The X Pathogen

Chapter Eleven

Ash walked, or more accurately, hobbled, along next to Saji. The group was slowly making their way towards the structure in the distance. There were a couple things slowing their progress, the first being Ash's aching body. None of their injuries were serious but the bruises all over them were more than enough to slow them down. The second was Governor Turi's heavy breathing and demands for a break every five minutes.
After their fifth or sixth break in only a couple hours, Kyo finally snapped, "alright, listen, you don't want to be stuck here forever, do you?"
The governor stopped dramatically moaning and stared at him.
"That's what I thought. I know you're not used to trudging through the woods, but neither are the cadets, and they're handling it better than you, a full grown adult."
The governor smirked, "I thought they were highly skilled GSA cadets."
Kyo raised an eyebrow, "do I need to remind you one of them is injured, in part thanks to your incompetence."
Ash gave the governor a sarcastic salute. He glared at them, but finally stopped talking.
Saji softly asked, "are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," Ash smiled, "I mean I'm definitely gonna have some nasty bruises tomorrow, but I'll live."
"Speaking of tomorrow," Nadil said, "the sun's going down soon, we might have to spend the night here."
Ash looked around, sure enough, their shadows were growing longer, and the light was getting dim. Kyo nodded, "we'll keep going a little longer, but once it's dark we should stop."
The group picked up the pace, walking as quickly as they could. Even the governor sped up, hoping to avoid spending the night in the woods.
The wind rustled through the tall, slender trees, giving Ash a slight chill. Dried leaves crunched underfoot as they walked. Bushes covered in small white flowers and orange berries spotted the terrain ahead. Nadil grabbed a handful of berries and popped one into his mouth.
Kyo glanced back at him, "careful, cadet, we don't know what's safe to eat here."
Nadil was already biting down on another berry. "It's fine, I used to eat these all the time when I was a kid. They aren't poisonous."
The governor's mouth was watering, he licked his lips and looked back and forth between Kyo and Nadil.
Kyo sighed and begrudgingly said, "alright, go ahead and eat, but keep walking while you do."
Governor Turi immediately began shoving fistfuls of berries into his mouth, saliva dripping from his lips.
Ash glanced at Saji and muttered, "I made the mistake of watching the governor, I think I've lost my appetite.
Saji giggled quietly, "me too," she said.
Nadil slowed down his pace until he was walking next to the other two cadets. He wordlessly held out his handful of berries.
Ash hesitated for a moment then took one, Saji nervously watched them eat it. The berry burst open in their mouth, and Ash's tongue rejoiced. It was wonderfully juicy, giving their parched lips and throat much needed relief. Not only that, it was delicious, not too sweet, but still full of flavor. Ash grinned at Saji, "it's good!"
Saji nodded and took a couple berries.
Nadil lowered his hand and looked away, but was careful to match their pace. Ash noticed Saji keeping a close eye on him, not out of distrust, just curiosity.
Even Ash had to admit, it was weird to see any side of him other than his bad side. Not a bad kind of weird, just weird.
The setting sun cast a soft glow as orange as the berries, stars began to appear in the deep blue sky.
Kyo motioned for everyone to stop, "alright, let's make camp before it's pitch black," he turned to the cadets, "who here knows how to start a fire?"
Nadil raised his hand right away. Ash hesitantly raised their hand. They knew how to start a fire in theory but had never put the knowledge into practice.
Kyo nodded, "you two, get a fire started. Cadet Avrel, help me set up a shelter."
Ash and Nadil split off to find firewood, heading into the surrounding woods. As they worked, Ash's eyes kept darting back to the stump where Nadil's wing used to be. Nadil caught them staring and turned so that Ash couldn't see it anymore.
Guilt filled Ash's chest. They hated people getting too nosy about their past, it wasn't their place to wonder about Nadil's. For some reason though, Ash desperately wanted to ask, as if knowing would somehow break down Nadil's walls.
"You want to know what happened," Nadil's said. It was a statement, not a question.
Ash stuttered, "oh- uh- you don't have to-"
Nadil spread his remaining wing out. Ash was caught off guard by its incredible size. When his wing was tucked in, it hardly took up any space at all. Fully extended, though, the single wing was nearly six feet long. "Where I'm from, it's a form of punishment," his voice cracked, "a punishment for murderers."
The firewood fell from Ash's arms as they stared at Nadil in shock and horror. He squatted down and handed them the dropped wood. Ash slowly took it from him, still in a shocked trance.
Nadil started to walk away, but hesitated, "just so you know, I didn't-"
His eyes met Ash's horrified gaze and he stopped talking.
Ash slowly followed behind him, unsure of what they were supposed to do or say. Surely Kyo didn't know about this. Or the GSA. They couldn't possibly know, or Nadil wouldn't be a cadet. Ash didn't know if they should tell someone, or keep it a secret.
Before they got back to camp, Nadil turned around again, "listen, you can't tell Agent Kyo about... y'know."
Ash stared at him in disbelief, "are you serious?"
"Please," his eyes reminded Ash of how Saji looked when she thought Ash was angry with her.
"I-" Ash started to say.
"Ah, you're back," Kyo interrupted, "come on, let's get that fire started."
Ash and Nadil followed with arms full of firewood. He stared at them pleadingly. Ash sighed and whispered, "fine I won't say anything, but you better explain yourself."
Relief flooded Nadil's face, he whispered, "thanks."
"To be clear, this doesn't mean I trust you," Ash hissed.
Nadil rolled his eyes, "ditto," he said.
Kyo glanced back at them, "something wrong?"
"Nothing," they said in unison.