Page 25 of Obsession

As we left the dining room, I walked with Ariana down the wide marble staircase leading to the main hall. Morning light poured through the massive windows, casting long shadows across the worn steps.

"Maybe he’s preparing for the mission,” Ariana said, slipping her hand into mine. “Kann is leading the ground offensive.”

“Maybe, but he considers his morningpadwumpto be a necessity.”

“Kann?"

I turned my head as Morgan and Jess hurryied down the stairs behind us. Morgan gave me an apologetic grin. “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but the only Drexian I know who considerspadwumpto be a food group is Kann.”

Jess laughed and nodded. “He’s obsessed with the stuff. Not that I blame him. It’s kind of like bacon, and I’m obsessed with that.”

“Anyhow,” Morgan said, as Jess got a wistful look in her eyes. “We saw him earlier. He was looking for Britta and said something about the holochambers."

I released a breath. This must have something to do with the holo-simulation to recreate a past academy challenge.

“See?” Ariana squeezed my hand. “A simple explanation.”

Then the lights flickered and died, plunging us into darkness for one heart-stopping moment before humming back to life.

When the main hall was illuminated again, Jess’s eyes were wide. “That was weird.”

“The academy is old,” I said. “I am surprised we do not have more power fluctuations.”

When we reached the bottom of the steps, Ariana tugged me toward the School of Flight. I resisted her pull.

“Aren’t you coming? Don’t you have class?”

I did, but an uneasy feeling told me I needed to see Kann first. My first-year flight class could wait. “I will meet you there after I speak to Kann.”

Ariana didn’t try to dissuade me or tell me I was being absurd. Instead, she popped up on her tiptoes and kissed my cheek. “See you later, fly boy.”

I added her reaction to the immense list of reasons I adored the woman as I watched her head for Flight. Then I pushed through the growing crowd of cadets and made my way to the School of Battle.

I strode purposefully under the stone arch and down the long corridor, getting a few curious glances from Blades who were walking with less urgency. I spotted Torq standing outside an open doorway leading to a room with the elevated battle rings inside. Cadets were already gathering for their morning grappling sessions, their excited voices booming off the walls as they warmed up inside the cages.

I barely nodded to Torq as I passed, my focus locked on the entrance to the holochambers ahead. Kann wouldn’t have been the one doing the technical work on the simulation, which meant he would be watching Britta work. I frowned. Was there something going on between my best friend and the Iron cadet?

I shook my head at this. “No, he would have told me.”

But had I told him about Ariana?

My internal debate was interrupted when I entered the holochamber area. Kann wasn’t there, and neither was Britta. They must have left, I told myself. But how had I missed running into Kann? Was he already in one of the Blade classrooms?

Then my gaze snagged on something. One of the holochamber control panels hung open, its lights flashing. I stepped closer. A program was running.

I glanced at the closed chamber door. Were Kann and Britta inside a running program? Had they lost track of time?

I tried to activate the comms that would project my voice into the chamber, but the console blinked back at me with an error message. That was odd. I attempted to pause the program. I got the same error message.

My pulse quickened. Why was the chamber unresponsive? Then I remembered the lights going out. Was this a result of the power surge?

"Volten?" Torq appeared beside me. "You looked like you were racing to a battle when you passed me. Is something wrong?"

I pointed at the readout, my fingers hovering over the unresponsive controls. "Something's not right. I can't shut it down or open the doors.”

Torq stepped forward, his massive frame casting a shadow over the panel as he tried a series of commands. Nothing. I might not be an expert in holotech, but I knew enough to read the life sign indicators pulsing on the screen.

"Who's inside?" Torq's voice was unusually quiet.

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