"Are you okay?!"

That was the 14th time that someone had asked me about my condition. My wounds were still painfully swell and they were healing very unhurriedly as what Typhi had stated but as of now I did not mind anything that was pertaining about my health.

I was emotionally damaged and mentally crushed by what I have discovered and the only reason why I was keeping myself together was the fact that I still had a mission to fulfill. My siblings depended on me and trusted me with the future of planet Aecha. I cannot let anymore wasteful sacrifices to happen in the future because my eomma had lost so many of his children to Necron.

Though I did regret not closing up my suit which clearly exposed the bite wound including the depression on my chest caused by the hit of the Annie, I pushed the regret in the back of my mind and continued with my research.

I did not attempt to look at the people concerned for me or even stand up and acknowledge them because I was too engrossed in learning more about my siblings. However my interest on the activity was temporarily halted when Hunse slammed his fist on the table and gave me his glare.

"Xiu is asking you; don't act like you are merely sporting an insect bite and a regular bruise you dolt," he coldly snapped. A hand shoved Hunse away and Xiu replaced him.

"Stop it Hunse!" Xiu scolded. He gazed back down at me with a sad and concerned look on his face. "Long time no see Scion. I thought we would never see each other again," he said. "I'm really glad that you're here, you have always wanted to become a Paragon."

At first his statement baffled me because I have never told him or Hunse about a dream of becoming a Paragon, but then I realized that I was Scion now and I never did know what dreams he had.

"Yes...things changed and I am very glad to have passed the exam," I replied and attempted to give him a smile. I realized that Xiu befriended anyone and that no matter the condition, he would always show concern. "Thank you for worrying."

Xiu nodded. "Don't force yourself too much okay? Necron hasn't even arrived yet."

"And you already look like you faced the monster," Hunse grumbled. Xiu jabbed Hunse at his side earning him a glare from the taller man. "What? He looks like he's been bitten by a cronie and punched by an oversized fist. A little more beating and he will look like Necron's dung."

Xiu retured his glare and shoved him. Hunse grumbled as he walked farther away from us. Xiu had always been accurate with his assumptions so I can never get angry at him. I actually find his words very comforting because at least I know that he will always be honest with his opinions and was never afraid of expressing it...unlike Gilmos who I have always thought was on my side.

The sense of betrayal within my ticker still pained me...

I stared down on the table and felt the downing feeling submerging further within me causing the tears to be pushed up at the rim of my lower eyes. Xiu gave my head gentle pats.

"I know you're truly strong-willed Scion. You have never let anyone's opinion stop you from reaching your goals. You really amaze me but you don't have to cross the rough roads all the time. If you abuse your body too much, the descendant of Ecgtheow will lose a formidable ally. As Paragons, we need to be there for him because out of anyone, he knows what is best for planet Aecha. He's the light that we should follow and if I had the strength to go up against those guards...I would bust him out of that prison because the light that will save planet Aecha should not be confined by those who he will save."

"You know who the child of Ecgtheow is?" I asked him.

Xiu chuckled. "Yeah, ironically, his name is Aecha and gosh that guy is just too good for this world. I know that he was special from the moment I saw him. I can tell that Hunse felt that too. He's just too shy to admit it."

I knew it. Hunse was very timid.

"There's just something about him that makes you feel...safe you know? And when I heard that he was the one who saved those poor people in the Open Market, I was shrilling at Hunse's ear. I think he went deaf for a day."

The tears that were caused by the sense of betrayal from Gilmos withdrawn and Xiu's oblivious praises —that were supposed to be indirect but unbeknownst to him I was the child of Ecgtheow— caused a rise of positivity within me.

"Enough of my starstruck experience, we need to get those wounds patched up. What in the world happened to you?" he asked me.

Though Hunse's guess was accurate I cannot use it since they will know that I sneaked out of the gates.

"I...I have developed sleep-walking throughout my absence and before I know it I woke up like this," I reasoned out.

Xiu blinked questionably at my reason but did not dwell on it anymore. "Well you should take care of your health more. You just miraculously recovered from the Withering Disease and abusing your body is a 'no no' for me. I should also give Stugox a piece of my mind. He is your group's leader isn't he? He should take more responsibility."

