PftA Book 2 - Interlude 2

Interlude 2 – Hidden Threats

In a small research ship hidden in orbit above Earth, an irate old elf struggled to restrain his anger as his attempt to acquire his newest subject was rebuffed. When he saw the dual affinity scores for one of the individuals on the list, his curiosity had been piqued, and he’d targeted the monitor worn by the individual so he could acquire them once they were alone and away from associated buildings.

After all, it wouldn’t do to have people disappearing from Atlas facilities.

But then the rune had been erased, and the target disappeared from his sensors. Only one person on the expedition was strong enough to do something like that. The gall of that human to interfere was beyond words.

With an uncharacteristic roar, Sir Eri’Non left his research lab and headed somewhere that might allow him to express his fury without destroying his beautiful ship. He seethed as he stalked down the narrow corridors, his normally graceful gait tainted by anger. The few workers who saw him fled in another direction, unwilling to face his wrath.

As was only right.

Entering the seldom-used room, Sir Eri’Non restrained his tier as low as he could manage before unleashing a massive strike against the humanoid-shaped combat target. He might not be a fighter, but he’d been taught the basics of unarmed combat as a youth. While that may have been thousands of years prior, it was enough for his purposes.

He eyed the dented target with disdain.

How dare that self-righteous Mage interfere with my research!

The elf hit the target again, the protective barrier flaring as he made contact. It was bad enough that the Time Mage had removed his mark. Now that he considered things, it was obvious the little princess had also tried to hide the target from him. He simply couldn’t understand what would motivate her and the Time Mage to interfere with his work…to steal from him!

This whole project was HIS. He was the Senior Researcher in the entire Alliance! Nobody had authority over his work. The Council might claim some status over him, and he might acquiesce to avoid conflict, but they all knew that his word was the law regarding research. He’d been working on this study longer than most council members had been alive.

What investment had the princess and the Time Mage made in the target that would justify stealing data from him? Nothing would justify hiding the native’s awakening and withholding the individual. And for the Time Mage to block him? To overtly thwart his efforts? It was simply beyond reasoning.

It was practically a declaration of war!

The elf’s hands shook as he struggled to control his rage. It had been thousands of years since someone stole from him like this. NOBODY stole from him!

The elf looked down at the destroyed combat target and scoffed. If only… he shook his head and exited the room. Aggression wasn’t going to help him. He needed to think.

If the individual was truly special, they’d only benefit from the second study. The Administrator and the Time Mage should be begging him to include the native they were protecting, not hiding them. Countless studies had shown the value of testing young awakened with stress and conflict. It was why the Accords allowed such actions in the first place. Besides, it’s not like the higher realms wanted a bunch of weaklings to join them.

Not that everyone needed to be a fighter. Researchers and crafters were just as important, maybe even more so.

When the bulk of his anger was spent, the elf returned to his laboratory to contemplate the implications of his subordinate’s actions.

It was possible the little princess hadn’t known about his secondary study. It wasn’t discussed openly, so it wouldn’t be fair to assume she knew of his plans. But if she hadn’t, why hide the native’s awakening? And why inform the only other Tier Ten individual on the expedition?

Looking back at the list, Sir Eri’Non stared at the individual’s Time affinity score. That might explain it, but Rhona had to know the sect Patriarch would claim the native. What was the point in protecting them if she was going to essentially give them away? It simply didn’t make sense. He’d have to talk to the woman and figure it out.

= = =

“He responded faster than you anticipated,” Stella commented from the chaise she’d dropped in the center of the office after Elder Kairos departed. The hurridly-placed trio of meeting chairs had already been removed and replaced with the more casual seating set Rhona preferred.

“I suspected he would be eager to meet her. I just didn’t anticipate how eager,” Rhona replied. “Sometimes I forget how few people awaken with exceptional affinities.”

The Space Mage chuckled. “Braggart.”

“Not at all!” the honorary princess gasped before realizing her cousin was only joking. She pursed her lips before frowning at the other woman. “You know I hardly use my Crystal affinity. I get more use out of my weak Mind affinity than anything else.”

“Your Mind affinity hasn’t been weak in centuries,” Rhona’s cousin scoffed. “The fact that you have two affinities is unfair enough.”

“Says the prodigy Space Mage,” the brunette retorted before leaning back with a sigh. Knowing Elder Kairos, Rhona had expected a swift response to the news of an exceptional Time affinity among the newly awakened. But the man had to have employed Time magic to make it here only seconds after she’d updated the database.

She wondered if he’d seen Emie get snatched by Sir Eri’Non for one of his endless tests. Hopefully not. That was a slew of trouble she wanted nothing to do with. If she could have avoided documenting Emie’s awakening, she would have. But that was impossible with the audit that just started.

