"Artemis. Apologize to him."

Ava stood firm, her hands planted on her hips, her tone brooking no argument.

Artemis rolled her eyes, "Why should I apologize? He was gawking at the Captain when my Yoyo hit him."

I interjected with a wave of my hand, "It's alright, Ava. It was my fault."

"See? Even he admits it," Artemis retorted, taking a casual sip of her smoothie.

She paused mid-sip, and a frown crept onto her face.

Putting the smoothie down, she swallowed hard, then narrowed her eyes toward the kitchen.

"Apollo," she said calmly, her tone deceptively sweet, "will you stop taking away my sense of taste?"

Apollo’s head popped out from the kitchen door, a mischievous grin plastered on his face. "Do you even have a sense of taste?" he teased.

Artemis gave him a sweet look that screamed danger. "Do you want a taste of blood in your mouth?"

She clenched her fist in warning, her Yoyo spinning lazily in the other hand.

He rolled his eyes and shrugged. "Fine."

With a snap of his fingers, he disappeared back into the kitchen, his retreat punctuated by a loud yelp of pain.

"Ow! That bloody hurts! Stupid penalty!" his voice echoed from the kitchen.

"He deserved it for messing around with his stigma," Artemis commented, unfazed by her brother's outburst. She took another sip of her smoothie, a satisfied smile gracing her lips.

"Ah, much better.", she sighed contentedly.

Ava glanced anxiously toward the kitchen. "Is he going to be okay?"

"Don't worry. Basil is there with him. He'll be fine," I reassured her, though I couldn’t help but think about Apollo's stigma.

Senses Devoid.

It allowed him to strip one of his opponent's senses for a chosen period.

But the catch? He’d endure the same deprivation and agonizing pain afterward.

For instance, if he deprived me of sight for five minutes, he’d suffer the same blindness and excruciating eye pain for the same duration once the stigma deactivated

Yeah, quite the troublesome stigma.

Ava looked at me with an amused smile. "Looks like Apollo is quite close to your mechanima."

"I'm not surprised," Artemis chimed in, casually flicking her Yoyo in a playful loop. "Apollo used to play with snakes as a kid."

We exchanged bemused glances. "Sounds like quite the adventurous childhood," I commented.

"Oh, I was the normal one," Artemis shrugged, effortlessly discarding her empty smoothie cup into the nearby bin.

She gave her Yoyo another spin, the metallic hum filling the room.

"Hey, could someone lend me a tongue for tasting over here?" Apollo’s voice drifted out from the kitchen, followed by Basil’s mechanical hiss.

"I'll go," Ava volunteered, making her way to the kitchen.

In case you're wondering, we Lunatics are currently in our camp.

Each Deathwalker unit has its own designated area within the Shield, known as a camp.

The size and amenities of these camps depend on the squad's status, and as Squad 21, we’ve got the best one.

Yeah. We are the best even without a majority of our members.

Our camp sits on the 47th floor of the Shield, resembling a massive penthouse.

It boasts a spacious lounge area, a fully stocked and advanced kitchen, an indoor swimming pool, and state-of-the-art entertainment systems.

Many will be wondering this.

Since half of the Deathwalkers are criminals, do criminals deserve such luxury?

Yes. Think of these luxuries as similar to the last meals requested by death row inmates.

None of us know whether we'll survive the next hour here in Blood Valley.

Deathwalkers die by the hundreds every day to keep the world safe.

Providing us with luxury like this is the least the world can do for us, even if we are seen as monsters by the general public.

But the camps are not all about luxury.

We also have a simulation room, a gym, an arsenal, and a sparring court, along with a control center directly linked to Minerva.

Additionally, we have a workshop for quick equipment fixes, and the camp serves as the home for our mechanima.

So yeah. That is the camp.

"INCOMING!" Krystal's voice rang out, just as Carlo came flying out of the sparring court entrance, hurtling straight toward me.

Reacting instinctively, I grabbed Artemis by the collar and leaped away just as the young Devereux crashed into the sitting area, shattering the glass coffee table in a spectacular spray of shards.

Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

"Ow," Carlo groaned, gingerly maneuvering himself amidst the wreckage, his obsidian-black hair tousled and singed at the red tips.

"Dude. You okay?" I asked, approaching him with Artemis in tow.

Carlo clenched his teeth, shooting me a pointed glare. "Just peachy. Thanks for the concern, vice cap."

Iris bounced over from the sparring court, a bright grin lighting up her features. Dressed in a red tank top and shorts, a jacket tied around her waist, she exuded boundless energy.

"That was a blast!" she exclaimed, seemingly unfazed by the chaos around her.

"You've got a peculiar sense of enjoyment," Artemis quipped.

Iris shrugged nonchalantly. "Hey, I wanted to gauge Carlo's progress."

Extending her hand, she helped Carlo to his feet. "And I must say, you’ve definitely stepped up your game."

"Getting my ass whupped by you in five minutes is an improvement?" Carlo asked, his frown deepening.

Iris flashed him a grin and gave his back a friendly pat. "Hey, you lasted five whole minutes against me. That's worthy of recognition."

Carlo rolled his eyes, "Well, I feel truly honored."

Turning to me, Iris asked, "Ready to go, love?"

