Triple Point

Chapter 104: Enemy of Your Enemy

Camilla

26 SEP 34AE, 0745

The meeting took place in a large conference room. While the room was large enough to hold a couple dozen, the center table could only seat ten, and Camilla was expected to be in the middle of it all. She made sure to arrive first to attract as little attention as possible, accompanied by Mack, Hitomi, and AJ.

Mack was a reassuring presence at her side as her vice captain, and he was happy to be there to support Camilla. Hitomi was there to prove people's trustworthiness; in exchange, she got front row seats to whatever drama would unfold when sworn enemies clashed, which she was willing to consider to be an early birthday present. As for AJ, Exodos was appreciative to her, even though they did have her briefly imprisoned. And although AJ was against helping both Exodos and the Alliance, she also wanted any way to ensure the safety of her brothers.

A few minutes later, the Alliance representatives arrived. Of course, Senior led the way, closely followed by Chief Ali as he guided a young woman into the room. Camilla had never seen the woman before, but she seemed much too young to be a former guardian. If anything, Camilla guessed she was one of the teenagers the Ali twins had taken off of Hester's radar. And if she was accompanying them now, she must have been the "lie detector" Senior had mentioned.

As they headed to their seats at the end of the table closest to the entrance, the Ali twins gave Camilla polite nods; in contrast, the young woman continued staring straight ahead without blinking. It was only after Chief Ali had led the girl to her seat and she got settled did Camilla realize that the young woman couldn't see.

A few moments later, the door opened again, and spectators began to trickle in and cluster around the room against the walls. Camilla recognized a few faces as some of the more senior guardians, but they were all essentially strangers to her.

The only person she actually knew was Lee—or rather, Abby; she had insisted Camilla call her by her first name when she realized Camilla hadn't been doing so already. When she made eye contact with Camilla, she sent her a peppy smile and thumbs-up for good luck. While the gesture didn't do Camilla any favors, she appreciated the attempt.

Just as the last of the onlookers were settling in, Exodos made their entrance. Of course, they were being led by Alliance metas for security, and Camilla belatedly hoped Senior had the decency to have their inhibitor collars removed. Not only was it respectful, but Camilla didn't think she could bear to sit through their entire talk while having to see someone else with those restraints.

Thankfully, when Camilla looked at the four new arrivals, they were all inhibitor-free. While they did look a little worn-down and ragged, they at least appeared to be decently cared for. In fact, the man at the center seemed completely average looking, as if he had just been plucked off the street not long ago. His position at the front of the group, along with his calm and professional demeanor, told Camilla that he must be Luca.

Right behind him was an angry version of the Three Musketeers. Camilla recognized them easily from the short time she had been conscious while Exodos still had control over their hideout.

It was hard to miss the trio; while two of them were just as average as Luca was, they never were seen without the other, and they were almost always accompanied by the third member of their group. And it was this last member that was easily distinguishable amongst all of the Exodos members, thanks to her towering height and muscular build that rivaled Mack's. On top of that, all three of them wore a persistent scowl whenever they saw Camilla.

As their group was led to their seats at the far end of the table, Luca made a point to greet the senior chief, much to the guards' annoyance.

"Senior Chief Ali, thank you for offering your time," Luca said, his tone calm and respectful.