Rhona suspected the old elf might be responsible for the disappearance of some of the newly awakened natives – including the first one. That threat was part of the reason she’d withheld the information in the first place. Everyone knew Sir Eri’Non was conducting some questionable auxiliary studies on the side. It was an open secret. The old elf cared only for data and reaching ascension through his research.

At least by accepting Emie as his personal disciple, Elder Kairos had somewhat protected her from the Senior Researcher. It was a small silver lining on the loss of a potential asset. But the loss was only temporary since the girl would eventually make her way to the Quartz kingdom. That was where the Epikairos Sect was based, after all.

After a few moments of silence, Stella said, “You know my parents would have sponsored her for Strata Mages’ Academy. She could have gone to my alma mater.”

“I know,” Rhona replied before shaking her head in frustration. “I would have sponsored her, but I was waiting until closer to the reintegration to make the offer.”

Stella frowned, her expression resigned. “Now it’s too late.”

“Yes,” Rhona agreed. It was too late.

Few organizations or families, including royal families, could support Emie’s Time magic the way the Epikairos Sect could. Even the many academies fell far short in what they could teach her by comparison. Emie might suffer a bit regarding Space Magic, but most of her shortcomings could be addressed before she even left Earth. She was already attending the virtual Mages’ Academy and taking private lessons from Stella.

“She’s still a cute kid, even if she was kinda dense initially,” Stella said as she idly played with a strand of dark violet hair. “You’re still going to let me have her for the project, right?”

Rhona considered the updates to the contract she’d made with the Time/Space Mage a short while earlier. The number of times Emie’s contract had been revised in such a short period was frankly ridiculous. Thankfully, that had allowed her to work in several caveats to protect Emie from being reassigned by another Regional Leader – or taken by an overzealous researcher.

“Of course,” the older cousin easily replied. “This development doesn’t change our agreement. Besides, I’m fairly certain our young Emie will be interested in the project you’ll be working on.”

“Ha, that’s an understatement. With the girl’s interest in Enchanting? You’ll probably have a hard time getting her to do anything else once she gets that augment. Speaking of…” Stella narrowed her eyes at her cousin. “Why did you let her use her contribution points already? I thought we were in agreement.”

Rhona held out a hand. “It was for a good reason.”

“The infant is under no threat,” Stella said as she rolled her eyes, enjoying the freedom to act casually. “I don’t see how it needed such a device. Perhaps in a couple of years, but not now.” Stella paused and shuddered slightly. “I hate to think of how the people of this world will react to the upcoming changes. If their media is to be believed, it won’t be well. Even with the game teaching them the basics, it’s likely to be bad.” She looked at her cousin judgementally. “But that still doesn’t justify her spending the points now.”

Rhona shrugged and raised her hands. “She asked. I reduced the price as much as I could, but ultimately, they are her points to use. Besides, she’ll have plenty of points to purchase the augment before the summer. There’s no reason to get upset.”

She wouldn’t admit it, but Rhona wholeheartedly supported Emie’s decision to provide Amie with a monitoring device to alert them in an emergency. She’d had herself added as an invisible monitor so she could ensure the infant was safe. Of all the children in the nursery, Amie was the one she connected with the most.

Rhona still adored the others, but her attachment to the youngest Mercer went well beyond what she normally felt toward unrelated children. Perhaps they shared an affinity.

Someday, Rhona hoped to have a daughter just like Amie. She was well within the range to consider such things, but of the potential suitors her parents had suggested, none seemed worth pursuing. She’d had dalliances over the centuries, but they hadn’t amounted to much.

It was hard when she could sense their interest in her familial connections instead of her. Even those who didn’t know who she was tended to change once they found out. Emie’s reaction had probably been one of the milder ones.

It was the whole reason she avoided using her family name.

The two women eventually began working on their own projects, silently agreeing to wait for the return of their young protégé.

Rhona’s interface flashed several minutes later, causing her to frown as she quickly set up her crystalline tablet. “Sir Eri’Non is contacting me. I’ll message you when we’re done.”

“Can’t I stay and watch? I’ll make sure he doesn’t see me,” Stella said hopefully.

Rhona shook her head. “No. I can’t risk it.”

Seeing she was unwilling to bend, Stella pouted for a moment before disappearing in a haze of purple mana. Rhona took a strained breath before forcing her face into a politely neutral mask.

She tapped the screen, and the visage of the old elf appeared. He looked strained, immediately putting the Administrator on her guard.

“Administrator,” the elf greeted through clenched teeth. “Please explain the delay in documenting the first awakening.”

