AFTER her call with Jasmine, Stephanie personally commandeered a warbird to take her to the expo to pick them up… only, they weren't there when the warbird arrived.
Hearing about Ryan's condition, she immediately went to the medical tent.
"Yes, he was here," said a healer who was tending to a broken leg
"Well, what happened to him?" Stephanie asked impatiently
"Well, he and the two he was with…" the healer began, then, her eyes went cloudy, "I… don't really… remember what happened to them."
"But they're not here anymore?" the Keeper inquired with a raised eyebrow.
"No… something… happened…"
"Thank you," Stephanie said. If the healers' memories had been tampered with, then there was really no use asking her for information. She exited the tent, with her hands folded and her Keeper's coat billowing in her wake.
As she made her way back to her warbird, she could see the gawkers, all trying to get a glimpse of the famous Lady Vulcanika, the surviving Fairchylde twin. Honestly, this was why she stayed away from public events nowadays; she can't stand their eyes on her, watching everything she does. Judging her.
She already got enough of that in her nightmares.
It's always been like this, even when they were new to ARGUS, Stephanie and Julia always attracted attention. Sure, they'd been outlaws prior to joining ARGUS, and they were infamous for it, but it's hard to remain anonymous when it turns out that you are a direct relation of a noble bloodline of magi that was believed to have died out centuries ago. Yes, back when they first joined, when you're a half-blood, they had this ritual called blood-proving, where they trace your magus lineage to see which magus family you came from, and during theirs, it had been discovered that their bloodline traced all the way back to the Ozdottïr lineage, a noble family that died out shortly after the great war.
The Ozdottïrs were renowned elementalists, having a deep connection with their environment and the element, it was said that they could even summon elemental fae. It would explain why Stephanie had such a proclivity for fire and earth magik and how she was able to achieve such a powerful advanced art, she even acquired an Eden art for Pete's sake. And Julia… there wasn't even any question.
Of course when this was discovered there was a huge uproar, people didn't approve of a couple of criminal skibs being recognized as nobility. But rules were rules, and as the surviving heirs to a noble house, they inherited the family legacy, which amounted to a title and little more. The clan had been extinct for several generations, all of its assets had been dissolved and absorbed into ARGUS long ago, leaving Stephanie and Julia with an official title and an honorary seat on the Noble Council.
As the crowd of onlookers continued to gawk, Stephanie decided she'd give them what they were expecting. Taking a deep breath, she held her head high and sauntered towards the landing zone, dignity and confidence oozing from her with every step. With her Keeper's coat billowing behind her, she left the onlookers with her royal and intimidating visage burned in their memories as she climbed onto the waiting warbird.
Once they were in the air, she collapsed into a cushioned seat, letting out a tired breath.
She used to love the performance, but that was only because her sister was there to complement her. They always were a matching set, never separated, and even after so long, Stephanie still felt her absence like a lost limb.
She looked out the window, letting the silence quiet the dark thoughts, then she called out to the empty room.
"I need you."
There was silence
"Our contract states that you must hear me when I call." She demanded
"True, but it never said anything about me 'answering', now does it?" said a voice out of the ether.
"It's implied in the context, that's why I took the time to write it out myself instead of having you do it."
"Yes. As they say; a deal must be honored, and a contract bound, but a blood pact can subjugate even gods. I've been around a long time and seen that saying applied many times, but I never even imagined myself falling prey to it. Oh, the irony."
"You still upset I had the upper hand in our deal?"
"You didn't have the 'upper hand'; you struck a deal with me so you could forge a blood pact, that's cheating."
"Well tough, you signed." Stephanie sighed
"So, what bidding will you have me do now?"
She was silent for a few minutes, then she spoke, "What do you know of the missing purebloods?"
"Not much, not really interesting enough."
"Don't toy with me, you know what's going on regarding that, don't you?" She snapped
"Well, I wouldn't be an all-knowing trickster god if I didn't know, now would I?"
