Creed didn't think he could be more impressed.
He was wrong.
After Meredith was officially accepted into the squad, complete with Tierra giving her a gentle pat on the head like a saintly big sister and Lilith smirking like a smug queen who'd found a new favorite pet, the air settled into a calm buzz.
The room still shimmered faintly with magical particles from the girls' return, and every breath Creed took smelled like ozone and silver dew, as if the universe had personally sprayed the training hall with a "Welcome Back, Badasses" fragrance.
But just as he was soaking it all in, smiling to himself and thinking how cool everything had turned out, Lilith turned to him with a flick of her knee-length hair and dropped a bomb.
"Oh right," she said casually, voice like silk soaked in thunder. "We're at the peak of Silver now."
Creed blinked.
"Wait. Peak of, like, stage five Silver?"
