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Chapter 14
18 February 2013: Washington DC
CHANGELING APPOINTED TO TOP SECURITY POST
The President announced today that Thomas Donilon was resigning from the post of National Security Advisor for personal reasons. His replacement will be Dr. Janet Lowe, who had been an associate professor in history at Virginia Tech before the Change. She has been working with the military Changeling program for the past month...
* * * *
“Gentlemen, ladies, please be seated.” The President took his own seat at the head of the conference table, while at the door a human and a badger-morph in the black suits of the secret service detail stood guard. “I don’t intend to keep you long, but this conversation needs to be kept secure – and right now, there may not be any secure communications. By now, all of our major headquarters buildings should be, ‘warded’ I believe is the word?” He looked to the witch seated beside his new National Security Adviser.
Stardancer nodded. “Most of them, sir. FBI, CIA, DEA, the Pentagon of course – that was the easiest – Homeland Security, the Capitol and all of the Congressional office buildings, NGA, Treasury, DIA, Army, and ONI. Camp David has its own security measures, I understand. The State Department has not allowed us access yet.”
The President glared at the head of the INR, the State Department’s in-house intelligence service. “Why not?”
Director Alex Carson squirmed nervously under that scrutiny. “Sir, we’re working on our own countermeasures--"
The President interrupted him. “Using what resources? CIA was the only group still funding research into such things before New Year’s Day. I’m not putting up with turf-guarding by bureaucrats, Carson. She gets her team in there no later than the end of the week, or heads will start rolling. Starting with yours and moving up the line, if necessary.”
The man nodded, looking miserable. “Yes, sir.”
The President relaxed his glare slightly. “If your superiors try to delay you, tell me and only higher heads will roll. This is important, Carson. Any questions?” He looked around the table and gave a curt nod. “Good. Now that that’s settled, I’d like you to meet my new National Security Adviser, Dr. Janet Lowe--" she dipped her muzzle in acknowledgment. “--and a brand new position, my Paranormal Liaison, Stardancer.” The redheaded witch nodded in turn. “Donilon couldn’t handle the job since things Changed, so I decided to find someone who would probably be more open-minded about things. The NSA will be reporting directly to me on all paranormal matters. I expect everyone here to pass any paranormal information to her office, no matter how weird or seemingly absurd, subject only to the usual caveats about protection of sources. We need to get a better feel for the new situation. Any questions?”
The DEA chief cleared his throat. “What are we supposed to do about the Mexican border? The Border Patrol can't even track some of the Changelings, and it’s leaking like a sieve. Our neighbors to the south have a lot more of them than we do, and they’re under a lot more pressure – the government down there seems to be under attack by them.”
“It is,” Stardancer noted. “One of the Immortals wants to take over.”
The man stared at her. “Immortals?”
The President interrupted. “She’ll brief you when we’re done here.” He turned to the Immigration Service head. “Tell the Border Patrol to do the best they can. We’re more concerned about paranormals getting through, both Changed and otherwise. Normal humans are likely true refugees, Mexico is in meltdown right now. Anything else?” No one else asked anything. “Then I’ll let Ms. Stardancer brief you. I’ve got a press conference to deal with.”
The President left the room, and Stardancer stood up. “I’ve prepared a summary of what we know about the current Immortals, and what the likely new threats will be. You each should have a folder with the detailed information, but I'd like to do a brief overview first. Starting with the Kraken that the Navy fought two weeks ago...”
* * * *
The witch and the wolf headed for the National Security Adviser’s office when the meeting was finally over. Lowe closed the door behind her and waved Stardancer to a seat. “What a zoo. Half of them still don’t believe I’m real, let alone what you told them.”
Stardancer nodded. “So what did you and your familiar find out about them?”
Lowe stared at the witch. “Familiar?”
The witch pointed at the wolf’s arm. “That thing on your wrist.”
The wolf pulled the sleeve of her jacket back. “The comp-link? Why’d you call it a familiar?”
Stardancer smiled. “Because it is. I was part of the team that evaluated you for the President, you realize? You enjoyed fantasy before the Change, Janet, but at heart you were a skeptic. So your abilities took a form you could accept – psionic powers and a high-tech computer link, rather than magic and a familiar. That link gives you access to the Net no matter where you are, regardless of hot-spots, and it goes through most security protocols like a hot knife through butter. But the Change wasn’t technological. You’re a specialist in information magic - divination - and that’s your familiar spirit. It boosts your abilities.”
