“Okay everyone, it’s time to head inside!” Senli called out to the school kids, attempting to corral them off the playground.

“Ahhh, boo!” Many of them cried back in response. The caretaker understood their plight. School had just resumed after the holidays, so the kids had gotten used to staying out and playing as late as they liked, but it was time to get back into the swing of things.

“Don’t give me that. You all have homework to do, so let’s get going. There will be plenty of time to play more tomorrow.”

All the children acquiesced and began to head inside, but some took it better than others. And one boy ran up to the closest ball and punted it with all of his strength in protest. Even though the boy wasn’t even ten years old, as a Fiend, it was enough to send the ball blasting out of sight.

Senli could only sigh as she began walking in that direction, having to retrieve it, wherever it went. This was the perfect thing to cap off the chaos of the past few days. Not only had she been trying to make sure all the children attended all of their classes—many forgetting items and assignments that she’d have to help them find—the compound had been abuzz with rumors.

And unfortunately, the caretaker had been so busy that she’d been unable to ascertain the validity of them. She’d heard that Xard was back, and then gone, and then back again, though she never once saw him for herself. And Senli could have sworn she heard Kada’s laugh at some point since it was fairly distinct.

The past year had been hard on her, and even harder on the children, especially when the siege started, so she’d love for those rumors to be true. Having to explain to them that they could no longer go out and explore the town was rough. Though since then, the remaining refugees in the tunnels had set up a miniature market where the kids and other members could get a similar thrill.

And to help deal with the stress of the siege, panels with rotating portraits had been put up around the school to block out the angry humans who’d spend their days scowling at the children for no good reason, some even going so far as to point their weapons at them. While Senli walked, looking for the ball, she exited the perimeter that the portraits blocked, so she got a glimpse of the outside world for the first time in a few days.

It was all gone, every trace of Humanity. Their mean-mugging faces, their weapons, turrets, encampments. It had all suddenly vanished. All that remained was the barren rocky mountainside. So there must have been at least some truth to the rumors. Did this mean that the siege was over? There’d been no sort of announcement for anyone.

But Senli had her own priorities, so these burning questions would need to wait for another day. Once she found the ball, the girl had her own studies to attend to. It was the last year of her compulsory education. And while she didn’t know if she’d continue it into college, or what else she’d do with her future, the student was going to give it her all until graduation.

Just where was that damn ball, though? The Eavesdropper had tracked it all the way to the residential district, since that was her best guess as to where it had flown, but now she was at a loss. Had it been kicked so hard that it soared over the wall to the outside? That would be a tragedy, since she wouldn’t be able to go out and retrieve it.

Senli didn’t want to abandon the ball, but it was a risk she couldn’t take. Though the guilt of leaving it would likely eat her up. The ball loved to play with the children, to help cheer them up after hard days, like it was part of the gang itself. Maybe she could get Roque to retrieve it with his power.

But then she heard the familiar playful voice. ⚽Bounce, bounce, bounce, down the steps. Down I go, into the depths.⚽

The caretaker looked around to try and find it, and the voice seemed to be coming from the stairs that led to the tunnels. Just how had it managed to fall down there? Maybe it had rebounded off of something and rolled there somehow, or perhaps it had been kicked again.

Senli descended down the stairs and looked around, but the ball was nowhere to be found. If she headed straight, she’d pass the Valen Express and reach the refugee camp of the townsfolk. Maybe one of them had seen it and taken the ball with them.

But suspiciously, there was a door open to her left—a door that was normally locked shut, which only those with special permissions could open and enter. Had the ball gone in there?

⚽Into the suspicious hall I roll. Come follow me, I won’t tell a soul.⚽

That confirmed Senli’s guess, but now the ball was acting a bit strange—different from its usual playful demeanor. It was still a bit cheeky, but was it actually trying to guide her somewhere?

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So the caretaker entered the hall which twisted and weaved. She’d always wondered what had been behind the door, but it seemed to be a basic maintenance tunnel with nothing of actual interest. And Senli finally found the ball, which had now gone silent. She bent down and picked it up without resistance.

But when the girl stood back up, there was a flashing keypad in her face, protruding out of the wall. She didn’t know where it had come from—certain it hadn’t been there just a moment ago.

🔢So now you’ve reached the end of the road. Want to see more? Just enter the code.🔢

That was so very odd. Since this was a maintenance tunnel, the panel likely just led to important equipment, probably for maintaining the barrier or maybe the group’s computer servers. And yet… her intrigue was piqued. The Eavesdropper knew it wasn’t good to sneak around, ironic coming from someone who heard secrets everyday, but still. Just what was there to see?

