My head was spinning with the information but I managed to get out one question at least.
“And you…supervise all of them?”
“Wesupervise them.”
“Why—”
“You're a supervisor because of your status as a Fallen.”
“A Fallen?”
“Some call us The Betrayed. Fallen sounds better, though not by much. Managerial skill or not, falling through that hole grants you immediate access to that uniform and all the privileges and responsibilities that come with it.”
I blinked at him, mind racing to understand all that I'd learned in a matter of moments.
“Because of my gifts,” I guessed.
“Yes,” he replied with a nod. “Our abilities make us better equipped to handle the demands of every level rather than specializing in one. Every day, you'll receive an assignment, delivered to your residence, of which level you'll be supervising that day. Help the workers with whatever they need. Don’t come across as arrogant. They're the experts on their level, not you. You’ll spend your first day with me. But you should know…”
Tiberius kept talking but I wasn’t listening. On either side of him and behind were massive metal filing cabinets, labeled with ranges of letters. A-B, C-E, F-G, and on.
“What are those?” I asked, interrupting him.
He turned toglanceat the filing cabinets behind him that I was pointing to.
“Records,” he replied.
“Of?”
“The inhabitants of the Underground.”
I sucked in a breath, hope blossoming in my chest for the first time in days.
“The Culled,” I started slowly, remembering that swirling black void and how similar it had looked to the pit I'd fallen into. “Do they come here?”
Tiberius hesitated, his eyes narrowing, but answered me anyway.
“They do,” he replied, slowly.
“Can you tell me if—” I started, my mouth running dry as I clung to my own desperate hope. “Darius Reed. Can you tell me if he’s here?”
Tiberius didn't move for so long I thought he would tell me no. But then heswiveled, slowly, to face his filing cabinets and reached for the column of them marked P-R.
I held my breath as he flipped through countlessfolders. My heart beat so hard against my chest I was certain Tiberius the Triumphant could hear it with his enhanced hearing. Finally,after what felt like forever, he turned toward me again, one folder in particular held in his gigantic hands.
“Darius Reed,” he repeated. “Assigned to level four; agriculture.”
Chapter Three
Dante
"The madness came on suddenly, like a fever spiking overnight. One day, Eximius was my father. The next, he was a shell of the man he'd been. And no one ever knew why.”
— From The Official Record of House Viper, As Recorded by Atticus, Son of Eximius
My whole life had been spent in preparation. For the Trials, for religious ceremonies, for this moment right now. And yet, standing on the smooth marble floor beneath the dais of the Eleven, it became painfully obvious I'd fallen woefully short.
Kleiohad brought me here immediately after whatever examination he'd conducted on me was complete. Now, he stood at the back of this enormous hall, shadowed in the corner, frowning as he kept his narrowed gaze upon the dais.
