Astrid's eyelids fluttered open at the feeling of sunlight hitting her face. As a veteran, she was accustomed to sleeping lightly - it had been years since she'd needed an alarm to wake up. Tossing her heated blanket to the side, she sat up in bed and ran her fingers through her milky hair, pulling it back into a stubby ponytail. As she stood up, she noticed a few tiny ice crystals strewn across the mattress where she'd been sleeping. She looked down at her new skin-tight thermoregulator jumpsuit with an expression of disapproval. So much for a more comfortable way to keep warm at night. 

Her eyes darted up toward the familiar white Winterbird armor mounted carefully on a metal stand at the foot of her bed. She smiled to herself as she picked up the heavy boots and slipped her feet into them, instantly feeling a surge of warmth that woke up her frozen toes. Countless contractors had offered her more lightweight options, but nothing kept her body's natural hypothermia at bay better than Thornton Tech's original design.The old suit was a pain to lug around, but at least it did the job. 

As she lifted pieces of her suit off the stand to put them on, the two wooden photo frames sitting on the dresser behind it came into view. One of them housed a carefully preserved newspaper clipping from over twenty years ago. The grainy photo depicted a young Astrid wearing her first Winterbird suit. Her wide smile contrasted sharply with the serious expressions of the two men standing behind her: tech magnate E.L. Thornton and then-junior senator Alan Nelson. US Senator And Tech Company Give Girl With Unusual Abilities A Second Chance, read the headline. 

Yet, it was the second frame that caught Astrid's interest. Taken only three years ago with Astrid's phone camera, its photo was much clearer and more recent. A broad-shouldered man in a US Air Force jacket stood in front of a fighter jet, his arm wrapped around a beaming Astrid. A small smile crossed Astrid's face as memories flooded her brain. She'd flown too many missions with John Jamison to even count. Jamison and Winterbird! was the higher-ups' call whenever a high-profile hostage needed to be extracted or a difficult terrorist base needed to be infiltrated. 

He was the gun, and she was the bullet. Together, there was no tactical problem they couldn't solve. They made such a good team... what could've gone wrong? 

Letting out an annoyed huff, Astrid finished pulling on her gloves and snatched up the frame. She was done giving herself false hope. Today was the day she was finally going to get rid of it... forever.

Astrid made her way out of her bedroom with the frame clutched tightly in her hand. Passing through the living room, she pushed aside the glass sliding door that led to the balcony. As she raised the frame into the air, ready to chuck it over the railing, she was startled out of her thoughts by a familiar chuckle. 

"You sure you want to do that?" 

Astrid whipped around to see Alan Nelson sitting cross-legged in the low plastic chair she kept on her small balcony. He held a cigarette loosely between his index and middle fingers and took a long drag from it when he noticed Astrid looking. His thinning gray hair stuck to his scalp and a fine layer of sweat from the humid Arcana City air coated his forehead. Still, he was dressed immaculately in a dark blue suit. No amount of physical discomfort could keep him from looking like a James Bond villain. 

"Nelson!" Astrid hissed, taking a few rapid steps backward in surprise. 

"Don't worry - I'm not mad," he smiled with artificial warmth. 

"You're not mad!? If you aren't out of my apartment in the next sixty seconds, I swear I'll put an icicle in your neck!" 

"Come on now, Astrid, that's no way to talk to the man who saved your life." Nelson's expression shifted to one of exaggerated disappointment as he slowly rose from the chair. "Also, in case my lenience has made you forget, you're the one who undermined me at the press conference and let Queen Juliana get away. I actually came to offer my forgiveness and discuss our next steps." 

"In the twenty years since you convinced the FBI not to kill me, I've repaid that debt a thousand times over," Astrid said seriously. "I've done despicable things for America. Specifically, for you. Arcana was supposed to be a new chapter!"

"And it is!" Nelson spread out his arms in a grandiose gesture. "You, Astrid Bennett, are now a part of history in a way that you never would've been flying around with that pilot of yours." 

Noticing that Nelson was looking it, Astrid instinctively tucked the picture frame behind her back. "I don't agree with everything John and I did, but at least I always knew I was serving my country. Thanks to you, I have no idea what I'm serving anymore." 

"Here's a bright idea: serve yourself!" 

"And that's worked out marvelously for you."

"It has!" Nelson exclaimed. "I rule a country!" 

His words echoed in the air as a tangible silence developed between the pair. Finally, Astrid let out a long sigh and set the picture frame down on a window sill. "You're right. I don't really want to get rid of this." 

"What is it you really want to get rid of?" Nelson asked, his tone uncharacteristically gentle. 

"I don't know," Astrid whispered, staring blankly ahead. "Two years ago, I was going to move to New York with him. You told me not to bother." 

"I didn't place a curse on your relationship, Astrid," Nelson said gravely. "I simply have a more developed understanding of the human psyche than most. Men seek out what's easy, and being with a woman who freezes everyone and everything she touches... that's hardly easy." 

"So according to your logic, my powers guarantee that I'll end up old and single." 

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Nelson replied nonchalantly. 

