Tanner briefly looks at me when I enter the cafe, and I frown a little. Since when does he have a group of ten friends? I'm kind of suspicious as to their motives for wanting to hang out with him. Leeches. Seven girls and three guys, probably all hoping for something lucky to happen as a result. Maybe even for him to take an interest in them, despite the rarity of Sigil-Bearers getting with normies.
They probably think that him hanging out with me is a sign that it's possible he's into that, that maybe it's a fetish of his. They'll be sorely disappointed once he leaves here after deciding he's done training here. I wouldn't put it past him to only stay long enough for my help to no longer be really all that relevant.
The sex might be amazing, but once he has control over his power, he'll no doubt want to get with another Sigil-Bearer. For now, I'm of use to him, and that's the reason he's still here.
It's sad, seeing normies fall for him like that. Maybe separating them in school would be a better idea because of that. Sigil-Bearers just aren't wired to have any form of romantic or sexual interest in normies, yet have an appearance that causes normies to have sexual interest in them.
It's ridiculous that the normies try despite knowing the chances are nil. They think that because it's relatively new information due to the ages of the oldest Sigil-Bearers, there's not enough sources to make a conclusive statement.
Turning my attention away from the pathetic lot who think they can actually get a grip on Tanner's heart, I walk over to Tabitha and Erin, the latter of whom is texting away on her phone while pretending not to watch Tanner. Tabitha's looking somewhat worried, and opens her mouth as I sit down.
"The call that I had to take," I say before she can speak. "Was regarding the situation. It appears the Klen did make their move, but it's ended up being a dud. Thank goodness."
I really hope Ian keeps to his promise and lets me know what happened once I head back to my apartment.
"However," I say. "I'm going to make some arrangements. Erin isn't a fighter, and she's going to need protection. There's a high Klen presence in the area at the moment, and that poses a danger to her."
"I don't need protection," Erin looks at me, a tone of annoyance in her voice.
"Tell me," I say. "How willing are you to bet that there isn't a single one in the Klen who doesn't know what you can do? Especially knowing that the Klen knows about ten years ago?"
Erin glares at me, but doesn't respond.
"Something's going on," I say. "If their plans earlier yielded no results, they will make another move, and until I know the full details of what their plans are, you will have protection."
"And you think you can protect me?" She asks. "When Frank already has a guard assigned to me?"
"Not me," I say. "But I can inform Frank that Tina's not enough."
Her eyes widen a little as her lips turn down in a slight frown.
"Yes, I know who your guard is," I say. "I've known since before you found out about her. I knew before she was even asked that she was going to be asked. Invisibility mixed with aerokinesis in the style of blade-like winds, two powers that work rather well with each other. I can point out exactly where she is right now, too. Now, if I can do that, imagine what a powerful Sigil-Bearer could do."
"Look," Erin says. "I can handle myself, Nick. I foresee any danger to myself. Any threat to myself. My power's developed enough for that. You see me what, once every few years? Don't pretend-"
"This is why I hate dealing with you," I stand. "Because you're pretty arrogant, thinking your power and the single guard are enough to protect you. Your power might be decent, but it's nowhere near the level of an Immortal Sigil."
"You are the arrogant one," she snaps back, drawing attention from others in here. "What? You think because you run around the ruins all day, that automatically makes you a badass, Nick? Guess what? You aren't, you-"
"I am someone who killed a Sigil-Bearer just hours ago," I state. "They were a trained soldier of the Klen, no less. I am a badass. You just have an issue with me because I'm not a Sigil-Bearer and you have an arrogance born from confidence in your power, a power that isn't even useful for combat. I will be contacting Frank and informing him that you need more protection due to the events of today. You have no choice in this matter. The fact that your guard hasn't done a single thing to end this discussion is proof that she agrees that you need more protection, so shut the hell up."
I look at Tabitha.
