Lady Superior

by Alex Ziebart

  Nothing about it made any sense.

  Michael suddenly jerked into a standing position. He circled around his desk to extend a hand. “Where are my manners? It's an honor to finally meet you in person, Miss Anderson.”

  Kristen shook his hand, saying nothing. He turned to Todd, hand out. “And a pleasure to meet you, Mister Schumacher. Thank you for coming today.”

  Todd frowned down at the man. “Why are we here?”

  “Straight to the point.” Michael clapped Todd on the shoulder. He had to swing up. “I like that. The two of you are here because your city needs you.”

  Kristen spoke first, suddenly eager. “What happened? Is this about the ring?”

  Michael returned to his desk, motioning everyone to take a seat. Kristen did so, then Todd. Jane took a standing position beside the desk instead. Kristen thought she looked like a bodyguard; stiff posture, pantsuit, and a bulge beneath her arm that suggested a shoulder holster. Michael folded his hands on the desk. “There's nothing I hate more than working on a Saturday. This has been one hell of a summer, so it can't be helped, but that doesn't mean I don't hate it. That means I'm short on patience today. Before we start, I'm going to ask you a simple question. It's going to save us a lot of time. Miss Anderson, do you believe?”

  “Believe what?”

  “That you are what you are and you can do what you do. That there are things in this world unknown to the common people. That there are threats that have been hidden for thousands of years. That what I say in this office, no matter how outlandish, is true.”

  Kristen nodded once. “I believe. That last part sounds shady, but the rest of it? I've seen enough to believe.”

  Michael looked to Todd, but didn't repeat his question. Todd nodded. Michael clapped his hands on the desk. “Good. Next question. Miss Anderson, has Jane told you who we really are?”

  “Just call me Kristen, please. Miss Anderson sounds awkward. No, she hasn't. She said you wouldn't let her.”

  Michael looked at Jane. “Why don’t you tell her?”

  She eyed him. “I have to do it?”

  “Sure. I hate saying it. It sounds ridiculous.”

  Jane rolled her eyes. “We’re part of an organization you’d know best as the Knights Templar.”

  Kristen squinted with one eye and peered at Jane, trying to read her face. It must have been a joke. “The Knights Templar?”

  Michael motioned for Jane to continue. She obliged. “Brace yourself, Kris. I’m going to get boring again. The Knights Templar were an order of knights based out of the Temple of Solomon, hence the name. Unless you took the time to study the Middle Ages or the Crusades, you wouldn't know their other job. They were the largest pan-European banking organization of the time. Money lending, debt collecting, property management, all of that. Over time, they came into permanent possession of a great deal of land, seized to repay debts. Even kings used Templar resources to extend themselves beyond their means. That’s what caused the downfall of the order. King Philip the Fourth of France arrested and executed the Knights Templar en masse in 1307. By 1312, he convinced Pope Clement the Fifth to officially disband the order. The banking services of the Templar Order evaporated, and with that, so went Europe's financial stability.

  “The surviving members of the order went into hiding. Some went to Scotland. Some went to Italy. Others changed their identities, reintegrated into their homeland society, and became influential in the new banking organizations that rose in place of the Knights Templar. By the middle of the 15th century, the Templars founded Banca di Scudi in Florence. They became a financial power in Europe all over again. Now they're global. Here in America, they're Temple Financial.”

  Jane stopped to take a breath, eyes flicking between Todd and Kristen, gauging whether or not she’d lost them. Kristen stared in bewilderment, but said nothing. “Beneath the Temple of Solomon used to be a place known as the Well of Souls. It was a gateway between the land of the living and the dead. The Knights Templar could speak with people who had been alive at the dawn of humanity just by going down a flight of stairs. Through the Well of Souls, the Knights Templar could speak to the dead to regain lost knowledge in defense of humanity. Those who wanted to suppress that information wanted the Well of Souls to be sealed. See, unlike most Crusaders, the Knights Templar generally got on fine with the locals in Jerusalem. The Christian Knights Templar allied with the Muslim Swords of Al-Ḥaqq in secrecy. When Philip and Clement dealt their blow to the Templars, the Muslim presence stood alone, and alone, they didn’t have the strength of numbers to defend the Well. The Well was sealed.”

