Author's Note: Hi guys! Sorry about the late update. I got sick. Also, I had to rewrite the second half of this chapter because I wasn't happy with it. Hope the longer chapter makes up for the lateness :).
Teemo and Arin burst into the campsite with an enormous crash. Instantly, Lieutenant Roxanne swung her weapon towards them, only to pause a fraction above their faces when she recognised the two recruits.
"What happened?" she asked forcefully.
"We were attacked," Arin spoke up as Teemo pulled the girl to her feet beside him. "Lieutenant Darren told us to get back here while he held them off."
Commander Rodney (who had swiftly arrived soon after their sudden entrance) gave them a sharp look. "Attacked by what?"
"Some sort of scaled beasts," Teemo told him. "They were large, fast and had a tough, grey hide. Lieutenant Darren's dagger barely scratched the surface of the one that attacked us."
"There's at least two or three of them," the green-skinned recruit added. "We heard the others on our way back."
Roxanne gave their commanding officer a shocked look. "I've never heard of any sort of creature like that here," she said, concern lacing her voice.
The older yordle narrowed his eyes in response, "Neither have I, but there's a lot we don't know about this jungle. They're headed this way?" The last part for directed at the two recruits, causing the teens to nod.
"We slowed them down with a patch of Rumpo Shrooms but they're likely still following us," Teemo explained briefly.
Understanding flashed through Commander Rodney's eyes as he immediately jumped into action. "Roxanne, get the recruits in position and ready to move. We're not equipped to deal with this head on but we may have enough time to get away if we act quickly. Corin and I will guard our rear. You two, get to the others."
They never got the chance to answer as Arin's eyes widened. The teen tried to call out a warning but the Commander was already moving. In one fluid movement, the veteran pulled out his dual blades out to catch the leaping monster before it reached them. With a clever twist, he forced the bigger creature away as a second beast emerged from the undergrowth.
Roxanne pulled out her gun. "Get to the others!" she called out as she joined the Commander.
Not needing more motivation, the two recruits raced across the camp before suddenly colliding with Milli. Teemo managed to catch the pale girl as she fell backwards but she paid it no mind. Instead she pushed into their space with a desperate cry.
"Where's Commander Rodney? There're lizard-beasts attacking!"
The cream-coloured yordle felt his stomach drop at her words. "On the other side of the camp holding two more of them off with Lieutenant Roxanne."
The white yordle's mouth opened in horror even as a strange calmness settled over Teemo. "We need to get out of here. Where are the others?"
"This way." Now that she had some direction Milli jumped into action, leading the other two scouts back the way she's come as she explained, "Kade was taken out before we knew what was happening but Lieutenant Corin seemed to be holding them off with Davis and Lexi's help."
'Holding them off' might have been a bit optimistic, Teemo thought when they reached the rest of the recruits. The trio found them just inside the edge of the camp, where they'd been forced back to from the sheer pressure the bloodthirsty beasts were applying. Still, Milli had been right on one count, as the Lieutenant and the others had successfully kept the creatures at bay. As they arrived however, things rapidly escalated.
"Milli!" Davis called out in surprise, turning from the battle. "What're you doing back here?"
One of the dark hounds instantly pounced for the distracted boy's back but Corin pushed him out of the way.
He let out a quick cry as its claws sliced long tears through his calf muscle but it didn't stop him from twisting out of its hold with a sharp kick to its muzzle. The beast collided with the other, sending them down in a pile of growling limbs.
Limping heavily, the Lieutenant pulled Davis and Lexi over to the others. His face was pulled in a tight grimace but his eyes were still sharp. Looking over the group, he quickly put together the situation.
"More?" he asked to be sure. Barely waiting for their nods he continued. "If they manage to pin us down we're as good as dead. You need to get out of here now and get to the rendezvous point. Commander Rodney and Roxanne should meet up with you soon. Whether they do or don't you need to get to the other scouts."
"What about you?" Milli asked.
"I'm going to try and keep these things from following you."
"But-" Davis tried to argue but the senior yordle cut him off.
"What did the Commander say about knowing when to fight? The other group need to know what happened. Now go!"
Reluctantly, the five recruits took off towards the forest. Teemo glanced back once, just in time to see Corin pull out his pistol and shoot a nearby container of cooking gas before a large explosion took him from view. Smoke rapidly billowed out from the point of impact, driving the creatures from view and leaving the centre of the campsite a smouldering pile of dying flames.
Before long, the five recruits reach the rendezvous point, coughing and gasping for breath.
Once they got their breathing under control, Arin asked the question they'd all been wondering. "Now what?"
A heavy silence fell over the yordle before Milli spoke up. "We should head towards the other group," she said softly, already scanning the surrounding jungle to get her bearings. "They're much more equipped to handle this than we are."
"No way!" Davis immediately jumped to his feet, fists tightening at his sides. "We need to wait for the Commander and the Lieutenant. We can't just leave them here!"
"But what if those things find us first?" Arin asked.
