Code of Conduct

Chapter One

 Evangeline can feel them staring her down, the eyes of the people seated in the circular auditorium. She tries to act unfazed but the fact of the matter is her heart is beating out of control. She takes a deep breath, keeping her back straight, shoulders back, body lax. She has no time to make mistakes, her father would never forgive her. His gaze feels heaviest, weighing a ton on her shoulders.

"Evangeline Eris, 19 years, auditioning for General Successor of the Warfare Sect of the Council." The robotic voice calls through the speakers, voice neither male nor female but right where it made you anxious. The crowd gasps like they hadn't seen it coming, like it wasn't already obvious. The Warfare Sect had been controlled by the Eris' bloodline for the last 200 years.

There is a muffled static echoing from the speakers before someone clears their throat. Evangeline recognizes the person's sigh before he even begins to speak. "I wasn't aware General Eris had an offspring, let alone a nineteen year old daughter."

Dusk Ammery, 25 years, Sovereign. He's been on the job sic years, barely claiming his spot on the highchair after a tragic family incident. He's not the only person Evangeline has been raised to hold dislike for. She's never spoken to Dusk. In fact, she's never even met him, she only recognizes the bored drawl because of the countless videos her father forced her to watch. He's not in all of them but he's in enough for her to know who's in charge. He holds power over every Sect from Warfare to Treasury to the Health; he has the final say in it all. He is sure to have his word in this.

"I wasn't aware her existence had to undergo your verification, Sovereign." General Eris answers through his own microphone and there is rising discord in the room.

Of course every birth in the Crown must be verified. If not by the Sovereign himself than the Population Sect must know. Everyone in the Crown must be closely monitored and if your existence is not known than that is generally impossible. General Eris knows this and his casual arrogance over the matters makes Dusk look up from the holographic table he's sitting at. Evangeline has only seen the Sovereign look up from his holographic desk once in his videos and he had publicly embarrassed the Treasurer before canceling deleting their documentation. They were no longer allowed to inhabit the Crown, they were cast below to the Land.

It's safe to say she fears for her father's life.

"Are you telling me you had no knowledge of a 200 year old law?" Dusk asks, eyebrow arched. One of them were scarred, the right one. It gave a sense of humanity to his regal figure.

General Eris takes a moment to answer. "My apologies, Sovereign, but you may have noticed the rising violence towards me-"

"Not to be inappropriate, but could you skip to where you tell me why you're daughter is not a verified citizen?" Dusk says in one breath, dropping his eyes back to the table, voice empty of anything besides the hard edge, daring General Eris to bypass the question. His hand settles on the bottom of his glass of flavored water, swashing the liquid as if bored.

A different council member lets out a small snort of a laugh as General Eris gathers himself to speak without portraying the rage in his chest. "I did not want her in danger, Sovereign."

Dusk raises his hazel green eyes, the kittenish almond shape to them making his glare fierce. He doesn't believe the General and for perfectly good reason. He has eyes and sees things the General would rather him not see. The air in the room is stifling, not one wants to breath for fear of a missing a moment.

"I want her verification clocked in by tomorrow morning or the situation will be further rectified however I see fit." By that, Dusk means destroying her documentation. Well, she doesn't have any documentation so he would just be throwing an intruder overboard. He wouldn't be phased. He sips lightly at his flavored water with wind's grace