  Kristen squinted again. “So…all of those words means what for me?”

  Michael laughed. “Miss Miller has that effect, doesn’t she? Let me give you the short version. We stand between what is often labeled as natural and supernatural. We don’t protect one from the other. We protect them from each other. There are supernatural elements that are a real threat, and there are elements that just want to keep on living, just like you and I do. Given how poorly humanity reacts to people who are even slightly different within their own world, I don’t think they’d react well to inhumans. Humanity is a terrifying force in its own right. Bullets are damn effective things. I think you both have experience when it comes to bullets.

  “Based on the look on your face,” Michael gestured, “I’d say you understand. In recent decades, the Knights Templar have realized the world is even more complex than we thought. The rise of comic books triggered a simultaneous rise in the appearance of people with abilities reflecting that media. The resurgence of superheroes in recent years has caused it all over again. People like you—Kristen, Todd—are outside of what our organization has been studying and preparing for. We aren’t equipped to handle it. We need people like you to help us protect others like you. And protect others from people like you who aren’t such good people.”

  Kristen rubbed her face. A mantra developed in her mind: I’m not insane. I’m not insane. I’m not insane. She took a breath and broke her silence. “Bear with me for a moment. I’m going to ignore the Templar thing, okay? What do you need me to do, specifically?”

  “Protect and serve the city of Milwaukee in ways no one but you can.”

  Kristen nodded. “I can do that.”

  Michael looked to Todd. “And you?”

  “I think you’re out of your damned mind. We were supposed to get straight to the point. What’s the point?”

  Michael sat back. He frowned in disappointment. “I did ask if you believed. I don’t think either of you truly do. But fine, we’ll get to it. Todd, I had our people look into your father.”

  Todd perked up, eyes wide. “Did you?”

  “Yes. We have no internal records of the man whatsoever. If he was special—like you are—we didn’t know about it. However…”

  Todd’s lips pressed into a thin line.

  Michael paused, gauging Todd’s severe expression. He began again. “However, you mentioned a woman by the name of Delphi. In the modern Knights Templar, we use codenames for our people who specialize in gathering information. Sometimes they’re just people who are good at getting answers out of others. Sometimes those people are more than that—seers, oracles, precogs. Such people are extremely rare treasures. More often than not, we get someone who can use a phone book really well.”

  “Oracles?” Kristen asked. “The Oracle of Delphi?”

  Michael smiled. “Very good. You know your history?”

  Kristen shook her head. “No. Not really. I just know my Hercules.”

  Todd ran fingers through his hair, looking away to hide his frustration. “So she’s one of yours?”

  “No. The Milwaukee branch has never used the name Delphi. We’ve had a Pythia, which is another name for the Oracle of Delphi, but no Delphi. The Chicago branch, however, had a Delphi as recently as ten years ago. Records show she had a fixation with specific locations in the metropolitan area, which might turn out useful. Most impo
rtant, though, is Delphi had the ability to look into deepest corners of a person’s mind and all it took was—”

  “A touch?” Todd asked.

  Michael nodded. “That’s right. Delphi went rogue, started withholding information, and was linked to murders within our organization. Our Chicago branch decided she had to be put down.”

  Jane cut in. “But it doesn’t seem to have happened. I’ve spent the last twelve hours following a spider web of reports involving the name Delphi. I think we had the wrong idea. We thought her abilities were the sort of supernatural the Knights Templar are familiar with. Now, I think she’s a little more like the two of you. I believe she has the ability to not only see into the mind, but to possess the mind, like a hermit crab changing its shell.”

  “By touch?” Todd asked. His eyes were tight in horror, skin pale. “Delphi could take—what—my body?”

  Jane shook her head. “I don’t think she can take yours. Every person who can be traced directly to Delphi is a woman. As far as I can figure—and this is just a guess—it’s only women who are susceptible to that aspect of her powers. Alternatively, she prefers female…hosts.”

  “So I’m the one who needs to be worried?” Kristen asked.

  “I suggest you start wearing gloves.” Michael said.

