"The team leaders are selected based on home world. We don't want foreign agents acting in a home that isn't theirs, even if they are acting in the best interest of the local populace. That is why we assign people to them and have them house their teams." - Casitor explaining the team structure to an Order auditor.

"I still don't think that this is on time." Kristi grumbled as they left the house, headed for the hub. "We should have left half an hour ago."

Val just reached out and patted her arm. "Kristi, sweetie, it's the normal social convention for parties. When you say a party starts at five, you don't expect guests to show up for another half hour at the earliest."

"If it makes you feel any better, I don't get it either." Kurt commiserated. "Don't get me started on the expectations of certain times either. If you have an event near dinnertime, you are expected to serve a meal but if you have one around lunch, you might only need some light snacks or refreshments. Why doesn't lunch get a meal of its own?"

Kristi looked rather put out by the information, but they continued on through the hub to Penny's office where she would meet them. Kurt and Val had spent most of the day trying to explain the concept of these types of gatherings. She seemed particularly confused that being late was expected, being on time was rude and nobody actually knew when it ended.

One thing she did firmly grasp was the concept of gifts. She knew that it was best to be prepared with a gift or in this case multiple. She also knew that you should give something that was nice but not too valuable, so the other person didn't feel bad about their own gift or obligated to give one the next time they met.

"Hey guys." Penny said as they passed through the portal to her office. "You are a bit early."

Val flashed a grin at Kristi who just rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, I get it."

Kurt responded to Penny, seeing the confused look on her face. "Kristi didn't understand that saying an event starts at six doesn't mean be there at six."

"Oh, yeah, this is pretty laid back anyway and I don't think anyone was expecting us to be there right away." She said while locking her computer. "Well, since you all are here, I can take us down to the room we rented."

"Sounds great." Kurt said and gestured for her to lead the way.

As soon as they were into the halls of the order, Val popped up on Penny's left. "So how was the date?" she said while leaning in and leering.

"Oh, umm. It was fine." She said, the tips of her ears turning a little red.

"Just fine?" Val prodded. The reddened tips of Penny's ears began to spread.

Penny looked like she was suddenly conflicted about whether she wanted to be embarrassed or angry and retorted reflexively. "It was nice. Jamie is very sweet, and I think we had a great time." She said while walking away from the group that just stopped in their tracks.

"Kurt?" Val asked, still standing in the middle of the hall.

"Yes, Val?"

"Is Jamie a very common name in your country?"

"Not really. That isn't to say its uncommon either." Kurt said as the pieces were beginning to fall into place with him. He had noticed that Penny seemed to be around his house a lot less and around their new business a lot more. Coincidentally, that business was right next door to a certain coffee shop.

It seemed that Penny realized she had left her charges behind and was quickly walking back to them. "What happened? Why did you all stop?"

"Ahem." Val said, turning to look at their handler. "You went out on a date with Jamie?"

"Yes."

"Kate's brother, Don and Les' son, Jamie?"

"That's the one."

"The completely human, not at all paranormal, as vanilla as they come Jamie?"

Penny was giving her a lot of side eye as she answered the questions. "Yes, and what of it?"

Val looked to Kurt and Kristi for backup but neither of them were about to spring to her aid and she decided to hedge. "I'm so happy for you!" she said and looped her arm in Penny's as she spun her around to continue leading them. "How did it go? Tell me everything."

"I gotta admit, I really didn't expect this." Kurt muttered to Kristi as they followed after the others. "I mean I thought I saw the signs but…"

Kristi nodded. "Yes, I didn't expect this from Jamie at all."

"I figured a regular human would be scared off." He said, having experienced that before.

"Well, that and I thought he wanted a muscle mommy… Are you ok?"

Kurt had doubled over laughing at the completely dead pan way that she had delivered the line and was struggling to stay on his feet. The outburst was so sudden and explosive that it startled Kristi and she was immediately by his side and trying to help him.

"F-f-fine. Ju-just ha-haa-hadn't expected th-that." He choked out between fits of laughing and coughing. He was able to calm himself after a few moments, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. "Oh, shit, that was funny."

"What was funny?" Penny asked with some edge in her voice and Kurt stood bolt upright.

"Nothing, just some circumstantial humor is all. I don't think you would find it funny." He knew as soon as the words left his mouth that it was a mistake.

"Oh, why? What did she say?" Val asked with a very toothy grin.

