It was night time and somewhere inside the crowded city's tavern came in five people. As the door opened and they stepped in everybody looked at their red armbands.

"Red crown, the cowards are now allowed to roam the city?", whispered the people from the right mixed together with the people on the left who were saying things like:

"Red clowns finally went outside their rat hole."

"They should just disband them, these two fucking aliens might one day even try to blow up the city, who knows."

The five people ignored the whispers except the last one in the line. It was a woman with a buzz cut, with rolled up sleeves, muscles and scars could be easily seen. As she turned towards the man on the right who said that the whole tavern went cold for a few seconds.

"Ice! Get back here right now!", yelled the first man in the line of red armbands.

"Yeah captain put her in her place, get her to sit on the floor", said another man who was slapped on the neck by someone else.

"Shut up Brian, another wrong word and she might freeze your tongue you idiot.", said the man as the whole tavern started laughing. Then the bartender calmed everyone down and asked for the armband to sit on the v.i.p table.

When they all sat the bartender approached and saluted them. A left hand's fist to the right hand's biceps, where the armband would usually be. All besides the woman and the man with the long red hair and brown-red eyes would return the salute.

"What would it be?", asked the bartender.

"Thank you for the warm welcome Zed. For me whiskey, for Ice and Fire, boiled water and a glass of ice cubes, whiskey again for Jev and...", said the captain but then turned confused towards one of the men who's eyes were closed.

"Is he asleep?", asked Jev as he moved his hand up and down in front of the man's eyes. Jev had a blonde short hair swept backwards with brown eyes and a scar on his cheek running from the bottom of his eye to the bottom lip. After a few seconds the man grunted and slapped Jev's hand as he turned to the side ready to fall in a deep sleep. The sleeping man had a buzz cut and was visibly bigger than the rest in terms of weight.

"That would be it.", said the commander as he turned towards the bartender with a slight smile. "The usual Ben, tired and grumpy. "He said with a giggle bowed and as he was about to leave he seemed to remember something.

"Captain...", he said with a slight sadness in his tone. "Can you come with me for a second?", asked Zed as he turned his eyes on the rest of the band, who were making fun of Ben poking him left and right. The captain stood up and slowly walked towards him as the bartender pulled out a list from his pocket.

For a moment Fire, the long haired man, threw a glimpse at the list. "The black apple print", he whispered to himself. Then a slight smile appeared on his face as he turned towards ice, who was laughing at Jev being slapped by Ben.

The captain turned back for a second to look at them all cheered up and happy, which saddened him as if he knew what was on the list. "Let's go." he said as he lightly pushed the bartender behind the bar.

Sitting on one of the chairs in the kitchen behind the bar everybody from the staff stood in silence looking at him. The captain's hand started shaking lightly as his eyebrows frowned. Reading the list in his mind, when he was done he gave it back to Zed and with both hands he brushed his medium long black hair backwards with a sad smile on his face.

"F-fuck.", he stuttered to say as he started laughing nervously, his foot going up and down.

"Can i?", asked the captain as he pulled out a cigarette. "Of course Tom", answered Zed as he gave him a lighter.

"Listen-", said the barman as he pulled another chair to sit.

"If you fight that you will die, this is not a battle, it's an execution. They want your armband dead Tom.", he said as he looked around for a second, with a worried expression and sweating he then looked back at Tom again.

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"Just... i don't know... don't go, run away from here, take the task and then while on the field desert-"

"No Zed!", yelled Tom, then he started smoking rapidly.

"Then what, live like animals for the rest of our lifes? He wants us dead because he thinks that those two kids can't actually win the war and he grows to fear them, see them as threat.", said the captain as he stood up and slowly walked towards the door looking through the window he saw Ice's angry face trying to hit Jev as both Ben and Fire were laughing and cheering.

Turning around he looked at Zed with a saddened face.

"It's the captain's role to keep his band safe... I know what to do, I just... I wish to see these idiots retire and have their own families, living normal lifes."

"I'm sorry Tom.", answered Zed looking at the captain as he left the kitchen.

Two hours later.

"It's midnight and you want us to play football now ?", asked Ben while yawning stretching his hands up in the air.

"Why are you complaining, you wanted to play so bad last week.", said Jev and then turned towards Ice.

"This bruise on my forehead, you are going to pay for that, if I win I get to hit you twice.", said Jev as he pointed his forehead with a taunting smile.

Ice raised her eyebrow turning towards him.

"I am better than you at football you know?"

"She is better at everything Jev, you are going to get a second bruise.", said Ben as he and Fire started giggling.

"Come on, really?", answered Jev as he turned towards Tom. "Captain, you will be in my team right?"

"Oh hell no.", answered the captain as they all started laughing except Jev.

"I'll be on your team Jev", said Fire as he grabbed Jev by the shoulder.

"I knew i cold count on you.", answered Jev as he patted Fire on the back.

After an hour or two all of them laid down on the grass sweating except ice who was still kicking and running around with the ball.

"I have to give it to her, she is good at football.", said Jev as he looked at the captain who suddenly started laughing all of a sudden. Looking at the stars with a big smile.

"We have to do that more often, forget the rule.", said the captain through his heavy breathing.

"If you remove the rule we are surely going to die from poisoning, we barely manage to clean our house now, imagine without making us do it.", said Ben with a low voice, barely hearable.

"What, i couldn't hear you?", asked the captain confused as he turned towards Ben.

"It's good that you forced us to clean our house and get random rewards as football and such otherwise we were going to die from how dirty it could get.", yelled Ice in the distance.

"She could hear that?", asked Jev as he raised his head to look at her.

"Again with the super hearing.", said the captain as he slowly stood up.

"What did the black apple want?", asked Fire as they all stood up.

The captain looked down for a second then turned around slowly.

"It's nothing to worry about, another scavenging mission.", answered Tom as he smiled a bit, hands in the pocket.

"Strange, he never sends orders personally like that.", said Fire as he shook his head to remove the grass from his hair.

"Yeah it's a big scavenge, that is why."

"I suppose they don't want us fighting anymore.", said Ben cleaning his pants from the mud.

"It's a big scavenge, so it's a step towards trust maybe.", said Jev then he looked at Ice.

"What do you think Ice, are we ever going to gain their trust again?"

"No, we ran from battle and left our allies to die. At least that is what they see from their perspective."

"It was an unwinnable battle, we either stayed and all of us died or we ran to fight another day, it's good that we have a thinking captain unlike the blue stone armband.", she said while kicking the ball and perfectly hitting the corner of the goalpost.

"Thank you Ice..."

"Let's go back to our house, we have a long day tomorrow morning."