Marked Ones: Advent of the Demon Prince

"My Lord… I welcome you to Watcher's Retreat."

Laris knelt on one knee and bowed before the imposing form of Richard von Petra, the general placed in command over the fort. Though Laris was not from Lord Petra's lands, he knew well of his battle prowess and ingenuity.

Laris was but a child fumbling in the dark when it came to the art of battle, especially when compared to the likes of Richard von Petra.

"Rise, Laris. I appreciate your consistent and thorough reports. You have done as well as could be expected with the lackluster troops you possessed. For now, I would like the current list of all remaining Marked Ones and their abilities. We shall incorporate them into my troops and attempt to match them with the platoons that suit them best."

"S-s-sir… truly?" Laris struggled to respond due to shock. He was expecting for Lord Petra to run the Marked Ones into the ground until nothing was left, then pick up where they left off.

"Yes. I understand Alorek does this, and it has shown a rather decent amount of success in various skirmishes. So, I shall try to do the same."

"I shall fetch the documents at once."

Laris looked to the group before him. Not only was there Lord Petra, but he also saw someone with similar eyes and hair that was likely a brother or cousin. He also recognized the massive seven-foot-tall frame of Commander Arturo.

Behind them were a shady looking group of characters. Two elves and a human. One elf was a woman with flowing black hair and amber-colored eyes.

Once he locked gazes with her, she smiled and stepped forward. "Hello, my name is Shiyani, a pleasure, Commander Laris."

His back straightened and the hair on his neck stood on end. This woman was very dangerous. She was also likely the assassin that would be eliminating the thorn in their side.

He kept up with reports from Mia regarding their activities. He had also given orders to one of the other units behind enemy lines to exclusively check on the ambush sites led by Mia's group. The details of their reports were disturbing.

Lucius seemed to fight with brutal efficiency and it was always easy to tell which unfortunate souls were the ones to do battle with him. Their bodies were often left dismembered, missing massive chunks of flesh, or had ragged wounds. Such were the results of his disgusting and dishonorable Arts.

They also ran into a few civilian survivors that told of their interactions with the group and how on multiple occasions Lucius had to be talked down from simply killing innocents. From the reports, some of them included children and teens who were roped into performing supply tasks because their parents in charge were their only caregivers.

"I find this kid's methods interesting. I've fought against the Forsaken Arts before. Nasty business. You never really know what one of those users would do in a fight. Every second is a guess."

"And he can use Mana Manipulation." Richard said.

Shiyani nodded. "Right, and that. Quite the wildcard. And you are sure about our agreement?"

Laris watched as Richard nodded grimly. "Yes." He said.

"Honestly… if you were going to agree that quickly I should have charged more for the kid… alright. Laris, I need stuff."

Laris nodded and motioned for them to follow him to their armory and supply depot. They were in separate locations so one massive spell or attack would not take out both, so they went to the armory first. It not only held weapons, or what little they had, but it also had some magical equipment that was not approved for their use.

Shiyani stepped into the building and gave out a low whistle when she approached a box of small crystals. "Hey, this is that explosive stuff, right?"

"Yes. We were instructed not to use it, but I'll look the other way if you need any."

Shiyani grinned. "Why thank you. Don't mind if I do."

The elven woman pocketed a few pieces of the explosive crystal before moving throughout the rest of the equipment. Nothing else seemed to catch her eye, so they then moved on to the supply depot.

Again, not much caught her attention it seemed, but she did gather a few extra supplies including a crystal that generated clean water when mana was poured into it. A surprisingly useful item, especially since they were going to be trekking through a desert.

She also picked out a few cloaks designed to keep the sun off of them and keep them cool in the scorching sun.

"That should do it I suppose… Thank you, Commander Laris." Shiyani gave him a seductive smile that made him sweat from fear more than attraction. "Any information regarding the kid's whereabouts?"

"I received word that they are heading to Fort Sella with some Eroan soldiers to resupply before returning to their mission. I expect it to take a few days, so if you are swift, you might be able to catch them as they leave."

"Good… thank you Laris."

"Also, please do not kill the Eroan's if you can. We don't need a war with our allies… Kalivas is stationed at Fort Sella, so if we upset them badly enough, he might come at us and I worry about our ability to hold him off…"

"Don't worry sweetheart, I won't harm a single strand of fur on their little heads. I was only paid to take care of the kid. Anyone else costs extra and I don't work for free."

Laris nodded in understanding and sighed with relief as the elven assassin quickly moved away. He dared not look at her. Like a child fearing a monster under their bed, he pulled the metaphorical covers over his eyes and hoped that if he didn't look at her, she was no longer there.

Soon the pressure the woman exuded disappeared and he sighed in relief. "Watch your back Lucius. I don't think you'll be able to get out of this one as easily as you have in the past. I've done some research on you and you've gotten lucky a few times… that luck ends here, boy."