Page 67 of Cerulean Truth
I squinted. "Like key cards?" I asked, remembering my way through the gate of the Universitas.
Enya nodded. "We thought entry to our most important building would be indispensable when living together with Nemecis."
Right. Stephen had referred to humans as NMCs or non-magical creatures as well.
“So you are all getting ready to live together with humans on a daily basis,” I concluded.
Was this the political climate James referred to?
Gradually, her words began to make sense to me, and, more significantly, I understood why James had told me in a year, a lot could change, and maybe I could come out of hiding too. This was like music to my ears. I felt inexplicably re-energized. My thoughts raced as I considered the possibility that what she said was true. In only one year, I could blend my two lives together! Perhaps it was a less daunting prospect than I had initially believed. A renewed sense of hope emerged within me, and I broke into a wide grin.
"We should head back," she said, rising to her feet. I was eager to learn more about this world, but it was evident she was growing weary of explaining things to me as to a child. I expressed my gratitude sincerely as I stood up.
On our way back to the Winter Palace, an older man approached us, waving with clear intent to strike up a conversation.
"Miss Thompson!" he called out enthusiastically. "I'm so glad to finally meet you. My name is Maurice, and I'm a Councilmember for this Collective," he introduced himself, as I stood before him. "I'm happy to welcome you to our community, and I hope you will soon feel at home." He seemed nice enough.
"I hear Enya has volunteered to give you the tour of our premises." He nodded amiably toward her.
"Yes," I confirmed. "She has been so kind as to teach me about your very captivating world. I hope I can reciprocate the gesture for her someday."
His demeanor instantly changed, as if my last comment had triggered some realization.
"Yes, of course, Miss Thompson. You are quite right. I believe you might offer us all a unique perspective on the Human World." He paused. "There is, in fact, a reception in a few weeks where some prominent figures from our international community will attend. I would be honored if you would join as our special guest."
"Uhm, well, sure, yes. I would be delighted," I stammered, taken aback by this sudden invitation.
"Wonderful. I will send someone to pick you up on the twenty-ninth at seven PM at your dorm. Have a nice day, girls," he saluted, created a portal within seconds, and left us standing in the middle of a garden, utterly astonished.
"What the hell..." Enya gasped. "Do you have any idea who that was? What you were invited to?" she asked.
I shook my head no, gazing at her quizzically.
"That was Maurice, as in one of our Leaders! I mean, not really, his wife is our current Leader, but he’s pretty much her stand-in. You getting this invitation ishuge!" she exclaimed.
I smiled carefully, not entirely sure about what exactly.
EIGHTEEN
JAMES
I was in a foul mood.
Simple orders I gave my Offensives seemed suddenly too complex to comprehend, my contacts within Kanata C weren’t as cooperative with our plans for the Radicals as I had anticipated, and I found myself in a heated argument with the Council over all of the above. To top it off, I'd been avoiding Emma since her arrival, feeling somewhat ashamed over my behavior in the Grand Hall, which was now days ago and still had me on edge.
A week after Emma had been settled in, I met up with Matthew for drinks at the Cube, fully prepared to drown my frustrations in copious amounts of alcohol, including any lingering doubts about stepping into the role of the next Leader. Unable to confide in anyone outside the Maumars about the true reasons for my ascension, conversation was off the table, but drowning those thoughts in alcohol was fair game.
Thankfully, Matthew was always up for a drinking session.
"I was summoned by the triplets today," he mentioned casually with his first drink in hand.
"You were?" I asked, somewhat surprised.
"Yeah, they want me to recruit the poor bastard who has to train the granny." He shrugged.
"Really? The granny...?" He clearly couldn't musteranyrespect for Emma.
"Yeah... just don't know who I hate enough to put in that position." He smiled wickedly.
