The following morning was a bit awkward and quiet. Yae didn’t change her routine nor did she change how she looked or spoke to Jake. Similarly, Jake did his best to hide his own emotions about her little secret. Tul and Xul were the ones who had changed the most. They only looked at Jake and each other briefly, they mumbled their words, and they didn’t partake in their morning ritual of cleaning their spears. All they did was eat, clean their faces and teeth, and then they grabbed their gear for the day. They left early, very early.

Jake hurried after them, not wanting to be left alone with Yae as he already felt uncomfortable enough when the other two were still around. By the time he had helped clean up, prepped himself, and clambered down the ladder outside- the two were gone. Jake was left alone in the alleyway and made his morning walk in silence. While he wanted to run after them, he knew they weren’t happy. No attempt at small talk before had worked and it wouldn’t now. It probably would even get worse the closer they got to the compound. Maybe walking alone was for the best.

Mur had allowed Jake to take his blade with him home, as a gift for his graduation. It dangled on his hip, albeit a bit awkwardly, but it felt nice to finally have a weapon to call his. He hadn’t engraved any enchantments onto it yet but he planned to do plenty. He had studied enchantments more during his evenings and had picked out the perfect set he could use. There was also one other thing he wanted to try but it would require an ingredient he didn’t think Ewana would have- magical ink.

The walk to the scout compound was longer than usual without anyone to talk to. It was early and the number of people in the streets Jake could have counted on his fingers and toes. The numbers only increased once he stepped up to the path leading to the three compounds. Warrior and Scout teams were both making their way up the road to their respective workplaces and several village officials were walking toward the center compound. The air was dreadful. Most of the individuals around looked tired and annoyed, or they had some kind of sour expression on their face. Work certainly sucked for those who didn’t enjoy it.

When Jake turned left for the Scout compound, he spotted a small scuffle. He didn’t need to see the actual fighters to know what was going on so he didn’t rush. Like everyone else who wasn’t involved, Jake maintained his pace and sighed as he approached the entrance.

“You Pharos rat!” Almost as if on cue, Xul shouted at the top of his lungs and he slammed his spear down onto a well-dressed individual. They were an Oryk dressed in all black- they wore a leather black jacket with a black t-shirt underneath and their legs were covered in slim pants. Their head was mostly shaved, save for the long top-knot at the back of their skull. Their black hair stretched down behind their back. They fended off Xul’s attack with a familiar black shortsword, and they did it with ease. From a distance, they looked shorter than Xul but that was only because Xul had jumped for his attack. Once Jake was closer, he could see through the small crowd trying to get around the roadblock. It was Xul who was significantly shorter. This person was at least two heads taller than Xul.

As Jake approached, the person turned their eye from Xul and Tul and glared down at Jake. They easily shoved Xul out of the way, sheathed their blade, and stepped up to meet Jake as he passed through the arch. Tul seemed tempted to try and attack. He was gripping his staff as though he was deciding whether to do it, but Jake knew it wouldn’t go very well.

“Are you Jake?” The individual spat. Now that they were in his face, Jake felt more uncomfortable. They had a chest which made the fabric of their shirt very tight. Their pants seemed a size smaller than they should have been, and they wore a pair of freshly polished combat boots that looked ready to knock Jake’s head off his shoulders. On their wide-set hips, they carried three black swords, not two. Jake could also see black ink peeking out from the individual’s shirt collar, wrist cuffs, and pant ends. Not to mention there was even ink on their slightly exposed stomach.

“I am. Are you my babysitter?” Jake retorted. The Pharos escort sucked her teeth and began to reach out toward him. The hand stopped as Jake gripped the sheath of his blade with his left hand, threatening to draw it.

“Follow me.” Rather than drag him, she decided to do her job properly and she turned around. Jake released his sword and did as he was told.

“Jake!” Xul shouted, but Jake shook his head and kept walking. “Jake!” Xul yelled once more. This time his voice was quite far and easier to ignore. Jake only looked back once he knew the gate was a good distance away. Xul and Tul were still standing where he had left them, staring at him as he left. Jake clenched his teeth and steeled his mind. For whatever reason, they were afraid of him being recruited to this team so he would take the time during their walk to prepare himself for it.

The woman led him into the main building of the scout compound and he stepped through a large set of open doors. The tall stone wall lining the edge of the village disappeared, being replaced by a high rock ceiling that blocked out any outside view. The inside of the building was far different than what he expected. While he thought there might be various rooms and a lot of noise with teams running around, there was no chaos or any loud noise.

