Chương 11: Finally, A Safe Harbor?

I sat down heavily on the bench of Harbor's locker room. My side twinged, but it wasn't so bad anymore. A few hours had passed since we took down the Skullker, and we just got back to base. Cleanup was as important as the hunt. Repairing damages to structures and taking care of the human cost was an obvious part of it. Containing and preparing the calamity corpse was the focus, though. If left to sit, it'd quickly become a source of corruption and could cause more damage than the calamity had in life.

Not to mention there were people who'd do anything to get ahold of the corpse of a T-3 Skullker. Its parts, once refined, could be used in all sorts of stuff. The black market commonly saw corpses of low-level calamities pass through it. The Calamity Core, though, was the big issue. Letting that slip through the cracks was how Reavers became a thing. Some civilians would do anything to become more. To become beyond.

People that willingly accepted the breakdown of their humanity were psychos, and nobody could change my mind. I shrugged off my plate carrier, and pulled out the plate. It was literally snapped in two by the impact of Skullker. The adrenaline had worn off a while ago. Most of the smaller injuries were already gone, but the major ones across my chest and side would take quite a bit longer to heal back up. I pulled open my shirt and looked down—oh, that was a lot of purple.

My ears flattened to either side of my head. The bruising was slowly going away, but my chest still looked like a tapestry of purple and brown. Good thing I didn't have Quinn's meat bags, or I would've been in a way different state.

"Reyna? You in here?" Speak of the devil. She peeked around a row of lockers. Her halo was gone. She'd deactivated it as soon as we got back on the AV. I dropped my hands onto my rifle like I'd been cleaning it and not checking injuries.

"Yeah? What's up?"

"I'm going to get burgers—" Her eyes snapped down to the broken plate, then darted up to my chest.

"You sure you're fine?"

"Totally…" Ah, wait, being completely fine after taking a hit like that would be unbelievable. I brushed a strand of silver hair back behind my ear.

"Just a bit of bruising."

"Right, if you say so." She scratched at the back of her head, and shrugged. Good ole Quinn. She never asked more questions than she needed to.

"If I have to get a new Canary, I'm going to be pissed."

"You should be more worried about your kidneys." I laughed at the joke, and pushed the two plates back together as if that'd hide just how hard of a hit I took. I could already smell the stench of alcohol off of her.

"I'm fine. Really."

"I didn't say anything." She brushed a stray blue strand back into her bob-cut.

"So, burgers? Want some?"

"Sure." I could eat. I could always eat… breakfast was a while ago, which I skipped. I hadn't had anything but protein bars recently.

"Cool, cool." She didn't back out, and instead leaned against one of the lockers with her arms crossed.

"Nice job today. Shame about Helms, but…"

"Yeah…" I stared at the floor. Maybe if I tracked the Skullker down quicker, they'd still be alive. Although I didn't like the Peacekeeper's methods, they went down protecting and serving like true heroes.

"Ruth's uncle agreed to take her in." Quinn shrugged when I looked up to her.

"Just thought you should know. Horizon took care of it quickly."

"Thanks." So the overlord could actually do something… I wasn't too worried about her finding somewhere to go, though. Plenty of people were more than willing to take in a child. Raising children was one of the best ways to earn credits.

"Mhmm. I'll get you some bruising cream while I'm out." She watched me for a moment longer, and then pushed off from the lockers. She stopped just at the door.

"Oh, and some big wigs from Centauri came in while we were gone. Probably best to lay low and avoid 'em."

"Got it." I tossed the plate carrier into a box of stuff I needed to return to the armory, and stood up. I pulled out my new jacket from Hades, and pulled it on. The stupid eared hood caught on my ears. I dropped my stuff off, and slowly walked back through the halls to the aviary—the Canary office area. Not every Guardian was chill with their partner sharing an office space like Quinn was. I briefly stopped by the break room to grab a cup of coffee, and leaned against a support pillar to listen.

My ears twitched around, and took in the constant chatter across the office. Although this was supposed to be a super serious government agency, Harbor agents were still people at the end of the day. Varied bits of gossip flowed in one ear and out the other. Apparently, the biggest gossip today was about Reddik, the city just north of Silverport. Riots had been breaking out for the last couple months, but the city council apparently just finally authorized total martial law.

The Guardians there were mobilized to deal with rebellious citizens more than calamities. A commotion near where the aviary connected to the Guardian offices drew my attention. A large group of people, mostly officials in suites, walked around the area. Captain Voin stood at the front of the group, as did a few familiar faces I couldn't quite place. Was it time for another floor walk already? This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

I pushed off the wall, and stuffed my free hand into my pocket. I sipped at my cup and headed back to Quinn's—"Hey! You there, silver dog." A voice called from behind me. My tail tensed up for a fraction of a second, and then I turned out to see a few of the suits watching me curiously. The others were too busy discussing something that sounded way too boring to focus on.

"I'm a wolf." Didn't anyone teach these guys it was incredibly rude to call a wolf a dog? Not to mention there wasn't even a dog Totem in the first place." Sir."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." The guy that called for me stood out amongst the group. He was younger, and had a certain air to him that made me a little uncomfortable. Or maybe it was the greased back hair like he thought he was someone important. He turned to the Captain.

"We'll take that one." Captain Voin didn't seem to recognize me. Why would he? He was usually way too busy licking up to care about those who worked for him.

"Canary…"

"Reyna Vargriev, sir." Lieutenant Harkness, the usual watch commander for the day shift, nodded to me.

