Drake didn't like the stunned silence that followed General Lilac's words. He felt like an exotic Ifere in a zoo, with everyone staring at him. Her last sentence also wasn't very flattering.

"How did that end, by the way?"

Deciding to ignore the fact she called him a prick, Drake focused on her first few words.

"The attack never came. I sent spies to the location you provided, and they found traces of a sixty thousand strong army, just thirty kilometers away from our borders. I'm guessing their decision to give up has to do with you?"

"Probably. Remember the Cleaners?"

General Lilac nodded while Drake sighed in relief internally. He was glad his actions had avoided countless deaths, on both sides.

"I met them again, and they left me without an Yscalent. But I'm a stubborn prick, as you put it, so I kept following their tracks, and ended up finding their camp. The soldiers were elites, all of them. Even Yscalents were contracted. One of them broke two of my ribs while I was trying to steal it."

While he was talking, two army doctors arrived, each bringing with them a life-type Ifere. One was the more common Arton, and the other Drake didn't recognize. Life-type creatures never were his speciality. While the medics took a look at Sarah's and the scouts' wounds, which were more serious then his, he continued talking.

"Long story short, I sent Frainer and Kniivar to find you, and tried to loose the black-coats by going deeper into Lapidum."

"I'm guessing it worked, since you are here."

"Partially. Cleaners found me, but I came out on top in the end. Probably why the black-coats gave up the surprise attack, since they knew you would be alert."

He rubbed uncomfortably his arm. There were a few scars on it, each no more than a centimeter long, and spaced evenly apart. General Lilac shook her head.

"We could have dealt a heavy blow to them. Such a pity."

"I don't think so, general."

Drake murmured these words, more occupied scratching Frainer than watching his mouth. The truth was, even when the soldiers looked at him confused and somehow irritated, he didn't care. General Lilac knew that, and didn't argue.

"And when does the 37th Squad come in?"

"I ended up in an outpost a few days after, and found these guys about to be executed. Only time the frickin rain helped."

Once again there was a flash of emotion in General Lilac's eyes, because of how close to death her daughter had come. The other officers who - Drake guessed - knew Ruli's identity weren't able to hide it so well. They kept glaing at the two women in what seemed like an exagerated reaction to Sarah and a few others.

"I guess I have to thank you for that too."

"Uhum. Anything more?"

"Hey! Watch your mouth! You are talking to..."

A middle-aged man started yelling at Drake for his lack of discipline and respect, but the old general raised a hand to stop him. Drake only glared at the officer - a major, from his stripes - before turning back to General Lilac.

"So?"

"I imagine asking you to fight is too much, Drake?"

"Yeah. I'm honestly glad you pushed me into this mess, general. You said it yourself that it helped save lot's of lives. Even if it's just for them to kill each other another day. But I've had about enough."

"Drake..."

It was the younger Lilac who called him this time, holding his arm. She wanted him to stop talking, because the other people in the room, apart from the scouts and maybe Sarah, were glaring daggers at him. However, he just winked at her, signaling it would be okay, and snapped his fingers at Kniivar and Frainer.

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"I will be nearby, general, at least for a few days. I have something I want to check. If you have any task for me that doesn't involve senseless murder, I will be glad to take it."

Patting Ruli's shoulder to reassure her, and touching two fingers on his forehead as a goodbye to the other scouts and the general, Drake and his companions left the room, leaving behind a bunch os astonished officers.

Once outside, he felt much more at ease, even though it was still raining so much that it seemed like the sky itself was falling. Neither he or the two small Iferes cared about it, so happy they were to be together again.

After asking a soldier on patrol, he discovered that the nearest city was no more than twenty kilometers away from the battlefield. Deciding that it was as good as any of a place to start what he had planned, he 'borrowed' an Yscalent from the Menoraz Army, and left the batlle behind him.

He desperately needed a bed, a roof over his head, and, above all else, a phone, to make some calls. The first to his grandfather Caleb, and the second to his friend, the ranger Ben Higler.

------------------

General Lilac looked at the closing door, and smiled. She really liked Drake. The military was her life, but sometimes it was nice to talk with someone who just didn't care about discipline. Stealing a glance at her daughter, she silently nodded. They had a lot to talk about later, but for now she was just glad Ruli was alive and well.

"General Lilac! We can't let this... This disrespectful kid go free! He must face punishment! Others would laugh at us if they saw we let one of our soldiers talk to his superiors like that!"

"Bernard is right, ma'am. Your prestige and reputation can't be trampled like that. Besides, he seen to care more about the black-coats than he does about his own people!"

Others seemed like they wanted to say their piece too, but a frosty glare from General Lilac made them all shut up. Ruli, Holber, Sarah, and the other three scouts had retreated to a corner of the room, already expecting a lot of angry remarks.

