The Jotun's Daughter

Chapter 17

For her credit, when I told Marty the truth, she didn't flip out. She took the news calmly, her eyes traveling from me to Jase when I introduced him, and then to the crew as I explained the situation. After assessing the predicament, she simply nodded, and motioned for us to follow her through the tunnels. Down deeper, bare light bulbs flickered overhead, casting eerie shadows.

        "Always suspected that you were different," She said after a moment of silence. "I never knew how or why, though. For your credit, neither did you." She walked steadily past a section of wall that was covered in dark stain that contrasted against the stone. Jase, however, stopped, staring at the dark red splotches. 

        "There's no way that a human being could loose that much blood and live," He said quietly. Marty glanced back, taking in the grim expression on his face. She glanced at me, but when I didn't respond, she decided to speak out.

        "It happened in a fight. Our opponents saw us and thought that we were something else. Came after us with guns and knives. We were good fighters-some of the best, even, but there were too many. By the time that our enemies finally realized their mistake and retreated, many of us were severely wounded, but no one near as bad as the person who lay there. They had dove right into the fight, with such an intensity that even I was scared." She looked at the blood on the wall.

        "No human could have lost that much blood and lived. But I guess now we know why she didn't die, don't we?" The unspoken answer hung in the silence. She wasn't human. I could feel the eyes of the group gravitate in my direction, and I kept my gaze ahead, uncomfortable with the attention. It was my blood on the wall. After Marty took charge, she used it to her advantage, proclaiming that unless you were willing to give what the person who had lain against that wall gave, you weren't worthy to be with the Scorpion's. Naturally, everyone who saw the blood and didn't know the backstory assumed that that person had died, when in reality, if they chose to stay, they would hear the plot twist later on. 

        Jase inhaled quickly, softly. He couldn't have known. Marty led us to an open cavern that looked somewhat similar to the cylinder in Russia, only this one had three levels. At the bottom, a large table was set up, primary for meeting and announcements. Other tunnels branched out from all three stories, but I knew where each of them by heart.

        "I'll assign you to your rooms, and then the two tech's can be driven out to get their equipment. You have two hours to get showered, or whatever else you need to do, look around a little, and then meet back up here. I'll get the Geeks on that portal immediately," She addressed me. I gave her a nod of thanks, and then set off on my own, towards the only room that I had ever occupied.  It was a simple, concrete room, the bed still in its place-taking a look around, I realized that everything was exactly how I had left it. Marty hadn't touched the place, but she must have had someone clean it, as there wasn't any dust. After a much-needed shower, I  let my damp hair down to air-dry, and then wandered outside. I happened to open the door to a group of Scorpion's back from the training hall, who all were passing a few feet from me. I stepped out and shut the door behind me, only to immediately become aware that all the voices had stopped. I looked up to see sixteen pairs of eyes staring at me. I met them steadily.

        "Are you-?" A girl maybe a year younger than me started, and then abruptly cut off her sentence. I tilted my head slightly, looking at her, and she snapped her mouth shut.

        "It's just," she started again. "The Commander doesn't let anyone in that room. A couple of us tried to sneak in once," She said sheepishly, "And we got lae 8 for ten days."

        "Laes" were the Scorpion's slang word for punishment. They ranged from 1-10, and 10 had only been dueled out once. I had taken the pain; still bore the scar- but I would never regret it.