Chapter 11: New Allies, Old Friends, New Threats

January 18, 2024 5:53 PM

 With the catmo- Pyrrha's help, searching the dead giantess only took a few minutes. Most of her stuff was of no real use, though they did take some parts and wires from her wrist unit. The shield generator had been too badly damaged having been ripped off and dropped and the rest was simply too big for them to use. It wasn't much of a haul, sadly, but no one really was that disappointed. How could they be when they had taken down an entire Ranger patrol by themselves?

Samantha was still feeling like she was in a dream from the news. A single Force beating a Ranger patrol with help from a catmonster along with Lindsey's death just made things seem so...unreal. Worse, she wasn't sure whether to be happy or sad or...or what. Lindsey had been everything she wanted to be, another female to look up to after... after Jessica. But now she was gone just like Jessica.

Oh sure Susan was still here, but she was about as independent as a duckling. She was a good squad leader and Samantha respected her a great deal, but that was all she was. She took her orders, did them, and that was it. Samantha didn't want that, though. She wanted to be someone, to have a name for herself, to be someone of importance. She wanted to be in on the big stuff, to be making decisions rather than just following them, to feel like she was actually making a difference and saving people, not just being another cog in a machine. Just like Jessica and Lindsey had been...

Samantha tried to shake off those thoughts as the squads came back together. The squad leaders, Sanders, and Darius were all talking, deciding how and where they were going. She sighed to herself, unable to not be a bit jealous of how quickly Sanders had rose to that level. Then again, he DID have a catmonster at his command AND it was the sole reason they managed to save Hope. She supposed he deserved to be raised up above the rank and file thanks to that. And he had saved all of Squad Three's lives, including hers and Jacob's.

Thinking of the catmonster, she glanced over to the huge thing. It was kneeling on the ground a good ways away from the group and was watching Sanders and the rest with a curious look. Her ears twitched every so often and Samantha couldn't help but think it was kinda cute how she seemed to be trying to understand what was going on. She shook that thought away, though, as she tried to remember it was still a catmonster. She had seen more than a few of her comrades be devoured by one...but this one HAD saved them and didn't look all that dangerous.

She tensed a bit as a hand touched her shoulder, but she relaxed when she recognized the hand. Jacob was about to draw away, but she pulled his hand back. She didn't want him to think she was against him touching her, she had never been against that, but show he had just surprised her. He seemed to understand and wrapped his other hand around her waist. She leaned back into his toned body and enjoyed the feel of it. This was much better than worrying about the catmonster or her dreams.

She looked back at him and was about to kiss him over her shoulder when the murmurs of talking and such died down. She cursed as she looked forward and saw Derek coming back toward them. Damn, just when she was starting to enjoy herself. At least she wasn't alone as a few other couples began to pull apart. Such open shows of affection were no uncommon in the soldiers of any group. Any of them could die in any number of ways so the general feel was to get in as much as you could while you were still alive, cause tomorrow, or an hour from now, you might not be here.

"Everyone listen up! We are going to be heading back to the Southern HQ and then on to Hope if things have gone according to plan. However, with Lindsey gone we need someone else to accompany Sanders and make sure he and Pyrrha don't get separated and lost. And before you ask, yes that means you will have to ride Pyrrha too. Any volunteers?" Derek asked. Silence greeted his request as a few shook their head and looked down at the ground. Samantha understood why. Sanders and Pyrrha may have saved them and won them this victory, but he was still Ex- Society and she was still a catmonster. Being alone with them both, all while riding on the catmonster, was...worrying to say the least.

Samantha looked at Sanders, still standing back with the squad leaders, and saw him sigh to himself. It probably didn't feel too good to have the fact he was still not fully trusted so blatantly shoved into his face and she felt bad for him. And whoever Derek forced to go with him was just going to be angry and suspicious the whole time. The man who had helped save them didn't deserve that, doubly so after having to watch Lindsey be killed... And he had seen Lindsey killed...maybe...

Samantha pulled out of Jacob's arms as she raised her hand to the surprise of the people looking her way.

"I'll do it," Samantha said as everyone turned to her. She didn't mind being stared at by them, she would have to get used to it, after all, if she wanted to be like Jessica. She wouldn't get anywhere just blending in with the others, she needed to stand out. And what better way than helping the rising star, Sanders? She felt a bit bad about that part of her reasoning, but she felt the other reasons she wanted to do it made it OK. She had ridden on Pyrrha already so she was less likely to be all freaked out over it and wouldn't be angry about being forced to do something she didn't want to do. And maybe she could help Sanders feel better about what happened to Lindsey, and find out more about her in the process.