  Todd slumped forward, head in his hands. “What’s the ring? What does it do? Why did she want it?”

  Jane looked at Kristen. “Do you remember my theory?”

  “Something about moving the planet?”

  Jane sighed. “Am I really that boring? Why do people fall asleep while I’m talking about serious, world-changing events? Anyway, yes. I’m more confident about my theory now. Todd, is it correct that Delphi said she only needed one ring to accomplish her goals?”

  He nodded. “I didn’t think about it at the time, but yeah. The way she said it, I think there were more than one.”

  Michael cut back in. “Mister Schumacher, could you tell us—specifically—what Delphi promised you?”

  Todd repeated the story he told Kristen in her apartment: visions of a new land and his place as a king. Once he was finished, Michael pushed a pair of tablets across his desk. Kristen picked one up. It was open to an image of the stolen ring. She swiped right. There was another picture and another ring. Swiping again, there was a third ring—only a sketch this time. She swiped back and forth through the pictures, comparing each one. Though obviously similar, each was just slightly different. On each image, there were handwritten notes alongside the ring. Cairo, Egypt. Lake Texcoco, Mexico. Wairau Bar, New Zealand.

  Jane spoke as Kristen studied the images. “I've been able to loosely link the stolen ring to similar rings found throughout the world. Previously, we believed these rings might have ended up in these locations in the Age of Explorers. We wrote them off as antiquities scattered by European sailors looking to make a buck. Now, I think we were wrong. I believe this ring is part of a set. When worn together, they imbue a person with the ability to literally change the world and shape it to their desires. If what Delphi says about only needing one is true, each ring has that power to a lesser extent. Maybe one of them can’t shift a continent, but it can make some noise.”

  Michael glanced at her sideways. “Don’t undersell it. By make some noise, she means potential earthquakes. A few tremors is all it would take to cause catastrophic damage.”

  Jane made a vague he’s right gesture with a roll of her hand. “This entire region, both Milwaukee and Chicago, is built on marshland. The oldest parts of both cities are slowly sinking into the ground. The city has spent millions of dollars in renovations on historical buildings from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries because they’re built on stacks of logs that were driven deep into the ground as solid foundations. When those logs start to rot, the building sinks.”

  “So…” Kristen let the word trail as she thought through it. “You think she isn’t going to make new land—she’s going to make Milwaukee sink?”

  Jane nodded. “That’s right. First Milwaukee, then Chicago. With rare exception, earthquakes are unheard of here. We don’t have building codes that take that into consideration. And even if we did, being on marshland would make it irrelevant due to liquefaction.”

  “I don’t know what that is but it sounds like liquid, so it probably has something to do with sinking. Which is bad.”

  “It’s the process of—”

  “Jane,” Michael interrupted, “she got the gist of it. Let’s leave it at that.”

  Jane cringed. “Right. Worse, we have to consider the possibility of more widespread ramifications. We’re nowhere near active fault lines, but there have been sizable intraplate earthquakes in the region. The New Madrid earthquakes of 1812 took place here in the Midwest. That earthquake was, and still is, one of the most powerful earthquakes in recorded history. We’re talking an earthquake felt over fifty thousand square miles. It’s an unlikely scenario, but it’s a possibility.”

  Kristen leaned back, taking it in. “And I guess we don’t really want to take chances on that. Considering we don’t actually know what the ring does, or how well it does it.”

  “Right.” Jane nodded in agreement. “If this theory is right, the worst case scenario is mass devastation across the American Midwest. An earthquake the size of the New Madrid quake could wipe out Little Rock, Indianapolis, Louisville, Nashville, Memphis, Milwaukee, and Chicago.”

  Todd chuckled to himself, shaking his head. Michael looked at him with an arched brow. “You find this funny, Mister Schumacher?”

  Todd looked him in the eyes. “No. I don’t. What I find funny is nobody in America gives a damn about any of those places except maybe Chicago. If they were all gone tomorrow, nobody would care.”

  Michael stared a moment, then offered a reluctant nod. “But that doesn’t mean we can let it happen.”

  “Do we have a plan?” Kristen asked.

