She gawked at me, only for tears to reappear in her eyes again .
It took me a moment to understand why she was crying. My tone was gentle. “If you want to hang around that long,” I added quietly.
She only nodded once, as if it was the most sure thing she’d ever agreed to in her entire life.
Against my better judgment, I reached out for her hand again, prompting her to accept it without hesitation as she tried to collect herself. By the time we arrived at the local State Bureau of Superheroes where Lexi went to work most days, she was pretty much back to her usual self, though I couldn’t deny that my hand was still very much in hers.
However, I let go and sat forward when I noticed something alarming in my second-sight. We had just pulled off the interstate and were traveling down the paved road toward the massive solitary building that was gated off, which was adorned with impressive landscaping.
Freya had been here once before, to get Eden’s evaluation done, so from her description I had a general idea of what this place looked like, since it wasn’t something you could look up and see on a map – locations like this had long since had satellite images banned from the public eye, nor was it something the average person could just look up. Most people driving by probably had no idea what this place was, although it was doubtful they thought much about it since most unmarked buildings were just random landscape along the interstate.
However, the impressive sight wasn’t why I was suddenly alert.
Rather, it was the massive invisible bubble that surrounded the entire area that had me focused now.
Because it signaled the presence of someone I’d met previously, back in January. Someone powerful and ancient , who also happened to look like a short, five-foot-tall, eighteen-year-old blonde sprite.
Well, at least now I had a good guess as to why this meeting was happening with such urgency. No doubt that out of everyone who would be here today – out of everyone important who had busy schedules – this one person, who I recalled was referred to as the Supreme Guardian, was likely the reason why the timeframe for this meeting was so limited.
Because, out of everyone, her time was the most valuable, and she probably didn’t intend to make herself available for long.
The girl who they simply referred to as Knight.
3: Discoveries
Heidi Stockton
April 10, 2735 – Current Day – Morning
Heidi sat at the kitchen table with Rose, watching her work through word problems involving the four basic operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Honestly though, this stuff was almost too easy for her. It was required for her to advance to the next grade, but Rose’s intelligence was definitely above average for someone her age.
Especially so, since Heidi recalled hearing Sam comment about how she was actually nine months younger than her birthday indicated, because July 3rd was essentially her conception date. Really, while Rose had been eight years old since last summer, technically she only truly turned eight just a few weeks ago, around Lily’s birthday.
That basically made her a year younger than she was claiming to be, which was both good and bad. It was good because it meant Rose was already studying stuff a grade ahead, after having easily gotten caught up in the last year, but it was bad because she had the physique of an eight-year-old, not an almost-nine-year-old.
Granted, Heidi had no problem homeschooling her little sunshine for the entirety of her education, but she knew Sam and Freya wanted her to be socialized and have the opportunity to make friends.
Like, normal friends.
Rose considered Heidi to be her best friend, and Heidi loved her to death, but she worried Rose wouldn’t build normal social skills if Heidi remained her only friend.
However, before they could even consider that, they had to deal with Rose’s other problem – the fact her face began changing colors whenever she smelled blood.
Like right now.
Lily was fixing lunch barely ten feet away, and Heidi immediately knew what the sharp gasp coming from Lily meant when Rose abruptly looked up at the wall, the whites of her eyes turning pitch-black, her face beginning to gray across the bridge of her nose and around her eyelashes.
“How bad is it?” Heidi asked, scooting out of her seat to see.
Lily moved to rinse her finger off in the sink. “It’s okay Heidi,” she said between her teeth. “I don’t think it’s too deep, and the pain is already subsiding.”
“I can heal it for you,” she offered.
Lily shook her head, looking away. “It’ll be fine.”
Heidi sighed. “I seem to recall you saying a couple of weeks ago that if I just grabbed it and said I was gonna heal you, that you wouldn’t stop me.”