Before Jacob could voice his dissent to the idea, and he would she knew, she headed through the parting crowd toward Derek. Derek gave her a quizzical look before glancing back in Jacob's direction. She risked a look back at him and saw he had a stunned look on his face. He got rid of it, though, when he noticed her looking at him and replaced it with a passive mask. He was angry, she could tell, but he would get over it. In fact, that might be another reason to do this. Help Jacob bury the hatchet with Sanders and Pyrrha.

"You sure you want to do this, Samantha?" Derek asked her, quiet enough that no one else could hear. She nodded to him with a stern look on her face. She was more than sure she wanted to do this. Derek looked to accept her nod and turned back to the rest of the group.

"Alright, the rest of you split off into your squads and get ready to move. We are heading out in five," Derek ordered as the people split off into their squads as the squad leaders began to yell for them to gather around them. Samantha watched Jacob go as a few people whispered between themselves while looking his way. She felt a flare of anger come over her as she wanted to beat the shit out of the assholes, but knew that would just make it worse. Jacob had to fight his own battles...

Samantha followed Derek over to Sanders and Pyrrha. Pyrrha had been nudging Sanders with her nose while Sanders grumbled angrily at her. She meowed at him as a deep rumble came from her stomach. That...didn't make Samantha feel any better about being near her. Though, to be fair, she sounded hungry and didn't seem to be too inclining to eating them. In fact, it looked more like she wanted to go.

"I said stop it! We'll go get you something to eat when Dere- STOP IT DAMMIT!" Sanders yelled as he whaped her nose with his fist. Pyrrha's look went from begging to annoyed as she poked him with one of her huge fingers and laid him flat out just with the light poke. Sanders was getting back his feet and looked about to hit her back when Derek cleared his throat. Both Sanders and Pyrrha glanced back toward them and Samantha felt a wave of fear go over her having the huge catmonster staring at her with her slit eyes. Maybe...maybe this was a bad idea.

Sanders, however, seemed a bit relieved to recognize Samantha. She hadn't spoken much with Sanders during their trip together to get Pyrrha. Lindsey had pretty much been around him at all times and she had been...shy about speaking or being near her. But she had heard them talking and Sanders had seemed nice enough and not at all like the crazed Society murderers some others always tried to paint any person from New Atlanta. She had always found that a stupid outlook. Like everyone in a city could be monsters...

"Its...Samantha, right?" Sanders asked as he offered his hand to her with a sad smile, though he tried to make it happy. Lindsey's death must have hit him rather hard, not surprising considering she had been his only friend out here. Samantha took his offered hand and nodded to him.

"Yes, I was in the group who took you to Pyrrha though we never really talked," she said as she tried to focus on Sanders and not the huge slit eyes behind him, staring at her. It was a futile effort, though as she keep being drawn to the reflection of herself in them. Thankfully, the catmonster seemed more curious about her than angry or hungry.

"Yeah I remember. She the only one coming along?" Sanders asked Derek once they finished shaking hands. Derek nodded.

"Yes. She knows all our tricks for leaving trails for others to follow and things like that. She, also, knows the way back to the Southern HQ and Hope so if you do lose us, you won't be completely lost," Derek said as Samantha wondered if that was completely true. She could find her way back to Hope for sure, but the Southern HQ might be a bit tougher. Well it was probably fine as getting them back to Hope was probably the more important part, anyway.

Before anyone else could say anything another loud rumble came from the catmonster. She gave a soft meow and nudged Sanders with her nose again. He pushed her back and grumbled a bit in annoyance.

"Alright, alright. We need to get going and find her some dinner before she starts trying to eat the trees. I'll try to link back up once she's feed. If not, I'll see you back at the HQ. Pyrrha, up," Sanders said as Pyrrha's eyes lit up and she quickly put her hand down to pick him up. Derek nodded and headed back to the others, leaving Samantha alone with Sanders and his huge catmonster that could kill her in more ways than she really wanted to consider...oh why did she think this was a good idea? No, no she needed to be brave, Jessica would have been brave.

