Free Aeon Legion: Labyrinth by J.P. Beaubien Page B

so
superstitious, Orion.”
    Terra's gaze darted from Alya
to Orion as she waited for a point to break into the conversation.
    Orion gestured to Alya. “I'm
not being superstitious, I'm being practical. If I had known you were
getting another squire, I would have put the Second Cohort on alert.”
    Alya grinned. “I'll prove
you a fool. Care to make a wager?”
    Orion raised an eyebrow.
    Alya gestured with one hand.
“I'll bet you five hundred years that nothing happens.”
    Terra tilted her head,
wondering how one gambled time.
    Orion shook his head. “Oh
come on, Alya. You know that's nothing to us. We both have more years
than we know what to do with. How about this. If I'm right you'll
wear that dress I like.”
    Alya smiled. “An acceptable
wager. But if I win then you'll take a week off work and we can go
somewhere nice for a while.”
    Orion hesitated as though a
week off work was worth far more than five hundred years. “Fine,”
he said at last.
    “Hey!” Terra shouted,
waving her arms during a brief lull in the conversation. Orion and
Alya turned their attention to her. She cleared her throat before
counting with her fingers. “Question one. How old are you both?
Question two. Who's Aion? Question three. Who's Kairos? Question
four. How do you gamble time? Question five ho–“
    Orion looked at Alya. “Well.
I see you have briefed her about as well as the rest of your squires.
Have you ever considered actually explaining things to the people you
drag through the Edge?”
    Alya shrugged. “That's what
the Academy is for. Besides, I only like to show them the interesting
things, like how the shieldwatch works.”
    Orion rubbed his brow. “Let
me guess. You were just going to dump her at the Academy and leave?”
    “So? Why does it matter?
It's their job to train squires in the basics. Besides, I hate
explaining things everyone should already know and I have no interest
spending the next few months supervising her exercise.”
    “Just like you. You blow
through like a storm and leave someone else to clean up the mess.”
    Terra's brow lowered. It was
just like when her parents argued. She never got a word in with them
either.
    Alya glanced at Terra. “You're
being awfully quiet.”
    Terra shot Alya a baleful
glare.
    Alya raised an eyebrow.
“What?”
    Orion looked at his
shieldwatch. “Well I'll go ahead and inform the others about the
new squire.”
    “No!” Alya said, turning
to Orion. “I mean no. That's a bad idea.”
    Orion paused.
    Alya looked away. “I
sometimes wonder if that's what drove Kairos away. People treated her
like a savior figure.”
    “But she was,” Orion said.
“She saved this city, not to mention the rest of Time. There is a
reason they call her the greatest of the Legendary Blades.”
    “And the price she paid for
that was loneliness and isolation,” Alya said, staring forlornly to
the side. “You can't be friends with someone you worship.”
    Orion
regarded Terra while rubbing his chin. “Well I guess it would make
things more complicated if everyone knew. Not to mention the endless Trial of Blades challengers she have to endure. Very well. I'll keep this between us
and Consul Prometheus for now. Just be sure she knows that.”
    Alya smiled. “Thanks,
Orion.”
    Orion turned to Terra. “What
is your name?”
    “Terra Mason, sir,” Terra
said.
    “Well, Terra Mason,” Orion
said. “Just be sure to keep the identity of who you are squiring
for a secret. If people knew you were Alya's squire, it would create
a terrible commotion.”
    Terra grimaced. “I paid
attention to the conversation even if you two ignored me.”
    Orion grinned. “Blunt. Very
different from Kairos.”
    “How did you know I was
Alya's squire?” Terra asked.
    “You look a little like
her,” Orion said.
    “Alya?” Terra asked.
    “No. Kairos,” he said as
he turned to leave. He looked over his shoulder before he exited. “I
look forward to working with you, Tiro Mason, when the next