Chapter 825: Barracks Trip: Keepin' Watch
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Night came and the group split off into different sections of the temple. Lee Seng and Olivia hung outside, sitting underneath the tree at the edge of the empty land. Lee Seng laid with his hand over his eyes. He had drifted off to sleep a long time ago and Olivia quietly watched the sky as told by Keng and Captain Zixin.
"If there's a light that shoots out from the forest, alert us. We'll hunt it down." Keng told Olivia. He flicked his eyes over to Lee Seng, who was staring up at the sky. "Tell me when he talks, okay?"
'He hasn't talked ever since they all left.' Olivia sighed. She stretched her arms and legs and took glances at Lee Seng. He slept peacefully like he hadn't just cried his eyeballs out. Olivia replayed the scene over and over, again. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him. She couldn't help but feel a little more guilty that she had contributed to Lee Seng's sadness. Olivia plucked a piece of grass and twirled it in her fingers.
Olivia leaned against the tree and lifted the grass up into the sky. The wind blew against her, fighting for the grass as it rattled in her hand. It was easier for Olivia to break thing down into their components than to build on things. Lee Seng had triggered something in Olivia, that changed the way she saw her power. She spent the last two years trying to build on this new idea.
'I can build things up. I can create things that I have broken.' Olivia thought. She watched the grass disappear in her hand. She let out a sigh and thought about the grass. She thought about making it grow slightly bigger, but watched the grass appear back in her fingers. 'It's not bigger nor the same. None of it is ever the same.' Olivia pushed more energy into the grass and watched it grow large blade of grass. 'Grass can only be grass. It can't be a flower, the dirt, the trees… Everything is written in what this piece of grass is…'
"I still don't fully understand what you told me about, Grandmother…" Olivia looked over at Lee Seng before releasing the grass. "But I understand more than I ever did now." She turned her attention back to the sky. "Enough about that. I got a job to do." Olivia settled into her spot and blinked a couple times before feeling drowsy. It had come for her just like it had taken Lee Seng. Olivia closed her eyes and let out a yawn. "I'll close my eyes for just a second…"
A brief moment went by and Olivia's eyes opened. It was much later and the temple doors were ajar. She noticed a blanket on her and pulled it off as she sat up. She looked for Lee Seng, who wasn't next to her. She stood up and looked around. She wondered how much time had past. She wondered if any beacons had gone up since then.
"The beacons." Olivia whispered. Something rustled in the bushes behind her. Olivia turned and spotted Lee Seng stepping out of it, dirtied. He lifted the bottom portion of his shirt up, holding an assortment of fruits and berries in it.
"Oh, you're up." Lee Seng smiled. He wandered over to Olivia, who couldn't help but stare at his abs. He moved over to her, revealing the fruits and berries he had tucked in his little makeshift pouch. "Want some fruits? I found them over there while I was watchin' earlier."
"How long have I been asleep?" Olivia asked. Lee Seng plucked a strange purple fruit the size of an apple and handed it to her.
"Maybe two hours?" Lee Seng guessed. "I woke up and you were sleeping. Try this, it tastes like a large grape and an orange together." Olivia gave him a weird face and took it.
"Is it… clean?"
"I mean… I could clean it for you now…" Lee Seng drew a rune and watched water wrap around the fruit and Olivia's hand. Olivia pulled the fruit out and wiped it off with her jacket before taking a bite.
"Not bad." Olivia told Lee Seng. Lee Seng nodded and flicked the water away. He settled down next to the tree and picked a berry and ate it.
"Mmm, juicy." Lee Seng munched as he looked to the sky. "I think they had lunch already. If you're hungry, you can go inside and grab some food." Olivia nodded and took another bite out of the grape orange fruit.
"Has there been anymore beacons?"
"I don't think so." Lee Seng grabbed another berry and threw it in his mouth. "The others would've felt it and came out. Keng would've given me an earful for falling asleep on the job if there was one."
Lee Seng glanced up into the sky and felt the enormous rush of discordant rings. He stood up immediately, dumping all of the fruit and berries into the air.
"Another beacon!" Lee Seng shouted. The temple doors flew open. Ena and Rudy rushed together. They both held scrolls in their hands as Lee Seng pointed behind them. The two disappeared and shortly afterwards, Ritsuka and Keng stepped outside.
"Y'all can go eat now." Ritsuka pointed behind him. "We can take your spot while you eat."
"I can go for a bit longer." Lee Seng replied. He plucked another berry and threw it into his mouth. "I got fruits. Y'all rest some more. Especially you." Lee Seng pointed at Ritsuka.
