The Rescue

What do you mean, Cait and Felix are captured? How did you let this happen? You were supposed to only go on a small scouting trip?” I rounded on Julien, who took a step back.

“I’m sorry, Coryn, they literally came out of nowhere.” Julien said, shifting nervously refusing to meet my eyes.

“What exactly do you carry these for?” I asked venomously, grabbing one of my daggers from its sheath on my thigh. Oh right, “To fucking fight and protect them.” I yelled. Julien glared at me,

“It was going to be all of us, I was lucky to get out of the ambush.” He said, clenching his fist.

“So, let me get this straight, you left our youngest and one of our healers in the hands of Grave Shadows just to save your own skin?” I advanced towards him slowly, my fury etched on my face. He gulped and back peddled his hands up. I know it’s bad when I can’t feel my face, I knew my normally brilliant blue eyes had turned pale and icy. I swept my leg underneath his own, causing him to fall onto his back. I stared at him a minute more before turning disgustedly away from him. My instincts made me duck as his fist sailed over my shoulder, I turned fluidly, my hands coming up and my feet sliding into the familiar ready stance. A small smile played on my face. I had to admit I was looking forward to this. He was a sloppy fighter that they’d even send him out with Cait and Felix I’ll never know. Julien swung at me again, I dodged it easily, I let him get in a few more failed swings before smashing him in the eye. He reeled backwards, cursing. Holding his eye, he looked up at me as he braced his other hand on his knee,

“You little bitch, you think you’re all that just because they call you the Retriever.” I smashed my foot into his manhood,

“At least I’m not a spineless piece of shit like you are Julien.” I said, clenching my fist. I turned away from him again only to hear him say,

“I can’t wait until Axl gets his hands on you, you won’t be so tough then.” I swung around my blood running cold.

“What? Did. You. Say.” He looked up at me from the ground a dark smile playing on his face,

“You heard me.” He spat. I stopped, cold realization donning on me. That ambush they had run into was for me. I was the one who was supposed to have led that scouting party, but I had been called away to deal with a near break in at Sentinel jail.

“It was you, two-faced little shit, you’re the mole.” I drew my dagger and slammed it into his skull knocking him out. Grabbing one of his feet I dragged him towards Sentinel Headquarters. I pushed open the heavy door to the meeting room, our leader Kenna who was busy staring into a scrying glass looked up as I came in with Julien literally in tow.

“What the fu-, Coryn?” She asked standing up,

“I found our mole,” I said dropping Julien’s foot and giving his prostrate form a look of contempt and loathing. “Oh and by the way, Cait and Felix were taken because of him.” I said. Kenna hurried forward, calling for Beck and Salem her two co leaders,

“Take him and put him in Solitary. Once Cullen gets back, I want everything out of him.” They grabbed Julien roughly and dragged him back through the door. I turned back to Kenna,

“I can’t leave Cait or Felix under Grave Shadow’s control, if Axl gets ahold of them. They’re too young not to mention they can’t hold under that kind of treatment.” I said Grabbing another dagger from the weapons rack along with a couple teleport crystals. Pulling my leather harness from off the shelf I secured it to my waist and back. Sticking various blades in it. Reaching down I pulled on my leather thigh high battle stockings. “They should still be in holding, I’ll get them and be gone before they know what’s hit them.” I said discarding my shirt and reaching for my light jerkin, lacing up the front quickly. Beck came back in, standing at Kenna’s elbow he waited for a second before saying,

“Julien is in holding right now, Salem is with him, one of the stray catapults slammed into solitary during yesterdays, break.” I sighed there was no help for that, they probably knew right where our jail was thanks to Julien. Beck grimaced hearing my sigh, moving around Kenna to reach for my camouflaged leather jerkin that someone had shoved on the top shelf. He handed it to me and leaned against the wall looking at Kenna.

“Coryn they know you’ll be coming, I can’t just let you walk into a trap.” She said her brown eyes worried.

“Give me some credit, I’ve retrieved how many people from Grave Shadows?” I asked not really expecting an answer.

“72” Beck said quietly. I glanced at him starting to braid my wavy concord purple hair.

“See nothing to worry about.” I said lightly. Beck and Kenna both scowled at me as I grabbed the spiked strap I braided into my hair to make anyone regret grabbing it. A curl tickled my cheek and I impatiently tucked it behind my ear.

“I hate this as much as you Kenna but she’s right we can’t leave them, and Coryn is the best at what she does.” Beck said rubbing at his eyes. Kenna chewed on her lip thinking hard for a moment.

