"Montegail." His gaze drifted to Zhilakoa, "I would like to have a word with you."
Zhilakoa felt a shiver run down her spine as she tilted her head all the way up to look at him. He towered over her, making her feel almost fragile in comparison.
Next to her, Kaida backed away, her eyes darting nervously between both of them. The other 3rd year cadet nodded respectfully and said, "Eryn, I'll be going now," before turning to leave.
Zhilakoa tried to sound confident, but her voice trembled slightly. "Annex leader, we've been dismissed, and I have a lot of catching up to do."
Eryn's expression remained unreadable, "That wasn't a request."
Without waiting for her response, Eryn turned and began walking away, expecting Zhilakoa to follow.
Kaida pushed her gently in his direction and whispered, "Go, I'll be right behind you."
Zhilakoa fell into pace next to him and scoffed, "Montegail?"
Eryn said, "For formalities' sake."
Zhilakoa folded her hands and said, "Very well, Threnody. Where are we going, by the way? I'm sure you have no intention of taking me to your room again, Annex leader."
Eryn threw his head up and laughed. "Zhi, yes we're going to my chambers, but not the one I sleep in, the one I work and train in."
Zhilakoa squirmed as she heard him say 'Zhi'. "Oh please, like you even need a bed."
He turned his face to her, looking at her through those long, beautiful lashes of his, and turned his face back, continuing to walk. "You're right, I don't. "
They arrived at their destination, and Eryn ushered her in. Zhilakoa's eyes widened in awe. "Oh wow, all of this is yours?"
He replied, slipping off his flight jacket, his movements fluid. "All of this is whoever's the annex leader."
Zhilakoa faced him, her eyes narrowing slightly. "So, what's this about?"
Eryn sat down, and said, "Sit, Zhi."
Zhilakoa sat down opposite him, "Talk, I'm sure you have more important things to do, anyway."
Eryn asked, his tone measured, "What exactly are you upset about, Zhi?"
Zhilakoa snapped, her voice rising in anger. "Stop. Just stop it. Stop calling me Zhi, stop acting like you didn't push me away, stop acting like you haven't been pretending to not know me since we left the Order's headquarters."
Eryn closed his eyes, his jaw working off the frustration, "Zhi... if anyone knows you mean something to me in this division, they will hunt you, and they will hurt you, just to spite me. I'm doing this for your protection."
Zhilakoa was stunned, her mouth hanging open as she struggled to process Eryn's words.
He continued, his voice softening, the vulnerability creeping in. "I'm sorry you're hurt, you're just getting here, and I need you to be careful. No one knows we're connected, but you've already been attacked."
Zhilakoa shrugged her injured shoulder unconsciously, "I mean something to you? And why are you trying to protect me? From what exactly?"
Eryn's gaze shifted to her shoulder, trying to end the conversation. "How's it holding up?"
Zhilakoa looked away, trying to appear nonchalant. "It's barely a bother."
Eryn narrowed his eyes "Oh, really?" he said, walking up to her to take a look. "May I?"
Zhilakoa pulled away, "I should really go. You'd probably hate for people to see me here with you."
Eryn sighed, "Zhi, show me, please. I need to know you're okay."
Zhilakoa backed away, "I haven't been okay since you left that night."
Then, she turned and walked out, leaving Eryn standing alone in his chambers.
She couldn't believe what she had just heard.
As she turned the corner, she spotted Kaida leaning against the wall, chatting with a guy she hadn't met before.
Kaida spotted her, she called out, "Zhi, what happened? You look like you've seen a ghost.
Zhilakoa raised an eyebrow as she approached.
"Hey," Zhilakoa said, clearing her throat to announce her presence.
Kaida pushed off the wall, grinning. " I was starting to think you'd gotten lost in the annex leader's lair."
The guy standing next to Kaida chuckled and held out his hand. "I'm Tamlyn, by the way. I'm also a new cadet."
Zhilakoa shook his hand, still feeling a bit off balance from her encounter with Eryn. "Zhilakoa. Nice to meet you, Tamlyn."
Tamlyn smiled. "Nice to meet you too, Special Orders."
Kaida burst into laughter. "Oh nice one, Tamlyn."
Zhilakoa raised an eyebrow, amused despite herself. "Special Orders?"
Tamlyn grinned. "Yeah, we all heard him say it."
Kaida gestured to the three of them. "Well, now that we're all here, shall we go find the others? I'm starving, and I could use a break from all the drama."
Tamlyn asked, "Do you guys have any idea what our schedules are like? I've been trying to get ahold of someone, but no one seems to know anything."
Zhilakoa shrugged. "I think we're supposed to get our schedules at the briefing. But honestly, at this point, I'm just trying to survive the day."
Kaida scrolled through her crystal tablet. "Alright, it says here that we're supposed to head to the Yellow Spires for our room assignments."
Tamlyn nodded. "I know where that is. My sister graduated from here last year."
