Dawn of Fog and Glass

Chapter Three: Dawn of Fog And Glass

Our actions don't come without consequences. After the techies disable the alarm, Caleb sends two security officers to take us to our separate rooms immediately. We're not to return to classes until Marksberg's Virus Specialists are certain we're not showing symptoms.

When the guards arrive, a towering, hefty woman traps my arms behind my back and veers me away from the infirmary. I yelp and strain against her, which only results in her being annoyed. Eventually, she merely picks me up and carries me to my room, of which she has orders not to leave.

After a brief while, a specialist that I learn is named Dr. Raymond lets herself in, a few nurses carrying trolleys of equipment after her. She listens to my heart, takes my temperature, checks my eyes with a miniature flashlight, and gets a blood sample before declaring me symptomless.

"We'll know for certain once we get the blood test back. I'll check up on you and your friend every few days to confirm nothing has changed. Tricky, this thing. It shows up faster in some people than others." She smiles weakly.

"I understand. Thank you," I offer. I'm not often an extraordinarily polite person, but I'd wager my chances are better if I behave.

"Good girl. Keep that head up." With that, the nurses back out of the room with Dr. Raymond following. The security officer stays, her face did of emotion. I plop down on my bed and open the book I've been reading. Or, rather, I pretend to read, though I can't help but notice the officer's eyes watching me.

A buzz of static on her radio startles us both, and she fumbles with it. She listens carefully, though I can't make anything out myself. After the message is over, she speaks a few words and replaces it in her belt.

"Let's go." Her voice is devoid of emotion. "You're to see Principal Darcy now."

I grimace. Principal Darcy is a peculiar woman, to say the least. She only wears white, though everything in her office apart from the mahogany shelves against the back walls is black. I suppose she wants to leave the impression that she is a beacon of light, a leader who the students can trust. It makes me apprehensive.

Unsurprisingly, her office door is jet black, though it seems more faded than when it was first painted eight years ago. I have questions about how she managed to scavenge everything in her office together in exactly the same colour amidst chaos. I have questions about most things involving Principal Darcy.

Orion isn't there when I arrive. Lucky me. My officer stands outside the door. I sit awkwardly in one of the two black chairs facing her desk. She stands with her back to me, staring out a intimidating, black-framed window at the Fog beyond. For dramatic effect, I think. In her hands rests a cup of black coffee.

Her ivory pantsuit is blinding, illuminated by the grey sky shining through the window. It makes her high cheekbones and icy eyes seem ethereal. Her dark hair is swept into a knot that has come loose. Frizzy hairs hang around her face.

She doesn't turn until both Orion and I are seated. He gives me a questioning look, to which I respond with a shrug. Her pale eyes alight.

"I'm sure you know why you are here," she begins. Her ebony chair, more luxurious than ours, creaks when she sits, and her hands clasp in front of her.

I bite the inside of my cheek so I don't answer with a sassy remark. Orion is calmer than me.

"We don't have too many rules here. Stay inside. Keep emergency doors closed. Never encourage Crawlers. All of these which you broke, not to mention setting off an alarm that sent us all into chaos."

I absentmindedly pick at my cuticles. Neither of us speaks.

"You're both good students. Orion, you are unexplainably talented when it comes to art. Arden, your marks in the sciences are more than impressive. So why would you do this?"