Lowe sat down. “That’s... that’s altogether too likely to be true. At least I’m in the right job now, eh? I’ve always been a data junkie.”
“In our own ways, we both are. I haven’t quite figured out your boyfriend yet, though.” The witch sat down. “Now, to business. First impressions of our colleagues?”
Lowe settled down and pulled out the notes she’d taken. “Let’s see... CIA seems to be on board with the program.”
Stardancer snickered. “Of course. He’s the one I was working for. CIA’s smelling like roses right now, braving the sneers of Congress to keep my now-essential program running all those years. What about the rest?”
“Military seems to be adjusting well to the new situation. They’ve had their noses rubbed in it, of course, out at the sharp end of the spear. State is pathetic. Nothing new there. DEA is hoping someone will wave a wand - sorry - and make things like they were before, but doesn’t actually believe it will happen, the way State does. ICE is just overwhelmed, not that I blame them.”
“And the FBI chief? I got the impression he was none too happy about you taking over NSA.”
Lowe shook her head. “He has to go. He’s as bad as Donilon, and he’s got more power. Don’t know if it’s religious in nature, or just human chauvinism, but he hates me, he hates you, and I caught some hints of worry when I hinted at an independent investigation into how the Draft Act was being implemented. I’ll give the President a call about him, and then I have to meet my own department heads and see how much fumigation this office needs. He gave me carte blanche to transfer anyone suspect to harmless duties elsewhere if they’re too high up to just fire. Given Donilon’s attitude, I suspect that Agriculture and Labor are about to get a large influx of GS-12 and above...”
* * * *
The two wolves entered the room together. The gray one took up a guard position by the door; the white one walked to the head of the conference table. “Please be seated, ladies and gentlemen.” She sat down and waited a moment while the rest followed her lead. “By now, you should have had a chance to read the memo I sent out. I realize I got promoted over a lot of heads. The President’s statement gives his reasons for that. Believe me, it wasn’t my idea, but I am damned well going to do my best to do the job he wants done. Anyone who feels that they will not be able to work with me is free to leave without prejudice and transfer to another department.” She paused, looking at each of her new subordinates in turn, and then sighed. “What is not in the public memo is that I, like many of the Changelings, have certain... abilities. Mine will assist me in this job. What, specifically, those abilities are is not within your need to know. The raw fact that I have such abilities does not leave this room. Is that understood?” She waited for the nods. “Good. At least you’re all being honest about that.” She pointed at three of them in turn. “Scaparelli, Kovalchik, Miller. I was quite serious about leaving the department if you do not feel you can work with me. You have two days to transfer without prejudice. If you do not, you will be fired at the first hint that you have not been able to overcome your current attitudes.”
Scaparelli’s face went white. Miller’s would have done the same, but in his case it wasn’t really possible. Kovalchik’s went red. “Ms. Lowe! You are my lawfully appointed superior, and I respect the President’s decision. You have no reason to try to sabotage my career like this! If you fire me for no reason, I’ll see you in court!”
The wolf’s tone was dry. “That’s Doctor Lowe to you, Ms. Kovalchik. You know as well as I do that there will be no court hearing if I have to fire you. This is the NSA, not the Post Office. In case you believed my comment about special abilities to be a bluff, I should point out that I also have the President’s authorization to fire everyone in the Agency if I feel it is needed, for any reason or none at all.” She stood and leaned forward over the conference table, the quiet voice developing a growl behind the words. “You do not need to like me. But if you lie to me again, you will find yourself in a North Dakota field office of the Department of Agriculture within the week.” Her gaze swept the table, lingering on the other two she’d singled out. “If any of you try to sabotage the work of the Agency to make me look bad, you will find yourself in Leavenworth faster than you can say ‘White-furred bitch’. Because I am. And because I will find out. Do we understand each other?”
