A young, impressionable woman who could make others tell the truth.

Miracca stared into her brown eyes. They were similar to her own, just a bit darker, and yet they revealed so much more. Eagerness, reservation, curiosity, ambition.

A young, impressionable woman.

Who could make others tell the truth.

Dyasen liked her, and Miracca generally trusted his opinion. As much as he hated to admit it, he did know something of observing people, even if he couldn’t translate that into interacting with them. He said he’d discovered a hard worker who learned quickly and was willing to work with others. And she had no particular political opinions, which was always best. It was better if they all worked together because they believed in each other, not because of some duty to the Empire. Of course, duty to the Empire was nice too, but Miracca knew it wasn’t something she could build a team from.

No, with the way she’d constructed it, the only things that could tear the team apart were secrets and lies. Everyone had them, most for good reasons, but that didn’t make their impact any less destructive.

Nora Sefares could be exactly the glue the team needed. But she could also be the force to tear it apart.

I can’t tell her not to use her ERA on her teammates. She can come to that decision herself, but demanding it makes it sound like we’re hiding something.

It might even make it sound like I’m hiding something.

Which Miracca was. She wouldn’t be, if there was any way around it, but there were certain things that came with her role as Sheer. Responsibilities that even her closest allies couldn’t shoulder. Everyone was hiding something, and just like anyone worth knowing, the things Miracca hid were a necessary sacrifice for the good of others.

If Nora started asking questions, a lot of things might go down in flames.

But if she started asking questions to the right people, Miracca could build something from the ashes.

“I’d be happy to consider it,” Miracca said finally, voice echoing through the silent room.

The room shuffled with a variety of reactions. Hexis grinned. Nora’s eyes lit up and she clasped her hands nervously. Dyasen’s shoulders slumped in relief. Jade pursed her lips and let out a breath. Kynar jumped with a squeal, causing her hair to fly up and get caught in her arrows. Voryis nodded and went back to scrutinizing the newcomer.

Miracca took a long, slow breath, meeting Nora’s eyes. “You’ll have to go on a trial run, cleaning up basic crime in the city, to see if you can work with the team. Voryis is busy for the next few weeks, but everyone else should be able to accompany you. Will you be ready tomorrow?”

Nora’s eyes widened for a second, but she swallowed and nodded. “Yes, Sheer Zenaryx.”

“Please, call me Miracca,” she told her with a wave.

“Yes, Sh- Miracca,” Nora responded quickly. She fidgeted for a second, then asked, “May I ask why?” Her voice was a bit timid, but not quiet—she was clearly trying to seem confident, which Miracca admired.

“I need to know that I can trust you, and I need to know that you trust me. Referring to me by a title may lead to alienation,” Miracca explained. “The only time you should use my title is when you are in the presence of people who don’t know what your job is.”

“I understand,” Nora said, nodding like she was trying to prove how quickly she could pick things up.

“Good.” Miracca’s eyes scanned over the rest of the group. “Is everyone else available tomorrow?”

They gave her various forms of “Yes”.

“Excellent.” She smiled. “Nora, I’m excited to see what you’re capable of.”

“Thank you…Miracca,” Nora answered, giving her a nervous grin.

Hexis made their way over to the girl. “Come on, I told you you could watch one of my sparring matches. Still interested?”

Nora glanced at them. “Sure,” she agreed hesitantly.

Hexis’ gloved fingers closed around her arm, tugging her eagerly toward the door. She seemed a bit uncomfortable with the physical contact, but followed them out without complaint.

Miracca clenched her teeth, but tried to keep her eyes neutral as the rest of the group left the room as well. She could keep her opinions on Hexis showing off to herself.

The door closed with a loud thump.

Miracca closed her eyes, exhaling and leaning back in the chair.

She just had to make sure she was doing this for the right reasons.

If this was a decision out of fear, the whole thing would come crashing down before Miracca had time to explain anything to anyone. And time to explain was one asset she couldn’t give up.

She glanced around and got to her feet, crossing the vast and empty hall to the same door her waiting decision had just gone through. The walk to her chambers was peppered with the occasional servant offering assistance, which she declined. She didn’t have space in her mind to think about being the Sheer right now, and she wouldn’t until she got a few things sorted.

In the privacy of her bath chamber, Miracca stationed herself in front of a mirror, rolling her shoulders back. Meeting her own eyes, she stated, “Hiring Nora Sefares would give my team a very valuable asset that could potentially make a lot of the others’ difficult work easier. Is that true?”

She nodded once.

“Hiring Nora Sefares would give me authority over her on a more personal level, making it less likely for her to ask me questions I don’t want to answer. Is that true?”

She nodded again.

“For which reason do I want to hire her?”

She stared at herself for a long moment, taking in the way her mouth was pulled into a line, the way her hands grasped the edge of the sink basin, turning the light golden skin on her knuckles white.

“It’s both,” she admitted finally, shoulders slumping. Swallowing, she elaborated, “I do believe she could be very valuable, but I’m also afraid of her.”

It felt good to say that aloud, as much as she hated to admit it. Miracca herself was the only person she didn’t have to lie to, and this was a needed sanctuary. She would never understand how Dyasen managed, with how many lies he fed himself on a regular basis. Not that I’m not grateful for what he does.

If it was both, was it worth it? Would the benefit Nora gave to the team outweigh the potential of Miracca spiraling into paranoia, something she couldn’t afford to do?

I can’t think about myself. What’s best for the team is that I hire her.

“What’s best for the team is that I hire her,” Miracca repeated to the mirror, “so that’s what I’m going to do.”

Assuming Nora passed her trial run tomorrow.