"I still doubt you're a god." Stephanie said, "A high tiered fae, maybe, but a god?"
"What's so preposterous about being a god?"
"I stopped believing in gods a long time ago" Stephanie said
"Well, the others are dead anyway," The voice answers, "So, missing purebloods?"
"I want to know everything you know it," Stephanie said
"Ooh, that's gonna cost you." The voice stated
"Everything with you always does,"
"This price this time will be a bit different."
"What is it?"
"There's an experiment I recently took an interest in trying out. And I can't think of a better participant than you."
Stephanie raised an eyebrow, "You want to experiment on me?"
"Is it too much to ask?" the voice asked, "It's nothing life threatening, if that's what you're worried about."
"No, if you need to use my body, so be it. As long as you do as you're bid." She said as she started to unbutton her shirt.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Slow your horses! I didn't mean now! Beside, a girl as classy as you should have a little dignity; stripping before a disembodied voice. If I wasn't a gentleman…"
"Like you said, what do I have to fear from a disembodied voice?" Stephanie said with a smirk
There was a long pause, "Stephanie Gwendolyn Fairchylde, you are that unique, one-of-a-kind, existence I've waited an eternity for." Stephanie could hear the smile in its voice, "I am so glad I agreed to that blood pact with you."
For the rest of the trip back to the first branch, Stephanie sat in silence, listening intently to what the voice had to say.
"Just one more thing," Stephanie said after their long talk, "What's going on with Ryan?"
"Well, that's a bit of a spoiler…"
"I don't care, he's my nephew, and he's been different ever since he came to ARGUS and I want to know why?"
"Alright, but don't come crying to me if you regret knowing this. Everyone knows that Heralds are powerful, some have said that a Herald is the equivalent of a walking WMD,"
"I already know that, what does that have to do with my kid?"
"Well –I really shouldn't be saying this, but— some believe… that using the same scale as that exaggeration, that Ryan could have the potential to maybe be the equivalent of an extinction level event."
"What?"
"Sorry, I've told you too much already." The voice pleaded, "Even I have limits to what I can do or say. if I tell you anymore, even I don't want to consider the price."
"Alright, thanks for all you told me. You can go."
"As you command." The voice said as it faded, Stephanie knew he was gone because she no longer felt his presence.
… )]≥( …
After the warbird returned to High V'hax, Stephanie walked directly towards the car waiting for her when she was approached by an attendant,
"Excuse me, Keeper Fairchylde… excuse me, Keeper Fairchylde?" the young attendant said trying to get her attention.
"What?" Stephanie demanded, obviously annoyed that someone was wasting her time.
"S-sorry ma'am, but Lord Crowley has asked for a word with you."
"He's not a lord, that blowhard is just a Keeper, like the rest of us, albeit a special Keeper." She muttered to herself, "Very well. I have words I want to exchange with Crowley myself."
She was led towards away from the terminal and towards another limo parked across the street.
Getting into the back, she sees a man sitting in the seat opposite from her. This man, however, was clearly NOT Crowley.
"Stephanie," the man greets as the door locks behind her, obviously they don't want her to leave just yet. She can also sense that that interior has been sealed through magikal means.
"Jackson?" Stephanie asked, surprised. "What is this? Why was I brought here thinking I was meeting with Crowley?"
"Sorry for the subterfuge, but I had a feeling you wouldn't have accepted my invitation if you knew it was from me."
Stephanie scowled, "Got that right. I still find it odd how a fifth-rate ranger drop-out like you ended up as head of a garrison force for the 1st." she sat back, crossing her legs, obviously not intimidated by the man before her.
The man named Jackson chuckled, "What can I say? Some people saw my potential and appreciate my service."
"Well some people also believe the world is flat, and somehow they're trusted to make major decisions." She huffed,
"So, where are you coming from?" the man asked
"Personal business," she retorted, "which means none of yours."
"As a garrison captain in charge of security, all coming and going from this branch is my business."
