(BL) Hunting The Field Guide

Chapter 496: A debrief for the ages



Hill was all business, not letting herself slip out of her Lieutenant persona as Kellen went through the briefing that he had wanted to give this whole time. He also had Rhys help him by grabbing his bag. Thankfully, Taylor had already removed the 'items' from it by the time that the bag touched Kellen's hands again.

That was one thing he just couldn't deal with right now.

Taylor also untied him, since he clearly wasn't going to thrash about in his current state, and he needed his hands to show off his finds. Kellen easily handed over his little diary, sure it would have gotten more nonsensical as time went along, but knowing it was a good documentation of that as well.

How good his suit worked, how long it took for him to get severely poisoned. What happened in the gate and how a 'normal' person viewed it versus whatever Kellen was like in the last bit. Kellen had known he had written in the diary, but even he couldn't recall what he had written. It was probably all about what Kellen had witnessed and heard.

How he kept hearing Rhys' voice in the forest, but how he knew it wasn't him. He hoped he'd made notes of how Bree was holding up. How she had been only able to focus on one task at a time.

He made sure to let Hill know about that part anyways, and his little theory about how everyone passed out when they reached their limit of poison intoxication.

From the look Taylor gave him, she was already having that thought as well. Good. Kellen was glad that they were all on the same page, even if he had been unconscious. It also wasn't lost on him that they had probably put everything back in the bag after Kellen had passed out, and then shoved everything back in the bag once he had woken up again. He didn't care.

That was the same thing he would have done in their footsteps, and it was wild to him that they were being so delicate around him. Kellen had been a C Class a lot longer than he had been an A Class Guide. He was used to rough treatment, even from Hill.

She had treated him more like an Esper than a Guide when she had known him on the front lines prior to him getting together with Rhys. Kellen hadn't hated that either. Kellen knew that they weren't being so careful with him because Kellen wanted it.

He knew it was solely because Rhys was who he was, and he was pretty close to the edge.

Mid brief, Carlos came in with Isabella on his heels, shoved the others out of the way and approached Kellen right away. He went to him, going for his good eye and examining it, before he ordered the lights to be dimmed so he could take off the eyepatch without further damaging Kellen's eye.

He didn't seem to care about anything around him, so focused on his task that Kellen wondered if he was alright. From the sunken look of Isabella's face, no, he wasn't alright, but he was allowed to get away with this kind of treatment because it worked.

He was clearly onto something if Kellen had made it out, was awake, and was also functioning in the face of the others who weren't awake yet.

When Carlos looked at Kellen's eye, Kellen wasn't able to see anything out of it. Carlos asked, doing several things that Kellen couldn't see because they were all on his left side, before Carlos let out a heavy sigh, put the eye patch back on, and then turned to Kellen's hand.

Kellen, since it was clear that Carlos wasn't really going to ask him anything about a hand that had been so heavily affected by a topical poison, turned to continue speaking to Hill.

Hill seemed a little unsure for only a second, before they continued their conversation. Kellen was right, he wasn't asking him questions about his hand, just checking on the condition. Kellen refused to look at the state of his hand.

It wouldn't help him right now to see it, and it certainly wasn't going to help the anxious Esper next to him.

Mid talking point, Kellen turned to Rhys and gave him a pointed look as the man looked stricken as he stared down towards Kellen's hand.

"Rhys, stop. Up here." Kellen told him, and Rhys swallowed, jerking his gaze towards Kellen. He looked helpless, terrified, and in so much pain that it was almost comical. "Rhys. You don't need to focus on that right now. Listen to my report instead." Kellen told him, and watched as Carlos and Taylor gave a little nod in agreement.

They were trying their best not to show it, but Kellen could see it. The relief in their expressions now that there was someone awake who could manage the man. It would be a different situation entirely if Gunther was here.

But he wasn't. So that fell to Kellen's shoulders, and he was fine with that. As long as Rhys let him do his damn job as his partner.

Kellen turned back to his debrief, leaning his head on Rhys' stiff shoulder as he did so. It was unlike him, unlike what anyone in the room thought he would do, so he could feel the shock in the room. Kellen didn't really care, not when after a few moments Rhys relaxed.

Carlos was finished with his checkup before Kellen was done with his debrief, since now Hill was asking more technical questions after she'd heard everything he'd seen with his eyes through his eyes. Carlos pulled Taylor out of the room so that they could speak about what he had observed in the time he had been in the room, and Isabella gave Kellen a small wave and a dip of her head.

Kellen smiled at her softly as the tent flap fell behind her as the two healers? Left.