"It was nice to see you again," I tell her. "Maybe we can get together while you're here without the cousin around. Every time Erin and I meet, we argue, and it kind of ruins the mood."
"I'll call you," Tabitha tells me.
"Thanks," I tell her. "Have a good day."
I make my way out of the cafe, noticing Tanner starting to rise.
"Stay, have fun with your friends."
He sits back down.
As soon as I'm outside of the cafe, I pull out my phone and call Frank.
"Please tell me there's not another Immortal Sigil from the Klen there," he groans.
"My cousin, Erin, is," I state. "And the Klen's increased their presence here. They did something earlier, though I don't know what. Ian says their plan was foiled, but I want to make sure Erin is protected. If they kidnap her, they can force out prophecies using Wyatt's power. If they do that, they can find their way to chaos, and we need to prevent that. I want at least four more Sigil-Bearers guarding her."
"You don't get to order me around," he states. "We can look into-"
"Four more, by midnight," I state. "That's an order, Frank. Erin is in very real danger, and if the Klen kidnap her, they could even dismantle the Federation. Erin isn't a combatant in any way, and she feels that her power and Tina are enough to protect her from danger."
Frank sighs into the phone.
"For someone who dislikes his cousin, you sure want to protect her."
"It's not her I want to protect," I state. "It's the world. The Klen will become an even bigger problem if they capture her. It doesn't matter if she's my cousin or not, what matters is that she refuses to learn how to fight and has only one guard. Four more. By midnight. No exceptions."
I hang up. Frank will probably fail to deliver on this without prompting. There's no evidence there's a threat to her, so he won't authorize a higher protection despite me saying that she needs it. I could have made something up, but I'm not going to.
So I make another call. It's answered on the third ring.
"It's not every day you call me, Nick," Dana, the Director of the Federation, answers calmly, a hint of curiosity in her voice.
"Erin might be in danger," I state. "I have no proof of that, but there's an increased number of Klen members and Sigil-Bearers in town. They're actually in town, rather than in the ruins, and Erin arrived today. They've also begun making moves, though I don't know for what."
"You want a higher protection detail assigned to her," she states.
"I do," I respond. "I've already informed Frank, but he tends to be useless with some things. I want four more Sigil-Bearers guarding her by midnight, or I'm asking Ashley to come to town."
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"Please don't," she sighs. "The last thing we need is the Goddess of Darkness acting like a bodyguard, and we need her doing other stuff for the sake of the safety of citizens everywhere. You're right, Frank will probably not deliver on your request, not with what you said as the only indication of possible danger. I'll make sure four more are assigned out to her. Do you want a sweep of the ruins? I'll have them avoid the areas you've banned."
"No," I tell her. "I'm already having a check of the ruins done. Off the books."
"Alright," she says. "I'll have Tina talk with Erin, Nick. Don't worry, we'll make sure she's safe."
"Thanks," I responds.
"Have a good day," she tells me, then ends the call.
The Director of the Federation's a busy woman, yet she still answered for me. Mostly because she knows I wouldn't call her unless it meant Erin might be in danger of having her power abused by darker forces or something of similar importance. After Erin's big prophecy, Dana visited me and told me that if I ever feel like Erin's in danger, to give her a call. She's just as aware of the potential damages as I am should the Klen get their hands on Erin and start forcing out prophecies.
There was already suffering because of them grabbing Isaac, and he was only in their possession for an hour before he was rescued. Now, he's in a mental hospital, his mind broken and fragmented and probably years away from anything resembling sanity.
Nearly three hundred Federation soldiers and nineteen Sigil-Bearers were killed and an entire town was leveled because of them forcing prophecies out of Isaac.
That was four years ago, so it was several years after the big prophecy, but still. Dana already knew, even ten years ago, what kind of threat someone giving prophecies could be if they were given to the wrong people. Then we found out about Wyatt and his ability to 'take over' a person and use their power through them.
As a master of that ability.
