Blue Moon

Chapter 37

Feliks groaned, "Love is disgusting."

Alona stopped chewing. Was she in love? She glanced at Arlo. He hadn't seemed to notice Feliks's comment. She had never been in love before. She had liked few guys, but that was a long time ago. She wasn't sure she knew what love was or if she had ever encountered love before. 

She had friends that she appreciated and respected, but she thought love was something more complicated. She figured that love couldn't go unnoticed and she hadn't noticed anything different between them. Sure her chest tightened and her knees shook when he showed her affection but she had supposed that was her infatuation with him. 

They finished breakfast quietly. Alona washed their dishes then returned upstairs to change into actual clothes. She stripped off her sweatpants then her baggy t-shirt. She slipped on a pair of navy blue pants. She wished they were blue jeans, oh how she missed blue jeans.

Arlo opened her door as she pulled out a white v-neck from her dresser. He stared, then turned back around. She scoffed as she slipped on her shirt over her gray sports bra. 

"Sorry." He seemed to struggle to speak. 

"It's fine." She replied, "You can turn around now." She shook her head.

"I was going to talk about the plan." He cleared his throat, trying to become captain once again.

She nodded and sat on the bed, waiting for him to continue.  

He watched her for a moment then began, "The ground troops will come up through the tunnels as a surprise attack. Our team, however, will be dropped off on the top floor. The goal is to get to the King before he is alerted by our presence. This means we will have to work quickly, we will have approximately 5 minutes before the ground troops will begin their siege. Once they do, the castle will be on lockdown. There will be only one way out, and that's by force." He talked to her like a soldier. There was nothing in his eyes, he was cold. He was the Captain.

Alona stared at him, wondering how he could switch so quickly. 

"We will be paired together," He gestured to him then to her, "Our job will be to eliminate the guards blocking the path to the King's chambers and to do it quietly." He emphasized quietly, making sure she understood, "You will follow me and do as I tell you. Tomorrow we will practice the operation together and then with the rest of the team."

She nodded, it sounded simple enough, "Won't they notice us coming? Won't they notice the ship?"

"Our ship has active camo. If that fails then they won't be surprised because it's one of their own ships. Remember the one we stole?" He asked.

She smiled, "I remember."

"That's the ship that we'll be on." He paused, "A team is retrieving it, and repairing it, as we speak." 

He shifted, searching her face then continued to speak, "Drew is giving the announcement today. It's almost time." He stared at her, "You'll have a map when we go in. The rest of us know the building, but if we get separated..." He stopped speaking, "Just make sure to stay out of sight. We won't be able to communicate through our comms inside the building, they block foreign signals inside the castle. We can't be separated, so don't let that happen."

She saw there was more he wanted to say, she understood. This was something she needed to do. She had to try. 

"Whenever we board the ship, Drew's guy will give you a watch that is synced with everyone else's, he'll brief you, then you'll have to basically convince him you know the plan front to back, you'll also have to know what to do if we fail." He crossed his arms.

"So what do I do if we fail?" She asked.

"You have a few choices, get captured, tortured then killed, if you find a way out then great, but if you don't then, it is expected that you will eliminate yourself from the equation, by whatever means possible." He spoke quickly.

"By eliminate you mean off myself? Kill myself?" She asked.

He nodded, "But I doubt it will come to that."

----

They stood outside watching Drew's announcement. Alona had been convincing herself she could kill herself if she had to. She wondered what way was easiest. She was going to ask Arlo, but she figured he would see it as she was expecting that to happen.

She had sat staring at the photos on her wall in her room, wondering about her future or if she even had one. She had sat there until Arlo convinced her to eat lunch with him.   

She looked down at her muddy boots. It was strange to Alona how suddenly there were crowds of people out on the streets standing in inches of mud and water. She had the feeling that everyone had expected what Drew would say. Everyone stared up watching. 

Alona scanned the crowd, looking at the faces of the rebel people. She wondered if they felt hope or fear. Maybe they felt anger or confusion. 

She watched a young, pregnant girl moving through the crowd; the girl glanced at the holographic screen then pick-pocketed an Official. Alona scoffed as she saw the girl smile at her reward then slide back into the crowd. The only person not concerned with what Drew was truly saying and it seemed she had the most precious thing to lose, an unborn life. 

She realized she was much like the pregnant girl. Too preoccupied with what she needed to do to see the real danger. 

She was going to die.

She had no real experience. She would be nothing but a burden on the team. She glanced at Arlo, he was busy watching the announcement. How could she truly help them? She looked around at the rest of the team. She could be the factor that got them killed. She didn't have any skills that they didn't already excel in. She would be a pathetic excuse for a soldier.

She could cause this entire operation to fall apart. She could cost them the war.

She glanced back to see Nik and Feliks watching her. Nik wore his usual hard expression. Feliks stared at her with the one eye that wasn't covered in hair, he showed no emotion. 

She was going to die.

----

<3 Sawyer