Immediately, she stopped and looked down at herself, but there was no visible sign of tampering.

A Factor-born, then, she concluded, and turned her gaze upon the street around her. Her medals were of sentimental value more than anything else - they weren't worth more than the bronze and steel they were casted from. And yet... if that had been an attempted theft, why the light touch? They could have simply ripped them straight off and disappeared into the crowd.

The dull, faded colors of Ferran workers streamed around her, and Erin eyed each passing figure to no avail. None of them seemed particularly interested in her, beyond the fact that she was now an obstacle for other passersby.

She was about to drop the whole thing and just continue on when the tugging returned. This time, Erin paid close attention to the direction of the force, and she whirled towards the line of buildings on her side of the street.

There, standing beside a break in the structures stood a man. Short, nondescript, with the quintessential black-and-gray outfit of the Ferren, he seemed utterly mundane. Except for the fact that he stared directly at Erin, who was disarmed by the intensity of the look. It was as though every drop of passion or emotion had been drained from the man's larger being and distilled into his gaze.

Erin shivered, and felt her muscles tense, but she didn't look away. For a long moment the two of them stood there, connected, before the man pulled back and slipped into the alleyway beside him.

There was nothing that suggested Erin should follow. Orlsow was the seat of the Ferrum Rete, a model city for the rest of the coalition. Still, that didn't mean that the city was fully declawed. Like two sides of a moon, there was always a dark side to things, biding its time to appear.

Even as Erin considered the man's potential to be a murderer, or some kind of con artist, her legs had taken on a mind of their own. In a few moments, she had already crossed to the edge of the sidewalk that met the row of buildings.

Peering within, she could see that the corridor was not well-lit. The space appeared well-maintained, however; in fact, she could see that racks of wood and soil had been installed along the walls. The space had been converted into a small contained mushroom farm, probably one of the adjacent office buildings aiming for a tax break.

But the ally ran deep, and the man had since melted into the darkness that the allway's dim, UV-lighting couldn't penetrate.

Still, Erin wasn't particularly worried. This was the heart of Orslow's government and financial district. It was as safe as you could possibly get in the entire city. The correct choice, regardless, would be to turn around and continue on her way.

And yet all of this rational thought couldn't stand up to the curiosity that had bubbled up inside her. This strange man's actions had been an anomaly in her morning - a series of behaviors that had no apparent purpose. Deviations from the norm are what drove her work with the Planatae, with deciphering the Factors. That same drive was pulling on her now, demanding her to find out the answers to the mystery before her, no matter how inconsequential they may be.

Having come to her decision, Erin activated her feed, directing her contacts to begin recording everything in her field of vision. She wasn't equipped with the right equipment for audio, but the visuals would be enough.

She stepped forward, feeling the shift of temperature against her skin as the sunlight dropped away behind her.

It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the shift in light; far above her, a thin band of brightness marked the sky. To the sides were draped rows upon rows of small, delicate-looking mushrooms.

As she walked, the sounds of city faded, the cacophony of voices and transports and advertisement screens all blending into a single thrum of activity behind her.

The alleyway was longer than she expected. It took a full minute for her to get roughly halfway down its length, and it appeared that it ended in a dead end, judging by the lack of light ahead. It also meant that the man, hidden by the deep shadows, had nowhere else to go.

As if on cue, her medals were tugged again, a light, yet insistent force that pulled her towards the allway;s end. She was close enough now to make out his silhouette, lined by the gentle glow of the UV-lamps.

The force of the pull wasn't strong enough to overpower her own body - in fact, Erin was startled by the deft lightness of this Factor-born - but she continued forward anyway, until there was only a few feet of air between the two of them. The man faced away from her, as though embarrassed. As she came to a stop, however, he began to turn around.

Erin raised her hands reflexively, but the man's movements were slow, his posture loose. As he faced her fully, the tug on her medals ceased, and they fell back against her chest.

