Nothing wanted to move.

Mettan had expected to be sore when he woke up. Honestly, he hadn’t expected to wake up at all. He had known he was going to die before he passed out, but when he started to wake up he reevaluated his expectations.

Mettan looked down at his leg. His pant legs had already repaired the damage from the hellhound’s claws. The uniform had nanotechnology woven into the fabric that allowed it to fit the wearer perfectly, while also allowing it to repair damage to the uniform. The bloodstains it wouldn’t take out though. He reached for the extra water inside the nightstand by his bed and wove it through the fabric. After the red stains had been pulled out of the uniform he put the water away. It was time to check on his crew.

Mettan slipped into his boots and with a dip of his left hand, pulled replacement water from his bathroom to fill the stores that he had lost. He stopped by his dresser and pulled out two glass tubes and slipped them into his vest. The tubes were magic rods. Apply a little water and the tube would grow into a rod the length of his leg that could be stuck in the ground or a wall. The rod would attract magic, making it harder for a mage to focus spells. It wouldn’t hurt a Guardian, but it would give him some breathing room, the next time he ran across Stilas.

The hall outside his room was empty. Mettan turned towards the bridge. He hadn’t expected anyone to wait for him. If fact, he was hoping to reorient himself before he had to talk with anyone. He wasn’t too concerned about the dishonor of losing to a dark mage. His reputation had been going steadily downhill after he lost Neresa. That would just be one more disappointment that he would have to swallow. It was that Kark would never let him forget that a human had saved him.

Mettan pushed the thoughts of his cousin’s teasing out of his mind as he walked onto the bridge. He allowed himself a small grin at what he saw. Kark was asleep in the pilot’s seat. An empty bowl was upside down on the floor beside him.

“You’re awake.”

Mettan didn’t have to look behind him. He knew the voice of the dragon and had expected him to be on the bridge once he had seen Kark asleep.

“You’re not.” Mettan said,

“I haven’t slept since I was bonded to Kark.” The old red replied. He pushed off of the wall and walked over to Mettan. The sound of nails scratching the steel floor echoed after every step.

Kark began to stir. He rubbed his eyes and stood up. He yawned as he stretched.

“You’re up.” Kark yawned as he padded over to the pair, “We need to talk.”

“About?” Mettan asked

“The Dark Mage.” Kark pointed his thumb out of the room, “Paige said you knew him.”

“It was Stilas.” Mettan said,

“I thought he was dead.” Kark said, “Weren’t you there when he died?”

“I was outside.” Mettan said, “Pattar, Demetrius, and Feletis were inside.”

“Where was Xannah?” Kark asked

Mettan pursed his lips.

Kark held up his hands, “I know you don’t like to talk about her, but I need to know.”

“She was with me.” Mettan said, “Disintegrating Elementals.”

Kark nodded, “So we can trust her.”

Mettan scowled, but he didn’t say anything. He didn’t trust Xannah, but that was for a different reason.

“I need to talk to Dumas.” Kark looked at Zeus, “Can you?”

Zeus vanished in a flash of light. While Guardians were common around Mages, it was bad manners to invite another Mage to one’s tower while your Guardian was out.

After Zeus was gone Kark snapped his fingers and the three of them were in his tower. He walked over to his desk and pushed two of the thirteen buttons on the side.

The air thickened and Dumas and Xannah appeared in the room. They were both wearing the purple robes that designated them as members of the Elders. Dumas had the gold sash of the Vita. There were bags under his eyes and his grey hair needed to be combed, probably because he had been up all night working on some artifact.

Xannah was the opposite. Her black, shoulder-length hair was pulled back in a silver chain. A pair of diamond earrings hung from silver chains off of her earlobes. Her skin was flawless and a rich brow. The scent of jasmine drifted off of her and filled the room. The confidence of her aura followed her perfume.

Her gold eyes leveled on Mettan, “What is he doing here?”

“You knew he was one of the survivors.” Kark stepped in between the pair, “He saw the Dark Mage.”

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Dumas leaned on his oak staff. “Then the Dark Mage is dead.”

“No.” Mettan said

“Ha.” Xannah scoffed, “Still failing to do your duty?”

Kark looked at Xannah, “He found the Dark Mage.” He leveled his glare, “That’s more than you did.”

Hatred oozed out of Xannah’s eyes, “I wouldn’t have let a Dark Mage loose on Earth. If I had found him, he’d be dead.”

Kark dropped his voice, “It was Stilas.”

“What?” Dumas demanded.

Kark put his finger to his lips, “We’re all right here.”

Dumas turned to Mettan, “Are you sure?” He asked in a hushed tone.

“I’m certain.” Mettan said, “He left an impression on me I can’t forget.”

Dumas nodded and turned to Kark, “We need to let the others know.”