The main room he walked into was wide, long, and tall. The walls were lined with what looked to be desks, and Scouts stepped up to the desks to be waited on by clerks and various studious-looking individuals. The scouts and clerks were separated by clear dividers. There were massive boards within the general open area with various pieces of paper stuck to them. Scouts gathered around those boards, plucking papers from them before heading to the clerk desks. The clerks, behind the desk, processed the paperwork and then passed the papers to runners who darted off to the main, central area that Jake was walking towards.

That central area was also separate from the general walking area and the runners brought the stamped papers to people sitting at desks. There were stacks of papers all over the place, with people trying to organize them, others carrying the piles this way and that, and even more people bringing papers into either distant rooms or storing them on the high shelves that lined the walls.

It was a well-oiled machine for scout work. The walk gave Jake enough time to assume what the process was and it was far different than he expected. The scouts likely came into this area and scoured those large boards for work. If they found a job they felt they could complete, they would take the paper to a clerk for verification and assignment. If they were good to go, the runner would take the stamped paper to the clerk at the back for further processing and the scouts would complete the job. Upon returning, Jake assumed the reward would be distributed once proof was given to the clerk and the finished job would be filed away or reported to a higher-up, depending on its importance.

A simple but effective way to run the system and there was plenty of work to be done. Some of the boards were covered with paper, but the number of scouts around them was thin. Whether that was because it was early or because there just weren’t enough bodies, Jake wasn’t sure. There seemed to be plenty of Scout recruits running around the compound so he assumed the teams themselves would be full. However, if he knew anything about the tunnels, then the low numbers were expected. The lacking number of working scouts only reflected how dangerous this job was.

“This way.” The woman turned right as they approached the central working area and guided Jake through an open gap in the clerk desks. A runner darted past just in time as if he had timed his run perfectly so he wouldn’t have to stop or hesitate. Jake huffed at the sight but paid it no mind as he followed the woman into a separate hallway. The hallway was just as long as the entrance area and the walls were lined with doors. A few were rowdy and loud, the individuals beyond the thresholds causing a ruckus. Eventually, they reached a stairwell and they swirled up two floors before being spit out into another long hallway. Jake groaned a bit from how long this was taking. The woman didn’t complain. They popped out in the entrance area again, this time just a lot higher up, and turned right again. They followed along the wall and curved around the back before once more turning right into another long hallway.

This hallway, however, had a limited number of widely spaced doors. The quality of the wood was also better but that was a minor detail Jake noticed. Not only were the doors themselves better quality but they each were labeled with a red colored plaque sporting a team name. They walked halfway into the hallway and stopped in front of their destination- finally. The door had the label “Pharos” written on it boldly, brightly. The woman didn’t knock, which didn’t surprise Jake because of her demeanor. She strolled into the room and held the door open, beckoning Jake to follow after her.

“Head’s up!” Jake ducked as he heard the voice and the air cracked over his head. He felt the wind through his hair and heard a crash off to his left. He looked over to see the wall cracked and shattered, with a massive ball lodged in the impact point. When he looked to the right, he saw an Oryk sitting on top of an odd-looking contraption.

“Sorry!” The Oryk shouted. “It malfunctioned!” The Oryk hopped off the seat attached to his machine and then kicked it. “Stupid thing,” he grumbled.

“Nuro’s going to have your head if he learns you’re messing with that thing again,” the woman hissed as she slammed the door shut. She strutted across the room and plopped down on a large, four-cushioned couch. She took up the entire thing with how her arms spread out.

“I doubt it! Catapults are the future! The Surface-Walkers use them frequently for defending their castles and I think we can use them to protect the tunnel entrances more efficiently than throwing bodies down them.” The Oryk grabbed some tools and began to tinker with the machine, adjusting and tightening. Modifying and changing. Jake stared for a few moments before he scanned the rest of the room.

It was larger than he originally thought. While the spacing between doors was small, looks were deceiving. There was depth to the room and it stretched quite far into the stone. At just a glance, Jake quickly identified eight sections of the room. The first was the entrance, where he stood. It contained chairs, a table, and two couches like the one the woman was sitting on. Behind the table was a wide desk with a grandiose-looking chair and a nameplate with Nuro’s name scratched into it. Fitting.

The next section was off to Jake’s right where the Oryk was working. It was a large space with various trinkets, weapons, tools, and works-in-progress scattered all over a bunch of workbenches and the walls. There were a few stools at each of the workbenches with projects and blueprints open all over the place. Jake had a feeling that while it looked messy and chaotic to him, the Oryk knew exactly where everything was in that bubble of his.

The third section was connected to the Oryk’s workshop but deeper into the room. It looked to be a practice ring for close combat. There were two wooden mannequins set up with plenty of slash marks and dents in them. There was also a wooden pole with various rods sticking out of it, with a few of the rods having been broken off or splintered. It was heavily used.

