Young Writers Society

Saving the Least of Us

Two Teams. Two Worlds. Two Times. One Enemy. One Mission.

When the Alpha Pack Team is given the mission of saving a fragile reality, no one know what to expect. Between the unknown assassin working from the shadows and their mysterious targets, it seems like the fate of this timeline is all but sealed.

But if there is one thing these two groups are good at, it's perservering. And they'll be damned if they let a time-hopping murderer ruin their reality.

"15 seconds to destination," announced the navigation system of The Antiquark. Kate dropped the file she was reading as she scrambled for the pilot's chair.

"You heard Carina, everybody in position. We're jumping for this one," she announced.

Behind her, she could hear Vankous spluttering in outrage. "WHAT? I was not informed of this. Since when do we jump into beach parties?"

"Is that why you're wearing that insult to fashion?" asked James.

"We're not going to a beach party," said Ray at the same time.

"You didn't read the brief, did you," pointed out Chud, also at the same time.

"None of those comments were remotely helpful to answering my question," said Vankous.

"We have not and will never jump into beach parties unless they have a skydiving theme," supplied Kate. 'Also, get ready to jump in about five seconds."

"But Gondon, Fenland is beach town?" said Vankous. He sounded genuinely confused.

"We're going to London, England," came James' voice from the back. "At least pretend like you thought about reading it."

"I just did that, didn't work out," said Vankous.

"Well, if you don't want to be grease stains on the floor, start prepping," said Ray.

"Booo," said Vankous.

"You did not just say boo," said Kate.

"I did," said Vankous. "Watch I'm gonna do it again. BOOO."

The boo was cut off by the navigation announcing they were at their destination. Kate flipped the ship into autopilot and got up from the chair, turning to the rest of the team.

"Alright, you guys know the drill. Aim for some sort of isolated place, preferably with cover, and try not to get separated too much," said Kate.

"But my hair is going to be a mess from the wind," protested Vankous.

"You have a hairbrush in your pocket at all times," said James.

"And he's a wizard who can conjure one at any time," said Ray before turning to James with a suspicious look. "How do you know he has a hairbrush in his pocket?"

"That's completely irrelevant," said Vankous. "Let's jump. WOO" Two seconds later, he was already out the door, minus the parachute.

"I was going to do a countdown, but since Vankous started us off..." Kate shrugged. She made a shooing motion with her hand.

"Very professional, Captain Hardy," said Ray.

"I always am," said Kate.

Thirty seconds, lots of screaming by James and Vankous, a shield spell and several curses in ancient languages later, they were firmly on the ground behind an overgrown hedge.

Kate sniffed the air. That did not smell like the London she was used to. Granted, 1838 wasn't a year she visited frequently, but there was something darker and more oppressive about the air that she hadn't spotted before in any of the Londons she'd been to.

"Everyone stay tight, I don't love the feel of this place," she said.

Behind her, Ray and Chud nodded, fanning out on either side of her as they took in their surroundings.

"This is definitely not the London I'm from," said James.

"They better have ice cream here," said Vankous.

"Your accent is horrifying, just don't," said James.

"I was not doing an accent," protested Vankous.

"You were," shot back James.

"Can you two flirt after we've made contact, we're on the clock here," said Kate.

That shut them up fast.

"We've got two separate targets of high importance we need to follow up and six others we need to locate according to the pings we got," supplied Ray.

"Oh, I really should've read that brief. How am I supposed to learn about eight people on the fly," said Vankous.

Kate just gave him a look. "Come on, folks. Nothing like the fate of the timeline and a scavenger hunt for six people to make life interesting."



Malvis sighed as she closed the door behind her, pushing her hair out of her face. "It sounds like another anti-revolutionary was just publically announced today. That makes three after us?"

Cyra snorted from where they sat in a chair, feet propped up on the small wooden table that made up their meeting room. "Let them come. We can take a few of Viccy's toys."

"Get your feet off my mother's table, Cyra." Malvis took a seat at the head of the table, folding her hands gently on its surface.

Cyra angrily grumbled but complied, shooting Malvis a sharp glare.

Malvis nodded in satisfaction. "I'm not worried. So far, all reports have said that they're searching Portsmouth and no one on the right side of the treasury wants to come around these parts."

Estella Fay picked at a stray thread on her gloves. "What's the but, then? The anti-revolutionaries aren't a threat, so what is?"

Malvis frowned. "Security is tight. The Mist is the only place we can go anywhere without being searched. Harris isn't exactly pleased with the stunt we pulled."

Cyra chuckled. "I thought that was the whole point. Pissing him off."

"Right, Cyra. That was at the top of the agenda." Malvis mockingly folded her hands. "Number one, make the Prime Minister target us more. Number two, do anything actually useful for the cause."

Cyra narrowed her eyes. "Fuck you."

"You’d break your fist.” Cyra spluttered. "Right now we have to establish our next move. Lin's out patrolling the forest for potential training grounds, but we have nothing within the city itself."

Saturn looked up from the small project he was working on. So far, it was nothing but a small square of fabric, but Malvis had learned the hard way to never underestimate Saturn and his fabric. "Getting into London right now is key. People are only going to worry more as things continue."

Malvis nodded. "Correct. We're not ready for civilian riots quite yet. That'll put too much pressure in one place, and we'll burst. We need more information."

The door slammed open, Artemis's figure heaving in the opening. "Malvis!"

Malvis barely reacted. Artemis was usually late, her wolfish instincts stopping at the ability to recognize the movement of time. "Welcome, Artemis. We were just discussing-"

"Never mind!" Artemis batted the air. "Newcomers are over the ridge line. Most are saying they're alis." Her lisp and thick accent muddled the words slightly, but Malvis had some practice understanding excited accents thanks to her siblings.

Malvis narrowed her eyes. "What do you say they are, Artemis?"

Artemis opened her mouth, sharp teeth on full display, before freezing. "I don't know. They don't like they're from here. The scent, it's too sharp. Like a lemon soaked in ale."

Malvis nodded, standing up once more. "Thank you. Well, team, let's go see if these strange fellows are friend or foe."

Malvis's mom, Betsy, told her the story of the zig-zag ramp. It was to prevent militias from marching down it in perfect formation. The sharp turns would force the soldiers to walk down at different angles, unable to fire their weapons for the risk of hitting their own allies.

She never knew if that was true, but watching newcomers complain about it was always entertaining. Most of this group seemed to make the trek with no problem, but a couple of them were struggling.

"I've seen 10 years build better roads in Minecraft. Who designed this city," one of them was yelling.

Malvis smiled. There it was, though it was certainly one she had never heard before. "Welcome, newcomers!"

She stood a few feet away from the base of the ramp, her comrades standing in a vague triangle formation behind her. The newcomers were still too far away to see clearly, but there seemed to be six of them as well. If a fight broke out, it'd be a simple one v. one.

She liked those odds.

"What brings you to The Mist?"

The newcomers came to a half in front of them. They stood in a vague half circle of sorts, a few of them looking at each other like they weren't fully sure of where they were supposed to be standing.

"Gree.." began the one at the centre of the circle before she was cut off.

"A horrifying name for a terribly planned city. Fitting. I'm surprised it's not called Right Angle Ville." It was the one at the very edge of the circle on the left.

The one next to him spoke up. "Mercy seeketh us. God Saveth the Queen."

"It's not the 1500s," said another one. He had his face in his hands.

Malvis chuckled. "It certainly isn't. We haven't had a queen since; how long, Saturn?"

She turned to look at Saturn, who was eyeing the group warily, his hand resting against his belt. "1721."

Malvis gestured at him. "1721. But none of you have answered me."

"1721?" said one of the two that hadn't spoken yet. "Wow, London's changed so so much. I really should've realized that during my final year project at the academy."

"Okay, let's not unload unnecessary details here. Captain, do you want to answer on behalf of us."

"Oh, right, sorry," said the one in the centre, shaking her head. "Got distracted. Something smells very interesting around here, and the..." She trailed off at a look. She turned towards the group and cleared her throat.

"You," she said simply before she seemed to realize something. "Y'all."

Cyra groaned. "What the hell are you talking about? Give us a clear answer before I-"

"Easy, Cyra." Malvis took a step forward, putting on an easygoing smile. "I'm going to ask all of you three questions. If you lie to me, I will know, so don't even try. Do you all understand?"

The one who'd complained about the city burst into laughter. "That's cute big guy. But..."

"Shush," said the one in the centre, stepping forward. "We'd love to answer questions. Isn't that right, everyone?"

"No, I hate answering things truthful..." began the earlier one again before a look cut him off. Everyone else nodded and smiled.

Malvis nodded. "Good. First question. Are you here to hunt down any fugitives or missing children?"

The one in the centre burst out laughing that time. She gestured to her dress. "Do we look like the police? Fugitives and Missing children. We wish."

Malvis's smile didn't waver. "You live here as long as I have, and you learn not to care about the police, love." She began to slowly walk back and forth, keeping her movements slow and sweeping. "Second question, are you here to hurt anyone who happens to call The Mist their home and refugee?"

The girl's face seemed to get a little bluer before it was gone in a blink. She sniffed the air. "For a mortal, that is a long time." She let out a little sigh. "As for your second question, I'm afraid I can't really answer that. We're looking for someone. We don't know where they are. If they happen to be here, we may have to hurt them."

Malvis stopped, staring at the one in the centre directly in the eye. She had never bothered to cover her gaping socket. Watching how people squirmed had always told her what sort of people they were. "Last question. Are you here to find the mutineers of Portsmouth?"

"Are all the places in this world that badly name..." began Mr City Planner again before another look cut him off.

The one in the centre turned back and returned her gaze. Her pupils flashed a brilliant blue for a split second. It was gone so fast it was easy to dismiss it as a trick of the light. "Nope. The last time we were looking for mutineers was about three hundred years ago. Mutiny is really not very conducive to time travel, so it happens super rarely."

Malvis tsked, shaking her head. "You're lying. Well, that or you're just missing a key bit of information."

She frowned. "I'm sorry. You're going to tell me that the pirates I personally hunted down, swimming through like seventy miles of the most polluted ocean, mind you, were not mutineers."

Estella Fay tapped Malvis on the shoulder, leaning in to whisper in her ear. "Mutineer is usually a term reserved for sailors."

Malvis frowned. "I mean, we did break into a ship."

"It wasn't seaworthy."

Malvis sighed. "Small details. Regardless-" She turned her attention back to the newcomers. "-no, that is not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is that we are the mutineers of Portsmouth, and you are certainly looking for us."

Estella Fay bounced on her toes. "A better word might be revolutionaries! Or rebels."

The girl rolled her eyes. "Well, how on this Earth were we supposed to know whatever fancy name you gave your team? If you want people to know that, maybe look into a shared t-shirt, team uniform, or at least a hat or a badge. Maybe one of you can carry a small banner?"

"Or you can make a theme song and have it constantly playing when you walk around," piped up city planner person.

"Too on the nose," commented the one in the centre.

Malvis sighed. "Estella Fay...?"

"I have no idea."

Malvis nodded. "I thought so. Saturn, you too?"

"Unfortunately."

"Okay, then it's official." Malvis folded her hands. "You lost us, and we have no idea what any of that means. Also, naming our team? Please, we're not the Ministerial Guard. History will know us only by the things we do."

Cyra snorted. "And she's just discovering that means everyone else names the group for her."

Malvis sighed. "You get what you're given, I suppose. No matter, you clearly didn't recognize the name and decided to torment us for it. But you are looking for us. So what is it that you want?"

"I mean, that's a wonderful loophole, though, getting someone to name your team for you," said the girl. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to come up with a good name for a team that has like zero things in common to work in a name?"

The girl waved her hand in the air. "Never mind that."

"We want..."

"...some ice cream. A cold drink. Maybe a place with a bed," began the city planner.

"...to help you help us." It was the one dressed in a suit.

"To help you," finished the one in the centre, "although that first request, if you could fulfil it, we wouldn't, you know....complain."

Cyra laughed at them. "You come to the poorest district in London, and you ask us for a rich man's dessert. Wrong place, wrong people." They shook their head, muttering, "Fucking ratbags," to themself.

Malvis made a point to let out a small snicker. "Unfortunately for you, this is one of the rare occasions this one is right. Beds we do have, though. Plenty. I would like you off my doorstep. So-" She politely gestured for the group to join her at the bottom of the stairs.

"Well, it was worth a shot," said the woman, turning back to city planner, who shrugged.

"Conjuring it is," he said.

"Or the printer," piped up one of the two in suits.

"Well, on that note, let's see how terrible this mission is going to be. Lead the way, mysterious owner of a doorstep," said the girl.

Malvis smiled again. "Of course. Follow me."

Estella Fay sighed in relief. "I'm so sorry about her. She always makes me nervous when she does that, so I can't imagine how you feel."

Cyra rolled their eyes. "Making you nervous is like making a tiger have stripes." He turned back to the group. "Ignore both of them. Estella Fay's scared of everything, and Malvis likes to feel like she's at the top."

"And this one doesn't like to listen to reason or common sense." Saturn glared up at Cyra. "So they're the last to speak about anything regarding what you should do."

Cyra could easily throw Saturn's less than five feet tall body across the ravine, but they settled on just glaring back.

"Common sense is so overrated," said Mr City Planner. "I think I will listen to that one, actually."

"Oh dear, we are all doomed," said the girl. "I mean, you guys kind of sort of already were, but now more so."

Malvis shook her head, already mostly fond of their antics. She had gotten used to bickering a long time ago. "Trust me. It takes a lot more than someone listening to Cyra to doom us."

Malvis stopped in front of the older homes near the end of the ravine. "But, here we are." She opened the door and gestured them inside, smiling softly.

"Unfortunately, I might know a thing that's worse, but it is better discussed seated," said the girl, smiling in return.

"Then our meeting table is just right here." Malvis pointed to a table with six chairs. "Let me fetch some more seats, and then we can see why you're really here."

Vankous took in the group seated before him and did his best not to sneer. Kate had pointed out to him a long time ago that it tended to put mortals off no matter how satisfying it could be, especially in a situation like this. Absolutely no one had bothered to tell him they were coming to England. Surely they knew by now that he would never, ever wear beach shorts to London of all places. Maybe he shouldn't have brought the lab coat. It had been to account for a possible emergency but that was also his official uniform and they'd probably assumed he was simply wearing something different like Kate was doing. He grimaced at that memory. A dress with flowers on it. A true insult. Especially because of how well it suited her. How did The Princess of Darkness pull off that look so naturally.

He shook his head. He could not afford to go off on a tangent just now, not when it seemed like there was going to be a mildly important discussion happening and this was also probably the last chance he was going to get to figure out what on Earth they were even doing here. Any later and he might have to find out while doing the job, which never turned out well for anyone.

He focused on their new companions. Ms. Lie Detector Cyclops was obviously the leader. Either that or she liked talking way too much and everyone else in the group hated it. She seemed tolerable at least. Vankous did always respect someone that worked based on truths rather than assumptions. The rest of her crew didn't seem particularly hopeless either if it came to them needing to protect this lot. He really had to pay attention to how this conversation went.

Ms. Lie Detetor folded her hands on the table, smiling that same customer service smile from earlier. "So, what is it that you needed to tell us?"

Fairy Giraffe-mother, she seemed pleasant , leaned in, whispering something into her ears. Cyclops brushed her off, smile not wavering.

Kate spoke up in reply. "Why don't we start with some names? Make this a little easier on all of us."

Cyclops nodded. "Yes, of course. Guests first." She gestured to the Alpha Team, sweeping her wrist like a performer.

Fairy Giraffe-mother opened her mouth, as if to argue, but one look from Cyclops shut her up quickly.

The Four Armed Zombie rolled their eyes.

"Smort," said Kate, with a little nod. Vankous glanced over at Ray to see the expected judgy eye roll.

"Well how do we do this..." said Kate, looking around at them. "Everyone gets a second to introduce themselves."

"We're not five year olds on their first day of preschool," Vankous pointed out. Introduce oneself. Pooh. This is why he'd suggested they get a theme song that did exactly that.

Cyclops looked at the Smurf, who simply shrugged. She sighed. "Lovely. Whatever way you decide to do it, we don't mind."

Kate exchanged a look with Ray and Chud, both of whom proceeded to nod sagely. Vankous rolled his eyes. What was this? A negotiation mid battle. They were around a goddamn table.

"Doctor Frostification," supplied Vankous before anyone else could open their mouths.

Cyclops snorted. "I'm Witch of the Forest, then."

Kate frowned. "That's not what your history suggests, but I guess not all of us keep our birth names." She smiled. 'Ms. of the Forest. Pleasure to meet you. Since...someone thought we were going formal, we may as well continue the trend." She gestured pointedly to the rest of the team.

Cyclops frowned. "No, wait-"

"Dr. Sanders," supplied Ray.

"Special Agent Bonlark. " That tiny squeak was James. How did that wall of muscle have such a rat voice. Vankous shuddered. That was a no thoughts zone.

Stean saved him from his own traitorous mind. "General Stakes."

"Lord Maliachisinsky," supplied Chud, with a curt nod.

"And I'm Princess Hardy," said Kate, with her trademark "you can all totally trust me" smile. Too many mortals had fallen prey to that, mostly because it was shudder a genuine one.

Cyclops took one look at her own team before bursting into sharp laughter. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize we were in such high-esteemed company." Her voice oozed with bitter sarcasm.

Giraffe made a strangled offended noise. "Hey! That one could actually be a lord."

"When have you ever seen someone working minimun-wage come around these parts here, angel?" Zombie scoffed. "You cross those lines, you lose your title."

Giraffe hunched, grumbling to herself.

Cyclops sighed. "Alright. Your real names, please. If we're really in danger, we'd apprecaite being able to trust you. Throwing around titles like that earns you no respect or trust here."

Vankous scoffed at them, looking over to see even Kate frowning at that. Everyone seemd just as confused as he currently was, only of course none of them were smart enough to hide it behind offense. It was negotiation 101, what were these morons doing? He had to save the day, clearly.

"Those are our real names," said Vankous, talking slowly. Clearly these toddlers needed a bit of help understanding. "And we don't particularly need your trust or your respect to protect you either. We're doing you a common courtesy by informing you of your situation and giving you the chance of active participation in your safety. If you don't want it, well we have much better things to get to."

"Dude," said Ray, from nearby but Vankous pointedtly ignored him.

Cyclop's hair slowly darkened, turning into a dark shade of ebony. "Oh. So you're really lords and princesses and generals." She laughed bitterly, leaning back in her seat. "What? Do you expect us to thank you for your presence. This is The Mist. You were the ones who discarded us decades ago because we weren't good enough for your perfect ideal of a world."

She gestured to Pixie Face. "My friend says you're not from around here. I don't where you're from, and frankly, I don't care. You don't see us as equals and you profit off our deaths. I don't know what made you think your authority would mean anything here, but it doesn't. That's what happens when your "garbage" creates their own society. It doesn't involve you." She leaned forward again, glaring at each of them in turn. "So, please. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't tell you to get the hell out of my home."

"We expect you to introduce yourself without laughing at our names, that's very insulting thank you very much," shot back Vankous. "I really don't know what nonsense you're spouting here but clearly have absolutely no idea how to make conversation respectfully." He glanced around. Why was no one interrupting him...someone always interrupted him at this point.

Five identical confused looks stared back at him. Well that explained that.

"Look I really don't care for whatever offense you want to take from someone just introducing themselves," Vankous rolled his eyes. "Profit off your death. I mean...what do you think we are. Fight club owners. Profit. As if. If we cared about anything even ressembling profit we'd be long dead."

Vankous sighed. "If you don't care to listen or do literally anything before making whatever judgement you think you're entitled to make, maybe we should be getting out of your home." He took a deep breath, adding before he could resist. "And please keep Hell out of this. I'd rather not have such a prestigous place be tarnished with such a memory."

"No we need to be around them if we're going to protect them," said Ray, finally speaking up. "You didn't even read the mission brief. Shush. We can't just walk out. Wait we can't right?" He looked towards Kate.

"It'd make things so much more difficult" said Kate, with a little shrug. "We could if the mortals really are this hard to get along with."

Cyclops chuckled. "Doctor Frostification, was it? Fine, I'll play along."

She stood up, carefully pushing her chair back in. "My name is Malvis. Some have taken to calling me The General. Don't. Welcome to the revolution. It's clear no one tolf you what you're getting into."

She approached Zombie, gently placing her hands on their shoulders. "This is my best fighter, Cyra. Their home is a militarized zone where you can get arressted for breathing to hard. Cyra here, was sentenced to work for the man who wants her in the ground because a copper attacked her."

Cyra glared at her. "What the hell are you doing?"

Fairy flushed. "Malvis! Don't-"

"Not now, dears. I'm making a point." Malvis walked to her next. "And this is Estella Fay. She was locked in her bedroom for nineteen years because her parents assumed she was possessed."

Estella Fay looked down at the table, fidgeting with her gloves.

Malvis sighed. "And Artemis." She gestured to Pixie Girl. "She wasn't said a word to you because the last time she spoke to a stranger she was almost shot. And Saturn-" she pointed at Smurf. "-can't even go outside without being shot."

She turned back to the Alpha Team, crossing her arms. "So please, tell me again about how my judgements are offensive, when people like you have been killing and hunting us based off judgements that we're evil, vile, less than. Look at my team and question why I might not a lord around to hurt them again."

Estella Fay stood up. "Malvis, stop it!" She slammed her hands on the table, her face bright red. "This isn't helping anyone. I am so sorry about her."

"What on this horribly stuffy and outdated Earth are you even going on about?" began Vankous. "Look if you folks didn't have it easy surviving in the world, I'm sorry, but we can't exactly go around fixing all of that. You're not the only one here who had to earn their place in a world that didn't want them" Vankous rolled to a stop. Now where in his mind was that coming from? Did someone open the Zenomia memory chest again. That was supposed to be closed at all times. Why couldn't his brain listen for once.? He dismissed them, schooling his features back again.

He cleared his throat. Still no backup from anyone. Really. Was this a prank somehow? Or at test? Well he was going to ace it "Your judgements are offensive because you literally proved yourself to be no better than whoever killed or hunted you. We simply told you two things. We want to help you, and our names. You decided that was enough to assume we were somehow responsible for everything evil that had happened to you."

Someone other than Vankous finally snapped out of her trance.

"Okay Vankous, maybe tone that down. She's right. None of this is helping anyone," said Kate, standing up. "Maybe. Hmm....carrying the six...it won't be that bad. We can leave."

Estella Fay turned even more red somehow. "Please don't! Really. Look, I don't know where you're from, so I agree, Malvis assumed some rude things. But, you have to understand that here, Lords make the laws that kill us. And the generals do the killing. We haven't had a princess in a long time, so I'm not really sure where that fits in." She laughed nervously. "You'd have to go to America for that. But, I'm assuming that's not how you guys operate! So, maybe it would be helpful to say how you treat some of your non-human citizens."

She turned and pointed to Kate. "Like you! You're a water alis, right? You must be able to fly around and use your elemental heritage, right?" She looked between the members of the Alpha Team nervously, like she was worried someone was about to yell at her for being stupid.

"Maybe your igni." A new voice had entered the arena. Pixie girl, or Artemis, as the General of Assumptions had called her, finally decided to speak up. She spoke with a thick Mexican accent, only empahsised by how fast she spoke. "How do you treat them?"

Vankous frowned at that. Maybe the giraffe had a point. He'd probably been a bit rude.

