The Soul Eaters (The Thin Hex Line Book 1) by Gwyndolyn Russell (e reader txt) 📕

snapped back to the wolf. Fenris?! That valkyrie had been sitting there in place of the wolf, my hand still petting its head! I pulled back, confused more than anything. What was I thinking?! That beautiful she-wolf...it couldn’t have been Fenris.

Reynolds grabbed my chin to turn my head to her again. A bright white light shone in my eyes. I fought the urge to close them. The brighter lights burned.

“It took a while, but everything looks great! If you notice anything unusual, come back and I’ll give a thorough examination.” She smiled.

I said my goodbyes and left the medical bay. Fenris was still with me. I figured he would have wandered off now that I had my sight back. When I asked him about it, he said nothing at all.

I headed down to the barracks to see what the others were up to. They were headed for lunch and invited us along.

We were still stuck with MREs. We were missing a crucial part to the synthesizer. There was no way we could get our hands on one either until making it to a station.

I made sure Fenris got a tray of food in hope he would try to eat it.

We sat down at a table that could fit all of us, Fenris opting for the floor where he could use a foot to stay in place.

"It's great having your eyes back, huh?" Sparrow cheered.

"Can't wait to get back to training." I said, wasting no time getting a forkful of spaghetti. "I'm gonna head to a sim for target practice."

"I wanna come!"

"We should all go." Mjolnir chimed in.

"Hm… Where's Ianisse? He came here with us I thought." I looked around the table.

Mjolnir and Sparrow lowered their heads, stuffing their mouths so they couldn't speak.

Ruby, who was next to me, sat back with his arms crossed over his chest. He hadn't said a word, nor opened a packet.

"Something he wanted to do." Ruby answered.

"Too bad he won't be joining us." I looked at Mjolnir. "Have you trained with him? How is he?"

"He has attitude." Mjolnir answered. "He can fight well enough."

There was an odd sounding crunch.

We looked to Fenris.

One of the unopened packets from his tray was hanging halfway out of his mouth. He took another bite as we all watched in amazement. Then swallowed the packet whole.

He looked at us with a curious tilt.

"Y-you don't eat the whole thing like that!" I said.

Sparrow coughed, trying not to laugh up her food.

Fenris grumbled.

"What? Didn't like it?" The sarcasm leaked into my tone.

"Can you actually eat that?" Sparrow asked.

"Eat anything." Fenris answered with a rasp.

I saw the light flicker in her eyes. I imagined the thoughts in her head. They were in mine, too.

"Anything?" Mjolnir needed extra confirmation.

Fenris nodded.

The ardrizi cleared his tray of the trash and held it to Fenris.

"Eat this!"

My jaw dropped a bit. I wasn't sure if I should stop it now, or just let it go. The responsible thing would have been to end it, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curious to see.

Fenris took the tray and tossed it into his mouth.

Now things got a little confusing here. It started with Fenris in that metal armor. A big crunch that bent the tray and cracked it. The next bite not only repositioned the tray in his mouth, but shifted his form into the familiar wolf form. Then he shifted back and forth, taking only a few bites to destroy the tray and swallow the chunks without so much as using his hands or paws.

The game started.

Sparrow and Mjolnir could not help themselves any longer. What else could that valkyrie eat? They ran around the mess hall, grabbing whatever they could. Glasses, plants, utensils.

Fenris seemed happy. He ate whatever they brought him without a care. As a wolf, I saw his tail wag calmly against the floor.

He practically glowed! Like the shadows that hung around him faded, even if it was only brief.

It sure was brief.

Ruby slammed his fist against the table and jumped up. "You guys are treating that thing like it's a fucking dog!" He shouted, baring his teeth. "It's disgusting as fuck! How can you look at that and see anything, but a monster?!"

Fenris' tail stopped moving. Everyone fell silent, watching Ruby.

"What's your problem?" I took on that familiar lieutenant's voice.

"That thing is my problem! Ianisse is right, it's tricking you. The moment you turn your back on it, it will eat you, too!"

"Hey, he's not a thing." Sparrow said. "He's a person, too!"

"So, you're siding with it?" Ruby seemed almost shocked.

"He ain't done anything wrong!"

"I'm not gonna sit here and put up with this." Ruby snapped. "That's bullshit! You guys wanna fall for its lies, then fine! I'm not helping you when it turns on you." He stormed out of the mess hall.

"What in Zaala's name was that?" Mjolnir watched him leave.

"Don't listen to him, Fenris." Sparrow said sweetly. "He's an idiot."

"Sounds like you two aren't getting along very well." I crossed my arms.

"He's spending a lot of time with Ianisse. He's even missed date night three times in a row because he's, and I quote, working late."

"That's not good." I shook my head. "This is why you don't date coworkers."

She huffed.

"Perhaps Ianisse has more to offer?" Mjolnir asked. "He can fight well on even ground. Ruby could be attracted to that."

"I can fight better than him! I'm a better soldier!"

“You know, speaking of fighting,” Mjolnir looked over to Fenris. “I have yet to see you fight!”

The valkyrie watched him.

“Why don’t we spar?” He held up a fist. “I haven’t had someone to size up to since I joined this crew!”

Fenris shook his head.

“Oh, come on, Fen, it’ll be good.” I chimed in. “You should try to make friends!”

“It’s friendly.” Mjolnir assured. “Sport. Fun. As a team, it’s good to know how each other battles. That way we work better together.”

“Exactly! We should head to a sim.” I jumped up before anyone could object. It would be good for all of us.