"Gosh," Astrid laughed humorlessly. "I can't even write you off as a sad old cynic because you were right about me and John. That's what I hate the most about you, Nelson. You're always right." 

"I know," Nelson nodded sympathetically. "It's maddening, being a genius." 

"Oh, shut up," Astrid scoffed. "I should know better than to indulge your narcissism by now. If you really know so much about how people work, how could you possibly think I'd still be on your side after I figured out what you were really up to?" 

"I knew you would betray me as soon as I turned my weapons on Queen Juliana," Nelson looked reflectively down at the floor. "I knew you would find in Project PROB something you haven't had since your powers were discovered... a family. Some part of me is genuinely glad that you did." 

"Ah yes, you were so happy for me that you ripped apart my team and took over their country!" 

"You still don't get it, do you?" Nelson sighed. "People throw the word 'sociopath' around when they talk about me. It's inaccurate. I do have feelings, but unlike most people, I understand that my goals are bigger than those feelings. I may be giving your new friends a hard time as part of my larger objective, but that doesn't mean I harbor any personal hatred toward you or any of them. And it certainly doesn't mean I'm not damn proud of the woman you've become." 

I'm not yours to be proud of! Astrid wanted to yell, but she couldn't bring herself to say the words. Nelson had been there for her when her own father ran away in fear of what she could do. He'd gotten Thornton Tech a government contract to build her first suit and marketed her to Congress as a useful tool instead of a threat to be eliminated. Astrid decided to change the subject before her mind could convince her that the former ambassador actually cared about her. 

"So why are you here, anyway?" 

"I want to talk to you about Project PROB." 

"What about them?" 

"There was an... incident at the Order meeting last night. They were uncooperative. I believe I may have pushed them too far and I've decided to back off for now." 

"You pushed them too far when you took over their country! Of course they're uncooperative!" A worried look came over Astrid's face. "What are you going to do to them?" 

"Nothing," Nelson chirped confidently. 

"...what?" 

"In politics, nothing is often the most reasonable thing to do. No matter how big the wave is, it will often settle on its own."

"Project PROB isn't your average wave."  

"You'd be surprised." 

"Where are they now?" Astrid asked, an uncomfortable feeling developing in her chest. Nelson had an uncanny knack for predicting public opinion. If he truly believed that support for Project PROB would fizzle out... 

"Let's see, uh... a couple of stories below us," Nelson gestured to the floor with his cigarette. 

"This is Hewkin Heights," Astrid shook her head in disbelief. "You're holding Chase prisoner in his own building?" 

"It is quite poetic when you put it like that," Nelson nodded appreciatively. "Although, they're not exactly prisoners. They're just... under observation." 

"For how long?" 

"Just until I officially take the throne," Nelson grinned. "When you take over an organization, you need to understand its spirit - for the Order of Chance, that's easy. Its most important value is in the name: order. They'd bow down to a flea if it sat on the Arcanese throne." 

"Maybe that's how it used to be, but Juliana's changed that," Astrid said confidently. "The Order thinks for itself now." 

"Astrid..." Nelson let out a booming laugh. "If people could magically be taught to think for themselves in the span of four years, guys like me would be out of business."

"You're horrible!" 

"I'm realistic."  

"Well, Project PROB isn't. They'll do whatever it takes to get back what's theirs. I can guarantee that they're already making plans - just let me see them, and I'll prove it to you." Astrid wasn't expecting Nelson to honor her request - she'd only made it to demonstrate how certain she was - so she was incredibly surprised when he nodded his head in assent. 

"Okay," Nelson sucked in a deep breath and reached into his pocket. "Here are the keys to the apartment they're in. Go say hello for me." 

"You can't be serious." Astrid raised her eyebrows as she looked down at the silver key in Nelson's outstretched hand. 

"I've got androids at all of the building's exits. It's not like any of you are going anywhere," Nelson shrugged. 

"So I'm a prisoner too, now?" Astrid frowned. "Or are you angling for me to be a double agent?" 

"I'm giving you a chance to catch up with your old team," Nelson smiled mysteriously, leaning casually on the railing. "You're not in the Air Force anymore. There are no more orders. No more pilots to take you exactly where the government needs you to be to do exactly what the government needs you to do. I didn't risk my career getting you off the FBI's kill list so you could spend the rest of your life letting other people tell you what to do. This is where you pick a side, Winterbird. Are you ready?" 

Astrid's eyes narrowed as she snatched the key out of Nelson's hand. 

"Oh, I'm ready." 

..........................

"Is she gone?" a deep female voice came through Nelson's earpiece as Astrid disappeared into her apartment, shutting the sliding glass door behind her. 

"Yes, Farrah, she is," Nelson smiled. "You've transcribed our entire conversation, haven't you? I want nothing to be missing from my records. We wouldn't want to compromise the completeness of my autobiography." 

"Of course," Farrah confirmed. "Wait... you didn't give Winterbird any specific instructions." 

"She's done being told what to do - and rightfully so," Nelson noted. "She'll only help me if she thinks it's her idea."