Chương 57: Out of the Box

Seraphina walked into the office to find Celestia staring out the window. She spotted an array of snacks and drinks sitting on the table by the sofa. Celestia turned and glanced at her then returned her gaze out the window. Seraphina glanced over to the sofa and saw that Jasper was sound asleep. She made her way quietly to the window and put an arm around Celestia's shoulder.

"You okay?" Seraphina asked, before gently rubbing the girl's arm up and down. Celestia turned to her.

"As well as can be expected, I suppose," she said, giving her a weary smile.

"I was just wondering how Thai was," she said softly.

"Sheera and Rowan have no idea what they have just gotten themselves into and we cannot even bring them up to speed." Celestia inhaled deeply.

"Besides, I miss the little stinker. I know I am not a mother or anything… but I feel kinda like she was mine. I was the first person… okay to be fair… we were the first ones to take care of her. She relied on… us."

"I know," Seraphina replied.

"I kind of grew attached myself, it's not hard to do, Celestia. I was just thinking about the obstacles that Sheera and Rowan may be facing right now. I was trying to figure out a way to get a message to them, but with the teleport system shut down, it's virtually impossible." She sighed, looking out the window. The pair stood in silence watching the sun come up over the horizon. Seraphina contemplated all that had happened. In a matter of hours, everyone's lives, not just hers, had been turned upside down.

No one knew what to expect right now and for a fairy that alone was enough to send them reeling. Seraphina had seen fairies wandering the building, unsure of what to do or where to go. Fairies were very regimented. Adhered to strict schedules and protocols. They were the keepers of the gates after all. They were the enforcers of rules, the officers of peace. How could someone as vile as a murderer escape notice?

"Any news from upstairs?" Celestia asked, pulling Seraphina from her thoughts.

"No, not really. There has been no activity at all. It was so strange seeing the control room so quiet. Everyone is basically staring at blank screens waiting for something to happen."

"Are we going to share with Jasper that the baby…"

"Got her first tooth?" Seraphina interrupted, casting a glare at Celestia, the kind of look that said zip-it! Celestia looked at her puzzled. Seraphina mouthed the words, "We don't know who is listening, so shh." Bringing a finger to her lips. Celestia nodded.

"Well maybe he should know that she got her first tooth, it would help him when sending the right supplies to the…"

"Safehouse?" Seraphina asked.

"Yeah, of course to the safehouse, where else would he send them?" Celestia asked, flatly looking over at his sleeping figure on the sofa.

"No. I don't think anyone other than us need to know. For now I think we will just keep it to ourselves. I think the less everyone knows the safer she is and the safer they all are. Considering Farthingsworth was murdered by someone, or something that looked like him, it's hard to know who to trust," she said, looking over at Jasper. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

"I hadn't thought about that." Celestia sighed.

"You're not thinking…"

"Jasper?" Seraphina laughed.

"No! Absolutely not.

"How do we know who's who and what's what?" Celestia asked with mounting frustration.

"We can't trust in what anyone says or does, because we can't be sure they are who they say they are." She looked at Seraphina skeptically.

"I can't even be sure that you are who you say you are right now," she said, taking a step back, her face turning white at the realization.

"It's me, Celestia, I swear." Seraphina said, reading the worry on Celestia's face.

"That's exactly what an imposter would say. That means nothing," Celestia said, the fear was growing in her eyes.

"I see your point," she said, unable to dismiss the girl's terror. She is not wrong. We have no way of knowing if the people around us are not just the imposter wearing their face. Well, this is going to be a problem now isn't it?

"Here I am worried about listening devices when the real threat is people we know and love not being who we think they are. Seraphina thought.

"So, how can I prove to you that I am who I say I am?" Seraphina asked. Celestia thought about this, searching her mind for a question she could ask that Seraphina would only know the answer to. Then it hit her.

"Got it, tell me, Seraphina, if that's who you really are, what is an accidoodle?" Seraphina burst out laughing at this.

"Well, an accidoodle is when a baby relieves themselves in their diaper." Celestia smiled.

"Okay, it's you," she said, relieved.

"Going forward, that will be our word, so we know for certain we are not speaking to an imposter."

"That's a great idea, Celestia," Seraphina said, her voice filled with enthusiasm.

"I think we should institute a code word system for everyone when discussing sensitive information, I will bring it up to Jasper when he wakes up."

"I also think we should pair up," Celestia said, "You know the buddy system, that way no one ends up like Farthingsworth."

"You just continue to surprise me, Celestia," Seraphina said, smiling at her.

"With all these so-called brilliant minds upstairs, not one of them thought about implementing some form of protection or verification system until we get a handle on this situation." She patted Celestia on the back.

"Everyone is so concerned with the big picture; no one has looked at the threat from an individual standpoint." She turned her gaze toward the window.

"Before we do that though, we need to figure out a way to confirm that they are who they say they are. For all we know we have already been infiltrated with enemy agents." Celestia thought about this, searching her mind for potential solutions as she made her way to the couch and sat down. She became wide eyed as it hit her.

"The trace lab!" she exclaimed.

"We already know that who or whatever disposed of Farthingsworth was not a fairy, they are an unknown species, if the trace lab runs the scanner on everyone, we will know if they are fairy or not," she said excitedly. Seraphina smiled brightly at her.

"That's perfect!" she nodded in agreement.

"It will serve a dual purpose, it will eliminate everyone in the building as a suspect and prove they are who they say they are, before implementing a new security protocol. You really are brilliant Celestia!"

"I have my moments," Celestia said, blushing.

"I mean it, this is a practical plan that will provide some much-needed assurance around here. Everyone is so on edge that it is making it difficult to focus or trust one another. Getting this enacted will allow everyone to breathe a little easier," Seraphina said, trying to express the pride she felt.

"It's this kind of out of the box thinking that will flush out threats and make agents extraordinary."

"You really think so?" Celestia said.

"I know I've messed up in the past, but I really am trying."

"Celestia, when it has mattered most, you have done an outstanding job. Don't cut yourself short. You have the potential to become one of the best agents we have ever seen," she said, coming to sit down beside her.

"Your missteps have been due to lack of maturity and experience. Trust me on this. You will come into your own, and blow everyone away with that brilliant mind of yours," she said, squeezing her leg reassuringly.