While sorting through today's bills, a bright shine catches Valerie's eye. A golden wax seal with a bird in the middle holds the thick red envelope shut. The paper has beautiful patterns along its edges, but there is no sender information. Curious, she tears it open and shakes out the contents, a large medallion thuds onto the table along with what look to be a few business cards and a thin book. She starts examining the book first, a glossy pamphlet advertising the new Impestra factory rests behind the cover. Everyone on the cover has the usual artificial smile plastered on. Usually, these ads head straight to the trash, but the medallion sent with it makes her hesitate. It's a silver medal with a red ribbon tied to it. An osprey with its wings outstretched is engraved into its center. It holds a small seed in its beak and a lancetfish in its talons. The medallion all Impestra Overseers wear. Valerie sits down and continues staring at the medal. The book that came with it turned out to be an instruction manual that detailed activation procedure and what her responsibilities as a new overseer would be. The job she never wanted has fallen right in her lap. The danger was evident, but there might also be a good opportunity here. She calls Alren immediately.
---
Inside Alren’s kitchen, Valerie lays out everything she's gotten from the red envelope on the table. The lone flickering bulb above it struggled to illuminate it all. She takes a seat across from him while Alren stood near the counter, eyeing the medal very carefully. He was acting as if Valarie had placed a bomb on his table. Alren believed what she had told him over the phone, but seeing an Overseer medal in person is something most will never do.
"Impestra has been sending me these letters for over a month. Now I've been handed the job. If they're this desperate for workers, I should take them up."
Alren holds Val’s new medal up to the light, tracing along its sigil with a clear disdain written on his face.
"You aren't considering the potential danger here, we’ve got no way to know what will happen once they bring you inside. There's no way you can think joining them would be a good idea."
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"But you aren't thinking about any of the potential benefits!" She yelled as she stood up from her chair "Do you have any idea the level of clearance an Overseer has? Their entire database, all their plans are right in our reach and they're practically begging me to take that them. Do you have any idea how much that would go for? I can't believe you aren't supporting this." Valarie sighs dramatically as she falls back into her chair. She would have looked agitated if not for the smile spreading across her lips. Despite his protests, there's no way he could turn this deal down and she knew it.
---
Alren was skeptical, but the potential really was too good to pass up. He sighed and dropped her medal back onto the table.
"So you’re going to activate it?"
"Of course! I've got to if I want to get in; I just needed to make sure you'd be backing me up."
Valerie leans in closer, waiting for his final answer. Closing his eyes for a moment, Alren turned away from the light, trying his best to find something that could outweigh the benefits of activating the medal. He was quiet for a long while before looking back at her.
Valerie flashed him a bright smile, she had already decided what she was going to do and there was no stopping her once her choice was made. Alren sighed; He couldn't help but think that this single-minded determination of hers is always far more trouble than it's worth.
"You already know I'm here to support you. Just -" He hesitated to look back at the medal. The potential consequences were so clear but so was the reward. He already knows there’s nothing he could do to sway her on this, but he has to take one last moment to find a rebuttal. Alas, no revelation comes to him. - "Please, just be careful."
"Of course I'll be careful! Besides, I know you won't let me do anything too crazy."
Satisfied, Valerie swiftly packed her things, leaving the room in haste. The journey back home was nothing but a nervous blur, the red envelope clutched tightly between her fingers.
---
Valerie clears her off her desk and places the medallion down. Riffling through the drawers, she finds a multi-tool. Taking the knife to the tip of her finger, a thin red line begins to form. She lets a single drop fall from her finger into the medal's deep grooves. Flowing down from the raised bird to fill every track. With the correct blood received, the medal starts to glow. Its form begins to waver, the large medallion melting away to reveal a gold colored badge with Valarie's name already engraved into it. Her ticket into the heart of Impestra. The pact is sealed.