Bird of a Cage [BoW 4]

Chapter 13

The air after that interaction fizzled with something. Innofe didn't know what to say. Taidra tried not to frown, but his foot tapped on the footrest as he pushed spiralling thoughts to the side and focused and the queue of information that his A.I had waiting for him. Wiljam hadn't changed in the slightest. He was still the man most likely to be causing explosions with his experiments and remained the engineer who came up with their most significant breakthroughs. There hadn't been an incident in a few weeks. The A.I. predicted an explosion within the next day or two. Taidra grimaced and rubbed his brow. The lift moved smoothly, but there was a grating sound of metal grinding against metal. Someone needed to oil the thing.

"Sorry about the noise," Innofe said, wincing himself. "They didn't design it very well. Damn thing needs a fresh coat of grease practically every day."

Taidra nodded, letting the A.I spin with that information. A smaller lift would help, this was one just slightly too big for the size of the shaft, but they didn't have time to wait for a new one before installing it. This entire base had been built with a timer and under strict secrecy. Wiljam could replace it. Not many people would trust the lift, but he could. A dozen or so other names of scientists who leaned more towards engineers clustered around the thought but most worked under Wiljam - he would have to be the first to talk to.

The horrible sound faded as the lift jolted to a stop, and Oira appeared next to them. Dark bags weighed under his eyes, and his hair stuck out in several directions, not having been tamed in a while. He mumbled a hello, offering his fist. Taidra bumped it in greeting, holding back in the instinct to order the young man to bed.

"Commander Yuin would like to see Taidra in the meeting room," Oira said, catching him as a yawn escaped mid-sentence.

"You're not on duty today, are you?"

Oira shrugged non-committedly.

"Oira," Innofe said with the tone Taidra wanted to use. "You know the rules, no working if you pulled an all-nighter."

Wiljam appeared laughing and wrapping his arm around a grumbling Oira. "He's fine, Innofe. Don't be a worrywart. Looking good, Taidra." Wiljam winked at him and bumped his shoulder. "Welcome to the madhouse. Explosions typically on Sundays, followed by Moonshine Mondays to share commiseration."

"Commander Yuin allows this?"

"He's the one who brews it," Wiljam beamed, teeth gleaming in the lights. Even with the happy expression, Wiljam had changed. His hair was longer, now dancing around his shoulders and pushed back with a bandana across his forehead to keep it out of his eyes. The man's smile was almost the same, but there was a tightness to it, a new scar on his jaw and bandages around his neck. Their miracle worker was beginning to crack at the edges. "Here, let me Innofe," Wiljam released Oira and tried to take over the wheelchair from the man. "Sol'an wants you."

"The Commander said I should escort Taidra this morning."

"We're capable of showing Tai around," Oira cut in, voice light and coaxing. "We got this."

Innofe hesitated but nodded. Meeting Taidra's eyes, Innofe smiled embarrassedly. "If you need help, ask one of the others to find me. I'll try to get back to you as soon as possible."