[i] I hate the cold,[/i] Shadow thinks as she’s enveloped in the warmth of a building. Even through her suit she can feel its fierce bite. A chill that penetrates deep into her bones. She’s grateful to be inside. Though it should be the least of the ex guardian’s worries. Glitch flickers out of sight, a smart idea. She barely muffles a snarl as one of the guards herding her jabs her with the edge of their spear. Her hands raise subconsciously in a gesture of submission. Muscles in her stomach ripple at the unfamiliar treatment. Taking a deep breath, she walks through an open door into a conference room. The spears follow her every movement, close enough to stop her the second she tries anything. Metal snaps shut behind her. She almost jumps from the sound paired with two pinpoint blue eyes focusing on her lithe frame. Hesitantly taking her mask off with a hiss of releasing oxygen, Shadow approaches the Kell, her awoken face revealed to the eliksni. Eramis’s lax posture tenses as she enters, an air of icy authority controlling the room. Alongside her, sitting at the table in the center of the room are two eliksni Shadow has never seen before- they stare her down hard- as well as Variks the Loyal, sitting across from them. His eyes find her hesitantly and suddenly she wonders how she should be presenting herself in relation to him. She decides to keep things formal. Upturning her palms, Shadow greets her new Kell. “Eramis...” Variks shoots her a warning glance. “...kel,” she adds hurriedly. “A pleasure to finally meet you.” Shadow uses Eramis’s own tongue to address her. She doesn’t miss the surprise that lights the Kell’s eyes. The larger of her companions lets out a snarl. Eramis turns her head to Variks, addressing the scribe instead of Shadow. “You taught it our speech.” It’s hard to tell if Eramis is offended. It’s hard to read her at all. Shadow has never met Eramis before now. She feels moved by the power in her accented voice. Variks remains silent, interlocking his lower hands. Shadow clenches her fists. “Please...” Eramis says, narrow eyed as she looks to Shadow. “[i]Sit[/i].” Finding a seat beside Variks, the hunter swallows against the knot in her throat. “So,” the Kell says, straightening her posture and gesturing with her upper hands. “[i]This[/i] is your pet... I have been awaiting your arrival,” she adds to Shadow herself. “... and this is what I’m greeted with.” A mocking chuckle escapes her, and she leans back once more. Clearly Eramis had expected a bigger guardian to appear before her. Anger boils Shadow’s blood and she clenches her jaw. That decision to keep things formal doesn’t last. “Actually,” Shadow corrects her. “I’m his mate.” A sting of regret pierces her chest as soon as the words leave her mouth. The room becomes quiet enough to hear Variks’s labored breathing. Then, gravelly laughter erupts from Eramis’s throat. Her two companions stare in outraged silence, far from amused. Shadow’s golden eyes narrow from the tension. Variks’s hand tightens around his staff. He looks uncomfortable and Eramis’s eyes narrow at his silence. It speaks volumes. “Does it speak true? Your “mate?”” Eramis doesn’t give Variks the chance to respond. Slowly, she shakes her head back and forth. “I always wondered if what they said about you was true.” Disappointment drips from every word. “Now I see they were right when they called you flesh-lover.” Now that Eramis’s amusement had died, her counsel wear scowls of disdain. An aura of disgust continues to resonate from them. “Hypocritical [i]scum! [/i]You are even [i]worse[/i] of a traitor than we thought!” A member of Eramis’s council explodes suddenly, raising from her seat with rage. “Skolas should have finished the job!” Variks flinches. “Blaspheming [i]filth[/i] is what you are!” Shadow’s chest swells with wrath. It takes every ounce of self control she has to not explode like the eliksni. Eramis raises a hand, gesturing for her to be silent. With a great effort, she lowers herself. A growl still rumbles deep within her chest. “She is not so different from us.” Variks’s quiet, solemn words surprise everyone in the room, himself seemingly included. Eramis’s eyes light with malicious interest. “Is that so?” Shadow swallows nervously. She doesn’t like how closely Eramis observes his reactions to her. “Hm,” she huffs. “I