Blood slid down the blade of her gladius as her patrol chased the remaining interloper towards the light. She smiled at the irony of this image. An arrow whistled by her head and buried itself in the runner's left ass cheek. That should slow him down. She had to give the man credit for speed. He screamed and stumbled out of the cave mouth into the late afternoon sun.
Clarissa was first out of the tunnel and came out on guard, suspecting a last ditch lunge by the wounded man. She couldn't see him, but the mess he had made of the underbrush made it easy for her to follow. She heard panting behind her as the rest of her patrol exited the tunnel. She dove into the foliage.
It wasn't long before she heard stifled groans and gasping breath. Following the sound, she crept closer and saw the man leaning awkwardly against a rock, apparently waiting to die. He didn't seem to see her as his wide, panic stricken eyes scanned the green, his sword on the ground next to him. She felt no remorse, in fact, she was doing him a favor by killing him. The black spiderweb of tracks on his arm indicated a rival element cult's failed experiments. One of the man's eyes was grey yellow, the other brown. A failed Air infusion. That explained the speed.
She began to step out of the brush to finish him, but tripped on something underfoot, falling face first into the tiny clearing where the man was making his stand. Cursing, she tried to rise, but the man had already grabbed his sword and made his lunge. An arrow intercepted him, saving her life. She looked up and Tomas emerged from the brush. Damn he could shoot. She gave him a mock salute and he returned it, smiling.
Berating herself for weakness, she should have died because of that misstep, she turned to look at what she tripped over. Pushing aside saplings, she saw it was a body. She squinted at it. The clothing was familiar. The jumpsuit was form fitting and so dark a grey it was almost black. Her comrades were talking, but she didn't hear them. Turning the body over, she saw insignia. Sweep Teams. She looked at the face and her breath caught in her throat.
She knew him. This man, his body was broken on the inside and out. The fall was only part of the damage. The once bright blue lines of raw Water element radiated out from the injection point in his upper arm. The man had been infused. The Census Office. Her mission. Pali. She sank to her knees. Overwhelmed like during her initiation, but this time from an invasion of her own memories. Her old life. A thing of shadows now spewing forth.
Someone put their hand on her shoulder and said something. There was laughing and jokes about dead bodies affecting people differently. She barely comprehended them. Like a mannequin on strings she rose as her "brothers and sisters" raised her up and gave her water. She looked back. They were leaving the body. She found a bit of herself and broke the light grip on her arm. She went back and tried to lift the man. He was well-built from training and heavy. She said they needed to bring the body back. Simon needed this. The other cultists they killed- their experiments were crude and foolish. But the Census Office? Precision, planning, intent. This man might tell Simon what he needed to know. They all paused, but knew she worked with him, a man from the Inner Circle. They complied. Hands came to help her. The body was lifted and carried back to the ark.