom continued calmly, ignoring the gun, “I am a Guardian, just like your dad, and just like your grandpa before he died.”

  “A G-guardian?” asked Lincoln, still shocked by what he had just seen.

  His mom nodded. “At the Atlas Academy, we learned to use our powers to protect those who need us the most, like the President.” His mom stepped closer to him. “I’m sorry we never told you. After your brother died, your father and I wanted to keep you safe, so we left the Secret Service and started a new chapter in our lives. Like our parents did with us, we planned on telling you as soon as your powers came, but that hasn’t happened.”

  Lincoln couldn’t concentrate. He felt as if a bomb had just exploded somewhere deep inside his brain. He leaned against the bookshelf behind him and tried to imagine how the kids at school would react if he told them he watched his mom stop a speeding bullet just by looking at it.

  “So ... I’m not a Guardian?”

  “I’m not sure yet,” his mom admitted. “You’re twelve. Most Guardians don’t receive their powers until they’re thirteen or older. Your dad didn’t get his powers until he was fourteen.” His mom put her arm around his shoulders. “Tomorrow, your father and I will answer all your questions, but right now we need to get ready. We’re leaving for Wisconsin as soon as your dad gets home.”

  Preparing for the trip took more time than Lincoln expected. They packed, tidied up the house, washed the dirty dishes, and folded the laundry. By the time they finished, it was nearly midnight. Too exhausted to change his clothes or even brush his teeth, Lincoln climbed the stairs to his room in the attic and crashed onto his bed. The last thought he remembered having was, My dentist is going to kill me.

  LINCOLN awoke with a jump. He had been dreaming about running for his life from a super-powered man with glowing grey eyes when something woke him. Lincoln sat still for a minute, hearing nothing but silence. He closed his eyes and tried to fall back asleep.

  Creak. This time the noise was unmistakable. Someone was in the kitchen. Lincoln looked at the clock next to his bed. 3:08 a.m. Wondering if his mom couldn’t sleep and was packing some last-minute items, Lincoln climbed out of bed and walked down the hallway.

  The creaking footsteps stopped. The hairs on the back of Lincoln’s neck stood on end as he looked down the stairs and saw the front door hanging wide open. Slowly and as quietly as possible, he crept down the stairs and through the hallway leading to the kitchen. He leaned his head in, peering through the darkness. There, standing at the other end of the room, was the older FBI agent from earlier. He was looking down the other hallway, the one leading to Lincoln’s parents’ bedroom.

  Lincoln exhaled in relief and stepped into the kitchen. He opened his mouth to call out to the agent but stopped. Something didn’t seem right. Why had the FBI agent come back to their house? And why had he come in the middle of the night? The agent took a step forward. As he did so, his body shifted, and Lincoln saw something that made his heart start pounding so forcefully it nearly jumped out of his chest—the agent was holding a long, narrow sword.

  What in the world? Panic took over, and Lincoln took a quick step backward. As he did so, his foot brushed lightly against the wall behind him.

  The FBI agent spun around as if he had just heard a car alarm. He saw Lincoln and smirked, an evil smile creeping across his lips. “Hello again, Lincoln. Sorry for the late visit, but I believe you have something I need.” With that, the agent began spinning his sword in his hand, grinning as he slowly advanced. He made it halfway across the kitchen while Lincoln stood still, paralyzed with fear.

  “Not my son!” Lincoln’s mom shouted from the other side of the kitchen. She stood outside her room, holding his dad’s treasured UNC basketball, the one from the 2005 National Championship game. She threw the ball at the agent, who raised his sword, ready to slice it in half. But as the ball flew through the air it transformed into a large, metal net. The net wrapped itself around the agent, and he crashed to the floor, his sword disappearing. Lincoln jumped over the agent and raced to his mom.

  “What’s going on?” he yelled.

  “He’s a Guardian,” she shouted back.

  “Like you? I thought you were the good guys? What’s he doing?”

