He brought a smaller version of the test equipment and installed it in the living room. My mom and my friends can now see and hear me, but there's a catch. The equipment is sending a livestream back to the military, and they can even improve the image and sound quality remotely. In other words, they'll see and hear everything. He told me that I had earned some rest, but was again needed next morning to begin my attack training on bugs in the wild.
After lunch Emily joined us in the living room and of course she petted me non-stop. She doesn't have much time though, since she needs to pick up a few more items at school and such.
Unfortunately I can't stay visible for more than 3 minutes, but at least the crystals seem to be improving that. I wonder how many more of those I need to absorb before I can have an actual conversation without the equipment?
"What do you think, Ann? Do you want to join her?" Thompson asked.
"I'd rather not have her leave the house just yet." Mom said, before I could reply. "What do you think, Ann?"
Yeah, like I'm going to contradict her, nuh-huh, but I can at least suggest a compromise, right?"I have to agree with you. I'm invisible and might get into trouble. However.....my wings could use the exercise. How about I follow her and then return here?"
Mom nods. "Sounds like a fair compromise. But I still want to know where you are. Mr Thompson, isn't there a way to track her whereabouts?"
"Of course there is. We could put a GPS tracker on her, one which we use to tag equipment. I can have someone bring it here in....say an hour?" He checked his watch and then waited for mom to reply.
"That works for me!" I said, not wanting to wait for mom to answer his question.
"But not for me." Emily said. "I'm expected to attend css in an hour. It's a 20 minute bike ride, so I have to leave soon."
"Okay, in that case, allow me to make a phone call. Your school will simply have to wait an hour."
"Wow...you can do that?" Emily sounds very surprised, and that makes two of us. He can do that?
"Of course. It's in our nation's best interest to keep you two happy. Besides, I'm not asking anything unreasonable."
Emily told him the name of her school, after which he made a few phone calls.
About an hour ter someone put a GPS tracker on me, and it was surprisingly light. It took a while to improvise a backpack for me, but it worked out pretty well. The tracker will beep on occasion, and I'm supposed to shake the thing to indicate that I'm still alive and well. When I don't do that within a minute, they'll send someone over to pick me up. But the best part is that people can now see a tiny backpack floating through the air, since I'm still invisible!
Emily steps on her bike and starts her journey to school, while I easily match her speed. Flying further than just around the house is super amazing and is having a very calming effect on me. I have never flown far from home before and have to be careful not to fly into any road signs.
After about 10 minutes I nd in her bike's front basket and she says "gd to see you're still here. Needed a break? I guess so. It's a pity we can't speak. Just five more minutes. If you look closely, you can already see a part of the building."
When she arrives at school and puts her bike in the shed, she sees me leaving, waves and then walks away towards her css.
I nd on top of the school building to get an overview of this area. "Alright. Flying is a bit more exhausting than I had imagined. I'm sure that they can track my altitude and speed too, so let's see how fast I can fly. Combat mode!"
My body changes faster than before and even my tail is in standby mode now. I'm very aerodynamic, except for the backpack, but I'll consider that as a part of my training.
I unch high up into the air and am surprised to see how fast I can go, and I'm not even trying to go fast!I level off and go straight ahead...faster and faster...then at top speed. I take a left turn and head back to school where I try all sorts of acrobatic maneuvers. First some quick turns and then even a barrel roll! This body is really agile, but flying like this is also very exhausting, so I take another break on a nearby tree branch. I can still see the school building, so I don't have to worry about getting lost.
After sitting there for a few minutes, I unexpectedly heard a female voice from above me."Hi there!"
I look up and am surprised to see another fairy!"Eeeeeeeeh......no way.....a fairy?"
"Yes, what else would I be?" She nds next to me and gives me a warm smile. Her red dress seems like it's made from a folded leaf, but it looks really cute on her. Her matching shoes are like my own, very soft. Her hair is long and brown, but she doesn't have fluffy ears nor a tail. Her ears are a bit pointy, surprisingly.
"Sorry...I have never met a fairy before! I'm Ann Finley, nice to meet you."
We shake hands, and apparently that's a thing fairies do too."Likewise, I'm Fern. Do all forest fairies have two names, Ann Finley?"
"Ah...no, it's a long story. Just call me Ann, please. That's my real name."
"Ooh.....that sounds much better. So you really never met another fairy?" She's studying my uniform and my backpack, but my fluffy ears seem most interesting to her.
"No, never, but I do have humans caring for me. I have so many questions to ask you!"
"That's fine, but, you...were raised by humans?" She blinks and keeps staring at my backpack now.
