Of course, the others were able to eventually get me to elaborate on my shocking statement as we ate our lunches. Eventually, the consensus was that I should call Raina after the meet and greet and try to get her to meet me somewhere neutral so I could bring up the whole Unicorn thing first and hopefully take some of the pressure off her. Karen and Moonlight weren’t too sure about that idea, but agreed that I could always back out if the talk with Raina didn’t look like it was going to go well.

The conversation helped to fill the time as we ate. We had to talk about something after all, and I don’t think any of us wanted to discuss the obvious elephant in the room. What elephant, you ask? Well, that would be the other people in the cafeteria. Sure, we were fortunate enough that nobody bothered us while we ate so far, but that didn’t mean that we went unnoticed. Far from it, in fact, but at least it was limited to uncomfortable stares and lingering glances for the moment.

While there were plenty of Altered around for the more mundane students to stare at, our table was getting more than our fair share of staring, especially from guys of both the regular human and Altered variety. That was largely due to Ainslee, unfortunately. As a Baobhan Sith, my best friend tended to be the most beautiful girl in any room that she graced with her presence, and that tended to get attention.

Kelly and Karen were getting a share of the glances as well. While not as unnaturally gorgeous as Ainslee, they were both very pretty in their own right, not to mention exotic. They also presented an interesting contrast: Karen, the dark and intimidating Dark Elf, and my sister, with her paleness and soft, fluffy white tails, hair, and fox ears.

Granted, none of the three were particularly happy with the attention that they were getting; it was making them very uncomfortable. Poor Karen was asexual and hadn’t been interested in that kind of thing even before that asshole Satyr went out of his way to threaten and assault her, and now men in general made her nervous, even if she wouldn’t admit it and tried to act tough. As for Kelly and Ainslee, those two only had eyes for one another, especially now that Ainslee was feeding on Karen twice a week and didn’t need to search for other ‘meals’.

Honestly, I was kind of glad that Poppy and I were too tiny to get much attention from people who were more than a table or two away from us and that Moonlight was wisely staying out of sight. We didn’t need more attention than we were already getting. I also wasn’t sure how any of the three who were getting unwanted attention would react right now if people stopped staring and actually approached our group.

None of us were looking forward to the meet and greet, and Ainslee in particular was worried about what she might do if guys approached her and things went too far. Kelly and Karen, on the other hand, were trying not to show it, but they were both very tired. While we all managed to pull through the most recent Incursion without freezing up or freaking out, both Kelly and Karen had been having nightmares the past couple of nights and hadn’t gotten a lot of sleep.

Not that it was very surprising, given that they both still held a lot of Incursion and Titan-related trauma. A few weeks of training sessions and one successful Incursion under our belts weren’t going to make that instantly vanish; it was going to take time and therapy. I think the only reason they were able to get any sleep the night we returned from the Incursion was that we were all dead tired from a long and exhausting day, and none of us had gotten much sleep the night before.

We managed to make it through lunch without anyone approaching us, and I let myself breathe a sigh of relief as we left the cafeteria and made our way back to the auditorium. I couldn’t quite relax yet, though, because I knew that we weren’t going to be able to avoid talking to people for much longer. After all, the whole point of this meet and greet was to talk to other students training to join the Vanguard, make friends, and form training teams.

When we arrived at our destination, I noticed that the auditorium’s layout had changed since orientation that morning. The low stage that held the speaker’s podium was still at the front of the room, as it had been for orientation, but three-quarters of the rows upon rows of seats that had been facing it had been removed. Now, the remainder of those seats were placed around over a dozen tables gathered near the stage, while the rear of the cavernous room held various refreshment tables and a large open area, likely intended for dancing or socializing.

Despite arriving ten minutes before one o’clock, there was already a sizable contingent of students present and dressed in Vanguard dress uniforms, as we were. Perhaps half of the recruits who were expected, if the number of full-sized chairs available at the tables was any indication. More recruits were filing inside behind us as well, but then, we were informed this morning that the meet and greet would begin promptly at one.

Yeah, this probably wouldn’t be the best time to show up late, at least, not if you wanted to look dependable for any possible teammates. Everyone here knew the risks of joining the Vanguard when they signed up, so they were also aware of the hard reality of being a member of the Corps. Fighting Titans can easily get you killed, and if they wanted to survive their first Incursion after training, it would be important to have a good team around them.

