Fate Breakers

Chapter 16

Gannon

I've been thinking a lot about Satyana these days.

"Heal. Grow your roots, bring life to what's been laid to waste."

Looking out at the training field, my chest just feels so heavy. So much has been laid to waste. The ground our camp sits on is overworked and aching. The people who live in these camps are ground down to nothing. All of us are exhausted. Something has to be done, but what?

There's a sharp whistle, and I feel something hit the back of my head. "Oye! Why so serious, Ramirez?"

I turn around, picking up what was thrown. "Where the fuck did you get a sweet pepper?"

Aviva hops onto the fence, sitting down beside where I'm leaning. She has an entire bag of these peppers, and she's eating them like they're carrot sticks. "Swapmeet," she answers around her bite of pepper. "Bruce bought em' for me so I'd quit sneaking stuff from his prepping station."

"So you're admitting to being a thief." I snatch one of her peppers for myself. There's no way I'm eating the one she chucked at my head.

Aviva smirks, shaking her head at me before she looks out at the training ground. "Did'ja hear that we're able to start picking for additions to our units?"

The reminder makes my stomach churn. I really wish I didn't bite straight into this pepper now. "I don't think we're ready."

Aviva sighs heavily through her nose. "I don't think they care..."

"They should." Heat spreads up my neck, my nails dig into the wood of the fence. "These are lives we're dealing with here. We could get someone killed."

"Maybe, at the end of the day, that's what they want. Maybe the goal of all this isn't to actually win, it's to kill off as many people as possible so there's no one left to challenge them."

"Which them are we talkin' about here?" I never believed that the Balor Masters didn't have their own reasons for allowing such devastation. Do I think they fully agree with the Realm Elders? No, not at all, but do I think they have their own agenda in all this? Absolutely I fucking do.

Aviva shakes her head. I've noticed more and more how similar we are. Something in my chest tells me that its for a reason, and I don't think I should ignore it. Some people like to say those odd little feelings we get are our intuition. If mine is trying to tell me something, maybe it's worth it to investigate.

I want to switch the topic, at least a little. "Any idea who you're gonna pick?"

Slowly, Aviva nods her head. "That one girl with the rose gold cape."

I freeze at that. "Viva... that's Lenore Dena."

"I know."

"A... as in... as in the Dena family... the Vampires responsible for attending to the royal family of Fíntan."

"As in the one person no one else will want due to false perceptions." Aviva looks over to me, a sort of determination in her eyes. "The Dena's are some of the most elusive of Fíntan's nobility solely because of how little is known about them. Lenore has the potentiality to be an incredible ally, if I shoot my shot and give her a chance."

Suddenly, I can't look at Aviva anymore. I turn my head off to the side, feigning interest in the new buildings under construction. Something in my chest aches seeing the hope in her eyes. I had eyes like that, and they were taken from me. So much was taken from me. Am I even the same person anymore?

"Your heart is still healing, I wish to nurture your heart and soul."

I shut my eyes. I take a deep breath.