Staying in her room had become a new habit. Hear voices outside, stay inside. Emryn didn’t like the idea of socializing. She didn't know how to talk to people. What was she even supposed to say?
She hadn’t meant to, but she ended up staying in her room the whole day after Zaiden had left that morning. Nobody came to see her, so she didn’t make an effort to go out. Laying in her new bed, Emryn couldn’t help but think she could stay there forever. But there was one thing keeping her from doing so. Her things were still in the hospital room.
Emryn wanted her stuff but the idea of having to walk through Abrax alone, while everyone stared daggers at her, greatly outweighed her initial desire to retrieve her things. She felt like an animal on display around them. No matter what they were doing at the time, they always turned to look at her. She hated the attention. It brought back the feelings of the labs. Everyone’s eyes were always on her there too.
She pulled the sleeves of her sweatshirt over her hands and watched the door. It was open just far enough so she could remind herself there was always a way out. This wasn’t a cage. She wasn’t in a cell anymore.
Emryn watched as shadows moved through the halls, shouting in glee as they passed her door. Each time someone crossed the hall outside her room, she’d grab her chakram. Running her fingers over the engraving Zaiden had put there, she’d think about walking out and joining whoever was out there.
Those thoughts never lasted long.
With nothing else to do, Emryn slowly drifted off to sleep. Thoughts spiraling, then fading. How long had it been since she slept? A day? She couldn’t have been up for too long but she was already tired.
A small, tentative knock at the door startled her awake. Looking through the small window, she could see the sun peeking up through the clouds.
“You were asleep for a while,” a tiny but hoarse voice said. Emryn whipped her head to look at the source, only to find the boy from earlier. Braun was what Simone and Zaiden had called him. Shocked to hear him actually speak, Emryn continued to stare. “Zai told me to give you these.” He held up her bag with one skinny arm.
“I-” Emryn cleared her throat. “Thank you.” He was actually talking to her. Strange. The boy had been too scared to approach her before.
She slipped off the bed to grab the bag from his outstretched hand but paused halfway. “Do you have a knife?” she asked, raising a brow.
“Huh?” Braun stepped back, flabbergasted.
She looked the boy up and down. He had nowhere to store any weapons. “Nevermind,” she said, taking the bag.
Braun didn’t leave like she thought he would. He stood there. Staring at her. Emryn grew squirmish under his gaze and averted her eyes to the window. When Braun still didn’t leave, she turned back to him. It didn’t look like he was thinking about anything. His face was only scanning hers. Braun’s eyes moved over her so much, for a moment she thought they’d fall out.
“Did you need something?” Emryn asked, rubbing her arms awkwardly. This little boy was suddenly the most terrifying thing she’d ever encountered.
“You’re pretty,” he smiled. Emryn opened, then closed her mouth, unsure of what to say. Braun didn’t stop grinning. Or staring. His small brown eyes burned holes through her. His words had only confused her more.
“Is that a good thing?”
“No. In fact it’s probably the worst thing that could happen to you.” Simone and Alex appeared behind Braun. Simone chuckled at her own joke. Alex on the other hand was rolling his eyes and crossed his arms. “Ignore her, she stayed up too late last night,” he groaned. He leaned on the doorframe with a far off look. “I think she was plotting a murder.”
Simone punched his shoulder, a scowl on her face. “If you tell her that she’ll think I’m crazy,” she grumbled, causing Braun to laugh.
“But you are,” he giggled. Alex stared at the boy, wide-eyed and concerned. Simone slowly turned towards Braun, a dark look covering her features.
“What did you say?” she questioned. Words slow and menacing. Before she could do anything to the poor kid, Alex hid him behind his back. He grabbed her hand and turned her back towards Emryn, who had watched the exchange curiously.
“We came to see you since you slept all day, “ he voiced, casting glances at Simone each time she tried to look at Braun. The small boy was on Alex’s other side, completely oblivious to the potential danger.
“Did I really sleep that long?” Someone could have murdered her if she wasn’t careful.