Kate was back to looking confused although this time she recovered faster. "Oh...right. You assumed we were here to..." Kate shook her head. "Well that's new. First time we got that reaction. I suppose its marginally better than that dude who tried to exorcise us from the world. To his credit, I am technically the mother of all demons."

She raised her hands placatingly. "Those are just the titles we earned. I'm sorry but its habit. We don't always like to hide who we are. Your reactions were just confusing. We don't actually hold any power per see in this world. I mean...technically it would be in my jurisdiction, but I never claimed this Earth so its really not. Chud over there is only a Lord in his home planet. Stean is a general of a large planetery alliance, which includes Earth but again not this one specifically so technically no, I mean by that logic I am also a general, technically retired but not really. Everyone else does have their title though. Vankous is a certified physician. Ray has actually about ten doctorates and well James is a special agent for Her Majesty's service. He is from London actually, so...it oddly counts."

She waved her hand. "And well...non human citizens. I mean." She shrugged. "What can I say really? I'm not human, only James here is actually human." Kate let out a little chuckle. "Funnily enough, humans are generally the ones getting treated badly for being an inferior species on most planets. We've had to protect James one too many times. I suppose acts like the ones performed by the humans on this world are what give humans that horrible rap they get."

Cyra blinked. "You lost me at Mother of all Demons."

Saturn, however, seemed to pratically explode with recogniction. "Are you saying you're from a different planet just like Ukayans? I mean, I had considered the possibility of things like that before. If two planets had intelligent life, why couldn't millions?" He laughed, rubbing the shaved sides of his ponytail. "That's... fantastic. Neptune has to hear this."

Cyra shook their head. "That's what that was? Well then, Neptune's defiently going to want to take notes."

Malvis's hair went back to its deep red, but her face was still hard. "So you're not here to disrupt the revolution or hurt any of them?" She pointed at her allies.

"What you think I can't be the mother of all demons wearing this dress?" demanded Kate, before her face softened. "Because literally everyone was trying to tell me that earlier but I thought they were joking."

"I don't think that's the important part of this or any conversation," said Ray as he finally chimed in on something. "And yes, different planets. Different time entirely kiddo."

"And no, we literally just told you we wanted to help you," said Vankous. "And I for one had no idea there was anything remotely to do with a revolution going on."

"That's on you dude," said Chud.

"True," said Vankous, "that one is mostly my bad."

Malvis sighed. "I think everyone here is painfully confused and no one knows what's happening. At least I don't."

Cyra snorted. "Wow, Malvis. Finally admitting you don't understand something."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Really? How long did it take you to tell us you couldn't-"

"Off-topic!" Malvis cleared her throat. "What do you mean by a different time?"

"I was born in the year 2114," said James, simply. Vankous exchanged a look with Kate. That seemed like the best explanation, given James was the only one with a birthday that could even be told in a human timescale.

Malvis took a deep breath. "You were born almost three-hundred years into the future."

Saturn nodded. "Oh, Neptune will love you when they come back."

"He has people to love him, thank you very much," shot Vankous, before he even realized what was coming out of his mouth. He slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Future, future, excitement. Things. Time. Travel," shot James from next to him. Vankous nodded like that explained everything.

Saturn held up his hands in surrender. "I certainly didn't mean to offend, sir. All I meant was that Neptune would understand you the most. They're a fan of science fantasy."

"Yup, he knows," said Kate. "Don't mind these gay disasters." She was doing her hardest not to smirk.

"Excuse you..." began Vankous, but she gave him her signature 'don't' look.

The five shared a look of pleasant surprise between themselves, before quickly turning back to the Alpha Team. Malvis cleared her throat. "Then what brings you here all the way from the future?"

It was Vankous' turn to exchange a look with everyone else.

Kate spoke up. "I though we were pretty clear about that. Y'all are why we're here."

Malvis nodded. "You mentioned that earlier, but that doesn't exactly help. Are you here to warn us of impending doom? Tell us our fight will end the world? Just come to watch the fun?"

"Yes, Couldn't tell you that even if I wanted to and No. Watching revolutions are the opposite of fun," said Kate. She shuddered. "So much death I can't prevent." She took a deep breath and Vankous winced. Kate's hearts really were too big for her own good. "We have some very good intel that suggests that assassins from the future will try to eliminate you guys or these two other key figures in an attempt to...throw the revolution into disarray. Please don't ask me if that means you succeed or not. I can't answer that."

Malvis sighed. "I don't want to know either. No matter what you tell us, it either ends in complacency or hopelessness." She hummed. "Well, there's the five of us, Neptune, Zylphia, Tavish, and Lin in the revolution. Should we be worried about them?"

Kate tapped the communicator on her wrist and barked a command at it in Hydranese. There was a small whir and a small paper popped out the side. "This is the list of people in potential mortal danger." She held it out to Malvis.

Malvis froze for a moment, but accepted it, scanning it quickly. With a small sigh, she handed it to Estella Fay.

Estella Fay read through it, pausing near the end. "I don't recognize two of these people."

"Ohh...we were hoping you'd know everyone, but that's alright. I'm sure you have ways at least finding out. The reason we picked this location and the six of you first is cause you lot were the easiest to track and we thought you'd have the resources to get a hold of the other two as well," said Kate.

Saturn opened his hand, and Estella Fay handed him the list. "Oh! I recognize these two. The answers not exactly good, though."

Cyra snorted. "Let me guess. The prime minister's son."

Saturn sighed. "Not much better. A lord, an alis one. And one of the greatest Anti-Revolutionaries."

Malvis's hair grew a blonde streak. "You're joking."

"I'm afraid not."

"So....would you know where to find them at least?" asked Kate. "We probably won't be roping them into anything then."

Malvis sighed. "Oh, we know where to find them. It's them that's the problem. Our lord here would never the Street of Kings, and every Anti-Revolutionary in a six country radius is in Portsmouth."

Estella Fay frowned. "Looking for us."

"Well...sometimes to ensure one outcome remains strong, you have to save a few people you'd rather not," said Kate. "Its just how time works."

"For the sake of the revolution, and the people at this table, we're saving them." Malvis laced her fingers together.

The rest of Team Grumpy nodded.

"And for the sake of not destroying the timeline," added Kate, "but that's probably not important for the moment. Okay then, I take it that you're in?"

Malvis nodded. "We're in. Neptune should be back shortly. What do you need from us?"

Kate exchanged a look with everyone else. Everyone nodded like they knew what she was taking about. Vankous joined them even though he did not know what she was going on about.

"We need to do a few things...we might have to split into a few smaller teams."

"We should wait until Neptune's back for that, then. They have... a unique way of doing things." Malvis stood up, peering out of a nearby window. "Ah! That should be them."

"Wonderful," said Kate. "this is off to a great start."

Malvis smiled and sat down, eyes watching the door. A few seconds later, a knock sounded on the door. "There's nothing in the way, Neptune! You can come in."

The door open, and the sound of incessant tapping approached from the entrance. Kids these days.

"We have guests today."

"I heard." A figure emerged in the doorway, holding out a white walking stick. They were a spitting image of The Smurf, except they seemed taller.

And they were completely blind from cataracts.

Smurf Senior would make a good addition to this team. Before Vankous could voice that, Kate was already talking again.

"Pleasure to meet you," said Kate. "So...I believe we should start with splitting up probably. the less time goes to waste, the better for everyone."

Neptune cocked their head to the side, face mostly neutral. "Well, it's a little to early that, but I appreciate your confidence." They tapped their way to an empty seat, sitting beside Saturn. "Split into teams for what?"

Saturn smiled at his brother? cousin? devoted follower? Vankous was bad at this when he couldn't just peek at the fourth dimension. "These people are from the future, and they want us to help them prevent someone from being assassinated by an assassin from the future."

Neptune nodded. "Like a backwards L'An 2440, rêve s'il en fut jamais?"

Saturn shrugged. "I think so. I don't remember that one well."

Neptune hummed. "Regardless, welcome to 1838. We're happy to help."

"Thank you," said Kate. "So...shall we make some teams then?"

Malvis nodded. "Yes, I believe we can."

"Wonderful. Okay...first things first, we'll need to have constant eyes on these other two, so we'll need possibly two each to be on that," said Kate.

Estella Fay pointed at Malvis. "Malvis is the only human. She has the best chance of blending in at Portsmouth."

"And Mr Reporter knows the most about Lords and all of their dealings. He pratically stalks them through the newspaper." Cyra glared at Saturn.

Saturn nodded. "Yes, I do know the most. But there's just one problem." He gestured to his blue skin. "Three quarters of England wants me dead."

"I know that! I'm just saying you could point one of them in the right direction."

"Brilliant, we'll worry about how not to die later, trust me I'm an expert, my brother is pretty much what you'd call the god of death," said Kate, with a chuckle. "Okay so from what I've heard, this person in Portsmouth is a bit of an assassin, yes?"

Saturn nodded. "An Anti-Revolutionary. People personally chosen by the Prime Minister as children to learn how to keep the 'opposing species' at bay."

"In other words, a self-rightoues bastard that can use a blade." Cyra leaned back in his chair. "With all of the funding of the House."

"Sounds like a delightful individual," said Vankous, voice dripping with sarcasm, "how badly would the timeline be screwed up if we let him just..."

"Very badly," said Kate, "believe me. We wouldn't be doing this if he wasn't important." She took a breath. "Okay, well then how about we use the resident assassin here along with Malvis you said...to hunt that slippery one." She gestured to Chud, who shrugged.

"I retired a thousand years ago, I can hardly be called an assassin," said Chud, "but it seems as good a plan as any."

Malvis hummed. "Good. Someone with experience in stealth, then. We're going to need it. Portsmouth is about as guarded as a ship full of gold right now."

"400 years, 350 of them as chief of the Hydranian Guild and 100 as Chief Across the Galaxy, at your service," said Chud, standing up and doing a little salute.

Malvis sighed. "I can't say I have quite that much experience, but I've wandered these streets for as long as I could wander. One of my mothers taught me how to fight young."

Estella Fay leaned forward. "The way she fights is beautiful."

"Thank you." Malvis rubbed a simple strand of twine around her neck. "I do try."

"I have no doubt," said Kate, before she seemed to realize what she was saying and wiped the smile off her face. Vankous smirked. Well there's some ammunition.

"Umm..you know you must be a great fighter," said Kate, "you certainly seem like a good leader." Vankous nearly face palmed. Wonderful. The Princess of Darkness was now a rambling schoolgirl. Delightful.

"So that team is confirmed," said Chud, breaking whatever spell Kate was under as she shook her head.

"Yes Yes Yes," said Kate. "Umm....as for hunting the other one down, how about James, you take that. You being the one actual human and Londoner would probably help with all these lordy things. Cause I'll be honest, very few of us understand how these silly parliament things work."

Saturn nodded. "Okay. I'll tell you everything you need to know, then."

"Wonderful," said James, getting up and offering a hand. "Special Agent for Her Majesty's secret service at your service. 114 years. Well I suppose technically more, but I've been more of a liason really for the past few centuries, hardly have the time for actively doing that sort of thing unless I'm on vacation and feel like busting a drug lord or two for ol' times sake."

"Uh, Saturn. Reporter for the London Post." He shook James' hand.

"And resident gunslinger." Cyra clapped him on the shoulder.

Neptune did a small half-smile. "He makes most of the clothes for stealth missions, too."

Saturn sighed. "Resident catch-all. Does that suffice?"

Vankous frowned. "Not the catchiest title to go with, but not a bad start. And I think you'll go just perfectly with James. He does love his guns." Vankous rolled his eyes.

"I keep telling him to stop using the primitive things, I mean you may as well use a sharp rock, but he refuses to weild a sword."

"Hey I'm very good with these," protested James.

"Never said you weren't." said Vankous.

"So that's sorted," said Kate, a little louder that necessary and Vankous stopped. That was usually the sign that he'd talked for too long with James, not like there ever good be a conversation that was too long, especially with...oh dear bags of ziti not those thoughts, Not again.

He tuned back into Kate.

"...so assassins from the future could be anywhere. We need the two largest teams, probably two teams of three looking out for assassins for both in both areas, canvassing as much as possible. I'll be heading one of those myself. Who among you is the best at umm...tracking..shall we say?"

Team Grumpy looked at each other. "Artemis."

Artemis flinched, like she didn't expect to come up again. "Oh." She nodded. "I am."

Malvis smiled comfortingly. "Hey, you speak here. They won't say anything." She glared at the Alpha Team like she dared them to prove her wrong.

Artemis nodded again. "Okay. I am a Mexican Wolf Igni, so-" Her lisp turned the 's' into a sharp 'th.' "-I'm the best tracker here, aside from Lin. But he's in charage of mapping out the forest, so I should suffice."

"Wonderful," said Kate. "You're with me then. Anyone else who wants to join this crew? I'd do a list of the titles I've held, but then we'd be here for the next two hours, so let's skip that part."

Malvis snickered. "You accepted Artemis, you already have Estella Fay. You don't seperate the duo."

Estella Fay flushed. "Hey! We don't always work together."

"Are you going to join someone else's team, then?"

Estella Fay crossed her arms, frowning. "...no."

Malvis chuckled. "Thought so."

"Cute," said Kate. There was another hand slapped over a mouth and Vankous just let out a sigh. As much as it was fun to torture Kate about these things, they were almost always too sad to bring up afterword. Vankous let out a sigh. This job really was terrible sometimes.

Kate recovered quickly. "So the three of us then, wonderful. Not to brag, but..." She turned to the rest of them. "Best team ever." She did a little high five that looked awkward even to Vankous. "Okay we need another scout team. Any offers...I'll probably have Ray and Stean on this, since we need Vankous for the last one and that'll be a two person team."

Cyra huffed. "Well, I guess you're getting me, pretty boys. I'm no Hiker's Sickness-" He gestured to Malvis. "-but I've worked as a guard for long enough to know the fun places well enough."

"Three Very Pretty Boys," nodded Vankous. "Good Combo."

"Not a boy," the entire team said similtaniously like some sort of cult.

"Ohh?" said Vankous. He really needed to have looked at that brief. He settled for poking into a time a little instead. "Oooh. I like your style. I never thought I'd meet someone less decisive about that than Kate."

Cyra looked at Kate. "Oh?"

"I'm female at the moment, " said Kate, "but ever hundred years of so I like to change it up a little. Gets a bit boring otherwise." She smirked. "I have a name for each one, absolute pain to make all the id's but fully worth it."

"Just be everything at once. Save yourself the trouble." Cyra crossed two of their arms. "Or constantly switch like Neptune, here. Speaking of, what are you right now, Neptune?"

Neptune shrugged. "I'm much to excited to think about something like that right now." They tapped their fingers on the table, their face still only having that little half-smile.

"Brilliant idea," said Kate, "I should try that in a few decades."

Vankous groaned. "Don't give this one any ideas."

"I believe we were finalizing the teams," said Ray. "And if anyone is wondering. 94 years in the Secret Service. Although I'm a hacker more than a field agent, well was. Now I am obviously a field agent."

"And I was General of the Notpyrkian Armed Forces for a good two centuries," said Stean. "Still am technically."

Cyra nodded. "Those are certainly words."

"Sorry, you'll see what all of those things mean if there's ever a fight. Stean can fry humans like nobody's business," said Kate. "Okay then well I think that leaves Nepture over here to pair up with Vankous for the last little task which is to monitor and look out for any points where time could be being affected by our actions or the actions of this assassin."

Neptune rubbed the top of their walking stick. "How could I help with that?"

"Simple, just stick with me and tell me where we're at," said Vankous. "Also are you okay with teleporting?"

Neptune sighed. "I've never exactly done it before. And I'm not very familar with the city."

"I didn't even know what city this is until five minutes ago," said Vankous. "I think we'll do wonderfully."

Neptune hummed. "Alright. I'll do my best, then."

"Wonderful," said Vankous, before he did a little bow. "And I of course am simply the greatest sorceror to ever exist."

"That saddest part is he's not even lying," said Kate. "But on that note, I think we've finalized these teams here."

Malvis nodded. "Wonderful! When do we start then?"

Kate checked her watch. "Right now?"

Malvis clapped her hands together. "Alright, then! My siblings will watch over The Mist while we're gone. So, let's go."

Saturn sighed. "Alright, James. Since I can't go with you, how much do you need to know?" Slight disappointment twisted in his stomach. He had always wanted to see the inside of the Palace of Westminster (which was less of a Palace and more a concrete prism, but the Prism of Westminster certainly didn't have the same flair), but he logically knew that simply wasn't possible. So, it was best to just send James in his stead. Maybe James would be up for an interrogation afterwards.

He pulled out a roll of paper, a quill, and a pot of ink. "I can try to make note of all of the important things."

"Okay, slow down, my man," said James. 'Why can't you go in there exactly?"

Saturn blinked. "Oh, well. I suppose you don't know." He swallowed nervously. "Ukayans are sort of... illegal."

"I figured that," said Jame, with a nod. "But what's stopping you? DNA test? Fingerprint? Literally just your appearance?"

Saturn furrowed his eyebrows. "There's not exactly many blue people wandering around. And I can't exactly walk into the Palace of Westminster covered head to toe."

"Maybe not in clothes, but magic is always an option," said James, with what looked like an attempt at a wise-looking nod.

Saturn froze. "That's an option?"

"You're working with The Alpha Pack now," said James, with a little wink. "Nothing is off the table."

Saturn grinned. "Then, yes! I would love to come." He swept his hair again. "I've always wanted to see them operate in person but always accepted that I wouldn't. But now I can, and oh, thank you!" He put away the piece of paper and pulled out a journal instead, scrawling the date on a fresh page.

"No worries, kiddo," said James, giving Saturn a little pat on the shoulder. "Now lemme call our magician."

Saturn nodded. "Yes, of course."

"You might want to stand back. Vankous loves a dramatic entrance," said James. He then tapped something on his wrist a couple of times.

Saturn did so, stepping aside to allow proper room. He had learned to always stay five feet away from doors courtesy of Cyra, so it wasn't that big of a change.

There was a sudden flash of green light. Quick enough, it could almost have been imagined, and Vankous popped out before doing a little bow. "You called?"

"Yes," said James, looking a little flustered. "Glamour. One for my new friend here, if you don't mind."

Saturn looked between the two of them.

Oh. OH.

He simply looked at Vankous, smiling politely. "Please, good sir."

Vanous nodded. He snapped his fingers and then made a few concentric circles in the air before doing a backflip. He ended by making a sound like a chicken.

Saturn blinked. "Uh, alright then. A bit different than the magic I've seen, but if it works." He shrugged. How would a chicken noise affect anything? Who knows? But Malvis had to do some... things to earn her own powers, so who was Saturn to judge?

"Don't mind him. The finger snap is the only thing that did anything other than destroy his dignity," said James.

"Excuse you," said Vankous, wheeling on James. "My dignity is never ruined. You're going to have to pay for that insult."

James pulled out a wallet. "How much for the show?"

Vankous took a step back, looking aghast before his face twisted into a smile. "Good one, tea. Good one. Well, have fun. That glamour should last for twelve hours...maybe...I was too focused on the chicken noise to check."

He dipped down into a bow, and he was gone in a puff of green smoke.

Saturn sighed. "Twelve hours." He looked down at his skin. It was a dark tan, barely lighter than Artemis's skin. Beneath the colour, he could tell it still felt the same. He wasn't really human, but no one would know. "Wow."

"Yeah, he was being a bit lazy with that spell," said James. "Should still be plenty of time, hopefully."

"Well, are you ready to find ourselves a Victorian Lord?" Saturn grinned. "We're looking for a fire alis named Heliodor Everett Lee."

"I did read the brief, yes," said James. "And of course. I would say I was born ready, but I really wasn't."

"Did your companion Vankous, because he seems to know nothing?" Saturn stood up, putting his journal back in his messenger bag. "Regardless, I'll try to guide you through it. Our best bet is to simply pretend we're journalists. We're there for an article. We try to catch him after the meeting."

James had a fond smile on his face. "Oh, he never does. The idiot just...well, I mean, you saw his outfit. He thought we were going to a beach party of all things." His face became a bit more serious. " And I love that plan. I did actually take journalism a long time ago, I mean obviously nothing even remotely close to 1840s things, but umm, I know articleish sounding words...sort of."

Saturn hummed. "Alright. For now, you are my apprentice learning how to take notes properly. I'm Castor Russ, a pleasure doing business with you." Saturn held out his hand, looking up at James.

James took the hand, giving it a very firm shake. "Pleasure doing business with you, Mr Russ. I'm...Ja..Jo..Ge..oh never mind, James...Bond."

"James Bond. Very fitting name for an Englishmen." Saturn nodded. "I approve. Now I hope you're good at taking notes, Mr Bond. No excuses."

James looked like he was trying his hardest not to burst out laughing, but he seemed to sober up quickly enough. "I haven't used a physical pen and paper for anything in about ten years. How badly could this go?"

Saturn chuckled. "You don't have to actually write anything down. Just follow my lead. And act young and impressionable. Lords love that."

"Young and impressionable," said James. 'I can do that. Maybe. Okay, I can. I can. How hard can it be?"

Saturn shrugged. "I suppose we'll find out."

James nodded. "Lead the way then. Mr Russ"

Saturn nodded. "Gladly, Mr Bond." He left Malvis's home with James, ushering him back to the zig-zag entrance. "The main city should only be a fifteen-minute walk from here."

"That's closer than I thought it was going to be," said James as he followed closely. "Oh, and keep an eye out for anything that looks even remotely suspicious."

Saturn nodded. "I can do that. Just a fair warning, we have to travel through the Street of Kings. And they'll find you suspicious if the bottoms of your shoes are dirty there, so people are going to be watching us like a hawk watches dinner. So tread lightly."

James looked down at his feet. "Great. That sounds great."

"Everything here is that same shade of 'great.'" Saturn sighed. "I'm sure all of you are going to face that plenty. But don't worry, we've mastered how to stay quiet." He paused. "Most of us. Cyra's never been good at subtlety. But we all have one companion who's consistently wanted by the law."

James chuckled. "Staying quiet is supposed to be something we're good at, but our entire team is usually that companion. This should be fine, though."

"Good. You'll fit right in then." Saturn finally reached the top of the zig-zag entryway. "Alright, the Street of Kings is that way." He blinked. "Though, I do need to remember what it's actually named."

"Ohh, that is not what it's actually called?" asked James. "That sounded very plausible as a name."

"Oh, that's its name. Unless you're actually from there." Saturn shook his head. "The Lords get... touchy when compared to monarchs. Despite being as awful as most of them."

"Ohh...that makes a lot of sense," said James. "It's sad, but I can see why that would happen."

Saturn pulled out his journal again and started flipping through it. "Why, what would happen?"

"Well, I've seen over the years with these various morons that think they're better than everyone else; they like to think they are the best of their species. They go around denouncing even others that act like them," said James. He shrugged. "Sometimes I think they genuinely are blind to the fact that they aren't any better.'

"I don't think. I know." Saturn sighed. "I grew up reading entire monologues about how humanity is the superior species. Humans are civilized, intelligent, and good. And everything else. Well-" He gestured vaguely. "-we're just some issue that we force the poor humans to deal with."

"Apologies on behalf of this moronic sector of my species," said James. He sighed. "I'd love to say this changes, but every single world has its share of those who think that way."

"And we know that we'll never get rid of those people. They will always be there, waiting to tear us apart." Saturn shuddered at the thought of Malvis and her most recent encounter with someone like that. "But, we'd appreciate it if they weren't the ones in charge."

