Hare of Misfortune

Forcing her legs to remain steady as she passed through the hallway, Rachel slowed a bit when Roy—the Green Beret who spoke Korean—motioned for her to stop after obtaining the order from Mateo.

”Lt. Thompson only wants to talk to you, Rachel; a place is being set up for Selvaria, Anthony, and Scarlet. Lt. Herrero will be joining us shortly after handing over command to Second Lt. Falcon.”

Rachel sighed, swapping to the wall to close her eyes and wait for everyone to finish with the most urgent matters. Anthony shifted the unconscious vespertine reaper in his arms as the others halted in the hall, soldiers hustling through it following orders.

Most of the Coast Guard personnel were looking up to Mateo’s Green Beret platoon after word spread that the Special Forces group had been part of the reason they’d escaped the dome and killed the alien threat; they’d taken out two of the Crystal Hubs, and, apparently, as the rumor went, lured one to the ’sea dragon’ that had some circles buzzing with speculation.

Surprisingly, her part was kept hushed over the radio, but that wouldn’t last long as her presence was made known from circle to circle. Now, most of the soldiers were supplying relief and organizing the dead.

Despite the Crystal not being active for long, the quick and deadly brown-skinned toads had murdered over two hundred and sixty people, mostly from the residential area, where a large group had gathered for prayer.

Zoe’s ears drew back as her name was left out of those who would be going to the rest area. ”What about me?”

”Unfortunately, you’ll need to return to the beastkin area for further instructions, Ma’am; we’re still receiving instructions as to how to proceed from command,” he said with a strained smile as his three buddies mirrored him.

”No, I get it...” the cat-girl groaned, rubbing her arm and smiling at her. ”Thanks for letting me tag along, Rachel; it really was crazy, scary, and, I know I shouldn’t be saying this...but it was really fun.”

Rachel chuckled, going forward with a pun while opening her tired eyes to give her a thumbs up. ”You helped more than you know, Zoe. Now you’re a battle vet, loli cat-girl, huh?”

”C’mon!” Zoe groaned, seeing Selvaria snicker. ”Do I really look like a loli?” Selvaria shrugged, holding up her fingers that said, ’a little.’ ”Aww. At least I can pull off some fun cosplay ideas, I guess...”

”That’s the way to look at it,” Selvaria grinned.

”Yeah... Still, I have an amazing story to tell Adam and my other small group of friends... Thanks, Rachel.”

She watched one of their Green Beret escorts take the cat-girl to the area where the beastkin were being segregated; they were now organizing them into specific categories after Mateo informed them about the different types Rachel had explained to them.

Selvaria moved to lean against the wall beside her, studying the raven-haired girl in Anthony’s arms. ”Is she going to be okay? Doesn’t she need blood? She’s not healing.”

Roy clicked his tongue a few times before hissing. ”We can’t do anything until the lieutenant gets here, and he’s being pulled in all sorts of directions with the OIC over the campus relief effort right now.”

Rachel drew her damp, braided hair over her shoulder before shifting to the ground, feeling like she was going to pass out if she wasn’t on the move without purpose. On the other hand, Anthony didn’t look tired in the least after everything they’d done, which told her he’d put points in his Stamina and Endurance.

”Ugh. Yeah, they’re talking to command right now, reporting the damages, casualties, and specifics to give them an idea of what kind of supplies we need... The campus hospital was already overrun, so they’re now redirecting resources to clear roads to others in the area. Everything’s a mess...”

Selvaria’s mouth tightened as she lightly tapped her tail against the brick; it still sent ripples that Rachel felt while leaning against the wall for support. ”On another topic, I don’t think your sports bra is going to last long; it’s pretty damaged.”

Anthony and the other men made faces that said they were of the same opinion.

”Haaa. I’d love to return to my dorm and get a replacement, but my legs already feel like jelly, so...”

”I can do it!” Selvaria chimed in in her monotone way, pushing away from the wall to show a bright, helpful smile as her lethal tail wagged left and right, causing the passing soldiers to give them a wide berth. ”Won’t you need a change of clothes and pajamas anyway?”

Rachel wasn’t sure she wanted to let a random girl—much less a leviathan-girl—near her things, but, at the same time, she didn’t have much choice in the matter.