"Not to mention the limited time we have to get to the other group," Lexi added. The pink girl placed her hand to her chin as she thought. "Our communicators where lost at the camp as was the map of the area. If the group moves on we'll have no way of finding them."
"Oh yeah," Davis rounded on the two. "All the more reason to wait. The Commander knows these woods better than any of us. We're more likely to make it there with him and he'll likely know where they went if they have moved."
Teemo stepped in before they could argue further. "You've all got a point. Commander Rodney and Lieutenant Roxanne are both going to increase our chances of survival." Seeing Davis' elated look, the cream-coloured male continued before he could brag. "However, we can't wait for them forever. So how about this: we wait ten minutes for them to show. That gives them a reasonable time to get out without us losing too much time waiting. Agreed?"
Grudgingly, the others nodded.
"A good plan," the unexpected voice made the recruits jump, turning with weapons raised as two new figures appeared out of the smoke. "But not necessary."
Collectively, they let out sighs of relief at the sight of their Commander and Roxanne. Both yordles looking a little worse for wear but definitely alive.
Meeting the young yordles' eyes Commander Rodney continued grimly. "Corin's trick gave us a little time. Let's not waste it."
Tristana made her way through the bustling defence grounds outside the Mothership, hoping to make it to the recruitment fields with time to spare for once. Even though she hadn't graduated yet, she was already expected to participate in part-time training in the evenings to get used to the training regimen. It was more work sure, but as she felt the weight of her new uniform the blue teen couldn't help but feel it was worth it.
As she arrived at the training grounds, Tristana spotted a pair of familiar cream ears. "Teemo!" she called out as she strode towards him. "What're you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be resting?"
He greeted her with a warm smile, waving at her with his injured hand (not that you could tell through his gloves).
"I'm mostly healed so I'm allowed on light duty."
Tristana sent him a playful glare, "Allowed yes. But not obligated. I would have thought you'd have taken some time off after everything."
The taller yordle shrugged, his smile fading. "I was getting restless. Wanted something to take my mind off of things – regain a sense of familiarity."
"Ah," was all Tristana could say. Trying to change the conversation, she forced a smile, "But what are you doing here? Don't the scouts have some super secluded training grounds away from us commoners?"
"Shared training today," Teemo took the topic gratefully. "Something about building cooperation between units and experience for the new recruits." He gave a self-conscious chuckle. "I'll be honest, that's part of the reason I decided to come in today. I really wanted to see you in action."
Tristana smirked, "And then show me up with your own skills."
"Would I do that?"
They both laughed at that before falling into an easy silence. After a bit, Teemo broke it. "I'm surprised you got in so early. Isn't your house quite far from here?"
The blue girl looked away. "I've been staying with Artemis recently. Her place is much closer."
The cream yordle picked up the implications but didn't say anything. Instead he asked, "How is she?"
"Away at the moment," the girl responded. "Her troop was sent to investigate the Kumungu the day after you got back so I've had the house to myself. It's nice, but a little quiet compared to what I'm used to. You're welcome to come visit if you want."
Teemo gave her a warm smile, straightening as their commander came into view. "I might take you up on that."
"Alright troops!" the tall female's words immediately had the young yordles scrambling to attention. "Today we're going to do some mock combat practice. You'll be randomly sorted into groups of four and your aim is to take out the opposing team."
This caused some murmurs of excitement and nerves from some of the newer recruits but their commander ignored them.
"Since most of you don't have much real-world experience, weapons will only be paint equivalents. If you get marked by paint, you're out. If you go out of bounds, you're out. If you are immobilised, you're out. Last team standing wins. Got it?"
The young recruits only had a moment to nod before the older yordle called out the first team. "First up will be Junaid, Yasmin, Tristana and Aurel against Reina, Annette, Lerato and Suvi."
Tristana gave her friend a quick grin before she joined the other seven yordles to gear up. Once they were in position, the commander gave them one last piece of advice, "Remember, this is a test to evaluate how well you can adapt to a situation so make sure you use your environment to the best of your ability."
In the end, the first fight ended pretty quickly. Unsurprisingly, Tristana's team won. The blue girl was a natural with her paint gun, and with the help of her team, was able to easily outplay her opponents. This got her a flattering report from the commander and a lot of praise from the other recruits. By the time she made her way back to Teemo, the female was practically glowing.
He gave her a warm grin and a sincere, "Congrats!" before both turned to watch the next teams' fight.
The next couple of matches were fairly even (none coming close to beating the record set by the first team) and uneventful, but their commander seemed pretty pleased with the raw talent the recruits were showing.
Finally, it was Teemo's turn. Making his way to their entry point, he let out a long breath to get rid of his lingering nerves and let his instincts kick in.
"So," one of the new yordles, Lloyd, turned to him. "You're our leader for this exercise. What-"
"There's an open ridge on the mid-right side of the arena which cuts a clear path around and behind us," the pale yordle cut him off crisply. "If they get through that they'll be able to come at us from two sides. You three will head there and hold them off."
