Rule number one of living with humans: Always wash the blood off before entering the house. Maria scrubbed her fingers under the freezing water of the outside tap, deftly trying to remove the stale blood from under her fingernails. A long silver dagger hung in its holster from her belt, and the black clothes she wore made her invisible from the street. She walked around to the back of the single-floor suburban-style house, entering via the kitchen. The Parker’s sat at the table eating what looked like spaghetti. Nancy chattering away on her mobile, Jeff with his head in a book and Liz doing homework of some sort, her head snapped up as Maria passed by her. “We waited dinner over an hour for you” she muttered. Yeah well that’s the thing Liz, when you’re an alien hunter trying to rid the world of evil beings who wouldn’t think twice about snapping ‘your’ head off, calling home to say you’ll be late for the family meal, just doesn’t seem like a high priority. Maria didn’t actually say it out loud; Liz Parker along with her parents had no idea that aliens existed, that thousands of them lived here on earth, hidden among them. Little Lizzie Parker’s head would probably implode if she thought her science books were in anyway incorrect. So instead Maria simply said “Sorry” And continued down the hall. Once in her bedroom, Maria used her powers to close the door behind her, throwing herself on her bed. From behind the door, a tall lanky dark haired boy emerged. Maria reached for her knife, now tucked securely inside her jeans. “Alex” Maria smiled with relief. Alex Whitman grinned back at her. “Ria” he mimicked her tone of voice. “The Parker's will kill me if they find you in my room” Maria had been living with her aunt and uncle for a little over a year now, but she still couldn’t bring herself to refer to them as such. “Little Miss Perfect will probably have a conniption fit” Alex grinned at Maria’s reference to her cousin and his lab partner. “Relax kiddo, I came through the window” he gestured towards the half open sill “Actually I’m here in an official capacity” Maria raised her eyebrows, her interest peaked. Alex was apart of Project: Crashdown, a secret organisation within the secret organisation of the Other World. Made up of rebel Other Worlders and humans who knew their secret, these were the people who wanted to see aliens and humans get along, live in harmony so to speak. Maria privately thought this misguided at best, but as she could be the poster child for the organisation, she felt indebted to help in any way she could. “So what evil’s afoot – O fearless leader?” she asked sardonically Maria had met Alex at school, the tiny pin he wore identified him as a part of something she had only ever heard referred to in hushed tones. They had struck up a friendship and he became the first human to ever earn her trust and in time learn her secret, he often came to her with information, his hacker skills allowed him to keep an eye on the police and FBI databases for ‘Other Worldly’ activity. Now he stood before her bed, pacing agitatedly, while she pulled her knees up to her chin ready to listen patiently. “Ever heard of the Orbs of Antar?” he asked. She just shook her head, smiling to herself at how funny her home planet's name sounded on the lips of a human. Antar had been destroyed six hundred years ago, Its remaining people had made their way to earth in the hopes of colonisation. The task had proved to hard for the thousand or so survivors, to many humans, too few of them. So instead they had opted to hide among the indigenous people, biding their time. Only a handful of the originals were still alive. Necedo being one of them, he now sat at the head of the Other World council, issuing laws and enacting measurements to ensure the race’s survival. Maria grimaced as she remembered how her parents had been sacrifice to his archaic beliefs. Alex cleared his throat. “When the Other Worlders first came to earth, they brought with them four crystal orbs, each contain the power of an element, if used in the right hands” “Whose hands are those?” Maria interrupted. Alex looked pained ”I’m getting there, shhhh! The manuscripts we have on them are unclear and sketchy at best. This is the translation we came up with:                                                            Four spheres entrusted                                                          Four warriors stand ground                                                                Two worlds united                                                                   Four less one                                                                Two worlds divided” Alex sat down on the bed next to Maria, both silent as if contemplating the puzzle before them. “Umm..Alex? What does it mean?” Maria asked hesitantly “God, I don’t know!” Alex laughed. ”But what I do know is someone has reported finding one of the orbs to the council” “And now I say...who?” “Michael Guerin” TBC

Part 4