"What about you, Olivia? You can go eat while I stay out here." Keng suggested.
"Mmm, I think I'll take you up on that offer." Olivia stretched and took another bite of the fruit as she set off to the temple.
"You can rest for a bit longer, dude. I'll stay out here with Lee." Keng told Ritsuka.
"Alright. Let me know when you need me." Ritsuka nodded. He waited for Olivia before turning and leaving with her. Keng made his way down to Lee Seng and plucked a random fruit from the air and took a bite out of it.
"Mmm, sweet." Keng raised his eyebrows. "Where'd you get this?"
"Over there." Lee Seng turned and pointed behind him. "There's a whole bunch of fruit trees and bushes back there. A lot of them seemed ready to grab, so I grabbed a bunch."
"Your shirt is nasty now."
"It's worth it." Lee Seng smiled. "We could make fruit punch with this." Lee Seng looked to the left and noticed a strange energy growing. "What's that?"
"Hm?" Keng looked over to the left. The sinister energy billowed outwards and then pulled back in. The twins watched the energy disappear, pulling into the forest.
"What was that all about?" Lee Seng asked, letting a sigh of relief out. He slunk back onto the tree, plucking another berry and holding it up to the sky.
"Lily was telling me there was some odd stuff happening around here earlier." Keng informed Lee Seng. "I'm not entirely sure what that was, but I hopefully it doesn't do anything until Zixin's group leaves."
The two sat for a couple more hours, witnessing Ena and Rudy return with another set of soldiers. Dinner quickly came and went. The two boys traded their spots with the next group and climbed the stairs back into the temple. The smell of fried food and herbs danced around the temple.
Lee Seng waddled over to the kitchen and dumped the fruits into a bowl and washed his hands. Keng and Lee Seng helped themselves to food, stacking on a lot of food before sitting down with a bunch of the rookies, who gave them nervous glances.
"He-hello, sir." Rookie 1 stuttered as they gave a small head bow.
"Hiya." Keng smiled. "Don't mind us. Y'all can eat and act like we're not here." The rookies looked at each other before they nervously ate.
"Oho, you two finally came in." Zixin grinned. The rookies all stood up and saluted. "At ease. Don't push yourself too hard. Eat."
"Might as well run a longer lookout shift so it's not as hard on everyone else." Keng answered. Lee Seng picked through his food, scooping some fried rice and stuffing it in his face.
"Man, this is so good. Who made this?" Lee Seng asked.
"Nixie and some of the recruits who came back earlier." Zixin answered. "Is it good? Nixie makes some good food."
"Mmm. I gotta learn how to make this for myself."
"I'll tell her you liked it." Zixin grinned, folding his arms together. "I think we'll be in good shape for the night, but keeping watch should be the priority just in case. Things will get wonky, so I'll probably make the recruits take watch. Y'all here that?"
"Yes, Captain." The recruits answered in unison.
"In the mean time, I'll need to roll out the second part of my plan since there were two groups that came today." Zixin informed Lee Seng and Keng. He leaned in and looked at both of them. "Could you two possibly help with that?"
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Night came and the group split off into different sections of the temple. Lee Seng and Olivia hung outside, sitting underneath the tree at the edge of the empty land. Lee Seng laid with his hand over his eyes. He had drifted off to sleep a long time ago and Olivia quietly watched the sky as told by Keng and Captain Zixin.
"If there's a light that shoots out from the forest, alert us. We'll hunt it down." Keng told Olivia. He flicked his eyes over to Lee Seng, who was staring up at the sky. "Tell me when he talks, okay?"
'He hasn't talked ever since they all left.' Olivia sighed. She stretched her arms and legs and took glances at Lee Seng. He slept peacefully like he hadn't just cried his eyeballs out. Olivia replayed the scene over and over, again. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him. She couldn't help but feel a little more guilty that she had contributed to Lee Seng's sadness. Olivia plucked a piece of grass and twirled it in her fingers.
Olivia leaned against the tree and lifted the grass up into the sky. The wind blew against her, fighting for the grass as it rattled in her hand. It was easier for Olivia to break thing down into their components than to build on things. Lee Seng had triggered something in Olivia, that changed the way she saw her power. She spent the last two years trying to build on this new idea.
