Cerberus HQ, Female Barracks, 936, November 6th, Tuesday, 8:30 AM.

Claire sat at the edge of her bed while looking at the screen of her phone in hand. She closed her eyes with a sigh before concealing the device inside a tactical bag around her waist, which was part of a tactical belt issued by Cerberus. The lieutenant promptly stood up from the bed after a quick check of her items, walking towards a standing mirror in Tori’s side of the dormitory.

“I wonder if he saw it…” she whispered with furrowed brows while tidying up her uniform. “Too bad the camera couldn’t capture Lucy.”

Her attention would quickly deviate away from her own reflection, making her eyes squint at the sight of Tori’s pillow being flung up in the air. She half closed her eyes and pressed her lips together as more pillows began to fly up into the ceiling, causing the bed to emit squeaky noises as it bounced up and down. A pair of tiny feet sinking down into the soft mattress did not escape Claire’s vision either, bringing a smile to her face as she casually strolled to the young redhead’s bed.

“How strange…” she said. “What could be causing all this ruckus I wonder? I wonder if there are ghosts nearby.”

All flying objects flopped back down suddenly at the woman’s words, never to move again as they lied static in both the bed and floor. The pair of tiny feet began to move away towards the end of the bed, but were caught in an instant by the lieutenant’s quick reaction.

“Ah!” a girlish cry escaped the entity haunting the dormitory, followed by merry laughs and giggles.

“I have trouble explaining myself to Tori when she can’t find her things,” Claire smiled while raising the girl above her head. “Kids your age would not get away with this type of mischief in my village, Lucy. Perhaps some good old-fashioned discipline from the lieutenant is what you need.”

The girl squirmed and wiggled about in an attempt to free herself from Claire’s clutches, but her hopeless attempts only served to draw out a quick chuckle from the lieutenant, who gently laid her back on top of the bed while rubbing her head with crinkled eyes.

“I’m joking, of course.” She said before turning towards the exit of the room, promptly walking her way towards the wooden door of the dormitory. “I have a mission today, and it may take a while before I can return to headquarters.” Claire announced with a straight face, placing one hand in the doorknob. “I stocked some food and water inside the lowest cabinet next to my bed, and if you need some entertainment just look inside my stash in front of it. That’s where I keep my books if you want to read them, there are some… hah.” Her shoulders dropped with an exasperated sigh before continuing. “A set of cards from Cards O’s if you want to play that… they are from Scott and Eric, so make sure to take care of them.”

Despite all her arrangements however, no amount of preparation could help in soothing Claire’s worries for the girl, as part of her mind objected to her leaving to perform her duties. She recollected herself quickly in spite of her concerns however, twisting the doorknob before leaving the room into the empty hallway of the female barracks.

“I’ll be back soon,” she told the girl before locking the door behind her.

Cerberus HQ, Rampart Gates: 936, November 6th, Tuesday, 9:00 AM.

In the busy grounds of headquarters, with the heavily guarded gates of the wall protecting HQ from the Deadlands tightly shut, and the warm winds of the hellish zone raising in temperature. Claire drove her motorcycle towards one of the small checkpoints protecting the massive entrance from many yards away, guarded by a pair of soldiers wearing the white and gold uniform of Cerberus. They rested inside two small cabins placed in front of each other, restraining access to the gate with two poles lowered in a straight horizontal angle.

Claire dropped off her bike as soon as she reached the point, immediately catching the attention of the two officers keeping the boom gates closed. Her motorcycle vanished once her feet touched the ground, leaving a trail of crimson particles behind as the lieutenant opted to approach one of the stations on foot. The soldier inside the cabin jumped off his plastic chair to jog his way out of his station, and meet Claire outside of the gates.

“Lieutenant Claire Lionheart,” she reported. “I’m here under the boss’ request.”

“Good morning, lieutenant!” The young officer saluted with a firm stance, lowering his hand to extend a clipboard and some papers towards Claire—who promptly took it into her own hands. “We were instructed to give you these, ma’am.” he said.

“Hmm…” the lieutenant hummed while carefully reading every instruction given, flipping up the pages as she scanned through every single one in silence.

“Meep! Meep!” a voice suddenly called for her attention with a playful tone.

