The irritation was evident on General Iza’s face, but he masked it well behind a stoic look. He was dressed well in his uniform, his hair slicked back from his face. Mica leaned back in the seat and rested his arms. Iza looked at him with a peculiar gaze, but he didn’t react to it. He was interested in how the man would take this show of trust and whether he lashed out would be the first test.

Iza followed the order and sat down. He placed his folded hands on his desk.

“Your visit was unexpected, General Rexton. I wasn’t aware there was a scheduled inspection.”

Mica ran his fingers across the soft leather. The stitching looked to be by hand. “It was, but I assume you were notified accordingly. This isn’t a normal inspection, as I think you already know.”

Iza nodded. “The mission—”

“The mission was a failure.” Mica narrowed his eyes. “Do not sugar coat it. Your decisions are questionable and President Maxem is well aware of my feelings about this whole case.”

Iza returned his stare. “And what are your feelings?”

Mica let the silence wash over the room. He stood from the seat, slowly pressing down the front of his uniform down and walked towards Iza’s desk. He stared down at the man, his heart rushing with electricity.

“I have reason to suspect neglect.” The words were sweet candies in his mouth. The feeling of pure dominance had never tasted so good before until he was in this room with an equal dominant man. The anger and heat fed into him like he was plugged to a source.

The veins in Iza’s neck flexed. He was holding in everything, but it painted clearly on his face. Mica didn’t understand why he even tried when he was so bad at it. It was laughable to imagine this was a man sitting in a general’s chair.

“My SWARM has shown progress over the years. Our success rates are above average and not once has there been a problem inside the facility,” Iza said. He leaned forward. He wasn’t backing down. “If you have doubt in my work, you have my blessing to go under and supervise just how my team in fairing. You won’t be disappointed.”

This is what Mica wanted to see. Like a Captain trying to save his sinking ship, Iza was at a point where he had to make a decision: bend to Mica’s demands or defend himself. For the first time in what felt like forever, Mica found a man who wasn’t going to choose and while that pissed him off, he admired a fight more than a quick surrender. Those that held out always dealt with loss the worst ways. To see such a strong character break down to a sniffling child was one of the greatest joys in life.

“Excellent, General Iza.” Mica grinned. “There is something else we must discuss.”

“Yes.” Iza nodded. He pulled the first manila folder from the stack and opened it. “The analyzed reports have come back. It’s as we suspected.”

It was the first time he was hearing about any reports, but he wasn’t going to let Iza know that. He wondered if President Maxem knew about these and whether he should be the first one to take a look. Though, he was the new general. He had no reason to not take a look.

Iza pushed the folder across the desk and Mica gathered it in his hand. The first page was a detailed report on what had happened the night of the mission from the time they arrived on site and leading up to the demon encounter. He scanned the first few paragraphs before he flipped to the next page. There was a chart and a forensic testing of the magic used. Most of the magic currents were normal and matched the Shadows and the Mekiahs. However, there was a second current that marked high on the scale. It was an inconceivable amount of magic that was toxic to any being located in and around the Veil. This could only be by a high wielding demon, but even then, the amount of magic burned in the allotted time meant the demon had been between the Veil for over fifteen minutes.

The longest recorded time for a high demon was five minutes. Due to their strength, they burned to much energy to sustain their presence in the Veil. Somehow, this demon had found a way around the problem.

“A high demon is in Keshtin jurisdiction.”

Iza nodded to the folder. “Yes, but we found something else.”

Mica turned the page.

“Our newest Mekiah didn’t survive in the encounter. He was fried alive by the demon’s magic current.” Mica read the lines of data as Iza continued to speak. He stopped when he came across what he assumed Iza was about to mention. “Cassius is the SWARM’s oldest Mekiah. He was the only one to meet the demon and not only did he survive, the demon made no attempt to attack.”

“And you’re sure about this?”

“He has no reason to lie. He knows well what will happen to him if he ever does.”

Doesn’t mean he won’t.

The Mekiah were slaves, but they weren’t dumb. They knew how to lie and deceive like any other being. To think otherwise would be plain stupid.

Mica moved back to the first page. He read the resolution of the mission, pausing at Cassius’s statements. It matched what Iza was saying, meaning it was either true or the Mekiah wasn’t as trained as the general was letting on. Of course, Iza would never admit to such a fault. It would ruin him.

There were only a few courses of action he could take in this type of situation. This new information meant he had a new case, but it also meant there were legalities that needed to be taken care of. With the surviving Mekiah in General Iza’s possession, he would have to leap through hoops to secure a transfer.

Mica closed the file.

“I think it’s time I met him.”