I nodded, "Yep. I was waiting for you."

"Where are you two off to?" Ava asked, emerging from the kitchen, holding a tray of burgers.

"The library. Mordred has developed a sudden curiosity for his family tree," Iris replied, snatching a mouthwatering burger from the tray with a black tentacle of darkness.

Artemis raised an incredulous eyebrow at me. "Seriously? You’re just now getting curious about your family tree?"

I flashed her a sheepish grin, and Iris let out a chuckle.

"Oh, this is typical of Mordred. There was this one time he suddenly wanted to dissect a wraith in the middle of battle."

Iris recounted with a shudder, "It was quite the effort to pry him away from the still-alive and pinned wraith while he dissected the thing. That was the first and only time I ever felt sorry for a wraith."

The rest of the group turned their attention to me, their expressions a mix of amusement and concern.

"Guys. From now on let’s not make the vice-captain curious. Like, ever," Apollo remarked, his voice laced with genuine unease.

"Great. I’ve lost my appetite," Carlo sighed, shooting a glance at Iris. "You better take him to the library, Captain."

Iris nodded. "Yep."

She handed me a burger from the tray before we made our way to the camp's main entrance.

"Oh! And no making out in the library!" Ava called out to us.

"What are you, our mother?" I grumbled in response.

"More like an older sister!" she retorted.

Iris waved a hand behind her as we hurried out, "Don't worry, Ava! We'll try to behave!"

"That's definitely not reassuring!"

Before we could hear any more from her, I and Iris booked it out of the camp.

*******

"Ah yes! Found it!"

Iris's eyes gleamed with excitement as she descended from the ladder, holding a hefty tome bound in crimson leather.

The library around us was bathed in the soft, white glow of the light panels in the ceiling.

The scent of old tomes, records, old recipes and many more mixed with freshly printed pages of modern novels, textbooks, and guides lingered in the air.

The towering, sleek, and ergonomically designed shelves seemed to close in around us as if they too were interested in listening to the things we are about to learn.

The silver embossing on the cover of the tome spelled out its purpose plainly:

The Book Of Lineages

"That's quite direct," I remarked.

She nodded, her gaze fixed on the book, "Indeed. It contains details not only about the Royal Family but also the lineage of other prominent noble families."

We settled into comfortable seats in a secluded corner of the library and she opened the book, tracing her slender finger across the index.

Her eyes lit up. "Ah! Pendragon."

She flipped to that page, and we began reading side by side.

"Hm. Your father's lineage is ancient indeed, tracing back to Liyr the Dragon Tamer," she remarked, breaking the silence.

"The Dragon Tamer?" I echoed, arching an eyebrow in surprise.

Dragons in this universe are very different from the ones on Earth.

They were not the glorified winged lizards of my past life, known for belching out fire and poison.

No, the dragons here are among the most powerful beings in existence, and their power is on par or even greater than the Incarni.

Yeah. They are a big deal, such that even some dragons are revered as gods.

The idea of a Dragon Tamer was both fascinating and perplexing.

"By Tamer, you mean?" I asked, my curiosity piqued

"Yes, the Dragon Tamer," Iris confirmed with a nod, though her expression held a touch of amusement and awkwardness.

"Legend has it that Liyr was the first to tame a dragon and... well, have sex with it."

I blinked, momentarily stunned, "What?"

She nodded again, this time a faint blush creeping up her cheeks as she continued, "Indeed. Some dragons are said to possess the ability to assume human form."

"Liyr's union with such a dragon is believed to have given rise to your bloodline."

"Oh," I muttered, quickly calming my wild imagination.

The thought was bizarre, yet somehow fascinating. "I guess that’s where the 'dragon' part of Pendragon came from."

"Indeed," Iris nodded, still blushing.

"And they had a son. Bran, the first dragon half-blood. A powerful conqueror who..." I flipped the page and whistled.

"Oooh. Brought the world under his feet."

Iris chuckled, her eyes sparkling with mischief, "Impressive lineage you've got there. From Bran conquering the world to your father becoming a being on par with the gods."

"And then there’s you and Elaine," she added, a smirk playing on her lips. "A Failed Prince who became a Deathwalker and a snobby princess."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, shut up. Morgan and Gawain are holding down the fort just fine."

"Also," I tapped the area beside mine and Elaine's names on the family tree list.

"I and that prick Elaine are no longer the latest Pendragons."

Iris’s eyes brightened, and she leaned in closer, "Ah yes! This book is now outdated. It should be updated."

"Isn't it right? Big brother?" she teased with a mischievous smile, her gaze making my heart skip a beat.

I blushed and rubbed my neck sheepishly, "Heh. That sounds good."

"Anyway," I quickly refocused on the book. "I need to see my mother's lineage. I'm more interested in that than the High King's."

Iris chuckled. "Alright, alright. Calm down, mama's boy."

We flipped the page to my mother's lineage and pored through the names and information.

At first, I was immensely relieved to see that my mother and the High King were not related at all.

Yeah. I still had that anxiety. I even had weird nightmares due to that.

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

But I must say. We were quite surprised by what we learned.

"Well, this is interesting," I remarked.

"Indeed," Iris agreed and looked at me.

"You have a remarkable family history."