The fourth section sat across from the practice ring. It was the equipment area. Several cages were set up with various equipment within each- weapons, clothes, armor sets. Each cage was labeled with a name and had a unique set of gear inside. Outside of the cages were several workstations with repair and maintenance tools provided.

Next to that portion of the room was likely the briefing area. A large map was hung up on the wall and also on a table in the center of the area. The map on the wall was flat, with a clear sheet over top of it. Ink of various colors was drawn all over the clear layer with various lines, dots, cross marks, and little scribbles of notes written down beside the map. The map on the table was three-dimensional, giving a more intense visual layout of the area. A few chairs and another couch were organized around the table, all pointed towards the map.

Behind that zone was a recovery area it seemed. There was fruit sitting on top of a large counter and a fully decked-out kitchen, something Jake hadn’t seen before. A pot sat on top of what looked to be a fire pit and several cabinets were organized, likely holding a bunch of other goodies within them. There was also a small cube sitting against the wall with a locked lid. A package of salt was set beside the cube.

The last two sections were far larger than the other, and both stretched into the stone walls. The first was a massive mat, likely for combat training and sparring. The second was a practice lane for magic, one just like Jake had inside of the Library. Except this one was wider, made entirely of stone, and the targets were carved into the walls rather than free-standing. From where he stood, he couldn’t see the far end of the range. That’s how long it stretched.

Within the room, there were six people. The woman who’d escorted him, the Oryx, two individuals sparring, one person practicing magic, and another sleeping in the briefing area on the couch. Jake made seven. Nuro was not one of them but Pari was. She was sparing with a four-armed demon, one that looked to be the same race as Mur. However, this individual was far smaller than the massive, oppressive-looking Mur. They were thin and lean, their arms weren’t the size of Jake’s head, and they wielded four swords instead of a hammer and axe. If Jake was being honest- he feared Mur a lot more. Jake reached out with his mana to check the levels of everyone present and found them all lacking in that regard, with only Pari being the standout. Even the individual practicing magic had a lackluster aura to them.

Jake sighed, finally understanding why Nuro was interested in him. If these were members of the Pharos squad and the only person who could use magic was Pari, then picking up a strong and young magician like Jake would certainly be a good investment. Nuro was likely betting on Jake being able to pick up Pari’s slack and support the team. Sadly, Jake had other plans. He knew magic and could certainly cast strong spells to fight the Maedra but it wasn’t something he planned to rely on specifically. He carried a sword for a reason.

While sizing up the other members of the Pharos squad, Jake picked up on another individual approaching the door. He moved out of the way before the knob was even touched. The woman in the chair squinted a bit as she noticed the detail.

Nuro walked in, pushing the door open wide and shouting to announce his presence. Jake couldn’t help but chuckle when no one reacted to the theatrics. The Oryk continued to tinker with his machine. The rhythmic snoring from the sleeping person didn’t change. The magician cast another spell, with some error. And the two sparring continued to whack staffs against each other. The only person to acknowledge Nuro’s return was the woman, who just stared at him blankly.

“Figures,” Nuro sighed and looked down at Jake as if he finally noticed the new addition to the room. “Oh, you’re early,” he pointed out. Jake furrowed his brow, annoyed.

“Don’t look so distraught! That’s a good thing. Welcome to the Pharos squad room, young Jake! I assume you’ve already met Mora. She is a great woman, isn’t she?” Nuro grinned as he introduced Jake to the irritated escort. She didn’t look pleased.

“Fuck off, Nuro.” She hissed. Nuro shrugged and seemed to continue with the introductions, even though Jake hadn’t asked. He didn’t particularly care.

“The tinkerer is Lao. Don’t mind his insanity, he’s just a genius who doesn’t know how to keep his thoughts to himself.” The Oryk swung his hammer and missed the target, instead hitting his thumb. “The sleeping oaf is Tua. He’s the Wall, he eats too much and sleeps even more. You’ve already scuffled with Pari, her opponent is Wyicks. He is like Mur but more tolerable. The one struggling with her magic is Fien, but don’t say that to her face. She bites.”

“She bites?” Jake asked, confused by that statement.

“Yea. Physical bites, not mental.” Nuro waved it off as if it were normal as he walked around his desk to find the chair. As he plopped down into it, he leaned back and kicked his feet up onto the thick wood desk.

Odd. The lot of them but Jake wasn’t surprised. Based on how they had been described, it was relieving to find out that Tul wasn’t joking. Jake had prepared his mental sanity appropriately so he would manage. Still, he let out a tired sigh and stepped up to the desk. Nuro watched him approach with that stupid smile on his face.

“So? Why am I here?” Jake asked, wanting to know the reason why Nuro had chosen him, of all the choices of recruits, to join Pharos.

“You’re good with magic and we don’t have a strong healer,” Nuro said offhand. He began to pick at his teeth with a long pinky nail. Jake, on the other hand, was dumbfounded. That he didn’t expect.

