The stone panel slid shut behind them, plunging the narrow passage into near total darkness. As it shut, Creed's mind raced for answers.
'Who was this girl?'
In a place like the Spire where uniform and rank decided everything, her white cloak and bandage stuck out like a sore thumb. It was like she was an exception to the rules.
Her walk, her confidence, her beauty, it was like that of the Spire's elite. Like Alta and Marx, but unlike them, her power didn't shine like the sun, this girl held it close, like a secret.
Despite his questions, for a while, they walked in silence. Until finally, in a soft voice without turning her head, she asked.
"What's your name?"
"Creed."
…
"What's yours?"
"Viola."
He waited for a family name, but none came.
"What are you doing in the Spire?"
She replied with a quiet laugh.
"What else would I be doing here? Learning of course."
"Not while wearing that," he said as he gestured to her cloak. "You must be someone important to be dressed like that and know about… this." He waved his hands at the secret passage around them.
As the words left his mouth, she pivoted on her heel, walking backwards to face him. Her blue eye shone in the darkness.
"I could say the same about you, Creed. You must be someone very important to be staying in the Archon's personal guest suites." She tilted her head. "What family are you from?"
Her response answered two of Creed's questions. He now knew she had to have a strong backing since no ordinary person would know where the Archon's guest suites are and he finally figured out exactly where he was. Archon Valerius must have put him in his own personal room, though why he had him put to sleep and what motives he might have were still a mystery to Creed.
"I'm an orphan."
That response stopped her. A surprised expression flashing across her face. "An orphan? Then how did you end up in a room like that?"
The question was blunt, but he answered it honestly.
"I tried to kill an Archon."
Hearing his words she stared at him for a long moment. Then, she threw her head back and laughed. It wasn't a giggle but a real laugh that echoed off the stone walls.
"I'm serious," he protested, his face turning a light shade of red.
This only made her laugh harder.
"You're a strange one, Creed," she said, finally catching her breath. She then turned and pressed another brick in the wall just ahead. A second panel of stone slid open, flooding the passage with the dim light of a library.
"We've arrived. The Grand Library of House Kiron. I can't take you all the way to the Professor's room but you should be able to make it there pretty quickly."
Creed stepped out of the passage and into the familiar, towering rows of bookshelves. He was back in his own House's territory.
He turned to thank her, but stopped realizing he had no idea what to say. He hadn't properly talked to someone in a long time. Not counting Carson. But even that was with the adrenalin of his imminent death doing most of the heavy lifting.
After a quick moment of silence, he settled on a short thank you.
"Than–"
"You should run," She said, cutting him off, rolling up the sleeve of her cloak a small watch lay strapped to her wrist. "You're thirty minutes late."
Creed's eyes went wide. In a fresh surge of panic, he bolted down the rows of towering bookshelves. He was so panicked he had forgotten to finish saying thank you, forgotten everything but the dread of Professor Harold's glare.
"Bye Creed!" a cheerful voice called out from behind him.
As he glanced over his shoulder he saw Viola standing at the entrance to the hidden passage waving at him with a small, amused smile.
"Thank you!" he yelled back over the rows of books, before turning and running faster."
…
He burst out of the library and into the grey corridors of House Kiron. They were empty, as students had already made their way to class.
It was the first day and he had already violated his probation. Creed didn't know what punishment he would get but he knew the longer he spent getting to class the worse it would be. With this new found motivation, he pushed himself even harder.
As he turned the final corner and saw the classroom, he slowed to a walk. A heavy oak door with a small bronze plaque that read E-2210 came into vision. He approached the door and after a quick breath yanked the door open and walked inside.
He found himself in a large, circular lecture hall. Rows of stone benches rose up around the central lecture floor and every single seat was filled with a student in a grey Kiron uniform.
The room went dead silent. The quiet whispers, the coughs, and the squeak of chalk on the massive board all stopped.
Every single head in the room, a sea of over 40 students, turned to stare at him. Professor Harold, a thin, bird-like man with glasses seated on the end of his nose, slowly lowered his piece of chalk. He looked at Creed over the rim of his glasses, his expression remaining neutral.
"Well Mr. Creed, now that you've decided to join us, are you just going to stand there or are you going to find your seat?"
His dismissal broke the awkward tension. Creed gave him a slight nod and turned, starting his long walk up the stone steps toward the back of the room where his seat was.
With every step, whispers flew all around him.
"...that's him…"
"...heard Valerius himself spoke for him…"
"...lucky to be alive…"
Despite the words pricking at his skin, Creed kept his eyes locked on his empty seat in the last row. He could feel the eyes of his fellow classmates following him up the steps like a zoo animal.
Finally reaching the last row, he collapsed into his seat. The whispers didn't stop, but they lowered in volume. He slumped down in his chair as Professor Harold picked his chalk back up.
Despite all the odds, Creed was back in class.