The womanly figure behind the illuminated board continued to address the assembly.
"Who among the heads wishes to speak?" she inquired.
Her tone suggested that the importance of the matter was not to be taken lightly.
For a moment, silence fell over the room. Just when it seemed that no one would dare to break the stillness, a shadow rose from behind one of the boards.
He was a hulklike man whose silhouette framed the entire board.
Nia whispered to Venn, "Look how large he is."
"Think he's an A-Rank?" he muttered back.
"Has to be!" she responded.
The large man's voice was unsurprisingly deep as he spoke, "I require more land for my group to expand. We need better territories to help foster our newcomers."
The woman coolly replied, "Then send out the necessary requests, and I'll review them."
Shade gauged the interaction closely, noting the familiar tone in their exchange. It was apparent they knew each other due to their lack of formal introductions or group affiliations.
This association could hint at alliances and animosities beyond what was visible at that moment.
As the bulky figure remained steadfastly upright, another silhouette emerged—this one distinctly leaner and smaller.
His voice was sharp and condescending as he said, "Land should be earned, not simply given out to those who ask for it! We all know what it means to fight for our territory."
The woman behind the illuminated board kept her silence, observing the larger man to see how he would respond. The larger man, however, did not respond, which only seemed to encourage the smaller man.
"Why do you think that?" the woman wondered.
"I've noticed that Libra's influence has been causing a lot of commotion in my sector," the skinnier man continued, crossing his arms over his chest. "What I want to know is why so many of you have turned a blind eye to their activities. They're taking over land without anyone batting an eye."
"Sounds like a you problem," the large man flatly replied.
"You dare?!" The skinnier man pointed in anger.
The woman, sensing the brewing tension, interrupted before it could escalate.
"Enough!" she demanded above the collective murmurs. "Let's not waste this meeting on petty disputes. I ask the head leaders here to voice their opinions. Speak up regarding this matter, or we can proceed without you."
Another figure stood, this one a woman who seemed mildly obese. Her voice was surprisingly soothing, almost maternal.
"I have no issues with Libra's operations," she commented. "Their recent success has kept AU from breaching my group's database. We've managed quite nicely because of that, and I respect any force that stands firm against our common enemy."
As she spoke, the heads behind the boards began to nod in cautious agreement. It seemed that Libra's presence in the region was beneficial to many they did not expect.
Shade immediately understood.
The confluence of their influence was undeniable—if Libra was protecting many groups from AU, perhaps they had established a primacy that others were eager to respect.
One by one, other leaders added their voices, rising to express their viewpoints on Libra's influence—and their own needs.
A tired-looking man with sparsely scattered hair spoke up next, "I, too, have seen the benefits of aligning with Libra. They're giving out some good insights that have helped."
With each voice that joined in, Shade confirmed his previous hypothesis: the respect that Libra directed was widespread, and this meeting only emphasized it—they had ingrained themselves within the rebel communities.
Shade somehow felt obligated to voice his opinion. But he knew better than to give heed to politics. So instead, he subtly gestured to Venn to speak on his behalf.
Venn, always adept at reading the room, understood what to add.
"What some of us here seem to overlook," he began, "is that we all share a common objective. Yes, land acquisition is vital, but so is our approach to it; we need to remember AU's widening grip on the rebel factions. That's the real pressing matter."
The assembly fell into contemplation. Venn sure knew how to probe at them. Each leader glanced at one another, seemingly in agreement without uttering a single word against the notion a second time.
"Moreover," Venn pressed, "we ought to allocate our resources wisely. If the AU's tightening its hold over Ekoris, we should be obligated to fortify our defenses—that includes using any acquired lands against them."
Shade watched as each leader absorbed the message. The skinnier man, words caught in his throat, was reluctant to lash out again. That put him at odds with the prevailing sentiment of the room.
Finally, the large man had his turn again, leveling a gaze toward his protestor.
"They may have their issues, sure," he said, "but the survival of our factions hinges more significantly on larger threats than quarrels over land. You're more than welcome to claim you were wronged, but don't waste our time on this."
The skinnier man quietly fumed. Sensing the tide of opinion against him, he completely fell silent.
The woman continued, "If anyone is going to speak on behalf of their heads, I ask that they inform everyone first. We need to maintain clarity on representation."
Shade narrowed his eyes behind his mask. Because the woman's gaze never left his direction when she had spoken. He then felt the collective attention shifting toward him and his group.
He wasn't bothered by her insistence on formality, but one thing nagged at him—how did she know that Venn had spoken for him? Were things not secretive here?
With the obscure lighting and the elusive covering, it shouldn't have been possible to know. There were no cameras, and yet she had been aware of his group's subtleties.
Shade kept quiet, choosing to observe.
As the talk of trade and resources continued, he no longer found himself on edge. Each head interacted and finally seemed to be collaborating based on their shared situations.
The discussions meandered through minor grievances of food shortages and how new rebel formations were slowing.
"It's not that concerning," a third woman expressed. "I mean, I have no problems on my end."
A statement like that only emphasized how much better off that woman's group was. It didn't matter if it was Libra or the AU; her resources were fine.
The meeting eventually droned on towards redundancy.
Shade's mind wandered, turning over the implications of what they were discussing—a revelation of the silhouettes behind the boards and the shapes they might take.
He understood the stakes well enough, but knowing his group fell short of establishing identities made it even more critical to establish a careful balance between power and submission they'd reluctantly agreed upon.
Ultimately, the meeting came to a close, and the trio was escorted out by the man who had initially greeted them.
Nia sighed in relief, groaning as they stepped into the lighter hallways.
"I'm happy that's over," she confessed. "I felt like I was suffocating in there."
Venn grunted in agreement, adding, "Not gonna lie, that put me a little on edge there, too… I can't even tell what the true purpose of that meeting was."
Shade remained thoughtful.
"That meeting was intended for someone in the room to secretly meet me," he announced.
The two were taken aback.
"So you think they were just sizing you up or something?" Venn wondered.
"Possibly…"
"Great, so now what?" Nia asked as she paced behind him.
Shade cast a long glance toward the nondescript building they'd just exited. For now, he needed to keep his head low and tread lightly among these figures.
"Let's return for now," he finally replied, pausing before they reached the exit.
And as they exited, he knew one thing for certain: they were in deeper waters than he had originally predicted.