Mishap

"I can't feel my legs! Ra, I can't feel my legs!" Nakia exclaimed as she was placed on the bed. The men who carried her in walked out of the room leaving just Yves and the latter's husband by the dark-haired woman's side.

"What happened?" Yves asked.

Suddenly, the door busted open and Kendi walked in. "Is she going to be okay?" He asked. While giving orders to some guards outside the house a few moments earlier, Kendi had seen the two men entering the building carrying his wife. "Will my wife be okay?!"

"Yves, see him out," he said not answering any of their questions.

Yves placed her hand on the dark-skinned man's shoulder and pushed him out of the room, leaving the room with him to ensure the dark-skinned man did not return.

He examined her leg, the woman with the long braid had long red thorns stabbed into her leg; red neem.

He turned to Nakia who was writhing and turning before linking their hands together and looking straight into her eyes, attempting to project his calmness into her.

"Nakia," he called. The dark-skinned woman's breath steadied as she stared into the alchemist's eyes.

"Remember the day we met?" He asked.

A smile flickers on her lips. "That's not a very good moment," she said.

"But it was the day we met," he said. "So, do you remember?" He asked once more.

"It was in Hel, inside of Lazuni's cave. I noticed you the moment you walked in," she said.

"I didn't notice you until Kendi called your name ... You were the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen."

Nakia raised an eyebrow. "Were?"

"You still are ... You always would be."

The dark-skinned woman sniggered. "Even when I'm old and grey?"

"You'll never be old and grey." He kisses her on the forehead. "How's the leg?"

Nakia sat up and looked at her leg, to her surprise, there were no longer any thorns in her leg. "When did --"

"How do you feel?" He asked.

"It feels heavy ... And limp at the same time," she replied.

He clenches his fist and punches three spots on her leg, restoring the flow of energy to her leg.

He takes out a potion from a bag beside the bedpost and hands it to her. "Here; drink this," he said, handing her the bottle just as they heard a knock on the door.

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Diana was writing on a sheet of paper when she heard a knock on the door. The snow-white-haired woman sets her pen on the book before moving to the door to unlock it.

"Baby!" She said excitedly when she saw Hunter on the other side of the door, embracing him tightly. When they separated, the peach-eyed woman looked behind the sprite before looking back at him.

"You know, for some reason I expected you to return with a swarm of girls."

Hunter laughs. "I had three, figured they wouldn't have a place here so I booked them a hotel not far from us."

"Smart. I can't wait to meet them."

"How have you been?" asked the sprite.

"Got yelled at by Camille because you took a detour, did some homework, and almost ran into the twins, but you know," she shrugged. "I'm fine."

"I can't imagine Camille yelling."

"Probably because I'm exaggerating. She was a little mad you didn't inform her first but that was it."

"And what was that about almost running into the twins?"

"It happened a couple of times but I feel like this avoiding the other thing isn't one-sided," Diana stated.

"What do you mean?" Hunter asked.

"There are times when we miss each other in the most dramatic way possible. I'm certain they too are trying to avoid me," Diana replied.

"Let's just keep watching them for the time being."

"Of course."

"Thank you for doing all the work while I was gone, Diana," said the sprite.

"Anything for you honey. Now come on, we've got work to do."

"Alright. What do I have to do?"

"Homework."

"You're kidding."

"Not one bit. How do you think schools work?"

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•Sector 5

"Camille ..." Skylar said softly.

The director of the Alpha Sector drops her spoon into the bowl of cereal and turns to the aqua blue-eyed woman. "What did I do wrong?" She asked knowing that the medic only called her in such a manner when she wanted to complain about something.

"You brought over two dozen new girls to the ship. Why?"

"My hands were tied," said Camille.

"It should have been the other way around."

Camille raised an eyebrow. "Tied were hands my?"

"Camille," she said softly as she pulled up a seat and placed it in front of the red-eyed woman, she sat on the seat, facing the black-haired woman before speaking. "You shouldn't have brought them here because your hands were tied. We're supposed to be doing a full dive, which means no contact with anything outside this ship but so far we've let in the Director of the Bureau, over two dozen new girls, and let's not forget that you contacted Hecate's coven and even left the ship itself," Skylar said. "If the operation fails --"

"It wouldn't," the red-eyed woman interrupted.

"If it does," said Skylar. "We'll need to prove we had nothing to do with it. You running around Nym'Roal doesn't help our case."

"I get it."

"Do you? Because they're some girls across the room that say otherwise," she said, in her calming voice.

"I do. But we would not fail, I feel it, everything would end well and you'd forget we even had this conversation," said Camille.

"Let's hope so." Skylar rose from the seat and started for the door.

"I know I act like this is all a joke but I take this operation very seriously," Camille said just as Skylar was about to leave. The aqua blue-haired woman stopped and turned to the Alpha Sector director.

"All the times I've had to contact outside sources, I did it because we had no other choice. Maybe ... Maybe we rushed into this but this is our one golden opportunity and I don't plan on wasting it." Camille sighs and rubs her temple. "The girls weren't my idea, Hunter just left me a text saying they would need my help and there was nothing I could do. After all, this place was built for girls like them."

Skylar walks towards the red-eyed woman. "I get it, honey, I really do but we have to be careful, one wrong move and we may never recover." Skylar's eyebrow shoot up. "Hunter found the girls? How?" She asked.

"I'm not sure ... They're some sort of mercenary group ... Most of the girls didn't want to be there."

"Mercenary group in Dreieck? Where have I heard that b -- Oh my!" She exclaimed.

"What is it?" Camille asks.

"The group ... Is the group called Retribution?" Skylar asked.

"Yes. How did you know that?"

"No ... No .. No ..."

"What is it?"

"According to Maxine's recent report, the Bureau is aware of the Retribution but leaves them be as they view them as a necessary evil in the East. The Bureau also has a spy that had infiltrated the group and is now considered as a top member in the group."

"That means ..."

"One of the girls you brought down here works for Olivia."

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