He's managed to consistently avoid Ian's detection, and by the time one of the Sigil Gods have arrived at where he's been sighted, he's always been long-gone with no trace of where he went. It's suspected he's a Duality with either the ability to avoid notice or the ability to erase his presence on top of regulation.
After the incident with Isaac's capture, Dana reached out to me again and reminded me to let her know if I ever have reason to believe Erin might be in danger of being captured. She knows how arrogant my cousin is and that ignoring her wishes is for the better.
Why couldn't my cousin be more like Ali? Someone who knows their limits, and while confident in their abilities, isn't arrogant and stupid and actually knows when they need more than what they can do? Someone who also trains their body as a form of precaution?
Of course, part of the problem is that it was me who said it. Erin's never liked me just because I'm not a Sigil-Bearer. She hates me even more because I have the looks of one, yet aren't one. My cousin falls into the category of Sigil-Bearers who believe that Sigil-Bearers are supreme and don't have family that isn't a Sigil-Bearer. The only reason she even still lives with Tabitha is because the other option is being kept in a Federation compound.
Fortunately, she's not stupid enough to believe in the Klen's ideals, but that won't matter if Wyatt uses his power on her. I really wish we could…
I stop walking and make eye contact with someone who was walking down the side of the street.
A fifteen-year-old boy who's going through puberty gracefully, no sign of scrawny, awkward limbs or acne on his face and the looks of a Sigil-Bearer. He has brown hair at a medium-short length and styled fashionably. He's dressed in black cargo shorts, a red tee with a black shirt over that, unbuttoned, and black combat boots.
For a moment, his dark blue eyes fill with shock, then they turn to hate.
Found him. The fact that he's in plain view of cameras yet Ian hasn't let me know he's here pretty much confirms he's got some way to avoid being detected by them.
Wyatt beckons for me to follow him, and I turn and resume walking to the student dorms. No way am I going to go anywhere with him.
I make it only a few steps before there's a hand grabbing my wrist, pulling me and turning me to face him with enough force that a normal person's arm would be yanked out of its socket. Wyatt opens his mouth to speak, only to suddenly look at me in confusion.
"What the hell are you?" He asks.
"What do you mean?" I ask.
"You don't feel like a normie," he states. "Yet you don't feel like a Sigil-Bearer."
Feel like? I guess he's able to sense the abilities of a Sigil-Bearer, it would make sense for someone as powerful as him. He's probably an eight if we put him on a power scale. That would come in handy for being able to effectively use someone's ability through them, though it was assumed that he had to know what they could do in order to use his ability on them.
"I'm a badass," I pull my hand free from his grip. "And if you know what's best for you, you'll turn your ass around and leave Frendok. For good. And so help me, if you're here for my cousin-"
"Your cousin?" He snorts. "As if I'd want a half-rate prophet like her, even if she did give the big prophecy. We have another prophet, one who actually aligns with us."
My shock must be evident, because he just smirks in response.
"Yeah, loser," he says. "So do whatever you want to protect that chick, because she ain't important to us. Our guy's been more than happy to let me use my power on him, and we found out some pretty useful stuff."
"Doesn't seem like a move's been made," I state.
"Of course not," he growls. "Not until we can stop this youngest god. So long as the empathic healer lives, the youngest god poses a threat to the Klen. Therefore, we're looking for the empathic healer, and we're going to kill him."
"So you have the full prophecy, then," I state.
"Our prophet's power works a little bit differently," he sneers. "He's even more accurate than Erin. According to him, the youngest god won't cause a world of destruction under a single condition: the empathic healer is not his friend on a certain date. Now, considering that Theodore works alone, all that means is we need to prevent the empathic healer from becoming his friend. Therefore, we just need to kill the empathic healer before they meet."
On a certain date?
"What date?" I ask.
