The atmosphere in the war room was thick with tension. General Odo sat at the head of the long steel table, his expression like a storm held barely in check. Commander Helda, Captain Tade, and Commander Otunba stood at attention before him, each waiting for the inevitable outburst.
Commander Helda stepped forward first, her voice firm despite the weight of her failure.
"The rescue was orchestrated by freedom fighters disguised as scavengers," she reported. "We engaged them. Three were neutralized, but two, along with the spy, escaped."
General Odo's fist slammed against the table. "Of course they came," he growled. "They knew we would soon discover the spy. This rescue… it proves something else — Gad is important to them. Special. Otherwise, they wouldn't have risked their men for one agent."
The others nodded grimly, the truth undeniable.
"We underestimated them," Commander Otunba admitted.
"No more," General Odo snapped. His gaze turned to his son, Captain Tade, sharp as a blade. "Begin preparations for an assault on Ember Line immediately."
Captain Tade straightened, a grim smile ghosting across his face. "Yes, Father."
General Odo turned without another word, exiting the room with a heavy clang of the doors behind him. Captain Tade lingered for a moment, then looked to Commander Helda.
"Before you leave," he ordered, "assign one of your best soldiers. I want someone capable enough to be Didi's personal guard."
Helda gave a sharp nod. As soon as Tade was gone, she turned to Commander Otunba.
"You'll handle it. Choose someone you trust."
Otunba nodded without hesitation.
---
Later that evening, Commander Otunba found Jimi leaning against a railing overlooking the darkened courtyard. The young soldier straightened up as Otunba approached.
"I have a task for you," Otunba said without preamble. "You are to be assigned as Guard to General Odo's daughter, Didi."
Jimi blinked, surprised, but said nothing.
Otunba stepped closer, lowering his voice. "Listen carefully. I know you're friends with Gad — the freedom fighter's spy."
Jimi's breath caught in his throat, his fists clenching instinctively.
"Relax," Otunba said coolly. "I won't expose you. But in exchange, you'll do something for me."
Jimi stayed silent, waiting.
"While you guard Didi, you will learn everything you can about General Odo and Captain Tade through her. Their weaknesses, their movements, their plans. Report it only to me."
A long pause stretched between them. Finally, Jimi gave a stiff nod.
"I'll do it," he said.
Otunba clapped him on the shoulder, a grim smile on his lips. "Good. Then we understand each other."
Captain Tade wasted no time. Early the next morning, he summoned Jimi to the east courtyard of the main fortress, where Didi and their mother, Bianca, waited under the shade of a silver-leaved tree.
As Jimi approached, he felt Captain Tade's sharp gaze pin him in place like a pinned insect. Didi stood beside her mother, her posture relaxed but her eyes alive with curiosity.
"This is Jimi," Tade said, his voice formal and clipped. "One of Commander Helda's finest. He will serve as Didi's personal guard from today onward."
Bianca, tall and elegant, gave a slight nod of approval. She wore a long flowing robe, her aging beauty still evident in her proud bearing. But it was Didi who stole all of Jimi's attention.
She was... radiant.
Her hair, a rare shade of pale gold, shimmered under the morning sun, falling in soft waves over her shoulders. Her eyes were a deep, rich brown, almost too vivid against her fair complexion, making her look like something out of a dream. She was the perfect balance of softness and fire, and for a moment, Jimi forgot himself.
He caught his breath and quickly lowered his eyes, masking his reaction under a soldier's stoic mask. But Didi saw it. She knew that look — boys at her academy in Greenland had looked at her the same way, some even more brazen. Usually, it annoyed her, made her feel like a trophy instead of a person.
But with Jimi... it was different.
There was something about the way he fought to hide it — like he knew one wrong glance in Captain Tade's presence could end him. His nervousness, his desperate restraint, amused her more than she expected. She watched him struggle to maintain his rigid posture and smirked slightly, a hidden smile playing at the corners of her lips.
How much do you fear my brother, Jimi? she wondered, her eyes twinkling mischievously.
Without speaking, Didi walked forward and extended her hand with the casual authority of someone who knew exactly how much power her beauty gave her — and how little she truly cared for it.
"I'm Didi," she said simply.
Jimi looked up, just briefly, and shook her hand with a stiff nod, trying hard not to linger in her gaze.
"Jimi, ma'am," he said, his voice a little hoarse despite himself.
Bianca watched the exchange with a slight narrowing of her eyes but said nothing. Captain Tade merely grunted, satisfied.
"You answer only to her," Tade instructed sharply. "She goes nowhere without you. If anything happens to her, you answer to me."
"Yes, sir," Jimi responded at once.
Tade gave a final warning glance — the kind that promised consequences without needing to spell them out — before turning to leave with Bianca at his side.
As their footsteps faded away, Didi leaned in a little closer, her voice low and teasing.
"You don't have to be that scared," she whispered, her smile widening. "Not yet, anyway."
Jimi swallowed hard, wondering whether he had just stepped into a duty far more dangerous than he had ever imagined.