FerideEdain

Feride nodded absently at the man’s late apology. At this point, made no difference to her, one way or the other. It was the man’s response about the Rikti, although not unexpected, that made her pause. He was intentionally leaving out information. Perhaps Mistress had left out other details than the portal problems.

Then the android, still partially disassembled, turned and said, "So, Shel, who's the pretty lady?" It had been quite a while since that term had been applied to her, especially as Feride. She raised her brows before responding.

“A lady who can shoot your flatterin’ tongue outta your head,” she said wryly. She turned to the man. “Feride Edain. Just another hero.” She shrugged with practiced and effortless nonchalance. “Heard ‘bout your project out here. Hopin’ you can get that portal fixed.”

As she said this, a man stepped through the portal. He was surrounded by a glow that quickly faded. Many of those around her stopped to stare, and Feride gave a strange look at what seemed to be a shield. There were too many glowing things in magic. His words were appropriately long and formal, as if he were accustomed to inspiring awe in others.

“Or maybe that portal’s on its way,” she said quietly.

Feride's quip was met with a short response. Any further comments were cut off as he directed her to Unai Kemen. The name sounded familiar, and in the time it took her to place it as Portal Corp’s security director, the man made an exclamation and moved away.

She looked back toward the group near the portal, and she noticed they were still working in mildly-restrained panic. Their attempts to access the system were being thwarted by something, and Feride had the feeling it was something darker than they imagined.

The hero sighed. Sometimes she really despised her sixth sense, as that was all she could call it. It wasn’t ESP or seeing the future, per say, but it was enough. Often useful, times like this she found it maddeningly vague and unhelpful. Minerva had it, and she was convinced it was her sister’s gift from beyond the grave.

However, it was this same sense that kept her from going through the portal. Feride stared hard at the blue monstrosity, as if that action would reveal more information, but none was forthcoming. Instead, she was pulled from her thoughts by a loud outburst from Kemen. The phrase “reckless risks” jumped out at her. In the resulting silence, she was unaware that she had uttered it aloud until a tech nearby said, “Yeah. The portal’s only one-way. Can’t figure why.”

The warning about the portal clicked. She laughed silently. That had to be the part Mistress left out. She was sure of it. She could hear it now. 'Oh, no, I haven't heard from Feride recently. What? She's gone? I can't imagine why.' She gave a huff. “Stupid villains.”

The android that the hero-looking man had been pulling apart suddenly came back to life. She moved a little closer, trying not to be too obtrusive. She gathered he (it looked like a ‘he’) had been inside the system, and perhaps his account could shed some light on what her sixth sense was trying to tell her.

((Argh! Everybody goes too fast!))

The noise from the rotating portal was extremely loud, now that she was close to it, and it seemed to echo off the buildings in the courtyard more than the underground chambers. The few heads that had risen at her call returned to their tasks, as if they had merely imagined the sound.

“Hey,” she said again. No response this time. She put her fingers between her lips and let out a loud whistle.

Feride’s shoulders twitched. Clearly, these folks were not going to get her the answers she needed. Surely Tina McIntire was around here someplace. Maybe she had something.

The dark hero headed toward the building at the back of the courtyard when she saw something out of place. A nervous-looking man stood away from the commotion. As she came closer, she noticed he was clad in body armor and a trench coat. Feride glanced at the Vanguard armor covering her torso and her own black trench coat. She snorted.

She was tempted to pass the man by—probably a hero, considering the blue and white get-up. However, if he had been standing there long enough, especially so close to the portal, he likely had some idea of what was going on. She wouldn’t bother Tina if the hero knew anything. If she's here, she's doing research. Her and Joseph, wouldn't recognize reality if it... Feride shook her head.

On the other hand, years of interviews had taught her that his nerves would preclude most coherent answers. And the fact that he hadn’t yet noticed her approach was a testament to how caught up in them he was.

She came right up next to him and gazed at the portal a moment. “So, you think the psionic folks just manipulate our clothin’ for the [heck] of it? Prob’ly a big laugh for ‘em.”

