Veil headed straight toward the left wing, brushing past Dartz along the way.
"Where are you going?!" Dartz called.
"Pierce said curfew starts at ten. It's not even ten yet. I can do what I want." Veil retorted. Dartz started to say something else, but then Veil's eyes began glowing as he added, "You didn't see me anyway."
Dartz froze. His expression went blank, and a moment later, he turned around and walked away. Veil then tilted his head and looked at the cameras and said,
"You recorded me returning directly to my room after speaking with Dartz."
There was an electrical whirring from the camera, and Veil strolled away. He gave similar commands to each camera he passed.
Then he made it to his destination, Flow's room, without delay.
She jolted when he came inside.
"I wasn't expecting you," she muttered, but she looked overjoyed to see him. Veil locked the door, then moved over to where she was seated on the bed.
"Why not? I said I was coming," he replied while placing his hand behind her head.
She blushed lightly, and her eyes drifted down to his lips.
Veil then pressed his lips to hers.
She gasped, and he moved his tongue into her mouth. She moaned, but the sound was muffled by the kisses. This entire time, he was gently pushing her back, and once she was lying on the bed, he got on top of her.
His kisses went down to her neck, and she covered her mouth so she could stay quiet. Within a minute, Veil had her clothes on the floor.
He didn't let her remain naked alone for long.
They spent almost an hour getting lost in each other over and over.
At the end of everything, Flow was staring at the ceiling, drenched in sweat and out of breath. Veil, on the other hand, put his clothes back on. He stood up and leaned over her to kiss her jawline, and cupped her breast as he whispered,
"I'll see you in the morning."
Flow tensed, and her heart stuttered erratically.
He smiled at her, waiting for her reply.
"Yeah," she mumbled while hiding her face behind her hands.
Veil kissed her fingers and slowly moved his hand away before getting up to leave.
This time, as he got close to the cameras, he paused. His instinct was to taunt whoever was in charge of surveillance by sticking up his middle finger before heading to his room... but he remembered his promise to keep meetings discreet. With a sigh, Veil's eyes lit up once more, and as he passed the camera, he said,
"I opened my door to peek into the hallway, but didn't go anywhere."
The camera made a loud buzzing sound, then Veil went into his room, slamming the door behind him.
He took a shower, then he lay in his bed, eyes fixed on the ceiling, agitated. He regretted respecting the curfew at all and wished he'd stayed longer.
Around thirty minutes later, Flow had just finished a bath and was returning to her room in a robe when she found Veil sitting on her bed. She froze in place, struggling to believe what she was seeing. His arms were folded, and he wore a deep scowl.
He glanced over at her. Flow wouldn't move a muscle until he beckoned her over and said,
"I have too much energy to sleep right now."
She gulped, trembling as she stepped closer. He immediately pulled her down into his lap, sliding her robe from her shoulders, gently biting down on her neck, while wrapping his arms around her waist.
Flow felt hot, and her mind was spinning. Her emotions were going haywire. She was happy to see him, but wasn't sure she could handle what was coming next. Many things popped into her head, but the only thing she managed to say was,
"B-but... I just took a bath."
Veil snorted from trying to hold in a laugh, then he moved his lips to hers and replied,
"You can take another one."
It was over three hours later when Veil finally seemed satisfied. Yet he was still placing kisses on her inner thigh, leaving fresh marks on her skin while making direct eye contact. This made it impossible for Flow to relax.
He smirked before getting up to put his clothes back on.
"You're a monster," Flow mumbled, while closing her legs and rolling over to face the wall.
Veil smacked her butt, which startled her. He chuckled at her reaction and said,
"Good night, for real this time."
Only after that did he return to his room and get some sleep.
Breakfast was granola bars and apple juice for everyone, then they immediately had to run laps around the training room.
Cantarella dragged behind, huffing and struggling to keep up. Flow was only slightly faster than her, but kept her pace and breathing steady.
Fenix, Caster, and Veil were competing for first place. Aura was in the lead at first, but after several laps her stamina began to fade. Soon she couldn't keep pace with the taller boys, who didn't have to work quite as hard to maintain their speed.
The rest of the group seemed content in the middle, running while conserving as much energy as possible.
Pierce was supervising the run with a stern look and whistle in hand. They weren't allowed a break until an hour later.
"Oh, thank god!" Cantarella wheezed while making her way to a nearby bench, but Pierce stepped into her path and said,
"You're five laps behind everyone else. You can't rest yet."
She fell on her knees and shouted,
"How could you possibly have noticed that?!"
Pierce's expression didn't change, and he pointed for her to get back up. She reluctantly complied.
Everyone watched Cantarella totter around miserably while they sat with their water bottles.
"I would have won if I could use my powers," Aura grumbled to Fenix. He smirked and said,
"I'm sure you would have..."
The goal of this training was to assess everyone's base abilities. The Cursed naturally have a higher physical potential than normal people. Even those with non-combat abilities could achieve superhuman strength if they worked hard enough.
"It would have been me regardless," Veil chimed in, from Fenix's left while downing his water in one gulp. Flow panicked and flailed her hands saying,
"Careful Veil, you're drinking really fast..."
"What are you talking about? I was done first," Caster argued, from his place on Aura's right side.
He and Veil exchanged cocky grins.
Fenix sighed, then threw his arm over Aura's shoulder. She spilled a little bit of water then glanced up at his face.
Fenix's eyes were on his father's back.
After Cantarella was allowed to join the others, Fenix called out,
"Hey who got done first?" to Pierce.
They stared at each other silently for a few moments then Pierce said,
"You have twenty minutes left in your break, then we'll move on to simulated combat training."
He then left the room.
Fenix pouted at being ignored, while Cantarella groaned and whined,
"Already? Give me a break."
She then curled up on the bench while taking small sips.
"Don't feel bad," Veil said while smirking at Fenix, "Your dad was just trying to spare your feelings."
Fenix rolled his eyes and rested his cheek atop Aura's head.
"Long distance running isn't really my thing," Mirror mumbled. Caster pecked her forehead and her face instantly turned crimson.
"If you're tired, I can boost your recovery rate," he offered sweetly. Mirror didn't respond at first, then she snuggled up against him and said,
"That wouldn't be fair, so no."
"We ran like thirty miles! My legs are killing me!" Panther moaned, while laying down as well and closing her eyes. Shade brushed her hair from her forehead and her eyes shot back open in surprise.
"Sorry," he said immediately while pulling his hand away. She was stunned, and at a loss for words. So she merely closed her eyes again and focused on resting.
"I don't think it was that bad—I like running," Shade mumbled, Panther peeked out at him with a look of disgust.
It felt like no time had passed at all when Pierce returned.
"Time for part two of today's training," he announced.
"Can't we have a snack or something first?" Cantarella pleaded with her hand raised.
"My son will go first," Pierce continued, "Because he's used the simulation system before."
He gestured toward Fenix, who sighed, sat up, and kissed Aura's cheek before standing. Aura appeared unaffected on the outside but internally she was losing her mind.
Screaming things in her head, such as:
"His dad is right there!"
and
"We're not alone right now, what is he thinking?!"
Fenix stepped into the arena and Pierce typed in a code. The computerized voice said:
"Situation: You've been caught infiltrating an enemy building, you must defeat one-hundred trained guards or escape the building before the timer runs out."
A thirty minute timer hovered in the air above Fenix's head and the scenery of the Arena warped into what looked like the upper room of a warehouse.