One of the company’s vehicles pulled over next to Claire as she lowered her instructions to glance at the car, driven by the young sniper of Bloodhound—Scott Foley. Tori and Eric hopped out from the truck bed, and immediately walked their way towards Claire. The young redhead met the lieutenant with a happy pump of her fists, while the noble simply met her gaze with nod.

“Are we ready to go?” Scott asked while pushing the truck’s door open, casually strolling his way towards the team with a smile.

“In just a moment,” replied Claire while turning her head towards the young soldier, who stood firm with a straight gaze and raised chin. “Inform the gates that Bloodhound is ready to operate,” she commanded. “We’ll report back once our mission is completed.”

“Yes, ma’am!” he saluted before taking a sharp turn back to his cabin. “Urk!” the man planted one foot in front of the other however, halting his advance to turn his head towards Claire. “M-ma’am… I have a question… if it isn’t much to ask, of course.”

The lieutenant’s eyes narrowed and her head tilted slightly to the side, displaying a hardened expression that forced the young officer to swallow dry as he began to sweat. All the other members of Bloodhound simply looked at each other with raised brows, wondering about the young man’s intentions before shrugging at each other.

A frustrated sigh escaped Claire as she crossed her arms, firmly replying to the officer’s request. “One question, be quick.”

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

“Y-yes, thank you!” the man pumped his fist and his eyes widened, proceeding to clear this throat before speaking. “So… uh…”

“I said be quick,” the lieutenant urged him to continue, maintaining a leveled voice despite exhibiting an angrier tone. “You are delaying our mission.”

“We are actually thirty minutes early,” Scott pointed out from behind the lieutenant’s back, which only earned him an aggressive glare from the lieutenant. “Of course… that’s… you know… good.”

“I-I want to be part of your team, lieutenant!” the young officers finally gathered the courage to spat out his request. “I joined Cerberus after hearing news about you, and thought I could a good member of the team, ma’am!”

“No,” Claire offered a cold reply in a mere instant, shutting down the young man’s request without a second thought. “Only the smartest, strongest, and most disciplined are allowed to join my Bloodhound,” she continued. “You possess none of these features, and your reasons for wanting to be part of the team lack any sense of agency. Now call for the gates to be open.”

“Ah!” the young soldier flinched back, offering one last salute before moving back to his job. “Sorry… I-I’ll call them right away!” He returned quickly to his station, lifting a phone into his ear while informing the second officer to lift the boom gates with a quick motion of his hand.

“Are we accepting just about anybody now days?” Eric crossed her arms with scrunched brows, followed by the protesting words of Tori.

“Eric!” she yelled at him. “Everyone is doing their best. Maybe… he just wanted to be useful.”

“Sure…”

With the issue quickly resolved, Bloodhound hopped back into the truck to prepare for their operation in the Deadlands. Scott took the driver’s sit once again, with Tori opting to take her place in the passenger’s spot next to the young sniper. Eric returned to his previous spot in the back of the truck, leaning his back on the car’s window. Having her way of transportation, Claire simply approached the driver’s window for a quick briefing—slamming both hands on top of the lowered window.

“Stay close as always, and make sure you have everything you need for the mission.” She told her team. “Specters will always be dangerous despite their numbers, so I want you both to be extra careful, understood?”

“Ma’am!” both Bloodhound officers responded to her command, displaying a strange glimmer in their expressions—one that didn’t go unnoticed by the lieutenant.

“Why do you look like that?” she raised an eyebrow, moving her eyes from Scott to Tori as they looked extremely pleased with themselves.

“Haha…” Tori chuckled nervously, leaning forward in her sit to look into Claire’s eyes. “Well… it’s just that…”

“We knew you were appreciative of our efforts,” Scott interrupted. “But to call us the best of the best in front of one of the recruits…”

“I’m happy you think of us that way, lieutenant!” Tori chimed back in with a bright smile. “I’ll make you proud, promise!”

A soft slap in the forehead was Claire’s response to her team’s antics, dropping her head with a sigh before stepping back from the vehicle. “Just don’t get distracted…” she said before moving towards the back, where the young blonde noble waited for the truck to start moving.

“Lieutenant,” he said with a nod at Claire’s presence.

“How are you doing back here?”

“I’m not complaining,” he replied. “I am one of the strongest, smartest, and most discipl—”

“Finish that sentence, and I’m leaving you behind for this mission.”