  “I don’t know, but right now, we need to get away. The net won’t hold him for very long.” They raced down the hall and into her bedroom. “Into the closet,” she ordered. “There’s a secret way out of the house.” Lincoln followed his mom through the hanging clothes to the back of the closet.

  “Follow me,” she said, grabbing Lincoln’s hand and pulling him through the small opening. They crawled through a tunnel and out a hidden door behind some trees along the side of the house.

  “Let’s lose him in the woods,” Lincoln’s mom whispered. They were halfway across the front lawn when Lincoln heard a yell and saw the FBI agent race out of the front door, sword in hand, his eyes glowing grey. He sprinted across the lawn with supernatural speed and dived at Lincoln. Lincoln’s mom jumped between them. The agent’s shoulder smashed into her cheek, and the two of them fell to the ground.

  “Where is it?” the agent yelled, grabbing her shoulders. His eyes narrowed angrily and he raised his sword. “Tell me now!”

  Lincoln stepped toward the two of them. He had no idea what he was going to do, but somehow he had to help his mom. He took another step forward as the sword began to fall toward his mom’s chest as if in slow motion. He had to save her! He reached for the sword, and everything around him stopped moving. Lincoln grabbed the agent by his shoulder, lifted him off his mom, and then threw him to the ground like a ragdoll.

  The agent howled in pain, clutching his shoulder, while the sword he held disappeared again, shrinking into a small, wooden handle. Lincoln ripped it from the agent’s hand. His mom sat on the ground, staring at Lincoln.

  “You just stopped time,” she whispered. “You are a Guardian.”

  The sound of a car engine brought both of their heads up quickly. “More must be coming. Hide!” his mom ordered.

  But it was too late. Someone was already jumping out of the car. A tall man dressed in a grey, hooded cloak and carrying a wooden staff approached. His athletic build, square jaw, and the way he moved as he came close, muscles tensed, ready to strike at any moment, reminded Lincoln of a large Doberman pinscher. His short, dark hair made the resemblance even more striking.

  Lincoln’s mom stared at the approaching stranger as Lincoln prepared to defend himself. “Otis, is that really you?”

  “Olivia
,” the man growled, “it’s been a long time.”

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I was in the neighborhood when you sent your distress signal.” Otis pointed to the man on the ground. “Are you okay?”

  “Lincoln saved me,” his mom proudly told Otis. “He’s one of us.”

  Otis studied Lincoln closely. “This runt?” he growled, lips curving upward into the smallest of grins. “Normally, we have all sorts of papers for parents to sign, but in this case, I think we can make an exception.” Otis looked at Lincoln’s mom, who nodded. He looked back at Lincoln. “Ready?”

  “Ready for what?” asked Lincoln.

  Otis snorted. “Ready to come to the academy for your training?”

  “The academy?” asked Lincoln, looking at his mom.

  She nodded. “He’s right, Lincoln. That’s where you should be. Otis is one of the Academy Keepers. He’ll take you there.”

  “But what about you?” protested Lincoln, motioning toward the agent lying on the ground. “What about him?”

  His mom pulled a small, black rope out from inside her coat. It swayed back and forth like a snake. She whispered something to the rope, and it grew several feet longer and began coiling itself around and around the FBI agent, covering him from head to toe.

  “Your father will be here tomorrow, and trust me, the two of us together will be safer than you can possibly imagine. Lincoln, you belong at the academy. This is your destiny!” She gave him a final kiss on the cheek and turned toward Otis. “Keep him safe.”

  Otis nodded. He pointed to his car. “Come on kid, it’s now or never.”

  Lincoln didn’t like this one bit, but he realized he didn’t have much of a choice. At least he wouldn’t have to worry about the Hastings brothers anymore.

  He turned his back on his home, nodded at Otis, and then followed him as he raced toward his car. As Lincoln jumped into the car and waved good-bye to his mom, he couldn’t help but think of how much his life had changed over the last twenty-four hours.

