Hidden Enemies | The Prime Archives #2 ✓

thirteen

Being an army brat, Chase had the luxury of spending most of his childhood in various places. Well, it wasn't exactly a luxury and he never spent more than a few months in one place. But he wouldn't have traded the experience for the world. He'd seen the bright, city lights of Japan at night. He'd visited the famous Berlin wall in Germany. He'd even seen the deserts of Sudan.

However, he'd never been to Ireland.

So, when the opportunity arose at headquarters about a Prime who was wreaking havoc across the Irish countryside, he jumped at the chance to lead it. Not only would it have been a good break from his routine at The Acropolis, but he'd also be able to visit The Vault after the mission was completed.

He had a few questions for a special someone who was locked away in the supermax prison designed to contain superhumans. The mission to Ireland was the perfect way for him to get his answers without raising suspicion among his peers.

The last thing he needed was people asking him questions about why he was taking a trip to The Vault for no apparent reason.

"What're they calling this thing again?" he asked as he glanced at the mission file on the device in his hands.

The Prime in question had only been referred to by a sequence of unrelated numbers and letters. It had only been active for a few days. The Irish police force reported numerous instances in which farmlands and outlying villages had been terrorized by some monstrous creature.

At first, Chase figured it was just a bear or a pack of wolves. Because why would a Prime be terrorizing random farmlands? But after seeing a few low-quality pictures of the thing, he realized it was no animal.

It was something else entirely.

The Irish government had enlisted Atlas to help neutralize the threat before it started moving into the cities. If that happened, Chase feared they wouldn't be able to take the beast down without people getting hurt in the process.

"The folk are calling it Caorthannach," Holly answered.

He glanced at the redhead, who was sat in the back of the armored truck with him and a few Atlas agents. She was the only other Prime present on the mission, as no one else volunteered. Though, it wasn't like they needed more. Their team should've been more than enough to deal with a threat like this.

"What the hell is a Cort-an-notch?"

She rolled her green eyes at him. "Not Cort-an-notch, you numpty. Caorthannach."

"Yeah, whatever. What does that even mean?"

"It's an old Celtic myth. Said to be a giant who spouts fire from its gob."

Fire? From its mouth?

He peered at the images of the Prime again to see if any of them matched Holly's description. None of them showed the monster spewing flames from its mouth. He wasn't sure if he should've been relieved or concerned.

"Maybe we should've brought Oscar," he said. "If this thing really does shoot fire from its mouth, he'd be helpful."

"He'd probably do more harm than good, don't ye think?" Holly asked.

A frown tugged at his lips. Sure, he messed up a bit more often than normal, but he was still a valuable member of the team. "You guys are way too hard on him. He's trying his best."

"I know, I know," Holly replied while tightening the thorny vines coiled around her forearms. She often used them as whips, grabbling ropes, or even extensions of her own arms. "It's just...a bit of a liability, ye know?"