Nightblade (Darkest night)

‎A few minutes before the decryption of the barrier artifact...

‎Aisha rarely had to get involved in the paranormal investigations within Zolaris.

‎This was mostly because of the fact that Jeff was quite reliable when it came to handling investigations, so most of the time she was either swamped with paperwork or sipping coffee in a quiet, dainty cafe away from all the noise.

‎After all, it wasn't befitting for a branch head to make s move simply because of a few small fry.

‎If someone had mentioned the possibility of it to her a few weeks back, she'd have laughed in their faces on the spot or simply brushed it off as a joke. Paranormal investigations rarely escalated to the point where a branch head had to personally get involved.

‎But the Crows had been making such a nuisance of themselves recently that she simply couldn't ignore them anymore.

‎In the beginning, it had started when a few disappearances.

‎A few obscure individuals here and there.

‎ Weeks later, the disappearances were linked to a string of murders, and soon after, the people in question turned out to be Talented.

‎From the information that Jeff had managed to gather, the murders were not random. Soon, they'd discovered a peculiar pattern.

‎The local police had reached out for assistance not long after, realizing they were out of their depth.

‎Of course, Jeff had hopped onto the case with his department, going to great lengths to track down and apprehend the perpetrators of the heinous atrocities.

‎Most of the crime scenes were blanks, with no trace of evidence that could be used to follow or even track down the murderers.

‎"It's almost like we're dealing with ghosts," Jeff had murmured one evening in her office.

‎The two of them were analyzing the photos and information they'd managed to obtain from the crime scenes, racking their brains for a lead and coming up with nothing in the end.

‎Aisha had simply smiled at him then, leaning back in her chair.

‎Wth a thought, a draw on the side of table flew open and an elegant pipe flew out.

‎Jeff rolled his eyes, frowning slightly at the scene.

‎Noticing the expression on his face, Aisha chuckled in amusement .

‎"It helps me think..Don't be such a kill joy."

‎"You know Layla wouldn't approve," he muttered, crossing his arms across his chest.

‎She smirked, the pipe filling itself and setting itself alight before smoothly gliding towards her lips.

‎After taking a few puffs, she reclined back in her chair in thought.

‎

‎B then they'd already noticed a peculiar pattern to the Crows' killings.

‎The organization wasn't simply going after ordinary Talented, but even with that snippet of knowledge, they'd been unable to make much progress with the case.

‎Just when she'd been contemplating whether to involve herself personally, the nefarious cabal had taken the decision right out of her hands.

‎The Crows had perpetrated a slaughter ao grotesque and reviling, murdering several Praesagius agents, recruits and veterans notwithstanding, in a single night.

‎In the old days only the Brotherhood of Shadows could even dare to such a thing and even then, such a conflict would result in a full-scale war.

‎It was also the first time Jeff had gone silent after a mission.

‎The man was usually calm, reassuring and on top of things.

‎ But the Crows had gone too far.

‎One of the agents that had been killed in action was Aisha's niece, Layla, who had also happened to be Jeff's fiancée.

‎And for all her power, Aisha had been powerless to stop it, and the murderers had cunningly eluded capture, that was until today.

‎From her vantage point, Aisha commandeered a particular area, placing it under her telepathic ability.

‎While she and Jeff had anticipated some sort of resistance from the Crows, they hadn't expected the elusive group to go as far as using an artifact.

‎ Despite her earlier objection to leaving the area where the warehouse was located, in the end, Aisha had left the decrypting of the artifact to Jeff, focusing her telepathic ability on the larger part of the city.

‎"If they're focused here, then they probably have other agents lurking around the city. They'll need an escape route after securing what they came from."

‎ Of course, using her Talented ability on such a large scale was particularly draining, but Aisha was a veteran of numerous battles, so her tenacity and endurance were bordering on superhuman.

In her younger days, she had fought for her life on several occasions, fighting Talented and even assassins from the Brotherhood on several occasions, honing her battle sense and abilities into lethal weapons that she could easily wield at a moment's notice.

