A/N: Before I start this a bit of a timeline. This happens After TLC, but before TTP. Also, for those of you who've read Missing in Action, before Missing in Action. Enjoy.
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After Holly Short's return from Hybras had quickly turned into another plot by Opal Koboi Holly was granted some time off. She didn't particularly think she needed any time off, but Trouble had insisted and seeing as he was now a commander she was in no position to argue.
So she was sitting in her apartment flipping through channels on her TV when the phone rang. Upon checking the caller ID she found it was Trouble. "Hey Trouble." She answered it.
"Hey Holly, how's vacation treating you?" Trouble replied.
"Not that well."
"Well you needed it."
"And I have had it. So when do I get to come back."
"Right now if you want."
"Seriously?"
"Seriously."
"Thanks, Trouble."
"Don't be thanking me yet. We've got a situation."
"Would this be a 'future of our civilization' kind of situation?"
"Sadly, it would."
"Does it involve Artemis?"
"A little."
"I'll be there as soon as possible."
"See you in a bit." Trouble said before hanging up.
--
Holly walked into Trouble's office. ""Okay so what's going on?" she asked.
"I will tell you in a minute Holly. I need to wait for Captain Sobiat." Trouble replied. "Have a seat."
She did. Captain Alita Sobiat had joined the LEP about ten years ago. The little anyone knew about her past she told them directly, since it had been discovered she lied her way through background checks and resumes. What people did know was that she grew up in the Lower East Side. She got tangled up in the illegal arms trade. She was pretty high up in the scheme of things and from what she let slip once during an interrogation, they knew it was Usiku she worked for.
Now a days she had more connections than almost any fairy under the world. From the arms trade of the East Side to the drug rings that sometimes stretched to the surface and the gang bangers of Suburbia; she was the person you went to first for intelligence.
And she was here, "Hey, got your message, what d'ya need?" Asked a young pixie with dark brown hair.
"So you're here, let's get started. We have been receiving some intelligence about a radical group. They call themselves the Shikan" Here Trouble expected Alita to jump in, but she didn't. Which meant what little they knew about them was it, Alita knew nothing.
Instead she said, "Shikan?"
"Liberation in the ancient Gnomish. They want to reclaim the ancient homeland from the Mud Men and they don't care what has to be done to get it."
"The ancient homeland being?" Holly asked.
"Ireland, I said it was little about Artemis."
"Alita, know anything else that could help us?"
"Actually, no. Which means one of two things, maybe both. Either, they're based out of somewhere that isn't Haven or they've been dormant for a very long time, somewhere close to 100 years." Alita replied.
If Alita knew nothing else there was only one place to go for information. "Foaly." Holly called.
No one answered her.
"Strange, that usually works." Trouble noted.
"It does indeed, but Foaly's a little off today." Said a voice from over the PA system. The voice of Josiah Crassus, another of Haven's main techs.
"Why?" Holly asked.
"Events did not unfold in direct correspondence to his plan." Josiah replied.
"Who did what?" Trouble asked.
"Qwan all but crashed his system."
"Well-"
They were interrupted by a knock at the door. "Troub."
"Yes Grub, what do you need?" Trouble asked.
"Lieutenant Sumal is here." Grub Kelp answered.
"Send him in. Holly, you should probably stay and, Alita, go see what Josiah knows about the Shikan." Trouble said.
"Got it." Alita answered. She walked out the door and Lieutenant Derek Sumal walked in. Sumal took care of most of the council's affairs, retirements, appointments, speeches, or at least the speech writing staff, and the problem Trouble had just heard about.
"Okay, let's make this quick, I got about a million other things to deal with. What's this about?"
"Erika Sekuma."
"Frond, what did she do this time?"
"She didn't do anything."
"Then-"
"Someone's threatening her."
"Damnit, who?"
"Not sure yet. Right now the only thing to do is impose a little security. I want you to find someone who can be with her 24-7."
"Already done, me."
"I thought you had a million other things." Holly said, speaking for the first time.
"Those can be handled by someone else. On the other hand, I am not entrusting security like this to someone lower down. Should've seen it coming anyway."
"How do you figure that?" Trouble asked.
"Parts of her history with the LEP had clearance to high for even me, and two years of her life have been completely erased. Plus she was barely elected. Should've seen something like this coming." Sumal explained
"Wait, parts have been erased, why didn't I know about this?"
"I made sure you didn't. She was too perfect a candidate to pass over because you didn't want to dig into the gap and there's a reason it was erased, and probably had something to do with the fat they didn't want anyone to know what happened, so it would not be good if you decided to dig." Sumal stood up, "I'll be going now. Things to do."
"Bye." Trouble said nodding to him.
"So, who's Sekuma?" Holly asked, after Sumal was out the door.
"The new Internal Affairs Director." Trouble replied.
"And who's trying to kill her?"
"I do have a small list, but I can all but guarantee you whoever's trying to kill her, it's because of whatever happened in that gap."
"Does Droin know yet? With a death threat we should probably-"
She was cut off by another elf that had just entered the room. "A death threat, A death threat." Droin said. "Add this to the whole Shikan thing and there is one thing that can make this day any worse."
"Rybeka Tusitala." Holly said.
"Yes." Droin agreed.
"Well," Trouble started, "Day just got worse."
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