There were nervous nods this time. Kovalchik shrank back in her chair. Lowe sat down again, her tone conversational. “Good. Things have been shaken up badly, and everything we thought we knew is quite possibly wrong, people.” She held up a clawed thick-furred hand. “As my very appearance should indicate. We need to establish what is going on in the world today, and preconceptions based on the pre-Change reality are going to hinder us. The first things I want on my desk are any studies, any data, any hints, of odd goings-on that my predecessor didn’t want to hear about. There are new Powers in the world - well, old ones reawakening if we want to be accurate - and ignoring them is not going to make them go away. The one known as Quetzalcoatl is on our southern border. From what we’ve found out already, the Aztec mythology gave him a much nicer reputation than he deserves, and the DIA suspects him of the attacks on Mexico City and Norfolk and one of the attacks on the Pentagon, as well as the assassinations of President Obama, Vice-President Biden, and half of their Cabinet. The briefing documents I received from Dr. Richardson do not even mention him, nor the paranormal nature of the events in question. This is not acceptable. You are used to having the luxury of being citizens and guardians of the most advanced nation in the world. But we are far from being the most advanced nation in terms of magic, and technology is not always effective against it. New habits, people. We need to see the world as it is, not as it was. I want a synopsis of everything you have that Donilon wouldn’t believe by Thursday morning. And if there’s anything you think needs immediate attention, I want to hear it now.”
Fuller, the CIA liaison, cleared his throat. “This may relate directly to Quetzalcoatl, Dr. Lowe. One of our clairvoyants says that he may know where he is.”
The wolf’s ears flicked forward. “Where? And how?”
“In the desert near Torreon, at the Durango-Coahuila border. He says it looks empty, and everybody else agrees. He also claims that he’s never seen it change.”
Lowe slitted her eyes. “He’s looking at it in detail, then? Nothing at all changes, dunes, trees, animal movements?”
The fellow nodded. “That’s part of it. There’s no animals that he can see. Just plants, and they don’t change while he’s watching. Every now and then it changes while he’s not looking, he says.”
Lowe nodded. “That’s exactly the sort of thing we should be finding out about, people. The President needs to know what his options are if Quetzal gets too dangerous, and he’s got a lot more options if we know where the snake is. You’ve all been sent the information that Stardancer has developed from her research. We need to know about all of these entities. She looked around the room. "Anything else?" No one volunteered anything. "Then get back to your offices and pass on the new directive, people. Donilon's wasted six weeks already. Let's start getting good information to the President again."
18 February 2013: Washington DC
CHANGELING APPOINTED TO TOP SECURITY POST
The President announced today that Thomas Donilon was resigning from the post of National Security Advisor for personal reasons. His replacement will be Dr. Janet Lowe, who had been an associate professor in history at Virginia Tech before the Change. She has been working with the military Changeling program for the past month...
* * * *
“Gentlemen, ladies, please be seated.” The President took his own seat at the head of the conference table, while at the door a human and a badger-morph in the black suits of the secret service detail stood guard. “I don’t intend to keep you long, but this conversation needs to be kept secure – and right now, there may not be any secure communications. By now, all of our major headquarters buildings should be, ‘warded’ I believe is the word?” He looked to the witch seated beside his new National Security Adviser.
Stardancer nodded. “Most of them, sir. FBI, CIA, DEA, the Pentagon of course – that was the easiest – Homeland Security, the Capitol and all of the Congressional office buildings, NGA, Treasury, DIA, Army, and ONI. Camp David has its own security measures, I understand. The State Department has not allowed us access yet.”
The President glared at the head of the INR, the State Department’s in-house intelligence service. “Why not?”
Director Alex Carson squirmed nervously under that scrutiny. “Sir, we’re working on our own countermeasures--"
The President interrupted him. “Using what resources? CIA was the only group still funding research into such things before New Year’s Day. I’m not putting up with turf-guarding by bureaucrats, Carson. She gets her team in there no later than the end of the week, or heads will start rolling. Starting with yours and moving up the line, if necessary.”
The man nodded, looking miserable. “Yes, sir.”
The President relaxed his glare slightly. “If your superiors try to delay you, tell me and only higher heads will roll. This is important, Carson. Any questions?” He looked around the table and gave a curt nod. “Good. Now that that’s settled, I’d like you to meet my new National Security Adviser, Dr. Janet Lowe--" she dipped her muzzle in acknowledgment. “--and a brand new position, my Paranormal Liaison, Stardancer.” The redheaded witch nodded in turn. “Donilon couldn’t handle the job since things Changed, so I decided to find someone who would probably be more open-minded about things. The NSA will be reporting directly to me on all paranormal matters. I expect everyone here to pass any paranormal information to her office, no matter how weird or seemingly absurd, subject only to the usual caveats about protection of sources. We need to get a better feel for the new situation. Any questions?”