“What? You didn’t pick me for my battle magic?” He was a bit offended by Nuro’s decision. Jake was good at healing magic, sure, but his expertise with other spells was far better. To be chosen for his weakest skillset bothered him. It was as though Nuro didn’t even acknowledge his prowess in everything else.

“Why would I? We have Pari and Fien is fairly decent at it. We just don’t have a healer that I can trust in the tunnels to keep up.” Nuro continued to pick at his teeth as he shrugged. Jake clenched his teeth and glared at the squad leader. He was beginning to honestly consider fighting.

“I wouldn’t waste your time trying to understand him, kid. Nuro is the biggest oddball out of everyone here.” The woman grumbled from her couch. Jake looked over to see her slouch over and slump down onto the cushions. She swung her legs over the arm of the couch and pulled a pillow over her face. “I’ve worked with him for almost three years now and he’s still not worth figuring out.”

“That’s rude to say in front of our recruit, don’t you think?” Nuro rumbled, wiggling his feet and frowning like a hurt child. Jake shook his head and walked away from the desk.

“Then who do I talk to about this place? I’m not exactly here by choice but I’d like to make it worth my time.” Rather than talk to Nuro, Jake decided to try the woman. She didn’t remove the pillow from her face as he approached her. Even so, he still kept his distance.

“Funny, none of us are. Let me guess. He strolled into wherever you were training, spit out something about the Elders, and now here you are.” Her precision with her guess was disheartening. She took Jake’s silence as his answer and wagged her arm lazily. “That’s the case for all of us. Nuro waltzed into my Warrior squad room and told my leader that I had been reassigned. Now here I am, still stuck doing scout work. It’s the same with everyone else. We aren’t here by personal choice but we make it work.”

Finally, she pulled the pillow from her face and stared up at Jake. He looked away from her piercing gaze and turned his attention to the others, looking over each of them one at a time.

“Just do your part and you’ll be fine. We don’t practice any tactics or that crap, so you’ll have to learn on the fly. Pay attention and don’t get in the way. Pari sucks with magic control, Fein can’t aim, and Wyicks stabbed the last healer for almost getting us killed.” The pillow returned over her face and she gently waved him off, signaling that she was finished talking. Jake grimaced as he looked towards Wyicks. The demon had quite the tense expression as Pari pressed him as though he were on the verge of snapping. Dealing with him would likely be the most annoying piece.

“Don’t worry, Wyicks won’t stab you unless you do something really dumb. Besides, at that point, the healer was practically dead anyway. Poor guy,” Nuro spoke as if it were nothing important as he talked about the dead. Jake couldn’t help but feel bad for his predecessor. Unnamed, forgotten in the tunnels, and tossed around by his old team as if he were a curse. Fortunately, Jake wouldn’t end up that way. He would kill Wyicks before he let the demon stab him.

“Do we have any jobs? I saw a lot on the boards in the main hall.” While he wasn’t eager to get along with his new team or work with them, he was more than happy to get a move on. Fighting the Maedra was why he was here, why he had trained for a month. Now that he was on a team, he expected to face his foe regularly.

“Nope!” Nuro suddenly quipped. Jake shook his head. The disappointment was likely a regular thing here. “Red teams are assigned tasks, Jake. We don’t request them nor do we sign up for them. We only go out when the Elders need us to. Otherwise, we remain here on standby and practice.” The explanation only made Jake more annoyed with the fact he was forced to be here. If it meant being given freedom of movement, he would have rather been on a Blue team.

“Do we all have to remain on standby?” Jake asked. As if knowing what he was alluding to, Nuro picked up his feet from the desk and stood up.

“Nope! If you would like to go on a mission, you certainly can go get one. Our missions are all given to us in advance of when we are expected to conduct them. If we have downtime, you are more than welcome to go to the main floor and pick up a mission on your own. The clerks can explain how it all works, though. It’s too tiring for me.”

“I guess that’s the benefit of being on a red team, then,” Jake said as he headed for the door.

“Leaving so soon?” Nuro asked, tilting his head as Jake grabbed the doorknob.

“Not soon enough,” Jake rumbled as he pulled the door open.

“If you are going out on a mission, that’s fine. When you return, report in and I will let you know if anything has come up.” It seemed Nuro wanted to keep tabs on him, which was fair. Nuro was the team leader and Jake was now his subordinate. It was one of his duties to make sure he was accountable for them all. Jake also had ties to this place now and he had his obligations towards the team to fulfill. If he was the healer, Jake would need to be present for every mission.

“Fine,” Jake stepped out and closed the door behind him. He made his way down the hallway, heading back towards the main area. He didn’t make it far before he heard a second set of feet behind him. The pacing and weight of the steps were familiar. Jake paused and looked back. “I thought your hand-holding job was done?”

