Page 4 of Scarlet Wars
Godsdamnit, I nearly strangled him for being right.
Breathing hard, I took a few seconds to think, a hasty plan forming in my mind.
"What’s the closest Collective to Cyclos outside the US?" I barked.
Saoirse was quick to respond despite having been silent until then—no doubt just as worried about her best friend. "KanataC. They’ve merged with the Canadian Human World effortlessly, and they’ve opened their doors to all magi migrants, offering sanctuary to those fleeing harsher regions. We could head there, monitor the situation from closer by."
"Who’s their First Offensive?" I demanded.
"Rachel Varez," Sean answered without hesitation.
"Get her on the Nexus, now!" I snapped, urgency burning through me. “And get me clearance!”
When Racheland I first met a few years ago, back when she was still a Moderate, she didn’t shy away from making her intentions clear.
At first, I assumed it was purely physical, so I went along with it. After all, with her Cuban roots, she was more than beautiful. Her deep, golden-brown skin, and her thick, dark hair stood in beautiful contrast with her light-colored eyes. She had this confident way of carrying herself, like she knew every head in the room would turn to follow her.
When it became obvious she wanted something deeper from me, something I couldn’t give, Irespectfullyended things between us.
In contacting Rachel, a part of me worried our history might make her less inclined to help us now. But I was relieved to find she was not only willing, but almost eager to welcome me back into her Collective.
I’d left Sean in charge of Crown, gathered the essentials, and portaled into Kanata C by myself, exactly fifty-three minutes after finding out Emma had been off the grid for fourteen fucking days.
As the portal’s shimmer faded, I landed in what could only be described as the scenic route to godsdamn hypothermia.
How did anyone live voluntarily in this kind of blasted cold?
I started trudging through the deep snow, cursing myself I didn’t portal in a bit closer to their living quarters.
Kanata C was planted deep in a forest so thick, I could only assume someone high up had said, “What if we put a base where no one can find it? Including us.”
Nothing says strategic defense like twelve thousand identical trees and zero visibility. Towering evergreens stretched in every direction, and beyond them the Rocky Mountains loomed, their snow-capped summits piercing the gray sky.
However beautiful it was, the place still smelled of pine, wet dirt, and logistic denial.
The compound spread out beneath the snow-heavy trees, a weird mix of sleek design and backwoods charm. There were over twenty buildings, all clean lines and sharp angles, with too much glass for a place this cold.
The windows reflected the trees and the gray sky as if they were trying to blend in. Wood beams framed the structures, dark grain half-buried under snow, and chunks of stone jutted out as though someone had tried to make the place look “authentic.”
Snow covered the roofs and piled up in the narrow paths between buildings, silencing every step as if the place didn’t want to be heard. Warm light spilled behind the glass, which was nice, if you were into the whole “cozy forest bunker” thing. For how big it was, the place didn’t mess with the forest much. It just sat there, quiet, like it was simply part of it.
Rachel stood waiting right beyond the clearing, her figure backlit by the soft, amber glow emanating from the Collective’s main structure.
She was dressed in Offensive attire, covered by a long, fur-lined coat, her dark hair falling in waves over her shoulders,giving her an air of both command and warmth. As I approached, I noticed how the light caught her gaze, a flicker of something—recognition, maybe even a touch of nostalgia—crossing her face.
“Welcome back,” Rachel said, sounding steady yet with an unmistakable undercurrent of curiosity.
I nodded in return. “It’s been a while.”
An uncomfortable silence stretched between us.
I cleared my throat, not sure how to proceed. “How have you been?”
“Good.”
Okay. Little awkward.
“Let’s uhm, let’s get you inside. Where the warmth, uhm, where it’s a warm. Well, warmer than here. In the cold, hah, obviously. You know, outside.” Watching Rachel stumble over her own words was rather fascinating. She was First Offensive for fuck’s sake.