The DEA chief cleared his throat. “What are we supposed to do about the Mexican border? The Border Patrol can't even track some of the Changelings, and it’s leaking like a sieve. Our neighbors to the south have a lot more of them than we do, and they’re under a lot more pressure – the government down there seems to be under attack by them.”
“It is,” Stardancer noted. “One of the Immortals wants to take over.”
The man stared at her. “Immortals?”
The President interrupted. “She’ll brief you when we’re done here.” He turned to the Immigration Service head. “Tell the Border Patrol to do the best they can. We’re more concerned about paranormals getting through, both Changed and otherwise. Normal humans are likely true refugees, Mexico is in meltdown right now. Anything else?” No one else asked anything. “Then I’ll let Ms. Stardancer brief you. I’ve got a press conference to deal with.”
The President left the room, and Stardancer stood up. “I’ve prepared a summary of what we know about the current Immortals, and what the likely new threats will be. You each should have a folder with the detailed information, but I'd like to do a brief overview first. Starting with the Kraken that the Navy fought two weeks ago...”
* * * *
The witch and the wolf headed for the National Security Adviser’s office when the meeting was finally over. Lowe closed the door behind her and waved Stardancer to a seat. “What a zoo. Half of them still don’t believe I’m real, let alone what you told them.”
Stardancer nodded. “So what did you and your familiar find out about them?”
Lowe stared at the witch. “Familiar?”
The witch pointed at the wolf’s arm. “That thing on your wrist.”
The wolf pulled the sleeve of her jacket back. “The comp-link? Why’d you call it a familiar?”
Stardancer smiled. “Because it is. I was part of the team that evaluated you for the President, you realize? You enjoyed fantasy before the Change, Janet, but at heart you were a skeptic. So your abilities took a form you could accept – psionic powers and a high-tech computer link, rather than magic and a familiar. That link gives you access to the Net no matter where you are, regardless of hot-spots, and it goes through most security protocols like a hot knife through butter. But the Change wasn’t technological. You’re a specialist in information magic - divination - and that’s your familiar spirit. It boosts your abilities.”
Lowe sat down. “That’s... that’s altogether too likely to be true. At least I’m in the right job now, eh? I’ve always been a data junkie.”
“In our own ways, we both are. I haven’t quite figured out your boyfriend yet, though.” The witch sat down. “Now, to business. First impressions of our colleagues?”
Lowe settled down and pulled out the notes she’d taken. “Let’s see... CIA seems to be on board with the program.”
Stardancer snickered. “Of course. He’s the one I was working for. CIA’s smelling like roses right now, braving the sneers of Congress to keep my now-essential program running all those years. What about the rest?”
“Military seems to be adjusting well to the new situation. They’ve had their noses rubbed in it, of course, out at the sharp end of the spear. State is pathetic. Nothing new there. DEA is hoping someone will wave a wand - sorry - and make things like they were before, but doesn’t actually believe it will happen, the way State does. ICE is just overwhelmed, not that I blame them.”
“And the FBI chief? I got the impression he was none too happy about you taking over NSA.”
Lowe shook her head. “He has to go. He’s as bad as Donilon, and he’s got more power. Don’t know if it’s religious in nature, or just human chauvinism, but he hates me, he hates you, and I caught some hints of worry when I hinted at an independent investigation into how the Draft Act was being implemented. I’ll give the President a call about him, and then I have to meet my own department heads and see how much fumigation this office needs. He gave me carte blanche to transfer anyone suspect to harmless duties elsewhere if they’re too high up to just fire. Given Donilon’s attitude, I suspect that Agriculture and Labor are about to get a large influx of GS-12 and above...”
