A Game Of Pawns

Chapter 15

"I'm hungry!" I complained as my stomach growled. We had been walking for what felt like hours. The sun was up and I was hot and ready for a break. "Saris, do you still have food in your pockets? How long have we been walking anyway?"

"Nope," Saris said casually. "And it hasn't been that long." Then Saris stopped and put a hand to his stomach. "Mmm. But you have a point. Let's find somewhere to eat."

"We just passed a Subway a block or so ago," Demi suggested.

"Perfect," Saris said. "Let's go."

We started heading back the way we came, Demi leading the way since she had seen the restaurant. I fell into step beside Saris, "do you think I made a good choice? With my weapon and power, I mean."

He didn't answer right away and his hesitation had me doubting myself. I risked a look at his face and he responded, "it all depends on how you end up using it. I think the sword and shield are great for you and your fighting style." His praise melted my concerns and I grinned, proud of my choice. Saris had combat experience, weapons training and strategy perception that I trusted, so if he thought it was a good pick, that was enough for me. "What is your power, anyway?"

I mentally 'duh'ed myself. I hadn't told him yet. "It's an energize weapon thingy," I cringed at my description. "Uhh...it's supposed to extend the range of my weapons."

"Oh, that's great for you. Could be a real surprise for an opponent too. Just make sure to think when you use your weapon and ability. Sounds obvious, but there's lots of people who don't. They have great abilities and waste them doing something stupid in a fight."

"Like what?"

"You remember the day we met and I fought that man who could freeze time? He wasted his ability by not trying to kill me. Something you might want to think about is when you use your ability. If you extend your sword when it's pointing down, you'll just get stuck in the ground. That kind of thing.

"Gotcha."

I spent the rest of our trip to the sandwich shop thinking of ways I might be able to use my gifts. It didn't take long to find the green sign and all thoughts of fighting left my mind. My mouth started to water just thinking about the food inside. Saris stopped us in front of the business adjacent to the sandwich shop. He cautiously peered around the corner of the building and into the windows of the restaurant, motioning for us to stay close. With the addition of Demi to our team, the chills were constant and we could no longer trust that tell to warn us of unwelcome company. We had to trust our other senses till the chills faded, which I figured would happen in the next day or so like they had with Saris. Not seeing anyone inside, Saris approached the door, opening it quickly and swiftly scanning the interior as we entered. Moving behind the counter he searched the back room but returned seconds later, looking visibly more relaxed.

Demi and I took that as a sign that all was okay and she rushed past Saris, making her way to the far side of the counter. She inspected the food for a moment, then combed her hair out of her eyes and put on plastic gloves. "Welcome to Subway, how may I help you?" She said in a dull tone.

I smiled and asked, "done this before?"

"Once or twice," she admitted with a wink. "What do you want? My treat."

Demi had definitely worked at a Subway before. She was quick and knew most of their signature sandwiches by heart, listing off what was in a few that I had asked about. She made me a Spicy Italian with provolone cheese, lettuce, spinach, peppers and tomato, topping it off with ranch dressing. I watched her with dreamy eyes and forgot that Saris was right beside me, watching Demi make the food, probably figuring out what he wanted. "Oh," she said, "you should try this too." She squirted some of the Subway Vinaigrette on top. "It gives it a nice umph." She wrapped the sandwich in paper, slipped it into a bag, and handed it over the counter. "That'll be fifty dollars, please," she announced, an expectant expression on her face as she held out her hand.