Thea knew she should have expected all the paperwork, of course there would be an unbelievable amount of paperwork involved with getting a job with the State Military, but she hadn't expected to be filling out forms for pretty much the entire train ride.

It also didn't help that the looming presence of Captain Brayne sitting right next to her made her feel quite uncomfortable. The tall, broad shouldered man was watching her every move, somehow managing to make it seem like he was following her eyes the entire time as he pointed out things she missed and clarified anything she didn't understand and lingered on for too long.

General Killian on the other hand worked on his own. Reviewing every form that she had completed and initialing them once he was done.

One by one, the forms were completed and signed, and by the time Thea had a moment to look up out the window again, she could begin to see the cityscape appearing off in the distance as the vast green lands of the countryside began to fade away behind them.

They were almost there.

Almost at the Capital. Acteonia City.

Despite having spent two not so pleasant years of her life there, the sight of it off in the distance still filled her with a sense of awe. It was different from anything they had in Elore, which consisted mostly of towns and villages. The closest thing that Thea could compare to Acteonia in the Elorian Province was probably their own capital, Gaila, the home of the University of Elore and the Elorian Times Headquarters... but even that was maybe less than a quarter the size of the Aiverian Capital.

The Aiverian Capital was another of the many examples of the differences between Elore and Aiveria, and for once, it may have been one of the differences where Thea quite preferred Aiveria over her own home.

A bustling city with cobblestone roads, buildings crowded so close together, hundreds of shops, bars and cafes, dozens of libraries and thousands of people just rushing around with their own lives... it was the excitement of all of that that made her want to come to the Capital to get her university degree in the first place.

Unfortunately for her, however, things didn't go as smoothly as she would have liked, and her memories of her time in the Capital were not as pleasant as she had hoped.

She took a deep breath.

Maybe her stay here this time around would be a little different.

She wasn't a naive child anymore... and Captain Brayne's words to her grandma ringed through her mind.

"You have your identification card, right?" The General asked her, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Yes," Thea said as she rummaged through her purse and pulled it out. Though he didn't ask, she handed it to him.

He took it and looked down at it, his brows furrowing a little. "It was issued four years ago..."

"Yes," she responded, a little surprised that he seemed concerned. It was Aiverian law that all citizens had to carry identification cards. Unlike Aiverians though, who only needed the card after they turned eighteen, Elorians had to get their first identification cards at the age of thirteen, which would then expire when they turn eighteen. After that, it was meant to be renewed every ten years. "My old one expired on my eighteenth birthday, so I got this one a little before the old one expired... I still have about six years before it expires again."

"No, no, I know that," the General responded. "As an employee of the state, we need to get the State seal on it... I am just a little concerned because you don't really look like this anymore." He turned the card and let her look at it.

Of course, she didn't need to look at it to know that.

Thea was well aware of the fact that she didn't look much like her soon to be eighteen year old self. At the time of that picture, Thea was rather bright eyed and even a little plump, looking more like a child than a girl who was officially an adult. Frankly, even at eighteen, she looked to be more like she was fourteen or fifteen.

The girl in the picture was the girl she was a few months before her hair was cut, the thought of which made the scar on her left ear tingle a little. Back then, she was someone who wasn't entirely self aware, someone who didn't really know how to do her hair or makeup, and someone who thought that the world wasn't as bad as people made it out to be.

She was a child.

And she was different now.

Looks wise, her time in university had caused her to lose an unhealthy amount of weight. Plus, the exhaustion and the stress of completing a four year program in two years at the most prestigious university in the country, just to get the hell out of there, left her with lasting issues.

Pushing aside the anxiety and nerves she still struggled with to this very day, Thea no longer had the baby fat in her cheeks that her family once adored, she cared too much about what people thought of her to leave her house with her hair and outfit looking anything but perfect and the lasting effect of the exhaustion she once felt seemed to follow her everywhere, reflected in the dark circles under her eyes that she covered up with makeup.

Yes, the General was right.

She certainly did not look like that girl in the picture anymore.

In fact, she wasn't anything like that girl in the picture anymore.

"Is that... going to be a problem?"

General Killian looked at the picture again. "Yes," he said. "But we'll just need to get you a new one." He looked at the Captain. "Get that done for her as soon as we arrive, will you?"

"Of course, Sir," the Captain said.

"Good," he handed the card back to Thea. "Once you get your new card, you must carry it with you wherever you go. At all times. Do you understand that?"

