LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 18: I Care Because You Do
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===[Chapter 18: I Care Because You Do]===
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Otaes took them deeper into the elven palace, right into its very heart. The wide halls were flooded by elves now, rushing from one spot to the next, chattering away in fear. It was almost like the entire building had been set on fire. Ants sent into a frenzy by an approaching predator, the elves scrambled to gather their defenses. Otaes had to narrowly brush past other masked warriors who'd grabbed their own weapons; spears, bows, even those old guns that Eli spotted before, as she led the humans into the fray.
Down a flight of stairs reaching yet another hall. They entered into a room on the left hand side. The room was dark, illuminated by a soft glowing fireplace that made the entire room feel warm and oddly cozy. There were no windows in the room, but there were plenty of plants, sculptures, and mosaic paintings that decked the wooden walls. On the far end of the room was a line of beds and sheets that were bundled atop of each other and laid over a thick pad of wool or soft wood. Only one of the beds were occupied. Cato’s.
Misfit drew nearer to Cato as Otaes watched them from behind. He was breathing, which was a good sign. His shirt had been removed letting them see that the purple veins that traced themselves across his body were no longer present. His skin no longer appeared rubbery, but he still looked sick. His previously swollen and bleeding arm too had returned to a more normal state. The inflammation was gone, the bleeding pores cleaned, and the horrific yellow flesh returned to normal – though it still looked pinkish and raw.
But most astonishing of all was that Cato was conscious. His eyes fluttered underneath closed eyelids, soaking in the last remnants of sleep that his ailing body could gather. He looked terribly sick and painfully skinny, with darkness clouding around his eyes in a manner that gave them a sunken appearance. But for what it was worth, he was alive.
“They actually saved him…” Matteo whispered, “Fascinating.”
“The healers said that he'd been stung by a Howler,” Otaes said, “The Avonians have sent out hundreds of them into the jungle to weed out resistance.”
“Howler?” Asked Eli, fearing that he already knew what she was speaking of.
“Those are the monsters that attacked you. They’re Synths. Half-machine, half-living hellhound. You can hardly call them alive, though," Otaes muttered, "The Imperials send them out to lurk in the jungle and stalk targets until they have an opportunity to strike. They’re terror weapons.”
“So, it was those 'Avonians' who attacked us?” Eli asked her, the masked warrior gave him a curt nod.
“They have to be the same people from the attack on the Nexus,” Badger said, “Robot death machines, toxic gas… terror weapons.”
Otaes gave a nod confirming Badger's point, "It's all because of your base. The Nexus," she said, "Ever since your base appeared, fighting has broken out between your faction and the Empire. The city of Canau was taken by your forces, and ever since the Empire and River Republic has blamed us for the loss."
"So, what you're saying is that this war... is our fault?" Asked Rafael.
"Sort of. There was a ceasefire that had ended a war between The Kiote Union and River Republic about a year ago. But to be honest the tensions never really died down, and the Republic's generals have been looking for a reason to destroy us ever since. Your appearance and the loss of Canau gave them all the excuses they needed to launch the invasion they've been looking for."
That made sense. Foreign interlopers unwittingly reigniting a war that had been buried for a year now. Though it of course wasn't Misfit's fault, Eli couldn't help but sense a feeling of shame. As if it really were, or as if he had played a role in The Coalition's actions. Then again, he sort of did. Not through his own will, of course. But he was there during the attack of the Nexus.
Attention once again turned to Cato who shuffled a bit while they were talking, disturbing the bedsheets. His breathing sounded labored, congested almost. It was painful to listen to.
“Is Cato alright? Can we wake him up?” Omar asked to which Otaes simply shrugged. It was Matteo who gave Cato a brief shake.
Slowly, like a man emerging from a month’s long coma, Cato’s lidded eyes fluttered open. Green irises were half conscious, and a deep throaty groan escaped his throat. In the first few moments, he seemed unaware of what was happening around him, but slowly he entered reality. Eli could see his eyes focus and residually begin a scan of the room.
“Fucking hell…” Cato groaned.
“He’s alive!” Rafael cheered, walking up to Cato’s bed almost like he was about to give the half-dead man a celebratory high five. To be honest it wasn’t unwarranted. Eli felt a residual tension inside of him unravel as everyone else in the squad crowded around Cato’s bed. They were eager to see if the man was alright. Eli swore he could make out exactly what they were thinking by the ways they looked at him. Nobody really wished harm to befall Cato, but for the guy who had technically caused this entire situation to begin with, it wasn’t hard to repress those feelings of vitriol boiling inside.