"Did I ask for you to take care of my prestige or reputaion for me, colonel?"

"N-No! I'm sorry, general!"

"Humph! You might have noticed, ladies and gentlemen, that Drake doesn't give a sh*t about my position, or yours. It's a trait all rangers seem to share."

A long, stunned silence followed her words. The many majors, colonels, and generals all that their eyes open wide, the enraged complaints they had all but forgotten. Ruli and her team had their mouths opened in shock, especially Holber, who couldn't believe the man he had discussed with had such an identity. Sarah, the only foot soldier in the room was frozen in place, and even Kilqia raised it's head at the mention of the word.

"T-That punk is a ranger?"

"A half-ranger, more accurately. He is missing only the badge. In the last two months he disbanded two gangs, and by disband I mean kill most of them. Not only that, he also sent a Menoraz Army major to rot in prison for the next five years, and interrupted, all by himself, a surprise attack that would have costed us, if not the war, at least a tenth of out territory, and dozens of thousands of lives."

She didn't think it was worth mentioning that Drake had only left his birthplace two months ago. Best to let them think he had a huge list of feats behind him, so they were less likely to cause him trouble.

"And just now, he brought me my daughter, who I didn't even know I almost lost. So, I don't even a bit offended by him, nor do I want to punish him. And neither will any of you, understood?"

"Y-Yes, ma'am"

"I hope so. For your own good."

The people in the room had different reactions to General Lilac's words. Sarah, for one, didn't know if she should be more shocked at everything Drake had accomplished, or at the fact the general called Ruli her daughter.

The higher-ups of the army, having misunderstood General Lilac's purposely misleading words, pushed away all thoughts of making things difficult for Drake. They thought it was for the best they left him alone, in case he did to them the same he did to the poor major she mentioned.

"All right, everyone except the 37th Squad leave, please. Oh, you can stay too, soldier. Sarah, right?"

After the general's latest outburst, no one dared to dilly-dally, and quickly left the room. As soon as they did, General Lilac dropped all pretenses, and hugged Ruli. The three surviving members of her team smiled.

"How are you, dear? Are you hurt? What happened?"

"I'm all good, mom. Haha..."

Even though she said that, her laughter was obviously forced. General Lilac could guess the reason. While Ruli was unharmed, her unit had been decimated, most of it having died. They could be rebuilt, but it would take time and effort, and it would not be the same as before. Unfortunately, this was war.

"I really do have to thank Drake this time, don't I? And here I thought he was just an above average scout."

"He certainly is... Special. I'm pretty sure that if it wasn't for the fact his companions were here with me, he wouldn't have even bothered to report back in."

"Was everything you said true?"

The older woman nodded, and Ruli whistled. She owned him a drink, and so did her team. Thinking of that, she glanced at Holber and smiled evily.

"You almost screwed up big time, didn't you, Jeff? I guess he wasn't kidding when he said he would kill you before letting you harm Lapidum civilians."

"D-Don't mention it, captain."

"Haha!"

Ruli herself was having a hard time believing it. Sure, Drake had rescued them, and proved he was a good fighter, but she hadn't expected him to be a ranger, or similar to one. It all made a lot more sense now, why he was so adamant on not killing unless attacked first, and forcing them to do the same.

"And what about her?"

One of the scouts gestured with a thumb towards Sarah, who instantly stopped examining the goop left on her wound, and stood straight. She too was curious as to why General Lilac ordered her to stay.

"Sarah here is a good soldier, and you are missing some members, aren't you, Ruli?"

"Well, yes, but... She didn't receive special training, general."

As soon as the conversation turned back to military related stuff, Ruli changed how she addressed her mother. It was an unconscious reflex, born from a lifetime of balancing their identities.

"She survived two weeks of war in one of the worst battlefields I've seen in my career. That's better than any training she could get. Also, you just have to teach her what she needs to know."

Hearing the two women talking as if she wasn't there, Sarah was at the same time shocked and overjoyed. To join an Advanced Scout Unit was a dream many had, but she was also afraid she would mess up. And, in the circumstances they were in, messing up meant not only her death, but also of others.

"I will do my best! I-I mean... If I join..."

Her voice turned into a whisper as she talked, embarrassed by the sudden outburst. She just couldn't control herself. However, instead of the expected scolding for interrupting her superiors, what she heard was loud laughter.

"Haha! All right, general, you convinced me. Sarah, you are in."

"Wait, really?!"

"Yup. I like you, you have determination. You had a boulder stuck in your arm all the way here and you barely grunted."

Grinning, the captain patted the shoulder of her dumbstruck new squad member., and nodded to Holber and the others. They, understanding her intentions, pulled Sarah out of the room, leaving mother and daughter alone.