The Annex

Chapter 27

By nightfall we had reached Yael. The Commander had found a small cave in a rocky outcrop that was covered in lichen. We had decided to make camp there. Torr had taken to soaring up above in the sky when I heard voices off in the distance. I turned to the Commander who slowly pressed his index finger to his lips as he slipped off into the trees. He returned with Tomas and Atlas in tow.

"Cara," Tomas ran and hugged me as soon as he came into view. Atlas appeared next and gave me a curt nod which I returned.

"What are you guys doing here," I asked as Tomas let go of me.

"The message from the pigeon told us to come here. Wasn't that your message," he asked.

"No, it was the Commander's message," I said, tilting my head toward the Commander who was busying himself with making a fire. "He's got a plan to stop the war."

Atlas and I started to make dinner from food that they had brought from the military base as the Commander started to answer Tomas' questions.

"How far away is the Windfallian army?"

"They just received word to mobilize here in Yael. There's the beginnings of a camp right in the valley."

"And we're supposed to intercept messages from Captain Hector to the army?"

"The only two ways I can think of for Hector to get messages to his army is through a pigeon or by messenger.

"Cara, can we talk," Atlas came to sit by my side. I scooted over to make room on the log I was perched on.

"Hey," I murmured awkwardly.

"I think we should probably talk about what's going on between us." He ran a hand through his sandy blonde hair.

"Yeah, I feel like maybe we rushed into it," I said as he opened his mouth to speak.

"That's exactly how I feel. I just think that maybe we're not the best fit for one another," he said, relief relaxing his shoulders. "I hope this doesn't mean we can't be friends."

"I think we'd make much better friends," I laughed as he slung his arm around me to pull me into a hug. "I'm so glad you feel the same way. I was really dreading this conversation," I admitted. I turned my attention back to the conversation between Tomas and the Commander.

"The higher we go, the better vantage, but we also increase the distance we need to cover to get to whoever comes in and out of the valley."

"Yeah, I think we should split up. I can go with Atlas to that mountain and you and Cara stay here, that way we've got the valley covered from both sides," Tomas said.

"That sounds good."

"We should split the supplies then," Atlas turned to me and we headed over to where Tomas and Atlas had unloaded the supplies. Splitting the food went quickly and soon it was time for goodbyes.

"We'll see you soon," Tomas said as he hugged me. "Don't do anything stupid."

"I'll try," I laughed.

"Well, you know where to find us," the Commander said. In case of emergencies, Tomas and the Commander had settled on signals by fire, signals that all soldiers in Rivell had to memorize. I watched the pair ride off into the night as I turned back to the Commander.

"Do you want first watch," I asked.

"You take it," he said as he made his way inside the cave. I pulled out my compass to determine the direction any airborne messages would be arriving and then settled into watch with my bow in hand.