Kristi, apparently not getting the point, filled in while Kurt's brain was still trying to dig him out of the situation. "I just expressed how I am surprised Jamie was interested in Penny when I though he wanted a muscle mommy."

Penny began to splutter and stumble over words while trying to form a retort. Val was laughing and Kristi had a big shit eating grin on her face. Kurt realized she knew exactly what she was doing and had been doing it on purpose.

"Kristi!" Penny finally managed to get out. She finally realized that the dragoness was making a joke at her expense. "Th… I thought better of you." She finally said with a huff.

After a moment they realized that they had stopped right in the middle of a hallway. It didn't matter that this hall was a wide boulevard with plenty of room, they were still drawing a lot of attention and people were stopping to stare.

"Let's get going." Kurt said, trying to redirect them back to walking. "I don't want to be the center of attention in some random part of the Order."

They quickly got moving and began navigating their way back through the streets and halls. Penny was telling them that they had a space reserved for them in one of the entertainment areas and that they could stay as long as they wanted.

A few minutes later, Penny pushed open a set of double doors that they had been pointed to after entering what looked like a mix between a hotel lobby and a fantasy style tavern. Apparently, this particular hotel was based on the architecture of another world that favored lots of unfinished wood for its walls and rafters. That styling ended at the door however, and they stepped into the 'room' that had been reserved for them.

Kurt couldn't call it a room, in fact he wasn't sure what to call it. The space they stepped into looked like the yard or garden of some sort of villa or mansion. The 'walls' were all either stone columns or tall hedges with the floor being a mix of paving stones and short cut grass. There were several tables and benches set on the paved sections with a few fountains and gazebos around in the lawn area.

The major clue that told him they weren't in an actual, outdoor garden was the ceiling. Well, calling the empty void above them a ceiling was a bit of a stretch, and it made Kurt wonder how this space was constructed to allow for complete blackness to somehow produce light.

Just as Kurt was wondering where the soft, yellow light was emitting from, the door they came through opened again and a trio of unfamiliar people stepped through. Kurt and the girls turned to look at them as Penny went over.

"Greeting Radis." She said and the elven looking man stepped up to talk while his charges peered around from behind him.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

"Evening, Penny." His voice was smooth as silk. Kurt thought he could make a killing as a radio host. "Glad we could finally do something that wasn't a hundred percent business related."

Penny was about to speak again when the door opened once more and in strode everyone's favorite daemon. "Ah, looks like I'm late to my own party." Jay said, smiling at them. Kurt could hear a grumbling about timelines coming from over his shoulder where Kristi stood.

"Hello, Jay." Penny and Radis said at the same time.

Snorting, Jay walked over to the tables that were arrayed near one of the hedge walls. He turned and looked back as the two groups both turned to look at him. "Let's set some ground rules." He began and his appearance changed when he turned back to face them. His normally blond hair and five-o'clock shadow turned nearly white while his skin darkened to a very sparkly grey. Jay's eyes turned a solid red color except for the pupils while his fingers grew long, razor sharp nails.

Other than the nails, his body didn't change in the slightest and he smirked while looking at the two groups of people. "If you feel comfortable, let your flag fly. Everyone here is either a hybrid or…" he looked to Kurt. "…in the know."

Kurt looked at the girls and they both looked to him. Val shrugged and was suddenly sporting her fox ears, tail and feet. Kristi chewed on her lip a moment while he gave her a soft smile and a hug. A moment later, he felt the little scales against his skin while her tail wrapped around his ankle for a moment.

Penny had sprouted scales on a large portion of her skin along with slit pupils but otherwise remained unchanged. Her counterpart, Radis had remained unchanged, presumably because he was either a plain elf or it was his most natural form. It was the other two people who surprised Kurt.

The two men that had come in with Radis both looked remarkably different. The shorter of the two went from looking like a short man to a scaled and thin short man. His skin became covered in reddish brown scales with a couple short horns at the edge of his lustrous, curly brown hair.

The other man took on the features of a dark-haired elf with the exception that his eyes were now black with an almost luminescent ring of neon blue outlining the pupil. Kurt had seen this once before in a human and was quite curious about how an elf became possessed.

"Great!" Jay said with a clap of his hands. "Allow me to make introductions." He waved the two groups closer. "On this side we have Rupert as team lead." Jay gestured and the short man gave a tentative wave with a slight smile. "And his partner Tig." The possessed elf made an elaborate bow and shot a wink at Kurt. "Along with their handler Radis."

