Elena

We're running out of time.

Alex and I, we promised to settle an agreement in approximately three to four months, yet it's been a month and we're not any closer to our goal. I've been so distracted with H, having late night meetings with him then spending time with my new friends and taking care of my duties, I've completely put it all aside, and so has Alex.

I contemplate all that as I try to tame my hair and end up pulling it up in a careless, messy ponytail, my uniform heavy from the variety of weapons tucked in it, weighing me down. I get the urge to flip off the person in the mirror, her eyes filled with worry and anxiety, two feelings I absolutely loathe. I thought I had my priorities straight, but with H in the picture, everything has fallen apart. I care about him.

The aspect of caring about anyone other than Alex and myself has been so distant to me for so long, it feels strange and new to actually feel something for someone else. I believed I was strong enough to resist forming any attachments, especially to a guy. My previous experiences weren't all bad, but it never went past physical connection. With H, there has barely been anything of the sort yet I feel connected to him.

My heart skips a beat when I see him standing in the centre of my room as I exit the bathroom. It takes me a few seconds to react, to which he bursts out laughing. He's dressed in his usual matching black sweatpants and a sweatshirt, looking charming as usual.

"Okay if this didn't kill me, nothing will," I say, my palm placed over my chest.

"Relax, scaredy cat, I mean I know I'm a pleasing sight, but it doesn't mean you should die when you see me," he says, a slight smirk on his lips. 

"I can't help myself, you're so charming," I tease, a smile on my face. "What are you even doing here, this is highly against the rules."

"Well maybe I don't like following the rules all the time," he says, his tone matching mine. "Sometimes I prefer no rules."

His eyes suddenly focus on a box of tampons on my bed, his lips slightly parted and eyes widened as if he's just seen a monster. A naked monster with hairs everywhere.

"Take deep breaths, they won't bite," I say gently as if I'm talking to a little child. "Go ahead, honey, approach the bed."

He flips me off angrily while I laugh loudly, making him laugh as well. I'm definitely one of those people whose laughter is funnier than the actual joke. My cheerful mood disappears as I suddenly remember I'm supposed to run, spend the whole day outside when there's a 99% chance of rain and drive around while losing blood.

It's literally hell's waterfall week for me.

I cringe when I remember bursting into Tori's room yesterday very early in the morning which almost got me killed since she pointed a gun at me when I woke her up, only so I can grab the box of female saviour product. "Good luck and think of me when you use those," she said.

H looks at me, an amused expression on his face. "I believe you know by now we change sheets every Sunday, but I can arrange for it to be done more so you don't bleed all over yours and are forced to lie on your blood--"

"Thank you for that vivid image, but that won't be necessary," I interrupt, rolling my eyes.

He raises his hands defensively, holding back a smile. "Okay okay, just don't go all emotional monster on me-- wait, you know what, I'm gonna need you to give me your knives while you're in this state--"

"Please, the only emotional one while I'm in this state is Alex," I reply and he snorts, letting out a loud laugh. "And no one touches my knives but me."

"You're, uh, you're getting ready for the mission and all, huh?" He asks, fortunately changing the bloody topic. Literally.

"Yeah. . ." I say suspiciously. "I know you well enough to be able to tell you have some kind of problem with that."

"What-- pfft, nooo. No, I don't. Well, technically-- maybe a little," he rambles. "Maybe it'd be better you stay here and do the guarding duty this week."

"But I was assigned to this already," I reply. "I want to go." No I don't. "I really miss the adrenaline." Nope.

"I still think you should stay," he presses, his eyebrows pulling in a slight frown.

"Who else has to stay?" I ask, hoping he'll drop it. Unfortunately, I have to go.

"Uh, only Liam, you know I never send all of you on missions at once."

"I never realised you care about me so much," I note, trying not to smile like an idiot.

It appears I've caught him by surprise, but he collects himself quickly. "Listen, this stuff is very delicate and you haven't been here for too long, Elena. You're already walking on thin ice as it is, so I shouldn't allow you to see the locations we use to meet with our suppliers. It's no secret if the enemy finds out about any of them, they'd use it to attack us and we're most vulnerable when we have to deliver the supplies. I just want to avoid any troubles--"

"You're seriously not starting with that again, I don't know what do I have to do to prove myself?" I interrupt, getting angry. "Why are you really asking me to stay?"

