337 Tension
A tense atmosphere enveloped the breakfast tables the following morning as Denzel approached with his breakfast plate, scanning for his group. Before he could sit down, however, a trio intercepted him.
The leader was a renowned athlete from Immortal Skye named Caleb Wrightwood. With a broad chest, chiseled abs, a neatly tapered haircut, a dazzling smile, blue eyes, and a predisposition for wearing shorts, he epitomized the classic jock.
Beside him stood Madeline, a woman with an oval face and waist-length blonde hair neatly braided to prevent interference during practice. Lacking in popularity and typically dressed in jeans and loose shirts, she contrasted sharply with the athletic Caleb.
The most incongruous of the three was a Hispanic man named Luis Morales.
Quiet and unremarkable in appearance, he seemed reluctant to be there.
Under normal circumstances, this unlikely trio would never have formed, but they had an agenda.
"Can I help y'all?" Denzel inquired, his heart racing at the prospect of confrontation.
Caleb chuckled menacingly, "That speech you delivered yesterday, claiming Immortal Skye as your country and acting virtuous — we don't want to hear it again. You murderers haven't even earned citizenship here, yet you're already posing as patriots — it's repulsive."
"l didn't mean to stir up trouble," Denzel explained. "General Skye has led us for over a month. I won't abandon her or the country we aspire to join."
"Don't aspire," Madeline sneered. "You soldiers executed my father and little brothers and left my grandparents for dead. You bombed our country and led cultivators that killed some of my friends. Do you think you deserve to be one of us after all that?"
"Your families' presence was classified for their safety," Denzel clarified. "Only a few soldiers here knew they were here, and they protected them."
Luis' eyes widened, but he remained silent, avoiding the athlete's wrathful glare.
"Excuses are convenient, Denzel," Caleb scoffed. "Your general was a conniving piece of shit, but he was yours. You betrayed him and Malta, switching sides to the winners. Don't act virtuous — you've proven you'll betray anyone if it suits you."
Denzel's anger flared, but before he could retort, someone else interjected.
"Denzel protected Larkin's mother and brother from cultivators with his life," Chen interjected, walking up with wrathful eyes. "He protected them from mutant fuckin' seagulls, too. Tell me, what have you done for others?"
Caleb's eyes seethed with fury. "If our families were with us from the start, they wouldn't be dead! Don't act noble for keeping survivors alive out of fear of death. That's your obligation, and we never asked for it!"
"Hey, everyone, calm down," Denzel interposed. "We're not here to cause trouble."
"No, if we don't clarify things, this will never end," Chen countered. "Tell me, guys — have you scavenged for food? Have you killed your own when they turned? Have you protected another constantly? Or do you think you could protect your families because you never had to protect yourselves?"
Caleb was speechless, but Madeline's face flushed with anger. "You motherfu---"
"Hey!" Layla shouted, rushing over. "Why are you three picking fights with the Lainwright soldiers?"
We're not starting fights!" Madeline snapped.
"Then what are you doing?" Layla demanded.
"Stay out of this, Layla," Caleb sneered. "You're here because you have a thing for Denzel. Naturally, you'll protect him. So stop pretending to be an impartial mediator."
"Yeah, I like Denzel, but I'm not biased here," she defended.
"Just stop, Layla," Chen growled lowly. "You're not helping anyone. You're reminding the Lainwrights that you were a spy and the Immortals that you're biased."
"Chen..." Layla hesitated, shifting her gaze away. "Evalyn asked me to help you all grow. I wasn't spying on you."
"Right, excuses," Madeline scoffed. "So stop accusing us of causing trouble when—"
"HmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmMMmmMmmMmmMmMmmMmM!" An attention-grabbing, drawn-out hum interrupted the conversation. As irritating as it was, nobody complained or showed their annoyance. They froze as the teen approached.
"So, you're saying you didn't start any conflict?" Kiera asked, walking up and positioning her chin on her thumb as if assessing a piece of art. "If that's true, this situation is like watching a baby panda feasting on a bowl of four-leaf clovers. Fantastically unlikely, indeed."
"K-Kiera..." Madeline stammered, taken aback by the damning assessment.
