Page 83 of Beyond The Maples
"I.. uhh... " Leo shudders, peeking over at the shriveled corpses that are now steaming on the warm earth, a potent odor coming from them. "The noise they made just sent me into complete hysteria. I'm not even scared of spiders, but I draw the line at that," he finishes waving his hands at the carnage before us. I smile up at him, because I love that he's far from embarrassed that he just squealed in front of his crew members.
"You better figure out a better line of defense, and quickly, kid," Tane scoffs, but it's half-hearted. He's probably too tired to fully reprimand us for our inaction.
I turn back to Tane, who's taken his shirt off, using it to wipe the blood and grime covering his face. My eyes peruse him without my permission. His torso is corded in thick muscle, a long, jagged scar bending down his chest towards his abdomen. There are other scars, littering his otherwise perfectly golden skin, but it's the dark whorls on his shoulders that catch my attention.
Tattoos peek over his shoulders. As Tane walks by me, he gives me a smug smirk that makes my cheeks flush, and I realize he knows full well I've been ogling him.
I try to stop myself, but I can't help but look back as he passes me.
He walks away, a tinge of familiarity washes over me as I try to continue to analyze his tattoos from afar.
Tattoos snake up his abdomen; what appears to be fire and smoke curling along muscle in artful swirls. It might be the most beautiful thing I've ever seen; the lowest flames dark and violent, cascading up and out, leaving soft tendrils of smoke grazing his shoulders. My mouth gapes, because I definitelyrecognize them.
"The Lieutenant is the strong silent type, hey?" Leo asks in Vera's direction, as he grabs packs from the buggy's storage container.
She tries and fails to hide her smirk, which Leo returns––his own giant goofy grin lighting up his face. Gods, this kid really can weasel his way into anyone's heart.
Anyone, except maybe the Sicari-slaying giant that is our Lieutenant.
"Leo, how many times did he tell you to shut up?" Farra whispers, grabbing her own bag.
"Oh, he threatened my life on multiple occasions. The guy’s got some issues to work through. Although, he can say whatever he wants when he slays monsters for me like that. Woof." He fake pants our way, completely unbothered.
Tarius pops up beside him. "You also might want to ask yourself why death threats are preferable to silence. It’s strange to watch." He scrunches his face up, like he was analyzing our crew members' compulsions the entire ride.
Laughing, I head to the front of the building. I search for the door, when suddenly the entire wall moves, and I jump back.
Vera is there, moving the heavy rust-coloured steel by herself, before we all catch on and help her push. Once it clicks open, Vera hops in the first buggy and drives it in. Tane does the same with the other, and our crew saunters into the giant, empty building.
"Old packing facility," Vera says, and I notice her tone’s changed back. The cold viciousness I've seen her display at training settles onto her features.
"Packing what?"
"Produce. Fruit mostly, if I remember correctly."
My eyes go wide. This place is huge. Imagining this amount of produce is... unfathomable, at this point. Empty metal shelves line the vast space.
I hear voices echoing to my left, and see two officers sitting between tables filled with wire, and odds and ends. There's a disk in the center with a network of tiny wires, and plugs on it. One officer is cursing as he tries to untangle the mess. The other officer notes our approach and calls to attention, and the first scrambles to do so as well.
"At ease," Vera says. The officers slack their shoulders slightly at her dismissal. They aren't dressed like us; they're in casual, albeit very dirty, work clothes.
Tane comes around the tables to inspect what they're doing. Repairs of one of the solar charging boards would be my guess, and the two officers tense at his nearness.
"Harrow, care to explain to me why we were just attacked by Sicari outside the station, and no one bothered to come aid us?" Tane's voice comes out like rolling thunder in the empty space. The two men blanch.
"We've come to ignore such sounds, sir. Being out here, you learn which noises to investigate, and when to stay put for survival. If we'd thought you were out there, we would have come to your aid," he says, his voice trembling slightly under Vera and Tane's scrutiny.
Tane grunts his disapproval.
"Harrow, show the cadets the bunk house so they can get settled for a bit, before we head out in the morning." He nods, to the strawberry-blond guy, who looks like he's either in love with Tane or absolutely terrified of him––maybe both.
Harrow motions for us to follow him to the back of the facility, where a room is tucked away between empty shelves. Walking into the space, I'm struck with a sudden familiarity. Gone are the orderly clean bunks of our dorm rooms; in their place are about eight bunks, unevenly splayed one on top of the other, taking up most of the space in the room. They're constructed with warehouseshelving and other mixed materials, cleverly assembled to hold crews that pass through.
This is what I'm used to. A kind of desperate ingenuity. We pick bunks and get comfortable. A part of me feels more at ease like this, anchored in the reality of our world.
My eyes are stretched wide in frustration as I lay awake. The beginnings of early morning light seep through cracks in the door. At first, I slept through the various breathing, snorting, and snoring in the room like it was my own personal lullaby. But as the night went on, and Tarius sounded more and more like a thunderstorm, I found it difficult to stay asleep. The throb in my shoulder doesn't help. I toss and turn and huff. Farra's above me and her deep even breaths tell me she's asleep. Like everyone else.
I roll and my eyes catch the large silhouette across from me. Tane had crept in late, Vera and he exchanging a few hushed words, before he snuck into the rickety bunk below hers. I can just barely see his face with the light streaming in. I hate to admit it, but he looks beautiful while he sleeps; all his harsh features softer, somehow. The usual scowl wiped away as he dreams.
