Wings of Fire Ch. 09 - Teaser (Patreon)

Turning to the stack of papers on her desk, Michelle collected everything, including the notebook that James had brought forward. With all of these items in hand, she walked to the side of the room opposite her bathroom. She reached out and felt along the plain wall, searching for something. After a few moments, she found it and pressed the hidden button, which opened the concealed door in the wall.

Once the door was open, she slipped into the room it revealed and shut the door behind her. In times of war, this room had served as the war room for the captain and the officers of the ship. When Michelle had purchased it years ago, she deliberately had the room concealed and known only to her.

The reasoning why was so she had a place to stow things that were extremely valuable or sensitive. In the case of the documents that had been given to her by Colonel Forestwalker, this was where she had to keep them. Information this sensitive was too dangerous to be just left lying around her office. The room in question was one which she dubbed her ‘safekeep’, where anything she wanted to be kept safe was safe.

She turned on the lights inside, illuminating the surrounding room. In the center was a large table, which was used as a war map back in the day. For the moment, it was a place where she could leave certain items that she wanted quick access to. Surrounding the table were several large cushy chairs, which still functioned but had seen better days.

On the far side of the room was a large board, where documents and photos had hung once. Michelle figured now was as good a time as any to put the board to use again. She carefully placed the stack of documents on the table and started by picking up a few sheets of blank paper and writing on them. Once she had a few titles written up, she then took the paper that read ‘Chimera’ and put it at the top of the board.

One by one, Michelle pasted additional titles on the board, connecting everything together, piece by piece. Slowly, a basic board of what Chimera was tied to, along with who was potentially involved, was up. Michelle stared at the board and could tell that there were some pieces missing, but that was only because what she had was incomplete.

The woman would need more time and information before this whole board started to make sense. She only hoped that she found the knowledge she required before it was gone. Just then, a knock sounded at her cabin door, making Michele jump, as the sound of it echoed like a drum in the room. She scrambled out of the room and shut the door behind her before she ran for the door.

“Yes?” she called out, composing herself.

“Breakfast, captain,” came a familiar voice, which made Michelle smile.

“Come in, Li!” Michelle said warmly and the Chinese woman entered, carrying her breakfast tray.

“Good morning, cap… Michelle,” Li-Fan said, remembering that it was just the pair of them in the room.

“I suppose it is, with the sun out and all,” Michelle replied with a smile.

“You seem a little… flustered, Michelle. Is everything OK?” Li-Fan queried.

“Yes, just… dealing with something unexpected is all,” Michelle responded.

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

“I don’t know. If I tell you about what’s going on, then you will have to keep it to yourself. You can’t speak to anyone about this matter at all, except for young James and myself,” Michelle told her lover.

“Why is that?” Li-Fan asked, her face scrunched up in confusion.

“Because the pair of us were pulled into something that goes beyond us. Something that can have serious repercussions for everyone,” the redheaded woman stated.

“What kind of repercussions? And what do you mean by ‘everyone’?” Li-Fan asked, still confused.

“The global kind, and when I say everyone, I do mean everyone!” Michelle told her.