Chapter Eighteen

The jungle was a nightmare.

The air was thick and humid, almost like wading through water itself. Everything was overgrown and twisted and tangled. Vines hung from trees and grew into bushes and flowers, flowers that were bright red and menacing. The insects were terrible, buzzing and hissing everywhere. The birds overhead chirped and screeched as they watched us make our way through the trees.

Bait didn't struggle to keep up, because we were already going slow due to the state of the forest. He did, however, trip and stumble a lot. He would get caught on vines and branches, bump into me and almost knock me over. He wasn't exactly graceful, but I couldn't blame him with his leg like that.

In front of me, Six walked carefully with his eyes on everything around us from the tree tops to the bushes. Three was in front of him with Four on his back now.

We hiked through the woods, making our way as quickly as we could to where Three had seen the security breach.

"So you don't know the name of the guy who attacked Four?" I asked Six as we walked. Six shook his head.

"I never caught his name."

"His name is Mikhail," Bait said, making Six and I turn to look at him and he frowned, "He said his name several times. He liked it when Four said his name." Six looked at me.

"I think I was trying to block it out," he admitted, looking embarrassed, "I just... It was so loud. It lasted forever. The guy never stopped. He just..."

"You were scared," I said, making Six grimace, "It's okay. You couldn't have done anything for him anyway. He was in another cell and you were locked in yours... Ah, so who is this Mikhail?" I looked at Bait now, who cocked his head as if he were thinking about it.

"He must be one of the Mother's favorites," he replied, "Being allowed to spend as much time down in the dungeons with Four as he wants, and when he did bring people, they did exactly what he said at all times, so he has power over people to an extent." I frowned.

"He brought other people down there with him?" I asked. Bait stared at me and Six swallowed thickly, looking down at the ground as he hurried to keep up with Three, who was silent the entire time aside from grumbling under his breath about the terrain.

"Only two other people," Bait answered me emotionlessly, "I think their names were Eilon and Cyrus. They also helped Mikhail with the things he was doing to Four." I pressed my lips together firmly and glanced over at where Four dangled on Three's back, then back at Bait, who just watched me.

"Did it scare you?" I asked. Bait frowned.

"I've seen it happen before. It doesn't bother me."

"It doesn't bother you? That someone else is being...?"

"Like I said. It happens a lot," Bait replied, heading past me and following behind Three and I hurried to keep up, "Four isn't the first and he isn't going to be the last. He was just Mikhail's favorite. Has been for a long time."

"How do you mean?" I asked. Bait shrugged.

"Mikhail's been following Four around since he was a teenager. He's been trying to get in his pants for years, but Four kept shooting him down. Literally. He used to turn on Mikhail in the middle of training all the time. He's busted the guy's face open a couple times and sent him to urgent care a couple more. He's not Mikhail's fan," he explained. I grimaced at that. What did that mean? That Mikhail wanted revenge perhaps? Maybe he just wanted Four that badly? I couldn't say. I didn't want to say. I didn't want this situation to be happening right now. I didn't want to be here, and I had a feeling Four definitely did not want to be here. My heart broke for him, this person I'd never met before, this person I'd only heard stories about.

"What kind of person is Four?" I asked. Bait frowned.

"He's kind of an asshole," he said, making me raise an eyebrow, "He used to like stepping on my face, or throwing me into walls. He does what he does. That's just how it is around here."

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"That you've gone through so much."

"That's life," Bait answered simply, "I just happened to draw the short stick."

"Well, things will get better once we get out of here," I said, watching Bait glance at me skeptically, "It will. We'll find who your parents are and get you to a loving home." Bait looked away, but didn't say anything. I sighed and kept trekking up behind Three, who was struggling uphill. Six finally talked him into taking a break and we sat down around a little creek to take a breather.

"This is gonna be a bitch," Three growled, "We should've just taken the coastline." Six gave him a droll look, folding his arms over his chest.

"And what? Let them see us no problem?"

"We'll fight 'em off."

"We have one severely injured, one handicapped, and three of us can't use magic. The only one able to fight is you and something tells me you're going to be greatly outnumbered."

"You don't have to be so pessimistic."

"I'm being realistic. Did you not pay attention to any of our strategy classes? Or were you too busy picking your nose?"

"I'm going to fucking deck you in a second," Three warned, clenching his fists against his knees. Six stared him down without a lick of fear.

