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12

"Swank," Zoe monotoned disappointedly, squinting at the cracked stucco. Behind the counter in the lobby was a tired-looking man in a uniform one size too small. Ivy knelt down and patted a young leashed Charcat; it rolled over on its back, inviting her to rub its tummy, purring when she did so. Its black tail swished back and forth as she petted it.

Colson cleared his throat and approached the front desk; the teller stated they had but two rooms available, one a single bed and the other a two bed. A sly grin crossed Colson's face; he leaned and, with a shallow voice, asked for the single bed, but Zoe interrupted, saying the double bed would be preferable.

The teller smirked and peered over them at Ivy—still petting the animal, listening intently, lips slightly parted; the Charcat's owner, an older man wearing sunglasses and a suit, was telling her all about the breed and how if she wanted one, there were many strays around the area, especially at night.

Looking back at Ivy, peering over the two, the teller gathered that they seemed like good-natured kids, which erased all doubts.

Neph's office phone rang; he took a deep breath, knowing who it would be. He held up a hand to quiet the other three people in the room. After the third ring, he picked up.

"Hello?" He said as calmly as possible.

"Why the hell did you give her a mission?"

"Aye, listen. It was a mistake on my part, and I take full responsibility for-"

"This is why I said that we need to watch her. Now she's off doing who-knows-what. Have you been able to get a hold of Orion?"

"No, but I finally heard from his assistant. She said that he was on a voyage somewhere and wouldn't be back for a long time. They wouldn't say where he was going or why."

Aye scoffed, "Now that's just great. Anyways, I heard there was some wild animal that got through the border and attacked. It's interesting how something like that happens right when that girl appears, huh?"

"Regrettably, we weren't able to detect and stop it before the tragedy struck," Neph said, ignoring the last part. Aye noted the pain in his voice. "We have it in captivity, and we have called for the wildlife researchers; they should be here any day now. We have noticed changes in its biology." He trailed off, deep in thought.

A long pause. "How's my daughter doing?" Aye asked, more as a statement than a question. It had been so long since anyone spoke that Neph had almost forgotten he was still on the phone.

"Reiza? She's doing as could be expected. In fact, if I recall correctly, she and a friend of hers has a mission scheduled in a few weeks."

After the call ended, Neph let out a long sigh, placing the phone back on its receiver. "So, how is she doing?" He asked.

"Who?" Amelia responded, "Reiza? I dunno. I think she's doing fine."

"What's your honest assessment of her development?"

"Academic wise, I wouldn't know. But she's keeping out of trouble."

Neph hummed vaguely in response.

Silas spoke up, "She's coasting. That's the big 'what-if,' what if Reiza actually applied herself?"

Lubbock scooted forward in his chair, "So the new one is off on a mission?"

"Apparently so," Neph said flatly.

"You want me to get em'?" Amelia asked.

"I don't think that'd be necessary. I'm leaning towards letting those three complete it."

Amelia scoffed, "Okay."

Lubbock turned, giving Neph an odd look, "Really?"

"Yes. The other two, Zoe and Colson, I think they're ready for something like this. Now, if this were a highly ranked mission, I'd say 'pull the plug.' I'm still of sound mind, of course."

"I suppose you're right." Lubbock grabbed a copy of the mission sheet off Neph's desk, reading it over.

"That boy, Colson, you were mentoring him, weren't you?"

"No, at one point, it was his brother and Mason, but I passed it off to Silas."

"Oh," Neph looked to Silas, smiling, and asked, "And how long before they surpass you?"

Silas just laughed until he realized from everyone's expression that the question wasn't a rhetorical one, "Uh, I dunno. Five...ten years, maybe?"

"That long?" He looked genuinely disappointed.

"Wha—I'm not weak, ya know?"

"Ten years...I'll need to keep this job for another ten years." Lubbock looked tired as he ran his fingers through his quickly greying hair.

"Hold on!" Amelia and Silas stood up, realizing what Lubbock was implying.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," she said, "You're really thinking about quitting on me?"

Silas looked at Lubbock, mouth agape, "It's way too early to think about a successor. Especially them. They're only, what? Fifteen at most! They're basically kids!"

"And kids grow up." He looked down at his hand, wrinkled and scarred. "If I were to quit or die tomorrow, who would be better than either of them to replace me? Honestly. Mason would be my first choice. Since you don't want to do it," Lubbock looked at Silas, "There's no one else I can think of."

"Sad," Amelia said, "The kids these days are lacking. We should push the gifted ones a little more. We'd definitely have more options."

"As the days go by, I find myself thinking about this more and more. Mason would be great for optics. At his age, already dawned with the mark of trinity. Charismatic, as well. He'd be great."