'I can build things up. I can create things that I have broken.' Olivia thought. She watched the grass disappear in her hand. She let out a sigh and thought about the grass. She thought about making it grow slightly bigger, but watched the grass appear back in her fingers. 'It's not bigger nor the same. None of it is ever the same.' Olivia pushed more energy into the grass and watched it grow large blade of grass. 'Grass can only be grass. It can't be a flower, the dirt, the trees… Everything is written in what this piece of grass is…'
"I still don't fully understand what you told me about, Grandmother…" Olivia looked over at Lee Seng before releasing the grass. "But I understand more than I ever did now." She turned her attention back to the sky. "Enough about that. I got a job to do." Olivia settled into her spot and blinked a couple times before feeling drowsy. It had come for her just like it had taken Lee Seng. Olivia closed her eyes and let out a yawn. "I'll close my eyes for just a second…"
A brief moment went by and Olivia's eyes opened. It was much later and the temple doors were ajar. She noticed a blanket on her and pulled it off as she sat up. She looked for Lee Seng, who wasn't next to her. She stood up and looked around. She wondered how much time had past. She wondered if any beacons had gone up since then.
"The beacons." Olivia whispered. Something rustled in the bushes behind her. Olivia turned and spotted Lee Seng stepping out of it, dirtied. He lifted the bottom portion of his shirt up, holding an assortment of fruits and berries in it.
"Oh, you're up." Lee Seng smiled. He wandered over to Olivia, who couldn't help but stare at his abs. He moved over to her, revealing the fruits and berries he had tucked in his little makeshift pouch. "Want some fruits? I found them over there while I was watchin' earlier."
"How long have I been asleep?" Olivia asked. Lee Seng plucked a strange purple fruit the size of an apple and handed it to her.
"Maybe two hours?" Lee Seng guessed. "I woke up and you were sleeping. Try this, it tastes like a large grape and an orange together." Olivia gave him a weird face and took it.
"Is it… clean?"
"I mean… I could clean it for you now…" Lee Seng drew a rune and watched water wrap around the fruit and Olivia's hand. Olivia pulled the fruit out and wiped it off with her jacket before taking a bite.
"Not bad." Olivia told Lee Seng. Lee Seng nodded and flicked the water away. He settled down next to the tree and picked a berry and ate it.
"Mmm, juicy." Lee Seng munched as he looked to the sky. "I think they had lunch already. If you're hungry, you can go inside and grab some food." Olivia nodded and took another bite out of the grape orange fruit.
"Has there been anymore beacons?"
"I don't think so." Lee Seng grabbed another berry and threw it in his mouth. "The others would've felt it and came out. Keng would've given me an earful for falling asleep on the job if there was one."
Lee Seng glanced up into the sky and felt the enormous rush of discordant rings. He stood up immediately, dumping all of the fruit and berries into the air.
"Another beacon!" Lee Seng shouted. The temple doors flew open. Ena and Rudy rushed together. They both held scrolls in their hands as Lee Seng pointed behind them. The two disappeared and shortly afterwards, Ritsuka and Keng stepped outside.
"Y'all can go eat now." Ritsuka pointed behind him. "We can take your spot while you eat."
"I can go for a bit longer." Lee Seng replied. He plucked another berry and threw it into his mouth. "I got fruits. Y'all rest some more. Especially you." Lee Seng pointed at Ritsuka.
"What about you, Olivia? You can go eat while I stay out here." Keng suggested.
"Mmm, I think I'll take you up on that offer." Olivia stretched and took another bite of the fruit as she set off to the temple.
"You can rest for a bit longer, dude. I'll stay out here with Lee." Keng told Ritsuka.
"Alright. Let me know when you need me." Ritsuka nodded. He waited for Olivia before turning and leaving with her. Keng made his way down to Lee Seng and plucked a random fruit from the air and took a bite out of it.
"Mmm, sweet." Keng raised his eyebrows. "Where'd you get this?"
"Over there." Lee Seng turned and pointed behind him. "There's a whole bunch of fruit trees and bushes back there. A lot of them seemed ready to grab, so I grabbed a bunch."
"Your shirt is nasty now."
"It's worth it." Lee Seng smiled. "We could make fruit punch with this." Lee Seng looked to the left and noticed a strange energy growing. "What's that?"
"Hm?" Keng looked over to the left. The sinister energy billowed outwards and then pulled back in. The twins watched the energy disappear, pulling into the forest.
"What was that all about?" Lee Seng asked, letting a sigh of relief out. He slunk back onto the tree, plucking another berry and holding it up to the sky.
"Lily was telling me there was some odd stuff happening around here earlier." Keng informed Lee Seng. "I'm not entirely sure what that was, but I hopefully it doesn't do anything until Zixin's group leaves."