Kellen then focused once more on Hill, and ignored Taylor when she came back in about 15 minutes later. Not because of any weird reason, but because he needed to focus on what Hill was asking him.

Then, finally, Hill put away the little recording device she had used in place of someone writing down everything Kellen was saying in real time, and sighed. Then, she moved towards Kellen and grabbed him, wrapping her arms around him.

"Thank fuck you made it out." She whispered. "I don't know what would have happened to the world if you hadn't. I was trying so desperately to not think about it. I'm sorry I got mad at you Kellen, and I'm sorry I doubted you. I had to. I couldn't imagine anyone going in there and making it out." Hill whispered, her voice harsh. Kellen wanted to be able to hug her back, but he couldn't.

Not with his one hand hooked up to every machine imaginable, and his other practically useless.

"It's fine, Hill. I don't hold it against you. I practically had an Esper power telling me I was going to make it out. The last of my trusty lucky rabbit's foot is gone. Now I'm just like everyone else." Kellen joked, but someone hit his foot. He glanced over to find Taylor, her eyes narrowed, his gaze green.

Kellen couldn't remember seeing her eyes blue since he'd woken up, actually. She was pulling a Rhys.

"Don't you fucking joke about that. You're on thin ice once you get well enough to function. Don't think I'm letting you out of my damn sight. You're on leave until I tell you otherwise, sir. I swear to god, if another damn thing happens like this again right away, I'm kidnapping you and not letting you get involved. In fact, your whole damn family is being kidnapped, by me, and put somewhere safe and away from prying eyes. I'm sure I'll have your Dad as a willing accomplice." It was a very valid, and unlike Taylor threat.

She must need guiding more than Kellen thought.

"Has anyone heard from my parents yet?" Kellen asked the room and Taylor froze, clamming up before Hill let out a deep sigh. Even Rhys looked uncomfortable.

"We…haven't told them anything yet." Rhys admitted and Kellen turned to him, giving him a stunned look as Hill took a step back, her arms behind her back. "Beyond that you made it out alive, and so did Gwen. I warned your Mom that she wasn't allowed to suddenly appear on the front lines since it wouldn't do either of her children any good. She cursed me out." Rhys said, and Kellen stared at the man.

"Are you mad? You're keeping my Mom away from us right now?" Kellen asked, horrified and Rhys sighed.

"I don't want her to see you like this. I don't want her or your Dad to see you and Gwen like this, and then blame themselves for the rest of their lives. They already are, Kellen. Especially given what they said to you. I know it, because…well, I've said some things to others that I will never forget, especially since I never saw them again. I would have thought they would have known better, but clearly, I was wrong." Rhys muttered. "Either way, they're fine. Your Dad was pleased to hear the news, it was your Mom who reacted poorly." Kellen wasn't so sure about that. His Dad was fairly good at masking his hurts normally.

He was a Guide after all. It was part of the curriculum.

"Kellen." Rhys started, a seriousness to his voice that surprised him. What else could he possibly tell him? Kellen's stomach dropped. Wait, there were a few people who were missing, who he hadn't found. Did they find them? Already? How close had they been?

Kellen felt his throat work as he swallowed, turning to Rhys. Rhys reached for Kellen, glancing at Taylor, and Hill, before he turned back to Kellen and met his gaze.

"We know where Brent is." Kellen hadn't anticipated that in the slightest. He felt his world tilt, and realised that Rhys had caught him with both hands as his back gave out. Taylor was there as the machines started making more noise, denoting how shocked Kellen was.

"H-How? Where?" Kellen demanded, shocked, worried, panicking now that Rhys had brought it up. Rhys looked grim.

"He's overseas. His family is a big deal there and…Kellen, his grandfather died and left a company to him." Kellen felt his world shift again. That was…oh no.

"Oh no. His grandfather died? Poor Brent." Kellen whispered, and the trio shared a look, clearly not expecting this kind of reaction from Kellen. Rhys gave him a concerned look.

"You aren't worried he lied?" Rhys asked softly and Kellen gave him a blank look.

"Rhys. We met on the front lines. Only weirdos or people who want to prove themselves come here. Do you think I think everyone else here told me their real name?" Kellen asked, and Hill's lips twisted up before she turned to hide her smile.

Rhys watched Kellen, scanning his face. He was making sure that Kellen truly wasn't upset about the fact that Brent came from money and was from overseas, before he let out an exhale.

"He's not safe. His family situ-"

"-They hate him. Yeah. It didn't take a genius to figure that out since he only spoke to me about his grandfather, and no one else." Kellen said softly. It was good news. Great news, honestly. Brent was safe.

He could see him once he got better.


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