Genesis Crisis: Resurgence IC

A knock sounded against the door. There was no need to get up - the door slid open of its own accord after a moment. It was a formality, in any case. Kurik was a patient here and had no say who came and went in this facility.

It was Dr. Maximilian Valery. It was always Maxim.

He could have easily gotten a junior researcher to do something as simple as a biometric screening, but the other researchers tended to be skiddish around Kurik. Besides, Maxim preferred to handle this subject himself.

"Kurik, you're looking well," Maxim said, smiling as he sat on the stool before the patient table. They were both quite familiar with the routine by this point. Maxim checked his breathing, his blood pressure, his reflexes, and a host of other things. With a finger prick so minor Kurik couldn't even feel it, Maxim was able to instantly produce his body process levels and inspect them on the screen.

"Good, good," he said, nodding to himself with hands stuck deep into his lab coat pockets. After a moment, the screen shifted over to his strain readings. Maxim narrowed his eyes, intent on the data for several moments. Finally, he turned and smiled.

"Excellent. Now, for the psychological evaluation," the scientist murmured, retrieving a datapad and bringing up a series of figures.

"How was it?" he asked. "Seeing Kaddath again?"

Arusia - Research Facility

Kurik looked up when the door opened. It was nothing new. He’d come to expect people coming and going as they pleased.

Of course it was Maxim. “I’m still alive.” He cracked a light smile. “And I see you didn’t die of boredom without me.” Secretly he was glad Maxim always tended to even those simple tasks himself. Kurik didn’t need to be reminded of the fact that he was different by the looks the other researchers sometimes gave him. No, he felt it, everyday.

They went through the procedure. Kurik probably knew it as well as Maxim did by now so it went by smoothly.

Kurik pulled up a chair and sat opposite of Maxim. “It really wasn’t so much seeing Kaddath again” he said, knowing Maxim probably wasn’t really interested in the factual mission report. “It was just great to be outside again.”

Of all the things he had to get used to, artificial lighting was the hardest and in the past two years, he had begun to miss the sunlight more than he realized. When they finally took the trip to Kaddath, his mood had instantly lightened up, not because of the people or the city, but because of the fresh air, the light and the wind he could feel on his face.

“I hadn’t realized how much I missed the sunlight” he admitted. “The first night back here, I was even able to sleep longer than usual.”

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Arusia - Research Facility

Ehlana grabbed a tray and fell into line behind Alexei Stanislav. Together with him and Belobog Volkov, who was standing in line behind her, she had been selected to go to Kaddath.

Would she have volunteered this mission? Probably not. Was she going to do her best? Of course. She always tried her best. Even though she was only mildly curious to see what the ‘outside’ world looked like, she felt a deep seated suspicion towards its inhabitants.

“You’ve been working out since the last time I saw you, Alexei” she commented, her voice light. During the briefing earlier they didn’t really have a chance to talk. Ehlana herself was built rather slender and not the tallest person around. “Are you sure they’re giving you the same rations as me? I can’t even gain a pound on this stuff.”

While she received her ration, she eyed it critically. It looked better than what they would normally get in the military cafeteria.

"Oh by the way, did either of you take the timetable for the mission with you?” she asked, adressing both Alexei and Belo. “How long until stage 2?”

Arusia - Research Facility

Maxim hummed thoughtfully as he scrolled through his datapad.

"I'm sure it's been difficult for you to adjust," he said. "The artificial light down here is something we've always lived with, but for an outsider it must be a pale imitation."

Maxim was glad to hear that Kurik's nostalgia lied with the outside world and not his former nation. The former he could live with - after all, that was what this mission was about. The latter... not so much. But he wasn't worried. Those people had betrayed him. They had taken him in. Surely, Kurik wouldn't forget that.

"You won't be heading back for some time," he said, setting the datapad down. "Not until stage 2. I hope you can wait until then."

--------------------------------------------

Arusia - Research Facility

The cig rolled between Alexei's teeth with practiced familiarity. It wasn't like those things they used to have in the old days - tobacco and other chemicals liable to kill you. It was a vapor of relaxants and enhancers to give maximum calm and focus. Alexei always had one between his lips, if he could help it.

It wasn't good for conversation, however - or eating, for that matter. With a grunt, he removed it from his mouth and tossed it into a nearby receptacle before turning to look over his thick shoulder at Ehlana.

"Heh, rations," he muttered. The researchers had developed a perfect diet to give just the right balance of nutrients and calories for each individual's BMI, embedded in their ID tag, but it was enough to keep you healthy and alive, and just that. If you wanted something more, you had to know where to look. Fortunately, Alexei had a good contact for that and his cigs. He didn't exactly have the funds to be digging deep into that kind of trade, but fortunately, she only wanted a couple hours of his time. Both of them were satisfied in the barter.

