Desperate
"It makes sense that only we would be stuck helping refugees," a twenty-two-year-old replacement griped.
Havoc nodded at one of the Sergeants under him. The pale, pale man whirled on the sod and started cussing him out something good.
Havoc just tuned it all out, watching the long, ragged line of sodden, frightened people. Unnatural weather patterns had alchemists, military, and citizens worried, and the torrential rain so swelled the oceans that several cities and villages were either under the threat of flood or actually flooded.
A small child ran up, crying, and attached herself to his knees. "Mama! Mama!"
His eyebrows twitched together and he knelt, trying to disentangle her. "Shh, it's okay kiddo," he said gently.
The girl looked up, wide brown eyes scared. "Have you seen my mama?!"
"No, I haven't. But you're soaked. We should get you into something that'll keep you from catching a fever."
"But it's still raining and I have to find my mama!"
He let go of the child just long enough to yank his slicker over his head. The thing was lined with wool and would keep the girl warm enough for the time being. "Well, my guess is that your mama is probably in the camp, waiting for you to come home to her," he said, draping the squirt in the poncho. He grinned: the thing was a tent on her. "So I have to get you back there dry and one piece, don't I?"
The girl held out her arms. "Carry?" she asked hopefully.
"Certainly." He leaned down, picking her up and settling her on his hip. He nodded at his second-in-command. "Hey, Palse, I'm going to see if I can find this girl's mother. Keep the recruits from griping so much, will you?"
Palse saluted. "Gotcha, Havoc."
The duo wandered off into the general direction of the refugee camp. In the process of getting from point A to point C, Havoc learned some interesting things: namely, the girl's dog was named Havoc. He didn't know whether to feel amused or something else.
They reached the camp, set on high ground, filled with tents and warm things to eat and wrap around oneself.
"I'm sorry," he overheard another captain telling Roy. "The entire village was wiped out. Only the children got out, we think, but we're missing a young girl named Briar."
Havoc felt something inside his chest constrict. Briar was a unique name. And he was pretty sure the girl asleep in his arms would never, ever get to see her mama again.