The two sat for a couple more hours, witnessing Ena and Rudy return with another set of soldiers. Dinner quickly came and went. The two boys traded their spots with the next group and climbed the stairs back into the temple. The smell of fried food and herbs danced around the temple.
Lee Seng waddled over to the kitchen and dumped the fruits into a bowl and washed his hands. Keng and Lee Seng helped themselves to food, stacking on a lot of food before sitting down with a bunch of the rookies, who gave them nervous glances.
"He-hello, sir." Rookie 1 stuttered as they gave a small head bow.
"Hiya." Keng smiled. "Don't mind us. Y'all can eat and act like we're not here." The rookies looked at each other before they nervously ate.
"Oho, you two finally came in." Zixin grinned. The rookies all stood up and saluted. "At ease. Don't push yourself too hard. Eat."
"Might as well run a longer lookout shift so it's not as hard on everyone else." Keng answered. Lee Seng picked through his food, scooping some fried rice and stuffing it in his face.
"Man, this is so good. Who made this?" Lee Seng asked.
"Nixie and some of the recruits who came back earlier." Zixin answered. "Is it good? Nixie makes some good food."
"Mmm. I gotta learn how to make this for myself."
"I'll tell her you liked it." Zixin grinned, folding his arms together. "I think we'll be in good shape for the night, but keeping watch should be the priority just in case. Things will get wonky, so I'll probably make the recruits take watch. Y'all here that?"
"Yes, Captain." The recruits answered in unison.
"In the mean time, I'll need to roll out the second part of my plan since there were two groups that came today." Zixin informed Lee Seng and Keng. He leaned in and looked at both of them. "Could you two possibly help with that?"
Night came and the group split off into different sections of the temple. Lee Seng and Olivia hung outside, sitting underneath the tree at the edge of the empty land. Lee Seng laid with his hand over his eyes. He had drifted off to sleep a long time ago and Olivia quietly watched the sky as told by Keng and Captain Zixin."If there's a light that shoots out from the forest, alert us. We'll hunt it down." Keng told Olivia. He flicked his eyes over to Lee Seng, who was staring up at the sky. "Tell me when he talks, okay?"'He hasn't talked ever since they all left.' Olivia sighed. She stretched her arms and legs and took glances at Lee Seng. He slept peacefully like he hadn't just cried his eyeballs out. Olivia replayed the scene over and over, again. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him. She couldn't help but feel a little more guilty that she had contributed to Lee Seng's sadness. Olivia plucked a piece of grass and twirled it in her fingers.Olivia leaned against the tree and lifted the grass up into the sky. The wind blew against her, fighting for the grass as it rattled in her hand. It was easier for Olivia to break thing down into their components than to build on things. Lee Seng had triggered something in Olivia, that changed the way she saw her power. She spent the last two years trying to build on this new idea.'I can build things up. I can create things that I have broken.' Olivia thought. She watched the grass disappear in her hand. She let out a sigh and thought about the grass. She thought about making it grow slightly bigger, but watched the grass appear back in her fingers. 'It's not bigger nor the same. None of it is ever the same.' Olivia pushed more energy into the grass and watched it grow large blade of grass. 'Grass can only be grass. It can't be a flower, the dirt, the trees Everything is written in what this piece of grass is'"I still don't fully understand what you told me about, Grandmother" Olivia looked over at Lee Seng before releasing the grass. "But I understand more than I ever did now." She turned her attention back to the sky. "Enough about that. I got a job to do." Olivia settled into her spot and blinked a couple times before feeling drowsy. It had come for her just like it had taken Lee Seng. Olivia closed her eyes and let out a yawn. "I'll close my eyes for just a second"A brief moment went by and Olivia's eyes opened. It was much later and the temple doors were ajar. She noticed a blanket on her and pulled it off as she sat up. She looked for Lee Seng, who wasn't next to her. She stood up and looked around. She wondered how much time had past. She wondered if any beacons had gone up since then."The beacons." Olivia whispered. Something rustled in the bushes behind her. Olivia turned and spotted Lee Seng stepping out of it, dirtied. He lifted the bottom portion of his shirt up, holding an assortment of fruits and berries in it."Oh, you're up." Lee Seng smiled. He wandered over to Olivia, who couldn't help but stare at his abs. He moved over to her, revealing the fruits and berries he had tucked in his little makeshift pouch. "Want some fruits? I found them over there while I was watchin' earlier.""How