The Blind Viper

Chapter 1

I am an undercover spy for the Australian and U.S. military. My latest assignment is to infiltrate Nazi Germany as a Nazi spy. My comrades don't know about my mission and if I am seen I will be shot on site.

You might be wondering how a pretty girl like me got into the army. I am told I have long brown hair and pale eyes. I'm averaged sized and reasonably tall. People look at me and think I'm weak. I have a bad habit of speaking my mind but I do try to avoid confrontation.

Someone like me shouldn't be in the army, but I am. The story of how I came to be here starts at the beginning. My very beginning.

My name is Calla Jade. I am seventeen years old and my parents are dead. I never knew my parents only that they died fighting. I was raised by a group of Nomads who travelled throughout Australia. They named me Calla after the white lily which signifies purity and beauty. They say I am a beauty to behold but I don't believe them. I mean how could I?

The truth about me that many do not know is that I am blind. I have never seen myself or the world around me. I have never seen the faces of those who took me in as their own and I will never see as 'normal' people do. The Nomads taught me to see through nature.

To hear and feel the energy and vibrations of those around me. I guess you could say I see with my feet. Being blind is supposed to be a weakness but for me its strength, it means that no matter the weather, time or environment, I can see almost perfectly. I've heard that it's called seismic seeing but I don't know what that means. Living with the Nomads meant that I never went to school. I learnt the ways of the world through experience and stories.

My fascination with the war began when I was seven. Zirconia (the Nomad who adopted me) and I were at a market in Billo-Weela buying some fruit for our companions when I met a boy. I didn't know his name or where he came from. A simple boy walking with his father. He came to the market store and started speaking with me. Didn't ask my name or question my eyes just started talking.

"Hey you look like a strong girl. Are you going to join the army when you're older?" He asked.

"Wh- what's the army?" I'd said.

"Oh, it's where people from here go overseas to fight the bad guys."

"I'm going, I want to be a sniper. It's where I hide and stop bad people without them noticing" He'd say. I could tell by his voice he had longed for the battle but back then I hadn't realised just how devastating a war could be.

"Sorry about my son, it just we don't meet many ahh strangers such as yourself." His father said.

"Oh don't be and we're just passing through." Zirconia had said as she grabbed my hand and walked me away. Back then I was only getting the hang of not being able to see so I was still a little clumsy. As I fumbled along I heard a small goodbye from the boy and had from then on wondered about the war. When I was ten I began to ask Rowan about the war. He was the elder of our mob and I'd heard that he survived the first war. Rowan told me stories of battles and places I could only imagine. To me, they sounded heroic and exciting, but as I grew older I realized why we needed the army.