Feride opened the door and stepped inside. It had been busy night, and she needed rest. As she flopped onto the sofa, Gabriel came in from the kitchen with a glass of milk in hand.

“Can I stay with you a while?” he asked.

She opened her arms. “Sure thing.”

They lay together for only a moment before the phone rang. Feride sighed.

“Come on, up you get.” As he got up and headed toward the stairs, she leaned over the arm of the couch to pick up the house phone. She was greeted by a ring tone.

The phone rang again before it stopped. Just as she went to investigate, Gabriel came back in. “Auntie Mel! Auntie Mel!” he cried. “It’s for you.” He held out the secure phone in his eight-year-old hand.

Feride winced at the name and took the phone. Her accent switched to strong Jersey. “Yeah?”

“This is Feride Edain?”

“Yeah. Zell?” The accent died a bit.

“Not quite.” There was a short pause. “ ‘Auntie Mel’, eh? I’ll have to remember that one the next time I’m in Paragon. And your adorable little nephew…”

Feride glared at the phone. “Zell,” she acknowledged.

“Very good,” she said. The sly smirk was audible on the line, all the way from the Rogue Isles. “If you listen to what I have to say, I might feel inclined to leave your pathetic family alone.”

----------

That had been 30 minutes ago. Now, Feride flew over Peregrine Island toward Portal Corp, suppressing a yawn as she went. It transformed into a sigh, not her first since leaving the house.

She did not like the idea of Vanguard organizing something this big or serious. Feride liked Lady Grey in the few times they met and had nothing but the deepest respect for Dark Watcher. But she often got the impression that there was more to the Vanguard than just fighting the Rikti. She worked with them against the aliens, but it was often a wary alliance.

Even still, something about Mistress’ message set off a warning signal. Not about the Vanguard, but about the Rikti. It sounded as though she had left something out, but perhaps she just lacked all the information. With the glee in her voice? Fat chance. She's evil, Bradford, remember? Either way, something big was going down, and Feride needed to be a part of this.

It had to be really big if Mistress was deigning to contact the “goody-goodies” for help.

And if the situation really was as dire as Feride thought, then perhaps it was worth ignoring the “evil” label for long enough to ensure there continued to be circumstances when it mattered. That meant acting on Mistress’ hunch, which she had already done. It would also entail working with Vanguard, who she was positive would be on the other side of the portal.

That was the only thing she was really sure of about this whole whirlwind. Despite the many threats sprinkled throughout, Feride could sum up the whole warning in one sentence: The Rikti world was under attack from someone on Earth.

She suppressed a groan as she hit the ground at Portal Corp. That was another group she would have to endure on this little trip.

Set up near the far building, an outdoor portal cast an indigo glow across the courtyard, far outshining the lighting attached to the buildings. The contrast between the darkness and the mild golden sheen of the permanent lights gave the area an extremely eerie quality, adding to an already-foreboding situation.

Huddled near the portal were several people, mostly recognizable as Portal Corp employees. One of them looked familiar as the security chief, but they had never talked, and Feride did not know his name. However, considering the general lack of Vanguard standing around, it was likely that he was in charge of the area for the time being. However, three years of pounding the pavement in the City had taught her better than to assume.

Feride placed the Cabal hat on her head, checked her mirrored glasses, and headed toward the group. “Yo, dudes,” she called. Several heads turned her direction. “Who’m I talkin’ to ‘bout gettin’ on this big-bad mission?”

((The characters of Mistress Zell and Lady Zell, who’s only mentioned, belong to Z, on the Champion Servers. Unfortunately used without permission.))

I'm a hero, so this may not apply so much to me, but my character has an issue with Rikti. So the RWZ is a dream come true for me. I was waiting for this. And leaving the zone feels so wrong, just on the basis of who Feride is. She would never, ever leave that zone, and I have taken her out of there. Often. It just feels wrong. And not much else in Paragon creates the satisfaction that killing off hoards of Rikti does.

((Oh wow. Looks fantastic, all. I know this is kind of late, but it's late here too. I got a hero with a grudge, and I can't let this slip by. I'll be off the comp for a couple of days, but here's hoping I can reserve a spot in here for when I come back. Maybe Tuesday?))