But it was a moot point. She had no idea what the code was, and if she tried to enter the wrong one, that could sound an alarm and just get her in trouble. So the girl turned around and prepared to walk away, but the keypad stopped her.

🔢Are you giving up? Are you going to flee? I’ll tell you the code. It’s twelve thirty-three.🔢

Senli turned back around, and without even touching the keypad herself, the numbers lit up, entering the code on its own. A panel then slid away revealing what appeared to be a standard maintenance duct. It was certainly big enough for her to crawl inside, but was she bold enough to do so? She could explain her excuse if she got caught up to this point. But there would be no way to justify that trespass.

🕳️Secrets, secrets, what do they hide? Want to see for yourself? Just climb inside.🕳️

The duct itself made a very convincing argument, and she couldn’t stop herself at this point. Almost as if lured in by a trance, Senli found her body climbing into the duct before she could stop herself. And no matter how much she told herself to turn around, her curiosity kept pushing her forward.

It wasn’t long until she reached where the objects had likely been trying to guide her: a grate that she could look through without being seen. It peered right into the lounge of the secret-lab. While not actually a secret to anyone who lived there, only a select few had ever been allowed to access it, and she had never been deemed worthy.

While the girl had no idea what reason they’d ever have to allow her access to that haven of bountiful secrets, she couldn’t deny her burning intrigue. Ever since she’d arrived, ever since she’d heard of it, she’d always wanted to peer inside. Even after being with the group for almost two years now, in her mind, she still likened them somewhat to a cult, and always felt they were hiding something. Or a few hundred things.

The Eavesdropper never quite believed that any of those secrets would be something nefarious, but maybe now she could get some answers to her questions that she’d been too afraid to ask. What she expected to see were weird experiments or some tech that hadn’t been made public yet. But what surprised the girl most of all were the people she spotted.

There was of course Avhra and Nathym. The girl was a bit surprised to see them just sitting around casually instead of working. Alk was also peeking around the corner from the lab, not mingling with the group. Senli had actually interacted with her a few times, since The Plague Doctor had often come to observe the children. It was creepy at first, but then the girl realized that Alk genuinely had just been concerned for their well being, so they’d become somewhat friendly, and this seemed to be standard behavior for her.

Among those sitting in the lounge were Xard and Kada. So it really was true. They were back! Had they busted out of prison? Were they let go? It raised so many more questions.

But the real surprise was to see Jaid sitting in the middle of all of them, not as a prisoner or invader, but she looked like a welcomed guest, even with a plate of food in her lap. Were they colluding with the Central Peace now or something? Jaid’s current look of confusion and surprise as she stared intently at the screen in front of her just added to the mystery.

Senli couldn’t see what they were watching, but it was obvious they were all paying attention to the lounge’s television. The atmosphere and those gathered made her think it wasn’t just some friendly movie night. She’d heard another rumor about there being a Fiend TV broadcast, but she’d never paid much attention to it when the channel was on the air, so she hadn't rushed to see what they were going to show. Maybe now she’d need to go back and catch up, or maybe she could pull it up on her phone.

But before the girl could wiggle around to get the device out of her pocket, another familiar face joined the group. It was Tize, and that just added a whole new layer of awkwardness as he and Jaid stared at each other. In fact, the entire room went silent, only adding to the uncomfortable atmosphere as the others stared awkwardly at the encounter as well.

Though with fortunate timing, another person entered to cut through the tension. But it just added another layer to Senli’s confusion, since it was Mallea. Wasn’t she in stasis? But now she was walking about as if nothing was wrong, and the woman looked healthier than ever. Had they been lying about her this entire time? Senli had to take a moment to calm herself down before her brain started deep diving into a conspiracy.

But then there was one final drop to add to the roaring flame of her intrigue, as Drim and Phon Drazah themselves suddenly appeared. Most of those around the room jumped up to greet them: Nathym, Mallea, and Tize all rushing forward for hugs and well-wishes. Drim responded to each of them in turn, staying silent, but reciprocating their feelings. And Pox immediately jumped up into the man’s long hair, claiming his rightful place on the back of his had.

Phon, however, ignored them all. The woman had craned her head, staring up at the vent, looking Senli directly in the eyes. And then The Vixen grinned at her. Before the girl could panic, could try to crawl away, the world changed around her.