Alexei took his tray and went to sit down. Ehlana and Belo followed close behind. There was no way to efficiently grow food down in Arusia, so most of it was synthetic. Alexei picked up his fork and jabbed disinterestedly at a brown cube with the consistency of dry peanut butter.

"No time table," he said, shoveling down a mouthful. "Stage 2 doesn't proceed without direct authorization."

That wasn't standard procedure, but nothing about this mission really was.

Alexei looked up from his tray and looked at Ehlana, who hadn't touched her food yet.

"Eat up," he said, giving a faint smirk, "if you don't want to be so scrawny."

Arusia - Research Facility, Cafeteria
Belobog Volkov, "Belo"

When Belobog was chosen, he had people whispering about how he was showing off his skills to people up there to be selected. Belobog, as usual, did not care about whatever people had said, but he was definitely excited after the briefing. Finally he was going to see the Sun. The Sun that would have saved his family, that would have made Belo less lonely in this unfair world.

In any case, such deep thought came to an end as he had to line up for the food. The female agent, who he had no interaction before, asked Alexei about if he was getting the same rations as they did.

Belobog's eyes looked at Alexei's thick muscled arms, and then looked at his own arms. Belobog's lips were curled, even though, Belobog too had quite well built muscled arms... Compare to Alexei's he was like a child... However, he did not comment on it.

Besides, with Alexei, Belobog had nothing against him; in fact, Alexei was one of his inspiration to do longer hours in gym. Of course, unlike Alexei, Belobog only used gym when many were sleeping. Additionally, Belobog was happy that he got a meal to eat. Matter of fact, he was even happier that they were giving better food than military camp.

Ehlana then proceed to ask a question to both of them, Belobog reached for his pocket, to see if he has one. But alas, nothing. It was this time he also realized how Ehlana was smaller than him and Alexei. Of course, if she was tall, then there was no way he could have saw Alexei's back right now...

As they settled down, Alexei answered Ehlana's question, and registering his answer, Belobog started to his dig in his synthetic food.

As he was eating, Alexei commented on Ehlana for not eating and commented about her physical appearance; Belobog looked at Ehlana, then his eyes were once again on his food. "She's fit." He commented as he himself take another bite of his food.

Arusia - Research Facility
- Kurik -

Indeed, Maxim was right. The pale light and the lack of natural change in daytime had messed with Kurik biorhythm in the beginning. After regaining his strength, he had trouble sleeping and in addition to that he was haunted by nightmares. However, as time passed, he had adjusted to a level where he was able to function normally. “Just wait until you can get out of here, Maxim. You will see the difference. I bet even those few days will show up in my biometric levels.”

“You know I’ve made my peace with it,” he replied calmly. His face was still calm, but there was a deep sadness mixed with anger in his eyes whenever he thought about his former life. They had taken something from him. His best friend was gone, sacrificed for an unacceptable reason. It wasn’t exactly the look of some revenge seeking madman, but Kurik was still bearing a cold grudge against Kaddath for that. Even after two years.
Arusia had become his home now. They had taken him in and by not letting him die and allowing him to be more than a prisoner, they had ensured his loyalty, especially now, that their goals were lining up.

“The Kaddath that exists now has nothing I want.”

He produced a small piece of wood from his pocket and a knife from somewhere. The trip outside had been a welcome chance to collect a few pieces of that resource that was treasured so highly here, where almost everything was made of metal. He began carving on it with practiced moves.

“How are the agents you selected?” he asked. Though having input, he wasn’t directly involved in the selection process. “I hope they can adapt quickly. Just practicing against me, will only have shown them a small part of what it means to fight someone from Kaddath.”

And almost like an afterthought, he added “Also, some of them need to work on their accent…” he trailed off. It was weird, one of the little oddities he discovered while living here. They basically spoke the same language, but the people in Arusia sounded more edgy. The words didn’t flow a natural but came more in a rumble. The visit to Kaddath had brought this difference fresh to his mind as he had become used to it over time.

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Arusia - Research Facility
- Ehlana -

Ehlana grimaced. Thank goodness she didn’t know how bad this synthetic food actually tasted. However, since she didn’t know anything else, being born Arusia, it was just something she was used to.

“It’s fine,” she said. “I like being small. People tend to underestimate me.” Her lips were curled into a smile that showed she knew how to use that to her advantage, because she knew how to fight.

Not that that would easily happen with Alexei, as they had trained together quite a few times. However on their mission they would encounter quite a number of unknown variables. Not to mention the people with extraordinary and slightly suspicious and unexplainable abilities.

With that, she picked up a mouthful of food and began chewing. She threw an appreciative look at Belo for his comment. She hadn’t really worked with him much and he seemed like a quiet guy.

“So, on a scale on 1 to 10, how excited are you to be on this mission, Belo,” she asked Belo and pointed her fork at him.