"Uh-huh. So....why don't you have a tail, Fern?"
"Huh? Hahaha....because we're different types of fairies, Ann! Didn't anyone expin that to you? You are a forest fairy, aren't you?"
"Eh....yes?" It says so in my stats, so I guess I am.
"Awww.....you still have so much to learn! I'm a city fairy, obviously." She twirled to show off her dress. "What are you wearing? It looks simir to what humans like to wear?"
"Exactly, that's what they asked me to wear today. But I also have normal dresses. Wait a moment..." I concentrated on my dress, and once more my uniform was repced with the dress my body came with.
"Woow. You can change your dress? Just like that?"
"Uh-huh, not sure how it works, but it always works."
"Amaaaazing." Her smile confirms that she's honestly surprised. "But why is your tail so....ft? Usually forest fairies have fluffy bushy tails, don't they?"
"I usually do, but this is not my normal form. Before we met, I was practising my attack moves because I'm going to be fighting monsters soon."
"Really? I don't think that I ever heard anyone talking about monsters before?" She crossed her arms and looked pensive.
"You haven't? That's not what I had expected to hear. I was hoping that you might teach me how to kill them!"
"Kill them?" She grimaced. "Why would you want to kill anyone?"
"No no no....you don't understand! I don't want to kill people! It's just that incredibly huge spiders and huge birds are migrating here." Let's try to use simple words. "And they don't care what they eat. They have killed many humans and I'm afraid they will eat fairies too. But then again, you are the first fairy I found."
"That's bad news. Our Queen has to learn about this! But can you first show me your true form?"
"Oh course!" After a few seconds I looked like my normal self again with lots of fluff.
"Woooooow, that was amazing!!!! Can you teach me how to do that too?"
"I don't know if it works for you, but I have no secrets! I'd love to show you!"
"Ehehe, we're friends already!"
"That means a lot to me. Maybe you could teach me about how we fairies should live? It's all new to me, and in return I'll share with you what I have learned."
"Gdly! I'm sure that Queen Hazel would love to meet you! Can you please follow me to our hometree?"
"I'd love to! But won't your friends mind?"
"Why would they? You're one of us, aren't you?"
"I am, yes. But are there more hometrees?" I want to ask her everything! So many questions!
"Of course! There are many hometrees, but usually only one or two per human city."
"Wow....I have so much to learn! One moment, I first need to memorize where we are because I'm far from home."
"Don't you have the home skill?"
"Eh...not that I'm aware of?"
"Then try that first. It's very easy to learn. Focus on your home...the people you know. Can you feel the direction?"
"No....wait.....yes, I feel something. Yes! I feel them! I have the skill now!"
I see a popup message.=======Skill acquiredCompass=======
"Congratutions! That was easy, right? Are you ready?" She's already hovering, ready to fly away.
"Yes, but is it far from here?"
"Not at all, just a few minutes in that direction."
"Oh, wait...I have to tell you something first."
"Like what?"
"Do you see this backpack?"
"Yes, I was wondering about that."
"It helps the humans to see where I am. When it buzzes, I have to shake, or they'll come looking for me."
"Is it like a punishment?" She frowned.
"Huh? No, not at all! They want to keep me safe, because I never went far from home. But I really wanted to explore the area."
"That makes sense, it's what we do. So.....does that mean that they can find us?"
"Yes, exactly. Oh, and before I forget, humans have also learned how to see us."
Her smile disappeared. "That's more bad news. They will start hunting us."
"Huh? Why would they?"
"It's just how things are. We can become visible to them, but those who have tried...never returned. That's what Queen Hazel taught us."
"Oh....well, these humans are different. They want to learn from you. I will share everything with you, but I don't want to cause problems. Do you want me to return ter, without this thing?"
"It would be better, yes. I could ask her to join you here. Is that okay?"
"Um.....sure."
"Wait here, I'll be back in a few minutes!" And she immediately left, leaving a trail of green particles behind her.
"That's odd. Why don't I have those green particles? I had it once, but never again. So many questions!"
After a minute I felt my backpack beep and vibrate, indicating the need to show that I was still safe. I shook it a few times to confirm and then flew a few circles so that they could track me. I then returned to the spot on the branch and waited again.
When I see a dozen Fairies approaching, I feel a bit nervous. Most are male and they seem to be carrying spears. Or toothpicks..... I giggled about my own joke and then tried to appear as polite and non threatening as I could.
A fairy in a beautiful golden dress nds close to me on the tree branch. Her long, blonde hair looks amazing and her smile seems welcoming. Everything about her tells me to trust her. That one has to be the Queen, no doubt about it.