Sanders motioned her over toward Pyrrha's hand and Samantha gulped a bit. She had ridden on Pyrrha before, but that had been with Luke, Jacob, Derek, and Lindsey. Being brave then was a lot easier with all of them there, doubly so with her trying to impress Lindsey. Now, though, it was just her and she wasn't so good with just her. Jessica wouldn't have chickened out, though, and neither would have Lindsey. And Samantha sure as hell wasn't either.

Samantha climbed onto Pyrrha's hand and tried to keep her face as stoic as possible. Pyrrha didn't seem to mind her tagging along and began to lift them up off the ground. Sanders keep his footing rather easily, but Samantha had to fight not to fall over. Thankfully, the lift up wasn't that far, only about a story up, as Pyrrha's hand stopped at her head.

Sanders leap over to her head and grabbed some of her hair to keep his footing before turning back to help her over. She tried to act like she didn't need it, but was thankful it was there. Once both of them were on and had good grips, Sanders rubbed Pyrrha's ear and the catmonster slowly stood up. Samantha felt her breath rush out of her body as the world fell away from them and her grip on Pyrrha's blonde hair became a death grip. Holy shit they were high...way way WAY too high. Sanders, however, didn't seem to notice as he got Pyrrha moving away from the dead body of Sharon and further west.

For the first few minutes, Samantha was too busy being terrified to do anything save hang on. The sky had darkened a good deal and only the barest hints of sunlight remained. Most of the woods below them was heavily shadowed and near impossible to see, which didn't help her fear at all. All she could manage to do was breath, barely, and hang on for dear life. It wasn't until Sanders started to try and ask her something, that Samantha thought about anything else other than the ground far below.

"Hey, are you alright?" he asked, looking a bit worried. She tried to answer, but her voice seemed to have left so she just nodded. He didn't look convinced in the least and said something into Pyrrha's ear. Pyrrha shifted as she lowered herself to the ground and got on all fours. Samantha felt some of her terror fade away a bit now that the ground wasn't so far away, but it was still there, lurking.

She took a few deep breaths as she tried to calm down and, finally, started to snap out of...whatever had gotten her. She had never had that happen before...

"Tha-...Thank you," she said to Sanders as she relaxed her grip.

"Are you afraid of heights?" he asked, still looking a bit worried.

"No! I...well...I don't...I don't think I have ever been really high up," she said as she began to think about it. She...had never really been all that high up to be honest. Well, save for the ramp up to the command center which..she hated now that she thought about it. Oh fuck...

"Never been high up? Did you never go to a city or anything like that?" Sanders asked.

"No. I lived Cartersville before the disaster hit and never really had a chance to go to the city. I was only eleven when it hit. And I certainly can't go now," she admitted, feeling the old terror and fear from back then. So many dead in just a few seconds...

"Oh..right. I guess I forgot you must have been from somewhere well away from the city. Only eleven...being fourteen during the disaster doesn't seem so bad, now, though..." Sanders said as he shook his head. Pyrrha keep moving through the area, making far too little noise for something so huge, oblivious to their talking.

"I think it was bad no matter what age or where you were. That disaster...it took so much that the pain and lose scarred everyone," Samantha said as she felt the old pain coming up again. She wasn't really angry about it, no one to be angry at after all, just...sad and lonely.

"Yeah...I lost so many friends that day. Hell, I would have died too if my parents hadn't pulled me out of class to help with the farm. I rode one of the first buses to leave the school. Would have been on it right when it hit... and I haven't seen anyone from my bus, or any of the buses that would have left the school..." Sanders said as he shook his head. Well she was getting his mind off Lindsey, but not really on anything happy. Still...she kinda wanted to talk about back then too. She had done it so rarely and Sanders had opened up to her, it was only fair.

"I was at school when it hit. Luckily, my bus was one of the last ones and I had set my backpack down. A few of the others...weren't so lucky. I heard them scream as they tried to get them off before it was too late. Most didn't... including a girl who had been standing right next to me," Samantha said. She still saw the girl's look of terror as her backpack slowly crushed the life out of her, despite the decade that had gone by.

"Stories like that make me think Disaster isn't a strong enough word for it. Guessing you managed to get back home," Sanders assumed, incorrectly.

"No...I've never been back to my house... or seen my parents since. Everything went to utter chaos once it hit and I was left alone. Probably would have starved or been killed if an older girl named Jessica hadn't adapted me. Only reason I am here is because of her," Samantha said as Pyrrha ears seem to twitch. The catmonster stopped for a second, before continuing on, somewhat slower than before. Sanders nodded in understanding, but didn't answer. Instead, he put his fingers to his lips and motioned for her to get down lower.