"Oh, they never stay in charge for long," said James before he seemed to reconsider. "On a relative scale, that is. To a human lifespan, it's a little too long, but generally across the universe, tyrants are nothing but little blips."

"Well, welcome to England, where one tyrant passes the title to the next tyrant forever." Saturn waved his hands so sarcastically that he felt like Malvis. "The very idea of freedom!"

James gave a sad nod. "Not forever. Not forever. Believe in that."

"I know that too." Saturn smiled. "I know that because we're going to change that. We're going to win and make things better."

"Yes, you are," said James, giving him a solid pat on the back. Something about the way he said it made it sound more like a fact than simple encouragement.

Saturn paused. "There! I found it. They call it Dixon Square."

"Sounds normal enough," said James, with a shrug.

"Well, then. With that, welcome to London!" Saturn gestured to a city sprawled out in front of them. The road shifted from dirt to cobblestone, and the sky was coated with thick smog. The buildings were mostly short and squat, and women with parasols and men with top hats milled about, gently conversing.

James gave it a measuring look. "I've seen better Londons and I've seen worse... Visually that is. From what you've told me, probably one of, if not the worst, I've seen internally."

Saturn winced. "Really?"

"Yeah, it's like a horrifying thirty-way tie or so," said James, "what these people are doing is among the worst things that living beings can do. You can't get much worse than this with this level of technology."

Saturn hiss through his teeth. "How much did your brief tell you?"

"Enough," said James. "The less you talk about it, the better. Humans can be terrifying sometimes even if they don't have reality-altering powers."

Saturn nodded. "Understood. The Street of-" He cleared his throat. "Dixon Square is this way."

James nodded. He paused for a moment as he seemed to be trying to think of something. Finally, he moved again. "Don't worry. When it comes to the end of time, none of the Londons I know of remains as the horror it may have once been."

"I appreciate the sentiment, but we're here." Saturn gestured to a large wrought iron fest. It looked to be nine feet tall, at least, and it was painted a shimmering shade of gold. "And they wonder why they're called Kings."

"Halt, down there!"

James nodded before he was turning sharply toward the sound.

A British guard emerged from inside a tower beside the guard, his hat adding a good two feet to his height. "What business do you have here? The House of Lords is meeting today."

James turned to Saturn and then to guard. He seemed to give the guard a quick once over before he stepped back a couple of steps.

Saturn waved to the guard. "Greetings! We're here to simply record the meeting for the London Post."

The guard scoffed. "We already have someone from the London Post."

"But sir, surely the tidings inside are important enough to warrant more than one," said James. "We don't want inaccuracies."

The guard sighed. "Do you have any proof of employment?"

Saturn nodded. "Yes, actually! But I'm afraid you'd either have to let us in or climb down. They don't make them large enough for tower-viewing."

James nodded vigorously.

The guard sighed. "But I can't let you in until I view proof of employment."

"But I can't show you proof of employment until you let us in." Saturn huffed.

The guard shrugged. "Sorry, gentlemen."

Saturn huffed, turning to James. "I knew this would happen, Mr Bond. I asked you to reserve us a seat, and what did you do?"

"And I said I tried," said James, raising his voice. "It's not my fault that someone was too lazy."

Saturn squawked, doing his best impression of a rich man. "Excuse me? I give you the gift of working with me, and you decide to sully my good name in front of this gentleman?" Saturn shook his head at the guard. "Children these days, heh? Always ungrateful." Saturn turned back to James, winking ever so slightly. The guard was too far away to notice.

"Excuse you?" said James. "I earned that place with hard work, thank you very much. If you are this lazy, I wonder how much longer you keep this job. If this gentleman doesn't let us in because of your oversight, can you imagine what it would do to our careers?"

"My oversight?" Saturn laughed incredulously, clutching his forehead. "I specifically told you that you needed to reserve a seat! Don't blame me for your mistakes."

"And I specifically told you that I didn't before we arrived," said James, "it's your duty to then find an alternate way."

Saturn groaned. "No, you didn't! Don't make me look foolish in front of the guard, or we'll never get in, and that's going on your assessment."

"Well, you are a fool if you were drinking instead of listening to what I was saying this morning," shot back James. He was really getting into it now, hopping up and down, making himself even bigger than he already was.

Saturn tried his best not to look like a child in comparison, but there wasn't much to be done. "How dare you? One more unholy accusation like that, sir, and you are no longer welcome at London Post!"

"I would like to see you try and be rid of me," said James, crossing his arms and staring down at Saturn.

"Well, I'll have you know-"

"Gentlemen, gentlemen, please!" The guard sighed. "I'll let you in. Just stop before you say something you both regret."

Saturn looked back towards the gate. "Fine, then."

James uncrossed his arms. "You best thank that gentlemen."

"Gentlemen!"

Saturn glared at James, but his playful smile ruined any chance of it being serious. "You heard him, Mr Bond."

"So I did, Mr Russ," said James. He looked like he was trying his best not to burst out laughing.

The guard sighed but ultimately opened the gate. "Please keep your issues personal. A meeting is now in session."

"I wouldn't dream of disrupting a meeting," said James, looking accusingly at Saturn.

"What are you looking at me for? Come along, Mr Bond, you're making us late." Saturn rushed through the gate, shaking his head.

James made a loud "HARRUMPH" before he followed right behind.

Once they were out of earshot of the guard, Saturn grinned. "That was fantastic! He bought every second of that."

James grinned right back. "That was fun. Up top!" He held out a hand.

Saturn stared at his hand. "Uhh?" He lifted his hand in a similar manner to James.

James slapped his hand. He frowned at Saturn's look. "Never heard of a high five before?"

Saturn winced at the sudden impact. "No. I can't say that I have."

James gave him another pat on the back. "Give it a couple of centuries. Wonderful invention."

Saturn nodded. "I'll take your word for it. Something tells me I won't be around."

James shrugged. "Maybe. Or Maybe you being the first person in this year to ever be given a high five, it becomes a tradition in your family, one day spreading to the rest of the world. You'll have to ask Kate or Vankous."

Saturn sighed. "Who knows?" He approached the doors of a large building in the middle of the square. It loomed over the rest of the structures like it was threatening them, each brick just another layer of doom. "But here we are. The House of Lords, The Palace of Westminster."

"Kate," said James, without missing a beat. He looked up towards the building in front of them and gave an appreciative nod. "Looks younger than I remember."

Saturn sighed. "A couple of decades back, they tore the old one down and built this one instead. Most of the brick is from the old one, but everything else gone."

James sighed at that one too. "Well, I suppose I shouldn't have been too surprised."

"Edmund, my foster father, has told me a lot of the things they've destroyed throughout the years." Saturn frowned. "Genocide on people isn't enough. They have to kill the history, too."

"They don't deserve that history anyway," said James simply.

Saturn nodded. "Maybe, but that doesn't make it any less painful." He shook his head. "Anyways, we should get going." He waved the guards by the door. "Hello, good sirs!"

James nodded as he followed after Saturn.

One of the guards looked up. "More journalists?"

Saturn nodded. "Yes indeed. Is that a problem?"

James just nodded.

The guard sighed. "Did you get a paper from the guard?"

Saturn shook his head. "No, were we supposed to?"

"Yes, we were never informed of any paper," added James.

The guard groaned. "Alright. We just need to see some form of identification, please."

Saturn's heart skipped a beat. Identification? He wasn't exactly a legal citizen.

James dived in his inner coat pocket, rummaging around in there like he was pressing a button before he produced a very crisp-looking ID card. He handed it to the guard.

The guard looked at it. "Yep, that works. Please be quiet and respectful."

James nodded, pocketing his ID. "Of course."

The guard opened the door. "Enjoy your time, then."

James nodded. "After you, Mr Russ."

Saturn nodded. "Thank you, Mr Bond."

He walked past the guards, taking in the inside of the Palace. The front doors opened to a large room filled with couches and small tables. It was empty now, but it was easy to imagine it filled to the brim with people before meetings. "Wow. I am really inside a Palace.

"Yes, you are, kiddo," said James.

Saturn took a deep breath. "Okay, focus. Meeting. Through that door, most likely." He snuck one more glance at the first room. "Onwards."

"You're the expert."

Saturn approached an open door, simply peeking his head through.

The lords sat around a large square table, speaking to each other in low, grave voices.

"All I'm saying is we should consider Du Cane's proposal."

"And all I'm saying is that you're depraved!"

"Gentlemen, ease up a bit."

Saturn's blood ran cold.

At the head of the table sat Victor Harris, the Prime Minister of the UK. The man they were fighting against. The man that told England to be this way. Saturn quickly shuffled in, taking an empty journalist's chair along the wall.

"There lies the Douchebag in Chief," whispered James, "Unfortunately, we can't punch him. Now, where's the chap we came to find."

Saturn nodded and scanned the table, skipping over the dozens of humans. "There are two fire alis on this council. I have to wait until one of them speaks."

Harris grinned. It was a very normal, human smile, but it looked sinister. "We've all agreed that prison hulks aren't enough. Du Cane's idea takes care of that."

Saturn clenched his fists. Du Cane? Saturn knew a Du Cane. James De Cane, the man behind Malvis's newest scars. Saturn was willing to bet money it was the same one.

"Alright, so we wait and watch this horror movie then," said James.

Saturn nodded.

One of the lords looked up from a sheet of paper. "Mr Lee, how do you vote?"

One of the fire alis, the one closest to Harris, looked up from the table. His face was completely blank. "I agree with Prime Minister."

Harris leaned back. "Then it's official. Du Cane is developing our newest prison system."

If Saturn could've paled, he would have.

"I'm assuming that's very bad," James whispered.

"Malvis... ran into Du Cane while we were in Portsmouth. He's not doing this out of the kindness of his heart." Saturn sighed. "But Lee there is the target. Heliodor Everett Lee."

"Du Cane is due for a caning, got it," said James, before nodding towards Helioder Everett. "Perfect. I'll tag him, and then we can do the rest of this a little more safely." He reached into his coat pocket again.

"How does tagging work?"

James produced a tiny little sliver of metal that looked like a grain of rice. He flicked it towards Heliodor Everett with practised ease, making it look like he'd just covered up a sneeze.

He turned to Saturn. "Do you have radio?"

"Pardon?"

"Right, I forget what year this was. It umm...it sends these little messages to this thing I have every few seconds which tell me where it is, and since it's on Heliodor Everett, it tells us where he is."

Saturn nodded. "That is... not the strangest thing I've ever heard."

"Good. Cause it will only get stranger," said James.

Saturn shrugged. "I gathered as much."

"Good. I suppose now we have to wait till this nonsense is over?" asked James.

Saturn shrugged. "We can leave if you. Stage another row if the guards say anything."

"Well, we don't have anything better to do until this one leaves the place anyway, so may as well stay, if you're okay with that?" asked James.

Saturn pulled out his journal. "More than, actually." He scribbled down the switch to the Du Cane system, barely suppressing a shudder.

"I suppose we sit back and relax, then," said James.

Chudnofsky gave the forest around them a cursoy sniff. It was so mind numbingly normal it was almost terrifying. The smell of something being just a little off was hanging in the air, just like it had when they first landed, it seemed like that was probably permeating this entire world, but the forest itself was incredibly normal and non threatening and Chud was getting a tiny bit bored.

"So where exactly are we headed to again?" he asked, turning to his new companion.

"Portsmouth." Malvis twirled a strange wooden stick between her fingertips, eyes trained at the forest line. "It's a port city."

"Aptly named then," said Chud, with a light chuckle. He could never get over how no matter the species, most of them tended to just name their places what they were or what they did.

Malvis sighed. "That's how you know it's English."

Chud chuckled. "Ohh. Well that's news to me, I'll remember that for later."

A twig snapped in the distance, and Malvis froze, the stick dangling percariously from her fingers.

Chud froze alongside her. Finally things could get a little bit more interesting. "You think that's potentially a bad thing."

Malvis shook her head. "No, I don't think so. It sounds too small..."

Chud sniffed the air and grimaced slightly. "Smells like human to me. That might not be that small."

Malvis winced. "They're hunters. And soon we're on the table."

"And they smell terrible. Have people not heard of showers around here?" said Chud, before he realized how that might have sounded. "Not that that is a important point. Umm..we should avoid the table. Probably. We're doing that right?"

Malvis scoffed. "No, I was quite fancying dying today. I was looking forward to it, actually."

"Ohh...really. Kate says Tuesday are great days for dy..." Chud frowned. He knew that tone. That was...what was it called...sarcasm. "Oh sorry. I thought. Yeah. Mortals don't like dying. Noted. I knew that."

Malvis shook her head, but it almost seemed fond. "Yes, I'm afraid that's the downside of the mortal bit."

Chud laughed. "So I'm told." He lowered his voice to a stage whisper. "Don't tell anyone but every immortal is jealous of mortals of being able to die."

"Even you?"

Another twig snapped, sounding much closer this time.

"They're coming this way. I hope you're ready for a fight."

"When the number of friends you've had to watch die passes the one thousand mark, everyone thinks that," said Chud. He schooled his features. Now was not the time for sentiment. "And well...I've been fighting since I was two hours old. One could say I was born ready."

Malvis flicked her strange stick, a blade appearing from the wood. It was a thin stilleto blade, the whole thing the length of Malvis's forearm. "Good. That makes this part much easier."

Chud smiled, letting out a quick yawn as he did a couple of quick stretches. "Wonderful." He poked around in his coat pocket, looking for the familiar weight of steel. He found the disc of metal. He brought it out and gave it his customary kiss. He brandished it in front of him before flipping it up into the air. He spoke the command word. The coin shifted, lengthening as he caught it, the familiar weight of his mace providing a familiar comfort. It's head was about the size of Malvis' head but in its currently shortest state it was only just a hair over five feet long.

Malvis whistled. "Now that is something I haven't seen before. Cyra would be frothing at the mouth in jealousy." She shifted into a very strange fighting stance, where she snaked her fighting hand behind her back, and splayed her right hand by her knees.

Chud chuckled. "I could loan them one of these. Not this one, this is hand crafted, but there's a million standard issue ones on the ship."

Chud shrugged and stood up straight, weapon balance on his shoulder. Everyone he ever met said his stance was too open and too relaxed, they stopped talking after the first swing.

The first hunter broke the tree line. "Hey! I found some people."

Chud gave a low whistle. "Impressive. Are you proud of yourself?"

Malvis shrugged. "Well, he should be. I could easily be confused with a rather large bird."

The hunter glared at the two of them. "Just what the hell are you doing out here? Do you have permission to be out here?"

Malvis nodded. "I do. It's called no one can stop me."

Chud spread his wings, glad to have an excuse to stretch them. They were not fans of being folded for long journeys. "That's a valid point. Good Job sir."

He let out another yawn. Maybe he should have taken a nap on the spaceship earlier, this was getting a little disrespectful. He did a few more stretches.

"I do have permission," said Chud, "to teach you a few manners about how to talk to strangers you meet in the woods." Chud frowned. "Okay maybe I didn't phrase that very well."

Malvis sighed and shook her head. "No, you didn't."

The hunter pulled out a hunting knife. "Look. I don't care who you two are, but these are our parts of the woods. Get out!"

Chud nodded.

He wheeled back on the hunters. "Do you have proof for that claim?"

The hunter pulled out a piece of paper and held it out to Malvis. She stepped back, gesturing for Chud to take it.

Chud took the paper. He was a little confused, but it could probably not hurt, unless it was one of those sentient paper warriors but this was the wrong climate for that.

The paper was simply permission to hunt on the land addressed to three men: Marcus, John, and Christopher Walkins.

"And what is this supposed to prove exactly?" asked Chud. "Who are these three men? Did anyone even sign this?"

"There's a signature right there." The hunter pointed to an elegant signature near the bottom. "And it's our permission to hunt here. Where is yours?" He took back the paper and pocketed it again.

Chud exchanged a look with Malvis. He produced rummaged around in another pocket. Universal ID. Keys. Toothpick. Paper. He exclaimed triumphantly and produced the paper to the man.

He smirked as he imagined the words he'd written down for precisely situations like these. "My Permissions Are Beyond Your Understanding. I Do What I Want"

The hunter frowned. "You think this will stand up in court?"

Malvis smirked. "I wish you luck in bringing us to court."

"It has stood up to every court its been presented to," said Chud, conveninetly leaving out the part where Jason was the judge at every one of those courts which was definitely not legal but that didn't matter here.

The hunter pointed the knife at Chud. "Do you know what else stands up in court? Defending your territory." He smirked at Malvis. "You might want to look away, miss. Your lover is about to get a little bloodied up."

Malvis attacked him so fast, she was pratically blurry. The hunting knife landed on the forest floor, and she stood behind him, blade ghosting over his neck. "I'd stop talking if I were you."

Chud growled. "Oh no you don't." Before he could move, Malvis was already at his throat. He shrugged and let out another yawn. Great, this was exactly like fighting with Kate. At least Malvis wasn't moving so fast she was invisible.

"It would be a wise move to not talk sir," said Chud, before pausing. "But if you do talk, it better be an apology. That was a horrible thing for you to say."

"Why? Is that a man beneath that dress?" He reached around, trying to grab Malvis's waist.

Malvis dug the blade into his skin, beads of blood bubbling to the surface around it. "I'm about to have a corpse in my arms."

"Alright sir, I'm going to have to ask you to kindly unhand my friend," he said, stepping right up. He frowned. Okay Malvis was the one doing most of the handling at the moment, but he could ignore that. He grabbed the man's throat from behind, pulling it away from the blade that was probably going to slit it if the fool uttered another sentence. He then gently extracted the scumbag from Malvis hold, hoisting him into the air.

He turned to Malvis, ignoring the man struggling in his grip. "I feel like I should apologize on behalf of males in general but I don't know if that's a good idea." He shrugged. "I hope you didn't stain your dress with that idiot's blood. I can't imagine how hard it is remove those in 1838, when its really annoying even in the late 2400's."

Malvis shrugged. "That's why I wear red." She wiped her blade off with a corner of the hunter's coat. "That usually handles it."

"Samesies," said Chud, before he looked around cautiously. "Don't tell anyone I admitted that. I tell everyone the red is to inspire fear in my enemies, not because I hate doing laundry." He was about to make a shushing motion when he realized he still had a man by the throat.

"What do we do with this one?" asked Chud.

Malvis glared at the hunter. "How many are there of you?"

The hunter didn't respond.

Chud gave the hunter a little shake. "Dude, you're horrifying, but probably not that illiterate. Answer the question."

"I don't have to say anything to her." He looked away. "She's just a woman."

Chud almost facepalmed before he realized one hand had a moron and the other hand had a mace. For the first time he wished he had four arms like that Cyra person from earlier. He cleared his throat.

"See technically you're right. You don't have to say anything to any of us, its your right. But you're reasoning is horrible. Doesn't matter, I remember seeing three names on that permit if yours. I'm going to assume three people. Anything else we want to ask this worm Malvis?"

She shook her head. "We don't have enough time to waste." She looked him up and down. "My sibling would've loved using you for target practice. What a shame."

Chud giggled. "Oh we used to do that. Until it got outlawed." He composed himself. Several thousand year old assassins did not giggle.

"Well I think the lady dismissed you sir, now would you like to be able to walk or do you want to sit here crying until your brother's come get you?" asked Chud.

"I think the lady needs to be taught her place." He spat on the ground in front of Malvis's feet. "Bitch."

Malvis took a deep breath. "Set him down before I turn his face into wolf bait."

Chud nodded. "He chose option B." He tossed the man towards the nearest tree. There was a satisfying crunch. "Enjoy your crying. I would call you the word you just used, but that would be an insult to dogs." He turned back to Malvis. "I think the view in that direction is a bit...uncultured. Shall we go the other way?"

Malvis looked at the sky, squinting at the sun for a few seconds. "That should work, yes."

"Brilliant. Lead the way Blademistress of the Red Dress?" said Chud. "I'll work on a better title sorry, This is usually Kate's job, or Winn's."

Malvis sighed. "I won't pretend to be nearly as old as you, but I've had my fair share of titles in my time."

"Do tell. Do tell," said Chud. "Gesturing grandly for someone to lead the way just doesn't work without a title you know? It loses its grandeur."

She hummed. "Let's see. There were the vague ones like Mister and Wanderer. But I've always been called The General, the Highest of the Six." She wrinkled her nose. "Ugh, I really hate that one. But my favorites have always been the truthful ones. Murderer. Theif. Bastard." She smiled. "Friend."

Chud smiled. "Truth is always the best." He frowned. "And those other titles are terrible. The only title I've heard that sounded worse was 'The Ice Cream of Coneland'. I'll just go with milady for now maybe."

Malvis sighed. "If you have to call me anyting, please use Mister. It's the name of my people, those who live and would die for The Mist."

Chud shrugged. "I'm just gonna stick to your name."

"That's fine too. I chose it myself, so I like it enough." Malvis smiled and flicked her blade back into its hiding place.

Chud nodded, flipping his own mace into the air. He deposited the coin back in the pocket where it belonged. "Okay, let's hope we don't run into too many more of those idiots."

Malvis nodded. "Agreed."

