Over the next few months, Mina worked herself as hard as she could handle, eventually falling into a schedule. Training with Caleb and Nikomi on some days, with Corric and Acastus on the opposite days. Her "day off" was usually spent with records work and extra training. Mina was determined to be the best she could be in order to keep up with the other Genii soldiers that had been training their entire lives. After some time, she could feel herself getting stronger. Her lungs no longer burned when she ran, she had fewer bruises from sparring with Caleb, and her aim had tremendously improved. The training with Acastus on the other hand, only got progressively more difficult with every lesson, making her feel as if all her other work was in vain.
Having been knocked to the ground for the umpteenth time that day, Mina decided to not get back up again. Her body ached from the constant impacts with the floor, and she had had enough for the day.
"Are you going to get up?" her husband asked as he hovered above her.
Mina shook her head and covered her eyes with her forearm, blocking her view of his annoyed face.
"I have had enough for today, my body can't take much more of this."
Mina heard him sigh and she could sense his frustration bubbling up to the surface. She knew her answer would get that response, but at this point, she didn't really care.
"Don't get huffy with me Acastus. I've reached my limit, and I don't want to get hurt," she said, dismissing her husband's disappointed attitude.
"I don't want you to get hurt either, which is why we are doing this extra training. Caleb is too easy on you, too worried about not injuring you to truly push you to your limits."
Mina moved her arm up and narrowed her eyes at him.
"The second half of what you just said contradicted the first half. I've seen and felt what you are capable of doing to your students. It may surprise you that I don't wish to be thrown around and wake up the next morning not being able to move. Especially not by you."
Mina stood from her place on the ground and walked towards the door to the training room. Not wanting to fight with him right now, she needed to leave before either of their tempers blew. Unfortunately, Kolya beat her to the door, his longer strides allowing him to cross the room faster than her. He held the door shut, blocking her exit. Mina looked up at his face, pinning him with a glare.
"Acastus move. I'm tired, I hurt, and I just want to go home. I'm done with this," she said, attempting to push his arm off the door so she could leave.
"Why do you always do that?" he asked, not budging against her efforts to move him.
"Do what?" she snapped, staring up at him in annoyance.
"Leave when you're upset."
Mina sighed and looked away, attempting to walk away from him again. He grabbed her arm and held her in place.
"Stop walking away from me and answer my question."
Mina pulled her arm from his grasp, anger flaring inside her.
"Is that an order Commander?" she asked.
Mina could see the pain that she caused with that question, but he was pushing her buttons.
"It was an attempt to avoid an argument. I don't particularly enjoy yelling at you, but you seem to be determined to bring it out of me regularly. Now let me leave Acastus."
Kolya stepped aside, removing his arm from her pathway. Mina was surprised that had worked. Straightening up, she walked out of the room with her head held high. Part of her felt bad for using his title against him, but she kept walking, afraid to look back to him.
When she reached home, she took a long shower, trying to soothe her sore muscles. It helped to some extent, but she could feel places on her body that would no doubt be covered in bruises. Sure enough, when she stood in front of the mirror half-dressed, she could see the purple and blue marks covering her skin. There were also several scars from training daggers on her forearms, some still pink and healing. Her hands were blemished with burn scars from the lab fire. Looking at herself, even though her muscles ached, Mina felt numb.
She heard the front door open and close, signaling Acastus's return. She heard his footsteps heading towards the bedroom, but Mina made no move to cover herself. She couldn't take her eyes off of her reflection, repeatedly scanning over every scar and bruise. When Kolya entered the bedroom, he stopped in the doorway.
"Mina? What are you doing?" he asked.
Lost in her self-observant state, Mina barely heard his question. He crossed the room and stood behind her, meeting her gaze in the mirror. His presence in the reflection broke Mina out of her trance, and she could feel again. The feeling came out in a sob-like gasp, startling both her and Kolya. He grasped her upper arms and turned her towards him, away from the mirror.
"What's wrong?" he asked, his eyes searching hers for answers.
"Why am I doing this Acastus? Why am I abusing my body like this? Why am I exhausting myself to the point where I no longer feel alive?" she asked, pain in her voice.
Kolya's concerned expression was clouded with confusion at her questions.
"I thought you wanted to help people? Like you did when you saved Dahlia from the fire. That's why you train so hard, so you can do what you set out to do. I know it's been hard, especially since you have had to make up for your lack of training."
Mina moved out of his grip, turning to the mirror again. She gestured at her battered body, disgust clouding her expression.
"But look at me! More of my body is scars and bruises than clear skin. I look nothing like myself."
Mina saw him shake his head in the reflection.