Then again, maybe that was just Eli.
“Where-“ Cato’s initial bout of confusion was interrupted by a violently ill cough that forced him to double over, but a reassuring pat on the shoulders by Matteo eased him back into his relaxed posture on the bed, “Where am I? Are we back at The Nexus?” He hadn’t seen Otaes yet.
“I’m afraid not. We were ambushed out in the forest, and the locals took us in,” Dutch told him.
Cato gave him a confused look, blinking again completely lost, “Wait, Dutch?” Cato’s eyes met Eli, Matteo, Omar and Dutch individually, “You guys came for us?”
“They’re fucking psychopaths,” Rafael grinned wildly, “Either crazy or stupid.”
“Yeah, I’ll say,” Cato’s British accent was subdued underneath his sickness, “But aren’t we all?”
“If that ain’t the truth,” Dutch chuckled.
It was then that Cato saw Otaes standing from beyond the crowd, he again looked rather uncomfortable, “And… you are?”
“I’m Otaes, human. We imprisoned you on suspicions that you were Imperial Soldiers. For that, we apologize,” She told him in an almost robotic sounding voice, “Our healers have managed to save you. You were poisoned by a howler.”
“The wolves,” Badger informed.
“Their fangs have venom in them. The healers did their best but you still need rest.”
Cato nodded slowly, “Right… and you guys. Who are you?”
“We’re the Warrior Elves of the Raritan tribe, human.”
“Yeah. Elves. Warrior elves,” Cato blinked, “Are you guys certain I'm not dead?"
Misfit looked around at each other. Truth be told, they didn't know for sure either. Maybe they had all died a while ago and were transported into this strange world where elves were just a thing that existed now. Eli had to keep reminding himself that this was not Earth, this was Narva. Whatever seemed strange back home would've been normal or even mundane here. But even still, he found it difficult to believe his eyes.
"Of course I am, who am I kidding. How silly of me to assume otherwise.” Another coughing fit interrupted him. But with Cato now mostly conscious, Misfit gathered around his bed to catch him up to speed.
Eli meanwhile, stood back, his feet glued to the archaic wooden floorboards, staring at them all as they asked Cato a billion-and-one questions. He couldn’t bring himself to do the same.
Cato wanted to escape the Nexus and he was perfectly fine with doing so on his own terms. He couldn’t have known that his escape would’ve brought harm on the rest of them. He couldn’t have known that his escape would snatch freedom from out of their reach. He couldn’t have known…
So why did he leave? If only he had just… remained where he was! For god’s sake if only he had just talked things out! They wouldn’t be here in the first place! If he’d just given it more room to think first! Overwatch wasn’t going to start murdering Phantoms just because they felt like it, they weren’t puppy-kicking monsters. There was no need to escape from The Nexus. Sure, everything seemed insane after the battle and all but… but there had to have been some rational thought left?
Why couldn’t Cato just hold on? Why couldn’t he just talk things out instead of insisting on escaping? Why? Why? Why? Memories flashed in Eli’s mind of him holding a gun up to Matteo’s head, of Omar being snubbed by a Howler, of the burning tank and the dead regulars. All of that could’ve been completely avoided had Cato been reasonable for once…
Eli felt a terrifying presence lurking behind him. Out of the corner of his vision, he saw the Elf warrior staring down at his back. Slowly he turned to face her and their eyes met. Her blue elven eyes still glowed from behind the mask, it was a type of bioluminescence that was more pronounced in the darker atmosphere of the room, “Uh… I-is there something wrong?” Eli said, trying his best not to sound nervous in front of her, but the truth was that she absolutely terrified him. How could she not? She was wearing a bone mask that looked eerily similar to a skull, stood almost exactly at his height, was armed to the teeth with a bow and spear, and probably had knowledge of all sorts of Elven voodoo magic that could kill Eli in a plethora of nightmarish ways.
Otaes blinked as if she hadn’t realized the faux pas she’d committed by staring literal daggers at his back in complete silence, “I don’t know… is there?”
