The sudden punch left everyone speechless. Only a few had paid attention to the entire scene, but no one could miss George after some surprised gasps resounded in the area. The boy was sitting on the ground, and a hand covered his nose as blood flowed out of it.
The recruits froze, and Paul's hands instinctively went in his hair when he thought about the many political consequences that the event could cause. George was even in his class, so he knew that he had to handle the issue by himself.
Natalie had just started to feel some relief after the tough weeks that she had to experience, so anger filled her face when she gazed at Havaa. She didn't care about George enough to get into a fight for him, but that girl had hurt her by hitting her friend.
Paul decided to step forward and defuse the situation, but Khan stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder. The soldier turned to question him, but he discovered that he didn't move his eyes from George and Havaa.
Khan performed a grabbing gesture with his free hand, and Ilman promptly put a cup filled with booze in his palm. Khan handed that cup to Paul before repeating the process to get a drink for himself.
Paul continued to stare at Khan in confusion, but the latter soon whispered to explained the situation. "Let them handle that. Everyone has waited for this to happen since learning about the meeting."
Paul wanted to complain, but his words remained stuck in his throat when he saw the other Niqols staring with prying eyes at George and Havaa while taking quick sips from their cups. Everyone seemed serious about the situation but for stupid reasons.
Natalie prepared herself to voice an angry berate, but Veronica reached her and pulled her away before she could say anything. The same confusion that afflicted Paul fell on Natalie, and she couldn't help but question her friend with her gaze while she continued to pull her away.
That confusion spread among all the recruits. Only Khan and the others who had lived in the academy knew what was happening and managed to take it as a mere fight between partners.
George rarely managed to keep his mouth shut, especially after drinking. Almost every student had learnt about his previous love interest, so they had waited for that event to unfold. Still, they didn't expect Havaa to hit him when he was talking with Natalie.
"[That's a bit too-]," Doku began to comment, but Azni slapped his shoulder to make him stop speaking.
Paul noticed that interaction and glanced at Khan again, hoping that the latter could give him explanations. Yet, Khan only had short answers for him, and he even had to whisper them out of fear of Azni's anger. "She has been George's girlfriend during these months."
"That's still-," Paul tried to argue, but he didn't contain his voice, so a series of annoyed gazes converged toward his figure and made him go silent.
"The Niqols generally like gossips, especially those involving couples," Khan explained through whispers.
Paul could only nod while Khan took a sip from his cup and remained focused on the scene. The soldier turned to look at George and Havaa and discovered that the other envoys had taken care of calming down the recruits who wanted to intervene.
"Why aren't you helping them?" Paul asked in a faint voice.
"This is a perfect spot," Khan responded. "I'm not giving it up."
"[Khan]?" Azni's cold voice resounded from behind the two, and Khan immediately fell silent. Paul also understood the silent threat and stopped talking.
"[Why did you do it]?" George asked in a poor accent. "[We were just talking]!"
"[I know what talking means for you]," Havaa scolded angrily. "[Did these months mean nothing to you]?"
"[Of course, but my family-]," George replied, but Havaa suppressed a sob before kicking his leg and leaving the scene in a hurry.
George followed her departing figure with his gaze, but an army of disappointed eyes unfolded in his vision when he turned to look at his companions. Some of the Niqols were even shaking their heads.
"[A man who can't listen to feeling-]," Ilman started to shout while standing up, but Khan and Doku promptly reached his shoulders to keep him on the ground.
Ilman still struggled, but Azni's cold glare eventually put an end to his desire to scold George. The girl appeared ready to kill to preserve her source of gossips.
George remained in that position for a few seconds before exploding into a loud groan. He nimbly jumped on his feet and wiped his bleeding nose before turning toward Natalie.
"I'm sorry," George announced. "We can't be together."
Natalie's eyes widened before her eyebrows closed into a frown. "We have never come close to that."
George pretended not to hear that answer. He began to run in the direction where Havaa had left, but he stopped after a few meters to turn toward Khan's group and voice a request. "Can I get a cup before g-."
The boy couldn't complete his request since a series of angry reprimands flew in his direction and forced him to resume his march. Curses and satisfied nods appeared among the group of Niqols after George left the areas, but Ilman's sudden announcement ruined that mood. "[Love wins in the end]!"
"[We have yet to see if she accepts to get him back]," Azni commented.
"[Don't appear too excited about it]," Doku teased.
"[Come on]," Azni complained while pulling Doku's sleeve. "[They are so cute together]."
"[We are cuter]," Doku winked, and Azni blushed in front of that unexpected gesture.
A series of cute exclamations resounded among the group when Azni hid her face in Doku's chest. Ilman ended up being the loudest of them, and Khan also showed an honest smile at the sight of the happy couple.
"What did you even do during these months?" Paul whispered when Khan rejoined him.
"You might discover that some of us have changed after adapting to the Niqols' lifestyle," Khan vaguely explained, and Paul stared at him for a few seconds before giving up on the matter.
The recruits found it hard to join the Niqols right away, but Khan, Helen, and Veronica did their best to unite the groups while the servants were still setting everything for the meeting. Tables filled with food slowly appeared on both flat areas at the sides of the gorge, and the event soon moved there.
The atmosphere in the valley wasn't tense. The main meeting was happening in the palace, and the Niqols discovered how easier it was to connect with the humans when Khan helped them out. That was the first time someone of their age had grown so close to them, so he could effortlessly act as a bridge between the two species.
