The Extra's Rise

The chamber for the Concord session had no windows and a very old table polished by hands that remembered harder centuries. No cameras. No streaming. Envoys wore field blacks instead of show colors. This wasn't a treaty ceremony; this was a safety meeting that could change the shape of Earth's sky.

Lyra opened with schedule and promise. Three pylons, two coastal, one mountain. First in forty-eight hours if weather allowed. Seven species would supply crews in rotation but Earth would own the anchors. No binding of mythical beasts. No cataloging people by "potential." Every rule we had fought over in drafts now sat like clean lines on paper. Rose wasn't here, but her legal shape was. Queen Lyralei and King Marcus didn't speak until it mattered. When they nodded, the room believed them.

Seraphina laid out the measurement arrays for pylon stabilization tests. She was at ease in this air. Numbers don't care about rank. Cecilia handed a three-page memo to the queen's protocol officer: supply routing that avoided the three families most likely to turn logistics into favors. Cold and useful. Rachel gave medical command structure in twelve sentences a child could follow. Reika drew the perimeter. Captain Vyr listened and said "Copy."

Lucifer sat near the back with a flight map hovering over his wrist. He didn't speak much; when he did, people listened. "No press lanes within five kilometers," he said. "No private drones, period. Any untagged drone drops. If someone complains, they can complain outside the cordon." Ian nodded along; the heir had learned to be a wall you can trust.

Then Lyra gave the room the thing it didn't want but needed.

"A pink-haired human woman," she said. No name. No map pins. "She attacked several of our outposts long before we came to your world. She did not take or hold. She ruined and moved. She did it to become stronger. Today her power sits just under the level of our Divine-rank leaders."

The room went quiet in a heavy way. Not fear alone. Weight. The understanding that a monster you can't name still wants something from your future.

"She is not ours to judge," Lyra continued. "She is your species. But if she strikes at our pylons or our people, we answer. We will not show restraint if she chooses war."

I felt the old sharpness rise in my chest and let it drain. Pride wants to talk in rooms like this. Reality is a better voice. I had stood in a hall with Alyssara once and survived because she wanted me to. That's not the same as winning. Lyra was right this morning and she was right now; I wasn't ready.

Tiamat spoke then, voice level, eyes steady. "This room has two jobs," she said. "Anchor the sky. Make no promises your hands can't keep."

We moved through progress and pain points. Cecilia flagged three political risks and flipped two with better contracts. Seraphina asked for cleaner time stamps in the mountain plan; Lyra offered Cantari clocks to sync. Rachel and the head of the Redeemers sorted evac corridors that didn't cross heavy equipment lanes. Reika got her outer ring and a veto on VIP clusters. It all held.

When the session broke, the envoys filed out with the tired posture of people who'd rather lift something heavy than talk another hour. I caught Lyra in the hall.

"Leave her to me," I said quietly. "When it's time."

Lyra's eyes didn't shift. "You're too weak," she said again. No softening. No harder either. "If you try now, you die. If you try soon, you die. When your numbers say yes, I will hear you."

"I accept that," I said. The words hurt and felt clean at the same time. "Train me."

"Yes," she said. "No Grey. Sword first."

I started to thank her. She shook her head. "Don't thank me for telling the truth. Do the work."

I did have one human note to set down. "Lucifer's fiancées couldn't come," I said, because this day needed a stitch of ordinary. "Deia and Seol-ah stayed back to hold the North."

Lyra's mouth softened by a degree. "They chose well," she said.

Tiamat stepped up. "Stormgate in two hours," she said. "Motion added to your small laws. Rachel owns your line. Seraphina owns the clocks. Reika owns the ring. I own 'stop.' Lyra owns the wind."

"Yes, Great Guardian," I said. It still feels strange to call someone that who also smiles at children.

On my way to gear, Lucifer fell into step beside me. "Deia says if you die before the banquet, she haunts you," he said.

"Noted," I said.

"Seol-ah says if you get hurt, she blames me," he added.

"You should avoid that."

"I am trying my best," he said, and then peeled off toward the flight decks.

We warped to Stormgate Flats again. The ground took us like it knew we'd be back. The inner ring was already chalked; Reika's people work fast. Kade had spent the midday shifting two cables because Cecilia told him to; he looked happier now that nothing would trip a medic in a hurry.

We ran motion on the same small truths. No bounce while walking. Shortest line while turning. Lyra gave me a steady crosswind that drifted a little when my feet did, like teaching a child to ride by letting the bike wobble until it doesn't. Twice Seraphina's tablet chirped. Twice Rachel stopped it before pride could talk. That was the lesson. Do not be proud. Be right.

We were packing when the warp pad on the ridge pulsed and two silhouettes stepped through. The air folded clean. Kali Ashbluff came first, posture like a spear. Jin came second, smile small and steady. They didn't bring court. They brought travel bags and a lot of work.

Kali hugged me with that short, strong pressure that says we've done this before and will do it again. "Boss," she said. "Where do you want me?"

"With Reika," I said. "You two will sand floors until the building shines."

"Perfect," she said, already scanning the ring.

Jin clasped my forearm and didn't let go fast, which matters. "Security panel, then a wall," he said.

"Pick your wall," Reika told him. "And tell me why it's the right one."

He grinned because she was speaking his language. They left in a line of purpose that made the Guard stand straighter.

Back at the palace, the royals gave the Ashbluffs a nod that said "you're here, now work." No parade. No music. It gave the day a feeling I like: adults doing their jobs because the job can't wait.

Night landed while I stood outside with a cup that pretended to be tea. I thought about the woman with pink hair and the way my chest had tried to burn this morning. It didn't burn now. It sat like a stone where I could see it and step around it. If she hit a pylon, seven races would be there before I drew. If she came for me, I would be ready when the numbers were ready. Not sooner.

I finished the cup and went inside to stretch my hands. Valeria hummed in my head, pleased with the neatness of the day. She likes tidy rooms. So do I when the world lets me have one.