Chapter 64: Ch103. Hunt
[AFTER KURT’S FIGHT]
[IRREGULAR’S INDIGO DORM - NIKOLAI’S ROOM]
Evellyn had packed her things, and was waiting for Nikolai to do so, but as soon as they got in his room, he sat on the bed, staring at Evellyn.
"What?" She asked, a bit uncomfortable by the incessant staring.
"You know something, don’t you?" Nikolai retorted, serious. "You dreamed of something before we lost our powers, am I wrong?"
Ever since kindergarten, Evellyn and Nikolai had been best friends, and the two of them were inseparable.
So, when she first showed signs of awakening, Nikolai was there.
"I know your trait branches slightly deeper than other awakened traits, and you know I study about them since I was very little, right?"
Evellyn knew where Nikolai was going to with what he was saying, but still, she chose to delay it for as long as it was possible for her.
"Yeah, but what about it?"
Nikolai glared at her, punching the bed.
"You won’t do it the easy way, will you?" He paused for a second and breathed in. "I know that your trait isn’t pretty much cataloged and all, but there are some traces of wielders happening to awaken with Precognition. And one of them, already deceased, showed signs of what the experts call late blooming, when an ability evolves even further. And guess what?"
"..."
"Her evolved trait allowed her to peek further into the future, and even into the past. And she became one of the most famous characters in the story of the First Wave."
"The Red Oracle, yeah, I know that already. But where are you going to with all this? You know we gotta go, right?"
Nikolai glared at her again.
"Come on, Kurt is a nice person." Nikolai decided to shoot it all at once. "And it’s not like I don’t trust him. After all, he did save our lives back in the Nest. But..."
"Don’t, Nikolai." Evellyn stopped him in the middle of his sentence.
"See?" He punched the bed again. "I was right! You know something!"
"I do, but it’s not my secret to tell, and God knows how mad Kurt would be if he wasn’t the one telling us about himself... I don’t want to lose him agai-"
She covered her mouth instantly, regretting having said those words.
"Again? What do you mean by that?" Nikolai looked more curious than ever at her, his eyes begging for an answer.
"I... I can’t, Nikita. It’s his secret, and I..."
"He’s not gonna stab us in the back like everyone else, right?"
Evellyn was surprised by the sudden change of topic in the conversation, but she answered it as honestly as she would ever have.
"No, he would never to that to us."
Nikolai paused for a moment, sighing.
"Okay, then. If you trust him this much, I’ll follow you." He got up to pack his things.
"Also... There’s one thing I have to ask."
"Go on."
"Do you happen to know someone named Nadia?"
Nikolai froze on the spot at the mention of the name.
"H-how do you k-know that name?"
"Woah, why did you get so worked up? Is she... Someone?"
"How. Do. You. Know. That. Name?" Nikolai asked through gritted teeth.
Evellyn thought that if she was anyone other than herself, and her friend had his powers back, she’d be dead meat by then, but she still chose to answer.
Even though it would be the first time ever that she would lie to Nikolai.
"I dreamed of this name a few days ago... Maybe she can help us...?"
The taste of lying to Nikolai made Evellyn shiver internally, but it was the only choice she had, other than telling him that Kurt was the one who mentioned the name.
Nikolai unclenched his fists and turned to Evellyn.
"She’s someone I knew long ago, almost for as long as I know you, but we had kind of a... Different story. But I don’t know if I can contact her." He paused, letting his arms fall alongside him. "I don’t know if she even wants to see me, anymore..."
*BAM! BAM! BAM*
"Open up, Nikolai! We know you’re in there!" An unknown, female voice echoed through the locked door.
"Did you invite someone?" he asked Evellyn.
She shook her head, silent.
Nikolai became deadly silent, walking towards the door without making a single noise.
He peeked through the peephole, there was a single girl outside, wearing the uniform of Crimson.
And her expression looked so innocent, that Nikolai knew she should be up to something.
"You don’t have to hide, pretty. I’m here to help you." She said, but Nikolai kept quiet, bringing a finger to his lips, looking at Evellyn.
He moved as fast as he could, without making a sound, and proceeded to finishing packing his things.
Evellyn started helping him, but they knew they didn’t have much time, anymore.
’If only I-’ Evellyn began thinking, but a memory flashed through her head before she could finish her thought.
Her dad and her mom were good people, and they supported her on the way she chose, even though she didn’t have any physical prowess.
"But you have one thing that most awakened don’t even dream of having." She remembered her dad saying once.
’Yeah... I just hope it’s enough for this time...’
She had been born with an incredible talent to empathy, and when she was a kid, back in kindergarten, she was able to know what a person would do, or if they were trustworthy or not, simply by listening to their voice.
"Come on, sweetie... Aren’t you going to open the door for me? I thought you liked me... I know how you look at me during lunchtime, so come on. I’m here to give you what you want." Her tone was lustful, lingering in every syllable.
Evellyn stared at Nikolai, and he glared back, as if he was saying "What? I don’t know shit about that!"
She shook her head, but something in her tone let her guard up.
’She’s...’
Then, Evellyn’s eyes went wide.
She knew what the Crimson girl was going to do.
"GET DOWN!" She shouted towards Nikolai, jumping towards him and throwing him to the floor.
The door exploded less than a second after that, sending rubble all over them.
The girl stepped into the room, her red-dyed hair in a long ponytail, her curves prominent underneath her uniform, and the shirt skirt showing the white skin of her thighs.
"I didn’t want to do this, cutie, but you left me no choice." She said, and through the rubble dust, sunlight hit her face, and her eyes were like the draconic eyes of the Ishir.
"Shit..." Nikolai said.
"Hey." Cinthia’s voice sounded behind her, and the student felt a poke on her shoulder.
She turned around, and Cinthia’s fist was already describing a straight line towards her jaw.
"How about you don’t disturb my friends’ rest?"
The red-haired girl tried to move away from Cinthia’s strike, but she was unable to.
Cinthia’s fist hit her straight in her chin, and her eyes went immediately vacant.
Caleb appeared right behind Cinthia, his eyes glowing and his hands pointed at the Crimson student.
"Did anyone call the cavalry?" Caleb said, his smile overflowing through his dark, glowing eyes.