  CHAPTER 2

  THE ACADEMY KEEPERS

  LINCOLN HAD NO IDEA WHERE THEY WERE going. He tried to ask Otis, but the strange man merely mumbled, “You’ll know soon enough,” and then wouldn’t say another word. A half hour into their drive, Lincoln’s eyes began to feel heavy, so he leaned his head against the car window.

  He awoke to sunlight beaming through the glass and onto his face. He had no idea how long he had been sleeping, but they were now parked on a sandy beach facing an enormous body of water. He blinked several times as he watched the surf pound the beach, and then peeled his forehead off the car window. He turned to look at Otis, who sat watching him from the driver’s seat.

  “Alright, kid, enough sleep. We need to hurry,” Otis said in a gruff voice, his face an emotionless mask.

  Lincoln wiped the drool from his chin and peered back out the car window. As far as he could see, they were surrounded by nothing but water and sand. “Now will you tell me where we are?”

  “The Outer Banks,” Otis answered. Without another word, he hopped out of the car and started walking down the beach.

  Lincoln joined him, jogging to keep pace with Otis’s long, quick strides. “Uh, Mr. Otis,” he stammered, “I think the road is the other way, sir. I mean, there’s nothing but sand and water all around us.”

  Otis continued walking without answering, so Lincoln spoke again, only louder this time. “So ... you’re an Academy Keeper. That sounds cool. What do you do?”

  “Geez, kid, you ask a lot of questions.” Otis tried to sound irritated, but Lincoln caught him smiling slightly. “Our job is to keep the academy and its recruits safe.”

  “How many of you are there?”

  “Eight.”

  “Eight?” Lincoln repeated.

  Otis nodded.

  “What about the recruits? Who are they?”

  “Recruits are like you, wannabe Guardians who come to us from all over the world and need to learn to use their powers. Part of my job is to try to keep you from killing each other in the process. Now, tell me what happened yesterday.”

  Lincoln told his story as they continued their walk down the beach, starting with the call to come home from school. He had just gotten to the part where he had saved his mom when suddenly he found himself overwhelmed with emotion. His throat tightened. He took a deep breath and tried to continue his story, but couldn’t. Tears filled his eyes and his lips quivered.

  Otis stopped walking, the roughness he had shown earlier now completely gone. He placed his arm around Lincoln’s shoulders. “I know,” he said. “Believe me, I know.” Lincoln buried his face in the long, grey cloak and sobbed, releasing emotions held in check over the past twenty-four hours.

  After a few minutes, Lincoln stopped crying. He wiped his eyes, and embarrassed by what had happened, took two steps away from Otis.

  “Sorry,” Lincoln mumbled while staring at his feet.

  “Don’t apologize,” Otis said sharply. “Mourning those we love is a sign of strength, not weakness. Keep your head up, Lincoln.” They continued their walk along the beach.

  After another few minutes of walking, Otis stopped. He glanced back and forth carefully, making sure they were alone, and then pointed his staff to a spot on the beach a few feet in front of them. The ground shook and the sand slowly spread apart, forming a hole.

  The hole continued to grow as a blue, metallic object appeared beneath the churning sand. As it came into view, Lincoln’s jaw dropped. He was staring at some type of flying vehicle. It was about the size of a helicopter and had two sets of wings, resembling a giant dragonfly.

  He turned back to Otis, who was watching him expectantly. “What?” Lincoln asked. Otis didn’t answer. “You don’t seriously expect me to hop into that thing, do you? There’s no way I’m riding in some giant dragonfly thing I have never seen fly before. No way.”

  Otis ignored him and walked to the front of the aircraft. He pulled a large key from his cloak and inserted it into the keyhole on the aircraft’s underside. A round opening appeared, and a ladder slowly descended from the aircraft.

  “You’ve got two options. You can climb up the ladder yourself, or you can continue to complain and I’ll haul you up there on my back.” Reluctantly, Lincoln followed Otis up the ladder.