"But, the ridge will give them-" the grey-furred female tried to argue but was also cut off.
"That was an order, now stop wasting my time."
Before the others could speak further, the scout briskly took off into the foliage, leaving them there.
"I guess… we do what he says," the first shrugged.
The three yordles took off in the direction they were told, soon coming up to the ridge in question.
"There," Jimmie pointed out some figures moving along the top. "I see th-"
He pulled back just in time; a glob of paint splattering the tree behind at chest height. As more shots rained down on them, the trio dove for cover behind some nearby rocks.
Lloyd carefully peered over the edge of their cover, trying to see if he could return fire, only to immediately duck back down as paint headed straight for him.
"I tried to warn him," Joelle seethed. "The ridge gives them the advantage of higher ground. We're sitting ducks here."
High above them, Madoc grinned as he and his two teammates fired down on their enemies. "Told you this would work," he crowed. "With them pinned we'll win in no time."
The fluffy boy next to him paused briefly to regard him seriously. "Don't get too cocky. There's still one missing."
The teal-coloured yordle just scoffed. "So? It'll be four against one then. Besides, that's why we have Alexey guarding our flanks." Realising they should probably check in with their teammate, Madoc brought his communicator up. "How're things looking Alli? We've got things in the bag on our end."
The only reply was the harsh sound of static.
"Alexey?" the smallest level of worry wormed its way into his gut as all three slowed their assault, attention now focused on the shrieking device.
"Maybe she dropped it. Or is fighting," Henrietta tried to reason. "Two here should be enough. I'll go help."
"Right," Madoc tried to sound more confident than he felt. His eyes briefly met Wayne's before they both turned their attention back to the trio of recruits they'd pinned.
Or at least they did until a shrill screech came from where the blonde female had left. The remaining two yordles froze.
"Henny?" Madoc called out. "You alright?"
Silence met his ears. Cold, deafening silence that torn unease right through the recruit.
"I think we should move," he spoke to the other boy, trying to keep his voice from quivering. However, when he turned to him, there was no one. "Wayne?"
By now the teal yordle could not deny the panic rapidly rising within him as his eyes darted about him in paranoia. A twig somewhere to his left snapped causing the teen to splatter the area with paint. But no one called out and no one appeared.
A rustling bush on his right was all it took for his resolve to break and the young yordle bolted away from the ridge. He barely made it ten steps before something constricted around his ankle and launched him into the air.
Once he got his bearings, Madoc found himself hanging upside-down by a tree snare. His gun had been flung well away from his reach and no matter how he twisted he could not reach the knot. That's when he heard the footsteps approaching. Unhurried, meticulous footsteps steadily making their way towards him.
He could not fight. He could not run. All he could do was close his eyes tightly and tense as the steps stopped right beside him. This was the end.
"Dead."
Madoc's eyes flew open as something wet dripped onto his face to meet the unfeeling gaze of the pale yordle above him; his hand pulling back as it continued to drip red paint.
All of a sudden, the tension he felt was broken as another recruit broke through the clearing.
"That was so amazing!" Lloyd crowed. "You took out all of them on your own!"
The serious yordle broke into a nervous laugh, as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I've just had more practise," was his humble response.
And all Madoc could do was stare. He unconsciously tensed as the cream-coloured boy turned his gaze back to him but all he did was smile.
"Sorry about that. Here, let me help you down."
As Lloyd continued to chatter excitedly about the exercise, the two yordles helped the third boy out of the snare. Soon they were joined by the others outside the arena, Madoc noting (with some relief) that his own teammates, though a little on edge, were none the worse for wear.
"Alright, let's start with the obvious," their commander wasted no time on them. "Teemo, your use of the environment was efficient and creative, allowing your team to take out your opponents in record time."
The teen in question, straightened as he was addressed before the tall female continued. "However, putting your team in danger to draw out the enemy is not a strategy I would ever recommend. Yes, this was a training exercise and it worked out for everyone involved. But if it hadn't, you would be responsible for the death of all your teammates as well as being left in a four on one situation."
"I understand," he spoke softly.
Nodding, the commander turned her attention to criticizing the other recruits. After she was done, they were allowed to disperse for a short break before the next exercise.
Tristana felt as if there was a brick lodged in her stomach after the display she'd seen. There had been something inexplicably disconcerting about watching her friend in that last fight. Something about how different he had seemed that left the girl uneasy. However, she pushed it aside with a smile as he approached.
"You know, I know I said you'd show me up but I didn't think you'd rub it in that much. That was incredible!"
"Yeah."
"Hey are you alright?" the blue yordle peered closely at her friend at his lacklustre response. "You look really pale."
"I'm sorry. I don't think I'm feeling that well after all. I think I'm going to head home."
Tristana gave him a concerned look, but before she could push, the commander called her group up again. "Alright," she conceded. "Hope you feel better soon."
Teemo watched as his friend raced off before returning his gaze to his hands. "Yeah," he whispered, as a brief look of fear crossed his face, "me too."