Armed with their next questions and confident in their promise, Cleo opened the door to lead her friends out of their small planning room. When she did, she found herself face to face with a wide-eyed and red-faced Cassian.
She mirrored his embarrassment once the memory of the words she had yelled about him slowly came back to her through her newfound confidence. That was fading quickly. At the time, she hadn't cared if he could hear- in fact, she almost wanted him to. But now she just wanted to crawl into a hole and never face him again.
Neither of them know how to start a conversation anymore. They both forgot the reason they were standing in that doorway. The one time Cleo wished for nothing more than one of Charlie's sarcastic comments or Andy's reminders, they both stayed silent. Figures.
"Um," Cassian finally started. "I was just... you know. I came to see if you... reached a decision yet."
"Right."
"Yup." He rubbed his neck nervously.
Cleo was just thinking to herself that she better bring it up and get it out of the way. Just apologize and move on. Even though she had nothing to really apologize for. Clearly he heard everything, which meant he was hanging around, probably eavesdropping. Why should she apologize?
Thankfully, Nolan saved them. "If you're done, you should probably head back in there." Boots propped on the desk, Nolan didn't even glance their way. His attention was focused on the string he wove between his fingers, apparently not caring if they saw him this time.
Cleo looked back at Cassian, who was still standing blocking the door. He opened his mouth to say something, then decided against it. He turned on his heel and crossed the room.
"That was interesting," Charlie said quietly from where they hid behind Cleo.
"Yeah, thanks for the help guys," Cleo threw over her shoulder before leaving them in the doorway.
Before long the four of them were back in their chairs in front of the leaders of the Goldari rebellion. Cleo noticed one chair was empty; the young man with the off scars along his jaw was missing from the group. She wondered what sort of business would pull him away from this meeting. It couldn't be anything good, she decided.
"Welcome back," Maedrian greeted them, the glass circlet laying in front of her this time. "Do you have an answer for us? Or do you return with more questions?" she added with an amused smile towards Andy.
Cleo shifted to sit straighter in her seat. "Actually, yes. We do have some more questions." She answered slowly, careful not to trip over her words. Or to pay any attention to Cassian, who stared at the table.
Maedrian waved her hand to encourage Cleo to continue.
"Well, I guess the first would be why us?"
"We mean, why call Cleo to get him out of trouble in the first place?" Andy clarified, gesturing vaguely at Cassian without looking his way. "You clearly have some support here, why call someone with no experience instead of a champion?"
"Ah, that is a good question," Maedrian began. "One that we did intend to explain soon enough, but no time like the present. You see, Cleo here is one of a small population we call the Chosen."
For a reason she couldn't explain, Cleo's mind brought up specific moments from the past couple days. Getting messages from Cassian in her dreams. Finding her way to Charlie's demon-induced memory. The way the pink glow guided them and opened the door when she stepped up to it. The guards, frozen with their eyes glazed over. And the shifting images of the building she was in now. What Cassian had told her.
It's normal. You'll get used to it. And you'll understand soon, I promise.
But he hadn't explained, of course. Cleo felt a rush of gratitude towards the woman who actually answered their questions directly. Even if they were answers she couldn't process.
"They are a small percentage of humans who have a... an unexplainable ability to battle the Alumarian. As if they were of Helopera blood, as if they trained with us, fought with us. Very rare, but those that are cooperative- and choose to- join us. The Helopera as a whole, I mean. They become champions and aid us in the war." Maedrian then turned to peer at Cassian. "We had our eye on you, Cleo, but as to why Cassian chose that moment to contact you... I'll let him explain."
Despite the shattering information she had just received, Cleo almost scoffed. Let him explain. She made it sound like he was dying to explain himself.
"Well," Cassian started, his gaze shifting uncomfortably between the trio, "I wanted to make sure no one could trace us back here. I knew they couldn't get that information out of you, even if you were caught and they tried to force it out of you."
"Gee, thanks," Andy said, sarcastic but not bitter.
"I only meant-"
"We know what you meant," Cleo told him, half sincere and half plain indifferent. She was still angry at him, but she had to admit his choice made sense. It was a shot in the dark whether or not they would actually help him, but even if they were caught they could play innocent. Maybe even convince their captors they had wandered into the building by accident.
On the other hand, getting caught would have been an interesting event with Rowana in their party.
"When you're done with your little moment, can we move on?" It was the woman whose voice Cleo first heard when they entered this room the first time. She didn't look remotely happy that Cleo and the rest of them were there at all. Her mouth curved in a permanent scowl as if she was being forced to observe something that both angered and confused her.