“Yeah you were out like a log, but don’t sweat it. Everyone sleeps in every now and then,” Simone reassured.
“We were just heading to the common rooms for some card games if you want to join us,” Alex offered.
Emryn rubbed her arms. She didn’t know how to play any card games. Never really had the chance to learn. Plus, the common rooms, to her knowledge, were always filled with people. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” she mumbled.
“Nonsense,” Simone exclaimed, throwing an arm around her shoulder. Emryn tensed but Simone didn’t seem to notice. “Hanging out with us will help you meet some more people. Everyone's already dying to know you.”
Her heart picked up. “Really?” she asked, trying to contain her excitement. People actually wanted to meet her.
“Yes, now hurry up and get ready so I can beat you at poker.” Emryn didn’t know what that was but the idea of being included made her smile.
Alex took Braun while Simone had to retrieve something from her room, leaving Emryn to get ready by herself. She grabbed her bag, taking out the old brush and started to get fixed up as fast as she could. The mirror mounted on one of the gray walls made her realize how unruly her hair had gotten. The golden red stands were sticking out in weird ways. It reminded her of some of the trees she had seen.
“Need some help?” Zaiden stood outside her door, smirking at her outlandish appearance. Her face grew hot. How long had he been there and why hadn’t she noticed?
“I think I got it,” she lied. She hadn’t meant to leave the door open again.
Zaiden gave her a knowing look. “If you say so.” Emryn looked from the mirror and back to him. His tall frame was leaning on the wall and watching her intently. The smug look he had made her more embarrassed. He had a way of making her seem like she was all he was ever looking at. Sometimes it made her squirm but other times it reminded her of the joy she felt when she would look at a flower or the sky. Free and precious. Sighing, she gave in a little and told him to get Simone. She wasn’t about to let him see how much of a mess she was.
Once Zaiden left and Simone came in, she started laughing at the face Emryn was making in the mirror. She said her nose scrunch was cute but Emryn wasn’t sure that was a complete compliment.
“I’m serious, you look like a cute little chipmunk when you make that face,” Simone managed to say through her giggles.
“Just help me with my hair,” Emryn groaned.
“Oh I’ll do more than that,” Simone said. “I’m gonna teach you how to braid and do it on your own.” She threw some strands of red hair over Emryn’s shoulders and smirked.
By the time Simone was done shoving all of her hair tips into Emryn’s brain, she had actually managed to learn something. She learned that Simone was obsessed with hair. Her knowledge seemed endless. Emryn struggled to keep up, only managing to learn the basics. Luckily, that was all she really needed.
When they made it to the common rooms, no one seemed to notice. The room hadn’t changed since the last time they were here and yet the atmosphere was completely different. People weren’t looking at her like she was growing horns anymore.
In the center of the room a table full of cheering people caught her eye. Simone was quick to join them, sharing the chair Alex was currently sitting in. He discreetly showed her his cards and the two exchanged weird gestures before nodding. It must have been some kind of code.
Unable to refrain herself, Emryn quietly walked over. The red velvet colored table was littered with playing cards, drinks, and round tokens in various colors. Everyone seated around the table wore blank or smug expressions, even Braun, who Emryn was surprised to see here. The little boy looked confident sitting on top of Zaiden’s lap. His small hands barely covered the cards he held but he still managed to fit in better than her.
They took turns pushing different tokens to the center. Everyone’s movements were mechanical and calculated. To her right, Alex looked nervous. His hands were shaking slightly and his eyes darted everywhere. Emryn found it odd how his heart didn’t reflect his usual hysteria. Noticing Alex’s nerves, a man Emryn didn’t know pushed all of his tokens in. His smirk taking over his face, he was the embodiment of overconfidence.
A few people threw their cards on the table but Braun pushed more of his tokens to the center, smirking at the man who had done it previously. “All in,” Zaiden said, peering over Braun’s shoulder to move more of their tokens. All eyes were on him as he leaned back in his chair, completely aloof.
“Don’t get cocky Amin. You’re not winning this one.” The blonde to Zaiden’s left, pushed all of her tokens forward. Emryn took notice of the sweat on her forehead and fast heart rate. “All in.”