"Reyna. Good work hunting that Skullker. Tidebreak praised your perception endlessly in her report." My grip on my coffee cup tightened. So that's what she was doing while I was busy handling the rest of the cleanup. That bitch got way ahead of me on the paperwork.

"Thank you, sir." Lieutenant Harkness nodded, and stepped in front of the group to place himself between me and them.

"Reyna just got back from a field mission, so—""Ah, so she's a perfect fit." The man nodded his head. His eyes danced across my jacket for a moment, and he completely ignored the lieutenant's attempts to shift his attention elsewhere.

"Come along, Canary. At least, as long as that's not an issue for you, Captain?"

"Our people are your people, Agent Haman." Captain Voin, just as I expected from the spineless man, put on an ingratiating smile. He turned away, and the smile instantly dropped into the glare of a hardass.

"Canary Vargriev, if you'd please follow us."

"Yes, sir." Not like I could say no when the Captain himself gave me an order. Fuck. Just what'd I step into this time? Seriously, what was my luck… Our group moved around the agency. Slowly but surely, officials bled off while exchanging ingratiating pleasantries with Agent Haman. The man seemed like he could care less, but none of them noticed. Or they did, but they still sucked-up anyway. Lieutenant Harkness slowly managed to work his way to the back of the group alongside me.

"Reyna."

"What's going on?" I nodded forward to the group and sipped at my coffee.

"Haman's a MET agent from Centauri." Harkness muttered soft enough I could barely pick it up with my wolfish hearing, "he's running a suicide mission." Mire Expedition Team? Why would one of those insane bastards be here of all places? And from one of the core cities, at that.

"Centauri City?"

"Yes." The man nodded heavily. He dragged a tired hand down his face, turned to face me fully.

"Look, you can say no—""Lieutenant." Captain Voin appeared like a ghost. No, that wasn't right. It was just that almost the entire group had dissipated by the time we arrived at the Captain's office.

"You can go back to your duties now."

"Sir." Harkness shared one last long look with me, and then backed away. Captain Voin smiled once more, and opened the door for Haman and me. We slipped into his room. It was a frankly disgusting place covered in accolades for various things that didn't matter.

"Please, take a seat."

"Thank you, Captain." Haman slid in across the desk.

"Reyna, is it?"

"Sir." I sat down next to Haman, and looked between the two men. Lieutenant Harkness had tried, but he hadn't been clear on the details.

"What's this about?"

"Our agency was selected to collaborate with MET in their upcoming expedition. They requested a Canary for this particular one." The Captain smiled at me, but his eyes were unfocused like he wasn't actually seeing me.

"It's a very prestigious position, and could accelerate your career, should you accept." Accelerate my career? Who the hell did the guy think he was fooling? Going beyond the walls was almost suicide for a Beyonder, let alone for any normal Canary or QRF. When I went out with Hades, we didn't even run into anything until the very end, and half my squad still died almost instantly. I took a breath. I wanted to say no outright, but a bit more information wouldn't hurt.

"If you don't mind me asking, why a Canary?"

"Reyna—" The Captain's voice dipped like he was disappointed in me for not just obediently accepting the suicidal task he deigned to offer me.

"No, no, Captain. It's a valid question." Agent Haman shifted in his chair, and leaned on his fist.

"Outposts around the area we're set to explore indicate a substantial increase in corrupted." I squeezed my eyes shut. AKA, they wanted a Canary to use like, well, a Canary. Although the brass may make promises with sweet words, it wasn't like being a Canary was a dignified position. Our job's true purpose was much, much darker in nature. There was a reason Canaries were all supposed to be trained, but ultimately mundane people.

Of course sending normal people out to fight monsters and calamities was a waste of resources. Especially when there were Awoken or other Beyonders that could do it better and safer. That wasn't why the job was originally made in the first place. Awoken were very resistant to corruption—until they weren't. We were a litmus test. If a Canary started to corrupt, it was a sign for the Awoken to either handle things quickly or get the hell out of there.

Nowadays, things weren't like that and corruption was incredibly rare, but back when Harbor first started?

"So?" Captain Voin frowned and crossed his arms.

"Of course, you and yours'll receive great benefits. A week of vacation time, substantial increased pay for the duration of your collaboration, and the—ahem—benefits will be upgraded to the maximum tier."

"You mean my life insurance policy?" Why was he skirting around it like a timid schoolgirl? We were all adults here. We all knew the likely result of sending a Canary alongside an expeditionary team. Unlike the others, I at least stood a chance.

"Indeed." The man frowned like he was offended that I pointed it out so clearly.

"It is dangerous, but opportunities like this are few and far between."

"Opportunities, you say…" Opportunities to end up without even a proper burial, you mean? That kind of opportunity? Captain Voin shook his head in disappointment.

"If she'd rather not, agent, we have tons of Canaries—""Just give her a moment." Agent Haman waved his hand dismissively. He glanced up from where he'd been texting someone.

"I'm sure Reyna here will make the right decision." Really? There wasn't even a decision to make. Going out beyond the walls under the syndicate's orders had already been bad enough. No way was I going to leave and abandon my sister a second time. Especially not so soon.

"I—""Inhibitor," Haman whispered quietly enough only I could hear. My ear twitched in his direction, and my tail stilled beside me. Heh… right. Of course. There was no escaping, was there? I loosely brushed the sleeve of my jacket, and hollowly met the eyes of Captain Voin.

"I accept."