"Look if your bleeding vagina is not a reason enough for you to not run around and carry heavy boxes then I don't know what to tell you," he says, pursing his lips. "You're a wild one, Elena."

I laugh lightly, my growing anger disappearing, a slight pain in my lower abdomen reminding me he's right. But I have to do this, I don't have a choice. "Then you understand why I have to go."

He sighs. "I just thought you'd like to stay here with me. . .or whatever." He shrugs slightly. "We could go to my training room, half of the base will be empty anyway."

"We can do that when I come back." I smile. "Nothing is going to happen, don't worry," I add, knowing how paranoid he can get and how much reassurance about everything he needs.

"Everyone always says that and something always happens."

My heart clenches slightly at his pained tone and I approach him, lifting my palm to gently caress this cheek. "Well, you can trust me. Even if something happens, we're all going to make it out alive."

His green eyes flick back and forth between mine, a resigned sigh leaving his mouth. "Take care," he whispers, his hand pressing against my lower back and pulling me in to press his soft lips against mine.

"It will be okay," I say, and reluctantly, he smiles.

. . . .

"Yessss, I'm so pumped!" Niall shouts ecstatically, bringing his fists up in the air. "I hope there's going to be some shooting today."

Louis, Tori and I turn our heads to give him a look. "What?" He asks, dumbfounded.

"Why the fuck would you possibly want something like that?" Louis says.

"Dunno', I'm an adrenaline junkie?" Niall replies, shrugging.

"We really give everyone permission to use dangerous weapons," Tori comments.

"Perks of being bff's with Styles," Niall retors, winking. 

He rotates in his seat beside me, leaning against the door and lifting his legs, lowering them onto my lap. "You don't mind babe, do you?" He asks me, shooting me a dazzling smile.

I only sigh and make no effort to push his legs away, looking out the window as we drive. Our mission is to collect and deliver the supplies consisting of weapons and food into the base. Sounds very simple, but there are a lot of supplies and even more dangers lurking all around us, despite the fact there are over fifty vehicles filled with Hazard soldiers on the move.

The door screeches slightly when I open it, landing on my feet as I jump out of the truck, slamming the door shut. We're all piled on an open field with patches of tall grass, ditches and dents in it, acres and acres of land sprawled in front of us, surrounded by a barbed wire. There's a forest visible kilometres on the horizon, a perfect shelter for a delivery, but also an opportunity for the enemy to hide. A few dirt roads lead to this field, connecting Hazard territory with the East, where Vortex territory resides.

We load our weapons just in case, eyes constantly moving to catch any possible threat. Most of the vehicles filled with food have already arrived while the others are emerging from the forest, driving toward us. There are functioning factories producing food, clothes, weapons and everything else needed for one country to function here, but it's for civilians, there's not enough for the army. We depend on our allies; countries in Asia and Africa; to deliver us all the supplies we need since our country has plenty of benefits for them and it's crucial our side wins. It's all about politics, just like always.

Vortex and Rogue depend on North and South America, whose interests are unknown to me, but I believe they're no different than what our allies want with this country at the end. We've never been more divided than we are now and everyone is taking advantage of that. While I'm familiar with almost every aspect of this war and the armies fighting in it, I have no information about Wildfire. Ever since their leader died a few years ago, we never found out who had replaced him and Wildfire had backed out of the war, never attacking anyone or returning the attacks, so everyone simply gave up on them. 

"El, let's start loading," Louis tells me as he lowers the tailgate of our truck, nodding his head toward one of the vehicles filled with food.

I swiftly walk toward it, nodding to the tanned man who pulls out one of the boxes, pushing it into my arms, making me take a few steps back as it's quite heavy. As I turn around to carry it toward our vehicle, I lock eyes with Lia, who gives me a once over. I realise I'm not mad at her anymore, she had something with H in the past which is so clear from the way she looks at him and touches him subtly when she can. She felt threatened by me and reacted, but not in the right way.

"Stay close to me," Tori says to a few trainees trailing behind her, making sure to explain to them how things work and what should they do since this is their first mission. At one point she looks at me with a bored expression, pointing a finger gun at her head and pretending to shoot.

After spending almost half an hour walking back and forth and carrying the boxes, we take a short break, the five of us leaning against the truck, talking about nonsense like what would happen if elephants could fly or if Niall decides to let his natural hair grow.  An argument nearby interrupts our conversation, realising two female trainees are standing close to each other, a few pairs of eyes already observing their heated discussion.

