Chapter 1

Professor Edwin Jackson taught history for the simple reason that he had a desire to live in historical times. He, along with a few others scattered around the globe, had helped rediscover fighting techniques and styles common in the days of ‘knights in shining armor.’ It was a passion of his and one that had led him to be a most sought after instructor at the local college. Students were often shocked and amazed when he would roll into the class room and then leap onto his desk while wearing a suit of armor.

His association with Gerald Jones had started early in his life. He had met Gerald Jones at a Renaissance fair, where the older man was demonstrating the use of the English Long Bow. The older man had smiled upon hearing his interest in medieval fighting styles. His training had begun at that moment, with an hour of bow practice. For the next twenty years, the two men taught each other how to use a variety of weapons. Gerald had trusted him with training Sid knowing that a stranger could often impose a lot more discipline on a student than a family member.

The only sour note in their friendship, from Professor Jackson’s perspective, was Gerald’s fantasy of Crossroads, Cassandra, and Chaos. He had listened to hours of stories about fighting with swords, rescuing damsels in distress, and life in a medieval society. When Gerald had added the bit about having sex with incredibly beautiful women he had blown his stack and told Gerald that he never wanted to hear one more word about Crossroads.

He had no idea why Gerald kept insisting that his tales were not fictions from an overactive, although impressive, imagination. He was half tempted to throw Sid, Mike, and Cynthia out of his training facility when they had started insisting that these were not stories, but really happened. Instead, he decided to call their bluff to put an end to the stories once and for all.

Now he was standing in Sid’s study surrounded by Sid, Mike, Cynthia, and JJ. Sid and Mike were grinning like he was about to have the world’s greatest practical joke pulled on him. Cynthia was busy telling JJ that she could have the adventure of a lifetime with Mike. JJ’s attention was divided among Cynthia, her father, and Mike.

“I know what you’re going to do,” Professor Jackson said glaring at Sid.

“What?” Sid asked.

“You’re going to lock me in the closet,” Professor Jackson answered despite the fact that it sounded pretty stupid even while he said it.

He couldn’t figure out what kind of trick Sid was going to play on him. He just knew that the young man was looking way too smug about something. He looked down at the ring on his finger. It looked like a normal ring. It was a simple gold band with a sapphire stone.

“I promise we won’t do that,” Sid said.

Professor Jackson said, “I’m not stepping in there.”

Sid looked over at Mike and said, “I don’t think he trusts us. What do you think?”

“Can you remove the closet door?” Mike asked.

“That’s a good idea,” Sid said with a grin.

“Just remember that I haven’t taught you all of the tricks that I know,” Professor Jackson said.

Seeing that Sid was more than willing to remove the closet door, he decided on a different tactic. He decided to step in and out of the closet, before the two young men had a chance to do anything. When Sid and Mike turned to ask Cynthia what she thought about the idea of removing the door, he stepped into the closet. There was a moment of disorientation.

Looking around the small white room that was definitely larger than the inside of the closet, he exclaimed, “What the hell?”

He walked around the perimeter of the room examining the walls for evidence of a door. The walls appeared to be perfectly normal despite the fact that there was a slight glow to them that provided a soft light for the room. He rubbed his hand against the four walls to see if there was some sort of imperfection that might suggest a door. There wasn’t one. What was even stranger was that he couldn’t identify the material of which the wall was made. He searched the ceiling to see if there had been some sort of trap door that had dropped him into the room. There wasn’t one. He knelt down to examine the floor.

After completing his search, he sat down with his back to a wall. He had no idea how Sid had managed this, he was getting tired of it. Looking up at the ceiling, he said, “Okay, you got me. Enough is enough.”

Nothing happened as a result of his declaration. He sat there trying to remember every detail about that fraction of a second when the room transitioned from closet to this holding cell. It had happened so fast that there wasn’t anything he could identify as a key to the trick. His foot entered the closet and then he was in the room.

His thoughts were interrupted when a door appeared at one end of the room. He rose and walked towards it. Upon reaching the door, he looked through it to assess the situation in the connecting room. His eyes immediately landed upon an extremely attractive, though not young, woman.

