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"It is tragic," my mom agreed with sympathy. "Perhaps you could give her a call later to check on her."

"Yeah, I think I will," I responded.

"I'm sure she'll appreciate that. For now, though, you all should continue and find the next Primordial to aid us," my mom kindly suggested.

"Lisa? Any luck finding Life?" Trik asked as he finished whatever it was he was eating.

"Yeah, I recognized a church somewhere in my dream that may be a hint," I said. "Looks like we're heading to Poland."

"Poland!? Ughh, another long trip...." Trik sighed exasperatedly.

"Yup, and lucky for you, you have to go since we need your sensors," I commented, teasing him.

"Lucky me." He muttered.

"Why don't you take one of the jets this time," my mom offered. "Besides, dear, I don't think you can stop over the ocean the next time you need a break."

"Oh, I could freeze the water when she needs to catch her breath," Naomi offered cheerfully, attempting to help.

"While we appreciate the gesture, Ms. Caia, sitting on a structure of ice for an hour or two doesn't sound very pleasant. At least not for humans," Trik stated.

"Then we could fly both of you there," Naomi suggested next. "With our speed, we'd get there within an hour. And if you're worried about safety, you can rest assured that your bodies would be coated in our spirit energy for protection."

"You can fly that fast?!" I exclaimed.

"Yep. Even without my hybrid form, I can fly at speeds up to Mach 12," she claimed. "If I recall correctly, Za'Fia can move up to Mach 9, so we should be fine...oh, but Tymon can only move up to Mach 3...it's a bit slower, but we should still get there within two or three hours."

"Sounds good to me," Trik conveyed. "It beats spending all day getting there."

"And we didn't even have to buy any primordial-class tickets," I said jokingly before concluding our little get-together. "Well, it looks like we know how we're getting there. I suppose we should be getting ready for the trip ahead."

My mom and dad left the room, probably to start calling in everyone.

"I won't be going," Za'Fia added as we moved toward the door.

"Why? Is something wrong?" I asked her, turning back around.

Her expression didn't scream to me that something was wrong. If anything, it looked more like the thought of going seemed like a nuisance to her. Maybe she didn't feel like flying.

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Naomi began to giggle. Then, she looked at Za'Fia and tried to stop but ultimately failed to hide her amusement.

Za'Fia rolled her eyes in response.

"Am I missing something?" I asked, confused.

"No. It's just that Michael has a thing for Za'Fia," Naomi mentioned.

"Really?" I said, then glanced at Za'Fia. Due to her cloak, I couldn't see what she was wearing today, but still, she looked amazing as usual. Of course, Michael would have a thing for her.

"Well, never mind," I said as I made an expression that said, "Who wouldn't?"

"I've had to turn him down a couple of times before," Za'Fia stated. Her tone indicated she wasn't looking forward to their next encounter where she'd have to.

"You can't be surprised; you're magnificently beautiful, after all," Trik remarked from my left.

Magnificently beautiful...wow Trik, such the romantic. I wonder how he sees Verin since he was gawking at her before...

Naomi began to laugh hysterically.

"Actually, that's not the main reason he likes her," she said next.

Za'Fia shook her head slowly as she tried to hide her smirk.

"I don't think Michael wants everyone to know that about him," she told Naomi.

"I think he needs a little humility," Naomi retorted playfully as she proceeded and divulged us.

"Michael likes Za'Fia for her overwhelming strength over anything else," she said cryptically as she tried to stifle a laugh.

"Hm. That's an interesting tidbit," Trik replied.

I didn't get it. He liked strong women. So what?

I believe it's less about him liking strong women and more about him desiring women stronger than him, Viraa explained.

...

Trik must've seen the confusion on my face, so he whispered what Naomi was insinuating into my ear.

My face began to blush as I looked at Za'Fia.

"You'd do that for him?" I asked her.

Her eyes widened as she quickly shook her head.

"No, I'm not into that," she cleared up immediately.

"Well, everyone has their interests," I said defensively. "I don't know him like you all do, but we shouldn't pick on him for having a preference."

"She's not laughing because of his preference," Za'Fia clarified. "The humor is due to how unexpected his preference is compared to his personality. Once you meet him, you'll see what I mean."

Before I could respond to Za'Fia, I received an incoming transmission from Vicki. The lighter mood from just a second ago felt a little heavier now.

After accepting the call, I immediately gave her my condolences.

"Hey, I was planning to call later. I heard the news – sorry about your dad," I said sympathetically. "I know you two weren't close, but still...."

"Thanks, Lisa," Vicki responded softly. "I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. I don't know if I should be sad, relieved, or angry."

There was a pause after she finished. I could practically feel her confused state through the phone.

"If you ask me, the healthiest would be to be sad," I said, stating my opinion. "Even after two centuries of hating him, even if he was a bad man, he was still your dad."

Vicki exhaled deeply before speaking again.

"Yeah, you're right..." she said. "Hey, I'm not sure what's happening, but we could use this to our advantage. After what happened to my dad and the attack on the Russos, I'm sure both branches will summon each of their members from around the world. If it turns out to be Avarice behind the attacks, your family should probably do the same in case you're targeted next. Even if Avarice isn't planning an attack, we'll need the numbers later anyways."

"We've figured as much, so we've already begun calling in everyone just in case," I replied.

"Great, well, I'll keep my ear to the ground and inform you of anything I hear," Vicki promised.

Yet again, she was risking her life to aid us in doing what's right. How did I get so lucky to find a friend like her?

"Thanks, Vicki. You're a great friend."

"Yeah...no problem," Vicki responded before ending the call.