Three Lies, All True || ONC2021 Longlister

Chapter 5: Black Feathers

The woman in the middle clicked her tongue slowly as she walked forward. Instinctively, Petra placed herself in front of Adrien and lowered herself down to a stance. She flexed her fingers a little bit, allowing the magic in her veins to flow freely to the tips of her fingers. Next to her, Peter readied a stance as well and summoned a bottle of potion in his hand.

"What do we have here?" The woman raised a brow and sneered. "Three little mice, trapped in a snowy cage."

The people with her laughed, and it took a lot of willpower for Petra to not snap her fingers and just kill them all on the spot. Her eyes flicked to the visible portions of their faces, then to the insignia on their chests.

It made her furrow her brows and scowl. That symbol... she swore that she destroyed that symbol and anything related to it years ago. And yet, there it was, staring back at her face as if it was smiling at her.

Her train of thoughts, however, was interrupted when Adrien placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it three taps. Her ears perked up a little, and she had almost turned her head to him. Before she could, she felt something pull her head back and stop in her tracks.

"I apologize if you see Kytzlanna as a cage," Adrien began as he circled his finger, making small sparks of magic fall. "But for us, Kytzlanna is just another playground where we can do whatever we want. After all, we were the ones who claimed victory during the Battle in Kytzlanna."

The people stopped laughing, and even the woman stopped in her tracks. Petra would have smiled, but there was something about the woman that felt... off for her. She looked young, probably someone around in her late teens or early twenties. Her stature was thin, too. Too thin, in fact. Almost like she didn't have any training in combat. Even Adrien had some build to him, and that was saying something.

The woman scoffed and rolled her eyes. "I guess that's what we should expect from... hmm, what are you guys again? Elves? Humans? Artificial beings?"

Petra gritted her teeth. Before she could do anything irrational, she took a deep breath and smiled. "Super soldiers shall suffice. As far as I'm aware, I don't think that there's a name for us."

"Proud, are we?" The woman laughed again and took a step back. "As I was saying, I guess we should expect none from super soldiers such as yourselves. The only thing in your mind is nothing but murder and violence."

"Not true." A smile formed on Adrien's face, and the mere sight of it sent shivers down Petra's spine. His eyes gleamed as he stared at the woman directly in her eyes. "Some of us think of strategies and plans, too. Not just murder and violence."

"Oh really now?"

"Yes, really." He cleared his throat and placed a hand behind Petra's back, shoving her forward a bit. Before she could even ask, he already started talking again. "Where are my manners? My name is Adrien, Commander of the Tactics Brigade. These two with me"--he grabbed Peter by the shoulder and lightly pushed him forward--"are the super soldier twins Peter and Petra, one is a commander of the Potions Brigade, and the other a commander of the Magi Brigade. It's an honor to meet you."

Petra furrowed her brows, but the small glance Adrien gave her was enough to know that he wanted her to stay quiet. There was another gleam in his eyes, one that was all too familiar for her. He was thinking. And by the looks of it, he was thinking of a plan on the spot.

It made a knot form in her stomach, and she took a gulp.

The best she can do now was follow Adrien's lead.

Clearing her throat, she stood tall and patted her cloak and coat. "Adrien's right. Sincerest apologies. I don't think our first meeting should involve us trying to kill each other already. I believe we didn't get to know your name."