赤裸裸的滑稽故事

The men had all decided it would be best to keep camp another night. The supply drop included the inoculations for each of them and a box of extra for the soldiers and civilians they were able to recover along the way.

Each of the soldiers received their shot without complaint. They were rookies, so it was easier to get them to follow procedure and line up to get it over with rather than bitch and moan about not liking needles.

Unfortunately, there was the unwelcome side effect of many of those same soldiers feeling worn down and uncomfortable after the shot.

Generally, keeping the same camp in an unknown territory where enemies had been spotted was never an option. But they had to take the risk.

Galen had barely slept for an hour when the attack had occurred.

They had been found by a roaming patrol of fae creatures. Among them was one of the mutated wolves that Caleb had warned him about.

They still needed to determine if the inoculation would keep them safe or not so quickly after taking it, but they were thankful for it regardless.

Galen and his men fought against the attackers with all their strength. When all was said and done, they had worked together to face down and defeat the threat. There were injuries, and some of the supplies had been destroyed, but his team came out the victors in the end.

They debated moving their camp but decided it would cost them too much energy. So instead, the ones most recovered, or running off the adrenaline of the fight, stood sentry or scouted for other patrols. The others were given the order to rest. Galen among them.

After he had seen to disposing of the mutated wolf husk and made sure that there were no severe injuries, he returned to his tent.

Galen sat down on his cot with a heavy sigh. Then, moving his elbows to his knees, he caught sight of the gash on his arm. He hadn’t even noticed it.

Bell would have given him so much shit for that.

He smiled softly to himself as he got up and pulled out his first aid supplies.

Sitting back down on his cot, he began to clean the wound. The cut was long and a little deeper than he would have liked. But nothing he couldn’t stitch up himself. As he threaded his needle, he wondered if it might have been the bat creature he had cut in half or the strange frog thing he had impaled.

Either way, he was sure it wasn’t the mutated wolf. That, he would never have heard the end of from Bell.

As he finished treating his wound and cleaning up the mess, he suddenly felt the day's exhaustion. Sleep was a struggle out here, even more so after an attack, so he knew he needed to take advantage and get some rest.

Galen crawled into his cot, getting as comfortable as possible, and closed his eyes.

It couldn’t have been more than two minutes before his phone began to buzz.

Galen sighed. He reached for it, hoping that if his sleep was going to be interrupted, at least it would be from the woman he never got tired of listening to.

As his eyes fell over the screen, he closed them in disappointment and irritation.

“Dude...� he answered. “Do you know what time it is? Do you have nothing better to do than interrupt my beauty sleep right now?�

“It seems like you have gotten very comfortable speaking with disrespect, Galen,� Caleb’s soft growl came through the phone.

Galen shot up in bed, his eyes wide. He pulled the phone away from his ear and looked down at the name. It read, ‘He Who Hmms’, but this was not he.

“Are you calling me from Saul’s phone?� Galen asked.

“I’m calling you. That’s all that matters,� Caleb growled again.

Galen licked his lips nervously and then sat up a little and smiled.

“I just realized you are alllll the way in the South, and I am allllll the way in the East... so... you can’t beat me up for being snarky right now.�

“Right now,� Caleb growled. “Key words, brother.�

Galen swallowed.

“Yes, my Alpha!� he called into the phone, much louder than necessary. He smirked.

“Knock it off, Galen,� Caleb grumbled. “I’m calling about the mission.�

Galen straightened up.

“Mine or yours?� he asked.

“Both,� Caleb replied. “How are things coming along on your end?�

“Not as good as I would like. But we were able to find the team that had been traveling with injured civilians.

"We patched them up and have sent them on to Winter; it will take a few days for them to arrive. I let Axel know they are on their way. He is sending Frostbite wolves to meet them,� Galen replied.

After taking a breath, he continued.

“We did, unfortunately, recover three bodies. All ours. We gave them a pyre and collected their personal effects for their families.�

Galen heard the soft sigh from the other line. He nodded. Caleb always felt the loss of his men.

“We will honor them,� Caleb whispered.

“We will remember them,� Galen replied.

It was something that they had learned when they were younger. To understand that every man fighting beside you is a brother. To defend and protect them. Work together. And should your brother fall, you must keep moving.

“By keeping your head clear and completing the mission, you will honor them, and you will remember them,� Fiona’s voice whispered in his memory.

Galen nodded, took a breath, and then continued his mission.

