Sons of the Earth

Foundation for Supernatural Activity Base, July 17, 2018

     The Swordsman's head was spinning. The Wizard had warned him that the Foundation for Supernatural Activity had some powerful Hunters. He'd been right. In retrospect, attacking the Hunter who'd come out to argue with him hadn't been the best idea. He probably should have realized that the Foundation would know better than sending a single Hunter without backup. The Wizard had warned him about going after them but had dropped the subject after the Swordsman had announced he needed to clear his head, granting the younger man his space. Of course, the Swordsman hadn't let it go for two days before heading to the closest Foundation base and starting a fight.

     The Swordsman still believed he could have won if he'd only taken the time to stake out the base a little before attacking. Even with that mistake, beating him had come at a heavy cost to the Foundation. He didn't have the level of power that the Wizard did, but he'd been holding his own reasonably well until they'd surprised him. All his life, the winds had been his domain and his alone. He'd never in his life encountered another being who could control air magic. He'd been completely unprepared when he suddenly found himself attacked within the plane of the air itself, unseen forces tearing at his very being in the one place he'd always believed he was safe. He knew he could have overpowered the Hunter easily, but the surprise attack had knocked him out of the plane of air, where he'd been overcome.

     He didn't regret it, though. The Wizard, he knew, was just as frustrated as he was. Perhaps his longer lifespan had taught him patience. Four centuries clearly was not enough for the Swordsman. After four years of following one dead-end lead after another in their search for the Son of the Water, the Swordsman had simply had enough. He was sure the Foundation knew where Mason was, but they refused to divulge the information for reasons known only to their mysterious Board of Overseers. Now he was quite likely in their power. It didn't matter. He knew he'd get out soon enough. After all, how could even a group as powerful as the Foundation possibly hope to contain the wind?

     The Swordsman groaned, shook his head to clear it, and opened his eyes. He looked up at a bank of lights suspended on a track above a glass ceiling. Above the track was what appeared to be concrete. Turning his head revealed glass walls to the left and right, behind which appeared to be more concrete. As far as interior design choices went, this place was sorely lacking, although it certainly had a familiar feel to it. What he was seeing him reminded him a great deal of their own base. Frowning, the Swordsman tried to sit up, only to find himself caught. Looking down revealed a heavy metal clamp across his chest. A bit of struggling confirmed more clamps on his arms, wrists, waist, thighs, and ankles. Well, this was about what he'd expected. At least, if he needed to, he could pass into the plane of air and escape fairly easily. Best he didn't reveal that bit of information just yet. He sighed, looking past his feet. He saw a long table with four chairs and a computer. More concrete and a heavy steel door were behind the table. Looking closely, he could see the door leading into his cell and the heavy bolts that held it closed coming up from the floor and from the metal rail that ran along the top of the cell. At the top of the rail, he found what he was looking for. "Alright," he called to the camera, "you have my attention. Send someone in here, and we'll talk."

     After a few endless minutes, the door to the room opened and four men entered. Three were wearing lab coats, the fourth business casual. All four sat at the table, with the heavyset businessman at the right end. "Hello, Swordsman," the man began. He was middle-aged with close-cropped grey hair and rounded glasses perched on his short nose. "My name is Justin Gulch. Next to me is Dr. Hain. The older gentleman at the computer is Dr. Hiw, and Dr. Yoshen is the blonde gentleman at the end. Welcome to the Foundation for Supernatural Activity."

     "And where, exactly, would this be?" the Swordsman wondered. "You have a bad habit of transporting Artifacts far from where you capture them. Where did you take me?"