"Fucking go for it. It won't change the situation," he replied. Three curled his lip and rose to his feet and I jumped to my feet, taking a step between him and Six, who had also gotten up.

"This isn't any of your business," Three said to me immediately, "Fuck off."

"It is my business because I'm here and I care about Six and I don't want to see you hurt him," I responded heatedly. Three clenched his teeth and Six blushed lightly, reaching out to place a hand on my arm. Three caught that and immediately lunged for me. I whipped around and punched him in the face, making him stumble before he caught himself, like he was shocked I'd actually thrown a punch, and that it actually hurt.

He ducked and slammed into me, throwing me to the ground and I cursed, grabbing my arm and drawing it up before bringing it down on his shoulder, forcing him to release me.

"Three, stop! Jesus Christ!" Six exclaimed, reaching for us, but Three shoved him aside and I shot up, grabbing Three by the head and slamming our heads together. Three barked a curse and fell back on the ground. I heaved myself to my feet at the same time Three flipped himself up. He lunged at me again, but this time, Six put himself between us and shoved Three back. I went to grab Six's arm to pull him out of the way, but it was too late; Three swung and hit Six so hard he hit the ground, grabbing onto a log to keep from kissing the dirt.

I abandoned my fight with Three to drop to the ground with Six, who was propping himself up on his hands and knees, spitting blood out between his lips.

"Are you alright?" I demanded. Six nodded, reaching up to wipe his mouth.

"I will be after I put his ass down," he growled, pushing me aside. I gritted my teeth and leaned out of the way as Six lunged to his feet and whirled around to face Three, who actually seemed to be startled.

"I... Shit, Six, I didn't--" He didn't get a chance to make up an excuse. Six charged him and threw him to the ground and drew his fist back, but Three caught it before it could collide with his face. He twisted out from under Six and rolled them over, pinning Six down. Seeing my chance, I lunged forward and caught Three around the neck in a headlock. Three cursed and Six looked up, surprised.

"Don't hurt him," Six gasped, making me narrow my eyes in defiance, "Please." I tensed for another moment, then released Three, who rolled onto the ground coughing and gasping for air. I stepped back, watching Six sit up and lean over to touch Three's shoulder. Three coughed for a second longer, then looked at Six, who was staring at him.

"You good?" Six asked. Three narrowed his eyes and grabbed the back of Six's head, forcing him forward and their lips clashing in a very sloppy, uncoordinated kiss. I tensed, but said nothing as Three roughly released Six and got to his feet. Six blinked rapidly, looking around before looking up at Three in confusion. I glared at Three as he steadied himself before he turned to look at me.

"Fuck off," he said, then turned and stormed off closer to the creek to get some space. I watched him go, irritated before looking back at Six, who was getting to his feet.

"Six, why--"

"Like I said," he said firmly, "We fight sometimes. Doesn't mean it's... it's abuse. It's just... It happens." Without another word, he went after Three. I watched him go, then sighed and turned to see Bait chewing on a piece of fruit, watching beside Four, who was still unconscious.

"Sorry," I muttered, coming over to sit next to him. Bait shrugged, looking down at his fruit.

"I expected that; it's fine," he replied, making me look at him with a cocked brow, "There's so much tension between you three it's a miracle you three haven't just killed each other or fucked each other. I'm not sure which one is more annoying at the moment." I stared at him.

"Excuse me?"

"Just an observer," Bait answered smoothly as he bit into the fruit again. I didn't know what to say to that, so I chose to say nothing as I reached over to grab a piece of fruit to take a bite. I looked over where Three and Six appeared to be talking in low voices as they sat by the creak. I studied them.

"They're... really close," I said after a moment. Bait looked up, then nodded as he pulled fruit fibers off the seed in the middle to eat, picking the fruit entirely clean of meat.

"Well, like I said, they always have been, for as long as I can remember anyway."

"You watched them grow up?"

"Sort of. Whenever I was let out, I tended to watch everyone."

"What's their relationship like? From what I see, it just looks... bad."

"That's normal," Bait said, making me frown at him as he tossed the fruit pit aside and reached for another piece, "Relationships like that, I mean. They're taught to be aggressive right from the start."

"They, but not you?"

"No. I was put in my cage and only let out when the soldiers needed someone to train on."

"What," I asked incredulously and Bait looked at me with a raised brow, "They used you like that?"

