Tamsin and Kendra were clicking away on their laptops on a long table in a smaller but unused study and makeshift library room in the early AM. They were both not in uniform but were in comfortable clothing. They had a relaxed 'on vacation' look about them. Even with no makeup on, both women were still head turners.
Tamsin was dressed in a T-shirt and sweats and Kendra had on loose beige cargo pants and a tucked in T-shirt as well.
The T-Shirts they wore were actually quite humorous as it was a reflection of them in a way.
Tamsin's T-Shirt was apparently given to her by the 69th. It had a cartoon sketch of a thin almost grotesque female dog baring it teeth. It had the caption in sloppy blood stained writing 'Raging Bitch'. Tamsin decided that although she was never a big fan of flying dog brewery or beer in general she made an exception for this one. Also, Bo loved that shirt although it always ended up on the floor soon after they met.
Kendra's T-Shirt was black and had a large shield on it with 2 A's within it featured on the front. This shirt was from Alexander Arms, the maker of Beowulf rounds. The tag line on the back of her shirt read "One Shot, Multiple Kills, No Problem."
Kendra was busily working on doing final edits and closing some Fae cases for the light while Dyson was working on a case with Kenzi and Bo concerning some elusive Fae scammers. Her work kept her mind off her and Dyson's relationship and she found herself immersed into it so much she just barely registered Drake walking into the room. Kendra found herself reflexively resting her hand on her Glock while navigating and typing wither her left. She subconsciously knew this was a foreign place and didn't trust security forces that were not hers. But she just kept working ahead.
Tamsin was multitasking. She was trying to hack into the wireless network for Lauren's place and at the same time doing research on Alex, Kendra's 'shadow'. She was indexing Police, Interpol, other 3 letter agencies, Light and Dark Fae databases. Both her and Kendra faced the entrances of the room to ensure no one dropped in on them unexpected. Drake entered the main study and smiled at Tamsin to which she was about to respond with a face of impatience and annoyance for being bothered by a human tool. Instead at the last second, being under cover and using the carrot method, she tilted her head and smiled broadly and her hand waved to him in a conservative manner. Total gagging material. She still had no idea how Bo could just do this stuff all day.
"Tamsin, Captain Shaw. I brought breakfast if you're interested," Drake stated bringing a large tray of food over with smaller plates on the side. He set it down and stated as he took out a small plate for himself. "I didn't know what you ladies wanted, so I got a little of everything," he said pulling out a fork getting some scrambled eggs and hash browns.
"Drake, just call me Kendra, you or your security team in no way reports to me." Kendra said observing Drake now eating while standing.
"You are such a brown noser you know that?" Tamsin mentioned resting her head in her hand with a smile. "Do we look like helpless damsels in distress where the trip a couple rooms over is fraught with UNSPEAKABLE DANGERS?" Tamsin asked with a scrunched up face.
"Nope. As a matter of fact that only reason why I am standing here eating a little of everything is to let you paranoid ladies know that this stuff is not poisoned in any way," Drake mentioned with a smirk.
Arin just walked in with damp just showered hair. "Drake, Valkyries can taste poison and are immune to several. You should do more reading on us." Arin stated strolling over to the table and started to get some breakfast too.
Tamsin just put on an evil grin leaning forward a little and then teased, "So you mean this stuff COULD be poisoned and YOU'RE eating it. Wow. That might get you to keep quiet for ohhhh …... AN ETERNITY… SWELL."
"Awwww ladies, don't tell me it never crossed your mind. Let's see. Just under 48 hours ago it was me against humans, Fae and Apache helicopters. You needed to bring a pack of UnderFae too in order to make it even remotely challenging for me." Drake said all smug chomping on a large amount of hash browns between the seated Tamsin and the standing Arin who was still gathering food.
"Oh god, I smell something awful. Are their cows in the area because I smell a lot of bullshit." Kendra exclaimed in her normal Australian accent looking around sniffing the air.
It was then Drake started to cough profusely and spit out his half chewed food and double over in pain. Arin executed strong back blows to ensure he was not choking but Drake just continued to cough more as he let go of his plate which just slid across the table with a thunk.
Drake took a couple steps and then collapsed in the floor convulsing and frothing at the mouth.
"POISON!" Tamsin yelled rushing over to Drake and turning him to his side as his eyes turned bloodshot red through his seizure. Tamsin felt a little odd at that moment like her body was slightly electrified.
"SHIT!" Arin exclaimed dropping her plate of food to the ground as she yelled, "Get the doc!"
At the same time, Kendra was already running out of the room yelling for help from Lauren.
"Hang in there Drake. Stay with me! Don't you fucking die on me," Tamsin ordered holding onto Drake who just continued to convulse and foam at the mouth even more.
Arin then reached over and sniffed the food on Drake's plate and even licked it tentatively. Something was wrong. None of the food seemed poisoned that she could detect. She then began to even take small bites then spitting the food out but nothing. This may be a new poison and what better place to have new undetectable poison then at Doctor Lauren's place. Was Lauren hiding something?
Lauren ran in with her emergency medical kit and another guard came in and got down the floor with Tamsin and Drake and started to assess what she could see and gather from her stethoscope while her other male guard hooked up Drake to check his vitals on a portable machine.
Tamsin yelled glaring at the doctor, "Lauren, how the fuck did poison get in our food?!"
'I can't detect any poison in Drake's food. This may be a new poison or …. Or he may be faking it.' Arin communicated with urgency through the link.
"Keep him still!" Lauren ordered to the tech and Tamsin pulling analyzing the data but chose to answer Tamsin. "I DO NOT have any manufactured poisons onsite beyond the intrinsic properties of the base chemical compounds I use." She forcefully interjected.
Tamsin was still digesting what Arin just communicated and with Lauren confirmation that no poisons were made onsite, that ruled out a new one for the most part. Also, the tech was looking at normal readings judging by his confusion as he stated a stable BP, and heat rate. That left one explanation.
Drake was playing a trick on them.
Tamsin then slapped Drake which only left Lauren with an open jawed and shocked look, "DRAKE. Give it up. You can't trick the sisters of light and dark. There IS no fucking poison you ASS!" Tasmin shouted.
Drake then stopped his convulsions and his eyes turned back to their normal coloration as he just looked up at Tamsin and smiled triumphantly.
Drake then said in a smooth normal voice with a grin and in a mock girly Scottish accent, "Oh hang in there Drake. Don't ye die on me laddie!"
Drake then did a hearty laugh.
Everyone just groaned in relief and a little upset that Drake played all of them, specifically Tamsin.
"Ugggggg, fucking moron, I DON'T talk like that," Tamsin said upset pushing him off to the ground in the middle of his laughing fit.
Lauren just started to pack up her stuff and then mentioned camly to Drake, "Drake, it's really not nice to play pranks on our guests."
Drake just continued in his girl voice with the mock accent sitting up, "Look at me. I'm a rough and tough Valkyrie and can play jokes on the doc but can't take one me-self."
Tamsin still a little pissed about being punked was still processing how Drake pulled off the frothing of the mouth and the color change in his eyes. The frothing was easy with a tablet you can get from any costume store. The eye change and the fact she felt weird when in contract with him was only seen in 1 type of Fae. A mind reading Fae which had to be in contact with its target in his red eyed state to do so. Valkyries were also somewhat immune to being read easily, but a HUMAN was easy. Tamsin was faced with the fact that Drake, depending on what he was looking for knew EVERYTHING.
