Location: Myriad Realms, Yellow Plains, Freedom Fighter's headquarters.
Henricks and Luna were sweating bullets, and for good reason. They—along with Ned—had funneled a huge chunk of their organization's already limited funds into the Empty Space Project, tightening the belt on every other department, especially the health department run by Plague Doctor Joy who fortunately for them was too busy attending to the wounded at the plague palace to attend this meeting.
Because of that one decision, the health team had been forced to come up with a desperate solution to treat those who desperately needed medical attention—using a unique plague to siphon vitality from healthy members and transfer it to those on their deathbeds or mortally wounded, just enough to pull them back from the brink.
Yeah, the lack of funds had driven them to literal vampirism.
Thankfully, the Freedom Fighters were all fanatics. They would willingly lay down their lives for the cause they all believed in, so sharing their health with their fellow comrades? That was nothing. If not for that level of devotion, the organization would have crumbled long before the Southern Princess stabbed them in the back. Because of that, as the ones responsible for dragging their people to this dispair-filled point, Ned, Luna, and Henricks couldn't shake their shame.
However, they did not do it out of greed. They knew the Empty Space Project wouldn't just be the answer to their current crisis—it would be their redemption, the key to making things right. After all, by stealing the only known source of Silver Milk overnight, they had turned every single ally of theirs in the Card World into an enemy. Their plans to hand the Silver Beach Dungeon over to the Southern Princess had only sealed their fate. The only way forward now was the Empty Space Project.
Their intentions were noble—they weren't just fighting to survive the present but to win tomorrow. But at what cost?
That was why Henricks and Luna were far from thrilled when the fake Baylor brought it up. Luna shot Henricks a sharp look, waiting for him to shut the fake Baylor up before anyone else pieced together what they had done. But he didn't. And that made her stomach drop as every second he kept talking, they were one step closer to being exposed.
"What the heck is he talking about?" the head of the operations department asked, deep frown etched on his face. Something wasn't adding up.
They knew exactly why they had shut down the Empty Space Project—because back then, Luna hadn't been able to show any promising results. If she had, they wouldn't have shut it down. Hell, they would've thrown every last dime they had at it. After all, being able to construct an artificial channel for inter-realm teleportation would have solved all their problems in one go.
Blair and Jax exchanged glances before turning to Luna, silently waiting for her to confirm or deny the fake Baylor's claims. But the moment they saw her shifting in her seat, eyes darting away to avoid their gaze, suspicion crept in.
Their stares grew sharper.
Finally, they turned to Henricks, who answered smoothly, as if fake Baylor's statement didn't shake him in the slightest. "Yes, you're right—we're way ahead of the top ten universities and the five regions in Empty Space research. But you're wrong about us lacking time and resources. We've already secured them all, so that's none of your concern." His tone was firm, dismissive. Then, without missing a beat, he threw the ball back in the imposter's court. "Now, answer me—who are you guys?"
Henricks had shifted the spotlight. A calculated move. He reminded his captains that their priority wasn't questioning him or Luna—it was dealing with the fake Baylor and his companion. They couldn't afford to let an outsider stir distrust among them.
Even so, the head of the operations department couldn't help but shoot another wary glance at Henricks and Luna before redirecting his focus to the imposter. Now wasn't the time for internal division—especially not in front of their enemies.
And yet, something still didn't sit right. Why was Henricks even entertaining this conversation? Why hadn't he shut the imposter down already? He wasn't alone in that thought. The other demigods were thinking the exact same thing.
What none of them realized, however, was that Henricks wasn't acting of his own accord. He was just a puppet—moving to Wyatt's strings. He was no longer the one in charge.
"Is it the Southern Princess? Did you reveal your progress on the Empty Space Project to her to regain her support?" the fake Baylor asked, his gaze sharp with suspicion.
He knew there was no way Henricks had secured the time and resources to continue the Empty Space Project unless he had found a sponsor. And considering that Henricks had left to find the Southern Princess and then returned with Wyatt, the answer seemed obvious—she had to be the one backing him.
Henricks' expression didn't change. "That doesn't concern you," he said coolly, dismissing the accusation with a wave of his hand. "I'll ask this one last time—who are you guys?"
But before he could steer the conversation away, Luna wasn't having it.
"Henricks, did you sell my research to that bitch?" she snapped, her voice rising with fury.
Henricks clenched his jaw. "Luna, now is not the ti—"
"Answer me!" she cut him off, shooting up from her seat, her hands slamming against the table.
Henricks exhaled sharply, his patience thinning. "No, I didn't. Now sit your ass down before I throw you into some unknown realm as punishment." His voice was low and edged with warning, his gaze locking onto hers.
The room fell into tense silence.
Luna stood frozen for a moment, fists clenched, nostrils flaring. Then, with a sharp exhale, she sank back into her seat, but her glare never wavered.
Henricks, for his part, didn't look at her again.
He didn't need to. His point had been made. However, fake Baylor's eyes sparkled, and he got the segway he needed from Luna's outburst.