The equipment that Melody grabbed for me was just a few meters away, resting next to a stray picnic bench. Sitting quietly on the bench next to the gear was Victor. As I started to gather up the equipment, it wasn't a big pile; Victor hopped off the bench, scooped up the tent bag and ran off.

"Hey," I yelled after him.

"Don't worry, he's just taking it to the spot I picked. He likes being helpful." Melody fell in beside me and then gestured for me to follow her.

"So, where is this perfect spot you have for me?" I asked.

"You mean for your tent?" she replied with a grin that I couldn't place.

"Yes, what else would I mean?"

She just snickered and shook her head. "You know, I didn't realize that this would be so entertaining."

"Showing me where I can set up my tent is entertaining?" I asked, befuddled.

"No," she said and gestured around. "All of this. The liberation mission. You." She pointedly looked at me. "It could just be my sense of humor, though. It really wasn't that entertaining until you showed up. The energy in the camp has really picked up since then. But now that I've met you, it's even better."

Before I could respond, she pointed forward. "We're here. You can set up your tent in the empty space right there, next to the large red one."

"Oh," I said, pausing for a moment. "I thought I would have my own area. I don't want to bother anyone."

"You won't be bothering anybody," she said.

"Well, then whose tent is that?" I was trying to think of some way to beg off being placed there. It made me uncomfortable to be placed around people I didn't know.

Melody's face dropped into a frown, and she clasped her hands in front of her chest, palms facing her body. Since I had only seen her with a smile on her face, her sudden change made me instantly feel as bad as if I had kicked a puppy. She looked heartbroken, and her hair fell over her eyes, which seemed to be building moisture.

"That's my tent," she said meekly. "I thought you would appreciate the company. But I could find somewhere else if you don't want to be by my brother and me." Her head turned away as she finished, and I stammered to right my wrongs.

"N-no, it's great," I quickly said. "I just didn't want it to be anyone else," I added, happy that I thought of something to alleviate her hurt.

"Great," she said, returning to normal. "I have some chores to do. Get your tent set up and stuff situated, and when I come back, we can go down to the campfire. Come on, Victor."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

She turned and walked away without glancing back. I watched her walk down the small road. Her younger brother was at her heels, and an ice-cold bucket of shame and confusion poured down my head.

Since I'm more familiar with her than anyone else, I didn't mind the spot once I knew it was her tent, but she still played me. I took a deep breath and shrugged it off. I realized I would have to try to be more cognizant of her skills in the future. I may have had a robust military education but severely lacked experience in other areas.

I turned to my equipment, inventoried what they gave me, and set up my tent. The whole process didn't take me too long. Once I was done, I kicked off my boots and went into the tent to relax for a few minutes.

It had been a couple of days since I had taken my boots off, and when I did, I could swear they must have grown mouths and audibly sighed in relief, or maybe that was just me. I was given a couple of pairs of socks in the supplies, so I stripped my issued green pair off and hung them above the tent to air out. I was sure they stunk so bad they could kill an elephant, but since I hadn't been able to bathe, it was difficult for me to tell. I would have to ask a little later about bathing and hygiene.

For the moment, I was alone in my tent and not under any threat of scrutiny. I took a few minutes to decompress and process everything that had happened the past few days. Only two days before, I had been at the camp and broken into Sergeant Michel's office. I was currently in a forest in the outside world with people who wanted to break into the base to free and liberate it.

I thought about that, about how everyone would react. The camp would likely tell everyone they were being attacked by hostile forces, which wouldn't really be a lie. Everyone, including the Carpenters, would be forced to fight against them.

I know I would have if I were told we were being attacked. I wondered if other liberation groups had dealt with similar situations in the past. It would be something I would have to ask Enzo.

Those thoughts brought up a lot of other issues. If they had fought against kids, did they kill them? If they did, they weren't any better than the camps they were trying to liberate, especially if the kids were held against their will.

But Jace wasn't there against his will; he knew everything and didn't care. I always thought he was angry at being confined and confused like the rest of us, but his knowledge was shocking. Also, how did he know?

The cadre mentioned that some kids would remember more, but they never mentioned someone might remember everything. Was he the only one? Were there others? How were my memories returned? Pondering all those questions let my mind drift away into the comfort of sleep.

"Aidren?" Melody called from outside my tent.

I was jerked awake at the sound of my name.

"Here," I managed to croak after a second of disorientation.

The inside of my tent was considerably darker than before, but there was still enough light to see. I unzipped the tent and stuck my head out. It was significantly lighter outside my tent, but the light was still falling fast. Melody stood a short distance away with what I was already considering as her signature smile.

"Sorry I woke you. I can let you sleep if you want to?" Melody asked but also didn't let me respond. "I just wanted to know if you wanted to go to the campfire. It's usually pretty fun, and that's where we serve dinner."

I was going to go anyway because I wanted to look around more, but once she mentioned dinner, I was sold on it. "Just let me put on my shoes."

"You can change your socks while you're at it, and we can burn those other ones," she said, plugging her nose and pointing at the pair I hung above my tent to air out. As I looked at my socks and back to her, she over-exaggeratedly fanned in front of her face.