Zhilakoa replied, "No way, what was she like?"
Tamlyn chuckled. "Well, she was a total overachiever."
Kaida grinned. "Sounds like a great pain in the ass...oops I said that out loud."
As they entered the Yellow Spires, Zhilakoa raised an eyebrow. "Wow, yellow really is the theme here, huh?"
At the front desk, a grumpy looking woman glared at them. "Sign in, please. And make it quick. I don't have all day."
Zhilakoa asked Tamlyn, "Hey, how are the rooms here? Are they decent?"
Tamlyn smiled. "Yeah, they're really nice. Individual rooms, so you'll have your own space."
Kaida's eyes lit up. "Oh, sweet! Too bad we can't share rooms, Tam."
Tamlyn chuckled. "Yeah, I know, right?"
The grumpy woman handed them each a room tag. "Choose your rooms from the available options. You'll find the room numbers on the tags."
As they scanned the tags, the woman began to list off the Spire rules in a monotone voice. "Curfew is at 10 PM sharp. No visitors allowed in the rooms for up to 24 hours. No sharing of rooms or personal belongings. And absolutely no fraternization between cadets."
As she spoke, she eyed Kaida and Kaida returned the look, her expression neutral. "How do we eat here?"
The woman's expression turned even grumpier. "Meals are served in the cafeteria on the ground floor. You'll find the schedule posted on the bulletin board. Now run along."
Zhilakoa selected a room tag for 304, Kaida chose 303, and Tamlyn chose 305.
As they made their way upstairs, Zhilakoa grinned. "I'm in the middle? Really? Well great, my very own personal bodyguards."
Kaida chuckled. "Just incase a certain annex leader decides to break in."
Zhilakoa grunted and rolled her eyes. "Hope you guys don't snore too loudly."
Eryn asked, "Have you let the rest of the squad know we're meeting at midnight?"
Alcom rubbed his eyebrows, "Yeah, they've been informed."
Eryn's gaze narrowed. "Good."
Alcom looked at him with a curious expression. "So, Montegail?"
Eryn's eyes locked onto Alcom's, his expression unreadable. "What?"
Alcom's smile grew wider. "You know, the girl. The one you called 'Special Orders' in front of everyone."
Eryn's jaw clenched, his eyes flashing with warning. "Alcom..."
Alcom chuckled. "Come on, Eryn, don't play dumb. I've seen the way you look at her. And that little stunt you pulled earlier? That's not exactly subtle."
Eryn's expression turned glacial, his voice dropping to a low growl. "Alcom, I'm warning you. Drop it."
But Alcom just laughed. "Seriously, what's going on with you and Montegail? You're not exactly known for your... sentimental attachments."
Eryn's eyes flashed with anger, but he kept his tone even. "There's nothing going on, Alcom. She's just a cadet under my command. That's all."
Alcom raised an eyebrow, his smile turned mocking. "And I'm the Queen of the Realm. Eryn, come on. I know you're not that stupid. You can't just claim a cadet like that and expect no one to notice. Or care."
Eryn's jaw clenched, his eyes flashing with warning. "I'm telling you, Alcom, there's nothing to notice. Now, are we done here?"
Alcom's eyes narrowed, his gaze piercing. "You know, I've been wondering... do you and Montegail know each other? I mean, before she got here?"
Eryn's expression turned guarded, his eyes flicking away for a moment before returning to Alcom's face. "What makes you think that?"
Alcom shrugged. "Just a hunch. The way you reacted to her earlier... it seemed a little too personal. A little too intense."
Eryn's jaw clenched, his voice dropping to a low growl. "I'm just trying to keep her safe, Alcom. That's all."
Alcom's eyes sparkled with amusement. "Oh, I'm sure that's all it is, Eryn. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that you seem to be... invested in her well being."
Eryn tried to laugh it off and said, There's nothing to notice bro, she's been here less than a day." "Now, we need to be extra careful to not get caught tonight. You know with first year cadets and their empty heads..."
Alcom turned serious and said, "Maybe we should just leave the first years out of this meeting."
Eryn sighed, "That defeats the whole purpose, we're doing all this for them."
Alcom stood up and said, "Well, I'll go talk to Feyrie and see what she can help with."
Eryn leaned on his chair and said, "So...you're heading to the yellow spires then?"
Alcom smiled and said, "Yes, is there a problem?"
Eryn got up and grabbed his jacket and said, "No, but you look like you need some company."
Alcom said, "Would you like to see someone in yellow too? Particularly maybe Zhilakoa?"
Eryn groaned, "Ohh, shut up, man."
Alcom chuckled, clearly "What? I'm just asking. You're the one who's being sensitive."
Eryn shook his head, his expression exasperated. "Let's just focus on the mission, okay?"
Alcom fell into step beside Eryn, his grin still plastered on his face. "So, shall we get moving? We've got a meeting with Feyrie to get to."