"Were you listening?"
"Why bother?" Kiera waved her hand dismissively. "Words are so subjective that they're famous for skull fucking relationships with anxiety before they hit first base. Now, this—"
The slang riddler framed the group with her index fingers and thumbs, smirking confidently. "This is an open-and-shut slam-dunk case with video evidence and DNA painting you three as villains, and you're gonna claim you're innocent?"
"Wait, are you siding with them just because we hate soldiers?" Caleb questioned, his eyes narrowing. "We're the victims here, and you're going to be prejudiced?"
"Woah now, calm your tits! No need to restart the P-word movement in a post-apocalyptic society," Kiera said, hands up. "I'll hear you out. Are you saying that you three, famous for hating soldiers, approached a soldier famous for avoiding trouble and invited him to tea, but he rudely told you to rimjob a horse instead?"
The Immortals fell silent, wanting to deny the last part but knowing it wouldn't help their case.
"Ah, that was a loaded question, mah~bad," she smirked. "Go ahead, speak for yourselves: what type of prejudiced soldier-hating shit did you say to this man before the other people showed up?"
"You're damning us exclusively, Kiera," Luis murmured, looking away. "This wouldn't have escalated if he hadn't provoked a fight."
"Oh yeah, there was that: 'you're all wrong, so apologize to one another' mentality in old Malta," she ridiculed in a burly man's voice. "But here's the thing— that's bullshit. You three took a piss on your leader's decree to blame your issues on undeserving people. They didn't like that — obvi. You're damn near breaking the rules right now, and I won't tolerate that shit."
"Why are you so heartless?" Caleb asked. "Do you know what it's like to lose your family?"
"Yeah, I do — let's bond," Kiera smirked. "How was your foster care experience?
Did you run away and live on the street too? Hmmm?"
Caleb and the others' eyes widened, realizing they had touched on a sensitive topic with someone they shouldn't have challenged in the first place.
"Yeah, that's right," she mocked. "You're the most privileged apocalypse peeps in existence, and you're acting like Tiny Tim without a crutch. It's pathetic. Now fuck off, so we don't have to hold mandatory work training to teach Immortals politically correct mourning protocols."
Caleb and Madeline swallowed hard, turning and walking away under the watchful eyes of soldiers and Immortals. Luis followed, his gaze fixed on the ground, mirroring the same expression he had when he arrived.
"Thank you, Kiera," Chen said, looking up at her.
"Yeah, go kill yourself, Mr. Sub-Stat," Kiera sneered. "You're holding the same plate of soul meat as everyone else in a literal utopia, yet you're actin’ like you're in the historic deep south. If you keep acting like a lower-class citizen, I'll cut off your legs to prove manifestation is real."
Chen was left stunned by Kiera's forceful words as she strode away, leaving him to reflect on her message.
"I'm sorry, Denzel," Layla whispered, biting her lip. "Would it be better if I just leave you guys alone?"
"I'd be upset if you did," Denzel smiled, his emotions a complex mix. "Let's go eat."
From a distance, Evalyn and Kaze watched the scene unfold, hidden by a concealment technique. "Kiera's strong personality has its merits," she observed, a wry smile on her lips. "However, her intervention alone won't defuse this situation. l understand the Immortals’ feelings, so I'm reluctant to crush their support."
Having also lost her family to soldiers, Evalyn had harbored deep resentment for a time. So treating them like Hayden Rompers and shattering their political spines felt like punishing the victim — something she went through.
"Given the circumstances," she began, "can we still proceed as planned?
Everything could fall apart."
"If you can't prevent a problem, prepare the ideal response ahead of time," Kaze advised. "They're knowingly breaking the rules and putting everyone's families at risk. If they cross the line, we'll make a strong example of them and consider clemency and exoneration afterward."
Evalyn slowly nodded, feeling a pang in her heart.
***
After the tense breakfast, the group returned to the training grounds, where the soldiers were eager for their first session with Kaze. It wasn't a conventional training session, but it was training nevertheless.
"Today, everyone will learn a movement technique," Kaze announced with an enigmatic smile. "I'm sure you'll love it."
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