Eli took that as a warning, and turned back to look at Cato, hoping desperately that Otaes wouldn’t try to slit his throat or something while his back was turned to her. Well, he really shouldn’t be so hostile to her. She was a bit mean and sort of terrifying in every aspect - sure. But she had also saved their lives. And to be fair, if it was true that The Coalition had unknowingly kickstarted a major war between Otaes’ people and those “Avonian Imperials” after they had just signed a ceasefire, then Otaes would have every right to be a bit pissed off that Misfit would have the absolute gall to wander into here as guests of honor.
And then there was that whole fiasco with Chief Ani… her whole demeanor towards Misfit had shifted once she’d tapped into Eli’s brain and read his thoughts. Or at the very least, sensed them. He swore he could still feel a bit of her magic trapped in his skull, giving him a residual headache that refused to go away. And Glassface. There was Glassface too. That weird dream creature kept popping up, and it popped up once again while Ani was performing her magic on Eli. What the hell was happening to him? It was like everything was falling apart at the seams including himself! He needed to get a grip! But he just couldn’t get the image of Glassface out of his head!
“You don’t seem happy,” Otaes’ voice broke through his almost trance like state.
Eli again turned back to her. She must’ve seen that he was confused, for she nudged her head towards Cato and the others, her voice low enough that the others wouldn’t hear over their chattiness, “Isn’t that your soldier? Shouldn’t you be happy to see him alive?”
“I am,” Eli lied. He was. But also, not really. It was hard to explain. She wouldn’t get it. “I’m just… it’s complicated.”
Her eyes narrowed, “How?”
“I uh… Well you know… Cato was the guy who led us out here in the first place. Technically. He wanted to escape after we’d arrived. It was the Avonians, they attacked our base and it dawned on us that Overwatch had dragged us through a portal to a new world,” Eli told her. The memories were fresh but it still felt like it had been weeks since it happened. In reality it had only been the day before yesterday. Sometimes it felt like years could pass and nothing would happen. And then in the span of a week, everything could change. Funny how that happened, “We were panicking. We didn’t know what was going on, you know.”
“So running from the Nexus was Cato’s idea.”
“Cato wanted to run because he thought we were all dead either way. Either we died out here or we let Overwatch murder us. He managed to convince a few of them that running was the better option.”
“But you stayed behind?” She asked, her blue eyes narrowing again.
Eli nodded, “Yeah… I did.”
“But then you left to go save him?”
“Eventually.”
“So you do care about him. If you were willing to sacrifice everything to run out here and save him, you clearly care for him. And if Cato thought that it was better to die as a free soul, you must agree with him.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Because you’re here, and not still in prison.”
“I’m here because my life depends on them just as much as theirs does mine. If they die, I die. There needs to be someone who protects them and I’ll try my best to do that. But I don’t want to pick a side in this… philosophical battle of dying free or living as a slave or whatever. I just want to go home. That’s it. I want to go home with Misfit alive,” Eli felt his voice creak. It was a weak defense but it was true. Or at the very least, it wasn’t a lie.
Otaes slowly shook her head, “But you know that’s impossible, right? You have to choose. Sooner or later. You can pretend that you are unaffected if you want to, but eventually you’ll have to make a choice. Death in freedom, or life in slavery.”
“I’m not a slave! I was six months from going home! Six months! And then just as I’m there at the finish line, all of this happens! I get shipped off to another planet!” The way Otaes took a defensive step back signaled to Eli that he was getting a bit too loud for the conversation. He took a moment to pause and recenter himself, “I mean… five years in this hellhole. I’ve spent my entire life as either a phantom, a soldier, or a prisoner. And right when I get the opportunity to be a free adult, it’s stolen. And in the most bizarre way possible too, just to add salt in the wound. I don’t want to fight in some great revolution against the Coalition. I don’t want to make some heroic final stand for my freedom. I just want to be ignored and to go home. That’s the only reward I care about and it’s the only one that matters.”
“So, you’re just willing to tolerate seeing your masters hold freedom above your head like that? You’re willing to fight for them, keep their empire intact across your planet and now into mine?”
