Operation Honey Trap vs The Emperor of the Apocalypse-Chapter 154: Everyone Responds Differently to Being Beaten

Chapter 154: Everyone Responds Differently to Being Beaten

"Here are the Generals!" called a clan warrior merrily, raising his glass to them.

"They’re back from the punishment hut!" came the shouts of another clan warrior.

"How’s your arse feeling, General Chastain?" asked Casey bluntly.

Alton looked fiercely at her.

"Very sore, very sore," she complained, rubbing it in mock agony. "I won’t be able to sit down for a week. Thank goodness I’m on a military mission where I never get to sit down!"

A great roar of laughter rose up in response.

"She won’t hit a man from behind again anytime soon," came a shout.

"How’s your head Casey?" asked another male warrior, rubbing the big man’s head roughly.

"Much better now her arse has been whooped," he grinned.

Delphi thought that might be the first time she had seen the man smile, and it was in response to her getting an arse beating. Nice guy...

"General, General, are youse two married?" asked a young lad with a broad accent.

Good lad! thought Alton. He smiled and tousled the boy’s hair. "Not yet."

"’Cause youse sound like you’re married and all."

This lad was rising in Alton’s estimations by the second!

"You make them noises like my folks do," he continued.

Alton coughed loudly, trying to drown the boy’s voice out in the general hubbub of the crowd.

"What noises, Vincent?" asked another lad.

"Them ’uh, uh, uh’ ones. You know!"

Unfortunately Alton’s coughing wasn’t loud enough to cover the despicable boy, whose short rise in the General’s opinion had now plummeted to that hell reserved for naughty children, with Alton glaring at the kid.

Why were these children still up? It must be past their bedtimes, he thought. Where were their mothers? He hunted around for likely looking women who might haul them off for him.

Everyone seemed to go quiet right at that moment, and Vincent’s comment hung loudly in the unnatural silence.

Delphi decided no answer was better than a lame excuse. She downed her drink, her face flushed.

When no one pulled the child up for his rude comment, Alton coughed again, "ahem. Everyone responds differently to being beaten. General Chastain has a high voice. It’s not the sound you’re thinking of..." he trailed off lamely.

Delphi couldn’t even look at him. Leave well enough alone, man! she thought furiously.

"I knew I should have whooped her myself," grumbled Casey. "If I knew she liked it, I never would have let General Meyer take her off my shoulder."

"Now listen here!" said Delphi, taking a step towards him while the entire group of men and women from the clan, plus her own tribe, fell about laughing at her.

In the end, she could only laugh at herself with good humour.

"Let’s call it a night, Guerillas," said General Meyer to the team. "We have an early start tomorrow and a lot of ground to cover."

The team rose and said their goodnights to their new buddies, Alton and Delphi leading the way to the secret tunnel.

After a quick tour, everyone threw their gear into the bunkroom and flopped into the narrow tight-packed bunks with relief.

Delphi found herself at no more than an arms’ length from Alton, who lay on his bunk facing her. He stared intensely at her, raising his eyebrows.

’What’? she mouthed, widening her eyes in question at him.

’You know,’ he signed at her, shaking his head wearily.

’None of it’s my fault,’ she signed at him.

’I suppose it’s my fault, is it?’ he signed.

"Probably," she said crossly. Closing her eyes to shut him out.

He smiled at her childish response with a mixture of tenderness and despair.

Niko had positioned himself alongside Indy, and Opal had grabbed the bunk on the other side of Niko.

Loveday looked at the weird sleeping arrangement. This is why it’s always better to keep men’s and women’s dorms separate, she thought with concern.

Indy was already in her bunk, snuggling down, happy to have a comfortable, safe bed with no ants and real pillows and blankets. She peeped out of her sleepy eyes to find Niko’s face a few feet from hers, gazing mournfully at her.

Her eyes flew open with shock and she whispered at him, "why did you take that bunk?"

"Why wouldn’t I?" he whispered back. "I told you, I’m not giving up, Indy. I’m waiting for you."

Indy looked over his shoulder to see Opal glaring daggers at her.

She sighed and closed her eyes, turning her back on Niko and his ’other woman’ in the next bunk.

Wolf had positioned himself protectively between Baer and Arrie. When he saw Baer inappropriately heading towards Arrie’s bunk, he had rushed down the next narrow aisle and jumped across two bunks to get there ahead of the man, throwing his pack onto the bed just before Baer could lay his pack down.

"Really, man?" asked Baer, raising an eyebrow at Wolf’s desperate antics.

Did the fellow have no shame, panting after Araminta like this? He felt confident she would never fall for the man; he was such a buffoon.

"Yes, really Baer," replied Wolf. "I don’t know how many different ways I can tell you to back off. Do you want to hear it in Pig Latin? Ack-bay off-way, man."

"You like this guy do you, Araminta?" asked Baer in disbelief, hooking his thumb towards Wolf. What a nerd the guy was.

"Yes," she replied, without looking at him.

Wolf looked sharply at her. Did she mean that, or was she using him to get rid of this pest of a man?

"I don’t believe you," Baer laughed derisively. "Listen to yourself. You like a guy who says ’ack-bay off-whatever in Pig language?" he was incredulous.

"Yes," she said implacably. "Remarkably, I like a guy who’s kind, thoughtful and nice to me."

"Sounds like a sop to me. Jump over to this bunk when you’re ready for a real man again."

Wolf punched the man in the guts, and the bunk beds rattled as the two tumbled over them onto Arrie’s bunk.

Arrie shrieked and curled into a little ball in the corner of her bed, trying to avoid the flying fists and feet of the huge men.

Loveday shook her head. Two bunkrooms, Bill! Trust a man to come up with this silly arrangement. It would never work.

Niko sighed as he threw his covers back and headed sideways down the aisle to sort them out.

"Need a hand?" General Meyer asked as he walked by.

"Nope, I can handle this, Sir," he chuckled. "It’s become a part of my daily routine..."