"Let's go hunt an assassin who is about to be assassinated," said Chud.

~~~~

The sun dipped low in the sky, casting the forest in an ever complex mesh of shadows. Malvis sighed. "It's getting dark. We should set up camp before we can't see."

Chud nodded. He wished for not the first time that day that they could've just used a transport but anachronisms were serious business and this was the only option. Only Vankous would be teleporting around, probably being obnoxious about it.

"I'll be fine unless it gets pitch black, but yes we should get some rest at least, and look out for any nighttime surprises."

Malvis nodded. "Let's make a fire quickly, then. It gets brisk here once night falls."

Chud nodded. "I can do heat. I will need some fuel to actually catch anything on fire though."

Malvis smiled. "It's a good thing we're in a forest then." She tugged on a couple of branches before snapping one off. "This is good timber. Nice and dry, just like Artemis says."

"Ohh yes," said Chud. "Sometimes I forget that Earth trees make for good timber."

Malvis handed him the wood. "Well, show me what you can do then."

Chud let out a little chuckle. "Very well." Chud gripped the wood, giving it an experimental stiff. "Definitely flammable."

He threw it on the ground, in a little circle. It would never pass for a good setup in any camping class, but he was too lazy to make on of those at the moment. He focused a hand on it, channeling the heat swirling within. His palm started to glow read hot and as he focues on the spot, there was a brilliant flash of pure white cutting through the air between his hand and the wood, a sound like a miniature clap of thunder echoing through the forest. The wood caught fire instantly.

Malvis took a step back, her hair turning white. "That was..." She cleared her throat. "... impressive."

"Thanks," said Chud. "Little trick I picked a long, long time ago." He let out a laugh. "First time I tried to focus my power that much I accidentally burned down a whole forest."

Malvis snorted. "Estella Fay did something similar when she first learned her power. Not with fire though, thankfully."

Chud laughed. "Its the same for most heroes out there." His voice dropped to a whisper. "Legend has it that the day Kate's power was unleashed she accidentally wiped out a moon from her home planet, well my home planet. Scariest bedtime story ever. I used to think it was just a random legend, then I met Kate."

Malvis winced. "Oh, that's always fun. Estella Fay's power is light moving we were just blinded for a good minute. Well, barring Neptune for obvious reasons."

Chud nodded. "That's not too bad. Kate is,...well...yeah, its a very good thing she's had billions of years to get her powers honed to a fine edge."

Malvis paused. "Can I ask what Kate's power is?"

Chud shrugged. "No one's stopping you."

"Are you going to tell me if I as you?" Malvis sat beside the fire, tucking her legs neatly beneath her.

"Yeah, sure. Not like its a secret or anything," said Chud, also taking a seat. He had no idea where this was going.

Malvis gestured to him. "So, what is Kate's power?"

Chud smiled. "If you see her fight you'd never be able to tell. She has nearly a hundred extra skills she's slowly acquired over the millenia. But...I suppose if one had to pin it down and look at what actually defines her. It would be darkness. I believe the way she put it the one day she explained it was that she was the living embodiment of every dark spot in existence or something. It was convoluted, but I believe her after what I've seen. Her true name I guess would be Darkness, with the ol' capital D. It makes sense. Her brother is Death."

Malvis hummed. "That seems... complicated. But fascinating nonetheless."

Chud nodded. "Its best not to think too much of it. You'd never know she was anything but an immortal teenager anyway. Not unless she assumes her true form, and well no one alive in this reality has ever seen it."

Malvis nodded, rubbing a strand of her hair. "I know how that feels."

Chud smiled. "Everyone lets her be herself. She never got to be a child, so she deserves to get it even if its now."

"Then Estella Fay is the best person for her to be with." Malvis sighs. "Let's just say her childhood somehow both never started and never ended."

Chud let out a little sigh. "Yeah. Its a small wonder people like them turn out so good, isn't it?"

"The best people I have ever met have suffered greatly." She shrugged. "It's almost as if the pain softens them into something beautiful."

Chud nodded. "It can seem that way somtimes." His expression darkened a bit. "But they are special. Its not everyone who emerges from quite so much pain and doesn't wish to inflict some of it back on anyone."

Malvis nodded. "I think they both need to exist, to keep us balanced."

A twig snapped in the distance again, but Malvis didn't react.

Chud was about to reply when the sound registered. 'I think we have company again. We need to be on alert. This fire is probably like a "Look her free prey" symbol for whatevers in this place.

Malvis flicked her blade into place again. "How many?"

Chud scanned the area. He could make out roughly five bodies in the darkness that was beginning to fall around them. "Five." He took out his disc.

Malvis hissed. "Military, then. They might leave us be, but I highly doubt it."

"Oh that sounds like fun," said Chud, before he realized how that sounded. "I mean that's awful. Danger. Fighting. Let's hope they move away."

Malvis snorted. "I don't know if we can win. We'd be destroyed immediately."

It was Chud's turn to snort. "If they had a thousand in their ranks, maybe it'd be a semi fair fight." He flipped the coin, his maze appearing.

"Poor things never had a chance." Malvis twirled her knife between her fingers, despite the fact that the blade was extended.

"Their fate was sealed a long time ago," said Chud, standing up. "They'll run away if they know what's good for them."

"They never know what's good for them." Malvis sighed. "But it makes for some decent fun."

"Oh Jason loves that too," said Chud."

"Well, I hope you at least enjoy it somewhat." Malvis stood up. "It gets dreadfully boring if you don't."

Chud shrugged. 'Its work. The fun comes from the people I get to do it with." He let out a little laugh before he realized something. "Oh for context, Jason is Death. He has a lot of fun coming up with creative little torture contraptions for idiots like this."

"Now that sounds like someone I want to meet."

Chud snorted. "You'd be the first. But then he is pretty nice, bit of a stickler for the rules, but he knows when to let his people have fun."

"Most of my people are very anti-rules, but they do know how to make a good torture contraption." Malvis smirked. "I'm sure Ray and Stean are enjoying their Cyra quality time."

"Should I be worried for their safety?" Chud smirked. "Well I'm sure they're getting on with Kate at least then. One of her mottos is "Rules exist only to be broken"

Malvis nodded. "Now that should be good for Estella Fay. She needs to get a little more comfortable with being a wanted criminal."

Chud nodded. "Oh if there was a record of how many times Kate was a wanted criminal, it'd probably be some sort of record. In a move that always surprises everyone, Vankous is the only one who has never actually broken the law."

Malvis laughed. "Oh, that one? That is surprising. I'm afraid none of my team can claim. For half of them being born was a crime."

Chud gave a half smile at that. "If you count stupid laws like that I suppose Vankous doesn't get away scot free."

"Good. That bastard can't be the only one to be immune to the law."

Chud snorted. "Well its only back on his home planet, but I see where you're coming from." Chud let out a little sigh. "The idiot means well though. For all the annoying things he does, that heart is somehow in the right place."

"I am intimately familar with well-intentioned people who are... not the greatest at thinking."

Chud snorted again. "That's a good way to put it. Okay before we end up being ambushed, maybe we should deal with our five guests first."

"Yes." Malvis nodded. "That is a good idea."

Chud nodded. "Let them make the first move, just in case they do genuinely not plan on attacking, I know that's about as likely as the ocean being dry, but these little things matter sometimes. Just on principle."

"Besides, if they attack first they'll think they have an advantage." Malvis grinned. "And the worst fighters are those who enter a fight expecting to win."

"That is very true," said Chud.

A whisper broke through the forest. Malvis held a finger to her lips.

Chud nodded slowly. He did a cursoy glance of the area. The figures had closed in quite a bit now.

Malvis hid her knife in the folds of her dress. "So, what are your plans once you make it to Portsmouth?"

A solider apprakched the edge of the light to her left. He was pulling something out of his pocket.

Chud took the cue, pressing the emergency retract on his mace to turn it back into a circle f metal.

"Having a good time mostly," he said in reply, raising his voice ever so slightly.

Malvis laughed. "Are you a man of pubs or escorts? Choose your answer carefully."

Chud let out an exaggerated belly laugh. "It be the pubs for me I'm afraid."

"I respect a man who can hold his liquor." Malvis fanned herself with her hand.

Chud pretended to puff out his chest. "I certainly can, milady."

Malvis played with a strand of hair. "Oh can you, now?"

"Definitely," said Chud. He did an exaggerated bow for good measure.

The solider pulled out what appeared to be a throwing knife. Just a little longer, then. "How much is your record, sir?"

Chud tensed ever so slightly even as his face twisted into a cocky smirk. "Twenty."

"Twenty what, sir? Help a little lady out." Malvis smirked too, the light from the fire making it seem sharp.

"Shots," said Chud, triumphantly. The level of cockiness was now leaving a bad taste in his mouth as he desperately channeled his inner Vankous.

The solider threw the knife, missing Malvis and sending it straight towards Chud.

Chud breathed a sigh of relief. He turned grabbing the knife and hurling it back towards the solider's ankle in one smooth motion. He did a little bow. "I'm sorry sir. I think that belongs to you."

The solider yelped. "Hey!"

Malvis sighed. "Honestly. One would think with your years of training you would learn how to ambush."

"A disgrace really," said Chud. "You should be ashamed of yourselves."

"I'm missing an eye and I saw that coming." Malvis tutted. "But we're not what you're looking for. There are no more igni in these parts. You made sure of that."

Another solider scoffed. "And how do you know what we're looking for?"

"You'd be surprised at just how much she knows," said Chud. "Now Scram you little miscreants."

The second solider glared at Chud. "And who do you think you are to be able to speak to soliders like that?"

Chud exchanged a look with Malvis. Jason was going to kill him for this. "Chudnofsky Leonov Maliachisinsky. I also go by Captain Fusion."

"You just made that all up." The solider frowned. "Lying to military personal is a federal offense."

Malvis snickered. "Oh, I'm absolutely terrifed."

Chud snorted. "I wish I was lying. My powers are based on fission, not fusion, and yet I'm stuck with that name forever."

"Oh, that's always rough." Malvis patted him on the shoulder. "My condolensces."

Chud shrugged. "I've gotten over it. For the most part."

The soliders looked between the two of them. "Are both of being serious right now?"

Malvis nodded. "Of course."

Chud concentrated, his hand heating up to grow white hot. "Serious as a heart attack."

The soliders backed away. "What are you doing, sir? Put that down."

Malvis's smirk only grew. "Yes, Captain Fusion. Put it down."

Chud groaned. "I need to go prank my nephew again, he's been indirectly humiliating me for too long." He turned back to the soldiers. "Glady, officer."

He directed his hand towards a tree near a few of the solider. Another arc of light, and the bottom of the tree was reduced to smoking, charred mess. It began to tilt dangerously.

The soliders scrambled out of the way at the last minute. "What the hell are you?"

Malvis, however, was simply cackling. "He followed your rules. That's your own damn fault."

"Not from hell, that's my friend Kate who I'm sure will entertain you sometime later," said Chud. Oh dear. Jason was going to hunt him down for that. "And like my friend just said I just did what you told me to. Any good advice to give or are you finally going to leave? Its a little past your bedtime now, don't you think?"

A revolver clicked into place. Another solider emerged from the forest, aiming it directly at Malvis. "Say another word, and the pretty thing dies."

Malvis sighed like this was a very common occurence.

Chud shrugged. "I'd tell you not to waste your ammunition, but I know that idiots like you never listen. Go ahead."

The solider shrugged. "Sorry, miss." He fired.

Chud moved fast. Well not too fast. These bullets were slow and he didn't want to mess up Malvis' hair too much. He turned, wings extending out and around him to cover Malvis. The bullet smacked into his wing with a dull thud. It was a little pricklier than he remembered. "That tickles."

Malvis gave him one second of a look of geninue surprise, before she was back to that neutral smirk. Though, there was now a bright streak of white in her hair.

Chud smiled. He could see why she was important to this world, better than any mission brief could.

He folded his wings again.

"If you're done playing with your toys, go back to bed young man," said Chud, a sharp edge creeping into his voice."

The solider took a step back. "You're no alis. You're nothing but a demon from Satan's arms."

Chud facepalmed. "Every time. Every. Single. Time." He took a deep breath. "Well if I'm a demon, at least do me a favor and run away. Before I steal your soul or something...or whatever it is you call it here."

The solider shook his head. "England is a god-fearing country. You have no power here."

Malvis groaned. "Are you all sharing the same pissed on newspaper for a brain? You know what, nope." She took up fighting position. "I'm counting to three. You're either gone by then, or you're dead."

Chud let out a sigh. "Lemme show you."

He slammed his wings together, this time with a lot more speed, sending a strong gust of wind down to the soldier who promptly fell right on his behind.

Malvis snorted.

The soliders all looked between each other again.

"If you're considering retreat do it now." Malvis shooed them away. "Go ahead."

One of the soliders spat on Chud's shoes. "I hope-"

Before he could finish his sentence, Malvis was on him like a bolt of lightening, slashing a smooth line across his cheek. It bleed almost instantly, red drippling down his chin. "That is your warning."

"Man those are hard to clean," said Chud, with a sigh. "Alright that's it." He stalked up the shoulder currently bleeding from the cheek. Everyone...fetch the soldier." He proceeded to yeet the man in the nearest direction. It was far enough to break a bone, but it wouldn't kill. Kate was a little strict on that one detail.

Malvis whistled. "And there he goes. Better catch him, gentlemen, before the bears do."

The rest of the soliders took off running into the forest.

Chud let out a sigh. "Well that took longer than I thought it would. Good Work."

Malvis shrugged. "You did most of the work this time."

Chud shrugged. "You did enough."

"I didn't actively hinder you."

"You'd be surprised how rarely that happens," said Chud.

"Well, then it must be impossible to get anything done."

Chud let out a sigh. "Try saving a team of six people all of whom think they are the second coming of God and can't be killed." Chud gave Malvis a pat on the shoulder. "You're a great team player. Not a lot of people are, especially with a total stranger."

"A team of six Cyras." Malvis shook her head. "Just kill me before I do it myself."

Her face shifted into something more serious. "But, I don't understand why anyone wouldn't. There's nothing to be gained by not doing my part."

"You'd be surprised how long it takes for some people to realize that simple truth," said Chud. "Heck wayy back when I was your age, I doubt I would've. I always wanted to be the lone wolf. You don't give yourself enough credit."

Malvis sighed. "You know, Artemis once taught me a fascinating fact about wolves. Do you know why they hunt in packs?"

Chud was thrown off for a second. "Can't say I know the exact reason. Kate's the one whose been around long enough to have studied up on literally everything."

"It's because ravens try to steal their hunt, often to the point of starving the wolves. So the wolves hunt in packs to keep the food in the pack." Malvis looked at Chud. "I've seen hundreds of people starve because of the ravens. Hell, they almost got me for a time. So, I don't think I'm special for being a 'team-player.' I'm just trying to do things right."

Chud nodded. "Well you're suceeding."

Malvis smiled. "I try."

Chud smiled in return. "I believe we have some rest to get back to."

Malvis nodded. "Yes we do."

Estella Fay would probably never get used to walking the streets of England. After years of never even seeing them, it felt like a dream to feel the cobblestones under her feet, the sounds of chattering in the air.

She turned to Kate, smiling to herself. "So, what exactly are we looking for, Kate?"

"Anything that looks a little out of the ordinary," said Kate. "The air having just a bit of aftertaste that's different from the norm, patches of scattered time, okay maybe not that one you need to be able to see time for that, but umm mostly little things like that. Just something that feels ever so slightly off from a normal day."

Artemis hummed. She opened her mouth hesitantly, showing off the peaks of her sharp teeth. She cleared her throat and continued. "You smell bitter to me. Like nothing I've ever smelled before. All of your friends do."

"Oh wonderful, that's good. Just try and see if you can catch the scent of more of that," said Kate. "It might be a little less intense because this person could be a first-time time traveller, and the spell isn't necessarily as pronounced until you've gone through time a few thousand times."

Artemis shrugged. "I'm good with subtle scents."

Estella Fay grinned, just happy that Artemis felt comfortable enough to speak. "Yes you are! Artemis can tell where you grew up, what you last ate, everything you ever need to know!"

Kate grinned in response. "That is very cool. I would ask her to do that to me, but I'm afraid that would be a little unfair."

"You smell... old." Artemis sniffed the air carefully. "Like a sealed ancient library or an abandoned temple in the forest. But older than that still. There are smells on you so faint that they're dying. And scents never die unless they're older than kingdoms long dead."

Estella Fay sighed. "Isn't that so fascinating? She can smell history."

Kate grinned. "It is fascination. Oh absolutely." She turned to Artemis. "And well you're pretty dead on. I've seen kingdoms rise and fall so many times over, sometimes by my own hand. Both the rise and the fall." She chuckled. "History can be so many things."

Artemis flushed. "Oh. That's... bueno."

Estella Fay clapped. "Amazing job, Artemis!"

Kate grinned. "Is it just me or are we all feeling like a group hug right now?"

Estella Fay gasped and nodded. "Ooh, yes! No one else wants to do those."

Artemis grinned, showing off the entire length of her sharpened canines.

Kate's grin widened as she opened her arms. "Get in here already."

Estella Fay hugged Kate, opening her arms for Artemis.

Artemis sighed and joined in.

Estella Fay giggled. "You're so wonderful, Kate!"

Kate gave a light squeeze to both of them before she pulled away also giggling. She looked bluer for some reason as she smiled widely at both of them. "No you're the wonderful ones!'

Estella Fay's face turned bright red. She didn't expect Kate to turn it on her!

Artemis crossed her arms. "Oh, now someone agrees with me regarding you, Estella Fay. Now you cannot escape."

Kate smirked. "Oh does this one refuse to accept how she wonderful she is?"

Estella Fay stepped back. "Wait."

Artemis sighs. "¡Si! She always pretends that she's anything but."

"Oh not on my watch," said Kate." I promise you that."

Artemis grinned even wider. "Oh, we shall do wonders together."

Estella Fay groaned, covering her face. "Why, Artemis?"

Kate smirked. "We shall." She promtly leaped towards Estella Fay, lifting her up into the air. She did a little twirl. "Come on, first things first. We are keeping the beautiful smile on full time."

Estella Fay shrieked. "Kate!" She grabbed Kate's shoulders in a panic.

Kate set her down gently, smiling.

Estella Fay looked down at Kate, still wildly blushing. "You're both going to be the end of me."

Artemis shrugged. "She's been saying that for two years now. Don't believe her."

Kate giggled before she winked at Estella Fay. "You're going to go down smiling. There are worse ways to die."

Estella Fay whined. "Perhaps! But that's not the point."

"Don't worry about it sweetheart," said Kate, reaching up to pat her on the shoulder.

If Estella Fay could blush anymore, they'd start smoking like a subterra in winter. "That's cruel and unusual punishment."

"Oh but you love it," said Kate, with another wink.

Estella Fay let out a strangled cry.

Artemis, her best friend and Judas, only laughed. "Pobrecita."

"Alright enough chit chat, let's get back to work," said Kate. She turned to face Estella Fay. "And I want to see a smile on your face the entire time, young lady."

Estella Fay sheepishly smiled, very unused to all of the attention. "Fine."

"Good," said Kate, wheeling onto Artemis. "You're not escaping any of the hugs either. But for now, do you notice anything odd in the area."

Artemis carefully sniffed the air. "Nothing here. Just the tang of arsenic and face powder."

Kate sniffed the air. "That is the exact combination of smells. Hmm, I guess we keep looking. I hope James doesn't go near whatever is causing this arsenic. He's not going to make it if he does."

"It's a popular dye." Estella Fay wrinkled her nose. "My governess used it in her evening gown."

Artemis gagged. "Don't remind me."

Kate grimaced. "That is...poison to quite a lot of beings, literally. Wow."

Estella Fay sighed. "And everyone knows that. And yet-" She gestured towards the people. "Everyone wearing green is using it."

Kate let out a sigh. "Humans...you can't love 'em. You can't hate 'em."

Artemis sighed. "I know plenty of people who do hate them."

Estella Fay frowned, placing a gentle hand on Artemis's shoulder.

"Some of them suck quite terribly," said Kate, with a nod. "But then you can't let a few bad eggs define a species, well a few million bad egs sometimes."

"Misters are quite nice." Estella Fay gently smiled again. "Though, most humans tend not to put them in the human category."

"A lot of humans have the unfortunate habit of not recognize parts of their own species sometimes," said Kate, with a sigh. She smiled. "But the humans that stick with you, usually always will."

Estella Fay nodded. "Just look at Malvis. Don't tell her I said this, but..." She took a deep breath. "She did something really dangerous for us. She suffered for it, but she never hesitated."

Kate nodded. "That's a good person for you."

Estella Fay nodded. "I'm sorry for how your first meeting with her went. You all deserved a better first impression."

Kate waved it aside. "That was a great first impression. We're only sorry we weren't more sensitive."

Estella Fay frowned again. Kate said that now, but was preventing her from being upset about it later? "Well, I still apologize."

"I still don't think you need to, but I will accept it," said Kate. "If you accept our apology."

Estella Fay only frowned harder, shaking her hands in denial. "No! That's not necessary. We assumed a lot of harmful things."

"Which was completely our fault, sweetie, don't take the blame," said Kate.

Estella Fay shook her head. "No. No, it wasn't."

"Vankous was the one almost openly insulting everyone, and we weren't doing much better by not realizing how insensitive we were being," said Kate. "It is our fault. Artemis, back me up here. Tell her how horrible we were."

Artemis sighed. "She's right."

Estella Fay flushed. "Maybe, but-"

"Estella Fay." Artemis marched up to her, always managing to be so much more intimidating than her with those yellow eyes in a hard glare. "You know what Lords have done to us both. Don't pretend those titles didn't hurt you too."

Estella Fay shook her head. "Stop it."

Kate walked up to her, putting a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Sweetie, you don't have to lie. Its okay to tell people they hurt you. I know you don't know me at all so you can't really trust me, but good people, they knew when to admit they are wrong and telling them when they're wrong is only going to make them like you more. And if they don't, well then that person is just not worth hanging about with, and you should still tell them they're wrong. You should always be the person you care about first, or at the very least don't please others at your expense."

Estella Fay shook them both off. "We need to keep going. We're supposed to be finding things that are out of the ordinary." She walked past both of them, feeling her posture worsen.

There was a little sigh from behind her. She heard Kate ask something. It sounded like "...she....like...this"

Artemis responded with a simple, "Yes."

Estella Fay turned around. "What are you two talking about?"

"This wonderful girl I met the other day," supplied Kate immediately.

Artemis snickered.

Estella Fay sighed. "Is she going to help us find this time-travelling assassin?"

"Possibly," said Kate. "Who knows...well I technically do, but I don't."

Estella Fay sighed. "Well, I am, so can we just go, please?"

Kate nodded. 'You're not off the hook just yet young lady. I'll let it slide for now."

"I don't know what that means."

"Good, I'll explain that later too," said Kate.

Estella Fay sighed for the third time in just two minutes.

Artemis sniffed the air. "Where did Ray, Stean, and Cyra explore?"

"I believe I told them to go in the exact opposite direction we did. I hope Cyra guided them that way. Something tells me Cyra is our resident badass who doesn't listen to any orders."

Estella Fay cringed, still very unused to hearing curse words. Even with Cyra around. "You would be... correct."

Artemis sniffed the air again. "Cyra isn't around. I don't smell copper. Just that bitterness, but no sulfur. And it's younger than James, so not Ray."

Kate scanned the area in a circle."Yeah their magical signatures are nowhere near, definitely no Ray or Stean." She frowned. "Do you think?"

Artemis stepped forward. "It's that bitter smell and-" She sneezed. "Ugh, cologne? Really strong cologne."

Kate fronwed, sniffing the air. "Oh dear, that is baad. That's 24th century. You can't make a concotion that vile without a cocktail of chemical."