“It’s not a problem if I don’t look up,” Eli whispered that final part. His eyes immediately sunk to the floor. It was so pathetic, but it was true! He didn’t want to fight the Coalition. He just wanted to live. Why was everybody so adamant on him making a choice between certain death at the hands of Overwatch, or certain death but at least they kept a moral victory? Why couldn’t they see what Eli saw? That they were both terrible options? Why couldn’t Eli just stay out of it? This is why he found it difficult to meet Cato’s eyes, this is why he couldn’t be relieved to find Cato alive and well, for Cato would demand he make a choice. He knew it. Cato was the type of nihilist to do so. Nothing mattered to Cato but his freedom. And the same went for Rafael. Freedom in death was preferable to them than life in slavery, and the thought horrified Eli more than anything. It would mean he would never find his home, a dream-like place that had eluded him since his was stolen as a boy. It would mean that Eli would also have to die. And he wasn’t ready to die. Not like this. In sacrifice, for other people’s safety? Sure. There wasn’t much of a choice in that regard. But for a concept like freedom? Why bother?
“I think you are confused. You want freedom and you want to live. But you haven’t realized yet that the very thing preventing you from having both is the group you adamantly refuse to challenge. You have to make a choice. Either you’re willing to fight and die for your freedom, or you’ll never get it. You’ll be a prisoner forever. And I think you know that. But you just don’t want to admit it because it scares you…”
Well, she was a perceptive one. Eli had to give her that. If her goal was to try and poke holes in Eli’s story about being foreign prisoners from another planet, she might not have been able to prove that it was false. But Otaes was a damn good interrogator. She was somehow right. Again.
His gaze drooped to the floor. He could feel Otaes’ harsh gaze lift from him, perhaps satisfied with her interrogation of Eli’s thoughts, for now. But Eli felt anything but satisfied. She was right. Cato was right. Eli was wrong. But why? Why was it so wrong to want to live in peace? The thought would torment him until he found an answer, and that answer could only be found in Cato. Either by fortune or by intent, Cato’s half-conscious eyes broke through Misfit and landed on Eli and Otaes.
“Erm… Miss Warrior Elf?” Cato's mellow British voice croaked out.
“Please, call me Otaes.”
“Right. Otaes. I don’t wish to be rude but, can I make an odd request?”
Otaes shrugged, “I’m only assigned to keep an eye on you. Do what you want.”
Cato’s frown turned into a scowl. He let out a sick sounding cough, before he spoke, “Can I talk to Eli for a second? Alone… that is?”
For some reason, Eli felt a pang of dread in his heart. Cato had something to say to him? Something he didn’t want to say in front of Misfit? What could that be? It wasn’t like Cato was in much of a position to be upset at Eli, there wasn’t much of a reason for him to be. Unless he was pissed off about Eli deciding to stay in the nexus, but that was a ridiculous thing for Cato to be really upset at Eli for. Why should Eli sacrifice his life for a man who wanted to die? For Badger and Rafael, maybe. But Cato…
Misfit looked at each other and then at Eli, and then back to Cato. Though they were confused by Cato’s sudden change in demeanor, they acquiesced. Sluggishly making their way towards the door, leaving only Cato and Eli behind. Otaes was of course the last to leave, and just as she was about to vacate the door, her cobalt blue eyes cast one final look at the two, before she shut the door behind her locking them in.
“So… am I in trouble?” Eli wearily choked out a joke as the absence of Misfit’s presence stifled the air with silence.
Cato shrugged while he was in the bed, “Shouldn’t I be the one asking that question?”
“I’m not gonna turn you in to Overwatch, if that’s what you’re afraid of.” Eli told him.
“Why not? It was me who almost got two of your squadmates killed. Right?”
“True..." Eli shrugged.
“Then go ahead. Do your job. Turn me in,” Cato sighed. Eli didn’t answer him. The silence was as deafening as it was awkward.
Eli searched his brain for the millions of questions he wanted to ask Cato. Yet none of them materialized. There was something between them, like a wall, invisible but still present all the same. Eli would like nothing more than to break through and find understanding, but he couldn’t.
It was Cato who broke the glass, “I know what you’re thinking. You’re asking me why I decided to run. Aren’t you?”
“Among other things.”
“Because I was sick of it. I was sick of the Coalition and their lies. They believe us to be less than human. We aren’t even slaves to them, we’re numbers. Pieces in their game that they can use and discard at a whim,” Cato told him, “I’m not a number. I’m not a slave, or a Phantom. I’m human. I’m real!”
“Then you can do something about it without getting us all killed!” Eli snapped, “Wait until you’re free, put your mind to good use.”
“There is no freedom as a Phantom! You should know that. I spent my entire life constantly waiting for mine. The Coalition took everything from me! They took my home, my family, my country! Everything! I have nothing left and they expect me to build their Utopia?” He chuckled dryly, “Their arrogance is astounding, isn’t it?”