Feeling at ease around Xiu, I let him help me fix my stuff. I imprinted my fingerprint at the borrower's identification detector just beside the trays of the injectors that I used. I get to take with me the actual trays for three days.

"It is not Stugox's fault. Please spare him," I requested.

Xiu scoffed. "Yeah, nope, when it comes to Scion, the best should be given. Just allow me to do this one thing for you. I already can't accept that I am powerless from saving Aecha from that danged prison pod and my dignity will be crushed if I can't even take care of one of my lower-classmen.

I fully zipped my suit to reduce the number of people looking at me and followed Xiu down where Hunse was waiting with an impatient look on his face.

"Hunse, go without me, I'll take Scion in his room."

Hunse glowered at me. "And why would you escort him to his room? Is he too weak to go on his own? He still has his two legs."

Xiu groaned. "Stop being brusque and just go without me. I'll catch up."

"You better, they have an important announcement and everyone is mandated to attend. The President is going to speak."

They must be going to announce about Necron's arrival and I was certain that Gilmos and his group will be present.

We separated ways with Hunse and Xiu assisted me back to the dormitory. Our room was completely devoid of any presence but there were dirty dishes and untouched food on the table with a little device blinking my name beside the plate.

"I'll catch up with them Scion. Be sure to rest up," he reminded me. "Where's your pod bed? I'll set its mode to HEALING."

I showed Xiu my pod bed and he pressed the buttons beside it. After bidding him farewell, I took the small device that was blinking my name and swiped the screen. A video of Team Ske showed up and I pressed the play button.

"Scion hi!" Hyuk Min greeted. Hoets face still looked red from crying and it made me worry for whatever reason was causing him to be upset.

"We left food for you. It was difficult reminding Stugox to not eat the food that I cooked for you so you better appreciate that," Ki said.

"I just wanted to know if it has the right amount of seasoning," Stugox solemnly reasoned out. "And I wanted to keep it warm in my stomach for Scion."

With that reason everyone laughed including me even Hoets who was in the verge of crying but ended up laughing.

"Please rest up and we're sorry of jeopardizing your performance in your very first day. Please leave the dishes to Won," Joe said.

Won's smile immediately dropped into a look of nothingness which only aggravated the light air that Team Ske seemed to possess.

Imsothy suddenly leaped over from his place behind the settee and onto Stugox's lap before coming closer to the camera and smudging his lips on the lens.

"Muah Muah Muah!"

"That's disgusting Imsothy!" Hyuk Min groaned.

The video ended with the lens smudged with the remains of Imsothy's lips and I looked at the food with much delight.

I finished the tasty food that Ki had skillfully and masterfully prepared and cleaned up the dishes for poor Won. After a hard day in the academy, I did not think that he had it in him to wash them anyway when he was always sleepy.

I cleaned up in the bathroom wincing from the pain on my wounds that were aggravated by the water. It was really hard to move with the heaviness in every shift of limbs. I dressed up and entered my pod bed. A neon blue wiring with its end shaped as an injector was released from a compartment above and a mechanical voice spoke instructing me to attach it on my head. After attachment, the mechanical voice informed me that this liquid was composed of Ascian particles that will aid me in my healing. It will also induce sleep until I was completely healed.

Sleep was finally given the opportunity to wrestle me down on bed with just three slow breaths reaching my ears until finally succumbing. I woke up with the sound of the pod bed moving out and with the wire detaching from my receiver.

Hyuk Min immediately apologized. "I'm sorry Scion; we were worried because you haven't woken up for two days."

Shock jolted me up from my position and Hyuk Min placed two securing hands on my shoulders to keep me in place. "It's okay Scion! You must have been really exhausted. I was just checking if you were still breathing."

"I am sorry for sleeping for so long..." I apologized.

My head was currently spinning but my body felt more capable than before. I looked at my chest and found that the depression finally rose up and my bite was slowly scarring. I was now more worried about the activities of Necron.

"Did something big happen while I was gone?" I asked Hyuk Min. I jumped down from the bed and the pavement returned inside.

"Yes, the Paragons are currently evacuating all citizens to planet Eumia. We are able to establish a great relationship with them when the child of Ecgtheow saved one of its people from the Mocksians," Hyuk Min said.

"Evacuating?" I asked with wide eyes. Sleep was no longer an inhabitant of my body.