Tamsin in enraged stated she was in mounted him aggressively pulling out her boot dagger and slammed him to the ground. In a blink of an eye she was ready to slice his head off with a dragger on his throat.
"WHOA Tamsin! It was just a joke." Kendra said trying to calm her down.
Lauren was about to try to calm Tamsin down but Tamsin just yelled, "You're a fucking mind reading Fae! How DARE you read me. NO ONE READS a Valkyrie. I… I should fucking kill you right now!"
'Drake may know everything about my plans to infiltrate Lauren's network to spy on her to see what she is up to AND he may know about me and Bo.' Tamsin communicated back to Arin who put her hand on her dagger ready of action.
Kendra kneeled next to Tamsin and calmly murmured, "Don't do this Tamsin, you're not a Valkyrie, you are much more than that."
"HE RAPED ME!" Tamsin yelled back. "I'm human and he can read EVERYTHING."
"Whoa whoa" Drake groaned out in a now normal voice, "I only did the eye change thing as a trick and accidentally read what you were thinking at the time. SHIT!"
"WHAT DID YOU READ!" Tamsin demanded putting more pressure on her dagger to his neck.
Drake calmly gave up and softly relayed, "That you come off as a hardened Valkyrie that doesn't give a hoot about anyone but you do actually care. And that you think a lot about someone named Bo and… and…" Drake hesitated probably knowing that if he continued he would let the cat out of the bag with a very pissed of Valkyrie ready to kill him but at the same token knew if he didn't the result was the same.
Lauren could see this catch22 and needed to back Tamsin down quickly. She needed to say things she herself was not willing to admit or completely fathom but what Drake said about Tamsin thinking a lot about her Bo, it all made sense. As painful as it sounded, she had proclaim items that would hurt her and also apologize for yesterday.
"I ALREADY know based on what you told me yesterday Tamsin." Lauren blurted out. "You fell in love with Bo and would do anything for her. Even… even if it means reuniting me, her EX, to be with her again. Tamsin, I miss her too but I lost my chance." Lauren stated boldly but deep down that statement cut her deep.
Lauren loved Bo.
Tamsin loved Bo.
Tamsin, the VALKYRIE, *LOVED* Bo.
But was it mutual? Lauren knew that this would be a battle for another time. If it was just one sided, then it was like Dyson and Bo. If it wasn't?
OMFG.
Lauren continued to analyze Tamsin's steely glaze at Drake but what she said was working. She could see signs that Tamsin FELT. She had feelings as unimaginable as that seemed. That was what was so off about Tamsin in her short time at the mansion. "Look. I'm sorry I questioned your intentions. I had no idea you gave your fealty to Bo," Laruen clarified but then added. "You're an honorable Valkyrie, don't do this."
That hurt Lauren even more. It was a lie to her but was it real? She was getting more and more confused by the second.
Tamsin felt violated. Drake read her inner most sacred thoughts and emotions about her and her succubus. Under normal conditions Tamsin would have been able to shield herself to some degree from being read. Drake just told her otherwise. Had he read more? She had no idea but thought it would be safer to just kill him right here before he spilled more of the beans, if any.
It took a couple seconds to process what Lauren said. She knew. Of course there probably was some leap of faith comments there, but she was on track. What took her by surprise however was when Lauren told her that she was 'honorable'.
"You don't really think that doc. Don't lie to me. Deep down, you hate me. You hate me for attempting to steal your girlfriend. You hate me even more now because you know Thomasina's full history," Tamsin said in a dead serious manner toward Lauren never backing down from Drake.
Lauren had a problem. Tamsin was right on all counts. She knew it was useless to argue with that assessment but if Tamsin loved Bo, she would have adopted redeeming qualities from Bo. That was what she needed to do. Appeal to Tamsin's compassion. She probably did have some.
Lauren took a deep breath and lifted both of her hands up in a non-threating manner.
"Tamsin, like Kendra said, you are more than your species, like Bo is more than a Succubus. It doesn't matter what I or anyone else thinks. It's what you KNOW. Did I say something about you that was false?" Lauren interjected, but continued, "If you know and love Bo, what would she do now in this situation?"
Lauren knew that if Tamsin gave Bo her fealty, she was an extension of Bo's wishes and commands. Moreover, if Tamsin fell in love with Bo, she would do anything to keep Bo happy. Lauren held her breath hoping this would work.
"FUCK!" Tamsin yelled throwing her blade to the side in defeat. Lauren was right. She may be a traitor to Bo, but the truth is the truth.
LAUREN. The woman she despised as well.
Tamsin was so pissed off that her face darkened and had her intimidation and doubt on full steam and then some with her rune necklace.
She pulled up Drake in to see her face who was now almost pissing himself in fear, "If you EVER do that again to me, I'll KILL YOU!"
She let go of him but punched the wooden floor as hard as she could next to him making a small crater in its wake.
Lauren checked him since Drake passed out as Tamsin got up but still had some residual shadows on her face. She was surprised for being fallen, she still had powers. HOW? Lauren made sure not to look at her however so she wouldn't be affected by Tamsin's powers of doubt.
Tamsin just got to and strode quickly out of the room but yelled, "GODS! Somebody just kill me now!"
Arin quickly followed her sister to the gym and Kendra assisted Lauren with Drake and the other guard to bring Drake to the lab.
Tamsin kicked the doors of the gym open and walked briskly to a punching back with Arin a couple steps behind. Tamsin started to work the punching bag without any gloves or gear. She threw everything at it. Punches, hammer fists, kicks, elbows, knees and even head butts. She was performing that at 100% strength with blazing speed. It did not take long for the first bag to break open and another spinning back kick to break the whole lower section of the bag clean off.
Arin noted how pissed Tamsin was but was amazed that Tamsin was executing all these punches and kicks which here beyond human strength and even beyond Valkyrie strength. With the rune necklace, she had more power than any Valkyrie she had ever scene. The proof was when the bag just broke and split under the immense strain it was under. Had this been Drake, he would have been killed with a single punch. Tamsin was exerting more and more force with each successive strike.
Tamsin stopped and grunted when the bag finally gave up on her but she just moved to the next one with her fists and head bloodied from her own attacks.
Arin knew that if this was a human body and Tamsin was applying strength beyond that of a Valkyrie, Tamsin needed to stop before she hurt herself really badly.
"TAMSIN STOP! You're going to break your bones and joints going at this rate!" Arin yelled.
"I DON'T CARE!" Tamsin yelled never looking at Arin as she did an extremely strong round house on the next bag which sent the back swing almost horizontal from the ground. "Valkyrie's NEVER show mercy but that FUCKING doctor. Ugggg!" Tamsin roared kicking the bag again with brute force.
"No. Bo. She shows mercy! *I* don't know mercy. Guns don't kill people. People may kill people. But *I* kill lots of people!" Tamsin spat out punching the bag with her bloodied fists.
Tamsin still continued to punch the bag and then roared "LOVE (WHACK), KINDNESS (WHACK WHACK), MERCY (WHACK WHACK WHACK), FORGIVENESS (WHACK WHACK WHACK WHACK), and FEELINGS BLAM! (spinning kick). I CAN'T LIVE THIS WAY!" Tamsin grunted through her flurry of fists and kicks.
Finally on a strong spinning left hammer fist the bag flew off its mount to the ground in pieces as a crack was heard from Tamsin's body.
"AHHHH!" She yelled barely registering that she just dislocated her left arm at the shoulder again.
Tamsin was about to advance onto the next bag when Arin swept and pinned her to the ground. Had Tamsin not exhausted the rune, Arin would not have been able to do this.
