I steadily recovered over the next couple days. It was more a mental recovery than a physical one. Awakened healed quickly thanks to ether supercharging the process, and with my already quicker-than-normal healing? I was completely fine after the first day.

  I sipped a fresh cup of coffee late in the morning. The refreshing taste offered unmatched comfort. Kali was out doing something or another, leaving just me at the apartment.

  The news played in the background while I read through a forum on my Glass. I wasn't really paying attention, but Nivia was attentively watching, so I left it running. “Aegis’s Threat Rating was changed to Red early today. Recent civil unrest and Anarch attacks, accompanied by a higher number of rifts bursting than usual, led to this change. BAM also warned about high etheric pressures later tonight. Tune in for the forecast with-“

  My Glass started to ring lightly. I hit the mute button on the TV remote and answered. “Yep?”

  Pursius’s meowed softly across the line. “SIGIL today?”

  ”Sure.” Not like I had much planned.

  ”Then come to Tlacauli soon. My guy is coming in.” Pursius hung up, leaving the line dead.

  I stood up, stretched out languidly, and downed the rest of my coffee. I paused in front of a mirror, bringing Ebonshroud up to cover my face. The tar-like substance seeped out of my skin and slowly took shape. What was I feeling today? Hmm… let's go with… how about a cat mask? Pursius might get a kick out of it.

  I finished prepping myself and then left the apartment.

  — — —

  I pushed my way up to the boss’s office, my head ringing from the roaring music. Did this place ever shut down? It wasn’t even noon yet, and it was already packed full of partiers. Did those guys not have a life? Just how much was Pursius earning off this place anyway?

  ”Nyx.” The large orc guard stopped me at the door, his eyes whirling.

  “Francis.” I complied fully… not that it actually mattered. If I meant Pursius harm, these little scans wouldn’t be able to detect Ebonshroud. I’d tested in the past. As long as it was within me, it was completely hidden from outside scans and probes. And as long as I had Ebonshroud, I had a weapon.

  Francis knocked on the door and stepped out of the way to let me by. This time, Pursius wasn’t by himself. I paused just at the door and eyed the other man. He likewise eyed me back. He looked completely relaxed, with his leg casually draped across his knee.

  He was a male dark elf. Ashen skin and long, dagger-like ears gave away his species almost immediately. Long black hair fell from his head and his face was full of sharp features. Chrome lines ran from cyber-eyes down to his jaw, framing his lips slightly.

  As expected of a dark elf, he was heavily layered in clothes to protect from UV light. Honestly, didn’t see too many dark elves outside of Darkhold. They tended to keep to themselves. Then again, Tlacuali was right on the district border between Neo-Aiter and New Haven, both of which bordered Darkhold to the north-east. It wasn't that far.

  More pressing, however, were his clothes. He wore a trench coat lined with red. Not just any red either. No, this was Enforcer Red, specifically #7C0A02, a highly controlled shade of red that only Throne’s Enforcers could legally own and wear. Either this guy was a suicidal lunatic… or an actual Enforcer. Not sure which was better.

  ”She’s the one?” The dark elf asked.

  “Indeed,” Pursius replied. He had the translating collar on. Poor cat. “Yet another Stray is in need of a SIGIL.”

  ”…?” I shot the cat a look.

  Although he couldn’t see my eyes, we’d been around each other long enough for him to recognize my question. “This here is Sergei, an Enforcer of Bastion. Likewise, he’s the one who’s going to set up your SIGIL.”

  ”Pleasure to meet you.” The dark-elf greeted me. He stood up and bowed at the waist to me.

  “…” I followed his etiquette, bowing lightly. To be honest, I felt like running away. Even being near an Enforcer made me deeply uncomfortable. One word from him? Things could become very, very difficult.

  ”Francis!” The cat called out. He only continued once the orc guard stepped into the room. “Take these two to the Turquoise Booth. I have work, so if you don’t mind?”

  ”Not at all.” Sergei lightly shook his head, causing his long black hair to flop around. He reached down and picked up a rather large silver box. “After you, Francis.”

  ”Right.” The orc bodyguard stepped back, motioning for us to follow.

  Sergei the Enforcer moved after him. I followed, pausing slightly as I heard a quiet, untranslated meow from Pursius. “Don’t mention anything about the other night. Also, treat this as a real ID. Give your real name and information, Aylin. They’ll see through anything else when you register and get a partial read of your status.”

  “Thanks.” I shoved my hands into my hoodie pockets and trailed behind them to a private booth. Francis left shortly after leading us, going back to Pursius’s office, no doubt.

  Sergei sat down at the booth and made himself comfortable. He popped open his silver box, revealing a bunch of complicated magitech and a terminal. Ether constantly pulsed from the machine. “Take a seat. We’ll be here for a while getting this all sorted out.”

