Page 66 of Hunters and Prey

Chapter 5

Elpis woke to a subtle vibration from the communicator pinned to her collar. The room was in semi-darkness, lights dimmed and television volume low. Two Marines at the espresso machine nearby chatted in whispered voices. The moment she moved, their attention snapped to her.

Good senses on those guys.

“Sorry, ah, Commander. Did we wake you?” asked the taller one with the spiky blond hair. She’d healed a few nasty sucker marks on his face from a colossal squid’s tentacles and thought his name was Powell.

“No. My communicator did that.” She flashed them a reassuring smile and excused herself from the room before detaching the sharktooth-shaped pin and popping it open to reveal Manu’s face in the polished bone.The big commander sat at his console in the office, muscled arms folded against his broad chest.

“About time. Are the humans working you hard?”

“No. I fell asleep. I must have used too much magic tending to their wounds.” She rubbed the back of her neck where it twinged from the awkward sleeping position. “Any changes?”

His guilty face told her everything she needed to know. She braced herself for shit news.“A few,” he said cagily.

“Do your worst. Hit me with it. I’m ready.”

“You’ve been assigned to instruct the humans in a six-week combat training against the Gloom.”

“I’m to do what?”

“Teach them. Instruct them. Judging from your report, their current training is ineffective against the Gloom. If they encounter even a wave without you present, they’ll be slaughtered.”

“That isn’t our job. Fuck that, it isn’t my job,” she hissed, irked by the change of plans and that no one had consulted her. “I’m a combat medic. This sort of thing should be assigned to Loto, not me. He’s infantry.”

“Loto’s wife just gave birth.”

Furious heat surged to her face and pounded behind her temple harder than Hercules with a hammer and chisel. “So? Hedidn’t crank a ten-pound child out of his vagina, so why am I the one punished with babysitting the humans? This is eelshit, Manu, and you know it.”

He raised a brow. “Down, barracuda. Loto requested paternity leave, but if this goes well—if you can teach these land-walkers to hunt and destroy disturbances as we do—he’s already volunteered to go next. Regent Aegaeon and I assumed you’d be happy to do anything that spared the humans some unnecessary losses, especially since this shit originates from our world. Atlantis has everything to gain from a wartime alliance with the humans once their special forces understand what’s at stake. I’d do it myself, El, but you’re already there with them.”

“And you’re also Her Highness’s personal guard,” she snapped bitterly, only to regret her tone the moment the words left her mouth. Manu had other legitimate reasons for staying behind in Atlantis. Remembering them cooled her temper. “I’m sorry. I’m not being fair.”

“I’m not upset. No harm, no foul. Look, if it’s that big a problem, Cosmas will come take your place. He enjoys teaching.”

Elpis shook her head.“It’s fine. I don’t like it, but I’ll do it. The land-walkers need appropriate gear, though. Their arms and protection are insufficient. If the regent intends to include them in our war efforts, it’s only right that Atlantis provide the proper—”

“Already done. The Black Anemone is en route to your location. I took the liberty of making the assignments for you and sending some of my best pilots. You’ll also receive an infantry squad to assist with the combat training.”

“And the arms?”

“Master Alohi volunteered her services. Did you think we were going to throw you to the sharks and leave it at that?”

“Maybe,” she muttered under her breath.

“Never. I wouldn’t let them do that to you. Aegaeon called an emergency meeting together after you confirmed the Gloom had mutated enough to infect humans. Now that this is a surface problem, the Council of Lords voted almost unanimously to outfit as many of their people as needed.”

“Almost unanimously?”

Manu shrugged.“Yeah well, there’s always one shithead. What’re you gonna do?”

She laughed despite the gravity of the situation and wondered if she could guess which noble lord had voted against their kingdom’s self interest. There was always one, but Lord Leonidas was particularly slippery, opposing any measure that didn’t allow him to prosper. “Which?”

Her friend smirked. “As if you even have to ask. Leonidas.”

“This is my surprised face,” she replied, forming her expression into an impassive mask.

“Lord Arcadius, as usual, had something to bitch and moan about, but his opposition ended when Cosmas made it personal. I was there for the entire thing, and let me tell you, it was a moment of beauty. The mer can’t say no to his son. The very moment Cosmas implied anything about leaving for clearer waters, the man was neutered. He looked as if his favorite mudpuppy died in his lap.”

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