"STOP SISTER!" Arin yelled at her but she just kept trying to get up even with a dislocated arm. What got Arin was that her sister was still extremely strong bordering Valkyrie strength. Had Bo given her that ability too? Where her emotions that strong where it amplified her human strength?
"Get off me!" Tamsin yelled but was in no condition to continue. Not only that, but the gym only had one bag left.
After a minute of total silence with only the heavy breathing of the 2, Tamsin finally looked away from Arin and mumbled out in defeat, "She showed me mercy and forgiveness which automatically came with her love. She freaking made me have a conscience. Have MORALS. It would be wrong of me to not extend the same to others beyond her. It's one thing to tell Bo to keep to her ethics. It's another thing totally to live it. I just never knew how hard it was to walk that road that she does so effortlessly."
Tamsin finally sat up with Arin's help and Arin worked her arm back into its socket. This would have been painful but Tamsin turned off all the pain and just sat there in exhausted silence.
Forgiveness from a Valkyrie?
Never.
But today Arin noted to Sigun via the link that the missing Valkyrie found it in her heart to forgive her enemies that wronged her.
An eye for an eye and maybe more was the law in which Valkyries lived by when something fell outside of the words of the Valkyrie creed or laws in Valhalla. However and eye for an eye would make the world go blind as Gandhi preached to which Tamsin remembered but never understood until now.
One does not after get rid of the darkness with darkness but you do it with light. Tamsin for the first time found that although Drake unintentionally wronged her, the correct response was not more wrongs and evils, but with something totally opposite. Counter intuitive. Love and kindness. It was today a war hardened and trained Valkyrie learned that lesson none of the others in the sisterhood could grasp yet again.
The missing and lost Valkyrie as referenced in the prophecy was neither missing or lost now for she was not only found, but walked the same high road as Bo in her own way.
Kendra with the help of the other guard and apparently medical assistant that went by Talan set the unconscious Drake on the table.
Lauren with the assistance with Talan went straight to business and hooked him up to all the machines to monitor him.
"He'll be fine but with the amount of doubt that Tamsin inflicted on him, it would be better he sleep it off. I'll give him a sedative to let him rest through the night. With a little luck, he will not be confused when he comes back to a lucid state," Lauren said in a professional manner.
Kendra just nodded trying to find her next course of action. Apologize for Tamsin? Maybe. Stay quiet. Maybe. Change subjects. Yes.
Kendra heard a mumble from behind the curtain to another bed and remembered that Lauren was treating a patient for apparent shock, but was not conscious at the time.
"The patient you are treating for shock is awake now?" Kendra asked
Lauren walked over and parted the curtain. "Well sort of," Lauren stated. "He, well Kyle, is still on some heavy sedatives because every time he wakes up, he goes into a panic. So I am trying to get him to a state where he can talk to us without that happening. That involves slowly pulling back on the sedatives to where he is calm enough to talk to us, but not stricken with panic and fear."
Kendra walked up to the bed and found a short male with dark tanned skin. He looked like he was from an equatorial region but had some Spanish and Asian features. He was mumbling something familiar, but Kendra paused to ask Lauren an obvious question.
"Lauren, how did he come into your care?" Kendra asked.
"Well, my security team was patrolling the surrounding area a week ago and we normally run into him since he is a resident on this island. However, this time we found him yelling in panic and running away in a frenzy from apparently nothing. He had not eaten for days, so for this own protection and to find out what happened, we brought him here. It was like he saw something like a ghost and his mind broke from reality. He normally speaks to us in broken English, but his native language is a Spanish variant from what I and my team gathered." Lauren rattled off.
"Have you found anything odd on the following patrols?" Kendra asked curiously since this is the same island that her clients would be married on.
"No because I suspended patrols and kept them here for everyone's safety. That and I heard there was activity of an upcoming Fae wedding of sorts at the normally quiet resort location which obviously is for your clients you took on." Lauren stated.
Just then Kyle mumbled in an apparent dream state, "Aba Ginoong Maria, napupuno ka ng grasiya, Ang Panginoong Diyos ay sumasaiyo."
"He repeats that all the time. It sounds like some sort of prayer." Lauren mumbled.
Kendra immediately recognized this language. Her mother spoke it all the time with her sisters.
"He is praying the Hail Mary in Tagalog," Kendra said with confidence.
"A language used in the Philippines. YOU can understand him?" Lauren smiled as if it was a break in the case she was looking for.
"Yes. I can speak it to a degree as well." Kendra replied.
"Captain, I.. I know I'm asking a lot from you since you have both Fae and Human responsibilities, but can you stay with us for at least a couple of days? I think he will come to any day now and I need someone that can converse with him." Lauren asked in earnest.
Kendra thought about this proposal. Sure solving this case might help her Derrick and Erica too, but she also had a higher obligation to her sister. Tamsin. Tamsin after all needed Kendra now for support since the journey for her was only going to get tougher.
"I'll make arrangements to stay Lauren and please call me Kendra," she mentioned with a smile.
"Thanks Kendra." Lauren replied smiling back.
Lauren and Kendra turned to leave as Lauren gave instructions to Talan to inform her when either patient, Kyle or Drake came to.
The walk down the hallway was quiet, too quiet. Finally Lauren broke the silence and got to the point.
"Kendra, I know where your loyalties fall and you probably hold Tamsin in high regards," Lauren stopped walking and turned to Kendra.
"And so does the rest of the team. She prepared us and saved us from almost certain death from over 200 shifters." Kendra said factually but knew where this was headed and it probably had to do with Bo.
Lauren wanted to know many things, but knew that Kendra would not answer them if they got too personal so she just quickly let out a statement that was somewhere in between. "I know Tamsin must spend plenty of time with Bo. Is Tamsin treating Bo right since I've been gone?"
Kendra considered this for a moment but there was no real harm in that question so she just answered, "Yes, she is."
"Good." Lauren concluded succinctly. That was probably about as far as she could go with this conversation she mused.
Lauren felt better that at least Tamsin was doing her best to keep Bo happy. At least she wasn't off somewhere still trying to put Bo in jail. This thought was broken when Kendra exclaimed, "SHIT Tamsin what happened!"
Kendra saw a limping and a bloodied Tamsin with her knuckles bleeding, forehead gashed open, and holding her left arm close to her body. Arin was next to her for support.
"Oh god! Tamsin," Lauren let out worried. "are we under attack again?" Lauren rushed over.
"Nope" Arin said scrunching her face, "but apparently 2 heavy weight punching bags ticked Tamsin off and they lost. BIG TIME."
"Lauren," Tamsin added with a scrunched up face as well while tilting her head, "You'll need to get 2 new ones since those 2 bags are in pieces everywhere after refusing to let me pass. Lucky for the last bag in the gym, it was smart enough to stay still and keep its mouth shut."
It didn't take long to get back to the lab and Lauren in her professional manner, cleaned her up, ran some tests and put her left arm in a sling.
Kendra just sat down quietly knowing that Tamsin probably vented all her frustrations to her own body's detriment for backing down on Drake. Tamsin felt she was raped, although not physically. Her mind was what she allowed no one to have. No one except Bo. Kendra and Arin had insights into it, but Tamsin still only shared a small portion. For Bo, she would willingly be an open book for her. Tamsin saved that part of her only reserved for her lover. By Drake reading even a single sentence of her life was insulting to her.