"It's interesting that you'd bring that up, during the siege I thought it suspicious how the enemy were able to get so close to the city without anyone noticing, especially with such a capable garrison captain monitoring the boundary, and it's very curious how you were nowhere to be seen until the very end."
"I don't like your tone." The man sneered, "are you that jealous that I was able to do better for myself than you had thought? Is it so hard for you to believe that someone else saw potential in something you completely disregarded?"
"This isn't personal, Jacky, don't make it so." She smirked
"Do not call me that." The man snarled
"Ooh, struck a nerve didn't I?" she teased, "That's what Jules used to call you, isn't it? Your little pet name?"
He just glared,
"Well enough dredging up the dead." Stephanie sighed, "If you must know, my nephew was sick, I went to the expo to check up on him. He's feeling better now, by the way."
"That's all?"
"That's all," Stephanie shrugged, "By the way, how did you get your new job?"
"What?"
"Last I heard you were working for ValCorp, then you go missing for half a decade, all of a sudden you're in charge of defending the 1st branch? That's some reach your backers have got."
Jackson' face turns dead serious as he pulls a gun from his coat, a mundane gun. "How did you know?"
"Well, someone as inept as you couldn't have made it to the 1st branch on your own, especially not after what happened when you got expelled. So you had to have had outside help, possibly under the table. But no one I know of has that kind of pull."
Jackson smirked, "Always so clever, aren't you? It's one of the reasons why I hated you so much."
She shrugged, "What can I say; I'm blessed, it runs in the family. So who're you really working for?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Jackson smirked,
"Okay, how does Crowley fit into all of this?"
"He has a part to play," Jackson replies, "the high table has taken notice of you as well, Keeper Fairchylde."
"Of course they'd have a name like high table," Stephanie rolled her eyes.
"You've piqued their interest. They would like to extend an invitation to you."
"I'm flattered. For the 'high table' to not only take an interest in me, but also want to invite me into their little club too?" she said, "It must burn to know that I'm valued above you, even in the eyes of your masters."
"When the high table issues a command, you have only one choice; to comply."
"But I'm the sort of girl who likes to keep her options open," Stephanie said smiling sweetly,
"Well you don't really have a choice."
"I always have a choice."
"I should tell you that they have also taken an interest in your nephew… Ryan, is it? Your cooperation could be save the boy from a great deal of suffering."
Stephanie's right eye twitched, it was something that happened only when she was seriously pissed off. "Jackson, you damned fool, you made two fatal mistakes. The first was thinking you could threaten me, because you don't, even now. The second, and probably the worst, was showing up in front of me at all, especially after the last time we met."
"So does that mean you reject the high table's offer?"
"What do you think, Dimwit?" she sneered
"That's good. To be perfectly honest with you; I wanted you to say no."
"Of course you did, that's always been your problem; putting your own whims above all else." Stephanie said, "It's why you brought up my nephew, you wanted to disturb me by threatening those I care about and my dead sister's kid is low hanging fruit. You haven't changed a bit from that simpering little stooge that followed me and Julie around at the camp. And you had the gall to think she'd actually want you?"
Jackson's face got red, he clearly did not like her scathing assessment on his character and lack of development.
"It's your fault she's dead," he hissed bitterly,
Stephanie's eyes narrowed, "What?"
"We all knew it," he retorted, "Julia wasn't cut out for field work, but she went anyway, because of you. It was only a matter of time before your selfishness got her killed."
"Don't you dare talk about my sister like you knew her," Stephanie snarled, her eyes alight with rage. "You were, at best, her gopher, and at worst, a stalker she was too nice to call out in public so don't you even dream of assuming you knew her better than me."
"Well, I guess you'll have to ask her who knew her better between us," he then sighed, leveling the gun at her, "No one rejects the high table and lives."
Outside the limo, the sounds of gunshots could just faintly be heard before being swept away by the ambient noise of the city.