The first man spoke again. “I should be saying the same to you, Mary. You’re about to lose too.” He was awfully smug on the outside, but his heart was also pounding.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Alex was up again, this time he didn’t look nervous at all. He casted one glance around the table and smiled. Pushing his tokens in, he said, “I’m all in.” His actions were met with a few odd looks from the others at the table.
“Really Alex?” Mary asked. “Sure you wanna do that?”
“We fold,” Zaiden announced, silencing the group. Braun set all of their cards on the table, face up. Everyone stared at it, surprised. Must have been a good hand.
“You can’t fold,” the man argued. “It’s not even your turn.”
Zaiden smirked at him. “Braun makes the rules, Elias. He wanted to fold.” Each word was spaced out to mock the man. Zaiden was messing with him and it looked like it worked.
Elias mumbled curses under his breath. His leg was shaking under the table. The dim lights hanging above flickered. Emryn didn’t know how to play but she could tell he was about to lose.
“Reveal your cards,” Braun announced to the table. Everyone showed their cards one at a time, Elias going first. Mary laughed but it sounded more relieved than humorous. She went next, revealing a couple matching cards. Turning to Alex, she smirked. “Should’ve folded,” she quipped.
Alex smiled, slowly revealing his cards. “Full house. I win.” Mary’s face fell and she let out a frustrated grunt. The action confused Emryn. It wasn’t like she was going to win anyway. It had been obvious since the beginning.
Elais and a few others started laughing. “Always the quiet ones,” he joked.
“We’re playing again,” Mary announced, causing the group to laugh more. Mary looked dejected, but perked up when her eyes met Emryn’s. The way she was looking at her made her queasy. “She can play with us,” Mary called out, directing everyone’s attention to Emryn.
Before anyone could ask, she was already shaking her head. “I wouldn’t want to intrude,” she pleaded, hoping she didn’t sound rude but also hoping they took the hint.
Mary waved her over. “Nonsense, what was your name again.” Emryn wanted to reach for her chakram but it wasn’t strapped to her back. Her throat got tight and her pulse quickened.
“Her name’s Emryn,” Zaiden announced. Emryn lifted her head to watch him. He smiled softly, nodding in understanding. It seemed like he was the only one who did understand her.
“She doesn’t have to play if she doesn’t want to,” Elias assured. “We’re gonna deal Simone in though. I still need my payback for last time.”
Simone leaned forward, wrapping a muscled arm around Alex’s shoulders. “What are we betting,” she grinned.
“Everything you’ve got, Major,” Elias replied, leaning forward.
Alex rolled his eyes. “Guess you better get used to sleeping in the halls Elias cause you’re not gonna win.” He was looking at Elias as if he were a rat, or a fly on his windshield. If looks could kill, Elias would be six feet under.
Their glaring contest was interrupted by a certain blonde general, who looked more pissed than usual. “Is this really what you guys decide to do when I’m not around?” Malcolm leered. He didn’t spare Emryn so much as a glance when he joined the others at the table.
“Oh look who it is! Back from the dead already?” Elias laughed. “I’ve got to admit, you look pretty good for a zombie. Though that scowl does ruin it. Has anyone ever told you you should smile more?”
“Shut up before I feed you to one of Alex’s machines.” He got up close to Elias, glaring at him. It was good to know Malcolm’s murderous tendencies weren’t just for Emryn. The guy hated everyone.
“Easy there Malcolm, don’t want you to break anything again,” Elias smirked, referring to his injuries. Emryn tried not to laugh at the annoyed expression Malcolm wore. Before things could get out of hand, Zaiden stepped in between the two, pushing both of them apart.
“Malcolm take my spot,” he ordered. The blonde sent a glare his way. “Please?” Malcolm rolled his eyes but didn’t argue. The table went back to winding each other up playing their game in the most chaotic way. They seemed close. Emryn kept her distance.
Zaiden moved to stand next to her. He didn’t say anything. Didn’t bother her with questions. Just stood there, watching the game with her. His presence was comforting. It made her feel less like an outsider looking in.
