SoDo, Seattle - 1 April 2060 14:39

"I've got something I want to tell you"

"What?" I responded, frustrated with him.

"I'll tell you when you get here"

"That answer's not going to change is it?"

"Nope"

"Bye"

"Love you too"

I looked up back at my computer. I didn't have time for John's antics just yet.

The digital dossier revealed the faces of three middle-eastern looking men. All three were suspected agents of Al-Muhaymin, enemies of Cascadia, the Empire, and the world. We had raided their houses the day before but nothing had come of it - they were empty. I stared into their dark, unforgiving eyes, pondering what extremist ideals had pushed them into the godless realm of terrorism.

"Angel Starskitch?"

My name stole my attention. I spun around in my chair to the short, Asian man who had called it.

"Guardian Angel to you" I corrected.

"Sorry madam" I had the accent fixed for an Imperial one, I want to say Queensland. He continued: "Guardian Charlotte has requested a meeting between all Guardians on the case."

"What time?"

"Now."

"Aye-aye"

I spun back around in my chair and began to transfer the dossier files to my tablet before logging off. I rose and took a look out my window. It was raining as usual for springtime Cascadia, and the trees looked like the life was beginning to return to them, at least the ones that weren't luscious green year-round.

I need to talk to Charlie about moving my office. The other side of the building had a view of the Sound, which made me slightly jealous. These were the thoughts that ran through my mind as I took the short trip to the meeting room and took a seat.

The room had a glass table, and one wall of glass to match it that offered a view of the nearby interstate. A TV on one of the walls was reading off the news of an abdication in Eastern Europe. I was the first one here, as usual. Charlie was always late and who knows who else would show up?

Ten minutes later, the team was here. Guardians Eric, Alex, Jonathan, Max, and of course, Charlotte, sat around a table. The TV shut itself off and everyone synced their tablets to the table.

"We think they're planning an attack at Raining Man" Charlotte said, setting a dark tone for the meeting. That also was an unfortunate statement as that's were I was due to be in a couple hours' time.

"What makes you say that?" I responded. Charlie (I called her Charlie much to her annoyance, but officially, she was Charlotte) did some tapping on her tablet and several pages of data appeared on the table in front of us all. They detailed several emails. On one page, a soundclip began playing. Though the conversation was entirely in Arabic, subtitles had been provided. Reign shall fall today brother.

Wait did Charlie suspect a terrorist attack based off a pun?

"I don't think that pun works in Arabic" Alex said

"Of course not. They want us to come, they've proven arrogant before" I think Eric said that one.

"When was this recorded? And where was the number from?" I asked.

"Eleven hundred hours this morning from Everett" Charlie responded.

"Do police know?" Jonathan asked.

"Yes. We've checked for things everywhere and neither The Throne nor Cortana have seen anything suspicious."

As much as I didn't like Charlie, she did her damn job, which was more than could be said for a certain Max could say. She was also the only other person in the room to have earned an Emerald Fir. She'd never said how.

"Should we head out now?" I asked.

"Yes. Guardian Angel, you're with me and Guardian Max. Guardians Eric, Alex, and Jonathan, I want you in Everett, Bellevue, and Seattle respectively."

"Yes ma'am!" We all said before setting forth once more unto the breach.

Near Marysville - 1 April 2060 15:53

We had begun searching. The car ride to Marysville wasn't a long one, but it sure felt it. Things were tense.

Raining Man was a large music festival held every year here. Marysville was chosen because of the land availability. Eventually, there grew a point where one was too far from the Sound metro to bother living there, and Marysville was just beyond that point. As such, the land was flat, wet, and quite green. Nearly every year it had rained during the festival and the spirit of it meant that nobody wore jackets - it was a mother's worst nightmare.

John was here somewhere. We were supposed to have met but circumstances had dictated otherwise. I just hoped he didn't get too bored with Cake and do something stupid. Speaking of people and stupid, we had to make sure nobody knew about the potential plot. If the thousands gathered here caught wind of it, hell would break loose.

I had just finished checking the obvious places, that being, inside of bandvans and inside equipment bags. Nothing about the stereos reeked of suspicion however.

Security had made sure nothing obvious like a chest bomb got in, and Charlie and I would make sure nothing else obvious got through. I was worried about Max though. He was lazy about this sort of thing and maybe, just maybe, he may miss a bomb or suspect.

I got another message from Charlie that said to regroup near the entrance. A popular band had begun a performance and we would finally have a quiet place to meet since everyone else would be at the big concert. Unfortunately for me, it was my favorite band. John would be there too...

"Still nothing?" Charlie asked, looking at both Max and I.

"Nothing"

"Nada"

"Okay" Charlie continued, "we need to secure the perime-"

The most horrifying thing I'd ever smelled in my life was seared human flesh.

I was in the blast zone now, amongst a sea of screams and moans. People were beginning to rise and those who were fortunate enough to keep their legs had ran out. First responders were already here and starting to take care of the wounded. God knew how many had died.

One cry in familiar shook me to the core, and I immediately darted towards it.

The bloodied, now one-legged body of John West lay on his stomach. His back was a mix of charred skin and boiled blood. He looked up at me, and the saddest look filled his eyes.

"Angel..." he managed to say. I looked at him, and realized that he likely wouldn't make it. It was the worst feeling I'd ever felt. I saw him trying to grab something with his hand, a hand that a miracle alone had spared.

"John, I..." I then began calling for a fireman or paramedic or someone to change the inevitable fate. There are very few times in a Guardian's life that they are powerless. It's one of the founding principles we're based on.

John reached finally finished his final act, pulling something from the pocket by his only leg. He was struggling more now as he spoke his last words.

"Angel... Will.. Will you..." He began coughing as the small box he'd gone through such a Herculean effort to produce slipped from his grasp. His eyes followed the small, meticulously-designed diamond ring to its resting spot in some dirt.

His eyes never moved again.

I was compromised.

That's what Charlie had said when after she'd found me. I'd been placed in an ambulance, the same as any other festival goer that day had been. The only thing I could tell the paramedics was that I was Angel West, before the tears began. At first I thought it was the rain, as it was an unusual sensation to me.

Raining Man wasn't the only incident. They'd hit Portland and Bellevue too, some 2,000 killed and many more wounded. It was one of the worst days in Cascadian history, and one of the worst days of my life.

I had later been informed that Cortana had been deactivated that day as a joke by some MoT engineers.

Maybe 2,000 people didn't need to die that day, maybe, if not for an April Fool's joke, Al-Muhaymin would have been foiled that day.

That day it's so often referred to now.