Chapter Twenty-Seven
A new day dawned beneath a sky freckled with small clouds. Daniel and Lucas went with Sanjay to return all that belonged to him from the mercenary life — his badge, his cuirass, the rest of his gear.
With the money he'd earned, Sanjay was able to open a small restaurant without much trouble, on a busy, noisy street. He also rented a place to live close to the shop — he had decided not to tire himself with long commutes. Meanwhile the kingdom's free period for lodging was coming to an end — the complimentary month had passed — so Daniel and Lucas renewed the rental with their own funds so Sanjay could keep the place.
That same day the two went to meet Azrian and the rest of his crew, as they had agreed. On arrival they found a fourth person they had not yet seen: a young man standing beside Risha and Malik.
The old man smiled and introduced the new member: "This is Niral — he graduated from the academy a year ago and decided to begin his path with us, as a mercenary."
He continued with a proud, organized tone: "Now our team contains all five core elements. Azrian and Daniel are lightning. Malik stands for fire, Risha for water, Lucas for earth, and Niral for wind. That gives us a perfect balance. Now — let each of us state his level, circles, and Eira."
Azrian began: "I'm mid-third circle. I have three Eira: Lightning Strike, Neural Paralysis, and a Retained Charge — a rare Eira from another kingdom. All of these are third-level."
Malik put his hand on his sword and added, "I'm at sixty-six percent of the second circle. I use Fire Orb and Burning Fist — both second level."
Risha spoke quietly, "I'm ten percent into the second circle. I use Water Rope and the Drowning Orb — both second level as well."
Daniel answered in a steady voice, "I'm at 13 percent of the first circle, and I have Neural Paralysis — level one."
Lucas said: "First circle, five percent. I have Earth Wave — level one."
Finally Niral said, "First circle at ninety-three percent. I wield Wind Blade — level one."
Daniel noticed that everyone said "Eira" instead of "Nira" — because "Eira" was used as a blanket term that covered both original Eira and replica Nira, a convention born of not knowing whether someone's skill had a limited number of uses. (Enemies, later on, might exploit that uncertainty.)
The old man stared at Daniel in surprise. "How are you at thirteen percent and you only arrived a month ago?!"
Niral gasped; Malik and Risha showed the same astonishment.
Daniel replied calmly, "I was kidnapped by a man called the Madman. The Knights compensated us for that."
"The Madman?!" The word rippled among them in tones edged with something like terror. Even Azrian joked, "You really have odd luck — you get kidnapped during the transfer, and on your second mission you nearly die."
Daniel laughed. "Yes — I've lived with this kind of luck a long time. I'm not surprised anymore." Then he nodded toward Lucas: "Lucas was with me as well."
All eyes turned to Lucas and Daniel. Faces softened with pity, but a new thread of respect ran through them.
Malik suggested, "Let's pick an easier mission next, given the new members and for a bit of respite."
Azrian and Risha agreed, and they arranged to repeat the mission Daniel had just done — they would start it the next day.
A fresh morning began. Daniel and Lucas prepared as usual, but before leaving they went to visit Sanjay's new restaurant. They ate well and, taking advantage of the special discount he insisted on giving them, packed a lot of food to take on the mission. They left the place with Sanjay's face flushed red — not from embarrassment, but from vexation almost like a tomato.
They then headed to the kingdom gate, the usual rendezvous. They sat a while and spoke with Amadou, asking about the two men who had left them during the second mission. Amadou confirmed the pair had indeed gone out; his description matched the men they had suspected before.
While they were talking, the two men returned unexpectedly to the kingdom. The three stood and watched them approach, surprised. The men's expressions showed a flicker of shock — perhaps at seeing Daniel and Lucas already setting out on another job.
One of them sneered as he came near: "Looks like your last mission was tough… where's your fat friend? Didn't I warn you? I told you to join us and do tasks together…"
Daniel stepped forward one pace and replied, in a steady voice, "Yes, that job was brutal. We nearly died. I'll tell you something strange that happened — while we were on the road two despicable criminals followed us — men who look exactly like you. They tried to kill us and to take our belongings."
The two men froze for a beat and looked at Daniel in surprise. The thin one spoke, faux-concerned and laced with mockery: "Really? That's terrible… good thing you escaped them. That's why we said you should join us. If you were with us, no one would dare chase you."
Daniel smiled a corner of his mouth, then said lightly but with a sting: "Yes — we took your advice. We joined a group, indeed. We choose our people well — we do not join scum or those who reek."
He turned and pointed before them. "Look… they've arrived."
Where he indicated, the band from the previous night was approaching the kingdom gate.
The two men fell silent and turned away quickly, leaving. Daniel didn't let them go so easily. He called after them loudly: "I never said we ran from those stinking vermin!"
One of the men stopped, face tightening in anger. He sniffed at his clothes and said, "I'll be the one to kill that bastard when we hunt them." Then he nearly choked on the scent in his own shirt — more from his words than anything else.
Lucas laughed. "Isn't that enough? Can't you stop arguing with them?"
Amadou clapped Daniel on the shoulder, amused: "Really… you've got a sharp tongue, Daniel."
Daniel waved him off. "Hold on… those two tried to kill me earlier. Kill me, okay?" he said sharply.
By then the group had arrived and had heard Daniel's last sentence. Someone asked, "What's going on?"
Lucas nodded toward the two men who were walking away and said quietly, "Those are the ones who tried to kill us."
The group fixed their gazes on the men, memorized their faces, and Niral began to ask questions. Lucas explained the details as they continued on.