suppose you would know, wouldn’t you?” she scoffs crudely, earning a look of approval from her other companion. Variks cringes. Shadow feels just about ready to shoot her own ghost at the following silence. Then, Eramis leans forward, her eyes boring into Shadow. Voice dropping in volume, she says, “I want to know what has made an awoken guardian make the choice to ally with the eliksni.” Boldly holding the Kell’s gaze, Shadow lets that question sink in, deciding honesty was the best route to take. If she wanted a place here in Riis Reborn with Variks, she wouldn’t earn it by tricking its Kell. “I’m not a guardian. Just awoken,” she corrects respectfully. “Variks taught me about your people while I worked for him in the Reef,” she begins, interlocking her hands. “As you know, there are other awoken and even guardians who are eliksni sympathizers. I did not care for war with your people. I would have rather allied with you. When the city rejected this idea, I left.” “You betrayed your own people.” Shadow can’t tell if it’s a question but she decides to treat it like one. “I admired your strength. And I wanted to be a part of that. I did not betray them, but I do not worship the Great Machine.” Eramis’s two eyes narrow. “I had to make a choice. And I think my choice is very clear to everyone here...” Shadow’s amber gaze drifts to aim a sidelong glance at Variks. Choosing his next words carefully, Variks interjects. “Shadow may be small, but she is gifted with the Great Machine’s blessing, and so she would be valuable in battle-“ Eramis scoffs again, as if this was of little importance to her. Anxiety worms it’s way deeper into Shadow’s stomach. What little trust she has for Eramis already begins to deplete. “She has very valuable information. You are aware of this, I am sure,” he adds. “And she is loyal and devoted to our people. She is a very good asset.” Eramis eyes her, deep in thought. Shadow hides a satisfied smirk. Variks is very persuasive and she has no doubt he will convince Eramis of whatever he so pleases. “It is good then, that she can be of use to us. We could always use another warrior...” Eramis exchanges a meaningful glance with the eliksni to her right, a slender, ethereal creature. Then she reclines back in her seat, her eyes falling on Shadow. The hunter’s momentary confidence begins to fade. She doesn’t like the way Eramis’s voice changes. Dripping with false sincerity. Forced, honeyed words. She wonders if Variks knows. Surely he could see her insincerity? “Alright, Variks.” Eramis looks to him. “Pester me no more to keep your “mate,”” she sneers. “[i]”Judgment Queen.”[/i]” She folds her lower hands together, addressing Shadow. “Have her ship and pike been confiscated?” Eramis looks behind her. Shadow’s eyes widen in alarm and she whips around in time to see Eramis’s guards respond in affirmation. “Wait-“ Eramis stands, all strength and muscle and confidence. Shadow holds her gaze but feels herself shrink from within. When she approaches, the hunter is hard pressed not to take a fearful step back. She straightens her shoulders and stares up into the face of the eliksni. A clawed hand extends outward toward her, and her golden eyes flick downward. Her fists clench in preparation. “Good. Now... the ghost.” A blank stare is all Eramis receives for a tense moment, Shadow’s golden eyes clouding with confusion. “...what?” “Did you [i]really[/i] think it would be that easy? That you would be welcome here without any proof of your loyalties?” Variks finally stands, a hint of desperation and fear in his voice. “Eramis, she has—“ Eramis’s council member snarls viciously, standing to cut him off. “Let your toy prove [i]herself[/i],” she seethes. Variks falls silent. Shadow can feel his fear. Her heart pounds inside her chest. “What do you need him for?” Swallowing, she raises her palm, and Glitch flickers to life above it. Like a hungry animal, Eramis eyes him. She suddenly looks amused, or satisfied. Maybe both. “We wouldn’t want your friend here having any... communications... with your old city anytime soon. I am sure you understand,” she adds in mock sympathy. Shadow does understand, of course. She tries to imagine how she would feel if a known enemy wanted to live with her in her own home. “You won’t hurt him...?” The question comes out more like a desperate request.