Chapter 11
CHAPTER
I was one of those people who easily worked up a fever. It mattered not if I was careful or reckless, I was simply more susceptible to it than others.
“Are you okay?” Mey whispered, looking at me worried as we had assembled in the yard, the upper ranks were holding a briefing.
I was out of it, barely able to make out a single word they were saying. I saw the woman from my first day here holding up a piece of paper, shouting out names. What for? I had no idea. From what I had heard, she was called Izera, one of the commanding females.
“I’m fine,” I lied, like always when I had a fever. There was no need for others to worry; yes I got them often, but I also recovered faster, my body was used to it.
Mey nodded slowly, but her eyes lingered a while longer. Nate sent me a quick look, as if evaluating my state. I took a deep breath, trying to focus on whatever they were talking about up on the stage.
Lionel’s arm brushed against my shoulder, offering the support I needed to straighten myself.
“I’ll be taking the S squad and H squad towards the southern border,” Izera shouted, before slowly lowering the paper, gazing at all of us.
“What squad are we?” I asked, almost panting the words, the back of my hand wiping off some sweat from my forehead.
“Weren’t you listening?” Nate asked, a faint smile on his lips. “We’re K squad.”
Oh, that was why she had read from the paper, announcing our new squad titles. Right.
“It’s just us?” I asked, glancing over at them.
“The original team and two sniper friends apparently,” Nate gave Lionel a questioning look. “I guess it’s no longer a harem here.” A wide grin spread on his lips.
“It never was,” Mey scoffed, annoyed.
“Eve is no friend of ours,” Ashley’s cold voice bit through the air.
I tensed and slowly my eyes drifted towards Lionel. “Please tell me I misheard that one.”
“Nope.” He pressed his lips into a straight line.
“We don’t even need two snipers,” Ashley argued. “I’ve got bombs.”
I chuckled at her reasoning, explosives were always the answer in her world.
Another male stepped forward, I recognized his face too, but never caught a name. “I’ll take the N squad.”
Some of the recruits began clapping their hands and cheering. Were they celebrating being picked?
My eyes found their way to Malakai, who was next up. His gaze was empty, as if not seeing any of us, his arms crossed above his chest, like he was on the verge of having enough of all of this.
Izera sent a quick glare at us, silencing the air quickly, for the Lieutenant to speak without further interruption.
Only then, his eyes swept over the recruits, studying us, as a heavy breath left his lips that echoed over the yard. My stare collided with his and I saw the faintest tug at the corner of his mouth.
“I’ll take the Kiddos squad to the west.”
Izera and the other man looked confused at Malakai, while the other squads started murmuring.
“Ha ha, Kiddos squad!?” a man with dark blonde hair burst into laughter amongst us, and soon more of them joined, as they turned and looked at us.
The K squad.
“Will you cry for us?” the blonde haired man sneered at us, mimicking a baby’s cry.
“He really hates us,” Ashley whispered, baffled behind me, fighting for her cool.
“Great,” Nate sighed, crossing his arms in an intimidating stance towards the others.
“Don’t worry,” Malakai’s voice cut through like a sword, killing the buzz immediately. “I’ve given you all names. Hassle squad, Shit Squad and Nonsense Squad.”
I pressed my lips together, trying to hide a smile as I saw the man who had made fun of us had paled and became quiet.
“Does this mean he favors us?” Mey asked, scratching her neck. “Technically kids can still be taught, I mean.”
“No,” Lionel’s voice remained calm, hushed and cold. “He’s just above all of us.”
This mission was intended to be longer than the previous, our packed bags were heavier, the mood stiffer. Mages had been seen around our lands towards the west and we were to take them out.
“Nothing like the smell of trees and the promise of explosions, eh? West is always a good direction,” Ashley smiled, swinging a satchel with far too much enthusiasm.
“Only because you’ve hidden half your stash in that satchel,” I said, flatly.
A smile played at her lips. “Correction, most of my stash. You never know when a tree might need to be… removed.”
Lionel shook his head, adjusting his gun. “You mean when everything might need to be removed. I’ll stay two paces away, just in case.”
“Make it ten. Safer for everyone,” Malakai added, dryly.
“And here I thought the Lieutenant’s words only extended to actual strategy, not bad jokes,” I murmured, glaring at his back.
A low huff sounded, but he never turned. “When my squad carries a walking powder keg, it becomes strategy.”
“See? He does think about me,” Ashley gasped mockingly.
Nate elbowed Mey in her side. “Don’t worry, sis. If the bombs don’t kill us, the bickering will.”
“Better bickering than silence. Silence means something found us,” Mey muttered in response. “Unless they find us because you’re all too loud.”
A slight pause around us, a moment, as if everyone was listening for any sound of movement besides our own.
“Not that silence would be so bad… I wouldn’t mind listening to you for a while, Lio,” Eve purred lightly, keeping her pace even with Lionel.
He scratched his neck, with a diplomatic smile on his lips as he kept his gaze forward. “Uh… the birds have me beat. They’re singing plenty.”
“Oh for the love of… She’s already starting,” I muttered in Ashley’s direction, as we both glared at our sworn enemy.
“Don’t worry, I’ve got enough explosives to make her fly far away if she gets too annoying,” Ashley snickered, pretending to keep her voice lowered.
“I heard that,” Eve snapped, sending us both a sharp glance.
“Good. Saves us repeating it,” I smiled, sweet, yet filled with venom.
“Ladies, ladies. If you’re going to fight, please make sure I’m not in the blast radius,” Nate urged, raising his hands like a referee.
Mey coughed into her sleeve.
“You okay?” Lionel asked, looking over at her, but she merely waved him off.
