Zuriel:The Recruit

I was an oddity, even before I was born.

Which only got worse moments after my birth when my parents named me Zuriel.

The name came about because both my parents were sure I was gonna be a girl, until they saw the little thing between my legs, and as they hadn’t bothered to have a boy name ready, they found a list of baby names and started at the back until they found one they liked.

Unfortunately, they were kinda right about me - I have always felt more like a girl than a guy.

Which is why I say I was an oddity even before my birth.

I live in a rough area, so I learned early to hide the feminine part of me. Didn’t always succeed, mind you, which is why the day my life changed forever I was being chased by a gang of 15 kids , and I was pretty sure I was gonna die.

Then the Power hit me.

In a split second, I was stronger, faster.

And I knew how to fight.

I turned on my pursuers and before they could understand how much the situation had changed, I attacked.

I had seen a few kung fu movies, but I think even Bruce Lee would had been impressed with my skill as I span, kicked, punched, and leaped. The hardest part was actually holding back so I didn’t kill anybody ...

Once all my opponents were downed, I ran for home. If the shock of what I had done hadn’t been enough, I found myself reliving moments of other lives - always a fighter, always facing monsters and demons ...

And always a girl.

It’s probably a good thing that in the aftermath of my fight, my attackers gave me a wide berth, as I was pretty busy trying to process the memories flooding my brain.

Then just when I was starting to think I had adjusted, I had a visitor come to my house.

She was a pretty red-head, college age from the look of her, and when I answered the door she said, “Hi. This may sound weird, but I need to speak to your sister as soon as possible. It’s really important.”

“You must have the wrong house, miss. I don’t have a sister.” I replied, and tried to shut the door.

She muttered something, and the door flung back open.

“My magic is never wrong.” She said firmly.

“Well, it’s wrong now. I don’t have a sister.”

The red-head then stared at me for a bit.

“It’s you? But how ...” She stammered, and then muttered something.

“Tell me the truth, did you have a moment of power recently? Are you getting memories of other lives?” She demanded.

I found myself helpless to hold back, and told her everything - my name, about turning the tables on the bullies, and of the memories of fighting monsters.

And the fact I had felt more like a girl than a guy my whole life.

The spell must have broken at that point, because I stopped talking, and started crying instead.

The woman pulled me into a hug, and said, “I’m sorry, that must be hard. I promise we’ll help you all we can. And I’ll start by telling you where those memories, those powers come from.”

She steered me inside, we sat at the kitchen table, and she started telling me a story. A story about how once upon a time a group of mages created a defender for humanity - The Slayer. How originally there had only been one at a time - one girl with the power to save the world. Then she told me how recently the spell had been changed (and from the blush she had when she mentioned that I got the idea she’d had a hand in that), resulting in every girl who had the potential to be the Slayer to get the power at once.

Then she said, “And you were obviously a potential Slayer.”

“But you said it was only for girls?” I asked.

“And I think you are one - at least in your heart and mind, which is the important part.”

“So what happens now? What do I do? What do I tell my parents?”

“Well, first, I would like you to meet the other Slayers from this town. We’ll figure out what to tell your folks, and then we’ll train you in using your gifts.”

I thought long and hard, and then said, “Okay. I ... always wanted to make a difference, to help people.”

“Well, you could have done that anyway, but we’ll help you learn everything you’ll need to know.”

I wrote a note for my folks saying I had gone out for a while but would be back before supper.

And then I began my adventure ....

End.