Arin was still getting over the fact that with her rune she was probably stronger and more powerful than any other Valkyrie, even those in 1,1,1 with the exception her ability to heal and take damage. She was still human there. Bo, she concluded, gave her a very small section of her powers back since she is a demi-god. The rune amplified that, but from what she read about it, it only boosted it by the same amount of what she had, in effect doubling her power. Double of Tamsin's almost nonexistent powers would not amount to what she saw in the gym today. Couple that with her near Valkyrie strength after the rune was exhausted only meant one thing.
Tamsin, Arin concluded, felt and it was her own emotions that boosted her intrinsic strength and power. Tamsin just felt so passionately now that those channeled emotions gave her a much larger boost with the diminutive powers she had been granted by Bo. When the rune doubled that, Tamsin was a beast.
UNSTOPPABLE.
What if she was a full Valkyrie that same passion with the Xanther rune? Even without the rune?
GOD-LIKE.
Tamsin, stripped of her powers now, would still give Odin a run for his money.
Arin always made her thoughts about Tamsin known to Sigun since she knew she had to make Tamsin live on in their hearts no matter the outcome. Sigun in turn made it known to others which of course meant everyone in the sisterhood knew within hours.
Arin had no idea what became of her casual observations of Tamsin, but now whole units and at times divisions under both Odin and Freya in Valhalla bowed to the statue of the missing Valkyrie outside the hall of warriors. Sure, it was an out of the way to visit but those units added it willing to their daily routines without their god's knowledge. Even Valkyries that were sent to other worlds also bowed in homage before leaving via the nearest portal.
The Valkyries in Valhalla simply could not relate to gods like Odin and Freya, although Freya was one of them at one point, but even she also lost some contact with her people to an extent, but Tamsin was one of them. She was fallen but was beating all the odds that were stacked against her. She was also the missing Valkyrie who represented the ideal of what they, the sisterhood, are supposed to be or become.
All the Valkyries feared the gods taking away their powers or lives, but Tamsin didn't fear. She attained strength and power almost all on her own. She was showing that complex emotions that all the Valkyries ran from could be mastered and were an asset, not a hindrance. Tamsin was even yielding viewpoints on love and life impossible to fathom for the sisterhood, but were true when tested.
Tamsin felt 100% and she was a Valkyrie. Those attributes were originally thought to be mutually exclusive but it was never true.
Tamsin and even Arin, unbeknownst to them, were moving the hearts and minds of the entire Valkyrie sisterhood. Some paid it no heed, but even then, when confronted with an issue that required them to have emotions to any degree, they would rely on Tamsin's tried and true actions and advice rather than the advice of their own god. The gods after all didn't quite have the field experience in those areas. Also why recreate the wheel?
For those that followed Tamsin, she was no longer referenced by her order, division, and unit. She, formerly of 4,1,8 was now just referenced as Tamsin and she was much more than just a number or even the missing Valkyrie. She was worshiped and elevated to the status of a goddess alongside Bo at this time. To them, by Odin punishing Tamsin and Tamsin still rising up above it sent a message loud and clear to all those heeded her without any words being uttered.
They will never be a held hostage or be a slave to the powers the gods grant them. It would be better to have no powers from their gods and live. Having a life was no longer good enough.
Tamsin was never aware of this since none of the sisterhood dared to talk or communicate to her. To those how didn't really pay any attention to her, they were forbidden by the laws to talk to a fallen Valkyrie. The followers oddly enough however, also didn't dare communicate to Tamsin in reverence to her god-like status. They felt unworthy. Only Bo and Arin had that right in their minds.
Life is wrought irony. Tamsin was doing her best to back the sisterhood down from a revolution, but in a twist of fate, her quest to be immortalized in their hearts unintentionally did the exact opposite, propelling Valhalla ever faster towards the brink of revolution.
They were already past the point of no return.
A revolution was certain.
Lauren came back into the room and put up several xrays of Tamsin's left and right arms in the large lcd screens.
"Tamsin," Lauren stated formally to Tamsin as well as to Arin and Kendra who were also in the room, "you have multiple hairline and stress fractures in BOTH arms." Lauren then pointed to the items of concern. "Aside from the dislocation of the left arm which was not allowed to fully heal, you have several stress fractures located on the radius, ulna and humerus. Everything will heal but it will take time and you will need to arrest high impact activities for the next month." Lauren said professionally.
Tamsin took this all in stride and just flippantly stated, "And everyone that first met me thought that I couldn't crack a joke."
That would have been funny for Lauren but Tamsin had a very serious condition. It did lead to another question she needed answered.
"Tamsin, if you are fallen, how do you have your powers and still have a human body?" Lauren questioned hugging her clip board with one hand to her chest while biting her pen with the other.
Tamsin just smiled and held out the necklace she was wearing.
"Yes. I know that is the Xanther Rune. But it only amplifies existing Fae powers IF and only if you are Fae, but a fallen status takes all your powers away and hence there would be no powers to boost." Lauren mentioned in an analytical manner.
Oh this was not going to be good, Tamsin thought to herself but decided to throw caution to the wind.
"I have powers granted by a demi-god. So that is why I have the powers I have now." Tamsin stated and hoped that would be the end of the questions.
"Freya gave you powers? She could have also given you the power to heal, regenerate and be re-born…. HOLD ON. D… Did you say demi-god?" Lauren asked confused.
"Yep." Tamsin said with a click.
Kendra and Arin just glanced at each other knowing full well that a train wreck was approaching.
"Freya is a full god, so a demi god is a product of them and another normal Fae." Lauren analyzed critically. "Only gods in Valhalla can grant Valkyries their powers, so a demi-god is a product of either Freya or Odin…." Lauren face then registered shock for she knew that there was only 1 possible demi-god that could give Tamsin her powers back at least partially.
Tamsin just smiled knowing that the doc got it, but wanted to see and enjoy the look on Lauren's face. To know that not only did Tamsin fall in love with Bo, but Bo loved Tamsin so much she had managed to grant her powers back against all odds.
"Bo….." Lauren trailed off meekly.
There was an uncomfortable silence in the air from everyone and Lauren finally spoke up.
"Bo granted you your powers back. Bo healed you too since I heard about your quick recovery after your encounter with the shifters." Lauren said under duress. "H… How?"
Tamsin just relished this moment but also didn't. Sure she wanted to show up the doctor, but at the same time, how could she get the doc back to Bo if Bo was bedding with her?
"In her red alter ego state she can." Tamsin confessed.
"Oh," Lauren mumbled looking down at her clipboard, "Bo loves y.."
Tamsin could see pain, bewilderment, and shock on the doc's face. She knew the doc stopped because it wasn't professional nor was it now really her business.
"She loves everyone doc." Tamsin offered in an aloof manner.
"True." Lauren said straightening herself up pushing all her personal thoughts out of her head.
"Your legs seem ok, but I wouldn't test it. As your doctor, you can be ambulatory, but I can't have you participate in activities that require heavy exertion. In addition, I need to keep your arm in a sling until such time it can heal correctly. We are looking at least a month and that is not even addressing your muscle inflammation. I'm sorry Tamsin." Lauren decreed formally.
"Tamsin is an integral part of our team. I need her on since the wedding is coming in less than month." Kendra interjected.
"I'm sorry Kendra, Tamsin's human body just can't keep up. This punching bag incident pushed her body way over the edge. It would have been different before then. So when I say a month, that is being incredibly optimistic assuming she heals like a normal hu….." Lauren cut herself off and everyone just stared at her wondering why.
Lauren then turned her full attention to Tamsin.
