Shifters

Interrogation

Joana walked in silence as she struggled to gather her thoughts. Her mind was yet to settle completely. In spite of all that had happened, Josh's situation troubled her the most. She'd inwardly debated whether bringing him here was the right choice. Even though she ruled out the possibility of him being a spy, Joana couldn't shake the feeling that she was missing an important piece of the puzzle. Her thoughts were interrupted by a faint monotonous shuffling of feet. As she neared her destination the footsteps rang clearly in her ears.

Joana stood before a large closed door. She eyed the freshly carved runes that lined the edges before knocking.

The footsteps paused momentarily as a gruff voice said, "come in."

Joana placed a hand on the door, pouring in a slight amount of energy as she pushed it open. As she entered, an uncomfortable murmur arose from several seated figures.

"It's good to see you back safe and sound Joana," said the voice that granted her entrance, "do you know why I called you here?"

"Not really," she answered casually, mind still foggy from her thoughts.

"No respect from this one," a feminine voice whispered.

"Quiet!" another said a bit louder.

They collectively turned toward the well-built man, who responded, "I called you here to tell us the details of your mission."

"Everything was already submitted in my report 2 weeks ago," Joana replied.

"I've yet to get a chance to see it," he said as he paced back and forth, "All the appropriate personnel are gathered here so why don't you give us a full account of what transpired."

Joana studied the room as they turned to her with bated breath.

'Is this some kind of test?' she wondered, 'surely they don't suspect the report's credibility right?'

Pushing the thought from her mind, she relayed a version identical to the earlier report previously submitted. As she began, the man stopped pacing and settled into a chair at the head of the table. Joana ended with the capture of Silva's men and her return. Many questions were hurled at her simultaneously as the entire table went into an uproar.

Before she could answer, the man seated at the head of the table shouted, "Silence!"

Just as quickly as it started the excited voices were immediately extinguished.

"Joana," he said slowly.

"Shaw?" she responded.

"Celene, I-I mean the others, you said they were captured, not killed?" Shaw asked shakily.

"Besides Leo who took a heavy blow, I'm positive the others were captured by the vines," she said softly.

"You! With your power, couldn't you have saved them?" he asked voice rising, "forget the others, Celene should've been your priority."

Joana stood in silence as she recalled various rumors of Shaw, one of the last surviving leaders of the resistance and Celine, one of the most powerful beings in the Hall of Shifters being romantically involved. Although she was not one for gossip, it seemed apparent that the rumors were in fact true.

"I knew she wasn't ready!" a voice chimed in.

"Two shifters lost in one mission!" said another in disbelief, referring to Celene and Leo.

"Even if Mitch was an idiot, he was certainly no slouch with a sword," a third added.

"On the bright side, at least we don't have to pay those overpriced assassins," a fourth said, earning a murmur of approval from the others seated at the table.

Joana stood in disgust as she noted how little their lives meant to these so called higher ups. In some ways, they were no better than the leaders of The Order themselves.

"What of the boy?" Shaw asked, interrupting the discussion.

"What of him?" Joana asked in return.

She knew this was coming. She'd returned with an unknown boy, who seemingly lost his memory. Not to mention he conveniently came out of the artefact, their team was sent to retrieve.

"Amnesia aside, what else do we know about him?" he questioned.

"I've already used 'Blind Truth' which yielded little information," Joana responded, "There's no way to deceive the spell, so naturally everything he's said thus far is the truth.

"Yes Hank told me something similar earlier," Shaw said getting out of his chair, "I heard he recently awakened. I'd like to see the boy."

"Why?" she blurted.

Shaw's expression hardened.

"It seems you've acquired a habit of testing my patience," he said seriously, "do not mistake my tolerance for weakness Joana. Disrespect me again and consequences will ensue!"

Joana fell silent once again. Though Shaw wielded no power of his own, his leadership skills had reorganized The Resistance into what it was currently.

"Bring the boy to me," he continued, "I'd like to get a read on the person that made the great Joana so concerned."

As she turned to leave, Joana paused at the open doorway. Raising a hand, energy swirled from her finger tips causing the entire room to tremble violently. An intense pressure filled the room as those at the table fell over when they tried to stand.

"On account of Celene's capture I'll let today slide," Joana stared coldly over her shoulder as cracks formed on the walls, "however, use that tone with me again and unimaginable consequences shall descend upon you all!"

She lowered her hand, releasing the energy that ensnared those around the table. As she exited, the door slammed shut, leaving the leaders of The Resistance quite shaken up. They stared at each other before looking to Shaw who also seemed to be stunned by the display of power. Staring at each other once more, they silently agreed never to test the limits of The Resistance's strongest powerhouse again.