Jay then turned to Kurt's party. "This is team leader Kurt and his partners Val and Kristi." They each waved as their names were called. "They have Penny as their handler. "

Radis stepped forward then. "We are based out of Calais in France. Well, we are for the moment, but we are looking to change soon."

"And we are based out of northern Michigan in the U.S." Penny said a moment later as all the agents adopted thoughtful looks. She then turned to Jay. "Are we still going to have Jeffery and his team join us?"

Nodding, Jay opened his mouth to reply when the doors opened once more, and a very nervous looking man poked his head in. The moment his eyes landed on Jay, his worry eased, and he ducked out before entering the room. "Ah, Kevin, did you bring Jeffery and his team?"

"Yes, Jay." He said as a quartet of people walked in the door behind him. "They got a little… um, distracted."

The four people that followed were a very eclectic bunch. Leading the charge was a rather harried-looking dwarf that seemed to be at wits end, judging by how he pulled at his long, red beard. The two women and a man following him were still talking animatedly as they seemed to follow on auto pilot.

The dwarf led the way over to where the others were and stopped near Radis while sharing an exasperated look. He promptly turned around. "Guys. Hey, guys!" he began, waving his hands at face level for them. "Oi, Dickheads!" he yelled, and clapped his large, meaty hands together. That got their attention, and they all looked up, surprise on their faces as they noticed they had an audience.

"That's better. Bunch of fucking assholes." He grumbled in a thick Australian accent.

Smirking, Jay went on with the introductions. "And our latest team. We have Piper, Sif and Sam with their handler, Jeffery out of Tacoma. I told the others, but this is a 'let your flag fly' sort of event if you all are so inclined."

The three agents all looked to each other before shrugging and letting their glamor's and illusions fade. The least changed was Sam since he remained the same except for a pair of fangs showing up in his smile. Other than that, he looked like a normal average height human man with blonde hair. The other two were something else.

Piper's skin turned sea green as her hair turned blue while dark blue scales sprouted along her neck and arms along with some finer ones across the bridge of her nose. Kurt would have thought a normal siren or mermaid except for the trio of horns that sprouted from her hair and the spade tail that flicked back and forth behind her.

Sif's chocolate brown hair morphed into long, thin feathers that draped over her shoulders while her forearms grew equally long ones that were a bit stiffer in appearance. Her eyes grew a little larger and the previously blue iris turned a sparkling gold. Her ears also morphed into long points ones that matched every elf Kurt had ever known.

Jeffery didn't change at all but began grumbling about how 'yes they are so pretty, no there isn't anyone more sparkly and of course your feathers are gorgeous'. He made his way over to Jay, peering at the table that was behind him, like he was looking for something.

"Well, food will be here in another half hour so, go and mingle. We have this room for the next twenty-five hours so have at it." Jay said with an evil grin while gesturing at the handlers to follow him.

Kurt stopped Jeffery as he walked by. "Here, it looks like you need this more than I do at the moment." He summoned one of the bottles of whiskey he had in his ring and handed it to the amazed dwarf. "Go on, I have plenty more."

Jeffery looked like he was about to cry from joy as he clapped Kurt on the arm. "Good on ya mate." He said with a little laugh as he hurried to catch up with the others. "Jay! What's your policy on us handlers switching teams for a while? I think it would be good for morale or cross training and other shit like that…"

"Or sanity, it seems." Came a voice with s slight French accent. Kurt turned and looked down to see the scaled man standing there with his hand extended. "Rupert Dubois. Currently of Calais but hopefully soon to be of America."

"Kurtis Rosk." He replied. His ring, that he actually remembered to wear that night, told him that Rupert was mixed from halfling and kobold. "These are Theakval Kraknovi or Val and…" Kurt trailed off as he realized he never got Kristi's full name.

The dragoness stepped up and offered her hand "Kristanazal of Libermount but everyone calls me Kristi." She said, her eyes darting around as she hesitantly shook hands with the short man. Her other hand was clinging to Kurt's sleeve while her tail was wrapped around his ankle.

"It is a pleasure!" Rupert said with a charming smile. "Allow me to introduce my partner Tigistragica or Tig as most call him."

The possessed elf grabbed Kurt's hand with both of his and shook hard. "Oh, it's so good to meet you!" He beamed. "Honestly it's so good to meet everyone!"

The possessed man was chipper to say the least. Val and Kristi exchanged handshakes with the exuberant possessed before turning to meet the third team. They had been quietly waiting before approaching to exchange greetings.

