I’ve been in the army long enough to know this assignment isn’t normal. I’m just a scout. I’m good at scouting for beasts and other armies. I’m not a spy good at staying hidden and gathering intel. It also feels like the higher ups left out a lot of intel regarding this Reagan I’m supposed to find. I get that he is pissing everyone off, liberating the half-beast scums, but I’m just a guy. I look to my right and see Sven. I guess we are two.

“Could you not look so glum for a second Adrien?” He asks me and I roll my eyes. I’ve known him long enough to understand that he is simply nervous. I get it but I think we are still rather far away anyways. I hold back a snappy comment because we are on the job. Lucky you Sven.

I look around at the rather desolate flora around us. No big trees, only rocky ground and gentle hills in front of us with some rather stubborn bushes. Makes you think it should be easy terrain to scout. Wrong. Hills are the worst. You think you see very far and suddenly you stumble upon something dangerous that was hiding between two hills that you couldn’t see. Sometimes even entire camps of soldiers.

Hills are treacherous and we proceed with caution. We both know not to be cocky. After all, cocky scouts don’t get to live long. Still, we are rather relaxed as we strategically arrive at the top of a hill unseen and covered by the few bushes that stubbornly decided that this was their spot. I don’t see anything on any other hill as far as I can see, but still, I urge sven to remain cautious and he nods, acutely aware of how treacherous this kind of terrain can be.

We continue to move forwards and away from the main camp for about an hour before it’s time to go back. Sadly it seems we have spotted something. I don’t like being good at my job. Finding danger isn’t good for my health and I wish I would stop being the one to always pick the right direction when we draw where each team will go. Or wrong direction for my well being.

Sven looks at me and I know he saw it too. I hesitate and he looks at me for a second. We are as far out as we are supposed to go. Maybe we could just head back? He looks at me and sighs. Yeah buddy, I know. We can’t just leave without checking it out.

“Just a quick check.” I tell him and he nods. We both know there is no such thing. The higher up will ask questions once we get back and we better have answers.

We creep down the hill in our brown and green painted leathers that blend in rather well in this dull colored environment. If someone ever came here to paint, it would be a bleak painting that most people would overlook. The truth is I find it beautiful in a strange way. The vast emptiness and harsh landscape is poetic in a way. As we make our way down I focus as the next part is the most important. Going up is where we might get spotted.

We slowly make our way up and move in a way that seems moved by the wind and rather naturally. I don’t think it's necessary, but then again, I’d rather be too cautious and live than be reckless and dead. We soon reach the top of the next hill and our suspicions are confirmed as we spot a camp tucked between two hills further away. I duck down as I spot sentries on the hills closest to us. How’d we miss them earlier? The angle?

Doesn’t matter now. I don’t think they saw us. Sven is lying down in the bush next to mine and I spot him looking for me. He signs me a message and I grimace. Yeah buddy, I saw the same thing. It’s the ones we are looking for. Or it seems very likely. It’s not like there are a lot of half-beast rebellions around here. I stay in my bush and spy on the distant camp. I notice a figure walking out towards us and for a moment I think our eyes meet. But at this distance that’s just ridiculous. A chill goes down my spine in either case and if there is one thing I have come to trust as a scout it is to listen to my instincts. Which are being very clear right now.

Run.

I turn to sven and he seems to be looking straight at the figure himself. I hiss as discreetly as I dare while still loud enough to make sure he reacts and he turns to me surprised. I sign at him furiously and he seems to agree. We’ve seen enough and we’ve got to go now. I start to creep back down the hill opposite the camp but before I go I cast a last look at the lone figure outside of the camp. It feels like he is looking straight at me but he isn’t doing anything else. Not moving to intercept or anything. Maybe it’s just my mind playing a trick on me?

We get down the hill and carefully make our way up the next. There we stay and look back to see if anything changed. I can’t see the camp from here but the sentries haven’t moved or anything so it seems we are in the clear. We start to make our way back now and I slowly relax the further away we get.

