The tension in the air was so thick that it was palpable— Lily didn't take any action because she wanted to see how the other group would react first, but they didn't take any action because they were cautious— panicked even.
They did not lower their guard for a second; their weapons pointed at the girl's body, waiting for just one wrong move to attack her— yet they were unaware that such weaponry would do little harm to her.
Some of the mutants within the group instinctively activated their abilities, ready to fight if the need arose— few of them had elemental-based abilities, their eyes glowing with the hue of their elemental powers.
Lily glanced around the room— watching as they slowly moved to try and surround her— a small smile forming on her lips as she did.
Quickly, her eyes shifted back to ahead of her, and there, a tall figure walked forward from the group, taking a stand.
This figure was much bigger than Lily— towering over her with a tall and muscular frame. His body was covered in what looked like dark scales, much like that of a reptile.
A low, guttural growl escaped his lips as he took the lead in this conversation; his eyes were locked onto the girl before him— staring down at her with his menacing height.
Yet, as Lily looked back up at him— locking eyes with the man— she was not the one who felt fear in the interaction. The man almost stepped back instinctively, his mutation screaming at him to run and flee.
It was as if his animalistic nature could feel that the being before him was much more dangerous than he could imagine— a bigger predator than he could be.
But he did not step back— he couldn't. It would have made him look weak before the group, and that was something he couldn't afford to do.
He held his ground, impressing Lily with his commitment, and he spoke to address her.
"Who are you, and what are you doing here?"
The man asked— no, demanded— an answer from the girl. Obviously, having realized that someone who just suddenly appeared out of nowhere was anything but normal.
Lily felt no threat from the man before her— he may be tall, but she could tell he was not as strong as she was, be it in physical capabilities or otherwise.
Maintaining her calm demeanor, she meets the gaze of the reptilian man by glancing up at him— her redden eyes locking on to the man's slightly green eyes.
She could sense the internal conflict within him at the moment; she could hear the primal instincts of the man telling him to retreat, but his mind warring against the need to assert dominance in front of the group.
"If I said I was passing through, would you believe me?"
It was naturally a lie— one that Lily did not expect the man to believe— but she had some time to waste; maybe she could even get them to lower their guard and make the situation so much easier.
"I didn't mean to intrude on your territory. I was simply following someone who stole something from someone I knew, and I ended up here."
Lily lied once more— but this time, it was only half a lie. She did follow someone who stole something from someone she saw, but she didn't know the person and did mean to intrude on their territory.
"I am a mutant."
She added, thinking maybe this would get them to relate to her some more.
The reptilian leader remained skeptical, his eyes narrowing as he scrutinized Lily. His eyes glanced her up and down, scanning her body for any weapons or threats.
He found nothing of the sort on her— she simply wore casual clothing. But this did not make him believe her, not even in the slightest.
'If this works, perhaps I can use them to find out the location of the other branches or even the leaders.'
As the man scrutinized her body, Lily's thoughts drifted to a plan that optimized the situation in her favor. Using them to find the other locations would drastically shorten the time needed to spend here, and finding the leaders would be even better.
The reptilian leader did not believe her, but he sensed that this might be an opportunity to assert control of the situation— maybe if he played his cards right, he could even gain an advantage over the girl.
"We don't take kindly to strangers, especially those that barge into our place and bring trouble. What makes you think we would possibly trust someone like you?"
Lily was aware that depending on what she said next, the course of the confrontation could greatly change, and she was unsure of which method she should take.
On the one hand, she could go for the aggressive method— this was more convenient as it allowed her to simply do what she wanted. Killing them and devouring them for their abilities rather than using the Hive to track down other locations.
On the other hand, she could play it peacefully— this method would allow her to join the group and gain information from them. It would take longer, but she may also be able to gain the location of their bases without the need for the Hive and maybe even learn about their leaders.
On the off chance that this group was being backed by another larger group, she could even use this method to get closer to them.
The only issue with this method was the uncertain time frame it would take.
It could take days to weeks, months, or even more. She didn't have that much time to waste here, and while the first method of searching with her Hive would take longer— in the more obvious sense— it was still a sure time frame.
With that in mind, she decided to go with the aggressive method.