Izick looked through the small slit of the thick curtains covering the windows.

  Ogres patrolled the streets outside at night with their heavy spears in their hands. He moved away from the window and then walked deeper into the room where the rest of the Scouts were sitting.

  A nearly unnoticeable series of yellow circles enveloped the Scouts, dimly glowing when Izick stepped into them. He sat down on the wooden floor, where a small red cube glowed to provide some light, but not so much as to draw attention from outside.

  “There are ogres everywhere out there. They’re not really checking these houses, but they seem to be patrolling the streets. They're likely trying to pick off those escaping Damaran, instead of sweeping each housing unit,” Izick said as he glanced back at the window.

  “Individually, we might be able to move undetected, but moving as a group is a no-go unless we have some sort of distraction that can last us minutes. We’re practically stuck here until they leave.”

  The Scouts grumbled in worry as Izick pulled down his mask. He grabbed some of the flatbread laid out on a cloth on the wooden floor and scoffed it down.

  He made sure no one was looking before snagging two more flatbreads, which he rolled into a cloth and stuffed into his inner vest pocket. Hobbs sighed before taking a sip from a leather flask.

  "Well, we knew that getting deeper into Damaran would be tricky, but I wasn't expecting such a heavy Ogre presence so soon. We are lucky to even get this far into Damaran, but the Elves of this city may already be dead."

  Hobbs said, downing the last of the contents inside his flask.

  "Our plans must now change."

  The creaking of wood floors caused Izick to jump to his feet and pull out his knife. Silence fell on the other Scouts as they followed suit and readied themselves as the footsteps came closer.

  Rhythmic knocking in a strange pattern sounded off on the back door, opposite the front entrance.

  Hobbs motioned for everyone to sit down before walking to the back door and opening it.

  Five hooded Scouts, consisting of what seemed to be three men and two women, rushed through the open door. Izick didn't let his guard down with these unknown Scouts. They threw off their heavy bags and walked to the center of the room, where everyone was seated.

  Izick instantly understood who they were from their aura and the various weapons strapped across their body. They were just like him, Combat Scouts.

  “This job is a bust. Those Elves are definitely dead if this place is already crawling with ogres. I say we turn back and find another route for the caravan,” one of the hooded women said while lying on her back in exhaustion.

  The other hooded woman removed her hood and face mask. She pulled a pair of circular glasses from her vest and placed them on her face as she sat down amongst the others.

  “We can’t be so sure yet. Let's use our brains here. This is a sizable city with multiple areas suitable for hiding large numbers of people. The streets would be littered with elven corpses if they were all dead. Also, we haven't found another path out of the Misty Alps, so Hiddel's route might be our only ticket out of here."

  "Adell's observation is correct. We must verify the status of these Elves before anything else. We cannot return empty-handed." Hobbs said, taking a seat next to the bespeckled woman.

  Izick raised a hand, catching Hobbs' attention.

  "Sorry, I'm new here. Who are these people?"

  Hobbs' face grew troubled. He stroked his chin as he stared at the wooden floor.

  "It's not a big deal, but I wasn't expecting you to ever meet this group since we were on two different missions up to this point."

  He lifted a hand toward the newly arrived Scouts.

  "These are my most experienced and trusted Combat Scouts."

  The woman adjusted her glasses as she looked at Izick across from her.

  "Interesting. The new Combat Scout Hobbs mentioned is much younger than I thought. For what it's worth, I'm Adell, the second-in-command of the Hossa Mercenary Band's Scout corps."

  Second-in-command, and a Combat Scout? Why was Hobbs so hesitant for him to meet them?

  The five Combat Scouts silently studied Izick from afar, trying to ascertain whatever they could from this unknown newbie. But the woman named Adell crawled on her knees and elbows until she reached Izick, not even bothering to simply stand and walk. She lifted a hand to him with a business-like confidence that seemed awkward for this setting.

  Izick played along with the strange situation he suddenly found himself in and shook her hand without saying a word. The other female Scout rose to her feet while staring down Izick.

  "Alright, that's enough. This isn't a meet and greet. We have a mission at hand. New blood, come with me for a second. Help me sort through some of the gear we brought for the rest of the team. Hobbs, we'll be in the other room."

  "Make sure you minimize those traveling packs. We'll be doing a lot of running here, so pack lightly."

  "Got it."

  The woman motioned for Izick to follow her. He saw no real way to refuse without causing a scene, so he stood to his feet and followed the woman to the next room.