  “…” I slid into the booth across from him. I really should've followed my instincts and gotten another coffee on the way here.

  “Let’s start simple, then, shall we? You don’t already have a SIGIL, do you? I won’t ask why, but it changes how I set this one up.” He explained.

  “…” I shook my head. This would be my first.

  ”That makes this easier. Name?” Sergei asked, his red eyes shifting up to look at my masked face.

  ”Aylin. Io.” My voice came out just as battered and hoarse as usual- no, it sounded slightly better. Maybe a future where I could speak fully wasn’t that far out? At this rate… maybe ten years? That wasn't too long.

  Sergei typed on the terminal. “Aylin Io… Hope I spelled that right.”

  ”…” Was that supposed to be a joke?

  ”Tough crowd. Alright, I need to see your face and take a render.” He motioned to a camera built into the silver box. “Just look right here.”

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  I hesitated for a moment before pulling off the cat mask and pushing down my hood. I was a bit bummed that Pursius didn’t say anything about it, but I guess then wasn't really the time with an Enforcer breathing down our necks.

  Said Enforcer stared at me for a moment before looking away. ”Wow, you are quite pretty, my lady. And much younger than I thought you were. Something happened to your throat?”

  “Yep.” I shifted uncomfortably in the seat, keeping my eyes half lidded and starred at the table.

  ”Good-“ He froze. “Er, not good. Sorry. I meant it's good for your SIGIL. Having as many background details as possible is good- ugh, age?”

  Never polite to ask a lady her age. Didn’t he know that? I thought Bastion ran off the same logic. “Seventeen-“

  He cut me off in surprise. ”Really?! I thought you'd be a bit older?”

  “…” I shrugged. I guess I aged well? And, well, I’d regressed quite a bit when I came here? For the better, considering my state back there… seventeen centuries took a toll. Especially the later ones when everything fell apart.

  Sergei tapped away, muttering under his breath. “And you look human enough.”

  Looks could be deceiving. Not that I said anything. Most humans also weren’t cursed like I was. I was closer to a human than anything else, at least. Or had been at one point in the distant past.

  The dark elf clapped his hands and leaned back. “Okay! I talked about this with the Miix, but your background is set as a pioneer who recently returned to Bastion. It’ll give a likely excuse for why your SIGIL was so empty. Your family all died out there, leaving you as the last of your kin. Sounds good?”

  “Yep.” Hadn’t really thought of all that. SIGILs were supposed to keep records of everything, so of course it’d look suspicious if mine was blank.

  We continued going back and forth for a few hours, polishing ‘my’ backstory. After typing in the last of the information he needed, Sergei pulled on a pair of black surgical gloves. “All set. Just need to actually implant it. Take off your hoodie.”

  ”…?” I squinted at him, reaching down below the table. A thing strand of Ebonshroud flowed out.

  “Um- sorry.” He raised his hands and turned around, giving me a bit of privacy. ”I need access to your back to implant the SIGIL. Lay down on the table when you're ready.”

  Right. Yeah, that made sense. I turned around and pulled my hoodie and shirt off, lying down. A moment later, Sergei started to move. He pressed what looked a bit like a large brand into the middle of my back. Ether condensed from the machines inside the silver suitcase. He fiddled around with the machine, causing it to fluctuate.

  I forced myself to remain still. Part of me, a very large part of me, wanted to hop off the table and flee from the situation. Giving access to my back so easily... I barely managed to avoid flinching when he pressed the brand onto my back further

  His eyes flicked to my trembling hands. ”This part is the core of the SIGIL.”

  The ether was carefully controlled, creating an ether core just below my skin. Ebonshroud writhed underneath in complaint, just as uncomfortable with the process as I was. I carefully shifted it away into other sections of my body, leaving my back completely bare. No idea what most of that stuff was, and it probably wouldn’t be good to interfere with the process?

  The brand punched down, hitting my back with force. The ether core solidified. He pulled back and grabbed what looked like a letter punch with a tube connecting back to the machine. “This is to fill in the basic data. Your name, species, age, sex, and all that simple stuff.”

  He pressed the punch just above the newly implanted SIGIL core, and I felt a burst of ether shoot down into my back. It wasn't exactly painful, but kinda numbing? And cold. It felt unbearably cold. He rapidly moved between different punches and filled out information on the core.

  ”Okay, that’s what newborns have right there. Now’s where it gets difficult.” Sergei put most of the tools away, this time grabbing a needle. His hand split into mechanical parts, creating a stabilizing bipod centered around the chrome. Looked like it might help with precision.

  “Why?”

  “It just takes a while.” He sighed and shook his head. “This might sting a bit. Think of it as… getting a tattoo? Ah, but don’t worry. It’ll be completely invisible once its done.”