long have I been asleep?" Olivia asked. Lee Seng plucked a strange purple fruit the size of an apple and handed it to her."Maybe two hours?" Lee Seng guessed. "I woke up and you were sleeping. Try this, it tastes like a large grape and an orange together." Olivia gave him a weird face and took it."Is it clean?""I mean I could clean it for you now" Lee Seng drew a rune and watched water wrap around the fruit and Olivia's hand. Olivia pulled the fruit out and wiped it off with her jacket before taking a bite."Not bad." Olivia told Lee Seng. Lee Seng nodded and flicked the water away. He settled down next to the tree and picked a berry and ate it."Mmm, juicy." Lee Seng munched as he looked to the sky. "I think they had lunch already. If you're hungry, you can go inside and grab some food." Olivia nodded and took another bite out of the grape orange fruit."Has there been anymore beacons?""I don't think so." Lee Seng grabbed another berry and threw it in his mouth. "The others would've felt it and came out. Keng would've given me an earful for falling asleep on the job if there was one."Lee Seng glanced up into the sky and felt the enormous rush of discordant rings. He stood up immediately, dumping all of the fruit and berries into the air."Another beacon!" Lee Seng shouted. The temple doors flew open. Ena and Rudy rushed together. They both held scrolls in their hands as Lee Seng pointed behind them. The two disappeared and shortly afterwards, Ritsuka and Keng stepped outside."Y'all can go eat now." Ritsuka pointed behind him. "We can take your spot while you eat.""I can go for a bit longer." Lee Seng replied. He plucked another berry and threw it into his mouth. "I got fruits. Y'all rest some more. Especially you." Lee Seng pointed at Ritsuka."What about you, Olivia? You can go eat while I stay out here." Keng suggested."Mmm, I think I'll take you up on that offer." Olivia stretched and took another bite of the fruit as she set off to the temple."You can rest for a bit longer, dude. I'll stay out here with Lee." Keng told Ritsuka."Alright. Let me know when you need me." Ritsuka nodded. He waited for Olivia before turning and leaving with her. Keng made his way down to Lee Seng and plucked a random fruit from the air and took a bite out of it."Mmm, sweet." Keng raised his eyebrows. "Where'd you get this?""Over there." Lee Seng turned and pointed behind him. "There's a whole bunch of fruit trees and bushes back there. A lot of them seemed ready to grab, so I grabbed a bunch.""Your shirt is nasty now.""It's worth it." Lee Seng smiled. "We could make fruit punch with this." Lee Seng looked to the left and noticed a strange energy growing. "What's that?""Hm?" Keng looked over to the left. The sinister energy billowed outwards and then pulled back in. The twins watched the energy disappear, pulling into the forest."What was that all about?" Lee Seng asked, letting a sigh of relief out. He slunk back onto the tree, plucking another berry and holding it up to the sky."Lily was telling me there was some odd stuff happening around here earlier." Keng informed Lee Seng. "I'm not entirely sure what that was, but I hopefully it doesn't do anything until Zixin's group leaves."The two sat for a couple more hours, witnessing Ena and Rudy return with another set of soldiers. Dinner quickly came and went. The two boys traded their spots with the next group and climbed the stairs back into the temple. The smell of fried food and herbs danced around the temple.Lee Seng waddled over to the kitchen and dumped the fruits into a bowl and washed his hands. Keng and Lee Seng helped themselves to food, stacking on a lot of food before sitting down with a bunch of the rookies, who gave them nervous glances."He-hello, sir." Rookie 1 stuttered as they gave a small head bow."Hiya." Keng smiled. "Don't mind us. Y'all can eat and act like we're not here." The rookies looked at each other before they nervously ate."Oho, you two finally came in." Zixin grinned. The rookies all stood up and saluted. "At ease. Don't push yourself too hard. Eat.""Might as well run a longer lookout shift so it's not as hard on everyone else." Keng answered. Lee Seng picked through his food, scooping some fried rice and stuffing it in his face."Man, this is so good. Who made this?" Lee Seng asked."Nixie and some of the recruits who came back earlier." Zixin answered. "Is it good? Nixie makes some good food.""Mmm. I gotta learn how to make this for myself.""I'll tell her you liked it." Zixin grinned, folding his arms together. "I think we'll be in good shape for the night, but keeping watch should be the priority just in case. Things will get wonky, so I'll probably make the recruits take watch. Y'all here that?" "Yes, Captain." The recruits answered in unison."In the mean time, I'll need to roll out the second part of my plan since there were two groups that came today." Zixin informed Lee Seng and Keng. He leaned in and looked at both of them. "Could you two possibly help with that?"