Thea nodded. It was the same when she was in the Capital for school. It was common for police to stop Elorians for no reason, and not having your ID card on you was the perfect way for them to pick you up and toss you into a jail cell for the night... and sometimes longer. "Yes, I understand."

"Good," the General said before he turned his head and looked out the window. "We'll be arriving shortly... I hope you're looking forward to a change in scenery."

And a change in scenery it was. When the train pulled into the station and Thea, the General and Captain Brayne left their car, Thea was almost immediately filled with a rush of nervousness, her heart skipping a few beats in a not so pleasant way.

Though the station back in Abureth was busy, it was nothing compared to that of the Capital. Hundreds of people ran around and the bustling noise of the mid-day crowd was almost overwhelming. The station was filled with people trying to squeeze onto the trains, while others were families seeing people off, and yet others were beggars trying to get some change for food.

And the smell wasn't entirely pleasant either... but that was just how the city was.

The noise, the smell, the smoky atmosphere caused by the train... all of this was very familiar to Thea, and not in a good way. It was enough to make her stomach turn and her palms tingle and sweat. Nevertheless, she couldn't help but feel a slight excitement in her heart. Old habits clearly seemed to die hard. She tried to suppress it though, reminding herself that she would no longer let herself be naive.

"Home sweet home," the General said, though he sounded rather sarcastic.

When they reached the outside of the station where cars and cabs waited for people, the General turned to face Captain Brayne. "I'll be heading straight to Achlis," he said. "Julian, I'm sure you can handle the rest? I will meet you once everything is sorted out."

"Yes, sir," Julien responded.

"Take care, Miss. Rhaanan," the General said, turning to her. "We will see each other later this evening, once you get a little settled."

Thea smiled, but before she could say anything else, the General was already walking off towards some other luxury vehicle that was waiting for him.

Captain Brayne looked at Thea. "It will take a couple minutes for the Rolls Royce to be offloaded from the train, once it is, we will head out first to the hostel you'll be staying at to drop off your luggage, and then we will go get a new photo taken of you for your Identification Card. We'll finish off the day with a quick tour of Achlis before heading back to General Killian and debriefing."

Thea nodded, realizing that it was most certainly going to be a busy day.







As Captain Brayne had said, once the Rolls Royce was brought over, Thea hopped into the back seat and Captain Brayne drove the two of them down the streets of the Capital and towards its heart of the city, which was exactly where the State Military Headquarters, or Achlis, sat.

Though it pleased her to know that the hostel she would be housed at was extremely close to the Headquarters, walking distance to be precise, she didn't really factor in the fact that she was about to be living in the center of the Military District.

She was going to be surrounded by soldiers and state officials and all sorts of Aiverian people who she knew for the most part would have preferred she not be there. The thought began to intimidate her... it was not something she had considered.

As the Rolls Royce drove in through the front gates of Achlis, waved in easily by the soldiers at the gate after a simple nod from Captain Brayne, Thea felt a rush of anxiety at the sight of all the soldiers strutting around in their black uniforms. She felt herself cower a little bit in the back seat of the car, trying to hide but not really realizing that she was doing this. Though no one seemed to pay attention to the Rolls Royce that sped by, somehow, maybe out of habit, she felt like all the soldiers eyes were on her.

"Welcome to Achlis," she heard Captain Brayne say as they approached the building.

Looking out past him through the front window, she caught sight of the building as the car drove in the direction of its large arched entranceway. The car then turned right, and when she looked to her left, she got a better view of the massive building that was Achlis looming over her. It was huge and built like a fort with dark bricks that looked old and unwelcoming, and the darkened sky caused by the cloudy weather didn't really help the view.

The building was covered with windows and vines and the maroon, navy blue and gold Aiverian flag with the golden bust of a stag displayed on it.

The sight of the flag in particular made her feel even more unwelcome.

It wasn't her flag.

It wasn't the golden sun that represented her people.

It took some time for the car to reach the end of the building before it took a left turn and drove for another distance, still along the building until they reached what seemed to be the back corner of it. Captain Brayne then drove up a very small hill and parked the car in front of the door to a separate building, one that looked almost equally as old and unwelcoming as Achlis, though only a fraction of the size.