Doku, Azni, Ilman, Asyat, and the other Niqols that had built a good relationship with Khan also helped since they knew that a good performance in the event would help their human friend. They didn't hesitate to bring the recruits inside their groups and make them join their conversations.
Many recruits remained biased or hesitant about the vague carelessness shown by the Niqols. The squad leaders also avoided drinking too much since they couldn't consider the event a simple celebration. Their serious approach made them unable to miss how deeply Khan had entered that social environment, and the four of them didn't forget to memorize that detail.
Yeza's mention and the scenes during the meeting put Khan above the other envoys. The squad leaders felt that the humans had finally gained a decent foundation regarding the relationship with the Niqols. It might take a few years, but Khan could transform into the connection they needed to get past that mutual distrust and start developing a proper alliance.
George returned a few hours later. He had a few bruises on his face, but Havaa held his hand as they walked back to the event. The girl was even blushing, which caused a series of excited gasps and laughs, with the loudest being Ilman and Azni.
"Why is everyone so excited?" Paul questioned Khan about that reaction.
"Ask the others," Khan laughed. "I'd rather not be the one to have this awkward conversation."
Paul listened to his advice and questioned the other envoys. Veronica ended up revealing everything to the squad leader, even if she blushed and used shy words to explain the matter.
The squad leader had no words to express how he felt. Paul didn't know whether to feel angry that George had left the meeting to be intimate with his girlfriend or happy that another recruit had established a strong relationship with the Niqols.
In the end, Paul let go of the matter and decided to ignore every strange outcome that had resulted from that political mission. It was part of the envoys' tasks to blend with an alien species without forgetting their origins. George seemed to tend too much toward the Niqols, but he chose not to care that day.
Truth be told, all the recruits needed to relax and vent the stress accumulated in the past weeks. They didn't have the parties to vent their tension, and their missions had been messy due to the lack of proper tools at their disposal.
The humans had to live in constant tension during those almost four weeks. The small area under their control was their only advantage over the Niqols since the weaker troops could always retreat and rely on stronger troops if the situation became too dangerous.
The peaceful meeting helped the humans rest their minds and enjoy a night among the hellish landscape that Nitis had become.
"What will you say to your family?" Khan asked once George separated from Havaa and walked past all the compliments and teases voiced by the Niqols.
"What can I even say?" George shrugged his shoulders before taking a sip from his cup. "It's not totally stupid from a political perspective, right? I'll get to see this alliance flourish while my talented friend does all the work for me."
"I wish it were so easy," Khan sighed while toasting with George and moving his gaze on the palace.
Some of the important figures who had entered the palace were on the long balcony of the central structure. Khan was too far away to recognize all of them, but Captain Erbair, Yeza, and Liiza were easy to find even at that distance.
Captain Erbair was too tall to mistake her for a Niqols, Yeza had her unique charm, and Liiza made Khan feel warm. The others were nothing more than vague figures in his vision.
It seemed that the meeting inside the palace had reached a cordial phase since many Niqols and humans were on the balcony. Still, Khan noticed how Liiza and Yeza left the area together and in a hurry.
The two Niqols didn't immediately return on the balcony. Khan only shot glances every once in a while when no one looked, but he kept track of the changes on the palace. It felt strange for such important figures to disappear from the main event, but a familiar screech eventually reached his ears and revealed the nature of the situation.
The group in the valley noticed a dark-grey Aduns when they glanced at the sky, but they quickly disregarded the matter. Only Khan continued to inspect the eagle because it was his girlfriend's ride.
Liiza soon appeared on the open roof of the right building and jumped on her Aduns to leave the palace. At the same time, Yeza returned to the central balcony and resumed her political tasks.
'They must have fought,' Khan concluded in his mind as he followed Liiza's Aduns crossing the valley.
Snow almost replied to the emotions filling Khan's mind, but he made sure to stop it. He couldn't follow her now even if he desired to do it with every fiber of his body.
A helpless sigh escaped Khan's mouth as he decided to bring his focus back on his surroundings, but a faint tremor suddenly reached his feet. No one except for the squad leaders seemed to have felt it, but a stronger vibration soon ran through the valley and made everyone aware of the event.
Khan looked at the Niqols to understand how worried they were about the earthquake. They didn't appear scared. They only frowned in front of that event, and annoyance filled their faces when the tremors intensified even more.
The first sign of danger appeared when a crack opened at the edges of the gorge. Yet, panic didn't spread since azure symbols appeared on the ground and the gorge's walls to reinforce their structure. Everything continued to tremble, but nothing broke anymore.
Liiza stopped above the valley when she noticed the azure symbols. It took her a while to notice the earthquake, but she didn't feel worried about the event either. However, her peculiar position allowed her to see that cracks continued to open in some mountains around the area.
The students couldn't see those events from the bottom of the valley, but that wasn't enough to cause worry. Liiza had to see a massive claw coming out of one of the cracks to understand that something was deeply wrong.
Liiza made her Aduns shoot toward the group, but her expression froze when her senses noticed something giant hiding right inside the gorge's edges. Her eagle unfolded its wings to stop its momentum, but everything happened too quickly for her to do something about the incredible event.
Part of the gorge's edges exploded even if the azure symbols were reinforcing them. A dark-green lightning bolt shot out of the rocky surface and illuminated a massive mutated Lysixi that had pointed its strange mouth toward Liiza.
The lightning bolt was too fast for the Aduns. It hit its chest and spread part of its destructive power on the other side.
****
Author's notes: Only one chapter left to cover yesterday's release.