Chántel threw the last piece of the 'dreaba' she was holding into her mouth before stepping into the room she was informed that her squad would be.
The moment she stepped in, she was greeted by an intense atmosphere and heavy looks from her crew members. The red-haired woman stayed by the door, her hand still gripping the doorknob. Her crew members all stared at her, none uttering a single word.
"Err…" she drawled. "I don't like the way you guys are staring at me. Should I come back later?" She joked, but they had zero shift of expression.
"Just come in," August said.
Chántel shut the door behind her and stepped into the room. She cleared her throat and cautiously sat on an empty seat next to August. "What is going on?" She whispered but the others heard it all.
"August here just told us about your relationship with the Queen," Uyi revealed.
Chántel dropped her awkward smile and put up a more serious face. "Oh. I was going to, but since he has, I guess that's that out of the way. It was obvious anyways--"
"Wait," Helga chipped. "We can't just brush past this like it's a normal revelation." She looked at the others as if asking for their opinion.
"I am the Queen's older sister, period. There's nothing more to talk about there," the red-haired lady dismissed her suggestion and rise to her feet. "It's late. We have a big day tomorrow so we should get enough rest."
"Big day tomorrow?" Helga questioned.
"Yeah. We are leading the Tzerian army for an assault on the Western Tzeria, a mission from the Queen."
"And you didn't speak to us about it?" Helga shouted, her voice becoming even louder with every time she speaks.
Chántel turned to the brown-haired lady with her brows furrowed. "Since when did I speak to you guys about missions I get?" She paused. "I get the mission, I explain the mission to you, and then we do the mission. I believe that's how it has always been."
"Well I don't think I can be part of any mission we take from a Royal blood," Helga barked.
"Fine."
"And I also don't think I can work for a Royal blood. In case your thick Imperial skull can't grasp what I just said, it means I'm leaving ONLINE!"
"Again, fine." Chántel turned to face the other members of the ONLINE squad. "Anyone else wants to leave?"
They all remained quiet, staring blankly at empty space. "Good. We leave for the Western Tzeria tomorrow at 8 am," she added before walking out of the room.
It wasn't the first time the two had bickered at each other, but it was the first time it was that intense. At any other time, the two would have just left the room and returned sometime later with everything normal again. But this time it resulted in Helga quitting the squad.
"That was..." Rusty opened his mouth to speak but let his words trail off as the silky brown-haired woman turned her eyes at him.
August shook his head before making his way out the door Chántel used. "I need to get some air."
The green-haired man tried to navigate his way through the palace but realized he was walking in circles as the building kept switching up into a more advanced and technological outlay. He was able to find his way to the rooftop of the complicated building with the help of a guard who showed him the way.
But as he got there, he realized the roof wasn't really a roof. It had four long pillars with pointy heads. Each of the pillars faced another with a small round space in the middle of the pillars, barely enough to contain more than three people.
Chántel sat on one edge of the building staring up at the many moons in the sky. August sighed before sitting next to her. "Oh shit. Falling from here will be nasty," he said, trying to lighten up the mood.
The red haired lady looked down and shook her head. "I'll definitely be able to make the jump," she said with a smile.
"Yeah, I don't doubt it."
"No, I could show you if you don't believe me." She placed her legs on an extension from the building.
"I totally believe you, you don't--- you don't need to show me." Chántel laughed and sat back down.
August looked at the redhead through his peripheral vision then back at the sky. He looked at her again then turned back away. He turned back again to steal a glance but she caught him before he turned away. Chántel smiled.
"How did you find me?" She probed.
"You always climb to the top of our ship whenever an argument happens so I thought there must be a roof in the palace and that's where you should be."
Chántel smiled and tucked a stray hair behind her ear.
"I'm sorry. I should have waited for you to reveal it to them yourself…"
"Oh please," she chipped. "Don't bring that up now. It was better the way it happened, everything would be fine. Your smart ass should be able to predict that."
"Better? Probably. Fine? I don't think so. You saw how she exploded, it was nothing like she did before. I think it's over for good now," August stated.
Chántel rolled her eyes. "Then so be it. It's not like we can't proceed without her. We can just hire someone else from the mercenary guild."
"Don't say that. We've been working together for a lot of years. Our chemistry won't be the same as any other person you add to the group."
"Enough about the crew and Helga. Tell me, how was your time at Standoff?"
August pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "I don't even want to talk about it."
The red-haired woman chuckled. "Lemme guess, it was hell?"
"Yeah. Every morning I thought night won't come any sooner, and every night I thought morning came way too soon," the green-haired man sighed and shook his head.
"Was it perhaps because I wasn't there and you missed me?" She asked, looking into August's light green eyes. He swallowed and quickly look away from her.
"Is it just me or did it suddenly get hot in here?" He asked.
Chántel smiled and got up on her feet. "Well, I should get to bed. We have a big day tomorrow." She turned her heels and walked back into the main building.
Feeling embarrassed, August face palmed and cussed before laying back on the metal ground.
...
ns 15.158.61.16da2