"Do you think we should do something. . ." Louis mumbles.

"Nah I'm good," Jess and I say at the same time, fist bumping each other.

"It's a girl fight Lou, back the fuck off," Niall says, observing the scene with interest. If he had a camera, he'd use it, I'm sure.

"Damn puberty," Tori mutters as she begins walking toward them, placing her hands on their shoulders and standing between them. They look at her in shock as she tells them something with a smile, walking back toward us after a few moments. "That was all for today, folks."

"That fight was weak, no one even threw a punch or anything," Niall says, sounding disappointed. "What'd ya tell them?"

"This is no place for trash talk and I might've mentioned sleeping in the woods for two days without any supplies if they continue," Tori says. "It's a part of H's 101 course on -- and I quote -- how to deal with stupid people when you're their boss."

"I'm kinda turned on. . ." Louis says quietly, making all of us give him a look while he clears his throat and walks away. We laugh lightly and each of us leaves to take care of the loading.

When a rough hand grabs my wrist, I quickly spin around, my eyebrows pulling in a frown as I take a defensive stance, prepared to fight. An older man stares at me, his features firm and cold as his eyes scan the area before stopping on me, his hand reluctantly releasing mine. My heart leaps in my chest as I immediately realise who is he and where did he come from.

"How much time?" He asks quietly.

"It will be done when we say it's done, you can't just appear on the open like this," I warn him. I thought they'd be more discreet, bloody morons.

"Your time's very limited," he warns.

"So is my patience," I say harshly, glancing over my shoulder to make sure no one is watching or listening. "I already gave my report to your men on how is this going, so why are you here?"

"They said ya' haven't been on David's meetings and have been neglecting your duties," he says. "Don't make any mistakes or you and your brother are out. We're gettin' very impatient."

"What exactly do you want with Hazard?" I ask, feeling very protective of the people in it, of H. I know our deal involved no harm for Hazard, otherwise, Alex and I wouldn't have accepted it, but I can't help but feel worried. I know nothing about these people.

"That's none of your concern, lass, you do your part of the deal and we'll do ours," he says. "There's no place for mistakes or bailing out, I believe you're familiar with the price." With that, he turns around, disappearing into the crowd.

"You okay?" Niall startles me, eyes glancing in the direction the man has gone to before focusing on me. "We're almost done with loading all the food, let's help the others before the weapons arrive."

I manage a smile as I follow him, the burden I've been carrying for so long suddenly feeling much heavier. 

. . . .

"I can't, I'm dying, I can't." Niall pants as he carries one of the boxes.

I rush to him before he drops it, taking it in my arms. I almost stumble back, its weight pinning me down, but I manage to lift it, placing it on top of the others in the vehicle. "How many boxes are left?"

"Two or three rounds and we're done," Louis replies, wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. "Let's take five-- wait, I'm getting a call." He lifts his finger, pressing the earpiece. "Ooh, mate, what's up?" His smile fades, widened eyes and a frown replacing it as his eyes start glancing around, searching for something. I notice a few more team leaders are getting the same message as Louis, their expressions matching his. "I don't see anything, are you sure--"

A gunshot echoes nearby, our heads turning in its direction. A moment later, a couple of soldiers dressed in our uniforms take out their knives and grab the person closest to them, swiping the blade across their throats, letting their bodies drop on the ground. The others pull out their guns, beginning to shoot at anyone at their aim. Cold sweat breaks over me, my pulse racing. 

One word quickly runs through my mind: ambush.

Dozens of Vortex vehicles emerge from the woods surrounding the field, making their way toward us at a fast pace. I don't understand how did they find out about this place, I was informed this is a new location and it was a last minute decision to come here.  I don't realise I'm running and shooting at a few soldiers impersonating as one of ours until I hear Louis call out my name. I quickly spin around, almost colliding with him.

"Don't ever separate from the group," he orders me, panting. He then lifts his gun and shoots at someone over my shoulder. "We have to stick together and watch each other's backs, is that clear?" His blue eyes look into mine.

"It's clear, I'm sorry," I quickly mumble. I was used to working alone while being in Vortex, it was always every man for himself. I like this option much more, it makes me feel as if I truly belong in Hazard, I'm not just a lone, meaningless soldier risking their life. It's as if I have a purpose; to make sure my team survives; to save lives not just take them.

