[Victoria Moore]:
"And where was Faction Head Athan in all of this?" her words were sharp and cut through the quiet faction heads and high ranking instructors present like a sledgehammer. "Matter of fact, where is he now?"
No one answered.
Then, someone did. Shifu Wang.
"He had important matters to attend to before any of this had even occurred, Vice President," he said, bowing his head in respect. "I have taken over his duties in his absence."
"Hmm…" Victoria sounded unsatisfied.
That's because she wasn't.
'None of this would've happened if Athan were present — At the very least, it wouldn't have gotten this bad,' she thought in frustration, narrowing her eyes. 'He's the only one I've met that I know is stronger than me and by far even the President himself. I don't know why he chooses to present himself a mere Chaotic ranker when he's so much more. He should've been Vice President in my stead — he has the power — Hell, he could become president, honestly, with his power.' The Vice President released a sigh, her thoughts as stressed ou as the situation they were in. 'Where did it all go so wrong?'
The Vice President of Mythorus Academy was offworld with the Academy's President, handling important Academy business when they received word of the attack on the Academy. The President himself wanted to abandon his mission and immediately return to Planet Mythos, to the Academy. Thankfully, Victoria convinced him otherwise and that she'll come in his stead. They were on that mission for the better part of a year; she would not see all their progress go up in vain by something that could be acknowledged and addressed by her alone.
Upon landing the capital ship west of the Academy, where a squadron of pegasi were already waiting to take them the rest of the way to the Academy, Victoria was greeted and welcomed by the faction heads, remembering 2nd and 3rd years and clueless 1st years. But no Athan Eubeleus, she noticed immediately, but said nothing.
The room itself was very basic, yet quite comfortable. Four great, mahogany wooden pillars held the four corners of the meeting area, with brown, hardwood flooring beneath one's feet. A long table with 14 chairs rested in the middle of the room, 9 of which were being seated in. This included Cole Seger of the Heavenly Faction, his usual upturned and superiority-complexed persona more strained, thanks to the situation; Draco Jackson, who had a better handle of his display of emotion, though even that was strained, too, if you knew where to look; Madea Helios J.r was net, sitting directly in front of Cole and Rowena Rae, who sat before Draco to Madea's right. h wore hardened expressions. Dr. Bruce was the most non-chalant of all, easily looking like he actually wanted to be there with everyone, and Tommen was a close second. Shifu Wang and Lady Lipton sat in the guest seats while Victoria sat at the head of the table.
"What I don't get was how you all were able to bypass a Peak Legendary barrier," Victoria continued, thinking onward. "You guys were outside the barrier, weren't you? How did you manage to get in?"
"That would be all Wang," Dr. Bruce said, with enthusiasm. "He 'siphoned' the barrier's energy away until we could enter."
"Siphoned?" Victoria inquired.
"My, um, bloodline ability lets me siphon, concentrate and then redirect different energy types back at someone else," Shifu Wang stated."There's more to it, but that is the essence of it."
"Huh. you don't say. I suppose we were fortunate to have you there with us, then. You have my gratitude," Victoria nodded to Shifu. Shifu bowed his head in acknowledgement.
"I do what I did for the Academy — And for Athan's pupil," Shifu answered.
"Very good. I— Wait, what?" Victoria had to double take. "Athan has gotten a pupil in my absence?"
"Yes, Vice President," Rowena Rae answered with a frown, as she explained Corven's condition. "And that's all we know."
'This Corven Umbrovante sounds like an interesting fellow,' Victoria thought. 'From the sound of Rowena's description and explanation and many of the Faction Heads' expressions, they aren't too fond of the boy. Maybe I'll keep an eye on him. Just in case?'
They all filled Victoria in on all that has happened in her absence — the Awakening Ceremony, the whole Dungeon fiasco and different details that were missed during the War Games explanation. She even received an update on the on-going problem she and the higher ups of the Academy's been keeping under wraps — the disappearances of students.
