I Spy Sea Green Eyes

Chapter 34

"You look like you just came from hell," Tritannus said as soon as  walked through the portal wall into the office. "So, how did you like governing your subjects down there?"

I mustered a smile and rolled my eyes at him. "Har dee har har," I said, with no emotion whatsoever. I wasn't exactly very inclined to show emotions of any sort; I didn't want a repeat of that day. I didn't feel the best right now, especially after finding out that my mother willingly cut my life short.

I now understood why she had apologized to me in the dream; she knew that I would be furious. As I sat down at my desk, I desperately tried to control my hair from going ablaze. I could just feel Tritannus' cool green eyes on me, trying to figure me out. And I did not want that to happen.

"You mind not staring?" I said with a sigh, running my fingers through any flames that might have come alive on my hair. "I'm absolutely sure there are better things to look at."

"No, it's just-" He shook his head. "I was going to say that you didn't need to come in the office today."

I stood up. "I'm fine, Tritannus. I can work today, I really can. As I've repeatedly told you, I don't need your pity." His intrigued look turned into a nonplussed one, and I knew that I was wrong in my interpretation.

"I wasn't talking about that," He said. "I was going to say that we have to inspect the dungeons today."

I cleared my throat nervously. "Well, what are we waiting for?" I walked out from behind the desk as quickly as I had sat down at it. Acting nonchalant, I walked over to the portal wall, whistling a random tune that I'd just made up, when I felt a hand grab mine.

"Spill," Tritannus said, but it wasn't an order or a request. I didn't look back at him, I couldn't. "I know there's something wrong."

"Not now, Tritannus," I said, slipping my hand out of his. "If I remember, we have dungeons to inspect." Before he could question me any further, I walked through the portal wall, hiding the large weight that I felt in my heart.

***

Tritannus POV

"Here we are," I said sarcastically, pulling the hood of my cloak over my face. "The best place in the world for utter trash bags."

Behind me, I heard Khloe tsk. "A Supreme Commander shouldn't use such language," She jokingly chastised. 'It is not worthy of your position."

"Oh,I'm sorry,was that rude?" I said sarcastically. "Get your head out of your ass, Khloe. It's not a hat."

She caught up to me and stepped on my foot accidentally-on-purpose. "You didn't just insult me and simultaneously make a Pitch Perfect reference!"

"I did," I smirked as I looked out into the darkness. I grabbed a torch from the wall, and the light from it shone in front of me, illuminating the dingy dungeon in front of us.

Khloe inhaled sharply as we saw the prisoners in their cells along the seemingly endless paths, and I probably visibly paled at their pathetic state. They were sickly looking, and there was no sign of them having any clean food in a long time.

"Why isn't there anyone else here, except for the prisoners?" Khloe asked, a slight quiver in her voice as she edged closer to the cells. 

"Nobody knows we're here," I said quietly. "The board of advisers think that I shouldn't concern myself with the condition of the prisoners. But turns out, I really don't care about what they think."

With the help of the light, I saw Khloe give me a faint smile. "You know what? I think that's the right call." She reached out to touch the bars of one of the cells and gazed inside the tiny space.