WARZONE - König

14

Nadja slowly woke from her short nap, her body aching more now than before. She takes a slow pan around her surroundings, spotting two of the women reading magazines on the couch aside her but no Konig.

Curious, she perks her head up more. Taking a wider look now, sitting up on the couch with a soft groan from the throbbing pain in both her shoulder and leg, she hears movement from the kitchen. She tilts her head for a better look thinking she'd see Konig, but spots the third woman instead turning the corner with a butchered can of food and a clean plate with what seemed like a sandwich on top.

She tosses the can into a trashcan and makes way into the living room where she hands Nadja the plate. It was a simple sandwich, what looked like somewhat decent bread with two slices of meat between them. She glances up at the woman for a brief moment who flashes her a kind smile before she walks back into the kitchen, and Nadja takes a bite.

The flavor was an instant reminder of her childhood. She recognized the meat to be Zwan chicken, a key ingredient her mother used in a lot of their home meals. The bread was dry, but the meat was fresh from the can, still moist. She had no complaints as she devoured the sandwich in nearly three bites.

She falls back onto the couch, staring up at the ceiling in satisfaction for a brief moment, reminiscing on her mother, the memories temporarily taking her aches away. But she was quick to snap back into reality, realizing she hadn't seen her comrade in quite a minute. Though she wasn't worried for his safety, knowing very well he was a capable man, she'd realized she hadn't even considered how he was recovering from their capture, unsure of how the situation may have affected him.

"Ladies, have you seen my partner?" She asks the two women in Arabic. They nod, one pointing at the entrance door. Nadja thanks them, looking down to the floor as she sat up. She plants her hands aside her on the cushions, preparing herself for the pain.

Finally, taking a deep breath, she pushes herself up, landing flat on her feet. She fights a pained groan from slipping her lips and pushes through as she limps towards the door, walking out into the hallway to the stairwell. Looking down the steps, a cold silence flows up the stairwell, where she then looks up towards the roof. 

Using her good arm, she grabs ahold of the railing and pulls herself up the steps one-by-one, grunting every time she plants her wounded leg down. She feared that if she couldn't even make it up the steps, she'd be useless for the remainder of the mission. That fear motivated her, giving her the strength she needed to push through the agony. And finally, she reaches the top, approaching the doorway to the roof. 

She catches her breath, resting her hand on the knob before finally opening it to the outside. She squints as the sun beams almost directly into her eyes, looking down as a chilly breeze gently hits her face. Across the rooftop she spots Konig looking overhead, his sniper leaned against the half wall as he looks down. 

She limps ahead, her approach loud as her foot stomps down. Konig knows it's her just by the footstep pattern and keeps his back to her until she was finally aside him. She rests her arms and body onto the halfwall, looking overhead with her comrade in a moment of peaceful silence, the winds whispering between the tall buildings of the grand city. 

"Did you eat?" Konig finally asks, breaking the silence. 

Nadja raises her cigarette carton as she slips it from her pocket, pulling out the last remaining one. Konig lets out a short huff of a laugh as she lights the tip, releasing a puff of smoke as she pulls it from her lips. "Have you?" She asks in return. 

Konig moves his arm, revealing the plate with nothing but crumbs sitting atop the wall. "They wouldn't let me leave without taking it." He chuckles in response. He then reaches into his pocket taking out a bottle of pain meds. "I found it in the bathroom. You should take it."