"Why do you think my name is Bait," he asked, then shook his head, "Anyway, aggression is normal in relationships around the compound. I once watched a wife beat her husband so badly he spent a month in urgent care. Apparently he stole her chicken at lunch."

"Christ. I can't imagine that kind of upbringing," I murmured, glancing over at where Six and Three were, "That violence is just so normal to you is... disconcerting."

"What else is there?" Bait asked. I looked at him and he stared at me seriously.

"Love," I said, "Affection. Jokes. Games. Friendliness."

"I literally have no idea what any of those words mean," Bait deadpanned. I frowned deeply at that, opening my mouth to comment when I heard a strange sound. It was almost like... dirt being crunched under a shoe. I looked up, but Three and Six were busy chatting. I looked at Bait, who looked up at the sound.

"Oh," he said, looking disappointed. I shot to my feet at the same time a sword came down between Bait and I, cutting the log we were on in half. Bait immediately rolled out of the way and landed on Four while I spun around to face our attacker.

It was definitely a soldier of the Mother. I recognized those black BDUs anywhere. The guy swung at me and I managed to hop back to avoid it before I spun around and kicked the sword right out of his hand. I ducked and rolled across the ground, snatching up the sword just as the guy summoned another sword.

What a mistake on his part.

I twirled the sword in my hand before slashing at the guy, who blocked the attack and swung for my head. I ducked and spun, dancing through the dirt before popping up behind the guy and swinging the sword for his head. He ducked just in time. I heard the crackle of twigs breaking under foot and glanced up to see two more soldiers coming out of the forest. This time, Six and Three heard the commotion and came running back.

I ducked a slash from my attacker and spun around, avoiding another attack before I swung my sword around, over my head, and right down on top of my attacker's head. The blade bit right through his skull and split it in half, his whole body crashing to the ground and his sword falling in the dirt.

"Six," I called, making him look up. I tossed a sword at him and he caught it midair before he twirled with it and lopped the head off his attacker. I looked over to see how Three was fairing, which was rather well, in fact. He didn't appear to be big on using swords or weapons. He was too busy ramming his fists into the guy's face and gut until he toppled over, totally KOed. He looked up.

"Shit," he seethed, "They caught up quick. We don't have time to stop anymore. We need to keep going." I nodded in agreement as Six came over to look me up and down.

"Are you alright?" He asked. I nodded, pausing to give him a once over myself, only to meet his eyes and see him staring at me.

"Hm?"

"Nothing, you're just... You fight really well," Six murmured, pink tinging his cheeks. I smiled slowly at that.

"You were watching me?"

"Yes," he answered, looking defensive. I smiled wider. How was it possible for one person to be so adorable? I heard a throat clearing and my smile diminished as I turned to look at Three, who was glaring at us with his arms folded over his chest. He threw his arms down at his sides and went over to Four, scooping him up rather roughly and coming over to thrust him out to me. I caught him before he could topple to the ground.

"Your turn," Three snapped, then shoved past me and headed off. I rolled my eyes and looked at Six, who frowned.

"I can help you," he offered, holding a hand out, but I shook my head as I shuffled Four around in my arms to get him more comfortable.

"He's actually... disturbingly light," I murmured. Six grimaced, then nodded and gestured for me to lead the way. I followed after Three with Six and Bait taking up the rear.

As we walked, I looked down at Four in my arms. He weighed absolutely nothing. It was like carrying a wet kitten. His legs were the heaviest, but only because they were deadweight. I looked up at Three as we walked.

"Can't you fix his legs?" I asked.

"No," Three answered as he untangled himself from a vine, then decided to rip it down from the tree, freeing a bunch of birds into the sky, "If I tried to heal them the way they are now, they'd be useless. Pushing a limb back into place isn't something magic can necessarily heal. At least, not my magic anyway." I frowned, looking down at Four, who shifted his head a little bit. I grimaced.

"Three, I think he's waking up," I said. Three paused to glance over, then shook his head.

"It's wearing off a bit, but it should still keep him sedated. I have to conserve my magic as much as possible. Something tells me those soldiers were just scouters. The real danger is further behind, but gaining quickly. It's why we don't have time to stop and stare," he explained gruffly. I said nothing to that and looked down at Four, who tilted his head back a little and stared through squinted eyes at me.

"Mmph... we... at?" he mumbled. I wasn't entirely sure what he asked, but took a guess.