When Captain Brayne opened the door for Thea, she stepped out and stared at the building that she knew would now be her home for the unforeseeable future. "The Greenwood Women's Hostel," Captain Brayne said as he walked over to the trunk of the vehicle and began pulling her luggage out.

Thea joined him to give him a hand, and when they both walked in together, they were greeted by a tall, thin older woman with a head full of silver hair that was tied into a neat bun. "Captain Brayne," the woman said, pushing her glasses up and walking around what looked like a receptionist desk. "General Killian told me that I should be expecting you."

"Mrs. Karse," he started. "Thank you for handling this at the last minute. This is Theavi Rhaanan."

The woman looked at Thea with her green eyes, lowering her glasses.

"Miss. Rhaanan, this is Mrs. Karse. She is the matron of Greenwood Hostel. She's in charge here and handles all of the administration, management and care for the residents. If you have any questions at all, she will be here to help."

Thea nodded before looking at Mrs. Karse. "It's lovely to meet you," Thea said as she held out her hand. "Everyone calls me Thea."

The woman took her hand and shook it. "Yes, it's nice to meet you," she said in a matter of fact tone. She looked back at Captain Brayne. "Be a gentleman and bring up the bags to the fifth floor. I'll go ahead with Thea and show her around."

Thea looked at the Captain and was going to offer to help, but Mrs. Karse snapped, "come on now, I've got plenty of work to do so let's not waste time."

Thea hesitated for a second before grabbing the medium sized bag, which was in fact heavy, and smiling at Captain Brayne.

The Captain returned the smile before Thea walked off with the medium size bag and, using all her strength, rushed up the stairs and after Mrs. Karse.

Mrs. Karse, despite her age, was quick on her feet and straight to the point. Once they arrived at the fifth floor, Thea was quickly shown around the common area, the kitchen and the dining area.

The common room, which was right next to the staircase, consisted of a few tables, couches and a large radio in the corner of the room. At the far end of the common room was the open kitchen with the dining area next to it. Despite all of it being rather small, it was cozy and looked relatively comfortable. "Each floor has all the amenities needed for each set of six girls that live on said floor," said Mrs. Karse as she continued on down to the hallway at the end of the common room. "And all the rooms are here. Of course, none of the girls are in right now because all of them are working."

Along the hallway were multiple doors, three on each side. Mrs. Karse led Thea to the second last door and opened it with a key before handing the key to Thea. When she opened the door, Thea raised a brow in surprise.

The room was tiny.

The entire room was maybe only a little bigger than her own bedroom at home and was entirely open. In the back left corner of the room was a bed, and only about three steps away from that was a small vanity and seat. To the right of the door and against the right wall was a tiny kitchen with only a small stove, a tap and a few cupboards and about a step away from that, close to the base of the bed, was a small square table which she assumed was for both work and for food.

Finally, in the back right corner of the room, about five steps away from her, was another door, which presumably led to the washroom.

Thankfully, there was at the very least a large window at the back of the room, right next to the bed and small table. At least she would be able to get some air in this small room.

"Small, yes I know," Mrs. Karse said as she walked around flipping switches, checking taps and the stove. "But we've got to make do with what we have... everything is working fine, you're welcome to make yourself at home."

Thea placed her luggage in the center of the room and looked around.

She knew she could manage with the size, seeing as this place was actually quite nicer than the hostel she lived in during university, which had rooms that consisted of only a bed and a tiny desk. At least this place had a small kitchen and a private bathroom. The only problem she had was that it was so dull. Aside from the window, which had a rather nice view of the downtown streets instead of the gloomy military headquarters, the room was dull, with brown wooden floors and an old pale gray wallpaper. The lighting, a small lamp hanging from the ceiling, was rather dim and the room also smelled a little stale too.

She certainly had her work cut out for her.

Plants. She thought. Plants would help... and lamps that won't take out too much room.

She felt a little bit of excitement at the thought of doing some shopping. With this new job, she was going to have more cash on her after all... more than she's ever had. A few lamps and plants wouldn't hurt.

"The rules are simple, I don't want people coming in and out late in the evening, so if you plan on staying here overnight, I expect you to be back here by midnight. Doors are locked after that. Men are not allowed in the building after eight in the evening and they are certainly not allowed to stay over." Mrs. Karse instructed. "I understand you girls are all working adults but this is my hostel, so I expect the rules to be followed."

Thea nodded. She wasn't expecting to be inviting any men over late anyways. "Understood."

Just as she said that, Captain Brayne walked in with the rest of her luggage.

