SHILOH

It's been a rough couple of days, to say the least. A terrible couple of days. But perhaps some good has come out of the bad. The world—Shiloh's world—has been changed irreversibly. Stretched. Modified.

Some alliances have been made, while others have been dissolved. Lines have been drawn. A new course has been charted. But only time will tell who Shiloh's real allies are in the endeavor.

Who could have foretold that one of her greatest allies would be a Biodroid, of all things? Nevertheless, it was true.

Silas was...the key. The answer to everything. Perhaps, with his help, Shiloh could actually make a difference in this world. Perhaps, together, they could take humanity into the future. They could take back what had been taken from them, by the Biodroids, and even by SERAPHIM.

It's a long shot, but in Shiloh's eyes, it's still possible. And she has to try.

Right now, she's sitting in a Board meeting, nodding along to suggestions regarding the Cloister's repairs and reconstructions. But inside, her heart is light, her pulse quick with anticipation.

Soon, she'll discover the thing her father was searching for all those years. Soon, all his years of efforts won't be in vain. She'll finish what her old man started.

The biggest bottleneck in the process, right now, is the Biodroid himself. Somehow, Silas managed to get himself blown up in the fight.

Well, 'blown up' might be a strong way of putting it. There was a lot of damage to his exterior. Cade insisted he would be fine, though. That it was the kind of damage his 'nano particles'—or whatever—would be able to repair on their own. With time.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Hopefully not too much time.

"Shiloh," Callahan says, pulling her back into the moment, into that room. For a guy who was shot less than forty-eight hours ago, and still has his arm and shoulder in bandages and a cast, he seems to be doing alright. "Do you have anything to add?"

To what? A meeting about fixing the underground bunker? There's another one, not fifty miles south of their current position. They all know that, now. Bigger. Better equipped. With secrets to uncover.

Yes, the Cloister needs repairs. It's an immediate concern. But what about long-term solutions? What about...the future? Does the Board really think that this will be the last of the Biodroid attacks? That things are just going to go back to normal from here on?

Nothing's changed for them, has it? The Cloister has gone through a life-changing ordeal. But the Board itself reverts back to the status quo, the old ways of handling things, as soon as the plight appears to be over.

But why get into it, right now? 'You can bring a horse to water...' isn't that the saying? Even less flattering: why cast pearls before swine?

They've made their choices. They've made it clear what their priorities are.

And Shiloh has made hers.

"No, that just about covers it," Shiloh says, putting on a smile.

Still, as everyone pushes their chairs back and gets to their feet, congratulating each other on another successful meeting, Shiloh remains seated. She locks eyes with Evelyn, who's been standing next to the coffee machine with a steaming mug in hand for the entire meeting.

Evelyn returns the look. The message is clear, and received.

They both stay, the two of them, as everyone else filters out of the room.

Finally, they are alone.

Shiloh stands, the feet of her chair squeaking on the concrete floor. She steps around the long conference table, coming to a stop next to the coffee machine, across from Evelyn. She folds her arms.

"You rang?" Evelyn says.

"I have to ask, Evelyn. Why did you do it?"

Evelyn smiles wryly, taking a sip from her mug. "Shouldn't you just be grateful that I did?"

Maybe. But there was something about it that stuck in Shiloh's craw. She couldn't just let it go.

"I still need to know."

"Oh," Evelyn says, smile fading. "But you already do. Don't you?"