Three Strikes [✓]

No Royal Road

Chapter Thirty-Eight: No Royal Road

|...|...|...|

Tyler Island, Spring Sea.
September 18th, 2019.
1400hrs.

|...|...|...|

Avril wasn't sure what to think of the air base that Osea had sent them off to. One thing she had immediately noticed on the day of their arrival was that the tension on the island itself was obvious. So much so that just walking around the base was enough to set you on edge. In spite of being formerly used as a prison, it didn't feel like one and the soldiers around base weren't guards nor were they prisoners. They were just regular soldiers, with a few ex-cons that had been pardoned thrown into their regular squadrons. The former prison aspect wasn't what set everyone on edge. It was the whole damned island as a whole.

If not for the war, it was probably a very beautiful place to be. There were tall trees and plenty of natural beauty that had been marred only slightly by the attacks from weeks before, though any wildlife that resided there had probably been chased off long ago. Even in the midst of a cease fire, the air was thick. There was some sort of silent understanding that, at any moment, the base could come under attack. There was a fence around the base, but it was damaged at several places after a couple of constant attacks. Should any Eruseans get cocky, they could easily slip onto base and then anything could happen from there.

That was perhaps the only reason she was grateful of Bandog's presence, along with other soldiers that worked as handlers. Even if they didn't enjoy one another's company, the two of them had sort of gravitated towards one another. Avril was still settling in whereas Bandog had been immediately put to work to refresh his and Sarge's training. When Bandog could, he'd bring Sarge around the hangars to play and unwind, and in the almost two days they had been there, Avril would often watch him and the others work.

Still, they were both making sure that direct interactions with one another were avoided as much as possible. Besides, Avril knew she had to start work sooner or later and both of them needed to focus. Plus, she didn't like him. She wished Tabloid and the others could have come along. It had barely been more than a day and Avril couldn't get Tabloid's stupid expression out of her mind. He looked like someone had punched him in the gut, but then he just...acted normal again. But it was a lie. He wanted her to make her own decision, even if he didn't like it. And he hadn't wanted her to feel guilty.

Avril knew she had to let that go. They'd all be here soon enough, provided things went well. She took a deep breath and relaxed, having been moving stuff around in the main hangar all day so that it was to her liking. She'd already met the remainder of the mechanics, still grieving the loss of the first guy. In spite of this, they seemed ready and willing to work with her and accept her into the group. Maybe it was just because she was a woman, or maybe they'd heard more about her skills than she'd previously thought.

She turned around and limped to the open hangar doors, looking out at the view towards the other end of the island. One thing that everyone had a clear view of, from wherever they were, was the mass driver. Erusea still had control of it, and both sides wanted it. Whichever side had it would also hold the advantage in the war. Osea needed to get it back, and that was probably what added to the tension. The cease fire was all for show. For both sides. At least, if it hadn't been that way before, then it was now.

The sound of footsteps and a dog barking brought her attention away from the mass driver and the coming storm and instead she searched for the source of the noise. There was little surprise that Bandog and Sarge were making their way over, though they hadn't spoken since they got the grand tour of the base. Avril placed her hands on her hips and watched them approach, scowling slightly as Bandog came to a halt a few feet away from her. He gave her an awkward, tense greeting. "Hey."