Samantha did as Sanders said, figuring Pyrrha must have found something to eat. She tried to look out into the gloom to see, but she couldn't make out anythin- A wave of fear went through her looking down on the trees and she looked away before it knocked her flat.

Samantha had just recovered from the wave of fear when Pyrrha sprang forward. She nearly lost her grip, but Sanders grabbed her arm and made sure she stayed on, holding on with practiced ease himself. Pyrrha crashed to the ground and began to grab up something in the dark. Samantha risked a glance just long enough to see some deer trying to run from Pyrrha's huge form, and failing. The catmonster snatched them all up and stuffed them into her mouth, greedily. Most she just swallowed whole, but a few she actually chewed a bit. Sanders seemed to turn a bit green at the noises, though.

"Are you OK?" she asked him, as he turned away from her and looked to rub something in his pocket.

"Fine. Its just a case of...bad memories," Sanders said as he keep looking away from Samantha. It was pretty easy to tell he was trying to hide tears. Samantha wondered what brought them on, but didn't push him to find out. Those kind of memories shouldn't be forced out of someone, least you wanted to open old wounds.

After a few minutes of eating, Pyrrha let out a small belch followed by a happy meow. She started licking her hands clean of the blood on them as Sanders turned back, his eyes a bit redder than before.

"OK, we can head back and try to find the others now. Come on, Pyrrha," Sanders said as Pyrrha stopping licking her hands and headed back the way they had come. Sanders waited till she was back to moving to turn back to Samantha.

"Is Jessica in another unit from you? Only seen you hang around with that Jacob guy," Sanders said getting an angry look at the mention of Jacob. Samantha sighed to herself as she had been dreading that question.

"No...she's dead," Samantha said, glad that the wound had scabbed over long ago. Sanders' look changed to embarrassment at the mention of her being dead.

"Oh...sorry."

"Its alright. It happened a...long while ago," she said as they both fell silent. She hadn't been trying to bring up painful old memories, but managed to do it nonetheless. Now she didn't feel like talking at all and Sanders looked about the same.

They both were silent as Pyrrha keep moving back toward the dead body of the giantess. By then it had become fully night and the half moon only gave of a hint of light. Pyrrha, however, still seemed fully able to see and moved through the area without any trouble. All Samantha was able to make out, however, was the rolling hills. On the plus side, though, not being able to see seemed to help her fear of heights. Couldn't be afraid of them if she couldn't see them, she supposed.

"We might want to stop or we might run into the Force without realizing it," Samantha suggested, not wanting to imagine the horror if that happened. Sanders didn't seem all that concerned, however.

"Don't worry about us not seeing them. Pyrrha can see really well at night and Derek is putting people out around them to listen for us. They'll signal us when w-" Sanders stopped as Pyrrha's ear twitched and she lowered herself to the ground. Sanders knelt down as well, and feel silent as Samantha followed his lead. Samantha didn't ask what was going on as she trusted Sanders to tell her if he could. For now, it would be best just to do as he did and ask later.

And then she realized what had got Pyrrha to stop. It was faint, but it was there. The rhythmic rumbles of massive feet walking. A giantess was nearby, no...more than one! Sanders swore under his breath as he whispered something to Pyrrha. Pyrrha began to slowly inch forward, making sure to stay behind a large hill rising above them. The rumbling, however, began to get closer and closer and Samantha began to get very worried.

Sanders whispered to Pyrrha again and the catgirl began to move a bit quicker, but had to stop as the hill began to dip down. Just as Pyrrha looked about to move, the sky over the hill began to brighten. Lights...and the only thing that could carry lights that big were... Samantha cursed as she grabbed Sanders and pointed it out. Sanders swore as he whispered to Pyrrha again and she stopped.

They watched the lights for a few seconds as the footsteps came closer. Thankfully, they stopped as they heard a loud voice say something, thought Samantha wasn't able to make it out. Sanders said something to Pyrrha and her hand came up. Sanders climbed onto it before turning back to Samantha.

"Stay her-" Sanders started to whisper, but didn't get it out before Samantha had climbed onto the hand as well. She gave him a daring look and he sighed in response. Well he was smarter than Jacob when it came to knowing when to just accept it and shut up. Pyrrha lowered her hand to the ground and both of them slipped through the dark woods toward the top of the hill. They needed to see where the giantesses were and make sure it was safe to move. And make sure they were not heading after the Force...