  Lincoln was surprised to find the inside much bigger than he had imagined. There was enough room for the four large, leather recliners that reminded Lincoln of the one in his parents’ room back home. He sat down in the one next to Otis. They were surrounded by multiple consoles, buttons, and joysticks.

  “Uh, I’m only twelve. I can’t even drive, so wherever we’re going, you’re flying this thing solo.”

  Otis grinned. “Do I detect fear in our soon-to-be Guardian?” He patted the console in front of him. “Don’t worry. From what I’ve heard, flying a Lulu is as easy as riding a bike.” He grinned wider as he saw the look on Lincoln’s face.

  “I’m not scared! I’m just not a huge fan of heights.”

  Otis continued to grin as he started up the engine. The wings began to flutter up and down, slowly at first, and then faster and faster, creating a humming sound. The Lulu gently lifted off the ground, rising nearly two hundred feet, and then stopped, hovering in place.

  Suddenly, Otis placed his hand to his forehead. “I almost forgot. Do you have a cellphone with you?”

  Lincoln nodded and Otis held out his hand. Lincoln reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone, and handed it to the Keeper.

  “There’s a strict no-cellphone policy at the academy,” Otis announced. And with that, he dropped the cellphone to the floor and stomped it to pieces with one of his thick, black boots. Lincoln cringed and let out a soft groan.

  “Sorry,” Otis chuckled with a shrug. “Next stop, Atlas Academy,” he added as he pushed a lever forward. The giant dragonfly shot through the air.

  The Lulu flew with unbelievable speed, faster than any aircraft Lincoln had ever seen.
For the first several minutes, he and Otis sat in silence, Lincoln watching everything Otis did and occasionally glancing out the window to make certain they weren’t about to crash.

  After deciding he wasn’t going to die for at least the next few minutes, Lincoln stopped staring at Otis and glanced around the cockpit, wanting a closer look at the controls surrounding him. He found a button on the side of his chair and pushed it, nearly falling out of his seat as it reclined to a horizontal position.

  Otis chuckled again and then pointed to a small refrigerator hidden under Lincoln’s seat. “There’s food in there, in case you’re hungry.”

  Lincoln opened the fridge and looked through his options, settling on a pack of cheese crackers and a soda.

  “Check it out,” Otis said, pointing to the ocean now two hundred feet below them. Leaping high into the air and then crashing back into the water was a pod of several hundred dolphins.

  “That’s awesome!” said Lincoln. “I swam with dolphins once when I went with my grandpa to Florida. They’re amazing.”

  Now that Otis seemed to be in a much better mood, Lincoln decided to try to find out a little bit more about the academy. “Otis,” he said tentatively. Otis raised his eyebrows without looking at Lincoln. “What can you tell me about the academy?”

  “What do you want to know?” asked Otis.

  “Well, for starters, where is it?”

  “Kodiak Island, just off the southern coast of Alaska and right in the middle of the national wildlife refuge,” Otis answered. “Don’t worry,” he added, in response to Lincoln’s questioning gaze. “We’re not going the wrong way. We’re looping up north and then we’ll cut across Canada.”

  “Mom said the academy’s where she was trained to protect the President.”

  Otis looked at Lincoln. “What else has your mom told you about the Guardians?”

  “Almost nothing,” Lincoln admitted. “I’d never heard of them before last night.”

  “Sounds like it’s time for Guardian History 101. The Guardians have been around since the beginning of time, though we weren’t called Guardians until we were given the name by a powerful Egyptian pharaoh, Ramesses III—not the one from the story of Moses. At that time, the Guardians in Egypt disguised themselves as magicians, workers of magic for the nobility. One of Ramesses’s wives, Tiye, enlisted the help of two powerful magicians to assassinate the pharaoh and give her son the throne. Luckily for Ramesses, a royal scribe stumbled upon the plot.