"Your majesty." I said and bowed to her, not sure if shaking hands is a thing with Queens.
"Please, raise your head, young one."
I look at her and still see that wonderful smile. Time to introduce myself to her. "I'm Ann, and I am helping the humans to fight the monsters. It is an honor to meet you and I apologize for making you leave your home."
"My of my, aren't you the polite one? We do things a bit differently here." She pulled me into a hug and I immediately felt a friendship beyond words. She released the hug and said "I am Queen Hazel of the Redwood Cn. Isn't that a much better introduction?"
I smiled as well, also blushing a bit. "Yes, it sure was. Thank you for welcoming me. But, do you even have Redwoods here?"
"Our ancestors migrated here long ago, but we continued their name in their honor. But how could you possibly know about the Redwoods? You are still so young?"
Young? Okay, let's ignore that for now. "I love nature documentaries...ah, I mean, love hearing about nature. There are still sequoias or Redwoods. Far, far up north, I think."
"There are? We thought they had disappeared, long ago! You are full of new information!" She looks at the others, and all of them seem happy to hear the news.
"Thank you, Queen Hazel. But you should know that your Cn might be in serious danger."
"So I've heard. Can you tell me about those...monsters as you called them?"
"Of course. It happened not so long ago when I appeared in a field far away. I was scared when I saw incredibly huge spiders and birds everywhere. Humans then appeared and they killed them."
"Humans." Her expression showed disgust. "They destroy everything. Why kill them?"
"Because those beings aren't normal animals. They are extremely aggressive and humans are losing the fight. I hear that humanity may go extinct."
"Are you serious? I find that very hard to believe!"
"Your majesty, I'm not lying. I also told Fern about my backpack. I don't want to harm you in any way, that's why we meet here, and I don't even know where your hometree is! So please trust me."
"Alright, that's a fair point. So if you're speaking the truth....what can we do? Won't we die with them?"
"Not necessarily. I do not wish to sound arrogant, but you have a right to know. I hatched only recently and I'm still very weak, but my skills seem to work against the monsters. The humans are almost begging me to help them and are caring for me."
She looks surprised and so do the others."I can tell that you only hatched recently. But.....you are fighting alongside the humans?"
"I swear that it is the truth."
"Well....at least you are not trying to hide things."
"I'm overjoyed that I have found you, but still....my human friends are decent, good people and I love them. They keep me safe. But I feel obligated to share with you what I know."
"That's very decent of you. But...one fairy fighting against an entire army of huge beings? Is that what you're saying?"
"Yes, your majesty. But the humans are fighting as well. Oh, and I learned that I get stronger when I absorb crystals from dead monsters."
She looks at the others then at me again. "How can I be sure that you are not lying? I mean no disrespect, of course."
"No offense taken, Queen Hazel. You or any of your people are welcome to join me. I will share what I know, and even offer you a crystal. For every crystal you consume, you get stronger. It's something you have to see before you can believe it. I mean, it still sounds like a fantasy to me, but I promise that it's all real."
"Alright. I will allow Fern to accompany you. But she will not enter a human home. Will you share with us where you live, to show your sincerity?"
"Of course. But you should be warned that humans have found a way to see and hear me. And this backpack allows them to follow me."
"Yes...so I've heard. Very unsettling news."
"Perhaps Fern can talk to them? I'm sure that these humans can keep a secret, but we have to tell them to respect your privacy."
"I understand. It's worth speaking to them. Is there anything else I should know?"
"Yes, humans need all the help they can get. This is not their request, but something I feel compelled to ask you. The day will come when we need to fight the monsters. I can't judge how strong your warriors are, but a single fairy may not be enough.
I was hoping.....asking for you to think about it.....perhaps a few fairies would want to join me? Together we might make a difference."
She shakes her head almost immediately. "We are not able to fight those beings. We serve life as much as you do, but our task is to care for nature, not to kill giant beasts. We help animals in need, care for trees.....don't you see?
We do have Defenders, but they keep invading animals at bay. We can't fight humans, nor your monsters. Until we don't have any other choice, I must ask you to respect my decision, it is how things must be."
"I understand, your majesty." I bowed again, to show her that I respect her.
She smiles and puts her hand on my shoulder for a moment. "Thank you Ann, for your kindness and understanding. We can't help you fight your monsters, but will however be there to support you in any way we can." She then looks at Fern.
"Fern, I know it's difficult, but you are one of our Defenders. Protect our Cn and see if she speaks the truth."
"Of course, Queen Hazel!" Fern said.