Both of them reached the top and were about to crest the hill when a shaft of light suddenly flashed over them. They both dived to the ground as the light hovered over them for a few seconds. Finally, it moved away as the giantess swung her flashlight away from the hill they were hiding behind. Her footsteps rumbled out, still a good distance away, but her flashlight was powerful enough to reach them all the way over her. It wasn't likely that she would have spotted them, but neither of them were willing to take the chance. Being spotted now would almost assuredly be a death sentence.

They both risked a look up and saw the dead body of the giantess a few scale miles away. Three giantesses were around her, all with flashlights in their hands. One was kneeling down to inspect her and was hard to see thanks to the shadows being cast on her. The other two were looking around the area, one with blue hair and the other with brown.

"We going to go look for the Resistance fuckers that did this?" the brown haired one asked. From this distance, she sounded like a normal person rather than a giantess. A normal person who was right next to Samantha and not scale miles away...

"Of course we are. We can't let them get away with this," the blue haired one said as her light sweep back toward them. They both dived down again as Sanders mouthed fuck fuck fuck FUCK. Did he know the blue haired one?

The light passed and both glanced back up. Samantha dearly hoped they didn't try to find the Force. Derek would have found a good hiding place for them and the lights the giantess were using would give them a very early warning of their approach. She trusted Derek to get them out of there and keep them safe. But there was still a chance...And if they came this way...

"That would be a mistake, Monet. Even assuming we do find the Resistance, unlikely with it now being night and them having double the places to hide, they have an ace on their side," the one kneeling down said. Samantha heard Sanders suck in a breath as his hand gripped the dirt.

"What do you mean an ace, Aviel?" the brown one asked as the kneeling one stood up to reveal her fiery red hair.

"There are claw marks on Sharon, catgirl claw marks. Not only that, her shield generator looks to have been pulled off, not blown off. A feral catgirl might have attacked her, but why would it pull her shield generator off and lure her right into a Resistance trap?" Aviel asked getting the other two giantesses to look at her in disbelief.

"Oh come on. Resistance working with a catgirl? That's impossible....isn't it?" the brown haired one said as she looked back down at Sharon. Monet got a stern look as she looked down as well.

"Apparently not...Aviel, do you think its?" she asked getting a nod from Aviel.

"No one else it could be. And as much as I would enjoy putting an end to him, we need to get back and report this. The Matriarchs need to know he is still alive," Aviel said as Monet and the brown haired giantess nodded. Samantha glanced over to Sanders and was taken back by the look of utter hate on his face.

"Aviel..." he growled out as his fist tightened in rage. Samantha had never seen Sanders, or anyone, look so angry. He looked on the verge of yelling for Pyrrha to attack, but a glance to her seemed to get him to calm down a little. She fought back a shiver as Sanders beat his fist into the rock he was hiding behind.

The three giantesses turned and began to move away from them and back toward the highway, thankfully. They were heading away from them and the Force which got a sigh of relief from Samantha. She looked back over and saw Sanders staring in hatred after the form of Aviel.

"Who...was that?" Samantha asked, unable to keep her curiosity in check. Sanders didn't look at her as he stared forward after Aviel. His mouth twisted into fury as he took deep a breath.

"My ex-partner and the person who betrayed me, Isabella, and everyone else just to get revenge and power. The person I am going to kill one of these days," Sanders said as he turned away and started back toward Pyrrha. Samantha glanced back and watched the lights from the giantesses grow dimmer. Whatever doubts she had about Sanders being on their side was dispelled, at least so far as being against the Society. No way he could fake that kind of fury, not to mention there was little doubt the giantesses were talking about Sanders.

She followed after him and both climbed back onto Pyrrha. Pyrrha seemed to sense Sanders anger and gave him a worried look, but he brushed her off. She gave a soft, sad, meow as they got back onto her head.

"We are not going to be able to pick up the Force's trail here. Not without risking being spotted, anyway. Do you know some other way to find them further on?" Sanders asked, looking to be trying to get his rage under control. Samantha nodded knowing the Force would have left marks on the trees to show their direction and such. They would look like animal claw marks to the untrained eye, but Samantha could tell the difference. The only problem was it was nearly pitch black and seeing the marks would be next to impossible.

