Howard looked at Steve. He didn’t take his eyes off the tablet and shrugged his shoulders. Howard sighed and stood up.

	“Well, to be honest, we’re not quite sure. We can make a guess based off of what we’ve observed of you so far as well as looking through the records we already have on you, but we can’t really say anything for sure,” Howard said. Trod felt angry - he had been torn from his life and this entire thing thrust upon him. He thought that the least they could do was give him some answers.

	“What do you mean not within your reach? Aren’t you supposed to at least know that stuff? How are you supposed to help the people of the Gemlands if you don’t even know what’s going to happen?” He quickly snapped and raised his voice.

	“Well, I thought I was clear on that - we’re not necessarily here to help. Just observe. The Director might have that power, but not us,” Howard said and shrugged his shoulders. Trod sighed and felt helplessness wash over him. All three of them sat silently in front of the map table, Trod trying to collect his thoughts and the two demi-divine beings monitoring his feelings. 

	“Alright, well, what do you think I’ll be?” Trod asked after a few minutes. Howard beckoned for the thin board that Steve was holding. He handed it over and Howard swiped all along it, his eyes rapidly moving up and down the device. Again, there was a silence among them. But this time, Trod felt more hopeful. He thought that if they could at least give him some sort of hint then he would be able to fill in some blanks.

        He got up and walked over to the other two. They didn’t mind him as he looked over the board that they were examining. There were blocks of texts that Trod couldn’t read. But, he recognized it as the language used by the ancient people after many attempts of analyzing them in the library. He was amazed at how the small board had so much writing, making paragraphs disappear to the top and more appear at the bottom. What shocked him even more was how quickly Howard was reading through everything. Then, he looked at Steve who was watching him and taking notes on a stack of paper. His upfront attitude about observing made Trod reel back a little bit. But after a few minutes of reading, Howard spoke up.

	“From my years of experience here, based on what we’ve gathered here, and the records we have on you…” Howard bit his lip and quietly mumbled something to himself before continuing. “I would say some sort of support role? Maybe a marker or a guide for one of the major catalysts? Maybe even a provider of something useful to them?”

	Trod felt himself calm down a little more. At least he wasn’t a harbinger of doom and destruction.

	“Who’s going to destroy the world, then?” He asked.

	“Well, we don’t know if there’s actually going to be an attempt at a catastrophe or renaissance. That’s why we use the term catalyst, more neutral sounding term,” Howard said, still mumbling while looking over the board. Trod felt even more hopeful. He thought that perhaps he might be able to be a scholar in Highpine’s Academic Order and make a discovery that would propel Highpine into an even more advanced age. The thought made him smile and he looked at Steve. He was still taking notes. But this time, he had a small smile on his face.

	“What sort of event am I to be involved in?” Trod asked excitedly.

	“Well, we can’t say for sure. But with the way the office has been running recently, I’d say it’s a catastrophic event coming,” Howard said, disappointed but distracted by what ws on the board. Trod felt his smile disappear immediately. The two demi-divine beings could feel the panic rising from him. Howard hurriedly pushed the board back to Steve and stood up to give Trod a glass of water. 

	Trod held the glass, but didn’t take a drink. Instead, he stood still and his breathing became rapid. Howard quickly pulled a chair out and gestured to Trod to take a seat. When he tried to move, he collapsed to the floor.

	Steve rushed over and helped him up onto the chair, but Trod felt weak and couldn’t hold himself up.

	“I’m going to be a part of a catastrophic event? Didis forgive me, am I going to be helping it along?” Trod asked. The first things he thought of was that he was going to accidentally start a revolution, or that he would discover something ancient and powerful that someone would steal, or that he would be blackmailed if he were to gain any sort of power.

	“We don’t have that information, Trod. But if I were to make a guess based off of what we know about you and what we’ve seen today, then you’re a part of the side that will resist against the catastrophe,” Howard said with a gentle smile. Trod’s breathing slowed down and he nodded his head.

	“Will I at least know or get a feeling if something wrong happens?” Trod asked. Howard shook his head and Trod felt his heart sink. He didn’t want to be a part of this. It was too much for his mind.

	“I think that we’ve gathered all we can or need, right, Howard?” Steve asked gently. Howard looked at him, surprised at his forwardness. But he nodded his head in agreement.

	“You’re probably right. No need to drag this out any longer. In fact, it would probably be cruel of us to. Go ahead and prep him for return to the Gemlands, I’m going to inform the Communications Department that we’re done here,” Howard said while walking up a staircase. Steve nodded and diligently watched as Howard opened a door into nothingness and disappeared.

	Immediately, Steve turned his attention back to the board and began tapping away at it.

	“But I have so many questions,” Trod said in a shaky voice.

	“I know. But don’t worry, you’ve got me. Are you still full from your meal earlier?” Steve asked. Trod nodded his head and Steve finished tapping at the board. A small slip of paper appeared in his hands.

	“What’s that?” Trod asked as Steve stuffed it into Trod’s pocket.

	“Non-departmental paper. It’s from your world. Do me a favor and just remember how that full feeling really quick, alright? Really think about it and set it into your brain,” Steve said, as he vanished the board away. Trod focused on his stomach and imagined the meat and wine sitting nice and snug in his stomach.

“Good luck out there, Trod. A lot of us here really are rooting for you,” Steve said.

	Before Trod could say anything, Steve snapped his fingers.

	Trod blinked and hugged the loaf of bread against his chest. For a moment, he didn’t know where he was running to. He looked and saw the bridge he had to cross to get to the intertree apartments. He glanced at the towers in the distance and imagined that they were on fire and above the tower were unspeakable creatures raining destruction down onto Highpine. But when he blinked again, he saw that the towers were fine and the sky was clear. His first feeling was horror. But he pushed the feeling away and ran. He wasn’t hungry, but he knew he would be later, so it would be worth it to run from the Guardians right now.

	He crossed the bridge and ran into between an alley that led to his apartment. He peeked around the corner and saw that no one was following. A sigh escaped him and he relaxed, digging a hand into his tunic pocket before proceeding home. There, he found a note that he didn’t remember writing during his last trip the library. He took it out and read it.

	“Catastrophe imminent. Proceed to the Guild of Frontline Responders.”