"That next day, we were finally ready to head out into the world. At least, ready enough to hold our own. Save for Kieran, of course, who had been much stronger for much longer. However, I don't think that any amount of training could have prepared us for what we were about to encounter. What we were about to be subjected to. Or, at least for one of us, who would show up from the past..."

That morning, the four had woken up early. They packed the bag with enough food to last a couple of days, as well as whatever else might prove useful for them along the way. They didn't know how long they'd be going before finding some kind of town, let alone an inn, and so they planned accordingly. By the time the sun peaked over the horizon, they met up with Azerael on the dirt road heading east.

"This is it," he began. "From now on, it's all you."

"We can handle it, Master, I'm sure!" Alexander's optimism had never been quite that high before. Maybe it was because of yesterday, or perhaps this was what he'd been wanting for awhile now. Azerael wasn't quite sure.

"Don't let that cockiness cloud your focus, dipshit," Kieran mumbled.

"Anyway," Azerael began. "As promised, I'll fill you in on the details." Azerael folded his arms. "I've paid some places a visit recently. From what I can tell, the Followers appear to be attempting to control the Northern Territories. For now, our top priority is to make sure that they can't secure Messel. If they were to do so, they'd be snuffing the flame on our proverbial wick. It would be a lot harder for us to fight against them."

"But Master," Kieran blurted. "You're the most powerful man on Adrin, I don't see why you don't just crush them yourself."

"'Powerful' is not 'invulnerable,' Kieran. I can still die. And while I could very well destroy them, the fact lies that if Anxor is among their ranks, I'd be rendered useless. Besides, I've told you before. I have resigned myself from mortal affairs unless the world is in immediate danger. This isn't world-ending, just a cult." Kieran huffed reluctantly in response to his Master's words.

"Well, we gotta get going," he said matter-of-factly. "We're wasting daylight and Anxor isn't going to kill himself." Kieran took a moment to think to himself, placing a hand on his dagger. "I think our best bet would be to try Riverville first. It's the closest town in Messel to us."

"And I'll be assisting in my own way," Azerael began. "I'll venture to Sorendelle, talk to General Argus and get the Army involved in other Territories. They trust me. If nothing else, we can limit the growth of this plaguey cult in the southern Territories."

"Right, then!" Alexander stated. "Let's beat these bastards!"

"Yeah. Just make sure your ass doesn't get in my way." Kieran glared. Alexander was taken aback, his blood beginning to boil. He was about to snap at him, until Azerael cut in.

"Kieran." His tone was calm, and yet there still existed an underlying razor-sharp tone. Kieran turned to his master, who took a few steps toward him. "These are your teammates. Don't be so arrogant and naive as to think you can truly face this man without them. Understood?"

Kieran engaged with his master in a stare down. Although it proved to be a short-lived one, as Kieran finally faced away from him, regret in his expression as he huffed. "Yes, Master Azerael."

"Good. I understand your drive to get this mission done, Kieran. But for once, this is not something that you can do alone. You must rely on them, the same as they rely on you." The four shifted in their stances, giving each other awkward glances. "Now go," He continued. "You have a mission to fulfill."

With that, the four moved hesitantly, turning around and striding forward, heading northeast through Kora Forest. Azerael watched as they stepped, disappearing behind the trees and the bushes. "We are counting on all of you..."

"...more than you know."

The days went by, each one feeling longer than the last. It took them three days to make it past the border of Dakir and reach the Balron Woods, on the border of Messel. In that time, their food supply was running low, which wouldn't have been a problem had it not been for the suspicious lack of fauna in the area. Instead, it was an almost nonstop cycle of slaying monsters. Encounter, engage, defeat. Rinse, wash, repeat. They did try a few times to cook the monsters' flesh, though each one had a taste fouler than the last. By the time they could see the wooden walls of a small town, they had all but lost their appetites.

With a weary voice, Emily asked, "Is that Riverville over there?"

Kieran turned to face her. "Yeah. Should be another half an hour before we make it."

Alexander groaned, biting into a half-stale loaf of bread. "I really hope they have meat of some kind. I'm starving for a steak." Taber nodded his head in agreement.

"Stop whining and keep walking, dumbass. How did you even pass the survival class?"

"To be fair, asshole, that class was cut short because you decided to-!"

