Aviana (MC Riders #1)

S C I A M A C H Y

/sʌɪˈaməki/

noun

a battle against imaginary enemies; fighting your shadow.

~🎲~

Six Years Ago:

" T H E R E ' S  N O T H I N G  out here for miles," a familiar voice floated towards his ears as Gunner walked, the heavy gear he was wearing in his vest rattling with every step.

"It's like you want something to jump out at us," Gunner shook his head with a chuckle.

His partner grinned, mischief twinkling in his eyes. "Well," he said. "A little action would be nice."

Gunner rolled his eyes at his response, hiking his rifle further up his shoulder as it began to slip before sighing. While he didn't share his partner's lust for action, he could empathise with his boredom. They had been stationed out in the middle of nowhere for an entire week and so far, they hadn't seen or heard anything.

"I thought being on the front lines meant you got to be in the fight," his partner grumbled as they approached camp where the other two soldiers were. "This isn't what I signed up for."

Gunner raised an eyebrow. "So you didn't sign up to 'serve your country?'" he asked in a playful manner. "You're just here to shoot guns and possibly get some shrapnel embedded in your body to take home as a souvenir?"

They finally reached the camp and entered the first tent, disarming themselves before Gunner's partner threw himself on his bed. "Of course I want to serve my country," he groaned as he shifted around, trying to get comfortable. "But sitting around in different camps week after week isn't doing much for anyone. I want to feel useful for once."

Gunner seated himself on the end of his own bed, sighing as he stared at his friend across the room. "They won't keep us here forever, Thompson," he grinned. "You'll get your action soon enough."

As if some supernatural force had heard their conversation, a single gunshot rang out from outside the tent. The two looked at each other for a moment, frozen, before switching gears entirely and grabbing their guns. Gunner cautiously peeked outside to tent to see if he could get a look at what had happened, but his line of sight was clear.

He gave a nod to his partner and the two moved out, watching each other's backs as they scanned the scenery around them. Finally, they caught sight of the two soldiers who had been stationed with them. The two were staring off into the distance, one pointing as if trying to get the other to see what he had seen.

"What's going on?" Thompson called out as he and Gunner approached the pair. "What are you shooting at?"

One of the men, a soldier who was a little younger than the rest of them pointed in the general vicinity of the mountain line. "I swear there was movement," he defended himself. "I saw something up there."

"And if it had just been an animal, Jones?" the other man asked with a firm voice. He was the officer in charge over their camp and as such had become the father figure. "You can't go shooting willy-nilly when you see the slightest movement."

Jones sighed, his brow scrunching in the centre as he stared up at the mountains. "Yes, sir," he mumbled, his eyes still searching.

The man subtly rolled his eyes before stalking off back towards the tents. Gunner patted Jones on the back, but before he could turn to leave, a bullet came zipping through the air, missing Thompson's shoulder by a millimetre.