"Tamsin, as your doctor, my methods will work, but it requires time. You have an alternative however." Lauren paused and she couldn't believe she had to say this as she gently put a hand on her shoulder without the sling. "Tamsin, RETURN TO BO. She will be able to heal you in seconds. Just make sure she feeds beforehand. I can only assume that Bo doesn't know I am here or else Bo would be here now. I thank you for that since I am still trying to sort my personal issues out. Talan will finish up here and I have to attend to other patients."
Tamsin nodded and the doctor disappeared quickly behind the next curtain.
Lauren took a deep breath behind the curtain as the feeling of humiliation set in. She knew deep down that although Bo loved everyone. Bo LOVED Tamsin and they were a couple somehow. As unthinkable as it seemed, it had to be true. A tear escaped her eyes but she put on the doctor mask once more and buried herself in her work again.
'Awkward….' Arin stated via the link to Tamsin.
'Odd. A part of me wanted to see the expression on the doc's face when she found out what I had her succubus, but now, I'm not so sure.' Tamsin thought back as she hopped off the exam table after Talan finished disconnecting all the probes off of her. She stripped off her gown, got dressed and walked with Arin and Kendra outside.
Kendra was the first to speak. "Tamsin, I'm sorry. I was being selfish back there for asking Lauren to do her magic more quickly."
"It's ok Cap. Everyone knows that I hate waiting too. I can't go back to Bo. She will get all clingy and I don't think she will let me out of her sight again when she sees me in this state." Tamsin confessed.
"Can I stay here with you then Terminator?" Kendra asked.
"Sure." Tamsin said with a smile. She felt grateful Kendra was staying.
"Anyhow, Lauren wanted me around to talk to a patient of hers that only speaks Tagalog when he come to which is any day now," Kendra clarified sitting casually on a bench.
Arin closed her eyes and it was apparent she was talking to someone in the sisterhood.
"Sis, I need to get back. My team will be on patrol soon. Get me via the link if you need anything ok?" Arin stated with a click.
"You bet," Tamsin concluded as Arin walked off.
Tamsin found it odd that Arin genuflected before her which was only reserved for generic gods or Fae of considerable power and respect. Tamsin considered herself neither but let it pass.
Arin was quick to flag one of Lauren's security team members down to drive her to the nearest portal to Valhalla.
That left Kendra and Tamsin there alone. Tamsin just took a seat next to Kendra and mumbled "Thanks"
Kendra just smiled and both enjoyed the silence.
"Sooo is the doc worth it?" Kendra finally spoke.
"I don't know. I just text messaged Kenzi for help remotely. I got into her wireless network but it is air gapped and only leads to the internet and not the internal network. I did however get access to her wired network in her lab but the security is tighter than I expected, so hopefully Kenzi can get some progress there. I think Taft, being paranoid as he was made his IT infrastructure really secure. Lauren just inherited it but may have also beefed it up too." Tamsin spilled out.
"Oh, anything good?" Kendra questioned.
"Nope, none so far, she seem like she is on the up and up. FOR NOW," Tamsin qualified.
"Oh, hold on. I was doing a search on Alex and my laptop should have finished its analysis by now." Tamsin said getting up slower than expected as both walked into the library.
Tamsin walked over the dent in the floor she made upon entering the library and just huffed out a laugh and said to herself, "They won't be able to buff that out."
Kendra logged into her laptop as well to check her email.
Tamsin reviewed her results and proclaimed, "BINGO. I am too awesome. Here in one of the Fae sub databases. Alex Riley AKA Alexis Riley Flanders! Daughter of ….. GUESS WHO…. Jessica Flanders. Wait make that adopted daughter."
"No shit, let me see this," Kendra said reorienting the laptop for both of them to see.
Tamsin, parsing other search results on the side tab found something interesting. "Umm Kendra? You met Alex already over a year ago at your precinct. She signed in at the front desk with her real name. Look at this visitor log entry."
Kendra now knew where to place Alex. "Crap, she was the pesky high school student that wouldn't take no for an answer after I refused her interview request several times. She just showed up in my office one day while I was in the middle of hunting down a stray doppelganger in our territory."
"So you kicked her out?" Tamsin grinned manically.
"No I gave her 15 minutes and then I was off." Kendra said reading the page some more.
Kendra read aloud, "Biological parents both deceased. Mother was a tree elder, father was a fire sprite. I have never seen that combination before. Anyway both parents were killed in an apparent freak explosion at their residence. It was ruled and accident. Case closed. Alex was playing at the neighbor's house at the time. She was only 6. No clan or next of kin claimed her for years as she went between human orphanages."
"Due to their hatred of each other most likely. But she was eventually adopted by Jessica Flanders, of the fire spite clan. Shit Jessica's got some balls to do that. You know the challenges of raising a child who is seen as your enemy? Jessica probably got some serious flack for taking her in." Tamsin stated factually.
"Wait," Kendra mumbled, "She did. Jessica separated from her clan and joined a group of outcasts who were mercenaries for hire who then became part of Derrick and Erica's clan."
Kendra stopped reading and then looked up and covered her face with both hand.
"NOW I know why Jessica blew up on me when she came to hire us and nobody else." Kendra spouted out. "Alex probably filled her mom with so much rhetoric about me that Jessica naturally had much higher standards for me. Yup, I guess compared to what all the articles that espoused my good traits and deeds, I guess I was a letdown in person."
"Naaaa sis, you are just fine. You just gotta put yourself next to someone who is worse that you and you come out smelling like a rose. WAIT, it even works now." Tamsin huffed out a laugh.
Kendra found it odd to be called her sister but was still honored. She laughed too but then said, "If that was true that why did Arin just kneel before you right before she left."
"I have NO idea. I threw a literal temper tantrum today and here she is probably off somewhere admiring that trait." Tamsin said rolling her eyes. "Young people these days."
"Kendra, why did you come here exactly? Not that I mind but you were supposed to meet me next week," Tamsin asked getting to the point and changing topics.
Kendra sighed and finally spilled the beans in 1 word.
"Dyson."
"Oh you need me to kick his puppy dog ass 'cus I can still do it even now." Tamsin said in a conceited manner.
"No. He found Eric's badge, returned it to me and then in the same letter asked me to stay with him. Commit to him and I don't know how to take that or if I can do that at all," Kendra said deep in thought.
This was going to be an interesting topic Tamsin thought. Dyson was her friend and she purposefully did not engage in these discussions since she was kind of a newbie to the relationship arena. Now she felt like Dr. Phil giving advice to all and since this was Kendra, she resigned to do her best.
"Take it as a compliment. From what I learned about Dyson, he was kind of stuck up elitist. He ONLY went out with Light Fae, hung out with Light Fae, stayed within the Light rules. Yea, he was a snobby stuck up tool of the light. He was so stuck up he almost crapped in his pants when he found out I was dark Fae AND his new partner. WAS. Then he met Bo, the unaligned Succu-dry, who challenged his perceptions but like a total idiot thought with the wrong head and gave his Wolf to her."
Tamsin was kind of stuck. How to you spin something positive about Kendra when Bo kept on dropping into the equation.
"Well big freaking opps for Dyson." Tamsin relayed, "After that, it was his nature to just salivate over Bo like it was some Pavlovian response. Total yuck since I hate slobbering dogs. Kendra, when Dyson gave his wolf away, there was supposed to be no do overs. PERIOD. You came along and changed him inside out despite him being hardcoded to follow and be with Bo. In addition, you are human and Dyson never let anyone human in that easily. Kenzi only got on the inside track since Dyson dealt with Bo and if you deal with Bo you gotta be in good with Kenzi ya know? Besides she's a really annoying Fae now," Tamsin said in earnest but continued.
