The Spaces Between Coordinates

Chapter Nine (part two)

For a while Anastasia's mother had pondered on whether she made the right choice joining the Grey Leagues. Her only family kicked her out because they didn't want anything to do with her anymore. She was not gifted either so finding a job that didn't need a gift of any nature was difficult. Until she stumbled upon the Grey Leagues founder, Agatha Barden.

Immediately she was recruited. In a short time she made quite a bit of money. She was only nineteen when she joined but she learned fast. But it was obvious to her that this wasn't the sort of job she could just leave. And after four years she figured she would stay but that all changed when she fell pregnant. Anastasia's father in question was quite the elusive man.

She had never met someone quite like him. For starters he knew a lot more than what the scientists used to talk about on television. The concepts and things he talked about seemed to be from a time where things were more advanced. Which didn't make any sense considering how far along the world progressed. Martin Lockwood intrigued her to no end.

He told her he came from a different solar system, five million years in the future. She found it funny but he didn't tell her the whole truth. A conflict arose in the past that sparked a war between the various solar systems in the Milky Way and that the conflict was identified to have started from hers. His job, as a field agent of his army force, was to go back in time to identify when the conflict had started.

But they did not account for the differences in their technology in the time difference, so he was not able to communicate with his people during his mission. He would only be able to do so when going back and he had to complete his mission first. So on one day he went off to a club with his disguise of a tall dark male. On his planet, his people had different colours of skin and had the ability to change them at will. His original skin was a dark green. And his irises were also susceptible to colour changes due to strong emotions.

He sat on a bar stool by the bar, watching the crowd till he noticed Anastasia's mother. He later found out her name to be Danny. Danny was on a different level of stunning that he couldn't quite explain. Her hair was a dark brown filled with millions of curls that ended at her waist. Her eyes were like chocolate and somehow they pierced through him with a stony stare. While her skin wasn't dark, it wasn't significantly lighter either. It was the same shade as his but she had lighter tones on her body.

They brought attention to her dark outfit and her small waist accentuated everything. He saw her head towards a tall man and gently tug on his arm. The man turned and followed her eagerly to a bathroom. The man was dressed casually but he had an air of confidence in his step. Five minutes later they both walked out the bathroom and the man walked away just as confident back to his friends.

The girl came out again and walked towards the bar where Martin sat. Heavy bass from the music and flashing lights did not divert his attention from her whatsoever. Something about her drew him to her and for the first time, he decided to disregard his mission and relax. They got to talking and suddenly she grabbed his hand and took them outside the club.

It was 3am. The air was chilly but he only felt the warmth that was her hand pulling him outside. They crossed the empty street and sat on a bench. "What are we waiting for?", he asked, his deep voice cutting through the air. She only shushed him and pointed at the club entrance. The man she took to the bathroom earlier staggered outside. He sat on the roadside and began to sob bitterly. Martin frowned at this but said nothing.

Then the man stood up and took out a gun and immediately shot himself in the mouth. Danny stood up still holding Martin's hand and they walked towards the body. Blood was pooling out in a dark circle. She got out her phone and snapped a picture. "He was a target and now my job is done. Shall we go?", she asked nonchalantly.

Danny cocked her head to the side as she appraised Martin. The tall dark stranger was nothing short of a distraction. Danny had never come across such a refreshing and intelligent conversation. She only had one target left today and she wanted it over and done with so she gave him a gun in the bathroom and decided to wait and see what would happen. 

The intel she had indicated the man had occasional depressive episodes and they were followed by suicidal attempts. He always had to be around friends but this time they were too drunk to pay attention to him. After a while she took Martin outside. Something told her that he wouldn't judge her harshly for what she was doing.

So when the man shot himself and Martin didn't openly react, she concluded that she might have a new friend. And as a field agent, Martin came to the conclusion that they were similar in what they did.

Perhaps it was a foolish whim or a desperate wish but he continued contact with her and after a few months convinced her to have a haven of her own and they stayed together like that up until she fell pregnant two years later. Not only did he fail to go through his mission but he carelessly gave Danny a child that he'd never see grow up.

He told her it was a mistake and he didn't intend on staying for so long, much less having a child. They fought over it until they agreed to separate. Naturally they both agreed on keeping the child but he decided to tell her the real truth as to why he came to Earth. "So you're an alien.", Danny stated when he finished telling her his mission.

"Is that seriously the only fact you're focused on?", he asked exasperatedly. "Well of course I'm mad at you and you still have a mission but honestly all I'm thinking about is how to keep our child safe.", she said while holding her flat tummy. He sighed heavily. 'A practical woman through and through.', he thought. While it frustrated him at times, he could not help but appreciate that side of her.

"Let her be an assassin. Train her hard so that she survives.", he said. "Wait how do you know if she'll be a girl? You can't possibly guess that!", she said while laughing. "Danny I'm telling you just do it. If my calculations are right, there will be an opportunity to get her out.", he said gravely.

"What do you mean?", she asked quietly. It was too much to hope for. Her unborn child didn't deserve to be in this life. "I mean there will be a chance to get out for her. But promise me you'll stay alive. I...want to come back...to see you both. I can't say when but promise me.", he said desperately.

Danny tilted her head. In the midst of his confession he had tears in his eyes and without realising it, his skin went back to green. His irises were a baby pink. He was more handsome this way she realised. She stretched out her hand to his cheek to wipe away at the rogue tear that fell. He looked down when he grabbed her arm and noticed his skin was green.

He couldn't bring himself to change it back so he looked back desperately in her eyes. Her brown eyes nearly drowning him in compassion. Her palm was warm and soft on his cheek. "I promise to keep our child alive. I promise to love you forever and I promise that I'll never forget you. ", she answered.

He threw himself into her arms and cried. Three months into her pregnancy, he left. Fast forward to twelve years later, the opportunity he told her about came. The target she didn't kill had predisposed knowledge of a potential world war. So in exchange for his life, she got him to agree to protect her daughter.

Danny immediately made preparations for someone to deliver the letter and paid for the school fees. It was a huge gamble but she hoped it would be a safe place and that her daughter would survive.

~

The sound of an automatic door sliding open stopped Anastasia's thoughts. One of the shelves on the left had disappeared leaving a doorway through which a tall buff man in army uniform entered. Her eyes widened in shock. The target that was left alive was somehow in charge of this school.

The conflict in her head began to make her head throb. She still had a mission to do but knowing that the man in front of her possibly held more information from her mother was clouding her judgement. She must have taken too much time to think because the burly man sat on one of the sofas.

"Please sit. We've been expecting you."

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