When Shift came into her room an hour later to ask about tonight's Owling, Athira lied.
"I need to skip tonight," she said, transitioning into the next stance of her combat yoga sequence, using it to steady her thoughts. "Raph has a point. I should sleep, and Rathe seems to be worn out after his tantrum today."
He wasn't. Rathe was still prowling down in the Below, snapping at every bite of annoyance that passed through her mind, and was kept at bay only by Talon's efforts.
"If you're sure," said Shift, tapping his hand against the door frame. "I'll be in my room if you change your mind. Feel free to wake me up until the usual time we turn in."
He left.
Athira finished two more sets of combat yoga. She told herself that she wasn't stalling, that she was waiting until everyone except Kione was asleep — but when the time came and she was reluctant to stuff the balls of clothes she'd prepared under her blankets, she was forced to admit she was lying to herself.
You don't have to do this, said Talon quietly in the back of her head. You could, y'know, actually just get some sleep.
Athira's fingers curled around her amulet. I have to. If the Surges start again—
Today's Surge caught both of us off guard, said Talon. And you still pulled yourself out of it.
What if I can't next time?
Talon fluttered closer, the soft touch of his feathers brushing against her mind.
Your mindscape is stronger than it's ever been, Thira, and it's all because of them, he said. The sunbeam was nice, but this tree? It's growing like crazy. It took a real beating from Rathe today, but I'm pretty sure it did more damage to Rathe than Rathe did to it. That wooden bench I told you about broke at one point, but it's back together now. And, dare I even say it, I even occasionally spot an Orange notebook and a few nice-looking boulders around the place.
It was a good argument, but there was one thing that Talon hadn't accounted for.
None of that matters if my runes break, said Athira, glancing at the still-flickering Blue marks along her arms. And you know just as well as I do what happen if they do.
We don't know that for sure, said Talon, but Athira felt his uncertainty.
He'd seen the memory.
He knew what they were hiding.
I can't risk it, said Athira, finally stuffing the clothes beneath her blankets as she found her resolve. If anything happens to them, especially because of me... She trailed off, a lump catching in her throat. I have to do whatever I can to protect them, even if they'll hate me for it.
Talon didn't have a response for that.
*+*+*+*
It took Athira less than an hour to complete Chief's favour.
With the proof acquired, she headed back to the Underground. The guards took one look at her and stepped aside without a word, which in her current mood, saved them from having their backsides find the floor.
The same teenage boy as last time was waiting by the elevator doors, ready to lead her straight to Chief. Athira hadn't looked at him long enough before to notice the scars that peeked out beneath his clothes, but now Shift had pointed it out, they were all too obvious.
When they reached the top of the stairs, out of earshot from most people in the Underground, Athira shaped a small Black crystal into her palm and held it out.
"I don't know if you're indebted or what, but if you ever want out, you find me," she said, noting the way he'd flinched when her hand had moved towards him. "In the meantime, if you touch that to an epicore, it'll fill up. You have a few hours before it expires."
The kid's suspicious gaze snapped to her, wary of a trap, before he cautiously took the shard from her hand and pocketed it.
"I'll... remember the offer, Owl," he said with a carefully measured amount of deference as he checked a small device on his wrist. "Chief is in a meeting for the moment, but he's been informed that you've arrived, and—"
Athira ignored him and walked straight through the door of Chief's office.
Chief was inside, lounging in his usual ridiculous chair across the desk from a woman who, as far as Athira could tell, was presenting some kind of accounting report on Orange projected screens. Both glanced up at Athira when she entered, and neither looked happy about the interruption.
"I have something for you," said Athira, planting her feet in the centre of the room and folding her arms, ignoring the glares Chief's two bodyguards were directing at her.
Chief just huffed, straightening in his chair and waving a hand towards the woman. "We'll finish this later. You have my apologies for this interruption."
The woman gathered up her things, giving Athira a wide berth on her way out of the room.
"No apprentice this time?" drawled Chief, straightening in his chair as the door clicked shut behind the woman.
"He's busy." Athira stepped forward, tossing proof of her favour on the desk in front of Chief. "As requested: the wristlet of the Elite you targeted. Can't promise it still works."
Chief reached forward, taking the wristlet in his hands and turning it over. "I have someone that can fix that. I suppose you'll be wanting your information?" He gestured to the seat across from him. "Please, sit."
If only to keep the conversation moving, Athira sat, gathering her cloak around her to keep her flickering runes out of view.
"Normally, I'd require a favour per topic, but given the favour I gave you, I'll allow it," said Chief, tapping the wristlet on the desk. "First, the Sleepers. As I said, I had the eastern wing sealed last week. That was after I sent a small team into the canal tunnels to find the source. They were partially successful, able to locate the entry point to what they reported as a hidden facility far below the ground, but were unable to enter it."
"Where?" said Athira.
"Couldn't tell you exactly," said Chief with a shrug. "Tunnels down near that canal are a maze. What I can do is put you in contact with someone who has the ability to track the residue those damned slugs leave, which is how they found the facility to begin with."
Athira frowned. Company wasn't ideal, but it was better than nothing. "Then I'll consider that part of the favour repaid after you set up a meeting for me."
"I could do that," said Chief. "Give me a few days, and—"
"Tonight."