  It did, indeed, take a long time. The dark elf had to manually set and adjust the SIGIL’s information. It did look—and I imagine felt—like getting a tattoo. Every prick of the needle stung slightly, though it wasn’t too bad. He continued talking to me through the process the entire time like he was trying to calm a wild colt.

  Once he finished, he collapsed back into the booth, entirely drained. He draped an arm over his face, covering his eyes. “All set.”

  I redressed and curiously looked at him. “…?”

  He pulled off his gloves and wiped sweat from his brow. “Just need to test it. Um- think about needing your ID and focus on your hand.”

  I followed his directions. A moment later, a black mass of runes, complicated arrays, and ether circles popped out of my hand. It looked just the same as other civilian SIGILs I’d seen around. I felt a tingle in the middle of my back when I held my information out..

  ”Anyone with SIGIL permissions can scan that, and anyone with an ID scanner can get your basic information-“ He went on to run me through the SIGIL, its features, and hidden gimmicks. Most of it was at least decently useful. The most important parts were by far the internal banking system of SIGILs and the ID, though.

  ”Under law, you must show it to one of Throne’s agents if we ask. Otherwise, if you don’t want someone scanning you, don’t show it.” He started cleaning up the SIGIL machinery. “Oh, and keep people away from your back. There's some… unscrupulous methods to forcibly read a SIGIL, though they’re rare.”

  “Thanks.” I nodded to the man and stood up, feeling my skin pull weirdly where the SIGIL was implanted. Ebonshroud danced around it, seemingly trying to get used to the new ether core in my back. It wasn’t physical core, but I could definitely still feel it. I guess I was now a legal citizen of Bastion.

  ”Go on up.” Sergei waved a hand. He carefully wiped off the needle of the tattoo device he’d spent hours holding. “I’ll follow once I get everything packed back up.”

  I left the Turquoise Booth and headed back up to Pursius’s office. Francis let me in right away this time.

  Pursius looked up from his documents, eyeing me. “Did it go well?”

  ”…!” I summoned forth my new SIGIL, showing it off. I have to admit, they were seriously cool. And it’d be so much easier than having to carry around a dozen shards to pay for stuff. Glad I let the cat talk me into getting one, yep.

  “Good… about registering.” He sighed, nodding his head to one of the chairs scattered about his office. “Be careful. From what I’ve heard, it's best to play your cards close to your chest when you go to the Bureau. Do you have any Skills yet?”

  ”Sword. Basic.” It seemed decently useful at a glance.

  “Right…” His amber eyes shifted out the window to the popping club down below. His whiskers twitched, a tell-tale sign he was thinking deeply about something.

  ”…?” I sat down in the chair and tilted my head toward the cat.

  His tail flicked. ”Listen, I got another job… D-rank rift tonight. A fireteam needs a Vanguard. Don’t worry about registering, you won’t need to for this one.”

  My confusion deepened. D-rank was a step up from F. It'd probably be a bit of a challenge compared to the last time. Then again, it would be with a proper fireteam. Three of us would make it much easier. And I wouldn’t have to deal with any resurgences now that the OS would protect me.

  The real issue was why Pursius was bringing this up with me. I’d done research recently. A lot of it, to be frank. There were plenty of resources, Warden forums, and even an official Throne-certified app used to look for groups. Not to mention all the agencies and guilds out there. So… that left just a few options, really.

  Pursius’s ears twitched and he glanced toward the door. “This group is… well, they’re like the last group you went with. Good with that?”

  Ah, Obsidio’s group? Anarchs... Well, I guess that explained why they couldn’t go through the usual methods. What rift were they going for? Most permanent type rifts were guarded pretty heavily by whoever owned them. Only Throne-certified Wardens were allowed into them. Assuming the rift was a permanent type, at least.

  “Yep.” Anarchs- Wardens- what was the difference? Well- there was a difference. Nytes were Nytes though. And I needed Nytes. A lot of them. My debt was now fifty thousand higher…

  ”Need anything for it? Weapons? Med-patches? Armor?” The usually stoic cat’s whiskers twitched as he starte mewing nonstop.

  I patted his head lightly. “Be. Fine.”

  I had weapons handled with Ebonshroud. Med-patches were handy, but I had some at home. Armor? Hmm… actual enchanted and forged Warden items were expensive. I could probably get by with some ballistic armor. Then again, I could just not get hit. I wasn't sure, but I could probably handle Disruptive just fine, too. Sure, I was vastly weakened since coming to Bastion, but I wasn’t that weak.

  “If you’re sure-“ He cut himself off when Francis knocked on the door. “Come in!”

  Sergei stepped into the office with his large silver briefcase. “All done.”

  Pursius nodded to me. “I’ll send you a message about it later. Need to talk to Sergei about some things.” ‘Alone.’

  He was kicking me out, yep. I rubbed at my wrist and stood up, heading for the door. I had things to do too. “Bye.”