“Eyes forward. West means mage territory. If you’re busy tearing each other apart, you’ll miss the real threat,” Malakai cut through, his voice sharp.
We all turned our heads forward without hesitation, but my lack of manners got the better of me.
“Don’t worry. If a mage shows up, I’ll be sure to throw them at you first, Lieutenant,” I muttered.
“Perfect. That way, I’ll finally have some fun,” Malakai answered with cold amusement.
The banter lapsed into quiet again. The trail bent, forcing us into single file beneath a low arch of branches. Somewhere deeper in the woods, a woodpecker tapped a steady rhythm.
The forest seemed endless, trees whispering with the wind. It would be days before we reached our first waypoint, and already the weight of the mission pressed on us.
After walking for hours, we reached a small tower on a cliff. It was built in wood, perhaps ten feet tall, built for an overlook of the environment nearby.
Malakai stopped and his head turned, locking eyes with Lionel as he signaled him to go up and take a look while the rest of us waited.
Lionel nodded, gave me a quick glance, reassuring me that he’d be back in a moment and then he strolled off towards the wooden watchtower.
Malakai’s eyes caught it, his eyes locking on me, his expression telling me everything.
Pathetic.
Mey let her bag hit the ground, as she sighed with relief.
“We’re not taking a break,” Malakai snapped at her.
Mey stiffened, halfway to protesting. “Of course, I just—”
He turned his head sharply, dismissing her excuse without another word.
I shifted my pack down and barked, “She simply rested her back when the opportunity presented itself.”
That got his attention.
His gaze found me, sharp and cutting. “Careful, kitten,” he drawled, the hated nickname curling off his tongue like smoke. “You’ve got a bad habit of biting.”
“Better than rolling over,” I shot back before I could stop myself.
A slow, dangerous smile tugged at his mouth. He closed the distance by a few steps, lowering his voice so the squad had to strain to hear. “You want to learn something, kitten? I’ll give you a lesson.”
Malakai yanked Mey’s backpack off the ground with a quick, practiced motion—easily, as if it had been empty—and tossed it onto the dirt before my boots. The thud echoed in the still forest.
“Pick it up.”
Before I could move, Eve’s voice chimed in, light and oh-so-sweet.
“Don’t worry, Lieutenant, some of us actually can keep pace. Not everyone’s cut out for this.”
I shot her a glare hot enough to burn bark off the trees.
Ashley barked a laugh. “Oh, that’s rich. Says the recruit who hides behind long-distance scopes while the rest of us do the real work.”
Eve’s smile turned sharp. “At least I actually hit what I aim at, unlike you with your little toys.”
Ashley slung her satchel of bombs forward with a grin that was all teeth. “Call them toys again, and I’ll show you how fast they stop being fun.”
Nate slid in quickly, hands raised in mock surrender. “Alright, alright, no need to redecorate the forest with each other. Some of us like our limbs exactly where they are.”
“I’m sorry, I’ll take it,” Mey apologized, taking a step forward.
“Move, and I’ll be the one re-arranging limbs,” Malakai growled, giving Mey a warning look, before returning his attention to me.
I clenched my teeth, bent, and slung the bag’s strap over my shoulders, keeping it in the front, since my own took up the back. My voice came out low and tight. “Satisfied?”
Malakai didn’t even blink. “Not yet. Run to the bend and back.”
“What?”
“You heard me.” His voice was cool, unyielding. “Run. Show us you’re more than claws and noise.”
“He’s lucky you haven’t clawed his eyes out yet,” Ashley muttered, loud enough for everyone to hear, but she faltered once the Lieutenant’s warning eyes found her.
Eve smirked, folding her arms. “Or maybe she’s just all bark. I suppose we’ll see.”
Heat boiled in my chest. I spat a curse, pushed off the ground, and broke into a run down the path. The straps dug into my shoulders, it was heavier than I imagined, but anger drove me forward.
Behind me, I heard their voices follow.
“Run fast, kitten! Show him whose claws are sharpest!” Ashley cheered.
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Eve scoffed, bitterly.
“Don’t listen to them. Just come back in one piece, alright?” Nate shouted, trying to smooth things over.
“She’ll come back, or I’ll punish her myself,” Malakai replied, low and iron-hard, cutting through them all.
The bend arrived quicker than I thought, anger burning hotter than the weight of the bags. My lungs clawed for air, but I refused to slow down. Each stride was a promise, he will not win this.
When I rounded the corner and came back into sight of the squad, I forced myself taller, steadier, not a hint of weakness in my step. My boots struck the dirt sharp and deliberate, as if every stomp was aimed at Malakai’s smug face.
“That’s my girl!” Ashley whistled low, clapping twice.
Eve crossed her arms, muttering something.
Nate offered me a crooked grin. “See? Easy—like morning drills… except angrier.”
I planted myself in front of Malakai, shoulders squared, breathing hard but refusing to show it as anything more than determination. “Well?”
His red eyes swept over me, taking in my steady stance and the defiance burning in my gaze. For a long, tense moment, he said nothing. The corner of his mouth curved in that infuriating half-smile.
“Congratulations, you’re not utterly useless, kitten,” he said at last. “Your legs seem to be working. Sadly, I can’t say the same for your brain.”
The mockery dripped from every word, but I didn’t let it bring me down. He thought I was a weakling, that he could trample all over me, and I had just begun to prove him wrong; it was a clear win for me.
I smirked, throwing his own taunt back. “Guess you’ll have to find another excuse to kill me, then.”
The squad chuckled under their breath, the air loosening slightly, though the tension between us didn’t ease. If anything, it pulsed sharper, like a blade yet to be drawn.
That’s when Lionel came back from the watch tower, looking all confused. He had probably heard us buzzing in the distance.
“What the hell did I miss?”