"We're in the jungle," I said.

"Mm," he answered, then closed his eyes and fell asleep. Relieved he wasn't going to throw another fit, I kept him close as we marched on through the jungle. Birds and monkeys followed us up in the treetops, hissing and chirping and howling. The humidity was awful, made it difficult to breathe, but we managed to pant our way up the mountain. Steps became steeper, the rocks became sharper and more defined, the trees became sparse. There was a distant roar that paused us for a minute, but we trekked on when we heard nothing more of it.

"We need to rest," I said about five hours later and Three shot me a dirty look, which I responded to with a glare of my own, "We won't be able to fight anyone off if we're exhausted. I say we find a safe place and make camp, at least for a couple hours."

"He's right," Six said from behind me, looking thoroughly exhausted, even his eyelids were hanging low as if he were having trouble keeping them open, "Plus, we're the ones with the collars on. It's just going to make us weaker. We need to rest to build up as much strength as we can. We'll find somewhere safe, Three. Another cave, or..." His voice trailed as Three paused to turn and look around. There were exactly any good options for caves in the area, despite being on a mountain. Just a few trees clustered here and there.

"Okay, I got an idea," Three said, walking over to a large tree. I frowned, watching him reach up and yank on some vines. They held tight. He pulled himself up and used the tree to climb up into the dense branches. I watched him, my head cocked and Six came over to stare up at him.

"That was smart," he commented, glancing at me. I rolled my eyes and Six seemed to try not to smile.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing, just... it's funny, nothing," he said, waving his hand idly in his face before he walked over to the tree to grab hold of the vines, looking up into the branches. Three poked his head down through the branches, hanging upside down off a particularly big one.

"Next," he ordered. Six nodded and climbed up, taking Three's hand and swinging up into the tree onto the branch. I walked over and struggled with Four, managed to get him up onto my shoulders and stood on a rock to get him as close to Three as possible. Three leaned down and grabbed him, then hoisted him up into the tree. I looked at Bait, holding my hand out. Bait grimaced at that, peering up into the tree, then back at my hand.

"I can't climb," he said after a minute.

"I know. Three is going to help you, so am I," I said. Bait frowned, like he clearly didn't like that idea.

"I don't have time for your bullshit," Three said, hanging upside down in the tree, so it was almost hard to take him seriously, "Get your ass into the tree, Bait, or you're staying here." Bait gave him a droll stare.

"Doesn't really scare me," he replied.

"Please," I said, looking at Bait and making him glance at me, "Please." Bait sighed, then nodded and came over to me. We managed to get him up onto my shoulders and Three plucked him right off me and up into the tree. I took hold of the vine and dragged myself up into the tree, pushing off the trunk to hop my way up until I was sitting on a nice stable branch beside Six, who smiled at me.

"Just a cat nap," Three said, making us look at him as he pulled the vine up into the tree, "Nothing more. We need to hurry."

"It's getting dark," I said dryly, "We can't go stomping through the jungle at night. It's just as dangerous as staying still." Three looked at me.

"I'm not scared of a fucking jaguar."

"But you're scared of the Mother's soldiers," I pointed out. Three narrowed his eyes.

"I'm gonna push you out of this tree."

"Do it. Give me a reason to put your head through it," I said.

"Okayyy," Six said slowly, clearing his throat and wiggling in his spot, "Let's just all get comfortable and take our nap, then we'll continue when we wake up, yeah?" Three and I glared a moment longer before we started to try and get comfortable. Not that it was easy to get comfortable in a tree. Thankfully the trees around here were rather large, with more trees growing up at its base, making for a nice little nesting spot.

Bait crawled to the end of our thick branch and sat there, eating a piece of fruit. We left Four curled up against the trunk while I sat beside him, looking down at the forest floor. Three crawled down into a groove in the trunk and when Six started to go by him onto a branch, Three grabbed him by the arm and jerked him down so he was plopping right into Three's lap. Six groaned and squirmed, but Three held him down.

"You're just doing this to start something," Six said to Three angrily. Three looked at him.

"I'm doing it because I want to be close to you. Do you have any idea how long I had to hold myself back because the Mother didn't allow me to touch you in public?" He demanded. Six paused at that, then shook his head and tried to get up again, but Three tugged him back down.

"Yeah, but you're just pissing Hadrian off."

"And why does that matter?"