"…And we believe it has been the Infernal Guild the whole time, abducting students, though we know not why or where they've been taken just yet," Draco was explaining.
"Don't know? Pah! More than half your factions were bad seeds, Draco! Don't know my ass!" screamed Madea in barely controlled rage. The air instantly began to heat around her.
"Madea is right," Rowena tried, her face scrunched in irritation. "That many bad seeds, that many traitors under one's banner, and it's the fault of who's leading the herd. For all we know, you're a traitor, Draco. Can't trust men with anything, I swear!"
"Oh, really?" Draco raised a brow, not visibly bothered by the allegations. "And how many of your faction was turned, Madea? A whole 1/5ths — That's almost an entire year's worth of students. By that same logic, Cole should be a traitor as well."
Cole, usually silent and reserved, maintained his image, though through clenched fists, Victoria noted.
"I didn't accuse Cole—," Madea began.
"You never accuse Cole," muttered Tommen under his breath, but everyone heard it.
"However," Madea continued after glancing briefly at Tommen. "We do need to face the very real possibility that there is a traitor amongst us Faction Heads. At the very least, there's one amongst the higher ranking instructors."
"She's not wrong," Tommen pointed out, almost a mutter, though everyone still somehow heard him nonetheless. "We must have a traitor amongst us. Or, perhaps, more than one. How else was this all planned around our war game schedule, with exact location that only we higher ups would've known beforehand?"
This briefly caused silence to settle before the uproar took over the meeting — All the while Victoria took mental note of the reactions of everyone ha to those words. She wasn't a fool. In saying this all outright, she basically alerted whoever was the traitor to her knowledge that she knew there was one.
That said, what else could she do? Let something like this happen again? No, she needed to make the traitor nervous. They'll slip up and, when they do, she'll be there to bust them and bring them in.
This caused an uproar amongst the gathered faction heads and instructors present. Draco, Rowena and Madea played a game of accusation with one another. Cole watched silently with an observant visage and Shifu Wang and Lady Lipton argued amongst one another. Tommen looked almost bored to be there and Dr. Bruce stayed wholly both amused and critical of... well, everything, as only he could.
All the while, Victoria watched it all unfold, rubbing the stress from her very temples. Then, with brief, controlled release of her Mid-Cosmic rank aura, order seemingly returned to the room almost instantaneously.
All the while, Victoria watched it all unfold, rubbing the stress from her very temples. Then, with brief, controlled release of her Mid-Cosmic rank aura, order seemingly returned to the room almost instantaneously.
"I don't care for the arguments — We're the adults. Some of us are literally hundreds of years old," Victoria spoke, all eyes on her, all mouths shut in the process. The aura she was releasing was like a cosmic elephant in the room — Both heavy and commanding. It left no room for questioning her authority. "What I do care about is the children. The children under our protection at this Academy and their safety takes precedent over all other things. We will root out all traitors in the staffing — high ranking, low ranking or even faction heads. Everyone is a suspect. And, if our traitor is here this day, this room, right now... I will find you. And I'll show you no mercy when I do root you out, of that I solemnly swear."
A silence passed over the room like a storm cloud, as all within feeling the sparks of her words down their spines, no doubt.
The gathering went over a few more mundane things, as well as the upcoming Years 1 & 2 Dungeon raid. It was decided that the trip would take place 2 weeks after the weeklong break — For reasons they all agreed on, as their charges needed time to process everything and everyone they've lost.
Many students were allowed temporary leave from the Academy to go with family or take a break from campus. Some choose to go, others stay. They didn't refuse anyone this.
By the time the meeting was formally over, Victoria had done her assessment and had a vague roster of who could be this 'traitor.'
But, even as she thought in depth to what she observed during the meeting, she couldn't help but remember one thing they had discussed earlier in the meeting.
'Athan had an apprentice...,' Victoria thought, inquisitively. 'Corven Umbrovante... I'll be seeing you, I suppose. And where the Hell is Athan Eubeles?'