“Have a seat. I’m sure the renowned Raven wouldn’t mind talking it out.”
The four of them are trapped in a domain. It’s likely artificial as it only contains the metallic ground beneath their feet, a marble white roundtable with four cold metallic seats for their visitors, and an endless white void stretching into infinity.
“Could you please keep your hands on the table?” he asks them, almost like a child asking for some candy. The sudden switch in demeanor comes as a surprise.
His way of speech is particular. It almost sounds like he’s not of German origin due to his accent not giving away which part of Germany he may stem from.
Raven does as told, intrigued by The Coordinator. Sylvia, though reluctant, follows Raven and keeps her hands on the table. Blossom, though grumpy, keeps her hands in her pockets, glaring at the child. She makes herself comfortable crossing her legs, just waiting for something to go wrong.
“So? What’s up with you?” Blossom sneers.
“If you don’t mind, I want to talk about my past. I am from Germany, but I spent a lot of time in Canada. Like a lab rat.”
Sylvia grows more intrigued yet remains quiet. Blossom rolls her eyes while Raven has his eyes on a massive cash reward. The Coordinator’s hands tremble, even if only for a bit.
“I grew up in Canada in a research facility on Vancouver Island. I was an orphan like all the other children in that place, yet they treated me with special care. Since I had such high compatibility with a relic so powerful, they praised me. I got all kinds of candy and delicious food that I haven’t had since. ‘You’re such a good girl!’, ‘You’re our best child!’ ‘You’ll be adopted for sure someday!’ was all I’d ever hear. I still miss it sometimes.”
“‘Good Girl’?” Raven asks himself but keeps it to himself for now.
“And they’re kind of child-like.”
“I’m sorry for going on and on about my story. They said all those sweet things. Right now, I talk like a toddler because they thought school wasn’t important for someone like me. I loved having little to no homework, but it left me… uneducated?”
“Apparently, I had massive potential to become incredibly powerful. My friend was even better than that! His might was unrivaled by any of the other children, yet someday, he vanished, and no one seemed to remember him. Even I can’t remember his face.”
“So, some form of altered reality?” Sylvia asks. “It would explain why there’s so little known about The Coordinator.”
“Something like that… The moment I forget what he looks like, I will talk like any other girl my age. After that, it won’t take a lot of time until I forget him and live a happy life,” they claim.
“But I don’t want to live like that! I want him to be happy too!”
Raven is still as composed as ever, not allowing himself to feel any emotions. Blossom’s gaze has softened, but she’s still trying to maintain that image of a hardened Dream Catcher who remains untouched by sentimental stories. Sylvia, however, is all too familiar with these kinds of tragedies.
“There’s nothing backing up these claims,” Raven states. “We have reason to believe that you’re just manipulating us. Even if your story were to hold truth, there’s little we can do and too much to risk by allowing someone like you to live.”
With ease, Raven tips the scales. He’s all too used to flowery speech and insubordinate comrades.
“I know. I’m sorry…”
Even he is taken aback by the lack of rebuttals and begins brooding in his seat as he thinks of ways to spur on some conflict.
“I’m not saying I don’t trust you, but how did this happen? How did it start? And where did you discover this relic along with your abilities?” Sylvia asks.
“Oh, right! Vancouver Island!” exclaims the child.
“It happened not too long ago on there!”
“That can’t be true! Vancouver Island was destroyed half a decade ago due to that damned Cursed Child! And you’re too young,” Blossom interjects. She’s likely speaking up because she’s tired of hearing of that place. Her connection with Elena is clouding her rationale.
“‘Talk like any other girl my age,’ ‘Lab rat,’ and ‘Vancouver Island’…” Sylvia says.
“I don’t want to give her credence, but it aligns with what we know about Elena and what I’ve read about some testing facilities.”
“So what?” Raven counters. “We have a mission, and we ought not to question our directives. Coordinators have always been threats. They always will be. You have kids to take care of. Blossom has a life to return to. Even if some of these things were true, we cannot allow ourselves to be swayed by our emotions lest we allow the deaths of many more, some of which will be children.”
“Let’s at least hear her out! The least we can do is gather some information,” Sylvia yells as she glances at the shivering, frightened child.
“I’m sorry. That island is a sensitive topic. Could we talk about your relic instead?” Sylvia asks while holding onto their hands.
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Raven knows that Blossom is likely to follow Sylvia unless that were to put her on Elena’s side. Part of the reason why she’s here isn’t just her incredibly massive reservoir of natural power but also her disdain for Elena. Their lack of synergy makes for a non-functioning team. In his eyes, however, despite her personal issues making her unfit to lead, Blossom is quite valuable and easy to control. Swaying her opinion is as easy as keeping a feather adrift on a windy summer day.
Sylvia, though nowhere near as easy to manipulate, has several orphans under her protection. Though she has taken in many such strays like The Coordinator, anything that could pose a threat to her kids is handled without mercy. Though headstrong and confident, her children are her weak spot and, therefore, make her controllable. Just by offering her a little bit of funding and public support, he can keep a hold of her.