Artemis sneezed again. "Why would you do that to yourselves?"

"I've lived with these humans for well over a million years," said Kate. 'I still don't know the answer to that question. I gave up trying."

Artemis wiped her nose. "Well, I'll lead you to them. It won't be hard."

"I can get you a nose plug," said Kate, "I can track the scent. I don't want you to catch some sort of disease out here."

"It's not a disease. It's a matter of I can smell everything within one mile of here. And sometimes, that's too much to handle." Artemis groaned. "Why would an assassin make themself so easy to smell coming?"

Estella Fay blinked, looking between the two of them. "I don't smell anything. So, I don't think they were expecting you two."

Kate nodded to Estella Fay. "Yup. Amateurs never do their homework on local species sometimes and well...no one ever accounts for me. Not that its their fault."

She turned to Artemis. "Yeah I mean you don't have to subject yourself to it. I can do it. I've smelled this perfume enough to survive it."

Artemis sighed. "I would agree, but it's complicated. For me, blocking out my sense of smell would be like you putting on a blindfold because the sun's really bright."

"Well, what I'm suggestion is more like sunglasses," said Kate. "It wouldn't block it out completely."

"I don't know what those are." Artemis frowned. "But if I can still smell what I need to, then yes. I accept your help to not suffer."

"Oh my, I keep forgetting this year. Its sort of like a shield of sorts for your eyes that makes the sun look much dimmer but you can still see everything," said Kate.

Estella Fay gasped. "You can do that in the future?"

"Oh yes," said Kate. She tapped the side of her head, right above the eye. There was a blur of motion and a blue shield covered her eyes. "These ones are mine. Although I mostly use them because my eye color is a little intimidating to people sometimes."

Estella Fay and Artemis both jumped back when the shield appeared. Estella Fay's mouth fell open in a perfect 'o' shape. "Isn't everything sort of blue, though?"

"Blue is my favorite color, well dark cyan," said Kate. "It makes everything look better."

"Blue is my favorite color too!" Estella Fay gestured to her dress, grinning.

"Team blue for the win," said Kate, doing a little cheer. "I always knew you were the best."

Artemis frowned. "Now I just feel out of place."

"I can change the color of whatever you're wearing to blue if you really want to," said Kate.

Artemis shook her head. "No! No, I like it how it is."

"Suit yourself," said Kate. "She tapped another part of her body, this time on the top left of her dress. She fiddle around with something before producing two small round objects." She held them out to Artemis. "Here's the nose plug." She turned to Estella Fay. "You want to try the glasses on?"

Estella Fay shrugged. "Light doesn't bother me, and it might make things... harder for me." She tugged on her gloves. "But I do want to try them on, yes."

"They should adapt to your needs if something goes wrong, they are very smart," said Kate. She pulled them off and handed them to Estella Fay.

Estella Fay gingerly took them and put them on. Everything became slightly blue, like staring through one of Cyra's stained glass bottles. "Woah..."

"Double tap the side," said Kate. "It gets better."

Estella Fay did so. A gas lamp in the distance got bigger until it looked like it was right in front of her. She stumbled backwards. "Did they just move me?"

"No, they umm make things far away look closer," said Kate.

"Oh." Estella Fay double-tapped the side again, and they went back to normal. "Woah, that's a little... disorientating."

"It takes some getting used to. Its easy for me cause my eyes normally do that anyway," said Kate.

"Your eyes can do that?" Estella Fay took off the glasses and handed them back to Kate. "My eyes have their own special ability, but nothing like that."

"My eyes can do a little too much sometimes," said Kate, putting the glasses back on and tapping someting on the side of her head to retract them. "Its a curse as much as its a blessing."

Artemis hummed. "It sounds so."

Kate shrugged. "How's the nose?"

Artemis hummed, sounding a little nasaly. "Better, thank you."

"Great," said Kate. "So onward we march towards this disgusting perfome. Let's hope its not Vankous having spilled something."

Artemis hummed. "I don't think it's him. Too young of a secent."

"Yeah," said Kate. "Just kidding. That man's magic is like a homing beacon. You can spot him from a hundred miles way."

Artemis paused before nodding. "I can't vouch for 100 miles, but he's defiently that way." She pointed to the east.

Kate nodded. "Shall we then?"

Estella Fay nodded. "Let's go save our world!"

"First time?" asked Kate.

Estella Fay shook her hand. "Depends on how you define it."

"Makes sense. Okay, let's roll."

Estella Fay nodded. "Yes!"

Kate smiled widely at her. "Do we walk or..." She paused. "Fly."

"Flying is..." Estella Fay picked at a loose thread on her gloves. "...illegal."

Kate frowned for a second before she broke out into a grin again. "What if... no one could see us?"

Estella Fay looked around. "I feel like people would see us."

"People would see us."

"Not if we're invisible."

Both Estella Fay and Artemis gasped. "You can turn us invisible?"

Kate shrugged, like they were both supposed to know that already.

The two laugh with each other, Estella Fay bouncing on her toes.

"So is that a yes?" asked Kate, hope lacing her voice.

"Yes!" Estella Fay pratically leaped into the air.

"Perfect, come a little bit closer then."

The two girls came closer to Kate, both of them grinning.

"This is going to feel a little like you're being dipped in ice water and you'll go blind for like half a second. Are you okay with that?"

Estella Fay nodded.

"Not the worwt transformation I go through." Artemis shrugged. "I can handle it."

Kate frowned a little at that but she nodded. "Then we're a go for the invisibility?"

Both of them nodded.

Kate smiled, before she snapped her fingers, muttering a command wand in a language they didn't recognize. There was a little blue shimmer at her fingertips and then it spread to their bodies.

Estella Fay stumbled back a little, the blue coating her entirely "Woah..."

"Let the magic do its work," said Kate, smiling brightly.

Estella Fay nodded. "Okay."

Kate smiled again. "It should only take a second. And then we can go."

Artemis hummed. "I can still smell you two, but you'r fading from view... fascinating."

Kate smiled proudly. "Its working."

Estella Fay giggled. "I get to fly over the city again!"

"Yes you do."

"I haven't done that since-!" Estella Fay frowned. "Since... never mind."

Kate frowned again. "Well then. I think we can get going."

Estella Fay nodded, far less happier than before. "Yeah."

"Darling, you okay there?"

Estella Fay's face snapped toward the direction of Kste's voice. "Darling?"

Kate looked a little blue as she shrugged.

Estella Fay turned bright red. "I'm, uh, okay."

"Are you sure?" Kate walked a little closer.

"What are you doing?"

"You look a lot less enthusiastic all of a sudden. I'm a little worried," said Kate, raising her hands. "Sorry."

"You don't have to say sorry." Estella Fay smiled. "It's really nothing important."

Artemis growled. "You know I hate it when you call that unimportant."

Kate nodded. "You shouldn't do that. Artemis is right."

Estella Fay spluttered. "Well!"

"Don't say it's true because it's not." Artemis crossed her arms.

Estella Fay's posture wilted. "But it is! It's fine! Everything's fine."

Kate turned to Artemis. "Do we handle this or do we go? We can wait as long as we need to."

Artemis sighed. "What color is the sky, Estella Fay?"

She sighed. "It's... light purple, like that last breaths of dusk."

Artemis nodded. "We move on for now, and come back later."

"Okay then. Artemis. How do you feel about being carried?"

"If you're strong enough, go ahead." Artemis shrugged.

Kate chuckled. "I could juggle your house like its a peanut, sweetie. I can lift you."

"Then we're all good." Artemis grinned.

Kate opened her arms. "Hop on."

Artemis walked over. "How do you want me to do this?"

Kate shrugged. "Take your pick. The five year old way. The newlywed way. Up to you."

Artemis blinked. "I don't know what you mean by either of those."

"Just jump sweetie."

Artemis jumped.

Kate gently caught her, holding her sideways, cradled to her chest. She smiled down at Artemis, winking. "This is what we call a bridal carry."

Artemis froze before nodding very quickly.

Kate beamed before turning towards Estella Fay. "Ready, darling?"

Estella Fay nodded. "Off we go."

Kate flapped her wings powerfully, lifting them steadily but speedily into the sky.

Estella Fay followed suit, launching herself into the air.

"And now we fly," said Kate. "If I go higher than you're comfortable with, please let me know."

"I will, I will!"

With that they were off, hurtling through the air.

Estella Fay had practiced plenty in the woods, so she was fast and spry. Every so often she would do a small loop, giggling to herself.

Kate, a little higher up than her was flying with a lot less twirling and spinning, keeping a steady path, although the grin on her face was identical.

Artemis smiled softly. "She doesn't get to do this often."

"I can imagine," whispered Kate.

Artemis sighed. "She's beautiful like this. A true angel."

"Yes she is," whispered Kate.

"Some days I don't believe that she's only half."

Kate smiled broadly. "I can imagine why."

Estella Fay, completely oblivious to their conversation waved at them, closing her eyes as she grinned even wider.

Kate returned the wave, grinning back just as wide at her.

Artemis waved too, smiling just enough that the sharp points of her teeth come out again.

"I apologize if this is too forward of me," said Kate, a hint of hesitation in her voice. "But you mentioned an uncomfortable transformation. Are you by any chance some sort of werewolf?"

"Werewolf?" Artemis cocked her head to the side, saying the word like she was unfamilar with it.

"Uhh...." said Kate, trailing off a little. "As in you transfrom into a wolf every full moon outside of your control and have other wolfish traits following you at other times."

Artemis hummed. "That sounds like a very complicated igni. That's what I am. A grey wolf igni. Every night, regardless of the moon, I turn into a wolf."

"Ohh... on the contrary, that sounds more complicated," said Kate. "To me." She chuckled. "You live for billions of years and you still have room to learn something. But hmm... so. Is this voluntary or not?"

"No.' Artemis frowned. "But it's not voluntary in the way that breathing isn't voluntary. I was born this way. My mother is an igni. My sister is an igni. My best friend is an igni, a different kind, though. I turn into a wolf when the sun goes down in the same way that Estella Fay has wings. It is a part of me."

Kate nodded. "That could've been worse I suppose. Do you... do you enjoy being a wolf, of course you said the transformation was uncomfortable but the form itself?"

"It has it's up and downs. I can't exactly talk, which makes things hard. But, I'm also faster, stronger, better equipped to handle my senses." Artemis smiled. "I do enjoy it. I couldn't imagine myself without it. Changing that about me would be like... ripping a piece of my heart out."

Kate seemed to consider something of her own, a little lost in thought before she finally replied. "That's a beautiful way to think about it."

Artemis smiled a little wider. "I just hope my transforming doesn't... bother you. It can be a little scary to see for the first time."

Kate chuckled at that. "I've looked in a mirror."

Artemis blinked. "¿Qué?"

Kate smiled wider. "Right you wouldn't have heard the legends."

"What legends?" Artemis looked just like a confused puppy, wide eyes and all.

"Have you ever heard of the Princess of the Darkness?"

Artemis shook her head. "No."

"The Darkness?" asked Kate.

"Darkness as in not light? ¿Oscuridad?"

Kate nodded. "Sort of. Darkness as in just darkness. But also Darkness as in with a capital D."

Artemis shook her head. "Not the second one."

Kate let out a small sigh. "Maybe its best you never hear of... them. They aren't a pretty sight."

Artemis sat up slightly, tugging down her shirt until they revealed their shoulder.

What was visible was covered in a thick burn scar, only about one year old. It was obviously from third degree burns.

"You don't need to tell me about pretty sights."

Kate's smile softened. "There's always something worse sweetie."

"I'm sorry, but I doubt it." Artemis looked away from Kate. "Nosotros perdimos... todo."

The arms around Artemis tightened ever so slightly. "Sadly the best of us sometimes have the worst time. But I can promise that evil never wins in the end, although I know the cost is often... great."

"I don't care." Artemis's face hardened. "I won't let it win. A cada cerdo le llega su San Martín."

"That's the spirit, sweetie," Kate's smile was even softer now even as her eyes seemed to be lost in some thought. "It's the one way to survive when no one wants you to."

"I know." Artemis sighs. "Believe me, I know. Estella Fay knows, Malvis knows. We all know."

"Then you've all already won half the battle."

"Now for the other half. The much, much harder half."

Kate nodded solemnly.

'But I believe in us." Artemis nodded. "I refuse to think that we can't."

"Of course you can, sweetie," said Kate. "Take it from me. I know it means very little to you now, but perhaps someday when we meet again."

"You think we'll meet again?"

"Unless you don't want that to happen, most likely we will."

"I do." Artemis glanced over at Estella Fay. "I'm sure she does too."

Kate smiled. "Then we will. Perhaps during better times under better circumstances."

"That would be nice."

Kate smiled wider. "I'll put it on my calenders.'

Artemis grinned. "I'll watch for your arrival date in the stars."

"I can leave it in the stars if you want."

Artemis gasped. "Could you really?"

"Of course."

"Is there anything you can't do?"

"A few," said Kate. There was an odd sadness to her voice as she said it.

"Oh. Lo siento." Artemis lowered her head.

"Don't be sweetie. I've had more years than the hairs on your head to come to terms with it."

"But that was a... a insensible thing to ask."

"No it was a perfectly natural thing to ask, sweetie. Don't worry about it."

Artemis nodded. "Okay."

Kate beamed again. "We're getting close now."

Artemis wrinkled her nose. "I can tell."

Kate smirked. "This will be fun."

Artemis grinned. "Let's see how long he lasts."

"The only chance he has of winning is through that atrocious smell."

"Let's not give him the satisfication."

"We won't," said Kate.

"Bueno." Artemis inspected her nails. "Let's go, then."

"We can start descending quite soon."

Artemis looked at the ground. "When well the- the-" She furrowed her eyebrows "-invisibilidad fade?"

Kate shook her head. "Never. Not unless I want it to. Or I die. That last one is very unlikely."

"I certainly hope so."

"That's nice of you sweetie. Now when do you want us to lose the invisibilit?"

Artemis shrugged. "We want it off when we talk to him, I assume."

"Pretty much. We can do a bit of scouting first of course."

"What are we looking for?"

"Just a few things. What they've done upto this point. Where and when exactly have they come from. Simple stuff. Mostly for paperwork filling purposes really."

Artemis nodded. "He smells slightly less bitter than you, but there's something that crackles about him. Like Vankous but... younger."

"Glad to know I smell at least a little better," said Kate with a chuckle. "And well." Kate sniffed the air. "Could be a young magic user. Or it could just be equally bad taste in cologne. We'll find out."

"Not cologne." Artemis inhaled again. "Cologne tends to be a shallower scent. This one is solid, permenant."

"Makes sense," said Kate."That was mostly a joke really." She laughed. "This will be an interesting character."

Artemis nodded. "Yes he will be."

Kate smirked. "Well I think its time we descended perhaps."

Artemos grinnned. "Back to Earth." She waved on Estella and ppointed towards the ground. Estella Fay grinned and nodded in approval.

"Are you ready for a little dive, sweetie?"

"I can handle a dive."

"Hold on then," said Kate. She angled her wings closer to her body and then they were hurtling down towards the Earth.

Estella Fay landed fist because of her proximity. She shook out her wings, the light dancing off of them in gorgerous rays of white and yellow.

Kate dived almost all the way to the floor before a couple of feet off the ground, she flared out wings out doing a full spin in the air before landing solidly on her feet, Artemis cradled tightly to her chest.

"We've landed."

Estella Fay grinned. "We have!"

Kate gently set Artemis down. "I hope that flight wasn't too bad."

Artemis found her footing very quickly. "It wasn't!"

"Thanks, sweetie." Kate turned to Estella Fay. "Did you enjoy your flight darling?"

Estella Fay shook her fist in pure joy. "Yes!"

"Wonderful," said Kate. "Alright then. Now we've got to get down to business."

Stean sighed. "There has to be a better way for this made by now."

Cyra snorted. "Oh, get over yourself. Isn't this your damn job?"

"Give it a rest Stean," chimed in Ray.

Cyra readjusted their top hat, glaring at every passer-by who gave them an odd glance. "So, what the hell are you two looking? Something odd just described half of the okayish people in this nightmare."

"There's odd and there's odd," said Ray. Stean rolled his eyes. No one was going to understand that.

"And then there's stupid, and then there's whatever the fuck that was." Someone made a disgusted noise at Cyra's word choice, but Cyra bluntly ignored it.

Ray huffed while Stean decided to take mercy on him. It'd be quicker that way for everyone involved.

"He means that there's a different type of odd when it comes to things that don't belong in this time period."

"Ah." Cyra nodded. "Inter-time trespassers."

"Precisely," said Ray.

Cyra hummed. "Understood. I can help with that."

Stean nodded. "Yup that is all we need."

"Good, good."

"So... what you have seen so far?" asked Ray.

"A lot of people who want me dead." Cyra shrugged. "So everything's pretty average."

Stean shrugged. If they counted the number of people that wanted them dead, their whole team wouldn't have much time to do anything else. "I see very few people who want me dead, and it's been surreal."

"Congratulations, then."

"Why thank you, kindly," said Stean.

Cyra tipped their top hat. "Of course."

Stean bowed in response. "Well, where to next, chief?"

Cyra glanced at Ray, waiting for his response.

"Got any ideas for where the really weird crowd hang out, Cyra?"

"Hang out?" Cyra shook their head. "Are you just making things up now?"

"No?" said Ray, looking confused.

This time Stean was also confused. "That's a very common word.

Cyra looked between the two of them. "I have no idea what the hell you mean."

"Ohhh," said Ray, said suddenly. "Right. That makes sense. I meant. Where do they spend their free time."

"Oh." Cyra shook their head. "What an odd way to say that. The suspicious crowd spends their time in The Mist, but no one's of out time there. Everyone would notice."

"Yeah that checks out," said Stean. "Do you know of any other spots?"

Cyra hummed. "The Underground is enough of a mess to hide odd stuff, but humans tend to be very easily noticeable."

"Let's try that perhaps," said Ray. "We need to look for places where someone from another time could hope to blend in without too much fuss. Most of them end up in there. Not everyone prepares well enough to blend in seamlessly to normal society.

Cyra paused. "The best place for humans to fit in without having to be societally acceptable is the factory district."

"Then we do that," said Ray.

Cyra nodded. "Let's go there, then."

"Lead the way, chief," said Stean, nodding to Cyra this time.

"Chief?" Cyra frowned.

"Don't tell me you don't know what that means either."

"I know what chief means!" Cyra cross their top two arms. "I just don't understand why you're calling me that."

"Its just how it's used," said Stean, shrugging. "You're leading us somewhere. You know more about the place. That makes its normal."

Cyra sighed. "Fine. Let's move along now."

Stean mumbled. "Most people would be happy to be called chief."

"Sure." Cyra took off down the street, gesturing for Ray and Stean to follow.

Ray and Stean exchanged a nod before following along.

Cyra expertly wove through the crowds of people, leading them down side streets, and busy roads.

Ray and Stean managed to keep pace, Stean thanking the refresher course on chasing in crowds.

Soon enough Cyra slowed down, gesturing forward to a serious of factories. "Greetings! Welcome to the factory district."

"Wonderful," said Ray. "Time to look for things again."

Cyra nodded. "Yes it is."

Stean groaned again. They really needed to invent some sort of temporal metal detector or something. This couldn't be just about looking around for things randomly. They'd been at this for too long.

Cyra seemed to get less stares in this part of town. Ray, however, seemed to earn his fair share of glares.

Stean did his best to scour the flour. That was always the first step. Look for anything out of place that someone might have dropped.

Cyra cleared their throat. "Hey! I find something odd here."

Stean looked up immediately. This could be his ticket to not be doing this anymore. "Ohh, what is it?" He ran over.

Cyra held up a small bronze disc. A penny. "This."

Stean frowned. "Isn't that just a penny?"

"No it isn't," said Ray coming up from the other side. "That's not one from anytime close to this. You can tell from the design."

"It says it was made in 2013."

"Oh that is very interesting," said Stean.

"Can I take a look?" Ray held out his hand.

Cyra placed the penny in Ray's hand.

Ray appraised it. "Yes, this is definitely not from this time. I..." He trailed off, lifting the coin to his eye for a closer examination. "I'm pretty sure this isn't some scam or prank by anyone here. The metalworking required to make such a coin would not have existed for at the very least a century to come. This one is legitimately a coin from the future and therefore a clue."

Stean let out a little chair. Finally they could stop this madness and actually follow on the trail of something instead of walking around looking like completely fools.

"So, future money, eh?" Cyra prodded it. "One would thing they'd pick something less fragile."

"Oh you don't know the half of it," said Stean. "This is coins, but this is very little value, they put all the real value in... get this... printed pieces of paper."

Cyra blinked. "Come again?"

"Paper is money in the future."

"In the future? When humans can apparently travel through fucking time?" Cyra shook his head. "Why?"

"To be honest, no one really knows," said Ray. "There's a whole host of reasons of course, but that's just the truth."

"Oh, lovely. Glad to see that the basis of life never changes." Cyra huffed. "So, first clue, I suppose."

"That is sadly a little too true," said Stean. "I'll never understand humans, even if I do always appreciate them."

"Well, hold your horses on that clue, I think I just found a lead here." Ray was looking excitedly at his finger.

"Neither will I." Cyra looked closer. "What is it?"

Ray held up a finger. It was a little blackened, but there was nothing that Stean could spot.

"Don't you see it?" he asked, sounding excited. Stean shook his head, confused.

"It's coal dust." Cyra frowned.

"Precisely," said Ray, looking very excited. Stean was just more confused.

"What on Earth does that have to do with anything?"

Cyra scowled. "That's not nearly as helpful as you think it is."

"Oh please, this is a lead," said Ray, rolling his eyes. "It means whoever came here visited the factories somehow. Maybe even decided to put their hideout there. I don't why one would chose such a place for it, but this is something to follow up on, a place to search. That's big."

"Every factory from here to Ireland uses coal. There are sixteen in this district alone." Cyra gestured towards the street. "All of them with hundreds of workers."

"Well we have our afternoon planned for us then," said Ray, smiling brightly just as Stean let out a prolonged groan. Just when he'd thought they'd narrow down their search area. At the very least they weren't going in one hundred percent blind to these spots. He was going to have to focus on the little things today.

Cyra rolled their eyes. "Sure. Sounds exhilarating."

"Detective work rarely is," said Ray.

Stean nodded. "That is too true."

Cyra looked between the two of them. "Do you not have sarcasm in the future?"

"Wed do, but its more fun to pretend like we don't." Stean said, smirking.

Cyra's eye twitched. "Of fucking course."

Stean chuckled. "Don't worry. You get used to it."

Cyra pointed to a nearby building. "This is the nearest factory. Do you want to start our search there?"

"Yeah, why not? It makes the most sense to start with the ones closest to this point anyway, given the owner of the penny probably didn't want to walk to terribly far."

Cyra swung their ax into their hands, grinning wildly. "Let's go then."

"Umm... " said Stean, exchanging a look with Ray. "Maybe without the axe swinging around so freely. We don't want to startle anyone."

"Look, those doors are usually nailed shut to prevent any workers from sneaking out." Cyra scowled. "Do you want to get in or not?"

"There are less... flashy ways to get in," said Stean. "Trust us."

"Does less flashy mean less effective and less fun?"

"On the contrary, its usually much more effective. The fun depends on who you're doing it with." said Ray.

"What is it, then?" Cyra rested their ax against their shoulder.

Well I can't tell you right now. We'd have to get close and see what sort of situation we're dealing with before we actually go ahead with the plan. We're not exactly familiar what the layout here is."

Cyra rolled their eyes again. "Let's go then."

"Lead the way, not a chief." Stean winked.

Cyra all but marched to the factory, pounding on the front door with a stone fist.

Stean gestured wildly in the negative. "No no. No. We don't want the entire factory to know we're coming. Is there a back entrance of some sort maybe?"

A slit in the door opened. "What?"

"Guard Shula reporting for a mandatory attendance check."

"Oh! Shula. I haven't seen in a month. I thought you finally cleaned up your act."

Cyra rolled their eyes. "Did you not hear the mandatory part? That means now."

"Yes, yes. I know." The sound of deadbolts unlocking filled the air. Cyra turned towards Stean and Ray, celebratory smirk on their face.

"Or we could do that," said Stean and Ray, nodding like that was fully something they understand. Well Ray nodded convincingly. Stean was pretty sure he just looked slightly deranged.

The door opened and a British guard stared at the trio. "Where the hell is your uniform, Shula?"