Arusia - Research Facility, Cafeteria
Belobog Volkov, "Belo"

"10" Said Belobog, without any second thought. There was nothing to think about it really, the chance of finally seeing and feeling what could have saved his family made him already excited. But of course, it also made him feel sad that his family was no longer there. In any case, he did not show much of excitement as he answered, then he asked Ehlana, "You?"; to Belobog, she did not strike as a person who is curious about the outside.

Then again, he could be wrong. Belobog's life as a street kid taught him that judging a person by first impression is stupid thing to do, and he won't let such experience go wasted.

Arusia - Research Faciliy

Maxim smiled at Kurik's words - no, not just the words. The look in his eyes when he spoke of outside was quite infectious. He was quite looking forward to his first steps outside as well.

When he spoke of Kaddath, however, his tone cooled considerably. Maxim wasn't surprised. Though the betrayal that had brought him here was no longer an open wound, it had still scarred quite severely.

He was coping though. Maxim watched the practiced movements as Kurik set about carving a piece of wood. It was a fascinating process. He would have to make note of it later.

"Ah, the agents," Maxim said, "I have no doubts they will perform admirably. It's true that the breadth of magic makes it impossible to prepare for all possibilities, but, with any luck, they shouldn't be involved in direct combat."

He pulled out one of the prototype nanobugs, tiny but brilliantly gold. He'd designed it after the scarabs he'd seen in old files of ancient Egypt, a land far to the south of them. It hadn't survived the Great War - pity.

"It's strange, isn't it? Eve the smallest things can have large consequences."

He tucked it back away and stood, just as Kurik mentioned about the accents. Maxim blinked, then laughed. Yes, to him, their words must sound strange. Maxim had never realized it until Kurik arrived. His words had a soft, beautiful tone to them. He felt a bit of envy in that moment, wishing he too could speak the same way, but listening to it was something, at least.

"I'll make sure to mention it," he said, smiling. "Now, I think you should something to eat. I hope you didn't indulge in Kaddath, or it's going to be hard to get back into."

-------------------------------------------

Alexei nodded approvingly at Ehlana's words. Using your weaknesses as advantages was sound strategy. He knew Ehlana was a capable fighter though, whether she was underestimated or not. He'd gotten some nice bruises in the past, courtesy of her bo staff.

Unsurprisingly, the topic of the upcoming mission wasn't going to be exhausted any time soon. Ehlana asked Belo about how excited he was, to which the agent responded quite enthusiastically. Alexei grunted and shook his head.

"Don't get excited," he said, propping his elbows on the table. "Going to be enough new stimuli out there to make focus difficult. Keep a cool head."

Arusia - Research Facility
- Kurik -

Kurik couldn’t help but cringe slightly at the sight of the prototype nanobug. He’d seen first hand what those little critters did to his blood. It wasn’t a pretty sight and he wasn’t keen on having those injected into him. Luckily, the research hadn’t involved any life sampling, but their effectiveness could be tested on his blood.

“Just keep that thing away from me,” he said and watched as Maxim put the nanobug back in his lab coat.

Kurik grimaced at Maxim’s last sentence. The food. “You just had to remind me, didn’t you,” he complained with a slight grin and in a light tone that showed he didn’t quite mean it. Some days he didn’t know what was worse. The artificial light or the food. “I had just managed to forget what the food here tastes like.”

He stood up, willingly and followed Maxim out the room. He was allowed to roam around the facility freely, but most people still felt uncomfortable around him, so when he was accompanied by someone it was usually better.

“Are you going to join me?” he asked.

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Arusia - Research Facility
- Ehlana -

Ehlana was surprised to hear the excitement of Belo and she slightly raised an eyebrow. If she expected any further explanation, it didn’t come. So he wasn’t just quiet, he also wasn’t too talkative.

She contemplated her answer for a second. “I’d range around a 2 or 3,” she mused. “I’ll admit, I’m mildly curious.” She shrugged. “Who knows, maybe it’ll surprise me.”

“Oh, c’mon, Alexei,” she said, pointing her fork at him. “You can’t tell me you’re not at least a little bit curious about what the outside world looks like.” And almost as an afterthought she added. “But you’re right. With all the new stimuli, we will need to be extra careful. There won’t be any time to indulge in excitement.”

Yes, when she was on a mission, she was all business. There was no time to play around and she had the intention not to let the next mission be any different just because the environment changed.

Briefly she wondered if she should stop by her parents to tell them about the new mission, but then decided against it. They were too absorbed in their world of science to care much for anything else.

Arusia - Research Facility, Cafeteria
Belobog Volkov, "Belo"

"I am aware of that." Said Belobog, in response to Alexei's comment about they should keep a cool head.

Then as Ehlana talked about her interest in outside world, Belobog eyebrows were furrowed, that was more than he expected. He was pretty sure she would have said none or close to one...

