The Spoils of War

Chapter 3

After a couple more days had passed, Reyna decided to focus her energy on building a raft that could get her back to Yeveland. Now that she and Celine had been stuck on the island for over seventy-two hours, she had pretty much given up on being rescued.

The trip from Nova to Yeveland was no small journey, even in a motorized boat. Reyna knew she would have to build something resilient and sturdy if they would ever survive the waves of the ocean and the sharks beneath it.

Before she could start assembling a raft, Reyna had to collect most of the materials first. She'd spend hours deep into the forest, cutting up wood and finding other materials that could be used for the boat. Inside the forest was also a good place for her to be alone with her thoughts.

While stopping for a sip of water at a large stream Reyna had discovered, she took a moment to reflect on her time at Nova.

It actually hasn't been that bad this time,

she thought to herself as she cupped the water with her hand and took a sip.

But if we stay here much longer, the Ishla girl will probably die.

The boat ride back to Yeveland won't be easy on her either. But it's not like we can stay here. Someone like her can only survive on fish, fruit and dirty water for so long...

Hopefully, we run into my squad in the middle of the ocean, so I don't have to row the entire way back,

she thought, as she continued to worry about her captured soldier.

That poor girl must be so miserable out here...

Meanwhile, back at the campsite, Celine was lying on her back, staring up at the clouds.

I love it out here...

she thought as a big smile came over her face.

Reyna is so cool...

Suddenly, her cheeks became red as the Yeveland soldier's name rang through her mind.

Oh, my God, I can't believe I'm referring to her by her first name... She'd probably be pissed if I ever called her Reyna in person! But I so badly want to try it! It would almost be like we're friends!

Taking a peek around, she began worrying about the woman she had spent so much time with.

Gosh, I just hope I'm not a burden on her. Reyna... I mean, Captain Fire... works tirelessly, every day. First, she built the entire campsite by herself. Now it looks like she's building a raft...

Celine then let out a little sigh as he thought about what was probably in store for their near future.

This has actually been kind of nice... being around a true warrior like her all day and night... but this can't last forever.

As Celine continued to reflect favorably on her time at Nova, she was left scratching her chin at something that still confused her.

I wonder why she never lets me follow her into the woods... It's actually kind of weird that she just lets me free-roam over here. I guess even though she doesn't think of me as a threat at all... I'd still be a burden if I followed her around.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up as an intriguing thought crossed her mind.

Or... what if she's protecting me by leaving me here? She could be out there fighting wild animals for all I know. Hell, she could even be out there keeping The Sorceress away!

No, I'm just being silly,

Celine chuckled to herself after thinking it over.

The truth is, she doesn't actually care about me. I'm just her captured soldier, and she has to get us back alive.

Still... no matter how this turns out... I've experienced more joy, pretending I have a real relationship with her, than I ever had with anyone from Ishla. And knowing that she took care of me for a few days, whether it was part of her orders or not, is more than enough for me. I just wish I could let her know... I care about her too.

Celine's daydreaming was suddenly interrupted as she heard the sound of rustling in the bushes nearby.

Reyna's back!

she thought as she jumped up with a big smile on her face.

I should probably try to not look so excited though... Maybe I should try to look semi-happy... Like... "I'm glad you're back but it's whatever."

She then started to feel giddy inside, as another thought crossed her mind.

What if I say, "Hi l, Reyna," when she gets back?! I wonder if she'll get mad that I called her by her first name. I should at least give it a try!

Unfortunately for Celine, she wouldn't get to try out any of the tactics she practiced in her head. Instead of Reyna walking through the bushes, she witnessed the terrifying sight of two large hogs approaching their base.

Jumping back, she stared at them with wide eyes as her body slowly began to tremble. "Holy shit..." she whispered to herself, as she laid her eyes on the massive animals. One was about four-hundred pounds and the other three-hundred. Even though she knew they weren't close to being the biggest on the island, she couldn't help but think,

They are so freaking scary!