Though she knew exactly what he was referencing, Rhona tilted her head as if confused. She’d thought about how she would respond to such a question several times, planning out justifications and reasons for her actions – all of which would ring true to any truth-detection abilities.

“I don’t understand, Sir Eri’Non. I documented it immediately when I met with the girl in a virtual environment and had her sign a system-enforced contract of silence. Her employment contract was also updated at the time,” the brunette said innocently.

Though hidden by her calm exterior, Rhona’s tension had skyrocketed as soon as she saw the contact request. Thank goodness the man couldn’t read her through the screen. Even so, she planned to ensure she told the truth since it was possible he had a few tricks she was unaware of.

“You failed to open an awakened database,” he countered. “As the sponsor of the first to awaken, it was your responsibility to initiate the database and immediately enter her information into it.”

Rhona pursed her lips. She was aware of the expectation, but it was predicated on there being no outliers. Given the regular reporting requirements that would have begun at the database’s initiation, she had room to justify the delay.

“It was clear the girl’s awakening was an anomaly since the first natural awakening was not expected until much later. Knowing she would likely be the only naturally awakened for a long time, I added her as a supplement to the list containing those forcibly awakened as part of our dealings with various governments instead.”

“That…” the elf’s eyes unfocused momentarily. The tension in the man’s jaw showed he didn’t like what he saw. “I see it, but it still doesn’t explain your actions. Why did you decide to add her to the proper list now?”

“The previous list was finalized earlier today since natural awakenings have begun. I didn’t want to leave the girl attached as a supplement to the previous report when adding her to the newer one would be more accurate. I apologize if I documented poorly.”

Rhona watched as the elf considered her words. She was telling the truth, mostly. She’d hoped Sir Eri’Non wouldn’t notice Emie’s addition to the newly awakened list, but it seemed that was wishful thinking. She should have expected he would be just as interested in her now as he would have been upon her awakening.

Hopefully, her new status as Elder Henlen Kairos’s personal disciple would protect her from further interest.

As if he read her mind, the elf asked, “What of the Time Mage’s interference?”

Rhona’s head tilted again, displaying her confusion. This time, it was genuine. “I’m not sure I follow. What interference? As far as I’m aware, he was notified of the girl through the list and rushed to claim her as his disciple. She has an exceptional Time affinity, as I’m sure you know. Elder Kairos didn’t even notify me of his arrival. He only stopped by after meeting Emie to renegotiate her employment contract.”

“Why would that matter?” the elf asked in a huff. “She’s a native. Her contract should only be a tertiary concern.”

“Emie Mercer is an Atlas employee earning contribution points,” Rhona replied, watching his reactions closely. “She is not a beta tester anymore. She is an Alliance citizen under contract in support of the Council’s mission. That information was included in the notes for both lists.”

It was a small rebuke, but Rhona was pissed that the Senior Researcher had essentially admitted he’d tried to take Emie for whatever side studies he was doing. She suspected he hadn’t bothered looking at the supplement by his demeanor. No wonder he’d been angered by Elder Kairos’s rebuff.

He shouldn’t have been angry, though. Sir Eri’Non should have felt grateful for the so-called intervention. Had he taken Emie, it would have caused several problems for him. Rhona wondered if he even cared at this point. He was so close to ascending – or dying – that he probably didn’t care.

She’d have to warn the girl and the Patriarch. While she didn’t think it would be an issue now that he was aware of Emie’s status, anything was possible with a man like Sir Eri’Non.

After making some mild threats about keeping a close eye on Rhona and her performance, the elf cut the call. Rhona had already recorded the conversation and planned to send it to her father since he was a Council member. She didn’t feel at all threatened by the elf. At least, not personally.

However, she was worried for the young Time/Space Mage now that she knew Sir Eri’Non was both aware of and interested in the girl.

A notification alerted Rhona that Emie had returned. It was immediately followed by a message from the Time/Space Mage. She quickly replied, summoning the girl to her office while simultaneously messaging Stella that Emie was back.

Rhona then sent Elder Kairos a copy of the recording so he’d know of the threat – just in case it wasn’t something he was already aware of. From Sir Eri’Non’s comments, it was possible the Patriarch already knew of the elf’s interest in Emie. And she had suspected Elder Kairos had used Time magic to arrive so quickly after she’d updated the list with Emie’s information.

It would have been so much easier to just avoid adding her at all, but the reconciliation that was currently being conducted would have tagged her employment contracts and NDA if she hadn’t listed her. That would have only made things worse.

Now, they could only hope that her status as a citizen contracted in service to the Alliance was enough to deter the elf.