“We can’t.” Kark said, “If Stilas is on Earth then someone helped him get here.” He scanned the faces in the room, “These are the only people I know I can trust.”

“What about him?” Xannah pointed at Mettan, “He’s worked for the other side before.”

Mettan started to open his mouth, but Kark beat him to it. His cousin grabbed Xannah by the front of her robe and slammed her into the wall behind her.

“He did what any father should have done.” Kark spat in Xannah’s face, “And what any MOTHER should’ve done.”

Dumas put his hand on Kark’s shoulder, “Control your emotions.”

Kark let Xannah go and stepped back, “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Xannah brushed the wrinkles from her robe, “I wouldn’t expect any less from an Elf that was raised by him.”

Kark balled his fists and gritted his teeth.

Mettan stepped forward and touched Kark’s arm. They had been through this fight before. Nothing would get solved. They had different ideas about what an Elf should do for family. No amount of fighting would change Xannah’s mind.

Kark flexed his fingers and turned away from the group.

Mettan looked at Xannah, “Are you done?”

Xannah turned and looked out the window.

“Why don’t you trust the others?” Dumas asked

Kark sat down on the edge of his bed, “The twins are too young. I don’t think either of them is helping the dark mage.”

“If you’re so sure, why aren’t they here?” Xannah scoffed

“They’re too young,” Mettan averted his eyes when Xannah looked at him, “We didn’t want to endanger them.”

“But you’re okay with risking mine and Dumas’ life?” Xannah demanded

“Xannah.” Dumas said as he tapped his staff on the floor, “Shut up.”

Xannah closed her lips.

Dumas turned to Kark, “Why would you suspect Feletis and Demetrius?”

“One of the Mages that went to Tenahill has to be the traitor.” Kark jabbed his thumb towards Xannah, “Mettan vouched for her.”

Xannah brushed her black bangs out of her face, “He did?”

“Did he speak out of turn?” Dumas asked

“No.” Xannah said, “I just didn’t expect him to do something so- human.”

“You might learn something from the humans.” Dumas chided. He turned to Mettan, “Why would you think that Feletis or Demetrius would be a traitor? Neither of them have a spec of black.”

“They wouldn’t have to use black magic.” Kark said, “They would just be the mole. It would explain how the Dark Legion has been beating us lately.”

Dumas nodded slowly, “I’ve known Feletis longer than I knew your father.” He rubbed his chin, “And I’ve known Demetrius since he was a youngling. I have a hard time imagining that either would do something so dark.”

“Demetrius would.” Xannah said

“Why?” Mettan demanded

Xannah sighed at Dumas, “You forget that I was in the same class as both of them in University. There was always a cloud that followed Demetrius around. To be honest, I was shocked that it was Stilas that turned and not Demetrius, but he’s never shown any tainting the whole time he has been with the Elders.” She looked at the floor, “I’ve checked all of the tests myself.”

“You suspected Demetrius and never told anyone?” Dumas seemed a little insulted.

“I did tell someone about your apprentice.” Xannah quipped, “I told Feletis about my concerns, but there was never anything to back it up, so we just kept watching him.”

“Could Demetrius have helped Stilas escape?” Kark asked

“He never would have got the chance.” Xannah answered, “Stilas attacked Feletis and the old geezer burned him down.”

“Could Feletis have faked Stilas’ death?” Kark asked

“Feletis is one of the few beings alive that remembers the time before the banishing. He helped write the Guild Laws and rebuilt the High Elf Alliance after the Camadt War.” Dumas leaned on his staff, “I can’t believe he’s the traitor.”

Xannah nodded in agreement, “Feletis is arrogant and crazy, but he’s not a traitor.” She cast a glance at Mettan, “I know what those look like.”

Mettan ignored the barb, “What about Demetrius?”

“I trained him.” Dumas said, “It’s unthinkable that he would help the Dark Legion.”

“We’ve ruled out the other options.” Kark shook his head, “It’s the only theory we have left.”

Dumas leaned on his staff, “Demetrius has been acting a little stranger than usual lately.”

Kark sighed, “We’ll need to confront him soon.”

Mettan looked over Kark’s shoulder. Beside the screen of Demetrius and Stilas was a screen that was monitoring the Dark Legion Fleet. He stepped closer to the screen, but he didn’t need to. It hadn’t been a glitch, the Fleet was moving again.

“We’re out of time.” Mettan said, “The Fleet is free.”

“More bad news.” Kark said, “Can’t we get something right to happen?”

Mettan thought for a moment. There was something that he had forgotten to tell Kark, but he wasn’t sure that he wanted to say it in front of Xannah, and especially not in front of Dumas. But it looked like they were going to need to hear it.

“There is good news.” Mettan said

“There’s only one traitor?” Kark asked sarcastically.

“No,” Mettan said, “I found the Triftion.”