The cafe was small, hidden away on a side street close to their hotel. It had outdoor seating, cheap pastries, and nobody inside who cared about ranks or military designations.
Team Soup had claimed the corner table, all four chairs occupied. A plate of half-eaten pastries was in the middle, along with three mugs of tea and one mug of something Renna insisted was hot chocolate but looked suspiciously like soup.
"It IS hot chocolate," Renna said, stirring it aggressively. "They just make it weird here."
"That is broth," Lyra said.
"It's chocolate broth."
"That's not a thing."
"It is now. I'm pioneering it."
Emric ignored both of them. He had a pastry in one hand and a small notebook in the other, sketching formation diagrams with a stubby pencil. "If we're deploying to Opium, we need to establish squad rotations. Combat shifts of four hours maximum, with two-hour rest cycles between engagements. Anything beyond that risks cognitive fatigue."