"Yes, but I can't see the marks on the trees in the dark," Samantha admitted. Spending a night alone with Pyrrha and Sanders wasn't horridly appealing, but she had sleep around worst. Sanders didn't look the type to try anything, but she still had her jury-rigged knife in case she misjudged him. As for Pyrrha...well there wasn't much she could do to stop her. That was a comforting thought...

Sanders didn't seem concerned about the dark as he took out his pack. He dug through it and pulled out a pair of goggles that looked to be some kind of Society tech. He looked in them and adjusted a few things on the side before handing them to Samantha. She looked in and realized they were night-vision goggles. Everything in the forest was, suddenly, visible though all in black and white.

"OK, this will work. Let's head north for a few miles and then I can try finding their trail," Samantha said as Sanders nodded. He got Pyrrha moving, making sure she stayed low to the ground, and they headed out into the darkness.

It took them about half a hour to find one of the marks. Once they found it, though, it was easy enough to stay on the Force's trail. When the marks started to get fresher, the sap was still leaking out, Samantha began to worry they might blunder right into the camp. Sanders, however, dispelled that worry by having Pyrrha lightly stomp every few steps. It wasn't hard enough to go really far, but was loud enough for a watchman to hear long before they were on top of him.

It proved to be effective as, after a few minutes of traveling, Samantha saw a flash of torchlight up ahead. It vanished just as quick as it appeared and Samantha smiled as she realized they had found the Force.

"Stop, Sanders. The Force is over there," she said, pointing towards where the light had been. He nodded and got Pyrrha tp set them both down. He had here stay and they headed, on foot, toward the light. Sanders still had a bit of simmering rage in his eyes and Samantha made sure to take the lead. Last thing they needed was someone getting jump and his anger causing problems.

"Phoenix," a voice said from the darkness, starting the first part of the code.

"Rise," Samantha answered as Sanders looked around in confusion. Two people came out of the darkness, their guns shouldered. Samantha recognized them from Jeremy's squad, but didn't know them personally. They recognized them as well and nodded a greeting to Sanders but shook Samantha' hand.

"We were starting to think you guys got lost. Derek set a place off to the side of the camp for the catmonster. Just go around that hill over there and you'll be in the spot," one of them said as he pointed out the hill.

"Thanks," Samantha said as they headed back. The two watchmen both melted back into the darkness and went back to their patrols. Sanders had Pyrrha move around the hill, making sure she took it nice and slow just in case, and stopped when she reached a large open area. She sat them down before letting out a long yawn, thankfully looking the other way when she did. Samantha, reminded of how late it was, suddenly felt unbelievably tired and wanted nothing more than to crawl in bed. Sanders, however, didn't look all that tired as he took out a whistle and studied it. Samantha might have asked about it if she wasn't too tired to care.

Pyrrha walked around them, making Samantha a bit worried as he hands and feet sent a bit of rumbles through the ground. Her fear was put to rest, though, as Pyrrha stretched and then laid down behind them. She nuzzled Sanders' back and he, absentmindedly, rubbed her cheek as he keep looking at the whistle. Samantha, now assured Pyrrha was just getting comfortable, went back to getting ready to sleep

Samantha took out her fur cover from her bag and draped it around herself to keep warm. She would have preferred to have Jacob here to warm her, but she didn't want to leave to find him. Tonight, she would sleep alone and just have to keep warm the old fashion way. She might have been disappointed by that if she didn't pass out almost the moment her head hit the dirt.

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January 19, 2024 8:13 AM

Samantha woke early, as always, and found Sanders still asleep. He was leaning back onto Pyrrha's cheek and had one of Pyrrha's finger wrapped around him like a blanket. Pyrrha opened one of her eyes as Samantha started to move around, but closed it after a second of watching her get up. The huge catmonster yawned, causing Sanders to shift a bit, before looking to go back to sleep.

Samantha left the two of them to sleep as she headed toward the camp, wanting to find Jacob, but knowing she needed to find Derek first. Those giantesses from last night were bound to come back and they hadn't put enough distance between them and the battle site, yet. If she hadn't been so tired, she might have told him last night, but hadn't thought about it. She needed to get Derek to get them moving ASAP.

She asked around the camp, finding a few others already awake as well. They pointed her toward a hill overlooking the camp. She headed that way, eating a bit of jerky and drinking some water she had scrounged up, and found Derek already awake. He was doing some morning exercises and stopped his push ups as Samantha came over. Derek might have been a good deal bigger and more muscled than Jacob, but she still preferred the son to the father. Derek was just a bit... too taciturn for her. Jacob still knew how to show emotions and she loved that about him, even if it was annoying at times.

