Elysium Falling (ONC 2024 Long List)

Chapter 6 Reaching Stasis

Dana paced. Her steps were slow and deliberate as she plotted her next steps. Her office one of the few lavishly decorated rooms at The Watch was suddenly tight and confined. There was no escape from what was coming. 

Controlling Rowan was like holding a tiger by the tail. You could hold on, but he was more than capable of seeking his teeth in and ten times as deadly. She knew she could do it, but he was unpredictable at best even while being extremely reliable.

It was what had made him so damn good at his job.

The man's penchant for killing was all there - as well as his uncanny ability to get the job done just as needed.

But this last job - she'd gone over the files, checked Dik's video feed over and over again. According to the press President Enerez had suffered massive cardiac arrest. No one had been with him, he'd sent his guards home for the day. He was in his office alone preparing for his speech that weekend. It was a good story. It should have been signed, sealed, and delivered. Job done, everyone goes home, money paid, etc.

And yet, she'd checked the feed over and over again. Rowan had simply shot the man as he'd said, up the ass. It had taken some clever maneuvering on their part for him and Dik to escape through a crowd.

And then she'd lost him. Precious minutes of feed where he could have reached out to anyone.

Everything was protocol except for the take down. She should have been happy with it. Anyone else would have been. Enerez was too expensive to keep around, his appetites growing too abhorrent even for the meths in their thousand year old cages.

But Rowan's comments, his actions. He had not taken the job seriously, and that grated on her nerves. This was not the agent that had slipped out years ago. He was jaded, the mission meant nothing - which meant the organization meant nothing. The programming had failed.

She sighed. Part of her hold on the organization meant she'd have to be able to keep Rowan in check. Keep him under control. Was that possible? Even with Miranda under wraps? He was going to figure it out eventually and when he did, was there any saving him? He was one of the oldest agents still in the game. There was no protocol for retiring him, they didn't retire unless a bullet took them down. That was it, end of story.

She sat at her desk eyeing the latest skin. She wore a lovely tanned brazilian that had been stored away for her particular use. It came with plenty of modifications from sultry to battle hardened. She could turn a man on and cut his throat while he was undressing her with his eyes. The male gaze had its uses, so did a good knife.

Rowan had his specialty designed sleeves and so did she.

The Miranda unit, while it had its uses simply was just a PJ, a plane Jane, and while it was beautiful, it had no weapons mods and she wasn't a civvy.

She stopped stalking and tapped the side of her head, linking her straight to her secretary.

"Lovelace, send in Paramar."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Dik walked in, moments later, covered in sweat, knuckles bleeding. He'd been hitting the gym since his return, not taking kindly to Rowan's subterfuge. It had taken hours to get him out of the authorities hands and back at The Watch. She sighed again. Another mess to clean up.

He stood at attention.

"Ma'am?"

Dana stood behind the desk. She favored Dik with a bland stare. 

"I may have made a mistake trying to get Stevescant to return to his old line of work."

"I'm sorry?" Dik's mouth hung open before he closed it again.