‎ Despite Aisha's calm persona and outward appearance, not just anyone was placed in charge of a branch of Praesagius.

‎ One had to be among the best of the best.

‎An elite among the elite.

‎And while she wasn't among the revered Videntis, she certainly could give them a run for their money.

‎After all, Aisha was a class A-6.

‎A rarity even among the Talented.

‎A Talented individual with the potential to use six abilities.

Her eyes glowed with ethereal light, spilling out from behind her sunglasses.

‎Taking to the skies, Aisha quickly flew through the air, alighting on what appeared to be the tallest building in the area.

‎ Using her ability, she made herself all but invisible even to the keenest of eyes in the suburban neighborhood.

‎A light wind blew at the top of the building, her long coat fluttering back slightly.

‎She pursed her lips, her face wrinkling into a frown.

‎" Where are you?"

‎Over the years, Aisha had trained her ability to the point that she'd be able to instantaneously scan the minds of large sections of the city, all at once.

‎The effort placed immense strain on her mental capacity, exposing her mind to excruciating agony, but with the passage of tim,e she had come to embrace that pain, making it a part of her. Forging it into a weapon of her own, and that had made her one of the deadliest psychics in Zolaris if not in the entire world.

Using her ability on hundreds at a time was dangerous. One could easily lose oneself in the sea of thoughts. Drowning over and over again in the tumultuous multitudes of minds.

With access to such a wondrous power, it was easy to get lost and even completely lose one's sense of self.

But the pain, the flaming hot sensation of pain at the back of her mind, was an anchor.

The more she focused on it, the more it rooted her in place.

The pain was the only thing between her and losing the boundless void of minds.

‎Her eyes glowed with renewed intensity, while light spilling forth from behind her dark sunglasses.

‎Her ability washed over the city like a tsunami, the tide of raw power, sweeping through the streets with practiced precision.

‎Almost as though obeying her, the wind picked up, flowing forth, turning the warm afternoon chilly.

‎On the streets, people shivered, tightening their scarves and jackets around themselves.

‎" Where are you hiding..." she murmured, turning her gaze elsewhere.

‎Then she noticed it. A small smile appeared on her face, her lips curling up into a grin

‎" The nerve... to try and hide beneath my nose."

‎Any other psychic could have missed it, but not Aisha.

‎A faint, subtle point of deflection, a place where her ability seemingly bounced back, not violent enough to alert her, and just subtle enough to dismiss it.

‎Her scarf fluttered slightly in the wind, her eyes glowing ominously behind her dark sunglasses.

‎"At the hotel, huh."

‎After a while, she spoke.

‎" Jeff, there's someone at the hotel. I think they're trying to take out the kids first. "

‎Outside the barrier, Jeff's eyes widened slightly. In the next moment, his expression darkened abruptly, startling the man he was talking to.

‎His hands balled tightly into fists, raw, unbridled fury radiating off of him in waves.

‎The man warily took a step back, eyeing him nervously.

‎" Sorry, sir, is something wrong?"

‎Jeff stared right through Jim, silently contemplating the implications of the news.

‎ " We're spread thin," he thought, grinding his teeth.

‎" They hit two spots simultaneously. What is their game in all of this? is the vault not their true goal?"

‎She slowly shook his head, then took a deep breath.

‎"I'll immediately send a few men to check it out."

‎" No, don't. "

‎Jeff's eyes widened slightly.

‎"What do you mean by that?"

‎Aisha chuckled, sensing his apprehension through the telepathic connection.

‎"Don't worry about the kids. Focus your attention here where it's needed. This time, I'll handle the situation at the hotel in person."

‎Jeff gasped slightly, narrowing his eyes.

‎" Sir, is something wrong?"

‎Jeff glared at her man, instantly shutting him up.

‎" Everything is fine. Continue decrypting the artifact."

‎A moment later, a shiver ran down his spine.

‎" If Aisha's getting involved personally, then I pity anyone foolish enough to incur her wrath."

‎Just then, the barrier in front of him shimmered, then crumbled, vanishing completely.

‎Sighing, he turned, staring into the distance.

‎"Godspeed, Aisha."