Overload

Shimiko waited in a large conference with a sea of reports in front of her. An outpost had gone down in the north of the country. Normally, this wasn't too surprising but because of the war and the anamalous nature of the storm she'd need to send someone to deal with it on short notice. She picked Yenn because she needed to get Tamwyn's death off of the girl's mind. The Inazuma was powerful and if channeled appropriately she could be a potent weapon for the village. However, that meant getting her out of her grief and on her feet.

Yenn had been summoned by Shimiko, and she was more than a bit worried. She couldn’t be sure if she was going to be in trouble for something, chastised, maybe even discharged from the military. Leaving the twins, Chloe and Damien, with their nanny she made her way to the Defense Coordination Center. She was dressed in her usual black leather outfit and her gauntlet on her arm, tucked into her boot was her hunting knife, and otherwise she looked like a relatively normal woman. If said woman was also a goth cat burglar with a leather fetish.

She was directed to a conference room when she arrived and she made her way in, knocking lightly with her gloved hand on the door as she opened it. She’d barely slept in weeks, and the tiredness showed under her eyes. But she put on a brave face so as not to show weakness, again, in front of the Honey Badger. Closing the door behind her she would bow formally and announce herself to the blonde woman. “You summoned me, Shimiko-san?”

Shimiko looked up as she heard the knock. When Yenn entered, Shimiko hid any concern from her face. If she expressed doubt in Yenn's ability to handle this mission then the girl herself might not want to take part in it. She could immediately tell that the she was sleep deprived. She knew from first-hand experience how hard childbirth could be on a woman's body. She couldn't imagine what delivering twins were like. Her own had been adopted and she was quite thankful for that. Then there was the fact that Yenn had to suffer through all of that pain without her husband, a man she truly loved and cared for.

Its no wonder she's not sleeping.....

Shimiko kept these thoughts to herself though. Instead, she stood up straight and pointed to a circle place on the map before her.

"Yes. I have a mission for you Yenn." There was no "if you're feeling up for " or "should you choose to accept it." The Inazuma's power was undeniable and if this war continued then she'd need it on her side. This mission would be a good beta test to see how much Yenn could be relied on in combat. "There has been a series of unusual storms in northern Kaminari. Right here. They aren't the sort we are used to seeing but that in of itself isn't too rare in these parts. They have a more windy character to them but maybe you could clear it up or at least get through so as to check up on the outpost that we have there. Unfortunately, this can't wait. Since we're at war we need all outposts running at 100% operational capacity that means you need to leave immediately."

Shimiko's voice was tough and stern. She wanted to hug Yenn and tell her that everything would be alright. She had comforted the girl in the weeks after her husband's death. They weren't close but Tamwyn appeared to be a loyal and dutiful soldier, the least she could do was not abandon his widow. However, the time for grief had passed. Shimiko had lost her best friend to cosmic forces and while it hurt, she could not leave the project of the Kingdom of Thunder on its back. If she had to fight through the inconsolable feelings of loss then so would Yenn.

Yenn noted the lack of a request when Shimiko spoke. And frankly she was glad for it. While a very large part of her wanted to continue to grieve and recover, the opportunity to just get back to work and do something she was actually good at, was most welcome. She had spent weeks torn between wanting to end her life and wanting to end the lives of everyone around her. She was nothing if not melodramatic. Obviously she had at least not done the former as she was currently standing in front of her superior, but it was never far from her mind. Just as it had been ever present before she had met Tamwyn.

The only thing that had stayed her hand had been the thought of her children. Yenn hadn’t had anyone need her before. She had always been the one that needed protection or comfort or love. Chloe and Damien were her life now, quite literally. She gave them everything she had, she ate and slept and fought for them. She had only hired a nanny at the suggestion of one of her staff, after another sleepless night staying up with the twins and then an early training session where she had hurt herself due to her tiredness; getting help had become a necessity. The decision was remarkably well timed it seemed, as without the nanny she would either have to turn down this mission or figure out how to bring Chloe and Damien with her. In some sort of backpack perhaps. . .

As Shimiko explained the mission parameters to her, her interest piqued. ‘A storm. . . no wonder they sent for me.’ It was likely that this sudden ‘mission assignment’ was nothing more than a ploy to get her out of her grief and back into the field. Which, she supposed, it could still be. But also getting an Inazuma to investigate storms just made sense. So whether there was some ‘help the poor grieving widow’ ulterior motive, the mission itself was right up her alley and she nodded firmly.

“At once, Shimiko-san. Consider it done. As soon as I arrive at the outpost and assess the situation I’ll send a report. Hopefully it’s just a radio tower gone out, or a bad enough storm that the locals are just waiting it out. If it isn’t though, rest assured I will handle it.” Her voice held a confidence that she didn’t quite feel, but she wanted to try to match Shimiko’s stern and businesslike manner. Yenn’s mind raced with preparations she had to make before leaving, and what exactly ‘immediately’ meant and how far she could push that. The only thing she really needed to do was send word to her nanny that she’d been called away for a mission. That could be accomplished by messenger though. ‘Yeah, okay. I’ll send a messenger.’

She would bow respectfully and unless Shimiko had anything else to add, Yenn would exit the room, closing the door quietly behind her. She took only an extra minute or two to write a quick note and hand a few coins to a messenger to send word to Chloe and Damien’s nanny. Then she made her way to the gates.

Note:

[Exit]

Shimiko was glad to see that Yenn did not resist the mission. It'd be awkward for her to force a grieving window into a mission but it was something that she would do. Kumo came before everything else, even their own personal trials and tribulations. Fortunately, there was no need for such unpleasantness. Yenn's eagerness meant that she too wanted to get out of the mental rut she had been in. It was much easier to help someone off their feet when they wanted to. Shimiko gave her knowing grin and returned the bow. "I look forward to hearing your report"

This might be easier than I thought.

Shimiko went back to doing her ANBU work and eventually called it a day and retired to her Tower.

[Exit]