"I heard somebody burned it." Cyra shrugged. "You know the guards just love me."

"And who are those two?"

"Guards in training. Forgive their silence." Cyra leaned in. "They're skittish."

Stean exchanged a look with Ray. They both nodded again.

The British guard ushered them in. "Try not to get trampled. They're antsy today."

"We won't." Cyra waved dismissively. "Let us in."

The British guard walked up to the next door and unbolted it: three deadbolts in total.

Stean followed, Ray close behind him.

As soon as the door opened, Cyra practically sprinted through.

Stean and Ray exchanged yet another nod before following suit immediately.

As soon as the guard shut the door behind them, Cyra turn back around. "Fucking bastard. He's lucky I can't rip him in half."

"That does sound lucky for him, " said Ray, with a nod.

"'Oh, I thought you cleaned up your act' and here I thought you stopped being a foot-licking disappoint, so I guess we were both wrong." Cyra shook his head.

Stean and Ray exchanged another nod before nodding along.

"Why do you keep doing that?" Cyra scowled. "It looks suspicious as hell."

"It does?" asked Stean.

"It does," agreed Ray. "Well from now on its going to have to be other things."

"I love how you two avoided my question. Doesn't make me want to behead you at all."

Stean could not tell if that was a joke or a threat. He chose to think of it as both. "Its a thing we do." Better safe than sorry.

"Not what I asked."

"I'm sorry?" asked Stean, now mildly confused.

"I asked why you did it, not what it was." Cyra scoffed. "Do why and what switch places in the future?"

"No... but the answer to both those questions are the same."

Cyra groaned. "You're both just like Malvis. Let's just go already."

"I'll take that as a compliment," said Stean. Ray nodded.

"You don't even know her that well. For all you know, she could be burning down orphanages in her spare time."

"She doesn't seem the type," said Stean, with a shrug. "If she does do that, kudos to her. That is some great acting."

Cyra groaned even louder that time.

Stean tried a winning smile. It worked on most people.

Cyra was not most people, considering his scowl only grew. "Come on, let's search for Bastard Lane in here."

"Okay, not a chief. Lead the way."

Cyra made a beeline for the other end of the factory, easily dodging past workers with surprising grace considering faer hulking size and skin make up.

Stean was once again graceful for that class as he did his best to follow them.

Cyra stopped in front of a steel door. "If anyone's going to hide in a factory, it's going to be in here."

"Well then let's find out," said Ray.

Cyra opened the steel door to reveal... a bunch of stairs.

"So do we go up or, look under or is there a secret entrance?"

"We go up to the factory catwalks." Cyra grinned. "Very few people are insane enough to walk on those rusted things."

"Oh lovely," said Stean with a genuine smile. He loved catwalks.

Cyra started up the stairs, each step groaning terribly under the weight.

Ray followed after them, Stean bringing up the rear.

"If these things give out, try not to die."

"I wouldn't worry about us dying," said Stean.

"Good. I'd like not to get immediately executed."

"We all would," said Stean.

"So for the sake of common interest, don't die."

"I wouldn't put it that way, but." Stean shrugged.

"Hey, it works."

"It does."

With that, the trio reached the top of the stairs. "Moment of truth."

Ray nodded.

Cyra opened the door to the catwalk.

Stean peered into the space.

There was nothing there.

"Well that's disappointing," said Ray.

Cyra scowled. "Very."

"We might as well check it a little bit more carefully however," said Ray.

"Yeah its possible someone is here, but they just aren't here for the moment."

Cyra shrugged. "Lead the way, then."

"Stean?" said Ray, with a quick gesture.

He rolled his eyes. "Very well." Stean managed to squeeze past the two in front of him and stepped through the door, being as careful as he could.

Cyra inspected the railings. "I don't think all three of use should walk on this bastard."

"Good observation," said Stean with a nod.

"Well then, go forth and be our eyes." Cyra waved him forward.

"Of. Give the Notpyrkian the dangerous job, why not?" Stean rolled his eyes before smirking to show that he wasn't actually offended.

"I have no idea what that fucking is. And I don't think you want the person made of literal stone on the dying metal."

"Yeah that makes sense. You give it to the person who wouldn't die falling from insanely high."

"Yes, yes. Now go."

"Sheesh." said Stean. "Give it a rest." He shook his head, before turning back towards the dangerously rusted catwalk.

"I'll give it a rest when you take more than a toddler's step forward."

Stean didn't bother dignifying that with a response, choosing instead to just step forward and onto the catwalk. How badly could this go?

The catwalk groaned under the weight, like Vankous whenever someone failed to acknowledge how awesome he was in the last five minutes.

From what Stean could make out, there didn't look to be anything to suggest that a living being had been in here for a while. He was pretty sure not even something dead had passed through this place in recent times.

"Anything worth noticing, catwalk boy?"

Stean shook his head from his place halfway down the catwalk. "I think this one's a bust."

"I'm assuming that means a complete waste of time."

"Correct." Stean turned back towards the door.

Cyra sarcastically waved their hands. "How dandy!"

Stean rolled his eyes, as headed back to the door and stepped onto the slightly safer stairs.

"So, the next factory then?"

"That's the logical next move," supplied Ray.

"Let's go then."

"Lead the way, not a chief."

"Is that just my new name now?"

"We all need nicknames for when the time arises. That's going to be yours unless you have a better one."

Cyra snorted. "You want nicknames? Ask Malvis or Saturn. They'll get you nicknames."

"We already have nicknames," said Ray. "And if you're not coming up with one, then that will be yours."

"Let's see." Cyra hummed. "I've been called every variation of rock under the sun. Various versions of "what the fuck." Oh, and my personal favorite, demon from hell."

'Yeah, none of those are going to work," said Ray, very seriously. Stean rolled his eyes. That time Ray was actually missing the sarcasm. This would be much more entertaining.

"Aww, why not? They'll help you fit right in." Cyra laughed. "London just hates its subterras, so if you want to blend in properly, you need to learn a thing or two."

"I'm not calling anyone either of these thing, especially not the last one. Demons look absolutely nothing like you and Jason will have my head."

Cyra nodded. "We also have the 'woman-friendly'-" They used air quotes for that. "-ones. Like scoundrel, criminal, and every petty insult you can think of."

"Fine, if you like being called dumbass or something, you just have to ask," said Stean.

"Malvis beat you to that one." Cyra shrugged. "You'll have to fight with her on that."

"Well she's not here right now, is she?"

"She might be." Cyra shook their finger. "Rule one about Malvis, she can look like anyone and be anywhere."

"Rule one about us." said Ray. "We'd know if Chud was nearby and she's with him, so we'd know she's here. Or if she ran away, we'd get a message about that too."

"Maybe she can duplicate herself. Have you ever thought about that?"

"Everyone except Vankous did read the mission brief you know."

"Am I supposed to know what that means?"

"Yes."

Cyra scowled. "Well, someone forgot to send a letter about it."

Ray sighed. "Well basically what that means is we know everything there is to know about the lot of you. Besides Vankous. I mean he could read your minds and find out if he wanted to, but he'd never do that so. There's that."

"Everything about me?" They smirked. "What's my surname, then?"

"As if even you know that."

"Oh, I know it." Cyra leaned against a wall. "The question is if you do."

Stean decided to take a gamble. They had never actually seen a surname in the records they'd accessed.

"You don't have one."

Cyra paused. "Well I'll be damned. I didn't expect you to get that one."

"Truth be told, neither did I."

Cyra sighed. "So I can't expect a repeat and have you guess which one of the team actually does have a surname?"

"Well its not like that exactly," said Stean. "See your public record has no surname for you, so I guessed that you didn't. If anyone else surname appears anywhere in a public place, we would know it. Otherwise no."

"Defiently not, then." Cyra nodded.

"Well not quite. We could call Kate or Vankous, well mostly Kate. She can read your birth details."

"That's take all of the fun out of guessing."

"Fair."

Cyra sighed. "Okay, we should really move on."

"Well lead the way dumbass."

Cyra rolled their eyes and started down the stairs.

Ray followed him as Stean took up the rear once again.

Soon enough, Cyra had weaved through the workers again and stopped at the door. "Fantastic. Someone already took mandatory attendance. No work for me." They banged on the door again, making a nearby worker flinch.

Ray and Stean nodded along like they knew what that was about. Well they sort of did, but not really.

The door opened again. "Took you long enough, Shula. I thought I was about to have to drag you out kicking and screaming."

Cyra scowled. "Well, it's done now."

The British guard moved out of the way and let them pass through.

Ray walked past, head down. Stean took the chance to discretely put his tongue out when the guard wasn't looking.

"Clean up your act, Shula. Or soon it's the river for you, and not just guard duty." The guard shook his head. "Grow up."

Cyra clenched their fist and stormed out as soon as they were able to.

Stean frowned at that interaction. Maybe they hadn't tried hard enough to convince Kate that they should stop this.

Cyra shouted. Their face was twisted into a dangerous mix of snarl and sneer.

"You okay there?"

"Oh, yes, of course. Just fine and dandy. I love receiving death threats from a man that can't lift up a fucking carraige wheel without buckling at the knees and not being able to put him in his place." Cyra was shaking now. "One of my favorite things in the morning."

Stean put a hand on his shoulder. "Sometimes you have to take a few of those so that everyone can stop hearing death threats. It's never easy, and heck it never gets easier, but you have no choice sometimes."

"You think I don't fucking know that?" Cyra shook their head. "I didn't spare him because I can't kill him. I spared him because if I don't every subterra from here to Portsmouth is going to feel the consequences. You don't have to tell me anything about taking shit from others."

Stean removed his hand immediately, raising them. "Cool."

Cyra growled. "Let's-"

Thunder rolled across the sky, causing Cyra to physically jump back under the ledge. "What the fuck?"

"Its either the weather... or Vankous just discovered a clue. Its hard to tell the difference," said Stean, moving to grab his umbrella. Ray was already tapping his suit, producing a long thin piece of metal.

Cyra blinked. "Vankou can just-" They gestured at the sky.

"Yeah, so can Kate, but she wouldn't just randomly do that. At least you think so." Stean shrugged.

Cyra scowled. "Bastards."

"Vankous is," said Stean, nodding as he unfurled his umbrella. Ray did the same. "But Kate really isn't. So don't call her that."

"Fine." Cyra all but dove under their umbrellas.

Stean, pressed a button on the stem of his umbrella, expanding it out to be much large. "There you go."

Cyra nodded. "Uh, thanks."

"Don't mention it," said Stean, with another pat on her shoulder. "Lead the way dumbass."

"Yeah, of course." Cyra gestured forward. "Next factory, then?"

"Yes," said Ray from up ahead. "Next closest to the spot with the penny."

"That would be that one, then." Cyra frowned. "Not in my jurisdiction, so we need a new way in."

"I ask you once again," said Stean. "Is there a back entrance?"

Cyra shook their head. "Factories are built like fortresses. One way in, one way out. To prevent rioting."

"Are there any vents?"

Cyra laughed. "What, the fancy holes rich people cut in their dining rooms? No."

Ray sighed. "A pipe to let air in and out."

"There's a chimney."

"That works."

Cyra blinked. "Wait, what?"

"There's our entrance." Stean frowned. How was that not the obvious solution?

"How do you plan on climbing a three story building that has no windows?"

"Jumping," said Stean. He exchanged a look with Ray. How does one not think of that? Ray did not return the look.

"You can jump three stories high?"

"No," said Stean. "I can jump roughly 200... give or take ten depending on running start versus no running start."

"And you were going to say this when?"

"When it became relevant?" said Stean. "Next you're going to ask me why I didn't talk about the superheated blasts of energy I can shoot with my eyes." He chuckled.

"I wasn't until you said that."

Stean shrugged. "So let's get going then shall we?"

Cyra blinked. "One problem. I cannot jump two hundred stories."

"I'll carry you. Obviously. I'll have to do that to Ray too. He can't use his flightsuit in this century."

Cyra blinked. "Three more problems. One, everyone's going to see you. Two, me and you cannot fit through the chimney. And three, I am made of solid stone."

"Okay first of all. I didn't think of that, good point. I'll look into some way to camouflage or worse comes to worse we can call Vankous. Second problem. We'll figure that out when we get to the top. Third one... that's... how is that a problem. Good to know, but also...why is that relevant?"

"Are you telling me that you can lift something equivalent to a boulder and still jump that high?"

"Probably not two hundred stories. But three stories. Won't even break a sweat."

Cyra shook their head. "Of course. Should've expected that."

Stean rolled his eyes. "Talk about the obvious. Well then. Any more problems you have for us?"

"If you get Vankous here will he make it stop fucking raining?"

"If he was the cause of it, and you ask nicely, no. If you threaten him, still probably no. If we threaten to tell Kate about it, there's a good chance he will, yes."

Cyra scowled. "Of fucking course."

"We did tell you he was a bastard," added Ray.

"You did."

"So can we go now?"

"Have you found a way to make sure that no one sees us?"

"No. We have to go there and see if there's something we can do. If not...well... we have to call Vankous."

"Okay. Let's see if that's necessary."

"Let's hope it isn't," said Ray, with a little shudder.

Cyra glanced up at Stean's umbrella, scowl turning a little more bitter.

"So?" Stean gestured in front of them.

Cyra nodded and started walking forward.

Stean followed along, holding the umbrella, Ray bringing up the rear this time.

A deep look of relief seemed to cross Cyra's face, but they didn't say anything as they arrived ath the base of the factory.

"We'll need to take a little tour around it," said Stean.

"You'd make a lovely tour guide."

"I was one... for like two months."

Cyra snorted. "Oh really?"

"Yes, really."

"How was it? That worst two months of your life?"

"Well I was tasked with befriending this serial killer while posing as a tour guide, so it was very cool, but I can't say they were the best months. Not the worst though. When you live as long as I have, you acquire a lot of bad months."

"That sounds... like a terribly complicated way of doing things."

"It was either that or watch two entire worlds crumble into nothing as a result of a horrifying century long war."

"Oh."

"So yeah."

Cyra cleared their throat, inspecting the walls of the factory. "So what are we looking for?"

"Anything that can cover us a little while we're doing the jump."

"Our best chance is an alleyway." Cyra shoved their hands in their pockets. "Use the buildings as cover."

"Hmm...that would work. How busy are those alleyways at this time of day?" asked Ray.

"Daytime? Not busy." Cyra looked slightly to the left, like they were struggling to remember something. "They should be deep enough that we're not practically on the street."

"That should be good enough then. Let's go for it."

Cyra's eyes stayed slightly to the left, scowl softening into a simple frown.

"So... lead the way?"

Cyra shook her head. "Right. This way." They walked around the factory.

"Thank you."

Cyra gave him a simple nod as a response and led them into an alleyway. Like he said, it was deep enough that the end was sort of shadowy, even in the hazy sunlight.

"This seems reasonable," said Ray.

"Good. Alleyways." Cyra kicked a nearby wall. "A criminal's best friend."

Stean chuckled. "Correction. Anyone who needs some privacy's best friend. Okay that is way wordier than I thought it would be."

Cyra was back to scowling again as they scanned the alleyway. "This is claimed territory. We should move quickly if you want to be stealthy about this."

"We can work with that. We just need to hug for a bit, especially if all three of us want to go up all at once, so is everyone ready?"

"Oh. Hugging." Cyra groaned. "Of course."

"Yup," said Stean, rolling his eyes. "Come on. Its just a little hug for a very short amount of time. You're not going to catch a disease."

Cyra looked between the two of them before getting in hugging range like a man walking to the gallows.

Stean pulled them against his side, with another eye roll. He opened his other arm. Ray moved closer, just about avoiding their umbrellas bumping into each other with some clever umbrella jujistsu. Stean held both of them carefully.

"Are we ready?"

Cyra went completely rigid from the time Stean pulled xem in. Their skin was hard and seemed to be slightly scratchy. He didn't respond.

"Ready," came Ray from the right.

Stean looked upto to Cyra on the left. "I'll need verbal confirmation Cyra. Can't do this without that."

Cyra opened faer mouth, but seemed to struggle on remembering how to speak before barely managed a small, "Go."

"That'll do," said Stean, bending his knees just slightly before he kicked up powerfully. They went just a little higher than anticipated and Stean lifted up his two companions ever so slightly as he landed squarely on his feet, bending his knees to absorb the impact slightly. The surface of the roof cracked ever so slightly, but it held. He immediately moved to put the two of them down.

Cyra almost immediately went to launch himself across the roof, but finally seemed to remember that Stean has the umbrella and that he was stuck.

"Okay, see that was easy. Now let's hope the chimney is wide enough or we will have to call Vankous.

"Let's hope."

"I'm assuming its that thing." Stean pointed to what he assumed was the chimney. It had been a while since he'd been to a time period where those were simply a big hole in the roof to funnel smoke out.

"Those are the smokestacks that deal with the coal." Cyra coughed. "There's a chimney that connects to the manager's quarters that leads to an actual fireplace."

"Oh. Ohhh. Ohhhhh. Which one gets us to that hiding spot you showed us in the previous one. I assume its the same here?"

"Probably. Factories tend to function exactly the same."

"Perfect, so which one do we want to jump into?"

"Not the smokestacks. Unless you want to jump into a burning cage of hot coals and death."

"What's down there doesn't matter. Which one is closest to our destination."

Cyra crossed all four of their arms, scowling petulantly. "...the smokestacks."

"Wonderful. That's what we're going into then. First step. See if its wide enough to fit us."

Cyra looked at the smokestacks, then looked at Stean. "Can you fucking shrink? Because you can't even fit a hand in there."

"No that's Kate. Looks like we're calling Vankous then."

"How exactly does that work?"

"I tap this thing, send a message and we wait." Stean gestured to the communicator on his wrist.

"How long is the wait time? A day or two?"

"If we're very unlucky, a minute. Otherwise usually ten to fifteen seconds."

"Ten to fifteen..." Cyra blinked. "Did you say seconds?"

"Yup," said Stean, frowning. "Pretty sure that's what I said."

"What the fuck is that thing?"

"It's called a communicator."

"How the hell does it communicate that fast?"

"Radiation with a little side dose of tachyons and magic."

Cyra blinked. "I understood one of those things."

"That's more than most people. Including me. I think you're good."

Cyra shrugged. "Okay."

"Okay then. I'll send a message. We all wait for a bit I guess."

"Oh dear. This is not ending well," said Ray.

"If he's going to cause a multitude of problems, I'd like to leave before the entire British army descends upon us."

"Oh most likely not," said Stean. "Just umm... try not to offend him. Its harder than you might think."

"Fan-bloody-tastic."

Stean smiled. "Have fun." He tapped his communicator, firing off a quick message to Vankous. "There is likely to be a dramatic entrance, so brace for impact."

Ray sighed.

Cyra rolled their eyes.

Right on cure, there was a flash of purple light and Vankous stepped out, doing a full 360. "Who dares awaken me from my eternal slumber." He snapped his fingers and purple sparks flashed around his head.

Cyra grumbled, but didn't say anything loud enough for Vankous to hear.

"Dude. You shouldn't be napping on a mission."

"It was for dramatic effect," protested Vankous, with a honest to goodness pout on his face. "Typical. You'll never understand the value of a proper entrance. Do you have any idea how much of a difference that would've made if perhaps you were facing a horde of enemies when I came in?"

"I specifically told you we were hiding up on a roof where we need to be discreet."

"And I was being discreet. No flashing colors. No multicolored flames."

"He does have a point," said Ray, gesturing wildly for Stean to shut up.

Cyra seemed like they desperately had some... colorful things to say, but kept their mouth shut, eyes trained on the umbrella.

"Fine," grumbled Stean. "Okay first things first. Is this you?" He pointed at the rain.

Cyra narrowed faer eyes at the rain as if it had personally offended faer somehow.

Vankous rolled his eyes. "Obviously."

"Why?" asked Stean while once again Ray waved wildly at him to stop talking.

Cyra glared at Vankous for a moment, before looking away again.

"Obviously because it was necessary," he rolled his eyes. "Now why are you even asking about that. Is that related to your problem? To be completely honest I didn't read that text. I just saw help on the subject line and popped over."

"How the hell is it necessary?" Cyra mutters, as if xe didn't want anyone to hear xem.

"I'll have you know its a very important dramatic element in a lot of things."

Cyra went rigid and fell silent.

"Is that dramatic situation over?" asked Ray cautiously.

"Well yeah," said Vankous.

"So maybe you want to stop the rain?" asked Stean, also cautiously.

"But I like the rain," protested Vankous.

Cyra's eye twitched and they clenched their fists in a clear sign of frustration.

"But it could be anachronistic," said Ray, slowly.

"You do make a good point. Kate's probably going to prickly about it." Vankous tapped his chin in thought.

If looks could kill, the smokestacks would have exploded under the weight of Cyra's glare.

"Soo...?" said Stean, careful not to suggest anything.

Vankous nodded. "Ehh. Whatever." He clapped twice and the rain slowed to a drizzle, vanishing within seconds.

Cyra visibly relaxed, stepping out from under Stean's umbrella.

"So...what did y'all want after all?" asked Vankous.

"We have to get into these smokestacks?" said Stean. "We're clearly not small enough, and apparently fiery death inside."

"It's a fucking coal furnace. And the furnace latches from the outside." Cyra readjusted her hat, muttering under her breath.

"Thank you for the details. That should be pretty easy." said Vankous. He walked in a small circle, tapping his chin like he was contemplating the secrets of the universe. "Ok. I'll go unlatch all of them so that you can step out. Timed shrinking spells all around. And I guess heat and fire resistance for the flammable among us." He gazed pointedly at Ray before turning to Cyra. "Would you happen to be flammable?"

"My clothes are." Cyra scowled. "We're a little short on fireproof cloth."

Vankous rolled his eyes. "Obviously. Fine you're clothes get a spell. But the one for those is different from living beings, so I'll still need an answer, unless by that you were implying that you yourself were fireproof when you're clothes were not."

Cyra rolled their eyes and approached Vankous. They bent down, showing him their scalp. "Do you see those cracks? Do you know what's in them?"

Vankous sniffed at it. "Spicy." He tapped his chin again. "So you are fireproof. Unless its Kate throwing the fire at you. Good to know." He backed away.

Cyra straightened. "More than fireproof, really. Fireproof just means something takes a long time to burn. I don't. At all."

"Don't get too confident about that," said Vankous. "Everything melts if its hot enough. Its just very unlikely most things will ever be for you. On this planet that is."

Cyra scowled. "Well, this is my planet, so I'll worry about what's on here, thanks."

"Kate. She's on here. For the moment at least."

"I don't foresee Kate wanting to melt me."

Vankous rolled his eyes. "She is a big softie. Not that you ever heard that from me. He gave everyone a pointed look."

Cyra shrugged. "Fine."

"Good. Now get ready to shrink. Stay quiet or I might accidentally turn one of you into a cockroach. Those spells are startlingly similar to one another."

Cyra sighed, but didn't say anything.

"Okay. Is everyone READY?" Vankous did the last part like he was about to give one of those pep talks they always had in movies about football.

Stean and Ray nodded, Stean doing his best to suppress the eye roll.

Cyra had no qualms about the eyeroll and shared theirs quite freely, gesturing for Vankous to do his thing.

Vankous nodded, launching into a few stretches. Stean sighed.

Cyra gave Stean a pointed look, seemingly asking, "Is he always this stupid?"

Stean gave them a discreet nod as Vankous jumped into the air, continuing to limber up like he was about to run a marathon.

Cyra scoffed, scowling ever more.

Vankous seemed to finally finish with that as he started to finally chant his spell, only of course he stood on one leg, waving his arms around in a way that Stean was pretty sure wasn't remotely required for a spell of this nature.

Cyra placed their two upper hands on their hips, crossing her other two arms across her stomach.

Vankous then got back onto his feet, doing two backflips before doing the classic superhero landing pose as he finished his enchantment. "That was the fire stuff actually. Next up is the shrinking thing."

Cyra's eye twitched.

Stean just nodded as Vankous launched into another warm up routine. It made sense given he hadn't felt anything.

Cyra taps their fingers in a clear sign of impatience, rage bubbling just beneath their cold scowl.

Vankous continues his warming up routine, this time doing a few balancing poses as well, chanting something that was definitely not a spell as he did those.

