Uprising | The Spies Protectors Book III

Chapter Fifteen

The Shaded Castle
Ace Hunter

I sat cross legged in the tent that Echo gave me. I closed my eyes and took long deep breaths. I remained focused.

I remembered before we arrived at Nevermore, before John was captured, before Jack arrived, while we were flying in the ship John pulled me aside so the others couldn't hear.

"I need you to listen to me Ace" He spoke, checking his six to make sure nobody could hear what he was saying.

"Yeah- what?" I asked.

"I know you have zero interest in joining Echo right?" John asked me.

I nodded. "Of course"

John nodded and smiled. "Then you'll be my fail safe. Echo will try to recruit members from the team, I can't be sure who will turn but I know you wouldn't. And I also know you are believable enough for Echo to buy it"

I nodded. "okay, so you want me too?" I trailed, hoping he'd finish my sentence.

John nodded. "I want you to join Echo, and not tell the others. Take him down from the inside Ace! Echo will never expect it" 

"John, we're here!" Sam called from the cockpit.

"Alright! Let's roll!" John responded leaving me only to my thoughts.

"Ace?" A voice called snapping me back to reality. It was Daniel, standing in the entrance of my tent. 

"Hey man" I smirked up to him.

"Um, Echo is doing some training drills out in the field here. He said he wanted the troops to face a "actual challenge" he asked me and you to run some training drills"

I smirked. "Thanks, but I need to be alone right now. Still processing all of this you know?" 

Daniel nodded. "Understandable, I'll let them know. Good luck man" Daniel answered turning and walking out of my tent.

The moment Daniel left the tent I rose to my feet, and activated my Darkness Core. While at first I thought it foolish for Echo to allow Daniel and I to keep our cores, I surely didn't argue with him. But still, he explained to me why exactly he did such a thing. He told me that Daniel and I would be needed to properly take over the City, and being that we are experienced Core users, we'd be of great use to him. 

"Do this" He told me. "And I will help you return to your home world"

As if I cared about that, the Spies were my home. I used my core to enter a Shadow state, similar to what Max Shadow himself has the ability to do. Cloaked by the late day and the shadows of the tents I made my way through Echo's camp undetected. 

Eventually I found a large tent at the end of camp, it had several guards outside of it. I snuck inside and surely enough, tied to a chair was John Kenway himself. I uncloaked myself and drew a small knife. I cut the ropes right off of John as he awoke. 

He was beaten and bruised, his face was a swelled up mess, covered in scars and blood. He was barely conscious.

"Who?" He mumbled. I wasn't sure about freeing John right away, after all this will completely blow my cover, whether I stay or I go with John. But after hearing the screams earlier today I knew keeping John here would only hurt the team. 

"Look out" A voice whispered from the wind, I turned around and saw Dark Star standing in the entrance way.

"Traitor!" He shouted throwing an axe at my face. I opened my leg to reveal my trident and it expanded at lightning speed, flying right into my right hand, I knocked the axe away from my face using my trident and looked right at Star.