A Witness to a New Covenant (Dragon)

[Anja Drake]

It had been a few weeks since she had talked to Professor Rhee one-on-one and she couldn’t stop thinking about what they talked about…
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A new agreement with the Angel? She didn’t quite know where to start or, even more pressing, if the Angel would actually cooperate. The question remained, could Anja herself be able to handle the encounter mentally. The stability of her mind was fragile as it was and she had only spoken once before with the Angel face to face. That had been so long ago that she barely even remembered what went on; she had been only a small child, what could she do now? She knew the Angel didn’t trust her anymore and that this new encounter could be more dangerous than any one of her transformations to this date.
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She uncurled herself from the metal garden chair and sighed as she panned out across the beautiful maze of green hedges. With all that had happened to her, she didn’t know what to do…she supposed it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try. The girl stood slowly and tracked back into the mansion; she headed down the halls, her nerves were on end as she thought on what to do.
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Anja found herself coming to the ever open door of the main office; she stood outside of it unsure of what to do…she wanted to live without fear, but what happens if she didn’t succeed. She would still be the way she was, but if she did convince the Angel to try again, what would happen then?<o></o>

The Italian played with the strings of her sweatshirt and took a deep breath before entering. She approached the front desk, where a woman she didn’t really know sat reading a book. As Anja came to a stop, the woman peered up with a smile on her thin lips…
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“Hello Anja. What can I do for you today?” Her voice was very lovely, almost musical. Anja bit her lower lip and opened her mouth once or twice before finally answering the woman’s question.
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“Well, um, could you call down to Professor Rhee’s office. I want to know if he is available, I have a question for him.”
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“Absolutely sweetie.” The woman nodded and picked up the phone. “I’ll give him a jingle.”
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“Thank you.”
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Anja waited quietly as the woman punch in a number on the key pad; the woman smiled again at her and turned her attention to the phone as it began to ring…

[Dragon]

John Rhee sat alongside one of Max Flannery's duplicates in the control booth overlooking the Danger Room. Through the one-way glass they looked down on a holographic recreation of what seemed to be a cross between a medical campus and a military base.

"Two more guards by the supply shed," John said. "We've got to assume they've increased security since my last visit."

Max nodded and hit a few controls, and two kevlar-suited guards with assault rifles materialized by the shed and immediately took up a patrol path.

John rested his chin in one hand. "And two more at the ambulance garage. Okay, now show me the whole complex."

The scene below them shrank away as if they were in a rocket blasting away from the place until they could see the entirety of the Jericho Center below them.

"We need to run three separate insertion simulations," he said. "A commando insertion, covert infiltration, and total assault. We'll double the security for the final simulation - we've got to assume that, if there's a situation that would force us to bring a whole squad, they'll be expecting an attack of some sort."

The cell phone-sized radio on his belt buzzed, and he quickly stood and walked away from the whirring computer equpiment. "Hello, Rhee," he said.

"John, this is Clara. Anja Drake is here. She wanted to speak with you."

He shared a glance with Max, who smiled. "I've got everything I need now, John," she said. "Go ahead."

John nodded in thanks. "I'm on my way to my office right now, Clara. Thanks."

He clipped the radio back on his belt and walked briskly to the nearest elevator.

[Anja Drake]

Anja stood quietly, leaning her elbows on the raised portion of the office reception desk as the woman called down to Mr. Rhee; she still didn’t know if this was the wisest choice, but it’s what she felt she needed to do, for the safety of other and the safety of herself. The fear she felt was something she had to overcome, at least for a little while.
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"John, this is Clara. Anja Drake is here. She wanted to speak with you….mhm…okay…I’ll tell her."<o></o>
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The woman put down the phone and Anja’s attention returned quickly to its previous state. The other mutant smiled up at Anja again…
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"He is on his way to his office. You may go and way for him. He will be there shortly.”
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“Thank you again, miss.” Anja spoke and flashed her teeth at the woman thankfully. She turned on the balls of her feet and headed out the door toward Mr. Rhee’s office. The emotional surges she had been experiencing recently were pushing to the breaking points of her mental stability; it was hard enough as it was to maintain a solid composer.
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One foot after the other, she found herself in a familiar hallway; it wasn’t long before she was standing outside the office door that read, John Rhee.
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She knocked, just in case he had beat her there, however when there was no answer. She took a seat in one of the many cushioned chairs that lined the outer office wall. Anja didn’t understand why her feelings had been so uneasy lately, but one thing was for sure…the air seemed tense and she would be meeting the Angel again very soon.