She studied his face. Even in the poor lighting, she could make out enough to note his classical Ferran features. Dark, straight hair that fell back against his shoulders, thin, pale face, nose with a slight hook to it. His eyes were dark, intense.

"Who are you?" She found herself asking.

"You know me," he said. His Standard was fluent, but there was a slight accent to his words she couldn't identify. He seemed to stretch his syllables slightly, as if trying to savor the sound.

"You've spent your whole life aware of who I am, Erin Adamas."

She narrowed her eyes at this. The way he spoke, the slow, odd movements... there was something unpracticed about this man's behavior. And he was a Factor-born as well...

"Am I in danger?" She finally asked.

"Danger?" The man's lips quirked as he glanced around him. "I wanted a moment of privacy while we spoke to each other. You come to me less and less often these days."

Erin felt a chill. "So, you know who I am," she said, keeping her voice even. I'm currently recording everything that has -or will transpire here, so-"

"You were very sneaky, Erin Adamas," the man said, his grin growing wider. Coming to me on the crest of your birth, hoping I would offer the child a modicum of power."

"This is impossible," Erin backed up a step, then took another. This man, who had seemed odd, but harmless - he something that should have been a myth.

Suddenly, Erin froze, as though she had been pressed against a wall. Try as she might, her legs wouldn't move, wouldn't carry her away from this creature. The sensation, overwhelming and impossible... well, it made her grin. If this man really was what she thought, she couldn't turn tail and run! It was the opportunity of a lifetime.

"You're pulling on the trace metals in my body, aren't you?" She said, mouth still free to work. "This level of control is fascinating..."

The man seemed flattered by Erin's reaction, but he still eyed her with an appraising look.

:I'm not going to run," Erin breathed. "I've been thinking about you for a long time, Ferrus."

"Ah," Ferrus nodded, and she felt her body relax, the invisible force suddenly pulled away. She almost stumbled from the sensation, but caught herself.
Was this a dream, a hallucination of some kind? Maybe Erin had activated a feed program without realizing it.

Why me? Why, after these long centuries of disappearance, of being reduced to a stories, would Ferrus reveal itself? It was well understood that some Planatae, even upon Awakening, choose not to take on an Avatar. That choice, ro separate themselves from humanity, even with the capacity to understand... it was something Erin had been studying for a long time. Ferrus was a particularly frustrating example, but to face it now was an impossible opportunity.

"You've had an Avatar, but chose not to reveal yourself," Erin mused. "An extreme form of observation? One where you refused any kind of contact with us?"

"Until now," Ferrus said, and his tone was almost wry.

"Until now." She agreed.

There was a beat of silence as they both regarded each other. The UV lights casted strange shadows across Ferrus' face, and it left Erin struggling to decipher his expression. Hesitantly, with slow, tiny steps, she edged closer to him. It was an urge she couldn't help; a desire to inspect this Avatar that even his display of power couldn't tamp down.

Ferrus didn't move. He continued to stare at her, but it was only until she was a handbreadth away did he suddenly flinch slightly, edging away.

She came to a stop, surprised. Was he... nervous?

Erin held out her hands, stepping back. "I apologize," she said, eyeing his inscrutable face. "I don't know what came over me."

"I've never touched a human with this body before," was his reply. "I don't know if I ever want to."

"Why hide yourself from us?" Erin asked, and there was a measure of relief for finally getting that out into the open. "These people... they would have revered you."

Ferrus looked away from her for the first time. When he spoke again, it was not to answer her question.

"You cannot allow your masters to go through with this project," he said. "They are trying to tap into something they should never have investigated."

"Can you tell me why?" Erin asked. "What effects would it cause?"

Ferrus shuffled its feet, looking uncomfortable. She was struck by how human the gesture looked.

"Bad things," he said finally. "Things will spiral in terrible directions."

