Humans Don't Make Good Familiars

Book 3- Part 5

Jake's POV

The sounds of wingbeats announced the arrival of the last few participants of the exercise. The remaining members of our team, and the last two members of the other team landed with their groups. Suma and the Lieutenant landed by the Captain, while Rou, and Odens landed by Nine, who had shown up earlier.

I walked up to Suma and asked, "are you okay?" But she didn't answer. She was staring off into space. The sparkle around her was dim, and she seemed distracted. "Suma?" I reached down and placed a hand in her wing to get her attention.

"Ah!" She shouted, and flinched. A pang of hurt hit my heart for a second, but she quickly said she was sorry. "Oh, Jake, I am so sorry. I am still a bit anxious for some reason."

"My sincere apologies, Private Suma. That may be the lingering effects of my spell." The other Captain said, fluttering down next to us.

"Your spell?" I asked.

"Yes, I cast a spell on her during the exercise. It appears she has a low tolerance for Mind Magic. She will likely feel uneasy for a few more hours; until the effects dissipate."

"Are you okay?" I asked Suma again.

"I... yes. I will be fine." She answered.

"Who won?" A member of the other team suddenly called out. For a moment, I held my breath for a moment, nervous to hear the answer.

"It was our loss." The Captain of the enemy team announced, and I sighed, relieved. Captain Gigoales nodded his head respectfully, while the rest of our team, minus the Lieutenant, celebrated.

"We're so sorry, Captain." One of the other team member said.

"Do not be. You all performed admirably. Tomorrow, we will resume our training, and seize victory next time." The Captain said proudly, and ordered his team into formation before flying away with them. With that, our team was left in the forest.

"Squad three." Captain Gigoales said, catching everyone's attention. "Good job. You all performed your role to the best of your ability, and accomplished the mission. Because of that, we won, and will proceed to the next step: our first mission."

"Sir... are you sure we are ready?" Rou asked. "We lost almost every member of your team in this exercise."

Instead of answering her question, he asked one to the Lieutenant. "Lieutenant Datahu, how many teams have you been a part of during your time with the Drake Squads?"

"Seven, sir." She answered.

"And how many missions have you been on?"

"Fifteen, sir." A quiet confusion settled on us, but it was Odens who broke it.

"I do not understand sir. What was the point of asking her that question?"

"Lieutenant Datahu, of those fifteen missions, how many were successful?" The Captain asked, ignoring Odens.

"Fourteen, sir."

"And how many of your former teammates have you seen recently?"

"Three, sir." That one, she answered... coldly; solemnly even.

"And why is that?" The Captain asked.

"Because of the thirty-five teammates I have served with, only three survived our missions, sir."

"...What?" Rou asked; her voice sounded both confused, and horrified.

"We expect a high mortality rate in the Drakes. We lay our lives down with each mission we accept. Not because we expect to live, not for glory, but because if we do not do these missions, if no one does them... Neame die. Innocent hatchlings, mothers, fathers... they are why we fight, they are why we die. You each had your own reasons for joining. Some because you knew that serving a year with us fulfilled your military requirements. Some because you wanted to make a difference. Whatever your reason was... this is it now. Not for yourself, but for them. For the mission." The Captain said. As he spoke, I felt cold. There were no chills running down my spine. Instead, my palms got clammy, and my mouth went dry. I tried and failed to swallow that same knot that has been showing up more and more recently in my throat.