“Yeah, but–”
“Let me see it,” Heidi said more firmly. All she really had to do was touch Lily on the shoulder, but she wanted to still have an idea of how bad it was before starting.
“Okay,” Lily agreed quietly, sounding ashamed for some reason. She turned off the water and reached over to grab a paper towel, only to freeze solid.
“What’s wrong?” Heidi said in concern, moving closer to see…
Nothing.
“It’s gone,” Lily said in complete shock, rubbing the paper towel over it. “W-What just…” Her voice trailed off, finally looking over her shoulder with wide eyes, meeting Heidi’s shocked gaze.
Suddenly, the room began to spin as the pieces fell together all at once, Heidi having no doubt that Lily had cut her finger, even though she hadn’t seen the blood herself. After all, Rose wouldn’t have reacted to nothing.
No, this could only mean…
“I…I need to get something from my room…” Heidi said, abruptly turning away and trying to rush up the stairs before she passed out. She barely got behind her door before she slumped to the floor, lying on her side, her thoughts shaken by this new revelation.
Lily’s finger healed itself.
However, how this came to be wasn’t what mattered to her. For Heidi, that wasn’t the realization that had just shaken her world.
Instead, it was something more foundational. Something more fundamental.
For a long time now, her sense of worth had been directly tied to her unique superpower. An ability that made her invaluable to most others.
But if Sam, Freya, Rose…and now Lily, could all heal on their own…
Then she’d just lost the only purpose she had.
She now had nothing she could offer their family.
No reason for them to keep her around.
She had just lost her worth.
❖ ❖ ❖
Sam Archer
April 10, 2735 – Current Day – Morning
As Lexi pulled her red Ferrari up to the wide front steps, adorned with massive cement pots filled with colorful flowers, I prepared myself for the fact that I wouldn’t be able to use my second-sight for the duration of this meeting. I mean, at least it wasn’t as bad as being stuck in a statue for seventeen years, which was were my claustrophobia problem originated from. But lacking the ability to extend my vision, like I’d always been able to do, did cause a slightly suffocating sensation to spark in my chest.
Still, I knew I should be fine if I just focused on my physical vision and didn’t think too much about the unexpected limitation.
Of course, my alarm prompted Lexi to become anxious herself, but I assured her everything was fine when she asked what was wrong. We were then both silent until she pulled to a stop right at the steps. There appeared to be plenty of parking spots in front of the building, but they seemed more for visitors rather than personnel.
“There’s a parking garage around back,” she explained in response to my gaze. “They said they’d let me know when you were done. I’ll come get you as soon as I’m able, to show you around.”
I nodded, finally focusing on the two people waiting for me.
Mrs. Knight was sitting on the steps at the
top, looking bored out of her mind with her elbow on one knee, her cheek resting in her palm. She was wearing similar clothing as before, wearing a black military outfit that fit her slim figure like a glove. The only difference this time was that she didn’t have a gun strapped to her hip – that small detail, was at least encouraging even if it never would have hurt me much in the first place.
The slouched posture made her look even smaller than usual, appearing much more like a kid at the moment, though I’d never dare treat her as such. The fact that she could even shut the Assistant Director of the S-FBI up, and treat the extremely tall older man like a child, reminded me that she wielded more authority than first impressions might initially imply.
As before, I could see a little bit with my second-sight, everywhere except for the roughly ten-feet by fifteen-feet oval space surrounding the Supreme Guardian. It was almost like opening my eyes underwater without goggles on, but I knew once I was within five feet of the five-foot-tall imp, I’d basically be blinded by her ability.
The other person was another young woman I’d never seen before, standing just outside of Mrs. Knight’s denser bubble, a few steps down. Her posture was ‘at ease,’ her back straight, her feet shoulder-width apart, her hands clasped behind her back. Her black uniform also fit her like a glove, revealing she was almost uncomfortably skinny and sinewy, though undoubtedly strong.
However, there were a few odd aspects of her appearance as well.