Erin, to her own surprise, suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. Even with that immense power, the intensity of it... Ferrus was awkward. If nothing else, he reminded her of a poorly-mannered bureaucrat, unused to people and terrible at speaking his mind.

"I'm expected to just take your word for it, then?" she said, "after you lured me into this dank corridor, hoping I'd believe you?"

The truth was that Erin did believe him - at least to the extent of his identity. Her military status offered her a measure of surveillance on the feed that was above the level of a civilian. She'd used it to pull an ID on the man, but the search came up empty. According to the feed network, this man didn't exist.

"You felt my power," he said, his voice taking on a touch of frustration. You are a scientist. You've spoken with my brothers and sisters. You would be the one to recognize me for what I am."

"Ferrus," Erin said, "I do believe that what I am speaking to is your Avatar. But it is hard for me to simply go against the will of my nation - and my superiors - off of one simple command."

"Do I not rank higher than these?"

"I would need a reason for my refusal. Otherwise, the reprimand will be severe. And what's to say that if I don't create the weapon they want, they won't simply pull someone else in to complete it?"

"I will tell you this," Ferrus said, face deadpan. If you are worried about development moving forward without you, I am afraid to say that has already been the case."

"What? Then why ask me...?" She trailed off as realization sank in. "Another nation. The Saiseki?"

Ferrus showed his affirmation with a tilt of his head. "The loss of their Knight has devastated them," he said. "They'd long-grown to believe that the anomaly was unstoppable. They grew lax, and they lost it..."

"So it's truly destroyed then? The Knight?" An anomaly? Is what she wanted to add, but it looked more and more doubtful that direct questions would be fruitful.

Ferrus scoffed. "That thing cannot be destroyed. Lost I said. But, they want to replace it, in much the same way your people seek to do. They, however, are closer to this task."

"And that's bad?"

"Yes. Bad... is inadequate as a description."

Erin sighed. "And I doubt you'll explain fully."

"I believe that as you move to prevent this, understanding will come naturally. Do you not prefer to decipher, to find the answer yourself?"

Erin couldn't stop herself from cracking a rueful smile at that. The Avatar's philosophy was so... rigid.

"Yes, of course - I've made a living out of it," she said. "But there are more important things in this world besides my preferences. Wouldn't more information help me complete this request?"

"I... agree," he said slowly. "But that is not my choice."

Erin noted how uncomfortable Ferrus looked, and made a note of it. He could have told her that from the beginning - but he didn't. Was there resentment there in whatever hierarchy Ferrus existed in? Was his comment proof that the Planatae truly communicated with each other?

Both of them lapsed into silence then. Erin, used to the Avatar's piercing stare, eyed the man, who stared right back. Logically, she should be approaching everything about this with skepticism, or trepidation. But the truth was that despite her loyalty to her home, she was deeply uncomfortable with the exploitation of Planatae, and their role in the galaxy. Hasn't she already proved the depths of their awareness, their intelligence?

The potential to move so closely amongst the Planatae was too good a chance to pass up, however - that was the truth.

"I will help you," Erin spoke quietly, "but I will expect answers eventually."

"I will try," Ferrus said.

Erin blinked, surprised.

"I have come to you for help, but you are still human," he said. "Who can predict what you would do - how your opinion may sway - if you were to fully understand these processes?"

Erin let out a soft laugh "So I have to prove myself then? How... dramatic."

Ferrus didn't answer; in fact, his expression took on a glassy sheen that Erin knew all too well.

He's accessing the feed.

It was an almost incongruous sight to see a figure pulled from mythology use something so mundane. A part of her would have expected the Avatar to treat the technology like an elder would with some new breakthrough.

Yet a few moments later, Erin's own feed pinged with an incoming message, and she accepted.

"Information," he said. "This will tell you where to point your ears in the sky. We have gotten lucky - there has been a sudden opportunity to see into the movements of the Saiseki."

"Couldn't you simply ask Saiseki itself?"