Once a few hills are between us and their camp I breathe a bit slower and relax a bit. We set a faster pace as we stop hiding as much but despite not seeing anyone or anything follow us I can’t shake the feeling that we have something following us. A bush shakes and I jump at the sound of an animal running away. I look at Sven and I notice he is a bit jumpy too which means I might not be imagining things.

If there is one thing you learn as a scout it’s to trust yourself and your instincts. And right now they are telling me to go faster. I accelerate my pace and Sven seems happy to keep up with me. The strange feeling gains in strength despite our actions and I start jogging. To my surprise it’s Sven that accelerates even faster. I look around as we are now running up and down the hills back towards our own camp.

I keep looking around at the desolate landscape with only stubborn vegetation and rocky terrain but I spot nothing. Nothing seems to be following us. So why do I feel like we’ll die if we stop? The fear pushes me forwards ever faster and at this pace it doesn’t take that long to see our camp in the distance. It’s much bigger than the slaves camp as a whole legion is currently out here. It’s not like you can hide five thousand men, nor do we try to hide.

I’m both relieved to see it and concerned that it’s still rather far away. I look around once more and still I don’t see… wait a minute. I almost stop as I turn to look to my left. I thought I saw something move, but it might just be my stressed mind playing a trick on me. There is nowhere to hide and if I saw someone out of the corner of my eyes, it would be impossible for me not to see that person now. Trust your gut, I tell myself as I look at Sven who seems as agitated as me.

I turn to continue running towards the camp. That’s when I completely stop in my tracks as someone is blocking our way. He is alone but I can’t help but feel a shiver run down my spine as I look at him. How did he even manage to get there without us seeing him? There can only be one explanation. One I don’t like but I’m not one to deny reality. He is strong. Very strong. I know this in my gut and that we don’t stand a chance. But it’s not a scout's role to be strong. Scouts only have one role. Get the intel back to base.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

I look at Sven and he nods at me. We don’t wait as we start sprinting in different directions. If one of us manages to get back to camp it’s a victory for us. I’m sorry Sven but I really hope he goes after you. I sprint to the right and I don’t look behind me as I vault over some rocks and over the smaller bushes littering the area. I slowly turn back towards the camp as I get further away from… I skid to a stop as he stands in front of me and I take a better look at him. It feels like I’m standing in front of a predator.

His hair is medium long and black. He is technically rather short, but he somehow feels a whole lot bigger than me. The worst is that twinkle of red in his eyes. Or is it cruelty I see reflected in his eyes? It doesn’t matter. I just need to gain time now for Sven to get back as he came after me rather than him. I draw a shortsword and prepare myself. The man in front of me doesn’t even unsheath his swords and confidently walks towards me.

A strange golden energy takes shape in his hand and he throws it at me. It doesn’t feel dangerous but I avoid it nonetheless with everything I got. The man seems to grunt in annoyance as he draws closer and I scramble to my feet. He swings his sword at me but he is clearly too far away for it to do anything. A very small something comes out of his swing like an arc but it disappears fast and doesn’t travel even half the distance between us. Was that a skill? Is he trying unfinished skills on me?

That’s both scary and good. It means he is taking his time and that I can get a lot more time. Unless… No. I have to trust that Sven is still running. He couldn’t possibly have dispatched Sven that fast and caught up to me, right? He seems to read my mind as he grins cruelly at me, like he knows. Nothing I can do about it now anyway. Whatever the case may be, I can only try and gain some time right now. I focus as the strange man seems to concentrate on something else for a moment. I use the opportunity to make a run for it.

I look behind me after a moment while I continue to sprint and I don’t see him there anymore. I look to my left and right frantically trying to spot him before it’s too late. Nothing. I continue to pump my legs for everything I’m worth while looking around. I can feel the creeping dread working itself up inside of me. That feeling of being doomed. Of hopelessness. I suppress it as much as I can. It will only slow me down and I can’t afford that right now.

I’m closer to the camp now. Ten hills left I’d say. It’s far, but oh so very close at the same time. I don’t know why I’m thinking about them, but an image of my kids happy and laughing comes to my mind as I run. I think it’s because deep down I know I won’t make it. It doesn’t mean I won’t try, however. It’s just that I’m afraid I won’t get to see them ever again. It’s a terrifying thought in truth but I’m strangely calm. Resigned?

