Aura - Journey Through Time and Space

"Venecia Bahl? Who is that?"

"I think she's that little misfit. Can barely control her Aura."

"You mean after FIVE YEARS?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

"Why do they keep her around anyways?"

"I hear it's just grunt work."

Skating swiftly as hushed tones low enough to avoid their topic's notice, these few phrases passed along from one office cubical to the next. They had been going on for four years now, when everyone realized that said person, Venecia Bahl, wasn't getting anywhere in her Aura User career. At the beginning of it, they had been sympathetic. But with each year that passed, the whispers grew more and more condescending, and at times, scornful of the girl. When she walked through the office, bearing her loads of paperwork, or pushing along a cart of oddities for study, the chattered complaints would die down to near silence, those small gusts of air that one never could hear, but could feel without question.

Despite their self imposed senses of security, in that their mocking had squeezed by her ears, she had always managed to catch at least one careless utterance. It only ever served to intensify the troubles she was already having.

This day was no different for her in this respect. The voices continued to flutter as hummingbirds across the gaps between each boxed in desk. And her ears, now primed for the insult, picked up no less, though no more, than three of the voices. Even after her significant succession of days since her arrival here, she still harbored a sensitivity to them. Each one, a knife through her heart, taking its toll on her shaking persona. And it didn't help that this time, she wasn't carting around the standard administrative devices. In her hand, clasped as though her life was existent within its contents, she carried along a trunk that seemed to outweigh her on all counts. With this new accessory, came a new wave of muttering.

"Where's she going, you think?"

"Maybe they finally gave her the boot. It's about time, if you asked me."

They'd have gotten the message, if they hadn't been rolling their eyes, and leaning back in their seats in a genuine lack of concern for their colleague. None of the faceless, nameless speakers had realized that their words had been heard clear enough. And they also failed to notice that the target of these words had bolted into a run out of the main cubical concourse, into the halls dedicated to private offices. Of course, they wouldn't have cared anyway, as it was there that she had often been dispatched. Her path of travel on this day lead to an office she had only visited once before: That of Zackarias.

She knew his name well, though only because of the name plaque sealed upon his office door, and the reputation he had run up with the administrators. As to whether he had ever heard hers was unknown. But she would be fortunate enough to find out in just a few seconds. She was expected to be in 'close quarters' with him for the coming days, whatever the higher ups had meant of that. Hesitantly, she raised a small, fist-formed hand up to eye level, leaving a quick, soft knock upon the door.

 

It was with a sudden spark that the events formed outside of the office. Venecia, frightened more so than was normal by the appearance of Marie, doubled back away from the door. It wasn't everday (not even at the AMS) that someone blatantly dropping from the ceiling.*In this fright, she let off a shriek, and a brief, sporadic burst if raw kinetic force siphoned from her own person upon her new company. The suitcase she had been carrying fell from her hand to the floor with an echoing klunk. "PLEASE!" she hollard at the girl. DON'T, sneak up on me like that. I scare very easily, as I'm sure you can now tell!"

She huffed out her chest, in an attempt at making her timid looking figure seem more demanding. It was a tough task to pull, but she figured she was doing a good enough job all the same. "A--" before her next word could escape her tongue, another, this one man, had made his way onto the scene. On her guard more in response to the girl's actions, she wasn't quite as flustered.*

It also helped that the person in question happened to be the very person she had come to meet. Zackarias, in what glory he had as an agent, looked down upon her. " ..." Often characteristic of her, she was unable to fully articulate her purpose. It turned out to be be well for the better though. Only a few seconds after, they had all been joined by another young man. Introducing himself as Riki, he seemed to be on the friendliest terms with Zack.

"If you must know," she barked the minute she could do so uninterrupted, "my name is Venecia Bahl." She shot the other female a it's-not-that-hard-to-remember look, and returned to look upon Zack. "The big guys upstairs have told me that if I join up with you, I might just 'man up, and learn to not be worthless.'"