[DPA Station Nine, February 2022]
"So, what's the deal with this new girl anyway? It's not like you to go out of your way to try and recruit someone."
"She's talented. Way more talented than either of us. We'd be foolish not to take advantage of an opportunity like this when it drops in our lap."
"What's so special about this rookie anyway? She's a 'beast magic' user like the two of us, isn't she?"
"She has a dragon-type cryptid."
"What?! You can't be serious! Aren't there only like twelve of those in the entire world?"
"Thirteen if you count hers. Although the one she has is still growing. It's only a few years old."
"Shit. I can see why you wanted her so badly then."
"Anyway, you'll be the one in charge of training her up. Theo and Chief Chandler already gave me the green light. So make sure that our newest rookie learns the ropes."
"Typical...saddling me with all of the work like usual."
"Stop complaining. You have nothing better to do anyway. Well, besides sleeping with any trashy skank that you can get your hands on."
"Alright, alright, I'll make sure that the newbie is up to speed as fast as possible. But you owe me one for this."
"I'll keep that in mind."
-(o)-
Maria Ortega wasn't exactly antisocial. Sure, she was what most people would call a "shut-in". One who preferred to use her time playing video games, spending an excessive amount of hours on her computer, and watching anime, but she wasn't exactly a hermit. The young woman with shoulder-length black hair and hazel eyes functioned more than well enough in social settings. She just preferred not to at times.
It wasn't exactly her fault, though; she had been like this for as long as she could remember.
If anything, her father was the one to blame for the way she acted now. That man was quite possibly the biggest geek that Maria had ever met in her entire life, and that's saying something. Hell, some of her earliest memories were of her and her old man sitting in the living room every Saturday watching all of the early morning cartoons that aired on television. Or, spending hours together playing one of his many retro video games that always seemed to be better than modern titles despite their shitty graphics and two-dimensional gameplay systems.
Looking back on it, that was without a doubt the happiest time in Maria's life. A time when things were nice, simple, and cozy. Unfortunately, those times were long gone. And Maria knew that she was never going to get them back.
After all, Maria's father was dead. And the chances of her getting to enjoy that kind of quality time again were impossible.
The young woman can still vividly remember the day her father was taken away from her. The image of a bullet puncturing the front of his skull and flying out the other side was something that she'll never be able to forget. Nor the feeling of the man's blood splattering all over her face as she watched him hit the ground and take his final breath. It was the kind of thing that no child should ever have to bear witness to.
To this day, Maria still doesn't know who pulled the trigger. And that was the most frustrating part of it all. Even after months of investigation, the police were never able to find so much as a clue as to who fired the shot that destroyed her family. Or the reason as to why they would do something so horrible in the first place. Sure, she knew that her family's past wasn't exactly spotless. After all, it was the reason why they moved to the U.S. from Mexico when she was still a toddler. But even then, to take a man's life right in front of his own child is something that she will never forgive. And that lack of forgiveness is exactly what has led the young woman down the path that she is currently walking.
-(o)-
In a modest, third-floor apartment in a small town just outside the city of Gastonia stood Maria Ortega. At the moment, the young woman was staring at an old photo, just left of the living room window overlooking the streets below. It was one of her family that was taken right around the time they left Mexico. They were standing in front of their old home, and all of them had bright smiles plastered across their faces.
"Maria, are you sure that you want to do this?" The woman's mother, Karla, asked with worry.
"I am." Maria said bluntly. "We need the money. Besides, it's a good opportunity that I can't really pass up."
"But the DPA? Don't you think that it's a bit too dangerous? Even your father avoided joining up with them when they asked."
"It is." Maria conceded. "But I think that I'll be able to take care of myself."
Maria's mother sighed. It wasn't like she was going to talk her only daughter out of this anytime soon. She was oddly stubborn at the most ridiculous of times, just like her father. It hadn't even been a month since the young woman told her about being recruited by one of the people at the agency. And now, the young sorcerer had apparently made up her mind and accepted the offer without so much as telling her.
"Just...please be careful, mija."
"I will." The hazel-eyed woman gave her mother the faintest of smiles.
Karla took a moment to gaze upon her daughter and let her own smile grace her lips.
"It's going to be pretty lonely around here once you leave. But I'm glad that you're finally starting to make your own way in life. Even if this is just the first step. I just wish that your father could've been here to see how much you've grown."
Maria glanced back over at the photo sitting atop the shelf. "Yeah...me too. I wish he were here."
It had been almost six years since that fateful day. The one that took her father away from her. The day that broke their loving family apart for reasons that she still didn't know. Images of a damp and dreary night, overshadowed by a river of both blood and tears, suddenly flashed into her mind.
Although Maria was pretty average in her own eyes, many would beg to differ. Not only was the woman a 'beast magic' user, but she was a remarkably talented one as well. At least according to others. The kind of talent that you'd be hard-pressed to find anywhere else. The young woman possessed the natural skill to tame and bond with a particularly difficult type of cryptid, while also being one of the rare few who were able to control a dragon. That fact alone was enough to secure her a job with the country's foremost magical authority.
Personally, Maria didn't see what all the hype was about. She understood that they were rare, but that was pretty much it. Besides, if anything, her "special" companion was more of a nuisance than anything else. It was the reason why she rarely let the thing out unless she had to. Hell, hers wasn't even the cool kind that breathed fire like the ones in all those fantasy anime that she spent way too much time watching. All it did was flap its wings around in a way that ruined her hair, seemingly just for kicks.
Complaining aside, the young woman was indeed ready for the journey that she was about to embark on. After all, she was only days away from taking her first steps toward achieving her ultimate goal.
'This is only the first step. Once I've gathered enough money and resources, I'll be able to track down the bastard who killed my father. And I'll make sure that they get exactly what they deserve.'
-(o)-
Infor Card: The Nine Families
The families that were formed by the nine founding members of the Department of Paranormal Activity. They are the largest and most influential sorcerer factions within the U.S..
In the early 1960s, during the formation of the DPA, the nine most powerful sorcerers in the U.S. were tasked by the government with overseeing and administering specific areas of the country to deal with cryptids and other sorcerers.
The Nine Families hold a large amount of influence over sorcerer society in the U.S., and their members are typically in high positions within the agency. As well as the U.S. government and military. In addition, these families have further branched out into other industries and have dramatically increased their influence over the last seventy years.
Because of their lineage, connections, and vast amount of resources, most sorcerers born from these families tend to be more powerful and skilled compared to other sorcerers within the country. This includes those who were adopted into the families after displaying a certain level of talent or skill.
Members of the Nine Families often compete with each other to gain more power and influence over the others, regularly leading to disputes and skirmishes that need to be mediated by the DPA itself.
It is very common, especially in the last twenty years or so, for these families to send their children to other families to train or network with others after they awaken their powers. Usually, during summer vacation or winter break, when school is out. This practice is to help keep relations strong among them and to avoid any unnecessary drama. This has also led to numerous marriages and children being born.
These families are as follows: Alvarez family, Blair family, Blackwell family, Conley family, MacNamara family, McKenna family, Murphy family, Owens family, and Watanabe family.
Currently, the Blair family has the most known members (726 confirmed), while the MacNamara family has the least (12 confirmed).