Mora rolled her eye and folded her hands on, or under, her chest.

“Would be a shame to let you go alone on your first mission just for you to die on it,” Mora spat. Jake shook his head and grumbled under his breath.

“Glad to know you care,” he retorted.

“I wouldn’t say that but I know stupid when I see it.” Her jab was irritating but Jake wasn’t going to fall into the back and forth. He kept quiet and continued his walk down the hall and into the main room. He and Mora circled back around to the next hallway but that was where the normal route stopped. Jake looked over the railing and down towards the floor. Mora’s eye opened a bit as she stared at him.

“What are you doing?” She asked, concerned.

“Magic,” He spat. A moment later, he grabbed the railing and jumped.

“Hey!” Mora barked as she tried to grab him. Her voice boomed through the open air, and several people down below looked up. Jake plunged to the floor and cast wind magic on his feet. He shoved mana into the gust of wind and stabilized himself as he dropped. Someone screamed and the people beneath him scattered. However, there was no splattering of flesh. Jake’s feet smacked into the ground and flailed his arms a bit as he stumbled. It was rough but he’d landed safely. No broken bones, no cratered face.

“Whew,” Jake huffed as his heart thumped in his chest.

“YOU DAMNED IDIOT!” Mora shouted from her high point. Jake looked up at her and chuckled to himself as he watched her sprint off, likely hurrying to catch up to him. When he looked around, he noticed all eyes were on him now.

“Sorry.” Jake politely excused himself out of the limelight and made his way over to one of the boards. A few of the Scouts standing around it moved out of the way. Whether that was because they were scared of him or something, he didn’t know, but he still said ‘excuse me’ as he wiggled through the bodies.

He scanned over the various strips of paper and took in all the little details that he could. Each paper had a color strip over the top of it- the level identifier for what teams could pick it. Then, beneath the color strip, was the tunnel number. Those details were followed by the name of the individual putting out the request, the details, the recommended number of Scouts, whether or not a Warrior team would be assigned for assistance, and then finally the reward amount. Everything the Scout team needed to know about the mission was on the ticket. There was even a small red stamp on a few of them in the form of a Maedra. All of those papers, however, had blue stripes over them.

Jake reached up and grabbed one of those papers. It was an expedition request. A simple task- enter the tunnel, explore up to the last marked position by a prior team, and then explore another two hundred meters into the tunnel or up until its end. Whichever happened first. There were two Warrior teams assigned to the request and the reward wasn’t some meager sum. But there were two Beast stamps on it, signaling the high risk of encountering the Maedra.

When he grabbed the paper, a few whispers crept up in the crowd. he ignored them all and walked away from the board. Mora finally chose that moment to catch up. She shoved her way through the other scouts and stomped her way up to Jake, her hair a bit of a mess and her cheeks flushed.

“Oh, hello,” Jake said as if he hadn’t expected her to show up. Mora scowled at him.

“You runt, don’t ever do that again,” she growled and gripped her hands into fists. He doubted she would swing but he also thought she might if he pushed her enough.

“I’m not walking that entire way when I can jump. Magic is a tool for convenience as much as it is a tool for battle.” Jake wagged the paper over his head as he walked away from her, headed in the direction of the desk. Doing so was a mistake- she snatched the paper out of his hand. “Hey!” Jake snipped.

“Quite the choice. You know this is dangerous, right?” Mora read over the ticket and then tossed it at him after her eyes soaked in the details she cared about. Jake swatted at the paper a few times but missed them all and ended up picking it up off the ground. “Two Warrior teams will be assigned to you. This is a task for a full squad of six Scouts.”

“So?” Jake shrugged and stared up at Mora, awaiting the actual reason he shouldn’t take the mission. Mora blinked a few times as she looked at him.

“Are you… Are you okay?” She asked without an ounce of actual concern in her voice.

“Yes, I am fine. Thank you for asking.” Jake utilized his sarcasm as he twirled about and headed to the desk. The clerk on the other side was a small halfling, not an Oryk. She had dark yellow hair, large blue eyes, and freckles on her cheeks. Thick glasses were set on her small nose.

“H-Hello! How c-can I help?” The halfling seemed a bit unsettled. Jake smiled at her as he hopped up onto the stool at her desk.

“I wanna do this.” Jake slapped down the paper and pushed it under the clear divider. He beamed happily, his feet swinging a bit as he waited. The halfling looked down at the paper, her eyes widening as she noticed what the ticket had on it.

“U-Uh.” She looked up at Jake, and then down at the paper, and then up at Jake again. “Are you sure? This is very… dangerous.”