"Perfect timing," Mrs. Karse said. "We are done here. If you have any questions, my room is on the main floor," and with that, she left, leaving Captain Brayne alone with Thea.

"Well," Captain Brayne started as he rolled his shoulders. "Let's make our way to the main building to get your photo taken for your identification card and then start the tour of Achlis."

Thea smiled and nodded, feeling her stomach knot a little. "Sounds good."







There was a knock on Niall's door and when he looked up, Mrs. Railer, his receptionist, opened it and peaked her head in. "An individual from the admin department just dropped by, Sir," she said. "I have the new identification card for Miss. Rhaanan." The older Aiverian woman walked into the room and placed the little sealed envelope in Niall's hands.

"Thank you," Niall responded, happy that they worked so quickly on this. "When the others show up, feel free to just send them in."

"Understood, Sir."

Niall gave her a smile before she left the room, shutting the door behind her.

Leaning back in his seat, he ripped open the envelope and pulled the new card out. When he saw Theavi's still face on the top center of the small rectangular plastic card, now with the emerald green state seal on the bottom right hand corner, he nodded his head.

After confirming that all the details were correct, he set the card down and pulled the thick folder with all her details out from his drawer, opening it up and examining the copy he had of her old one.

It surprised him how different she looked in a matter of about four years. Now, she looked much more mature and wore the smallest of smiles... completely unlike her old picture where she smiled pleasantly and looked so young.

He thought back to where he was four years ago as he leaned back in his leather chair. He was twenty-three... already the General of the Aiverian army but not yet the Deputy Secretary of Defence. His father, the previous Secretary of Defense was on his death bed at that point though, and only a few months after Niall's twenty-third birthday, he was appointed the successor to the Deputy.

He didn't think he had changed much since then, but then again, as he pulled out his own identification card and looked at it, ignoring the bolded Half-Blood written in the 'Race' section, he noticed that the one thing that did change was how tired he always looked now. If he were to look in the mirror, he would see the bags under his eyes and the wrinkles already beginning to form on his forehead and near the corner of his eyes. He was still so young but sometimes he wondered if this job was aging him.

He sighed, setting his card down and leaning back in his seat with his eyes closed.

Yes, he was certainly more tired these days.

He only had his eyes closed for about a minute when his door clicked open again. When he looked over at it, he saw his three subordinates walk in, all looking a little more lively than usual. "Is the new girl here?" Luana, one of his soldiers who worked under Kaya asked enthusiastically. "She said yes?"

The other two, both Milo and Aari, did what they were technically supposed to do and waited for them to be spoken to before speaking up.

"Yes, she is," Niall said, ignoring Luana's misbehavior and straightening himself up. Though generally the girl was often well behaved around other State Officials, somehow she had managed to grow too comfortable around Niall.

He never understood how that happened.

He turned his seat to face them as the three stood at attention on the other side of the desk. "However, Luana, you won't be meeting her until later tomorrow, so don't get too excited."

The Elorian girl who surprised everyone by becoming a State Soldier pouted a little but nodded. "Yes, Sir."

Niall then looked at Milo. "She will be working closest with you, Milo," he said to the skinny, glasses wearing Aiverian, "so as we previously discussed, I do expect you to keep a close eye on her and keep me updated. My expectation is that you will be introduced to her tomorrow as well."

"Of course," Milo nodded. "But I'm sorry, Sir... I don't think you ever gave us a name?"

"Right," Niall pushed her ID card towards them. "Her name is Theavi. Theavi Rhaanan."

Niall didn't fail to notice Aari stiffening. The young man's eyes remained on the photo longer than anyone else's and when he finally looked up at Niall, he could see the hint of anger flash through his expression.

"I know you knew the girl... I apologize for not telling you sooner," Niall said, undeniably feeling a little guilty. "However, a lot of the work had to remain confidential until we were sure about her."

"You know her?" Luana asked, intrigued.

Aari ignored her. "How did you know I..." he cut himself off, seeming to know the answer before he could even finish asking the question. To keep it simple, the answer was Julian.

Niall was not entirely sure what Aari's relationship to Theavi was, but Julian had only come across her information when assisting Niall with the paperwork involved in Aari's very recent promotion. And though Niall was curious, and now maybe even a little worried seeing as Aari looked uneasy, he knew the details were really none of his business.

