"I’ve been asked to form a small team," he said. "One person, embedded. Get close to the Epics. Watch how they move."
His tone didn’t change, but his focus didn’t shift either.
"See how they talk. What they do. What they think matters."
The room stayed quiet.
"They want soone without a shard," he added. "No interference. No signature. Easier to pass under."
Kikaru’s arms were still crossed. "Without a power? You expect soone like that to walk in and not get killed?"
Geras didn’t flinch. "They wouldn’t be walking in to fight."
He tapped the panel. The screen flickered to life again.
"One more clip. Then we move forward."
—
The broadcast cut in mid-sentence.
"...not a power vacuum. It’s deliberate. Targeted. And cruel."
The cara panned to the Commandant, standing in front of a military-grade podium. Sa black suit. Sa white tie. Behind him, only gray wall panels and a static display of regional sectors.
"For those living in occupied zones across Vardency, the first priority is survival," he said. "Do not engage. Do not organize offensives. Evacuation corridors are active where possible. If you can relocate—do it."
His voice was calm. Blunt. No pacing.
"The group calling themselves the Prid Epics has taken control through brute force. They misuse the abilities they’ve gained. Not to protect. Not to build. But to dominate the weak."
Static flickered faintly over the screen, but the audio held steady.
"This is not revolution. It’s coercion. A small group of enhanced individuals using fear to replace structure."
Elias watched the man’s face. No anger. No hesitation. Just certainty.
"Let be clear," the Commandant said. "Having a shard does not make you a ruler. Power without control is a hazard—not a right."
He looked to his left, then back to the cara.
"We are not abandoning this region. And we are not abandoning those of you caught within it."
His hand touched the podium briefly.
"To the civilians—stay mobile, stay safe. You’re not weak for avoiding a fight you didn’t ask for. To the Epics—this isn’t your world to shape. You don’t speak for humanity. You’re just louder than most."
The feed paused on a still fra of the Commandant—face firm, lit by overheads, nothing staged.
Then the screen went black.
Geras exhaled lightly. "We don’t think they’re bringing new shard users in with open arms. Having more would boost their numbers, sure. But the way it’s structured now? It’s self-consuming. Shard users turning on each other just to get stronger."
He tapped once on the display beside him. "Odds are, they’ll bait new ones in. Then strip them for power."
"That’s... a jump," Kikaru said, arms crossed. "You really think it’s that bad?"
"You’d think so," Geras replied. "But their leader—from what we’ve gathered, it’s Roachaline Vaslix. Daughter of one of the old political nas. He didn’t last the turnover."
Paul frowned. "Wasn’t he wounded during the first wave?"
"He was," Geras said. "But when the handoff ca, he snapped. Attacked his replacent detail. Took a few down before they dropped him."
Dot’s hovered above Elias and just whispered "So they killed her Father? Ouch..."
Paul nodded once. "Guess it makes sense. Sort of explains the way she’s acted since getting power."
"Yeah," Geras said. "Destructive, cornered. Like soone burning everything on their way out."
He shifted slightly, gaze on the center screen. "She’s been seen with two shards. And she’s not passive. They’ve captured people—searched them for shards before killing them."
He turned toward Elias.
"So. Back to the plan. We’ll be using you, and one other with no shard, to get inside Vardency. Quiet recon only. No engagent under any circumstance."
Kikaru stepped forward without hesitation. "N-no. I should be going too. I could actually be useful."
"You will be," Geras said. "Just not in direct contact. You’ll be based nearby—localized. Smaller. Less likely to get hit if the seven start sweeping the area."
"If we can get full docuntation," Geras said, "Ikona and human, we can start working on counters. Once the gas protocol’s ready."
Kikaru shifted slightly. "The gas?"
Paul looked over. "You an the sa gas Silas used to kill Colby?"
Geras nodded. "Yes. We’ve developed our own version, but we’ve been hesitant to deploy it. Maybe we’d catch one or two off guard. But if they survive, they’ll just get stronger."
He tapped the console again.
"We don’t even know how effective it is yet. Still needs testing. We collected residue, made so versions. What we don’t understand is why it affects the blood the way it does—or why it didn’t kill Kikaru and Paul."
Kikaru rested a finger under her chin. "I think in so weird way Silas might be so type of pacifist... well, sort of. He doesn’t seem to want to directly kill people. He could’ve killed and Paul, but he didn’t."
"Yeah. Sothing we can’t afford to harp on."
Elias glanced over. "Well, his friend—or whatever he is—Vincent definitely isn’t a pacifist. He’s tried to rip my head off a few tis now. Should we be worried about the forces they’ve got? Elara fought over a dozen back on the resort."
Geras chuckled once. "That’s a bit above what I’m allowed to worry about. I’m sure soone’s handling it. For now, we keep things grounded. Focus on figuring out how to deal with those seven."
"Perfect. When do I move out?"
Geras smirked. "You’re not. Not yet. You’ll be waiting a week. Moving with your team of four."
Elias raised a brow. "Team of four?"
"Correct."
He turned slightly.
"This is a good ti to ntion—Paul, you won’t be going on this mission. Not to start. You’ll be hanging back and assisting with training the other blocks. Get them up to speed physically. But given what’s happening, I wanted you looped in."
Paul groaned a little. "I suppose. I’m sure you’ll tell more about the training. And why."
He nodded. "Right now, the focus is getting ready. We’ll see how this cut down to ninety people plays out. If we’re lucky, one of the seven gets dragged into sothing, and you’ll be close enough to get a read."
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