My team knew that as well, and that teamwork and trust were just as important, if not more so, than what abilities your teammates possess. Sergeant Vale had certainly worked hard enough to drill that into our heads during our training sessions leading up to the start of the school year. It was one of the reasons that I wasn’t looking to expand my team anymore.

The team I had was made up of my family and friends, even Karen was becoming a trusted friend and started to trust us as well. I would put my life in their hands, and we all knew our roles on the team by now. Adding more people to our team now could throw things into confusion again, so I didn’t want to risk it unless all of us felt that the person would be a good fit, and I wasn’t about to start actively looking for anyone.

To be honest, we were only here because it was a requirement for all first-year Vanguard recruits attending the University. It also made a certain amount of sense to get to know our fellow recruits, so that we could communicate and work together better when the occasion arose. However, I did not want to put up with anybody who did anything to make me or any of my teammates uncomfortable. Sure, military discipline was a thing, but we were all still raw recruits, and most of us hadn’t even gone through any sort of basic training yet, so I wasn’t expecting a lot on that front, at least not yet.

I led the others to a table that was close to the podium on the small stage, one of a few that I saw with a Fairy-sized table and chairs sitting upon it. There were four seats at the Fairy table and eight at the larger one, which meant that we probably weren’t going to get away with finding a nice, quiet spot to watch the proceedings from without having to socialize.

Sometimes, I hate being right. Things started so well since there wasn’t much time for socializing, while people found spots to sit, not much more than basic introductions between people at the same table. Then, there were speeches from Vanguard personnel, including Vice-Commander Carpenter, which took attention away from us once things got underway. Now that the speeches were over, though, we were encouraged to mingle and get to know our fellow cadets.

Except for my team, the other cadets at our table had gone to do that after realizing that they weren’t having much luck with us. I did try to give those who were polite a fair chance, but none of them would have been a good fit. Some of them had interesting abilities and were honestly looking for a good team to join, but I felt that we either already had those roles covered or that their personalities would clash with ours.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the end of people trying to join our team. Our table was getting a lot of attention, mostly from guys who couldn’t stop staring at Ainslee. They were mostly interested in joining our team as a transparent attempt to get their foot in the door with my best friend.

We were now dealing with the seventh such guy to approach us, and I think we were all starting to get a little bit frustrated. I was trying not to dismiss these people out of hand, but even I was beginning to lose patience after this parade of lust-addled idiots. This one couldn’t seem to take his eyes, or mind, off Ainslee well enough to even answer a simple question.

Fuck being polite, it wasn’t like he was extending us that same courtesy. I flew right into his face, blocking his view of Ainslee and making sure that I had his complete attention. “Cadet Howe, an officer just asked you a fucking question. Now, I’ll ask one more time: just what do you think you have to offer my team?”

Yeah, I used the rank card. I didn’t like doing it, but this guy needed to know there was a small, yet very important, roadblock standing between him and Ainslee. It took him a moment to process this and come up with a reply. “I’m… uh… big and strong? Oh, and my special ability lets me harden my skin. If you need a tank, I gotcha covered.”

My sister, who was holding Ainslee’s hand, snorted dismissively and cut in. “Sorry, pal, but that role is already taken. I tanked a Titan’s destruction beam with my face on Saturday. Do you think you could do the same?” Howe turned to stare at Kelly, his eyes widening, but she didn’t let it go there. “And since you’ve been staring so hard at my girlfriend, you should know that role has been filled as well. The only interest she might have in you, like ever, is as a snack.”

That managed to bring a smile to Ainslee’s face as she put an arm around Karen and said, “Nah, that role is already taken, too, Babe. See, I’ve got my tsundere juice box right here.”

“Hey! I do more for this team than just give you blood!” the Dark Elf immediately protested. I was amused to note, however, that she didn’t argue the tsundere part of that statement.

“Perhaps, Cadet Howe, you should try your luck at another table and stop bothering Cadet MacKenzie and her teammates,” a familiar voice interjected. “I would like to speak with them anyway and introduce them to someone.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Howe responded, snapping a salute and then rushing to obey the order. I turned to see Vice-Commander Carpenter standing beside our table with a very pretty young woman in a cadet’s uniform. At first glance, I thought she might be an Angel, like the Vice-Commander, simply because of the big feathery wings emerging from her back, but a more detailed glance quickly told me otherwise.