“No need to be shy about it, if—”

“Get out.”

“I’m sorry.”

Argument settled, and the gates of the massive rampart groaning loudly as they began to slide open. Bloodhound waited no longer to proceed with their operation as Scott pressed on the gas while Claire summoned her motorcycle, mounting the spectral bike and riding next to her team’s vehicle. The crimson fog of the Deadlands began to pour in from the breaches of the gargantuan gate, releasing a strong heat from within the zone. All stationed platoons nearby observed as one motorcycle, and a single vehicle ventured into the Deadlands with barely any supplies to operate—watching them both vanish within the red fog in the distance.

Cerberus HQ, Female Barracks: 936, November 6th, Tuesday, 9:00 AM.

Striding across the empty halls of the female barracks, was a man clothed in a white coat and round glasses with red frames. He causally smiled to himself while glancing at all the doors of the hallway, only stopping his advance at one of them in specific. A golden plaque labeled with the number ‘911’ was placed in front of it, drawing a wider smile in Jacob’s expression.

He placed one hand in the door before attempting to push it open, only to be met by the clicking sound of its locks. His mood wouldn’t be watered by the sealed entrance however, as he withdrew a small silver key from inside the pocket in his pants. The item slid in swiftly in the doorknob’s keyhole, unlocking the room in a single twist of the man’s wrist.

The door creaked open with a soft push from Jacob, who invited himself into the room without announcement. He was met by a brightly decorated half of the bedroom, which displayed many happy posters of animals and landscapes. His eyes immediately settled in the furthest half of the bedroom however, which kept a plain look with barely any decorations around. Jacob took one last look at the empty hallway before locking the door behind him, proceeding to walk towards the farthest side of the room.

“Hm?” he stopped in front of the bed, and turned his head towards a small photo resting on top of a wooden drawer. “I wasn’t told about this…” he murmured, settling his gaze in the bright smiles of Sebastian Lionheart and his team. “Yeon told me Sovereign revealed himself to the lieutenant… but was he seeing her often?”

A gasp escaped Jacob as he quickly stepped back from the photo, closing the curtains of the dormitory before thoroughly scanning the area. He looked under the beds, desks, drawers, closet, and every object of the bedroom regardless of how small it was—making sure to leave no stone unturned in his hasty search. Sweat began to roll down the man’s forehead, who found himself worn out and huffing through his lips.

“Lucy,” he called out with a friendly voice while baring his teeth with a smile. “Lucy are you here? It’s me Jacob, remember?” he slowly moved across the room with and arched back, keeping his arms close to the floor while waving his hands around. “The lieutenant is out on a mission right now, so I came in to check on you. Lucy?”

Northern Region of the Deadlands, Near Cerberus’ Borders: 936, November 6th, Tuesday, 9:00 AM.

Having entered the hellish zone without issue, Bloodhound rapidly advanced through the vast and dry hell of the Deadlands. Scott drove the team’s vehicle while Claire rode her bike next to it, maintaining a fixed stare in the dark horizon in front of them. Their path forward was nothing but a desolated plain of scorched earth, a now familiar environment that the team had fought many times, and has served as the graves of many who’ve fallen at the hands of the demons lurking inside its shadows.

“…” sweat rolled down the lieutenant’s forehead, as the heat of the Deadlands grew the further she and her team ventured towards the center. “I hate this place…” she muttered.

“I… e…”

“Wha—” Claire’s focus was suddenly broken by a faint sound—one she recognized as a faint voice calling nearby. “What was that?”

“Did you say something, lieutenant?” Scott asked without taking his eyes off the path ahead.

The lieutenant waited a few seconds to respond as she waited for the voice to speak once again, leaning forward in her motorcycle while holding her breath. “No…” she finally offered her reply to Scott, simply leaning back into her original position before blowing air out through her lips. “I just thought I heard something…”

“Gurk!” the young sniper recoiled at her words, gulping down with a nervous chuckle. “Hah… well, it’s probably just the heat… ghosts aren’t real after all, right?”

“Of course not.”

No specters to oppose them during their journey across the Deadlands, Bloodhound continued its way further towards the zone’s center. Accompanied only by the whistling sounds of the wind, and the rolling stones of its empty plains

END OF CHAPTER