That earned her a smile from the Queen, who then said "Ann, it was good to meet a forest fairy again. Do you swear to keep Fern safe? On your honor as a fairy?"
"I swear, your majesty. You are free to send your guards with us, I will not be offended."
"I don't think that such a thing will be necessary. This is where we say goodbye. I hope we can meet in our hometree soon. But without your...backpack please." She pointed at the backpack.
"I promise, your majesty. I'm looking forward to seeing how we fairies are supposed to live."
"And I'm sure you will feel right at home. Until we meet again."
That's when all of them left...except for Fern."Well? What do you think of our Queen?"
"She's amazing. Like a loving mother. Not at all what I had expected. It's like we're friends already."
"We are! So....are you ready to show me your home?"
"Yup. Follow me!"
After about 10 minutes, we nded in our backyard. I needed to slow down, probably due to the crystals giving me a permanent speed boost.
"Fern, this is our backyard. My mother lives here with Rachel, her assistant."
"Your mother? But didn't you say that you haven't met fairies before?"
"I did. But she's a human. She adopted me shortly after I hatched." Let's keep it simple, no need to expin everything to her.
"Wow.....okay. So how do we get them out of their home?"
"They already know that I'm waiting here because of my backpack. They will be here shortly, just trust me. There are also other people inside. People who are trying to see us. But they are good people, okay?"
"I trust you with my life."
"Thank you, I won't let them harm you, you have my word."
"That's all I needed to hear." She smiled again.
The backdoor opens and Rachel appears. "Ann? Are you here? The door is open!" She's probably looking for a hovering backpack right now.
"What do we do now?" Fern asked.
"We have to wait, because we can't go inside. I promised to keep you safe."
"True, but if you promise me that it's safe for me to go inside, then I will follow you."
"I promise....follow me! And thanks for trusting me!"
After a few minutes I nded on the living room table, right in front of the camera.
"Hi! I'm back and brought a friend!" I shouted, while waving at the camera.
"Hey, Ann, had a nice time?" Mom asked.
"Yes, mom. I met a few super nice people just now."
I gestured to Fern to join me. "It's okay, Fern. Land here next to me. They can see and hear you, but only in this spot."
She nodded and nded next to me. "Hi everyone," she said, "I'm Fern."
"Incredible....you found another fairy?" Thompson asked.
"Yes, sir. She's from a nearby Cn. I met their Queen and they are all nice people!"
"Nice, huh?" Mom said, smiling. "So...Fern? I'm Ann's mother....sort of."
"Yes, she told me about you. Em....Ann? Why don't you just become visible to them?" Fern asked, making it sound so simple.
"Why? Because I can't! I always become invisible again after a few minutes."
"Ooooooh, like that! You really are young, aren't you? Hahahaha." She ughed, but in a friendly way.
"Don't tell me there's a simple way?"
"Of course there is! You have activated the Concealment skill, haven't you?"
"Yeah?"
"It can also be disabled."
"I already tried that. The description said that it was permanent, for life."
"No no, you don't understand. Yes, the invisibility is permanent, but only if you keep the skill enabled. Right now the skill is enabled and the invisibility is activated. Deactivating it temporarily to become visible costs lots of mana. But....you can also completely disable the Concealment skill."
"Oh.....and...how?"
"Look at the skill in your stats, keep focusing on it and then say....Stop Concealment."
"Okay......umm...there it is. Stop Concealment."
"Heeey! You're back!" Mom said.
"Oh my god, yes! Thank you so much, Fern!" I hugged her and I think I startled her, but she's smiling.
"You're welcome, Ann." She now becomes visible as well.
"So you must be Fern. Pretty!" Rachel said.
"You mean my dress? It's new!" Fern twirled to show off her new dress.
"Not just your dress, your hair too." Rachel said, and I think that she's simply trying to make Fern feel welcome.
"Awww.......you really are nice people. Just like Ann told me."
Thompson deactivated the cameras and microphones to stop the echo, while I removed my backpack.
Fern looks at mom. "Um.....Ann told me that you can see and hear us now, and I can see that she wasn't lying. May I ask what your intentions are?"
Thomspon nods. "Please allow me to answer your question, Miss Fern. I represent our government in this case. We mean you and your people no harm. The technology you saw earlier is only designed to help us fight the monsters. Did she tell you about those?"
"She has, yes. But how real are they?"
"Very real. We have a few pictures for you to see, do you have the time?"
"Um...how much time?"
"A few minutes."
"Of course!"
Thompson showed her a few video recordings of battles lost in Florida. When the picture ended, she was in tears.
