Rhea sucked on her lollipop as she examined the situation: Thor was down, Eons needed to be pulled back, and a fully charged up Brisingr was about to go head to head against Atlas. She grinned. This was what she signed up for!

“Commander? There's a notice coming from the Board,” Hugo said.

Rhea’s smile grew even wider. She loved messing with those bureaucrats just as much as she loved messing with Legends; maybe even more, considering they couldn’t fire back without violating at least a hundred laws. Besides, they couldn’t do anything to her without the UN or the Precept Prime backing them.

“Pull them up,” Rhea said.

The holographic display split and revealed the governors, each one looking spiffier then the last. Rhea straightened her jacket absentmindedly in a last-ditch attempt to look ‘presentable.’

“Hello!” Rhea chirped.

“Commoner Rhea, what is the meaning of this?” Governor Ross demanded to know.

Rhea bit down on her lollipop. “Well, a Legend popped up and my team is down there fighting it off. What’s the issue so important it draws my attention away from making sure Neverstien is saved?”

“That is exactly the problem, Commander Rhea!” Governor Amelia said.

Rhea cocked her head. “Saving Neverstien? Isn’t that what we all want here?”

“Not that; do you truly think your team is the best equipped to deal with these so-called ‘Legends?’” Governor Ross asked.

Rhea nodded firmly. “Absolutely. They’ve trained a long time and prepared for this harder than anybody I know. Besides, this isn’t the first time they fought and this isn't the first time you came here to complain.”

Governor Anthony frowned. “As I recall, operative Brisingr has been offline for quite some time, is that not so?”

“Like, 6 months, give or take. Why?”

The governors exchanged looks before Governor Wren stepped forward, her hands out in a placating matter. “My dear Rhea, haven’t you thought of the possibility she’s rusty?”

For a long time, there was silence. The members of Yddgrasil glanced back and forth between the bureaucrats and their commander.

Finally, Rhea burst out laughing. She couldn’t help it, this situation was hilarious!

“Commander Rhea! This is not a matter to joke about, despite your immature tendencies!” Governor Wren admonished.

Rhea got a hold of herself. “Sorry, sorry. I know this matter is nothing to joke about and believe me, I’m furious about what you people are implying. It’s just, do you actually believe what you're saying or are they words forced into your mouths?”

The governors all shifted, refusing to look directly into her eyes. That was all the answers she needed.

“Ah, I knew you guys are smarter than for this. Well, Governor Wren, I can assure you Brisingr may have been gone for a period, but she is still one of my best operatives. You’ve all seen her in action, and I’ve no doubt you’re watching her at this moment. Do not underestimate her, and allow her to do her work.”

Governor Ross looked down on her. “I hope you know what you’re doing. The damage to Neverstien is-“

“Minimal to what could be happening instead. Would you rather have Neverstien damaged, or Neverstien wiped off the map entirely? We are dealing with a high-ranking Legend here; we cannot defeat him without collateral damage.”

“And are the innocent frozen people collateral damage as well?” Governor Anthony asked.

For the first time since this conversation, Rhea was completely serious. Her eyes bore into his. “Governor Anthony,” she began slowly. “People will never be collateral damage. People are people, individuals with souls. Yggdrasil's goals are, and have always been to protect the people of Neverstien from Legends. That is our goal, and that is what we will do.”

The governors and Rhea had a staredown but she wasn’t willing to relent on this. Many things she could just laugh off or get revenge in a prank, but this was different. Lives and souls were never something to be messed around with.

Governor Ross sighed. “Fine, Commander Rhea. Looks like you win again.” He gave a rueful grin. “You’re too good at this, it’s a bit scary, you know? You look like a kid!”

Rhea eyed him. “Yeeeeaaaaaaaah. Anyway, are we done?”

The governors silently communicated before nodding once. “Yes. We trust you and Yggdrasil, as we have done in the past. We see no reason to not now. Good luck, and goodbye, Commander Rhea.” Governor Amelia said.

“Bye-bye! I’ll tell Brisingr you sent your love!” Rhea waved energetically as the images fizzled out. She slumped down, wiping her forehead. “Whooo! That was hard!”

“You did good,” Luna emotionlessly said. She handed Rhea a bottle of water and she gulped it down furiously.

“Ah!” Rhea dabbed her mouth. “Scrumptious! Thanks, Luna!”

“That was water,” Luna said.

Rhea winked. “Water can be delicious!”

“You’re weird,” Luna deadpanned.

“Welp, we can’t all be super-geniuses like you. How’s Nicole doing?” Rhea asked, a tint of concern leaking into her voice.

“She’s going through surgery right now. Her room has been designated offline, and I do not recommend approaching her privacy by looking at cams.” Luna said.

Rhea sighed. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. I just need her!”

“Wow, Commander. You’re usually never this touchy-“ Hugo began.

“I need her to prank Brisingr together!” Rhea finished. Collectively, everybody sweatdropped.

“I think it’s going to take a while for that to happen, Commander,” Luna told her. Rhea nodded.

“You’re right, you’re right. Okay, how many more of the sound containers do we have? Jeez, we really need a better name,” Rhea added as an afterthought.

“We have three more, all sent to Brisingr. Each container has 5 grenades,” somebody replied.

Rhea grinned. “All right! We’re making steady hay way!”

“Hay way?” Luna repeated dully.

“Headway, I mean! Hugo, how much longer will Eon’s shield last?”

Hugo typed away and got the answer. “Judging from her current power levels, there are only about 30 minutes left before the shield begins to drain her life force.”

Rhea frowned. “No way, that happened once already today. Brisingr, do you hear?”

“What is it?” Brisingr asked. They could hear the roaring flames behind her.

“You’ve got 30 minutes, use it to the fullest!” Rhea ordered. “We’ll keep on throwing more sound bombs and remotely blowing them up. All you’ve gotta do is to keep your earmuffs on and burn away at him! Even his tough skin’s gotta crack with that much heat!”

“Understood.” There was a pause. “Um, how’s Nicole?” Her voice was soft and quiet like she was shy.

Rhea smiled. “She’s fine. She’s just about to get ready to help me prank your butt off! Now go!”

“Understood!”

Hugo gazed at her. “Are you sure it’s okay to lie to her? Nicole may not wake up for a while.”

Rhea didn’t look back as she spoke, “She needs to devote her entire focus and concentration on this. It’s not just Nevertsien at stake, but her as well. Brisingr’s not invincible, no matter how much some people want it.”

Rhea could feel Hugo continuing to stare at her but she locked eyes on the screen, watching the temperature go up. Behind her seat, she crossed her fingers.