Lucas' POV
The days passed by in a blur. It felt like time had picked up speed as the countdown for “The Midnight Scavenger” loomed closer. Tomorrow was the big day. The moment everything came together, the moment everyone had been waiting for.
I stood in the event room, leaning against the back wall with my arms crossed, watching as the Red and Blue Elites bustled around. Each had their own roles to play in preparing for tomorrow. Setting up the games, preparing the battlefields, checking the talent stages. It was all falling into place, like pieces of a puzzle that everyone else seemed excited about except for me. 
I let my eyes scan the room, taking in the sight of everyone hard at work. It looked perfect—almost too perfect. My eyes narrowed, though, when I noticed something was off.
Where was Nathalie?
She was supposed to be here, doing her job, organizing her part of the event. But she wasn’t. I felt a slight twinge of irritation settle in my chest. Was she too caught up with Abigail to care about her duties now? Nathalie had always been strict when it came to these Elite events, but something had shifted, and it was bothering me more than I wanted to admit. 
I pushed off the wall, pacing back and forth as the tension in the air grew. The battlefield was already set up, the stages gleaming under the dim lights. Tomorrow, the academy would be buzzing with excitement, and everyone would be fighting tooth and nail to prove themselves. 
This whole event… it wasn’t just fun and games. It was a battleground—both physically and mentally. Every moment counted, every mistake could cost you your status. That’s what it meant to be part of the Elite.
I felt a sudden presence behind me and turned quickly. One of the Black Elites was making her way toward me—Amara Heviner, the last Black Elite to be inducted last year. She’d earned her position flawlessly, passing every challenge with precision. A true Elite, through and through.
She approached with a quiet grace, her sharp eyes catching mine. I straightened up, meeting her with a steady gaze as she bowed her head slightly before standing beside me. There was always a strange tension when Amara was around, like she was always calculating something in her mind. It made people wary, and I wasn’t immune to it.
“It’s all done,” Amara said, handing me the clipboard, her voice as cold and efficient as ever.
I didn’t even glance at the clipboard. I was barely paying attention to the event anymore. My focus was elsewhere, on something—or someone—that had been nagging at the back of my mind for days. I cleared my throat, keeping my voice low.
“Did you get the folder I requested?” I asked, making sure no one else could hear us. 
Amara didn’t miss a beat. She nodded, her dark eyes unwavering. “Every file you asked for is in your office. I made sure it was handled discreetly.”
I nodded, my mind racing. The folder wasn’t about the event—it was about something far more important. Something Nathalie had been keeping her eye on too, but I wasn’t sure she knew the full extent of it yet. The pieces were slowly coming together, and tomorrow’s event… it wasn’t just about games for me. There were bigger things at play.
“Thanks,” I said, shifting my weight slightly. “Get some rest, Amara. Tomorrow will be… eventful.” 
She gave a small nod, acknowledging the unspoken meaning in my words. As she turned to leave, her movements were so smooth it was almost unsettling. She was always so composed, so in control. 
But there were cracks in the system, cracks that only a few of us could see. And tomorrow, I had a feeling those cracks might start to widen.
As Amara disappeared into the shadows of the hallway, I let out a slow breath. The tension building inside me was almost unbearable. Everything felt like it was teetering on the edge of something big, and I wasn’t sure if I was ready for it.
I shot one last glance around the event room, taking in the sight of the perfectly arranged battlefield. Tomorrow was going to be a day no one in this academy would forget. But for me, it wasn’t the games that mattered. It was what came after.
And I had a feeling Nathalie wasn’t going to be too happy when she found out just how deep I was digging.
As soon as I stepped into my office, the weight of everything hit me hard. The faint hum of the lights barely registered as I closed the door behind me, locking it with a soft click. Amara had done her part. Now it was my turn.
I moved to my desk, eyeing the thick stack of files she’d left for me. The folder was thicker than I expected, filled with years of history, records, and secrets buried beneath this academy. I hesitated for a moment, the silence pressing down on me. The Elite were all caught up with tomorrow’s event, running around making sure everything was perfect. This was the perfect time. No one would notice I wasn’t out there. 
I pulled up a chair, the cold leather pressing into my back as I sat down and flipped open the first page. My fingers shook slightly as I did, a mix of anticipation and dread filling me.
Why am I really here? Why does it feel like the past is catching up to me?
As I flipped through, pages and pictures started falling into place. Old business agreements, financial deals, and more unsettling things—like lists of weapons, invoices with signatures that made my skin crawl. There was something dark running underneath this academy, something much bigger than just Elite ranks and competitions. 
Then, something caught my eye—a picture. I paused, my breath catching in my throat as I picked it up.
It was an old black-and-white photo. Two teenagers stood at the center. One of them was unmistakable, Mr. Aurorium, Emery’s father, younger and almost unrecognizable from the strict, imposing man he’d grown into. But it wasn’t him who drew my attention.
It was the girl beside him.
She sat in a wheelchair, smiling up at him like he was her entire world. Her eyes were filled with warmth, with trust. And yet… there was something haunting in the way she seemed so delicate, so fragile.
Who was she? What was her story?
But before I could think more about it, another photo slipped from the folder. I froze, my heart nearly stopping.
There, standing next to Mr. Aurorium and the girl, were my parents. My mom, my dad. Younger, carefree, and laughing. And beside them… Abigail’s father.
“What the hell…” I whispered, the words barely escaping my lips.
I dropped the files on the table, the papers scattering across my desk. I stared at the picture, my hands trembling now. My parents and Abigail’s father. Together. With Mr. Aurorium.
Why had I never heard about this? Why had no one ever mentioned their connection before?
My mind raced, questions swirling and crashing into each other. It didn’t make sense. Nothing about this made sense. My parents never spoke of Mr. Aurorium. They never spoke about the academy in the way it was now. And yet… here they were, part of something that seemed so much bigger than just us.
And why the girl in the wheelchair? What role did she play?
As I shuffled through the rest of the papers, I found more old documents. Business deals that seemed to span back decades. My dad’s signature appeared on more contracts than I could count, alongside Mr. Aurorium’s. There were blueprints, plans for… something. I couldn’t even make sense of half of it.
But it wasn’t just business.
There were mentions of weapons, alliances, and whispers of deals with groups I didn’t recognize. A darkness creeping under the surface. The academy had always felt intense, but now it felt like something much more sinister was at play.
I needed answers.
Why were my parents involved in all of this? Why was Abigail’s father in the mix? And what the hell did all this mean for us now? Was I—were we—just pieces in some long game that had been set in motion years before?
My chest tightened, a sinking feeling growing in the pit of my stomach. 
I stood up abruptly, the chair scraping against the floor as I backed away from the desk, the scattered papers, the haunting photos. I felt trapped, like the room itself was closing in on me, suffocating me with the weight of these revelations.
There had to be more to this. More than just old deals and secret alliances. The girl in the wheelchair. The history between my family, Abigail’s, and the Auroriums. It was all connected somehow, and the pieces were just starting to fall into place.
But I didn’t know if I was ready for the truth.
I ran a hand through my hair, my mind racing as I tried to piece together what this all meant. Tomorrow, everything would seem normal. The Midnight Scavenger would be just another event, just another competition.
But I knew better. 
There was something deeper happening beneath the surface, something no one wanted to talk about. And I wasn’t sure if I could keep playing along, pretending that this academy was just another place.
With a heavy breath, I glanced back at the files spread across the table, the pictures staring back at me like ghosts from the past.
I needed to find out the truth. Whatever it took.
Even if it meant unraveling everything I thought I knew about myself, my family, and this academy.