Ch 2.49: Strategizing


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Are you sure you didn’t mishear?” Tira asked in a hushed voice.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yeah, they definitely said ‘Temmie,’” ina replied, hoping her voice was masked to outsiders by the crowd of students in the dining room.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I heard it too, from different people,” Flora said, as she ripped into a piece of bread. “And you’re sure our Temmie is safe though?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yeah, I checked on her right after. Shes fine both here and out in the forest.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Are we sure this is actually like, a subcore?” Tira asked, making extra certain to muffle thatst word. “Temmie isn’t even her real name, it’s just a silly nickname Flora came up with; no on else should know it.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“ina said the name while you were out,” Carly said, pushing her food around her te. “The brown haireddy heard her say it, before she escaped.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">ina winced at the description, urate and non judgemental as it was. She didn’t like being reminded that the woman had gotten away because of her, or that she’d let out Temmie’s name around her either. “I still don’t get why they’d call her that though, or it that, I guess…” she added, trying to change the subject.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Well, what else are they going to call it?” Flora said. “It kind of looks and sort of acts like an awakening stone, but those are heavily regted, so they can’t exactly go around advertising that.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“It’s not just that,” Tira said. “They could just call it a mystery prize with no name if that were the case, but they’re being specific with a name no one recognizes. No one except <i><span style="font-weight:400">us.”</i>


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Shit,” ina said, the weight of the situation finally dawning on her. “We’re being baited? Why.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Well, from what it sounds like, thedy tried to get our ‘Temmie’ when she ran off,” Tira said, propping her arm on the table and resting her chin on her palm, cocking her head slightly sideways and closing her eyes. She looked cute when she was deep in thought. “They still don’t really know what a Temmie is though. They <i><span style="font-weight:400">do </i><span style="font-weight:400">know that we’re Endrin students, and that we probably know what it is… If we’re going to do this we need to go in with that in mind, that we’re not customers, but targets.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Uhm, are we sure we should be doing this at all?” Carly asked. “I mean, these are criminals, right? Should we, you know…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">ina didn’t need her to finish the thought to know she was suggesting to alert the authorities, but she also knew why Carly couldn’t utter that part out loud. “We can’t let anyone know about Temmie. We need to get the subcore, and not lot anyone else figure out what it is.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Easier said than done,” Flora said, finally pushing away her empty te. “I’ve been to Mirage before. It’s not the seediest ce, but that’ what scares me. If they’re somehow involved with some criminal syndicate and are able to maintain their reputation, it’s not going to be some small time thing. They’re going to be in deep.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Isn’t this like, all against the rules anyway?” ina asked. “Like, how are they even getting away with advertising something like this?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“It’s not illegal,” Tira said. “Just… against school rules.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“And you’re going toe anyway,” Flora said, poking Tira’s nose and sending the girl into a state of shock.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Did you just… boop my nose?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Attention,” a deep booming voice said from the head of the dining hall. Only one person’s voice could be that loud. “I’d like to take just a moment of your time,” Alonse continued. “We are still recovering from the incidentst week, and we will never fully recover, not truly, not in our hearts. But our institution is strong, will remain strong, and today we’re taking a step forward in rebuilding.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Students, I’d like to introduce your new fencing master.”