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Chapter Seventy-Three: Nightsong
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Chapter Seventy-Three: Nightsong
I fidget nervously as I sit across the conference table from Nightsong, wishing I had Akari or Lucas here to help me deal with the stress. The woman before me may as well be a goddess for how untouchable she is. There are a scant few people in the world who could even put a scratch on Nightsong, and they’re her allies.
The room we’re in can only be called a conference room in the most generous of terms. To be honest, it feels more like an interrogation room with only a few chairs, a single table, and no furnishings on the gray walls. This already sets the precedent that my meeting with Nightsong most likely won’t be pleasant.
Obviously, I knew that Nightsong was being called in to give the final verdict on my trial, but I didn’t expect her to snatch me away from my friends for a private chat. Akari didn’t like it either, but Nightsong didn’t give any of us an option. She simply touched my shoulder, and suddenly, we were in this conference room — which I can only hope is still somewhere in GDF Headquarters.
Even Celeste wasn’t able to follow me easily, being forced to dissolve her body for her mind to rejoin mine in our soul gem.
After appearing here, Nightsong simply pointed at the chair in which I now sit and then moved to sit across from me. Since then, she’s simply watched me curiously as I attempted to decode the situation.
Essentially, I’m in a windowless conference room with one of the most powerful sentinels on Earth… oh, and the only exit is behind her.
If it was anyone else in the room with me, I might have shifted to my assault state. Here, though, I’m worried that shifting might be like pulling a gun in a bar fight. It would make things a whole lot more serious, and if push comes to shove, there’s absolutely no chance I’m beating Nightsong in any kind of conflict.
And so, I’ll have to talk my way out.
“M-Miss Nightsong, I’ve heard a lot about you,” I manage weakly. My mind flashes over Kayne’s warnings about what happens to people who meet this woman.
I can’t help but feel off-kilter with her just sitting there, staring at me with those dark, penetrating eyes. I feel like a prey animal staring down a tiger, just waiting for it to pounce and kill me. And if she does kill me… there will be no consequences. No government nor military can do anything to enforce the law upon someone like Nightsong.
My words hang in the dead air for a long few seconds as I nervously await a response. She said she wanted to talk to me, so why isn’t she talking?
“What do I do?” I ask Celeste after a minute passes without Nightsong answering me. I can’t help but feel like she’s studying me like one might their steak dinner.
[How should I know?] she replies, her own nervousness compounding my own.
Stars, I wish Audrey was here; at least she would be able to do something if Nightsong decides to attack. But… why would she do that? I haven’t done anything wrong. Have I?
“Miss N-Nightsong?” I ask again, hugging myself tightly and wishing for any kind of escape.
“Quiet,” Nightsong replies, her tone devoid of emotion. “I’m deciding whether you’re worth the trouble or not.”
I freeze, my blood running cold. Suddenly, I have an awful premonition of her surging forward and tearing my soul gem from my chest. She could do it… she could kill me and shatter my soul gem in less time than it would take me to blink.
Still, she didn’t say what she meant by “worth the trouble.” Maybe I’m just reading into this way too much because I’m scared?
“If… if she attacks… can your mother save us?” I ask Celeste. Maybe recruiting Althia into this meeting would be a good idea.
[No…] Celeste responds instantly. [She’s not ingrained into the world enough to act directly. She could maybe try something, but-]
Nightsong lets out a sigh and leans forward — even her small motion makes me jump like a startled animal. “Do you know why you’re such a big problem, Serena Solace?” Nightsong asks, her eyes hard.
Shakily, I nod. “If I’m transferred to another branch, there will be precedent to do the same thing to dozens, if not hundreds of other sentinels.”
Nightsong shrugs, “Sure, that’s a problem. It isn’t the problem, though.”
I swallow nervously but am happy that she’s at least engaging with me now. “So… what is?” I ask hesitantly.
“This Centurion backer of yours. Althia was is?” Nightsong asks, a knife appearing in her hand in a flash of light, she begins to casually spin it in her fingers.
I nod, not daring to take my eyes off the flashing blade in her hand for even a moment.
“From what I’ve learned from General Novak, this Althia has big plans for Japan,” Nightsong continues, “Plans that involve seizing control and weren’t shared with us officially. The A Rank council is deliberating on whether to support you and your team or to put you all down. I’ve been placed in charge of making a final decision.”
My eyes go wide, and I quickly stand from my chair. Why in the stars did we ever think attracting this woman to Japan was a good idea! Yes, she can protect the city from a surge of Volcora, but she might be a bigger threat than they are!
“Calm yourself, child,” Nightsong says, looking me up and down with an assessing gaze. “I have no intention of killing you today. All I was doing was letting you know to choose your next words very carefully.”
I don’t sit back down; Nightsong didn’t demand it, and standing while she sits gives me at least a modicum of control — ephemeral as it might be.
“Y-You want me to convince you that Althia and the others aren’t a threat to your power,” I say softly, putting my back to the wall. “You’re worried about what’s going to happen after the convergence.”