"We need back up, I'm calling H!" Tori yells at us, crouched behind a vehicle while holding a gun in one hand and pressing her earpiece with the other.

"Someone needs to take away the supplies, they'll ruin them!" I warn Louis. "The rest of us need to stay and keep them away."

I hear H's voice coming from the earpiece I'm wearing, saying they're already on their way and will be here in less than a few minutes. I don't have time to think about the fact H already knows about this or that he actually might be out of the base again since I'm in the middle of the battle and I have to make sure I get out of it alive.

I watch as most of our vehicles drive away, relieved at least some of the supplies will be saved. Hazard wouldn't last for too long without them and Seth knows that, that's why he chose this opportunity to attack. The worst part is, I was the one who had given him the advice when I was in Vortex. Not necessarily to attack Hazard, but to attack in general. You have to be patient and smart, always a few steps ahead of your enemy. That's exactly what he did.

The first thing to do in a situation like this is to find cover, especially if you're on an open field. Vehicles would serve as a perfect cover, but they're Vortex's target considering they're loaded with supplies. The other options are muddy ditches and tall grass. The noise surrounding me is almost deafening, gunshots and explosions mixed with pained yells of dying soldiers. It's something I'm used to and completely unaffected by anymore; you have to toughen up if you want to survive in a world like this. 

When I kill, I don't think, I just act. I can't think about the fact the enemy might have a family, a kid waiting for them to come back. I can't think of them as human beings, I have to look at them as killing machines whose only goal is to kill me. It's all about self-preservation, survival. I have to be numb, otherwise, I would end up just like H. Haunted by guilt and unable to move on.

Perspiration has vastly formed on my skin, adrenaline pumping through my veins. I run as bullets fly in my direction, hitting the ground beneath my feet, ripping through the air around me. It already smells like death.

"Elena!" Someone shouts and just as I turn my head, my body collides with the hard ground, another body pinning it down with its weight.

A pained grunt is heard from the person above me, my blurry vision gradually becoming focused again, meeting with the pair of icy blue eyes belonging to Niall. His face contorts in pain and he rolls off me onto his back, small puffs of air leaving his mouth.

My eyes widen as I process what happened and I quickly sit up, shifting onto my knees beside Niall. "No, no, no! Where are you hurt?"

He doesn't reply, only making me more terrified. No, please. He actually jumped on me and saved my life. My eyes frantically search his body to find a wound, detecting no signs of injury on his torso or abdomen.

"Now is not the time to check me out, babe," he mumbles, his voice laced with pain. "My arm hurts like a bitch, though."

A sigh of relief leaves my mouth, my eyes glancing at his right arm, seeing a nasty wound, the ripped uniform surrounding the wound soaked in blood. Thank God, he'll live.

"Niall, we need to move--"

"Niall, nooo!" I suddenly hear H's alarmed voice. His body soon appears next to mine, kneeling beside Niall. "Buddy, you okay? Talk to me." His voice is panicked, his hand grabbing Niall's. "I'm so sorry for pushing you away this morning, you know I hate it when you sneak up on me--"

"H," I say.

"--so please forgive me, I won't ever do that again, I'll let you hug me and even listen to your annoying stories--"

"H!" I repeat, louder.

"What, I'm having a moment here!" He snaps at me.

"He's not dying, his arm is wounded," I say. "But we all might die if we don't find cover." 

"Oh. . ." he mumbles, looking down at Niall. "Why didn't you say something, the fuck?!"

"Because you were being all sweet, you dick, I wanted to hear the rest of the speech," Niall grumbles as he pushes himself into a sitting position with his uninjured arm.

H offers him his hand and he grabs it, standing up with his assistance. Without much thought, H wraps his strong arms around Niall's smaller frame, a shocked expression on his features. Before Niall can do anything, H steps back, his usual blank expression already present, as if nothing has happened.

I want to ask him why or how is he here, but I don't. One look at him and I know. H might be keeping a lot of painful memories locked up deep within him, memories holding him back from living a normal life, but all of that fades when people he cares about are in danger. He might not see it, but he's a true leader, prepared to die for his soldiers. And in this moment, right now, he's our leader.

"Stay close to me and follow my lead," H orders and I see the man I saw on the day I met him. Brave, ready to fight. "We'll fight and we'll get out of here alive."