  They dragged the five bags into an adjacent room.

  They emptied the contents of the five bags, ranging from field rations to first aid kits, into smaller ones for the other Scouts to carry.

  Izick slid a field ration into a bag when the blade of a curved knife pressed against his neck. Izick clenched his teeth at the cold metal. He was suspicious of this woman, but her speed caught him off guard. She got him.

  The woman removed a yellow cube from her pocket and dropped it to the ground, creating a glowing yellow ring around them.

  "Why are you here, you little bastard? Are you here under the Staff Hero’s orders? I was hoping you were dead after you disappeared the day your master betrayed everyone."

  The knife pressed into Izick's neck even more, drawing blood that trickled down the weapon.

  "Now that I see you here, I'm starting to wonder if you're the reason why Vezzel and those Scouts died. You and the Staff Hero set everyone up to die that night."

  "No, I knew nothing of Alister's plans. Besides, those Scouts died that night because Vezzel was a fool and his plan sucked."

  Izick unsheathed his knife and drove it between his neck and the curved knife in one motion, cutting his neck even further but freeing him as he spun out of the woman's grasp.

  He used his momentum to flip his knife and strike at the woman's head. She blocked the slash, then countered with three slashes of her own, which Izick dodged with ease. He grabbed one of the travel packs and launched it.

  She slashed at the pack with her knife, but a knife flew at her face as soon as she severed the bag in half. She could only lift her knife in an attempt to block the knife, but the blade drove into her hand, causing her to scream and stumble back.

  Izick used the opening to jump and unleash a spinning kick to the woman's temple. The woman flew out of the yellow circle and fell to the wooden floor with a loud thud. The unconscious woman's raven-colored hair spilled out of her hood, confirming her identity to Izick.

  Izick took off running toward the other side of the room. His cover was completely blown one way or another. All he could try now is bust through a wall and escape.

  The door behind him swung open as Hobbs entered with a long-barrelled pistol.

  "Stop, move another inch, and I'll blow your head off with this gun."

  Izick stopped in his tracks. It was too late to use one of his explosive Banger cubes to escape now that he was caught.

  Hobbs looked over the unconscious woman.

  "Is she dead?"

  "Probably not, but you can go check if you want to."

  "So I can look away and let you escape? Not a chance, Scout."

  The woman groaned as she came to and sat up. She grabbed the side of her head before locking onto Izick with hatred in her eyes.

  "You're paying with your life for that cheap hit, punk!" the woman said, grabbing her knife and rising back to her feet.

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  "Bersi, wait. I am relieved to see you alive, but I want some answers first. We have leverage in this situation. Boy, raise your hands, and walk back into this Silence circle over here. I don't want anyone to hear this," Hobbs said, pointing to the yellow circle with his free hand while keeping a steady aim at Izick.

  "And if I refuse?"

  "Harm may come to that Healer you took apprenticeship under. She's surrounded by dozens of our mercenaries who will act under my orders with the swipe of my pen. We separated the two of you on purpose in case either of you went rogue. The feigning of ignorance by the Hossa Mercenary Band ends here. Get in this circle and start explaining things."

  He had confidence in escaping with the right opening, but running was no longer an option now that Mill could be in danger.

  Izick sighed as he raised his hands in surrender and walked over to the yellow circle.

  "Wait, take off your knives and throw that staff away," Bersi said, wagging her knife at Izick.

  "I'll throw my knives away, but I can't remove my staff."

  "Why? What's so important about a stick?"

  "I got cursed with some Malevolence, and that staff regulates said Malevolence. Taking it away will have catastrophic consequences, which may end in me and everyone here blowing up in a blaze of fire."

  Bersi grabbed Izick by the vest and pushed him down to the floor, forcing him into a sitting position. She sheathed her knife and then pulled out a short rope to tie Izick’s hands together.

  "What kind of lame excuse is that? I guess I'll just rip it off your body."

  "That's enough. He could be telling the truth, and I don't want to be wrong. Bersi, explain what happened here."

  "What happened is that this brat is a Scout for Staff Hero! We were on the same team during the mission in the Death Emperor's castle. He must be here to sabotage us under the Staff Hero’s orders. I tried to apprehend him, but then he tried to kill me."

  "What reaction were you expecting when you put a knife to someone's neck?"

  Hobbs frowned at Izick, who was sitting at Bersi's feet.