“Hello,” he said entering the room.

“Greetings, Hero. I am Elizabeth Hero Greeter,” the woman said in a sexy voice.

“I’m Edwin Jackson.”

“I have heard of you. You were a friend of Gerald Jones,” Elizabeth said somewhat surprised by the identity of the man standing in front of her.

“Yes, I was,” Edwin said.

It had always saddened him that he hadn’t learned of Gerald’s death in time to attend the funeral. He had been away at a conference when the obituary had been published in the newspaper. JJ was of an age where she didn’t read that section of the newspaper. He felt guilty for having missed the funeral. He had been ashamed when he learned that Sid had been one of two attendees at the funeral.

“I was Gerald’s Caretaker,” Elizabeth said.

“You are Elizabeth Caretaker?” Edwin asked.

“I was,” Elizabeth answered.

“He talked about you frequently. He loved you very much,” Edwin said.

Gerald hadn’t lied when he described Elizabeth Caretaker. He had often referred to her as the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Despite her age, it was obvious that at one time she had been a gorgeous woman.

“I miss him,” Elizabeth said.

“I miss him, too,” Edwin said.

Elizabeth said, “He was always telling me that he wanted you to join the ranks of Heroes.”

“I never believed him when he told me the stories about his adventures,” Edwin said. “I guess I should have.”

“You’re here now,” Elizabeth said.

“I take it that this is Crossroads,” Edwin said looking around the featureless white room. “It is kind of plain looking.”

“Yes, this is Crossroads. I’ll admit that it looks a little plain, now, but you and your caretaker can decorate this room however you wish,” Elizabeth said.

“My caretaker?” Edwin asked.

“You will be selecting a caretaker. It will be her job to take care of all of your needs,” Elizabeth answered.

“Can you be my caretaker?” Edwin asked.

Elizabeth laughed at the suggestion. She said, “I’m too old for you. You need a woman closer to your own age.”

“But you were a good caretaker for Gerald. He told me about how you would help him plan his missions,” Edwin said.

“I’m not the one you want,” Elizabeth said while blushing slightly.

“I want the best woman for the job and from what Gerald said, that would be you,” Edwin countered.

“I took care of all of his needs,” Elizabeth said.

Edwin said, “I’m sure that you’ll take care of me just fine.”

“We were lovers,” Elizabeth said.

“You wouldn’t have to do that for me,” Edwin said.

“That is a caretaker’s job. You will want someone younger,” Elizabeth said. Looking up at the ceiling, she said, “Folders for the available caretakers, please.”

Six folders appeared on the coffee table. She gestured to them and said, “Study the folders with care and make your choice wisely. Your caretaker will be extremely important to your success as a Hero. It is really a matter of life and death.”

“That’s why I want you,” Edwin said.

“I appreciate your interest, but I’m a Hero Greeter and not a Caretaker,” Elizabeth said.

Edwin sat down on the sofa next to the coffee table. He picked up the folders and opened the top one. He read the resume unsure of what he was looking for in it. The woman was a martial artist and ran a dojo on Cassandra. The second folder was of a woman who worked for a shipping company scheduling deliveries and studied history as a hobby.

He opened the last folder. It was the thickest.

Surprised, he said, “A librarian?”

“What’s her name?” Elizabeth asked with a frown.

“Mercedes,” Edwin answered.

“Mercedes Librarian of Linden?” Elizabeth asked.

“Yes.”

Surprised, Elizabeth said, “I had no idea she had applied to be a Hero Caretaker.”

Glancing over the resume, he said, “Impressive. She’s quite an author.”

“Yes,” Elizabeth said. “She’s brilliant.”

“Strategies for Troop Supply in the Field,” Edwin said reading one of the titles aloud. Glancing down at another article he read, “Techniques for Terrain Assessment.”

“She has diverse interests,” Elizabeth said.

“If I can’t have you, then I want her,” Edwin said.

“Did you see her picture?” Elizabeth asked.

Edwin flipped to the last page. He looked at the picture unable to believe what he saw.