A L T E R N A T I V E

“I hear things,” was the serene answer, draped over the tense atmosphere with morning’s calm. Eyes made of stardust twinkled with the same tranquil joy. “I’ve heard of your last mission,” he went on, realizing she might have been sour with his ominous ‘I KNOW EVERYTHING’ joke. Not too many of the young ones found it amusing.

“Heard great things. You’re someone that demands respect, Captain Evans.”

“Isn’t that everyone these days?” She scoffed at his answer, unamused. Was he trying to be funny or condescending? Either way, as if it weren’t bad enough that the higher-ups only knew of her thanks to her brother. Crossing her arms, she looked away, confused yet slightly flustered. As far as she could remember about her most recent mission, it was a complete disaster, according to Fraser.

He towered above her but was a pillar of sunlight, warm, strong, gentle. Time, space, air-it all seemed to glide around him, encasing him in a light that detached him from the rest of humanity. An aura that let the world know he was kind, gentle, wise.

Offering her a hand up, the one she collided with chuckled. “Well, good morning, Mana,” he beamed, eyes afire with the same light that kissed the Spring. The absence of her rank wasn’t done out of malice; he preferred being on a first name basis with those around him, Private or janitor.

“Or is it good afternoon?” He chuckled yet again. “I can’t ever tell.”

Rubbing her eye with one hand, she used the other to take the hand offered for leverage. “Honestly, I couldn’t care less at this point, General Lowell.” She grumbled, running her fingers through her hair. “But I’m hoping for morning. The more time I have the better-”

She shot straight up, tensing. Hang on a second, is that?

The drive to stop her was absent, relief breathing in its place. He glanced at her through eyes made of ice blue steel. She was where Darren stood once, brave and true, as solid as the sun. Reporting in about the emissary he valiantly saved, all by himself. “You’re free to go,” he said, his voice weary, showing no interest in whatever Mana chose to do.

Pathetic. Standing in the young Evans’ place was a tiny woman that felt she knew something. Suppressing the bile rising in his throat, Connor returned his attention to his paperwork. As long as she didn’t meet his expectations and botch the conference, she was as free as a bird.

Hearing his dismissal brought nothing but relief to the stealth unit. As soon as she stepped out of the conference room, she took a deep breath, slouching against the wall. Okay. That could’ve gone better. But it could’ve gone worse too. Now she had a conference to prepare for. 

The first order of business then would be to track down Brent. Then to form her unit. Amin would definitely be one of them. Maybe Brent too. Perhaps Mica and Osi would be willing to join in too? As she made the list in her head, she turned one of the corners only to crash into a larger figure. Disoriented and slightly flustered on the ground, she looked up.

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“Then it’s settled,” the officer sighed, hand running over tired features. “There is one matter of equal importance I’d like you to settle after the conference, as I’ve been unable to find a far more suitable candidate for the job. But I’d rather not overload you with responsibility, Captain,” he finished, an extra special touch on her rank.

“You may do as you wish. For now. Please do not forget today’s meeting with the very same force you’ll be debating against. Call it a prelude if you will. It’s just a test to see if you’ll be capable of handling yourself.”

“You could just tell me now,” Mana quipped, the words tumbling out without warning. She cursed at herself before sighing. So much for acting on her best behavior. Major Fraser always did bring out the worst in her. “I am very sure I can handle whatever you throw at me, Major.”

Grey eyes made of amber fury burned through her skull. A heavy sigh escaped his lips, like a long wind blown over the artic terrain. “You are, Captain,” he snarled, returning his hands and eyes to his assignments. A tornado of responsibilities cast at him in paper.

“You are to take a unit of your choice and conduct yourself in a way that will honor the CRI. Remember your guidelines, yourself, and above all, where you stand. I, of course, will supervise you as your commander and will step in if you manage to bring us to ruin.”

“If there’s anything else you’ve forgotten, Miss Evans, let me know immediately. I hope you’re at least prepared in regards to the conference topics at hand.”

Wait, what? She blinked twice. She didn’t remember being told that. Maybe Fraser told her but it must’ve slipped out of her mind. Shoot. Well that changed everything.

In the midst of the confusion though, she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Of course, Fraser would say that. Rubbing his position of power in her face. Like she already didn’t know he was (unfortunately) her commanding officer.

Steadying herself with a deep breath, she looked Major Fraser in the eye, refusing to appear intimidated. Millions of questions raced through her mind although she refused to acknowledged them. Not in front of Fraser at least. Maybe she could ask Brent for the details later. That CRI receptionist always seemed to know practically everything. 

@xlternate

Major Connor Mosiah Fraser eyed her, grey-brown eyes made of the moon’s darkest side. She tore his attention away from mountains of mission strategies and unit information, all in the form of overwhelming paperwork, but other than that she’d be getting nothing else from him. The air in his office suddenly became like lead, heavy and poisonous, as he eyed the young woman in front of him. He had a knack for being a slavemaster towards his unit, even more so towards the women. The younger they were, the harsher they were treated. Why? Connor, thirty seven years old with a sea of grey-blue hair, felt they needed more iron on their soldiers. If little girls were going to serve the Bureau of Courage, Resilience and Integrity, they needed to be gladiators of titanic strength.

Captain Mana Evans got under his skin far more than every other woman under his command. Sure, all women needed to be put to the ultimate test of endurance, but she was Darren Evans’ sister. Darren. The young man that led a mission to rescue one of Major Fraser’s closest friends, an Emissary in Europe. A paragon of brilliant strength, valor and dedication. That little girl thought she could hold a candle to her brother?

Wrong.

His voice was laced with hatred born in the darkest night. “If I didn’t need you, Captain, I wouldn’t have called for you.”

Connor set down a pile of paperwork, eyes shut against the sight of Mana’s face. “Hopefully you remember being assigned to Thursday’s conference. If you don’t, I need you to inform me immediately so I may finally put you out of your misery.”

“Now, in the last eight weeks, you have shown a stunning degree of resourcefulness and wit. I wish there were far more suitable candidates for this assignment, especially because this particular conference is one of extreme importance, but your quick thinking and mental clarity are needed.”

“Please allow me to remind you that if you make even one misstep during the conference, Miss Evans, I will personally have you escorted from the force myself. So if you have any questions about your assignment, you’d be wise to ask them now.”

Captain Evans bit the inside of her cheek and flinched at the sound of the paperwork slammed against the desk. At this point in their...relationship, the tone of his voice couldn’t bother her anymore. But she had almost forgotten about the conference on Thursday. Not necessarily that fact that she was assigned to this extremely important conference, but rather when it was. Thursday? That was sooner than she expected.

Still, she gritted her teeth, keeping her voice even while fighting the temptation to counter him with a snappy comeback. She was more than capable of handling this conference, thank you very much. Much better than Fraser at least if she recalled the last conference accurately. The last time she had been in the arena of oration and wits Major Fraser had messed up on a key cultural fact which almost closed all alternatives as opposed to war.

Russet eyes were shut tightly before she forced them open. She swallowed the words, resisting the bile rising up her throat. He already hated her for reasons beyond her control (it’s not like she could control her bloodline or the fact that he seemed to hate women in general). There was no need to give him one more. “Just one, sir.”