The man suddenly stands in front of me and I skid to a stop while looking left and right, trying to find the best way to survive. I decide to try right and vault over a stone, only my leg gives out under me and I fall face first on it. Luckily my helmet saves me from a dangerous concussion and I get up fast only to feel intense pain in my right leg. I look down and see that I’m bleeding. He cut me deep. It was so fast I didn’t even notice it. I grit my teeth as I finish propping myself up and look at him.

He is just standing there and looking at me. It seems he is enjoying himself and I can’t help but feel helpless. I hate it so much. He looms over me and draws his swords slowly while looking me straight in the eyes and for a moment I wonder if he is somehow going to do something worse than kill me. Take my soul or something? I don’t know but it doesn’t feel right. I grip my shortsword tight in hopes that it will anchor my sanity for a moment longer.

It’s obvious he is playing with me. I just don’t understand why. What does he have to gain from dragging this out when there is an army not far from here that is looking to kill him. Shouldn’t he hurry back to his camp and make a run for it? But instead he is here, playing with my life. It’s strange that he would waste so much time. I see him draw out that strange energy again but it’s a mix of gold and red now. He concentrates the energy in his finger but suddenly stops.

I hear a sound from behind him and spot a group of sentries walking up from the other side of the hill. They reach the top and spot us on the slope down. One of them exclaims and they run at us. The cruel man turns his back to me but I spot a grin on his face before he turns. One of the sentries is running back to camp but three come at him and I know it won’t be enough. It doesn’t take that long for me to spot two more groups of four converging on our position and I’m hopeful that I might just make it out of here.

He doesn’t move and waits for them all to encircle him. Does he really believe he can win against so many? I try to stand up on my wounded leg and take position behind the rock. I draw my bow just in case and train it on his head. The sentries are too close for me to risk a shot but I’m sure it’ll be useful at some point in the fight. As they are finally surrounding him properly, one of them finally makes a move from behind him.

He turns around and uses [Double Slash], cutting off both of the man's arms in an instant. The sentry screams in shock and pain and the others charge the intruder. Two of them lose their heads and he is suddenly outside of their encirclement. The shock of what happened made me miss exactly how that went down. It just went so fast. I lose the arrow I have trained on him and he simply leans his head to a side to avoid it.

The others scream as they charge him but he simply cuts down two more of them before taking some distance from the group. There are only six left now and they don’t seem to want to stay here. It doesn’t take a genius to know the outcome of this fight. But before they can really make a decision and run for it, he charges them. It’s fast, but I don’t think a skill is involved. He somehow keeps all six of them busy as he keeps swinging his two long swords in a flurry of blows.

After a few exchanges one of them gets his leg cut off and screams. The remaining ones seem desperate as they throw more than a few skills at this enemy only for him to disappear and reappear behind them. He cuts down another pair of legs and the poor man screams as the two stubs where his legs previously were let his blood out onto the hill. The four remaining sentries know their fate is sealed. One of them tries to make a run for it while the three others try to stand their ground.

The runner doesn’t even make it to the top of the hill before his three buddies have been dealt with. None of them are dead yet but they all scream as they have been mutilated in some ways. I tremble in fear as I look at the senseless violence. Why doesn’t he kill them? Why does he let them suffer? I don’t understand it. I look down at my own leg and think back on how he followed us all the way.

I look up only to see the last one getting a sword plunged through his guts. He didn’t use his own sword but picked one of ours up. He leaves it sticking out of the man who is too shocked to even scream in pain yet. He falls down and looks at the sword in disbelief, unsure if he should take it out. His pain tells him to, but he knows that's a death sentence. Sadly no one will help him out here. A cruel choice. To pull it out and die faster, or die slowly.

The man walks back towards me and I barely notice my gaping mouth as I take in everything around me. This man isn’t normal, if he even is a man at all. All I see as he takes out his swords slowly is evil. Suffering and torture for the sake of it. For a second it all feels unreal. Like it’s just a hilariously bad dream, yet it feels all too real at the same time.

His sword goes through my open mouth as I look him in the eyes. A glint of red is the last thing I see.