"Samantha, something you need?" Derek asked, looking a bit concerned she wasn't with Sanders.

"Commander, I need to report what I saw last night," she said as she walked up to him. Derek got a stern look and nodded for her to go ahead, while taking a drink.

"While we were heading back from Pyrrha finding food, we passed by the giantess' dead body. Three other giantesses were already there, looking over her body. We overheard them talking and they now know she was killed by a Resistance group with the aid of a catmonster. I, also, believe they know it was Sanders who aided us. One of them seemed to know him and Sanders for sure know one of them," she said, trying to give as much information as she could. Derek needed to know everything she did if he was to make a good tactical decision. And a good decision could save all of their lives.

Derek cursed as he heard the news, but raised an eyebrow at the last part.

"What do you mean he for sure knew one of them?"

"Sir, when that giantess revealed herself Sanders was nearly overcome with rage. I thought, for a second, he was going to charge the giantess by himself with how angry he was. He said her name was Aviel and that she was his ex-partner and had betrayed him. I...do not think he was lying, sir. The look on his face was nothing short of unbridled hate. Also, the giantesses seemed to hint that they knew it was Sanders who had aided us as well," she said, still shivering a bit remembering that look. Derek listened and looked away. He nodded and seemed somewhat pleased to hear that.

"Alright. Get back to watching Sanders and tell everyone you pass to get ready to move out. We need to get going before those giantesses come back," Derek said as he gathered up his stuff. Samantha nodded and took off back down the hill to the huge form off Pyrrha in the distance. She did as she was ordered and told everyone she passed to get ready to go, including the ones sleeping.

On her way back, she ran into Sanders, now awake, who looked to be heading for Derek.

"What are you doing?" she asked him as he noticed her and stopped.

"Going to tell Derek what we saw last night. We nee-" Samantha stopped him as she interrupted him.

"Need to tell him about the giantesses, I already did and he is getting everyone moving. Let's get back to Pyrrha and get ready to move ourselves," she said as Sanders looked a bit surprised. He recovered and nodded as he lead the way back to Pyrrha after saying good job.

She was about to enter into the clearing Pyrrha was in when someone grabbed her from behind a tree. Her hand shoot down to her knife, but stopped as the arm pulled her into a familiar hug. She sighed in annoyance as Jacob wrapped himself around her.

"Dammit, Jacob, I keep telling you not to do that. One of these days I am going to stab you when you do that," she said in anger. She wasn't sure she could ever live with herself if she hurt Jacob like that, or stop kicking his ass for being that stupid.

"You would have just brushed past me and keep going with this Society fucker if I hadn't grabbed you. And I barely sleep at all without you," Jacob said kissing the side of her neck. Samantha wanted nothing more than to stay in his arms and make up for their lost night, but she didn't have the time for that. Doubly so with him trying to start shit with Sanders who gave him an icy stare at the Society fucker. Why was Jacob still getting hung up on that?

"I'm sorry, Jacob, but I can't right now. The Society knows we killed that giantess and is going to be looking for us. I need to get Sanders and Pyrrha ready to move and you need to get back to Squad 3," she said as she started to walk away. Jacob looked about to say something, but stopped when she said the Society was looking for them. He swore under his breath before glancing over toward the huge catmonster. He got a suspicious look which got Samantha to sigh and Sanders to harden his glare. She was going to nip that thought before it formed.

"Its not them, trust me. Sanders hates the Society just as much, if not more, than us. We can trust him," she said as Jacob just got a more angry look. Sanders, though, seemed to soften up as she took his side. She sighed to herself, wondering if Jacob was just jealous or if this was about something else. Whatever it was, she didn't need him starting trouble.

"Jacob, don't even think of doing something stupid or starting something. Sanders saved our lives and so did Pyrrha. We need them if we want to win this war and you starting trouble with them isn't going to help," she chastised him. Jacob looked away with an annoyed look, but nodded just the same.

"Fine...fine, I'll trust YOU that we can trust them. But, I'm going with you to make sure Sanders doesn't try anything," Jacob said as he glared at Sanders. Sanders returned the glare in full and Samantha groaned to herself. Pyrrha suddenly appeared over them, apparently having gotten curious and glanced at Jacob. She let out a low growl at Jacob which only got Jacob to look even madder. So much for not starting something...