”Hah. My pajamas are more of a loose sports bra and elastic shorts, but if you want to pack up one of my suitcases, that would be nice. One of the boys wants to join you since we can’t be alone, I’m guessing,” she added, gesturing between the three remaining Green Berets.

Roy nodded, selecting one of his men after calling it in. ”Tanner can join you, Selvaria. Pack light; there will probably be some relief coming from companies soon.”

Selvaria waved her hand dismissively at the statement. ”That’s never as good as your own clothes, though, and clothes are very important. Also, you can call me Selv—all my friends do. Do you have a nickname?” she asked Tanner while Rachel took the map the man produced to mark her dorm and room. ”Tanny or Tae sounds pretty cool.”

”Haha. Tanny? No. Just Tanner... My mom calls me Tae,” the tall, muscular soldier said, with his buddies joining in his laugh; things were calming down after the tense night.

They moved to execute the plan while Anthony puffed out a long stream of air, showing her a forced smile, and Rachel could guess what the man wanted to ask.

”Yes, Anthony, hehe, I’ll mention your fiancé when I get the chance.”

”You remember the—”

”HCA Florida Mercy,” Rachel grinned, holding a finger up to her head. ”I remember everything.”

His shoulders lowered as if a huge weight had been lifted off them. ”Thanks, Rachel.”

”Hey, I think we’re a bit more than acquaintances now,” she teased, carefully adjusting her sports bra and shorts now that she had time before shooting a tired, playful leer at him. ”Wait...”

”What?” he asked, following her gaze to Scarlet.

”How many women have you been princess-carrying in the past twenty-four hours? Your fiancé might get the wrong impression, showing so much attention to other girls.”

”Haha. No doubt,” he laughed. ”Amelia will probably beat me senseless when I tell her about all the dangerous situations I’ve been in; she worries about me.”

”She sounds sweet,” Roy muttered, shifting to stare down the hall as Mateo exited with two other soldiers by his side. ”Looks like we’re about to be on the move. Need help with Scarlet, Anthony?”

He shook his head. ”Nah. I can hardly feel the weight; these new powers are wild.”

”Tell me about it. What’s the deal with that keg you brought back anyway—just beer?”

Anthony shrugged as Rachel forced herself up with a groan. ”No idea, mate. They just gave me the stuff, and I’m not even sure what kind of alcohol it is. Want to break it open when we get things settled down?”

Mateo lifted an eyebrow as he joined them. ”What’s this about starting a party? Once it’s logged and samples sent off, I’m not against it; the boys need something to kill the edge anyway. Are we ready, Rachel? You’re...not looking too hot.”

Rachel snorted, running her fingers through her hair. ”Thanks, way to destroy a girl’s confidence. I’m managing.”

”Hehe. I’m sure. Roy, I’ll take Rachel from here. Start setting up some R and R for the platoon; we don’t know when we’ll be on the move again and need our strength. Henry, keep hold of that sword and the earrings they brought back; a team from command is coming to take it for study. Blood is being prepared for Scarlet from the university hospital. As for cleanup, the Coast Guard is handling it; let’s move, boys.”

”Roger.”

Rachel couldn’t help but stare at the earrings with a bit of disappointment at not being able to keep them. It made sense they’d want to study whatever came from the other world, though.

They broke apart, Rachel waving at Anthony goodbye and hoping it wouldn’t be the last time she saw the fire-haired, muscular legend. Who knew what might happen when Scarlet woke up? She may even turn into an insane demon after she went to war against the toads.

Just before turning the corner and losing sight of the vespertine reaper, Rachel’s mind lingered on the gashes in the eighteen-year-old girl’s clothing and skin.

Despite all the power I gained from The Oscillation, there was no way I could have come out of this Crystal attack alive...even after leveling up in Anthony’s training grounds. There’s something different about Scarlet that this cult knew about, and she believes her parents started all of this...

She blinked as the world spun, and the next moment, Mateo held her steady; she’d lost time.

”You okay, Rachel?”

”Hmm? Uh, y-yeah... I, umm, just got a little dizzy,” she mumbled, brushing him away to stand on her own with some effort while taking a shuddering breath; several other passing soldiers seemed to have noticed her going down and moved to help, but the lieutenant got to her first. ”I’m fine.”