Page 44 of Red Demon (Oria #1)

Soldier

T wo more soapy buckets and six more meal trays passed before I was allowed to leave the stale air of the quarantine building.

Those were a rough two days: I didn’t sleep well, I couldn’t keep much food down, and I wasn’t sure what was wrong with me other than feeling worn out.

I’d about given up when I heard a voice on the other side of the bolted door, telling me the medics cleared my bloodwork.

They let me step outside. My eyes watered, adjusting to a sunny winter afternoon. I scanned the military camp—more bustling than I remembered. There, beside the soldier glaring at me, was a face I loved.

“Ash,” I said, a lump in my throat.

He looked rough. Gone was the boy who smiled his way through every practice and the man who hummed his mandolin music as he engraved at his desk. His sun-kissed curls were shorn close to his head, with dirt worn into new lines on his tan face. Yet, when our eyes met, a smile bloomed on his face.

Before I could take another breath, Ash sprinted across the uneven ground with a whoop, his smile exploding into a full-blown grin. Our embrace was fierce, exchanging relief and worry. I felt his calloused hands on my neck as he brought his forehead to mine.

“Jesse. Brother,” he breathed, pulling back but not letting go entirely. “You’re alive. Voids, I … thought I lost you too.”

I squeezed his shoulder, mirroring the unspoken worry in his voice. “I won’t leave you alone. Ever.”

Asher chuckled as he pulled away. “You look sick. Too pale.”

“Born that way, asshole,” I laughed. “Let’s get my pale ass some sun.”

We weaved through the throngs of soldiers, and he filled me in the last few months in whispers.

His squad had just gotten back from an attack on a rebel safehouse.

He described a cluster of desperate underground rebels, cursing Queen Azara while their skin glowed blue with illegal magic.

He felt madness tearing at his mind before they flicked on the magic blockers to take the rebels down.

His head dropped. “Those were clean deaths. But last week, I tracked an Attiq-ka. The machine gives them seizures if they use their magic, but she used her magic knowing she’d die anyway.

She wiped out half my squad. It felt like—hammers in my head, loud screaming, until I got a crossbow bolt into her. ”

I recognized the tremor in his voice, the forced nonchalance. Haunted eyes. “You alright, Ash?”

He hesitated, then gave a curt nod. “That was one of the easier deaths to live with. My first kill was just a scared kid, maybe fifteen. Dangerous, but voids—” He swallowed. “I killed that kid before he killed me first.” He paused. “I’m sorry I didn’t write home often. I didn’t know what to say.”

A heavy silence descended between us. I wanted to press him, to share the weight he carried, but I knew there was only so much I could take from his shoulders. I’d yet to kill anyone.

“You’re a good man, Ash. Taking out dangerous rebels while I’ve been chasing shadows.”

“Chasing shadows?”

I shrugged, nodding to all the people around. There was no way I could explain everything right here. I needed to get him alone.

We reached the armory tent. Asher rummaged through the gear, pulling out a pair of black pants and a long-sleeved shirt like his, the fabric hugging tight up the neck.

“Top quality Chaeten leather,” Asher said, holding it up. “Deflects a lot of damage; already saved my life twice. You’d never know by looking at it, right?”

I ran my fingers across the material, surprised by how soft and thin it felt on the inside of the shirt. “Yeah.”

“Did the Chaeten gang have tech like this in Nunbiren?” Ash said, whispering to ensure the soldiers just outside the tent couldn’t hear.

A flicker of unease sparked in my gut. “I didn’t see any Chaeten rebels during the attack.”

“What about the unit that caught them looting?”

“What unit?” I asked.

“The report didn’t specify—classified.” Asher gestured to the shirt. “Put this on under your uniform. Make sure it fits.”

I peeled off my dirty layers to put it on. Asher helped me into the secondary armor, the pieces conforming to my body like a second skin. He strapped on a utility belt loaded with pouches and daggers.

My thoughts whirled as I followed him out of the armory. Wind licked my face as the rest of me stayed warm under the Chaeten leather.

“Jesse, how did Taam die?” Ash whispered.

My heart sank in my chest. “A demon in his mind, after the khels fell.” I clenched my fist. “We should have done what the ghost girl said and left. I should have trusted my instincts.”

He paused, his gaze flickering away for a moment. “What ghost girl?”