* * * *
The two wolves entered the room together. The gray one took up a guard position by the door; the white one walked to the head of the conference table. “Please be seated, ladies and gentlemen.” She sat down and waited a moment while the rest followed her lead. “By now, you should have had a chance to read the memo I sent out. I realize I got promoted over a lot of heads. The President’s statement gives his reasons for that. Believe me, it wasn’t my idea, but I am damned well going to do my best to do the job he wants done. Anyone who feels that they will not be able to work with me is free to leave without prejudice and transfer to another department.” She paused, looking at each of her new subordinates in turn, and then sighed. “What is not in the public memo is that I, like many of the Changelings, have certain... abilities. Mine will assist me in this job. What, specifically, those abilities are is not within your need to know. The raw fact that I have such abilities does not leave this room. Is that understood?” She waited for the nods. “Good. At least you’re all being honest about that.” She pointed at three of them in turn. “Scaparelli, Kovalchik, Miller. I was quite serious about leaving the department if you do not feel you can work with me. You have two days to transfer without prejudice. If you do not, you will be fired at the first hint that you have not been able to overcome your current attitudes.”
Scaparelli’s face went white. Miller’s would have done the same, but in his case it wasn’t really possible. Kovalchik’s went red. “Ms. Lowe! You are my lawfully appointed superior, and I respect the President’s decision. You have no reason to try to sabotage my career like this! If you fire me for no reason, I’ll see you in court!”
The wolf’s tone was dry. “That’s Doctor Lowe to you, Ms. Kovalchik. You know as well as I do that there will be no court hearing if I have to fire you. This is the NSA, not the Post Office. In case you believed my comment about special abilities to be a bluff, I should point out that I also have the President’s authorization to fire everyone in the Agency if I feel it is needed, for any reason or none at all.” She stood and leaned forward over the conference table, the quiet voice developing a growl behind the words. “You do not need to like me. But if you lie to me again, you will find yourself in a North Dakota field office of the Department of Agriculture within the week.” Her gaze swept the table, lingering on the other two she’d singled out. “If any of you try to sabotage the work of the Agency to make me look bad, you will find yourself in Leavenworth faster than you can say ‘White-furred bitch’. Because I am. And because I will find out. Do we understand each other?”
There were nervous nods this time. Kovalchik shrank back in her chair. Lowe sat down again, her tone conversational. “Good. Things have been shaken up badly, and everything we thought we knew is quite possibly wrong, people.” She held up a clawed thick-furred hand. “As my very appearance should indicate. We need to establish what is going on in the world today, and preconceptions based on the pre-Change reality are going to hinder us. The first things I want on my desk are any studies, any data, any hints, of odd goings-on that my predecessor didn’t want to hear about. There are new Powers in the world - well, old ones reawakening if we want to be accurate - and ignoring them is not going to make them go away. The one known as Quetzalcoatl is on our southern border. From what we’ve found out already, the Aztec mythology gave him a much nicer reputation than he deserves, and the DIA suspects him of the attacks on Mexico City and Norfolk and one of the attacks on the Pentagon, as well as the assassinations of President Obama, Vice-President Biden, and half of their Cabinet. The briefing documents I received from Dr. Richardson do not even mention him, nor the paranormal nature of the events in question. This is not acceptable. You are used to having the luxury of being citizens and guardians of the most advanced nation in the world. But we are far from being the most advanced nation in terms of magic, and technology is not always effective against it. New habits, people. We need to see the world as it is, not as it was. I want a synopsis of everything you have that Donilon wouldn’t believe by Thursday morning. And if there’s anything you think needs immediate attention, I want to hear it now.”
Fuller, the CIA liaison, cleared his throat. “This may relate directly to Quetzalcoatl, Dr. Lowe. One of our clairvoyants says that he may know where he is.”
The wolf’s ears flicked forward. “Where? And how?”
“In the desert near Torreon, at the Durango-Coahuila border. He says it looks empty, and everybody else agrees. He also claims that he’s never seen it change.”
Lowe slitted her eyes. “He’s looking at it in detail, then? Nothing at all changes, dunes, trees, animal movements?”
The fellow nodded. “That’s part of it. There’s no animals that he can see. Just plants, and they don’t change while he’s watching. Every now and then it changes while he’s not looking, he says.”
Lowe nodded. “That’s exactly the sort of thing we should be finding out about, people. The President needs to know what his options are if Quetzal gets too dangerous, and he’s got a lot more options if we know where the snake is. You’ve all been sent the information that Stardancer has developed from her research. We need to know about all of these entities. She looked around the room. "Anything else?" No one volunteered anything. "Then get back to your offices and pass on the new directive, people. Donilon's wasted six weeks already. Let's start getting good information to the President again."
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