Storyteller's Universe // Two Percent
Disciplinary Action



“That Carla girl is a piece of work, isn’t she?”

Sybil carefully stepped through her portal, closing it behind her. Hearing Damon soured the smug grin she was previously sporting.

“You’re a piece of work too, Carla’s they/them ya dipshit. Get in the car, you’re driving.”

“How the hell was I supposed to know?”

“By reading the manilla folders you’re handed before the job, that’d be a good start. It’s on the sticker on the front, smack dab in the middle.”

They both get in the black sedan and fasten their seatbelts. Damon is adjusting the seat, Sybil is fixing her hair in the sun visor mirror.

“Had to listen to them yammer on and on how much of a fuckwit ya are and I found it hard to disagree with. Ya pretended to happen upon them by chance, really?”

“Okay, listen, first of all, I--”

“Nah, nah, I ain’t listening. Ya can’t pretend you’re there by chance, then claim ya done your homework and then also mix up pronouns, we’re trying to recruit serious people so don’t act like a clown.”

“Please, let me--”

“Did ya really try to pull a gun on them in the middle of the diner? Just because you’re threatening someone capable of serious abracadabra, doesn’t mean veiled onlookers won’t notice a goddamn Glock. That’s not how any of this works. Did ya sleep through all your lectures?”

“Sybil.”

“Just wait till-- drive in that direction --wait till Axel hears about this, he’ll be thrilled to find out how off he was in predictions about ya. The protocol for these recruitment missions ain’t even--”

“SYBIL.”

Sybil puts her phone in the stand, with a route punched into navigation. The squirrel refuses to look at the jean-clad lemming and focuses her gaze on a car in front of them on the highway.

“You’re one to talk about protocol of all things, didn’t you just exchange favors with a potential recruit? Didn’t you just help them move hundreds of kilometers in an instant, allowing them an easy escape? And you failed to recruit either of them too.”

Sybil raises her hand and rhythmically raps her knuckles against the side window.

“Carla’s a thaumaturge, Axel doesn’t give a shit. And no, I got portals all over Paris, we can easily get there in a few seconds, they didn’t get away at all.”

“Still, you recruited fuck all today.”

“Maybe not today, but when I’ll be doing the report, I will write a poem about how intel came in handy to sell Shae on the whole recruitment thing.”

The smug smile returns to her face.

“Let me tell ya, I saw the glint in her eye, she’ll be giving us a call real soon. Good luck explaining your side of this mess though.”

Sybil turns on the radio and immediately turns the volume down, just to have some noise in the background. She doesn’t understand the local news station, but the music at least is universal.

“Speaking of following up on Shae, did ya do your thing?”

“I didn’t get to touch anything valuable to her, just gave Shae my business card and I’m tracking that.”

“Good, if I convinced her enough despite Carla getting all up in my shit, she’ll carry it on her.”

Damon nods, the first thing today he wasn’t scolded for.

“And what about our next steps?”

“We’re leaving the car where we picked it up from, the rest is up to Axel.”

For a few seconds there’s an uncomfortable silence in the car. Well, it’s uncomfortable for Damon.

“By the way, the protocol says what we should do before the mission, in the field we’re free to do whatever we want as long as it’s towards the goal. Bettin’ fifty ya haven’t read that either.”

“I’m not betting anything.”

“Knew it. I ain’t teaching newbies ever again.”