Zora leaned forward, fully invested now. New lands? Abhorrents controlling territories? Her stars floated quietly around her, equally attentive.
Theron stepped forward, gesturing toward the screen. "Quick sidetrack — does anyone here not know what an Abhorrent is, or what separates them from a Sovereign?"
His gaze drifted toward Lena, who instantly looked away.
Ivory raised her hand. Theron pointed at her. "Go ahead."
"Abhorrents come in many shapes and stages," she began confidently. "Stage One is when the body can't handle the Eidolon. It causes severe deformities — and with the mind fractured as well, they become feral and violently unstable."
Theron nodded. Ivory continued.
"Stage Two is when the mind can't handle the Eidolon. They may look normal, but mentally, they're completely gone — just as dangerous, if not more so."
She glanced sideways at Lena, smug.
"Stage Three is full transformation. Both the body and mind reject the Eidolon. That's when the host becomes something else entirely — like the Spider Queen. She's a perfect example of a Stage Three. Giant spider. Fully mutated. But the Eidolon remains intelligent, fully in control."
Ivory sat down with a proud smile.
Theron gave a small nod. "Well said. Now—"
A soft snore interrupted him.
His eyes flicked to Paul, whose head had slumped sideways. Theron's brow twitched. He walked over — then kicked Paul's chair clean out from under him.
Paul crashed to the floor.
"Tori, damn it!" he groaned, whipping his head around—only to lock eyes with Theron.
The blood drained from his face.
"Paul, is it?" Theron asked, calm and low.
"Y-yes, sir."
"Then tell me — what is a Sovereign?"
Paul stood, brushing himself off. Theron raised a hand. "Leave the chair."
Paul swallowed and straightened up. "Sir... a Sovereign is someone whose body and mind can handle the Eidolon — but the Eidolon still takes over. There's no physical deformity, but the Eidolon becomes the dominant will."
Theron said nothing, watching him squirm.
"They're intelligent. Aware. That makes them... dangerous. But also, potentially... allies."
Theron turned, satisfied. "Correct. You'll stand for the rest of the briefing."
Paul sighed, retreating to the wall.
Theron returned to the center and gestured toward the screen. "To the East — we face The Mother of Graves. She is a Primordial Sovereign, meaning her Eidolon represents a fundamental force of nature. Her name should tell you exactly which one."
Zora jolted upright in her seat.
Everyone turned.
"Something wrong, Zora?" Theron asked, a knowing look in his eye.
"N-no... I just—" She faltered. "She controls so much territory... I didn't realize..."
She sank back into her seat, face pale.
Memories clawed their way up from that day. The field. The fire. Her parents.
Theron let the silence sit a moment before continuing.
"Her influence spreads across a massive stretch, just look at the map, I'm not going to talk about the other territories like I did the spider queen."
Theron pointed toward the map again. "The South is controlled by the Wendigos — nasty little Abhorrents."
He shifted his hand to the West. "And finally... the Chimera Sovereign."
With a flick, the map changed, all colors fading except one: red.
"This task force will focus on the Spider Queen's territory. You'll be conducting missions inside her area of influence and reporting back with anything of note."
Jason reached under the table and pulled a black duffel bag onto the surface. He unzipped it, withdrawing five manila folders. "Inside these are files on the Spider Queen — her mutations, her spawn, and how she's managed to maintain control of such a large area."
He handed them out one by one.
"Any questions?" Theron asked.
Tori raised her hand without hesitation. "Yeah — so who exactly is leading this little squad?"
Theron smiled.
"Well, seeing as Zora is the only one here ranked in the top ten of this camp, she is."
Every head turned.
Zora blinked. "H-huh? I'm in the top ten?"
Theron nodded. "An official ranking came out a few weeks ago. It's classified, but since you're all here, this is the right time to share it."
Her stars zipped around in excitement.
Look at us go! Nexus cheered, spinning around her head.
Zora opened her mouth to ask another question, but Theron raised a hand, silencing her.
"The full rankings — camp and worldwide — are in your files. Study them."
Then, his expression darkened. The pressure in the room dropped like a guillotine.
"And remember: everything in those files is classified. If a single word leaks... I'll know."
With that, he turned, walked through the portal, and vanished.
Zora slumped back in her chair with a groan.
"God, I thought he'd never leave," Ivory muttered. "That man's a walking headache."
Jason chuckled. "Yeah, he's intense. But fair." He stood up and waved his hand.
In an instant, the conference room melted away.
They now stood in a wide open field of green hills under a bright blue sky. A gentle breeze stirred the air.
"WOW!" Spark shouted, zipping through the clouds.
Jason turned to them with a grin. "Now — time for a little teambuilding exercise I like to call King of the Hill."
Zora stood as the others all began stretching or cracking their knuckles.
Jason continued, "The rules are simple. Whoever wins stays on the field. They'll keep fighting until they lose — or until there's no one left to challenge."
Everyone's smiles grew sharp. Eyes glinted.
"You can't die or be mortally wounded here," Jason added. "But you can feel pain. So go wild. And no matter what General Vance said — whoever wins this, becomes the real leader of the task force."
They all turned their eyes toward Zora.
Hungry. Competitive. Ready.
"Time to kick some ASS!" Nexus shouted excitedly.