Cleo's Game

4. Blake

Blake stood off to the side, away from the rest of the crowd, with her arms crossed and a disinterested look on her face. She had a scar across her left eye that looked fresh, but Cleo chose to be polite and not mention it. "So Blake, congrats on getting picked!" Cleo greeted, after approaching her. "I'm used to it, but thanks. You too," she responded, straight faced. "You don't sound very excited," pointed out Cleo, trying to break the ice.

"I'm a rank four commander. We all get picked," she snappily explained. "This mission is on land, though, so it's a change of scenery from those murky underwater missions that I get sent on constantly," she continued. "Oh, my brother didn't say during the announcement; where will you be going?" Cleo asked.

"It's some scouting trip, in a place called the Horned Volcano. I'll be with your brother and Scream," Blake answered. "Who's Scream?" Cleo asked, puzzled. "Some old loser; his thing is illusions. He has the same rank as me, probably from having the right fucking friends," Blake answered, sounding rather jaded. "Are you okay, Blake? You seem agitated, even for you."

Cleo's concern only served to annoy the grumpy Blake further. Blake towered over Cleo and grunted. "I'm so sorry that being a hideous creature fighting a useless war is making me agitated," Blake growled sarcastically, baring her teeth at Cleo. Cleo awkwardly backed away, leaving Blake to be alone, as usual...

As Cleo walked away, she was wondering why Blake was the way she was. Cleo had never seen a smile on her face or an optimistic word from her ever-frowning mouth. They first met around a year ago, when Cleo had first been recruited and Blake was still a soldier too. All the other soldiers steered clear of Blake, but not Cleo. Cleo wasn't scared of Blake's appearance or her prickly and abrasive personality.

Blake admired her bravery and was a little less aggressive towards her. They trained together, with Blake showing Cleo the ropes when it came to physical combat. The topic of Cleo's power rarely came up, as Blake looked at Cleo as a human without powers. "How much do you see me relying on my powers to fight?" Blake used to ask. The answer was always never. There were some slight advantages, like the roughness of her skin, but Blake was all technique. Without Blake's attitude rubbing off on her, Cleo would've spent all her time unsuccessfully trying to tap into her power that she just couldn't harness.

Something was off with how Blake was acting, however. Usually she would show Cleo her "sweeter" side, but Cleo was certainly treated to the sour side today. While Cleo walked towards her other friends, she pondered what could have possibly changed since the last time she talked to Blake. Maybe she's just being moody, though. Cleo went over to meet Vitaliy and Leah, who were the polar opposites of Blake's frigid presence.

"Cleo!!!" "Vitaliy!!!" The two greeted each other with shared excitement about the announcement. Vitaliy was another hybrid, being human mixed with wolverine. He must've gotten the personality from one, as he is the most tenacious and fearless person Cleo knows, even despite his small size. They hugged one another, before Leah moved in with a more timid greeting.

"I'm so glad that we all finally got picked, and we're together too!" Vitaliy said, still energetic. "You know Vitaliy... I think I'll be able to use my ice powers on this mission," Cleo confidently stated. "How come?" asked Vitaliy. "I don't know what caused it, but I'm able to do it on command. Not just some stupid crap like cold air, actual ice!"

"Show me," asked Vitaliy, curious about Cleo's sudden ability to use her powers. "I will, but not here. I can't control it a lot. I don't know if you heard about the training facility or not..." Vitaliy laughed. "That was you? Everyone was talking about that!" Vitaliy asked. Cleo shuddered, imagining what sort of reputation she would get if people knew she was behind it. "Yeah... I'd prefer if you kept that part secret." Cleo requested. Vitaliy nodded obediently.

"It's so cool that you can use your powers now. I'm still waiting to see mine." Leah said. Cleo looked at Leah's innocent and happy expression and didn't have the heart to tell her the truth. The truth is that powers are something that you are born with and would very likely know about by now. Cleo awkwardly smiled and nodded. "Anyway, let's go somewhere with fewer people. I'll show you two what I can do."

The three of them vacated the area and walked to a secluded, forested area. This was further away than the training facility that she accidentally froze before. Even if the ice eventually does get found, it's unlikely that it will be found while Cleo is still there, in the dead of night. They could only see what the moon illuminated through the cracks in the canopy above. The white glow reflected off of a tiny pond back towards them, and Cleo confidently approached it.

"Alright, now show us," prompted Vitaliy. Cleo took a deep breath and approached the pond. "Here it is. Just like... this!" Cleo made a punching motion towards the water, with full confidence that it would freeze instantly before her eyes. The water slightly rippled and remained unchanged. Cleo started to sweat, scared that the last time was a fluke. She went quiet with her head in her hands, drawing concern from the other two.

"Hey, it's okay, Cleo. We believe you. It'll get better with practice," Leah tried to reassure, but it had the opposite effect. Cleo couldn't handle the shame of bringing the two of them out there for nothing. "No... I should be able to do it now. I am able to do it now... What the fuck is going on!?" Cleo yelled, loud enough to scare birds out of trees. When Cleo opened her eyes, not only the pond was frozen, but the ground they stood on too. Vitaliy and Leah saw Cleo prove herself with their own eyes, and their mouths opened in shock.

"Alright, let's get out of here before somebody sees us. I may have brought some unwanted attention," Cleo said, before turning around and seeing Drew staring towards her, his unfazed expression lit up by the moonlight. "What a mess this is," joked Drew, before cracking a half smile. "Tomorrow, I'll bring you to where I usually train. It's remote, and you won't need to worry about killing off any local ecosystems there. It's a place where nothing can survive."