I frowned. “Mahakal said he knew about that. I thought he’d have told the whole unit.”

Asher pulled me aside when a cluster of soldiers walked by, and I could see his panic rising. “Tell me everything, from the beginning.”

I recounted everything I thought I could unravel quickly: what the ghost said, Solonstrong, Ruan killing Ola as if she didn’t even know her. Asher’s face contorted into a variety of expressions as I spoke, but he didn’t interrupt.

“That’s very different from what my squad leader told me,” Asher said. “Something is not adding up.”

“Ash, there’s so much more we need to talk about—alone, as soon as possible,” I said. Even now, his ravaged expression and roving eyes were getting stares from passing soldiers.

Before I could say more, a harsh voice sliced the air. “Eirini! What in the voids are you doing with Biohazard?”

Captain Havoc approached, his scarred lips pursed in irritation. His gaze flicked between me and Asher, another furrow appearing on his forehead with each passing second.

“Captain, Sir,” Asher said, his voice tight. “The med tent cleared my brother. I volunteered to help him with his gear.”

Havoc snorted. “Someone in the med tent, not your commanding officer, allowed you to leave your post to do their job?”

Asher opened his mouth to protest, but Havoc cut him off with a sharp gesture.

“Back to squad leader Navarro, and expect some extra duties tonight. And you… Biohazard.” Havoc turned his steely gaze on me.

“Unless you’ve passed basic and pledged in that shed, you aren’t free to wander.

Let’s put you to work in the meantime. You’ll be reporting to me. ”

A flicker of concern crossed Asher’s face. He saluted Havoc, then turned to me. “See you later, Brother. Clean that pond water out of your canteen, na? ”

Pond water. His code word for someone throwing off his dahn. I gave him an Asri salute farewell, burying the jolt his warning sent through me. Havoc. I shouldn’t trust Havoc. I jerked my head to confirm I had that right, but Asher was already marching off.

Havoc barked another order to follow, and I did, crossing the camp in bold strides. A knot of unease tightened in my stomach.

“All right, soldier,” Havoc snapped, pulling me from my thoughts. “I need you to relieve a guard on the edge of the camp.”

I blinked. It all felt rushed. I hadn’t showered since getting out of quarantine. No one showed me where my quarters were, or even briefed me on basic procedures yet. But I knew enough not to appear defiant when given orders. “Yes sir, Captain Havoc.”

Havoc tossed me a ration bar and gestured toward a group of soldiers clustered near the camp’s edge. He pointed toward a tall woman, and I recognized the brown ponytail peeking out from her helmet. That was the same soldier who’d been rude to me when I first got into camp.

“That’s Riverhawk,” Havoc said, his voice clipped. “She’ll be making sure you’re more help than trouble.” He strode off without another word.

I approached Riverhawk, who shook my hand. She stood straight and lean, Chaeten, giving me a guarded look with those sharp green eyes, but no sneer. “Havoc said your name is Biohazard until you earn something better. He thinks it’s confusing to have two Eirinis around.”

The soldier beside her laughed, a petite, tawny-faced man with a contagious smile and sharp gray eyes. “Havoc is easily confused. He wouldn’t know whether to go down or out a latrine unless Mahakal was holding the door, off the record, of course.”

Riverhawk snorted. “Yep.”

“I’m Victor Eight,” the man said, shaking my hand.

“Eight?”

“How many times I almost died before I joined up,” he said. “Eventful childhood. Still Eight.”

“You’ve held that count in the military?” I whistled.

“So far.” He grinned. “Nice to meet you, man.”

“Give Biohazard your headset, Eight,” Riverhawk said. “He’s your relief.”

Eight shrugged off a small device in his ear, cleaning it off with his shirt before he handed it over.

“Connects you to the command tent with a tap. And this—” She pulled out a black visor. “That will give you enhanced motion and heat detection for the perimeter.”

“Wouldn’t you want me trained before you put me on patrol?” I asked.

Riverhawk’s smile was humorless. “Do you need to be trained to tell the difference between a rabbit and a guy with a sword?”

“Well, I walked right in, didn’t I?”

Eight laughed. “Yeah, on her watch.”

She frowned. “You looked about as threatening as the rabbit, but you’re one of the reasons we doubled perimeter guards.”

I grimaced. “Sorry.”

“You gonna warn him about the other reason?” Eight asked.