Slowly, she took a step back as each of the hogs got closer and closer. She noticed they were looking at her, but neither had made an aggressive move towards her yet.

Eventually, the smaller of the two began rummaging through some of the fruits that Reyna had collected and stored at the camp. Scared that they would need that food for their upcoming journey through the ocean, Celine felt a need to stop them somehow!

I can't let them eat all our food,

she thought to herself, as she began biting her fingernails.

Reyna probably worked so hard to collect that stuff. Now here I am, all alone, while she's out there working... I have to defend the base somehow...

If only I had my rifle. I lost it after the explosions.... but maybe if I just scream at them, they'll be triggered by the sound and run away... It might be a death wish but I have to try something...

Celine began to yell various loud noises while spreading her arms and legs to appear bigger. Unfortunately for her, not only were the hogs undeterred, but now they were laser focused on her. Even worse, the larger hog was now snarling at her.

"Oh, my God, I'm sorry..." the Ishla soldier pleaded, backing away. Then, as the hog slowly followed her around, she continued to beg, "Please, no... Please don't attack me..."

This charade went on for a couple of minutes. Celine kept backing away, watching the hog carefully. All the while, the big animal was stalking her, waiting for her to make a mistake so it could jump in for an attack.

Suddenly, the hog made its move and came rushing towards the defenseless woman. After tripping over her own feet and stumbling to the ground, Celine realized there was no escaping. All she could do was close her eyes and scream, "Reyna, please save me!"

Just before the hog got to her, Reyna came out of nowhere and stabbed it with her sword, entering through one armpit and exiting the other. It then let out a big squeal before running around in circles, screaming in pain.

When Celine looked up, she witnessed Reyna, almost in the same light as she did the first time she laid her eyes on the brave woman. Though there wasn't a fire around her this time, Reyna appeared just as heroic to the weaker soldier as she did when she first saw her in the ravine.

While the bigger hog ran around with the sword still stuck through its body, it eventually ran into the other one, causing both to frantically squeal in a frenzy. Reyna took this moment to locate the spot where she buried Celine's rifle the other night and quickly dug it out.

Reyna knew full well that it would take a couple of minutes for the wounded hog to eventually die. Wanting to end its life quickly, as well as dispatch the other one, she pointed the rifle at it, with only her left hand, but was unable to fire for some reason.

Inspecting the weapon with a confused expression on her face, Reyna tried to figure out why it wouldn't fire. At the same time, the wounded hog began charging at her, causing Celine's heart to race.

She doesn't know how to use our weapons!

the Ishla soldier silently panicked as she jumped up to her feet.

The hog's about to attack her! I have to do something!

What is up with this gun?

Reyna wondered as she felt the hog getting closer and closer. But after realizing she didn't have enough time to figure the weapon out before the hog reached her, she simply lowered it with her left hand before raising her right palm in front of her face.

I didn't want it to have to come to this,

she thought as she began getting into her stance. But much to her surprise, just before the hog reached her, she was tackled out of the way and onto the ground by the petite Ishla soldier.

What the...?

she reacted, as she suddenly noticed Celine on top of her.

Acting quickly, Celine then grabbed the rifle from Reyna's hand before quickly aiming it at the large hog and pulling the trigger. It wasn't the most accurate shot, but she did manage to hit the dangerous animal on the side of the skull, despite her frantic state.

As the hog went into an even bigger frenzy, Reyna got up to her feet and calmly grabbed the gun back out of Celine's hands.

Wow, their rifles have safety mechanisms on them,

she thought to herself, as she effortlessly pointed the gun at the frantic hog with only her left hand and shot it directly between the eyes.

After the first hog went down, Celine stared on with wide eyes and a big mouth as the Yeveland soldier calmly shot the other hog right between the eyes.

Two perfect shots in a row?!

she screamed in her head in disbelief.

She didn't even use the sights! And how the hell did she fire my rifle so casually like it was some little pistol?!