Niall knew that Aari would understand that he would not delve deep into the details, but he clearly did not seem any more pleased by this. Instead, he looked down at the photo and then back at Niall. "You're sure about her?"

"Not yet," Niall asked. "Which is one of the reasons I wanted you to come to see me today... you two were friends?"

Aari hesitated, thinking for a moment before he spoke, revealing a look of discomfort on his face. "A long time ago, yes."

Niall nodded slowly, stroking his beardless chin. "Do you think she'd recognize you?"

Aari had been working under Niall for quite a few years now, and even within those few years, the young man had changed dramatically. Despite now being twenty-two, he certainly had his growth spurt quite late. It was only in the last two or three years that Aari's shoulders had broadened and his features had hardened dramatically. He was even in the process of growing his hair out, his thick black hair now just long enough to tie back, like he had done right now, and his facial hair neatly presenting itself as a shadow around his chin and over his lip as well.

Niall was also well aware of the fact that this young man was a sight that women ogled over, even among Aiverian women, despite the fact that Aari was in fact, Elorian.

Yes, he was certainly different from the boy he once was... the boy that Theavi would have supposedly known.

"I think she may," he responded. "If she looks closely enough."

Niall nodded again. After thinking to himself for a moment, he looked back at Aari. "My concern is... I do worry a little that her knowing of your cooperation with me may influence her to want to join you."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Luana asked.

"No," he responded. "It's not."

"The General wants to know if he can trust her," Aari said.

"Yes," Niall agreed, "if she agrees to do what I ask her to do simply because she knows someone else is doing the same... that doesn't really help me in understanding her motives and knowing for sure whether I can trust her on her own... as her own person."

"Oh... right," Luana said. "Makes sense"

Niall remained quiet for a moment, thinking of how they could handle this.

"Maybe it would be best for Aari to avoid her for the time being?" Milo suggested.

"Do you think you can manage that?" Niall asked, looking at Aari. That was certainly what Niall would have preferred, but he wasn't sure how easy it would be. Sure, Achlis was huge, but not necessarily big enough for two people to never run into each other.

Aari seemed hesitant, but of course, he nodded. "I will do as you request, General... I suppose I could keep myself at the Camp, since I'm mostly there anyways," he said. "If I need anything from Achlis, I could just reach out to Milo or Luana."

Luana sighed. "More errand running for me."

Milo chuckled.

"That seems like a good plan," Niall nodded, ignoring Luana. "Hopefully it won't take too long, but I cannot guarantee anything. She could prove her trustworthiness within the next couple days, or it could be in a year–"

"I'll do whatever needs to be done, sir," Aari said. "And if Thea is the same girl she's always been, I'd imagine that once she understands, so will she."

Niall nodded, a little pleased that despite his initial show of discomfort, whatever relationship he had had with her in the past, at least he seemed to trust her. Though her photos flashed back into his mind and he was reminded that she certainly did not seem like she would be the same girl Aari once knew. "Perfect," Niall responded. "There are a few other things I need to discuss with you all, but do you have any questions about this before I move on?"

"No," Milo and Aari said together.

Luana, however, grinned. "It's gonna be so nice to finally have another girl around here!"

"Don't be the one to scare her off," was Aari's response to that, and though he was trying to make a joke, trying to be his usual, sarcastic self, Niall could still sense the malaise in his voice.

Nevertheless, Niall couldn't help chuckle to himself, shaking his head at Luana's comments as he often found himself doing.







Once Captain Brayne had finished most of the tour, Thea realized that there was no way that she would get used to this building any time soon. Despite the fact that the building was pretty much just a square, the amount of rooms and halls and corridors and offices were too much for her to remember in one go.

Thankfully, Captain Brayne didn't seem to expect that she would remember anything, and often reassured her that she would usually have someone around to guide her.

Someone named Luana.

The name didn't really give much away, but Captain Brayne seemed to suggest that she was a soldier... and that would mean she was an Aiverian.

Though the thought of her guide being an Aiverian made her nervous, she hoped simply that whoever she was, she was as nice as Captain Brayne was. In the time she had spent with the man, she found that he was nothing but respectful and patient with her despite the fact that he was an Aiverian soldier and she was an Elorian. It was rather unusual. Frankly, all she could think of was that he was a real gentle giant.

It was nearly five-thirty in the evening when he guided her towards General Niall's office and when they arrived at the door Captain Brayne opened it without knocking, revealing a waiting area where, to the left of the door, sat an older Aiverian woman at an expensive looking desk.

