Rebellion

Chapter 7

I awoke the next morning, surprisingly well rested. In the night someone must have gotten my things from the house. My bag was sitting by my feet beside my crossbow. I looked through my bag and found it filled with clothes and my daggers. I pulled out a clean outfit and changed, brushed my hair, strapped a dagger to my thigh, and grabbed my crossbow.

As I left my tent I saw Bree and smiled at her. "Good morning," I said as I walked over to her.

"Morning. Come on, you should come eat with me before you start your training."

"Alright." We walked over to the large table and grabbed plates of eggs and ham. "Wow. This is amazing. We have real food."

"Yup," she said before taking a bite of eggs. "And it's not Society made. We have chickens and pigs a little bit away from here." We didn't say anything else as we ate. I hardly stopped to take a breath. It was wonderful.

As we were finishing up, Phoenix walked up with another man. He was tall like Phoenix with sun-tanned skin and brown eyes. He wore a dirt-stained white tank top and tan-green camouflage pants. Bree straightened up beside me and looked at both of them.

"Good morning, Phoenix, General."

Phoenix smiled. "Good morning, Bree. And good morning, Xandia."

The other man just nodded. He didn't smile, though he didn't frown either. He just looked tired.

Bree stood and grabbed her plate. "If you'll excuse me," she said quietly and walked away." I got the feeling she knew they were there to talk to me.

Phoenix nodded and Bree before returning his gaze back to me. "Xandia, I would like to introduce you to my second-in-command. This is Ace, head general of the Rebellion. He will be training you this week."

I bowed my head in respect. "It's a pleasure, General. I look forward to working with you."

"Likewise. I see you're not dead, so I know you can keep your ass out of trouble enough to live. That's good. I don't need a corpse on my hands."

I nodded. He seemed serious, but I saw a glimmer of humor in his eyes. I didn't think he was as serious as he looked.

"We'll start your survival training today. I think you already know basic survival in the wilderness, considering the fact that you survived, but there's more to it than that. I'll tell ya later. I need coffee first." He left for the table without another word.

Phoenix laughed. "Sorry about him. He's not really a morning person."

"It's alright. He doesn't seem that bad." I smiled.

"I'm glad you think so. Many of our younger members find him to be intimidating at first."

I looked over towards Bree. "Yeah I noticed that. He seems kinda scary at first, but his eyes are kind."

Phoenix nodded slightly. "He's a good man. He's loyal to me and the group. But he is our strongest fighter outside myself. He is not someone you want to be enemies with. He has never lost a fight against an enemy. That is why I chose him to train you. We have a very short time to work with, while many other new members train for months, or even years before feeling confident enough to go into battle. You have one week."

"You think he will be able to train me well enough to go with you in such a short time?"

"If anyone can it's him. We have to at least try. I doubt you'll stay behind either way. You have potential, and I hope that with his training that will be enough."

"Me too. I can't die yet. I need to live for Landon."

"I hope you will. You'll be a great addition to our group."