It had been three weeks since Alim had arrived at Gran’s base, and thanks to the recommendation of the mercenaries, he had gotten a job as a guard for the base. The job was easy and quiet, allowing him to wander the base, but two things had exceeded his expectations. The first was that Gran had not been at the base in months and showed no signs of returning soon; this threw his entire plan off. The second was that the Alchemic Race duo was also staying in this base; Alim could not ask why for fear of the plan becoming even more chaotic than it already was.
“Strev!” yelled a man in thick grey metal armor from across an open yard of the base.
Alim looked at the armored man; it was someone who started at the same time as him, but he could not remember his name, not like he tried, though.
The man ran to Alim, his armor clinking with every step, “Do you want to grab a bite while we wait for the shift to start?”
“Is that pair there?” Alim asked.
At some point in the weeks of their stay, Alim and Ager had become something like enemies and seemed to come to loggerheads at the sight of each other.
“Naw, they went to the town. Said something about a guest.”
“A guest?” Alim asked, but his mind started to wonder.
“I got no idea, way outside my interest. All I care about is getting my pay and some food.”
“Ha, right.” Alim laughed, acting like the information was uninteresting to him.
Alim and the man began to walk off, talking and laughing like old friends, but Alim’s thoughts ran as he glanced around.
A few days passed, and the Alchemic Race pair and their guest finally arrived. Unfortunately, Alim was off duty and could not see who these guests were as they ran right to Irmin’s lab as soon as they arrived. Unlike the Alim at the start of this war, the current him knew that patience was necessary, and if he waited, he would get what he wanted.
Days passed silently, and Alim tried to find any information on Gran or the suspicious guest. He would just poke around for information as he did not want to raise any suspicions, but there was something strange about the guest. When Alim asked about Gran, no matter what it was, he would get an answer sometimes too much, but when he asked about the guest, all he got was a fear-filled silence.
Alim knew he needed to report this information, so he sent a letter to the Second Lord through one of the Shadow Race’s secret messaging routes.
Several days later, Alim stood in the pitch-black darkness of the night, waiting for the response to his information and his next steps, but he was surprised to see the Second Lord come to him personally.
“Alim,” The Second Lord said as he looked at the man before him.
“Second Lord! Why have you come in person?” Alim asked in shock
“The situation is changing faster than we had anticipated,” The Second Lord spoke tiredly, “We have just located Gran. He has been in the Quake capital of Tremor. He left just a few days ago and should be here in the next three to six months.”
“And what of me? Do I need to stay here, or will you be assigning me a new mission,” Alim asked.
“No, we need you to stay, especially with the guest Gran has invited.”
“Did you discover who they were?”
“We are still investigating the new guest. I was referring to Irmin and Ager Erlminin of the Alchemic Race.” The Second Lord spoke grimly, “The Erlminin is an ancient Alchemic Race family that dates back to the creation of the Alchemic Race, so their being here does not bode well.”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
“They are already suspicious of me! Are you sure that it is safe for me to be here?”
“Yes, it is better to hide in sight of those who distrust you so they can be your alibi when something happens. We shall start moving some others to aid in your current disguise but do not let your guard down. Any slip could end not only this mission but your life.”
“What of the other guests? Shall I also keep my distance from them?”
“No, when you discover them, notify us, but keep a normal distance like you have with the commander of this base.”
“Yes, sir! I will do my best!”
“I expect nothing less from you, Alim.”
Alim silently made his way back from his meeting. He knew what his next steps were, and that was to do the same. It was relaxing to be here. It was almost like he was on a break. All he had to do was eat and sleep.
“How interesting…” Suddenly, Alim heard a voice from behind him.
When he turned, he saw a young man, maybe a teenager with icy-blue hair, standing behind him with raised eyebrows. Seeing the man, Alim’s hair stood on end. It had been nearly a century since someone had been able to sneak up on him, and here, a man who did precisely that stood just a few steps away.
“A Shadow Race here? It seems like the security is lacking.” The man said with a slight smile.
“VANIR!” The scream of Irmin echoed in the surroundings, but Alim was panicking about what to do, so he did not even notice the scream.
Irmin came dashing around the corner of the outpost walls, the same mad smile plastered on his face, “Vanir, there you are. Oh, Strev, you are here as well? I had no clue you knew each other!”
The man gave a dead stare at Irmin, “How many times must I say that I have not inherited the title of Vanir…”
“Then tell me your name, and I can call you that!” Irmin interrupted with a cheeky smile.
“A Seedling like you.” The man said with a sneer
“Oh,” Irmin deflated at the man’s words, “Vanir was looking for you. We need to go back before he gets angry again.”
“Ah yes, tell him I will explore the compound with this friend here. I shall return when we have completed that.”
“You became friends with him!” Irmin shouted with a betrayed look at Alim, who only stared with wide eyes at everything happening.
“Now disappear, Seedling.” The man said with a sneer before turning to Alim, “Where to now, Strev,” He continued with a smile
The pair walked some ways before the man stopped, “Here should be fine.” he said with a nod.
Alim was silent. He knew that what life he had left was in the hands of this man, whoever he was.
“So, Shadow Race, I have a suspicion why you are here, but I need you to do something for me first.”
Alim just nodded. He knew that he had no choice. It was better to play along and hope he could find a way to complete his mission and leave before this man could get what he wanted and dispose of him.
“Good, then I need you to kill the leader of this group. I believe his name is Gran. I also need you to make it look like the man I am with is responsible for this.” The man said with a sinister smile
“What?”
“I do not like repeating myself, Seedling. I hold your life in my hands now; you need to complete the task I gave you, and only then may you do your own. I believe it should have something to do with those Erlminins of the Alchemic Race.”
Alim was silent and only glared at the man in front of him. The man, seeing this, could only smile.
“Seedling, you make it so easy to read you, but it is fine. I shall remain silent until you complete your task.”
After the man left, Alim immediately went to meet the Second Lord to inform him of the current circumstances of the base. The Second Lord silently listened to what happened and remained silent for some time.
“Icy-blue hair? Are you sure that was it? And they referred to you as a Seedling? Right?” The Second Lord asked in a tone masked with calm, but Alim could hear the fluctuations of his voice.
“Yes, The man named Irmin called him Vanir, but he refused to accept that name.”
“We need to get you out of here!” The Second Lord spoke in a strange mix of panic and other emotions, “No, we must complete this mission! But how?”
“Lord, our interest aligns with this man. Why not act like my target is Ager or Irmin?” Alim questioned
“No, it is too dangerous to have anything to do with them, especially for us Shadow Race.”
“No, Lord! I can do this. I already have a plan in mind! It will work. Please trust me. I can do this.” Alim said with determination
The Second Lord stared silently at the young man before him, “If that is what you wish, then I can not take you off this mission unless you choose to relinquish the mission yourself.”
“Sir! I will do my best!” Alim shouted as he dashed off back to the base.