Cyra was now fully glaring at Vankous, looking like he was about to lunge and tear him into pieces.

Vankous seemed to finally switch into the spell as he started doing something similar to a Terran ballet dance. Stean felt his skin start to crawl a little.

Cyra flinched, looking down at their arms. Their face filled with annoyed confusion.

Vankous continued his ballet, launching into a large spin as his voice got steadily louder. Stean could feel it now, the shrinking starting to take effect. He could see his hands getting smaller, and suddenly he was getting shorter.

Cyra is definitely getting smaller as the spell takes affect.

Vankous seemed to finally finish with one final spin and now Stean was officially smaller than hand. It was not the first time, but that didn't stop it from being weird.

"You guys have half an hour. Use your time wisely," said Vankous, his voice sounding much further away than it normally did.

Cyra swallowed sharply. "This is awful."

"Welcome to the Alpha Pack."

"Alpha Pack...?"

"Its what our division is designated as. Horrifying name, I know," said Stean. "Kate's been trying to get that changed for a while now."

"I can see why." Cyra takes a moment to look around, scowl mostly gone for the moment.

"Have fun," said Vankous, breaking Stean out of his thoughts and he vanished in a swirl of purple light.

"We need to move quickly," said Ray, running over to them. "We have to make our way out of there too."

Cyra frowned. "How the hell are we going to run up the stairs like this?"

"I did not think about that," said Stean. He shrugged. "We'll just have to jump, or if its abandoned enough, that area is sufficiently deserted for Ray to just fly in and out."

Cyra shrugged. "Let's go then."

Stean nodded. "Onward we march!" He cringed. "Sorry. Being with Vankous just makes you say things like that."

"If you start spinning like he did, I will throw you off of the roof."

"I'll live." said Stean, with a shrug. "You might get a bit of backlash though, at least until you explain yourself. Then everyone would throw me a few more times off a roof."

"I can handle backlash." Cyra shrugged, approaching the smokestacks.

"Not from Kate you can't." said Stean, "but that's irrelevant. Let's go. Raymond. "Fire away."

He nodded, tapping his suit in a couple of spots.

Cyra rolled their eyes.

Ray's suit activated with a little whir and he was soon hovering a few inches off the ground. He gestured to them. Hold onto my legs as I take off.

Cyra nodded. "Sure."

"Good," said Ray as he proceeded to take off, Stean gripping onto his right leg with practiced ease, not really caring to dodge the stream of superheated gas that was dangerously close to him.

Cyra grabbed his left leg.

Ray guided them up above the smokestack, the heat hardly bothering Stean even as he could feel how Ray tensed above him.

"Into the belly of the beast we go," he announced. "Hold onto tight."

Cyra held Ray's leg visibly tighter.

They descended down, the heat only getting higher the lower they went.

"Cyra I need you to point us to the latches when we're close," said Stean, speaking as loud as he dared to be heard over the noise while being careful not to alert anyone outside the furnace to their presence. It was very unlikely they'd be heard, but he wasn't taking the chance."

Cyra nodded. "Sure thing."

Ray flew lower, they were almost out of the smokestack itself now, Stean could make out the interior of the furnace below him.

Before they landed, Cyra let go of Ray's leg, landing with ease of the coals before. "Latches are always in two places. You get the top one, up there." Cyra set about opening a now giant latch near the bottom.

Ray nodded, flying to it even as Stean landed on the coals. He watched as Ray mirrored Cyra from above.

Soon enough, the latch released and the cool furnace door swung open.

Stean gestured towards the outside as Ray landed beside them, still hovering a few feet above the coals. "After you chief. Sorry I can't keep calling you dumbass like that."

Cyra jumped out of the coal furnace, smearing coal dust on the factory floor. "That's a little weak of you, jump boy."

"If you consider the inability to call someone something they are not, weak, then absolutely, yes."

Cyra rolled their eyes. "Just come along."

"I can do that," said Stean. Ray was already flying his way out.

Cyra stared up at the people the looked absolutely massive now. "That's... I don't like that." He scowled.

"You get used to it kiddo," said Stean. "It's only unsettling the first dozen or so times. Just don't look. That usually helps."

Cyra raised an eyebrow. "Kiddo? No thanks." They kept walking, eyes trained forward.

"Force of habit. You just... well nevermind."

"I just what?" Cyra's scowl deepened.

"Doesn't matter. Now where is this catwalk."

Cyra pointed towards the ceiling. "Up."

"Perfect. I think we do the flying once again, just slightly more cautiously."

Cyra shrugged. "Okay."

"Hop on the legs once again, and this time whisper directions so no one looks around and spots us. We're small enough that as long as wew don't draw attention to ourselves, no one should see us."

Cyra hummed. "I don't think you need me to. Just go up."

"Alright. That works. Still though, you should come with us to go up."

"I will, I will." Cyra glanced up at the catwalk above. "This time I won't shatter the damn thing."

"Oh you still could, I have no doubt, but since you're not setting foot on the ground, we might just be fine."

"You better be right."

"I'm never wrong when it comes to things that involve...okay scratch that. I'm usually not wrong. Don't be an exception to the norm and you're good."

"I'll try my best."

"I'm sure you will."

Cyra gestured toward the ceiling. "So? Are we going?"

"Yup. Ray?"

"I've been hovering here for five minutes already," said the man, rolling his eyes. "Hop on already."

Cyra rolled their eyes and grabbed Ray's left leg again."

Stean jumped once again, and they were off the moment he grabbed onto the right leg, flying up above the workers and towards the ceiling.

Cyra hung from Ray's legs like it took no effort to do so, scanning the crowd below.

Ray maintained a steady pace, flying them upto the ceiling a couple of minutes later. "Well we're here."

"We're here." Cyra narrowed their eyes. "See anything?"

"Unfortunately, no."

Cyra groaned. "So another waste of time."

"Looks that way. Well this is how it usually goes. It never really happens on the first try or the second or the forty second."

"We don't have time for forty-two tries."

"No...but that was just an example. We could get lucky on the third one. You never know."

"I fucking hope so." Cyra huffed. "Otherwise, Malvis is going to walk back from Portsmouth before we leave this street."

"Possibly. But believe me. Patience is always rewarded in matters like this."

"I disagree with that." Cyra shook their head. "One time we were waiting for Malvis to return from scouting these hulks we were breaking into and we waited for hours thinking she was just being thorough when she had just been arrested."

"I fail to see how that can possibly be a matter like the one we're currently in."

Cyra shrugs. "All I'm saying is we could just be waiting for the right factory to come along when this man has long left the district and taken residence somewhere else."

"That penny was too fresh for that," said Ray.

"Yeah, but good point. I did not think of it that way." Stean nodded. "Good work kidoba ba boo eee." Stean internally facepalmed. He had to stop doing that with people he just met a day ago, especially ones that clearly didn't like it."

"I'm not even going to ask what happened there."

"Good call."

"How about we discuss all of this after we get out?" said Ray. "We only have so long on this spell."

Cyra nodded. "Right."

"Hold on then."

Cyra sighed. "Never let go."

"Here we go." Ray took off again.

Cyra cross the three arms that weren't holding on to Ray.

They were soon back in the furnace.

"We have to close this quietly."

"Good luck with that." Cyra sighed. "The hinges squeal."

"Well if that happens, we just make a fly for it. Not like they can do much once we're on the way out."

Cyra nodded. "Let's close this bastard, then."

"That's the spirit."

Cyra walked across the coals, grabbing the bottom. "Let's go."

Ray grabbed the top of the door. "Here we go." Stean hung on for dear life.

Cyra tugged, jostling the door seemingly pretty easily.

Ray followed along.

Soon enough, the door banged shut. Cyra wiped off all four of their hands on their pants.

"Grab on, let's go!" announced Stean, not caring too much about volume anymore.

Cyra grabbed on to Ray's leg again. "Calm the hell down."

"I'm calm. Are you?"

"Always and never. Never and always."

"Noted."

"Good."

With that, Ray started to take off.

Cyra inspected their hands, as if looking for more coal dust.

They were soon flying back into the smokestack.

As soon as the trio emerged and Ray was within a couple of inches from the ground, Cyra let go again, landing on the roof with a sharp crack.

Stean jumped off too, Ray coming to a landing on solid ground once again.

Cyra stepped towards them, leaving behind a slight crack in the roof.

"Well that roof's seen better days. Well we should switch back to normal in roughly five minutes," said Ray. "My timer isn't perfectly accurate because there's no telling when exactly Vankous' spell took hold."

"Amazing. I love that." Cyra sighed.

"Sarcasm. Really?"

"Yes. We've established that."

"Good. So... while we wait. Next factory?"

"Next factory."

"Yes. Look we'll check five, how about that? If we don't find anything in five, then we look for an alternate method."

"Works for me."

"Off we go then. Lead the way."

"I don't think we should jump off the roof in tiny form."

Stean frowned. "Why not?"

"I understand that two out of three of us are immortal, but that remaining one would like to survive, thanks."

"Well for starters, immortal doesn't mean we can't die to you know... injuries. Also you wouldn't die. We'll catch you."

Cyra narrowed their eyes. "Fine."

"Besides if you keep talking for this long, the last three minutes left are just going to pass by before you hit the ground."

"Fine by me."

Stean rolled his eyes. "Just remind me which direction we jumped up from again."

"From that way." Cyra pointed behind Stean.

"Brilliant, let's start walking. That's going to take a minute in these forms."

Cyra nodded and proceeded forward, hands already in their pockets.

The two of them followed suit.

Cyra walked like they were still weaving through factory workers: with speed and purpose.

They followed suit.

Cyra didn't seem to even check to make sure he was being followed.

Stean exhanged a glance with Ray. He didn't seem to have anything to say for the moment.

Cyra sighed, slowing down. "Okay. How long is this spell going to last?"

"We still have a couple of minutes," informed Ray, promptly.

They groaned. "Of course. You future people can't come up with an switch or something to kill the spell early."

"If you want that, you have to ask Vankous for that."

Cyra rolled their eyes. "And how likely is it that he just does some weird future dance and makes it rain again?"

"Very likely. Also that was not a dance."

Cya shrugged. "I wouldn't know."

"That's fair."

"So, is Vankous always like that or are we getting special treatment?"

"He's been a little restrained actually."

"That's... restrained?" Cyra scowled.

"Yup."

"How bad is he usually?"

"About 10 percent worse." said Ray.

"I don't know how to measure that."

"Don't worry about it."

Cyra's eye twitched. "Fine."

"We've got less than a minute left now anyway. Get ready to jump."

"I've been ready." Cyra frowned.

"Not the best position, but to each their own," said Stean with a small shrug.

"I'm not sure what you mean by that."

"You're not in the best position to be jumping off a building," explained Ray. "but that doesn't matter as long as you have done it before and are comfortable in this current position."

"You promised to prevent my tragic death, so you better stick to that."

"I will, don't worry," said Stean.

"I'll worry if I damn well please."

"Go ahead."

"Like ten more seconds left," announced Ray.

"Good. I'll be glad to get out of this mightmare."

"Five. Four. Three. Two. One," counted down Ray. Nothing happened for a few seconds. Then with a shiver, Stean could feel the spell wearing off as he started to grow taller and taller.

Cyra seemed to visisbly relax the taller they grew until they were back at normal height.

"There you go. Jumping time now."

Cyra gave Ray and Stean a salute and jumped.

"You should..." began Ray at the same time as Stean said "I should." They exchanged a nod and Stean jumped off, diving down after Cyra, body in the position you'd expect from a swimmer diving into water so that he could catch upto Cyra.

Cyra seemed totally unconcerned with their velocity and seemed quite content to just fall.

Stean just about managed to catch upto her with a few feet to go, grabbing them around the waist. This was going to be awkward but given the height difference the bridal carry was the only viable option.

Stean hit the ground with a crack that was a little louder than he would've prefered, Cyra held gently in his arms. He took a second to catch his breath before setting them down next to him. He chanced a look in faer direction.

They had gone completely rigid, scalp quite literally steaming in the brisk air. She barely seemed to even breathe.

Stean smiled. "Safe and sound." He turned away immediately to watch Ray come plummetting down. He discreetely engaged his flight system at the last second, just about slowing down enough. Stean instinctively looked around, checking to make sure it was empty. He knew Ray would never have used the flight system if there was someone, but it never hurt to double check.

Cyra didn't seem to be faring even better, only blinking in response to Ray's landing.

"Alright, on the ground once more. Let's probably get out of this alley now."

It took a good twenty seconds for Cyra to finally nod.

"Great."

Cyra didn't move.

"Next factory, let's go! Woo!!" Stean tried to cheer. Surely that landing wasn't so bad Cyra couldn't talk after it, was it?

Cyra blinked before nodding slowly.

"After you then."

Cyra just stared blankly at Stean, looking a little lost, before violently shaking their head. A deep, borderline murderous scowl took over their entire face. "Fine. Third time's a fucking charm. Or at least it should be." They all but stormed out of the alleyway.

Stean jogged to keep up, Ray following quickly. He really wanted to apologize or hug Cyra or do something. That couldn't possible be a normal reaction there to just stare blankly for so long, but something held him back. Maybe it was how much he'd hated being called kiddo by accident, maybe because Stean was reminded of someone else from a long time ago, but he kept his mouth shut, following along silently for the moment.

Ray either didn't seem to notice Cyra sudden mood swing or didn't seem to bother. Given how the man operated, it was probably neither.

Cyra didn't seem to care about either of them, only moving forward in a ruthless march towards the next factory.

Ray and Stean just about managed to keep up the pace. Stean really hoped third time was going to be the charm. Cyra was not going to last until five factories before something went down.

Cyra gestured to the next factory. "How the hell are we getting in?"

"Well, I assume your front entrance method won't work?"

"Nope. Unless I rip the damned thing off its hinges."

"So rooftop?"

"And go through that whole fucking ordeal? No thanks." Cyra glared at the building. "Are you opposed to fucking someone up?"

"We could call Kate." said Stean. "And yes. Without good reason, that's the least effective way to do something."

"It would get us inside." Cyra looked like they were trying to melt away the wall witht he force of their glare.

"Why don't we ask Kate first. She's much less of a bastard. And she is the also the one who will come and yell at everyone if we attack someone without provocation or reason."

"Sure, go ahead." Cyra started pacing.

Stean fired off a quick message to Kate.

"Okay she's going to take a minute." said Stean, when he got a response.

Cyra just kept pacing, only nodding in response.

Stean and Ray just stood there, tapping their feet agains the ground and trying not to look too suspicious as they waited, Stean especially doing his best not to stare at Cyra.

Cyra probably wouldn't have noticed if he did. She just kept muttering to herself, pratically shaking by this point.

Kate thankfully chose that moment to arrive, startling Stean out of his skin as he found a hand casually on his shoulder.

"Need a lift?"

Stean turned to see Kate, hands on her hips and smile on her face.

Cyra finally stopped pacing, glancing up at Kate.

"We do," said Stean, once he'd come down from his temporary shock. He'd never get over how quietly Kate could show up in a place.

"We need to get inside that factory, specifically to the very top part of it," said Ray.

Cyra nodded, looking like a bouncer at a club now.

"Ahh, industrial espionage. Brings back some good ol' times." said Kate, slapping a hand affectionately on Stean's shoulder. It was comforting in a way Stean could never understand, but that feeling of just being loved that emanated just from her touch was why Stean had never doubted she was in fact the being in charge of love across reality.

Cyra sighed. "Can you do it, then?"

"Sweetie, I snuck a crew of four hundred into an orange peel to sabotage the coronation of an evil ant dictator. I can sneak four people into a giant factory."

Stean nodded. He remembered Kate telling them that story.

Cyra scoffed. "Sure."

"A skeptic I see," said Kate, with a little wink. 'Alright, alright, let's get a move on then. We need to get a little closer to the factory. She gestured for them to follow her as she marched purposefully towards it."

Cyra sighed, following after her, scowl still firmly in place.

Kate brought them to a stop inches from the factory wall.

"Now Cyra, can you fly?"

Cyra crossed all four of their arms. "No."

"Well not to worry. You can come with me then. Stean, you can jump and Ray, you know the drill." Both of them nodded without a second thought.

"What the hell is happening?" Cyra looked between the three of them with enough venom to kill a bull elephant.

"Easy, we're going to turn invisble and get on the roof," said Kate walking over. "Don't worry, you'll be perfectly safe with me." She smiled encouragingly and patted Cyra on the shoulder much like she'd done to Stean moments ago.

Cyra went completely rigid again, staring down at Kate with something akin to fear in his eyes.

Kate frowned, her hand stopping on Cyra's shoulder. "Sweetie, you alright?"

Cyra tried to speak for a second before promptly bursting into tears. They hunched over, trying to hide their face, but with how much their shoulders trembled, it did nothing to hide what was happening.

Stean stood there mouth open, wondering if he should maybe be turning away now. It felt wrong to be looking at this as Kate, stood carefully on her tip toes to come closer to Cyra's height.

"Sweetie, it's okay." She didn't hesitate to wrap her arms gently around Cyra, her wings folding out and wrapping him in an extra layer.

Cyra, for once, didn't argue. They just stood there, sobbing into Kate's arms like they had been holding back tears for decades.

Kate held firm, slowly rocking them back and forth. She was muttering something. It was a language that Stean didn't understand, but her recognized the tone and the accent. It was her native tongue.

If Cyra noticed, they didn't comment on it. Though, that could just be the way they were choking on their own breath.

Kate continued to softly hold them.

After a couple of minutes, Cyra finally seemed to calm down. But they stayed there, like they couldn't bear to leave.

Kate didn't make any moves to let xem go.

Cyra made a noise that could be attempted speech, but it was quickly abandoned.

"All better, sweetie?"

Stean, really knew he should be looking away by now, but he couldn't possibly tear his gaze away even if he tried.

Cyra went rigid again.

Kate didn't budge.

Cyra mumbled something Kte that sounded like a string of curse words and an apology.

"Oh sweetie, there's nothing to apologize," said Kate, patting Cyra's back now. "You're okay. Don't worry. Don't worry at all."

Cyra's next words were completely muffled to Stean, but they seemed bitter, somehow.

Stean could hear Kate say something along the lines of "Don't think like that sweetie. You deserve..." Kate pulled Cyra in closer, her wings wrapping tighter around them. She said something that sounded like "Take it from me."

Cyra let out another sob at that, shaking their head profusely.

"Its hard to belive.. I..." Stean took a step back. He really wasn't meant to be seeing this. He chanced a glance at Ray to see that he suddenly seemed very interested in a bird somewhere nearby.

But Stean couldn't look away. He inevitably looked back. He just about caught the end of something else Kate was saying. "are loved, sweetie. And you deserve that love. Maybe it seems wrong to feel that way and I know how conflicting that is, but its okay to give in sweetie."

Cyra shuddered as they seemed to be deserpatly pulling themself together at this point.

Kate finally unwrapped her wings, patting Cyra, on the back softly. "Come on, sweetie. You're strong. Stronger than a lot of people I know, and believe me that means something coming from me." She reached up higher to gently peck Cyra on the forehead.

Cyra brsuhed their fingers against their forehead, looking a little dazed.

Kate pulled away finally, patting Cyra on the shoulder once again. "There you go, sweetie."

Cyra nodded, looking slightly ashamed.

"Well there, that was a good talk," said Kate, smiling softly. Her smile morphed into its more relaxed state seconds later. "Alright, people. Time to go invisible. And then up. Chop chop."

Cyra just awkwardly stayed beside Kate, not quite looking anyone in the eye.

Stean and Ray walked in there. Ray was going along like absolutely nothing had happened and Stean followed suit as Kate snapped her fingers with a singel quiet command word. Stean felt the familiar cold of going invisible.

"Upsy daisy boys," Kate announced, before holding out a hand to Cyra. "And you're with me, sweetie."

Cyra acepted Kate's hand.

Stean didn't wait around to see what happened there, launching himself skyward. But as was typical with Kate, as he landed, Kate was already standing there, Cyra still holding onto her hand like they'd just landed. Stean could hear Ray's engine firing as he appeared to still be only halfway up.

Cyra slowly let go of Kate's hand.

Stean turned around quickly to see Ray, just coming into land.

"Alright, peeps. Let's get ready to dive into this factory now. Who knows which part we need to be entering?"

Cyra sighed. "The catwalk. It cuts the factory in half from above. Perfect for spying on your workers to make sure they're not doing anything but suffering." Their voice was more hesitant than usual, like he was perfectly ready to be ignored or cut off.

"Gross," said Kate, making a face. "I wonder if we sabotage one of those catwalks and get away with it. Hmm. Too much work. No. Eww.. Nope. Naa." As usual she was looking at something but not really. Stean knew that look well now even if it had caught him very off guard the first coupe of months. Kate was looking at the timeline for some reason.

She shook her head, her eyes focusing on the world around her again. "Right, so down to the catwalk we go. Cyra, sweetie, whereabouts would they exactly be?

Cyra took a step back, surveying the rooftop. "Smokestacks are right there so..." They muttered a few things before walking to the center of the roof. "About this enitre strech right here."

"Ahh perfect, sweetie. Thank you," said Kate, glaring pointedly at Stean and Ray.

"Thank you, Cyra," they chorused like they were in kindergarten. They were a little too used to that look now.

"Alright then, we just have to punch straight through, you guys can do your thing and then I can repair this once y'all are done."

Cyra's face seemed to light up. "That's your plan? Punch through the damn thing?"

"Duh?" said Kate. "Simplest solution. Unless you want to try and shrink and climb in through the smokestacks or something." She rolled her eyes.

"That's what we did last time becase these two decided to call Vankous first." Cyra rolled up their sleeves. "But this I can do."

Kate laughed. "Of course you did."

Stean decided not commenting on that was the smartest option in the moment. Kate knew they couldn't just repair ceilings like she could, didn't she? Next to him, Ray was similarly silent.

"Just make a little hole for yourself, makes sure nothing falls in, and we're just gonna slowly drop down. Don't think those catwalks can hold a ton of weight by the look of them."

Cyra shook their head. "They were built for a couple of humans at most."

"Yup," said Kate. "Carefully people. And Ray just use the hole Stean makes."

Stean just nodded, gesturing for him to come over.

Cyra frowned. "I don't think I should join you."

"You're not that heavy sweetie. We'll be fine."

Cyra shrugged. "If you say so."

"Alright then, on three, two, one. Punch that roof like it personally offended you."

Steal rolled his eyes, cracking his knuckles.

Cyra grinned a little manically, tapping pieces of the ceiling before picking their target.

Stean did the same, tapping on it with his knuckles, making sure there was a decent circle with a catwalk below it, before he stuck a hand through it, punching through with only a mild sting to his knuckles. He spread his hand out and pulled back, using it to catch on the piece and pull a good sized chunk out of the roof. He placed it carefully to the side.

Cyra wound up their own punch, launching it straight through the roof with a loud crack.

Stean gestured for Ray to lower himself down as he watched Kate carefully outline a section of the roof. She dipped a finger into it, the surface fracturing like a dry cracket as she traced a circle into it. She took a deep breath, forming a funnel with her hand before she blew into it, The cracks widened significantly, spreading into a neat circle before the section of roof fell straight in. Kate flicked her hand and the piece flew out of the hole and into her hands. She crumbled it into a fine powder like a wet tissue paper, tossing the crumbs to the side.

Cyra tore off the edges of the roof until they had a very lopsided hole barely wide enough to fit their hulking figure.

Stean watched as Kate proceeded to drop down carefull. He followed suit, half jumping and half lowering himself down to minimize the impact as much as possible. These catwalks didn't look like they could take too much.

Crya glared at the catwalk for a moment, before climbing through their hole, hands gripping the sides in a death grip before they very carefully touched down on the catwalk. The metal immeditaly groaned and she went rigid.