"You had him the moment you strutted your stuff at the hospital because of all the history you had. He normally would have ignored you and just kept salivating after Bo but you got to his heart somehow. I must say in his own way, he quite literally worships the ground you walk on .. ugggg… and it sometimes makes we want to puke. Well make that all the time. He is madly in ugggg… love …. with you and whatever barriers or reservations he had about you, he has managed to overcome them despite his hard coding to another. He is fighting for you and has proven that HE is more than his species. You are a very lucky woman to have Dyson in your corner, an honorable warrior of the light as your mentor and guide. Even more so when you consider the fact that he loves you now and only wants you and only you. Just look at all the time he has spent with you compared to everyone else. He is one of the good ones I hate to say." Tamsin concluded with a click.
"Gods, I feel sick and I think I need to puke." Tamsin then proclaimed looking away after some silence passed.
Kendra put her hand on top of Tamsin right hand and smiled and said "Thanks Tamsin. You never told me that before and I really appreciate it."
"Don't mention it. REALLY I mean it. I am not cut out for this romance crap," Tamsin said rolling her eyes.
Kendra hated to do this but she still had more questions.
"But I feel like I am always second place to Bo. That he chose me only because he lost out to Bo the succubus. That I am just the next best thing, but what if Bo decided to want him again? There is no way I can compete with that." Kendra said a little exasperated. She had been after all thinking about this in the back of her mind this whole time.
Tamsin thought about it but couldn't relate. She did however know something about Dyson that would help Kendra make up her mind.
"Kendra, while I can't exactly relate to your predicament, I did get some interesting news from a friend of mine who is close to the Dire Wolf counsel." Tamsin started.
"The DIRE WOLF counsel?" Kendra asked curiously.
"Yea, it's like a governing body for all Shifters, light, dark, unaligned, smart, stupid, green, yellow, brown… yadda yadda. Apparently after we like merc'd like a whole lot of shifters on canal street, Grizzal wanted you dead. Yea, he wanted to council to put out a hit on you. Well, dog breath dropped by and told them that you were protected since you where his life mate. The council has been split 50/50 and it doesn't' look like that deadlock is going to clear any time in the next couple centuries. So no worries right?" Tamsin stated with a click.
"But how can that be? Bo Dennis has his wolf and is his life mate." Kendra rebutted leaning forward to hear the response.
"Ohhhhh I know," Tamsin said scrunching up her face, "BUT Dyson came to address the council, and boldly told them that having the ability to only claim one life mate was not an absolute since NOTHING in this world ever is. He also fessed up and said his feelings for Bo seemed true at the time, but since she was a succubus, he was confused and made an egregious miscalculation. Yea, he told them that nobody was perfect. He then proceeded and claimed YOU as his since he said he now knew was true love was. Kendra he wants you not as his pet, but HIS LIFE MATE. Shit teen wolf's got it bad because no shifter in their right mind would choose a life mate that does not have near the same life span as them. You see Kendra, you think he will go back to Bo sooner or later when given the chance but he can't. Once he stood up there and said all that, it meant that him and Bo better not be an item ever or else it could mean his death by decree of the council even now although they have not passed judgment on the matter. He essentially closed that door on Bo forever. He can be her friend, but now there is a line in the sand he will never cross. All because of his love for you."
"OK, I really need a drink now Kendra," Tamsin stated getting up walking to the bar and pulling out a bottle of scotch. She cursed not being able to use her left arm, but made due, opened it and took a few big gulps directly from the bottle. Valkyries don't talk about feelings and that is all she has been doing lately.
Kendra thought about what she just heard. She never knew Dyson was that strong. He was doing everything to protect her and be with her, yet here she was not giving into his advances. She did love him, but questioned his loyalty. This revelation obviously changed things. She now felt selfish. Dyson was not pressuring her but gave her space. He WAS using the last ember of his love very wisely. He was being patient ensuring that not only did a fire start, but lasted long after the tinder burned away.
Tamsin took a few more gulps and then said in a casual manner, "You know, Dyson use to be a ladies man in his younger years. He had some internal black book and list of women to mess around with. Yea, that got old fast and his list got shortened in the last thousand years. Let's see who's left that he gives a shit about shall we?" Tamsin said looking up thinking then taking a gulp again. "Carria knew Dyson and was his BEST friend for thousands of years, dead at the hands of the Garuda. Bo knew Dyson for over 3 and made him question the meaning of life, she's alive but his love for her is dead. Ohhhhh one and only one left," Tamsin said scrunching her face leaning on bar looking over to Kendra, "Kendra Shaw." Tamsin then brought her bottle up to toast her obviously a little under the influence before she took a few more gulps.
"You knew him for over 5 years were good friends but were in separate worlds. You know when we did that raid on the shifters, Dyson told me the first thing he thought about was YOU and not his fellow shifters right after he got the news. Damn, even I came in second sis. WOW and I'm his partner. That meant," Tamsin slurred slightly taking another swig, "you guys had unaddressed sexual tension and love mojo this WHOLE time. I bet Dyson knew you were going out with someone steady way back when and got jealous. NOW let's see. He is going against EVERYTHING, all Fae kind, heck even his own kind, the council, even publicly denying his feelings for Bo and going so far as to vote her off the island permanently all for ONE HUMAN FEMALE. Can you image the whole of his kind laughing at him now? I have no idea how anyone on the Dire Wolf council could keep a straight face when he was talking to them." Tamsin spewed out.
Kendra was amazed that she had Dyson's heart the whole time and she didn't know it. That is why they were able to work so well together pre, post and during Eric.
"I honestly didn't know he loved me that deeply Tamsin," Kendra sighed.
Tamsin staggered back over with the bottle in hand and crashed into her seat next to Kendra and finally in a drunken state concluded, "It's not Dyson's loyalties in question here, it's yours and it has been for some time. You refuse to let go of Eric's ghost but to what end? The blatant genocide of Dyson's whole species? That is what Grizzal claimed to the council members and he may be right. Do you think Dyson would stand idly by and let you exterminate HIS whole kind? Let me remind you that you fell in love with one. Shifters are fallible make mistakes too. WHEN did fucking forgiveness become a rare mineral to be hoarded and never shared? Man up and STOP using …. ABUSING DYSON. He is the last person that deserves your wrath for the death of Eric but you subconsciously still see him as a shifter and therefore he has a cross to bear put squarely on his shoulders by YOU. To think all along I thought he proved himself to you be being by your side upon Eric's death. He could have let you rot I hell but he visited you every couple of days looking at the precinct records of when he was out and what did YOU do? You knew it was his kind that killed Eric and you probably yelled at him and threw him out of your room every time. Tell me I'm wro…"
Tamsin stopped abruptly knowing that the damn alcohol made her cross some lines which were never supposed to be breached. Kendra was a sister, but she may not have deserved such a harsh scathing criticism.
Kendra looked down and away in shock. Tamsin was right on all counts. No one ever talked to her that way. She just never put up with it since she always had an ace up her sleeve or chip on her shoulder to keep the conversations under control but right now she had none. Tamsin was silent this whole time holding all the cards, but allowing Kendra to find her own path. It was both good and bad. The good part was that Tamsin never dictated to her what she could or could not do with her personal life. The bad of course was that she was flying blind. Tamsin told it to her like it was and although it hurt it was the truth.