"Look," Taber interjected, "I get that you guys have a lot of things to talk over, but can't this wait? We're almost there." Alex and Kieran traded glances before letting out a huff, turning around, and continuing on down the road. Continuing toward Riverville.

It wasn't until they had almost arrived that they could tell something was wrong. Scratches and claw marks peppered the wooden walls along the exterior. Several palisades had been snapped and cut up. A few still had the culprits, blood dried on the wooden spikes that had pierced through their necks. Monsters. Specifically, Dire Wolves. As the four stood there examining the scene before them, a male voice shouted at them.

"Hey, kids! This town is off-limits to visitors!" A guard ran over to them, his helmet removed, revealing a relatively young man with evergreen eyes and jet-black hair that was cut down to military regulation. The guard's demeanor matched up with his occupation, however his tone was almost no different from a concerned father. "There is a shelter just down the road to the south of here. Tread carefully and make it to that inn for the night, while there's still sun."

Taber walked over to the guard. "What exactly happened here? Why is the town off-limits?"

"There's a criminal on the loose," responded the guard, placing a hand on his hip. "Citizens claim he'd stolen a precious artifact of theirs. The artifact's said to repel monsters and, well..." He gestured over to the deceased monsters decorating the spikes. "You can probably see the validity in those claims."

"We can assist you," Alexander proclaimed boldly.

"Right... Look, I appreciate the spunk, kid. However, this is a serious matter. This case is no place for mere teenagers."

Kieran grumbled under his breath. "For the love of Hephast..." Stepping forward, he announced, "we were sent this way by Master Azerael Briarheart. We have business here."

The guard's expression stiffened, though a hint of shock remained. "The Arcanic Sage? My apologies, Mages!" The guard stepped aside. "The Commander is just ahead, in front of the village elder's house."

"Well, that was effective." Taber said. "I guess being around a few thousand years will earn you that respect."

"It's not just because he's old, you know," Kieran began walking through the gate. "This world owes him with the amount of times he's prevented its destruction."

"Right..." Emily gripped her left shoulder as she stepped forward, her eyes seemingly glued to the dead beast to her right.

A young soldier in light armor rounded the corner of a building, running toward a table set up just at the center of the village. Coming to a stop, he saluted. "Sir, we've finished conducting a patrol of the perimeter."

The Commander, a slightly older man who'd been leaned over the table studying a map of the area, fixed his azure cape and redirected his attention toward the runner. "And?"

"The monsters' numbers surrounding the village have increased by at least a dozen per group. Our squad had several close encounters. We have two casualties, however no fatalities as of yet, sir."

"And the suspect?"

"We extended the range of our search by 200 meters in all directions, but still no sign of him, sir."

"Alright, at ease." The Commander looked back at one of the two banners flanking the table. An azure-blue and golden-yellow backdrop accenting a black dragon head. He sighed, then turned to the rest of his subordinates while running a hand through his short black hair. "Alright, men," he stated with the gruff voice. "How is it that a crook runs off with a priceless artifact that radiates Arcanic Energy, and yet nobody here's able to trace where it is? Further, how is it that we got here within one day of receiving the report and yet not one of you have been able to come close to a lead?" The Commander was cut off midway through his speech when the view of four teenagers approaching grabbed his attention. Exasperated, he pushed his fingers to his eyes and sighed. "And what are a group of children doing approaching my planning table...?"

"Err..." Alexander, now overwhelmed by the presence of the soldiers, struggled to properly convey his intent. "Would you happen to be the Commander?"

"Depends, who's asking. Actually, better question. Why are you here? The village is sealed off and I sure as hell have never seen any of you around here."

Taber stepped forward, clearing his throat. "Comman- I mean, sir. The guard at the gate directed us to you."

"Viktor!" The Commander called, slamming his fist onto the table. "That idiot... I ought to have him demoted."

"If I may, sir." Kieran made his way to the table, placing down a medallion Alex had never seen before. "My name is Kieran Renvar, Apprentice of Master Azerael Briarheart. We were sent to this town to help investigate the matter at hand." Alexander knew that wasn't the reason they had come, and more than anything he was still starving for a bite to eat. However, he wasn't about to say that out loud. Not here.