Riverhawk sighed, and the two shared a sullen look.

“Stay sharp. We’ve lost two soldiers in the last two days.

Redsky and Liu were both picked off running patrols outside of camp.

” She bent down to a crate beside her and removed a crossbow, one with small shining darts and a barrel.

“Mahakal said you should be a decent shot?”

I nodded, admiring the light weapon. “What’s the range?”

“Two hundred meters. Watch the recoil. The mitigation system can only do so much.” She lowered her visor, saluted to Eight, and motioned for me to follow her.

I’ll never tire of the scent of the Noé wild.

The forest beyond the camp stretched out below, a vast expanse of ancient trees between the old gorges, cloaked in the hues of late autumn twilight. Camp was on one of three hills in this area, and we’d be watching the other, a patchy beard of oak and cedar with brown leaves still clinging.

Riverhawk took her watch about a hundred meters away, and I did my best to stay sharp, to not let my mind wander.

I tore open my ration bar and took a bite, forcing down the bland mix of grains and powdered protein. It tasted vaguely metallic, and I decided any complaints I heard about military food were justified.

The sun set the sky on fire, red and purple and gold.

As I looked out at the darkening forest, a movement caught my eye on the treeline.

It was just a flicker, a splash of color against dying leaves.

But something about it felt wrong. I squinted, adjusting the visor, and for a fleeting moment, I could have sworn I saw…

Fuck.

I knew that mane of red hair anywhere, cascading in the wind over her worn leather armor, a battered crossbow clutched in her hand. Faruhar ducked behind a tree.

My breath hitched in my throat. What the fuck was she doing here? Two soldiers picked off by arrows, that’s what. I tried to untangle the knot of conflicting emotions in my chest.

The metallic taste in my mouth intensified, a bitter tang that spread like a slow-burning fire through my throat. Panic clawed at me as my head throbbed.

“Riverhawk,” I rasped through the comm, my voice tight. A wave of dizziness washed over me. I pointed to the treeline as she walked over, my hand shaking. The nausea intensified.

Riverhawk rushed over, face lined with concern. “You all right? You don’t look all right.”

“Just—a minute,” I said, clutching my stomach. The forest seemed to press in on me, the rustling leaves whispering with malevolence.

“Hey!” Riverhawk gripped my arm. “Biohazard, what’s happening?”

Before I could respond, I swayed, doubling over to empty the contents of my stomach onto the forest floor.

She took a step back.

“Looks like Havoc gave you the right name. Fuck.”

I rubbed my temples, reminding myself these soldiers didn’t deserve to die. Command. I was supposed to call Command. I touched my headset, my gaze darting back to the treeline. But the Red Demon was gone.

Stay that way.

“This is Command, Perimeter Guard.”

Riverhawk shot me a questioning glance, then touched her own headset. “Biohazard needs to be relieved. He’s pretty sick.”

“SBO symptoms?” the soldier in our ears said.

My stomach chose that time to heave again, and I’m sure Command heard it all. I wiped my mouth after, disgusted with myself.

“Just puking all over the forest, Ma’am,” Riverhawk said.

“Copy that,” Command said. “Continue patrol until you’re relieved.”

Riverhawk gave my back a sympathetic pat. “Rough first day, huh?”

“Tree line,” I said, even if I couldn’t bring myself to say her name.

She clipped her headset back on and turned away with a nod: all business. “Clear. What did you see?”

Maybe I hallucinated her. My focus came in and out in waves.

I heard running footsteps and looked up to see Havoc, his face a mask of thunder. “Riverhawk,” he barked, “head back to camp. I’m relieving you.”

“Don’t you mean him?” she said, gesturing her head at me.

Havoc glared in response. “Major wants a word with you. I’ll deal with him.”

Confused, I watched Riverhawk salute, then jog back to the camp. Havoc sauntered toward me, his face odd… Angry. Why was he so angry? I rose to my feet from where I sat at the base of the tree. I’d forgotten to salute. Maybe that was it.

It wasn’t. He pulled out a dagger, sizing me up.

My heart hammered. Was he…

A sickening thud. A bolt protruded from Havoc’s eye. His mouth widened in surprise, his hand tightening around the hilt of the knife pointed at me. He crumpled to the ground. Another arrow followed, glancing off the Chaeten leather on his chest.

He’d been about to kill me. Asher’s dahn was right.