  "You were a Scout under the Staff Hero? That's both unexpected and troubling. Your prospects are getting worse by the second, boy. Bersi, call Adell over. She might have some insight on this."

  "But why? Let's kill him now and get this over with–"

  "I don't want your opinion, just your actions. Bring Adell over here." Hobbs growled without taking his eyes or gun off Izick. Bersi grunted and then left the room to fetch Hobbs' second-in-command.

  Adell entered the room a few seconds later and raised a brow after seeing Izick tied up on the floor.

  "Scout, I just met you, and you're already in trouble. I need someone to bring me up to speed here."

  Hobbs and Bersi gave a quick synopsis of what led up to this situation.

  She nodded at each new morsel of information while haphazardly chewing on her gloved thumb.

  She remained silent for a while, blankly staring into space after they finished speaking.

  Izick’s brain ran through different strategies to ensure both his and Mill's safety, but a solution evaded him. Bersi clicked her teeth before pulling out both of her curved knives.

  "Adell, what are you thinking so deeply about? We know this brat works for the Staff Hero, so let's kill him and tell the other Scouts he got cold feet and ran."

  "Shut up, Berse. I'm thinking."

  Adell continued to chew on her thumb as she looked down at Izick, who stared right back at her. She knelt down in front of Izick and pulled out a pink cube, which she then pressed to Izick's neck.

  A cooling sensation covered his entire head, down to his shoulders, as the wound on his neck healed. She tapped him on the shoulder while giving him a wry smile.

  "You've been through a lot, haven't you, kid?"

  Izick couldn't hide the confusion on his face from Adell's actions and words. She healed him, but what was her actual goal? She stood back up and turned to Hobbs.

  "I recommend that we do not kill him, but let's also not let him go. I don't trust him, still, I want to trust him if he's who I think he is."

  Adell pointed to Izick.

  "I'm a glutton for knowledge, so I'm always trying to learn and gather unique information. When I was researching the Scout corps for each of the Summoned Heroes, I learned so much about their party structures and methods, but I came to a dead end for the Staff Hero’s party."

  She shrugged her shoulders.

  "As far as I could tell, the Staff Hero’s party was nothing more than violent and unorganized mercenaries who survived each mission through pure luck. However, Alister’s party was known for extremely efficient scouting despite this."

  "What are you trying to say?" Hobbs said, taking note of Izick’s deep silence.

  "I combed through many eye-witness reports of the Staff Hero’s party, and there has never been more than one Scout spotted with this party. Each description loosely fits the Scout before us right now. The best Scout in the Staff Hero’s party had the moniker Foxtrot, but my theory is a ridiculous one. I believe the boy in front of us is Foxtrot himself, but I also believe Alister employed this boy as his only Scout."

  "That's foolish. Even I know of Foxtrot's exploits. He's one of our generation's greatest Scout Infiltrators. There's no way this boy is him." Bersi said, tapping the flat side of her knife on Izick's head.

  "It makes sense if you think about it. His youth makes it hard to believe, but everything else checks out."

  "Boy, is this true?" Hobbs said, looking to Izick to see if he would support Adell's claims.

  "My opinion doesn’t matter. You'd think I'm lying either way."

  Izick didn't like the direction this conversation was going. Denying or supporting Adell's theory would make him seem like a liar.

  "Alright, then what are your intentions for joining the Hossa Mercenary Band? Are you here to infiltrate our ranks to sabotage us?"

  "My master already stated our intentions from the very beginning. We joined this band to gain passage to Tallbern. We gain nothing by sabotaging this caravan. Don't forget, Barson was the one who approached us first. Which caravan that accepted us didn't matter. Your band wasn't special to us."

  Hobbs slowly nodded as he holstered his gun to his side.

  "Barson did indeed approach the two of you first. That's an irrevocable fact we cannot ignore. However, that doesn't fully vindicate you from our suspicions. Your true identity is the problem here."

  "Exactly. We know who he is now, so let's take care of him before he causes us trouble. Don't tell me the two of you plan on continuing this mission as normal with this brat in our ranks?" Bersi said with growing irritation in her voice.

  "Not quite. We'll use him like a normal Combat Scout, but with an unfortunate twist." Adell said, pulling out a black collar from a traveling pouch attached to her belt.

  "We'll place this Control Collar on him and move on with the mission. If he stays in line and helps us, he lives to see tomorrow. If he steps out of line and betrays us,"

  Adell produced a red and orange cube from the same pouch she pulled the collar from.

