Academy Island

Arrival

Ski, er...Silas gave my face one last look as the scream faded before bending to scoop me up under my back and legs. I was hefted up against a solid chest, care taken that my foot didn't bump on anything as I was lifted up princess style. I could smell the ocean's salty presence all over him, along with the wind. The smell of men was foreign to me, other than my father, his smell always reminding me faintly of paper and printer cartridges. Up so close, it made my skin quiver. The man with green eyes turned back from scanning the jungle to us, adjusting his glasses as he looked me over with my leg sticking out at an awkward angle. Max growled at the jungle and he nodded.

"Everyone head back to camp, and stay alert. Let's go."

It took me a few minutes to get used to the sway of being carried, an uneasy twist in the pit of my stomach. Punky and Luke came up on either side of me, everyone's footsteps rustling together and the jingle of Max's collar reminding me I was in the middle of a crowd of men. All of them weren't even here, Muscles formidable physique came to mind. I hid my face against Silas' tight pectoral.

I was doomed.

The men around me moved swiftly, far faster then I could have traveled, back the way I'd come to get away from them. Every step made me more nervous. I hadn't wanted this. They scared me. Not as much as the cat, but still. I wasn't sure if I had jumped from the frying pan into the fire or not. I looked from face to face, all of them serious and alert to every sound the jungle was making, walking as one all-direction facing unit like they were highly trained, or just had been surviving a long time together here and knew the dangers of the jungle well. It made me wonder if they were stranded here, like I was. Judging by some of the hand made things they were wearing, and the handcrafted guns, they most likely were.

A twitch at my hair made me jump. I peeked over my squished shoulder to see what it was, and found Punky with the flower I'd put in my hair in his hand, twirling it for a moment in a blur of pale blue, and then reaching again for my hair. I watched him with big eyes, wondering what he wanted. I was already being touched all over, something I wasn't used to at all, but his face was almost distant. I wondered what was wrong.

"What...what is it?"

He pulled his hand away and gave me my flower back, a smirk on his lips.

"Still trying to make myself believe that you're really real, and not just a ghost."

I took the periwinkle flower he held out to me and blushed.

"Sorry. I didn't think any of you would be coming back down to the lagoon that late at night."

Silas hefted me up a notch and got a better hold under my knees. "Don't move so much, little Aggele. We're almost there."

"Aggele?"

The camp clearing was around us next and I got an eyeful of grass huts with bamboo frames, scattered around a large central fire surrounded by palm logs. The redheaded one, Muscles, was bent over and grunting through the hefting of a large awkward stone, his straining back to us. He was going to hurt himself if he wasn't careful. Luke, the one who'd saved me and I hadn't thanked yet, tossed something into my lap, a lumpy burlap sack, and ran forward, I thought at first to help Muscles with the rock. Silas stiffened under me, his fingers digging into my thighs as Luke crept up behind and swung his hand in a swift and sure arc, aiming for Muscles backside. Punky groaned a warning, but it was too late.

I could almost feel the sharp smack on my own backside, and cringed when Muscles swore loudly and dropped the rock. Luke jumped back, laughing while he easily dodged Muscle's swings.

"Did you miss me that much, you little punk? Try that again and I'll..."

The man wearing green moved forward, his back straight as he got between the two. "Enough. Nate, I need you to fire one of the flares off. We have a problem."