"Piper Adams. Well met Kurt, we have heard so much about you." Said the blue haired woman as Kurt's ring identified her as a Demon and Siren hybrid. Her voice was tantalizing in its tone, like it teased at him, trying to input suggestions as he heard it. Kurt's heritage and lycanthropy pushed off the effect without issue. "I hope that we-oof." She suddenly stopped as Sam tapped her on the stomach in a none too gentle manner.

"Knock it off with the hypnosis." Said Sam. "Can't you see the guy is human." He then turned to Kurt while Piper stepped back. "Don't buy into her bull. She likes to tease even though it never ends well for her."

Kurt took the offered hand. "Thanks, but I'm not a human." That made everyone in the other teams tilt their heads in confusion as they eyed him up and down again. "This might be as good a time as any." He said and fished into his pocket.

Kurt pulled out a pouch with several of the identification rings in it. He opened the pouch and pulled out one ring, handing it to Sam, the changeling vampire. He noted that he was wearing jeans that looked like they were painted on and a deep V-neck t-shirt. Kurt found the outfit to be interesting and made him wonder about the changing's default appearance.

Sam took the ring and looked at it, holding it up to the light before mirroring Kurt, putting it on his right hand. Once more Kurt offered his hand and Sam took it, his eye going from speculative to wide with interest then confusion.

"How did you happen?" Sam said curiously before looking to the ring and smiling. "Well, that will come in handy I think."

"What is it?" Sif said as she suddenly appeared and looked over Sam's shoulder, standing on her toes.

Kurt handed her a ring then offered his hand. The feather haired woman turned out to be half elf and half harpy. Her surprise at him was only tempered by her amazement at the magical ring. Piper looked like she was about to lose it until Val filled her and the others in.

"They are rings of identification. Kurt made them for us too." She began. "Pretty much once you touch someone with it, you get a sense of what they are."

"Really? That is fascinating." Rupert said.

"What's better is that I have brought some for all of you." Kurt said and began handing out the rings to the now very interested party. After a few minutes, they all were exchanging gifts, completely unaware of the conversation happening on the other side of the courtyard.

*****

"I have news." Jay said as the handlers gathered around him. Kevin lurked just outside the circle, waiting for any direction or cues from his boss.

"Hope its good news." Jeffery said after working the cork loose on the bottle of whiskey Kurt had given him. He took a sniff before a long sip and sighed happily. "You got a good one there, Penny. Up for a trade?"

Penny smiled. "Not on your life."

"Ahem." Radis cleared his throat. "I believe we were talking about news, not horse trading between our charges."

"Buzzkill." Jeffery grumbled and took another pull at the bottle.

Jay rolled his eyes, a terrifying sight with his glamor removed. "As some of you know, Kurt and his team secured a coven's entire inner circle, well all the surviving ones anyway. I would like to share that the interrogations have been progressing nicely and we have a lead."

The three handlers all turned to look at the daemon. Their interest seemed to be a physical force that Jays words cut through like a knife. "We have a good lead on the instigators of many a summoning."

"Just some summoners?" Penny asked.

"Not just 'some' but the ones that have been trying to draw rifts, summon monsters and possibly part of a larger cabal that orchestrated the veil breaking." Jay said, leading up to the most significant event.

"Fucking hell." Jeffery said. "Which cunts did it?"

"That remains to be seen, but we have some leads on our internal issues too. After I did some 'fact finding' and tied up some loose ends that were responsible for endangering our teams."

"Does that mean I can bring mine over now?" Radis asked.

Jay nodded. "Yeah, any time you are ready. Still thinking the southeast part of the country?"

"Yes, it's the best balance for their needs I think." Radis said. His eyes flicked up to the group of agents that seemed to be crowded around Kurt for some reason.

Nodding, Jay pointed to Penny. "Can you help them with anything they might need? In terms of property that is." She flashed a thumbs up at him and he went back to his original points.

"I want us to hit this in the next couple weeks." Jay said. "It will be a joint venture. All three of our teams with at least four full squads as a reserve."

"Are you sure our teams are ready?" Penny asked. Her eyes flicked to Jeffery.

The dwarf sighed before answering the unspoken question. "They might act like a bunch of airheads half the time, but they can pull their weight if put to the right task." He then looked at Jay. "Let's see if we can get them all together for some planning sessions. That way we have commitments and not just assignments."

Jay smiled. "Excellent, Kevin can arrange it but for now let's enjoy the party. I do believe Kurt was just passing out some gifts. Trust me, you don't want to miss out on his handy work.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.