[Dragon]

John came hustling down the hallway and saw Anja waiting just outside his office door. "Hello, Anja! I'm sorry about that, was just working on a training program."

He fished his keys out of his pocket, unlocked his office door, and beckoned Anja inside.

"I'm afraid I don't have any tea ready, but go ahead and have a seat," he said, motioning toward the low table where they'd spoken last. He dropped onto a cushion on the floor on the opposite side.

"What's on your mind?"

[Anja Drake]

"It's not a problem." She mentioned and she continued to wave away the statement about the tea, to be brutally honest, Anja really wasn't feeling well enough for it at the moment. She scanned the office; it was just the same as it was a few weeks ago, and it still had the same soothing aura.

She didn't want to bother him, but he had said that he would be there for her if she needed help. And now...she needed his help. She needed his advice.

The Italian followed his suit and sat down across the table from John. "I've been thinking a lot of our last conversation and I've decided to make a new agreement with the Angel."

She shallowed nervously as a small tinge of an emotional surge past through her...it wasn't unusual but it was starting to be noticeable that her stability was failing. "I don't know if you can see it Mr. Rhee, but I'm becoming ill...like I'm on the brink of becoming undone. I don't know if it's due to the fact that the Angel is being so harshly surpressed, but whether or not it is, I don't have a choice. I don't want what happened in Venice to happen again."

[Dragon]

Venice. John remembered when Anja's darker side had goaded him to ask her about it. He'd thought about it, but he'd decided to wait until Anja volunteered the information herself.

"The last time we met," he said, "you mentioned there was something you wanted to talk to me about. Was this it?"

[Anja Drake]

"Yes." She stated simply; though her voice seemed weak. "Five years ago, my father and brother where killed in Venice."

The story was too long to put into great deal, plus it hurt her too much to speak a long on the event. She broke suddenly. "It was an accident, I swear it was."

She covered her eyes with her hands; upset and already starting to unwind. "It was my fault; I couldn't control myself. I couldn't hold her anymore back anymore, I just snapped....and...and..."

The girl was rambling and probably didn't make any sense.

"I caused an accident, in the Piazza San Marco. My father and brother were....killed, but I don't know how. It was my fault....all my fault."

She let a slight gasp escape her and attempted to sober; however, her efforts were in vain.

[Dragon]

John could sense where she was going. It was like watching an avalanche start.

Five years ago. She would have been thirteen, around the age when most mutations were just beginning to manifest themselves. It was a fragile time for humans and mutants alike - a time of transition and uncertainty, a time when Anja may well have been specially vulnerable and volatile.

And yet a five-year wound, even one that cut so deeply, was hardly fresh. If she still blamed herself after so long, there were no comforting words he could say to convince her otherwise in one afternoon. Quietly, John got up and moved next to Anja so he could wrap an arm around her shoulders.

"I'm sorry, Anja," he said softly. "I'm sorry you carry such a burden."

[Anja Drake]

She took comfort in his action, but only slightly. The thought of seeing her father and brother killed before her eyes so many years ago still haunted her. What made it worse was that back then, her mother had witnessed it as well. It took nearly a year for her mother to forgive her...or to understand what happened to her.

Anja, even now, couldn't believe that her mother forgave what happened and now was the closest thing the girl had.

"I...I think it's going to happen again." She whispered as she curled her legs up to her chest. "I've been feeling so uneasy lately...and exhausted. I feel like I'm sick and I haven't been getting better."

"It feels so much like it did five years ago." She breathing became shallow. "I could never forget what I felt back then...it'll happen again, Mr. Rhee, unless I do something about it."

[Dragon]

John could feel the tension across Anja's shoulders - even more profoundly, he could feel the tension in the air, pulsing with the rhythm of her panicked breathing. It was obvious she wasn't well.

Now wasn't the time to speculate, to interrogate, to cajole, or to comfort. It was time to take action.

"How can I help?"

[Anja Drake]

"I...I don't know." She spoke quietly.

The honest truth was that she didn't know what to do. The last time this happened she hadn't expected it and now that she was; there was no one to tell her what to do.

"I need to go some place...somewhere with a safe environment." Anja whispered. "Some place, where I can't hurt anybody but mostly, a place where I can confront the Angel...with only the Angel and I present."

[Dragon]

"Someplace where you can make your new agreement," John said. It wasn't really a question - he could see the intention on Anja's face, desperate as it was.

"Do you know how you're going to do it?"

[Anja Drake]

Anja sighed heavily. Exhaustion was catching up with her and fast at that.

"I have an idea. But I first have to talk to her."

The girl shifted in her place under Mr. Rhee's arm.