“It’s okay. This is my first mission. Do I have to sign up somewhere?” Jake could sense her nervousness but thought he would try to prod her along. His father talked about Guild clerks, having to do a lot of paperwork, and the hassle it always was when it came to finding work. Jake still didn’t know what a Guild was or what he referred to but with all of the paper fluttering around in the room and the sheer number of scouts scattered around, Jake assumed there might be something he would need to fill out.

“Oh, you’re new! Then you definitely can’t do this,” the girl let out a sigh of relief. All of the stress on her shoulders evaporated and the color returned to her cheeks. Jake tilted his head.

“Why not? I’m a member of the Pharos squad.”

The color drained again and the girl stared at Jake blankly. Her attention then shifted to something behind Jake- Mora. The girl looked at Jake again and frowned.

“Oh…” She mumbled. Her lack of action eventually was replaced by something more mechanical. She picked up two papers from beneath her desk and slid them both over to Jake. “The left is a sign-up sheet for the Scouts. If you are a part of the Pharos team then I can assume it has not been done for you. The right is a liability sheet. As a member of a Red team, you need to sign the agreement.”

In essence- Nuro was too lazy to fill out the Scout paperwork for his team members and the Scout Elders wouldn’t be held accountable if Jake was injured, maimed, or killed in the tunnels.

Jake sighed and plucked the small wood object from the inkwell beside him. He scribbled down his information onto the application sheet and then scribbled his name onto the liability agreement. The girl took both and then whistled for a runner. The boy appeared after a few moments and whisked both away back towards the middle area.

“Are you a magician, fighter, defender, or healer?” The girl asked as she pulled open a small drawer.

“A magi-...Healer.” Jake nearly identified himself as a magician but corrected himself. Nuro had told him his role in the team would be healer so he figured that would be how the rest of the Scout hierarchy would view him. The girl just stared at him, though.

“Are you sure?” She looked up at Mora for a moment. Mora sighed behind Jake and nudged his shoulder for his attention.

“Healers can’t go out on missions by themselves. They require escorts. If you want to do this regularly, then you’ll want to sign up as one of the other three,” Mora explained.

“But Nuro said-” Jake began to explain himself, but she held up a hand.

“Yes. You are a healer when we go out on mission as the Pharos Squad. However, what we do on our own is separate from those missions. I am a defender in the Pharos missions, but alone I work as a fighter. Make sense?” Mora’s tone shifted a bit, softening as she played her informative role. It was easy to understand but also a bit misleading. Maybe Nuro didn’t fill out paperwork because he understood this and wanted his team members to be able to live their own independent lives as they pleased.

Was he really that nice of a person?

“Alright. Then fighter, please.” Jake corrected himself to what he felt more comfortable with. The girl paused again but Jake was confident with his choice.

“Fighter? Did you hear what I said?” Mora’s gruff tone returned. Jake chuckled but nodded confidently.

“Fighter, please.” This time, the girl didn’t hesitate. She nodded and pulled out a red card. She started to scribble information onto the back of it and then flipped it over. She slid it back over to him and also slid him a pad of ink. Attached to the ink pad was a sharp cone.

“Place your thumb into the ink, pierce the center of your thumb with the cone, and then press both onto the square on the card.” The instructions were clear and easy, and Jake followed them. He rolled his left thumb through the ink first and then used the cone to poke a small hole into his skin. Blood mixed with the black ink and he pressed the gooey mixture down onto the card. His thumbprint and blood stained the card. The card glowed faintly for a brief moment before fading. The girl nodded and gestured for him to return the card.

The runner returned at the same moment and placed the application paper down on the desk. “Approved!” He shouted before running off. The girl took the application and the card, filled out more information onto the card, and then stamped it. She passed the identification card back to Jake and then sat up straight in her chair. She took in a deep breath, and then-

“You’re registered. Welcome to the Ewana Scout Association, Jake Furrow. As a member of the Pharos Squad, you are identified as a Red Scout. Red Scouts are eligible to take any mission on the boards without an escort. You will still be assigned Warrior teams per the ticket requirements but it is not required for you to be dispatched with a full scout team. It is recommended you still bring a team member with you but that too is not required.” She paused for a moment, taking in another deep breath.

“Your actions in the tunnel reflect the village of Ewana. You are expected to fight valiantly against the Beasts and other creatures you may encounter. If other teams are in trouble, it is expected that you will assist them until the backup Warrior teams arrive. Failure to provide adequate aid may result in negative action against you.” Once more, the halfling breathed.