Belobog's lips slowly curled as it seemed his answer gave them the possibility of losing focus to new stimuli, Belobog sighed and started to speak calmly. "I am not so sure what new stimuli would be up there, but I am just excited over what I have read from the old literature, Sunlight. Other than that, I doubt it would spark my interest." Belobog took another small bite of his meal.

"How about you, Alexei. 1 to 10." Belobog asked Alexei, curious to know how uninterested he is for the new world they had to explore.

Arusia - Research Facility

Maxim chuckled at Kurik's grimace. So many things that they took for granted he had such difficulty with.

"Yes, I'll join you," the researcher said pleasantly. "If only to make sure you actually eat."

Maxim checked the time. The agents should be eating now before their final briefing and departure.

They walked down the hallway. They passed several researchers along the way, but merely received curt nods of acknowledgement. Maxim knew why, but he didn't show it. It didn't bother him anyway.

When they reached the mess hall, Maxim spied the three agents that had been selected for the mission.

"Ah, there they are," he said, nodding in their direction.

--------------------------------------------

"One," Alexei replied, polishing off his protein cube. He squinted at the dark green color of his vegetable portion before shoveling into it as well.

Truthfully, the outside world didn't hold much appeal for him. He had never been one to explore the history and logs of earth's older days, or much about Kaddath - other than what they'd needed to take in for the mission.

"Just another mission," he said, chewing on his vegetable cube.

Arusia - Research Facility
- Kurik -

Kurik couldn't help but grin in response. Yes, Maxim had a legitimate concern. In the beginning he had more than once refused to eat the stuff they called food and even now he was eating more because his body needed it and not because he liked it.

On their way to the mess hall, he ignored more or less everyone they met. When they arrived, he reluctantly grabbed a tray and waited for it to be filled up with food.

With a slightly disgusted look on his face, he sat down and eyed the cubes on his plate. Food shouldn’t have this shape. Food shouldn’t even have this color or texture. With a sigh, he began to eat.

To distract himself, he looked at the three agents Maxim had pointed out. “They should work well enough,” he commented, recognizing them.

“When are they going to leave?”

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Arusia - Research Facility
- Ehlana -

Ehlana finished her food, listening to the short conversation. Sunlight, yes she was curious about that too. She heard that the artificial light here was but a pale imitation of the real thing.

Unsurprisingly, Alexei was even less interested in exploring the outside world for its wonders than she was. Well maybe that was part of the reason they were picked? Anyone too easily distracted was a risk.

“Do you want to get another training session in before we leave?” she asked, not knowing if they even had time for that. "Truth be told, I would rather leave sooner than later."

Her eyes wandered across the room, recognizing Dr. Valery and Kurik.

[OOC: She’s just asking that to make conversation. I don’t expect there to be a training session before they leave.]

Arusia - Research Facility, Cafeteria
Belobog Volkov, "Belo"

Belobog nodded in understanding of what Alexei had said. They were soldiers, not researchers. Thinking about what to do next is not their job, but doing what they were told to do is.

Then Ehlana spoke about having extra training session; "Not so sure we could have one." Said Belobog as he finished his meal, "Then again, we will never know. But, not knowing when we will start Stage 2, exhausting oneself should be avoided." Belobog then stare at his tray, to see if he had actually finished it all.

"Wish military meal was like this." Said Belobog, somewhat implying he had a good meal. Not something many would agree though.

Arusia - Research Facility

Alexei followed the gazes of his two companions to Dr. Valery and Kurik before finishing off the rest of his tray.

"I think," he said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "That sooner is more likely than later."

--------------------

Maxim was pleased to see that Kurik agreed with their selection.

"One final briefing after their meal," he said. "Then they depart."

He would not be accompanying them to the surface. He wished to do that on his own terms. He felt excited nonetheless. This was it. Once the agents departed on their mission, there was no going back.

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Arusia - West Gate

Alexei had never been to the West Gate. Only those researchers who needed samples from the surface had that clearance, and even they never went into the surface lift. Only their drones.

But now, he was standing against the wall of the elevator shaft, listening to the faint creaks as they moved upward, closer and closer to the surface.

"We'll be seeing your precious sun any moment," he murmured, gnawing on his cig.

The lift ground to a halt. The blast doors opened, leading them into a cave. Unlike the ones down below, there was a warm light spilling over the rocks, a light coming from around the corner. Alexei moved forward slowly, squinting as he turned the corner.

And sucked in his breath.

A great ball of light hung low in the sky, sending a cascade of colors across the horizon. The surface before them, covered in a thick layer of glistening ice, reflected the light from above.

Well, no slides or video feeds prepared you for that.

They stared at it all for a long moment before Alexei shielded his eyes.

"Too bright," he murmured. Looking around, he spotted an aircraft nearby, the emblem of the so-called Old Guard on its side.

"Are you ready to depart?" the soldier standing by the ship said. Alexei looked over at his companions and nodded.

