Scorching winds whipped up sand, throwing it in their faces as they crested yet another dune. For the last six hours, they have been walking through the blazing desert as furious winds pelted them with coarse sand.

Both Tom and Mike agreed that they would never come back to this country, if they could help it. Not only did they detest Hason’s culture, but they also hated the people, and the environment.

Hason truly believed that some people were born better than others. That ideology was not new of isolated to just Hason. It was everywhere, it was the very foundation of Nobility. It was a simple truth of reality; some people were better than others. Regardless of how much that fact hurts some feelings, it is still a fact.

However, Hason took it up another notch. They believed that some people were inferior, and that those of inferior birth or upbringing, should serve those better than they were through slavery.

Again, not an idea that was new. Many cities enslaved repeat criminals in order to serve the city. But Hason treated them like that from birth. And nothing that person did would change that. Even if the slave saved a city, they would simply get less of a beating the next time.

Hason’s Military was comprised almost entirely of Slaves. An enchanted collar around their necks prevented them from doing anything against their commanders or against the Royal Family of Hason. The collars could not force the slave to obey, but if they refused, or were too slow to obey, the collar electrocuted them. The longer they did not obey, the more intensive the shock, to the point of even killing them.

The collars themselves were a genius creation created for misery. If the enchantments on the collars began to lose cohesion, either through damage or age, they released a shock strong enough to kill even five men. Such powerful enchantments on lousy material caused the collars to wear out enough for the killing shock after only a week.

Without the key, that only their masters ruled, anyone who attempted to repair the enchantments would receive a killing shock in addition the slave, killing both.

Only the most desperate of slaves attempted to flee, but none had ever survived long enough to even leave the borders of Hason.

With the collars, Hason ensured that they had a dependable workforce and military, whether their loyalty was forced or not.

It left a rotten taste in Mike’s mouth, and he had grown tired of stopping Tom from acting out against it. His oldest friend knew it would have been pointless, but he struggled to control himself when he saw something that went against his own morals so strongly.

After a month in Hason, the duo had finally accomplished their mission. Unfortunately, they had attracted attention from the authorities. They had already had to kill a few. Much to their relief, the people of Hason refused to let a slave command them, so all the law keepers and guards were not slaves.

They were both tired, hot, and bloody. Their equipment was damaged and dull. Tom had taken a serious wound to his side, though one of his Abilities activated, healing it in just ten minutes, leaving just a spot of bare skin. While Tom searched the horizon for their pursuers, Mike was looking at the map, wishing they had not accepted this mission to begin with.

In order to build their reputation, power, as well as foster a relationship with the Duke, the two friends had allowed themselves to be recruited into a taskforce under the direct command of Duke Redmond. This taskforce was nothing large or elite.

It was actually quite similar to the Adventurer’s Guild. Except while the Guild remained fiercely neutral, except in self-defense, the taskforce was loyal to Lissura, though they only took orders from the Duke.

Within the taskforce, missions would be posted, and anyone could take them. These missions ranged from clearing out certain Monsters or escorting valuable cargo, all the way to espionage or even assassination. Anything that was seen as beneficial to the Kingdom of Lissura.

There were just two ground rules. First, any member found guilty of a crime was immediately removed from the taskforce and depending on the circumstances, executed. Second, members must keep their involvement secret. The Taskforce was public knowledge, but its members and their missions were not.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Mike and Tom had taken one of the higher ranked missions. Despite still being new to the taskforce, they took one of the more difficult missions. They did this to show their worth, and hopefully get closer to the Duke, perhaps even meet with him personally. Anything to get a better understanding of Evelyn’s circumstances.

The mission was to survey the military capabilities and actions of Hason. How many Slaves and Officers? Where were they stationed? Any prominent figures? Average strength? But most importantly, did they seem to be acting aggressively or defensively?

The pair had actually accomplished the mission by pretending to be Adventurers who just wanted to see a new culture, they even did a few jobs for the local guilds. However, during their visit to the third and final city, the capital, the Guards wanted to ask them a few questions.

They couldn’t allow that to happen, so had escaped, killing half a dozen guards that stood in their way. They now had three dozen pursuing them. The guards likely thought they were fools to attempt fleeing into the sand dunes, where there was no water or even shelter. And indeed, it would have been foolish, had they not had an exit strategy.

Every member of the taskforce was given an amulet that when triggered, would send a signal back to the taskforce headquarters. That signal would trigger a small portal to open near them, powered by the twenty portal mages constantly powering the portal arches.

However, the amulet had a few limitations. The portal would only be only for a few moments. The Portal was only as large as an average person, so Tom had to duck. And, the portal couldn’t be opened within a certain distance of a large population, such as a city. The amulet got confused with all those people around and it simply shut down.

So, they had been moving through the desert, watching the amulet for when the small light would turn on, signaling that they could use the amulet.

As Mike checked once more, he sighed.

“We have to keep moving.”

Tom groaned, “Piece of junk! Couldn’t they have given us equipment that actually works? They are still chasing us by the way. Just a few miles behind.”

Mike adjusted the pack on his back, “Then let’s keep going. It can’t be much further.”

Tom followed after his friend as they descended the dune, “That’s what you said four miles ago.”

“Oh please, I have personally seen you run ten miles as a warmup. This much should be nothing to you.”

“That was when it was cool in the morning and on stable footing. Not when its over a hundred degrees and with the ground constantly shifting. I hate sand!”

So they kept moving. At the top of each dune, Tom would glance behind them. Their pursuers were catching up. That wasn’t much of a surprise. The people of Hason were naturally better trained to travel across loose sand, as they were raised doing so.

It was a challenge to stay ahead of their pursuers. After three more hours, even Tom was breathing hard. But the small gem on the Amulet finally glowed with pale white light.

Mike didn’t hesitate to activate the Amulet. As he did, a cut appeared in the air before him before it widened, revealing a blue portal.

“Lets go!”

“Finally!”

They both dived through the portal, and it closed behind them a moment later.

Tom let himself lay there, on the cool stone. He sighed in relief and was content to continue laying there until he had to move.

Mike, on the other hand, was immediately up. The man in charge of receiving their information similar to theirs was there. So Mike walked over and handed him the small pile of notes they had created. The man took them without ceremony and ran off.

Where? Mike did not know, nor did he truly care at the moment. The notes would eventually end up where they needed to go. After they were evaluated, they would be rewarded accordingly. The results of their scouting would end up in front of the Duke one way or another.

He would examine them and then act on it, or he wouldn’t. Either way, their scouting would have helped direct the course of the Nation. But neither of them cared for that. They did not care for the Nation.

When they were children, their friend’s parents had been tortured, his sister stolen away, and he was declared a heretic, cast out into the wilderness. Even after, taxes continued to rise, causing many to leave the village, until it was just a shadow of what it once was.

Just last month, the two of them had received news that a plague had swept through the village, killing many of the few remaining villagers. Tom’s mother and Mike’s little sister had been among the dead. Instead of sending healers and doctors, the Lissurian government had decided to instead quarantine the entire village, preventing any help from reaching them.

At first, they had simply wanted payback on behalf of their friend. Now, they had no care for the Kingdom. They did not wish harm upon the people, but they would smile at the misfortune of the Nobles that led the Kingdom.

Tom eventually got off the ground with a groan and together, the two returned to their room. It was only early evening, but they were both tired and decided to call it an early day.

As Tom laid down, he pondered. They had kept a distant eye on Evelyn. He wondered how the young girl was reacting to the news. Did she even care anymore? Would she care if many of the people from her hometown were dead? Did she even know?