Tyree, noticing Jade, offered a gentle smile and stood up, stretching with a yawn. "Been a little bit, good to see you taking care of yourself," he said, his gaze briefly pausing on her appearance. "I like what you did with your hair."
Jade instinctively reached for the tips of her hair, now accented with stark white ends, and responded, "Yes, I wish I could have had a choice in the color, but alas, one must deal with the cards they're dealt, I suppose."
Tyree chuckled lightly, "I'm not really sure what that's about, but I'm glad to see you went through the initiation and all of that."
"Yes, it would have been nice if someone had warned me about being stabbed like that, but I suppose I'll forgive you since you didn't have a choice not to tell," Jade replied, attempting a playful laugh.'
Tyree, adjusting his posture to accommodate the cast on his arm, rested his other hand on his head, conveying a mix of regret and concern. "Yeah, really wish I could have done something. I wasn't even sure they'd let you in after what happened," he shared, his voice tinged with uncertainty.
Jade, curious and concerned, inquired, "Yeah, how is Waddell doing anyways? I heard he was in bad condition?"
The mention of Waddell caused Tyree's expression to falter, a shadow crossing his features. "He still hasn't woken up. I think that creature stole something from him, stopping him from waking up. So, I just need to get strong enough to beat him the next time he shows up," he said, his resolve evident in the tight clench of his free hand.
Jade nodded in agreement, her own determination mirrored in her response. "Yeah, that's true. I still need to find a way to get Ty back and get answers from him. All in due time, though. It seems things are speeding up every day."
With a brief pause, she added, "Well, I'm going to grab some food real quick, and I'll join you and Master Gojaro for a bite."
The conversation was interrupted as Gojaro's phone chimed. He checked the message and then informed Jade, "The Director will be ready for the debriefing in about thirty minutes, so hurry up and finish so we can get there a bit before he does. We need to go over the topics with you, Rosa, and Oscar to ensure all of your stories line up and the events given are accurate."
"Why do you need the events from all three of us?" Jade inquired, curious about the necessity for such detailed corroboration.
"Well, in times past, we have had creatures that had the ability to alter the minds of those they fought. And even though it was still defeated, it still gave different events to those who defeated him. So just ensuring everyone's story lines up ensures the director is given the best information to move forward with the next step," Gojaro explained
Reflecting on her unsettling encounter with the King of Nothing, Jade shared her thoughts with Master Gojaro, "He seemed like what he was doing to us, and possibly more worlds, was some necessary thing to prepare for something worse. But yeah, seeing the way these creatures look, nothing surprises me anymore about this world."
She continued, pondering her own capabilities, "I just hope to unlock their works and better understand how my ability functions, but I think I'm close," she said, examining her palms as if the answers might be written in her own skin.
Master Gojaro, acknowledging her determination and the gravity of their situation, agreed, "I hope so as well. I believe things are only going to get crazier from here. Come, let's head to see the Director. We have just enough time to get there 10 minutes early."
Jade quickly finished her meal, returned her tray, and grabbed a breath mint from the table, hurrying to catch up with Gojaro, who had already started making his way out of the café area.
Walking alongside Gojaro, Jade navigated the labyrinthine hallways of the facility for about ten minutes. They eventually arrived at a corridor lined with rooms, each marked with placards indicating "DB 1-15."
Curious, Jade inquired, "Why so many rooms just to debrief information?"