Tamsin regained her composure although in a drunken state and decided it best to leave. She had done enough damage to Kendra's ego for the day. "I'm sorry Kendra. I… I have to go." Tamsin mumbled getting up to leave.
Kendra found herself speechless and Tamsin didn't deserve the cold shoulder for being a true friend and sister to her. She immediately grabbed Tamsin from getting up and hugged her and though her sobs said, "Thank you."
Kendra was roaming the halls of Derrick and Erica's compound. Security was extra tight since both clams knew where they were now. As such there were several checkpoints and even more rent-a-cops on the perimeter.
The security teams were confused on why she was there but she told them she had to meet with Jessica to go over some plans for the wedding. She was still dressed in civilian clothing and walked into an area Tamsin told her that had dorms like rooms for those families related to the officers. Kendra had never been there before.
She scanned the hall slowly and found the room she was looking for. A small name plate read, Flanders, A.R. Kendra then briskly knocked on the door and it was opened by someone else, another girl with frizzy dark hair approximately Alex's age holding a book on physics.
"Hi, I'm looking for Alex? Is she here?" Kendra questioned.
"*OH* *MY* *GOD*! You're Captain Kendra 'Widow Maker' Shaw leader of the humans in the 69th and ruler of the 8 regions and our gracious magnanimous protector of peace and unity! The FIRST of your name! Long may you reign!" the girl squealed jumping up and down in place in awe like she just met a movie star.
Kendra just looked at this scene before her dumbfounded in confusion. Had she gotten the wrong room? "Excuse me?" she questioned. There was only 1 name plate on the door.
The girl just grabbed her arm and yanked her into the room and then the girl who looked like she had too much caffeine just talked quickly and the words just kept going and going with no end in sight.
"I'm Tess! Alex's study partner. Like OMG, we've gotta take like our finals soon and SUCH a bummer but we have to prove Newton's laws of motion with a project. Like pretty much Duh! IMO totally LAME… TOTALLY. Then the teach gave is less than a week to complete, like whoa WTF and Ya, FML! Like I GTG to like the beach later! Got better things to do but Alex, she's like UBER super awesome like she's like…. Like like…" Tess stammered obviously attempting in vain to find an adjective to best describe Alex.
Kendra thought Tess's brain was going to explode at any moment but thanked the heavens above that she stopped talking so quickly and enjoyed the respite from the barrage of words.
"Amazing? Smart? Brilliant?" Kendra offered.
"YES! Brilliant!" Tess said hugging Kendra and then sat her down at a desk chair.
"Oh sorry, WTF where are my manners. Alex is meeting me here in a few, so make yourself at home. Like she will be soooo surprised you are here 'cus she was like 'BRB, gotta pick up stuff for the project'. I asked her once what was it like to be the hand of the king and to get your autograph. She is like no fun, SUCH a downer. She told me you don't do autographs and that you like run John's and Jessica's outfit ragged and are the typical MEAN drill sergeant everyone like FEARS," Tess rattled off getting her second wind. Tess catapulted herself onto Alex's bed stomach down cradling her head atop of her hands with her elbows firmly planted down into the mattress.
That gave Kendra enough time to ask, "So what else has Alex told you about me?"
"OMG like Alex ALWAYS gives me the 411 about you. She says that the only way you can be SUCH as kickass PoPo that can take down Fae is because YOU have SPIDER senses. LIKE you know when bad shit is gonna happen. Annnnd like you can duck bullets like Neo on the matrix like lean back and let the bullets fly by. And you like are TOTALLY a black belt in kicking ass. Like Neo said 'I know kung fuuuuuuu'. And then you say the names of the people you are going to kill just like in Game of Thrones before you go to sleep every night but the only difference is that those people just end to dead just by you mentioning their name DAYS later. Like they could like be in Indo China or even North of the wall and BOOM dead. Alex seems to think you MUST have Fae DNA and powers."
"Really?" Kendra smiled kind of amused by the sheer over exaggerations and claims being made.
"Yea you have to have Fae powers. Like don't tell Alex, but you had to have some since SERIOUS MoJo JoJo since you like stole 'The Hound', Dyson Wolfbane from the LEGENDARY Unaligned Succubus. NO ONE escapes her beacon call LIKE NO ONE. EVER. She's gotta WHOLE harem on speed dial. And OMG, you can stand up to Bo Dennis and like you had to have bitch slapped her so hard and made her say UNCLE! You TOTALLY broke the spell on the hound and Bo was like TOTALLY powerless against you. You OWNED that bitch! YOU soooo gotta tell me HOW to do that without taking off any clothes. Did you like do the Mortal Kombat thing that Scorpion does on Dyson… 'GET OVER HERE!'" Tess went on making a pulling motion of a lasso.
For all the talking and exaggerating that Tess was doing, it was annoying at first, but now Kendra felt a lot better that people actually think that she is more powerful than Bo and can even beat her at her own game.
Tess then jumped out of the bed and pulled a large scrap book off the shelf. This book had every single snippet of information about Kendra starting off when she was in high school. It was even more complete than what she had for herself. Alex, Kendra surmised, was a huge admirer of hers no doubt. Had Alex followed her around more aggressively she might be considered a stalker.
The scrap book painted a picture of Kendra which she found to be almost laughable. All the articles and snippets pointed to her being a hero for the masses. Giving a voice to the oppressed. An outspoken but humble leader, an upholder of the laws, and a warrior all rolled into one.
When she turned the page over toward the back of the scrap book, it looked like Alex was trying to find the correct mythological figure she represented. There were a Hydra, goddess of war with multiple arms, multi headed dragons, and so forth, but toward the middle of a page, still being colored in was a muscular and terrifying beast, a 3 headed dog in front of a large foreboding gate.
Cerberus.
Little did Alex know, she was more on target than she thought.
It was then Alex walked into the room and froze in apparent shock at who was in her room. Alex purposefully stayed in the barracks so that Kendra wouldn't catch on that she was just a young college kid with almost no combat experience. Her mother ensured that she stayed out of all that to give her a better future. A heart beat later she came to attention and even in civilian clothing stood at attention and loudly proclaimed, "Ma'am!"
Tess looked shocked Kendra observed no doubt to the fact that Alex was so formal.
"Alex," Kendra stated soothingly, "at ease. Just calm down. We are not in the middle of any drills, exercises, or ops."
Kendra then turned to Tess, "Thanks for keeping me company. I do however need to have a private meeting to go over the affairs of state with the hand of the queen right now ok? Do you want me to sign your book?" Kendra asked.
"OH GOD Yes!" Tess exclaimed and handed her physics book over to which Kendra signed the inside cover.
Tess got up and hugged Kendra and ran out of the room exclaiming down the hall "I'm sooo faming this whole book. THE WIDOW MAKER TOUCHED IT!"
After the sound of Tess faded away finally Kendra just mumbled, "Wow, and all along I took for granted how blissful silence was. Alex, can we talk?"
"Of course ma'am" Alex reflexively said but corrected herself and just said, "sure," while she sat on the edge of the bed.
"You know, if your mom gave me a personnel file that was more substantial, I would have never thought to dig up your real file and I would have never placed you as that high school student that kept requesting for an interview with me," Kendra said soothingly.
Alex hesitated to answer but Kendra cut her off.
"Alex, why did you go through all the trouble of trying to remain anonymous to me?" Kendra asked in a relaxed posture.
"When I met you 18 months ago, you wouldn't see me after several requests and when I finally did after some convincing of your front desk and even your team, you barely had the time for me. I knew you were busy, but I felt like I was not important enough or my accomplishments were not even worth of your time. Your team got most of your attention on and off work," Alex responded without feeling when she nervously batted her long red hair over her shoulder.