Firstly, her wings bore golden feathers rather than white. Secondly, her hair was aquamarine in color, which matched her eyes and the iridescent scales covering what I could see of her legs beneath the knee-length hem of her skirt. Those legs didn’t end in human feet either; they looked more like the talons of a bird of prey. She was a Siren.

“Girls, I’d like to introduce Cadet Naia Lazos. Naia, this is the team that I was telling you about earlier,” Vice Commander Carpenter offered before making all the proper introductions.

“I recognize you; you were in the tour for the music program this morning,” Poppy pointed out cheerfully. “There weren’t a lot of Altered there, and you kind of stood out.”

“Oh, yeah, you were like the only Sprite on the tour, so you weren’t exactly hard to miss either,” Naia replied a little nervously as she fidgeted. It seemed like she was shy around new people, but I had a feeling that being a student here and training to be in the Vanguard would help her to get over that.

The Vice-Commander smiled at the pair before giving us all a serious look and saying, “I won’t beat around the bush, Cadets. I’m introducing Naia here in the hope that she’ll be a good fit for your team. As a first response team, and likely one of the first to arrive at some Incursions, I think that her special ability will be of great use to you in the event of a communications breakdown or for information that can’t be relayed through open channels. We still can’t be sure whether the Titans can intercept our comm signals yet.”

That brought my mind back to how my comm device wasn’t working when Moonlight made us both ethereal. That could be a major weakness that negated our ability to scout ahead while safe from harm. “What’s your special ability, Naia?”

“We… umm… think it’s long-range telepathy with anyone I know well, or… maybe who I’ve been in physical contact with? I won’t be getting tested officially until tomorrow,” the Siren quickly replied. “I used it for the first time on Saturday, so I’m… uhh… still working out some of the kinks.”

“We do have five people in the Vanguard with similar abilities, so I’ve had one of them start working with her to try to discover her limits. Still, I think we can safely say that contacting someone in Rio from here counts as long-distance,” Vice-Commander Carpenter offered with a smile at the Siren.

“Wait… she contacted someone in Rio… on Saturday?” Kelly asked as she started piecing things together.

“Yeah, when my ability manifested, I was kind of having a bad day and freaking out about something, and really needed to talk to my big sister, Aster. She’s the only family I have, and she’s in the Vanguard. She kind of raised me since we lost our parents and our village, Kini, was destroyed in the Incursion six years ago,” the Siren nervously babbled.

Kini, that was a familiar name. If Naia was just starting university now, then she must have been only twelve or thirteen when the Incursion happened. “Yeah,” I offered to the fidgeting girl. “We have a friend who was in that Incursion, a Centaur named Annika; she was pregnant with her daughter, Lyra, at the time.”

“Oh! I know Annika and Lyra!” she enthused, seeming to lose some of her nervousness.

Vice-Commander Carpenter gave me a small smile and a subtle nod of approval and then offered, “Well, I’ll leave you all to get to know one another, then, and see if Naia will be a good fit for your team. Enjoy the party.”

With that, she left the shy Siren in our care. She seemed nice, but as we talked about our lives and interests, I couldn’t help but notice Karen’s frown growing steadily deeper until she was practically glaring in the girl’s direction. I fluttered over toward the Dark Elf’s pointed ear to ask, “Hey, what’s wrong, Karen? She doesn’t seem that bad.”

“Fucking asshole,” she grumbled under her breath before she seemed to realize what I’d asked and said, “No, not her, I guess she’s not terrible or anything.”

“Then what…” I began to ask as I followed her hostile gaze. On the other side of one of the refreshment tables, one of the catering staff was watching our table raptly. “Great, another Ainslee admirer,” I thought bitterly before realizing that his intent gaze wasn’t locked on my best friend as I had feared. No, his eyes were on my sister, and the expression on his face was just blank. Not like he was lost in thought or something, this was almost absent and just plain creepy.

“You see him, Lily?” The concern in Karen’s voice surprised me.

“Yeah, fuck staying around here,” I whispered back to her before announcing to the others, “Let’s go get to know Naia somewhere more private.”

That got me eager nods and a few relieved sighs. Not only was I done with dealing with cadets with no discipline and obvious designs on my best friend, but I was pretty sure that the others were as well, and that large gatherings of people like this one made Naia nervous. I wanted to get us away from here, but I needed to know if that guy was going to be a problem. So, I had Ainslee lead the others out of the auditorium and into the afternoon sunshine while I rode on her shoulder and sent to Moonlight, -Watch our backs, please, and let me know if that guy follows us or does anything suspicious.-