I give her a hug. "I'm sorry, but what you saw was the truth, Fern."
"It's horrible. I had no idea. Those aren't animals....they are.....evil."
"That's one way to describe it," Thompson said. "But we agree. We would like to befriend the Fairy race, and we have no intention of harming you. Will you please consider asking your Queen if we can become friends?"
"She.....
"Let me tell you the truth. We can kill most monsters.....but not all of them. Ann is helping us now, so we have a fighting chance. I can't force you, but please know that all fairies are welcome to join us. Together we might win. If we lose...we all lose."
"I...I think I understand what you mean. They are really, really, enormous. And you lost so many humans already?"
"Yes, miss Fern."
"Um....Mr Thompson?" I asked.
"Yes, Ann?"
"Do you have a few crystals for us?"
"Not yet, but I do have a single one in the car for presentations and such?"
"May I please have it? I wish for Fern to use it. She's a Defender, like me, and it may help her Cn. It will also show her people that we share with them what we learn."
"Alright, but we can't share with others. We need you to grow stronger, Ann, and fast."
"I know, and I understand."
Thompson brought us the crystal and Fern is staring at it right now."So....what is this thing?"
I expin "this is a monster crystal. When they die, we take it out of their bodies. I learned that when I absorb it, it increases my strength and skills permanently."
"Like a divine blessing?"
"Um...I never thought of it that way, but I think it's exactly like that, yes."
"So...do I eat it?"
"No, just take it in your arms and hug it."
"Like this?" She's hugging the thing like a plushie, but nothing happens.
"Yes, and now close your eyes and wish for it to enter your tummy."
"My tummy?" She giggled. "You mean my stomach?"
"I do." I'm smiling, because I guess it probably sounded a bit childish.
And that's when the crystal slowly moved into her tummy, making her glow for a few seconds."Woooooow! I feel the blessing! The goddess has spoken to me! She said 'level up'!"
"Yes, you get those messages when you defeat monsters. That's basically what happened now. Do you see any new skills?"
"Mmm.....yes, a stinger? What is that?"
"Huh? You didn't have one before?"
"No, what is it?"
"Okay, em.....it's like a spear. It will.....come out of your lower back, right here." I point at the area above my tail. "It's like how a bee can defend its hive, same thing. But after absorbing a lot of those crystals, your stinger might get a new pce. Mine is now hidden in my tail."
"Can I see it?" She asked, sounding really excited.
"Not today, because it's dangerous. Your and my stinger contain venom. Be careful with that thing. It will kill within seconds."
"Oh....thanks for the information." She grimaced for a moment.
"I think we can call it a fair exchange of information." Thompson said.
"Yes, Queen Hazel will be pleased. May I leave your home now? I wish to return home."
"Of course. Do you want me to accompany you? To keep you safe?" I asked.
"No, I'm a Defender. I know my way around, but thank you for the offer."
"Please follow me, Fern."
I guided her to the backdoor, but Rachel had to open it for us first. Fern activated her Concealment skill again and then flew away at top speed.
When I returned to the living room, we were all happy for the progress we made in such a short time.
"Mom, the others I saw don't have tails, because they are city fairies!"
"Yes, we noticed that already. Well done, Ann, well done. I think you made some really valuable friends today. And Fern seemed like an honest, decent person."
"She absolutely is!"
"Do you want to live with them?" Thompson asked, making my smile vanish. Where did that come from?
"Um.....not really? This is my home after all. But I'd love to see their hometree one day. But they first need to get used to the idea that we can see and hear them. But Queen Hazel told me that I was welcome. So...maybe soon?"
"Exactly. Honey, why don't you call it a day and go see Emily? She should be back any moment now. Your skills are needed tomorrow, so rest up while you still can."
"Yup. And it's good to talk to you again. It was kinda lonely."
"Same here. Now go, honey. Rachel, please let her out."
"We really need to install a cat door, Amelia."
"Hahahaha.....and have cats in here? No thank you! Besides, cats and fairies probably don't mix very well."
When I finally met Emily outside, she took me into their living room and petted me while I expined a few things to her and her parents. Emily was happy to see and hear me again, but also felt sad for having missed Fern.
Mom already told me that they are basically part of our project team now, and had to sign a non disclosure form. Long story short...I can openly discuss anything with them.
Her cssmates however weren't happy that they had to wait an hour until Emily arrived. Thompson made that happen, and apparently said that it was needed because Emily had to assist in a matter of national security. Now that her cssmates are aware of the reason, she suddenly became quite popur, despite the hour dey.