TFS: Burnt Earth
CONNOR 29: CRUSH

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Molly’s an epically bad hider. Patient? Yeah, no. A tarantula she is not. Me? I’m impatient for a different reason. I want to be properly introduced to the miracle girl. Fanboying hard over here.

We’ve spent a week with our standard watchful waiting, under strict orders not to come into contact with her. Apparently, her Solathair frenemies left their closet unlocked when we arrived. All their skeletons fell out. Secrets are a bad time, generally. What did they expect? Their family history is midnight dark. No sane human would take lightly the fact their survival depends solely on what they take from humans—their energy. Oh, and taking that energy? Yeah, it kills the human or creates a Sumair. Bad call on their part shelving that.

Of course, we could’ve intervened. There were several opportunities where approach was possible. We could’ve told her she was wrong in her assumption all Solathairs killed humans for food. We didn’t. Why? We were ordered not to. I mean, Molly would’ve had to be forced to share the truth with her. She’s thoroughly enjoyed seeing Sheyla miserable. She’s at her best when everyone’s as miserable as she is. Me? I don’t like dragging this out. It seems mean, not just to Sheyla but to her friends, who legitimately seem to care for her.

Absolute truth time. For me, that’s the weirdest thing about this whole mission. They care. I’ve never met any Solathair who behaves like these ones do. Okay, there are many who find some way around directly drawing energy from live kills, but they all want to, and they always fuck up every once in a while. This group? It’s…different. All of them, especially the Water Solathair. Dude’s a genuine doctor, using his element to heal people. They slurp up the needed essence using donated blood. Handy, what with a hospital at the ready thanks to said doctor. Convenient or not, it’s still a choice they’re making. One they’ve stuck with since the possibility presented itself. They’re decent, for fuck’s sake. It’s intriguing. More, it gives me hope.

We’re giving as many updates to the Tribunal as we’re able. Seems to me they’re looking for us to drive the wedge deeper between Sheyla and her Solathair friends. From an entirely technical standpoint, we stuck the wedge in the ground to begin with. Well, Brody did. He’s the one who informed Sheyla her buddies were energy suckers, human blood being the carrier of that energy. He’s also the one who didn’t clarify her friends don’t feed from humans directly. Like me, he’s Team Humanity. Like Molly, he’s heavy on the hate Team Solathair front. He absolutely was a great choice for our fourth team member. Really evened things out. Sometimes those Scholars amaze me by how on point they are. Top notch.

Anyway, clearing up the misunderstanding we caused would’ve helped the girl immensely. Instead, she’s left to her own conclusions, which are fairly self-deprecating. We need to work on improving her confidence if she’s shining as brightly as the Tribunal expects her to. Polish her up so she presents better. That kind of thing.

Molly rustles the damn bushes again, and Sheyla stops in her tracks, taking a big whiff of the air around her. Yeah, we’re busted now. She smelled us. No way she didn’t.

Brody’s clearly amused by her aggressive sniffing. “To think, people call me an animal.”

Yeah, leave it to Brody to be the first of us invited back into the sphere of her excellence. I’m not jealous of him. It isn’t like that. I’m jealous of the opportunity to learn more about her. I’m curious. We’ve met other fire trannys, Fire Sumairs, and Fire Solathairs. They’re rare, yes, but they’re no Magic: The Gathering Black Lotus. How is Sheyla different? How is she special? This inquiring mind wants to know.

“Your entourage,” she teases him.

“My back up,” he counters.

“You have to protect me, but at the same time, they want to make sure you’re protected from me. This is an interesting circle we find ourselves in.”

He runs a large hand through his shaggy hair. He really should buzz that shit off. Easier to deal with a shaved head. “Yeah, sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry.” She smirks. “It’s nice to see you’re smarter than I thought.” Ouch, Bro. Need some balm for that burn?

“How smart should I be?”

“Hey, I’m not judging,” she deflects, “but it doesn’t help your intelligence case you’re protecting something having the potential to blow up Canada. Maybe even all of North America.”

“I do what I’m told,” he defends himself.

“Lemming idealism,” Molly grumbles, leaping over the embankment and landing three metres away from the now terrified girl. I’m quick to follow. Predictably, I smile my best smile to counter Molly’s fierceness. She wants to slap me. I feel that with every bone in my body. She won’t though. She saves that shit for behind closed doors. Not because she doesn’t want people to know she tosses me around. She doesn’t want to embarrass me. Thoughtful, in her own way.

“Molly and Connor,” Brody announces, folding his arms across his chest. “The other land-walkers in our scouting party.”

She waves timidly, and Molly takes a step forward. This causes the girl to take a giant step backward. Fuck Molly, settle down. She’s already intimidated. No need to make her wet herself on the roadway.

A warning roar bubbles up from Molly’s chest, and I punch her playfully, but not entirely playfully, on the arm. She’ll probably break my hand later for doing that.

“Nice to meet you,” I say enthusiastically. “Don’t pay any attention to my sister. We never do.”

Molly growls low in her throat. Yeah, now she’s contemplating breaking more than my hand.

“Knock it off, Molly,” Brody warns her, stepping back and sliding his arm possessively over Sheyla’s shoulder.

Huh. Would you look at that? If I didn’t know better, I’d think our prodigal water baby has a crush. Couldn’t be, could it? Tyler’s tethers make that sort of desire impossible. We don’t get southern comfort, for good reason. Those types of connections get in the way of what we need to do. They’re an unnecessary distraction dividing allegiances. In that, I agree with the concept if not the application.

A long, loud roar puts an end to the awkward as fuck silence stretching out between the four of us. Well timed too. Pretty sure Phelan’s interruption is saving Molly from getting up close and personal with the kill squad she so desperately wants to join. Just not in the way she’s hoping for. More like, if she doesn’t keep herself in check, she’ll wind up as their next target.

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