While Reyna looked calm, cool and collected on the outside, she felt nothing but confusion on the inside. Despite looking impressive to Celine, the Yeveland soldier didn't understand how her first shot was a fraction of a centimeter off where she expected it to land, and she definitely didn't understand why a rifle designed for battle would have a safety mechanism to it. However, there was something else on her mind, that would end up keeping her awake that night.

***

Later on, as the two stranded soldiers found themselves sitting together by the fire like they had become accustomed to over the past few days. While Reyna attempted to cook some of the hog meat, the memory of Celine tackling her out of harm's way continued to play through her mind.

She... tried to protect... me...

the Yeveland soldier kept repeating in her head.

I don't understand...

Meanwhile, Celine just kept staring at her feet in an attempt to not look at Reyna. Blushing, as she recollected over her own account of what happened earlier that day, she thought to herself,

That was a really embarrassing display I showed out there... She must think I'm such an incapable soldier...

However, as the petite blonde finally took a peek at the strong woman sitting beside her, her face began to grow even warmer as she reminisced about the rest of the incident.

But that was so cool the way she took those hogs out! She didn't even know how to use my gun and yet she got off the two most perfect shots I've ever seen! I could hardly even hold that gun still with two hands, and she did it with one!

While Celine did everything she could not to jump with excitement, Reyna continued to sit there and ponder why the Ishla soldier tried to protect her, risking her life. However, with neither woman able to reach a conclusion that would calm their restless minds, Celine put a halt to all their anxious thoughts when she suddenly rested her head on Reyna's shoulder.

Huh?

the Yeveland soldier reacted, as she looked over and saw the top of Celine's head resting against her.

Why is she lying on me like this?

All the while, Celine wore a smile on her face, as she silently spoke,

You're probably wondering why I'm resting my head on you like this... It's because you're my hero... Even though we were born enemies... I'll never see you as anything other than my hero!

***

That night, Celine rested under the stars, sharing the cloak with Reyna, just as she had the previous few nights. However, much to her shock, she would eventually discover that this night would be a little different.

Instead of falling asleep side by side, as she had come to expect, the Yeveland soldier pushed her way closer until their bodies were directly against each other's. Celine's heart raced and her eyes popped wide open, because it was the first sign of affection she had ever seen out of Reyna.

Not knowing whether this stemmed from vulnerability or just the cold weather, Celine embraced the opportunity and wrapped her arms around Reyna. She closed her eyes and squeezed the soldier like it was the last opportunity she would ever get.

Despite the excitement in her heart, Celine would quickly fall into a deep slumber. It had been an exhausting day for her, but she was at peace, knowing she was in the arms of the woman who protected her earlier that day.

However, with Celine's eyes closed, she wasn't able to see that Reyna's face told a completely different story. For the first time, she wasn't just wearing an emotionless expression; there was a slight furrow to her brows, and determination in her eyes.

As she stared into the woods from their campsite, a phrase constantly replayed through her mind...

The past never dies...

***

I really don't know how I would describe the next few days of my adventure. I wish I could summarize it in one word, but I don't think there's a word in the Ishla dictionary, nor the Yeveland one, that could even begin to describe how I felt.

Reyna was still the Yeveland soldier who captured me in the middle of my mission. However, now she had saved my life more than once, meaning... I was kind of in debt to her now.

On top of all that, we had begun snuggling at night. It was kind of awkward at first, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't look forward to it every day.

Even though we lived in a world where the women heavily outnumbered the men, I never viewed myself as having feelings for another woman. I figured that if I never ended up with a male, I would just end up alone. And I don't speak the Yeveland language, so I can't ask Reyna how she felt, but I assume she felt the same.

Looking back on it, perhaps that was the reason our nighttime cuddling never progressed into anything further. And when I'd wake up, she'd already be out and about, working on the raft to get us out of there. But still, even the nights we shared, when we were just sleeping next to each other underneath the same cloak, I felt something with her I've never felt with anyone else.