"I'll never tell you," he sneers. "You pathetic scum. I don't know what you are, but-"
"What do you mean 'what I am'?" I ask. "You said I don't feel like a normie or a Sigil-Bearer. Are you going to tell me what you mean by that, punk? Or just be an ass?"
"Oh, I can be the biggest ass you know," he sneers. "Sure, I'll tell you. Part of regulation allows me to sense the abilities of others. Not just Sigil abilities, but normal abilities, such as physical capabilities. It also lets me get a sense for how dangerous they are. A normie usually feels light and fluffy, while an Immortal Sigil-Bearer trained for combat feels heavy and dense, dangerous. You dwarf that. You're not a Sigil-Bearer, yet you feel dangerous enough that I don't think I could kill you, despite being many times faster and stronger. Your combat abilities aren't even enough to make my flinch, yet that feeling of danger I get from you… it's inhuman."
"Perhaps that 'danger' you're feeling isn't me," I smile. "But my boyfriend."
"Who?" He asks.
I lean forward so that my mouth is by his ear and whisper my boyfriend's name and abilities. He stiffens up as he inhales sharply, probably contemplating for the first time his power's ability to sense a danger that's granted to someone through a connection. He's probably realizing that if they killed me, then my boyfriend would eradicate the entire Klen.
On his own.
There's always the chance he'll think I'm lying about my boyfriend later, but right now, having felt that powerful danger, he's believing it.
"So what brings the Klen to town?" I pull back. "I heard that I'm supposed to die, and that the tracker who went after me moved ahead of schedule?"
"You're an annoyance," he states. "You've gotten in the way of us finding Alison Smol for too long. You've killed far too many of our agents. I've decided to personally oversee your death. Or at least, hinder you from finding us. As for why we're in town… well, our prophet says the empathic healer will be at some point in the next two weeks. We weren't able to narrow it down closer than that, something is interfering with his ability, even when I use regulation on it."
So that's what Ian meant by their efforts will yield nothing. I'm not sure why they'd have needed to keep me out of town for whatever they did, but it was connected to them locating the empathic healer. But that interference prevented them from narrowing down when he'll be here. Unfortunately, that means they'll be here heavily over the next two weeks.
Which means two weeks of dealing with them. But as long as Wyatt believes me in regards to who my boyfriend is, I'll be safe from harm. They'll want to keep me out of town, but not attack me.
"Now, you cretinous scum," Wyatt sneers. "I'm off to go do things someone without any ability couldn't ever do. Enjoy your miserable life with your freak of a boyfriend. What kind of taste does he have, dating someone who's not a Sigil-Bearer?"
"The best taste of them all," I smile. "He's dating me!"
Wyatt looks like he wants to punch me, but I ignore it and turn away, not looking back. He's probably heading off to whatever he was doing, too.
I hate him. Just one encounter with him, and I hate him. How many rockets do I have? How much will the Federation yell at me for using them in town? Will Ian send me some emergency restock on it if I asked him to?
As I mull over the possibilities of how to either kill Wyatt or teach him a lesson, I reach my apartment. I'll need to let Ian know that Wyatt's in town, too. There's a good chance that he'll leave now that I know he's here, but on the chance that he doesn't… it's best to let Ian know.
Entering my apartment, I think about the fact that they know that the empathic healer will be here at some point in the next two weeks. At least, according to the Klen's prophet. The fact that they have their own means they don't need Erin, but I wouldn't put it past them to try to kidnap her in an attempt to force me to act in their wishes.
Or Tabitha. They'd have a better chance at getting me to cooperate if they kidnapped my aunt. Or Tanner. Maybe I shouldn't have left Tanner at the cafe, after all.
As I take off my boots, I notice another pair of them sitting in the entryway. Boots that aren't mine. Normally, I'd have noticed such a thing even before I opened the door, but a combination of my distraction over the situation and the specific person who's here prevented me from doing so.
I charge into my bedroom and tackle the guy sitting on my bed, who had been hidden by the wall at the end of the kitchen.
"Ian!"