Path to Secrecy

A mission

"I hope you're up for it." Rahul stated, his arms folded as the sunset blazed into his eyes. While the wind was at rest, the sun sure as hell was enjoying scorching over us.

"Why wouldn't I be?" I retorted with a frown, turning my head to look at him as my ponytail whipped over my shoulder. It had grown impeccably long, almost reaching my waist when tied up, the blonde lazy locks curling at the bottom.

He glanced at me from the corner of his eyes with a renowned smirk, I grew familiar to everyday at camp. "Because this is war, my love."

I used an unfamiliar peeved glare I had grown accustomed to over the last four hours of the day. Who knew two days of thick training with adapted and dominating drills followed by enthusiastic rounds of fire arms practice could go by within a blink of an eye? I was staring up at the following cadets who climbed the wooden steps beside the Inverted rope descent activity on plans today. To say my arms were crying was an understatement. The amount of strain I could feel on my left shoulder was enough to make me realise how much effort I had been putting in for the past week and a half.

On the other hand, Rahul couldn't stop chirping on about the beginner's mission that we would be undertaking as pairs later this evening. The procedure was simple. We were to fire as many 'human figured' targets as possible while being entombed in a maze-like route. The person with the advanced amounts of strikes was handed the thirty second applause and fame, followed by many more months of training where nobody gave a shit if you had single-handedly achieved your goals.

Except for yourself.

"You've done it your whole life. Why are you excited this one time?" I shook my head at him and he grinned at me like a possessed child who'd found his doll, Annabelle. His eyes sparkling with a readable emotion and I couldn't help but pass him an odd look, rearing back the slightest bit.

"Because you're a challenge."

I looked away, watching as uncertain cadets climbed the ladder one at a time, gripping on tightly. At the same moment, a spring of pain flared in my shoulder and I grunted, gritting my jaw close. Once the Cadets lifted themselves to the top, they sidled beside the Commander who was coordinating the soldiers for the task at hand. "I'm a challenge?"

"Isn't that what I just said?" Rahul smirked, the satanic look far from disappearing.

I shrugged my shoulders, cursing myself silently, regarding Steven who accidentally bumped my good shoulder as he strolled past with a bag of ropes. He stopped, almost tripping over his own foot before turning around and throwing me an apology, an uncomfortable look on his face. I nodded at him with a small smile and he scampered away. I understood the look. It was from my abrupt fight with Reilly who by the way, was missing from activities since that afternoon. I absently noticed him a couple of times near the Lieutenants office but that was more like my imagination was enjoying giving me hallucinations. "Yeah, but I'm new to the activity. I couldn't become a challenge on the first day."

Rahul scoffed and I tucked my hands into the pockets of my service pants. "Have you seen yourself in the firing sectors here in Camp? You're a young legend." I rolled my eyes at him, shaking my head. Looking at him, I threw an incredulous stare and he raised his eyebrows to match my mock. "I mean I would say beginners luck, but that 'luck' of yours seems to be stretching pretty far for the past two days."

Without a believable response, I shrugged, hoping it sufficed my boredom for his topic. "Whatever. You've had many more challenges before me when you did the activity."

There was a long pause where we both stood and stared at the line growing smaller. The majority of the Cadets were already swinging on the ropes and tugging themselves closer to the finish line but there were a few likely afraid of heights as they reared further away from the Commander who motivated them. "Actually I didn't."