As she spent the next days working on our escape raft, I stayed productive by fantasizing about stuff that would never happen. She didn't want my help, anyway. I tried to offer, but she would just gently move me out of the way with her left hand.

While I sat there and watched her work, I couldn't help but notice how impressive Reyna was in all aspects. To build the raft, she used wood from trees that she had cut up with her sword, despite how difficult that is. She tied them together with these long and hardy vines she found deep in the forest. She even used some nectar between the logs to keep water from seeping in.

Somehow, she even fastened two paddles to row with. I'm assuming one was just a backup for her, because like with anything else, I would only get in her way if I tried to help. And then there was the staff she made out of the wood from a smaller tree. She spread her cloak around it, almost using it as a makeshift sail.

The experience of watching her do all this while simultaneously protecting me gave me the weirdest feeling I had ever experienced in my life. Somehow, my heart would be racing, and without even realizing it, I'd be biting my bottom lip. And never once did I experience any type of boredom. I could have sat there and watched her forever, if only we didn't have to escape the island.

The last thing we did before setting sail was take a trip to this large stream she had found deeper into the forest. However, on our way there, I noticed a sight that sent chills down my spine.

Not too far from the creek was a pile of dead hogs. Some of which were much bigger than the two that came to our campsite the other day.

I couldn't figure out what had happened to them. There were large holes in each of their chests, like something had come and purposely executed all of them. I could only wonder if this was the doings of something supernatural... like The Sorceress.

What I found even more surprising was the cold look on Reyna's face when she stared at the pile of carnage. As shocked as I was, she appeared completely emotionless. All I could do was chalk it up to her harsh past. I assumed that seeing this amount of death must have been natural to her.

The surprises continued when we got to the creek, but in a different way... Reyna undressed me of all my clothes, leaving me completely naked, before unexpectedly pushing me into the water.

There was nothing malicious about the way she handled me. I just assumed that there was some reason I needed to bathe myself before our long journey through the ocean. She even motioned for me to scrub myself, leaving me with an awkward feeling as I bathed right in front of her.

Of course, this wasn't the first time that she had seen me naked. There was the strip search the first time I encountered her, and I always wondered if she would do it again. This moment was so different, however. I was no longer afraid of her, like I was the first time. In fact, I kind of wanted her to join me, so we could have a girls' bath together...

I didn't know why, but I thought it'd be nice to share the water with her. It wasn't for any sexual reasons either. I knew she and I wouldn't be washing each other. I just thought it'd be more fun than having her stare at me while I bathed myself.

Come to think of it, I hadn't seen her out of her clothes. It's not that I wanted to see her naked or anything; I just thought that could be something we could share, now that she had seen me naked, twice.

I actually hadn't seen her outside of her clothes at all. Even though she let me wear her jacket at night when it was cold, she'd never take that long button-up shirt off, no matter how hot it got during the day.

As cold as I was after the bath, I started to see why she might have forced me to do it. When we finally got to the ocean and jumped on the make-shift raft, I could immediately tell that it would be a hot journey once the sun started reflecting off the water. And jumping into the water wasn't really an option, with all the dangerous animals that were lurking under the sea.

Twice our boat was surrounded by sharks, some of which were three or four times bigger than either of us. But as afraid as I was, whenever they would surround our boat, Reyna looked at them as if they were no threat to us at all.

That was what I loved most about this mysterious warrior. No matter what threats came our direction, she never once looked unsure of herself. Even when the hogs attacked us the other day, she had this look in her eyes, like she wasn't in the least bit of danger.

With that undeterred gaze, she paddled and paddled the entire way. Sometimes, when the winds were right, she'd open up the sail to help give us a boost. But from morning until night, she worked hard to get us to our destination.

Over and over, I'd fall asleep from the fatigue of being out in the sun for so long. But every time I'd wake up, she was doing the same thing she had been doing when I fell asleep; just paddling away.

Never once did she appear tired; never once did she appear undeterred. It was just another example of what a true warrior she was.