Cleo was ready to abandon their prepared questions in favor of the avalanche of new ones she had about the Chosen, but Maedrian stopped her.
"Cleo I'm sure you have more questions on the matter but I'm afraid we don't have unlimited time," she said, grinning slightly.
"Right," Cleo said, though her mind screamed to ask more and more. "We just have two other questions. I guess my next one would be why is there a rebellion at all? I mean, why don't the rest of your people want the same things you want?"
Spiros answered this time, attempting to straighten his glasses in vain. "They are too rooted in tradition. Even if it means fighting a war that will never end."
"They refuse to reveal themselves because they think too highly of their own abilities," the woman with the scowl countered bitterly. As she turned her head to Spiros, Cleo noticed a pair of earrings glinting underneath her curly shoulder length hair. She recognized that symbol... it was the same one Rowana wore everyday around her neck. Cleo made a mental note to figure out what that symbol meant.
"Lintilla, this is hardly the time for this debate," Maedrian's tone was exasperated, tired of having the same argument over and over. The woman, Lintilla, scoffed before leaning back in her chair and going silent.
Maedrian turned back to Cleo's end of the table. "Whatever the specific reasons are, the point is that they are unwilling to reveal themselves and their technology to the world. They are perfectly content to continue fighting Fear themselves, however impossibly it may be."
"But," Charlie pressed on, "that doesn't make sense, why wouldn't they take this chance to end a war they know they can't win?"
"Again, this is hardly the time, as I know you have other questions and we have much to do. The point is they dismissed us and our ideas and they don't agree with our goals." Maedrian sounded more demanding, more final, this time. Cleo was bursting with more questions, but she forced herself to stay quiet.
"Last question?" Lintilla prompted, clearly eager to no longer be in this room.
"Right. Uh, assuming we wanted to join you," Cleo said, "what exactly is it you want from us?"
"I was hoping you'd ask that." Maedrian flashed a slightly mischievous smile. "We know that you managed to break into Cenilorn once before. We want you to do it again."
"Break in?" Cleo blurted out. She glanced at Cassian, who didn't look surprised. "Why?"
"For these," Spiros replied, gesturing to the glass circlet now sitting on the table in front of his wife.
"There are more of them?" Charlie wondered under their breath. Cleo was wondering the same thing, but it made sense. How can you recruit an army with only one?
No one answered.
"So," Andy said slowly, "is there some sort of plan? Or are we just supposed to wander around until we find some glass headbands?"
Maedrian chuckled, but her husband didn't seem amused.
"Of course we have a plan," he insisted
"The perfect cover," Lintilla added, glaring at Cassian of all people, "if we have the right team."
Cleo had a sneaking suspicion that she and her friends were not her idea of a perfect team.
"I'm afraid we'll have to do without the details of this plan until we know you're in," Maedrian said, ignoring Lintilla's comment. "Just in case. You understand."
Cleo glanced at Andy, remembering what she had said about not being able to walk away from this. She knew what their answer was.
"Our answer is yes." A quick glance at her friends told her they were all on the same page. "Can we hear this plan now?"
Maedrian beamed. She clasped her hands together. "Wonderful! I knew you would make the right decision.
"Now, this master plan of ours. The Rose family is having a ball, one week from tonight. It's the perfect distraction for you to slip inside through the halls where the devices are held."
"A ball?" Charlie repeated. "You want us to go to a ball?"
"Yes. Is there a problem?" Maedrian asked.
Charlie blinked. Clearly they had a million answers to that question, but they said, "Uh... I just- well I guess not."
"Lady Silver, If I may."
The polite voice came from the third woman in the meeting, the only one who had stayed silent so far.
Maedrian nodded to the young woman, who, now that Cleo looked at her, couldn't have been much older than Cassian, maybe eighteen or nineteen.
"You'll be outside the city, so you won't stick out as human," she said with a kind smile, somehow answering the biggest question the trio had in their heads. "Plus, no one will recognize you or suspect you're a part of the rebellion, so you won't have any suspicion on you."
"Well said," Maedrian told the woman, who looked very proud of herself, though she tried to hide it. Turning back to the trio, Maedrian continued, "We will discuss the details in the week to come. For now, we must allow you to go, you've been here quite a while already."
Cassian stood, his chair scraping against the floor, and made his way to the door to lead them out again. Cleo and her friends hesitantly stood to follow, taking the relatively abrupt hint.
"Thank you," Cleo said to Maedrian, only because she had nothing else to say.
"We shall see each other soon," she answered, "Champion."