Cato coughed again, though he continued, “When we were out in the jungle, Rafael told me something. He said that they’ve been beating us so thoroughly that we can’t even feel their whiplashes against our skin. Their collars choke us so effectively that we don’t even notice we’re being strangled. And he's right, you know. The Coalition’s power is absolute.”
“If they’re so strong, then what’s even the point in trying to fight back against them?”
“What’s the point?” Cato sounded offended that Eli would even ask, “No… the question is – what other choice do we have? There is none! They’ve left us with none. They’ve left you with none. They tell us to stand, to sit, they command us like dogs. But worse yet is that they can tell us when we die. And they could kill all of us and not even care.”
“So what was the plan? Sacrifice yourself and then what? Prove a point? Die with your morals still intact? I know Overwatch is powerful. A single act of defiance from one Phantom isn’t going to change anything.”
“Exactly, a single act of defiance won’t. But a multitude will,” Cato said, “Overwatch bases their strength from compliance and stability. The moment stability goes out the window, the entire structure collapses. If one random act of disobedience can inspire others to do the same, Kovic and Overwatch Command become powerless practically overnight! Overwatch isn’t ever going to grant us freedom. We need to take it, by force if we have to! And I’m willing to do that. That’s why I escaped. I have nothing to lose and everything to gain.”
“Don’t you want to go back home?”
“What home?” Cato’s face soured, like he tasted something bitter he was on the verge of spitting out.
“You’re British aren’t you?”
“I was,” Cato shrugged, “There’s no Britain anymore. Not after the civil war.”
That was news to Eli. He knew that there had been a Civil War in The United Kingdom, but that started in the late 2020s, only a few years after Eli was born. And Cato didn’t look that old. In fact, Eli was sure that Cato was younger than he was, and Eli was born in ’25.
It was from The British Civil War that Phantoms first got their origins, thousands of English and Scottish civilians found themselves without a country to call their own. The armed forces of both sides terrorized each other in the chaos of the first flashpoint in the resource wars. Thousands became refugees practically overnight, labelled as undesirables by uncaring governments and shipped off to Phantom-Refugee centers to remain out of sight and out of mind. It was the first true glimpse at what the world would descend into, a warning that had gone ignored.
“I didn’t even get a chance to grow up there. Whatever memories I have of living a stable life have long been taken by the bastards. I was a baby when The Civil War broke out. My home was destroyed in an attack by The Royal Government. My mother and father became refugees, and when they moved to London we found out that we weren’t wanted there. Instead of helping us, they sent us to The Zone…”
The Zone, that was another hideous feature of The Resource Wars, and a lasting scar that all Phantoms shuddered to even think about. The Zone was a territory that encompassed what used to be The Netherlands and Belgium - or at least the remnants of what was left of them before The Atlantic swallowed their cities whole and displaced millions. The world’s largest holding pen and dumping ground for Europe’s unwanted refugees and phantoms. It was a nightmare state. Millions of people being illegally kidnapped and trafficked into The Zone, ejected from countries across Europe, forced to build their own shelter out of scraps salvaged from garbage dumps and waste piles, and having to live in sprawling slums thousands of miles in size with millions of equally desperate and hopeless Phantoms as neighbors. There was no wonder that it had become the world’s murder capital, the center of modern piracy, and a drug smuggling harbor. It was the definition of hopelessness.
“That’s the ‘freedom’ that The Coalition provides,” Cato bitterly said, “They pack you up and ship you off to rot in hell. That’s what they give you. Once they have no use for you, if they can’t kill you, they get rid of you. Send you off to The Zone so you can fend for yourself. That’s Overwatch’s idea of ‘freedom’… if you can stomach to call it that. So, when you ask me why I ran or what point I see in trying to resist, I tell you what other possible choice do I have? They’ve given us none. The Coalition’s presence is so absolute that they can convince us that slavery is freedom, and that freedom is slavery. They’re making us forget the definitions of those words so that they can use us. But not me…”
Cato shook his head, “Not me. I’m tired of being used. And you should be too.”
“Even if you die?”