Nightsong nods, still studying me. Despite the casual way she sits and plays with her knife, I still feel as if one wrong move will leave me dead before I even get a chance to react.
I close my eyes, knowing that my next words could be very likely to get me killed. Still, I feel like lying is an even worse idea.
“You are right to be worried,” I continue, fully expecting that knife to enter my heart at any moment. “Althia and the others… they’re stronger than any sentinel on the planet. They’re… I don’t even know how old. You could train for a hundred years and still never come close to them.”
Nightsong bites her lip as if considering this. However, she has to already know what I’m saying is true. I’ve already told Karma about this, and I doubt the general would have held anything back from someone like Nightsong.
“This… Althia. She considers you her daughter, no?” Nightsong asks, still casually flipping her knife.
I nod, “My familiar, Celeste, is Althia’s daughter. Since we are eternally bonded with our familiars, she considers me her daughter as well.”
“Hmm,” Nightsong considers. Then, the knife is suddenly embedded in the wall millimeters from my head — quivering with the force of Nightsong’s throw.
I stand there, my eyes wide as pain blossoms along my right cheek. I… I didn’t even see her move. Even now, still sitting in her seat, I can barely see a difference in her posture from before.
My heart thunders in my chest, and I can barely keep tears of fear from forming in my eyes. Still, I’ve been hardened enough by my experiences as a sentinel that I manage to keep myself from crying out.
Hesitantly, I move a trembling hand up to my cheek to touch the small cut there… my fingers come away bloody. Just an inch more, and I’d be dead.
“You didn’t even scream,” Nightsong comments, kicking her boots up on the table. “Shame. I suppose I can’t kill you either, not without making an enemy of your dear old mom.”
Nightsong gives me a smile that’s downright predatory. “Me and you, though… I think we understand each other now. Don’t you?”
I nod frantically, doing everything in my power to stay strong and not break down.
“Good,” Nightsong hums. “We wouldn’t want any confusion about the chain of command, would we? Now, be a dear and spread the word to the rest of your team. Otherwise…” she clicks her tongue, “we’ll just have to see how far mommy’s protection stretches… won’t we. And that goes for all of you little D Ranks.”
Before I can even blink, Nightsong stands before me, that horrible mockery of a smile still on her face. Then, she places a hand on my shoulder, and my world shifts.
Suddenly, I find myself falling. I barely have time to cry out before I hit the ground hard, knocking my head against the stone hard enough that I see stars.
“Serena!” Akari’s voice cries out above me, and her arms instantly wrap around me, lifting me up from where I lay crumpled on the ground.
I blink rapidly, attempting to get my bearings as I find myself being lifted. My vision is hazy, and my head is spinning from slamming against the ground, but I feel like I’m in the hub. Natural light streams in from massive windows to light the space, and I can see that I very narrowly missed landing on grass instead of the cobblestone road.
Akari cradles me against her chest, but I try to look past that at the two other hazy figures, who I think are Baylee and Hayley — the pink hair is a bit of a giveaway.
“Stars, Serena!” Akari exclaims, holding me tight. “How bad are you hurt?! Damnit, we need a blue sentinel!”
“I’m okay,” I murmur, shifting and trying to rub at my temples — my body trembles so fiercely that it’s difficult for me to move. Stars, how high did she drop me from? I really need to get better at reactionary shifting — Audrey would have been in her assault state before she even hit the ground and Nightsong… Stars, Nightsong did all of that without even having to shift. What kind of monster is she?
Akari looks down at me, her eyes wide with concern. “Serena, you’re bleeding, trembling, and you’re obviously terrified. You are not okay.”
“Serena?” Baylee asks, “What happened to you? Akari said that you spoke briefly to Nightsong, but then you both just vanished. I swear on the stars that if she hurt you!” Baylee says through gritted teeth.
I close my eyes, hardly able to think through my fear. Nightsong didn’t just threaten to kill me; she threatened to kill my entire team. If she decides to go through with it… there isn’t a person in Japan who can stop her. Audrey maybe could stand a chance, but I really don’t think so.
Opening my eyes, I manage to give Baylee a weak smile. “She uh… you know, just threatened to kill us all. So… there’s that.”
Baylee’s eyes go wide, and she instantly produces her phone from her inventory. “I’m calling Calan to get you looked at, then I’m calling Audrey and Kayne. We need to do something about this.”
I wince, trying to control my fear. I can’t just sit here trembling in Akari’s arms; I’m supposed to be a sentinel, stars damn it! “I-I… I’m okay, Baylee. You don’t need to call Calan. I’m just… shaken, is all.”
Honestly, shaken is an understatement. There were moments there where I genuinely thought Nightsong would kill me. Even now, I’m not convinced she won’t just appear out of nowhere and slash my throat.
Still, I need to be strong, so I start to wiggle slightly to get Akari to release me. “Akari… I can stand, I think.”
Reluctantly, Akari sets me on my feet, but she keeps an arm wrapped cautiously around me. Hayley moves in on my other side, looking concerned but staying strong. She captures my free hand in hers and gives me a soft squeeze of support.