After a few rounds she slowly started to understand it. The value of the different cards she didn’t get but she could tell who was gonna win every time. The game centered itself around bluffs. She could tell who was confident in their hand and who wasn’t. Bluffing was similar to lying. Both were masks used to deceive someone into thinking a certain way.
Alex had the best bluff. Using other people’s pretenses about him, he could manipulate the game in his favor every time. It was kind of scary.
Malcolm was an interesting player as well. He was always calm and would do things only for the purpose of annoying Elias. He copied his moves or gave the man strange looks every time he did something Malcolm could tell he wasn’t confident about. He managed to get Elias to question every move he made.
But he couldn’t fool Emryn. She knew every time he bluffed. His nerves would show through the things others couldn’t see. Anytime he lied about something, he’d fidget with his fingers and his pupils would dilate.
“Can you tell who’s gonna win?” Zaiden whispered, leaning close. Emryn’s face heated. She looked away, hoping he didn’t notice.
“Yes, can you?”
“Most of the time,” he trailed off, staring at the table.
“Is that how you knew to give up? When Alex won?” Zaiden sighed, looking down at his hands.
“I knew he was gonna win as soon as he smiled. He doesn’t let his facade fade very often but I could recognize it anywhere. Perks of knowing him for a long time.” Emryn hadn’t known him for as long as Zaiden had but she knew exactly what he meant. Alex purposefully seemed nervous and jumpy when he played, so everyone thought he didn’t have a good hand. They didn’t think he was a good liar.
“Malcolm’s going to win this one,” Emryn declared after a minute.
“What makes you say that?”
“No one else can see the little tells he has when he’s bluffing. Everyone sees him as a confident and truthful person since he always says what comes to mind. None of them can see how nervous he is. His heart is fast and he constantly bites his lip or scratches his ear when he’s unsure of something but his face remains neutral no matter what,” she went on. “That’s how I know he can fool everyone.”
The group took turns revealing their cards. When it came time for Malcolm to, every yelled out and scoffed. Some cursed as they threw their cards in.
Zaiden grinned. “Everyone except you apparently.” Emryn smiled, proud of her own observations. She watched as Alex cheered while Mary was wrapping an arm around Malcolm. Simone slapped his back. The room was filled with more cheers as Elias threw his cards down and sighed in defeat.
Malcolm laughed and it might have been the first time that Emryn had ever seen him smile. Elias was right. He should smile more. It looked better than the scowls and death glares he gave her.
“Remind me to never bet against you,” Zaiden commended, his voice bringing her thoughts back to him. His casual stance and carefree attitude put her at ease. Even if she would never fit in with anyone else at Abrax, she would always have him.
Instinctively, Emryn’s eyes drifted from his face to his stomach. An arm was draped across his torso, almost protectively. He did that a lot. She had grown rather curious as to why that was but he never asked about her scars, so she wouldn’t ask about his.
“Do you play a lot of bluffing games?” Emryn asked, determined to learn more about him. Zaiden chuckled, rubbing his side with the arm hugging his stomach.
“You could say that,” he breathed. “It’s a good skill to have.” His eyes were distant which Emryn found odd. Zaiden always seemed to be holding back. Fixed on not letting anyone truly see him.
“Is it a skill you normally use?” He wasn’t looking at her, his eyes were set on the game going on in front of them. His smile and carefree attitude disappeared when he spoke. “I have to,” he murmured, swallowing a lump in his throat.
Zaiden looked so defeated, Emryn regretted asking. Desperate to steer the conversation in a new direction, she racked her brain for a new topic. “You and Malcolm always talk about Mallax and O’Connor, can you tell me more about them?”
Zaiden knitted his brows, confused, but the look was wiped away by a proud smile. “You want to help us?”
“Of course I do. You helped me and I made you a promise. I’m going to eradicate them.” Maybe she came off too blunt. Some of the things that would come out of her mouth made her understand why people were afraid of her.