"I see," The Commander placed a hand to his chin. "Maybe taking his rank won't be necessary. With that in mind, it would be rude not to introduce myself. Name's Commander Leon Mason, I'm in charge of the 94th Investigative Infantry Corps. It's nice to finally connect a face to the name, Renvar. I've heard a lot about you."

"Likewise, Commander." Alexander exchanged confused glances with Taber and Emily, before returning their attention to Commander Mason as he continued.

"Well if you're here to help, then I trust that you're aware of the situation?"

The three once again traded glances, before Emily spoke up with her soft voice. "I mean, we were told about the increase in monsters and that somebody had stolen the village's artifact. Outside of that, we haven't heard anything else."

Mason nodded. "In that case, let's get into detail about the man himself." He reached for a parchment just on the edge of the table, placing it down before them on the table. On the paper was a hastily-drawn sketch of the suspect. "After carefully reviewing eyewitness reports, with how little there were, we've been able to conclude that the culprit's identity is Markos Zelf. He's been on the run for some time, though he usually only targets petty items and jewelry. Stealing artifacts isn't usually his forte, so to speak."

"So why would he start now?" Kieran asked with arms crossed.

"That's what we're trying to figure out. You could think of it as the natural evolution for a thief, however even that still doesn't add up. If it were a prized treasure worth hundreds of gold pieces, that would be one thing. However, based on the description of the artifact, it's just a wooden totem. Not a hint of a gemstone or precious metal on it."

Taber suggested, "Maybe he's getting revenge on the village for some reason?"

"According to the Elder and the watchmen, Markos had never set foot in Riverville prior to the other night." The Commander grumbled. "In any case, as much as I'm against the idea of entrusting the success of my investigation to a bunch of kids, Azerael has never let us down before. Don't see why he'd start now." Mason took a moment, before turning toward a tent set up just to the right of the table. "Commander Shen!"

A couple of moments passed before a slightly younger man with short blonde hair moved the flap from the entrance, jogging to his side. "Yes, Mason?"

"Kids, meet Commander Erik Shen." He directed his attention back toward Shen. "These are students of Azerael, they've come to help with the investigation. I gave them the basic rundown of what's going on with Zelf, just brief them on what your Scouts uncovered."

"Right away," Shen pulled out a worn notebook and opened to a page roughly in the middle. "Late last night, the 219th Outrider Squad was sent out to a nearby bandit camp. After bringing the inhabitants in for questioning and numerous counts of stolen possessions, we took the time to study their claims. As of a few minutes ago, we were able to figure out his approximate location. Now, if these bandits weren't screwing with us, Markos should be hiding out somewhere near the town of Siron, northwest of here."

 "That's kinda vague," Alexander's voice trailed. "Did the Outriders find any leads in Siron?"

"We didn't have time before you arrived. The expedition just ended a couple hours ago so even if we did send out a group, they wouldn't be back for at least another few days."

"You guys aren't able to teleport out there?" Taber asked. "I mean, Kieran can."

"Easy for an apprentice of the Arcanic Sage to say." Mason leaned over the table. "The Army of Leod has a lack of available Battlemages at the moment. Tensions are rising on the east coast and Leod can't afford to spare many, especially not to a remote village to investigate a thief. Also the fact that Magic is inherently different for everybody. Not everyone can be a Battlemage, let alone a proper Mage. Hell, even the Battlemages that we do have with us are novice."

"In short," Kieran turned to Taber. "Teleportation isn't an option for them. Not to mention that I use Osvoros, a specific form of Warp Magic that can only be learned from a specific bloodline. And the only reason I ever got an audience with them is because Master Azerael requested that they teach me."

The others stood awkwardly, failing to follow up on the topic. Mason cleared his throat. "Anyway, if you need a ride there, there's a cart available. We can arrange for transport as soon as we clear it with Corporal-"

"No need, Commander," Kieran interrupted. "I've visited Siron a few times in the past. I'll be able to teleport us there."

"Very well. In that case, best of luck to you kids. And don't mess up."

Kieran gathered the other three, having them join hands in the middle. He turned back to Mason. "I never fail, Commander." As he turned back around, a ball of dark mist engulfed the four, before swirling into nothing.

Mason gave a light chuckle, rubbing the back of his neck. "Whatever you say, kid..."