For one, she had black lipstick on, like she was a goth chick cosplaying as a soldier, along with slight Asian features coupled with extremely pale skin. All this was sharply contrasted against her jet-black hair, that only went down just far enough to barely touch her shoulders, as well as her pale seafoam green eyes that felt extremely exotic.
Like, seriously, beyond my daughter’s unique teal eyes, I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen anyone with such a unique eye color. There was something almost…feline, about it. Granted, considering she was wearing black lipstick, I wouldn’t be surprised if they were colored enhancement contacts instead, and I couldn’t see clearly enough to confirm one way or the other.
The last unusual aspect of her appearance was the seemingly poofy spots underneath her clothing. Like in her legs where the clothing suddenly got a little less tight on her upper thigh, whereas the black material was stretched really taut on her lower thigh and below.
In my blurry second-sight, I could see that she appeared to be wearing something white on her legs, like thigh-high stockings or something, except that they had black stripes. She had a similar pattern on her shoulders and upper arms, along with a line running down her sides, looking almost as if she’d worn exotic lingerie for her ‘night job’ and forgot to change out of it before slipping on her work clothes. Or rather, her daytime work clothes.
Strange.
Not to mention, the striped ‘white-tiger’ outfit seemed to be separate from her regular black bra.
She was objectively beautiful, having the kind of physique and appearance I’d expect to see in a modeling competition, especially with her unique facial features and alluring pale green eyes. However, assessing her attractiveness was definitely the furthest thing from my mind right now, aside from my passive evaluation of her appearance.
I had way too much to worry about.
Popping open the door, I gave Lexi one last goodbye before stepping out, meeting the Supreme Guardian’s azure gaze, since she undoubtedly had the most potent presence in the vicinity – more like, the most potent presence ever.
“Good morning, Mrs. Knight,” I said respectfully, hearing Lexi pull away behind me.
She nodded, finally standing up and brushing off her butt. I’d forgotten how young her voice sounded. “Good morning to you, Mr. Archer,” she replied. “Your eyes are different,” she added, referring to the shifting blue colors.
I didn’t want to get into that, so I ignored the comment. “I hope you weren’t waiting long,” I said, pulling out my phone for a moment to check the time.
“No, you’re early,” Knight replied automatically. “But my niece wanted the fresh air, and this is a great spot to watch the sunrise anyway.”
Instantly, my gaze shifted to the other woman, a series of complicated emotions swelling up inside of me. First, ‘surprise’ to find out this slightly older looking girl was her niece , then ‘shock’ to discover they’d been out here since the sun rose, only to finally feel ‘sorrow’ at the implications of their relationship.
Or more specifically, the implications of the Supreme Guardian’s age .
I had no idea how old she was, but she was undoubtedly much older than Freya, who was over three-hundred. And yet, the fact she had a niece implied she had other family members too, many of whom she’d outlived over, and over, and over again.
Shit. I couldn’t even imagine how much that sucked.
“What’s wrong?” Knight asked with unexpected empathy, seemingly shocked by my somber expression.
I tried to clear my throat, shaking my head. “Nothing.” I focused on the goth chick’s pale green eyes, her expression neutral. “It’s nice to meet you, I’m Sam Archer.”
“No, seriously,” Knight said before her niece could respond. “I want to know. It’s not like we’re in any rush. You’re early enough that you beat some of our esteemed guests.” She ended her statement with a little sarcasm in her tone. “And no one can hear us right now while you’re standing this close. I’ve made a sort of sound-proof space for us. So please, humor me.”
I cleared my throat, a little surprised she could control sound like that with her shield, unsure of what to say. I didn’t really want to lie to her, but I also didn’t want to bring up what was potentially a painful subject, not to mention I wasn’t sure if she knew I was aware of her possible age.
Dammit.
“Umm…”
Knight cut me off, looking at the girl with a sigh. “Winter?” she said simply.
The woman glanced back over her shoulder. “You sure?”
