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She was a pretty thing, with white-blonde hair and big blue eyes. Her look was almost the exact opposite of mine: all pale or bright colors, like a slip of quicksilver flashing in the corner of one’s vision.
Aria? Aya? I couldn’t remember her name, but she didn’t usually come to the dining hall, especially when it was this loud and crowded. I wondered why she was present even as I continued chatting up our latest batch of newcomers.
It certainly wasn’t to see me. In the few times we’d interacted, the woman had made it clear she was incredibly uninterested in having any conversation, which was fine. Yet it did gnaw at my pride that I couldn’t seem to coax even the slightest bit of conversation from her.
“Captain Kai?”
A question from another recruit had me turning back in the healer’s direction, and my eyes flickered over to her again. This time she wasn’t looking at me, at least not right away, but after a beat, her head perked up, and I was able to see that pretty visage of hers once more.
Well, it’d be awkward if I just looked away as if I was ashamed of seeing her, so instead, I smiled and tipped my head. Maybe she was just painfully shy?
No, that didn’t seem to be the case. She glared, then she picked up her tray and left.
Huh.
Vague disappointment drifted through me. As an alpha, I liked to instill a sense of camaraderie and closeness among all the members of Fort Canid. It was a massive military instillation, yes, but I firmly believed forces who actually cared about each other were a million times more effective than impartial strangers.
Well, it wasn’t like she was causing fights or any tension, and I'd never tolerate it if she was abusive to her patients. No, from what I heard from our head healer, she was excellent, and those she cared for had nothing negative to say. She was just a pack member who needed a little more space than others. Probablybecause she was a witch and not a shifter. Still a cryptid, but basically an entirely different creature.
Perhaps I should approach her privately? At least compliment her work ethic and put any nerves she had at ease? Then again, if she preferred to be left alone, I didn’t want to bother her. Witches were hard to come by, and witches trained in the healing arts who wanted to fight for our side were even rarer.
“Captain Kai?”
Oh, right. I was supposed to be paying attention to the new recruits. I needed to get myself together.
“I know that many of you come from smaller, intergenerational packs, so there will be an adjustment period here. But I don’t want any of you to feel nervous. If you’re having difficulty, we have several specialists who can help you, and you can always come to me with any issues you have.”
I may have grown up in a massive pack, yet I’d long since learned that everyone’s transitions from their home pack to our military were different. Not everyone fell into the hierarchy with ease, and some had issues with dominance or submission.
Unlike armies that only ever recruited alpha shifters, we welcomed cryptids of all nationalities, designations, and species. Witches, vampires, changelings: our doors were wide open to anyone who wanted to fight for our country’s victory. The downside was that sometimes there were bumps along the road, but I’d long since found that recruits did a lot better when they were warned beforehand. The time went quickly as I went through my rounds, though I was certainly parched once I’d finished. As usual, the recruits were eager to keep chatting, but I dismissed them and urged them to eat as the new training was going to make them hungry.
As I walked away, I saw a familiar face approaching me. A smile spread across my features at the sight of him.
“Lieutenant Oren,” I said, nodding to my best friend and adopted brother. We’d been raised together, and while usually alpha shifters tended to part ways once they hit puberty, we’d stuck by each other’s sides. I trusted him more than pretty much anybody else I knew in the world, and he’d never once let me down. “You certainly look like you have something on your mind.”
He nodded, scanning the room around us. That was my friend, all right: always vigilant, never caught off guard. “A couple of our scouts reported back.”
“Anything interesting in their findings?”
“No, nothing…”
“Why does your tone tell me there’s a ‘but’?”
“Because there is. One of the scouts, Tristan Hayes, didn’t return at his rally time. I requested a few shifters who’re familiar with him and his scent go out looking for him immediately.”
Damn. The wild animal within me wanted to go after him, to hunt down a brother in need and bring him home to safety. But the truth was that war didn’t always allow our inner animal to rule. As an alpha shifter, it was important I knew when to rely on my civilized brain and when to rely on my wolf.
“Anything I can do?”
“Not yet, my friend. The scout could either be hiding from a threat, and we’d walk into whatever conflict he’s avoiding, or he could be stealthing at a human tavern. You know how much some of the barflies appreciate our uniforms. I need to talk to one of our local suppliers, anyway, so I’ll take a look around town. If I can’t find any hide nor hair of him there, we’ll send a search party out in the morning.”
“Yes, sir.”
Normally, I'd be much more concerned, but it wasn’t exactly the first time Tristan had gone galivanting off to schmooze with townsfolk. The only reason I never cared to bring him up oninsubordination charges was because he always came back with vital intel or new connections.
“Now, with that handled, what else…” I trailed off when I noticed Oren’s gaze decidedly lingering somewhere behind me. Turning, I saw that he was glowering at a group by one of the center tables—mostly male soldiers with a very particular woman at their center.
Ah, Sergeant Khan. She was a particularly powerful psychic, and an absolute boon to our forces. She also was drop dead gorgeous—something I knew Oren waspainfullyaware of.