Ki came up behind Hyuk Min and answered my inquiry. "Yeah, the President announced the encounter with a cronie two days ago and the fact that you managed to stop the spread of rot at the woodland below us," Ki informed me with a scowl on his face.

The tone of Ki made my ticker speed up. Did they figure out my secret already?

Hyuk Min let out an awkward and loud laugh. "Oh come on Ki, we all talked about this already right? Scion can't be the child of Ecgtheow. He looks way too different than the image that we were shown with."

Ki expressed a 'tsk which only made me flinch'. "I know I'm not stupid and I am sure as heck that you aren't that dense Hyuk Min. Those annihilators reacted because Scion was there and no regular Aechean could have stopped that spread."

Hyuk Min didn't have any such way to retort back to Ki and I did not know how to hide this from such a witty group. They were all presented with facts and further denying such suspicions was an insult to their intellect.

"I am sorry Ki...I apologize to all of you," I murmured feeling much ashamed about my lies.

"You think you can get away by lying to us?" Ki scoffed. I have really upset them especially Ki.

"I am sorry...I truly am," I apologized with my head down. What I have done was shameful.

"Sorry isn't enough for the damage done. We aren't that shallow."

Hyuk Min let out a whine of frustration. "What the heck are you talking about Ki? If anything Scion seems to be in a secret mission which is actually cool!"

"You stay out of this Hyuk Min!" Ki snapped.

The tensed atmosphere was suffocating and I frankly was thankful that my secrets were spilled since I do not think that I can lengthen the amount of time lying to my team. However, Ki was in fact scary when he was in rage or triggered.

"I will do anything to make it up-"

The orange-haired cook of the team abruptly laughed breaking the scowl on his face before smacking my shoulder hard. "You should have seen the look on your face; you look like a kicked pooch-puff!" He laughed.

Hyuk Min groaned and attempted to kick Ki at his butt only for Ki to dodge while laughing.

"You're a horrible person Ki!" Hyuk Min whined and hugged me. "I was going to brief him about what he missed and here you are starting fake drama!"

"I was going to tell you guys that dinner is ready but I couldn't resist!" Ki chortled before running away.

Relief washed over me and Hyuk Min pulled me to the dining table with the others already waiting for us. The whole group waved at me and gathered around me to give me the 'homeboy hug.'

A sense of over protectiveness over our blooming bond occurred inside of me as each of them gave me their own version of hugs. No matter what, I will not allow Gilmos to remove me from Team Ske.

They all briefed me about the Paragons evacuating the whole population to planet Eumia but there were some who wanted to stay because this was their home. They also told me that Paragons came knocking at our dorm room saying that I had to come with them but Gilmos arrived and shunned them away saying that I should be given the privilege to rest.

I was still upset with Gilmos but not so much anymore compared to two days ago. I must have been emotionally cornered because of my physical condition and the attainment of a fresh wound from the knowledge that children of Ecgtheow were nothing more but a snack.

"So far, Necron doesn't have any activities. We helped evacuate the citizens but there were a few who were stubborn," Joe said.

"What do you plan on doing now?" Won asked me. "If you're here and not in the pod jail then that would mean that there's something that you don't agree with when it comes to how the Paragons handle things," he sleepily pointed out.

I lowered my gaze at the food on my plate and took my time in pondering for the correct answer but only came with an indecisive one. "I have no idea...but I realized that if I stay here, my actions are limited and I cannot find out more about Necron but that would only make me fight against both the Paragons and Necron."

Stugox attempted to say something but the food muffled his words. "Swallow first Stugox, Scion won't go anywhere," Hyuk Min laughed.

My system received a message from Gilmos and I did not hesitate to open it since I value messages no matter what the content since no one really messaged me frequently.

Sender name: Gilmos Devasur

Topic: Get out of there.

Aecha, leave your dorm. The Paragons are coming for you. Your identity might blow up if they get their hands on you. Don't let them catch you or else you'll be endangering the real Scion as well.

A loud banging and a constant buzzing to our dormitory alerted everyone. "Open up, we are here for Scion Ghazi!"

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A/N: Not much activity but I want you guys to get a better feel of the bond of characters. Gilmos is really a fatherly figure over Aecha.