CHAPTER 21: CH 21: HOME.

From above, the flare cut through the darkness like a knife through butter, it hung the air casting a warm red glow of the surrounding area.

Levi and Jace stood there, muscles exhausted and waiting for the plane to descend before Jace turned to Levi.

"Before I forget, If they know what I told you, we’re both dead. So let’s keep that between us."

He shot him the most casual smile possible.

The jet slowly lowered altitude, dropping slightly by the minute before finally touching down on the beach.

The ramp lowered and they both wasted no time getting in and sinking into the seats.

The pilot in the front, turned to them, "Where are the rest?"

Jace, head down, "They belong to the island now."

A bead of silence rested between them before the pilot spoke again, "... And the mission?"

Jace pulled the vial from his vest, "Complete."

The conversation ended there.

The ramp raised as the hum of the engine intensified pulling them off the beach and crawling into the sky.

The entire jet ride was silent except for the glances being thrown from Jace to Levi that said it all: shut the fuck up.

The jet moved swiftly and before the hours passed they were finally back at the desert.

The circular section of sand began to retract again.

The jet landed on the metallic platform as it gradually swallowed the jet.

Levi sat there, arms on his thighs, fingers intertwined and staring at the vial.

’These people actually sacrificed three of their own men just for that.’

He turned to the side, as the sun crept up the sky.

Bright, golden and a warmth he hadn’t felt in a while.

Just before they fully dropped.

Levi and Jace got off the jet as some L.U.X soldiers were already waiting for them.

The one in front with a sleek black case, opened up.

Jace didn’t need permission before dropping the vial into the case, shutting it with a soft click.

Selene was slowly walking up to them, clapping her hands as she marched.

When she finally approached them she waved off the soldiers standing rigidly with the vial.

She tugged silently in her shirt, "Wasn’t so hard now was it?"

Levi arched a brow in her direction, "We almost died... Several times."

Jace patted him on the shoulder before interrupting him, "Welcome to the lightbourne Unit for Xenothreats Levi, I hope you don’t die too early."

And with that he was off, completely ignoring Selene apart from a slight nod of acknowledgement.

Something was definitely off between them.

He turned to her, "So what’s next?"

She smirked, "Well, now that we know you can work with other people and not try to kill them..."

He scratched the back of his head slightly, recalling all the fights he had with Jace on the mission.

She, unaware of this, continued, "That means you will be given more serious missions, like high-risk retrieval, high level variants and undercover work."

Selene shrugged, "You survived Stormrend. That’s more than most. And you didn’t kill Jace, which is a miracle in itself."

Levi muttered, "I considered it."

She chuckled, then turned serious. "There’s a mission debriefing in two hours. We need to know what exactly happened at the Stormrend. No rest. No downtime. You’re Lightbourne now."

Levi glanced at the case holding the vial, now being carried off by soldiers in black armor. "What happens to that?"

Selene followed his gaze. "That goes straight to the Vault. Level 7 clearance. You’ll never see it again."

He nodded slowly, his jaw tight. "And if I want answers?"

She leaned in slightly, voice low. "Then you’ll have to earn them. One mission at a time...

Thank you for not royally fucking this up— but there’s still a lot you can fuck up so now we have to make sure you can actually go hand to hand with a C to B-Class

Or as we call them, actually vampires."

He interjected, "What about A and S-Class vampires?"

She smirked, "Levi, even I will be killed very painfully if I go against an A-Class on my own. So baby steps."

And with that she dismissed him.

He headed back to his room, averting his gaze from the countless finger pointing and whispers from other L.U.X soldiers and trainees he walked past.

It was basically high school in these halls.

He made it back to the room, shutting the door with a satisfying click.

He leaned back against the door, letting his exhaustion consume him as he slid from his back to the floor.

Finally getting up to wash away the blood, sweat, guts and gunpowder that plagued him.

The water ran steamy, every drop fresh and liberating, scrubbing every single part of himself but no matter how long he stayed, the water at his feet just wouldn’t turn white.

He settled when he was ’transparent enough’ stepping out of the shower then he turned his back against the mirror, watching the scars settle in.

’In the last three to four days I’ve been thrown through a glass window, thrown against the walls more than I can count, and had to shatter my leg to free myself...

And so much more, but yet there are no fresh injuries on me. Like they just healed up instantly.

I don’t know what the hell I am, but I’m definitely not human either, there’s no way around it.’

He opened the wardrobe in the corner. Not a lot of options so he put on some plain black sweats that were comfortable enough for him to sigh.

He sat at the edge of the bed, dragging his wet hair back while the thoughts in his head toppled over one another.

’Ivery’s alive. Don’t know if I’m relieved or disappointed. At least if she was dead then she wouldn’t see what type of disgusting world we’ve made.

Regardless I have to find her, find out what happened to my family, what other families are they and where are they.’

He folded his fist, muttering, "Selene’s not wrong. I might be stronger than a human but if I go against an A or even B class, then I’m definitely going to lose."

~Knock. Knock. Knock.~

He stood up and answered the door.

It was Zack, "Alright, it’s time for your debriefing, let’s go."