While we searched for our next ambush site I desperately tried not to think about the fact that we had just killed someone. Despite not actually hitting him with an arrow, my actions led directly to his death. This was a new feeling for me and I was having a hard time squashing it. I thought about Cass and how he was handling the three from the clearing as well as the ambush. I hoped we would have time to talk about it with our entire squad before this feeling could fester further.

We placed another tripper across the path and connected it to a popper. This would warn us against anyone coming from behind us, we were using the assumption that the scout was on his own this far out while the rest of the group took a more direct route. We couldn’t see the smoke from the campsites at ground level. We walked for another ten minutes before we began to set up for our next attack. This time we swung back towards the east side of the trail, towards our original campsite where we were attacked. We hoped we were going in the right direction, Amelia was our specialist in this area, I had my fieldcraft classes to rely on but lacked confidence in my ability to find the Norx soldiers trails.

I began by placing two manglers in the path and covered them with leaves to hide them. I placed a trip wire directly behind them and connected it to a popper secured to a tree trunk. The plan being that they would activate the tripper and sound off the popper, this would cause them to react without checking their footing and hopefully step into the hidden mangler. We waited off the trail together this time and laid down on our bellies in a group of low and thick bushes.

It did not take long before two scouts from the Norx group were in sight. To our dismay they were off the path and being very careful to scan the area as they advanced. They must have found the body from earlier. The direction they headed in would not bring them across the trip wire so Cass grabbed his bow and shot directly at the closest one before I could react.

The arrow missed narrowly and the two scouts responded by dashing to the closest trees for cover. I hid down close to the ground to not give away my position while Cass found a tree for cover off to my right. Cass began exchanging fire with one of the scouts while the other slinked back off in the direction they had come from. I knew that if he made it to the group we would be overwhelmed.

I waited for the enemy archer to duck back behind the tree before sprinting off in the direction the other scout was running. I tried to keep him in my sights while keeping an eye out for others but I was getting overwhelmed. I knew that I was running blind in to likely backup. I decided to rely on my strengths and stopped chasing the Norxman, I grabbed two of the blue boxes out of my pack. I strung them with a tripwire and placed them on opposite sides of the path. I took out two more manglers and placed them off path partially hidden in brush. I backed off fifty feet and waited for someone to come with my bow ready.

It did not take long for me to spot movement up ahead, walking slowly spread out were five members from the group that had attacked us. I began to panic as I considered the odds, I wish I had not left Cass behind. I knew I had a small chance to escape this and considered running as fast as I could back to where I last saw him.

I nocked an arrow and tried to settle my nerves as I peeked around the tree I was using for cover. I released prematurely at the closest scout and the arrow flew into a bush just in front and to the right of him about where my mangler was hidden. He crouched down and let out a shout to the others who immediately took cover. I was so focused on him I did not see the rest of the band continue to advance until one let out a yell and fell, he had stepped on the mangler. His foot would be a mess and he would not be able to walk on it or get the trap off without help.

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I stayed hidden behind the tree as they advanced, I could hear them coming closer and knew that my chance to run had ended. “I’m coming out, please don't shoot”, I shouted out. “You should have thought about that before your little traps took out one of our men and injured another, you're already dead, you just don’t know it yet '' one of them replied in a harsh voice.

I felt another chill down my spine as I frantically considered my options. I knew I could run and take my chances, I was always a fast kid and I had good stamina, if I dropped my pack I could maybe outrun them. That would leave Cass on his own to face these guys and leave me alone in the woods without supplies. That felt just as certain to end with me dead as this did.

I could hear the footsteps coming closer, I snuck a peak around the tree and whipped my head back as an arrow rushed past. I could hear laughter now from the scouts.

“Face your death like a man not like a little boy” one of them called out.

I thought of the smokers in my pack and grabbed two of them, lighting them and tossed them around the tree in the direction of the men.

“No one left for you to signal boy, we executed your little friends at dawn, it's just two little vermin left now.”

I ignored what he had said and thought furiously.

“Aw look you started a fire, going to burn this pretty forest down now” the same taunting asshole said.

His words registered in my mind and I remembered my two explosives hidden on the path. I took off in a sprint away from where I had thrown the smokers, using the orange smoke as hopeful cover against arrows. If that fire got to those boxes, that entire area would go up in an explosion.

I made it about fifty feet before the loudest sound I had ever heard in my life sounded behind me. I dove to the ground and tried to find cover in the bushes. Another loud explosion sounded seconds later and I knew both boxes had gone off. I waited, straining my ears, to hear anything from behind me in the forest.

I crawled out from the bushes and saw smoke and dirt filling the air where the boxes had been hidden. I waited tensely for minutes but saw no movement in front or to the sides. I stood up and began walking slowly back towards the site of the explosion. I saw a small root on the trail and as I got closer I realized it was a hand. I stood there in shock for a moment and turned to puke.

After relieving myself of my meager breakfast, I surveyed the damage and heard groaning coming from my left. I took out my bow and slowly crept in the direction of the noise until I saw one of the Norx scouts laying down with his foot still caught in the mangler. He had been far enough away from the blast but was unable to get up and had lost a lot of blood. When he saw me he raised his knife in my direction but I released an arrow into his stomach. He gave a yelp and coughed blood out.

“You are all dead, we are going to wipe your little nation into the ocean, our emperor just will destroy your little backwoods nation.” he said, blood leaking out of his mouth.

I didn’t bother to respond, I was still in shock and dazed. I had killed four people, other humans just like me. I felt myself going to be sick again and puked right on to the dying enemy scout. I searched for the others as I felt my mind slipping and saw body parts scattered across the trail, blood was everywhere. There was still some brush on fire but it was dying out.

“Sylar, Sylar! Where are you?!” I heard shouting but I couldn’t register the voice or direction it was coming from.

“Sylar!” I felt a strong hand grab my shoulder and turn me to face them. It was Cass, he was covered in blood that couldn’t have been his. “What happened, what did you do?”, his mouth was open as he scanned the area. I felt myself going to be sick again and fell to my hands and knees. Heaves racked my body as my thoughts spiraled out of control. I always knew I would have to engage in combat, kill someone, but I wasn’t ready for this. This was too much, I was losing control. I heard a loud buzzing sound and turned up to search for the source, my vision was suddenly blocked with large floating words in a language I couldn't read. After a moment the words shifted to Etren and I could read them.

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