"Let's go."

Arusia - Research Facility
- Kurik -

Kurik finished his food with an audible sigh of relief.

“Well, I wish them luck,” he said, his voice free of any emotion at the thought of what these agents were going to do once they arrived in Kaddath and he glanced once more at them.

After a pause he continued. “I’ll let you get back to work. Thanks for joining me. I know it’s not always the easiest situation.” He stood up and placed a small wooden figurine in front of Maxim that roughly resembled a squirrel. It wasn't the first figure he'd given to Maxim, nor would it be the last. It was odd, Kurik didn’t want to collect them, he simply enjoyed making them and Maxim seemed to appreciate them more than the others did.

“I’ll see you for the next checkup,” he said and turned to leave. No doubt it would be soon. There was seldom a day where he was left to his devices, but he didn’t mind that. He’d never been the loner type anyways.

---------------------------------------------

Arusia - West Gate
- Ehlana -

Ehlana’s hand tightened around her bo staff as she stood next to Alexei and Belo in the surface lift. The rest of her equipment and the crossbow were concealed underneath her cape.

The creaking of the lift made her more nervous than what they were told to expect on the surface. Finally they arrived and the doors swung open.

The light was different. That was the first thing she noticed. It was warmer and more welcoming. Her grey eyes darted to all corners of the cave before she slowly exited it and then stopped dead in her tracks.

The landscape before them was icy and barren, a cold wind howled around the corner and pulled Ehlana from her perplexed state. Yes, it was beautiful, even this barren area, void of any visible life, seemed beautiful to her. This was definitely worth fighting for.

She took a few more steps forward, surprised by the creaking sound the ice made under her boots. She resisted the urge to kneel down and touch it. She’d seen ice. Surely, this would be cold as well.

“I’m ready,” she said, her voice firm as she shook off the last remnants of sentimentality that had started to creep up her emotions. They were on a mission after all. With confidence in her steps, she followed Alexei towards the aircraft.

Arusia - West Gate
Belobog Volkov, "Belo"

Belobog's looked at Alexei's direction as he mentions about 'the precious sun', then his eyes were placed where he would be able to see this so-called Sun... or what many called Sunlight, as he recalls, one could not and should avoid gazing at the Sun.

"I hope it won't disappoint me..."

Belobog's comment did not sound excited, and there was really lack of happiness into his tone. Only really few would have caught such sentiment; the mix of sadness and excitement.

As the elevator swung open and Belobog could not help, but be amazed by gentle light source that came  into his eyes. Even though, it was a cave, somehow it did not feel like one. In fact, the cave in his image, it always had been dark tunnels. This one was different. It had an exit. It had a path that had a light, a light that he saw it for the first time.

Belobog tightened his grip on his nano machine firing sniper-rifle, for the first time, he could feel tension from his body. It was not a tension created by fear, no, but something else. Something he had lost for long time. An excitement... And this was not an adrenaline rush he felt in his training... No, it was like an excitement when his parent gave him a present on his seventh year birthday...

As he finally stepped out from the cave, cold breeze passed his cheek, giving him frozen kiss. However, the kiss from the cold breeze did not feel unwelcoming... Instead, it felt like a kiss from someone who finally got to see her lover. No, the frozen kiss from the cold wind came to him as a warm greeting from the surface.

The snowy ground that he had read from the old literature, was hard to describe in words. The beauty of the noisy frozen water molecule ground... It was mesmerizing... The colors of the icy wasteland did not come to him so dark. Instead, it came to him as color of what he thought light should be, and alas, the light...

The Sun that gazed upon him, the source that he could not gaze upon, greeted him in warm embrace. Belobog couldn't help himself, but whispered himself in old tongue that he taught himself with. "So this embrace could have saved my family..."

Belobog couldn't help himself but let out weak smile. He let out a long breath, seeing the steam coming from his mouth. He breathed in, the cold air quickly rushed into his lung and he let it out as his face was cast down. "Ready." and boarded the aircraft with his fellow companions.

Three Weeks Later

Caltha - Grand Council Chamber

No one ever said rebuilding an empire would be easy. They'd gone into this expecting an uphill climb, but it still surprised Jax how difficult it could be sometimes.

What was it now? He checked the agenda. Apparently, they needed to address the issues surrounding the growing protests, admittedly peaceful for now, against forced silencing of magic strains for those not wishing to enter the Army. Even though they now had two options, this was still too much regulation for some. It didn't help that anti-strain sentiment was on the rise as well.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Jax looked up. He thought he'd reached the chambers first. Raidon as already there, representing Internal Affairs. At first, Jax thought the former chief might resent seeing him in the smart black uniform of police chief, but Raidon seemed to hold no such ill will. Neither spoke much with the other, but they had a healthy respect for each other.