"Okay maybe don't move actually sweetie, this is fractionally weaker than I initially spotted.

"I fucking told you." Cyra didn't move at all, arms spread out in what seemed to be a poor attempt of distrubting weight.

"Relax. You'll be fine."

Cyra glared at Kate. "None of us will be fine if I fall through this fucking catwalk because you're all going with me."

"Well maybe Ray will be a bit startled, but seriously we'll be fine if that happens." Kate waved her hand dismissively. "Let's focus up."

Cyra's eye twitched, muttering something that sounded suspciously like, "Fuck all of you."

"I don't think that helps your situation, sweetie," said Kate. Stean proceeded to do his best to look around, studiously avoiding acknowledging either of those statements.

"It certainly would make me feel better. Bastards." If looks could kill, Kate would be hacked to pieces.

Stean nearly choked on his own spit.

"Not at this moment," came Kate's reply. There was a distinct higher pitch to her voice.

Cyra growled. "That's too damn bad. Now hurry up before this thing buckles."

"Of course." That was Ray. "Although I think we've hit the jackpot finally." Stean swivelled in that direction immediately.

Cyra didn't swivell, but they certainly looked in that direction.

Stean furrowed his brows. There was definitely more than just darkness up here.

"Is that..." asked Stean, trailing off.

Neptune remained at the table as everyone else left. Her companion, Vankous, as Katherine had said, seemed perfectly content to remain stationary. They didn't argue, too focused on the building pressure of questions in their chest. They tried to sort through them by importance, but when dealing with something as expansive as time travel, there was no such thing as a poor question. They drummed their fingers on the table, keeping their cane close.

Vankous didn't seem move from his position, even though the sound of everyone leaving had died out a few minutes ago.

Neptune hummed. "Are we... departing soon?"

"That depends."

Neptune paused, waiting for a continuation. When none came they sighed. "On?"

"What happens," came another stiff reply.

Neptune nodded. "I suppose everything does though, doesn't it?"

"True." There was a short laugh.

Neptune relaxed slightly at that. "So, do you have any particular idea of where we are going?"

"At the moment, that would be a no."

Neptune nodded. "Okay."

"The job we were assigned is a very reactive one."

"Reactive to what, exactly?"

"The stability of the timeline."

"Are timelines easily disrupted or destroyed?"

"Thankfully, no, or we'd all be long since dead."

"Yes, avoiding death is something worth gratitude." Neptune hummed. "So, what affects the stability of timelines, then?"

"Well, there are a few things," said Vankous, sounding a little bored.

Neptune frowned. "Is this not an adequate subject of conversation?" Cyra had taught them that it was best to change subjects when someone has bored. Not by being a patient teacher but by being an avid breaker of things when not amused.

"It's relevant," replied Vankous, not elaborating further.

"Relevance and adequacy are not one and the same."

"It's reasonable."

Neptune took a deep breath. "Reasonability, relevance, and adequacy are not one and the same."

"They do have separate definitions."

"Precisely."

Vankous made a non commital sound.

"So..." What did people from the future like to talk about? Conversing with people from the present was difficult enough, but someone so disconnected? That was difficult. "What time are you from?"

"646 ZSD." There was noticeably more enthusiasm from Vankous. "That's around...Lemme see. 2400 ish."

"Fascinating. So you're even more from the future than your companion James." Neptune drew their chair a little closer. "What's it like?"

Vankous made a sound that was halfway between a squeal and a sigh. "Well... I suppose that's something of a relative question. Where I was from, we were from a time not so different from the technology humans had a couple of hundred years before even this current point in time. But then, the past ten thousand or so years, I've gotten used to things that are so much more advanced than even the 2400s had."

Neptune tapped their fingers faster. "So your world was dealing with technology that was pre-industrial revolution? No steam engines or anything similar?"

"Yeah. We just had mostly manual or animal power."

"Fascinating. Truly, deeply, fascinating." Neptune wished Saturn was here so he could take notes for them, but they could remember. "Was everyone just content to continue on this way, or did the natural abundance of resources required for industrialization simply not exist?"

"Neither, really. Our civilization was just a work in progress. That's just the rung we happened to be on the development ladder. There were all kinds of projects in place to improve technology. Making contact with our neighbors really sped all that up too."

Neptune paused. "Neighbors?"

"Amaxonia. Our neighboring planet."

Neptune could feel waves of energy filling them from the inside. "You made contact with a species outside of your own?"

"Yeah." said Vankous. "Only two members of our team are from the same planet. We've made contact with so many more species."

Neptune smiled. "That is... remarkable."

"Thank you. I suppose we've been used to that reality for so long you don't take a step back to see how amazing it can be."

Neptune froze. It was very rare that someone other than Saturn thanked Neptune for sharing in their enamormement. "You're welcome, I suppose."

There was a laugh.

Neptune blinked. "Did you just laugh at me?"

"No?" There was a hint of confusion. "I just found what you said funny."

Neptune furrowed their eyebrows. They didn't see any humorous merit, but that was a very subjective ordeal. They shrugged. "Alright. My apologies."

"Nothing to apologize for."

"I shall keep that in mind for next time."

"Good."

Neptune nodded, unsure how to proceed.

"So we wait."

Neptune nodded. "So we wait."

"Yes we do."

Neptune kept tapping their fingers on the table.

"So. Just a heads up, but we will not be doing any walking."

"Whatever do you mean?"

"Exactly what I just said. Walking. We're not doing that."

"What is our alternative?"

"Teleportation."

Neptune frowned. "Teleportation...?"

"Near-instant transportation from one point to another directly."

"No, I know what teleportation is. I simply didn't realize it was a part of your skillset."

"Ohh. Sorry. People normally haven't heard of it this far back in time."

"As you said, no need to apologize. I must admit, I've heard of such things due to my love for... science fantasy."

"Oh that's wonderful. This will all be a lot easier for you then."

Neptune nodded. "Though, it does fill me with many burning questions."

"Inevitable side effect."

"I'm sure."

"So. Yeah. Just wanted you to know that. Advance warning and all that. Cause we have to leave immediately as soon as we get a sign."

"Thank you for the advance." Neptune resumed tapping their fingers on the table.

"Of course. Standard procedure and all that."

Neptune nodded. "Understandable."

"So. We're Just Going to Wait some more."

Neptune hummed. "Alright. Waiting."

"Don't worry. This job is much less boring when we actually get to work."

"What is our job exactly?"

"We clean up whatever mess ends up happening to the timeline as a result of the general chaos of what we're doing right now."

"The janitorial crew of the fabric of time."

"That's one way to put it."

Neptune clicked their tongue. "How do you know when a 'mess' appears?"

"There's a disturbance in the... I really don't know what to call it, to be honest. You just know when you know."

"So, a shift in atmospheric tension. Something just misaligns."

"That's sort of what happens, but also not. But it's as good an explanation as any, really."

Neptune shrugged. "Alright then."

"You accepted that a lot faster than a lot of people do."

Neptune shrugged. "I have experience with things that simply... transcend words. A least on this Earth, at this time."

"That's wise for your age."

Neptune shrugged, feeling their face warm at that. "Maybe."

"It really is. Trust me. I've talked to a lot of people in my time."

Neptune's tapping quickened. "I suppose it's just life experience."

"That's true enough."

Neptune nodded.

"Yeah, so...holy crap on a cracker!" There was the sound of him getting up.

"Pardon?"

"We have to go. Like five minutes ago."

"Oh!" Neptune stood up, grabbing their cane. "We should go then."

"Yes. You're just going to have to... well. Actually. Just try not to move too much. Its going to be a little unpleasant at first, but you'll be fine and you'll get used to it." There was a hand on their shoulder. "That's me. Can you put an arm around my shoulder too?"

"I know it's you. You have very... distincive footsteps." Neptune wrapped an arm around his shoulder. using the direction of his voice as a guideline.

"I took power walking class seriously."

"Interesting."

"Alright kiddo. Hold onto something. By something I mean me. Don't grab at random things. And yes I'm saying that because one too many people did actually jump and grab something random. I don't want a chair teleporting on top of me again, thank you very much."

Neptune smiled, before frowning. "Wait. Where are we going?"

"To be honest, I don't know either, but we'll find out soon enough."

"If it's around people I can't... I can't go."

"Ohh. Umm...mind me asking why exactly?"

Neptune sighed. "I am... from a neighboring planet. Except, instead of being welcomed into the folds of society, my very existence is banned within the great United Ministership."

"Right. Humans have a bad habit of doing that. Well... don't worry. If there's someone there, I'll make sure they don't realize you're anything but another human."

"I'd ask how, but I'm just going to trust you for now since we're running out of time."

"Wow, see you are much wiser than most. Literally everyone always stops to ask and never realizes there's a time crunch. Thank you for that. You will be getting a full explanation soon. Don't worry."

"Thank you. Now, I know you said no objects, but is my cane okay? I can't naviagate without it."

"Oh yeah the cane is a necessary item, like your shoes or a water bottle or something. We just don't want furniture or the ceiling fan. That was a long day."

"I think I can manage."

"Wonderful. So in, three, two one." There was nothing for a second before it seemed like they were sliding. Then the temperature dropped rapidly, and suddenly it felt like they were floating. Seconds later another slide, and a sharp spike in temperature, rising up much higher than it should have. Floating. Another slide and everything was normal again.

"We're here." announced Vankous. "And no one's here."

"Good. It gets hard to move in crowds." Neptune blinked. "Certainly not the worst state I've been."

"You're taking it pretty well. Most people on their first time are a little dizzy. Although that might be due to the lack of visuals. Its the images that usually get you although the temperature changes are nothing to scoff at. Are you sure you're completely fine? Just think about it for a second. Some of these reactions are a bit delayed."

"I have a heart conditon where I will medically die for upwards of..." They paused, trying to recall the exact numbers. "Three hours, I think was the max so far. Temperature change isn't much in comparison."

"Hearts stopping can be rather annoying." said Vankous. "Good on you. Okay. So. Good News is we're all doing fine. Bad news is, we'll have to hunt down a bloodsucking vampiric fish monster so... prepare yourself."

"Sounds interesting. Can damaging the timeline open small holes to various alternate universes?"

"Yes. But No. How do I put this? You can sort of make a place in time and space so unstable that things already in transition in the timeline from other universes can accidentally just get sucked out.

"Fascinating." Neptune hummed. "Your very presence here causes so much turmoil. What a way to live."

"Well we didn't start the turmoil, but yeah. Sometimes to fix the timeline you gotta break it a little first."

Neptune nodded. "Like rebreaking a bone that repaired itself incorrectly. Or amputating a festering limb."

"Exactly like that," said Vankous, clapping them gently on the shoulder. "Wow, you're good at this."

Neptune shrugged. "I suppose so."

"So. We have to follow the fish vampire. Can't let it actually harm anyone. Just a casual bit of banishing. Not too terribly difficult. Just don't get bitten if you can at all help it."

"I will try my very best."

"That's all anyone can do. Thank you again."

"You're welcome. Again."

"Of course. Now, don't let go off me as we move. We might have to teleport off at a moment's notice. Oh and keep an ear out for general sort of mushy sounds..you know the kind that tends to happen with fish like things."

Neptune shuddered as they imagined the wet sounds Vankous was describing. Not enjoyable. "Okay."

"It is as bad as it sounds. Please worry."

"Worrying." They frowned, trying to summon some scrounges of anxiety. That was one of the more nebolus feelings. Very difficult to define. "I'll manage."

"Good. Now stay close." Vankous began to walk.

"I'm not letting go of you, per your instructions."

"That would be perfect. Thank you."

"Though, I am wondering. Would linking arms work just as well as having my arm across your shoulder? Just for simplicity."

"Well teleportation only requires some form of contact, so that would work."

Neptune nodded, stepping a bit away from Vankous, but not letting go of his arm. "Thank you."

"No worries. Just make sure you're in contact with me in a way that's comfortable but also not easy to accidentally dislodge. I want to be able to teleport us away at a moment's notice if things get hairy."

Neptune linked their elbows in one fluid motion. It was the most natural, ever since they were a child and Saturn was guiding them around Nellie and Edwin's basement.

"Now I feel like its mandatory for us to be skipping and singing."

"I don't think we know the same songs."

"It was a joke, Neptune. Neptune. Neptune. That's a mouthful. Do you have any nicknames?"

"It's two syllablles. How are you going to handle the alis names?"

"By using nicknames. Katherine. Kate. Raymond. Ray. Varvirxial Xiriodan VI. Boo."

Neptune hummed. "Well, I don't have any nicknames of that sort."

"That's a true atrocity which needs fixing immediately."

Neptune furrowed their eyebrows. "What is your suggestion?

"Hmm. Do you any suggestions?" Vankous gently pulled them to the side out of the blue but didn't offer an explanation.

Neptune was used to being pulled in such a manner, so they followed along. "Nep sounds slightly odd. Unfinished, in a way."

"Yeah know, that doesn't work at all in my opinion. If you think it isn't great, that's definitely a no no."

"Tune has the same issue." They sighed.

Vankous hummed. "Okay I won't lie, Tune could work. I can see some vibe for that, but if you don't like the sound of it, naturally its a no no as well. What else have you got?"

"Hmm." Neptune tapped their fingers on their thigh. "Saturn used to call me Neps when we were much, much younger."

"That's... an acquired taste," said Vankous. "I don't know if I love it. Do you like it?"

Neptune shrugged. "Middle ground."

"Fair enough. Any other suggestions?"

Neptune shook their head. "My apologies, but no."

"No worries." Vankous hummed. "Would you mind terribly if I threw out some suggestions?"

"No. I tend not to mind most things."

"I don't know if that's the best policy in life but to each their own. So then. First suggestion. T."

"Like the drink? Tea?"

"No like the letter."

"Oh." Neptune shrugged. "Middle ground."

"Fair enough. How about Nute?"

"Nute?"

"Yeah. Thoughts?"

"It's odd. Nute. Nute." They closed their eyes. "It feels like an S curve on the tongue."

"That's an interesting observation."

Neptune shrugged. "I've never seen any shapes. I only know them by how they feel."

"That checks out."

Neptune nodded.

"So... final thoughts?"

"I... like it."

"Ohh. Wait. For real?"

Neptune flushed. "Was that... a joke offering?"

"On some level. Yes."

Neptune cleared their throat. "Never mind, then. Forget I said anything."

"Oh well... if you truly like it, we can use it. I just didn't expect you would, that's all."

Neptune didn't say anything. They were never could understand when people were joking. Unless it was someone like Cyra where you just prayed they were, and sighed in relief when they were and panicked when they weren't.

"Did... was that. Did that offend you somehow?" asked Vankous, slowing down a little.

Neptune shook their head.

"Ok."

Neptune didn't add anything, just kept walking alongside Vankous.

"Wait. Our fish vampire smells close. Be on full alert. Again, try not to get bitten."

"Any tips for avoiding getting bitten when I can't see the thing to dodge?"

"It makes a slightly different hissing sound to its normal hissing sound when its about to charge at you. Pay attention to that and try to move as much as possible from wherever you are when you hear that sound."

Neptune frowned. "Will you aid in the moving process?"

"Most likely."

Neptune hummed. "I may end up following your lead then, more often than not. I apologize. My hearing... isn't exactly as good as it should be."

"No worries."

Neptune nodded. "For your explanation, I was just born with a multitude of health problems. I hope none of them cause too many issues."

"Doubt it."

Neptune hummed. "Good."

"Move slow for now. When we need, be as fast as possible."

"Following your lead."

"Right."

Neptune strained their ears, trying to make out the sounds of hissing.

"Left. Left. Left," said Vankous, quickly shuffliing in that direction. "Not too fast. But smooth."

Neptune followed him, ducking their head slightly. "Smooth."

"Like uhh...no sudden moves. It hasn't spotted us yet, but its looking in this direction."

Neptune hummed in acknowledgement, not even nodding their head.

Vankous continued to pull them to the left.

Neptune moved at exactly Vankous's pace, not making a single sound.

Vankous came to a stop out of nowhere. "Wait. Wait. Wait."

Neptune barely manged to catch themself. "Waiting."

"Just a bit. It paused. And the less we move, the lower the chance of it spotting us. So...yeah."

"Makes sense. Most predators have special eyes designed for spotting very minimal movement. Though, not usually fish."

"True dat."

"Not quite sure what that means, but I'll take it as an agreement."

"It was an agreement."

"Good. I was right, after all."

"You were."

Neptune hummed.

"Oh crap. Fast Left. Fast Left. Here comes the hiss."

"Fast left." Neptune scurried after Vankous, listening for the hiss.

The hiss came seconds later. It was a relatively loud sound, sharp and almost painful to hear.

Neptune made her own hiss, going up to cover their ear with their free hand.

"Its a bit painful, but you get used to it." Vankous paused. "I mean... not that you'll run into this enough times in this brief stint to get used to it, but..umm.. figure of speech and all that."

Neptune cringed. "I look forward to the getting used to part."

"Don't. If you hear this thing screech enough to get used to it, you've made a mistake in life, either that or you've joined a time travelling team of superheroes, which could also be considered a mistake a in life I suppose."

"Do you consider you joining a mistake?"

"Oh not at all. No one's better at my job than me."

"Good to know."

"You'll do well to remember that for future reference, especially if my teammates try to refute that claim. A good rule of thumb is. Everyone's wrong. I'm right."

Neptune frowned. "That's something Cyra would say."

"I thought they looked wise."

Neptune let out a small laugh at that. "I'd like to see how long you keep that opinion."

"Well anyone who thinks I'm right will always be a wise person." There was a short laugh. "I kid of course...I...Right. Right. Right. The Direction. The Direction." Vankous shuffled rapidly to the right.

Neptune followed easily. "Have I managed to help at all in the endeavor?"

"Yes."

Neptune hummed. "Would it be best if we captured that beast?"

"No. We simply need to send it back or kill it. We try to do the send it back method. Its the cleanest."

"And how do we do that?"

"Depends. We'll have to tire it down a little bit."

"Okay. Continuously dodging it should suffice."

"For now. It hasn't actually spotted us properly yet."

Neptune nodded. "Okay."

"It'll all make sense in the end. Maybe."

"If it doesn't." Neptune shrugged. "Some things just don't."

"Wise words again."

Neptune hummed. "This time, I must agree with you."

"And your words continue to get wiser."

Neptune didn't say anything that time.

"Ok, freeze again. Its pondering something or the other."

Neptune froze.

"Just a minute."

Neptune hummed in affirmation.

"Just trying to see if we maybe have an opportunity here. I can sense one."

"Just tell me what to do."

"I will."

"Thank you."

"You're Welcome."

Neptune strained their ears for the vampiric fish.

"We're moving forward very slowly now. Be prepared for a potential quick teleportation."

"Considered me prepared."

"Wonderful."

Neptune kept at Vankous's pace, tapping their free hand against their thigh.

Vankous kept walking for nearly a full minute before he finally came to a stop.

"Is everything alright?"

"Oh yes. We're just waiting for the right moment to pounce."

"Oh." Neptune nodded. "That's good."

"Yup. This one will be mostly uneventful from the looks of things."

"That's better than a fatal injury."

"Most things are better than a fatal injury."

Neptune hummed. "Can't argue with that."

"Uh huh," said Vankous. "Oh.. alright. Sometime in the next ten seconds we'll teleport and I probably won't be able to warn you."

"Thank you for the warning regarding a lack of warning."

"Of course."

Neptune went back to tapping their thigh.

Without any warning that feeling was back and with a stumble they landed somewhere else. There was sound of Vankous saying something in a different language, either that or he was gargling aggressively.

"Are you alright? Were you bit?"

There was no reply for a bit as Vankous kept gargling. He stopped after a little while longer. "N..Nop..Nope. Just" There was the sound of heavy breathing. "Banish...Did... That."

"Banishing... tired you?" Neptune furrowed their eyebrows. The fragmented sentences didn't make sense.

There was more heavy breathing. "Y.. Yup. Big.. Burst. Energy. More." There was a small cough. "Expected Than."

Neptune reached into their pocket and held out their small perfume bottle of water. "Here. It might help to spray some water in your face. Unless you're allergic."

"Oh.. sure." said Vankous. ""B... but I. Think. Fine. Soon."

"Might as well speed up the process."

"OK."

Neptune offered a small half smile and brushed their fingers against their own skin. "How long as it been since we left?"

"26 minutes, 43 seconds and counting."

Neptune nodded. "Can I have the bottle once you're finished, then?"

"Oh sure."

Neptune nods. "Thank you."

The bottle was placed back in their hands. "There you go."

Neptune nodded. They sprayed their face and their arms, feeling the water open their pores. They plugged their nose and took a deep breath through their skin. They pocketed the bottle. "Okay. What's our next course of action?"

"Now we return to where we were to wait for the next issue."

Neptune nodded. "Understood."

"So we'll teleport back in a minute."

"Okay. Thank you."

"You're Welcome. Give me a few seconds to catalogue this. It'll be necessary to predict things later on."

Neptune smiled. "Of course. I actually quite enjoy catalogue work myself."

"Ohh. Interesting. I catalogue mostly out of necessity, or at least that's what is usually what happens. Truth be told, as tedious and boring as this sometimes is, its come in handy enough times that I genuinely can't call this a useless practice."

Neptune hummed. "I started cataloguing when Saturn got his job at the post. He's wicked intelligent, but he has trouble keeping track of smaller details."

"Ahh. Makes sense. That's a common affliction sometimes among people who are really intelligent. Their brains just don't have time for the smaller things."

Neptune nodded. "Most people would call me intelligent, but I made my sacrifices in other areas."

"You're definitely intelligent. And well...that's life sometimes. You get one thing, another thing gets taken away in exchange."

"More like I never got one thing, but I figurtively catch your meaning."

"Yes."

Neptune tapped their fingers against their thigh again.

A bit of time passed by in silence before Vankous spoke up again. "Okay, we're done."

"Okay. Back to The Mist, then?"

"Yes. Hold on tight. More teleportation to come."

Neptune held on to Vankous again.

There was another moment of discomfort and they appeared in a place with a familiar smell.

Neptune let out a sigh. They were home again.

"And we're back."

"Yes. You can tell by how the people sound. They're happier here."

"They are. Its a place with a lot more hope."

Neptune nodded. "I thought this place wasn't realy for the longest time. But, Malvis, Estella Fay, and Artemis arrived in my home in the dead of night and introduced me to this whole new world of things outside of one damp basement."

There was a hand carefully placed on their shoulder. "Funny how that works. When you find the people you really belong with."

Neptune nodded. "I mean, don't get me wrong. My and Saturn's adopted parents were amazing people. But, they could only do so much for us. They were human bakers. We... are wanted criminals."

Vankous patten them on the shoulder. "I'm sure they did their best but it does seem their hands were very much tied."

Neptune nodded. "Sometimes life's just that way. But, Malvis is an expert at untying hands, so now we're here. Living the life we never had before."

"Here you are indeed."

Neptune sighed. "So, what's your story? How did you end up here?"

"Here as in, this timeline?"

Neptune nodded. "That works."

"Ohh..well that. We got assigned this apparently."

"What do you mean?"

"Well someone noticed something was wrong down here, something bad enough to upset a lot of things. So... we're here to stop that."

Neptune hummed. "I'm assuming you can't exactly tell us what."

"What we're stopping. That's free information. To you and your team. What the upsets are...that we can't tell you."

"I understand." Neptune smiled.

"So...yeah. We're stopping a couple of assassinations."

Neptune nodded. "Okay."

"And that's pretty much it really. You'd be surprised at how tiny something needs to be to cause massive changes a couple hundred years in the future."

Neptune shook their head. "No. An assassination can topple an entire country in days."

"Well...that is true. Maybe not the best example for that particular oh time is grand speech. Sorry. Force of habit."

Neptune hummed. "No need to apologize."

Vankous patted them on the shoulder again.

Neptune went back to their tapping.