"I want her to know that I never ment to make her angry. I think she forgot that a long time ago."

[Dragon]

John pulled back slightly to give her some space.

"We'll do it, then," he said. "We can use one of the practice rooms. We'll bring in as much wall padding as possible, just in case the Angel decides to try hurting you. I'll keep watch outside, just in case. Hopefully if she doesn't have a target for her aggression, she'll be forced to listen."

He paused, taking a good look at Anja's condition.

"When do you want to do it? Right now you look exhausted - maybe you should wait until you've had some time to rest?"

[Anja Drake]

Anja shook her head solemnly.

"I haven't been able to sleep for a few days now. I can't get rid of this horrible feeling." She didn't know what to do. The longer she waited, the higher the chance the Angel could rampage and kill like a few years ago. She was torn between being ready to face the Angel and the quickly passing time.

"I think the sooner I can do this the better. I feel like I'm losing this...inner battle even as we speak."

She looked at Mr. Rhee with uncertainty.

"I don't know what to do anymore. I'm so afraid."

[Dragon]

The eyes were a window to the soul. John saw an entire universe of fear in Anja's sightless eyes.

Eyes, he noted, that were somehow looking straight at his.

"All right," he said. "I have a session scheduled in an hour, but we can do it this evening. I'll notify Professor MacLaverty, just in case. Is there anything I can do to help you prepare?"

[Anja Drake]

“No, you should get ready for your next session.”
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She swallowed her fear momentarily and composed herself. Mr. Rhee had done and probably would continue to do more for her than anyone else had done. Whether or not it was his job, she felt he had already gone out of his way to help her.
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“Thank you. I’ll go rest and meet with you this evening.”
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With that said, Anja stood and headed out of Professor Rhee’s office; her condition wouldn’t worsen that much over a span of a few hours.
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Anja Drake spent the next few hours in a land of disturbing sleep…one full of nightmares and altered dreams.

[Dragon]

There was enough time to gather a few things from the medical lab in the Sub-Basement before John left for his training session with Jacinda. In a lot of ways, it was a release - she was progressing so well, exploring her boundaries, learning to take joy in her abilities. It was the best sort of reward a teacher could hope for.

After Jacinda had said her farewell and disappeared down the hall, John turned his attention back toward the duffel he'd left in the corner. He hoped the equipment inside wouldn't be necessary.

Much as he had before his last session with Anja, he stepped out to the center of the practice room and closed his eyes to meditate while he waited for Anja to arrive.

[Anja Drake]

When she awoke, her mood had not altered, if anything her condition had taken a higher toll on her physical being. Through her sleep, visions of past experiences haunted her and the fear inside her only grew. What if this didn’t work?
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Anja would rather take her own life than deal with her past cycling itself.
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Her dress hadn’t change much since the last time she had been in the training room except for a pair of black shorts, her old t-shirt had small holes in it but otherwise it was the same. A black sports bag hung from her shoulder as she moved steadily down the hallway; passing groups of students as she went.
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At one point she thought she noticed Jacinda’s aura pass by, but Anja’s state of mind was more than too tousled to care.
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She picked her way through the remainder of the mansion with relatively no problem; again she came to the door to the training room. It was like every emotion in her was replaying itself; she knew this was going to be hard on her. But, she needed to do this more than anything.
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She opened the door and entered; all ready knowing that Mr. Rhee was waiting for her inside.

[Dragon]

"Hello, Anja," John said. "Come on in."

There was no sense in asking her how she felt. He could already feel the room's energy changing. Her turmoil was palpable.

"Before we start, there's something I need to know. I know we had planned to keep me out of the picture so the Angel would have no target for her aggression. But is there any possibility she might take her aggression out on you? That she might try to hurt herself physically to get to you?"

[Anja Drake]

The duffle bag found its way to its usual spot and her attention was fully on John.

"She is angry with me and her power seems to be growing." Her voice was careful, quiet...like she trying to cover her words up as she spoke. "There isn't a doubt in my mind that she will come after me. I know how aggressive she is right now."

She rubbed her arms as a sudden chill ran down her spine. "Our mental battle will soon turn into a physical one, whether this agreement works or not."

[Dragon]

That was what John was afraid of. As much as it pained him, he had to ask the next question.

"Do you think you would feel safer if you were physically restrained?"

[Anja Drake]

The girl paled at the thought, but the more she thought about it the more it seemed to make sense.

"I haven't really thought about that." She admitted. "I think it could be a good idea. The Angel will be angry and there will a very high probability that she will come after me. I want to limit the destruction that comes along with her."