STORMWEAVER II: Chapter 48 Sneak Peek

There is like a 25% chance this chapter is coming Saturday instead of tomorrow, but I think I should be able to get it wrapped tonight if I can find the time! Regardless, look forward to it no later than this weekend!

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They deserve to know.

At first Rei wasn’t sure where the small voice came from, much less the certainty it rang with. It was weighty, despite its quiet presence, and as Rei considered it, considered Aria’s request—because even without her asking, when else could it have been?—he found himself shooting down any real argument to the contrary was quickly shot down. Shido’s specs should remain a secret? Maybe they were technically still a secret, but at this point even an SCT newbie would have some sense of what was going on with his Device. He wanted that information to be special, to stay between him, Aria, Viv, and Catcher? That was stupid, not the least because plenty of ISCM higher-ups already knew.

He didn’t trust Grant and Cashe?

That just wasn’t true.

He realized it, then. Absolutely, for the first time. Considering it, down in the subbasement Rei had only paused at the field line, had only hesitated when the recollection of the disastrous fight with Aria had rooted him to the spot for a moment. He hadn’t even thought about Grant and Cashe’s presence nearby when he’d called, much less worried that they were there watching. On the contrary, Rei suspected he’d been as excited to explore what changes the Device had gone through with his team as he’d been excited to discover them for himself.

His whole team.

They deserved to know.

Because—and Rei let out an aggravated grumble, considering there was a time not so long ago he would never have thought he could say such a thing about Logan Grant—he trusted them. Plain and simple.

And they’d they’d earned that trust. They really had. Not just by fighting back to back with him and Aria and Viv and Catcher. They’d earned it by not hounding him, too. By respecting his choice not to tell them, even though it had long since been made clear that wasn’t an easy thing to do.

Yeah… It did seem like the right time, didn’t it?

Rei sighed, not sure if he felt more relief or anxiety as he typed his message out with his left hand, his right still held in Aria’s.

I’ll tell them tonight.

He couldn’t bring himself to look at her, but he could still tell when she’d read his answer, because her smile was finally genuine even in the corner of his vision. He’d thought that would be the end of the conversation—at least for the time being—but Aria promptly surprised him with another message.

Good. I think Logan has something to share too.

Rei looked around at her sharply again, but this time Aria just shook her head, offering him half a shrug. “Not the time, and I don’t know much even if it was”, she seemed to be telling him.

Like that was enough for him.

‘Logan’ has something to share? he asked, emphasizing the name pointedly. And don’t think I missed you calling Cashe ‘Chancery’ too.

We had a good chat before the match, Aria replied simply. Let’s talk tonight.

And then she stopped answering even when Rei pressed her for more information, only shaking her head again and squeezing his hand even as she ignored his messages.

Only when Rei was sure he wasn’t going to get anything else out of her did he sit back again with a huff, forcing himself not to notice that Viv was still glancing at him nervously from his left, which didn’t help at all.

The hell had he been left out of?

Cliffhangers are mean, Aria, was the last thing he sent before letting his aching body settle again just as the Arena announcer called for the upper-bracket Wargames finalists to prepare for their match.