"No sense making this longer than it needs to be," Jax said, smiling. Raidon nodded. It didn't seem like he had anything else to say, but he didn't have the chance anyway. Kokonoe blundered in, looking rather irritable. Married life and motherhood might have softened her edges a bit, but that didn't mean they weren't there. Or that you couldn't hurt yourself if you weren't careful.

"Kokonoe," Jax said, raising a hand in greeting. Kokonoe scowled and tossed her briefcase onto the spare chair that had been brought in.

"I hope you people know what an inconvenience this is," she muttered. Raidon gave her a pointed look.

"You developed the silencing serum. You're our expert," he said. Kokonoe merely glared at that. She was an expert in that field too.

Jax sighed and took his seat. With any luck, the rest of the Grand Council would arrive soon. But, then, he didn't consider himself a lucky person.

--------------------

Gemnity - Downtown

"Mic check!"

Rise tapped her microphone, wincing as the sound reverberated. Darcy gave her a thumbs up and switched on the lights.

"A little bright," she replied, squinting. He toned them down slightly and changed the angle. She gave a thumbs up back.

"All right, we should be ready to roll," Darcy announced, smoothing back his slicked blonde hair. "Why don't you get off your feet and relax, kiddo. You're going to be standing long enough tonight."

Rise smiled and headed off stage where James and Lenka were waiting for her. She gave James a kiss on the cheek and beckoned for them to follow her to her backstage room.

"I never really stop being nervous," she said, sitting down at her vanity to apply her eyeliner. "Especially when I stand in a place we've been and think about how far we've come since then."

Gemnity had been her first concert - the first time she stood on stage and realized her dream had become a reality.

"Do you remember?" she asked, looking over at James with a smile. "This was where I had my first concert... and our first date after."

Gemnity - Downtown
- James & Lenka -

They had just arrived at the concert hall and were watching Rise as she did the final sound check. Lenka was lightly rocking on the balls of her feet in anticipation. She’d seen Rise perform once or twice, but the atmosphere and the event as a whole was still electrifying to her.

James on the other hand still looked he would have rather stayed at home. Just the mental picture of having to stand in this crowd of people made him uncomfortable. However, his face brightened up considerably when Rise came over and he willingly followed her backstage.

In the past two years, his appearance hadn’t changed that much. His blonde hair was still slightly too long and despite training on a regular basis, he hadn’t become any bulkier.

“Of course I remember,” he replied and his cheeks flushed slightly at the memory. Though matured somewhat, he was still head over heels for Rise. “You’ll do great, as always,” he said calmly and stepped up behind her, lightly kissing the top of her head. She looked amazing. That thought ran through his head every time he saw her even though he’d seen almost all her performances.

“I think you have by far continued to make the biggest difference for the people,” he said. His blue eyes met hers in the mirror and he smiled. Holding her gaze for a second, he gave her shoulder a light, comforting squeeze and then he sat down on the couch.

“Did you tell her what Mom said?” asked Lenka, nudging James impatiently when he sat down. He shook his head. “You can tell her if you want.”

Lenka bounced up, grinning happily. “On the way here we stopped at home and by the way that’s not the reason we were almost late,” she threw a stern look at James, who shrugged half-heartedly. “And Mom said, it’s been way too long since your last visit, so she invited us all to a late dinner after the show before you move on to the next location!” Lenka looked expectantly at Rise and then turned to Darcy. “You’re invited too,” she announced and then returned to the couch.

They had left the University earlier today to drive to Gemnity. Their home was just a short detour away and so they had stopped by for a quick visit despite being pressed for time and their parents had immediately expressed their desire to see all of them.

(OOC: I know they won’t be able to keep the invitation, I just felt it was a nice touch to at least deliver it.)

Gemnity - Downtown

“I think you have by far continued to make the biggest difference for the people.”

James' words made her heart flutter. She caught his eyes in the mirror - so very blue - and smiled back. Thinking back, she was so very oblivious not to notice the way he looked at her. She could see it now though, and that was what mattered.

James returned to the couch, and Rise picked up her brush to get her hair in order. Lenka, who had clearly been waiting impatiently for them to get their couple's stuff out of the way, started to talk about their mother. Rise, interested, put her brush down and looked over.

"What's going on?" she asked. Lenka explained that their mother was hoping for her to stop by and visit again. It was a very sweet gesture, and Rise was only too happy to oblige. James and Lenka's mother was wonderful, and it felt so nice to be included in a functional family.

"Of course I'll go," Rise said, smiling. Darcy even got an invite too, which made his eyebrows shoot up.

"Well, how about that?" he said, flashing his white teeth. "Someone actually remembered the hired help."

Rise rolled her eyes. Darcy had a heart of pure gold, but you had to peel back all the sarcasm and dramatic flair to get to it.

Gemnity - Downtown
- James & Lenka -

“Great,” Lenka beamed a smile at Rise. Of course she hadn’t expected any other answer, but it was still nice to hear. James threw her a glance from the side. It was so easy to make her happy sometimes and he was sure glad that she and Rise got along well.