Even Phantom is controlled by his manipulative means. Phantom can act freely within the entirety of Bavaria for as long as he remains in Raven’s good graces. The only reason he’s on a mission to Munich is because of a PR stunt. He was likely to request to be stationed there and be allowed to explore this abnormality anyway so that also worked out in Raven’s favor.
Elena, though most know it not, is rather powerful and versatile. However, her status as Cursed Child leaves her somewhat disadvantaged. By offering her housing and the chance to govern over a part of Bavaria, she’ll be indebted to him and unable to ever disapprove of whatever he orders her to do. It turns her into another powerful asset that’s easy to manipulate.
“Right! This visor is Null. It’s a relic with powerful beams and erases everything.”
“Erases everything? Like my hand?” Sylvia asks, hoping The Coordinator would reveal a little more so she could piece its capabilities together.
“No. I don’t know how to explain it. Metal? Clothes? Something about humans…”
“Human inventions? Technology”
“Yes! That’s it!” she shouts, excited about Sylvia being able to understand her.
“But that’s not all! I have even more relics!”
With one swift hand motion, she creates several holograms that display all kinds of relics. Knowing that she may be in possession of eight of them is concerning. A child containing this much power shouldn’t be allowed.
First of all relics is Null, the visor The Coordinator wields. Unlike many other relics, it seems like the penultimate relic that is not only complete but also incredibly versatile and powerful. Within the right hands, one could formulate wishes that could alter reality, reverse entire landscapes to what they once were millions of years ago, and bestow powers upon people that would grant them absolute might. Yet, for some reason, only the erasure of technology seems to be an option for this child.
The following two relics are paired together. Castor and Pollux of the Dioscuri, though only their silhouette is visible, are incredible relics that ultimately boil down to infinity and death. In their complete forms, one can inflict attacks that will do damage over eternity. If one were to be afflicted by a paper cut, no amount of time would heal the wound as it would continuously bleed. The other can bring back the dead or cause instant death. With enough expertise, one can cause necrosis by just scratching a body part.
Pandora and Pandora’s Box are also on the list of relics that may be within The Coordinator’s possession. Pandora would draw both fortune and misfortune upon the user, while Pandora’s Box would store misfortune and allow it to be released and spread chaos into the cosmos.
Two more relics are named, yet there seems to be no description of their nature and capabilities, while the last is unnamed and oozes off mystery, awakening intrigue within Raven.
“I can only give you Astral Core. Any more and I will be in trouble…”
“I can’t tell you who I’m talking about! That’s also a secret!”
Sylvia chuckles as Raven reaches for the solid block of gold The Coordinator is gifting them. Blossom grunts. It’s her sign that whatever comes of this relic will be shared between the two of them. Raven intently looks at the visor, pondering how he can bring an end to this farce of a tea party. If The Coordinator got to them without being alerted by any other Dream Catcher, then something must have happened to them.
“Can you turn invisible?” he asks.
“No?” answers The Coordinator.
“What does Null do?” he asks.
“Erase technology,” answers The Coordinator.
“That’s all it can do, right?” he asks.
“Yes?” answers The Coordinator.
“Then what happened to my Dream Catchers? I’m sure you must have seen someone.”
No response is given as The Coordinator grimaces.
“What exactly do you want from us?”
“Trade and collaborate. I’m sure we can ride this incident off as a huge scuffle you couldn’t handle, right?”
“Aren’t we rather formal for a child, huh?” Blossom interjects.
“I should have known you were full of shit.”
The Coordinator sighs. A violent battle between them and whoever this Coordinator is is likely unavoidable at this point, but it’s precisely what Raven was banking on. He can collect the reward for beating The Coordinator while also collecting a number of precious relics. Though he’s prepared for almost anything, there’s some kind of uneasiness welling up inside him.
“No. That child was there. She was genuine and did gift us an incredible power source,” Sylvia states.
“Why would you care?” The Coordinator asks.
“You have your own house of potential child soldiers. It’s not like you care.”
Their words sting as Sylvia avoids their gaze.
The Coordinator’s attention shifts to Blossom.
“And you have the audacity to demean and dishonor those children!” they shout.
“Huh?! Ellie’s just an idiot who gets everyone killed! Not my fault that she gets mistreated!”
“Of course not. Your spineless bellows are so shallow with so little substance that you’d help gas protesters the moment there’s any cash reward.”
Raven is expecting venom to be spewed at him but believes himself to be invulnerable. The only things that could possibly sting are nigh impossible to know. Even if guesses were to be made, one would have to witness his secrets.
“I’m sure your beloved partner would appreciate you being the cause of several dead children. Don’t you recognize this one? I cleaned him up just for you,” The Coordinator spews.
“Do you want to tell them about these Receptor Children, or should I?”
Sylvia knew of Raven’s shrewd business practices but not to what extent. She was afraid of incurring his wrath and harming any of her children. If Sylvia were to lose his support, she could only house half as many children with less liberties and less luxuries. But it’s nothing she wasn’t expecting. And that doesn’t change the fact that her children still need her support. Working within the system is the only way she knows of protecting the innocents.
Before they could react, a bird oozing dark magic came flying into this domain straight through The Coordinator’s throat.