Over Powered

Chapter 1

Alaina wiped the sweat from her forehead. She had just finished her daily conditioning and was not looking forward to the extra chores she received after her little "stunt" she had pulled last night. The chief of her tribe had scolded her after sending the two new arrivals Alaina had brought back with her from her scouting trip. In her eyes, what Alaina had done was too risky and dangerous for such a young girl.

Alaina had then lost her temper and tried to explain that she was not a child. She had tried to explain this in a rather loud manner, as a result she got extra chores. Her and her big mouth.

Alaina picked up her towel and started to dab the drops of sweat from her face. When she brought the towel away from her face a small girl, about seven, was standing in front of her. The young girl had her tiny hands in fists on her hips. If the girl hadn't looked so upset Alaina would have laughed.

"Um, what's up Cathy" Alaina said happily.

"Don't 'what's up, Cathy' me!" The young girl yelled. "What were you thinking!"

"Look, Cat, I told you I was on a scouting trip." Alaina tried to explain calmly "I was out in the forest and-"

"Don't give me that junk you've been telling every other fool in this camp." Cathy demanded. "I want the truth."

Alaina sighed and rubbed the back of her neck with her towel. She knew lying to Cathy was like trying to tell your mother you didn't draw on the walls when the crayons where in your hands. She looked around, the people in the camp noticing what was taking place and staring. Alaina sighed again and grabbed Cathy, swinging the child over her shoulder.

"Hey!" Cathy screeched "I don't like being man-handled!"

"Please." Alaina said dramatically "You're not being man-handled! Your being ittsy-bittsy-little-girl-handled!" Alaina laughed at her joke and walk towards the bunks.

"Very funny, Alaina." Cathy crossed her arms and watched Alaina's feet carry her over the dry grass and dirt.

Alaina ducked under the door into the bunks careful of Cathy's head. She walked all the way to the farthest corner where her's and Cathy's beds were located. She threw Cathy onto her bed and sat on her own, laughing as the smaller girl squirmed to sit back up in the bed that almost swallowed her.

"Alaina!" Cathy whined when she finally sat up. She jumped to Alaina's bed and started punching her arm.

It didn't hurt Alaina, but she dramatically winced at the imaginary pain. "Ok, ok. Pipe down pipsqueak." Alaina laughed.

Cathy giggled and pounced back to her own bed. She sat on the edge of her bed facing Alaina, crossed her legs, put her elbows on her knees, and placed her head in hands. Cathy's light brown hair had almost all the way fallen out of the double braids they had been in. Alaina chuckled and moved over to Cathy's bed taking the smaller girls thick hair in her hands and redoing it. Alaina took a deep breath and began to explain.

"Basically, I was supposed to be on my scouting trip." Alaina started "We were walking trough the forest near the tree line when we over heard voices. We climbed the trees and went to see what the noise was from above. When we got to the end of the tree line we saw some of the Emperor's guards chatting around a fire.

"Turns out the Emperor just finished his latest summer home not too far from here. About 20 miles maybe. Anyway, he was supposed to be on vacation. And he had caught three women on the way over. One had gotten sick and died within the first few days at the summer home. But the other two survived and had been stuck at the house for weeks.

"One of the guards said that he had heard one of the women crying about a child she had left the morning she was taken. The other women with me said we had to get back and tell the chief. Of course me being me, I didn't want to leave anyone behind. Lucky I had one or two newbies who agreed and followed me."

Finished with her hair, Alaina tickled Cathy's sides. She squealed and leaned back, putting her head in Alaina's lap.

"So when everyone else turned and left for the camp we stayed and fallowed the guards back to the Emperor's summer home. When we got there I found the two women, and brought them back with us."

Cathy stared up at Alina, her mouth hanging open, her green eyes bright. She shakes her head to clear her thoughts and smiles up at Alaina.

"You're awesome, Alaina!" She cries, jumping from the bed. "I wish I could have been there! I would have loved to remember something like that!"

"I don't know." Said Alaina, rubbing Cathy's head. "You got a lot of good stuff in that big head of yours. Do you really need a silly adventure like that?"

"Hey." Cathy giggled putting her tiny fists on her hips again. "When you remember everything, like I do, every adventure lasts a lifetime!"

"Literally." Alaina mumbles.

"I just don't see why you got punished." Cathy tilted her head. "I mean you did nothing wrong, and you weren't alone."

"In the chief's eyes, I did something that was too risky for my low level experience." Alaina explained. Seeing Cathy's confused look, she tried again. "Basically, I went and did something she thinks I'm too childish to do."

Realization dawned in Cathy's eyes, then anger. "She can't do that!" She cried jumping back onto her bed. "You saved two lives!"

"That's not how everyone sees it, Cat." Alaina shrugged.

Someone behind her cleared there throat. Alaina turned around to see the Chief standing there. Alaina stood up quickly and moved to try and hide the younger girl.

"Yes?" Alaina said.

"I need to speak with you." The Chief said flatly.

"Yes m'am" Alaina answered respectfully.

The Chief turned away from her, her jet black hair shining on her head. "Oh!" The Chief called over her shoulder "And bring the little one, Cathy, was it?" The Chief continued to walk away her olive skin absorbing the sunlight as she left the bunk room.

Alaina turned around and grabbed Cathy's arms. She looked the girl in the eyes and talked to her calmly.

"Cathy, you need to understand something." She said. "This is important. Don't speak unless spoken to, don't stand unless dismissed, don't sit until she has, be respectful when you speak, and don't give your opinion unless asked for it. Do you understand?"

Cathy gave a solid nod and grabbed her favorite teddy bear from under her mattress. Alaina smiled at the toy that used to be her own most loved possession. She took Cathy's hand and went to fallow the chief to the meeting hall.