“No, you’re right we can’t. Damn it, Julien. He had to get those particular people taken.” She slammed her fist against the wall with surprising strength for someone who owned a whole 5' 5". Sitting down I held out my hands for my left grooved boot specially made for running, Beck threw it towards me swiftly followed by my right one. Lacing them up I stood stretching. Grabbing my hood from the peg by the door I pulled it over my head to obscure my vibrant hair. I pushed open the doors with Beck and Kenna following me. Dropping onto one knee I dabbed some dirt on my face. Grabbing my Jian sword and sliding it into the sheath on my back.

“I should get started they won’t be in holding for much longer and I really don’t want to run around the prison, seeing Axl from far off is good enough for me, thanks all the same.” I said bouncing on the balls of my feet and shaking out my arms and shoulders.

“Come back to us Coryn, if you can’t save them it’s okay.” Kenna said reaching for my hand. I stopped turning to her,

“I won’t come back without them, I’ll do whatever it takes. Felix is my brother after all.” I gave her a quick hug and fist bumped Beck who cracked a small smile. As always, I scaled our walls rather than go through the gate it was good practice and a better warm up. I ran lightly through the forest following the well warn path. Sentinel land always seemed so much lighter and friendly then Grave Shadows. Maybe it was the name, but I knew it was more than that. I waved to several other returning hunting parties who saluted me as I passed, they knew better then to keep me when I was wearing my gear. I turned off the path and headed through some trees onto The Strip. We all called it that, it was a gravel road about three car lengths wide, devoid of any plant life. It was the neutral grounds, no one could be taken from it and it had a strict no fighting barrier. If you attempted to fight someone on it, you’d get zapped and it hurts like a bitch.

Looking both ways across the Strip, I vaulted across with practiced ease landing noiselessly in Grave Shadows. The vegetation grew thick here, the trees closer together. The forest was dark and silent, a bare stretch of land that could’ve been a meadow at one point but was now just dead grass, lay to my right. It met The Strip while forest reigned on either side of it. I knew most of the patrols used the open to move about, mostly because it was easier. Moving silently through the trees, I stopped to listen sucking my breath in to hear everything with no interruptions. Voices, I swung myself up into one of the trees positioning myself in its branches. Luckily, it still had its leaves intact. The scouting party passed directly below me,

“Shut up, Jeffrey,” said one speaker rounding on another of the figures.

“Don’t tell me to shut up Tony, my aim was perfect. I know I got the Sents solitary.” Jeffery said irritably.

“Both of you quit, Julien isn’t going to be in holding long with or without solitary. Come on let’s go.” The third figure, obviously, the party leader hissed at the both of them. The party moved off in the direction of Sentinel. I clenched my fist half, needing to go after them. The retrieval team for Julien was coming way sooner than we expected. I took a calming breath and made myself think of Felix and Cait. They wouldn’t be in holding much longer either, and Grave’s solitary wasn’t broken. Swinging down from the tree, I continued on towards holding. I ran across two other small parties, which was weird. Usually, there was a lot more foot traffic.

The electric fence surrounding holding was a good 8 feet high. I climbed a tree, looking down. My luck it was the guard change. Spotting Cait and Felix, they were chained next to each other, neither had been taken before, and they both looked pretty roughed up. Setting my foot into the tree, I pushed off it with a small grunt of effort landing on the other side and rolling to take the force of the fall off my ankles. I kept close to the ground, slipping quietly up to Felix and putting a finger to my lips. Drawing out a lock pick, I had him free in a second and Cait in another second. I turned surveying the fence, they’d fixed it since last I was here. Probably on Axl’s orders, curse him, he made my job harder every time.

“Hang on, guys, I’m going to have to short circuit this shit. Get ready to run through that gate when this thing blows. Stick to the edge of the forest. We’re gonna have half of Grave on us. Do not look back, do not wait for me, keep going until you get to The Strip. Do you understand?” I asked, looking them both in the eyes.

“But Coryn-“ Started Felix, I grabbed his chin and asked again my eyes, dead serious,

“Do. You. Understand.” I didn’t phrase it as a question. Felix dropped his eyes and nodded.

“Get ready” I whispered. Drawing my Jian, I took off my hood, wrapping it around my hands on the hilt, and jammed it into the control box on the fence. The entire thing exploded with the sound of thrumming electricity in a shower of sparks.

“GO NOW,” I bellowed, no point in being quiet when there was yelling from inside the prison and the alarm had started to go off. Cait and Felix took off running, and I took off after them.