Chase couldn't remember the last time he felt so claustrophobic. He was always striving to be at the center of any event or at least be able to socialize with a group. Popularity was the closest thing Chase would ever have to influential power. It's why he fought to be the best he could in school and anywhere his racial and personal talents could shine.

Here in this warehouse building, he was surrounded by monsters and Earth mages who he felt were either equal to him or stronger. Trolls and orcs towered above him and his friends while goblins and hags schemed in corners. Dryads and other nature spirits hung around trees that could root themselves through the building’s floor. Not every creature was a threat to Chase, but the mages would always put him on edge. Though they were not as strong as their Skyland counterparts, magic was still magic in his eyes.

What caused Chase the most anxiety was the overwhelming number of mercenaries. Men and women for hire were all paid to fight, steal, and kill with their allegiances to the money they were getting paid with. Their inclusion was one of the few things that didn't make sense to Chase and didn’t align with what this group aimed to do as far as he could tell. Skyland was always a realm superpower and a symbol of magical freedom. Those who lived there were free to use magic, and Skyland was said to have more people born with a higher affinity to magic. For Chase, those claiming they come from Skyland always had an air of superiority backed up by their strength. This group seemed to aim to make the creatures of Earth stand equal to or surpass that of Skyland.

So, why the mercenaries?

Chase was with his group of friends when one of them said, "We're missing a lot of school for this." It was a dumb thing to be concerned about, but no one berated him.

Chase then said, "You didn't have to come. Shadow Fang came for me."

"Like we were going to just let you face this by yourself. No one in the community would turn their backs on you."

Chase wanted to argue, but then a ghoul approached the group. She looked malnourished and had hair as white as beach sand. She was a creature manifested by Shadow Fang, making her the active second in command. She looked at Chase with hollow eyes and said, "Chase. Shadow Fang wants to see you."

Chase slowly removed himself from his group, not paying attention to their concerned faces, and followed the ghoul. She leads him outside the warehouse, where the afternoon sun of Manaus causes her to flinch. They made their way to a smaller building that was used to host meetings between all the top leaders of the militia but was most commonly used by Shadow Fang as a living area. The ghoul opened the door for Chase, and as he walked into the first section of the building with a long table, he could hear Shadow Fang's voice behind another door.

With no care about who might be listening, Shadow Fang said, "We are about to go into the most guarded areas found in one of the most dangerous places known on planet Earth! What do you mean you don't have a plan?!" Chase stopped at the sudden fit of aggravation, not sure if he should press on. There was no audible reply when Shadow Fang continued. "As touching as that may be, let's not forget that all of this is for you and primarily you. Saying you're 'helping us become independent' is one thing, but a group like this still needs an active leader."

Once again, there was no audible reply. Chase knew Shadow Fang wasn't just a vampire. He was chosen by some greater power to lead this militia. It was believed that the mercenaries were hired on orders of Shadow Fang under the authority of this other power. The way it was described by other members, Chase got a cult vibe, with Shadow Fang being the overzealous head with the most faith in the cause. Based on what Chase was overhearing, whoever this other power did not align with Shadow Fang seamlessly.

"My position was always meant to be temporary. That's what you said. While on that note, you haven't given any updates on what you're looking for in a replacement." Another pause. "Fine! Fine. It will be done. We will get the scroll without fail. But when something goes to crap, I don't want to hear anything from you."

At that point, the ghoul knocked on the door to confirm she was there. Shadow Fang gave the OK for them to walk in, and she opened the door to his living area.

Chase walked through, and Shadow Fang thanked the ghoul Dina, prompting her to leave the two alone.

Shadow Fang, who was no longer wearing his typical coverings, stripped down to only a shirt and pants, turned to Chase as he smiled and said, "Ghouls. The best of help, am I right?"

"I never had 'help' before," Chase said blankly.

"I'm sorry. Did that offend you?"

"Why do you care if it did?"

"Can I not be sympathetic?"

"Vampires don't get sympathetic. They have no emotions."

Shadow Fang paused for a moment. "That is true, but not for me."

"What do you mean?"

Shadow Fang walked over to a table and chair, using his one arm to help him sit down. He motioned for Chase to take a seat as well. Once he did, Shadow Fang asked, "Do you know why I recruited you?"

"I know you're running a rebellion against Skyland using the down-trotted and lower-classed monsters and Earth mages. Me specifically, no."

"You have a history with Silver. You went to school with him, have had many years of interactions, and most importantly, you hate him."

"Can't that be said with any other rivals Joe has made in the past?"

"Sure, but you are the most recent and the one at the forefront of his mind. Because of that, he will be coming after you, and that's the best part."

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"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Chase yelled as he stood up, slamming his hands on the foldable table. "Am I just some scapegoat for you to use? Bullshit when you said you were sympathetic."

"Hear me out, at least. Not like you can turn back now." Chase grinds his teeth at Shadow Fang's words but picks up his chair and sits down again. "There's no hiding the fact that you are a scapegoat, but do you know why?" Chase shook his head, not entirely happy about the situation. Shadow Fang grabbed the stub where his left arm once was and explained. "Not too long ago, Silver took my arm due to a transgression I performed against him. The thing was, that was a mistake on his part. What he meant to do was cut off my hand. He apologized for cutting off such a big chunk of me as he wanted to go slow. At that moment, I was his chew toy. Defenseless, powerless, scared. Scared! I felt an emotion after years and years of being undead. If it wasn't for his dragon, I... You get the point, don't you? I can't fight Silver. Not seriously, anyway. The power he used against me was overwhelming, even though he didn't have his sword."