“Damage to the tunnels is requested to be kept to a minimum as they are the lifelines of the village. Materials you find on your expeditions will be evenly split between yourself, Ewana, and your team to ensure equal distribution of goods. However, if you go alone and find a large amount of materials, Ewana will take only a fair portion and will not take half of your loot. If you wish to sell more to the village, we will compensate you at market value and increase the reward amount. However, if a request identifies a specific amount of resources and you find more than the requested amount, Ewana will only take the specified amount and will offer an additional reward of twenty percent above market value for a portion of the additional resources.” As she finished, she pulled out a small stack of papers and slid them beneath the divider. Jake looked down and found himself staring at a list- resources, market prices, and a quantity.

“This is the Market List. There are multiple copies available for your viewing at each of the boards, near the entrance of this building, and are available at each clerk station. These lists provide the name of the resource, the price Ewana is willing to pay for the resource, and the quantity Ewana currently needs. Once the quantity is fulfilled, Ewana will no longer purchase the resource from Scouts or will do so at a heavily reduced value. Items marked with a star will be purchased at a twenty-percent markup from the market value. Items labeled in red are desperately needed by the village and there are likely missions requesting Scouts to go find them. If you find these resources, they will be purchased at a fifty percent markup.”

Fifty percent was quite a bit, especially with how expensive some of those items already were. Though, judging by their names, Jake had a feeling there was a reason they were so difficult to get. Some of them were Maedra items. There was one item Jake didn’t see, and that bothered him a bit. He waited for a moment to see if the halfling was done speaking before he asked, but she wasn’t. She simply waited until he was done looking before she held out her hand, requesting him to push the papers back to her. He did, and she continued.

“These are Alert flares,” she pushed a small box across the divider for Jake to take. “It is requested that every Scout carries at least five on their person. When Warrior teams are dispatched with the Scouts, they are instructed to remain a safe distance from the teams to maintain a low level of noise within the tunnels. When encountering the Beasts, you are to ignite the flare to signal the Warrior team. The team will then move to the front and engage with the Beasts. Even as a Red Scout, it is requested to leave the fighting to the Warriors.”

“Why?” Jake interrupted her, unable and unwilling to let that detail slip by. The halfling blinked, caught off guard by the question.

“Er. As a scout, it is not your task to fight the Beasts. That’s up to the Warrior teams. Your job is to scout the tunnels safely, retrieve resources, and identify safe points within the tunnels for future expeditions. We ask that you only fight the Beasts when it is unavoidable for your safety.”

Mora scoffed at the last bit and Jake rolled his eyes. “For your safety”, so they say, but Jake just signed a piece of paper saying that his life was practically worthless if the Beasts got him. Which now made sense. The flares the halfling gave him would expose Jake within the darkness of the tunnel. They would fully illuminate his position, make a ton of noise, and would increase his heat signature. Both the Maedra and the Warriors would be alerted to the flare, and then it would just be a race. If the Warriors didn’t reach him in time, the Beast would eat him alive. Well, in an ordinary case they would.

But Jake had no desire to use the flares. He took them as requested and to not draw attention to himself. Yet, that was the last time he would touch them. He buried them into his pocket, with every intention of either discarding them or misplacing them.

“Once the Beasts are clear, the expedition may continue at your discretion. However, we request you wait for the Warrior teams to conduct maintenance and give them a short time to rest. If the situation is either too dangerous or the Warriors have sustained too many casualties, the Warrior team leader can call the expedition to a close. If possible, please gather the mana crystals in the area and return to the village.”

Taking his opportunity, Jake raised his hand. The gesture caused the halfling to pause.

“Are the mana crystals worth money?” He asked. The halfling nodded, as did Jake. She pulled out another sheet of paper and passed it to Jake to read. It was a classification sheet for the crystals. On it, there were size ratings, color codes, and also a portion for more advanced crystals that still contained mana in them.

“This is the price sheet. After you return with the crystals, our appraisers will evaluate them and add the money to your reward for the expedition. There is no cap or limit on how many crystals you may return with, but understand that full compensation might not be able to be made all at once. The total amount of funds the Associate can payout per day is limited. If money is not available, vouchers can be provided to certain establishments for services and the Association will pay for such things in place of the monetary compensation.” The exchange of crystals for favors instead of money was a smart one. Doing so helped both the Scout and the Association. Running this kind of operation was expensive and paying for all of the rewards and resources coming in was likely even more so. If the Association could find a way to save itself some money by cutting deals with other trades workers, then it certainly made sense. Jake would take advantage of that.

“That’s all I need to know, thank you.” Jake pushed the paper back across and the halfling smiled.

“Okay. My name is Kithri and if you ever need any other assistance, please feel free to come to ask me or any of my other associates.” The girl smiled as she bowed her head. Jake returned the gesture. “Now, let’s register this mission.”

Kithri pulled out another piece of paper but this time she began filling it out with Jake’s information as well as the information on the ticket. There was a reference number on the ticket, which she copied over to the registration form. She then folded the two together, placed them into an envelope, and called for a runner. The runner snatched the paperwork and ran towards the back.

