The Alrevia Order [Elisop]

#4 The head of the snake

Four o'clock in the morning. The scouts sent out had just returned from their patrol and were sharing the information they had gathered with the commander and vice commander. Eli was waiting impatiently, sitting on the ground against the trunk of a tree. A wrinkle had formed between his eyebrows and he was staring into space with an annoyed look on his face. Suddenly, one of the soldiers approached him and called out to him.

The male was a little confused, had he done something wrong? He put this thought aside and stood up, following the guard who took him to the tent where the higher-ups were making their plans. All this was becoming more and more disturbing but it was not in a bad way, he had the feeling that what was waiting for him was not as awful as the situation let him think.

He took a deep breath and lifted the veil to enter the tent, coming across two pairs of eyes staring at him like eagles as he arrived. He gulped under the pressure and took a step forward then bowed quickly.

"You called for me?"

"Herwood."

It took him a little while to absorb the commander's words, he still wasn't used to that name.

"Yes, ma'am!"

"Come here, youngster." said Jose.

He nodded and complied. A table was set up in the middle and a map was on it. His eyes quickly went over it, it looked like the forest they were in, there was also some kind of red rectangle drawn in the corner.

"Carl is here."

"Aesop...?"

"The scouts reported that there was a strange house in the woods towards the south. There were also fresh footprints leading in that direction so it's very likely that he's there."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"There is only one entrance and that is the main door. However, there is a balcony upstairs so while we lead the assault on the front, you and Dorval will sneak in that way."

"I don't understand why you chose me for such a mission..."

Vera brought her dark eyes to the male and Jose sketched a slight smile behind his back.

"You were the last person to see Carl, right? So take responsibility for what happened to him and bring him back in one piece."

Eli widened his eyes, his gaze shifting momentarily to Jose before returning to Vera once more.

"Understood!"

The young woman sketched a slight smile before waving her hand to tell him to scurry away. So the young man rushed out of the tent and went to get ready for mission time.

The brunet felt so nervous during the whole day that before he even realized it, the sun had already set and the attack was about to take place. He put on the cloak that had been given to him so that he could infiltrate more discreetly and went to join Patricia who was waiting for him near two horses. He got on the saddle and gave a blow to the side of the stallion which began to gallop at the signal.

"Be careful." said the mage.

"Don't worry."

"I still don't understand why you're so stubborn about this boy."

"He's my friend."

"You barely know each other."

"Time doesn't matter, from the moment we crossed swords side by side, I was handing over my life to him and he was handing over his and yet... This is already the second time I've failed to keep that oath." he replied bitterly.