Lenka looked at Darcy, with a slightly confused face. She hadn’t spent enough time with him to determine instantly if he was serious of if he was joking. By the way Rise rolled her eyes at him, he certainly wasn’t serious.

“Oh you will be so excited,” Lenka rattled on. “The dog they bought has just had puppies last month and they are just the cutest thing alive. I was going to take one back to the University, but they said, I can’t keep pets there.” She pouted slightly, not overly upset about it.

Suddenly James’ phone rang. He shot Rise an apologetic look and mouthed sorry and moved to the back of the room to take the call.
“Carter - Matty, what do you want? - No, I’m not near a computer. I’m not even at the University.” There was a slightly longer pause. “Okay look, you will just have to deal with it. I won’t be back until tomorrow. My girlfriend is giving a concert tonight and I won’t miss that.“ James sighed audibly. “Check the calendar again, the deadline isn’t until next week. - Okay. Bye.”

“Are you sure the deadline isn’t until next week,” Lenka asked jokingly, knowing James tendencies to be tardy. She grinned when he shot her a slightly annoyed look. “Yes, I’m sure,” he replied, not taking the bait.

Growing up with someone as socially shy as James, had taught Lenka to instinctively read her brother and his feelings, even if he wasn’t freely sharing them. This advantage had allowed her to develop an empathy for reading people and situations and she knew when it was safe to push his buttons and when he needed to be left alone.

Unable to sit still for much longer, she got up, her long blonde hair, that matched James’ hair color to tee, waving around her. “It’s almost time, right?” she asked Rise, her blue eyes sparkling with excitement. “You know what, I’m going ahead, so I can find the best possible place to watch you perform.”

Gemnity - University, few days ago
Luke Jaron

"Man... I can't believe I am going to miss Phoenix's concert again..." Luke sighed, disappointed that all the tickets were sold out.

Friend of his, Mark Redwind, sighed beside him as well. "I told you, I could get one for you and pay me later..." Luke shook his head, "No way, I had no money at that time... That's like asking you to buy me a ticket for free." Luke gave gentle smile, Mark sighed once again. Then Mark quickly slapped the back of Luke's head, Luke rubbed it quickly, trying to ease the pain. "You idiot. helping people is fine. But why can't you be little bit selfish?" Mark shook his head, his right hand, face-palming. He couldn't help it, but feel the anger in him whenever he thinks about it. "I mean what if he was lying to you about his mother?"

Luke, still rubbing back of his head, smiled. "Well, he was really happy though. Didn't you see it? His eyes were brightened up with hopes when I told him I will buy every good he had to sell. That boy's eyes were not lying. He was desperate. He needed help. And I, well, decided to help." Luke grinned, flashing his victory sign. Mark looked at him, shaking his head. "oh brother, how did I lose to an idiot like him..."

Then Luke quickly got his hand together, pleading hands, and blocked Mark."How about this, Mark! Sell me your ticket! Three times the original price!" Mark gave him a blank stare, "No. I bought this ticket by going through the battlefield called cue line, and it's not for sale!" Luke sighed, that determined look on Mark... He was really not going to sell it.

Luke sighed and turned around, waving his hand. "Alright, enjoy the concert. Let's hope I won't miss the next one..." Mark waved back, "I will tell you how awesome she was after the concert."

Luke rolled his eyes and he was finally alone; his lips were curled, however, his lips became a smile again as he remembered the young boy he had helped back then. "Well, it was worth it..." He muttered to himself.

Then as he walked, he saw a blonde girl... staring at the ticket. For some reason, Luke's eyes went to the ticket that she was holding. His eyes were widen as he saw the the words written on ticket. "That's Phoenix's concert ticket!" Realizing he spoke little louder than he intended, he quickly covered his mouth.

A lot of thought was going through his head at that time; how he was suppose to struck a conversation, or how should he act and etc, however, it was do or die situation for him. He could not let such chance slipped by.

Luke cleared his throat, swallowing his shyness, "Hey, umm, hi... uh.... Could you.. Could you sell that ticket to me? I am really big fan of hers. Ummm.....Uhhh... the tickets were...ummm... sold out... and I really am looking for one. I would pay you triple, please?", Luke made pleading hands.

Then, Luke's golden eyes unintentionally study the girl in front of him; the girl had blonde hair, quite a beauty. Before his eyes could take more information about her, he closed his eyes quickly and gave his head a quick shake. "No, you know what, you probably are quite a big fan of hers as well... ummm, that was a selfish request... uhh you should go... you should go and have fun..." Luke quickly turned around, thinking, 'what are you doing, Luke! I am an idiot! Oh my God!' Then the girl said "Hey!" Luke turned around, even though he was not so sure if she was calling to him or someone else. The girl walked up to him and she gave the ticket to Luke, "Here, you can have it. Enjoy the concert." Luke blinked, surprised, "Wait, hey, uh, you sure?" Luke asked the girl as she about to turn and walk away, the girl smiled, "Yup. I can get another ticket anyways."

