Let's Play Pretend

Tick Tock

Aiden was restless. Not the kind of restlessness that makes you unable to sit still, that makes you fidget and wander and still make you unable to do anything at all. No, the bone-deep restlessness that doesn't show on the outside, but leaves you ready for everything and anything. There had been nearly two weeks of... nothing.

He didn't do well with calm normally, and this was not an exception. Even though playing househusband for Jenna had been quite nice, in a domestic kind of way... he was far too aware that this was the kind of calm that would be followed by a natural disaster. Eddie had been quiet, but Aiden knew better than to think this meant he had moved on. It merely meant that the next move he made would be bigger. Aiden had seen it often enough, in his line of work. But it never got old, really. He couldn't let it, it had to keep him on edge.

He sat in deep thoughts about the pressing necessity of being alert, when he suddenly found himself rudely interrupted by the digital horror in his pocket. The shrill noise made him jump so high, he was quite certain he was lucky not to have bumped his head on the ceiling. #1 calling. This was not good, there were still hours left until he'd be supposed to check in. But... at least this meant something was happening.

-Aiden speaking.

-Yeah, you know who this is. We need to talk. Are you in a place that's safe?

Corals voice sounded oddly strained, far from it's regular tone. If anything could be a sure sign the world was coming to an end, this would be it.

-Yeah, I am alone, and I have gone over the entire house just about hundred times since the bedroom incident. We can speak freely.

-The bedroom incident was... unfortunate. As a result of it, the superiors are questioning my ability to run the unit, and they're quite eager to see you return back to base. I am fending them off as best I know how, but I strongly suggest you don't show your face around here until this case is well sorted out. You don't have many friends among the higher-ups right now.

-I never did have many friends in high places, can't say I am surprised this didn't make me any. I am not too pleased with myself either, if that is any consolation. But I am certain your worries that I won't be promoted in any foreseeable future isn't the reason you called?

Talking about Aiden not making any friends was about as close as Coral got to smalltalk, and it was very unsettling. She always got straight to the core of the issue. Especially on the phone. He was quite certain she preferred the world before those things came along, no matter how handy or useful they had proved themselves to be.

-No, of course. Let's cut the idle chit-chat. The results came back. From the ashes you sent in after the previously mentioned fuck-up?

He didn't like how she stopped at a question, as to prepare him for what was to follow. If the ashes had been just as predicted, she wouldn't have done that. She also wouldn't have called out of the normal times to let him know... Well... Fuck. Things were about to get interesting. He shouldn't have been so quick to bemoan the calm. The calm had been nice, after all.

-Yes? What did they say about them?

-We have to reassess the threat. We have been working under the assumption that he was a rogue dabbler, yes? Someone who stumbled upon a couple of spells online, and had happened upon a couple of real relics?

Well, of course they had. 99% of their cases were just people playing with things they should have left alone, not knowing the dangers of letting magic in. Not knowing what to do with it either, thankfully. But they still posed a real danger, and had to be dealt with.