Relic Hunters: The Apex Predators

The assembly hall was completely silent. The students sat in shock, reflecting on Dante's speech.

Director Diez's voice resonated throughout the room. "Let's give the captain another round of applause."

Still stunned, the room slowly filled with the sound of clapping. Thalia looked over at Theo and mouthed, "What was that?" He shrugged, shaking his head to indicate he was just as confused as she was.

"Now, the moment everyone has been waiting for has arrived. It is time for everyone to read their assignment letters," Director Diez announced enthusiastically.

Instantly, everyone snapped out of their confusion and perked up at the thought of receiving their assignments. Nervous and excited expressions were exchanged throughout the assembly hall. Theo grabbed his arm, attempting to prevent it from shaking with anxiety. Thalia couldn't deny it—she was feeling anxious too, just like Theo. However, she was too stubborn to show or admit it, even to herself.

Tyler yawned, seemingly unaffected. His arrogant demeanor was starting to irritate Thalia. *We get it. You already know exactly where you're going after graduation,* she thought. She glanced over at Keelan, who was lounging with his hands behind his head, relaxed. He must have figured that, no matter what his assignment was, he would just skip out on his obligations and head home. On the other hand, Thalia would be crushed if she were not selected for the Retrieval Corps.

"Okay, loves, open your hands and close your eyes," the director instructed, demonstrating her request.

Everyone quickly closed their eyes and held out their hands. Director Diez's eyes began to glow, and an aura formed a thin white layer around her body. She snapped her fingers, creating a small, bright flash. Suddenly, all of the students' hands were filled with identical white envelopes.

"Okay, now open them, my lovelies," the Director said as her soft white aura faded.

Thalia opened her eyes and saw a white envelope with her name handwritten in cursive using green pen ink. She recognized the handwriting—it was identical to the notes and instructions her Tía left on the fridge at home. She looked over at Theo, who was mystified and staring down at his letter. He was no longer shaking.

Instead, he was utterly still, almost afraid to move. Theo often suffered from severe anxiety and panic attacks that caused his body to tense up and freeze. Thalia turned and pointed her finger toward Theo, concentrating her power at the tip. She felt a small surge rise in her chest and quickly released a jolt of electricity through her fingertip, sending a small electric current toward Theo's arm.

"Ow! Shit, that hurt," Theo yelped. His arm was still tingling from the pain, and he quickly looked over at his sister, who was now looking away and whistling. As he rubbed his sore arm, he noticed a small burn mark on his black dress shirt.

Thalia gave Theo an awkward smile and a thumbs-up gesture, mouthing the words "You're welcome," before returning her attention to her letter. Her hands were sweaty with excitement; she must have been nervous because if it were any other time, she would have ripped the letter open already. She turned the envelope around, broke the seal, and pulled the green slip of paper from inside.

At this point, her heart was racing. She flipped the paper and read her assignment, written in her Tía's excellent cursive. The letter read, "I am pleased to inform you that you have been selected to join the Retrieval Corps Elite Assault Squad." Excitement and relief welled up in her chest as she continued reading. "Due to your excellent aptitude and performance in combat simulations, we believe you are uniquely qualified to join the Retrieval Unit. Please report to your new commanding officer tomorrow morning at 0800 hours."

Thalia was so happy she could cry. She had spent the last four years training with this single goal in mind, and now she was finally on the verge of realizing her dream of becoming a hero. Everyone around her seemed to either be celebrating or crying. At the peak of her happiness, she almost forgot about Theo.

Looking back, she saw her brother with his hands on the top of his head, rubbing back and forth. Thalia's heart dropped; her brother usually rubbed his head to self-soothe after receiving bad news. She jumped out of her seat and bent down beside him, picking up the letter that Theo must have dropped after reading it.

"It's going to be okay, little bro. Cheer up! It can't be that bad. You placed second in our class. Tia would be a fool not to assign you to the Expedition Corps," Thalia said reassuringly.

"Read it," Theo whispered in a shaky tone.

Thalia read the assignment: "I am pleased to inform you that you have been selected to join the Retrieval Corps Elite Assault Squad." She almost dropped the letter, convinced she must have misread it.

However, there was no doubt that Theo had been assigned to an assault squad.

"This can't be right. This has to be some mistake," Thalia mumbled under her breath. "What was Tia thinking? She had to know how much you wanted to be placed in the Expedition Corps so you could go to that fancy engineering school in District Eleven." Thalia stood up and turned to look at their Tia.

The Director was still smiling out at the crowd of students. Finally, Thalia's eyes met hers, and the Director gave her a reassuring smile and a nod. That small gesture confirmed any doubts—there was no mistake, and the decision had been made. Yet, Thalia couldn't grasp the reasoning behind Tia's choice.

She never did anything without a solid reason, and Thalia was certain she would be able to ask her to explain later, but now was not the time. Tyler opened his letter and smiled, which took Thalia by surprise. He very rarely showed any emotion; disappointment or contempt were typically his expressions, but he never smiled. He must have been placed exactly where he wanted to be, as he put the letter in his front suit vest pocket and turned to leave.

Everyone else seemed to be packing up to exit when Keelan hopped onto the stage and marched over to the Director. "You have got to be kidding me! This has to be some kind of mistake!" Keelan yelled.

The Director remained smiling and utterly unfazed by his outburst. "Whatever do you mean? I don't believe I have ever made a mistake placing one of my cubs in the perfect home."

Keelan's face turned bright red, and he looked as if he might start foaming at the mouth with anger. Thalia wondered what his assignment could possibly be. She spotted a green slip of paper crumpled into a ball under the seat next to where Keelan was sitting.

The assignment read: "I am pleased to inform you that you have been selected for the sanitation and campus restoration project. We believe your overall performance reflects a personality that takes great pride in your work. We would love to see that same amount of energy directed toward the restoration of buildings within the institute. I know we can count on you to help make our home as clean as possible."

Thalia burst out laughing and quickly covered her mouth. The thought of Keelan spending the next few years participating in the revitalization effort in the city brought her to tears. She could picture it clearly: Keelan dressed in a bright green jumpsuit, getting dirty as he sorted through trash and debris.

Keelan overheard Thalia's outburst of laughter and turned around, hopping off the stage. He yelled, "My father will be having words with you, and we'll see whether or not this is still funny!"

Keelan stormed out of the assembly hall angrier than Thalia had ever seen him. She couldn't deny that it made her quite happy to see the guy who tormented her younger brother so thoroughly humiliated. She suspected that this was probably her Tia's intention when she selected his assignment.

A tall gentleman in a fitted suit walked up behind the director. "Our students are becoming more and more disrespectful with every passing year," the vice director said, handing her the clipboard.

"Yes, Vincent, it is almost to be expected for the direct son of a Knight of the Round to be so arrogant," the director replied, sounding amused by the notion.

Almost everyone in the assembly hall had left to celebrate or sulk after receiving their new assignments. Only Thalia stood patiently, waiting for her Tia to finish speaking with the vice director. Disappointed by his assignment, Theo sat quietly, staring at the floor. At least he had stopped rubbing his hands through his hair, which Thalia considered a good sign.