It was a poor attempt at getting more information, but Ferrus grimaced and actually responded.

"We aren't as united as you think he said," and there was a sudden shift in his posture that suggested that he was done with their encounter.

"Good luck, Erin Ademas," he said, and she inclined her head in acknowledgement.

Then, as she stood there, watching, Ferrus lifted himself off the ground and shot up into the sky.

Erin jumped back, her mouth agape as she craned her neck to watch. Flight? How was that even possible? She glanced about, looking for some sign of hidden wires. Maybe he'd been lifted by a drone? Then her eyes fell upon the ground itself, and a thought occurred to her. She dropped down for a closer look.

Like much of the surrounding streets, the allyway's ground was made up of interlocking pieces of inset-solar cells, although she doubted the place got much sunlight. What drew her attention, however, was the thin bands of metal that glinted in the darkness; enough metal, she guessed, to allow Ferrus to push off the inset material and launch himself into the air.

She looked up again, but there was no point. The Avatar had long since disappeared past the distant peak of the surrounding buildings.

For a few long minutes, Erin simply stood there. She tried to pick apart the past few minutes from a clerical standpoint; used the recording she made to replay certain statements or actions made by Ferrus.

But the irrational part of her mind clamored to be heard. It wasn't his words orders that had made Erin believe. It was his presence, his gaze. The overwhelming feeling of his power seizing her body as though it were her own. These were not quantifiable things, and yet they seemed less infallible right now than any observation.

Erin waved away the recording and looked at the documents she'd been given. They floated before her like a phantom in her feed-vision.

There was a choice before her.

She could chalk this all up to some kind of fabrication - just ignore everything that had passed in the alleyway and simply press forward with her duties.

But Ferrus - and she was inclined to believe that it truly was his Avatar - had known about her assignment when she'd been assigned to it barely an hour before. He had provided her with a base of information, and although she hadn't looked through it yet, it seemed too strange to be a joke.

Of course, the one thing she really couldn't deny or explain was the sheer strength of his Factor.

In the time that she'd encountered him, the man had shown incredible dexterity, subtly tugging on her medals from halfway down the street. He'd been able to freeze her body, pulling on the iron in her blood.

And then he flew, lifting himself into the air like a thing from legends.

From her own research, Erin knew that there was variation when it came to a population with a certain Factor. Body-type Factors had variation in their features, Mind-types differed in the strength of their abilities.

But these were relatively minor deviations; if shown visually, such data would resemble a slim-looking bell curve. In other words, the vast majority of people were just about... average.

In fact, the only other figure Erin could think of with significantly more power than expected was the Knight of Saiseki. Of course, asking the Knight for an explanation wasn't exactly an option.

She wandered out of the alleyway, still deep in thought. It had only been a few minutes since she'd stepped off the street, but the morning felt completely different. She glanced about her, trying to catch the gaze of a nearby agent of the Rete, perhaps, waiting to see what she would do.

But the flood of people moved past her, seemingly ignorant of the precedent that had occurred right under their noses. Subtly wasn't the Rete's style anyway, Erin decided as she weaved her way towards the street and hailed a cab.

Already, she could feel herself leaning towards the unknown, the unexplored. The Senators had gently threatened her, it was true, but they thought they were dealing with a protective mother above anything else.

Erin loved her son more than anything in the world, it was true - but she hadn't provided Lukas with a Factor for the novelty. The few people that knew the truth assumed she'd done it as some form of experimentation - that she was using her son as some sort of subject.

But really she'd done it to protect him. To give him the tools he'd need to protect himself, regardless of what happened. Erin has no qualms about her work, the waves it could make.

This is just the situation I've been preparing for, she thought to herself, staring out through a transport's tinted interior. I'm going to get to the bottom of this.

She'd need trusted help if she was going to do this, and resources... but her mind was now set. Ferrus had dangled the truth in front of her, and she couldn't help but follow.