Kassian's expression softened slightly, and he regarded Isaev with a look as warm as it was brief. The faint lines around his mouth twitched upward slightly, then relaxed.
"You're not so bad yourself, Isaev," he muttered, though his voice was fond and gruff, and only just loud enough for the two of them to share.
His gaze traveled to the gavial. "It is too bad," he said, solemn once more.
A creature like that had lived a long time and clearly had come to have no fear of humans. And the massive beast had survived one encounter with an Ocelot soldier already. That was saying something.
Spetsnaz elite versus giant crocodiles.
That was definitely not part of GRU training, Kassian was sure.
He thought about the way the lieutenant had touched the gavial's ruined head, with both reverence and regret. "She lived a long time," he murmured to Isaev, "and she'll be remembered for longer. Soldiers will be telling this story for years to come, and she'll probably grow larger and fiercer with every retelling."
He shrugged a little, and let the back of his hand graze Isaev's arm in a seemingly casual gesture. "If she knew, she'd be pleased."
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2006-11-27 11:11 pm (UTC)"You're not so bad yourself, Isaev," he muttered, though his voice was fond and gruff, and only just loud enough for the two of them to share.
His gaze traveled to the gavial. "It is too bad," he said, solemn once more.
A creature like that had lived a long time and clearly had come to have no fear of humans. And the massive beast had survived one encounter with an Ocelot soldier already. That was saying something.
Spetsnaz elite versus giant crocodiles.
That was definitely not part of GRU training, Kassian was sure.
He thought about the way the lieutenant had touched the gavial's ruined head, with both reverence and regret. "She lived a long time," he murmured to Isaev, "and she'll be remembered for longer. Soldiers will be telling this story for years to come, and she'll probably grow larger and fiercer with every retelling."
He shrugged a little, and let the back of his hand graze Isaev's arm in a seemingly casual gesture. "If she knew, she'd be pleased."