"Hey, you," she purred, her voice a low, intimate lody that was unmistakably only for him. "Finally calling ? I was starting to think all those pretty Warladies-in-training had made you forget about ."
That alone, the way she spoke to him, how happy she was that he was calling her, was all the proof anyone needed that Sage was really Zaeryn’s girlfriend.
The collective intake of breath from the group was audible. This wasn’t just an acquaintance. This was familiar.h
Leia’s smug expression was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a mask of rigid shock.
Zaeryn’s grin was blinding. "Never, babe," he replied smoothly. "Just had to... prove a point." He angled his wrist, turning the projection so Sage could see the room. "I’m at my new classmate’s house. Say hi to everyone. Leia’s here, by the way, your friend’s sister, she says."
Sage’s gaze flickered over the group, her smile turning sharp and knowing. "Oh? At your friend’s house?"
"Yes, I got myself so new friends," Zaeryn confird.
"Hi everyone," Sage continued. Her eyes landed on Leia, and her tone remained perfectly pleasant. "Leia! Hey."
"Hey," Leia managed, her voice tight. Her face went from shock to a deep, blotchy crimson. She was speechless. Proven wrong, publicly, in front of everyone. This confird everything Zaeryn had said.
"I thought you would be getting ready to leave for your new job by now?" Zaeryn asked, smoothly changing the subject.
"Yes, I should be, but I have sothing that I need to get done before I leave," Sage replied.
Not long passed and Zaeryn was off the phone with Sage. A heavy silence descended on the lounge.
Leia stared at the empty space where Sage had been, her expression a look of pure, humiliated fury. She let out a sharp sigh. "Fine, you are dating Sage, we get it...." Her gaze snapped to Zaeryn, predatory and cold. "Still doesn’t change that I’ll beat your ass tomorrow. Actually," she added, a cruel smirk returning, "that’s a good thing. Your girlfriend is a scientist, she’ll... be able to patch you up after I’m done with you."
"We’ll see about that," Zaeryn responded, his tone light, unbothered. He decided to shift the topic, leaning forward with genuine curiosity. "Anyways, what’s your sister’s na? I can’t think of any of Sage’s friends who would be your sister, I have only t a handful of her friends."
Leia seed surprised by the direct question. She hesitated, then shrugged, the anger montarily replaced by simple fact. "Her na is Isla. And I’m assuming you and Sage only started dating not long ago. My sister has been away on active duty for a year and a half now."
"isla. Yeah, I’ve definitely never t her. So she’s a Warlady?" Zaeryn asked.
"Yes," Genevieve chid in, leaning closer to Zaeryn again. "Leia’s whole family is a war family. Her sister is a decorated officer. That’s why Leia is so skilled; it’s literally in her blood."
Genevieve’s hand rested on his arm again. "Enough about Leia’s family, tell us about your family, Zaeryn."
"Uhh, what about... my family do you want to hear?" Zaeryn asked, suddenly feeling like the subject of an interrogation. But if he was going to make friends or have any aningful conversations, then this was the chance, letting them know him or at least know a part of him.
"Well," Morticia began, her analytical gaze softening, "tell us about your mother. The woman who gave birth to a handso contradiction."
Zaeryn laughed, "Well, I don’t have anything to say about her really."
"What’s her na?"
"Ysine."
Ryla, asked. "Do you have any siblings?"
"I have one sister," he said, thinking of Aeris. "And two cousins, and a grandmother."
"What do your sister and your cousins do?" ira asked, leaning forward.
"My sister... She was a warlady, but she has since withdrawn. And my cousins, one of them is a Warlady, and the other one is a student, like ."
"Oh, wow, you have a Warlady cousin? What’s her na?" Genevieve asked, her interest clearly piqued.
Zaeryn hesitated for just a fraction of a second. He didn’t want to say that, but he was trying to make friends here and him being open and honest will go a long way. "Kayla Noctis."
"Nice na," ira said, clearly not recognizing it.
But Genevieve and Morticia both froze. "Wait," Genevieve breathed, her eyes wide. "Kayla Noctis, as in the legendary Warlady? The ’Void Scythe’?"
"I don’t know about that," Zaeryn said, suddenly uncomfortable with the shift in attention. "But she’s reportedly very powerful."
"Are you kidding?" Genevieve almost shouted, her gaze now fixed on him with a completely new level of awe and disbelief. "Kayla Noctis is a Tier-One. She’s a living hero... and she’s your cousin?"
"She’s not just ’powerful,’ Zaeryn," Genevieve continued, her voice breathless, her usual playful teasing gone, replaced by genuine reverence. "She’s a role model , soone who every one in this academy dreams of becoming. She’s the ’Void Scythe.’ She’s a living legend."
Morticia leaned forward, her analytical calm completely shattered by a rare spark of intensity. "Genevieve’s right. Kayla Noctis isn’t just a high-tier Warlady. She’s the standard. Most Warladies are lucky to have Tier 3. She’s Tier-One. There are maybe... five of those in the entire Queendom."
"Rember the Breach in sector 7 district 2?" ira interjected, her voice hushed. "My family was there. The Vorthak main line broke through the orbital defenses. They were on the ground. It was a slaughter." Her eyes were wide, replaying a story she’d clearly heard many tis. "They say the Vorthak were overwhelming the local force... and then she arrived."
Ryla nodded, picking up the story, her brown eyes shining with hero-worship. "My instructor told us about it. She said Kayla Noctis teleported into the swarm, just her. They said she fought for three hours straight, just a black-and-silver blur, cutting them down until a relief force finally arrived. She saved thousands of lives."
Even Leia, who had been pointedly ignoring him, had turned her head. Her expression was a complex, unreadable mix of disbelief and... sothing Zaeryn couldn’t quite place. Her usual contempt was definitely gone, replaced by a grudging acknowledgnt of the sheer weight of the na he’d just dropped.
Hearing everyone speak about Kayla like she was so angel made him roll his eyes, "Yeah, well," he muttered, deflecting, "she’s still just... Kayla. And honestly, she’s an ass."
This blunt, almost disrespectful summary of a living legend left the group montarily speechless.
"Well, she’s your cousin, maybe you don’t like her personality, but the fact is that she’s a legend.
"Your family must be special Zaeryn. No, they are special."
The awe in the room was almost visible. Genevieve, ira, and Ryla were looking at him with a new, undisguised admiration. Even Morticia’s analytical gaze held a spark of sothing like wonder. Zaeryn felt the weight of Kayla’s legendary status settle over him, and he wanted it gone.
"Yeah, well," he said, deliberately breaking the hero-worship mood. He pushed himself up from the bench, stretching his arms over his head with a casual groan. "Enough about my family. It’s getting boring. Can we do sothing else? Play a ga or sothing?"
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