Chapter 7 - From Personal Problems To Public Alarms

"It was... unlike anything I've ever seen or felt before. Like a living blot of shadow and these tendrils of energy that seemed to reach out and consume the very broken reality around it."

The muscular man listening to her leaned in. As someone whose power worked around ignoring realities, he was intrigued.

"Was it from the other universe?"

"We're not sure."

Naia admitted quickly. Ever since seeing the singing artifact in person she wasn't sure about much at all.

"Evander thinks it might be a byproduct of the collision between realities. A new form of... existence that was born from the chaos of the Dead Zones. Something that might live in them once nothing else of our old realities are left but the Confluence. Or something that just eats them…"

She shuddered as she remembered how it grew *bigger*. Poros frowned while processing her words. He'd heard a rumor of strange entities in the Dead Zones, but nothing from anyone he knew had been concrete until now.

"The way it moved was almost entrancing, in a terrifying way. When Theia suddenly unleashed her chaos energy, for me it was like... like they were speaking the same language."

"And Evander? What did he make of it?"

Naia's expression tightened.

"He was... fascinated. Both by the creature and by Theia's quick response to it. He kept asking questions on the way back - trying to understand the connection between her abilities and pretty much everything chaos."

"That makes sense. The more information he has, the better."

She sighed heavily, having rationalized the same thing at the time. But it was a long trip back and she had already been exhausted.

"You're right. I just felt... redundant. Like my Harmony powers were suddenly obsolete in the face of this new kind of threat."

Poros squeezed her shoulder gently.

"Naia, you know that's not true. Your abilities are crucial to the missions. To our very survival after."

The woman whispered her next complaints. She was growing closer to clamming up now that his support was turning into advice.

"Are they though? If someone like Theia can manipulate chaos itself, couldn't they also learn to make the paths?"

The Shift Walker shook his head firmly.

"Balance, Naia. It's everything. It's not just what V/O tells us to make us work together without fighting in the squads. Really think about it - without harmony, raw chaos consumes everything. It doesn't build things intentionally. You know this. Your powers are the reason we can navigate the Dead Zones at all."

Naia managed a small smile after his words. She was grateful for her friend's support. He was always great to vent to.

"Thanks. I just... I can't shake this feeling that everything's about to change, Poros. I started feeling it the moment the notice about her assignment came in. I'm not sure I'm ready for it."

Poros nodded thoughtfully. He'd seen enough in his years with Vanguard Operations to know that change was the only constant in their line of work. Every mission was usually a vain attempt to keep the status quo on the warfront. But he also knew that Naia's fears went beyond just the mission dynamics.

He knew the pair had always gone beyond that.

"What about after you got back? How were things between you and Evander?"

Naia's face fell upon his prodding.

"Distant. He was... preoccupied. Kept going over the data from the encounter, talking with other tacticians about theories through his terminal. It was like I wasn't even there. It's… why you found me here."

Brown eyes glittered with a surge of protectiveness. While he was part of the squad, the one he was actually close friends with out of all of them was Naia. He'd always implicitly respected Evander as a leader, but if he was hurting Naia, intentionally or not...

"Have you tried talking to him about how you feel?"

He asked despite already knowing the answer. Black hair shook side to side.

"How can I? We already proved that we can all work together well. The mission was well off parameters and we still succeeded. In the middle of all this… my personal feelings seem so... insignificant in comparison."

"They're not insignificant, Naia. Our personal connections, our relationships - they're what keep us sane in all this chaos. They matter. That's why V/O doesn't even bother to block fraternizing. Command knows that people need to have the ability to form deeper connections."

The woman looked at him with a mix of gratitude and uncertainty in her eyes.

"But - they also aren't going to hold your hand through them either. They are only fine with it as long as it isn't seen as a problem. Letting your resentment grow could be a problem."

"Maybe you're right. I just... I don't know how to even begin that conversation."

Poros, with an ever down to earth smile, encouraged her further.

"Start small. Just ask him how he's feeling about Theia's addition to the team. He obviously knows what he told you in the past. See where the conversation goes from there."

Naia nodded slowly while considering his advice. It was a simple plan… though she was pretty sure the only way it could go was being told she was acting foolish. Evander wasn't exactly as in tune with his emotions as she was with his. Because of her ability, most people weren't.

Just when she opened her mouth to thank the Shift Walker again, an alarm blared across the green zone. Both of them tensed, immediately on alert. Full alarms usually meant a change on the front. Poros looked grim as he walked through her wall, again, and turned back to her coming through the balcony doorway.

"Looks like our downtime is over."

Naia nodded, all the personal troubles momentarily pushed aside by the call of duty. After she grabbed her uniform and dressed in it quickly, she couldn't help but wonder what new challenge awaited them. She hoped it was something time consuming… as the woman really wasn't looking forward to confronting her lover with her jealous sounding thoughts.