“Every option leads to my death. But if I’m going down, I won’t go quietly. That’s what they want,” Cato whispered. His voice had been loud, though still held back by his ailment, and up until now he was forcing himself to speak with force. Cato was genuine. He was real about his beliefs in a way that Eli hadn’t really given him credit for, “Now I’m not going to delude myself in the belief that my personal suicide is some great revolutionary act. Rafael might. Hell, Badger might too. But not me. I know that what I’m doing is suicidal, purely. But if there’s a chance, even the smallest chance, that it sends a message not just to Overwatch but to every other Phantom here that freedom is possible so long as we resist, then I will take that chance. And I’ll take it again, and again, and again, and again, until the message gets through. I’m fated to die no matter what. Why use the life I have to be a collaborator?”
Eli shuffled in his boots. For the first time, he’d actually given it some thought. He wanted to say Cato was right but there was still far too much uncertainty. Eli wasn’t ready or willing to die for freedom. But, Cato was right that collaboration wasn’t going to get them anything good either. There had to be another way… anything. There must be freedom and life together. What’s the point otherwise?
“I… I agree with you. Mostly, I think,” Eli began, “But I don’t think we should be nihilistic about our odds.”
“That’s what you call it? Nihilism?”
“You don’t seem very hopeful about our chances. I don’t want to throw our lives away just to prove a point…” Eli sighed, carefully considering what he was about to say next, “But you’re right. We do need to resist. I don’t want to start a revolution; I just want to survive.”
“On that, you’ll find no argument from me,” Cato shakily said before he launched into yet another coughing fit.
“Right… Misfit is our best chance at finding any type of strength. If you help me-“
“Oh and there you go… hoping again,” Cato gave him a weak chuckle, “You’re idealizing it too much. You’re trying to be a hero. I don’t need heroes. I need people. People who are sick and tired of being treated like numbers.”
“What do you suggest then? That we die? If Misfit is our best chance then I’m going to keep you all alive as best as I can.”
“You and what authority? Overwatch could hang us all the moment we return to The Nexus and there would be nothing you could do to stop them.”
“That’s why we’re together. We can come up with something! Anything! I just need you to trust me. And if you don’t trust me, trust the squad. I mean,” Eli gestured to the structure around them, “We saved you. Or at least we tried. I’m not ready to die for my freedom but I’ll die to help others live.”
There was something strange on Cato’s face as he considered Eli’s words. It had contorted into an expression that Eli never saw Cato wear before. At least, he hadn’t noticed it if he did. A smile.
“Alright… fine. I’ll help Misfit, Misfit helps me. I’ll join Robin Hood and his gang of merry men. I don’t suppose it’ll make much of a difference either way, but it can’t get worse.”
And just like that the tension Eli felt in his shoulders had relieved themselves, allowing him to breath in for what felt like the first time in forever. But a solid glare from Cato let Eli know that the battle hadn’t quite been won, “But when it all comes crashing down… when we all wind up either tucked away in solitary, dead, or miserable, which will inevitably happen – trust me, it will. I want you to remember me. Whether I’m dead or not, I want you to remember that it was me who told you that our only hope was in our hopelessness. I want you to remember that the only thing Overwatch respects, is force. Not words, not friendship, not solidarity or even revolutionary talk… but force.”
Interrupting Cato’s diatribe, there was a distinct echo that reverberated through the air. Both were silenced, immediately.
There was a chorus of yelling coming from outside. Screaming. The distinct sounds of gunfire popped through the walls, and then an explosion. A large explosion that rocked the palace walls causing dirt lodged between the wooden logs to trickled down over them. The fireplace burnt out, casting the two into a dreadful darkness. The duo looked at each other, “What the hell was that?”
“It must be the Avonians.”
“The who?”
“Same guys who attacked us at the Nexus, and the guys who made the Howlers, the robo-wolves,” Eli told him, looking through the now dark room with wide eyes. He felt something crawl up his throat, and his heart skipped a beat. Fear. The Avonians had returned.
“Shit, they’re here?” Cato asked, sitting up firmly in his bed. Another explosion, this time closer to the palace, confirmed their fears. The door to the room flew open, and in came Misfit. Otaes had her spear drawn out, and she was clutching it close. She knew exactly what was happening.
“What the hell is going on out there?” Eli asked when Misfit came in, all of them had been frightened by the explosions.
It was Dutch who pointed a shaky finger upwards, “It’s them. They're here. And they've brought the dragons.”
>>>[Verifying...]
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==The Revolutionary Department Of Intelligence==
==[WEAPONS OF THE COLD WAR]==
==[DIRECT IMAGE LINKS FOR CLEARER RESOLUTION]==
>>>[THE HOWLERS]
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