Mira Arvaith
We had thirty minutes until curfew, and House Bronzard was livelier than ever. Housemates were busy with many things, whether it was reinforcing the steel balconies of our dorms or adjusting the ventilation pipes that ran throughout our isle. Everyone was on high alert.
Searchlights were applied to the roofs of every building, while others stoked the fire inside our gigantic furnace that resided at the center of our Isle.
All because of a run-in with a Truth Seeker.
I found the idea laughable at best.
They were also too smart to come into a spot where they didn't have the advantage.
But then again, Cyrus and I were going to do the same thing.
I wonder if he went on ahead and did it by himself.
"Mira, is the perimeter secure?" Milodara yelled out. She was one of the few people in our house whom I respected.
Being a member of the Zmei clan, she gave me a little hope when it came to nobles.
Just a little.
"Of course she didn't, she's useless." Ida Wigbold said, someone whom I respected the least, she was also a branch member of the Vortaris, as well as Stravos's little puppy. Despite that, Ida and the Wigbold family didn't carry themselves like a branch family. The Warlord often appointed someone from their family to be a general in his army. So they felt a step above the rest.
Biting the inside of my cheek, I created a small divot in the ground right in front of Ida, causing her to topple over a few of our housemates who just so happened to be carrying heavy machinery.
I chuckled at the sight and ran to my post.
As I ran through our isle, I took note just how amazing it is. It's a builder's dream, seeing all the contraptions and inventions littered throughout the isle. Our professors are strict in class, but outside the classroom, they let us run wild with our creativity and innovation.
They said the innovation brought on by armament techs in the year 700 PL, during the era of kingdoms, is what brought us into the modern age we have now. So the professors of House Bronzard thought it would be a shame to throttle the world's progress by not letting young and gifted starbound explore their creativity, as long as no one intentionally tried to hurt someone in the house.
To think that in the current year of 2113 PL, we have advanced this much in such a short time, I couldn't wait to see what we would create in the near future.
My father would have loved to visit a place like this.
In a few short moments, I made it to my post.
The bridge was silent, and the frigid wind was the only thing that spoke as it brushed past my ears.
I hated cold temperatures and heights. Eager to leave, I made a singular thirty-foot wall that blocked the entrance into our Isle.
Even if someone were enhanced with cosmic energy, they would still struggle with the wind the higher they climbed. Putting their life on the line.
I doubt a Truth Seeker would do anything that dumb.
My job done, I hurried back to our dorms and got myself into bed.
The curfew announcement rang through the isle's sound system.
I lay in bed, buried under my weighted blanket, the space heater's warmth filling the room. The room sucked, since I didn't fare well during the totem games, so I had to manage with the bare essentials. No air conditioning, no insulation in the walls, no soundproofing. Just a single wooden desk, a dresser, and a hundred-year-old bed.
Despite that, nothing could get me out of this spot, so I let my heavy eyes close and surrendered to the sensation.
Only a few moments passed before a loud shriek echoed through the dormitory.
A siren blared, and lights flashed everywhere. Our security system wasn't top-notch, but it worked.
Several loud knocks came from the outside of the door.
"Mira, hurry, it's urgent!"
"Is it, or did a mouse trip a wire again?" I asked, dreading getting out of bed.
"No. Chole said her desk was floating and had been thrown against her wall."
"Is that my problem, though?"
"It might be since there was a large hole put through the wall you conjured at the bridge."
My interest piqued. I racked my brain trying to figure out who had the guts to do that. I begrudgingly stepped out of bed, another scream erupted in our dorms.
"Hurry up, Mira," Milodara said, bursting through my door so that she could drag me out of my bed.
Outside the dorm, everyone ran amok. I turned towards Milodara,
"Did anyone check the sensors? Do we know how many people came over?"
"No, all sensors are down. Cosmic, heat, and X-ray. It's like they knew everything about our base."
"Do you think someone leaked it?"
"I doubt it. But then again, we do have some shady house members. But we need you to use seismic sense, it's our last resort."
Now I understand why they begged me to help. "Fine, just send a message to everyone in the house to stay put. So I can focus." Milodara nodded.
The message was sent, and the commotion died down. Feeling the subtle impacts under my bare feet, I sensed someone running across the floating rock.
Judging by the distance the vibrations traveled, they were alone in the engineering room.
"I found the intruder."
"Thank the pantheon," Milodara said
"Yeah, but grab a couple of people you trust, and wait for me outside the entrance of the engineering room."
"You don't want back up?"
"No, but just trust me, I have an idea."
"Alright then.' I nodded, and I darted off to the engineering room.
When I arrived, blueprints were all over, and equipment was scattered across the floor.
Whoever came in moved like a turret– slow, deliberate, precise.
I walked carefully, my seismic sense telling me they were close.
I couldn't see well in the dark; the cold made me shiver, and I couldn't sense the person's cosmic energy.
This was the perfect setup for a horror movie.
Then the thing stopped. Around the corner of a wall, I saw a drawer open by itself.
Notes, pencils, and circuits were jumping out of the desk. In a blur, it all stopped.
My heart was racing, and I felt like I was in the presence of some creature.
I started to believe that maybe the rumors were true.
Maybe weird things did happen after curfew.
I held my breath, hoping not to make a sound. Then a small object floated out of the drawer.
It was a silver box with two clear cylindrical containers on each side.
Whatever it was holding, I had never seen it before, but it came from Jonathan's desk.
The box floated towards me. I couldn't hold my breath anymore.
A deep gasp left my lips as my lungs desperately sought air.
There was no plan; I ran through the engineering room as fast as I could.
But before I could reach for the door, something coiled around my neck and lifted me from the ground.