Stunned by unexpected generosity of the girl, he just looked at the girl who was walking away. He quickly recovered though, "Hey, my name is Luke! Luke Jaron! What's yours?" It looked like she caught off guard by his sudden introduction of his name to her. The girl kindly responded with her name as well. "Lenka Carter, enjoy the concert"

As she walked away, Luke repeated her name softly, "Lenka Carter..."



Gemnity - Downtown, Before the Concert
Luke Jaron

Luke stared at the ticket that was in his hand, and smiled. "I should really say my thanks to her, if I get to see her in the university." Then a familiar voice called his name, "Luke? why are you here?" It was Mark, Luke grinned at his friend and showed his friend the ticket "Look! Someone gave me this ticket!" Mark eyes were widened, and smiled. "Awesome! Where did you get it?", Luke bite his lips, not so sure if he should tell Mark or not. Then again, what was there to hide. "A girl gave it to me. I am hoping I could say my thanks to her later." Mark smirked and furrowed his eyebrows, not so sure if he should believe what Luke was telling him. "Well, was she pretty?" Mark asked Luke suddenly, and Luke, caught off guard, bite his lips. "Umm... I think... she is?... Well I, uh, I was focused on the ticket, so, uh, I didn't look at her that carefully..."

Mark eyes looked at his friend like a sly fox found his new toy, "So she is pretty, huh? Well, you better introduce me to her, too. I have good eyes for girls. You have to be careful with who you are dating these days." Luke rolled his eyes, and sighed, "It's not like that, Mark. I only saw her once. Well, I do want to find her to say 'thank you'... But that's it. I have no alternative motives.... " Mark gave look of 'I don't trust you' to Luke, Luke avoided Mark's eyes, "Argh, anyways, come on, let's look for good place to watch the concert..."

Luke led the way, and Mark followed him and stared at Luke with a grin.

Gemnity - Downtown

Rise and Lenka were gushing about getting to see the adorable puppies when James' phone rang. Rise sighed and went back to brushing her hair. She was used to James getting these sorts of calls, and she tried to be as supportive as possible, but she couldn't pretend it didn't get to her sometimes.

Still, he did refuse to work on her concert night, and then brought a fresh smile to her face before he hung up.

Lenka got up to go find a good seat, and Rise waved her off before looking back at James.

"Thanks," she said, setting her things aside and heading over to the couch. She sat beside him, careful to avoid messing up her hair and makeup as she put her head on his shoulder.

"You know, after this concert, I think I'd like to ask Darcy for a little time. Maybe we can go away on a little vacation.... just the two of us."

Grand Council Chamber

"Alright, let's get started!" Alina said as she strode into the council chamber. Her eyes remained on whatever paper currently occupied the top of her clipboard while she made her way to her seat though. It was only after a few seconds of silence that she looked up from whatever she'd been reading to see why discussion hadn't begun.

"Or we could start behind schedule..." She said with a dramatic sigh. "Not like that's anything new today."

Her eyes roamed over the faces in the room, locking onto Jax's for a few seconds longer than the others, and her cheeks pinked slightly as she placed her attention firmly back on her clipboard.

The sound of combat boots clomping on the cobblestone floors echoed down the hall, announcing Keynes' arrival several seconds before he entered the chamber, muttering to himself about building codes and fire safety.

He took his seat and leaned back in it, running his fingers upwards through his hair. "I'm surprised they know how to breathe without someone telling them how." Keynes said to no one in particular, eyes turned towards the ceiling.

Gemnity - Downtown
- James -

When Lenka bounced out the door, he looked after her, wondering if she was really that excited or if this was her way of giving them some alone time. While she seemed to know him inside and out, he still sometimes had trouble assessing how sensible she really was towards these things.

James quietly took Rise's hand when she sat down next to him. Their fingers intertwined. He enjoyed that they could have this moment of closeness and calmness.

"I think that's a wondeful idea," he said, pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to think it through. "Give me two weeks, cara mia. Then the graduation ceremony will be over and this last big project will be finished at work."

He kissed her hand softly. "Then we can go as long as you want," James said. "What do you think of visiting the south of Kaddath. I hear it's great this time of year. It has nice and sandy beaches, the ocean and a very bad network connection." The amusement could be heard in his voice when he added the last part.

----------------------------------------------
- Lenka -

Lenka left the room and headed towards the main concert hall. Coming from backstage, she could already hear the crowd filing in.

After showing her ticket, she mixed in with the crowd and headed to the area just before the stage, keeping to the left hand side. The atmosphere already displayed a certain tension and she could see the excitement on the faces around her, mirroring her own.