The sun was burning the solid brick pavement that circled the arena.

Aaron sat in one of the seats, patiently awaiting Gabriella and Isaac. He had no idea that the quiet times were coming to an end.

He knew they would eventually since he wanted to get revenge one day, but the young mage never expected that he’d have to put his life on the line so soon.

A noise emerged as the aluminum bleachers vibrated. Aaron greeted his friend, Isaac Tremblay.

“Hey, Isaac, where were you? I’ve been waiting for you and Gab to train with you.”

“I overheard…” Isaac whispered.

“What? I can’t hear you.”

Isaac approached him with the same voice tone. “Ejiro, Seth, I overheard them talking.”

“Okay?” Confused, Aaron looked up at Isaac. He knew something was wrong.

Isaac took a deep breath.

“Gab’s father is still alive, and he’s one of the- the Five Cursed.”

Aaron’s eyes widened as shock filled his face, but just one quiet word came out of his mouth. “Huh?”

Aaron pondered silently. They both thought Gabriella was an orphan, too, since that’s what she had told them. But in truth, they hadn’t ever brought up her family or background in a conversation.

They knew one thing: Gabriella had a dark past and killed tens, if not hundreds, of innocent humans. It wasn’t a surprise that she had ties with the Obscure Guild. However, her being a tyrant’s daughter worsened things to a new level.

The Obscure Guild was the most hated in the world because it openly introduced itself as an enemy of the Democratic Alliance.

What made matters worse, they were in Western Democratic Alliance Territories!

Aaron brought up the most relevant question he could think of,

“Wait, where is she right now?!”

“I don’t know. I haven’t seen Gab since Ejiro came ba-”

Isaac realized his negligence. “Oh shit. We have to find her!”

…

They rushed back to the manor. But, when they arrived, they knew they were too late.

Seth Rayn, Ejiro Sani and Gabriella Rivampe were gone.

They went into Gabriella’s tidy room. She hadn’t even had time to pack her things.

Would she be put in jail? Be interrogated for months? Or be used as blackmail? These thoughts rushed through Isaac’s mind.

“They took her, dammit!”

“Isaac. Maybe we should call Ejiro.”

“Right.” Isaac looked at his leather all-purpose digital watch.

Ejiro, Seth and Gabriella had left on a private plane.

Given no context, one could’ve mistaken the cabin they were in for a living room. It was luxurious, and there was a lot of space. There were many screens, a big coffee table, seats as comfortable as couches, actual couches, a grey rug on the floor and proper lighting.

Ejiro’s transparent phone vibrated, so he took it out of his pocket. “Hi, Isaac.”

“WHERE’S GABRIELLA?!” Ejiro almost dropped his phone as he put it 10 centimetres away from his ear.

“We’re just taking a trip around the continent. Don’t worry. She’ll be back in a few days… if things go as planned.”

“Don’t lie. I know you’re going straight into enemy territory! The Obscure Guild has the most security in the world! Once you’re in, if you can even manage to do that, you won’t ever come out!”

Ejiro said in a calm but shameful tone. “Listen, Isaac. I have a task that I can only entrust you with: keep the manor safe while we’re out. Who knows what could happen while we’re away.”

“Don’t try that on me!”

Aaron asked rationally, “What will you do over there, and why did you take Gab with you?”

The retired magician, Seth Rayn, answered.

“We’ll gather evidence, he said. Gabriella Rivampe will guide us in.”

“Does she want to be there, or did you take her by force?”

Gabriella remained silent. She didn’t know if she wanted or not to go back to the Obscure Guild.

Guilt and fear prevented her from answering.

“Let her go!” Isaac clenched his fists.

“Isaac Tremblay, Aaron Amon. Ejiro and I are doing this for the good of the continent. We can use Gabriella’s status in the Obscure Guild to oppose it.”

Aaron remarked, “I thought you had retired.”

“See you.” Ejiro turned off his phone.

Aaron and Isaac looked at each other. “What now?”

…

They ran out of the manor. Aaron browsed the internet before settling on two plane tickets to Oilos, Shall Guild, in the Wandering Lands. They booked the only not cancelled public flight near the Obscure Guild they could find.

The airport was much bigger than the one in Hellish City and was even busier. They luckily breezed past the never-ending queues and rushed straight to the waiting area.

Aaron and Isaac could sense the anxiety. Children cried, mothers tightly held their babies, and fathers looked at the news with dreaded looks.

The worse part was these people weren’t running away from their hometowns. They were risking their lives to go back there.

Some were heading to Oilos to support relatives, some to clear out their homes, and some to volunteer or to enroll in the new alliance, the Western Alliance's army.

At last, Aaron and Isaac's names got called out. They got on board, and the plane took off.

Unbeknownst to them, a few grins were conspiring something cruel among the passenger.