Governor Keis returned home a worried father. The smiles of the household startled him first. The tears of Reigh stopped him in his tracks. The joyful calls of his wife and children lifted the mist of sorrow off of him. And the sight of Collie, sleeping peacefully in bed, brought him to smile. Such was the wonderful night.
Two hours later, he walked into the dimly lit conference room, where he was the only participant physically present. The rest occupied the screens sitting around the long table.
"Gentlemen, I have news," Keis announced as soon as everyone arrived.
In here, the governor's title meant nothing. When the doors closed, the participants were only gentlemen. The fact that they made it in through the door was all the validation that was needed.
Keis waited not for a reply, but for impact. The words weren't new, or his own. They were words that were used whenever anyone had anything big to say. And so, the result was immediate. All fell quiet. All eyes froze on Keis.
"Collie is doing fine," Keis said, unable to hold back the slight tremor. He was coldly calm as he continued. "She was cured. The ekhto was disposed of. And that is what I have to talk about."
Keis dropped a thin folder onto the table, and at that exact moment, a mail was delivered to every participant, containing what was in the folder in its entirety. He remained standing, while waiting for the rest to read through the report.
Having ensured that his daughter was truly fine, and having kissed her lovingly, Keis walked to his study which also doubled as his office. Reigh followed him. When the two were locked in the study, Keis had Reigh describe the events truthfully and objectively. Reigh's report was recorded and made for what was in the folder.
The report in itself wasn't long. Didn't amount to five hundred words. Shouldn't have taken more than two minutes for the gentlemen to read and digest the report. But, it was ten whole minutes before anyone reacted. Firstly, because it was so unbelievable. Second, there was a lot more information than would seem obvious in the five hundred words. Third, the excitement was palpable. And that was the most troubling, because it held back some from reaching the fourth. Fourth, the identities of the parties in the report.
"Is this real?" Arsen asked.
Keis nodded. They weren't in the same room, but such was the arrangement that the separation made no difference. Every little tic of every gentleman was clear for all, like they were in the same room. And so, Keis' nod was all the answer needed.
"What are you thinking Arsen," Gillock teased. "I know. I'm very eager too."
A few snickered. Keis cleared his throat, declaring his intent to clear the blinded eyes.
"Gentlemen," Keis said, looking straight at Gillock. "Please put in the effort to read without losing anything. The children that are so enticing, one is from the temple, and the other is from Muria."
Gillock froze. As did a few others. But since the rest held their tongue, the embarrassment was entirely Gillock's.
Arsen cleared his throat.
"Gentleman, if I may. Keis, all of the details can be confirmed?"
"Yes," Keis answered, a shine in his eyes. He had caught on to what Arsen was getting at.
"Good," Arsen exclaimed with a clap and sounding extremely joyous. "Good."
"What are you thinking," Jorje asked.
"Think about it," Arsen replied. "What happened here. In short, a girl in a sensitive position was possessed. A priest from the black chapter wasn't able to help, by himself. The two boys took care of it. They got the ekhto out. The girl is fine. The family is happy. The situation is resolved, and with no repercussions. Now, imagine the possibilities."
Almost everyone was immediately on-board, imagining. A couple had one question to ask first.
"What was your impression of them?" Monet asked.
Keis relived the memory in his head. From the study, he went to the kitchen. The guests were sitting around a servants' table, entirely engrossed in the discussion. They paid him no attention as he went over. They didn't care about being overheard. In fact, they welcomed participation, as evidenced from how the servants squeezed into the conversation with ease as they passed by while performing their duties. Keis was confounded, especially by the content of the conversation.
Klaus was reading out ice-cream flavours, also giving brief descriptions. YaYa was like a studious student, committing every word to memory. Porez was pouring over the cookies he had laid out in a large plate he had clearly borrowed from the kitchen. Klaus was animated. YaYa was focussed. Porez was blank, his eyes doing all of the expression.
At one point, Klaus saw Keis. Gave a small smile. Without a break in his voice. The boys too had noticed Keis, but couldn't be bothered to extend the slightest attention. And so, Keis stood by for a while, observing carefully, before leaving.
"I think the report says it," Keis answered. "YaYa's compel was so strong, he compelled the ekhto into tearing off its own hand. Porez' energy was so dense, he could physically grab the ekhto and gather strength enough to tear off its hand. Are more words needed?"
Monet was satisfied, as were the remaining of the gentlemen. They had all unfurled their wings, and set off riding the winds of possibilities.
It was a while, when Gillock cleared his throat, pausing the flights. He was among the most practical of the gentlemen.
"Keis, you obviously have a plan. What are you thinking?"
Keis smiled in satisfaction. He knew Gillock could be depended upon to steer conversations right.
"Consider what has been of high priority in all of our discussions recently."
He didn't have to say more.
There had been a rise in cases of abnormalities. It wasn't a localised phenomenon. It was happening everywhere, giving the impression that it might either be directed by a party, which as frightening as it was, was lesser scary. Or, it was a natural phenomenon, indicating a greater shift which was inevitable. No one wanted it to be the latter. Nature wasn't an enemy they could ever face off against.
Institutions of law and order everywhere were drafting plans to handle the issue.
"That's impossible," Arsen and Jorje said unequivocally.
And they were right. It was absolutely impossible to draft the boys into any plan of any institution, not just because of their identities but also because the institutions wouldn't be willing to accept the boys for they would only hamper the coordination and planning. If only that was Keis' intent.
"I do not mean to say they should be drafted," Keis clarified patiently. "They could be a separate team. Separate from any institution. Tasked with a single goal. Go where needed. Handle sensitive cases that the institutions cannot be alerted to. Solve the cases without repercussions. And keep moving."
And then, they were all enlightened.
Who could be certain when they would need the services of such a team? Who wouldn't be ready to extend the services of the team to friends in return for favours.
A vote was unnecessary. The team was approved.
"It would be the Special Case Team. The SCT," Keis said, beaming.