“Is there a limit to how many missions I can take per day?” Since he was going to be waiting for the runner to come back, Jake figured he would sate his curiosity. Fighting the Maedra would become quite the difficult task in certain situations but he had plenty of mana. Training in Mur’s Hall and practicing in the Library had also increased his stamina so he could sustain himself for a while. If there was a limit to what he could do, though, then he could adjust his schedule to add in training and visits to the Library. He would do that anyway but making money and establishing himself would be important, too.

“No, but we ask you not to take up too many requests if you find yourself completing them easily. As a Red Scout, you are given a monthly allowance by the Association on top of the rewards you are given for your Red Missions.” Kithri let out a soft laugh, hoping Jake understood. He didn’t.

“An allowance?” Jake whirled his head around to look at Mora. She just stared at him.

“Did… Nuro not tell you anything?” Mora seemed unsure of what to say. She must have been questioning Nuro.

“No! What kind of allowance?” Jake was both confused and a bit elated. A monthly allowance for surviving and existing? He hadn’t heard of that.

“It’s a small amount to cover your basic living costs and to assist with the maintenance of your equipment. If you need additional healing assistance, the money is also to help cover that. As I mentioned, the Association understands the dangers of your missions. They also know they cannot pay you as much as they would like for each mission, so the monthly sum is extra.”

“That’s nice of them. Now I see why the others aren’t out here taking tickets from the board.” Jake nodded and turned to look at the board. The Scouts all gathered around the boards were likely all lower ranking. Those boards were their livelihoods. If Jake plucked too many tickets or took too many of the more dangerous tickets, then the others wouldn’t be able to afford to live. He would have to be cautious as to how often he worked on his own.

“Is there somewhere I can store my extra money?” Of course, Jake wouldn’t be able to keep all of his rewards on his person. He needed somewhere to store it all. He could just make a hole in the ground and bury it, or create a place in the home, but thieves would always find a way.

“Of course! There is a bank in town that can secure your money and rewards. All you need to do is open an account with them. If you are interested, you can find them near the market with the coin symbol hanging above the door.” Kithri smiled and passed him a small map, one that would lead him to the bank. He pocketed the sheet for use later.

“Approved!” A runner whizzed past, dropping off a small piece of paper as he did. Kithri dropped the paper into her desk and smiled at Jake. She slid him another card, it was a green square with nothing on it.

“You are all set. The Warrior association has been notified and your escort team will be waiting by the designated tunnel shortly. Please wait for them to arrive before you set off. When leaving, show the Guards this ticket and your identification card to be let through. If you lose the green ticket after you leave, it’s okay. We have plenty here.” Kithri cleaned up her desk as she spoke, preparing herself for the next Scout. Jake bowed his head and slid off his seat.

“Thank you, Kithri.” Jake waved as he left.

“Good luck! And stay safe!” Kithri shouted over the divider. She returned the wave as he departed.

“That was a pain,” Jake sighed as he organized his pockets. He would need a bag of some kind or more pockets. His skirt was thin, the material not made to hold a bunch of weight. Once he got back, he would go get better gear with his reward money.

“So? Going off into the tunnels like that?” Mora quipped as she walked beside him. Jake nodded and tapped his sword.

“This is all I need. I’ll get more later when I have money but this will do for now,” Jake said with a grin. He felt giddy, excited to finally put his skills to the test.

“The Beasts aren’t a joke, kid. Since I don’t want to see you die, I’m going to accompany you for now.” Mora's words caused Jake to stop. He stared up at her, narrowing his eyes as he mulled over whether or not she was toying with him.

“I think I can handle it,” Jake spat. Mora didn’t budge.

“I’m sure you think that. I’ll be the one to decide.” It didn’t seem like she would be changing her mind. If Jake wanted to shake her off, he would have to do it in the tunnels. Though if he ran off somewhere and ditched her, it would come to bite him. For now, he would play her game.

“Fine, but you can only watch. Don’t interfere or I might miss.” Jake turned away and continued his march. Mora stifled a laugh.

“We’ll see, boy. Don’t start crying when the Beasts start screaming. If you wet yourself, I’ll make sure to tell everyone.”

Unfortunately for Mora, this wasn’t Jake’s first time. This wasn’t an expedition into the tunnels or a scouting mission. No, this was a hunt. Jake picked this mission specifically for its danger and for the high chance of encountering the Maedra. There would be no screaming or pissing of his pants. Only the singing of his blade and the splattering of flesh as he let loose the chains of his magic. No, it would not be Jake shaking and bound in place, awestruck by the disgusting sight of the Maedra. It would be Mora swallowing her tongue for daring to challenge his capabilities.

Jake couldn’t wait.