  "We pulse Mana into this cube, causing the collar around his neck to explode and instantly kill him."

  A firm silence fell among them. Izick adjusted his sitting position on the floor to face Adell.

  "What is this? You want to make me a slave? Isn't that collar used for torturing people into control?" Izick said, eyeing the collar in Adell's hands.

  Hobbs' eye twitched at the sight of the collar.

  "I thought I told you to toss that thing."

  "Sorry, I kept it in case someone tried to betray us. It will only be for the duration of this current mission. Boy, this is the best course of action if you want to live. You might sabotage us if we let you go, and we can't trust you with our backs while we're running through Damaran. This satisfies all parties. You get to live, we keep you close, and we have a way to eliminate you if you turn on us."

  "Fine, put it on me."

  Hobbs, Bersi, and even Adell herself reeled back from how quickly Izick agreed to the proposal. Izick understood that this was a dangerous gamble. They could activate the trigger at any time or might never take the collar off, but he wasn’t going to risk Mill's safety.

  "But only with a few conditions."

  "You're in no place to negotiate terms."

  "Let the boy speak, Bersi. Continue." Hobbs said, crossing his arms.

  "Firstly, I want you to ensure the safety of my master, Milletta Conji. You said she would be in danger if I disobeyed you, so I want her safety if I follow your orders."

  "Fair enough. I obviously can't guarantee her safety if we're attacked by enemies, but no harm will come to her from our side."

  "Secondly, I want this collar off my neck after this mission ends."

  "Play your role, and we'll release you from the collar."

  "OK, thirdly, allow me and my master to leave Hossa after I help you with this mission."

  "Rejected. There are too many unanswered questions about you to let you run free, even after this mission. We're going to expect even more answers from you after we escape the Alps."

  Izick made a mental note: regroup with Mill and escape once they cleared the Alps, before they could be cornered again.

  "Fine, I expected as much. Lastly, do not let Bersi have this detonation trigger since she would just activate it and kill me, even if I followed your every order."

  Hobbs and Adell glanced at each other before turning back to Izick and nodding.

  "No argument there. You have our word, we won't let her near it."

  Bersi grunted as she stepped in front of Izick to face Hobbs and Adell.

  "I definitely would activate that collar if I had the chance. Why are the two of you so ready to move on and accept this traitor?"

  "I'm really curious right now," Adell said, pushing her glasses up.

  "Little information is known about the Staff Hero, especially now after his betrayal. This boy might know the answers to some of my burning questions. It would be a waste to kill him now. Besides, I'm also interested in this Malevolence he says is afflicting him. Killing him might also trigger it, so I want to be sure we're safe before doing anything drastic and permanent."

  Bersi put away her knives before throwing up her hands.

  "Don't blame me when he betrays us all like the Staff Hero and gets us all killed. Have fun making your fatal mistake," Bersi said before pointing a finger at Izick.

  "I'll be the one to lop your head off when you show your true colors. No dumb collar necessary."

  Bersi stormed out of the yellow circle and left the room to rejoin the other Scouts.

  Adell held up the collar to Hobbs.

  "Boss, are we doing this or not? I know you don't like this collar business, but I don't see any other option."

  "Unfortunately, I share the same conclusion. This makes me sick, but hard decisions are needed sometimes. Boy, have you prepared yourself?"

  "There's nothing to talk about. We scratch each other's backs and move on from this. Let's get it over with," Izick said, hanging his head and pulling his hair up to make room for the collar.

  Adell unhooked the collar and clamped it onto Izick’s neck.

  "There it's activated. This collar will automatically explode if you remove it. I don't want to see the worst-case scenario, so hold up your end of things, and you will live."

  "And I expect you to do the same."

  Adell nodded as she handed Hobbs one of the red and orange detonation cubes. Hobbs looked down at the cube for a few moments before shaking his head.

  "Tell me, why would you go through so much trouble?"

  "Because I have someone who needs me and I have someone I can't afford to ever become."

  The sound of zinging fireworks made Hobbs, Adell, and Izick pause.

  “It's Artillery Mysteria! Adell!”

  Adell threw three green cubes into the air. The cubes began to shine before expanding into three large circular hard light shields.

  The house rocked as dust and wood blasted everywhere. Izick curled up and protected his neck as his body got pelted with debris.