Chief narrowed his eyes at her and reached for the bottle of alcohol on the shelf behind him. "If you'd completed the favour when I first offered it, tonight may have been possible, but—"
"You're the Underground head," said Athira. "You're the definition of possible around here, and either you're useful to me, or you're not."
Athira didn't flinch as Chief stood up from his chair, setting the bottle down on the desk with a heavy thud.
"You dare speak to me like that in my own Nest?"
"The only reason," Athira began softly, "that this is still your Nest, is because I've decided it's beneficial to me." She was flirting with danger, but right now, she didn't care. Let him remember exactly who he was dealing with. "I completed your favour because it was the simplest way to save time, not because I have qualms about removing anyone in my way."
Chief grit his teeth.
Athira leaned back in the chair, crossing one leg over the other. "Do you need a minute to organise that meeting, or are you going to tell me what you know about the Wardens?"
It was a long moment before Chief took his seat once more, motioning one of his bodyguards over.
"Send for Tracker," said Chief sharply. "Inform her that the Owl wishes to meet with her at the eastern Nest entrance as soon as possible."
The bodyguard nodded and left the room, taking the Elite's wristlet with him.
Chief poured himself a drink. "The only reason I am allowing your insult to stand is because of what I have to say next, but I assure you, you have not bought any goodwill with me — and if you ever pull something like that outside this office, one of us is going to regret it."
Athira remained silent, waiting as Chief downed his drink.
"I said when you first asked about the Wardens that the favour was just as much for your own good as it was mine," said Chief. "That's because the man you took the wristlet from wasn't an Elite, but a Warden.
"Ask anyone in the Underground, and they'll have heard rumours about the Wardens," he continued. "Most assume they're a myth, but I can assure you, they're quite real. They're the shrouded tip of Sirah's government, commanding the Elites from the shadows. Everything significant in Sirah — the Elites, the Colourformer system, the Redresin city rebuild — it was all the Wardens doing."
There was some faded memory in the far reaches of Athira's head dredged up by Chief's words that felt important, but the harder Athira reached for it, the further away it felt.
Trian's voice. "Warden, I'm not certain—"
A stranger's reply, sharp and stiff. "There is no room for doubt. We do what is necessary."
Athira ran her gloves over her arms as an echo of some long-forgotten pain swept through her. She could almost remember runes, a blindingly white stone, the Black building within her—
She shook it off, focusing on the matter at hand. "How do I find them?"
Chief laughed, pouring out a second drink. "You don't. They don't have a base you can walk into, at least not one I'm aware of. They're just everywhere, integrated into every part of this damned society. It took months to identify the one I sent you after, and despite the precautions we took, I still lost several good people." He leaned back, swirling his drink. "Best bet? You might find one or two at this facility they've got hidden in the tunnels."
It wasn't anything she hadn't already suspected, but having it confirmed was a relief. "You think the Wardens are behind the Sleepers?"
"The Wardens have a hand in anything significant that goes on in this city," said Chief. "If they aren't causing the Sleepers, they know who is, and they're allowing it. I'm fairly certain they only allow the Underground to exist because we serve a purpose. Fear, probably, to help keep the majority in line."
"With all the big, strong bullies you have lying around in your little club house?" said Athira dryly. "Never would have guessed."
Chief replied with an uncertain shrug. "Any respectable villain can hold their own against an Elite long enough to escape, but the Wardens are in a class of their own. They're unbeatable. Untouchable." He drained the rest of his drink and fixed his gaze on her. "And yet, you managed to take one out and steal his wristlet."
Athira didn't like the direction this conversation was going, but she'd come this far. It wouldn't kill her to spend an extra minute or two getting whatever she could out of Chief. "I got lucky."
"Except you didn't," said Chief, waving a hand towards the remaining bodyguard in the room, who handed him a tablet. "I've had a team tracking this Warden's movements for a while now, and they happened to be recording when you arrived earlier." He started the video and slid it towards her. "Take a look."
Athira recognised the scene.
The supposed Warden, posing as an Elite, had been overseeing a shipment of building materials at the docks when she'd arrived. It didn't take long for Athira's past self to appear on the screen. The fight — if you could call it that — lasted all of ten seconds as a wave of Black engulfed the Warden, drowning his Green and knocking him out before past-Athira took his wristlet and shot off into the sky.
"He had the chance to draw his Colour, and you still won," said Chief, tapping his glass against the desk with the last three syllables. "There aren't many of us capable of walking away from a fight with a Warden, let alone winning one."
"And?" said Athira, bored.
Chief pushed his glass to the side and leaned forward on his arms.
"You want these Wardens out of the way," he said. "So do I, along with a few select others capable of holding their own that I've recruited. With your Colour nullification ability, we could overthrow the Elites. Put the Wardens in their place. Break out of this Colourformer system they've shackled us to and—"
Athira stood up from her chair with a sigh. "If I wanted a revolution, I'd do it myself. Right now, I have bigger things to worry about."
Chief thumped a fist on the desk. "What could be more important than controlling Sirah, Owl?"
"Ensuring there's a Sirah left at all," she said, stopping just before the door and turning back to give him a thin smile. "I'll expect Tracker at the meeting point within thirty minutes. If not, I'm coming back to drag you through the tunnels until we find that facility."
*+*+*+*
A/N - idk about you guys, but I'm here for Chief's glow up since the original, he's come a long way from a faceless fill-in blob x)