Random Writing

Sorry for not posting any more of The Veteran recently, but this popped into my head today and I have to get it out. More episodes of The Veteran shall be forthcoming.

David was sitting across from the stranger when the oddest feeling overtook him. He went from a casually aloof state to one of full mental alertness. There was nothing that the stranger was saying or doing that triggered the change; no balled fists, or angry statements, or quiet threats. The stranger did not even change the cadence of their speech or the tone of their voice. In fact, David was quite sure that the stranger did not even notice that he had suddenly shifted mental gears.

David had been slouching in his chair, casually stirring a cup of coffee with his free hand when the feeling came over him. Without making any sudden movements he gently laid the spoon down on the plate and rested his forearm horizontally on the table, with his elbow slightly bent and cocked so that if the need arose he could throw a rapid, heavy punch without having to pull his fist back to his ear. Mentally he relaxed every muscle in both of his arms, starting at the fingertips and working his way up the arm, until each of his arms felt as light as a feather, and instantly he knew that if he so chose, he could move his hands so quickly that they would be a blur. He did not rack his shoulders straight back, but let them rest naturally upon his spine, which he realized that he had unconsciously adjusted so that it was a literal pillar, a perfect column, running straight up and down. His feet, too, shifted, until both of them were resting flat on the floor, and once more he relaxed all the muscles throughout both of his legs, until they, too, felt lighter than air.

Oddly enough, David could feel his heart beat a little faster, pumping endorphins and adrenaline throughout his system, and his hearing and eyesight became more acute than they had been but moments before. The slight ache that David had felt in the back of his neck faded away, until there was no pain at all. Suddenly, it was impossible to look away from the strangers eyes, and he became aware of every nuance and gesture of the stranger, who had remained completely oblivious to the change that was sweeping over his conversant. His eyes bored into the strangers and he felt as though he were peering into his very soul and separating truth from falsehoods as they tripped from the strangers lips.

So heightened were Davids senses that when an insect managed to slip through a crack in the door landed on his arm, he could count each of the six legs that alit, ever so slightly, on his skin.

David knew that he was ready for anything. If the stranger gave the slightest indication of trying anything dangerous, he would move faster, swing harder, and connect with more kinetic energy and accuracy than the stranger ever could.

In fact, David knew at that particular moment in time, he was the most dangerous man in the room.

The stranger, however, remained completely unaware as to David's physiological and mental changes, and continued to natter on about nothing in particular. The minutes ticked away with David poised in a perfect state of readiness and the stranger still rattling on, until the stranger excused himself to use the restroom. David's head was on a swivel as he watched the man stride away and he knew, in his heart of hearts, that his heightened state was no accident; the stranger was an equally dangerous man.