Kendra never saw Alex with her hair down like she was during the interview so that too threw Kendra off. She found it odd that she didn't wear much makeup, even now.
"I'm sorry Alex, but my team is all I have. They are my family and we back each other up, so I apologize if I made you feel that way." Kendra leaned forward in her chair to move closer to Alex.
"I have reviewed both of your files and the file that was given to me by your mom. You are the top of your class at a prestigious mixed Fae and human university. That you did have on both, but it omitted that you are pre-med and are in a good position to be a doctor. You also omitted your volunteer work at hospices. Those items have yielded you several awards including a presidential one. What you did add on the records I got from your mom was all your strategic, tactical and combat training. It included squad leadership on offensive and defensive deployments, heavy weapons, and you seemed to have picked up Krav Maga, and BJJ. You have been advancing in belts and have completed your required certifications but no awards above and beyond. You picked these up over a year ago dropping several of your classes to graduate a year behind and you have been training nonstop with your mom's team. Did I get it about right Alex?" Kendra questioned softly.
To that Alex slowly nodded.
"OK," Kendra followed up, "First, when you did meet me, I was tracking and chasing a doppelganger. Your accomplishments ARE impressive even then. So there was really no need to put down your stethoscope only to pick up a gun. I can blatantly see your strengths, so why are you trying to fit into a mold you are not cast for? I mean you can do some great things being a doctor. Heck my parents would have loved for me to be one as stereotypical as it may be. So Alex, can you just honestly tell me why."
Alex bit her lip and looked deep in thought but finally responded meekly, "I want to make a difference. John's team needs all the people they can get for the wedding, so here I am. I asked my mom to hide my medical background and chose to live the Spartan life of a soldier so that I would be able to get on the team and work with everyone. Also I would like to learn from you."
Kendra just smiled knowing that it wasn't the whole truth. "This wedding was only put in the works a couple months ago. You have been training for longer. It coincided around the time you met me at my office. What happened that made you change course?" Kendra asked calmly.
Alex hesitated and finally gave up, "Capt… Kendra, I hold you in the highest respect, you know that. I wanted to make a difference as a doctor but being a doctor won't make the same impact if I can't defend my clan. When I met you, you were so focused and sharp. You were taking down Fae without knowing their existence and using just the raw tools you had and it worked. You told me to never give up and strike out on my own if I had to in order to obtain the truth. It didn't matter if I was a woman. You told me I had power so I took the initiative and faced my fears. I am both Fire Sprite and Tree Elder an extremely rare combination. It is said that this combination could never exist, but it does at times. My biological parents I found out after some digging were murdered because although they loved each other, their respective clans didn't agree and it will happen again. You inspired me to take action and therefore I follow Derrick and Erica and they need me as a solider now, NOT a doctor. I will still become one later. Also now that I know the faces of my parent's killers they will not take me like they did them but I need to train to even get that chance."
Kendra sat there silently and didn't know what to say. Alex was following in her steps. Flattering though it may be initially, Kendra new the path she walked was not a good one. It was definitely not the path that the 'scrap book Kendra' represented either. Now that was a work of fiction she mused.
Kendra could also tell that Alex, though having a good heart may actually avenge her parent's death in time if her hatred for her parent's killers was left unchecked. Alex needed a role model and Kendra knew it was not her.
"Did you mom ever tell you what she said to me exactly to join her team at the Dal Rita?" Kendra murmured still looking down at the floor.
"No. She just told me that you accepted with multiple conditions attached which made sense. When I got the news, I was so excited that I would be working with you." Alex stated looking at Kendra confused probably at where the conversations was going.
Kendra never looked up and hated that she had to repeat it, but it needed to be done for Alex's sake. "After I politely turned down the assignment she just snapped at me, she told me that I was a one trick pony with a sole purpose of revenge. That I was so corrupted by this nothing else like the oaths that I took or the betterment of all human and Fae kind no longer mattered. She insinuated that I was a disgrace to the badge and uniform. She also pointed to the fact that all I had left in to give was hate but it was disguised in my mind as justice."
Alex had a look of bewilderment on her face since she was probably flabbergasted that her mom would say that, "My mom didn't mean it Captain."
Kendra looked up at her with a serious stare and said annoyed, "STOP calling me that Alex. I am not your Captain. Your mom is more deserving of the title that I. Yes, your mom meant every word of it and she was RIGHT. You've been filling her and everyone else's head with your version of me that DOESN'T exist Alex!"
"No, It's not true. You are amazing in person." Alex stated hurriedly shaking her head vehemently.
Kendra shot up out of the chair and glared at Alex, "Alex! You put me on a high pedestal that NO ONE can possibly reach!" Kendra roared pointing sharply at the scrap book. "SHE, does NOT EXIST! Those articles just took what I did and over exaggerated everything. I can't be that hero! It's ok to strive for that, but let me tell you following me will only be to your detriment."
"No," Alex mumbled with an uneven voice as she began to cry. "You ARE her."
"NO I'm NOT!" Kendra yelled back, "And you know why? Because, I'm broken and NO ONE can fix me! Deep down, I'm a fucked up human that has nothing in her end game but hate and violence."
A tear escaped Kendra's eye before she continued, "I wake up thinking about taking down Shape Shifters! When I go to sleep I think the same. And when I'm at work, I plot on how to kill them. THAT'S ALL I DO! Every waking hour is filled with my contempt of that race for taking away my brother and then Eric. HATE. REVENGE. RETRIBUTION. KILLING. THAT is what I am about Alex. That isn't the hero you need. You should be running AWAY from me not to me! I almost KILLED Dyson several times already and he loves me!"
Kendra through the yelling began to shed more tears. It was one thing to think it to herself, but something entirely different to compose it, vocalize it and openly admitting to it. When she did that, it was made real.
Kendra just kept yelling as she now paced the room, "You are following a ghost, a shell of a person. Huh! I don't know if I can be even called a person anymore BECAUSE… BECAUSE…. I CAN'T seem to love anymore! I hate all shifters and I would wipe out their whole useless race if I could BUT I SLEEP WITH ONE! Dyson gives me stability, love, and all the support I need to keep going BUT to do what? Genocide his entire race?! Talk about messed up. And to make matters worse although he is giving me everything he has including his life, I came to the realization that I am a SAVAGE who is just fucking SELFISH. I *PUNISH* him every day because of WHAT he is not WHO he is! I unconsciously still hold my heart away from him because he IS a shifter. It took a 4th order Valkyrie to make me aware of that! Can you believe that? She had seen and done every single evil out there under Odin and today she told me that Dyson was never the monster because I was it all along! Tamsin is absolutely correct. In my quest to eradicate all of them, I became less than human."
"A freak of nature, a Leviathan!" Kendra proclaimed out loudly through her now free flowing tears.
Alex kept her gaze on Kendra through her tears in utter denial of what she was hearing.
Kendra took some deep breaths before she murmured through her hitched breathing, "Alex, I am the LAST person you need to be at your side. My given moniker from the shifters is curse and a promise. I will not let you have that fate nor am I willing to take you away from your mother as you are her only child. So I will recommend that…. "
From across the room at Alex's open door Jessica stood clearing her throat, "That's quite enough Captain Shaw. You requested to see me and I look forward to your recommendations. My office now. Belay that. In 15," Jessica said sternly.
Kendra wiped her face of the tears with the back of her arm and rushed out of the room brushing passed Jessica.