Despite my protests, Baylee already has her phone to her ear and is speaking softly into it. A moment later, she lowers her phone and hangs up the call. “Calan says he’s busy, but he’s sending Kaipo to us now.”
“Guys, I’m really fine,” I protest. “Other than the cut on my cheek and that fall, all she did was scare me.”
“Well,” Akari says, her voice raw, “she scared the stars out of me, too. New rule, you aren’t allowed to just vanish like that. You have no idea how worried I was!”
I lower my eyes. I really didn’t have a choice in the whole vanishing thing, but I still feel bad for making her worry.
Over the course of around the next hour, Akari, Baylee, Hayley, and a good few of our friends who happen to be around come to check on me. Still, after dealing with Kaipo, Troy, Ken, Melody, and even Claire, who arrived to go shopping at the hub, I’m feeling a touch tired of everyone trying to look after me. Tired and profoundly lucky.
Before I became a sentinel, I never would have gotten so much support from so many different people. It feels like the only people who don’t come by to check on me are Kayne and Audrey, but not without effort on Baylee’s part.
However, the only thing we received from either of them was a brief text response from Audrey saying that she was going to “handle it” and to keep me safe. For obvious reasons, this doesn’t make me any less worried.
If Audrey decides to fight Nightsong… well, I have full faith in my mentor, and she has already completed some legendary feats to earn her title of Stardust Angel, but I’m still certain that would be a fight she can’t win. There’s a reason Althia wanted me to attract Nightsong to the city to combat the incoming Volcora surge. If Audrey could have handled it after her rank-up, I’m certain Althia would have just told me that.
Eventually, after Akari and Baylee have me healed by Kaipo and what feels like half the GDF comes to check on me, Akari and I head home. I’m just glad that Akari had the foresight to send Candice away with her parents before attempting to start gathering support to come find me.
Akari and I stay close to one another as we walk through the skyway, Akari constantly glancing around and evaluating everyone for how threatening they seem. For once, I actually follow suit, trying to see if I can spot Nightsong watching me in the crowd.
After walking in silence for a few minutes, I speak up. “You know what really confuses me?” I ask.
Akari glances toward me a moment before returning to scanning the passing crowds. “What?” she asks, seeming curious.
“Why Nightsong did it like that,” I respond thoughtfully. “That whole meeting… the purpose was to intimidate me, I’m certain. But why do it? If she’s actually worried about the Centurions coming to Earth next year, why alienate some of the people closest to the Centurion leadership?”
Akari narrows her eyes in concentration for a few silent seconds before responding. “There could be a few reasons. However, what if the goal was to see if Althia would come and protect you?”
“I thought of that,” I consider, my shoulders slumping. “Everyone knows that the Centurions can’t act directly on Earth until after the convergence, though. Why would she think that’s different for us?”
“So far as I’m aware,” Akari starts, “Centurions can only be summoned in for a chat using a massive inscription and at great cost. That’s why we don’t see them popping in to help out all the time. Althia ignored that rule. Maybe Nightsong was trying to see if she was actually already present on Earth and decided that threatening you was the obvious way to prompt a reaction.”
I sigh, “I suppose I could have called on Althia, but I didn’t really see anything she could do to help. Honestly, if they’re worried about the powerful Centurions, bringing in Althia would have just made things worse. Still, I suppose that makes sense.”
Akari nods her agreement. “Yeah… I also think that there’s another, more obvious reason, though. Our team… we’re not… normal, Serena.”
“I know,” I say, eyes on the ground. Even just from talks with Team Firestorm and other sentinels, I know that our abilities seem proportionally much more potent than theirs. Not to mention the ease of our current growth or our new Astral Paths. If we reach A Rank following our paths… we will be the most powerful sentinels on the planet, bar none.
“You think they’re threatened by us?” I ask Akari. “The A Rank Council, I mean.”
“Definitely,” she says, nodding. “And because they’re threatened, they feel the need to control us. It could have been the decision of the entire council or of just Nightsong herself, but controlling through fear is a classic way of doing things.”
I shiver, hugging myself. “Well… it worked. I’m definitely scared of her.”
Akari’s face twists with anger, but it's not directed at me. “I think, one day, they’ll realize that we make much better allies than enemies.”
Comments
Metal(Liz)ard🏳️⚧️
The A ranks being bastards is not very surprising. I'm guessing team picnic already has a kill order for when they reach high B rank before the convergence. Would be very appropriate for serena to be caught in the middle of the 3 major factions plans
phantom
Well I am pretty certain Nightsong has already fucked up badly. also the A-rank council does not know what the convergence is. They do not know all these Centurians vastly more powerful than them are coming. This is not a threat to their power. Saying threat would indicate it is anything but inevitable unless they somehow sabotage the convergence. What she did accomplish was threatening multiple children of the most powerful Centurians out of consideration of sabotaging their plans. She mine as well have threatened outright war with them. There is no way rulers will tolerate someone much weaker wanting to play ruler. I would be surprised if Althia is not already considering roughly the same thing Nightsong just talked about. Killing all the A-ranks after the convergence.
