Wolf Heart

Chapter 50

Planet: Kestra, Elite Training Ground

First Insurgency War

MAIA

Months after the disastrous training simulation, their teamwork suffered.

James refused to work with her and continued to ignore her since. Maia braced herself for the incoming lecture when General Falae called her to her office, and when she entered, her superior officer wasn't alone. Commander Beckett, another superior officer she met at the end of specialised training, stood at her side, hair greying at the roots, an uneasy expression curled over his face. I'm guessing there's trouble... I usually see him with a smile on his face...

It had to be about her failure at teamwork. It was her responsibility, but she struggled to get James to communicate — not that he made it easy. In fact, he made it damn near impossible.

But... Can I blame him after what I said? He did open up, and I just threw it right back at him.

"General Falae." Maia stood at attention and brought her hand to her brow. "You wished to see me?"

"I wanted to talk to you about James Ranier and the lack of cooperation you two have shown," General Falae said without a greeting.

Maia bowed and headed to the desk, and shuffled without a valuable reason. "I don't know what's going on with him, Ma'am." Harder to admit, but worse to acknowledge.

"I did notice the drop after the flag session," General Falae pointed out. "Did something happen during your exercise afterwards?"

Maia frowned and refused to hide the truth. "We got into a small spat after you smoked us," she admitted. "His attitude got to me, and he shot back that I'm not his mother." Shame filled her heart, and no amount of justification made what she said anymore right. "I said I wouldn't want to be considering his stubborn ass."

Commander Beckett and General Falae glanced at each other, and Maia frowned at their reaction. "What is it?"

"May I ask you a question, Urtanes?" General Falae asked.

"Yes, Ma'am."

General Falae got out of her chair and pressed a tab on her datapad. "What do you know of the Eastpoint Massacre?"

Icy pinpricks swept down her spine at the haggard reporters on the edge of the condemned scene. Coverage from Roxton while flames lit through the stars. Unreal and a nightmare from the other side of an I-Screen. Each loss splattered across the screen in blood with endless numbers, until there was nothing left of a little town out in the middle of nowhere. "How could I not know?" Maia whispered. "It's all everyone would talk about. It was the worst pirate raid in Sanctum history. Eastpoint, a small town on the edges of Roxton county... wiped out in a single night." Maia pressed a hand against her chest while the noise and screams from across the screen dug into her heart. "And no one survived."

General Falae shook her head. "You have to take caution with the news, because there were survivors. We've kept their identities private for their own sake." She unhooked the datapad then handed it to her. "I want you to look over these documents."

Her heart dropped at the complete list of every confirmed casualty within Eastpoint and the few missing. Ice filled her heart at the R section of names.

Ranier.

Maia flicked through the three names which perished in the attack.

General Falae tented her fingers and knitted her brow. "James Ranier is one of three survivors of the Eastpoint Massacre. He lost his entire family in that raid — including his mother. He had a poor reaction to what you said... because he doesn't have her anymore."