Chase struggled to get his words out. With a quiver, he asked, "An-and you want me to-to fight ThAT?!"

"As you are? What do you think I am; insane? You're a scapegoat, not a sacrifice. We have been using the Silver Challenger Project's remnants to encourage certain people to stand against him for some time now. Due to your situation, I recommended you be the next main candidate for the scientist."

"Why all this for him? Isn't Claymore the bigger threat?"

"In power, yes. However, Claymore can still die. Silver, on the other hand, will always come back. He is the first obstacle and a thorn in my side forever."

Chase sat there horrified. He hated it. He hated the kid who was the only person that stood against him, the kid who was supposed to be human with no powers of his own. The only thing Chase had over him now stood second to the most powerful mage recorded in recent history. Joe was the Iron Werewolf, while Chase was just Chase. He was supposed to be the fastest, the strongest, and the one on top of the hill. No, it was Joe now.

Chase thought back to his friends, Bre and his dad. He thought about his mom and the community of leatherbacks that looked up to him. They said that he would make history. He was the one who would change everything.

Chase looked up at Shadow Fang. "What exactly will happen to me?"

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

Raya found the meeting place effortlessly. It was a basic-looking house similar to all the others in the area.

We walked up to the door, and Raya knocked. It took a minute before the door was open. The woman who answered was different from the one I recognized. She seemed to know us but was hesitant to let us in. After looking us up and down, she moved out of the doorway, and we walked in.

The house was warm and smelled like soup. We passed little girls playing and laughing around the house. One ran into me, and I helped her up. When she saw who helped her, she was shocked and scared. I smiled at her and kept going behind Raya. We went up some stairs where more girls of similar ages moved back and forth, staring briefly at me. I was a stranger to them.

Finally, we stopped at a door that led into a living room. Four Amazons were waiting, and I only recognized three; the one who fought BD who could fly, the one with the chain whip, and the eldest. The fourth had more muscle on her. She wasn't taller than the others, but something told me she would be the first to attack if needed. A bodyguard, to put it simply.

"You should feel honored, Silver," said the old leader, "Raya is the only reason we let you in so far in our territory."

"Let's cut to the chase, Esther," said Raya, not giving me a chance to respond. "Are you going to give us the information on Shadow Fang?"

The leader of the Amazons, Esther, paused on that while glaring at Raya. She shook her head in disappointment and replied. "To the point then. There is a group that has set up shop in our city years ago. A band of monsters whose goals were unclear to us. Their numbers were small then, but now they have hundreds of members scattered all over the city and further. Of course, we tried to deal with them and let them know whose territory they were on, but we were pushed back. They haven't moved to take over the city, so we left them alone for now."

"So, you can't handle them?"

"There is something off about them, but now I have questions. Are you only after the one vampire?"

"That's right."

"And is he a major part of this organization in my city?" Raya turned to me for answers. Esther then replied, "Can you really not think for yourself?"

"He knows things that I don't, and if you want your answer, I suggest you listen to him," Raya nods to me, giving me the assurance to speak.

I nodded back at her with a smile, and I turned to the leader. "I don't know Shadow Fang's overall place, but he seems to be at the center. He is the voice and instigator if he's not the head."

Esther took a moment to consider what I said. It was like watching someone swallow a pill. Eventually, she looked up scornfully and said, "This group is pushing into the forest, most likely looking for something. I don't know what it is, but they consistently travel south over the Rio Negro. I can think of a few things of importance in that direction."

"We'll need a guide," proclaimed Raya.

"If that's all the information you need, you can go."

"We need an Amazonian guide."

"What for?"

"What for?! To traverse the rainforest. I believe Shadow Fang will retrieve whatever he is looking for very soon."

"On what grounds do you believe that?"

"A hunch."

"I am not sending any of my women with you based on a hunch."

"I'll go," said the one who I fought. "Lady Raya's instincts have been honed for years if the stories are true, which means any hunch she has is most likely to be true, right? We already trust her with being here. Why not her word as well?"

"I forbid it, Bethânia," said Esther.

"I know the forest, and I'm willing to go."

"I will not repeat myself," Esther turned to us, "And as for you, leave and do what must be done. I don't want to see you back here."

We were escorted out of the house by the bodyguard. The door slammed on us after she pushed us out.

"Well, at least we got what we needed," I said, trying to cheer myself up that the one named Bethânia wasn't coming with us.

"We got half of what we needed," said Raya as she began to walk away from the house. Her face was twisted with anger, and I could hear her trying to hold back every curse word on her tongue.

Once I caught up to her, I asked, "I get that the jungle is big, but why do we need an Amazonian guide so badly?"

"Because they are the only ones aware of the dangers and how to best avoid them."

"What kind of dangers?"

Raya looks over at BD hanging on my shoulder. "The Amazon Jungle is home to one of 5 Natural Disaster Dragons, and if my memory is correct, one of them is not too far from where we are going. If that wasn’t bad enough, I think the Amazons are hiding something." She then pulled out her phone to call Mindplay.

“What do you think they're hiding?” BD asked.

“I think they're working with Shadow Fang.”