"Because you have changed. You've become stronger, gained muscle. The scars tell a story of your hard work and the bruises will fade. You are just as beautiful as the day I met you, if not more beautiful."
Mina's distraught feeling faded slightly at his words, but she felt as if he was trying to placate her to calm her down.
"You don't need to make me feel better Acastus. I haven't exactly been nice to you lately," she said, turning to face him again. "I'm sorry about the Commander thing. I could feel myself waiting to snap, which is why I tried to leave before it happened."
The corner of his mouth turned up in his trademark smirk.
"One of my favorite things about you is the fire in you. Your need to prove me wrong, to put me in my place. Not many people have the courage to do that, but that fire seems to burn strongly in your family."
At the mention of her family, Mina felt her heart sink. Her mind went back to the thing that had initially stressed her out so much, bringing back the feeling of doubt. Her face must have shown her feelings, as Kolya lifted her chin with his hand so she was looking him in the eyes.
"You were starting to come back to me, but you disappeared again. What is really going on Mina? What has put you on this path of self-doubt?"
"You were right before," she said "I want to help others. But what if I can't? What if I can't even help those that mean the most to me? What if I can't save them from the danger that may take them from me?"
Mina saw confusion in his eyes for a moment before realization dawned on him.
"You're talking about the rules that Cowen put in place, aren't you?"
A few weeks earlier…
Mina walked into the auditorium with Caleb and Nikomi, making her way to a seat. Cowen had called for an assembly of all military personnel. As she sat waiting for everyone to file in, Mina conversed quietly with her brother, both of them speculating on the reason that they had all been summoned. She glanced over to where the high ranking officers were and found her husband in the crowd. He looked in her direction and met her gaze. She gave him a small smile in greeting, which he responded to with an accepting nod. Once the auditorium was filled, Cowen stepped up to the broadcasting receiver. His presence at the front quieted the gathered crowd, everyone's attention focused on their leader.
"In the past year, the presence of the wraith has increased in the galaxy. They were awoken from their long slumber earlier than planned, which has led to many deaths, some among our own people. During the last culling, we lost nearly 100 people."
A wave of gasps and shocked exclamations spread over the gathered people before it was silent again.
"Also, unfortunately, our secret was nearly revealed to the wraith. Information gathered from a captured wraith before his death has led me to make a difficult decision. In order to preserve our people as a whole, to prevent the wraith from discovering the truth behind our way of living, we will need to make sacrifices."
Mina could feel the crowd tense around her as they anxiously awaited Cowen's plan. Whatever it was, Mina was sure that it would not be received positively. Cowen hesitated in his speech, as if he could sense the same thing she did.
"When the wraith return, which they surely will, only military personnel will be allowed into the safety of the bunkers. That being said, simply being a member of the military will not grant you safety. Anyone on the surface at the time of the attack will not be allowed access to the bunkers."
As expected, the crowd did not react well to this revelation. Shouts of outrage filled the room. People that served in the military but lived on the surface with their family made up most of the angry crowd. Mina exchanged a worried glance with her brother. They both had much to lose with the implication of this plan. While they both had a chance of preserving themselves, Thali didn't stand a chance unless she was able to find a place to hide on the surface. Caleb's new girlfriend Kenna was only Cowen's secretary, not a member of the military, so she was at risk as well.
"What are we going to do?" Mina asked frantically.
Caleb reached out and squeezed her hand comfortingly.
"We'll figure something out."
Cowen stood on the center platform, raising his hands to quiet the angry crowd.
"I know this is hard for you all to hear. Many of you have loved ones on the surface. Some exceptions will be made, namely for young children and women who are expecting. I hope that this concession will help quell some worries you may have. If it were possible, I would grant every citizen safety. But I fear that would lead to the total destruction of us as a society. I have hope that our advanced warning systems will alert us to any impending attack, thus allowing those on the surface to find refuge somewhere until the danger has passed."
"How can I spend so much time training to help people when the status granted to me through that training puts my chances of survival above theirs?" Mina asked. "What about those with no idea that they can't rely on the safety of the bunker? What about my sister? Cowen told us that we were not allowed to share his plan with non-military personnel, threatening to label us as traitors. When the Wraith attack, I can't help her. She will be on her own, they all will!"
Kolya pulled Mina into his arms, holding him tightly against him in an attempt to calm her.
"When the time comes, we will save your sister, I promise. She is your family, and you are mine, which makes her my family as well."
Mina sunk into his embrace, absorbing his promise with all her being. She knew her husband was a determined man. If he set his mind to something, he would do all he could to achieve it. She would be safe, Thali would be safe, they would make it out of this alive.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Please review and let me know what you think. Reviews are writer fuel!