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“Embyrlyn is still a virgin,” he said.
Grey arched a brow. “Oh?” he asked. “And how would her captain know? I thought you were the same person who barely paid her any attention, and yet, you speak to me about something so terribly intimate.”
Kazu clenched his teeth. “What, exactly, are you implying?”
“I would never dare imply anything so viciously debauched, Kazu, especially as it relates to your character,” Grey said, and Kazu knew he was telling the truth. As it was, it was clear Grey was still keen on making a point, something Kazu didn’t appreciate since it took his entire reputation and called it into question. “But the question still stands: you’re worried about her loss of innocence, and yet, you're presuming she’s innocent in the first place. Do you have evidence of this?”
“Of course not,” Kazu said, “but I'm certain of it. There’s a particular naivety when it comes to that, and I don’t think it’s right that that should be a sacrifice she has to make on the chance we might acquire information. You’re already having her go to a nest, get fed on. She’ll be violated in that way, spiritually, emotionally, even mentally. But on top of all of that, she’ll be violated physically as well. You know the act of feeding for the Light Bringers requires physical connection. We were taught that in the academy.”
“Which means Embyrlyn knows what she’s getting into,” Grey said, glancing down at his desk and picking up a few sheets of paper. He shuffled them a few times before straightening them out and setting them back down.
“She has no idea,” Kazu said. “You didn’t tell her.”
“Do I need to?” Grey asked. “When she’s been educated here about what to expect?”
“It must be clear –”
“Are you calling her stupid? You know she’s one of the top students at the academy.”
“Book smarts and street smarts are two vastly different types of intelligences,” Kazu said. “We both know that. And Embyrlyn, while brilliant when it comes to the former, isn’t as keen on the latter.”
“So, you do think she’s stupid.”
“I think she needs certain things to be clear,” Kazu said. “And the fact that they’re not means that she wasn’t fully informed of what she’s getting into, and I think that that’s wrong.”
“Now you’re insinuating I manipulated her again,” Grey stated.
“Did you bring up Dade?” Kazu didn’t mean to, but he placed hands on the surface of the desk, hunching over it. He locked eyes with Master Grey. He wouldn’t back down, not until Grey took back the mission or gave it to someone else. Embyrlyn couldn’t handle this. She had no idea what it would mean, what it would do to her, and the fact that Grey didn’t seem to care, infuriated him beyond measure.
“I felt I had to,” Grey said, “in order to have her fully understand the mission and its context –”
Kazu slammed his left down on the desk, nearly toppling over the teacup. Kazu wished he had. It would have given him a pervasive sense of satisfaction. “And yet, you couldn’t tell her what the Light Bringers will expect of her the second she attempts to become a piece of meat?” he demanded.
Grey clenched his teeth together, glaring at Kazu in a way that would have brought most wolves to their knees.
But not Kazu.
“Again, Kazu, I didn’t feel it was necessary, considering her education where she’s already learned such things take place,” he said. “Her mission begins after the full moon. I was going to have Rainey be her contact since he’s familiar with the nests based on the few missions I sent him on, but it’s clear you’re more suited for the job.”
“Wait, what –”
“And, if what you’re saying is true, then as her contact, it’s your responsibility to inform Embyrlyn what to expect.” He shifted the teacup and shifted it over a couple of centimeters. “It might behoove of her to give that to someone before she leaves so she doesn’t have to worry about that particular injustice by the time she leaves.”
Kazu stood up right, hands falling to his sides. He blinked once. “You can’t be serious,” he said.
“I’m dead serious,” Grey said. “You’ve raised concerns. I’m here addressing them.”
“I can’t be her handler,” Kazu insisted.
“And why not?” Grey asked. “You know her better than anyone else. From what you’re telling me, you know she’s a virgin.”
Kazu jerked back, his own words held against him.
“She will do this mission, Kazu,” Grey said as he slowly stood up, and while he didn’t have the height on Kazu, there was something about his mere presence that even Kazu had to acknowledge. “She knows what her duty is. She knows that in order to protect the academy and all of its inhabitants, sacrifice is required. You know this as well as I do. And in order to track Dade down —“
“Why do we want a traitor back among us?” Kazu demanded to know, leaning forward and wrinkling his nose.
Grey had to lean back to take in Kazu for a long moment. “You know,” he said, “it’s rare, but every now and then, something strokes your ire so much, you show your true emotions and I can see the inner beast living inside of you. I can see your true nature. I can see why they call you the White Wolf, why they fear you.”