The pretty woman stood when she saw Captain Brayne, revealing her tall stature as well as her clean, ironed black fitted skirt that went down to below her knees, and her very pretty blue blouse that she tucked into her skirt. Despite her older age, evident from the streaks of silver in her brown hair as well as the light wrinkles around her green eyes, she clearly dressed very well. Even her large, rounded spectacles looked good on her.

"This must be Miss. Rhaanan," the woman said. Her voice was rather deep and velvety, in fact, she sounded quite elegant. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

Thea gave the woman a smile, feeling a real warmth coming from her. Something about her seemed quite maternal. "The pleasure is mine."

"Thea, this is Mrs. Railer. She's a wonderful woman who served as a nurse for quite some time but is now General Killians secretary," Captain Brayne said, making Mrs. Railer chuckle. "She will be here to help you with absolutely anything, especially when the General is busy or he's simply not here."

"Don't ever hesitate to let me know if there is anything you need," Mrs. Railer said.

"Thank you."

After holding Thea's gaze for a moment with a warm smile, Mrs. Railer turned to Captain Brayne. "Niall said to let you right in when you arrive."

"Perfect," said Captain Brayne before guiding Thea to the door across from Mrs. Railer's desk. When he opened the door, he walked right in and greeted the man with, "General Killian."

When Thea walked into the large office, she saw General Killian looking right at them from the seat behind his desk. "Great timing," the General said. "I was getting ready to start wrapping up for the evening."

Though Thea heard him, she was rather distracted by the room to respond. The room was beautiful... much like what she imagined her own dream office to look like. At the end of the room, there was the large black desk that the General sat at, and behind it a picturesque window which, from where she was standing, presented a view of the extravagant training grounds behind the building, as well as a beautiful view of the Capital right behind it. Shelves and books lined the other walls and there were even two nice sofas facing each other, between them a coffee table, to the right of where she was standing, closer to the door.

The floors were carpeted and the walls were wooden and to the left of the desk was a large Alverian flag which sat limp and was the only thing in this room that looked rather unimpressive. The maroon flag was framed with a thick band of navy blue on the top and bottom, followed by a thin band of yellow. The yellow silhouette of the stag head sat in the center of it, and though normally the flag had the potential to look quite majestic, this one looked rather dull and wrinkly even.

To be honest, it did seem rather surprising that this well kept General would allow his nation's flag to be so... unkept.

Aside from that, Thea did not fail to notice that on the wall behind the couches next to her was a massive portrait of the President himself... a rather unpleasant looking fellow with silver hair on his head and face, and a straight, stern looking expression. In the portrait, his green eyes were painted rather brightly, and Thea assumed it was because it was the only real identifier of his Aiverian blood, seeing as his hair was grayed. She also did not fail to notice that the portrait, along with its mahogany frame, were recently cleaned, whereas the flag of the nation was not. She wondered what that could mean.

"Please, have a seat," the General said, looking down at some notebook he had in his hands.

Thea blinked, looking at Captain Brayne who smiled before he walked over to the desk and took a seat in one of the two armchairs that sat on the opposite end of the General's desk. She followed him over and took the other seat. "How did you find everything?" The General asked after she was seated.

"Large," she chuckled nervously, "and maze-like."

"You'll get used to it," he responded. "And more times than not you'll have someone to guide you."

"Luana?" Thea asked.

"Yes, you'll be meeting her tomorrow," he said. "As for today, before I let you go home for the night I wanted to give you this–" he slid over an envelope to her, which she opened and found her new identification card, "–and I wanted to let you know that tomorrow, nine a.m. sharp, you will meet me here. I will be taking you to the prison where the individuals I would like you to talk to are. This will be my opportunity to give you a quick introduction to these men."

Introduction? Thea thought. It seemed quite strange that she was going to be introduced to the prisoners by the General himself. Whatever the case, Thea nodded. "Understood."

"Good," he said, leaning back in his chair. "Do you have any other questions for me? Questions, concerns, anything?"

Thea shook her head. "No, Sir. But if I do, I'll be sure to let you know."

"Good," he repeated before looking at Julian. "You can handle the rest?"

"Yes, Sir," Julian said before standing up and looking at Thea. "I'll take you home then."

And that was it.

That was her first day.

Her first day as an employee of the State.