“The team I sent ahead to follow the large fae movement reported that the group has split. They seem to be sending pairs of fae in different directions. Team Leader wanted to send scouts after them, but I told him not to. I am not sure what the fae are doing, but I don’t want to risk losing more of our men.�

“Understandable,� Caleb replied. “How many more checkpoints do you have?�

“Three, two are large civilian groups with only a couple soldiers needing an escort. The third was an active attack, the last we heard. That is the one we are headed to in the morning.�

“Good,� Caleb said. “I have no doubt that you will do what is needed. Once you have recovered the rest of our men, go back home. Ashleigh and the others will have breached Spring today. We don’t know how long it will take to accomplish what they have set out to do, but when she is done, she will need to destroy the Summer gate. I think we can expect some unwelcome visitors before then.�

Galen nodded.

“What about you?� Galen asked.

Caleb sighed.

“The reports Axel received about the fae gathered near Burning Ember were... outdated by the time we arrived.�

Galen furrowed his brow.

“What do you mean?� he asked.

Caleb was quiet for a moment.

“It’s not an attack party...It’s a war party,� he sighed.

Galen’s eyes widened.

“Caleb...�

“We are creeping through the mountain pass, we are still probably two days out from Burning Ember, but we haven’t seen any movement from the fae. They are gathering for something. But there is still a chance we can get everyone out in time.�

Galen stood up from his cot.

“Caleb, that’s a big risk...� he said. “You and Saul are great, but... you won’t survive if they attack.�

Caleb took a deep breath.

“I don’t have another option,� he replied. “I can’t abandon Burning Ember. I won’t.�

“I’m not saying that, but at least wait... let me come help. I can be there in... two days.�

“You’re good, Galen, but I think even you can’t take on a war party,� Caleb chuckled.

Galen scoffed a laugh.

“No, but... I can help.�

“You have your own mission, and even if you didn’t, two days is too long. Waiting for you or any other team would take away from the time we could use to evacuate.�

Galen sighed, he knew that Caleb was right, but he couldn’t just accept that there was nothing he could do.

“I spoke with Sofia,� Caleb continued. “She has already begun the process. Her people are gathering their things and preparing to leave as we speak. We are going to take the long way around. I will need to take them further south and then turn north past the gorge. If we all get out in time and run into no issues along the way. I might be able to get them to Summer in ten days.�

Galen swallowed.

“If you take them that way... you will run straight into Rogue territory, and you’ll be further out than any of our communication towers. We won’t be able to send help if you need it. You won't even be able to call for it.�

“I know,� Caleb sighed. “But if I take them any other way, I lead them straight back to the fae.�

Galen sighed.

“Galen,� Caleb called. “Saul and I will be approaching the encampment in the next few hours; we are going completely silent as we make our way past.�

Galen closed his eyes, his heart pounding in his chest.

“I will call you again when I have the Burning Ember wolves, and we are on our way South,� he said, pausing. “But if you don’t hear from me in four days... I need you to tell my mother.�

Galen felt a thickness in his throat and a weight in his chest. He dropped down into a squatting position as he suddenly felt dizzy.

“Caleb...�

“And Ashleigh...� Caleb continued.

Galen squeezed his eyes even tighter and clenched his jaw.

“I’m taking a suppressant when I get off the phone with you,� he continued. “I can’t risk that if something happens to me, our bond will do anything that might hurt her or her mission.�

Caleb spoke with authority and conviction. But Galen could hear the pain in his voice, the doubt, and fear.

“She doesn’t know,� Caleb said. “I didn’t want to lie to her. Maybe if I had known yesterday about the war party... no, I still wouldn’t have told her...�

He sighed.

“Am I a bad husband?� he laughed painfully.

Galen shook his head and sniffled.

“You’re a good Alpha,� he said softly. “She would understand that better than most.�

Caleb took a deep breath.

The two men were silent for a long time. Only the mutual worry and hesitation to express that worry hung between them.

Galen took a deep breath.

“Why did you call on Saul’s phone?� he asked, trying to relieve the tension.

Caleb cleared his throat, something he often did when he felt uncomfortable or embarrassed by something.

“Mine... broke.�

Galen narrowed his eyes.

“It broke?� he asked. “We have some of the toughest phones around. So how did it break?�

Caleb was quiet.

“Caleb?� Galen called.

Caleb sighed.

“I broke it when we saw the war party.�

“You broke it...?� Galen asked.

Suddenly the memory of two laptops and desks flying through the air came forward.

“Wait... are you saying... you destroyed it in a fit of anger?!� he shouted.

Caleb only grumbled in response.

“I’m not filling out the paperwork for that one....� Galen sighed in response.

They each laughed, and the rest of the call remained light-hearted. But they both knew it was only a front for the heaviness they both felt.