The Bonded: Lost And Gained

~ Chapter 9 ~

"What the heck are you doing?" Noriko asks.

Her brow was twitching, her eyes glued on the three commanders. As of now, she had seemed to enter into a battle between three commanders in the middle of the forest. Mass destruction was everywhere, the threes were blown down, the Tamer Beasts were injured and small wounds were on the commanders. It didn't look good for all three of them. 

Rumon laughed nervously, uncharacteristically fanning himself quickly as if he knew that if he didn't say the right words, he might end up dead.

"Well, you see, Noriko," he began. "We were, uh, training ourselves... And what better way than to fight each other, right...?"

"When I came back, I was expecting you three to be doing serious work," she said.

Her eyes dilated into a dangerous, threatening look, making the commanders flinch at the malicious look in her eyes. They knew that she would never hurt them, but sometimes she looked like she would.

"Especially you, Takehiko; I didn't expect much from Rumon. But I end up coming back to damaged environments and injured Tamer Beasts - so what the heck were you doing while I was away?" 

They stepped back, scared of what the commander could do to them. It was rare for Noriko to snap, but when she did, it was best to stay clear. Sweat trailed down his face, but Takehiko was the first to step forward.

"Calm down Noriko, we can explain."

"Yeah, we can, so calm down, will you?" Mika said, unnerved.

Noriko shook her head, murmuring words in a dangerously calm voice.

"Fine, but you better make it quick. I've got a meeting with the King later."

The three looked at each other nervously, then seated themselves on the ground. She joined them with an expecting look, waiting to hear their excuse for the destruction around them and their injuries. 

Takehiko gulped, hoping that telling the truth will make sure they would live for another day and not end up dead by the hands of their comrade. 

"We were talking when you left, doing our usual thing as you know."

She rolled her eyes, clearly not believing them or expecting such a response from him. Both options seemed likely, but her foul mood made it difficult to distinguish which she actually believed.

"Right."

"Unexpectedly, HoPaKa and Bleu began fighting with each other. We tried stopping them, and asking what was wrong - but they were too angry with each other to listen to us," Takehiko said, sighing at the end. "We resorted to try and stop them, Drake and Winter ran off saying that they'll leave them to us. The other Tamer Beasts tried helping them but they got themselves hurt instead. They stopped after a little while and now refuse to talk to each other."

She narrowed her eyes, glancing over her shoulder to look at the Tamer Beasts. True enough, Drake and Winter were nowhere in sight, and HoPaKa and Bleu had their heads turning away from each other with pouty expressions.

I guess they're telling the truth.

She sighs, shaking her head in what seemed to be disappointment. 

"You three are so troublesome - even your Tamer Beasts are," she said. 

The commanders sighed in relief, glad that she believed their word. 

"So, what does the King want to talk to you about?" Rumon asks.

Noriko shrugs, her angry aura gone and they hoped it would stay like that for awhile. If it did return, it would be too soon.