The blonde nodded. “Yeah, I want to know, and he might as well know too.”
Now I was really confused, at least until the goth chick, who I assumed must be named Winter, focused on me again as she began speaking.
“He’s aware you’re much older than you look, and when you mentioned me, it made him sad to think of all the potential people you’ve lost over the years.”
Shit!
A mind reader?!
“Yes,” Winter added, her seafoam gaze still locked on mine. “I’m Winter Fowler. She and I aren’t biologically related, but she considers me her niece due to my mother’s association with her husband.”
My brow furrowed, wanting to be respectful toward this person who could literally read my thoughts, but also automatically coming to the conclusion that the Supreme Guardian’s husband had more than one woman in his life – at least, based on the way this very nice respectable, not a stripper or hooker, young woman made it sound.
But then, wouldn’t that mean that Mr. Knight was her father?
Winter didn’t react to my last-minute attempt to flatter her by trying to indirectly apologize for my thoughts. Then again, considering her ability, I wouldn’t be surprised if she’d ‘heard it all’ and then some. Instead, she continued speaking as if I’d voiced my thoughts out loud.
“Yes and no,” she continued. “Mr. Knight is not my bio-father. However, my mother–”
“Jeez!” Knight cut her off. “What , is he using some kind of truth serum ability on you? He doesn’t need to know all that!” It was the first time I’d seen her flustered. It made the blonde sprite feel more like a normal person.
Winter simply glanced over her shoulder again, barely reacting to her aunt’s outburst. “Well, he’s immortal, right? That makes for a high probability he’ll find out eventually . And from my understanding, his own situation isn’t much different.”
Knight practically smacked herself in the face, before slowly drawing her hand down from he
r forehead to her mouth. She then sighed before focusing on me. “Short story is this. My husband is primarily with me and his other wife, and Winter’s mother is primarily with someone else. However, on occasion, the two of them have enjoyed each other’s company.” Her blue eyes narrowed. “But I expect you to keep that to yourself. One of the most important rules of being immortal is not to get on the bad side of another immortal. Holding a grudge has different implications for those who can’t die, and you do not want me to have a grudge against you.”
I held up my hands. “Of course,” I agreed, sincerely shocked they would even divulge such information. But then again, I would have just remained confused as hell had she not explained the gist of it, and Winter’s partial explanation kind of necessitated it. “Sorry,” I added, kind of feeling bad about the situation.
Knight looked at me in surprise. “Sorry? For what?”
Winter chimed in without missing a beat. “He thinks my mother was cheating.”
The blonde’s eyes widened in surprise, as she held up her hands, waving them back and forth. “Oh! No, no, no. We’re all okay with it. My husband is the only man I’ve ever wanted, but I’ve never had a problem with him and Winter’s mother hooking up occasionally.”
Winter spoke up again, anticipating my question – a question I definitely wasn’t planning on asking. “No, my father doesn’t care either. Even though he and my mother are ‘together,’ their relationship isn’t like most people. Certainly not like what you’d expect to see in normal society.”
“It’s because of their superpowers,” Knight added. “It has a heavy influence on how they view the world and relationships.” She then focused on Winter, still speaking to me. “But that’s probably all we should say about it for now.” She then directed her words at her niece, her tone more firm. “I can’t stop you from sharing whatever you want about your mother, but I’d prefer to keep my business out of it. You didn’t have to explain why you’re my niece.”
Winter nodded, still focused on me. “You know me, auntie. Divulging unnecessary information is not my MO. But like I said, if he’s immortal then he’ll find out eventually .” Her already sharp gaze seemed to focus on me even more intently, like she was staring directly into my soul. “Plus, the obvious reason why I’m here – to assess the integrity of this CDS postulant. Obviously, I’ve made my initial assessment. This man does not share unnecessary information with others.”
The Powerful Pride of an Immortal (Immortal Supers Book 4) Page 5