"Because... Because, I like him," Six said, making me blink and look up to see him looking at Three, who stared at him, "I like him. A lot... And maybe I like you too, but you're the one being unfair right now. So, until you learn to play well with others, I'm not playing with you." He managed to hook his arm on a branch and hoisted himself up off Three, crawling over to take a seat beside me. Three glared, then rolled over and gave us his back, huffing and puffing the whole time.

"You didn't have to do that," I murmured, "I know you still... well, you two have something special." Six looked down.

"But I have something special with you too," he murmured, making me glance at him, "I'm just... I'm really confused right now. I want you both and I know that's not possible, but... It's just..." I looked at him, then looked away.

"In some ways, it isn't," I admitted, searching the forest floor and then looking up at the night sky through the leaves and branches, "But in others, maybe." Six looked up.

"What do you mean?" He asked. I looked at him.

"You can date two people at once."

"But... How? Doesn't that hurt someone?"

"Not if all parties are consenting adults who understand the type of relationship it is."

"That sounds confusing," Six murmured. I shrugged.

"It makes sense to some people. It's just how they live. The gods, Mictlan and Set, live in a similar relationship."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It's interesting how people make things work to achieve happiness," I replied. Six looked at me, then over at Three, who was curled up on his side, then looked back at me.

"He hates you, though," he said softly. I shrugged.

"I don't hate him," I admitted, making Six look at me in surprise, "I just think he's annoying."

"Yeah, and some of us can fucking hear you," Three growled from his spot. We looked at him.

"Shut up," we said in unison. Six looked at me and I looked back before I couldn't suppress a laugh and reached up to cover my mouth. Six started to smile slowly before he laughed too. We chuckled and bumped shoulders for a moment, leaning together as we looked up at the starry night sky.

Six's body put off a nice heat, I noted. It was warm and cozy. I scooted closer until we were touching, and I felt something warm cover my hand on the tree branch. I glanced down to see Six had put his hand over mine. I lowered my eyes and met Six's. We stared at each other for the longest time, listening to the chirp, buzz, and hum of the insect life around us.

I leaned in slowly and captured Six's lips in a warm, soft kiss that stole my breath away. I loved the feel of those plump lips parting against mine, that tentative tongue slipping into my mouth. He didn't seek control in the kiss, just passively swirled and danced his tongue against mine, explored every nook and cranny until he had it memorized. I kissed him back with the same white hot intensity and I felt my body turning to face his, felt my hand slide up his thigh to his hip, my thumb massaging his groin. He moaned softly and arched his back, pushing himself into the palm of my hand. I stroked him through his sweatpants, watched his body twitch and jerk with anticipation.

I felt like he was just about to reach his peak when he wobbled and nearly fell off the tree branch. I caught him and steadied him as he panted.

"Okay," I said, "Maybe not the best place." Six laughed at that.

"Probably not," he answered breathlessly. I smiled, reaching up to stroke his face before I leaned in and kissed him once more. He kissed me back before he turned and headed over where Three was sleeping. I looked down the branch over at Bait, but he'd somehow managed to get comfortable where he was, looking like he'd fallen asleep a while ago. I crawled over and checked on Four, who was still asleep.

I looked around for a moment to find a place to rest, when I met Six's eyes and he held his arm out to me. I looked at Three, who said nothing, didn't even look at me. I crawled over and settled into the groove of the trunk with them. I found myself spooning Six, my arm over him. It didn't take long for Three to get jealous, though. He rolled over and put his arm over Six on the other side, our arms touching. He glared at my arm, then at me. I looked at him.

"Don't start," Six said with his eyes closed as he nestled in between us.

"Wasn't doin' shit," Three grumbled, closing his eyes. I shrugged and closed my eyes.

"Get closer," I said, making Three blink his eyes open to look at me in surprise as I opened mine to meet his, "It's cold." Three studied me for a moment, then scooted in closer. We managed to cram ourselves in together as tightly as possible. One by one, we drifted to sleep starting with Six and ending with me as I closed my eyes and drifted.

And once again, I dreamt. I dreamt of the hazel eyed dragon, the flames that reached up and licked at the starry night sky. Except... This time, I noticed the flames were eating the dragon. They were just dancing around him. Swirling and turning and twisting and the dragon tilted its head back to roar at the sky, but it wasn't a vicious roar or a terrified roar. It was... possessive.

The fire didn't own the dragon.

The dragon owned the fire.