The First Age

She wouldn't expect Natalie to be aware of the agreements passed between herself and Nikolai. The memory of his whispered promises still fluttered through her mind like the pleasant warmth of God's light. Sure, he was prepared to gather channelers beneath his wings like some dark angel, but that was all before Evelyn arrived. She didn't expect all plans to come to a screeching halt, but he had promised. He'd promised and yet this boy disappeared yesterday?

Her heart beat faster in her chest. Last night she found herself gathered in his arms when she expected a battle to hold a simple conversation with the man. Last night he proposed united their nations beneath one banner as a means to eradicate the purpose for war and usher in the modern age of channelers. Maybe the disappearance of Natalie's friend was a coincidence. An occurrence preceding Nikolai's altruistic epiphany.

But that was yesterday.

And Natalie just met with Ascendancy? He'd admitted that the American was here? Somewhere within the Kremlin complex? Evelyn struggled to keep the color from draining from her cheeks. Everything flashed through her mind like the flickering scenes of a movie. Jacques Danjou was here. He brought his best from the Legion along with him. Nikolai promised to help restore order to Africa, providing money and resources for the Legion and stability to the nations in turmoil.

There had to be an explanation. There had to be.

Evelyn smiled reassuringly and stood, smoothing out the lines of her suit as she did. "Let me do some investigating myself and I will see what we can resolve. I am really grateful you brought this to my attention, and I understand it wasn't what you intended."
She thought for a moment and her expression settled on Natalie's injuries. "Are you alright? Do you need something? Or can I call someone for you?"

She hit a mark, not knowing the exact target, or if it was an aim that would benefit her. Evelyn stilled, and though Natalie observed her reaction, she did not know enough of the peripheral circumstances to interpret it for good or ill. The woman tidied her emotions away quickly, but seemed suddenly keen to bring a close to their meeting. Natalie's gaze rose when Evelyn stood. She did not think Brandon would struggle to smooth this over, and it was not like she intended to cause irreparable damage to their alliance -- whatever Brandon himself might discern of her visit today -- but she would move mountains to find the answers she sought. Perhaps she had more of her mother in her than she thought. Either way, the coin was tossed now; she wouldn't be privy to where it landed. It spun in the right direction at least; or so she hoped.

Natalie pushed up to her own feet. It was her own turn for a note of surprise then; genuine this time. She glanced down at where her injuries peeked beneath the sleeves of her blouse; a ring of greenish bruising around her wrists and the hint of deeper slashes that disappeared beneath the diaphanous material. She hadn't meant for those to show; was surprised Evelyn even noticed such a small detail, let alone concerned herself with it. Though it was touching in a way that leaned on the faint kinship of their shared gift. Made her more certain of the path she had chosen. "No, no thank you. My mother is still in France, and of course my grandfather remains in London. I'm in Moscow alone, there's no one you need to call; but I assure you I'm fine. I don't wish to detain you any further, Evelyn -- I'm grateful for your help."

Evelyn smiled warmly. Natalie had opened up to her when she had come on pure business. Evelyn always prided herself on her ability to comfort and welcome people. This was only another example of why she was so widely adored by people in her home state.
"Tell you what, I will learn what I can and give you a call when I make progress. I'm sure everything will be alright."


She wondered what was meant by her grandfather being in London, of course. A moment later, the connection was made. She had been so focused on Nikolai, that she had completely forgotten about the governance of the various dominances. She'd aced all her histories in world government in high school and college, took advanced classes and even tested out of the pre-req courses from university. Northbrook was a name she should have recognized sooner. There had been some controversy a couple years ago around the Patron of western Europe. One of his children was accused of something pretty terrible, if she recalled correctly. It had something to do with the Minutemen, she thought, but couldn't summon specific details. Either way, she'd call one of her aids to look it up and send her a summary. At least the next time she spoke with Natalie, she would have a better understanding of who she was dealing with.

The kindness touched something that made her feel disingenuous. Still, she nodded, and the quiet gratitude of it was honest. Did Brandon realise what a tool he wielded here? Perhaps he did. It was not her intention to present herself as something she was not; Natalie did not gush or beam, but the relief in her pale gaze was palpable. She thanked Evelyn again, then left her to her work.

After leaving the meeting with the Patron's granddaughter, Evelyn returned to her work on the treaty. But every time she looked up to stretch her neck or take a healthy walking break, her mind wandered back to Natalie. Less so about Natalie and more about what she said Ascendancy was doing behind all their backs. Evelyn wasn't naive, sh.e knew that Presidents and world leaders had agendas they didn't disclose to the public. Nikolai already agreed to disarm channelers from combat. Why would he agree with me then do this? Something must be going on. What am I missing?

It was late evening when she had her draft completed and returned from her colleagues with their mutual approval. It was forwarded to Ascendancy's office. She spent the rest of the night seeking some sort of precedent for how to move forward before falling into a deep sleep. She needed her wits about her tomorrow.

delete


Edited by Evelyn, Jul 11 2018, 09:30 PM.