  “We do.” Michael looked to Todd again. “But before we discuss that, we need to know whether or not you’ll be joining us, Mister Schumacher. I know you’ve been involved with Delphi, so here’s your opportunity to make that right.”

  “Make me an offer.”

  Michael's eyes flicked from Todd to Kristen and back again. He sounded surprised. “An offer? I'm offering you a chance to save lives rather than take them. If something goes wrong here, it's on your head.”

  “Hey, hold on.” Kristen jumped from her seat. Anger bloomed in her chest. “You can't pull that on him. You can’t use me to get him into your office, trap him in here, and make him do what you want. What’s he going to do? Tell you he won’t do it while Jane’s standing there with a gun under her jacket? You're paying me, and it's a damn good thing you are. Good intentions don't pay the bills. If the bad ones do, then that's what you do. If you want his help, then give him a reason. If you won’t, then I’m going to help him walk out that door.”

  Michael beamed a smile. “That's exactly what I wanted to hear. You have to stand up for your own, Miss Anderson. Nobody else is going to do it.”

  Deflated, Kristen fell back into her chair. “That was a test?”

  “We'll call it a pop quiz.” Michael returned his attention to Todd. “I'd like to offer you a job.”

  Todd frowned; the test hadn’t amused him, either. “What kind of job?”

  “I understand you like working with your hands. Do you know anything about cars?”

  He scratched his beard. “That depends on what you’re looking for. Mechanical problems? Sure, I can do that. It all comes out of a book. But cars are a lot of electronics these days, and I can’t do anything with that. I doubt you’ll find a mechanic who can. Those repairs don’t happen in a garage.”

  “Temple Financial has a hand in a garage on Loomis Avenue—not too far from where you live. Our company cars have a bad habit of taking damage we can’t explain. We could use a mechanic who doesn’t ask too many questions. In order to ensure everything looks legitimate, we can only of
fer you forty-thousand per year, but I understand you’re currently self-employed. Keep that going. We’ll make sure it goes well for you. Is that acceptable?”

  Todd slouched in his seat. He stared out into the void as he thought it over. “It doesn’t compare to having my own kingdom, that’s for sure.”

  “Unfortunately, we don’t have any kingdoms among our assets. Not since Henry.”

  Kristen leaned forward. The word irreplaceable echoed through her head. “May I take over negotiations?”

  Michael nodded. “By all means. Mister Schumacher, may Miss Anderson speak on your behalf?”

  Todd looked to her. She turned to him, meeting his gaze. They stared at one another for a long moment, then Todd nodded. “You need us. We need you. We have our gifts, you have yours. We know you can’t hand us a million dollars in cash without someone noticing, but you still have financial pull.”

  Michael folded his hands on the desk. He leaned forward, giving Kristen his full attention. “Meaning what?”

  “Todd has a mortgage and three kids. Temple Financial can wipe out his mortgage on top of the salary you just offered him. That is giving him a kingdom.”

  For a few seconds—seconds which felt like an eternity—there was nothing but silence. Michael sat there as if waiting for more, an impeccable poker face setting Kristen ill at ease. Michael asked, “And I take it you find your compensation acceptable, Miss Anderson?”

  She shook her head. “I have family to consider, too. And an identity I need to keep secret. I need a house, and I have one in mind. I can pay my own mortgage, but I’d like Temple to front the down payment.”

  Michael observed them, jowly jaw working back and forth while he considered. “Miss Anderson, don’t you find this a little extortionate? Hundreds of thousands of lives hang in the balance. You’d withhold your help unless you’re given a fortune on a platter?”

  “Mister Gruber,” Kristen said with an air of false respect, “hundreds of thousands of lives hang in the balance. Don’t you find it callous that one of the largest financial institutions in the world won’t invest a couple hundred thousand—a relative drop in a bucket—to save those lives? If you’re going to be so callous, it’s going to cost you less than a dollar per life saved. And that’s assuming this is a one-time deal rather than a long-term employment. The longer we work for you, the more value you get out of your investment. It’s in everyone’s best interest to ensure Todd and I have what we need to do our jobs properly.”