Valens

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Airport Intercom: "Welcome to Luton International!"

24/11/2019 - Sunday 8:15pm

          What a funny teaching. To have left Singapore on Monday, and land here in England, on Sunday. Quite a fascination that is.

          Upon touchdown, the aircraft was met with the Air Marshal and Interpol. Investigations started, but once the passengers have been through interrogation,  they were free to go. Without hesitation, 'Awe had alerted James of her arrival.

"Lovely to see you again, Mistress. Hope you had a wonderful travel.", James says filled with joy of her presence.

"James? Has anything...'strange' been happening lately?", she asks.

"Well ma'am, aside from the three planes needing to make emergency landings, and the new Beings in town, which I'm sure you are already...", and before he could finish, 'Awe intervenes.

"Three planes!...Wait, new supernaturals?!,  she questioned.

          The ride has continued in silence, but she can't seem to stop thinking about what James said. Third plane? Must be a bad omen. If the council's matter is of any connection to the recent events, this meeting is about to get interesting.

~•~

          James and 'Awe arrive in Coventry, where the council is already up in the chamber.  The two slowly make my way to the elevators, and up to where silence permeates into all corners of the room.

"Welcome back, Mistress.", Victor says slightly uneasy.

"I've had quite the mysterious last few hours, so let's get to it. Where is the summary from The Oracle?", 'Awe replies while she makes her way to her seat.

Marcus then hands her the scribe, that which reads...

          "Trouble is near. A what, a who. What's seen as one, will become two. Watch the horizon, for a change is to come. It's not what it seems, but right under your thumb."

"To think, after all these years, these messages remain as cryptic as ever. Anyways, have we got any idea of what this could be referencing?", she asks.

After a few minutes of silence, an assistant enters the room with a letter in hand, making their way over to Liam. His facial expression takes a drastic turn for the worst.

"Attention all..."

"I have just received word from our Valens Director for China. The humans are up to something...", he says as he reads the context of the letter.

Boss,

My associates are hearing word of an illness outbreak. More and more people here are showing symptoms of what seems to be worrisome. Word has not spread yet, as these remain unconfirmed rumors. But they are affecting our business. Less of the humans are ordering, due to sickness. We continue to push sales, but this issue is occurring all over China.

I thought that you and the council might want to hear this, in the case this may become a much more serious problem. I will keep you posted if I hear more.

Jin Gao

Valens Regional Director

Beijing, China

"An epidemic, again?! China was also the origin of the last outbreak in the early years of this century. Vicious cycle. Mortal never learn, do they.", says Sage Turgenev. Supreme of the East.

Sage is a 1,200 year old vampire from Russia. Making her the second-oldest councilmember, from the vampire faction. She has been seated on this council for the best part of a millennium, while also being one of the only two primordials from the east. The other being, Han Yeon-Seok, who we call "Tank". Supreme of the West.

A 900 year old vampire from Korea. Known as "Tank", due to his involvement in the Korean War. Being that Korea was a Japanese Colony at the time, he fought with both the Japanese and German armies. He's never been one to support war, however, he is very obedient.

His last order had him complicit to the German bombing of this very cathedral, we now call Headquarters for Valens. Although of opposite sides, Tank and Sage met during that battle, as she had been stationed at Coventry, fighting or Great Britain. Don't be mistaken, they did attempt to kill each other. But in the midst of the chaos, they found that they share a common hatred for destruction, causing them to run together. Years go by, and they are found by the council.

Talk about "full circle".

~•~

"Perhaps these rumors are what was spoken of, by the Oracles." says Victor.

"That still begs to question, what did the Oracles mean about the One, becoming Two?" says Finn.

"The timing is all to ideal. I'll have to look further into this..." 'Awe says while folding the Oracle letter and places it in the pocket of her coat. She continues.

"...let's redirect our focus to these rumors coming in from China. If this situation escalates, we need to be prepared for the response from the humans, as they most likely will to close airports, docks, walls, etc. I move to enact Order #919.

The room fills with heavy gasps and a sense of confusion.

"Are you mad, Order 919?! You wish to revert our systems back to standard. That Order consists of a 5-hour transition period, of which places all servers on standby. Access will be limited..." says Sage as Finn decides to chime in.

"Mistress. We have deliveries on backlog that production is unable to fulfill in a timely manner. Enacting this order now, will put us further back into the delay. It's not worth the risk." he concludes.

"Listen. Although most human activity bare a minimum effect on our industry, we do rely on heavily on their satellites for networking and communication. If this situation were to become consequential, our systems will go dark. Order filings, records of production, inventory, etc. Everything sealed off...I'd say the risk of this Order is insignificant compared to the latter, Supreme." 'Awe says with confidence.

The other council members continue to glance at each other, however no objection are shared. In the same moment, she sends a message to James, to obtain the manifest for the delivery backlog, mentioned by Finn.

James immediately enters the room with the report, and hands her a file before exiting.

"If there are no further oppositions, then Order 919 will go into effect promptly at the conclusion of this meeting. As for the backlogs. This report shows that we have delays on 50 shipment deliveries. Let me start off with a wonder on how these delays managed to get this significant."

"...these shipments will be settle by an inventory of my own, and my private transport team, along with an extra palette of a new product I've created with Crimson Berry. This will come free of charge for the delayed sectors, as gratitude for their patience and an attempt to ease the symptoms of the sickness being spread over there."

The response from the council is filled with relief and acknowledgment for her assertiveness.

"Consider the deliveries completed. Let's get a handle on these deliveries. I'd hate to have to make a visit to productions myself."

She continues, "As for the Order, let's get the transition started now, as it will be very time-consuming."

The meeting ends, and all the members are off to make the necessary arrangements.

HQ Intercom: ORDER #919, Now Commencing | First Hour Time Marker: 21:43:05