Cage the mirage

Climbing rocks

"The location is near Eagle Nest, not too far away. It will take us at least 2 hours by car to reach there, but then we'll have to walk and climb rocks, so the total journey time will be around five hours," Lucian said as he meticulously packed all the necessary items for our mission.

"I can't shake off this feeling that something is off about this place. We need to be careful, and not do anything reckless like what you did in that house in the woods." His face was a mix of concern and anger as he looked at me, but even in his frustration, I couldn't help but find him cute with his pouty lips.

"Yes, I'll be careful," I replied, nodding my head in understanding. As I continued getting ready, I couldn't help but admire Lucian's appearance in his black t-shirt and shoulder holster. The way the fabric hugged his muscles and accentuated his form was undeniably alluring.

I caught myself trailing my gaze down to his perfectly round bums before quickly looking away when he caught me staring. "What are you looking at?" he asked, now standing in front of me with a slight blush creeping up on his angry expression.

A small smile played on my lips as I adjusted the belt holster at my waist. "Nothing, my gaze just froze," I responded, trying to hide my amusement. Lucian let out a chuckle and picked up his backpack.

"Yes, your gaze just froze on my ass, right?" he joked, teasing me. I rolled my eyes playfully before responding, "Can you blame me? It's a nice view," We both laughed as we headed out to the waiting car, ready to continue our mission at Eagles Nest.

The drive was quiet and serene, with only occasional breaks in conversation to discuss our plans for getting the target safely out of the compound.

As we reached the halfway point, I felt a weight on my shoulder and looked down to see Lucian peacefully sleeping against me. He must have still been tired from last night. I adjusted his head to make him more comfortable and couldn't help but feel a wave of protectiveness over him.

An hour later, we arrived at our destination and I gently shook Lucian awake with a soft whisper of his name. He quickly stirred and opened his eyes, already alert and ready to go.

As we emerged from the car, the setting sun painted the landscape with majestic hues of orange and pink.

The rocks we were climbing weren't too high, but Lucian's face showed signs of pain as he gripped a large stone with his injured hand he slipped and winced. I quickly reached him.

"be careful Lucian," I said, ruffling his hair affectionately before leading him up the rocky path. After what seemed like hours, we finally reached a resting spot. The night had fallen, but it wasn't completely dark yet. 

Throwing our backpack down on the ground, I turned to look at Lucian who seemed much more exhausted than me. Sweat dripped down his forehead, dampening his already wet hair. 

"Are you okay?" I asked, helping him sit on a nearby rock to catch his breath.

"I'm fine, just tired," he replied with a sigh, wiping away the sweat. 

I couldn't help but recall the time he boasted about not getting easily sweaty, but now he looked pale and drained. My worry grew as I studied his face closely.