Silas was standing outside the reception room, hands shoved deep into his pockets. He was sure that his futuristic surroundings were very interesting, but he preferred to look at his clean, washed shoes. He didn't lift his head when Saya came through the door with Charybdis.
"Silas, you have until 1:00. Saya, you have until 1:20. I'll be waiting for you right here. In the meantime, go and explore our facilities. In my opinion, nothing beats the peace rooms in the left wing. Jayken and Yona both know where they are – so if you're interested, just ask."
With that, Charybdis gave the group of human kids a sly salute, and strolled out of sight to the left, rounding a corner and disappearing behind a wall as Saya elbowed Silas in the shoulder, catching his attention.
"Hey, hey! How'd it go? I just got top of the leaderboard in Scylla's training room."
"Yeah, and did you see my score?" Silas mumbled.
"I was wondering about that. Is there a glitch in the system? Twenty seconds is like, way too low to be possible."
"No, no, it's correct. I only lasted twenty seconds against her. I ran out stamina quick and I couldn't keep up."
"Dang, that sucks," Saya said, her lighthearted tone suddenly becoming sympathetic once she realized she'd set her expectations too high. "Well, we all have our different skills and talents. How'd you do on the math portion?"
"I couldn't even operate the projector," Silas grumbled, half hoping that Saya couldn't understand his words and would just drop the subject. But Saya, annoying and nosy as she was, wouldn't stop pressing. It drove Silas crazy. He just wanted to be left alone after that escapade. There was no way she'd be able to make him feel better.
"Oh, why's that?"
"My magic is too weak. I'm too pathetic to even do a basic thing like that."
"Don't say that," Saya said, but didn't offer any other encouragement. Instead, she placed her hand on Silas' shoulder and said, "cheer up. We're gonna see Wicke!"
"I don't know why I should be happy about that," Silas said bluntly. "We don't know anything about her personality. She'll probably scream at us. I mean, when Charybdis tried to pry into my mind, it felt absolutely awful. I can't imagine she'd be very happy to see us."
"I know… but I have a good feeling about this," Saya tried to assure him. Silas knew that as long as Saya had a good gut feeling about something, she'd do it. She expected him to feel the same way. Silas just hoped that she would eventually learn that he didn't operate in the same way, and she had to respect that.
Thankfully, Saya seemed to have forgotten completely about Silas' abysmal score for Scylla's test. She was much too focused on the prospect of seeing Wicke. Axel and Evelynn had been picked up by their own supervisor while Yona and Jayken guided the group of four – Rekka, Silas, Saya, and Macy, towards the medical wing where they'd first encountered Charybdis.
In broad daylight, the middle of the day, the medical wing was bright and active. The smell was crisp and clear, the air almost like plastic. Bright white floors lined bright white walls, impossibly smooth and polished. Several of the rooms had their mesh black curtains drawn, but most were open and empty. A few scientists and researches bustled about, but it was much less populated her than in the food court.
Silas caught a few glances here and there, but didn't witness any monster try and approach or make a move towards him. He wondered why that was. Surely the entirety of the organization would have heard about the recent acquisition of eight human specimens. Didn't everyone want humans eradicated from the planet? Why weren't any of them approaching him? Surely they'd be head over heels, trying to get a glimpse at the last humans, right?
"Jayken, why is nobody paying any attention to us?" Saya asked. She had noticed it too with her keen perceptive abilities.
"That's a good question," the tall fox hunter replied. "Unlike us bounty hunters, a lot of these monsters are also operators working for PSEF, training under RimOps. They've had lots of experiences with humans in the past, and none of them have been great. While we're in it for the money and don't get emotionally attached, these monsters have had their families and homes stripped from them by humans. I would wager they're trying their best to forget you even exist," he said with a hint of sadness.
"It's a sad truth of this world. After a while, you get used to the sight of weary and anguished faces. I'd advise you to try and avoid contact with any of the operators from PSEF. It won't go smoothly."
"What about Wicke?" Macy asked worriedly.
"Oh, she's fine," Yona smiled casually, hiding her own forlorn face behind her cheerful smile. "She's totally green, and you're the first humans she's ever encountered. And her family's nice and safe. Plus, she's a scout, not a soldier or an assassin trained specifically to kill humans. She won't have the same level of personal pain connected to your kind."
When Jayken approached Wicke's room, Silas noticed that the curtains were closed. They covered the glass window in its entirety, so he couldn't tell if the lights were on or off. If the lights were on, not a single drop of it permeated through the black curtains. A small screen on the side of the glass wall read "Wicke" in bright blue letters.
Wicke was curled up against the frame of her hospital bed, leaning to one side, blanket slung over her shoulder. Deep against her chest, she held a plushie and in the other hand she held a thin book. Her bat ears alerted her instantly to the sound of the group entering, and her eyes widened when she saw that six people had suddenly come into her room. She recognized Jayken and Yona, the somewhat infamous bounty hunters that had completed several missions flawlessly and with gusto.
But that wasn't what caught her attention. Standing before her were four of the humans who had tormented her and used her for information, like she was nothing more than an object. Because she'd been weak, and she'd been useless. Staring right back into her face was her own fear. And Rekka's powerful, commanding voice echoed in her head as soon as they locked eyes.
"Hello, Wicke," Rekka said calmly. Wicke quivered.