Luckily, Zaiden didn’t seem put off. He smiled at her, making her heart flutter. That was a strange reaction. An odd feeling too.
“I know I’ve already told you some things about them, so stop me if I repeat myself, but Mallax is one of Abrax’s opposing factions. It’s made up of a bunch of misfits that strive for our destruction. They’re nomadic in a sense. They travel a lot, following animals, but stay within certain boundaries. All of that would have been fine if they hadn’t tried stealing from us. Most of our supply runs have been intercepted by them. They attack from the shadows, killing our soldiers and taking what’s rightfully ours. Mallax specializes in more covert operations because their resources aren’t as advanced as ours. They have some modern weapons but I’ve never seen them with vehicles. Which, honestly, makes them harder to track.” Zaiden continued to rub circles in his side. Emryn’s eyes followed the movement. “Part of why they’re such a pain to deal with also has to do with their leader, O’Connor. From what I understand, he rose to power young and has taken every opportunity he gets to make our life here at Abrax harder. He’s also one of the oddest people I’ve ever met.”
Emryn’s attention snapped back up to his eyes. “You’ve met him?” If Zaiden and O’Connor had met, it made no sense for O’Connor to still be alive. He was the enemy. Emryn’s nails started digging into her palms.
Zaiden stared at her for a moment. His soft brown eyes focused on her hands. He gently took hold of them and moved her fingers so she could no longer cause herself harm. Looking at her open hands, Emryn could see the red crescent marks start to bleed and then quickly heal. Very tentatively, Zaiden held her hand after the wounds had closed, as if to prevent her from doing it again.
“I’ve encountered him several times,” he continued. “Sometimes we manage to capture him but he always escapes. It’s like he has a gift for it. He took on whole battalions by himself and still made it out alive. I’ve heard some people joke that he has magic.” Zaiden laughed at that last part. “If I hadn’t seen him bleed, I don’t think I would have believed he was human.” His thumb ran up and down her hand as he held it. She would have been lost in the movement if it wasn’t for the last remark. Was that reasoning also used to determine if she was human? She had bleed plenty of times, did that make her human?
“You cheated!” Elias’s yells from across the room made both Zaiden and Emryn turn. Braun was standing on the table holding a set of cards high out of Elias’s reach while Mary and Alex held him down.
“He didn’t cheat, you just suck,” Malcolm said with simple directness and boredom.
Elias turned his frustration towards Malcolm, who looked like he couldn’t care less about the situation. Emryn saw Mary and Alex’s eyes widen, the sudden shock making Elais break free from their cage of arms.
“Wanna say that again blondie?” he sneered.
“Did you have trouble hearing the first time?” Malcolm’s cold demeanor was nothing new but Emryn found it entertaining when it was directed at someone besides her.
“I should probably stop that,” Zaiden pondered but seemed to be in no rush.
“Probably,” Emryn shrugged, smiling softly at the display. Soon enough Elias stepped up to Malcolm, who sat up in his seat, ready to fight. Elais was taller and had a stronger build but that did nothing to deter Malcolm. The two stared each other down, neither backing up. The air was thick and the suspense was tangible. Everyone’s eyes now laid upon the two men at the center of the large room, waiting to see who would make the first move. Simone slightly raised herself, ready to interfere if necessary.
Emryn could hear the steady rhythm of Malcolm’s heart. She had listened in to see if he was afraid, only to find he was much calmer than anyone else here.
Elias smiled, shocking the people nearby, and pulled a deck of cards out of his pocket. They were almost identical to the ones used to play. “Care for another game?” he inquired. “One on one.”
Malcolm rolled his eyes. “Take your rematch up with the kid who beat you. I’m going back to bed.” Elias laughed, along with a few others. Everyone went back to their previous activities as if nothing happened. Emryn watched Malcolm leave the room, their eyes catching for a brief moment before he turned away.
“You people are strange,” Emryn whispered. Elais had taken Malcolm’s advice and played a one on one game with Braun, only to have the boy beat him a few minutes later. No matter how many times Elias lost, he kept challenging others against him. People were very strange indeed.